‘We’re ready for you.’ The aged solicitor held open the door to the interview room. He was exactly who I’d have pictured giving the Dunlows legal advice. He might be older and thinner, but he was cut from the same cloth as his moneyed employer.
Juliet and I pushed away from the wall. We’d waited in the corridor for over an hour while Leo conferred with his legal representative. Neither of us had suggested going up to the office.
I followed Juliet into the room and settled in the chair opposite Leo. She opened a file of evidence while I pressed the record button.
‘Interview commencing at 11:20 a.m. on 16th October. Interviewee is Leonard Dunlow and his solicitor, Gerard Hargrave, is present. They have been given time prior to this interview to consult. Leonard Dunlow has been arrested in conjunction with the murder of Melanie Pirt on the Dunlow Estate in the New Forest on 9th October. This interview is being conducted by myself, Detective Sergeant Gabriella Martin, and Detective Inspector Juliet Stern.’
As I finished my spiel, Juliet passed me a piece of paper. I slid it across the table towards Leo, my hand steady. Adrenaline fizzed in my gut, but I’d practised calming breathing while we waited.
‘This was your original statement, made on 10th October,’ I said. ‘You claimed you didn’t know Melanie.’
Leo skimmed the words. Juliet placed another piece of paper next to the first.
‘This is your second statement, where you admitted you knew Melanie. You said you didn’t go to meet her.’ Juliet slid a final statement across the table as I continued. ‘And your third statement, amending your relationship with Melanie. You were in love with her but maintained that when she came to the estate you didn’t meet with her.’
I placed a fourth piece of paper, detailing the forensics from Melanie’s body, beside the first three. ‘We have DNA evidence that proves you’ve lied again. Now, Leo, it’s time for you to tell us the truth.’
‘I’m sorry I lied, but I promise I didn’t kill Mel.’
‘We’d be much more inclined to believe you if you tell us what actually happened on 9th October,’ Juliet said.
Leo pushed his glasses up his nose. He didn’t look at his solicitor but Hargrave took a deep breath, his brow furrowed. This was why they’d taken so long to confer; there was some kind of disagreement between them. We could work with that.
‘Everything I told you was true, apart from the bit where I didn’t go to meet Mel. I did meet her,’ Leo said. ‘She was desperate. I’d told her what my dad was like about girls, so I knew she was only asking to come over because something bad had happened. I met her at the bus stop. I thought I would be able to talk to her there and send her home, but she was so upset. She started crying as soon as she saw me. She told me how her ex wouldn’t leave her alone and kept sending her horrible messages. I didn’t want to make her go away, so I snuck her onto the estate.’
‘You didn’t go through the gates?’ I asked.
Leo shook his head. ‘Parts of the boundary walls are falling down. We climbed over, then followed one of the paths through the forest. I took her to the den over the garage. I thought Dad wouldn’t notice us there.’ He gulped. ‘I don’t know how it happened, but we were talking and then kissing. We ended up having sex.’
Red patches formed on Leo’s neck, but he forged on. ‘It was amazing. I’d never had sex before, and Mel was so kind and lovely. But I didn’t handle it well afterwards. I told her she couldn’t stay. I wanted to be there for her, but I couldn’t risk Dad finding out I’d had a girl over. He would go mad.’
I made a note. ‘What happened then, Leo?’
‘She was upset. I needed her to leave but I didn’t want her to think I was using her. I didn’t know what to say as she got dressed. She left.’ He pressed his lips together. ‘I let her go.’
‘You didn’t follow?’ I asked.
Leo glanced at his solicitor, who studiously ignored him. ‘I fell asleep.’
‘You didn’t hear anything that happened during the night?’ I pushed.
‘I wish I’d gone after her.’ Leo’s chin quivered. ‘I could have made sure she got off the estate safely.’
Leo had lied before, but never well. It may have been pathetic that he fell asleep when Melanie left, rather than chasing after her, but it had a ring of truth to it. If this was the first time he’d had sex, he wouldn’t have expected the energy drop that came after.
Juliet tapped Leo’s previous statements. ‘Why did you lie before?’
‘It wasn’t my idea.’
‘Whose idea was it?’ I asked, even though I could take a good guess.
Leo scrunched his nose. ‘My dad’s.’
Juliet raised her eyebrows. This was the first time Dunlow had done anything other than be an arrogant prick. He wasn’t floating above this anymore.
‘How did your dad know Melanie was there?’ I asked.
Leo shuffled in his chair while Hargrave drummed his fingers on the table. That meant something to the younger man. Leo straightened and shook his head.
‘I have to tell them the truth,’ he muttered. ‘It’s not going to get Dad in trouble.’
The look of distaste on Hargrave’s face was familiar from time we’d spent in Dunlow’s presence. Maybe they went to the same school, had learnt together how to make people feel like insignificant worms.
‘Leo?’ I prompted.
