The next morning I ask Mrs Paterson if it would be all right if I used her phone to call Detective Walker. He told me that if there was anything I could help them with I should call, so that is what I am doing.
Mrs Paterson takes me into her and Mr Paterson’s living room. They have their own private space that we are not allowed into. I have only ever been in here once or twice. It smells different to the rest of the house, like stale air that doesn’t move around much.
The phone is kept on the windowsill and she takes it down and moves it over to the table so I can dial the number. I haven’t used a phone much before so when I try to dial I get it wrong the first two times. Eventually Mrs Paterson takes the number, dials it, checks it is ringing and gives the handset to me. It rings a couple more times, then a female voice says, ‘Grant Street Police Station, how can I help you?’
Mrs Paterson stays, which is fine with me as she needs to know what is going on to keep the other girls safe. I ask to speak to Detective Walker and the voice says he isn’t at work today, so I tell her that my name is Lesley Beaton, that I live at Cottage 5 at the Homes, and that I want to talk to him, so could he either call the Homes, or if he is going past he could come and visit as I have some important information that could help him.
I’m bursting to tell someone about Mr Sharples. I would talk to Jonesy if she were here. I would talk to Clara if it weren’t the school holidays, but I can’t trust the girls in my room to keep it to themselves and I don’t trust most of the adults around here. They talk to each other so it could get out that way. I want to tell Eadie but it’s a Sunday and she’s not here. In the end I decide to tell Mrs Paterson. If anything happens to me I need at least one other person to know what I know.
‘Mrs Paterson,’ I say, ‘if the polis call back can you come get me? I think Mr Sharples might be the one killing girls. Please don’t tell anyone else yet as I can’t prove it, but I found something that might mean it is him.’
She promises to keep quiet about it and I feel a sense of relief to have told someone, although I can tell from her expression that she thinks I’m half cracked.
I go outside to meet up with the girls. I can feel Shona watching me. I know she knows something is up, but she doesn’t ask what it is, so I don’t tell her.
I’ll just wait for Detective Walker to get back to me.