by Sally Rigby
‘David was my first cousin. His mother and my mother were sisters. They were brought up in Lenchester and were very close until they both got married and started their own families and then moved to different parts of the country. It meant they couldn’t keep in touch as much as they’d like. It was before the internet. That’s changed everything,’ Mrs Douglas said, a wistful tone in her voice.
‘Yet, both you and David ended up back here in the same town.’
‘Yes, it’s funny how these things turn out. I worked in London after university until meeting Grant and then moved here to be with him. I’m not sure why David came here. Most likely it was work, too.’
‘What sort of relationship did you have with David?’
‘He was younger than me by quite a few years. Nine or ten, I’m not sure exactly. My mother was the older sister and had me at a young age. David’s mother didn’t have him until she was older. He was an only child, but not spoilt. We would see each other at family gatherings when growing up, and also when we had our own families we’d get together occasionally.’
Whitney scribbled in her notebook.
‘What can you tell me about David and the rest of his family?’
‘I know this might sound ridiculous, but they really were perfect. Like you see on the washing powder commercials.’
No way. That doesn’t happen. All it meant was they were clever at hiding whatever went on in their relationships.
‘Could you give me a little more detail?’
‘Obviously, I didn’t see what went on behind closed doors, but there was never a time when I thought there were issues in the family.’
‘Would you have been able to tell?’
‘We’re family, and if any cracks showed it would be with us. But there was nothing. David worked hard and was always there to support his family. He was so good with the children. I never once heard him raise his voice to them.’
‘There must have been times when they tried his patience. All children do that.’
‘I’m sure there was, but because he was often away on business, he made sure not to neglect them. They always came first.’
‘Did Gillian ever complain that he was away so much?’
‘No. She seemed to take it in her stride. There wasn’t ever a time when he didn’t travel for work. When he was away, she took care of the family. The children were now all teenagers and didn’t need so much looking after, but more ferrying around to various clubs and activities. You know what it’s like at that age.’
‘Yes, I remember those times. Would you say you were close with Gillian?’
‘We always got on well when we saw each other. We’d often stand in the kitchen at family get-togethers, doing the washing up or helping out.’
‘When we went to her house, the kitchen was spotless. It was like visiting a show home.’
‘Gillian prided herself on keeping everything clean and tidy. I was always amazed whenever we were there. So different from our house.’
Whitney stole a quick glance in Douglas’s direction. His lips were set in a firm line. Was he annoyed that his wife had mentioned the state of their house?
‘When were you last there?’
‘Just over a year ago, I believe. Gillian hosted a party for my aunt’s eightieth birthday. She died six months later.’
‘Did they hold the funeral in Lenchester?’
‘No. It was in Norfolk. We weren’t able to attend as we were away in America at the time.’
‘Do you know who their friends were?’
‘No, I don’t, sorry.’
‘Can you think of any reason why someone would want to harm the family?’
‘Nothing springs to mind. I keep asking myself, what could they have done to warrant this? Unless it was a random attack, and it could’ve been anyone. Do you think that’s the case?’
‘That’s what we’re investigating. It’s early days, and we don’t have enough information yet to draw any conclusions.’
‘Is that it, Walker? I’m sure there can’t be anything else you need to know. My wife has had enough for the day.’
Belinda turned to Douglas. ‘It’s okay, dear. I’m more than happy to continue. This is important.’
It might be okay for her, but Whitney wasn’t foolish enough to believe that it would be okay with him, and he’d make his feelings known once his wife had left.
‘I won’t be much longer, Mrs Douglas. I know you can’t think of any reason why anyone would want to harm the family right now, but do you know of anything in David or Gillian’s past which might have come back to haunt them?’
Mrs Douglas bit down on the bottom lip and thought for a moment. ‘No. I’m sorry there’s nothing.’
‘And their children? Were there any issues with them?’
‘Not that I know of, but we didn’t live in each other’s pockets, as I’ve already explained.’
‘When was the last time you saw the family?’
‘You’ve already asked that, and my wife told you it was at David’s mother’s birthday party.’
‘That answer was in respect of when your wife was last at the Barker house, sir. I wondered if she’d seen them other than at that time,’ Whitney said, forcing her voice to stay calm, when in fact she wanted to smack him.
‘Actually, we did see them at my parents’ diamond wedding anniversary party last year. All the family were at the celebration.’
‘Including David?’
‘Yes, he was there, too.’
‘What about Gillian’s family, do you mix with them at all?’
‘No, because she came from down south. I don’t know her family at all, only to nod to if we ever saw them at parties.’
‘Do your children go to the same school as the Barkers?’
‘My children have left home now, and we lived in London when they were at school.’
‘Okay, well, thank you very much for your help. I’ll give you my card and if anything comes to mind, anything at all, please contact me.’ Whitney pulled her card from her pocket and held it out.
‘There’s no need for that, Walker. If Mrs Douglas remembers anything she can tell me, and I’ll let you know.’
‘Yes, sir,’ Whitney said, returning the card to her pocket.
