“We have tried to explain to her that as they are not going to prosecute on the minor robbery, and providing she is from an EU country then, at least for the moment, she has done nothing wrong.” The female immigration officer seemed genuinely caring and frustrated by the problem. “It’s done no good; she’s scared of something, that’s what I reckon. She’s been fed some sort of tale to keep her quiet and we’re getting nowhere. I hope you have some luck with her.” She left them facing each other in the bare room in the silence.
“She seems nice,” Kate said. “Things must have improved here lately, it had some bad press back in the day.
“Are you being treated well?” Tanya asked the girl. There was no response.
Tanya slid the printed image of their female victim out of the cardboard folder. She placed it upside down on the table between them. “Ana, is it okay if I call you Ana?”
There was no response.
“I’ve been speaking to one of the PCSOs, the woman who was there when you stole the phone.” There was a flash of panic in the other woman’s eyes and Tanya raised a hand trying to calm her.
“It’s alright, we’re not here about that. That’s all over. But Karen…” She stuck to Christian names in an effort to diffuse the tension. “Karen told me that when you were leaving the police station you saw a picture of someone you think you know.”
The use of the present tense was deliberate and as Ana raised her eyes, the hope in them was heart-breaking.
As she turned the picture over, for just a moment, Tanya hated her job. “Do you know who this is, Ana?”
The days of being silent had made the woman’s voice croaky, but she reached out to lift the picture as her eyes filled with tears. “My friend. She is my friend. She went to London. Please, will you tell her where I am? Will you ask her to help me?”
There was a beat while Tanya considered her response. She felt much more sympathy for this woman than she had for the angry widow of the morning, but the truth had to come out.
“I’m very sorry, Ana. Your friend won’t be able to help you. I’m afraid she is dead.” There was nothing else she could say. All they could do was witness the devastation on the face of the woman sitting opposite them.
Ana raised a hand to cover her streaming eyes, she was sobbing uncontrollably. They waited until she calmed a little. They knew what the next question would be, and knew they were about to add to the distress. It was unavoidable. Tanya turned towards Kate and wasn’t terribly surprised to see the glint of tears in the officer’s eyes. She was a kind, motherly woman and would be feeling dreadful.
“Why is she dead?” The incorrect English added a poignant note to the terrible question, but they knew what she was asking.
“She was killed, Ana. I’m sorry but someone killed your friend.”
“Not Elian. Elian would not. He was simple and innocent. He would not. Can I speak to Elian?” She paused, horrified, and then spoke in a whisper, “Elian is dead as well. We were all warned. I know he is dead also.”
Tanya and Kate glanced at each other. They both felt it – the case had just split wide open.
Chapter 59
In sobbing gulps, Ana told them about her friend Dani. That they had lived and worked together, somewhere in England. She would not tell them where. She told them about Elian, the young man who had also run away when Dani left. She refused to give them any information about where they had been held, simply that they worked for an agency, that they owed money, and until the debt was paid there was no way out.
She told them that they were all afraid and unhappy, but no matter how hard they pushed she refused to give them any more names or locations. Just that there was a damp and dirty house, caravans, a factory, and endless work every day. She explained that she had been desperate to call home – that was why she needed the phone. She stopped and then asked that they tell the old woman that she was sorry she’d been hurt. These things came out in stops and starts and she constantly fell back into the silence, shaking her head. Reassurances from Tanya that they would take care of her and her family did nothing to break through the wall of fear. She held the picture of her dead friend, pressing it to her chest, and breaking into more heart-rending sobs each time she glanced at it.
The officer in charge of the unit intervened when her sobs became so overwhelming that she was gasping for breath. A doctor was called. Despite Tanya’s pleas, they administered a sedative. There was now no option but for them to return the next day when the girl had come to terms with the news and might be more help to them.
As they led her from the room, already heavy-eyed and sluggish, Tanya pulled the image of the girl who had been found in the graveyard from the folder. “I’m sorry, I’m really sorry, Ana. Do you know who this is?” They hadn’t told her that this woman was also dead but there was no need – she connected the dots immediately.
The cry of anguish told them everything they needed to know.
“Emilia. Is Emilia. Is my fault. Is all my fault.” With the final declaration, the woman collapsed to the floor in a semi-conscious daze and had to be taken from the room in a wheelchair.
Tanya and Kate Lewis sat in the car gulping cold water from a bottle. “God, that was ghastly,” Kate murmured. “How did you know, boss?”
“What?”
“How did you know to show her the picture of Finch’s victim?”
“I don’t know, I really don’t, well not enough to explain it anyway. It was just a feeling. Too many bodies, too many coincidences. We’ll come back tomorrow, get what we can, but we’ve got to move ourselves. We have to find out where they were being held. When she’s had time to reflect and, hopefully, started to get angry and see that she owes her friends some justice, well, maybe that’ll encourage her to tell us. I hope so, because if she goes back to not speaking it’s going to get very unpleasant for us all. This isn’t fun, is it, Kate?”
“No, ma’am, it’s not. The job is hard a lot of the time but now and then it all just seems too hard. We just keep going though, don’t we? We have to get to the truth, no matter how horrible. I wish we could do it without hurting that poor girl any more though.”
