Sunday 25th September – 8 p.m.
‘Well, I shoulda known you’d be at the heart of the trouble,’ Sergeant Baptiste accused Conor.
Nell’s eyes flicked between the two men, hoping Conor was calm enough to keep quiet.
But Conor didn’t put up any defence. Brandon was roused and transported to an ambulance with Finn and Maeve, also bloody from their injuries. Sean went with them, but Conor was hauled to the station.
Gulping back sobs, Sylvia leaped to her feet, protesting Conor’s arrest. But it fell on deaf ears: Baptiste ignored her and Conor didn’t even meet her eyes.
Sinking to her seat, her face stricken, Nell moved in to hug her as Sergeant Baptiste paused beside James. ‘Since you’re such a stickler for the rules, I’ll expect your statement later this evening. Who knows, maybe we’ve just smoked out a murderer.’ His head tilt suggested he expected James to argue.
‘I’ll provide my statement,’ James said. ‘There are several points to note about Conor’s self-defence – his assailant was armed, and had already injured two people, and resisted the restraint of an officer of the law. Not to mention the significant mitigating factors, including the high degree of stress the family is under after today’s discovery and ahead of tomorrow’s results.’
Sergeant Baptiste pursed his lips but didn’t reply. As he left Nell felt grateful for James pointing out Conor’s position, and knew he’d frame his statement in the strongest terms. Even so, it was horrendous. And Sylvia voiced Nell’s fears.
‘If he’s arrested, if he’s charged, for … for … something like that …’ Sylvia whispered, ‘that’ll be the end of his job, won’t it? You can’t work in his field with a record.’ Her worried gaze met Nell’s eyes, then James’s.
‘Probably,’ James said.
Nell flinched. James could be annoyingly blunt. ‘But Conor works for my family, Sylv.’ She pointed out. ‘We owe him far too much, and think too highly of him to let him go.’
A sob caught in Sylvia’s throat but she didn’t look relieved. ‘I … I’ve never seen him like that. I … I didn’t recognise him at all.’ She let out a shuddering exhale. ‘I feel like I don’t even know him.’ She leaned against Rav, accepting his sideways hug. Over her golden curls, Rav’s eyes met Nell’s.
‘What was he supposed to do? Let Brandon hurt everyone?’ Nell tried to reassure her.
‘He was using it as an excuse to pulverise him, though, wasn’t he?’ Sylvia gulped. ‘He didn’t just stop the fight. He could have got in between them, or restrained him. He just nearly killed his brother.’
‘Yeah, well. Restraining Brandon took more than I imagined.’ James rotated his shoulder. ‘It’s not like I’m inexperienced in that department, and I couldn’t hold him back.’
‘And what if Brandon killed Siobhan?’ Nell asked. She had another question that she didn’t think Sylvia needed to hear right now. But when she raised her head and met her gaze, she knew Sylvia was thinking it too.
Sylvia turned to Rav, her face still stricken. ‘Do you think he and Siobhan …’
‘Oh, Sylv.’ He wrapped a strong arm around her. ‘I seem to remember you telling me I had to channel my courage when I had the wrong end of the stick. About Nell.’
Nell eyed him, wondering what he was talking about. But it made Sylvia swallow a sob and manage a watery smile. ‘Yes, that’s true. I did …’
Backing away from the conversation, to leave Sylvia in Rav’s capable hands, Nell saw James and Shannon head outside.
Behind the bar, Aoife looked shell-shocked and Nell hesitated, wondering if she should ask her if she’d taken whatever was in Siobhan’s hand. She was fairly sure it would have been Maeve. Maybe it was sentimental – or maybe she recognised who it belonged to?
But I should at least rule Aoife out …
Spotting Nell staring at her, Aoife attempted an unconvincing smile. Nell walked over. Nothing for it now …
‘Jeez. What a night.’ Aoife sounded breathless. ‘What a weekend.’ She eyed Nell with something approaching suspicion. ‘To think, you just popped out to see my precious bog yesterday morning, and then a body’s found, and then you know the family. It’s … well. It’s a lot.’
Nell met her gaze levelly. ‘Yes. How did you find Siobhan?’
‘We were digging down to put in the boardwalk supports. We were being careful, methodical so we could replace the peat. But then we saw the hand …’
Shaking off a shiver, Aoife went on. ‘We need a boardwalk there because it’s such an accessible spot, with easy parking off the road, in the lay-by. The volume of walkers we’re getting is harming the habitat.’
Nell used the agreeable tone to change tack. ‘It looked like you were equally as careful with Siobhan, protecting her while she was excavated. It was really interesting to see you working like that. Was that your supervisor, directing the SOCO team?’
Aoife nodded. ‘Turns out he’s suddenly available when there’s something to actually dig up. Can’t resist it.’
‘Well, I suppose that’s natural. Is Siobhan’s body at your lab? To be properly preserved for as long as possible?’