‘I’m sorry I couldn’t have been more help, but just catch whoever did this.’
‘You’ve been a great help and given us some insight into the family,’ Whitney said.
‘You know, they were a lovely family. I …’ Belinda’s voice broke, and she pulled a tissue from her sleeve and dabbed her eyes.
‘That’s it. Interview over,’ Douglas said, standing up and going over to stand behind his wife.
Whitney picked up her folders from the table. ‘Thank you, Mrs Douglas. It was very good of you to come in. I’ll leave you to it then, sir. Ma’am.’
She left the office and returned upstairs replaying the interview in her mind. She hadn’t got much out of Mrs Douglas other than they were an almost perfect family. That in itself was worth investigating. As was the fact the husband worked hard and was often away from home. How much time did he spend at home? And what was he doing when he wasn’t there? Answers she hoped would help with the investigation.
Chapter 7
George knocked on the door that went directly into Whitney’s office, but there was no answer, so she carried on down the corridor until reaching the incident room. She was hit by the usual frenzy of activity when they were working on a case. The clicking of computer keys. Voices on the phone. Discussions between colleagues.
She immediately relaxed. It was good to be back in familiar surroundings and away from the absurdity of what was happening with her parents. Of course, she’d been upset about her father having to face such a debilitating illness. Who wouldn’t be? But the fact they’d assumed she could drop everything to be with them showed how out of touch they were with her life. Seeing Ross last night and now being at the station with Whitney and the team confirmed t
hat this was where she belonged. She would help her parents, when possible, but she had no intention of leaving Lenchester and the life she’d built for herself.
Whitney was towards the back of the room, staring at the large whiteboard, which had five photographs along the top. The deceased, George assumed. She headed over to the DCI, passing other members of the team who were seated at their desks working, either on the phone or staring at their computer screens.
‘Hi George,’ the officer said once she was close.
‘Good morning.’
‘Are you okay? You’re looking harassed.’
‘The last few days with my family have been difficult, but I’m happy to be back.’
She hoped her friend wasn’t going to press her for more details, because she had no desire to talk about it. She needed distracting. Maybe she’d elaborate more once she was back into the swing of her life in Lenchester.
‘You’ve arrived at the right time because I was about to feedback to the team about my interview with Mrs Douglas yesterday. They weren’t all here by the time I’d finished which is why I’m doing it now. And, by the way, that’s Douglas as in Chief Superintendent Douglas’s wife. Who would believe it?’
‘What’s she to do with the case?’
‘She’s David Barker’s cousin. I was stunned when I found out, because you know what that means.’
George grimaced. Whitney was going to have to watch her step throughout the investigation. She’d witnessed the chief superintendent’s dislike of her friend and the way he tried to derail her. It wasn’t in Whitney’s imagination. If there was any time when Whitney needed her help, then now was it.
‘The chief superintendent will be keeping an eye on the case?’
‘And that’s an understatement. I had to interview Mrs Douglas in the super’s office, with her and Dickhead watching. As I’m sure you can imagine, it wasn’t an easy situation to deal with.’
‘Nothing that you can’t handle, I’m sure,’ she said, wanting to reassure her.
‘I can, but the additional pressure isn’t something I’m looking forward to.’
‘But he can’t be involved in the actual case because of his link with the family, can he?’
‘You’re right, he can’t. And he’s mentioned that. He’s also told me he wants to be informed of what’s going on. So, I’ll leave you to draw your own conclusions on that. Although, I will say that his wife seemed okay. God knows what she sees in him, that’s for sure.’
‘Maybe he’s different when away from the office.’
‘That would entail a total personality transplant, so I doubt it very much. Right, now you’re here, let’s get cracking. Listen up, team.’ Whitney turned from George to face the rest of them. ‘Let’s catch up with where we’ve all got to. I’ll start. According to the chief super’s wife, Mrs Douglas, who’s David Barker’s cousin, they were the perfect family.’
‘Well, that’s a red flag for a start,’ called out Frank.
‘My sentiments exactly. She was very complimentary about her cousin and said although he worked hard and was often away on business, he was very supportive of his family. Mrs Douglas could think of no reason why anyone would want to harm them, although she did mention that they didn’t see much of each other. They’d meet mainly at family gatherings. It’s not much, but it’s a start.’
‘And was Dick …’ Frank paused and looked across at Brian. ‘I mean, the chief super. Was he at the interview?’
‘He was, Frank.’
‘Would she have told you more if she was on her own, do you think, guv?’
‘Difficult to say, but I don’t believe so. I think she told me all she knew. The rest of you, what do you have from your research. Ellie?’
‘I’ve done a preliminary investigation into David and Gillian’s financial history and, so far, there doesn’t appear to be anything dodgy going on. They had a joint account, and both of their salaries went into it. Their spending patterns were normal for a family. Food, bills, clothes, a few luxury items. And there were no recent irregularities, either. I’ll keep on digging.’
‘Thanks, Ellie. Frank, have you got anything else to report?’
