All Things Bright

by Ted Tayler

  “Leave it with me, guv,” said Blessing.

  “No reply from Vanessa Nicholls, guv. I’ll try again in thirty minutes. My turn now with a fact that might need checking, guv,” said Neil. “When we were by the canal the other morning, we saw the cross Debbie and her sister left in memory of Stacey. Does Vanessa Nicholls drive?”

  “Alex didn’t make a note of a car on the drive when they interviewed her,” said Gus. “I’m looking at his Freeman Files update. Vanessa told Alex that Rod Maidment drove a new Honda when she knew him. She complained of having to walk to her mother’s house on Tuesday night to see whether Stacey was there. When could they go to the nature reserve together? Debbie has worked the morning to mid-afternoon shift at Dorcan since 2015. Vanessa started working part-time before that and has supplemented that with bar work in the pubs and clubs. They would need to take Lucy with them at the weekend because Mary doesn’t see her much since Stacey died. I can’t see many opportunities where they could go together to lay flowers or leave a birthday card.”

  “Public transport in Swindon is excellent,” said Blessing, “that’s what we’ve learned. Debbie cycles to work each day. How long would it take to cycle to the murder site?”

  “Around fifteen minutes,” said Neil, checking the street map.

  “How would Vanessa get there by bus?” asked Blessing.

  “In forty-five minutes, with a couple of changes,” said Neil. “It’s doable, but Vanessa would moan because once again she does the hard work while Debbie cycles along the path from Rushey Platt Park right to the site of the murder.”

  “Any luck, Luke?” asked Gus.

  “It surprised Debbie to hear from me, Guv. She couldn’t understand what more she could tell us. I’m ready to leave for Gorse Hill as soon as Blessing is.”

  “I’m ready now,” said Blessing,

  “Sorry,” said Gus. “I forgot your coffee. I got distracted.”

  “That’s okay, guv,” said Blessing. “The case is more important.”

  CHAPTER 12

  Luke and Blessing arrived in Gorse Hill at ten-forty. Debbie Read answered the door before Luke could ring the bell and asked them to be quiet. Lucy was still in bed in the room directly above the hallway. They followed Debbie into the kitchen at the rear of the property.

  Luke told Debbie Read who he and Blessing were.

  “What is it this time?” she asked.

  “We’re still trying to find your daughter’s killer,” said Luke.

  “Surely, you want to help us in any way you can?” said Blessing.

  “It was only yesterday you dragged us across the other side of Swindon,” moaned Debbie.

  “Perhaps,” said Luke, “but my colleague here spotted discrepancies in the information you supplied to Inspector Francis.” Debbie looked daggers at Blessing Umeh.

  Blessing smiled back.

  “I told that detective I might have got names mixed up,” shrugged Debbie. “So what?”

  “Are you sure you didn’t leave anyone out?” asked Luke.

  “I didn’t think I did. I cannot see what my private life has to do with Stacey’s death.”

  “Maybe nothing,” said Luke, “maybe everything. The dates for the foreign workers are wrong, but you know that, don’t you, Mrs Read? They were back in Poland before the times you said you slept with them. We checked with the landlords of the properties where they stayed, and then checked the flights they took to Krakow and Warsaw. That’s ten months unaccounted for, and we need the names that should appear on the list at those times.”

  “I don’t keep a diary,” said Debbie.

  “We can wait while you compile a revised list,” said Luke “Here’s a copy of the original.”

  “Before you put your thinking cap on, Mrs Read,” said Blessing, “does Lucy have a bicycle?”

  “Yes, why?”

  “When was the last time you and Lucy cycled from here to Rushey Platt?”

  “I don’t believe we’ve ever put her through that ordeal,” said Debbie. “I’ve gone with my sister. I cycle across, and Nessie gets the bus.”

  Luke heard Lucy moving around upstairs.

  “That sounds like Lucy, Mrs Read,” he said. “Would you mind if we asked a few questions while you concentrate on that list?”

  “Yes, I would mind. Lucy got most upset yesterday when she had to go through it again.”

  “We’ll leave it for another time,” said Luke. “My colleague will sit with her in another room, but there will be no questions, okay?”

