The Silent Quarry

by Cheryl Rees-Price

  ‘How long will I be at the station?’

  ‘That depends.’

  ‘What about my dog?’

  ‘I’ll call in an animal welfare officer. I assure you the dog will be well taken care of. Edris!’

  Edris entered the room. His lips twitched and Giles guessed that the young officer was trying not to look smug.

  ‘Read him his rights and take him in.’ Meadows turned away.

  The words washed over Giles as Edris read him his rights. He felt like he was in a nightmare; he pinched the skin on the back of his hand hoping to wake up.

  ‘Come along, sir,’ Edris smiled.

  Giles stepped outside and saw that a small crowd had gathered across the road, even his next-door neighbour stood on the doorstep watching. He kept his eyes down as he hurried to the car. Edris opened the door and he slid into the back seat. He could feel all eyes upon him and hear the whispers. Just hurry up. He glared at Edris, who had slipped into the driver’s seat and was taking his time to start the engine. I’m sure he is delaying on purpose, he wants to humiliate me. I’ll get them back, I’ll sue the lot of them.

  The car pulled off and Giles let his head rest against the seat. Slow breaths, in, out, in, out. He focused on his breathing, trying to calm his anxiety as they travelled towards the station. Edris remained silent; occasionally Giles could see his eyes in the rear view mirror looking at him. When the car pulled up in the station car park he felt a little calmer. They have nothing on me and they won’t find anything in the house. If I stay calm and cooperate it will be alright. So what, they arrested me, they can’t charge me with no evidence.

  Edris led him to the front desk where he was booked in by the custody sergeant. His pockets were emptied and the items signed for, he was then offered legal representation and a chance to view a copy of the police code of conduct but declined both. The only thing he was allowed to keep was his medication. Next he was fingerprinted, photographed, and DNA swabs taken from the inside of his cheek. Edris stood and watched over the procedure. Giles sensed that the young officer gained some pleasure from having authority over his old headmaster. Finally he was put into a holding cell and the door locked.

  He sat down on the bed and tried to quell the panic that fizzled through his veins. The room was small and felt airless. A faint smell of disinfectant lingered and Giles conjured up images of drunks and murderers, covered in blood and vomit, who had sat on the same bed. He could feel his shirt clinging to his back and longed to take a shower. His watch had been taken from him so he had no idea how long he sat in the cell. Occasionally the flap in the door would open and a face would appear. Later he was bought a sandwich and tepid tea in a polystyrene cup.

  ‘How much longer am I going to be locked in here?’ he asked the young officer who brought the tray.

  ‘Erm, I’m not sure. I’ll see if I can find out.’ He left, locking the door.

  ‘Imbecile,’ Giles muttered and bit into the sandwich. The crust was dry and the filling tasteless; he wasn’t hungry but ate anyway to pass the time. The young officer didn’t come back with the information.

  Giles was lying on his back staring at the ceiling when Edris entered the cell. ‘DI Meadows is ready for you now.’

  ‘About time.’ Giles swung his legs off the bed and followed Edris into the interview room where he took his seat.

  Meadows was already sat at the table. He recorded the time and date together with the names of those present. His serious tone sent another wave of panic through Giles, who tried not to squirm in his seat. Meadows looked sternly at him.

  ‘I understand you have waived your right to legal representation.’

  ‘Yes. I have nothing to hide so it would be a waste of time and money to bring in my solicitor.’ Giles fidgeted in his seat, the hard plastic was digging into his back and stress tensed his muscles. ‘Now, can we get on with it? I think you’ve kept me here long enough. I would like to go home.’

  ‘You’re entitled to change your mind and request legal representation at any time during the interview.’ Meadows gave him a tight smile. ‘What were your movements last Wednesday?’

  ‘Wednesday? I would have been in my office at the school from 8 a.m. I didn’t leave until 5.30 that evening. I’m sure you can find plenty of witnesses to confirm this.’

  ‘And after 5.30?’

  ‘I drove home, prepared and ate dinner, then took the dog for a walk. I got back about 8 p.m., watched some television then went to bed.’

  ‘Is there anyone who can corroborate this?’

  ‘No, as you are fully aware I live alone.’

  ‘Where did you walk the dog?’

