Gaslighting: A British Crime Thriller (Doc Powers & D.I. Carver Investigate Book 3)

by Will Patching

  It was the title of a book she had read decades before. A comedy about a teenage fantasist. But there was nothing funny about her Billy liar, or this dreadful story he had invented. Nana was devastated by the very thought of it.

  I can’t tell her… She thinks the world of the boy.

  ‘I think Billy might sometimes imagine things, Mum. He definitely imagined that. I promise you, I’ve never set foot in the place. And I also promise you, right now, I will never put you in a home. This is your home!’

  Nana’s face crumpled, and she sobbed again, giving the impression she was crying with relief. But she wasn’t.

  ‘Please stop lying to me… I can’t stand it.’

  ‘I’m not!’ Suzie sat up on the edge of the lounger and took both her mother’s hands in hers, leaning forward, urging her to believe what she was saying, peering into her eyes, hoping to communicate her total honesty through her own. ‘I have never been to Lakeside, or any other place like it. Honestly, Mum. Billy’s obviously confused – and I’m not.’

  ‘You mean it?’ Watery eyes held hers. ‘Swear on your father’s grave.’

  ‘I swear.’ Suzie gave her mother a hug, held her until the juddering sobs stopped. She picked up the tray and said, ‘Let me get some tea and some tissues.’

  For years, Suzie Leech had been an emotional wreck, buffeted and battered by unwanted and often overwhelming feelings of worthlessness, fear, desperation and depression. As she strode to the kitchen, her face rigid, her muscles tense, her head thumping a painful beat, she felt an unfamiliar emotion welling up inside her.

  Fury.

  The few minutes it took her to make a pot of tea and arrange some cups on the tray allowed Suzie to calm herself. The rage had not disappeared. No. She had stored it, would let it loose again, later.

  The moment she was ready to confront her bastard son.

  With a purposeful stride, she carried the tray back to her mother, certain she had heard the worst. Then her mother started on a new tack.

  ‘I know you think this house should be yours by rights. And it will be. When I’m dead and buried… And not before.’

  ‘Mum!’ What is she on about? ‘I don’t think that! I have plenty of money of my own. I could buy a dozen houses like this one, and still have enough left over never to work again.’ Suzie had not talked to her mother about any of this – her father had helped her sort all her finances when she had sold up and first moved here. ‘Didn’t Dad tell you?’ The plan had been to buy her own place nearby, but Suzie had never felt up to it, and then inertia set in. They had settled here, buying up some land and stables from a neighbour to convert to study rooms for Billy. It had been the ideal solution for a while. Before her father committed suicide.

  ‘It’s not the same. This house is special…’

  ‘I don’t think you realise, Mum. We’re rich. Shaun may have been an evil bastard, but he provided well for us, with millions invested. Our London home fetched five million when I sold it! He left everything to me.’ Nothing to Billy, though the boy was also well provided for. Another massive pile of undeserved Leech lucre that her father had ended up managing for the lad.

  ‘Your dad worked hard to buy this place, to make it such a lovely home. I did too. You mustn’t think…’

  ‘Think what?’

  ‘It’s true… Mr and Mrs Leech did give us some money. But please… That wasn’t really how we managed to buy this place. It helped, but–’

  ‘Enough, Mum! I have no clue what you’re talking about.’

  ‘I know you do, Susan – even though we’ve never discussed it. I hate to even mention it… When Peter assaulted you. When you were Billy’s age.’

  Peter? She still doesn’t realise it was Shaun.

  Of course, her mother had never discovered the truth, and Suzie only found out twenty years after the event that she had unwittingly married her rapist. She’d been drugged, was unconscious at the time. Everyone had blamed Shaun’s brother – the black sheep of the family. The whole terrible event had been swept under the carpet, for lack of evidence – she’d been woken by Shaun and had showered, still groggy and confused, before discovering what had happened to her. It had all seemed unreal at the time, hearing about it and being unable to remember anything.

  That was a blessing, in many ways.

  But why was her mother bringing it up now?

  ‘So what, Mum? It’s ancient history and I put it behind me.’

  Twice.

  ‘The money. Mr Leech paid us fifty thousand pounds… It was, well, sort of compensation for all the trouble his lad caused us. I was devastated, and your dad was furious. He involved the police, but there was little they could do, and we didn’t want to distress you any further. So, we told them to drop the charges… We had to move away from that boy’s house though, couldn’t stand to live in the same neighbourhood any more, so we used the money towards this property.’

