Cold Justice

by Lee Weeks

  ‘This must be his master’s suite.’ Lauren shook her head. ‘Definitely over-the-top.’

  Up the third flight of stairs was a room with a four-poster. It had a chesterfield in the corner. Its heavy brocade curtains were opulent purples and gold.

  ‘Look at this,’ Lauren called from the bathroom.

  Willis joined her and stood speechless in the middle of a marble-clad wet room with a bath in the centre and a double sink.

  ‘This isn’t exactly a family-friendly house, is it? We haven’t seen any cots or bunks,’ said Lauren.

  ‘No. I haven’t seen the telly yet either,’ said Willis.

  She walked back through to the front of the house and the lounge on her right where the wood-burner was fully alight and throwing out some heat. Willis closed the curtains in the rooms and went to find Lauren.

  Lauren was sitting at the kitchen table.

  ‘Can I get you anything?’ Willis asked as she put the kettle back on and looked in the cupboards.

  ‘Yes, a glass of wine, please.’

  ‘Okay.’ Willis opened the cupboards looking for any sign of a bottle. She was surprised to see that the cupboards were well stocked.

  ‘There’s some already in the fridge. I saw it there,’ Lauren said. She was sitting with her head resting on her hands, watching Willis. Russell was doing a smelling tour of the kitchen.

  ‘Are you calling Toby this evening?’ asked Willis as she took the wine from the fridge door.

  Lauren nodded.

  Willis and Carter already knew about Jeanie’s day with Toby and what she’d learned. Willis knew that it would be fair to tell Lauren but decided she just wasn’t able to. She was hoping Toby would do it for her.

  Willis found a corkscrew and made a mess of opening the bottle. After several attempts Lauren got up and took it off her.

  ‘We only have one cold bottle so I better take over.’ She smiled. ‘You’re not much of a wine connoisseur then?’

  ‘No – more of a Coca-Cola expert. What do you want to do this evening?’

  Willis found a glass for Lauren.

  ‘I want to go through it all. I want to know what the police are working on. I want to know exactly what you think has happened. I want to be kept informed about everything.’

  ‘Okay, Lauren. I’ll do my best to tell you everything I know.’

  Willis made herself a cup of tea, still thinking about what she should say and what she shouldn’t. She was trying to think what Jeanie would do and decided she’d phone and ask her later. She texted Carter as she set Lauren’s wine down and sat across the table from her. Lauren picked up a pad of paper and a pen.

  ‘Where do you want to start?’ Willis looked at the blank pad of paper.

  ‘I want to start with Samuel.’ She put Samuel’s name in block capitals in the middle of the page – from him she drew a line and wrote ‘Toby’ and then her own name.

  She stopped and looked at what she’d written and then up at Willis.

  ‘Do you think he’s still alive?’ Willis didn’t answer straight away.

  ‘Honestly? I do, you know. Carter does and he’s the best judge of these things. He has an instinct about people, about what motivates them. He thinks someone has Samuel for a purpose, which we will get to the bottom of. He thinks that they won’t harm him, they will keep him until they achieve that purpose.’

  ‘What purpose?’

  ‘Something to do with money and this house; and to do with the man who owned it.’

  Lauren breathed in through her nose deeply and sighed as she exhaled. Willis’s answer seemed to have exhausted Lauren but the lines on her worried face eased slightly. She seemed calmer.

  ‘I am sure he’s out there somewhere,’ Lauren said. ‘He’s calling for me somewhere. My heart is breaking but a part of me feels hope still.’

  ‘What about Toby? Does he feel the same?’

  ‘I don’t know what Toby feels,’ she answered dismissively. ‘Since it happened he has hardly answered one of my questions. He’s shut up shop. Yes, I know he feels like it’s his fault and Christ knows so do I. I mean, what kind of father is he? He told me he never wanted Samuel. I always knew that I got pregnant against his wishes. Ultimately it’s just as much my fault as his. I forced Toby into a corner and he’s tried his best to make himself fit into it but he can’t. Somehow I don’t care about him any more. I realize I only married him to have Samuel.’

