Scorned

by Kerry Kaya

  “And yet he was never charged for the assault?”

  “No.” Sadie sank back into the chair. He gave the detective a cold stare and his tone was sarcastic as he answered. “Of course, he wasn’t bloody charged. He’s one of you lot, and you protect your own, don’t you?”

  “That’s a very serious accusation you are making, Sadie.”

  “Is it?” Sadie crossed his arms over his chest and turned his face away from the detective.

  “So, you went to talk about the attack you allege Mr. Browning carried out on you?”

  “Yes,” Sadie snapped. “I’ve already told you all of this.”

  “And then you attacked him?”

  Sadie let out a long sigh. He was becoming bored with explaining himself over and over again. “Yes, and then I attacked him. I picked up a knife and stabbed the bloody bastard until he was dead.” He pointed a long fingernail across the table. The scarlet nail polish was chipped. “And good riddance to him, an’ all.”

  Myles gave a nod of his head. He looked down at his notes. “Where did you get the knife from, Sadie?”

  “What?”

  “You said you picked up the knife.” He gave a smile, not taking his eyes away from the man. “It’s a simple question, or are you trying to tell me that the knife was just sitting there in the hallway, ready and waiting for you to pick it up and attack Mr. Browning?”

  A bead of cold sweat broke out across Sadie’s top lip, and he swallowed deeply, giving him enough time to think through the question. “That’s it, I remember now.” He slapped his palm across his forehead to emphasise his point. “I took it from the knife block in the kitchen.”

  “So, you didn’t just pick it up. You purposely walked into the kitchen and drew the knife from the said knife block with the intention of killing Mr. Browning.”

  Sadie nodded his head.

  “For the purpose of the tape, please answer, Mr. Meadows.”

  Sadie’s voice was small as he answered. “It’s Sadie, and yes, I took the knife with the intention of killing him.”

  “There were no knives missing from the knife block. So, I will ask you again, where did you get the knife from?”

  “Then I must have picked it up from the kitchen counter.” He threw his arms up into the air. “I don’t flipping know. I was in such a state, I wasn’t thinking straight, was I?”

  Myles glanced down at his watch. He had spent the last three hours interviewing Sadie, and other than where he’d got the knife from, his story had hardly altered at all. “Okay,” he said. He switched off the tape recorder and scrapped back his chair as he stood up.

  * * *

  Outside in the corridor, DCS Marcus Gibbs was waiting for the young detective constable to join him. “Well?” he snapped as Myles exited the interview room.

  Myles gave a nod of his head and leaned back against the wall. “He maintains he did it, and he’s certainly got a temper on him, I know that much.”

  He chewed on the inside of his cheek. There was something about Sadie’s account of events which didn’t sit right with him. He’d been a copper for a long time and had a nose for sniffing out the truth. He glanced behind him to the interview room. It was the knife that was troubling him the most. That, and the fact that the man hadn’t seemed to know where he’d taken it from. It was the only time his account of what had taken place changed.

  “Charge him.” Gibbs leaned in toward the young DC. “It’s imperative that this case is closed.” He gave the younger man a cold stare. “I don’t need to remind you that you are still new to this unit, do I, DC Lambert?”

  Myles shook his head. “No, Sir.”

  “Good.” Gibbs clicked his heels together and began to walk away. “I want the report on my desk within the hour.”

  Myles looked down at his watch and sighed. He’d better get a move on. Taking a deep breath, he pushed open the door to the interview room, walked across the floor and took a seat at the table opposite Sadie. He pushed record on the tape recorder and then spoke. “Mr. Simon Meadows, I am charging you with the murder of Ronald Browning.”

  Sadie sat up straight in his chair. He had to hide the smile that threatened to crease his face. He had done it; they believed him. Jake Carter would never become a suspect. For the first time in his life, he had actually done something good, something worthwhile.

  * * *

  Janet Carter stepped outside her front door. Dressed in a black skirt and matching fitted jacket, on top of her head, she had perched a black pillbox hat that had a small veil attached to cover her face.