  Hush money?

  ‘Now you think… I think… that was my money! And that you owe me this house!’ Suzie started laughing. Of all the things she had learned today, this was the most outrageous. It took all her effort to speak again. ‘Ridiculous! Of course, I don’t. I love this place. It’s our family home. And I guarantee you will never leave here, other than feet first.’

  Suzie’s laughter dissipated all the tension that had been building inside her today, the steel strip springing from her head, all pressure released. It was a relief to hear such unfounded nonsense was at the root of her mother’s concern.

  Nana’s next words, spoken in utter confusion, choked off the laughter bubbling from Suzie’s throat.

  ‘So, are you saying Billy lied to me, then?’

  ***

  ‘I’m thinking I might have to cut my vacation short. Well, probably defer joining Sally for a couple of nights. I had a very interesting chat over lunch with an old friend of mine about some of the goings on around here. What d’you know about the Dooley boys and the Richardsons?’

  ‘Not much.’ Doc had finished cleaning up the aftermath of their lunch. Judy had been offhand with him while they ate, and he couldn’t understand why after she seemed so happy earlier. Hormones, perhaps. He handed Jack a cup of tea and they both settled on to the sofas in his lounge as he added, ‘Sam didn’t find a trace of anyone accessing my computers. Checked out the whole system. Thanks for arranging for him to come today, Jack – that’s a load off my mind.’

  ‘Yeah. Mine too.’

  ‘As for the Dooleys. I can’t tell you much, other than they have a gang of mates, late teens I believe, and they cause a bit of trouble. There’s no farm work for them, but they make some cash trading in scrap metal. Mostly lead stripped from church roofs and office buildings from what I’ve heard. There was a load of overhead wires cut down near Thatcham a few months back, and that went missing too. Dangerous business, stealing high tension cables. Why?’

  ‘Billy Leech used to hang out with ’em. Until late last year. Apparently, they think he’s a nutter. And I’m inclined to agree after all I heard this morning.’ Jack brought Doc up to speed with what Jonesy had said, then continued with his latest findings. ‘My contact said he was expelled from school, but everything was covered up. Rumour has it, he was involved in some violence against three older kids who’d been bullying him.’

  ‘Well, I knew he’d suffered for the few years he wasn’t talking. They may well have deserved it.’

  ‘Serious violence from what I heard. Three kids from his school arrived in hospital the same day he was suspended, then expelled shortly after. That’s all I know. I’d like to go to the school and do some digging, but it’s Sunday.’

  ‘Come off it, Jack. You’re on holiday. Sally’ll be here soon.’ Doc tried to dismiss his pal’s concerns, though his own suspicions were multiplying. ‘How old was he? Eleven? Twelve? It was probably just boys being boys.’

  Or a Leech being a Leech?

  ‘Mmm, about that I think. He’s not been back to school since. No
one would have him, not even the private academies, according to Charlie.’

  ‘What else did he have to say.’

  Jack leered as he answered. ‘She… Charlotte. Uniformed Inspector, out Newbury way. She said they had looked long and hard at the Dooley gang, but never managed to catch ’em red-handed. Flashing the cash, but no sniff of where it came from. The local nick’s too busy to bother with a bit of petty theft, though when that electric cable went missing five local villages had no power for days, so that got some attention. No collars, though.’ Jack slurped his tea, his face thoughtful. ‘What I found interesting is that there’s been a lot of other unexplained vandalism and some serious animal cruelty hereabouts.’

  ‘That’s not a good sign, Jack. As you well know.’ Doc felt stirrings in the dark part of his mind, unbidden but coming alert with this disturbing news.

  ‘That’s what I thought, and when I asked her how long this had been going on for, she said–’

  ‘Seven years?’

  ‘Uh-huh. Almost seven.’

  ‘Shortly after Billy Leech moved into the area.’ Doc gulped down his own tea, determined not to touch another coffee today, and cut down from tomorrow. Even so, he felt increasingly tense as they talked.

  ‘Yup. And when I asked her to pinpoint all these happenings she said they started around Bucklebury Common and had spread out over the years to cover a wider area.’

