Chapter 23: Chapter 23

FIFTY-SIX

‘Bye,’ Elisa shouted up the stairs. As she left the farm shop, she checked her messages. Her mother was running late picking her up. It was only a couple of miles, she could walk home. It’s not like it was raining. She messaged her mum.

I’ll start walking. See you at home. X

She kept close to the grassy verge, walking along the single-track road. A car slowed down and passed her carefully. It was going to be a long walk she thought as she looked down at her thin-soled dolly shoes. She stepped onto the grass and plugged her earphones in, selecting her Little Mix album to listen to. As she walked she bobbed her head and stepped in time with the beat. Ethan hated her music, always removing her CDs when they went out in his car. She sometimes won the battle but more often than not, they had to listen to the Foo Fighters. She smiled. In a couple of hours he’d be picking her up and they were heading into Stratford to park up by the river and meet up with friends. They’d go to McDonald’s, grab some food and hang out.

Her heart skipped a beat as she spotted the silver car pull up alongside her. She noticed that it was a Mercedes. The creepy man who bought the honey was driving at walking

speed. She snatched one of the earbuds out. His window came down. She knew he was a weirdo when he came into the shop. Had he been following her and waiting for her to finish work? Her amble became a fast walk, then turned into a light jog. The man drove a little faster. She looked for a gap in the verge but there wasn’t one. She began to sprint but her shoes weren’t the best to run in.

‘Wait,’ he called.

‘Get away from me.’ He pulled up and began to chase her. She ran until she reached the woodland. A shiver ran through her body. She was running through the same area that the girl had been found in the shallow grave. She should have waited for her mother to pick her up. ‘I’m calling the police,’ she yelled as she held her phone up. Then she tripped, hitting her head on a tree. Through woozy vision, she watched as the man caught up and kneeled beside her. ‘Please don’t hurt me,’ she whimpered as she drifted out of consciousness.

FIFTY-SEVEN

Gina threw her keys onto the worktop and booted the laptop up as she filled Ebony’s dinner bowl. The cat darted in through the cat door and began chewing the meat. She grabbed the glass of warm juice from the side that she’d started at breakfast and took a swig.

Sitting at the table, she checked her emails and logged onto the system. Wyre had uploaded all the information they had on the Norths. They were worth over six million pounds as per their reported figures, all made from investments and property. As mentioned, Stan North had known Bryn Tilly since childhood. They’d attended Cleevesford Junior and Cleevesford Senior together. There was a close history. She could see that he may want to help his friend enter the property business, especially as Bryn had building and project management skills.

She clicked on the tab that would show up any previous. Mr North had been charged with buying cocaine after being caught a third time. One of the charges was with Mrs North. Cocaine use was becoming as prevalent as weed use in the area, especially amongst those who could afford it. A problem that was only escalating. The thought of drug use and the two girls flashed through her mind. Heroin was found in Erin’s

blood. Maybe the Norths were making money from illegal trades too.

Her mind went back to Mrs North. The woman with everything. She’d never seen so many photos up in a workplace of one person. Each photo a different hairstyle or colour, the trendiest of cuts, the latest designer clothing. Gina knew expensive clothing when she saw it. She used to browse the racks of John Lewis, wishing she could afford to buy from there one day and never being able to. Mrs North even smelled of quality. She hadn’t bought her perfume from the market. Gina shook her head and laughed as she swigged the rest of the orange juice, grimacing as it swished around her mouth. Everyone had a past and some people had things in their past they wanted to forget, her included. The Norths hadn’t done anything wrong for the best part of twenty years.

Apart from the minor drug charges, there was nothing else that stood out. They were rich, they were business people, she supposed a lot of people loved to hate them. They also looked perfect which made it easier. They weren’t entirely likeable though. Her mind flashed to Julia’s boyfriend, Roy, the man with no record at all.

She jumped as her mobile rang.

‘The plot thickens, guv,’ Jacob blurted out. ‘Bryn Tilly has just called in. He went over to the property that he and the Norths had invested in, where we found Simone Duxford’s bones, and he found a girl holding her head. She said she’d been chased through the woods by a man in a silver Mercedes. He took her to Cleevesford Hospital for a check-up and her mother has been called.’

Gina stared at Stan North’s notes and smiled. ‘Bring Stan North in now.’

FIFTY-EIGHT

FRIDAY, 20 JULY 2018

‘Did we get hold of Stan North last night?’ Gina asked Wyre as she stepped into the incident room, sipping her first coffee of the day.

‘No, AWOL. We went over to his pad, and I’m telling you, it’s a big pad. It’s the type of place you’d expect the likes of Posh and Becks to live in. I took a few photos for evidential purposes. Elizabeth North didn’t object. Big kitchen, pristine with a banquet table that could host a huge party. How the other half live? Anyway, he didn’t go home last night. Mrs North is going berserk and keeps calling the station.’

Gina carefully studied the photos. The rooms were almost clutter-free except for a few jars on the side, and a spice rack. ‘Did anyone speak with her?’