‘No, the body has to be secured at the mortuary. We’re advising on how best to preserve it, to give any evidence the best … longevity. We have been allowed to take some samples. My supervisor wasn’t shy about asking her family for permission.’
Nell wondered if they’d even been able to process the request, given how upset and shocked the family was, and squirmed in discomfort at the manipulation.
‘It must be helpful, academically speaking, to know how long ago she was … buried, and how well preserved everything is.’
Aoife nodded. ‘I couldn’t help taking notes about that today.’
‘Was that all you took, Aoife?’ Nell held her gaze, until Aoife looked away.
‘Well, I took … Look, I’m sorry, but I just thought it was too good an opportunity to miss. So I took … a photo. Or two.’
‘You didn’t take a harmless artefact? Just for scientific reasons?’
Aoife frowned.
‘Because someone did. And you were one of the few with access.’ Nell pulled her phone out and showed her the photos.
Aoife squinted. ‘I can’t make out what she’s holding. But it looks like it could be the same bracelet that she’s wearing—’ Her voice cut off and she gasped. ‘Jeez … it’s like this.’ Aoife pulled up her sleeve and showed Nell the friendship bracelet she wore.
Aoife’s bracelet was well-worn and slightly ragged. Six different coloured leather strands were woven in a decorative plait.
Nell studied the photo again, zooming in on the thin bracelet around Siobhan’s wrist. It had become sepia-toned by the peat, but the different shades suggested they’d once been different colours.
‘Where did you get that, Aoife?’
Did she steal it, to wear it, like some macabre relic …? She could wash it easily enough. But can you remove the coloration of the peat? Maybe there’s a technique …?
She shrugged. ‘I’ve always had it.’
‘Sure. But where did you get it? In the first place?’
‘It was on my wrist. When I was … left.’
Nell frowned. ‘Left where?’
Her heart began to pound again, even as she rejected the possibility of another coincidence.
‘I was abandoned.’ Her chin trembled but she raised her head. ‘As a baby. At a convent. They got the authorities involved but I was initially looked after by the nuns while they found a family and got things organised. A couple of things were left with me. This, and my locket, which was tucked beside me in the car seat I was left in.’
‘Oh … Aoife. I had no idea.’
Aoife shook her head. ‘It’s fine. There’s no knowing why, is there? So no sense in wondering about it. Every single day.’
She tried to undo the locket, just as Rav wheeled over, but her fingers were shaking and she fumbled with the clasp.
‘Everything OK?’ he asked.
Nell nodded. ‘Just checking something out.’
Finally undoing it, Aoife held out her locket for Nell, who turned it over to see the stylised B symbol on the back.
Rav peered at it. ‘That looks like the original logo of the Delaney distillery – it’s in photos at the tasting area. How funny.’
Nell looked again and saw the curves of the B were two interlocking capital Ds, with a trailing stem.
‘It’s designed to look like a two-eared stem of wheat,’ Rav said. ‘Because that variety is used for whiskey, having more sugars to convert to alcohol compared to the six-eared variety which has more protein and is used for food. If you want to be a nerd about it.’
He gave a sheepish grin. ‘Sorry to babble. Bit of an unsettling evening.’
Nell glanced at Aoife’s face. Her finger traced the pattern etched into the gold. It looked too old-fashioned to have been something Siobhan would have chosen.
Yet …
Something stopped Nell from saying the idea aloud. Like it wasn’t her assumption to make.
But Aoife held her gaze, visibly pale. ‘If this … is a Delaney locket. And if … if I have the same bracelet as her … Then could … Siobhan … be my mammie? ’
Rav gaped, but Nell could see emotion welling in Aoife’s eyes, and knew she had to tread carefully.
‘It does seem like quite a coincidence,’ she said gently.
Aoife swallowed, quiet for the first time since Nell had met her. A long moment drew out before Aoife met her eyes. She seemed unable to speak, so Nell asked, ‘Would you want to find out? For sure?’
‘Yes! Of course!’ Aoife blurted. ‘I’ve always wanted to know. It felt like I was given little clues, but I’ve never known what to do with them. But how—’ Her eyes widened as she stared at Nell. ‘Oh! We’ve got all the equipment to do DNA tests over at the lab. But I’ve never done one alone. I don’t even … I couldn’t.’
‘OK.’ Realising her suggestion might have been too much, Nell nodded. ‘This is a lot to take in. I didn’t mean to push. I just thought, if you were certain, it would help with how you’d approach the family. It would be better to know one way or the other before launching something like this on them.’
Nell also hoped, if Aoife was Siobhan’s daughter, that a test and some certainty would be kinder than the taut dread of another day of radar testing.
‘I think you’re right.’ Aoife hesitated. ‘Do you know how to do a DNA test?’
When Nell nodded, Aoife asked, ‘So …? Would you?’