  Of course…

  ‘What sort of things? How serious?’

  ‘Serious enough. Charlie said there was no proof, but when they were interviewing the Dooleys about the cables, they laid into ’em about the arson and the animals too.’

  ‘Arson?’

  ‘Hay bales at first, then a couple of barns – the first the farmer put down to spontaneous combustion. Happens, apparently. Then another one occurred a couple of months later just down the road. Fire department reckoned petrol had been splashed around, but by then the first site had been cleared ready to rebuild, so there’s no evidence that one was deliberate.’

  ‘Is that it?’ Doc doubted that would be all, his mind alive with the possibilities of what was behind these incidents.

  ‘No. A scout hut, a village hall, several private garages – with the owners’ cars inside – and the icing on the cake. A school gym went up in smoke last summer.’

  Doc’s stomach flip-flopped as he heard this, then he asked, ‘Billy’s old school?’

  ‘You got it in one, Doc.’ Jack finished his tea and let the cup and saucer clatter on the coffee table before he spoke again, his tone serious, firm. ‘That’s why I’m thinking I may hang around. I’m really worried about this kid.’

  ‘So why haven’t the local bobbies arrested him? Did the Dooleys say he was responsible?’

  ‘Nah. Just dropped hints. Smug bastards were laughing at the coppers doing the interviews as they knew they were innocent – of the arson. When asked about Billy, they denied they knew him, at first. Then the interviewer told them he’d been seen with them in Reading, hanging around with ’em. That’s when the Dooleys said they’d told him to piss off. Too much of a weirdo even for those scrotes.’ Jack planted his elbows on his knees, hands clasped, eyes fierce. ‘I’d like a little chat with them too…’

  ‘And the animals?’

  ‘Really ’orrible stuff, mate. Horses having their tails sliced off in the middle of the night. Sheep being gutted and left bleating while bleedin to death. Pigs with their ears cut off and eyes gouged. Cows having their udders slashed. An ostrich farm lost two birds one night… Found ’em in a ditch the next morning. Their necks had been tied in a knot.’ Jack’s mouth twisted in disgust, his head shaking as he eyed Doc. ‘Who’d do something like that?’

  A budding psychopath…

  ‘Jesus, Jack… And the local police did nothing?’

  ‘Did what they could. But we’re in the middle of the countryside. There ain’t security cameras on every corner like there is in London. It’s a huge area with hardly any people and loads of livestock. This all happened under the cover of darkness too, so there was no one around to witness what was happening.’ Jack sighed and sat back again. Shrugged. ‘For a sadistic lunatic with a desire to harm animals, it’s bleedin Paradise round here.’

  ‘They suspect Billy Leech did all this?’

  ‘Charlie’s oppo does. A sergeant in the Thatcham nick. She knows the Leech family from twenty-five years ago – was a trainee on the force when Billy’s grandparents were murdered in their home near where she was stationed. She’s convinced it’s him, though she got short shrift from her boss. She had a gut feeling about it, after quizzing the Dooleys. Even spent some nights on obbo. Outside his gaff.’

  Observing Billy’s home overnight to see if he went walkabout in the early hours…

  ‘Nothing then?’

  ‘Nah. She gave up after a couple of weeks – was still working a full shift during the day, as a lowly sergeant. Let me show you what clinched it for her though. Charlie’s pretty convinced after seeing this too. She put the word out for me after I called her this morning, and this sarge came up with gold for us.’ Jack handed Doc a USB stick. ‘Don’t worry – there’s no spyware on it!’

  Doc slipped the thumb drive into his MacBook and opened the file marked ‘Unsolved Incidents – BL Files’. A map of the local area appeared and Doc could see irregular zig-zag rings spreading out from a location some miles to the south of his home. He expanded the view.

  ‘Bucklebury Common. This is Billy’s house?’

  ‘Yup.’

  ‘And the rings? Distance by road from his home?’

  ‘I thought that when she showed me, but she’s a clever one, our Charlie. She added them for me after the PC emailed the basics to her. It’s the years the events happened. And the little red crosses are fires, the little yellow crosses are the attacks on farm animals, the green ones are domestic pets, either missing or mutilated. The numbers next to them are the month and year they happened. Clicking on the date will bring up details of the relevant incident.’

