Goodbye My Precious Child

by M A Comley

“Is there a problem?” Sally snapped.

  “No, not at all. Where are we going?” Brian replied.

  “To check out the other witnesses’ alibis.”

  He scrambled out of his chair.

  She picked up her handbag and returned from her office. “Keep digging, Joanna and Jack, we’ve got to stumble across something new soon.”

  “If you say so,” Jack mumbled as she walked past his chair.

  She slammed a hand down on his desk, startling everyone else, especially Jack. “Cut it out. Give the frigging attitude a rest, for all our sakes, Jack. I’ve had as much as I can take for one day. Give me a break. Don’t you think this case is proving difficult enough without the other crappy stuff you’re flinging into the mix?”

  “Sorry.” He jumped out of his seat and tore his jacket off the back of the chair. “I’ve had it. I’m not feeling very well. I’m pulling a sickie.”

  “What? You walk out of this office, and it’s the last thing you’ll do around here, partner.”

  “Huh! Partner? That’s a bloody laugh. When you’re in need of my services again in that department, let me know. I might see you tomorrow. There again, I might not.” He stormed out of the room before Sally had a second chance to issue him with a warning.

  She slumped on the desk and placed her head in her hands, tears pricking her eyes. What the hell is happening? Why is everything going wrong? And what the hell is eating Jack? Jealousy? Because of Brian?

  “Is this down to me?” Brian asked.

  “If it is, it’s his problem, not ours. We should head off. Will you be all right here alone, Joanna?”

  Joanna nodded and waved her concerns away. “I’ll be fine. Not making excuses for him, but I’m sure Jack didn’t mean to strike out like that.”

  “Is there something going on at home that I’m not aware of, Joanna?”

  “I don’t think so, boss.” Her gaze drifted from Sally to Brian.

  “So it’s pure and simple jealousy, is that it?”

  Joanna nodded. “Seems that way to me, boss.”

  “I expected better of him. Oh well, here we go again. If he wants to leave the team then who am I to try and stand in his way?”

  “I’m sorry if my being here has caused any ill-feeling between you all,” Brian chipped in.

  “Don’t you dare apologise, you’ve done nothing wrong. Jack needs to grow up, that’s all. He’s responsible for getting himself in a tizzy, no one else.”

  “It’s tough when an outsider joins a team, so I kind of get where he’s coming from,” Brian added, exhaling a large breath.

  “That’s his fault, not ours. He’s not a junior around here, he has approximately ten years of service under his belt. He needs to grow some balls and lighten up. We should go. We have a lot of ground to cover. We’ll keep in touch, Joanna. Ring me if you find out anything useful.”

  “I will, boss. I hope your quest goes well.”

  “Thanks.” She smiled, showing how much she appreciated the constable’s loyalty.

  10

  During the day, in spite of telling herself to calm down, Sally’s frustrations got the better of her. She and Brian spent the next few hours reinterviewing the witnesses, ensuring their alibis matched up, leaving them shaking their heads in despair. “I don’t get it,” she said, slamming her fist against the steering wheel.

  “It’s tough. Don’t let it get to you. I know the situation with Jack is bound to be playing on your mind, too.”

  “It’s truly not. He’s made his bed. I’ll deal with him when this case has come to a conclusion. I’ll be honest with you, I’m lost. For the first time in years, I haven’t got a damn clue where to turn next.”

  “Would it be worth visiting Anna Pickrel? Not sure what I’m suggesting, it’s just a thought.”

  “And say what? Show her the two E-FITs and muddy the water even more?”

  Brian shrugged. “Don’t forget what Jack suggested yesterday.”

  She turned to face him. Frowning, she asked, “Remind me? My head’s all over the place right now.”

  “He told us not to keep Louie out of the equation in regard to getting folks’ alibis checked out.”

  She pondered his statement for a moment and then started the engine. “I still think Jack is wrong, but as we’ve got nothing else to go on, it’s worth a shot. First, I think you’re right, we should visit Anna and let her know what’s going on. She’s only around the corner. We might as well see her while we’re on her doorstep.”

