by Val Collins
‘It’s Tadhg. He’s dead.’
THIRTY-TWO
‘Dead? Tadhg? How could he be dead? What happened?’
Maura shook her head. ‘I was only talking to him last night. I knew something was wrong. I should have made him tell me, but with the party and everything it didn’t seem the right time. I planned to talk to him this morning.’ The tears flowed again. ‘And now I can’t.’ She sniffed. ‘That poor boy.’
Aoife put her arm around Maura’s shoulder. ‘Did he… did Tadhg kill himself?’
Maura pulled away and stared at her. ‘Of course not. Tadhg would never do something like that. He was murdered.’
*
The phone rang but they both ignored it.
‘Tadhg was murdered? Who murdered him?’
‘The police think it was some small-time drug dealer.’
‘Tadhg was on drugs? I don’t believe it.’
‘I couldn’t believe it either. But he was found in an alley in Dublin. The only people who go into that area at night are selling or buying dugs. And there were pills in Tadhg’s pocket. The police think there was probably an argument with whoever he was trying to get the drugs from. Tadhg might have owed him money or something.’ Tears welled in her eyes again. ‘Whatever happened, he’s gone.’ She sniffed. ‘That beautiful young boy is gone.’
‘But why would Tadhg take drugs?’
‘I don’t know, but he’d be alive now if it wasn’t for me.’
‘How could it be your fault, Maura?’
‘I knew something was very wrong the last time I saw Tadhg. I should have made him talk to me.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘It was at Jack’s party. Tadhg had been so excited about it. I was helping him set up the room. We’d bought balloons. I know it was stupid, but Tadhg said Jack never had much of a childhood and he wanted him to have the whole kids’ birthday party experience. He’d bought candles for the cake and we had paper chains and balloons. All that nonsense.’ She reached for a tissue and blew her nose. ‘Anyway, the lads helped blow up the balloons, but then they started using them as footballs. They were out in the corridor, kicking them around the place. There were bits of burst balloons everywhere. I told them to forget the balloons and go tidy the kitchen. Tadhg was a bit annoyed, but he was laughing too. I left him setting up the room and I hoovered the corridor and got rid of all the burst balloons. That’s when it happened.’
‘What happened?’
Maura shook her head. ‘I—’ She sniffed. ‘I have no idea. Tadhg was in the room by himself. I was in the corridor. Nobody went near him. When I finished hoovering, I opened the door and said, “Are you finished?” At first I thought he was sick. His face was a weird green colour. When I asked him if he was okay, he nodded. Then the lads came in and said they were going to get Jack and the party started.’ She sniffed again. ‘I don’t think Tadhg said one word the entire night. He was supposed to make the presentation to Jack, but he told the lads to do it. After the party I pulled him to one side and asked him what was wrong. He said he wasn’t feeling great and he was going to lie down. That was the last time I saw him.’
‘What could have upset him?’
‘It must have been a phone call. I wouldn’t have heard his phone ring over the noise of the hoover, but anyone who went in or out of the room would have had to pass me. It can’t have been anything else.’
‘And whatever someone said to him on the phone made him go buy drugs?’
‘It looks that way.’
Maura wiped her eyes. ‘Better get back to work. It must be at least twenty minutes since I told Jack I’d bring him in a cup of tea.’
‘I’ll do it.’
*
Jack was sitting at his desk, puffing on a cigarette. A cheap Bic cigarette lighter lay beside a pack of forty cigarettes. Aoife could barely see him through the haze of smoke. He must have gone through the entire packet. He held the cigarette he was smoking in one hand, Tadhg’s lighter in the other.
‘I checked the cost of these on the internet,’ he said as Aoife put the mug of tea on the desk. ‘Maura told me it was Tadhg who organised everything. God knows how he paid for it.’
‘He wanted to show how grateful he was for your help.’
‘What help? He’s dead, Aoife.’
‘You helped him while he was alive. You gave him a place to live and a future to look forward to.’
Jack fiddled with Tadhg’s lighter. ‘Did you know both his parents were drug addicts?’
Aoife shook her head.
‘I never thought he’d go down that road. He always swore he wouldn’t.’
