Dead to Me: A serial killer thriller (Detective Kate Matthews Crime Thriller Series Book 1)

by Stephen Edger

  She didn’t want to ask, but the word was out of her mouth before she could stop it. ‘What?’

  ‘You’re too late to save Fenton. The sooner you accept that fact, the sooner you can forgive yourself and move on. There is nothing you can do to stop the inevitable.’

  ‘I have backup on the way. A team will be here any second, and then we’ll hunt until we find him. Your sick little game won’t work, Vaughn. You might as well give up now, and tell me where he is.’

  He laughed. ‘I can see from your eyes that you’re bluffing.’

  She stuck her chin out in an effort to appear more confident. ‘I phoned in this location when I arrived.’

  ‘How would you do that with no phone signal? I didn’t choose this place at random. I knew we wouldn’t be disturbed. There’s an army barracks not far from here, but other than that, there isn’t a soul in five miles.’

  She growled in frustration. ‘Just tell me what you want. I’ve had enough of this shit!’

  ‘It’s a simple exchange: a life for a life. On the wall next to the television is a kill switch. Press it and you will cut the air pumping through his mask. He will die in under a minute. Do that and I will give you the name of DC Spencer’s killer.’

  ‘You’re insane!’

  ‘I may be many things, but I’m not insane.’

  Kate moved across to the switch and studied the large red button on the yellow plastic mount. ‘I won’t do it. I’m not like you.’

  ‘What’s the issue? He’s going to die soon anyway. You’ll just quicken the process.’

  ‘If he’s going to die anyway, what difference does it make whether I press the button or not?’

  ‘Because it will prove to me that my instincts about you were right.’

  She lowered her eyes. ‘I’m not a killer.’

  ‘Killer is a term reserved for those who act with bad intentions. Do we refer to soldiers as killers? No, yet they kill on the battlefield. What about the nurses and doctors who work in abortion clinics? We don’t call them killers, because they are performing a service for the person who doesn’t want the unborn child. If anything, you’ll be putting him out of his misery. He doesn’t know how close to the end he is, but he’s been in that box long enough to realise that he will suffocate at some point. Can you imagine how that must feel?’

  ‘It’s murder.’

  ‘No! It’s justice. He has killed and ordered the executions of countless men. Death is the only thing he deserves!’

  Her gaze fell back on the switch and then up to Fenton on the screen. ‘If he is guilty of murder then he should be tried in a court of law.’

  ‘You think I didn’t try that approach? I nearly had him once, but he slipped through our fingers. I won’t let that happen again. This is the only way.’

  Her eyes darted from the switch to Vaughn. ‘I swear to you, if you release him, I will spend every waking hour chasing him until he gets what he truly deserves. The right way.’

  ‘Don’t you see, Kate? Press that button and you won’t need to. You’ll be able to chase after new criminals and ensure they get the justice they deserve. Criminals like Amy’s killer. You can finally bring him in and wipe that smug grin off the faces of people like Underhill and Hendrix. All you have to do is press that button and I’ll give you his name.’

  Her hand hovered over the switch, but she just couldn’t. Or could she? ‘How do I know you’re not lying to me again? If I press that button, I have no way of knowing if you actually know who killed her, or whether you’re setting me up.’

  ‘That’s a chance you’ll have to take, Kate. You’d better hurry up and make a decision. He has under three minutes of air left, and if he dies before you press that button you will never find out the truth.’

  Kate checked her phone.

  No signal. No way to call for help.

  She looked him in the eye, almost defeated. ‘Tell me his name and I’ll press the button.’

  76

  ‘It doesn’t work like that, Kate.’

  She studied the thick black cable hanging down from the switch. ‘Don’t you trust me to press it?’

  ‘Trust has to be earned, Kate.’

  ‘Yet you expect me to trust you to give me the name once I’ve cut off his air supply?’

  ‘Everything I showed you led to this moment. I had to test you were worthy to continue my legacy. You’ve lived up to expectations so far, but I need to be sure you’re one hundred per cent committed to the cause.’