‘We asked her a few questions. In summary, he’d left work earlier that day, saying that he was just off to pick a delivery up. It was probably about teatime but she couldn’t be sure when. That was the last she saw of him. She’s been trying to call him since but he hasn’t been answering his phone.’

‘And the girl?’ Gina rubbed her tired eyes.

‘Seventeen-year-old Elisa Stanford. Smith went over to the hospital and spoke to her last night. Her mother was with her and she had been placed in a side ward, being monitored for

concussion. She’d fallen and knocked her head after being chased by a male that fitted Stan North’s description. Her mother was going to be late picking her up from work. She works at the Taste of Nature farm shop. She left at around five o’clock and began walking home along the country roads. Next thing she remembers is his car pulling up alongside her. She said he’d come in and bought some items from the shop a couple of days earlier and he’d seemed creepy then, so she ran into the woodland. The only thing she remembered after that was Bryn Tilly finding her in the woods with a bleeding head and taking her to the hospital. She called her mother who met her there.’

‘Thanks, Paula. What colour is her hair?’ ‘Smith said she had mousy brown hair.’

‘She doesn’t fit the description. If our theories are right, our perpetrator likes red haired girls.’

‘Maybe he’s changed.’ ‘Maybe.’

Jacob walked past with Smith. Gina listened as Smith spoke. ‘We’ve charged the woman with being in possession of a class A drug and she’s still not talking. We’ve run her DNA, prints and mug shot – nothing.’

‘Who’s this?’ Gina asked as Smith took a seat with Jacob around the main table.

‘That woman we pulled in, at the drug bust. She still won’t say a word. We’re applying to the courts for a further extension this morning. We need to identify her.’

‘Has her swab been fast tracked? Was there a match on the prints?’

‘It’s all been catalogued and the swab has been sent to the lab. There’s something you need to know and I was just getting to this.’

Gina took a step closer, eager to hear what Smith had to share. A smile beamed across his face. ‘The partial print that was recorded, from the cellophane packaging that was found on our van girl, Erin – it matches our silent woman’s print.’

‘I need to speak to her.’ ‘Good luck with that, guv.’

O’Connor stepped into the room with a tray of coffees just as his phone went. He slammed them down, steaming brown liquid sloshing over the side of the cups. ‘O’Connor,’ he said as he took the call. ‘Okay, thank you.’ He placed the receiver down. ‘Guv, Stacey has arrived with her father – Christina Dawson’s friend.’

She’d almost forgotten that Christina’s friend was coming in but speaking to her wasn’t at the top of Gina’s list now. Their silent woman was definitely connected to one of their victims. How? She had no idea. ‘It’s all happening at once. Can you and Wyre speak with her? Take her to the family room, it might put her at ease. Jacob and I will attempt to speak with this woman. Did she have anything on her when she was brought in?’

‘No, guv. Just the heroin that we seized and about another thirty pounds in cash. The rest of her cash probably made up the pile that we confiscated from Westley Young.’

‘She didn’t have a phone?’

‘No. It was just her. We are reviewing what small amount of CCTV footage we have in the area, trying to locate if she

has a car. If she has, it would have been left there since the bust.’

‘Has she spoken at all?’ Gina felt her muscles tensing up. If only she could storm in there and shake it out of the woman.

‘She’s asked for coffee. She understands, she’s just refusing to speak. She grins occasionally as if to tell us where to go. I had the medical officer take a look at her, she spoke to him and she’s in good health.’

‘Why is this job so damn hard? I mean, how long does she think she can sit there without saying a word? Keep on with the CCTV footage. If we can find a car, we can identify her. Right, let’s do this.’

FIFTY-NINE

The recorder rolled and Jacob was fiddling with his pen lid. Five minutes had passed and the woman remained silent. Gina rolled her stiff ankles and flexed her legs under the table. Climbing over the fence the other night had awoken muscles that hadn’t been used for a while and her ankle was now slightly puffy.

The young duty solicitor had a slight curl to the edges of his moustache. He fiddled with it as he waited with his client for the interview to begin.

‘Here’s what I have.’ Gina stared at the woman. Her long dyed brown hair with obvious grey roots fell just over her shoulders. The woman leaned forward and sighed. ‘We have matched one of your fingerprints to one found at a serious crime scene. Do you know an Erin Holden?’

The woman began staring at the wall, her gaze fixed on what Gina knew was a bit of chipped plaster.

‘On Saturday the fourteenth of July, a young girl was discovered escaping from a van in Cleevesford. You may have heard something on the news. Her name was Erin Holden. She was only sixteen years of age and had a beautiful red tone to her hair.’

She watched as the woman’s eyes began to water in the corner. Gina struggled to tell if the woman was making an emotional connection to what she was describing or the tearing was a result of the woman’s direct stare.

‘Why would an item that Erin was carrying have your fingerprints on it?’

The woman wiped her nose with her arm and stared into her lap.

‘Where do you know Erin from?’

The air went silent and the solicitor began to style the one end of his moustache. From what Smith had told her, the woman had refused to speak with him, even though he was there to represent her.

