Behind the Walls: A British Crime Thriller (A DCI Pilgrim Thriller Book 4)

by A L Fraine

  Polly shrugged. “Oh, okay. The house is close by if you want to have a look. It’s only round the corner. I can take you if you like.”

  Jon glanced at Kate, who shrugged. “Sure, why not,” she said.

  “Good, good. I don’t think it’s in too much of a mess,” she replied as she got up and started to lead them out of the house. “I mentioned Mark, didn’t I? He was the tenant who came in after Duncan left. He was very eager to get in there, and, well…” She sighed and shook her head. “I don’t know. I’m probably being silly and reading into things too much, you know?”

  “How come?” Kate asked, as they walked along the street.

  “Well, he seemed really nice at first. Said he knew Duncan and was keen to stay at the house. I took a cheque and let him move in. He was so friendly, and as Duncan was a good client, I let my guard down and let him move in before depositing the cheque. Then he was asking all these questions about Duncan, and I just thought it a little odd that he’d be so interested in the previous client.”

  “And his name was Mark?” Kate asked.

  “Mark. Mark Cooper.”

  “Why was he interested in Duncan?” Jon asked.

  “I don’t know,” Polly said. “Maybe you can help me with him, actually. He disappeared several days ago after moving in, and I had this bad feeling, so I took the cheque to the bank, but it bounced.” She sighed. “Yes yes, I know. It was bloody stupid of me to do that, but I honestly thought it would be fine, and it was just a few days. I’ll never do that again. And he left the place in a mess. Food and rubbish everywhere. I’m so annoyed at him. I’ve heard this happen to other people before but…”

  “You have?” Kate pressed.

  “Yeah. I’m in a few Landlord groups online, and we chat, ask for advice, that kind of thing. I’ve heard of people not paying their rent or trashing places and disappearing overnight. I never thought I’d have it happen to me, though. I’m so annoyed. Can you help me find him? He owes me money.”

  “Well, it’s not really within our remit, but if we do happen across anything, we’ll be sure to let you know,” Jon replied.

  “Thanks. Here we are,” Polly said and led them up to a terrace house that was just a few moments away from Polly’s house. She unlocked the door.

  Walking in, Jon moved into the front room and looked around. It was nothing spectacular, but it was clean and well maintained, and there was no sign of the mess that Polly had talked about.

  “This is nice and clean,” Jon commented.

  “I had the cleaners in,” Polly said.

  “So, Duncan lived here?” Jon asked, tuning to Polly, who stood in the doorway to the lounge.

  “This is the house he rented from me, yes,” she answered.

  “I see.”

  “What’s in the basement?” Kate called out from the hallway. Jon walked back to see Kate standing beside an open door beneath the staircase.

  “Oh, nothing, I don’t think,” Polly said. “I don’t really go down there. It’s a bit creepy. Feel free, though, I thought that was locked.”

  “It was wide open,” Kate said.

  “Oh, well, I’ll make sure to close it once you’re done.”

  Kate looked up at Jon. “I’ll check down here.”

  “Right you are. I’ll look around up here,” Jon replied, as Kate moved down the stairs. He’d barely stepped into the kitchen at the back of the house when Kate called up to him.

  “Jon?”

  He took one quick look around and then wandered back into the hallway to find Polly standing at the entrance to the basement, looking curious but unlikely to head down.

  “What is it?” Jon called out.

  “I might have found something,” she said. He couldn’t see her from the top of the stairs, so he made his way down the wooden steps into the concrete rectangle room beneath the house. Lit by a single bulb dangling from the ceiling, there was some shelving against one wall and a few bits of scattered debris, but little else. Kate was crouched close to the corner.

  “Oh, there you. Jesus, you gave me some Blair Witch vibes there.”

  Kate smirked. “Damn, I didn’t think of that. I should have just stood in the corner. That would have been awesome.”

  “No, that would have been cruel.”

  “In your opinion. Come here, look at this.”

  “What have you found?” Jon asked and walked over. Behind a small box, Kate pointed to a bright pink purse lying in the dirt, in the shadows. It was completely hidden unless you were right on top of it, and it stood out from everything else in here.