  ‘Good grief!’ Doc estimated he could see over a hundred crosses, almost all within the seven jagged circles, with the most recent events largely confined to the outer rings, the furthest being several miles beyond his Pangbourne home. ‘It’s a huge area, fifteen-mile radius or more… He went further from home as he got older, as he grew more confident.’

  Jack clicked on a yellow cross just outside of Doc’s village. ‘Pig farm, Doc. Just up the road from here.’

  Doc was familiar with the farm, and could hear a sow squealing, screaming in agony as Jack spoke. He thought it was real, it was so vivid, but Jack was still staring at the screen, so Doc closed his eyes and focused.

  The sound continued and sent a repugnant thrill through him. He could feel cool wind on his face as a field appeared off to one side in a mind-movie, his attention drawn to the arches of corrugated iron there, the pig shelters, as he sped forward. The sensation of movement was familiar, but it had been a long time since Doc had felt it. He whispered his conclusion, still with his eyes closed.

  ‘A bicycle… As his stamina improved, he went further afield.’

  ‘Are you doing that thing again… You’d better not let your missus find out.’ Jack sniffed, scrunched up his nose and muttered his disgust at himself. ‘Why didn’t I think of that? It’s bleedin obvious. A kid with a bike!’

  ‘A young lad, out in the middle of the night? Where was his mother? Why would she let him?’ Psychopaths are devious and deceptive creatures. The thought whispered itself to him. ‘Unless she doesn’t know?’

  ‘I’d like a word with her, an’ all.’ Jack puffed out his lips, frustrated. ‘Charlie did say it’s not a completely accurate correlation, but there’s a definite concentration in the local area, many more incidents than the national average. Several times more, in fact – I checked... Oh yeah, and all the bigger properties were burned down more recently, no matter where they are. Look.’ Jack clicked on a fire located in the t
hird ring to the east of Billy’s home. ‘His old school.’

  ‘That’s only two months ago… He’s becoming more daring with experience.’ Billy had mentioned he had a tutor during their handful of sessions together, but Doc had been unaware of the full story. ‘What do they do about schooling? You said he couldn’t find a place after being expelled.’

  ‘It’s news to me, but loads of kids are taught outside of the system. Special needs usually, but there’s others whose parents don’t want them indoctrinated by the state.’ Jack made air quote signs with hooked fingers as he said the word. ‘Twats. Probably feed the poor buggers on muesli and wheatgrass smoothies, too. Then there’s the hard cases and trouble makers, like Billy Leech, the sort of lout no self-respecting school wants coming through their doors.’

  ‘So, he has no scheduled classes to attend? No need to be up for the school run.’

  ‘Of course!’ Jack bounced forward again, his legs and feet jerking as if he wanted to sprint after the lad right now, to arrest him on suspicion for these horrendous crimes. ‘He can have a lie in after cycling half the night, maiming animals and burning buildings. It’s got to be him!’

  ‘We have nothing more than wafer thin circumstantial evidence still.’ Doc pondered for a moment, wondering how they might encourage the locals to investigate Billy more thoroughly. ‘Do you think Charlie might run with this? Did you tell her about the dead pets posed on my property?’

  ‘I did. Problem is, her station’s snowed under. And there’s been loads of gyppos camping out too – regularly get moved on by the local bobbies, then they find another field and squat on that.’

  ‘Travellers?’

  ‘Yeah. Isn’t that what I said? Sorry, not very PC of me. Charlie’s bosses are convinced the two things are related.’ Jack grimaced at the stupidity of the top brass. ‘Aren’t interested in a Thatcham copper’s vendetta against the Leech family, apparently. I’m thinking I’ll do some interviews and digging around before shooting off on me hols. I’ll stay here for a night or two, if that’s alright with you.’

  ‘Listen my friend. You should go away with your daughter and do some bonding with her fiancé as planned.’ Jack went to interrupt, but Doc insisted, certain he could force Jack to take the holiday he had been promising himself for years. ‘It’s a simple choice. I’m lending you my boat. Not Sally. I’m not about to let her and a guy I’ve never met take almost half a million pounds’ worth of precious nautical machinery without you on board, am I?’ Jack started to protest, but Doc was adamant. ‘Either you take them tonight or you cancel their holiday too. Just go, Jack. You deserve it. Investigating Billy Leech will wait until you get back.’