  Sally didn’t bother ringing ahead; she took the chance the woman would be at home. If she wasn’t then she’d ring her later and bring her up to date on things. As it happened, there were two cars sitting in the drive when Sally brought the car to a halt outside Anna’s house.

  “Let’s get this over with,” she said, exiting the car.

  Brian opened the gate for her and rang the bell. She fixed a smile in place ready for when the door opened.

  Louie appeared a few seconds later. He seemed as surprised to see them as they were to see him.

  “Hello, Mr Pickrel, it’s just a courtesy call to see your mother. Is she in?”

  “She is. Come in. I’ll tell her you’re here.”

  “Thanks. By the way, this is Sergeant Brian Jessop. He’s a temporary member of my team.”

  Louie shrugged, as if the news didn’t concern him, then he showed them both into the lounge where Anna was sitting, reading a magazine.

  “Inspector, although it’s nice to see you, it strikes the fear of God into me. Do you have any news about Millie?” Anna asked apprehensively.

  “Unfortunately, not at this time. I wanted to drop by and see you as we were in the area. Sorry, this is Sergeant Brian Jessop. He and I are working on a couple of cases together.”

  “Pleased to meet you. Take a seat both of you.”

  Sally and Brian sat on the spare couch while Louie stood next to his mother.

  “Does this mean you’re not working full-time on my daughter’s case now?” Anna asked, nervously rubbing her hands together in her lap.

  “On the contrary. Since we last met, there has been a further incident.”

  Anna’s brow furrowed. “I’m not with you. What are you saying?”

  “We’re not sure of the whys or wherefores as the other investigation is in its infancy; however, I need to prepare you for some shocking news.”

  Anna reached for her son’s hand. He sank onto the arm of his mother’s easy chair.

  “Go on,” Anna prompted.

  “Recently, we were called out to a scene. Actually, Brian is the investigating officer on this one. Anyway, the victim was a child who had been suffocated in her own home.”

  Anna gasped. She snatched her hand away from her son’s and placed both hands over her face. She rocked back and forth saying the word no, over and over.

  After a while, with a lump swelling in her throat, Sally pleaded, “Please, the last thing I wanted to do was cause you any distress.”

  Anna glanced up, her eyes red raw. “Don’t you see? It’s our fault.” She looked up at her son. “You warned me not to take part in that programme. You were right, Louie. I should’ve listened to you.”

  He placed an arm around his mother’s shoulder. “Hush now, let the inspector talk, Mum. No recriminations, please. We’ve had enough of them over the years.”

  Anna nodded and faced Sally again. “I’m sorry. I should’ve let you finish. Please, go on.”

  “It’s complicated, Mrs Pickrel. While we’re linking the two cases, we have to be cautious about doing that, given the length of time between the two crimes. We’ve spent the best part of the day reinterviewing all the witnesses we spoke to regarding Millie’s case, just in case the killer was amongst them, and have to say all their alibis have checked out so far.”

  “So, where does that leave you?” Louie asked, his feet shifting a little as if he was trying to suppress his impatience.

  “No further forward at the moment
. Right now, I’m leaning towards the latest crime possibly being by a copycat killer.”

  “Because they saw it on the programme I took part in?” Anna asked, her voice quivering with emotion.

  “Maybe. The truth is, we just don’t know,” Sally replied.

  She nodded slowly. “Stupid question: how are the parents?”

  “Devastated, as you can imagine. They were both in the house asleep when it happened. We did have a spark of good news. One of the neighbours told us he saw a man loitering in the street where the crime took place on the night of the murder. He was able to work with a sketch artist.” She reached into her jacket pocket for her phone, stood and crossed the room. Flipping through her recent photos, she showed a shot she’d taken of the two sketches sitting side by side on the whiteboard.

  Anna shook her head. “No! It can’t be, can it?”

  “This is the puzzling part which is driving us to distraction, as you can appreciate. Although the drawings were sketched nineteen years apart, they’re virtually the same. That is the man you identified, isn’t it, Louie?”

