Jack tucked the wedge of £50 notes into his wallet and went downstairs to the kitchen. He paced up and down, unsure what to do. He felt worried sick about Maggie, Penny and Hannah. It was now after 9 a.m. and even though he had told DCI Clarke that he would be in earlier than the start of his night-shift duty, he was reluctant to leave the house. He decided he would order an Uber and go and visit Maggie at the hospital to check that she was alright and to warn her to take precautions. He checked that the back door was locked, then went through the entire house checking all the windows before going back into his office.
Just as he was about to order an Uber, his mobile rang. It was Laura, first apologising in case she had woken him. She had received a call from Anik.
‘I didn’t get home until the early hours, but the DCI is bringing in the main team to be on standby.’
‘Why?’
‘It’s Amanda Dunn. She’s being brought in this afternoon. We’ve got Social Services on our back saying even though she’s eighteen she’s mentally vulnerable and needs an adult present for the interviews. I suggested we get one of her parents to be present.’
‘She ran away when she was twelve years old and she hasn’t been in contact with her parents for six years, so I doubt Amanda would want them.’
‘Then we’ll get Social Services to send someone. The DCI’s had that barrister Georgina Bamford bending his ear about legal representation for Amanda.’
‘But she can’t represent her if she’s Rodney Middleton’s brief!’ Jack said, trying to remain calm.
‘I know that, but she is insisting on a lawyer not attached to her chambers representing Amanda. I don’t know who it is, and I’m not at the station yet. As you have had more dealings with Amanda than anyone, I suggested that you should be present to conduct or at least monitor the interview.’
‘Well, at least someone respects the work I’ve done. But I was told that Anik was going to be involved in the interview, which really pissed me off.’
‘I know, he’s been so far up the DCI’s arse it’s embarrassing.’
‘Have the press got hold of it yet?’
‘I don’t know, but the DCI is under pressure to issue a press release this morning. Oh, by the way, they brought Harold Miller into the station last night. He came in after you’d left. He was sweating and shaking. He admitted that on occasions he had gone with Rodney to some depot to pick up the cans of acid. He claimed he was told they were for clearing the rats. Anyway, they let him go because he’s the main carer for his wife.’
She paused. ‘Are you listening, Jack?’
‘Yes . . . yes . . . so what time are you going into the station?’
‘I’m leaving home in about half an hour. There was something else: the new commander from Scotland Yard was also in with the DCI, and Clarke looked very shaken after he left.’
‘Did he say what happened?’
‘I think the gist of it was that we need to have a confession as there are so many unidentified victims, and still no remains. I think they hope Amanda will turn prosecution witness. It was quite funny, actually.’
Jack frowned. ‘What could possibly be funny?’
‘It was Hendricks. He said surely we have enough evidence against Middleton to charge him for all three murders, even without a confession. DCI Clarke rounded on him. He said that they had the Yorkshire Ripper bang to rights but it wasn’t until he made a confession that they knew how many he’d actually murdered.’
‘Well, well, well, I’d say our DCI is under a lot of pressure,’ Jack said.
‘So, you coming in early? I didn’t think you’d want to miss out on the arrival of Amanda Dunn.’
‘I’ll be there,’ Jack said.
Jack ended the call, then ordered an Uber to take him to Maggie’s hospital. Whilst he waited, he stood by the window and lifted the blinds a fraction. The same cars were still parked outside the house, most in the residents’ bays. There was also a gas repair van, with a small canopy tent pitched over a section of pavement. Three men in hard helmets and hi-viz jackets with GAS BOARD printed on their backs looked to be hard at work. Jack continued watching them, wondering if they were a surveillance team. He continued watching them for another five minutes, then he saw the Uber taxi drawing up. It was a Toyota Prius with an Egyptian driver Jack recognised from previous trips.
He left the house, glancing over at the gas workers. One of them was using a mobile phone and immediately turned away when he saw Jack looking at him. Jack was now sure they were monitoring his house and he felt a wave of relief wash over him. He kept a careful watch from the back of the Prius but saw no one following him. Arriving at the hospital, he asked the Uber driver to wait but he told Jack he would have to call in and book another journey. Jack got out, put in another call on his account and the driver gave him the thumbs up and indicated that he would wait for him in the pick-up and drop-off section.