“Yes.”
They drove away between the tall metal fences and, until Tanya’s phone beeped, they could think of nothing to say.
Kate picked up the handset and read the text message. “Hmm, I reckon we might be in trouble, boss. DCI Scunthorpe wants you in his office as soon as possible. He wants an estimated time of arrival. Sister Rouse must have heard what we’ve done.”
“I’ll take full responsibility, Kate. I’ll let them know I didn’t give you any choice. What can they do? You can see I’m better, can’t you?”
“Not really, boss. To be honest I think what just happened in there hasn’t done you any favours. Perhaps we should stop in the motorway services and you can see if you can do anything with a bit of makeup to make you look less like the walking dead, ma’am”
They laughed at the final, ironic, address. It was brief but it lightened the mood in the car as they turned for home.
Chapter 60
Tanya wasn’t particularly worried as she walked the corridor to Bob Scunthorpe’s office. She had disobeyed the medical staff’s instructions and if he wanted to give her a bollocking, then so be it. She would show him the progress they’d made and assure him that she felt better. She wasn’t sure that it was true, but the headache was held at bay by a mixture of adrenaline and painkillers. For her, the fact that she was still alive, and functioning, was enough at the moment.
What she hadn’t expected was to find the Assistant Chief Constable sitting in one of the visitor’s chairs, a mug of coffee in his hand. She moved further into the room and Brian Finch nodded at her from the other side of the small coffee table. They were grouped in the area away from the DCI’s desk. It had the appearance of a friendly little get together. Her stomach clenched.
Bob Scunthorpe didn’t smile at her. This seemed over the top for a mi
nor infraction, unless it was coincidence that the ACC was there. She clutched at the fragile straw.
“You wanted to see me, sir?” she said.
“Yes, come and sit down, Detective Inspector, before you fall down. I think you have already been told that you shouldn’t be on duty and looking at you it’s pretty obvious why. However, we’ll leave that issue until later.”
“I’m fine, sir. Well maybe not fine, but I truly believe that I’m well enough to be working.”
There was a flash of impatience in his eyes. She held her peace and took a seat on the remaining chair. There was no offer of coffee and the smell of it was torment.
“I’ll cut straight to the chase. We’ve received a complaint and the Assistant Chief Constable has asked that the case you are currently involved in be handed over to Detective Inspector Finch. Please make all the information you have available to him immediately. We will re-assign your team. As it turns out this is probably for the best. You can have a week to recover from your concussion, and then come back ready to take on something else…” Scunthorpe glanced at the solemn looking officer who would not meet Tanya’s eyes but stared down at the cup in his hand. Of course ‘asked’ wasn’t the truth of it.
Tanya had never experienced an episode of total speechlessness. She truly could not form words. Brian Finch watched her, smug and amused. At that moment she wanted to lash out, to wipe the expression from his face. She gulped, struggled with the racing thoughts until, after what felt like an age, she finally managed to speak. “If there has been a complaint, sir, shouldn’t my union representative be here?”
“We can go that way if you wish, Detective Inspector, but we rather hoped to keep this on a more informal level. That way there will be no need to have a written record, no black marks against anyone.” The ACC’s voice was low and quiet.
“What complaints have been made, sir? By whom?” Tanya struggled to keep her response measured and respectful, but she seethed with anger. This was wrong. She hadn’t done anything that could have been cause for complaint.
“I was contacted by Mrs Patricia Baker. As you know she has recently been widowed under the most distressing circumstances. Her husband, Peter, was a close friend,” said the ACC.
“Sir, what is it exactly that Mrs Baker is complaining about? I believe that I was sensitive and considerate when I visited her. The news that her husband’s death is now to be treated as suspicious was difficult, I do understand that, but what am I supposed to have done?”
“I think it is enough that Mrs Baker has asked that someone else handle the investigation into her husband’s death, and as DI Finch has been involved, we have judged it politic for him to be assigned. Now, if you wish to make a fuss about this, contact your union representative and what have you, then so be it. However, I think we should consider the facts here. You haven’t made progress with the original investigation. You have initiated surveillance on a member of the public without following the correct protocol, searched his vehicle without a warrant, and managed to get yourself injured into the bargain. I think, to be honest, Detective Inspector Miller that it would be best for you to step back, absent yourself on sick leave, and allow Detective Inspector Finch to take this forward.”
“Sir, I brought Mulholland in, I feel sure that we’ll get a conviction.” Tanya felt the panic rise. She wasn’t sure what she had just said was true but was determined to fight her corner. “If I may…”
The ACC had put his mug on the table and picked up his uniform hat. The rest of them stood as he did, and she was forced into silence.
He was a tall man and bent towards her before he spoke. He invaded her space from above and the action carried a message that was more than just an acknowledgement of their difference in height. “A relatively small case of smuggling and tax avoidance is not very important in the face of what appear to be several murders. It is hardly major crime.” The comment was merciless. “I think that’s enough. I will leave the details in your hands, Detective Chief Inspector. Now I have another meeting and…” He glanced at his watch. “I’m already late.”