  ‘Around the park, then down Turnpike Road to the rugby pitch. I let him run around for a while then returned home.’

  ‘Did you pass Gwen Thomas’ house?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘And last Tuesday?’

  ‘Much the same.’

  ‘Are you sure you didn’t go to Gwen Thomas’ house? See her car in the driveway and take the opportunity to tamper with her brakes.’

  ‘What?’ Giles felt laughter bubble in his throat. It escaped his mouth and filled the interview room.

  ‘Is there something that amuses you?’ Meadows’ eyes blazed.

  ‘No.’ Giles fought to control the hysteria that threatened to take over. They think it was me that caused Gwen’s accident, that’s why they’ve brought me in. ‘No, I did not go to Gwen Thomas’ house and I certainly did not tamper with her brakes. Why on earth would I do such a thing?’

  ‘Well, it seems you have a secret, one that Gwen Thomas knew about. A secret that so convenient for you she forgot about.’ Meadows paused and leaned across the table. ‘Until now.’

  Cold sweat prickled the back of Giles’ neck. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’

  ‘I’m talking about what Gwen saw that day in the barn.’

  Pain rippled across his chest, he put his hand against his ribs and pressed hard. No, please don’t say it. You’re going to ruin everything.

  ‘She saw you performing a sexual act on an underage boy.’ Meadows’ lips curled.

  ‘No, it’s not true.’ The pain gripped like a snake, coiling and squeezing until it constricted his breathing.

  ‘Are you feeling unwell?’ Meadows sat back in his chair and folded his arms.

  Giles shook his head, he couldn’t speak. He took the bottle from his jacket pocket and squirted the liquid under his tongue. He breathed in slowly as he waited for the medication to take effect. He heard the door open and close but didn’t turn to look. A few moment later Edris entered the room and placed a plastic cup of water on the table. Giles picked it up and sipped slowly, and the grip on his chest loosened.

  ‘Do you feel well enough to continue with the interview or would you rather be seen by a doctor?’

  ‘Let’s just get this over with. I can’t imagine why Gwen would say those things. I’m sure she must be confused. You can’t expect her memory to be reliable after the trauma she suffered and it being so long.’

  ‘No, I suppose we can’t.’ Meadows smiled. ‘But there’s also Carl Perkins, who backs up her story.’

  ‘He wouldn’t!’

  ‘Oh, why wouldn’t he?’

  Did I say that out loud? I’ve got to get a grip and stay calm. Make them understand. ‘I mean he wouldn’t say such things about me. I was good to that boy.’

  ‘Yes, so I’ve heard. Bought him gifts and gave him money in exchange for sexual favours.’

  ‘No, it wasn’t like that. I loved him.’ Giles slammed his fist on the table, the beat of his heart thrummed in his ears. ‘You wouldn’t understand that, would you? I’ve met your type before.’

  ‘And what type is that?’

  ‘Homophobes. That’s what this is all about, isn’t it?’

  ‘I’m no homophobe, Mr Epworth, but I do detest paedophiles, and especially your type who use their position to abuse children.’

  ‘No, I’m n
ot like that.’ Giles felt the bile rise in his throat. ‘I told you, I loved him and he loved me.’

  ‘And what about the others?’

  ‘What others?’

  ‘Did you think deleting the files from your computer would be enough? We have technicians that can retrieve those files and guess what we found?’

  Giles felt shame crawl at his skin and put his head in his hand.

  ‘Photographs, lots of them. Carl Perkins was only one among many schoolboys. It won’t take us long to track them down.’

  Giles kept his head down, he could feel his life being picked apart. This is it, they’re going to take away my job, my boys. He let the tears leak from his eyes.

  ‘What happened that day when you caught up with Gwen? Did she threaten to tell everyone about you? Did Bethan turn up? Did she laugh at you? You had to keep them quiet, didn’t you?’

  ‘No!’ Giles lifted his head. ‘I didn’t touch those little sluts.’

  Meadows leaned in close, his eyes glinted dangerously. ‘Little sluts, were they? We all know the type, coming into your classroom, skirts raised and buttons undone, revealing all that young flesh. But it didn’t do anything for you so they taunted you. That day was the last straw for you, you just snapped. Maybe you didn’t intend to kill Bethan. Did you hit her when she laughed at you? Then Gwen was screaming, she tried to get away. You were frightened, you couldn’t let her go. You had no choice, you had to push her down the ravine.’