The signage in the reception area was still instructing anyone entering to respect social distance, and masks were obligatory. Jack fished a rather crumpled one out of his pocket whilst the receptionist tried to contact Maggie. She was eventually tracked down, but he had to wait another ten minutes until she came into the reception. He could see she was concerned, and he quickly reassured her that it was nothing serious, he had just come to have a quiet word with her.
‘Is it about Penny?’
‘No, I’m sorry, I didn’t get the opportunity to talk to her, but I’m not going to be late tonight as they’ve just called me in. I wanted to talk to you about something . . .’
‘What?’
‘Ridley turned up at the house. This case he’s been involved with has got pretty serious. He says we need to be very vigilant about locking doors and not letting strangers in.’
‘You’re kidding?’
‘I’m serious, Maggie, but there are people looking out for us, for you and Hannah especially; a surveillance team, 24/7. Ridley wanted me to underline that it’s serious, so I came here to tell you personally, but not to alarm you.’
‘Oh, thanks very much, Jack! Of course, I’m alarmed! Do you think I should go home?’
‘No, just be watchful. Like I said, I’ll be home early this evening and hopefully by then I’ll have more details. But if anything at all looks suspicious, you need to let me know straightaway.’
‘You sure I shouldn’t go home?’
‘Yes. Like I said, I just came here to make you aware of everything, and to tell you that I love you.’
Jack lowered his mask and kissed her. He hated seeing how concerned she was, but he reassured her again that they would be fine. Maggie watched him leave the hospital, then hurried back to the ward. She spoke to the head of department who was working the schedules for all the staff and explained that there was a family situation and she needed someone to take over her shift after lunch because she had to go home.
As Maggie was a highly respected doctor, and had never asked for personal time off, it was agreed that she could leave after the lunch break. Despite Jack’s reassurances that everything was OK, she was not going to take his word for it. He had never come to the hospital before just to tell her to be vigilant, and she wanted to be at home with her daughter and Penny.
Jack arrived at the station and knew that something had been leaked as there were a group of press photographers waiting outside. He side-stepped them and went inside to the main desk. The duty sergeant released the security gate for him to go into the main corridor.
‘They’ve been here all morning, like bloody wasps; it’s always a sign that something big is going down, not that I’m likely to be told. But if they try to get in, they’ll get short shrift from me.’
Jack headed to the canteen and could feel the anticipation that something big was happening. There were only a few officers in there, and by the time he got his breakfast they had left. He carried his coffee and bagel down one flight of stairs and headed along the main corridor to the incident room. Nobody passed him and when he pushed open one of the double doors and stepped into the incident room it was oddly quiet, even though most of the desks were occupied.
Making his way to his own desk, he passed Anik wearing an Armani suit with a crisp white shirt and tie and looking very pleased with himself. In contrast, Jack still had some of Hannah’s breakfast splattered on his jacket and his shirt was very crumpled, with a tie that had already dangled in his coffee mug. But at least he had shaved. He felt loath to bite into his bagel as everyone appeared to be poised and waiting. As if on cue, the door to the incident room opened and Sara put her head in.
‘We have Amanda Dunn’s mother in interview room one with one of the WPCs. She has asked for a coffee. Can someone organise that from the canteen as I have to be out in the yard?’
Leon stood up and hurried out after Sara. Then Hendricks appeared, to let them know that Amanda Dunn’s brief had arrived and was waiting in reception. Anik got up, straightening his tie, saying that he would go and talk to him. He picked up a thick folder of files as he walked out. Laura came in carrying a coffee and said they had received confirmation that Amanda Dunn was arriving via the back entrance. She asked that the officers assigned to meet her be ready to usher her into the interview room with her brief after she had been booked in with the custody officer.
‘She has a social worker with her and hasn’t been told that her mother’s here. I presume she’ll be joining her in the interview room.’
Jack looked on with some amusement and decided he might as well tuck into his bagel. At that moment DCI Clarke opened his office door and came out carrying a clipboard.
‘Right, can I have everyone’s attention please. Before we begin to question Amanda Dunn, have we received confirmation that Miss Margaret Langton is available to attend as the appropriate adult?’
