Cold Heart: Absolutely gripping serial-killer fiction

by Stephen Edger

  Kate thought back to the threadbare carpets in number forty-eight, and wondered exactly what kind of maintenance Jackson had done. ‘So why end the agreement? There’s something you’re not telling me, and I need you to be open.’

  ‘The house was becoming more of a burden, and I decided to put it on the market. I offered Chris the chance to buy it, but he said he wouldn’t be able to secure a mortgage and so he moved out.’

  ‘But he still works at the school?’

  ‘He’s self-employed, but I think the school calls on him when required. I really don’t get involved in that side of school affairs.’

  ‘So you expect me to believe that your landlord-tenant relationship ended amicably?’

  Imelda reached for her water again, studying Kate’s face. ‘Why would you assume otherwise?’ Her eyes widened. ‘Wait, you think Chris has something to do with what you’ve found at the house? You think he’s murdered somebody?’

  ‘I can’t go into detail, Mrs Watkins, but we have reason to believe that the crime scene at your house is linked to what was discovered on Friday night at the school.’

  Mrs Watkins’ hand shot to her mouth again. ‘You think… Chris? Oh my.’

  ‘Let me ask you again: why did you not extend his lease?’

  Imelda suddenly stood and moved to the window, staring into the garden. ‘It will probably sound prudish… but he was into things.’

  ‘What sort of things?’

  ‘I don’t understand the correct vernacular, but… whips and chains and that sort of paraphernalia.’

  ‘Bondage? Sadomasochism?’

  Imelda nodded, still stood by the glass. ‘I called round to the house one day, and walked in on… suffice to say it was embarrassing for all concerned. I hadn’t realised that… it came as quite a shock, I can tell you.’

  Sadomasochism wasn’t a crime, nor was it an indicator of psychopathy. ‘Can you be more specific, Mrs Watkins. I’m sorry to ask. Was he tied up? Was he alone?’

  ‘There was a girl there; I didn’t know who she was… but she was tied up… to a chair… she was naked, and her wrists and ankles were tied to the chair with some kind of rope. There was a gag around her mouth as well. When I first saw it, I didn’t know what I’d stumbled into, but he explained, and when he untied the girl, she verified that she had chosen to be tied up. Not the sort of thing that happened in my day, let me tell you.’

  ‘How long ago was this, Mrs Watkins?’

  She turned back and looked at Kate, her face white as a sheet. ‘Just before Christmas the year before last. I was already considering putting the house on the market, and that was the final straw. It’s none of my business what people practise in private, but I couldn’t forget the look of terror in the girl’s eyes when I walked in on them.’

  Kate helped Imelda back to the wicker chair. ‘What were things like between the two of you afterwards?’

  ‘I didn’t really see him much after that. He’s been at the school on a couple of occasions as I’ve been passing through, but I don’t think we’ve spoken.’

  ‘Would you say there’s animosity?’

  ‘He certainly hasn’t gone out of his way to say hello, and I’ve been too embarrassed.’

  ‘There was no sign of forced entry at number forty-eight. Is it possible that Jackson still has a key?’

  ‘I wouldn’t have said so, but now that you say what’s gone on in there, I suppose he could. I never changed the locks when he moved out, so maybe it’s possible he had a spare key cut before moving out. I really can’t say for sure.’

  ‘We believe the victim was a man named Petr Nowakowski. Does that name ring a bell with you?’

  Imelda reached for the water again. ‘I don’t think so.’

  ‘Did you ever see Jackson with any male friends at the house?’

  ‘No, the only person I ever saw him with was that girl.’

  Was it possible that the girl Imelda had stumbled in on was Maria Alexandrou? Had Jackson paid her to indulge his sexual fantasies? It still didn’t explain how or why he’d chosen to mutilate her at the school. But if he knew number forty-eight was vacant and still had access, he wouldn’t have expected to be disturbed… until Daisy.

  ‘Would you be willing to make a formal statement about what you saw?’ Kate pressed.

  ‘If you think that would help?’

  Kate stood. ‘Would you like me to call anyone to be with you?’

