Déjà Vu

by Stephen Edger

  Lying on Patel’s couch, she’d been transported to the back seat of the taxi, to the moment when Janice had slurred to the driver that he was to take Megan straight home and take special care of her. She’d then half fallen out of the taxi, full of thanks and praise for Megan, her guardian angel, who had kept her alive even though the grim reaper was lurking. Janice had laughed hysterically at her own joke, and had slammed the taxi’s door and had almost gone to the wrong property, before suddenly realising and correcting her path.

  It was at this moment the taxi driver had stared up at Megan from the rear-view mirror and smiled. His greying beard curly, with stray hairs poking wildly at different angles.

  ‘You alright?’ he’d asked, his voice accented. ‘If you’re sick in my cab you’ll have to pay.’

  ‘I’m fine,’ Megan had fired back, frustrated that he’d thought she was as drunk as Janice.

  ‘You and your friend been drinking. You want some water to help sober up? It will stop hangover in morning.’

  She’d looked back at Janice, now at the front door, trying to line the key up with the door lock.

  When she’d turned back to face the front, the taxi driver had been leaning around his seat, offering her the bottle of mineral water. At first she was going to decline, but seeing that the small bottle was sealed, and was cool to the touch, she’d thanked him gratefully, snapping off the cap and taking a long gulp. She’d tried to return it to him, but he’d told her to keep it.

  Megan had taken a final glance back at Janice as the front door had opened and her friend had stepped inside before closing the door, and Megan had given the signal for the driver to move on.

  What followed from that point was harder to remember as the Flunitrazepam – that was what the police office had called the drug – began to take effect. In her mind’s eye, it was like watching a film edited out of order. One moment she could feel him lying on top of her, his brush-like beard scraping her back. Then the next minute she was back in the taxi, telling him she was feeling sleepy, and him suggesting she closed her eyes. And then they were back at her flat, and he was pushing himself through the door, even though she was telling him he shouldn’t be there.

  The nurse helped Megan slip off her trousers, bagging those as well as the underwear. It all felt so clinical, like being a laboratory rat. There was no emotion, and no way to stray from the path ahead. The nurse bagged all of the clothes items individually. She’d already suggested Wanda return to Megan’s home and fetch something to change into. Wanda had wanted to stay, to be in the examination suite, but that wasn’t a humiliation Megan was prepared to stand.

  ‘I’ll be fine,’ she’d lied, knowing that the next half hour would be one of the most uncomfortable – both emotionally and physically – that she would experience.

  She no longer felt like a person. Her privacy had been violated in the most heinous of ways, and she wasn’t sure she would ever feel safe again. The studio flat hadn’t felt like home since she’d moved in, but now it was somewhere she never wanted to step foot inside again.

  Wanda had promised she would pack up some items of clothing and toiletries and that Megan would stay at her house for the foreseeable future. For all her flaws, Wanda was proving to be a rock, and Megan could now understand why Rob had been so happy for his sister to support him in preparing his proposal.

  ‘I’m sorry I washed this morning,’ Megan said. ‘If I’d known I wouldn’t have...’

  ‘Don’t worry,’ the nurse said reassuringly. We’ll do the examination anyway, and then we’ll take some blood and a urine sample. The drug should show in urine for up to three days, but if we’re lucky it may still be in your blood, which will help with the case.’

  The nurse helped Megan onto the bed, and was very vocal about what she was doing, explaining where she would take samples from, the reason why, and all the time checking that Megan was happy with her to do so.

  She had tried to fight him off, but in her drugged state, she’d been unable to fend him off. He’d forced her hands beneath her belly, and with the weight of him on her back, she’d been powerless to stop him. She couldn’t specifically remember how she’d got the scratches, but she had a vague flash of grabbing a knife from the pile of dirty dishes on the draining board and threatening him with it. Had he managed to wrestle it from her? She couldn’t be certain.

  Waking this morning in the pool of blood, she’d had zero recollection of what had happened. Even now, despite the hypnotic regression it still didn’t feel like it had been done to her. Rob had never felt so far away.