  She shook her head. ‘No, that’s just not true. I loved him, I fancied him. He was so sweet to me. We had a whirlwind romance and then that was it. A few months later I found I was pregnant, no surprise to me, big surprise for him. He tried to be happy but I knew he felt disappointed, more than that really. He felt I’d cheated him in a way. And I had.’

  ‘How has he been recently?’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘The build-up to his dad’s funeral and afterwards? He said he didn’t get on with his father, but still . . .’

  ‘He’s been upset, distracted. He’s been nervous about everything but he didn’t talk about specifics. I shouldn’t have let him take Samuel out – his mind was elsewhere. He couldn’t look after him properly. I shouldn’t have trusted him. Christ!’

  She stood abruptly.

  ‘I can’t stay inside a moment longer. Can we go for a look around the area – we might find something to help Samuel. Why aren’t the police looking for him down here?’

  ‘We are, I promise you. Both Carter and I have been searching places today. The helicopter has been up. We are looking, I promise.’

  Willis felt her phone buzz in her pocket – she got a text from Carter.

  ‘Excuse me, Lauren.’

  How is she?

  Tense, she replied, we’re going out for a drive.

  I’ll stay here and wait for locals to appear, Carter replied. Watch yourself – don’t go off-piste.

  Chapter 20

  Ebony drove slowly on the unlit lanes. Russell settled down in the back of the car. Lauren took out a map she’d printed of the area.

  ‘I wanted to see what’s around – I need to get my bearings.’

  ‘I understand.’

  They drove down the winding lane towards Penhal and the beach. The shops were all dark, closed up for the night.

  Willis drove past the shops and away from the beach, up and out of the village on the other side, past the bed-and-breakfasts and small guesthouses, bungalows perched on the side of the winding lane, until the stone walls and high hedges took over again and the stars were the only light to break up the darkness.

  Lauren used the light on her phone to look at the map in her hand.

  ‘It’s hard to know where to start,’ she said, exasperated.

  Willis pulled over into a layby.

  ‘Can I see?’

  She handed the map across to Willis.

  ‘We should start on this side tonight and work our way across section by section. Let’s look at this part here, since we’re this side, and then we can work across bit by bit. I think we should concentrate on places where there are buildings. There are lots of tiny farm tracks that we might have to be careful of. I don’t want us to get stuck in the middle of nowhere. But these lanes are going to be easier to negotiate when we can see lights rather than in the day when we could hit a tractor. I think we should look at this section here.’ She showed Lauren the map and ringed the area she had in mind. ‘We are here. And I suggest we take the next right.’

  Lauren nodded her agreement as she took the map back from Willis.

  After more than an hour of driving Willis headed for home.

  ‘We’ve made a good start, Lauren, don’t get despondent. We’ll continue tomorrow. Dan Carter will be coming over later this evening and the three of us will tackle it together. That is, unless you tell me you’re not up to it, and I’d understand if that’s so.’

  ‘I’m up for anything that has a chance of finding my son,’ she answered indignantly.

  ‘O
f course. I’m sorry.’

  As they drove back through Penhal they passed the Surfshack. Willis looked at the clock on the dashboard. It was nine. She pulled over and parked outside.

  ‘Stay in the car for me a minute, Lauren, while I take a look.’

  It was too dark – she could no longer see the sea although she could still hear it pounding and crashing on the beach: it was a black menace beneath the clouded night sky. She shivered.

  From somewhere at the back of the shop, a light was on. The glow from the window in the Surfshack was faint, but definite. Willis walked Russell around to the front of the building and up the steps. Inside the window were posters of bronzed surfers. Willis cupped her hands to see if she could make out movement, but she couldn’t. She walked around to the side of the building that had the goods entrance and was elevated up a few steps from the hard-standing car park. As she made her way back around towards the front she saw a light come on in the shop. She doubled back and knocked on the glass. There was movement, then it stopped: froze. She leaned in to look through the glass. She looked towards the car where a man was now leaning in and talking to Lauren.

