‘I’m wondering if our man hasn’t had some practice. Perhaps Natasha isn’t the first girl he’s abducted.’
Mac’s next call was at the Aldis house. The door opened even quicker that on their previous call.
‘Oh!’ Mrs. Aldis said with some surprise, ‘I thought it was…’
Her face was pale and her hand went up to her mouth. Mac noticed that her hand was shaking.
‘I take it that we’ve missed Jonny again?’ Mac asked.
She nodded but said nothing further.
‘Can we come in?’
She turned and they followed her into the living room.
Once they were sat down Mac said, ‘Something’s happened hasn’t it?’
She nodded. She wrapped her arms around her body as if she were hugging herself.
‘Tell us,’ Mac said softly.
‘Well, Jonny came back late last night. I woke up and heard him in his bedroom. He told me that the police had been asking some of his friends about him. He started unpacking some boxes and, when I asked him what he was doing, all he said was that he needed some things for the morning.’
‘And then what?’
She didn’t answer. Both her hands went to her mouth and she started rocking.
‘Mrs. Aldis, a girl is missing and probably in great danger. You need to tell us what you know,’ Mac said a little more sharply.
She removed her hands from her mouth and wrung them together.
‘He’s gone. I woke up early this morning and caught him just before he went out of the door. He had his rucksack on his back. He said he was going to be gone for a while and he didn’t know when he’d be back.’
Her face was bleak with worry.
‘Gone where?’
‘I don’t know but he took all his gear with him.’
‘What gear?’ Mac asked.
‘His camping gear, the tent, his sleeping bag, the stove, the rations, they’ve all gone.’
‘Does Jonny do a lot of camping?’
Mrs. Aldis nodded.
‘Yes he and his dad go off for a week at a time. They don’t bother with camp sites, they go hiking and camp out wherever they find themselves. My husband says he likes the space and to be surrounded by land for a change. Jonny just loves being with his dad.’
‘So he could camp out anywhere really. What about these rations? How long might they last him?’
‘The box is empty so I guess he’d have enough for at least a week, if not longer.’
Mac thought on this.
‘Tell me again what Jonny said and please give us the exact words if you can remember them.’
‘When he was going out of the door he said ‘I’ll be gone a while and I won’t call but don’t worry I’ll be alright’. He won’t be able to call anyway as he forgot and left his phone here.’
Mac immediately wondered if the real reason Jonny had left his phone was because he knew his location could be traced if he’d taken it with him.
‘Did he say anything else before he went out of the door?’ Mac persisted.
‘Yes, he started walking away then he came back and gave me a hug and said ‘I have to go, something bad has happened to Nat’.’
Mac frowned.
‘You’re sure that’s exactly what he said?’
‘Yes, I’m sure,’ she replied.
Mac could see that she didn’t seem to be aware of the possible implication of what she’d just told them.
Something bad has happened to Nat.
The obvious question was how could he know that for sure?
Mac sighed. Jonny Aldis had just put himself right in the middle of the frame.
Chapter Eight
Mac phoned Dan immediately with the news. He said that he’d be there in fifteen minutes and that he’d arrange for a forensics team to visit as soon as possible.
‘Is it serious?’ Mrs. Aldis asked, her hands shaking even more.
Mac’s expression told her all she needed to know.
‘Is there a relative or a friend that you can call?’ he asked.
‘Yes, my sister lives just the other side of Hitchin.’
‘Then I’d give her a ring if I were you, you’ll need some company. What about Jonny’s dad?’
It was clear that the thought of contacting him hadn’t occurred to her.
‘He told me to only call him if it was something serious…’
She stopped and looked at Mac.
‘You don’t want him hearing about this on the news, do you?’ Mac asked.
‘The news? Oh God no, I’ll ring him right now.’
She went into the hallway and started dialling.
‘I don’t suppose it will take long for the press to find out, will it?’ Tommy said.