  ‘“Cause”?’

  ‘Delivering true justice when it is necessary; righting the wrongs the system can’t correct.’

  ‘Killing.’

  ‘I had good reason, and once you’ve killed Fenton, you’ll be free to end my life too. I’m weak and frail. It wouldn’t take much.’

  Her fingers brushed the button. ‘Why me?’

  ‘Only a true detective could have found the way through the maze I created. I had my doubts about you at times, but you didn’t give up when so many others would have done. You kept going, even when I threatened the life of your daughter. You have one final obstacle, and then you can take your place as a true crusader for justice.’

  The thick black cable trailed down and disappeared through the wall near the floor. ‘Is that what you think you are?’

  ‘Two minutes to go, Kate.’

  Kate stared from Vaughn to Fenton. ‘So, it’s remote-controlled then?’

  He held her gaze. ‘Something like that.’

  ‘I only have your word for it that the air is running out.’

  ‘You can see how the air is starting to thin. He’s having to take deeper breaths, which is only using up the supply quicker. I reckon he’s got ninety or so seconds left. Are you really going to waste the opportunity to uncover the name of Amy’s killer?’

  On the screen, Fenton was starting to struggle within the tight confines of the box. It was really happening.

  ‘Please, Eddie, tell me where he is. Let me end this and then we can discuss a way forward.’

  ‘Press the button, Kate. You’re running out of time.’

  ‘And what if I press it? That proves nothing. You have no guarantee that I’ll continue what you started. I could end his life now, and go back on my word as soon as we’re out of here.’

  A smile broke out across his face. ‘No, you won’t. I know you, Kate. Pressing that button will awaken something inside of you and you’ll never go back. It will open your eyes to all the faults with the system, and it will give you the courage to make a real difference.’ He sucked on the mask. ‘The first one is the hardest. I learned that with Yen, but I held my nerve, and it was much easier with Watson. I can help you through it. You have the courage. Press the button now and let the journey begin.’

  Kate clamped her eyes shut. Was it really murder if he was about to die anyway? Nobody would know she’d pressed it; she could blame it on Vaughn. If she pressed it and he didn’t name Amy’s killer, she could still arrest him for Fenton’s murder. Who would believe his word over hers? He had nothing to gain from not naming Amy’s killer.

  Her arm trembled as she raised her hand towards the button.

  ‘That’s it, Kate. He has under a minute. It’s now, or never.’

  Kate’s eyes stung with tears as she opened them and saw how close her hand was to the button. Her fingers were no more than a hair’s breadth from making contact.

  ‘Press it, Kate, and catch Amy’s killer.’

  Could she live with the knowledge that she’d killed Fenton? Did the ends really justify the means? Wasn’t it better to stop Amy’s killer striking again?

  The breath caught in her throat as her fingertip brushed the button’s edge. She quickly pulled it away, before reaching for the thick black cable and tugging on it. She was surprised when it came away in her hands. She pulled the slack through the hole in the wall until it was taut.

  She turned and saw Vaughn wheeling himself away. She moved to go after him, but on the sc
reen Fenton was starting to violently shake. The door slammed shut as Vaughn disappeared through it. She had to believe he wouldn’t get far, not in his condition.

  There was no doorway to whatever lay the other side of the wall, but as she banged her hand against it, the echo told her it was only plasterboard. She searched frantically for anything she could use to break through, finding a fire extinguisher and, hanging above it, an axe in the corner by the door. She yanked it from the wall and, lifting it over her head, she swung it hard against the wall with all her might.

  The plaster cracked in two, revealing a hidden room beyond. She swung the axe again, and suddenly light flooded into the hidden passage. She traced the thick cable to a large opening in the ground. She could see Fenton’s panicked eyes staring back up at her through a transparent barrier in the floor. She stamped on it, but the Perspex resisted her weight.

  He had seconds left.

  She was angry that she hadn’t figured it out sooner. Of course, Fenton had to be nearby. Vaughn was in no condition to dig a grave, let alone shift a body. The hole and box had to have been prepared when he was more able-bodied, allowing him just to drop Fenton in.