‘I checked out the alibi for the Fletchers and it was confirmed by both sets of friends that they didn’t leave the house until midnight. I’m still waiting to hear back from uniform regarding which neighbours were spoken to and what they said.’
‘Okay, keep on going. Anybody got anything else, Brian?’
‘David worked for Hutt Consulting in Birmingham and Gillian, I’m not sure of yet.’
‘She worked at Lenchester Physio, according to the bank deposits,’ Ellie said.
‘Thanks, I’ll contact them for details,’ Brian said.
‘Anything else? Meena? Doug?’ Whitney asked, staring ahead at the two officers.
‘The children all have social media accounts, and I’m looking into their posts and who they’re friends with.’ Meena said.
‘Parents also have accounts, but hardly ever post. I’m in the process of digging deeper,’ Doug added.
‘George and I are heading to the crime scene and then to the morgue. Call me if anything comes up.’ Whitney turned to her. ‘Is that okay? Do you have time?’
‘I’m with you for the day.’
‘Excellent. That’s what I was hoping. I’ll pop back to my office to grab my bag.’
George followed her and after going through Whitney’s office they made their way down towards the car.
‘You’re handling Chief Superintendent Douglas’s involvement very well,’ George said.
‘What choice do I have? I couldn’t let my annoyance show to the rest of the team. They must focus one hundred per cent on finding our killer and not my feelings. But seriously, I can’t believe I’ve got to put up with him. It’s going to be a nightmare. You remember what he was like with the train murders? This will be the same, I’m sure of it. You should have seen him yesterday, the way he was staring at me. It was like he was willing me to fail, so he could appoint another team to do the investigation.’
‘Don’t let him see he’s rattling you, because he’ll thrive on it. Act like he’s simply another person. I know you don’t like me saying this, but you have to compartmentalise. It’s the only way in this instance.’
‘Easy for you to say, being on the outside. Thank goodness for the super being our go-between. I know she’s got my back.’
‘Why didn’t you interview his wife on your own? I’d have thought that would’ve been a given.’
‘Because he wouldn’t let me. First, he wanted to interview his wife himself, but luckily the super intervened. It’s incentive enough to get this case solved as quickly as possible. That way I won’t have him threatening me with traffic duty if it isn’t solved to his satisfaction.’
‘The main thing is you’re aware of what he’s like and can adjust your behaviour accordingly. Providing you don’t let it get to you.’
‘Which is where you come in. I’m relying on you to sort me out when I start losing it.’
‘All you need to do is keep out of your own way.’
‘Whatever that’s meant to mean.’
‘That you—’
‘I know what it means, I was being facetious.’
‘Oh.’
They reached George’s Porsche Cayenne, which she’d parked at the rear of the station car park, out of the way of other cars.
‘We’re going to 96 Beech Avenue, it’s in Westcliffe.’
‘Thanks.’ She keyed the address into the satnav and then drove out of the station car park, in the direction of the crime scene.
‘While we’re on the way, you can give me an update on what’s going on with your parents.’
Did she want to have the conversation? The trouble with Whitney was she would try to get it out of her, and considering she already knew a large part of it, having her input might confirm that she’d made the right decision. Except, when had she ever needed that sort
of assistance? She’d clearly been hanging around with the officer for too long.
‘They’re struggling to cope with my father’s prognosis, especially as he already has tremors. The fact he’s no longer operating means his career in that sphere has come to an end.’
‘But surely there must be something he can do, even if it’s not actually performing operations himself.’
‘My thoughts exactly, but all he’s managing to do is wallow in self-pity, which is most unlike him.’
‘That’s a natural response. You must know that. Especially for someone like him who’s so respected and important.’
‘Once he begins to accept his situation I’m sure he’ll be able to undertake some sort of work. There’ll be plenty of people who will want to employ him. That’s if he’ll take their offers.’
‘Could he do academic work like you?’
George doubted he’d lower his standards sufficiently to do that. His view, not hers.
‘It’s an option but knowing him, it isn’t something he’d consider. Remember the adage … those who can, do. Those who can’t, teach.’
‘That’s nonsense. Why doesn’t he retire? I bet he’s got loads of money stashed away.’
‘I hadn’t realised you’d seen his bank account.’ George turned her head and saw the shocked expression on Whitney’s face, following her sarcastic comment.
She didn’t normally speak like that. Clearly, the situation with her parents had affected her more than she’d imagined.
‘Sorry, I didn’t mean it. I was being flippant. Of course, I don’t know how much money your folks have.’
‘I should apologise, too. There was no need for my response. Put it down to the stressful situation I’ve found myself in.’
‘Apology accepted. Beech Avenue is the next left, and the victims’ house is third on the right.’
George parked on the street, under one of the tall, wide-spreading green beech trees lining the road, and they headed over to the entrance which had a cordon across it and an officer on duty.
‘It looks like forensics are still here. That’s Jenny’s car,’ Whitney said, nodding at the white Honda Accord parked on the other side of the road.