  ‘No! You can’t just make things up. I didn’t go anywhere near those two.’

  ‘You chased Gwen that day.’

  ‘Yes, I chased her out of the barn. I saw her fall and called out for her to wait. I just wanted to talk to her, beg her not to tell people what she had seen, but she got up and kept running. I followed her onto the quarry footpath then lost her. I called out then ran further down the path. I was frantic. I came to that old tool shack, I thought she might be hiding inside but as I got nearer I heard voices so I turned and ran back up the path.’

  ‘Voices? So you’re saying someone was with Gwen.’

  ‘No, it wasn’t Gwen, it was Bethan, she was with a boy.’

  ‘What boy?’

  ‘I don’t know. Can I go home now? I’ve told you everything I know.’

  Meadows eyes narrowed. ‘No, you can’t.’

  ‘Then I want legal representation, you have no reason to keep me here.’

  Meadows looked at his watch. ‘We’ll continue in the morning by which time we should have the fingerprint analysis results.’ He called an end to the interview.

  Giles was led back to the cell. He felt drained, he plonked down on the bed and wrapped his arms around his body. I wish I was dead, they’re going to take everything from me. He rocked back and forth until finally he gave into exhaustion and curled into a ball.

  Meadows sat at his desk nursing a hot cup of tea. ‘Did you get the fingerprints from Matt and Alex Thomas?’ he looked at Edris.

  ‘Yes, and Sue Collier. I sent them off with Epworth’s as soon as I booked him in.’

  ‘Good, I take it you requested that Epworth’s were checked against the ones taken from the original crime scene.’

  The colour rose in Edris’ cheeks. ‘I’m sorry, I didn’t put in the request for the fingerprints but I sent off Epworth’s DNA.’

  ‘That will take longer to process, we can only hold him until tomorrow afternoon.’

  ‘I’ll do it now.’ Edris leapt from his seat.

  Meadows turned to his computer and typed up a summary of the interview. When Edris returned he sat down next to him and spun his chair back and forth.

  ‘So what now? Do we charge him?’

  Meadows leaned back in his chair and rubbed his hand over his chin. ‘We could charge him for sex with a minor but we really need Carl Perkins to make a statement. I’ll call him in the morning. I think you should work on identifying the boys in the photographs we got from his computer, maybe one of them will be willing to testify.’

  ‘What about the attack on Gwen and Bethan?’

  ‘Let’s see what we get back from the fingerprint analysis. If he was in the shack he would have left prints.’

  ‘Imagine, all these years he has been at the school, it gives me the creeps. I wonder how they missed him in the first investigation.’

  ‘They had no reason to suspect him, Gwen had no memory of what happened.’

  ‘Yeah, I guess. Still, I think we’ll be celebrating tomorrow. Lester is going to be well chuffed,’ Edris grinned.

  ‘Maybe.’

  ‘You don’t sound very convinced.’ Edris stopped spinning the chair. ‘What’s troubling you? He admitted he was there and he had the motive.’

  ‘Don’t you think his behaviour was a bit odd during the interview? When I asked him about the brakes on Gwen’s car he laughed. It was like he was relieved.’

  ‘I don’t follow.’

  ‘Think of it from a different angle. If Epworth is not guilty of the murder then the only thing he would have been concerned about is us finding out about the boys. When I told him about Perkins I thought he was going to have a heart attack, yet he didn’t appear that concerned when I questioned him about the attack on the girls. It was almost as though the worst had already happened.’

  ‘He’s a nutcase, and he’s so full of himself that he doesn’t think we have anything on him.’

  ‘We don’t have anything on him, all the evidence is circumstantial. He knows we could match his DNA to the scene yet after he admitted to being with Carl Perkins he thought he could go home. I don’t think it occurred to him that we could charge him with murder, he’s more concerned with protecting his reputation.’

  ‘I reckon you’re overthinking this. It’s been a long day,’ Edris grinned.

  ‘Yeah, I guess you’re right. You should go home, I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be a busy day. You can make a start on identifying the boys in the photographs on Epworth’s computer, we can get him for that if nothing else.’