‘As soon as the men in white suits and the crime scene tape goes up outside they’ll put two and two together and make five whatever we tell them.’
Mac looked at his watch. It had just gone one thirty. Nine minutes later Dan and Adil arrived. Mac told them what they’d found.
‘Do you fancy him for it, Mac?’ Dan asked.
Trust Dan to ask him the one question he couldn’t answer.
‘If I’m being absolutely honest I don’t know. He’s a big lad and could easily overpower someone as small as Natasha. He might even have had a motive, shy loner and most popular girl, it’s almost a cliché, isn’t it? But what about opportunity, did he have that? Would you mind if Tommy and me go and interview Corinne and her friends again? If they can confirm that he never left the pub then it might help us to rule him out.’
‘Good idea Mac. I’ll let you know if we turn anything up here,’ Dan replied.
As Mac walked to the car he surprised himself by saying a little prayer that it wasn’t Jonny. In his mind’s eye he could see Natasha looking out at him from his drawing. He was convinced that the person who drew that could never have done Natasha any harm. However he had his duty to do and, if that meant finding that Jonny was guilty, then so be it.
Seated in the car Tommy asked, ‘Where to?’
‘Let’s try Corinne again first. Hopefully she’ll be able to give us the names of everyone who was there.’
‘She’ll be at college, won’t she?’
‘Try her home first. I don’t think she’ll be in the mood for college somehow.’
Mac was right. It was Corinne who opened the door to them. She didn’t look at all surprised to see Mac and Tommy again.
‘Is your mother at home?’ Mac asked as she let them in.
‘She’s at work but I’ve got some friends with me.’
She led them into the living room again. The small room was packed with young people, four on the small sofas the rest sitting on the floor.
‘Were any of these in the pub last Saturday?’ Mac asked in hope.
Corinne looked around the room.
‘Yes, we’re all here I think…’
Mac said a silent hallelujah.
Corinne was interrupted by one of the girls.
‘Jonny isn’t here,’ she pointed out.
‘Yes that’s right. Has anyone seen Jonny?’ she asked.
They all shook their heads.
‘It’s Jonny I need to ask you about. You’ve certainly saved us some time by all turning up here together.’
‘I didn’t want to go to college, not while Nat’s still missing,’ a young man with pimples and gelled hair said. ‘I just didn’t know where else to go.’
They all nodded sombrely at this.
‘Now this is important, I need to know if Jonny was with you at all times last Saturday or if he left the pub or even went outside for a few minutes. Did he?’
They all looked at each other. Most shook their heads, most but not all. A young man with long hair tied up in a black bandana with a skull motif looked thoughtful.
‘What’s your name?’ Mac asked him.
He looked startled at the question.
‘Matty,’ he replied, sounding as if he wasn’t quite sure that he’d
answered the question correctly.
‘You know something. Tell me what it is Matty,’ Mac said softly.
He looked at the rest of the young people before he answered.
‘I went outside for a bit, for a smoke,’ he glanced up at Mac as he said this and his face reddened slightly.
Mac didn’t need to ask what it was he was smoking.
‘Anyway we were having a chat but Jonny kept looking up and down the road. I guess he was looking to see if Nat was coming, Corinne said that she might drop in later. Then I went inside.’
‘He didn’t go back in with you?’ Mac asked.
The young man shook his head.
‘What time was this?’ Mac asked.
‘About quarter to ten I think.’
Mac looked at the young faces in front of him.
‘When was the next time that any of you saw Jonny after this?’
They all looked at each other. A few of them shrugged.
‘He was there when he got his round in,’ a young girl piped up.
‘Yes that’s right,’ Corinne confirmed.
‘And what time was that?’
‘Around ten thirty, I think,’ she replied. ‘We only had one more after that.’
‘So can any of you say, with certainty, that you saw Jonny between nine forty five and ten thirty? Think hard, this could be important.’
A young girl who hadn’t spoken before tentatively put her hand up.