  Fenton’s face was growing redder by the second. The gauge on the gas canister that lay on top of the box was on zero. She couldn’t see a way of opening the lid – it was sealed shut.

  She was out of time. There was only one thing for it. Grabbing the axe again, she swung it down against the lid. It bounced off leaving barely a mark, sending her crashing to the floor. She forced herself back up as he writhed in the box beneath her.

  ‘Hold on,’ she shouted at Fenton.

  She hoisted the axe over her shoulders once more, summoning every fibre of anger and frustration she had built up inside her and, with a wild cry, she pulled the axe over and slammed it down at the lid.

  77

  The hole in the plastic lid was barely three inches wide, but it wasn’t enough. Fenton lay there motionless, his eyes closed. She banged her hand on the lid, calling for him to wake up. His eyes flickered but scarcely opened. She needed to get him out. Fast.

  She could hardly stand as the exertion took its toll. She scanned the box again, looking for any kind of weakness she could exploit to get to him. At the foot-end of the box she spotted a catch and padlock. It took all her strength to pull the axe free.

  ‘Hold on,’ she said using the axe handle to help steady herself as she stood.

  She appraised the box again. The only way she would get enough purchase to break the catch was if she stood on the box and faced it.

  ‘Keep still,’ she warned, as she lifted herself up onto the lid, just above his waistline. ‘I’m going to swing on the count of three. Just try and keep your feet apart.’

  The box was barely wide enough for his hips to fit, but she saw him press his feet to the edges as best he could.

  Kate hoisted the axe into the air, hoping it would be the final time. She bellowed once again as she swung the steel head down. The impact vibrated through the handle and up her arms, causing her to lose balance, crashing head first towards the plasterboard wall. She groaned as the plaster dust settled around her like snow. She wanted to prop herself up, but every part of her ached, and her brain refused to move her.

  She could hear shuffling behind her as Fenton managed to push the lid up and scramble from the box, and tried to raise her head to make eye contact, but it was too painful. She felt him grab her shoulders.

  ‘Who the fuck put me in that hole?’

  She couldn’t answer as the thick fog enveloped her mind. The last thing she heard was Fenton darting through the door out of the hidden room. And then there was nothing but black.

  78

  She didn’t know how long she’d been lying there when she heard the familiar sound of sirens growing louder as they drew closer. An invasion of blue light flashed off the painted walls at the entrance to the building. She watched as armed officers flooded the room, packed tightly in Kevlar, their weapons trained on any movement. They secured the room, and one of them asked if she was okay. She was about to confirm she was, when Laura pushed through them.

  She fell to her knees, and tried to help Kate up. ‘Ma’am, are you okay. Did he hurt you?’

  She winced as she rolled onto her back. ‘I’m okay, he didn’t do this to me.’

  ‘Thank God.’

  ‘How did you find me?’

  ‘When Hendrix couldn’t get hold of you, she called me from Mawkes Close and demanded to know where you were. I told her you were at the station, but she said she’d phoned there and you couldn’t be found. I didn’t want to tell her about you interviewing Patel, so I made my way back from the nursing home and found the envelope under my keyboard. I didn’t know what it meant, at first, but assumed the killer had left it for you. Reading the message, I knew you had to be here.’

  ‘I wish you’d got here sooner.’

  ‘Where’s Fenton? Where’s the killer?’

  She reached for Laura’s hand and forced herself to her feet. ‘It’s a long story. Fenton’s gone.’

  ‘Should we go after him?’

  She shook her head, more of her hair falling from the ponytail. ‘What’s the point? We haven’t got anything on him.’ She winced. ‘He wasn’t the one behind any of this.’

  ‘No? Who was then?’

  Kate was about to answer, when a voice shouted to her from the entrance.

  ‘Let me through, let me through, dammit. Matthews, where are you?’

  They turned and saw the supe marching through the door.

  ‘DI Matthews, I need to speak to you urgently.’

