Class Murder Page 18

  ‘I need you to listen to me,’ Robin said.

  He stood up and began pacing the room again, trying to decide how much to tell her. Kneeling on the floor, she put the baby down on his playmat and looked up, frowning. Rob sat down again and gazed miserably at her.

  ‘You’d better tell me what’s going on,’ she said quietly. ‘If you know anything about these murders…’ Her voice tailed off and her blue eyes suddenly filled with tears. ‘You can talk to me, Rob. No secrets, remember? If you’re in some kind of trouble…’

  He laughed harshly. ‘I haven’t been running around killing people, if that’s what you’re worried about.’

  ‘Don’t be silly. That’s not what I meant. But something’s wrong and you have to tell me what it is. This isn’t fair, Rob. What the hell’s going on? You can’t drop hints and then not explain what you’re talking about.’

  He nodded. She was right.

  ‘OK,’ he said heavily. ‘There have been three murders: Stephanie Crawford, Peter Edwards and now Beth Carr.’

  He paused, lost in thought.

  ‘You make it sound as though you knew them.’

  ‘I did. Oh, not recently,’ he added quickly, seeing her shocked expression. ‘We were at school together.’

  ‘Oh my God, I had no idea. Were they all friends of yours?’

  ‘No, not really. I mean, we were in the same class and I knew them. I was actually friends with Peter for a while. We used to kick a football around together. I remember he was shorter than me for a while.’ He laughed. ‘I guess that’s why I wanted to be friends with him.’

  The shortest boy in the year, Robin had been desperate to be as tall as his peers.

  ‘I’m so sorry you lost your friend like that,’ Katie said. ‘What was he like?’

  ‘He was OK. We weren’t that friendly. It was a long time ago anyway. But that’s not the point.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  Robin looked at his wife. Slim and pale, she looked very different to the girl he had first met three years ago when they were both at university in Liverpool. He sometimes wondered what he might have done with his life if Katie hadn’t fallen pregnant so soon after they had graduated but she had, and now they were here, bringing up a son.

  ‘What do you mean?’ Katie repeated. ‘What are you talking about?’

  This was it. He would have to tell her all about it. Cautiously he explained that someone appeared to be targeting the members of his class at school, trying to kill them all. He did his best to make sure she took him seriously, while at the same time trying not to worry her. For once she heard him out without interrupting.

  ‘Do you think you’re being paranoid?’ she asked when he had finished. ‘And anyway, the third victim was shot. I know there was speculation in the media that the three murders were related, but it turned out that wasn’t true. The first two were stabbed and the third one was shot.’

  The baby began to cry. She swept him up in her arms and Robin felt a surge of tenderness for them both. If anything were to happen to them, he wouldn’t want to live. Reluctantly he recounted what Leah had told him.

  ‘So you’re telling me the same person killed three of your classmates, and the killer has a gun?’

  He had succeeded in making her anxious, but for the wrong reason.

  ‘You’re the one who should be careful,’ she said, her face stretched taut with fear. ‘I wasn’t in your class at school. This is about you, not me, Robin. You’re the one who’s in danger. Surely the police can carry out a massive hunt for the gun and find the killer that way?’

  ‘And how do you suppose they can track down the gun? Talk about looking for a needle in a haystack.’

  ‘They could search the home of every member of your class for a start. They have to do something.’

  With a shrug he told her that the police didn’t yet know that Bethany’s killer had recently acquired a gun. Leah didn’t want anyone else to know.

  Katie was horrified. ‘She has to tell them.’

  ‘We tried to persuade her but she flatly refused. She got hold of the gun illegally.’

  ‘So she’s prepared to withhold evidence that might help to find a killer who’s already claimed three victims and is quite possibly threatening more people, including you. That’s crazy. Anyway, if she won’t tell the police, you have to.’

  ‘She didn’t want us to.’

  ‘So?’