‘You did your best for him, Jack. That’s all anyone can do.’
‘Maybe.’ He picked up his mug. ‘I try not to get too close to any of the boys. It’s not fair on them. They’re only here a few years. It’s not right to let them think they can rely on me. But Tadhg—I thought he was going to be our success story.’
‘How do you mean?’
‘A lot of the kids who come in here, they don’t have much chance in life. By the time they hit eighteen, they’ve experienced more abuse, neglect and tragedy than most of us could imagine. It doesn’t make them good students. The best I can hope for is they live a normal life without ending up on drugs or in prison.’ He smiled. ‘Tadhg was so bright. If he’d grown up in a normal environment, he’d have been one of those child geniuses. And he was luckier than most of my boys. His parents were a liability, but his grandmother loved him and she kept him with her whenever she wasn’t in hospital. That’s how he ended up with me. If he’d spent more time in foster care, he’d have been entitled to a State allowance and he wouldn’t have needed me. I used to joke that when Tadhg finished college and became a famous doctor, I wanted his face plastered all over my fundraising material.’ He cleared his throat, stuck the lighter in his pocket and stubbed out the cigarette. ‘Well, that’s over. No point in crying over spilled milk, as they say. Thanks for the tea, Aoife. Tell Maura I don’t feel like working today, so if she’d like to go home, I’ll see her tomorrow.’
THIRTY-THREE
Maura went to the inquest alone. She phoned Aoife with the verdict.
‘Of course we knew Tadhg had been stabbed, but nobody mentioned that he didn’t die in that alley. There were signs that his body had been moved after death.’
‘You mean he might not have been killed by a drug dealer after all?’
‘I don’t know, Aoife. I’m sure drug dealers move around the city. Maybe one of them killed Tadhg but dumped the body in the alley because he knew it was an area that would most likely be deserted at night.’
‘When’s the funeral?’
‘I wish I knew. I’ve offered to arrange it, but Jack says he’ll handle it. He hasn’t done the first thing about it, though.’
‘That’s weird. Jack must be used to organising funerals.’
‘I think once Tadhg is buried, Jack’s going to have to face the fact that Tadhg’s actually dead. Right now, he’s refusing to face reality.’
He wasn’t the only one.
*
‘I’m not going.’
‘Orla, you have to go. Tadhg was your friend.’
‘Well, Tadhg isn’t going to be there, is he? I don’t want to remember him in a coffin. He was such a beautiful guy. And he had so much life in him.’ Her eyes filled with tears. ‘He was only eighteen, Aoife.’
Aoife put her arms around her.
‘I know. But his grandmother is dead and he has no contact with his parents. If his friends don’t go to his funeral, who will? Do you want him shoved in the ground without anyone around who even cares? He deserved better than that.’
Orla stood up and wiped her eyes. ‘You’re right. I’m going to give him the best f—’ Her eyes filled with tears again and she brushed them away with her fist. ‘I am going to give Tadhg the biggest, best funeral anybody around here has ever seen.’ She pulled out her mobile and googled florists for several minu
tes before bursting into loud sobs.
*
Orla had certainly done her best. There were so many flowers in the church, you’d have been forgiven for thinking you were attending a wedding. Once Orla had decided to take over organising the funeral, it was full steam ahead. The following morning she’d arrived at Jack’s office, notepad in hand. She’d left an hour later with the address of all the different places Tadhg had lived and phone numbers for every choir in the locality. She’d contacted everybody Tadhg had ever known, right down to the foster parents who had looked after him for two months when he was four. She’d made sure everyone was aware of the funeral arrangements. The guys in the halfway house all had new suits which Orla, or rather her parents, had paid for. Orla spent three days writing Tadhg’s eulogy. It took twenty-four minutes to read, but it was the last sentence that caught everyone’s attention.