‘I think I saw him outside. He was sitting on one of the benches.’
‘Can you be absolutely sure that this was between nine forty five and ten thirty?’ Mac asked.
She gave this some thought, then shrugged.
‘No, I’m sorry I don’t think I can. We had some shooters just before that and they always go to my head.’
Mac was almost disappointed. It seems like Jonny might have had the opportunity after all but was he really the type of person who could abduct someone and then calmly go back to his friends in the pub?
‘What was Jonny like when he bought his round? Was he excited, worried, was there anything out of the ordinary about him?’
They all looked at each other. Corinne spoke for them.
‘No, he was just Jonny. He never shows much emotion if I’m honest and it can be hard to know what he’s thinking sometimes but he really cared for Nat that much I do know. It wasn’t Jonny, Mr. Maguire, he would never hurt Nat.’
‘And do the rest of you think that too?’ Mac asked.
They all nodded in unison. Mac hoped to God they were right.
‘Well that doesn’t help his case much, does it?’ Tommy said as they walked back to the car.
‘True. We now know he might have had the opportunity, the means and maybe the motive too. What do you think?’
‘I think he looks good for it. If that girl was right and Jonny was sitting outside the pub he might have seen Natasha get out of the taxi. Perhaps Jonny offered to walk her home and then tried to kiss her or something and she wouldn’t let him. Then they had a row and he hit her, he’s a big lad perhaps he even killed her when he punched her. He could have hid the body somewhere close by and then went back to the pub for an alibi.’
Mac had already considered this possibility and he found it depressed him for some reason, mainly, perhaps, because it could just be the truth.
Dan and Adil were standing outside the house when they returned. The crime scene tape was up and a small crowd of gawkers were standing the street side of it. A couple of them had very professional looking cameras.
God, it didn’t take them long, Mac thought.
‘You’re policemen aren’t you? Did Jonny Aldis kill Natasha, did he?’ a young, sharp featured blonde girl shouted as Mac pulled the tape up over his head. She then took some pictures of him and Tommy. ‘Have you found where he buried her yet?’
Mac didn’t reply. They not only had him murdering her but burying the body too. Experience had taught him that, while the press had their uses, they were often more trouble than they were worth.
‘Let’s go inside,’ Mac suggested to Dan as he glanced back towards the pressmen.
He could hear the cameras whir as they went into the house. They stood in the hallway while Mac told Dan what they’d found.
‘So it still leaves him as our best suspect by a mile,’ Dan said. ‘It’s unlikely that he could be keeping her somewhere so I think we have to go on the assumption that, if it was him, then he killed her and hid her body.’
‘Tommy here thinks they might have had a row,’ Mac said, trying to be as even handed as he could.
‘Well if it did come to anything physical she wouldn’t have stood a chance,’ Adil said. ‘Apparently Jonny Aldis has a black belt at Tae Kwon Do.’
Things seemed to just keep on stacking up against him, Mac thought.
‘Does he drive or have access to a car?’ Mac asked.
Dan shook his head.
‘Hasn’t even started taking lessons yet according to his mum and she’s said that he couldn’t have used her car anyway, it’s got a flat and she hasn’t had it fixed yet.’
‘He only had forty five minutes at most so, if he did do it, she must be somewhere nearby,’ Tommy said.
‘There’s a bloody great field right opposite the pub,’ Dan said. ‘We’ll start the search there. I’ll need to get on and organise that straight away.’
‘What do you want us to do in the meantime?’ Mac asked.
‘We’ve checked out Adam Oakley and it looks like he was telling us the truth for once,’ Dan said. ‘Can you carry on with Tony Hamilton? Martin will give you all the information we have on him.’
As they drove back towards the incident room Tommy asked, ‘Do you think they’ll find her?’
What could he say? That he hoped that a suspect was innocent and based on what? A drawing he’d seen for a few seconds. It all sounded a bit daft, even to himself.