As the door closed behind him there was a charged silence. Bob Scunthorpe moved back behind his desk. The cosy little gathering was over, and it was down to business. “I hope you’re not intending to make a fuss, Tanya. It can only get messy and you haven’t exactly covered yourself in glory.”
“Sir, I admit this case has been difficult, progress has been slow. But really, I simply do not see that I did anything that warranted a complaint from Mrs Baker.” She hesitated. She needed to tread very carefully now if she was not to sound pathetic and peevish but, although she might be on the canvas, she was not ready to throw in the towel. “If I could have a minute to explain some things, sir?” Bob had always been fair and supportive, and she hoped that, now that the senior officer was gone, he would be more open to listening.
“I made some progress today.” She had brought her file with her and held it up now as evidence. “I have names for the body in the shed, and the body in the lake.” She glanced at Brian Finch, moved on. “I have a witness. She’s being held at Colnburn Detention Centre, but I am going back there tomorrow, and I believe she has information that will move us forward very quickly now.” Her mind was racing; how much should she reveal? She could see from his face that what she had said so far hadn’t been enough. “About Mrs Baker, sir...” She was aware of Brian Finch glaring at her, huffing now and then, but she blanked him.
“Yes. What about Mrs Baker?” Scunthorpe asked.
She would go for broke. “I have certain concerns regarding her. I had misgivings from the start but it’s only since this new information came to light that they have begun to become more… solid.”
Brian Finch shifted in his seat, she heard him tut. Ignored it. Bob was waiting but there was interest in his eyes now rather than irritation. She knew he was a believer in gut feeling, in instinct.
“When Mrs Baker was brought from her office, she was told only that there had been an incident involving her husband, and she needed to return to their home. I have checked and confirmed this.” Tanya paused again.
She was exhausted. The early start, lack of food and constant reliance on painkillers had made her feel ill and weak. Fleetingly she wondered if it might be the best thing to just walk away and let someone else take over. Then she glanced at the file in her hand, she was all too aware of the photographs they contained. “At no point in our interview with Mrs Baker did she ask what had happened to her husband, what his condition was or indeed where he was.”
Brian Finch interrupted. “Oh, for heaven’s sake, sir. The woman was in shock, she could see that something serious had happened. This is conjecture and opinion and nothing more.”
Bob Scunthorpe held up his hand. “Are you suggesting Mrs Baker had some involvement in the death of her husband, or some foreknowledge?”
“I don’t have enough at the moment, but I would like to take it further.”
“And this new progress with the other murders? Is it as important as you say, really? Is it enough for me to put my head on the block for?” As Bob Scunthorpe spoke Tanya was aware of Brian Finch shifting to the edge of the chair.
“Sir,” he blurted.
Now was the moment to deliver the killer blow, Tanya turned to face Finch. “I was intending to come down to have a word with you, Brian.”
Both men waited. “I was able today to help you along with your own case. My witness, Ana, was able to identify the victim that was found in the graveyard. It is a woman known to her.” She took a moment to enjoy the building fury evident on his face and flipped open the file. “Emilia, is the name she gave us. She was living in the same place as Ana. When I return tomorrow, I am hopeful I’ll be able to obtain more information, something that will lead to you being able to wind your case up.
She was aware she was ignoring the recent discussion and behaving as if she was still in charge of her enquiry. She stopped speaking and waited for Bob Scunth
orpe to come to her aid.
Chapter 61
“This puts me in quite a spot here, Detective Inspector,” Bob Scunthorpe said.
Brian Finch stood, pushing the chair backwards with the suddenness of the move. “Sir, you can’t be serious. I think the ACC was pretty clear. Detective Inspector Miller has not only failed to make progress, but she has antagonised a woman who is just as much a victim as her husband. This vague idea of suspicion falling on Mrs Baker is simply a smoke screen. I really must insist, sir, that we carry out the instruction of the Assistant Chief Constable. I am perfectly able to go to the detention centre myself and question this witness.”
“Sir, I don’t think that would work. The woman is in a very fragile state. Even with myself and Detective Constable Lewis, she became overwrought and we had to leave because they needed to administer a sedative. A different officer, and especially a male officer is, in my opinion, going to make matters worse and we won’t get anywhere,” Tanya said.
The DCI steepled his fingers on the desk in front of him. He waited for a moment; the tension was palpable. He lifted his gaze to look directly at Brian Finch. “Thank you for your input, both of you. Brian, I think, as we now have more information, you can leave it to me to speak to the ACC, and we’ll discuss these further developments. For the time being, I am allowing Detective Inspector Miller to continue with her investigations. Also, as she has now been able to uncover some helpful information you will probably wish to work with her on the case of the poor young woman who was found in the graveyard. I don’t think there is much to be gained at the moment from further discussion. I will be speaking to you both later when I have clarification but, in the meantime, we’ll leave things as they are.”
There was nothing for them to do now but to leave.
Tanya was the first into the corridor. She nodded at Bob’s new secretary as she passed. The thud of Brian Finch’s shoes as he rushed to catch up with her made her grin. This was going to be fun.
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