  She opened up her handbag and checked that she had her front door keys and a handful of tissues, then gently closed the door. Wearily, she made her way down the pathway to her eldest grandson’s car.

  Liam gave his nanna a warm smile. “Where’s grandad?” he asked.

  Janet shook her head. She opened up the passenger’s door and climbed inside. “He isn’t coming, darling.”

  “What do you mean, he ain’t coming?” Liam tore his eyes away from his grandmother to look across at the house. “He does realise that today is Dad’s funeral?”

  “Of course he does,” Janet sighed. She put her hand over her grandson’s arm to stop him from climbing out of the car to have a word with her husband. The truth was, she didn’t want him to come to the funeral. For over twenty years, her Frank had given their eldest son the cold shoulder, and she, like a silly old fool, had allowed it to happen.

  Well, enough was enough. He could bloody well stop at home. This was Tommy’s day, and the funeral was to be a proper East End send off, and she wasn’t prepared to allow anyone, least of all her old man, ruin it. “Forget about him,” she said, with a flap of her hand. “We’ve got enough going on without that miserable old bugger adding to our troubles.”

  As her grandson drove away from the kerb, Janet kept her head pointing straight ahead. She didn’t even give her husband a second thought.

  * * *

  Stacey sat perched on the edge of the sofa. She wore a black fitted dress and her hip bones jutted out of the thin material. She wore no makeup and only at her youngest son’s persistence had she dragged a comb through her matted hair.

  She looked around her at the mourners who had congregated at her home. She barely recognised anyone. The majority of them were her husband’s business associates, and she had to bite her tongue to stop herself from screaming out loud for them to leave.

  Ignoring the pitiful glances that they shot in her direction, Stacey continued staring into space. She felt numb, and although she may have physically been there, her mind wasn’t. It was almost as though someone had flipped a switch off inside of her.

  Janet stepped into her second eldest son’s arms. There was a good turnout, and she felt as proud as punch to see so many people want to pay their respects to her eldest son.

  “How is she doing?” she asked, nodding her head toward her daughter-in-law.

  Jimmy shrugged his shoulders. “Not too good, I don’t think, Mum.”

  It was the answer she had been expecting, and Janet pursed her lips together. “Looks like she’s lost a lot of weight, an’ all. She’s skin and bone.” She grabbed hold of her grandson’s arm. “Has your mum been eating?” she asked.

  “Not really, Nan.” Jake shook his head. “All she does is sit staring into space.”

  “Well, in that case, we’ll get today over and done with, and then we’ll call a doctor to come in and see her.” She was thoughtful for a few moments. “Maybe she could do with having some sedatives?”

  “Yeah, maybe.” Jimmy nodded his head in agreement.

  “And where the bleeding hell is Karen? She should be here.” She pursed her lips together for a second time. “Missing her own father’s funeral, it ain’t right, is it?”

  “I know, Mum. None of this makes any sense.” Despite leaving numerous messages for his niece to contact him, there had still been no word from her. He spotted Danny McKay and Moray Garner step inside the
lounge and excused himself.

  “The cars are here, mate.” Danny shook Jimmy’s hand, then jerked his thumb behind him.

  Looking toward the grand oak panelled hallway that led to the front door, Jimmy nodded his head. “Cheers, mate.”

  He felt sick to his stomach and took a deep breath before moving forward. Nothing could have prepared him for the sight of his brother’s coffin. He slammed his palm against the wall to steady himself and tore his eyes away from the funeral cortege to look down at the floral tributes that spread out across the front lawn. After a few moments, he made his way back inside the lounge, and coming to a halt in front of his sister-in-law, he knelt down beside her.

  He took a deep breath then spoke. “Stace, the cars are here.”

  She looked across at him with a blank expression.

  He began again. “Stace, Tommy is here.”

  “Is he?”