There were glances around the room before Laura put up her hand. She stood up beside her desk and DCI Clarke nodded at her.
‘Miss Langton is six months pregnant and not currently fit to attend.’
DCI Clarke gave a tight-lipped nod and closed his eyes.
‘Didn’t anyone check this out? Let’s hope Mrs Dunn will be acceptable as a supervising adult; if not, get someone else on standby. We should be ready to begin the session in fifteen minutes. I have allowed her solicitor to have a private consultation pre-interview.’
He walked back into his office and Jack quickly finished his bagel, screwing up the napkin and tossing it into the waste bin. Laura looked over to him and raised her eyebrows. Like Jack, she felt the whole situation was being over-orchestrated. Everyone was waiting for the arrival of their prized witness, who alternatively could end up being charged as an accessory to murder. There was no window in the incident room to see into the yard, so everyone just waited patiently for information.
DCI Clarke appeared again, saying that Amanda Dunn was now here and would be taken into Interview Room Two to confer with her brief and Anik. He then asked everyone listed on the board to be present in the viewing room, to go directly there and to wait for the interview to begin.
Jack, coffee in hand, sauntered across to the board. It had now been extended so many times that it was covering most of one wall. There was a list of the officers required to be in the viewing room and he noticed that he was at the top of the list, along with Laura, two other officers, and Glenda Bagshot.
Jack knew from past experience that it would take some time before everyone would be ready for the interview to commence. He left the incident room and headed along the corridor and down a flight of stairs, heading towards the interview room. He passed one of the smaller interview rooms, and through the window in the door he could see a small, bleach-blonde woman sitting with a mug of coffee. She was wearing a very loud plaid coat with a wide collar, and knee-high leather boots, and was clutching a bulging leather handbag. There was something about her over made-up face that gave her the appearance of being beaten in some way.
Laura caught Jack looking through the window.
‘That’s her mother. Sara is trying to sort out her return ticket to Liverpool, and to get some petty cash for a meal for her.’
‘Yeah, I thought she must be the mother. What’s going on with Anik and our star witness’s brief?’
‘Well, he has to be given a certain amount of disclosure, but we haven’t yet charged her and at the moment she is just “helping police enquiries”, so I don’t know how long it’s going to take. He’s very good looking, though, a young Indian man. He must be worth his weight, as he’s a pet boy of that Georgina Bamford. He was wearing a very expensive long cashmere overcoat, and gorgeous . . .’
‘For Christ’s sake, Laura! Where’s Amanda?’
‘They took her into the private interview room first, then when the cashmere coat is ready, she’ll have a meeting with him before it all goes down.’
‘Terrific, I’m glad you dragged me in here. I could have had a few hours extra kip.’
Laura walked off as Jack continued along the corridor, heading down the staircase to the lower ground floor where the new high-tech viewing room was located. He went into the ‘spectator’ section and found Glenda Bagshot overseeing a trolley with an array of takeaway cartons.
‘Miss Bagshot, I have to say you are fast becoming everyone’s favourite person. I presume this is down to you . . . It looks like a feast.’
‘Listen, Sergeant Warr, I have been in this business a very long time and I know just how important it is to feed the workers. But don’t think I’m a walking charity; I make them pay for all this. Clarke tried to tell me it wasn’t ethical, so I told him to stuff it. Help yourself because it’s going to be a long night.’
‘Night? Bloody hell, Glenda, it’s only three o’clock in the afternoon.’
‘We might all be running around the clock to keep to a bloody timetable, but this is a very big investigation, on a par with Fred West. And it’s even more newsworthy because we have two young kid killers. God only knows how the press will handle it when some of the facts get out. I have nothing against the DCI but it’s his first major murder investigation and in my opinion, he’s out of his depth. I heard the commander was here so that must have put a rocket under him.’
Sara knocked and entered, looking flustered. ‘I’m sorry to interrupt, but I’m not sure who I should talk to about organising Mrs Dunn’s travel arrangements? Also, she’s asked for something to eat as she got the early train from Liverpool, and the buffet on the train wasn’t open.’