  ‘My Neil will be back soon.’ She paused. ‘When will I be able to see the house?’

  Kate’s heart went out to her. The mess could be cleaned: walls could be painted and carpets replaced, but it would forever be remembered as the house where Petr Nowakowski was carved up. Over time the names of the victim and perpetrator would be forgotten, but the act was now embedded in folklore. Mrs Watkins would be lucky to receive half the value of the property after this.

  ‘We’ll keep you informed. I’ll send one of my team around to take that statement from you.’

  Kate thanked Imelda, leaving her in the conservatory, and showed herself to the door, keen to get back to the station and secure Jackson’s confession and find out where he was holding Daisy.

  48

  Passing through the security barrier back at the station, Kate was anxious to get into the incident room and find out what progress Humberidge and the search team had made. But as she parked in her regular space beneath the building and got out of the car, the sound of Quinlan’s raised voice caught her attention. Looking around to see where the noise was coming from, she soon realised Quinlan was on foot, heading out of the station directly above her. Ordinarily she would have given him his privacy, but it was what he was saying that piqued her curiosity.

  ‘I told you before to stop calling. I’ll get you the money. I’ll come now.’

  Remembering the conversation she’d overheard yesterday, she wondered if he’d been running up gambling debts – or worse, a drug habit. She’d seen too many officers too proud to ask for help who’d lost everything. She knew only too well how thin the line was between right and wrong.

  Rather than allowing him to slip away, Kate followed the car ramp back up to the ground level where she saw Quinlan nervously making his way from the building, across the road towards the train station, the mobile phone glued to his ear. He was at least a hundred metres ahead of her, which meant she could no longer hear the conversation, but the way he kept glancing about to check he wasn’t being followed set alarm bells ringing in her head. He had to be going to meet whoever was causing him so much distress. If ever Kate had a chance to help him, this was it.

  Proceeding along the pavement on the opposite side of the road, Kate kept him just in sight as she followed. As he reached the car park on the south side of the train station, she saw him duck inside and had to dart between the oncoming vehicles to cross the road and keep eyes on him. She lost him. Had he spotted her tailing him and double-backed? She was certain he couldn’t have seen her. She looked around, then spotted him at the opposite side of the building, near where the buses dropped passengers.

  His back was to her, but he seemed to be staring down and talking to someone seated on a bench. Kate couldn’t see who, without getting closer.

  She paused for a moment. Was this really the right approach to take? She’d already reached out to Quinlan and he’d rejected her support. Would he thank her for confronting him, or push her further away?

  Quinlan suddenly took a step back, and Kate caught her breath as she finally saw who was on the bench and the jigsaw pieces slotted into place. She now had no choice but to intercept.

  It was Tara who spotted Kate first, her eyes widening. ‘Kate? What are…?’

  Quinlan spun round as soon as he heard Kate’s name, the shock on his face almost comical.

  She spoke before either of them had a chance to. ‘Olly’s the father?’

  Quinlan’s face dropped and he collapsed down onto the bench next to Tara, burying his face in his hands as his secr
et was exposed. He clearly had no idea how to explain himself. Tara could only manage a slow nod before lowering her eyes.

  So, that was why Tara hadn’t wanted to discuss the father with Kate, because she knew how Kate would react, him being a member of her team. She had to give it to her, Tara had done a pretty good job of coaxing Kate into protecting part of the secret and simultaneously manipulating Quinlan into paying to keep his involvement under wraps.

  Kate wanted to bash their heads together for being so stupid and irresponsible, Quinlan especially, but she resisted. ‘Does this place have a café? I think we all need a quiet chat.’

  *

  The station café was quiet and warm, allowing them to find a small table and three chairs in a corner where they could talk discreetly.

  Kate looked from one to the other. ‘Which one of you wants to tell me how this mess started? Olly?’

  But Tara was the first to speak up. ‘It isn’t what you think.’

  ‘No? Tell me what I’m thinking, Tara.’

  ‘We’re not dating or anything. It was a one-time thing that unfortunately resulted in…’ her words trailed off, but her hands gestured towards her belly.