  With the examination over, the nurse had carefully slipped out of the room to retrieve the fresh clothes from Wanda, and had then helped Megan to get dressed. Wanda was waiting in the corridor when the nurse wheeled her out of the room. Megan couldn’t look at her; knowing she and Dr Patel were the only other people in the world who knew the horror she’d experienced.

  ‘I’ll let the officer know you’re ready to make your statement,’ the nurse offered helpfully, removing her gloves and disposing of them in a yellow-lidded pedal bin inside the room.

  ‘I’ve made a statement,’ Wanda said, to break the uneasy silence when they were alone. ‘Although what we witnessed in Dr Patel’s office might not be admissible in court, they said there’s a possibility.’

  The two of them jumped as the door closest to them opened suddenly, and DS Jake Knight emerged, firing Megan a puzzled look.

  FIFTY-NINE

  She’d been crying, that was the first thing Jake had noticed. Then he’d seen the taller, older, stick thin white woman in a light flowery dress, but he didn’t know who she was.

  ‘Is everything alright, Megan?’ Jake asked, wondering whether she’d come in to try and spin her psychic mumbo-jumbo to someone else.

  She looked away, failing to hide her fear and sadness.

  Jake crouched down beside her; regardless of his personal opinion of her, clearly she was upset, and he wouldn’t leave her that way without finding out why.

  ‘What are you doing here, Megan?’

  She closed her mouth, grinding her teeth, clearly too ashamed to tell him what was wrong.

  Jake straightened, and was about to ask the second woman why Megan was so upset, when a nurse in a white uniform walked between the three of them and headed to the closed door at the end of the corridor, reappearing a moment later, clasping two vials of blood and a pot of urine in a protective bag.

  The nurse stopped at Megan’s side, whispering, ‘I’ll update the officer with the results. If you need to talk to anyone more, you have the address for the centre. Stop by anytime.’

  The nurse smiled politely at Jake, as she continued onwards, and the dots connected in his head. He didn’t know what to say.

  ‘Megan, I’m...I’m sorry...’

  It was impossible for him to know exactly what was going on inside her head, but he’d seen enough victims of sexual assault to know his very presence there – as a man – would be a source of concern for her.

  Jake turned to face the other woman, leading her a little further along the corridor where they wouldn’t be overheard. ‘Are you a friend of Megan’s?’

  ‘Sister-in-law,’ the woman replied proudly. ‘Megan was...she was engaged my brother before he died. I’m Wanda.’

  ‘My condolences for your brother. Is Megan...I mean, was she...was her drink spiked last night? Is that why she has a blank spot in her memory?’

  Wanda nodded. ‘Not so blank now. Her doctor used hypnotic regression to help her access those memories. The...the taxi driver who brought her home, we believe he was the one whom...’ She couldn’t finish the words, but Jake didn’t need her to.

  ‘So if she was with him, she couldn’t have...’ He paused and turned back to face her. She’d buried her face in her hands and her shoulders were gently rocking, as she wept.

  ‘Look after her,’ Jake said to Wanda. ‘She’ll be feeling humiliated, but she needs her friends around her more than sh
e’ll ever know. She has my business card. If she needs anything, call us and we’ll do what we can.’

  Wanda thanked him, and watched on as Jake returned to his crouched position beside the wheelchair.

  He handed her a clean handkerchief so she could wipe her eyes. ‘We’ll nail whoever did this to you. Okay? You have my word; we treat cases like this very seriously. If there’s anything I can do for you, just -’

  She suddenly reached into her handbag and removed the yellow exercise book, thrusting it towards him. ‘You – want – to – help – me?’ she said, her voice shaking between the sobs. ‘Then you – need to – read my – last dream.’ She took a deep breath to steady her voice. ‘It wasn’t me he was chasing; it was you.’

  Jake remembered Tosh’s warning about McGregor’s gang, but stared sceptically at the book. After what had happened to her he would have thought she’d have given up on this line of business.

  She recognised his cynicism and pressed the book into his hands. ‘Janice didn’t take me seriously enough, and look what happened to her. If she had listened, she would still be alive now. Please, just read.’

  Jake opened the book.