‘I don’t know how Dad knew, but he stormed into the den as soon as Mel left. He was shouting all kinds of stuff.’ He paused. ‘He cares about me. He doesn’t want me to mess up my education or anything, that’s all.’
‘What was he saying?’ Juliet asked.
Leo cringed. ‘Just that I couldn’t have girls over and I should know better.’
I gripped my pencil. I bet Dunlow had a lot more to say than that. ‘Did he say anything about Melanie specifically?’
More uneven patches of blood worked their way across Leo’s face. ‘I don’t remember.’
There we go. Lying again. It was obvious now.
Juliet sighed. ‘What happened after your dad left?’
‘The last thing he said was to not go after Mel. He told me to go to sleep,’ Leo said in a rush, happy to move away from whatever vile things his father said that night. ‘I was going to wait until he was in the house to go after her, but I fell asleep. I woke up the next morning.’
His voice caught at the end of his speech. This was the most emotion we’d seen from Leo. Perhaps he’d been keeping the truth so carefully locked inside that he couldn’t let out his guilt or sadness either. Or maybe it was what his dad expected of him. It was believable that in the Dunlow household men did not cry.
‘When did your dad tell you to lie?’ Juliet asked.
Leo squinted one eye. ‘When I got home from school. Dad told me the police were coming and that I was to tell you nothing. He said it would look bad if I told you I’d let Mel onto the estate.’ He shrugged. ‘Since you took my DNA, I’ve been waiting for you to come. I didn’t know why it was taking so long.’
Juliet’s nostrils flared. ‘If you knew we’d get here in the end, why did you continue to lie? Your dad wasn’t in the hospital. That would have been a good time to confess.’
Leo’s eyes flicked between us. ‘I know it was stupid, I’m sorry, but Dad told me to lie so I tried to. The only other time I’d broken one of his rules, Mel died. I didn’t want to tempt fate like that again.’
Flawed logic, but a reason nonetheless. I started a new page in my notepad. ‘Leo, do you have any idea who would have killed Melanie?’
‘I don’t know.’ His nose wrinkled. ‘Dad thinks it was Karl. He keeps going on about how an innocent person wouldn’t have run away, but I think he’s just mad about the dogs. We’ve had to take care of them, at least until we find somewhere for them, and he doesn’t like doing all that stuff. I knew Karl better than Dad, and he was a nice guy. He wouldn’t have killed Mel.’
‘What did your dad do after he left the den that night?’ Juliet asked.
Leo’s eyes widened. ‘He didn’t go off and kill Mel, if that’s what you’re implying.’
Juliet held up her hands. ‘I’m not implying anything. I’m simply asking what your dad did after he left the den. Did you see him walk into the house?’
Leo frowned down at the table and flinched when Hargrave coughed. Clearly, they’d already spoken about this. Their chat was full of disagreements.
Leo sat up straight. ‘Right. I didn’t see him walk into the house, okay? I fell asleep almost as soon as he left. But he wouldn’t have gone and killed Mel. He didn’t like me seeing her, but he had no reason to want her dead.’
It was interesting that everyone jumped so readily to Dunlow’s defence, keen to assure us he wasn’t a murderer. Juliet pressed her fingers together.
‘I’m sorry, Leo, but I’m not sure I believe any of this,’ she said. ‘You’ve lied repeatedly, and I have no reason to assume you’re not lying again. You admit you argued with Melanie before she died. What if this conversation with your dad is another fabrication, one he told you to add so that it wouldn’t be crystal clear you were so upset with Melanie after she left that you followed her into the forest and killed her?’
Leo gaped at Juliet. If I didn’t know exactly how her mind worked, I might have done the same. I was much more trusting of my gut than her. It told me Leo was telling the truth at last, but she would push and prod until she was sure.
‘I’m not lying anymore, I swear.’ Leo voice was hoarse. ‘I didn’t kill Mel. I loved her.’
‘Have you got any evidence to support these accusations?’ Hargrave asked, eyes half lidded with boredom.
Juliet smiled. ‘We have Leo’s DNA all over the victim. We know he had access to the kind of gun used to kill her. He has the right sized feet to have made an incredibly clear boot print at the scene. We know he was friendly with the dogs, and in close contact with the animal that mauled the victim. His father has a temper, and what could be more natural than a son sharing the same trait? And we found these on Leo’s computer. They make for interesting reading.’
Juliet placed a copy of Leo’s poems in the middle of the table.
Leo shook his head. ‘I know it looks bad, but I don’t know how to shoot. Ask my dad or Teddy, they’ll tell you. I’m useless. And I don’t know about the boot print, but I wasn’t down there. If I had been, Lucy was more likely to attack me than Mel. She hated me, bit me the other day because I got too close. And I’m not like my dad, not like that. He’s been worse since Mum died. It’s grief talking most of the time when he gets cross.’ He looked at his poems. ‘No one was supposed to see these. They don’t mean anything.’
‘I’m sure.’ Juliet crossed her arms. ‘Has Melanie got what she deserves now?’ she asked, referencing one of the poems.