  He shook his head. ‘I was thinking of going straight to the police but I don’t want to get involved. She made us promise not to say anything.’ He bit his lip.

  ‘Well, I never promised.’

  Robin nodded. ‘You know I would never stop you doing anything you want to do. But until they find this killer I want you to be – well, careful.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Promise me you won’t go out alone after dark…’

  She gave an angry laugh. ‘You want to impose a curfew on me?’

  Before he could answer the baby began to cry again, and she turned her attention to feeding him. Robin watched her for a moment, wondering whether to try and continue the conversation. On balance he decided it was best to leave it to her. Katie might be obsessed with the baby, but she wasn’t stupid. If he knew his wife, she would be at the police station first thing in the morning.

  ‘Well, there’s no immediate danger,’ he said at last. ‘And hopefully this’ll soon blow over. The police will sort it out. That’s their job.’

  Katie didn’t answer.

  39

  As Geraldine was about to leave her desk, her phone rang. Glancing down, she saw the number of the clinic where Helena was in rehab. With a sinking feeling in her stomach, she answered.

  ‘I can’t talk for long right now. Is everything all right?’

  A stranger replied in an uninterested tone, informing her that Helena was ready to leave the clinic.

  ‘I’m sorry, I can’t give the arrangements my full attention at the moment. I’m at work and just about to go to a meeting. Can I call you back?’

  ‘Don’t worry, there’s nothing for you to do right now. We just wanted to inform you. It helps if there’s someone around to offer support.’

  ‘Yes, of course. I’ll come and collect her on Sunday morning and take her home. Please make sure she waits for me.’

  Ringing off, Geraldine hurried to an interview room where a blond woman of about twenty was waiting for her. She was wearing a bright blue anorak and a red scarf. From her lap a small infant raised his head and stared curiously at Geraldine, as though trying to work out whether he recognised her. After a few seconds he lost interest in her and threw himself backwards to look up at the woman who was holding him. The young mother sat stiffly on the chair staring across at Geraldine, her face impassive. Only the expression in her eyes and her tightly clasped fingers betrayed her anxiety.

  Geraldine gave her a reassuring smile. ‘How can I help you, Mrs Jones?’

  The woman continued to stare at her without speaking.

  ‘What was it you came here to tell us?’

  The young woman shifted awkwardly on her chair and cleared her throat. She seemed unable to meet Geraldine’s eye.

  ‘It’s about the recent murders,’ she said at last, and hesitated.

  ‘If you have some information you think might help us, please tell me what you know.’

  ‘I’m married to Robin Jones.’

  Geraldine waited quietly for Robin’s wife to explain herself in her own time.

  ‘My husband was at school with the three recent murder victims. They were in the same class.’

  Geraldine listened without speaking.

  ‘He’s afraid he might be next. He thinks the rest of the class might all be at risk. Do you think that’s crazy?’

  Geraldine shrugged and waited for
the girl to continue but Katie paused, waiting for a response.

  ‘It’s very unusual for someone to target victims on such a large scale,’ Geraldine replied cautiously. ‘At this stage we’re not ruling anything out but Bethany Carr was shot and the other two victims were stabbed, which suggests there’s a different killer involved.’

  ‘Yes I know, the killer’s got a gun now, but it’s the same killer,’ Katie blurted out, her voice rising in agitation. ‘He got his hands on a gun when he killed Bethany. That’s what happened. But it’s the same killer,’ she insisted.

  ‘We don’t know that…’

  ‘No, listen, that’s what I came here to tell you. Leah was afraid to tell you because it was illegal, but you ought to know. Because it means it’s the same killer. And if anything happens to Robin…’ she broke off, her voice shaking. Taking a deep breath, she went on. ‘And if there’s anything that might help you find the killer, it’s insane not to tell you. I don’t know what they’re thinking. They should have come to you straight away, all of them. It’s crazy. I told him.’