  “Can I trust her,” asked Debbie, looking at Blessing.

  “Of course. It would save valuable time if you admitted who it was you saw between December 2012 and October 2013,” said Blessing.

  “Rod Maidment, alright. It was Rod. He works at Honda. I met him again in the run-up to Christmas. We saw one another for a while before.”

  “When exactly?” asked Luke.

  “Mum. Who are these people?”

  Lucy had crept downstairs and now stood in the doorway.

  “The police had more questions, darling. I won’t be much longer. Sit in the front room with this lady. You can get your breakfast in a tick.”

  Blessing followed Lucy Read along the hallway.

  “Carry on,” said Luke when Lucy was out of earshot.

  “The date I gave the detective was wrong. It was eighteen months after Pat left.”

  “So, you had a relationship with Rod Maidment at the beginning of 2009. Then you met up again at the end of 2012, is that correct?”

  “Yes,” said Debbie.

  “Where was he working in January 2009?”

  “Honda,”

  “Has he worked there continuously from the time you met?”

  “Yes,”

  “Why don’t you know his address in Wroughton?”

  “He never took me there.”

  “How do you know he wasn’t married? Perhaps he has a wife and children. We can’t get hold of him on the number you provided. Why is that?”

  “I haven’t spoken to Rod since we stopped seeing one another. I suppose he swapped phones so I couldn’t get in touch.”

  “Do you know who he started seeing after he ended things?”

  “No idea,” said Debbie, “they’re welcome to him.”

  “Do you know anyone Vanessa might have seen during that period?”

  “It was never something we discussed. Nessie and Mum weren’t happy with my lifestyle. I needed company after Pat walked out. I didn’t want them poking their noses in my business, so I kept out of theirs. Why? How do my sister’s men friends have anything to do with Stacey?”

  “Stacey was an attractive young girl,” said Luke. “You know what the police thought could have happened. Her attacker didn’t set out to kill her. Their initial motive was sexual. Stacey ran, got stabbed, fell into the canal, and drowned. We believe she knew the man, or at least the man knew her. Perhaps his name is on that list you’re holding, Mrs Read. Or maybe, one of Nessie’s lovers spotted her when your daughters arrived earlier than planned one weekend. Is there anyone on your list that your sister might have known?”

  “I don’t know. Do I have to ask her? I’m not sure either of us would want to know.”

  “Do you want Stacey’s killer brought to justice, or not?” asked Luke.

  “I suppose I have to then, don’t I?”

  “How did you get to Redpost Drive that night when you were searching for Stacey?”

  “I cycled to every likely spot I could think of,” said Debbie. “That dog walker was the only person I spoke to who had seen Stacey.”

  “Where did you go after you spoke to the lady with the dog?” asked Luke.

  “I cycled home. It was cold. There wasn’t anyone on the nearby streets to ask, so I came back here. I hoped I’d find Stacey on the doorstep, saying she’d lost her keys and her phone.”

  “Run through the list again, please, Mrs Read,” said Luke. “Adjust for any errors you spot. I’ll fetch Lu
cy and my colleague. We’ll let you get on with your day. If we need more information, one of the team will be in touch.”

  Ten minutes later, Luke and Blessing were in his car.

  “Did Lucy ask questions, Blessing?”

  “The usual, why were we there? Was her Mum in trouble? Nothing more. How did you get on with Mrs Read?”

  “She admitted to two extended relationships with Rod Maidment,”

  “Does she know that he went straight to Vanessa’s bed after ending it with her?”

  “Not a clue unless she’s an exceptional actress. I hinted that she should check to see whether they had a lover in common. I pointed out that Stacey could have been the target of a sexual attack from one of her ex-lovers, or one of her sister’s.”

  “That must have horrified her,” said Blessing.

  “No, and that was the crucial snippet I took from our conversation, Blessing. I need to make sure Gus hears it. Debbie Read was more concerned about asking her sister if they’d slept with the same man than she was about one of their lovers taking a shine to her daughter and attempting to rape her.”

  “Debbie Read is a cold, heartless woman,” said Blessing, “only concerned with her own gratification. Did you ask who Lucy’s father was?”