  He saw a flicker of recognition in her eyes and spoke softly. “It’s time to go now.” Gently, he placed his hand underneath her elbow, guided her up from the sofa, and began walking her out to the hallway. He could sense her begin to falter as they neared the front door and threw his arm around her slender shoulders. “Come on, Stace, it’s time to say goodbye to him.”

  “I can’t.” Frozen to the spot, Stacey shook her head. “I can’t,” she repeated. “Please, Jimmy, don’t make me.”

  Helplessly, Jimmy looked around him.

  “It’s okay, Son, let me help.” Janet took the lead, and looping her arm through her daughter-in-law’s, she gently coaxed the younger woman out of the house. “Look at the beautiful flowers.” She gave Stacey a warm smile. “Tommy was well liked, wasn’t he?” she remarked.

  Just the sheer number of floral tributes was enough to tell her that. Ever so slowly, she guided her daughter-in-law toward a series of black limousines. “That’s it, darling, climb inside.” She puffed out her cheeks and glanced over her shoulder at her grandsons. “Look after your mum,” she instructed them.

  She moved aside so the two boys could climb inside the car alongside their mother, and then made her way across to the hearse. Placing her palm on the glass windowpane, Janet surveyed the solid oak coffin. She closed her eyes tightly. “Goodbye my, darling, sleep tight.” She spoke quietly and allowed the tears that filled her eyes to slip freely down her cheeks.

  “Come on, Mum, let’s get you into the car.”

  Janet nodded her head, and holding onto Jimmy’s arm, she walked toward the cars. “We’ve done him proud today, Son,” she said, her voice cracking with emotion.

  He opened the car door and watched his two nephews shuffle along the polished leather seat so their grandmother could climb inside beside them. “Yeah, we have,” he answered with a heavy heart.

  Chapter 14

  Bethany Johnson was sitting inside her car, watching as the funeral procession wound its way through the City of London Cemetery gates. She would have given anything to be able to sit inside the chapel, but even she had to admit that that wasn’t a viable option, and definitely not one of her brightest ideas.

  She took a tissue from her handbag and delicately dabbed at her eyes. “It didn’t have to be this way,” she whispered. In that instant, her heart broke for the only man she had ever loved. She wiped from her mind the fact that she herself was the mastermind for Tommy Carter’s downfall, and that without her interference, he would still be alive and kicking.

  Patiently, she waited inside her car for just over an hour, until the black limousines trailed back through the cemetery gates. Only then did Bethany fling open the car door and step outside. Carrying a single long-stemmed red rose, she walked through the churchyard, and with relative ease, she found Tommy Carter’s final resting place. At least she would always know where he was now. The very thought brought her some comfort.

  Ignoring the grave diggers who shot sly glances in her direction, she stood at the edge of the graveside and looked down at the oak coffin. She blew him a kiss and tossed the rose down on top of the solid oak lid. “It didn’t have to be this way,” she mumbled for a second time. She bent down and grasped a fistful of earth. “If only you could have loved me, the way that I loved you. Together, we would have taken on the world.”

  “You all right, miss?”

  Bethany looked up and gave a slight indication of her head. She threw the earth down into the grave and took a step backwards. She could tell the men were eager to get on with the job in hand, and after giving the coffin one final glance, she reluctantly walked away.

  She came to sit on a bench, watching as they shovelled earth into the six-foot-deep hole, and she pulled her cashmere coat around her slender frame, ignoring the goose flesh that spread across her arms. Despite a chill in the air, she knew she wouldn’t leave until Tommy Carter’s grave had been filled.

  * * *

  “Poor little cow doesn’t know what’s hit her,” Janet Carter stated. She stared across the saloon bar of the Short Blue public house, where the wake was being held, to where her daughter-in-law was sitting alone at a corner table with her head bowed. “She’ll be lost without my Tommy. She’s gonna need looking after.”

  Mary Williams, Stacey’s mother, nodded her head in agreement. “He was her life, had been from the very first moment she clapped her eyes on him.”

  Taking a sip of her port and lemon, Janet puffed out her chest with pride. “And she was his life, an’ all, don’t you forget that. Made for each other, those two were.”