‘I only knew Tadhg for a short time, but we became very close. He told me everything. He told me he was terrified he had a genetic weakness towards substance abuse. That’s why he wouldn’t touch cigarettes or alcohol. It’s the reason I didn’t need an inquest to tell me that Tadhg hadn’t been murdered in that alley. And it’s how I know Tadhg wasn’t killed by any drug dealer. Tadhg never touched drugs in his life. He wouldn’t even go near areas where drugs were sold. I don’t know who murdered Tadhg. I don’t know why he was murdered. But if it’s the last thing I ever do, I’m going to find out who killed him and I’m going to see that bastard’s life destroyed the way he destroyed Tadhg.’
THIRTY-FOUR
‘Okay, Orla, maybe a drug dealer didn’t kill Tadhg. It could have been a robbery gone wrong. But I don’t see how you can possibly hope to find the murderer.’
‘Why not? You’re looking for Danny’s murderer.’
‘That’s different. I have a list of suspects. I have reasons why people might want to kill Danny. You don’t have anywhere to start.’
‘Yes, I do. I’m going to start with the phone call Tadhg received the night of Jack’s party. Maura said he’d been perfectly fine before he got that call, so whoever phoned him knows the whole story.’
‘How are you going to find out who called him? The police kept Tadhg’s phone as part of the murder investigation.’
‘I know. That’s why I need your help.’
‘What do you want me to do?’
‘Call that detective of yours. Ask him to get a list of all the phone calls Tadhg made and received over the last week.’
‘I’m sure they’re not allowed give out that information, and what do you mean “my detective”? He’s not “my” detective.’
‘Aoife! For God’s sake! I’m trying to find out who murdered Tadhg. I don’t care about you and the detective.’
‘There is no “me and the detective”.’
Orla glared at her. ‘Just ring him. Get a list of the numbers and give them to me. If that’s not too much trouble. Thank you.’ She stormed out of the room.
*
‘I understand your friend is upset, Aoife, but we don’t just hand out that kind of information. Orla isn’t even the next of kin.’
‘Orla, Jack and Maura were the closest thing Tadhg had to family.’
‘Well, I certainly wouldn’t give out information like that but, look, it’s not my decision. I’ll find out who’s in charge of the investigation, ask him to phone Orla and what happens after that is up to them.’
‘Thank you, Detective.’
‘Conor.’
Aoife hesitated. ‘Thank you, Conor.’
‘You’re welcome. How is a list of Tadhg’s phone calls going to help your friend?’
‘Tadhg was very upset the night he died. We think it was because of a phone call he received. Orla wants to contact everyone he spoke to recently. If she can’t discover who made the actual call, she might find someone who knows what happened that night.’
‘I don’t think the phone numbers will help her much. The investigator will have already checked them. Drug dealers use pay-as-you-go phones that can’t be traced back to them. And if a drug dealer was involved in a murder, the first thing he’d do is destroy his phone’s SIM card.’
‘I have a pay-as-you-go phone. The shop asked me for my name and address when I bought it.’
‘They didn’t ask for proof of identity, though, did they? Criminals always give false names and addresses.’
‘Orla doesn’t believe Tadhg was killed by a drug dealer. She says he would never have touched drugs.’
‘It’s not unusual for people to hide their drug use. Does your friend have reason to think somebody else was the murderer?’
‘Not really. But she’s convinced it couldn’t have been a drug dealer.’
‘I can understand she doesn’t want to believe it. It’s the most likely scenario, though. I know young lads get in fights occasionally, but Tadhg was stabbed in the back. Your normal everyday youngster doesn’t carry around a knife with him. Tadhg was in Trinity, wasn’t he?’
‘Yes.’
‘Almost all college kids drink and no doubt a lot of them take drugs, but I never heard of any Irish college kid, let alone a Trinity student, being murdered. And I don’t imagine drug pushers hang around the Trinity campus either. Can you imagine the fuss if some of the wealthiest and most powerful people in the country found out that Trinity was allowing their kids to consort with criminals?’
‘I know you’re right, but Orla isn’t ready to accept that.’
‘Well, as I said, I’ll pass on her number. That’s all I can do.’
Aoife thanked him. If the detective in charge of Tadhg’s case was male, she wouldn’t have to bother Moaney again. Orla would have the list within hours.
*
Aoife was right.
Two days later she was at her desk when she heard Orla talking in the corridor. Assuming she was with Cian, Aoife followed them into the kitchen. A heavyset middle-aged man looked up when she entered.
