‘You’ve got it wrong,’ Mrs Mead said, her fingers twisting the tightly bound tissue on her lap. ‘That’s not my April. She’s not a prostitute, she’s a model.’
‘I’m sorry,’ Ruby said. She had witnessed the whole gamut of emotions with this case.
Having travelled to Essex to break the news, she found that April’s mother was clearly in denial. Who could blame her, Ruby thought. And on top of everything else, she hadn’t even known she was a grandmother. It had not taken long for her team to find April on their system, given they had her fingerprints for a previous arrest for soliciting. She was better known for a number of domestics she’d had with her ex-boyfriend, who was now in prison serving time for assault. April had been treated as a high-risk victim of domestic abuse in the past, and details of her baby were on their system too. According to her friend, who reported her missing, she was giving up prostitution to go and live in Essex with her. But when she did not show up at the train station, alarm bells began to chime.
‘I can’t imagine how incredibly difficult this must be for you and your family, but we’ve checked her fingerprints as they’re already on file. Mrs Mead. . .’
‘Joan,’ the woman sniffed.
‘Joan. Were you aware that April had a baby in care?’ Ruby had already spoken to social services and clarified that she had not been informed. The decision to keep her mother in the dark was April’s. As an adult, she was entitled to make her own choices but Ruby felt this act of secrecy was bound to deepen the wounds of grief suffered by her mother.
Joan frowned, the lines in her forehead instantly ageing her. ‘A baby? No, no, no. This just proves you’ve got it wrong. I’d know if I was a grandmother now, wouldn’t I? This is just stupid. How on earth would she have a baby without me knowing?’
‘When was she born?’ April’s sister, Lara, asked.
Ruby sighed. It was tough enough breaking the news of April’s death without adding this bombshell into the mix. ‘She’s six months old. She’s been fostered, but April was working with social care with the view of getting her back.’
Silently, Lara’s lips moved as she counted back the months. ‘June. I remember she was acting all funny back then. We wanted to come and see her. Do you remember, Mum? But she wouldn’t have it. She said she was going away on a photo shoot. I knew by her voice that something was wrong.’
‘No,’ Joan said. ‘We saw her last month. She didn’t look like she’d had a baby. I don’t believe it.’
‘It’s been a terrible shock,’ Ruby said, handing her a piece of folded notepaper. ‘Here are the details of the social worker. She’ll be in touch soon about Charley. You can call her in the meantime if you like.’
‘Charley? Is that her name?’ Lara said, fresh tears springing to her eyes. ‘We used to argue over the name because I liked it too. We planned everything together when we were kids – our dream wedding, what we’d call our children. Do you remember, Mum. . . Mum?’
But Joan was staring into space, her face chalky white. Ruby guessed that somewhere in her mind she was turning over the fact that her daughter was never coming home. She had seen such behaviour many times. Overcome by grief, April’s mother had withdrawn from the world that brought such pain. At least she had her family around her. Ruby couldn’t understand why April had not called on them for support when it came to giving up her daughter. At least Joan didn’t ask her for details about her daughter’s death. She knew the time would come, but for now, she had not been able to take any more.
Ruby stood, just as there was a knock on the door. She hoped it was a family liaison officer. She would take the heat of their anger and frustrations, and Ruby felt nothing but admiration for her.
‘Right, guys, what have we got?’ Ruby asked as she faced her team. She had grouped them together just as she returned from her visit to Mrs Mead, and they had been given numerous tasks to add to their existing burgeoning workload.
‘April’s flat is being searched right now,’ DC Ludgrove piped up. The youngest member of the team, Ruby had been impressed with his performance so far. A young man with no children or partner to answer to, his time was generously given to the job. ‘She’s been working through an online escort site as far as we know. Her computer’s being seized for examination.’
‘Good,’ Ruby said. ‘I want that examined as a priority.’ She sighed, knowing the tech department were snowed under with requests. ‘In the meantime, find out everything you can about the site she worked for. Contact them directly, see what information you can get by asking nicely. I want a list of her clients on my desk. Usually, with these sites users pay by credit card, and a percentage goes to the escort, along with cash in hand for any extras on the side. They’ll have names and addresses. See if you can match any of those clients with the intel we have on Ellie Mason.’
She turned to DC Ash Baker. ‘I want you to. . . Ash, are you OK?’ she asked, watching the colour visibly drain from his face. She had meant to catch up with him about his wife’s situation.
‘Sorry,’ he said, rubbing his chest. ‘Just some pains, it’s probably indigestion. I’ll be OK in a minute.’
‘Come into my office,’ she said. ‘I’ll get you a drink of water.’ She turned back to the heads still bobbing from behind their computers. ‘C’mon, guys, you know what you have to do. We’re under the cosh here.’ There was one task she would have to carry out herself. It was too much of a coincidence that both Ellie and April were working girls. She needed to contact the Crosbys and find out if April was ever on their books.
‘Here, let me open the window, let in a bit of air,’ Ruby said, allowing a blast of petrol-polluted air to waft inside. She turned back to Ash, whose expression was tight and drawn. ‘You look awful. Do you want me to call you a doctor?’
Ash shook his head, keeping his eyes on the floor. His hand had dropped away from his chest, and his fingers were now tightly interlinked. It was something she had seen before, and it could only mean one thing.
‘You’re not in any pain, are you?’
‘No, Sarge,’ he said. The use of her title raised another flicker of concern. This wasn’t good, not good at all.
‘What’s happened? Is it your wife? Your daughters. . . do you need to go home?’
Ash tugged at his tie, loosening the knot. ‘No, the wife’s fine. She’s settling in, and the kids are at my sister’s.’ He sighed, waving away her offer of a drink of water. ‘It’s just that. . .’
Ruby caught the slight tremble in his bottom lip as the words seemed to get stuck in his throat. She rose to close the blinds. It was a signal to her fellow workers that she was not to be disturbed. Pulling her chair up next to his, she spoke in soft, comforting tones. ‘C’mon, mate, it can’t be that bad, can it?’
‘It is.’ Ash swiped away a tear from the corner of his eye, but it was instantly replaced by another. His face bloomed pink, and Ruby laid her hand on his shoulder.
‘Mate, it’s me. If you need to speak to me in confidence. . .’
‘Oh God, I can’t believe I’m about to tell you this.’ The words came out in a long exhale. ‘But it’s going to get out at some point.’
Ruby craned her head to one side. ‘You’re talking to the Queen of Fuck-ups. I’m sure it won’t come as any great shock to me.’
Pulling a tissue from his pocket, Ash blew his nose. ‘You don’t understand. If this comes to light, I’ll lose my job. I’ll lose everything.’
Ruby straightened in her chair. ‘Consider this conversation off the record. The sooner you tell me what it is, the sooner we can figure out what to do.’