  “One of these things is not like the others,” Kate sang. “One of these things doesn’t belong.”

  “Sesame Street,” Jon said brightly.

  “Bingo.”

  He reached into his inside pocket, pulled out a pair of latex gloves and pulled them on before reaching down and lifting the pink leather purse by the corners. “You’re right. This is odd. Let's see…” he muttered and pulled open the flap, revealing an ID card behind a small plastic window.

  “Helen Cooper,” Jon read and looked up at Kate, frowning. “What is her wallet doing in the corner of this basement?”

  “Her surname’s Cooper? Maybe she’s related to Mark in some way?”

  “Maybe.”

  Kate stood up. “I’ll grab an evidence bag from the car and ask Polly if she knows anything on the way out.”

  Jon followed her to the bottom of the stairs but didn’t go up.

  “Do you know a Helen Cooper?” Kate asked.

  “Um, no, sorry,” Polly replied.

  “Did Mark not mention a sister or daughter or something?” Jon called up as Kate went to get the bag.

  “No, Nothing like that. He didn’t talk about his family, just Duncan.”

  “Hmm,” Jon answered as he peered at the photo of the girl on the ID. She was young, in her early twenties maybe, and had that typical neutral expression on her face that was on all ID’s these days.

  “What’s that?” Polly called down. “What did you find?”

  Jon looked back at the purse and pulled a face. “Hopefully, nothing.”

  17

  Having dropped the purse off in Horsley Station’s small forensics lab, Jon walked back into the office, where Kate was already sitting at her desk. He’d sent her ahead while he stopped by the lab in the hope that she could find something on these new bits of evidence.

  It was curious. He wondered if whatever was going on with the Coopers had anything at all to do with this case. It seemed linked to Duncan, given Mark’s apparent interest in him. But did that have anything at all to do with the bodies in the walls in Newdigate?

  It was probably too early to know and would require some investigating, but he didn’t like how this case and the number of suspects seemed to keep growing rather than shrinking.

  Who was this Mark, and what the hell was he doing following Duncan around and asking after him? Was he just a friend? Or maybe some kind of former lover or a stalker? Or did he perhaps have unfinished business with Duncan? Maybe this was more sinister than he realised.

  He shook his head as he walked through the main office of the SIU, cursing his run away thoughts.

  “Jon,” a voice called out from behind him. He turned to see the Superintendent standing at his office door. Ray beckoned him over and disappeared inside his office.

  Aaah, crap, now what? Did he forget to keep Stingray informed about what he was doing? Probably. He needed to be more careful and play by the rules, he thought as he glanced over at Kate. He’d been heading her way to see if she’d found anything.

  She looked at him and shrugged, pulling a face that told him she was just as mystified as he was.

  Jon bobbed his eyebrows at her and then made for the DSupt’s office. He walked in to find Ray pacing back and forth behind his desk, looking concerned.

  “Shut the door, please,” Ray asked.

  “Sir.” Jon did as he was told. “What can I do for
you?”

  “I’ve just got off the phone with the ACC,” he began, and Jon’s heart sank. What was the Assistant Chief Constable up to now? But Ray paused, not offering an answer right away. He looked troubled as he rubbed his jaw with his hand.

  “I see, sir,” Jon replied, as Ray shook his head. “What seems to be the issue?”

  “Alright, I’ll just say it, even though it sounds a little like madness to me.”

  “Very well, sir,” Jon replied.

  “ACC Ward wants to know why one of my officers is bothering the Miller family.”

  “What?” Jon asked, shocked.

  “I know. I… I’m as surprised as you are. I know who the Millers are, and I know of their reputation. They’re dodgy, at best, and I have no idea why the ACC would give them the time of day. I don’t know, maybe this has come from higher up or something, but…” Ray sighed. “Okay, so, why are you talking to the Millers?”

  “Apart from the obvious?” Jon asked, rising an eyebrow.

  “Don’t get smart. I’m not in the mood, Jon.”