  “Made for each other? Don’t make me fucking laugh.” Standing at the bar, Gary Carter rolled his eyes. He’d had just about enough of hearing about Saint Stacey, and how she was going to cope after his brother’s demise. He ordered a round of drinks and turned to face his mother. “Give her a week and she’ll be out there putting it about.”

  He looked around him, lowered his voice, and gave a little wink. “Trust me, when that insurance money comes through, she’ll have them queuing up at the door. Let’s face it, who in their right mind wouldn’t want to give Tommy Carter’s misses one. Not to mention, she’ll be worth a bob or two.” He straightened up and pointed around the room. “Like flies around shit this lot will be, you just wait and see.”

  “Don’t be so disgusting.” Janet screwed up her face and pushed her son away from her. “Dedicated to him, she was,” she called out after Gary’s retreating back.

  “If you say so, Mum,” he called back with a sly grin spread across his face.

  “Take no notice of him,” Janet remarked to a tearful Mary Williams. Sipping at her port and lemon, her cheeks were flushed scarlet. She had never felt so ashamed. Not for the first time did she wonder how she could have birthed her third eldest son.

  * * *

  Eyeing Danny McKay across the bar, Jake shifted his weight. He was eager to find out if the business concerning Ronald Browning had been sorted out. He waited for his uncle to go up to the bar alone, then sidled up beside him.

  “Uncle Jimmy.”

  Turning his head, Jimmy gave his nephew a warm smile. “Drink?” he asked, as he took his wallet out from the inside of his jacket pocket.

  Jake shook his head, declining the offer. He glanced in Danny’s direction and lowered his voice. “Is everything okay? Has it all been sorted out?”

  Jimmy followed his nephew’s eye-line, and indicating for the boy to follow him, he moved away from the bar so they could speak in private. “Everything has been taken care of, okay?” He placed his hands on Jake’s shoulders and looked him in the eyes. “Nothing will come back to you. Sadie stuck to his word and took the flak.”

  “Good.” Jake shifted his weight for a second time. “I was thinking that maybe I could come and work for the business. It’s what Dad would have wanted.”

  “I don’t know.” Taken aback, Jimmy raised his eyebrows. “I’m not so sure that’s a good idea.”

  “Why not?” Jake’s shoulders slumped downwards, and he nodded across to his brother. “Liam works for you; don’t you
think that I can do it?”

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “Then what’s the problem? Please, Uncle Jimmy, let me do this, please? For my dad?”

  Against his better judgement, Jimmy reluctantly agreed. Where would he even put the boy? “I’ll sort something out, okay?”

  “Thanks, Uncle Jimmy.” Jake beamed from ear to ear.

  “Are you sure that you’re okay?” Jimmy didn’t take his eyes away from his nephew’s face, on the lookout for any tell-tale signs that something was amiss. After all, it wasn’t every day that you killed a man. It was bound to have had an effect on him.

  “Of course I am.” Jake smiled, hiding the knot of repulsion that bubbled within him. He could feel his breath become laboured, could feel a sense of panic within him grow, and his smile became even wider, hiding the sense of self-loathing that he felt.

  “Okay,” Jimmy smiled gently. He still hadn’t got to the bottom of why the murder had taken place. A tiny part of him didn’t want to ask, an even bigger part of him didn’t want to know the finer details. “As long as you know that I’m here if you ever need to talk.”

  “Yeah.” He looked across at his brother once again and lowered his voice. “You won’t tell anyone will you?”

  Jimmy shook his head. “Of course I won’t.”

  “Thanks,” Jake murmured. He began to walk away. “Don’t forget about the businesses,” he said, spinning around.

  “I won’t,” he sighed, as he watched his nephew walk across the bar. He wasn’t so sure he was doing the right thing in allowing him to come on board. After all, Tommy himself had been reluctant to put Jake out to work. He looked around him and spotted Stacey sitting alone at a corner table.

  “You okay, Stace?” He eased his body onto the seat beside his sister-in-law.