  It’s dark – so dark – and I’m outside in some kind of swamp, the mud so thick around me, like quicksand ... And it’s cold too; I don’t see it, but I’m sure condensation was billowing from my mouth ... And my heart is racing: I’m terrified that he is going to find and kill me ... I try to pull clear of the swamp, but it’s like I’m stuck there, like someone beneath the surface has hold of me and won’t let go ... But I do pull free and I am on my feet running ... Branches and twigs scratch at my arms and legs, and I feel the blood trickling, but I continue onwards ... Still so dark ... And then I trip and fall, and I’m sure he hears ... I can feel him watching me ... My wrist is hurt; sprained maybe, but I manage to get up and continue ... There is a clap of thunder and the heavens open, but even though I’m getting soaked, my only thought is escape ... I can hear him rampaging through the forest after me ... I don’t know where I am, but then I see the distant lights of a house ... I race towards it, knowing that if I can get inside I’ll be safe ... But he’s suddenly right behind me ... And then I’m tumbling for what feels like forever into a deep, dark hole ... I hit the ground and that’s when I look back up at his outline against the moonlight, and watch as he begins to fill the grave.

  ‘At first I thought it was you who was chasing me,’ Megan continued, her voice and breathing steadier now. ‘Your outline matched what I saw in the dream, but I think that’s why it’s your life that’s in danger. All I can tell you about the place is that it was pitch black; no sign of street lights anywhere. And I crawled out of a muddy swamp, into a forest of trees. Given the thunder and lightning and heavy rain, I’m guessing it’s going to happen tonight or tomorrow.’ She grabbed his hand and squeezed it tight. ‘Whatever you do tonight, don’t go out after dark. Stay home with your loved ones.’

  Her eyes showed a determination he hadn’t seen in a long time. There was no doubt Megan believed every word she’d said, even if he didn’t.

  ‘Can you describe the house to me?’ Jake asked, humouring her a tad.

  She closed her eyes, trying to recall the memory. ‘It had two storeys, there were no other properties anywhere near, oh, and I think it was old-fashioned...um, made of stone, not brick. The front door was slap-bang in the middle, with bright windows either side.’

  He peeled her fingers from around his hand. ‘Had you ever seen the house or surrounding forest before? Did any of it look familiar?’

  She shook her head. ‘No, it’s funny, because I felt I recognised the car in the first nightmare, and I saw the train station in the second, and the third was set in my old flat – the one that burned down – but this time I felt lost and terrified.’

  Jake made a show of re-reading the text before handing the book back to her. ‘I appreciate the warning.’

  She clasped his hand again. ‘I don’t want to feel responsible for another death. Please, promise me you’ll stay home. No matter what happens. Please?’

  Jake patted her hand until she let go again. ‘Okay, I promise. Just tell me one thing: why do you think you’re having these visions?’

  Megan considered the question in silence. ‘I honestly don’t know...I want to think it’s Rob’s way of helping, even though he’s gone. You know, like he wants me to help save people from horrible deaths. I’ve failed so far, which is why you can’t.’

  Jake stood as he heard approaching footsteps. Turning he saw PC Durridge hurrying along the corridor, almost out of breath as he caught up to them and pulled Jake back along the corridor.

  ‘That phone number you gave me,’ he panted. ‘It’s the same number that called Rita Enfield when she was at the Wetherspoons at the bottom end of town.’

  Jake froze. ‘You’re sure?’

  Durridge nodded. ‘I just double-checked, and it’s definitely the same number.’

  ‘Where was it when the call was placed?’

  ‘Triangulated between the cell towers in Shirley, Lordshill, and Totton.’

  Jake’s pulse quickened. ‘Is the phone on now? Can we trace it?’

  Durridge shook his head. ‘Hasn’t been on since that call. But the phone company said they would call the moment it comes back to life, if it does.’

  Jake thanked him and took one further glance back at Megan who was now being comforted by her sister-in-law. There was still nothing to officially connect Carlos, Rita and Janice, save for Megan’s dreams. But that wasn’t conclusive proof. Yet the voice in the back of Jake’s head was now screaming.