‘Aoife, this is Detective Tony Brennan. Tony’s in charge of the investigation into Tadhg’s murder.’
The detective nodded, but his gaze quickly returned to Orla. Aoife doubted Tadhg’s investigation was the reason for the home visit.
‘Have you found out anything about Tadhg’s murder?’ she asked.
‘We’ve spoken to a number of people known to hang around the area where the body was found. Nobody reported seeing anything.’
‘So what is the next step in the investigation?’
‘I can’t discuss that with members of the public.’
‘You can discuss it with me, Tony, can’t you?’
The detective smiled at Orla. ‘I consider you to be Tadhg’s next of kin. As such I am authorised to keep you fully informed on the progress of the investigation.’
Orla patted his arm and gave him her trademark smile. ‘Thank you, Tony. I’m so glad you were chosen to head up the investigation. You’ll do a brilliant job and I’ll do everything I can to help. What do you plan to do next?’
‘Next? Well, ahmm, I don’t have the file with me, but there are standard procedures we follow in cases like this.’
*
Aoife went back to her desk. Over an hour later, she heard the detective leave. The door closed and Orla ran down the corridor. ‘I’ve got it,’ she said, holding up two pages of typed numbers. She handed one page to Aoife. ‘We need to start checking these numbers right now.’
‘Orla, I can’t. I’m working. I’ll phone them tonight.’
‘We’ve wasted enough time already. It can’t wait until tonight. Cian will understand.’
‘No, he won’t. He said he needs this report by four p.m. and I’ve only just started it.’
‘Oh, for God’s sake! Cian!’ When there was no reply, Orla screamed, ‘Cian!’
Footsteps hurried down the corridor. ‘What’s wrong?’
‘Aoife’s worried you’ll be annoyed if you have to wait another day for your report. You don’t mind waiting, do you?’
&nb
sp; ‘Why? Do you have to go home, Aoife?’
‘No. I—’
‘She’s helping me contact all the people Tadhg phoned or received calls from the week he died.’
‘Isn’t that a job for the police?’
Orla snorted. ‘I just met the detective handling the investigation into Tadhg’s death. He did not fill me with confidence. Aoife’s a brilliant investigator. She was the one who uncovered the DCA murderer.’
‘You did? You said you worked in DCA, Aoife. You didn’t say anything about uncovering murderers.’
‘I—’
‘That’s not important right now, Cian. What matters is Aoife needs to spend today phoning everyone Tadhg was in contact with the week he died. Your report can wait until tomorrow, can’t it?’
‘No, Orla. It can’t wait. I need that report today and I don’t want Aoife conducting investigations during her working hours.’
‘Cian! Finding Tadhg’s murderer is far more important than some stupid report.’
‘Finding Tadhg’s murderer is a job for the police. I don’t want Aoife getting involved in it during office hours, and I don’t want you involved at all. It’s dangerous.’
‘How could checking phone numbers be dangerous? Cian, I’m serious about this. Either you tell Aoife she can make those calls or I am walking out of this house right now and I won’t come back.’
Cian looked at her. Without breaking eye contact with Orla, he said, ‘Make the calls, Aoife.’
Orla pecked him on the cheek. ‘Thanks, darling.’
Without responding, Cian walked out of the room.
*
After wasting hours on the phone, Aoife had learned nothing of consequence. She ticked the last name on her list. About half Tadhg’s calls were to Orla. She and Tadhg spoke every morning and two or three times during the day, probably when they both had breaks in their college courses. They spoke for about an hour each evening, presumably on their way home from college. On average they had two or three conversations a week that started around 10 p.m. and ended around midnight. Aoife guessed these were the nights Cian didn’t stay over. She’d known Orla and Tadhg were close, but she had no idea they’d been so involved in each other’s lives. There were numerous calls to shops and businesses in connection with Jack’s party. A few calls were to the guys in the halfway house, one to Bridget and two to Maura. Almost all his texts were to college friends, who were anxious to discuss Tadhg at length. But they all said they didn’t know he was taking drugs and couldn’t believe anyone would murder him.