  Willis called out, ‘Can I help you, sir?’

  He stood up and stepped back as he held his palms up. ‘Just asking if this lady was waiting for my shop to open, that’s all. No sweat, lady.’

  ‘I’m Detective Constable Willis.’ She showed her badge. ‘And you are?’

  ‘Marky Raymonds.’

  The side door opened and another man stood looking at her in the doorway. He sniffed loudly as he wiped his nose with his sleeve.

  ‘You’re working late,’ she said, holding her badge up for him to see. ‘What’s your name?’

  ‘Jago. I’m just inspecting my new surfboard.’ He called over to the man by the car: ‘Hey, Marky . . . you all finished in here? Can I lock up?’

  ‘Yeah. Let’s get a drink.’

  ‘Jago what?’ Willis held out her arm to stop him from going past her. He stopped, grinned and took an exaggerated step backwards.

  ‘Jago Trebethin.’ He gave a nod towards the car. ‘Is that the woman who lost her son? We heard you were down. You went to the Stokes farm today, didn’t you?’

  Willis nodded. ‘Have you got any information about the missing child?’

  ‘No, I can’t tell you anything except how sorry I am for the family.’

  ‘I’ll pass that on. Did you know Jeremy Forbes-Wright personally?’ asked Willis.

  ‘I met him a few times over the years. He was pretty hard to miss – big character.’

  ‘You went up to the funeral on Monday, didn’t you?’

  ‘Yes I did, me and Marky there. We went up to pay our respects. Least we could do, such a great man, meant a lot to the villagers.’

  ‘Right. So I’ve heard,’ she said. ‘Where are you working tomorrow in case I need to ask you some more questions?’

  ‘I’ll be at home tomorrow unless the surf is good, then you can catch me down here in the water.’

  ‘Where do you live?’

  ‘I’m sharing a place with Marky here, a cottage on the Stokes farm. You must have passed my place on the lane to the farm.’

  ‘Were you there this afternoon?’

  ‘No, I was down here helping my mum; she owns the shop across the road.’

  ‘Were you anywhere near the Garra Cove area?’

  He shook his head, looked perplexed. ‘I know it; I go there often. It’s a pretty beach away from the holidaymakers. Great for collecting mussels and good surfing sometimes. But I didn’t go there today, who would? The surf was blown out there. The rocks are dangerous then. Look, we’re just on the way across to the other side for a drink in the bar,’ he said. ‘If you’re off duty later you can come and find us.’

  ‘No thanks.’

  Willis watched them walk away and disappear around the back of the Surfshack before she got in the car. She drove back to Kellis House and took Russell inside. The fire had gone out.

  Willis picked up her bag. ‘Which of the rooms do you want?’ she asked Lauren.

  ‘Shall we go next to each other in the two front-facing bedrooms?’ Lauren replied.

  ‘Yes, that’s fine. I don’t think either of them have an en-suite.’

  ‘Are you going to bed now?’

  ‘No, don’t worry – just taking my bag up, that’s all, I’ll be straight back.’

  ‘Shall I make us some dinner?’ Lauren sounded like she wanted to and Willis was starving.

  ‘Yes, if you don’t mind – I’m always hungry. I’ll come and chop stuff for you in ten.’

  By the time Willis got back down the smell of onion and garlic was all round the house. ‘Have I missed my chance?’ Willis said as she looked inside the saucepan at the pasta sauce. ‘I’m a lousy cook but a good chopper.’

  ‘Just a quick pasta sauce,’ Lauren said.

  ‘Great.’

  As Lauren stirred the sauce she sighed continually. Her shoulders rose and fell with her exaggerated breathing.

  ‘You want me to do something for you, Lauren?’

  ‘A glass of wine, please.’

  Willis went and got the bottle from the fridge and poured Lauren one.

  ‘Are you going to join me?’

  ‘Not tonight, thanks.’

  Willis knew what she was in for. She hoped that they would make it to the end of dinner before Lauren broke down.