  He peered closer at the phone, then responded, “Yes. That’s incredible. I’m not surprised you’re flummoxed, Inspector. What do you intend doing about it?”

  “We’re running the necessary checks through the system now. I’m not holding out much hope. The forensics team are doing their best to find some form of clue the killer might have left at the recent scene. I need to check in on them when I return to base. Nothing has shown up so far. Like I said, this case was never going to be easy. Almost twenty years after your daughter’s murder, adding the new murder has just made it a thousand times harder to solve. I want to reassure you that we’re doing our utmost not to let you down. I’m hoping you can understand our plight and are prepared to give us more time to delve into things further.”

  “Take all the time you need,” Louie said, answering for both of them. “Can we do anything else to assist you?”

  “No, not really, but thank you for asking. We’d better get back to it now.” She tucked her phone away again and walked towards the door while Brian left his comfy seat.

  Louie hugged his mother. “You stay there, Mum, I’ll show the officers out.”

  “Thanks, love. Do your best, Inspector.”

  “Always, Mrs Pickrel. I hope the next time I see you we’ll have the killer banged up in a police cell.”

  They left the house, and Louie shook their hands at the front door. “Thank you for keeping us updated. Mum didn’t say it, but I’m sure she meant to. Can you pass on our condolences to the parents of the little girl who was murdered?”

  “I’ll be sure to do that. Please, take care of your mother. Hearing this news is bound to bring back memories of what happened to Millie. I wish our visit could’ve been more positive for you. Hang in there.”

  “Thank you, Inspector. I’ll take care of Mum. We all will.”

  Sally and Brian returned to the car and set off back to the station. The car journey remained quiet. Had she been alone, Sally would have pulled over into the nearest lay-by and shed a few tears to release the pent-up emotions clawing at her throat and chest. Instead, she was forced to hang on to them.

  When they arrived back at the station, Joanna had the TV on and was watching the news. The main story was that of Holly Kilpatrick. The parents were on the screen, arms wrapped around each other, pleading for the public to help the police with their enquiries. Brian looked a bit miffed by the events being shown.

  “Everything all right, Brian?” Sally asked. She handed him a coffee she’d bought from the vending machine as she listened to the broadcast.

  “Fine. Trust my boss to get in on the act. He’s a bit of a control freak. Called me last night to get all the information out of me. Never even mentioned he was going to do a conference about the damn case.”

  “Ouch! That’s got to hurt. Sorry, mate,” she replied, rubbing his arm in consolation.

  “I know someone who wouldn’t treat her colleagues like that,” Joanna said quietly.

  Sally nodded. “No, I wouldn’t. I’m shocked and appalled on your behalf, Brian. Is it my fault?”

  “What? Why would it be your fault?” Brian asked, confused.

  “If I hadn’t suggested you teaming up with us, well, you’d be in the thick of all this.” Sally pointed at the screen.

  Brian laughed despite his anger. “Nope, you’re fine. It’s just the way Wagstaff likes to run things. I’ll get over it. I have to.”

  “You’re a better person than me, Brian. I’d be absolutely tearing my hair out and ready to beat someone up with a bat if I were in your shoes.”

  He tilted his head and asked, “You would?”

  She pulled a face at him. “Well, maybe I wouldn’t be tempted to go that far, but you get my drift. I’m livid on your behalf, how’s that?”

  “It’ll do. Thank you for caring. Truly, it’s fine. I guess I have to accept it if I’m going to remain working under Wagstaff.”

  And if Jack doesn’t buck his ideas up, there will be an opening in my department. I’d jump at the chance of having you on board.

  “I suppose so, unless another opening comes up for you to transfer to in the near future.”

  Joanna’s head snapped round, and her mouth gaped open. Sally suppressed a giggle and winked at her. The constable shook her head slightly and got back to work.

  “I’ll be in my office for the foreseeable,” she called over her shoulder.