  To begin with Geraldine struggled to work out what the girl was telling her.

  ‘And you’re sure that’s what happened?’ she asked when she finally understood.

  ‘That’s what Robin told me, and he wouldn’t make up something like that. Bethany took the gun, and I guess she was going to chuck it in the canal, only the killer caught up with her before she could get rid of it. If she hadn’t had the gun on her, maybe she would have escaped alive… and now he’s got a gun and he wants to kill Robin.’ She raised tearful eyes to Geraldine. ‘You have to stop him. You have to!’

  After thanking Katie for coming forward, and reassuring her as best she could, Geraldine filed her report and looked for Eileen. The detective chief inspector was in a meeting so Geraldine went to talk to Ian instead. He smiled when he saw her enter his office.

  ‘Geraldine, how’s it all going?’

  ‘I know how the killer got hold of a gun,’ she said, without pausing to return his greeting.

  Ian’s welcoming smile vanished and he sat forward in his chair. ‘Go on.’

  Briefly she summarised what Katie had told her. ‘Leah was reluctant to come forward because she got hold of the gun illegally,’ she concluded.

  Ian swore. Leah’s decision to keep herself out of trouble meant the truth had been concealed for days. When Ian congratulated Geraldine for having unearthed what had happened, she pointed out that Katie had come forward of her own volition. Nevertheless she was gratified by Ian’s praise. She wondered if he had been similarly pleased by her praise whenever she had commended his efforts as her sergeant. It seemed like a long time since they had worked together, their positions reversed. She wondered if he was also finding their new situation strange.

  At last Eileen returned and summoned Geraldine and Ian to her office to discuss the latest development. Quizzing Geraldine about Katie’s account, the detective chief inspector was as incensed as Ian.

  ‘Leah’s so worried about being caught out in possession of an illegal firearm that she’s prepared to withhold crucial information from the investigation. Is she a complete moron? Geraldine, never mind second- and third-hand information, go and speak to Leah. Make up whatever story you like to account for how you know about her taking a gun back to the flat, or don’t explain it at all. Frankly right now I don’t care about how or where or why she got hold of it. We can deal with that later. For now, we just need confirmation that Bethany took a gun with her on the night she was shot, and that Leah’s gun was the one that fired the shot.’

  ‘We don’t know it wasn’t Leah who shot her,’ Ian pointed out. ‘She said they had an argument.’

  ‘It could have been Leah all along,’ Eileen agreed. ‘It almost looks likely, doesn’t it? No, I know she’s unlikely to have stabbed two people to death,’ she added, seeing Geraldine’s expression, ‘but if you were to tell her that we’re thinking along those lines, do you think it might help persuade her to start telling us the truth?’

  40

  ‘What do you want?’ Leah called through the door once Geraldine had announced herself.

  ‘I’d like to talk to you.’

  There was a pause.

  ‘Leah? Can you open the door please?’

  There was another pause.

  ‘Leah? You know I know you’re in there.’

  There was another pause before the door opened a fraction, with the chain across.

  ‘Leah, you can see it’s me. Open the door please.’

  ‘I’m just going to bed.’

  Geraldine began to lose patience but she spoke softly. ‘Leah, I haven’t driven all this way only to be turned away. I just want to come in for a quick chat. I don’t understand why you don’t want to let me in – unless you have something in there you don’t want me to see? Come on now, open the door. I only want to ask you a few questions. It won’t take long. Let’s get it over with and then you can go to bed, and I can go home.’

  The door opened. Leah was wearing a faded pink towelling dressing gown that fitted her snugly and was slightly too long for her. Beneath it her plump white feet were bare.

  ‘What do you want?’

  ‘Shall we go in and sit down?’

  ‘I thought this wasn’t going to take long?’ Leah grumbled as she turned and led the way.

  There was a bowl of sweets on a low coffee table in the sitting room. Leah reached for one and unwrapped it noisily as Geraldine asked her where she had been on the night her flatmate was killed.