  Chapter 21

  Carter sat at the bar with his bottle of beer and watched the bearded barman connect up the new barrel. There was an ‘aboard deck’ style about the bar that worked in summer but was cold-feeling in winter with albatross carvings and white sail cloth for curtains, ships’ portholes along the front of the bar. There was a game of bridge going on. This time of year it could have done with a wood-burner because there was a cold draught from the long thin main part of the bar; at the back and up a few steps were two pool tables and a few gaming machines. The sound of one being played was a constant noise in the background. Carter was thinking how people must be seriously short of somewhere to go to have to come to this place every night. He was going off the idea of owning a second home.

  Raymonds had come in at the other entrance to the bar some five minutes ago and was working his way up towards him. He hadn’t missed Carter and looked amused by his presence. He walked in with what looked like his son and another man. The son was taller than his dad but had the same stretched skin over fine features. His face was smoothed out.

  There was no music in the bar – just the sound of the pool table and the gambling machines. There was a hard-core set of local drinkers present.

  ‘She let you off your leash?’ The three men walked up to Carter’s end of the bar. Raymonds stopped to talk to him while the other two walked past to have a look at the pool table. Carter did his best to look as if he didn’t understand. ‘Have you had a good day playing with your gadgets: helicopters, dogs and search teams?’

  ‘It’s been interesting. We even saw you out at the old mine.’

  ‘Oh, I expect you’ll see me a lot before you’re through here. I like to keep a good eye on my flock.’ He laughed.

  Carter took in the interest in him that Raymonds had generated with his question. Carter smiled, looked back at his beer and took a drink from the bottle.

  ‘You haven’t found him yet then?’ Raymonds said as he picked up his pint from the barman and moved along the bar next to Carter.

  ‘Not yet.’

  ‘Dead – no doubt about it. He’ll be lying in some ditch somewhere. In some dark place that you can’t see.’

  ‘Possible, but this case isn’t an easy one to call. I could do with a little help from you – ex-officer, you want to share some pearls of wisdom?’

  ‘I’ll share one for a start – the father, Toby, did you investigate him like I said?’

  Carter gave a small shake of the head. ‘We’ve got nothing on him.’ He ordered another beer and offered Raymonds one. He accepted
and downed the half-pint he had in his glass. ‘We can’t establish a motive at the moment.’

  ‘Some people don’t need a motive. Just an opportunity and a bucket-load of malice – bound to come out some day. Busy London streets. A baby could easily go missing from a buggy. Especially if the father was just plain careless with it.’

  ‘As I said, we don’t have any idea.’

  ‘Yet, something brings you down here.’

  ‘It’s just another line of enquiry.’

  ‘Is his estate tidied up yet?’

  Carter shook his head. ‘It’s a lengthy process, as you know. I’m not the one looking into it – I leave that to the clever ones in London. If it had anything to do with his estate you’d think someone would have waited until it was settled and there was money in the bank.’

  ‘They have plenty of money – I’m sure the wife has a good job. It’s a big expense living where they do.’

  Carter took a swig of his beer.

  ‘You went sightseeing the day of the funeral – did it include a tour of Toby’s apartment?’

  ‘I looked in the estate agents’ windows when I walked around Greenwich – colossal amount of money for a tiny place. They’ve got the house now. They’re sitting pretty – it’s a million-pound property.’ As Raymonds talked, Carter could see the hunger in his eyes.

  ‘Perhaps, but they can’t sell it yet. It’s part of his estate. Nothing’s settled yet. It can take a long time.’

  ‘Yeah. Hey, Marky – come and say hello.’ Raymonds pulled his son back as he was walking past. ‘Detective Inspector Carter, this is my son Marky who owns the Surfshack down there on the beach, and this is Jago who does very little at the moment, except cause trouble.’ He laughed.

  Carter shook their hands.

  ‘We met your partner just now down at the beach,’ Jago said. He was well spoken with a groomed appearance about him, tailored shirt and jeans. He looked like he shopped in places that charged a hundred pounds for a polo shirt. He also looked like he worked out. He had too much gel in his hair and it was too long on top, it stuck up in the air like a cockerel’s comb.