  She emerged a few hours later, after raised voices drifted into her office. “What’s going on?” she asked Stuart and Jordan.

  “Excuse our enthusiasm, boss. We think we’ve solved the Barratt case.”

  “You have?” She pulled out a nearby chair and motioned for him to continue. “I’m all ears.”

  “Well, while I bring you up to date, we’ll need you to authorise a warrant, boss, if that’s okay? Jordan can sort that out if you’re in agreement.”

  “I trust you. If you believe the evidence is clear, then yes, go ahead and order one, Jordan. Now, get on with it, Stuart, I’m dying to hear how you got on.”

  Stuart chuckled and pulled out his chair. “As you requested, we went back to the factory and poked around some more. Questioned the three women again who we spoke to previously. Two were obliging, and one was a little reluctant. This stuck out like a sore thumb to both of us. Luckily, we questioned her first and were able to ask the other two women what her problem was.” He sipped at his cup of coffee.

  Sally patiently waited while he replenished his fluids. “Go on,” she asked eagerly.

  “Well, one of the women leaned in and whispered, ‘You know she’s been visiting Mick in prison, don’t you?’ Well, that statement floored us, as you can imagine.”

  “Wow, okay. Did they say why or how often this had happened? If it was the once she might’ve just been offering her condolences.”

  He shook his head slowly. “The woman said Donna Jarvis, who is divorced by the way, has been a frequent visitor. On the journey back, I got Jordan to ring the prison, and they confirmed that she visits Mick every month. They’ve been monitoring the relationship, and it has developed into them hugging and holding hands. The prison officers have been forced to intervene on several occasions.”

  Sally rubbed her chin with her finger and thumb. “Very interesting. No wonder she was reluctant to speak to you. I’m taking it that she worked alongside Lucinda before her death?”

  “You presume right. All four women used to be extremely close. Since Lucinda’s death, the other two women mentioned they’ve seen a different side to Donna. From what they told us, they’re under the impression that Donna felt awful about Lucinda’s death and the fact that Mick is an innocent bystander who is being punished. She told them that she’s doing everything she can to keep his spirits up and is hoping to put enough money aside to employ a barrister to take up his case and try to get his conviction overturned.”

  “I know what you’re t
hinking. Why would she do that unless she knew who the real killer was, am I right?”

  Stuart nodded and took another sip of coffee. “Glad we’re on the same wavelength, boss. One of the women hinted at a rift between Donna and Lucinda shortly before her death. When I spoke to Donna about it, she averted her eyes and stared at the floor, refused to say anything else. Said she was too upset and didn’t want to speak to us any more.”

  “That’s a bit sus in itself, let alone on top of what else you’ve told me. You’re right to ask for a warrant. In the meantime, I think you should pay the husband another visit. Go there and run a few minor things past him and then hit him with why he didn’t tell you about Donna’s frequent visits. For all we know, they could be in on it together, so tread carefully.”

  “Shit! I never thought of that, boss. You could be right, otherwise, why wouldn’t he have mentioned it to us when we initially questioned him?”

  Jordan joined them after he ended his call. “The warrant should be through in the next few days, boss.”

  “Good, that gives you plenty of time to revisit Barratt and probe him for information about Donna. What you want to get out of him is when their friendship or relationship flourished. In other words, if he and Donna were having an affair while Lucinda was alive. Judge his reaction to that and you’ll have your answer if they were in on the murder together or not. The last thing we want to do is set the man free if he’s as guilty as sin.”

  “Got it, boss, although, I have to say, he seems innocent to me,” Stuart replied.

  “Let’s hope you’re right. You won’t really know until you confront him about Donna’s visits. Why didn’t he mention that when you visited him? Why the secrecy if he has nothing to hide?”

  “True enough. All right if we grab something to eat en route to the prison? We kind of missed out on lunch.”

  “I’m annoyed you even had to ask me that, Stuart. I trust you guys not to waste time when you leave this office. You’re still entitled to eat during the day while on shift.”

  “Thanks, boss. We’ll have our drink and then get on the road again.”