  He nodded, wondering about the internal conflict that was going through Ray’s head right now. He’d been sent here to the SIU by the ACC to bring the unit into line or—and this was only a guess—find a way to shut it down. ACC Ward did not like the SIU and their investigations into the rich and powerful, and installing a puppet Superintendent was, as far as Jon was concerned, his way to make sure the SIU toed the line.

  Was Ray beginning to see another side to the Assistant Chief Constable?

  “A suspect in our case has links to the Millers,” Jon explained. “We don’t know where this suspect is, but we hoped his associates might.”

  “I see. Okay, and you spoke to one of the Millers today?”

  “Two, actually. Nathan visited one.”

  “Right,” he said and shook his head. “Well, this is all shades of messed up. Look, all I can say is, tread carefully. I know I’m holding your feet to the fire constantly, but you also need to follow the leads where ever they go. I get that. I want these murders solved too. I’ve been in the trenches, I know how it goes. Do your job, but Jon, if you want the SIU to be here in a years time, you need to tread more carefully.”

  Jon hesitated, surprised by the DSupt’s candour, and the fact that he seemed more on Jon’s side over this than the ACC’s. He didn’t expect this state of affairs to last, though. “I’ll do my best, sir.”

  “Good. How’s it going?”

  “Steady,” Jon replied. “We have another lead to follow up.” He went on to explain their find at Polly Elliot’s rented house.

  “Okay, keep me up to date,” Ray said. “You can go.”

  “Thank you, sir,” Jon replied and left the office, leaving the DSupt sitting in his chair with a lot on his mind.

  Walking back to Kate, he pulled up a chair and sat beside her.

  “That was quick,” she said.

  “I know. Looks like the ACC doesn’t like us interrogating the Millers.”

  “The Millers? He’s friendly with the Millers?”

  Jon shrugged. “I have no idea. It could have come from higher up or something, but it doesn’t look good, whatever the case.”

  “No, it doesn’t. Shit.”

  “Something weirder than that happened, though,” Jon began.

  “Weirder?”

  “Oh yes, get a load of this. Ray was on our side.”

  “What?”

  “I know. He was just as shocked as we are. He knows who the Millers are and seemed shocked by the ACC’s interference. He said we should just tread carefully from now on.”

  Kate nodded. “Damn. That’s good to know, though, that he’s with us on this, at least.”

  “Yep. Alright, so have you found anything?”

  “I have, actually.” She brought up a page on her screen. “So, I started with Helen, given that we found her purse, and it turns out that she was reported missing today by her mother, Rose Cooper.”

  “Aaah, okay. That’s interesting. If we have her purse, I wonder if we have a crime scene too, in that basement?”

  Kate shrugged. “No idea. What I can tell you is that the case was given to DC Ellie Mizaki at Mount Browne. It doesn’t look like they have much on the case yet, though.”

  “Maybe we can give Ellie a boost then, with the purse.”

  “Yep. We should go and see her. She might know something we don’t.”

  “Sounds good. So, what about Mark Cooper?”

  “No criminal record. But, it didn’t take much for me to link him with Helen. He’s her brother.”

  “Hmm. Okay, so Mark Cooper seems to know Duncan somehow. Duncan rents that house from Polly, and then moves out…” he checked his notes. “…three weeks ago. Mark moves in a short time after that, asking about Duncan. He seems to know a lot about Duncan. But then he suddenly leaves the property without Polly knowing and cancels his cheque. Then we visit, and find Helen’s stuff in the basement, as she’s just disappeared.”

  “Right,” Kate agreed.

  “But their mother only reported Helen missing, not Mark.”

  “Seems so, yes.”

  Jon sat back and frowned. “This all links to the bodies somehow, but how?”

  “Do you think it’s Duncan?”

  “Maybe, but how? He wasn’t renting the place when Helen goes missing, but Mark was by the sounds of things. Duncan rented the house out, but Corey was in there when the bodies went in. It’s as if someone is following Duncan around, killing people.”

  “Like he’s got a dark cloud following him around.”

  “But who is that dark cloud? Duncan himself? Or Corey, or Evan?”

  “Or Mark?” Kate added.

  “Yeah, or him. Or all of them perhaps?”