‘Who knows?’ he answered non-committedly.
‘What about your theory about the suitcase and that?’
‘Could have just been someone coming back off holiday I suppose,’ Mac replied a little grumpily.
Mac thought about what he’d said as they drove back and found that he didn’t believe his own words. Jonny wasn’t a killer and Natasha was taken away in a suitcase. He knew this to be true but how could he be so certain?
Again that little tickle came at the back of his brain. Yet it was still so totally non-specific that it was starting to really annoy him now. On the way back Mac sent the photo of Natasha to his old sergeant Peter Harper and asked him if he could check out their case files just in case.
Martin had the file on Tony Hamilton ready for them when they arrived. There was only Martin and Amanda Lingard manning the incident room. It somehow felt forlorn and annoyed Mac even more than the tickle did.
‘I need to eat,’ Mac said, his grumpiness growing.
He could feel his blood sugar dropping like a stone.
‘Come on, let’s read this while we get some food.’
Tommy followed Mac to the Hen and Chickens. They ordered two burgers and coffees. The landlord served them. Mac asked him if he’d thought of anything else since they last met. He drew a blank.
Mac split the slim case file in two and they ate in silence as they read. Mac wolfed down his meal, he was even hungrier than he’d realised.
He wiped his mouth with a serviette.
‘Anything?’ he asked.
Tommy looked up.
‘No, he looks squeaky clean from everything I’ve read so far.’
‘Same here, not even a speeding conviction. He did supply a witness statement some years ago. He gave evidence that helped put an ASBO on a serial offender.’
‘What was the offence?’ Tommy asked.
‘Threatening behaviour towards a supermarket check-out lady. Well it shows he’s public spirited if nothing else. I can’t believe that there hasn’t been some bumps along the way though.’
‘So where do we start?’ Tommy asked.
Mac decided to let Tommy take the lead.
‘’Where do you think we should start?’ he asked.
Tommy gave it some thought.
‘His last headmistress perhaps, she’s still at the school apparently.’
Mac smiled.
‘That’s as good as anywhere. Let’s get going then.’
He checked his phone but there were no messages from Dan. Mac found that he was quite relieved.
Chapter Nine
The school was just a short drive up the hill from the town centre. Mac was quite surprised when he saw a very large Edwardian building standing proudly in its own grounds. If he hadn’t known better he’d have assumed it was a grand hotel or something along those lines.
The headmistress was a Mrs. Hilary Meredith. Tommy asked for her at reception. They only had to wait a few minutes before a tall thin woman in her late forties strode towards them. She was dressed in a black skirt, a crisp white blouse and a black jacket. She looked very business-like. She had a quick word with the receptionist before turning to face Mac and Tommy.
‘Can I see your cards please?’ she asked with the sure air of someone used to being obeyed.
Mac and Tommy duly showed their cards as ordered.
‘Very well follow me,’ she said striding off down another corridor. Mac couldn’t keep up. She opened a classroom door and waited, tapping her toe, until he arrived. She ushered them both inside.
‘This is free for the next half hour which is all I can spare at the moment. What can I do for the police?’ she asked as she sat on one of the desks.
‘We’re enquiring about a former teacher, a Mr. Anthony Hamilton,’ Mac said.
‘Tony?’ she asked with some surprise. ‘What’s he supposed to have done?’
‘Nothing as far as we know. You’ll have heard the phrase ‘eliminating a person from our enquiries’ before, well that’s exactly what we’re doing now.’
Her sceptical expression told Mac that she didn’t quite believe him.
‘Is this something to do with Natasha Barker?’ she asked with some suspicion.
Mac decided that there was no point beating around the bush with Mrs. Meredith, she was far too sharp.
‘Yes, Mr. Hamilton now drives a taxi part-time and he was in the area around the time Natasha disappeared. As I said we’re just trying to eliminate him from our enquiries.’
The Blackness (The Mac Maguire detective mysteries Book 4) Page 8