‘It’s going to be a long day. Do you want a drink?’ The woman shook her head.

‘We’re going to find out who you are eventually.’

The woman shrugged her shoulders. She then caught an expression that said it all. The woman had nothing left to lose. This was her last stand. Or was she protecting someone else, hiding something more? Maybe she was protecting Stan North. The woman hunched forward and continued looking into her lap. Gina stared at her hair. If her prints matched those that were found on Erin, her hair might match the hair that they also found. The DNA results would be back soon enough. What had this woman done to Erin Holden?

‘Tell us about Simone Duxford.’

Gina watched as sweat beads began to form on the woman’s forehead.

‘Simone Duxford, aged eighteen, found in a shallow grave in the woodland. Long gingery-red hair and carefully placed in the foetal position. The grave was a little bit small but we could see that some care had been taken in placing her. Dressed in a white nightdress, underwear. Someone had tried to preserve her dignity. Tell me about Simone.’

The woman began to hyperventilate.

‘Tell me about Simone!’ Gina pulled Simone’s photo from her notebook and slid it across the table.

As the chair slid from under the woman, she clutched her chest as she tried to stagger towards the door. Gasping for breath, the woman yelled and fell to her knees. ‘I need an ambulance.’ She began ripping her blouse buttons as she gasped for air.

‘Tell me about Simone!’ Gina yelled.

The woman writhed as she gasped for breath.

‘Guv.’ Jacob placed a hand on her shoulder. Sweat dripped from her brow onto the floor as her body shook. She was so close to getting the woman to speak.

‘Call an ambulance and get Smith here immediately,’ Gina said to Jacob, also knowing Smith was their best-trained first aider. There was no way she was getting the information she needed from a woman who looked like she was having a heart attack. The solicitor grabbed his pad and headed to the door, clearly worried about getting his pristine suit dirty as the suspect struggled for breath. Gina daren’t push for another question with him watching. She’d already come close to pushing her luck. She only hoped their suspect wouldn’t keel over and die. ‘Interview terminated at nine forty-five.’

‘We were so close.’ Gina slammed her hand on the wall as she seethed. ‘Give me something good. What did Stacey say?’ Gina asked as she left the medics to deal with their mystery woman. Wyre had just come from seeing the girl out.

‘She had nothing new to add. The only piece of information she had kept a secret was that she knew of Westley. She hasn’t been in contact with Christina Dawson since. What’s happening in there?’

‘I think our mystery woman is having a heart attack.’ They entered the incident room.

‘Did you get anything out of her?’

‘Not a jot. You should have seen her face when I mentioned Erin Holden and Simone Duxford. Simone’s photo sent her off the scale and left her struggling for breath. I think she had an anxiety attack but we have to be sure and get her checked out. They’re seeing to her now. I’m just hoping they don’t admit her to hospital but I suspect they may want to run an ECG. She looked rough.’

‘You think she knows Simone?’

‘I know it. I’m sure she knows all the girls. She’s the key to cracking this case. If she gets admitted, I want her watched like a hawk. She’s a suspect and I’m not giving her the chance to escape, especially as we still don’t know who she is.’

‘She’s stable but they’re taking her in,’ Jacob said as he ran into the room.

‘Great. I’ll head to the hospital. I want to speak to the girl, Elisa, about her run in with Stan North. We need him found. Wyre, ask Smith to provide someone who can follow the ambulance and guard mystery woman’s room while she’s there. I don’t want her giving us the slip.’

‘That’ll make his day,’ Wyre replied.

O’Connor walked in eating a biscuit, holding the packet in his other hand. ‘I just went to grab a snack. What happened?’

‘Wyre will fill you in?’ Gina grabbed one of his biscuits and her bag, before heading out to the car park. While fishing through the rubbish in her bag for her car keys, she watched as the paramedics wheeled their suspect into the ambulance. The woman wasn’t getting away from her that easily. She would wait as long as it took to get the answers she needed.

Gina checked her messages as she inhaled the summer air. Dandelion seeds gave the dried out townscape a surreal look. All the patches of grass had turned into a golden colour and leaves had begun to fall from the trees prematurely. It almost looked autumnal. The stifling weather was set to continue. Gina took a step back into the shade. A call was coming in from Wyre. ‘What have you got for me?’

‘It’s Mrs Dawson. As you know she’s been doing a bit of investigating herself and spoke to a homeless girl in Birmingham who recognised her daughter as being with a girl called Erin. She forgot to mention another detail, which is that when the girl saw the man return to Birmingham, with a woman, she said that the woman needed her roots doing. Not much to go on but I thought—’

‘Or it might be everything.’ She grinned as she thought about the mystery woman. Had she always left her roots a little too long before dying her hair or were her roots just shorter when she went with Stan North to Birmingham, possibly on the lookout for another girl. Had her hair grown a little more since? All evidence was pointing to Stan North. He was looking more suspicious by the minute. She needed to

find out how he was connected to the mystery woman, the girls and the drugs.