  “No, I didn’t. I wasn’t sure how Debbie would have reacted, and you had Lucy in the other room. Lucy needs to learn the truth one day, but today was not the day. Gus should decide how we handle that knowledge.”

  “We haven’t got definitive proof yet, anyway,” said Blessing.

  “Let’s get back to the office,” said Luke, “and wait for Alex and Lydia to report back from Feltham.”

  “I have to slog through those other names on the list for Gus,” sighed Blessing.

  “My checks on the four men Debbie saw for two or three weeks won’t take long,” said Luke. “After that, I’m not sure which way we turn.”

  “Until we locate Rod Maidment,” said Blessing.

  Luke drove them back to rejoin Gus and Neil in the office.

  “How was the delectable Debbie,” said Neil as they exited the lift.

  “Worth a closer look,” said Blessing.

  Luke went through the conversation, step by step, without commenting on the impression he had gained. Blessing added the few words that Lucy had spoken into the mix.

  “How long were you in there?” asked Gus.

  “Ten minutes, guv,” said Blessing. “She’s coming up to her fifteenth birthday. I told Lucy what she needed to know. Debbie didn’t want Lucy questioned under any circumstances, so I left Lucy to flick through her phone. She was just browsing. She didn’t send or receive any messages.”

  “Alex and Lydia should be back in an hour,” said Gus. “I’ll digest what you’ve discovered. In the meantime, update your Freeman Files, carry on with the research you started earlier, and we’ll reassess where we are after we learn what Ryan Lock offered.”

  “I’ve updated my files, guv,” said Neil, “what can I do to help? I’m seeing Vanessa Nicholls later this afternoon. I don’t need to leave until four.”

  “Neil could widen the search for Rod Maidment, guv,” said Luke. “We know from Debbie that he worked at Honda in 2009, and he’s still there as far as we know. Maybe Maidment gets a new car every year, the same as Pat Read. We have nothing on him, apart from the name. No photo, or home address. No description or car registration. Is he on social media? Are there photos online of him, his friends, and his car? He’s a mystery man.”

  “There you go, Neil,” said Gus. “Get your teeth into that.”

  “Should we concentrate on identifying Lucy’s father, guv?” asked Blessing. “I know that it only takes one time to get pregnant, but isn’t it more likely to be someone Debbie was with for an extended period?”

  “We didn’t ask Debbie about any men she went with when she was living with Pat Read, guv,” said Luke. “I didn’t raise the subject this morning because we’ve said throughout that Debbie had no connection to her daughter’s death.”

  Gus sat back in his chair. What was it he said to Neil that day by the canal? We might be coming at this from the wrong direction. Was that it?

  “I’ll add those thoughts to my deliberations while we wait for the others,” he said. “Let’s hope they bring back the final missing pieces.”

  He’s nearly there, thought Neil. I can see the cogs turning more quickly. I wish he’d share his thoughts with us because I’m as much in the dark as I was when we started.

  Luke was thinking of Debbie. After Stacey left, Debbie said she watched TV with Lucy until her daughter went to bed. Lucy confirmed that was what happened when Gus talked to her with Christine Moseley. When Lucy got up for school the next morning, her Mum had already cycled to work. Lucy couldn’t have known whether her mother left the house once she fell asleep a few minutes after nine. The eyewitness saw Stacey before eight on Redpost Drive. Who said it was nine o’clock that Lucy went to bed? Luke checked the Freeman Files for the conversation between Gus and Lucy. Nobody mentioned the time. Debbie Read had told them that was the time Lucy went to bed. Did that mean Debbie didn’t have an alibi?

  Blessing Umeh was ploughing through the fifteen men's details with whom Debbie Read admitted having a one-night stand. It proved boring and unproductive. Her mind drifted to Debbie Read cycling around Swindon. Cycling was an excellent way to keep fit.

  Lucy had a bicycle too. Where was Lucy on Tuesday evening when Debbie went looking for Stacey? Vanessa didn’t have her, nor did Mary, her grandmother. She was at bingo in Greenbridge. Had Lucy gone with her mother? She never mentioned it to Gus. What time would they have left home, and how long did they search?