  ‘I don’t understand how the two of you even met,’ Kate said, frowning.

  ‘It was at your work’s Christmas party,’ Tara said, looking away. ‘I was supposed to be meeting some friends in town and Dad said he’d give me a lift as he had to make an appearance at your drinks do. I came in for a drink, and Dad was away talking to you I think, Kate, when Olly came and we started talking.’

  ‘I wouldn’t have gone near her, if I’d known she was the boss’s daughter, and she told me she was nineteen!’

  Tara snorted. ‘As I recall, you didn’t seem all that interested in asking too many questions before inviting me back to your place…’

  Kate stared at Quinlan. ‘And I take it this was the news you received on Friday night, and why you were hungover when you arrived at the office?’

  ‘I’m sorry, ma’am, it’s all come as a bit of a shock. I’m not ready to settle down, let alone be a father—’

  ‘I’m not asking you to be a father,’ Tara fired back.

  ‘Well, you can’t have a feckin’ abortion either,’ Quinlan defended.

  Kate shushed the two of them, as a woman from a nearby table looked over. ‘Now is not the time to make decisions. In all honesty, I don’t think either of you are ready to fully understand the implications of what you’ve done, but this is the situation we find ourselves in, so we’re going to have to find the best path forward for everyone, and that includes the little life growing inside you, Tara.’

  ‘I’m going to have it terminated,’ Tara said stubbornly, ‘and there’s nothing either of you can do about it.’

  Kate could see Quinlan was about to react, so jumped in first. ‘I think the best thing we can do today is to make a plan of where and when you are going to break this news to your parents, Tara. I know you are worried about how they will react, and I’m sure you’re just as terrified, Olly, but there’s absolutely no way around it. None of us can keep something this big from them; they deserve to know, so they can be supportive. And believe me, Tara, they might be shocked by the news, but they love you and that will never change. I know that if my daughter ever comes to me in your situation, I’ll give the support she needs. And your parents will be the same.’

  ‘I’ll lose my job,’ Quinlan said.

  ‘You’re both over the age of consent, so you haven’t done anything illegal. He’ll be upset, of course, but the supe is a consummate professional and he won’t allow this to get in the way of work.’ She paused and checked her watch. ‘Speaking of which, you and I should be heading back, Olly. Tara, how did you get down here?’

  ‘Caught a bus.’

  ‘And are you okay getting home, or do you need a lift?’

  ‘I can catch the bus.’

  ‘Good. All the secret phone calls and messages between the two of you need to stop. And I think the three of us need to sit down with your parents at the weekend, Tara. I know you’re both scared, but this secrecy ends here.’

  Neither Quinlan nor Tara looked up, but both reluctantly nodded.

  ‘Good,’ Kate said, standing and leaving the café with Quinlan in close pursuit. ‘Olly, we won’t mention this again until we’ve nailed Jackson. But I need your head in the game. Understand?’

  He stopped her and fixed her with a stare. ‘I’m sorry you got dragged into all this, but thanks for having my back. I swear I’ll work night and day until we have the evidence we need against Jackson and find Daisy.’

  49

  Kate clapped her hands together for the attention of the incident room. ‘What’s Humberidge saying at the site? Any updates?’

  Patel grabbed a note from his desk. ‘They’ve found a shed packed full of garden equipment: spades, forks, buckets, and a lawnmower covered in rust. More interestingly, they’ve also found a patch of lawn that looks recently turned over.’

  Kate didn’t want to ask the next question. ‘How big is the hole?’

  Patel tried to allay her fears, spreading his arms wide. ‘Humberidge reckons about a metre deep, and half a metre wide.’

  ‘Not big enough for a body,’ Laura offered.

  ‘Not in one piece,’ Kate agreed, but they all understood what she was alluding to. ‘Are they digging?’

  Patel frowned. ‘The ground is pretty solid from what Humberidge said, but SSD are down there and will excavate the hole as soon as they can.’

  ‘Can we get sniffer dogs down there? Maybe they could at least indicate if there’s a scent of blood in the ground?’