  She leaned closer to Laura. ‘Can you secure the scene for me? Get SOCOs here ASAP.’

  Laura nodded and moved away as the supe reached them. He pulled Kate up and led her away from anyone who might overhear them. Her injuries cried out with every step.

  ‘Sir, before you start, I’m sor—’

  ‘Never mind about all that right now. Trotter called me when she found the coordinates and told me what has been going on. I assume you told her to phone me?’

  ‘What she said about Patel, we were wrong about—’

  ‘Of course you were wrong about DS Patel. I knew that the moment she called and started throwing about accusations.’

  ‘So, you know Patel wasn’t behind this?’

  ‘Of course it wasn’t him, but what Trotter told me about the connections between the three murders got me thinking…’ He paused. ‘Where is he?’

  ‘He, sir?’

  DSI Williams ushered her through the small door leading from the hidden room, and gritted his teeth. ‘Don’t make me say his name out loud, Matthews. Did you see him? Is he still alive?’

  ‘How did you know—?’

  He raised his hand. ‘That’s not important right now. What went on here?’

  She proceeded to tell him everything that had happened since she’d arrived at the farm, including Vaughn’s confession before he’d disappeared. The supe looked at her intensely. ‘Where was Fenton while this conversation took place?’

  ‘In the ground in the hidden room. He wasn’t conscious when he went in. Before he took off he said he hadn’t seen his abductor’s face, and I don’t believe he could have heard what was discussed, as he was too far away.’

  He looked deeply troubled. ‘Good. And that’s the way it should be.’

  ‘Sir?’

  ‘You and I are the only two who know the real identity of the killer, and that’s how it will stay.’

  ‘But, sir, the families, we need to—’

  ‘Out of the question, Matthews!’

  ‘Sir, he murdered three people. He abducted my mother, and he threatened my daughter’s life. He’s a monster.’

  ‘He was a very sick man in the throes of death. And now he is gone. It serves no benefit to give him a name.’

  ‘I’m sorry, sir, but you’re wrong.’

  ‘This isn’t open for debate, Matthews. You will keep y
our lips sealed. If the truth ever gets out, I will hold you personally responsible.’

  ‘And what do I tell my team? They know someone was behind all this. They’ll want a name so we can close the cases.’

  ‘I will handle the closure of the cases. You can tell them the killer’s identity is a matter of national security and that you are not at liberty to divulge his name.’

  She couldn’t believe what he was saying.

  ‘And before you try and argue, Matthews, you should remember the possible implications if the truth does ever get out. Every criminal that he helped convict will be subject to an appeal hearing. It won’t matter that there was sufficient evidence to secure their sentences in the first place. It will be a free-for-all for every crook he put away in his thirty-four years of service. Do you really want that on you? Think about it, think about what it will do to our team and your fellow officers.’

  She shook her head. ‘No, I won’t do it. I want no part in a cover-up.’

  ‘This isn’t a cover-up, we’re merely preserving the good character of the Southampton police force. A killer has been stopped and it is all down to your hard work and natural detective instincts, Matthews. You’ll be hailed a hero for solving three murders in the space of a week, for which you will be highly commended. A week ago, you were in my office begging me for the opportunity to prove to the unit that you weren’t a burn-out, ready for the scrapheap. Well, I’d say this has surpassed that, wouldn’t you agree?’

  She bit her tongue to stop herself saying what she really thought of him. She wanted to scream, to run out the door and find what was left of Vaughn. He had betrayed everything she had sworn into when she joined the force. He was a killer and a monster and the supe was going to let him die in peace? It just couldn’t be right. But what if the supe was right? What if it unravelled every legitimate conviction Vaughn had ever made? Did the good outweigh the bad?

  DSI Williams fixed her with a glare. ‘So, I have your agreement that you’ll keep it under wraps?’

  She narrowed her eyes, returning his glare, as she forced herself to believe he was right and hating herself for not to having the strength to disagree, but she was broken and exhausted. ‘Yes,’ she whispered.