  Meadows watched Edris leave the office then picked up the original case notes. He read through hoping that something would stand out and put his mind at ease. Bethan was pregnant. He leant back in his chair and put his hands behind his head. Epworth is unlikely to be the father, he’s not interested in girls. Suppose he’s telling the truth and there was someone else in the shack that day. That someone could still be out there and trying to get to Gwen.

  He closed the files and sighed. His eyes burned with tiredness and he could feel the onset of a headache. He switched of his computer and stopped to see the custody sergeant on the way out.

  ‘Any problems?’

  ‘No, your man is sleeping like a baby.’

  ‘Good, the sooner he gets used to his new surroundings the better because by the time I’m finished with him he is going to spend a very long time locked away.’

  The custody sergeant grinned. ‘That’s what I like to hear, one less pervert on the streets.’

  ‘See you in the morning.’ Meadows walked out into the night air. Only an empty house awaited him and he suddenly felt tired and lonely. It would be nice if Gwen was at home waiting for me. He felt a smile play on his lips. Maybe one day.

  Chapter Twenty-five

  Gwen awoke to the sun streaming through the window and casting a warm glow on the carpet. Matt was standing next to the bed staring down at her.

  ‘Good morning.’ He held out a cup of tea.

  Gwen pulled herself upright and took the cup. ‘Thanks, you’re up early.’

  ‘Yes, it’s a beautiful day.’

  Gwen sipped her tea, suspicious of Matt’s good mood.

  ‘I was thinking we should go out tonight to celebrate, the kids can go to your mother’s. That way we can have the place to ourselves.’ He perched on the edge of the bed and slipped his hand under the duvet.

  ‘What are we celebrating?’ Gwen wriggled away from his roaming hands.

  ‘Epworth’s arrest, of course. The whole vi
llage is buzzing. They took him in yesterday evening and he didn’t come home. It’s over, love.’ He grinned.

  ‘I’ll call Winter and see what is going on.’

  Matt’s lips curled. ‘He won’t be able to tell you anything that you don’t already know.’

  ‘No, I guess not.’

  ‘Come on, I thought you wanted to have some closure? Well, now you know what happened that day.’

  ‘Not everything, and I thought you didn’t believe me. What was it you said? Oh yes, my head is completely fucked-up.’

  Matt reddened. ‘I said I was sorry and I am trying to make an effort here. We can have a fresh start. You’ve no idea how hard it’s been having this hang over my head for all these years.’

  ‘Your head?’

  ‘I mean over us, it’s always been there. Now you can put it behind you.’

  I don’t know if I want a fresh start with you. All of his affairs and unkind comments pricked at her mind. She tried to brush them off as she swung her legs out of bed.

  ‘You’re right, we should be celebrating, I’ll give Mum a call, I’m sure the kids won’t mind staying over.’ With a bit of luck he’ll get so pissed he will fall asleep as soon as we get home.

  Gwen showered, dressed, and made breakfast. As she sat eating toast in the kitchen Matt hovered nearby.

  ‘Anywhere particular you want to go tonight?’ he asked.

  ‘No, you pick somewhere. Surprise me.’ She tried to muster a smile.

  ‘OK.’ He took the frying pan out and poured in a generous amount of oil before setting it on the hob. ‘I fancy a fry-up this morning.’ He whistled as he took eggs and bacon from the fridge. ‘Want some?’

  ‘No thanks, I’m going to take Blue up the river for a swim.’

  ‘Good idea, no need for you to worry about being safe anymore. Right, I’ll give the kids a shout, see if they want to join me for breakfast. It’s about time the lazy buggers got out of bed.’ He walked out of the kitchen and she heard him shout up the stairs.

  Gwen gobbled down the rest of her toast then put a bottle of water into her bag before clipping on Blue’s lead. I need to get out of here. Up on the mountain she welcomed the cool breeze ruffling her hair. The sky was cloudless and the mountain deserted, now alone she felt she had the space to let her thoughts free. Blue strained on the lead as soon as he saw the river. She let him go, and his tail swished through the air as he leapt into the water. She let out a sigh as she settled on the bank. I should feel different, like the weight of the past has been lifted but nothing has changed. Maybe I need to remember the attack before I’m completely free.