  ‘The dog unit is already at the Mottisfont site, ma’am. To be honest, by the time we’d get them to the house, SSD could already be through the top layer.’

  Kate nodded, glancing at the clock. ‘It’s nearly two o’clock, so that gives us nineteen hours until we have to release him; unless of course the supe agrees to extend his custody. But he’ll only extend if he believes we have a genuine opportunity to nail the bastard, and as it stands we only have circumstantial evidence at best. Is Jackson still in with his solicitor?’

  Patel nodded. ‘Yeah, they broke for half an hour for Jackson to eat lunch, but reconvened immediately after. I’ve no idea what they’re discussing, but if he’s as innocent as he claims, I don’t see why he’d need to talk for so long.’

  Kate sighed, feeling they’d never been closer to confirming what had happened to Petr and Maria, but no closer to finding out why. The psychology of the criminal mind fascinated her, particularly when she came up against someone with a psyche as twisted as Jackson’s.

  Kate focused back on the three of them. ‘How are we with progressing why Petr and Maria were picked by Jackson?’

  Laura shuffled forward on her chair. ‘I’ve been looking into the financial side of things, ma’am. We know that both Petr and Maria weren’t in professions that would make them a lot of money, but we have witnesses who say that both had either received or were about to receive a windfall, right? Sofia said Maria managed to raise ten grand to pay off her pimp, and Petr’s sister said he was going to put a deposit down on a flat for them to rent together. I’ve been going through Jackson’s recent bank statements, courtesy of what Humberidge has scanned and sent over from the house, and there are multiple ATM withdrawals from his personal account. Not in the region of ten grand, but over time, a couple of grand here, a grand there, it could add up. However, we have yet to lay our hands on his business records. From what I can see, he was taking home a considerable monthly sum from the business, which would suggest the company has been doing well.’

  ‘Define considerable,’ Kate said.

  Laura grabbed the statements from her desk and handed them to Kate. ‘I’ve highlighted the figures in question. This month, the company paid him just under four thousand, the month before, just over that figure, and the month before that well over six thousand.’

  ‘Wh
ere are his business accounts?’

  ‘Humberidge hasn’t found them at the property yet, but is still searching. I’ve put a call in to his bank to request access and am waiting for a call back.’

  Kate narrowed her eyes. ‘But even if we can establish he made significant withdrawals from his business account in order to pay them, what was he paying them for?’

  ‘Maybe he set up business as a loan shark?’ Quinlan offered.

  Kate furrowed her brow. ‘I don’t think it fits.’

  ‘Drugs then?’ Quinlan countered.

  ‘No evidence to suggest that Jackson has any involvement in that world.’

  ‘Well, that only leaves sex, ma’am,’ Quinlan concluded. ‘You reckon he goes both ways?’

  Kate considered it. ‘We know that Maria was used to selling her body for money. Could he have offered her the money she needed in return for something sexual? According to Imelda Watkins he had an interest in sadomasochism. But the only evidence we have that Maria received the money is Sofia saying their pimp had released Maria from their contract. The money never touched a bank account.’

  ‘Maria Alexandrou hadn’t used her account for several years,’ Patel advised.

  ‘And Petr? What do his accounts say?’

  ‘In the last six months, his only account transactions were the monthly payments received from the cruise company, which he withdrew in whole almost immediately after. No direct debits or debit card payments on the account. There’s obviously a mattress stuffed full of money somewhere.’

  Kate fixed Patel with a look. ‘Have we been through Nowakowski’s accommodation yet?’

  He shook his head. ‘Humberidge was supposed to be heading there this morning, but with Jackson’s sudden appearance, it hasn’t happened.’

  Kate fired a look at Quinlan, who grabbed his coat. ‘On it, ma’am. What are we looking for?’

  Kate joined him at the door. ‘Anything that might tell us how he crossed paths with Jackson: computer, tablet, phone, sexual paraphernalia, anything and everything.’ She glanced back at Laura and Patel. ‘Keep digging. We need something to tie our victims and suspect together. I’m sure we’re missing something obvious; I just can’t work out what.’