  ‘It was only five days ago,’ Leah said, her eyes suddenly filling with tears. She sniffed loudly. ‘I still can’t believe she’s gone. Why don’t you find out who did it? Until you do, no one’s safe. I could be next.’

  Geraldine assured her firmly that the police were doing everything they could to find the killer. ‘Tell me again what happened that evening. What time did Bethany go out?’

  Leah shrugged. ‘I don’t know. I told you, I was in the shower when she left. It was probably around six or seven. I didn’t look at the time.’

  ‘So you heard her go out?’

  ‘No. How could I, when I was in the shower? I didn’t know she’d gone until I came out of the bathroom and discovered she wasn’t here.’

  ‘Tell me exactly what you did after you had your shower. Think carefully, and please don’t leave anything out.’

  ‘I came out of the shower and I went in my room and…’ she broke off, frowning.

  ‘Yes, you went in your room, and what happened then? Did you see something that told you she’d gone out?’

  Leah’s face reddened.

  ‘What was it, Leah? Had she taken something of yours?’

  For a moment Leah didn’t answer. When she spoke, it wasn’t what Geraldine was hoping to hear.

  ‘She hadn’t been in my room, as far as I knew. When I was dry I went into the living room and she wasn’t there, so I called her and knocked on her door to see if she wanted to watch telly with me. That’s when I discovered she’d gone out.’

  ‘So you’re saying she hadn’t taken anything of yours with her?’

  Leah’s eyes narrowed slightly. Her mouth opened but she made no sound. Her stricken eyes closed and tears slid silently down her cheeks. Geraldine gave her a few seconds.

  ‘Please,’ Leah whispered without opening her eyes, ‘please just go away and let me grieve for my friend in peace. You have no right to come here and harass me like this.’

  ‘Leah,’ Geraldine said gently. ‘If there’s anything you’re not telling me, you need to tell me now. It’s understandable that you’d be frightened about the killer and want to protect yourself. If you did something illegal, no one’s going to be interested in that right now. All we want to do is find this killer and lock him up.’

  A faint frown flitted across Le
ah’s face as she opened her eyes. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about. I haven’t done anything illegal, and you’ve got no right to come here making accusations like that. I’d like you to go now.’

  Despite Leah’s firmness, Geraldine wasn’t convinced. She was inclined to think Katie had been telling the truth.

  ‘Are you sure there’s nothing else you want to tell me?’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘What happened on Sunday evening? Tell me again, right from the beginning, because something doesn’t add up. Did you and Beth argue? Was that why she went out?’

  Leah described how she had urged her friend to stay indoors as it might not be safe to go out after dark, with a killer targeting their classmates, but Bethany had ignored her advice. They had quarrelled about it.

  ‘What did you do after you discovered she’d gone out?’

  ‘I stayed at home and waited for her to come back.’

  ‘Where did she go?’

  ‘How many times do I have to tell you? I don’t know.’

  ‘Did she often go out without telling you where she was going?’

  ‘Yes, of course she did. We weren’t joined at the hip. We weren’t married. And anyway, I already told you we’d had a row. But I don’t know where she went, and I didn’t follow her, if that’s what you’re thinking, and I didn’t kill her.’

  Abandoning any hope that Leah would tell the truth freely, Geraldine spoke sternly.

  ‘Leah, it’s an offence to conceal information from police conducting a murder enquiry, so think carefully before you answer my next question. And remember, I’m here to track down a killer. I’m not interested in anything else.’ She leaned forward in her chair. ‘Have you at any time owned a gun, for self-defence? Tell me the truth, Leah. We don’t want to leave the killer at liberty for a moment longer than we have to. So tell me the truth. Did you have a gun here in the flat at any time?’

  ‘No, no, I never have. I never would. I wouldn’t know where to get hold of one.’ Leah lowered her face in her hands and burst into tears.