  Blessing abandoned the laborious checks and plotted a route that mother and daughter might take.

  Alex and Lydia came through the lift doors at five minutes to two.

  “Did you have your eyes closed for the entire journey, Alex?” asked Luke.

  “I deserve a medal, Luke,” said Alex, “it was the definition of a white-knuckle ride.”

  “I couldn’t wait to get back to tell you what we found out,” said Lydia.

  “We’re listening,” said Gus.

  “Ryan Lock and his mother, Karen, live off Juno Way, a five-minute walk from Redpost Drive,” said Alex. “Ryan caved after a few minutes and admitted that he was the lad seen with Stacey that night. She had a heavy blanket in the large shoulder bag, to protect herself against the cold. She planned to lie in wait for a drug dealer arriving via Peglar’s Way at around eight-thirty. The man supplied several kids from Stacey’s school. Ryan told Stacey what time the dealer would be there. Stacey planned to take a photo of the guy, illuminated by a large torch she had in the bag, and hand it over to the police. Ryan told us the argument began when he realised Stacey had a knife.”

  “Ryan is just a frightened kid,” said Lydia. “He warned Stacey that she didn’t know what she was up against, confronting this man. We kept pressing him for more information, but he fears for his life and that of his mother. Alex has promised to get protection for Karen Lock. She’s only in her early thirties, guv, a single mother. Ryan told us she had him while at school.”

  “Another schoolboy was the father, or someone older, perhaps this drug dealer?” asked Gus.

  “Ryan didn’t say, guv,” said Alex. “I gave him a card and asked him to call when he’s ready to talk. When I said we’d come back if we discovered the man’s identity ourselves, he agreed he would then give us a full statement.”

  “Provided his mother was safe,” said Lydia.

  “Where’s Peglar’s Way?” asked Gus.

  “Before we got to the bottom of Redpost Drive the other morning, guv,” said Neil, “we cut through to the nature reserve. The road dead ahead of us was Peglar’s Way. This dealer could have come from Wichelstowe, East Wichel, or anywhere at that end of town. If they know their way around, then they could have come from anywhere.”

  “Was there anything else, Alex?”
>
  “Those were the highlights, guv. I’ll enter the full script into the files now.”

  “Okay, Alex,” said Gus, “you do the same, Lydia.”

  “On it, guv,” said Lydia.

  “Right, listen up, everyone,” said Gus. “Our priorities are as follows. Interview Karen Lock and arrange protection. Contact Gablecross for names of dealers active over a long period in that part of Swindon. Who is this thug Ryan Lock told us Stacey was waiting to intercept? Analyse what Neil gets from Vanessa Nicholls on Maidment including any social media content. Then we should detain Rod Maidment and interview him.”

  “There could be someone else involved, guv,” said Blessing. “Whoever the dealer is, he wouldn’t hang around on a freezing night on the off chance somebody wanted to score.”

  “The guy was expecting someone, you mean?” said Gus.

  “Is it possible, guv?” asked Blessing.

  Gus clicked his fingers.

  “That’s why Stacey kept running away from the exit to Redpost Drive.”

  The rest of the team exchanged glances.

  “Luke, can you get hold of Karen Lock, please,” said Gus. “We’ll set the wheels in motion straight away.”

  Gus picked up the phone and dialled.

  “Rick, Gus Freeman here. Are you involved in something major? No? If I call your boss, do you think there’s a chance he’d free you up for surveillance work over the next three or four days? Good. If he agrees, I’ll see you in the office first thing tomorrow.”

  “Is Rick Chalmers coming back to the fold, guv?” asked Neil.

  “An extra body will help. Each of us will take a share of the load, Neil,” said Gus. “We need to continue with the spadework we’ve got underway, and then it’s a case of watching and waiting.”

  “Karen Lock’s at home, guv,” said Luke. “I can drive over with Neil if you wish. We can go direct to Vanessa Nicholls after we’ve spoken to Ryan’s mother.”

  “Excellent,” said Gus. “Ask Karen for a photo of her with Ryan as a child. Get the name of the father if she knows it. Follow your nose. You’ll know what to ask.”