  “All of them? Like some kind of conspiracy?”

  “Hmm, maybe not.”

  “It might be, but maybe don’t mention that to Nathan. He might get excited.”

  “And we wouldn’t want that,” Jon replied. “Hmm. This is all linked, somehow, but I’m not really sure how. Do you think someone’s trying to set Duncan up?”

  “Make him out to be the killer, you mean?”

  “Yeah. I mean, he fell out with Corey, so he doesn’t like him. He doesn’t get on with Evan, either. Both have a motive to hurt Duncan or set him up.”

  “And Mark?”

  “I don’t know. Mark knows him, for sure.”

  “True. Polly said he seemed really interested in Duncan. Maybe as more than friends, perhaps?”

  “Duncan could be gay, I suppose.”

  “So maybe he had relationships with Corey and Mark?” Kate suggested.

  “Makes sense.” Jon thought back to the Lockwood case and the hate that riddled that family. “You don’t think this could be another homophobic thing, do you?”

  “From who?”

  “I don’t know. Evan, maybe? Maybe he doesn’t like that his brother is gay.”

  Kate shrugged. “He seems quite a manly man. I guess it could be some toxic masculinity.”

  Jon nodded but couldn’t be sure. All this was pure speculation on their part for now. They needed to know more. “Let’s see what we can dig up. See if we have any phone numbers for either of them that we can comb through. If they were friendly, there’d likely be some traces of that in messages and stuff.”

  “I’ll pass it along to the team,” Kate said.

  Jon felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out and glanced at the caller ID but didn’t recognise the number that came up. With a grunt, he answered.

  “Hello?”

  “DCI Jon Pilgrim,” said a male voice with a London accent on the other end of the line. “It’s good to speak to you again. This is Irving Miller. We met a few months ago.”

  “I remember you, Irving,” he replied, making sure to say the name aloud so Kate knew who was on the phone. She made an “oh” face at him and moved closer to listen in.

  “I’m sure you do. You ma
de quite the impression when you visited, you know, with that plucky partner of yours.”

  Jon didn’t like the man’s attitude. “What can I do for you today, Mr Miller.”

  “Aaah, I see. Straight to the point are we. I see how this is going.”

  “Good,” Jon said.

  “No need to be so unfriendly, Jon. I’m a big supporter of the Police and commend the great work you do.”

  “I’m sure you do. I know the ACC is a big fan of yours.”

  “I’ve shared a drink with Miles before at the occasional society function. He’s a hard-working and dedicated officer. You could learn a lot from him, Jon.”

  “Could I?” I bet I could, he thought. Like, how to lick the boots of an organised crime boss, maybe?

  “Yes indeed. But that’s not why I’m calling you Jon. But, I suspect you know why I’m calling.”

  “Why don’t you enlighten me,” Jon said, baiting him.

  “If you have questions to ask anyone in this family, Jon, you come to me. I don’t like you poking your nose into the private affairs of my family.”

  “Aaah, well, unfortunately for you, that’s kind of my job, and I have certain powers granted to me by the state that allow me to do just that. So if I need to ask Brent some questions, I think that’s what I’ll be doing, Irving.”

  There was a moment’s silence on the line, as if Irving was thinking his words through before he answered. “I see. Well, good luck, Mr Pilgrim.”

  “DCI Pilgrim, Mr Miller,” he corrected him.

  “Indeed. I’ll see you and Kate around, Jon.” The link clicked off.

  Kate looked up at him as she sat back in her seat. “He was trying to intimidate you.”

  “Trying being the operative word,” Jon replied. “I’m not going to dance to his tune.”

  She nodded and smile. “Good. So, what now?”

  “Let’s go see Ellie, and see what she makes of our lead.”

  18

  After signing in, Jon and Kate moved away from the reception desk in the entrance lobby so the next person in line could be seen.

  “Have you been here before?” Kate asked.

  “I don’t think so, no,” Jon replied, looking around the lobby of Mount Browne, the Surrey Police Head Quarters. It was modern, with security doors leading into the building and a huge police logo inlaid into the floor.