‘You don’t have to answer that,’ Hargrave cut in before Leo could open his mouth.
‘And how about this one?’ Juliet carried on, relentless. ‘Had you had your perfect moment and couldn’t bear to have it ruined?’
I’d made a connection to that poem before. In the hospital, I thought it meant the kiss Leo and Melanie had shared during a singing practice. I’d jumped to a conclusion, and enabled Leo to go on lying. I bit my tongue between my teeth.
‘I loved Mel,’ Leo protested. ‘I wouldn’t have hurt her.’
‘Jordan, Melanie’s boyfriend, thinks you were obsessed with her,’ I said, desperate to add something of value. ‘He said you were scaring her.’
‘I was scaring Mel?’ Leo’s eyebrows rose. ‘I wasn’t the one beating her.’
‘Jordan is adamant you had something to do with her death,’ I pushed.
Leo raised a hand to the gauze on his cheek, covering Jordan’s handiwork. He would probably carry a scar for the rest of his life.
‘He’s jealous,’ Leo said. ‘He doesn’t know what mine and Mel’s relationship was like.’
‘Trouble is, Leo, the only other person who did know what your relationship was like is dead,’ Juliet said.
Leo flinched but recovered quickly. ‘That’s not true. We met in the church hall at St Peter’s. The vicar let us in, and sometimes he would hang around to listen to Mel sing. He can tell you everything between us was normal, that I was always nice and kind.’
I made a note. I wasn’t sure if a vicar who only saw Melanie and Leo during practices was a great character witness, but he might have noticed anything nasty going on.
‘Were you upset when Melanie left, after you had sex?’ Juliet asked.
‘I was sad. She said some horrible things, as she was leaving. That I was a loser, just like her ex. I didn’t want the night to end like that.’ Leo eyebrows gathered together. ‘I was going to follow her, but then Dad burst in.’
‘But after he left, you didn’t go then?’ Juliet tipped her head to one side.
‘I told you. I was waiting for Dad to go into the house, but I fell asleep.’
‘You fell asleep when the love of your life had walked out into the night alone?’ Juliet asked.
Leo swallowed, tears gathering in his eyes. ‘You think I don’t regret that more than anything else I’ve ever done? If I’d stayed awake, Mel would be alive right now. I wouldn’t even care if she was mad at me, I would have made sure she got home.’ He let out a shuddering breath. ‘I don’t know what happened. One minute I was watching Dad, the next I woke up and it was morning and everything had gone wrong.’
He pulled off his glasses and covered his face with his hands. I used the quiet moment while Leo took several deep breaths to gather the pieces of paper on the table and pass them to Juliet. The solicitor’s face screamed contempt. He could see through all of this. Leo was in deep trouble, but there were serious holes in our knowledge. We didn’t have the murder weapon and if everyone confirmed Leo was as terrible at shooting as he claimed then our case against him would come tumbling down.
‘Leo?’ Juliet said. ‘When were you bitten by the dog?’
He wiped his eyes and put his glasses back on. ‘I told you, it was the day before all this happened.’
He rubbed at his arm. The bandage was gone.
‘Are you sure, Leo?’ Juliet asked. ‘Or were you bitten by the dog after it was done with Melanie? Did it turn on you, and you had to shoot to stop it from really hurting you?’
Juliet had read the same DNA report as me about the dog. Only Melanie’s blood was in its mouth when it died. But Leo didn’t know that. Juliet was withholding information, hoping Leo would twist himself into knots and reveal something more.
‘No,’ Leo spluttered. ‘That’s not what happened. Lucy bit me when I let her out the day before. Karl told you.’
‘But Karl’s gone,’ Juliet said. ‘Your brother paid him a lot of money to disappear.’
She was counting on another gap in Leo’s knowledge. The brothers seemed close, both cowering in Dunlow’s shadow, but would Terence have trusted his younger brother with his secret?
Leo’s skin was a curdled mix of whites and reds. ‘Teddy did what? Why would he do that?’
‘You tell us.’ Juliet’s voice had a harsh edge, like she was tiring of circling the truth.
‘I know this doesn’t look good. I should have gone after Mel and I never should have let her go out onto the estate on her own, but I have no idea why Karl left or why Teddy would have given him any money.’ Leo sat up, his eyes brimming. ‘I made one stupid mistake, and it’s caused so much pain. That’s the worst thing I’ve ever done; letting Mel go out alone to die.’
Tears fell from his chin and splashed onto his jeans. He buried his face in his hands, his shoulders shaking. His glasses clattered onto the desk.
Hargrave shifted in his seat. ‘I think it’s time we took a break.’
I pressed the button to stop the recording. Juliet straightened the papers and flipped the folder closed, before rising to her feet and walking out of the room.
I paused in the doorway. Hargrave rested a hand on Leo’s heaving back. If I was looking for a display of emotion to prove Leo was cut up about Melanie’s death, then here it was.