  He had work to do.

  SIXTY

  Jake’s mind was racing with questions – not many answers – but plenty of questions. Who called both Carlos Xavier and Rita Enfield before their deaths? And why? Was it purely coincidence: did they have friends in common? Or was there something far more terrifying afoot.

  The police define the first hour of any murder investigation as the ‘Golden Hour’, and it was a widely-held belief that the decisions taken during this first hour had the potential to make or break the enquiry. But both Carlos and Rita had died several days earlier, and neither case was being treated as a murder enquiry. But was that the beauty of what had happened? Were their suicides covering up something more sinister?

  Jake realised the hypothesis was thin, and he would require far more than the nagging voice in his head to convince Tosh and any of his colleagues. But it was a starting point with which to sculpt his questions.

  From memory, Rita and Carlos lived in different areas, were almost a generation apart, and travelled in very different circles; in fact Carlos had little by way of social life at all. But two things linked them: the person who had called, and Megan Hopkirk’s dreams. But his view of her was changing by the second. Whilst he had no explanation for the things she had alleged to have seen, he no longer harboured thoughts that she might be involved, and yet, he still wasn’t convinced that her name wouldn’t crop up later down the line.

  His mind was still processing these thoughts as he stepped into the Major Incident Room where DCI Toshack was formally addressing the gathered faces, many of which nodded in Jake’s directions as he made his way into the circle. Stood next to the DCI, DS Ian Waverley scowled at Jake, who blew a kiss in his direction; trying not to giggle at the stupidity of the grudge.

  ‘Now that everyone’s here,’ Tosh began, ‘I just wanted us to take a moment to re-cap where we are on the investigation. We don’t currently have anyone in custody, but where are we with our suspects list?’

  ‘My money’s on the husband,’ one of the DCs shouted out, and there were several nods of heads from the rest of the dozen or so gathered around the main dry-wipe board in the centre of the office.

  ‘Darren Walker’s prints weren’t on the murder weapon,’ Tosh challenged, ‘but then nobody’s were. What’s his motive?’

  ‘He was the main breadwinner,’ Waverley confirmed,
his attention now back on the board. ‘Rumour has it he earned quite a tasty bonus in the last couple of months and was planning to leave his wife. Neighbours reported arguments in the days leading up to the crime. One neighbour commented that the victim was known to have had the occasional affair, but he wasn’t able to give any names and suggested it was some time ago.’

  ‘Anything else at the scene to tie him to it?’ Tosh pressed on.

  ‘They renewed their life assurance policies at the end of last year,’ someone else piped up. ‘She was worth a cool half million. Just what you’d need to start again.’

  Jake coughed. ‘I don’t buy it. If I was thinking of murdering my wife and claiming on the insurance, I certainly wouldn’t leave the body on the driveway. I’d have a proper alibi in place, and would ensure the body was at an impossible distance from wherever I was.’

  Tosh smiled, relieved that someone was prepared to offer alternative opinion. ‘Ladies and gents, let’s all welcome back DS Knight. Good to have you back in the fold, Jakey. Can anyone offer any suspects that aren’t the victim’s husband? Are we certain she’s been having a fling behind his back? If so, who with? A friend? A colleague?’

  ‘My witness wasn’t aware of any extra-marital affairs,’ Jake confirmed, consulting the notes he’d taken during his second chat with Megan. ‘She said they were in love, which is why my gut says it wasn’t him.’

  ‘But the stabbing was undertaken with passion,’ Waverley countered. ‘Had to have been someone she knew.’

  ‘Where are we with local surveillance cameras?’ Tosh interrupted, keen to keep control of the meeting.

  The team brief ended with specific instructions for all to dig further into the background of Janice and Darren Walker. Jake could understand why the husband was considered the prime suspect, but just because nine times out of ten the killer turned out to be a spouse or partner, didn’t mean that was the case this time. Nothing in Megan’s account of the crime had suggested the husband was involved, but Jake was struggling to focus his mind on the case. Having not visited the scene, and his only involvement being his chat with Megan, it would take time to feel the same adrenalin buzz the rest were thriving on.