‘Sorry, I’m not following? If she got here, we must have arranged a return ticket, so what’s the problem?’ Jack asked.
‘They arranged a single. It wasn’t down to me; it was Hendricks. Everyone keeps on directing me to someone else. Do I put her in a taxi?’
Jack shook his head in disbelief. ‘Has she had a meeting with her daughter?’
‘No, Amanda has refused to see her. She said, and I quote, “I wouldn’t see her if she was in spitting distance.” We tried, but she was adamant that she didn’t want to even speak to her, let alone see her. So now I have to send her back to Liverpool. The canteen isn’t open for another ten minutes and they won’t let me have so much as a sandwich.’
Jack picked up a paper plate. ‘Go and talk to the clerical staff that handle the kitty and organise a taxi to take her to the station and a return fare to Liverpool. In the meantime, if you don’t mind Glenda, I will take a selection of these goodies and give them to Mrs Dunn myself.’
‘Thank you, sarge, I’ll go and sort the transport,’ Sara said gratefully. ‘Mrs Dunn is downstairs in one of the lower ground floor interview rooms.’
‘I know, I saw her when I was coming up here.’
Sara hurried out as Jack piled a paper plate with sausage rolls, some chicken and ham sandwiches and a small container of what looked like curry. Glenda watched him, then handed him a spoon and fork and some paper napkins.
‘Well, that should keep her going, and she can take some back on the train. Typical isn’t it; they organise a single ticket!’
Jack headed back towards the interview room. He knocked and entered.
‘Mrs Dunn, I do apologise for you being left in here on your own. I understand the buffet on the train wasn’t open so I hope this will suffice. He placed the food selection down in front of her on the table and took the cutlery out of his pocket, along with the paper napkins.
‘She bloody refused to see me!’ she said in a strong Liverpool accent. ‘Can you believe it? After me coming all this way, but I suppose I expected it in some ways. I’ve not seen her for four or five years, and there’s been no contact or nothing. Believe you me, I’ve tried. I used to call the missing persons place every other day asking if they had found her.’
Mrs Dunn peered at the contents of the plastic container. ‘Is this a curry with noodles?’
‘I believe so, and there’s some fresh sandwiches with chicken and ham.’
He watched as she jabbed at the noodles with the plastic fork and took a mouthful. She chewed and swallowed, then nodded. ‘Very nice.’
‘Did your husband accompany you?’
‘No, he’s her stepfather . . . and to be honest, he’s had enough of her. I have been worried all this time . . . and like I said, I kept on calling the Social Services and the missing persons, but eventually I gave up. She’s done it before you know.’
Jack waited as she forked in two more mouthfuls of the spicy noodles, then wiped her mouth with the napkin.
‘Running away, you mean?’
‘Yes, when she was about ten. Disappeared for three weeks. We found her with one of her friends after searching the streets, as well as contacting the police. She made horrible accusations against my husband, all lies; she was a terrible liar. She was always skiving off school; the number of times I had the school calling me to say that she hadn’t turned up.’
‘These accusations against your husband, were they of a sexual nature?’
She nodded. ‘We had the Social Services round to question me and him, and we had two little ones as well. It was all lies, and they said they wanted her assessed by a therapist because they reckoned she was suffering from . . .’ She frowned chewing at her bottom lip. Jack waited whilst she bit into a sausage roll.
‘Suffering from what?’
‘Asperkers, that’s what it was.’
‘I think you mean Asperger’s? What did they suggest you should do about it?’
‘She was supposed to go to a therapist and have some extra tuition at school. But she never turned up and then the school would report her not being in class. It was just non-stop with her. She was nothing but trouble. I would always try to stick up for her, but you can only make excuses for someone for so long.’
‘She was only twelve years old though.’
‘I know how old she was,’ she said indignantly. ‘And before you say anything, you don’t have to remind me how long she’s been away from me. I’m her mother, and I got two younger kids to look after. I’m very protective about them, even more so when she was at home because of what happened to Sharon.’
‘Sharon?’
‘She was Amanda’s younger sister, by my first husband. We divorced after it happened; he couldn’t deal with it. Mind you, he couldn’t deal with much, and with him being in the Navy he was never around. He was at home when it happened, though, and from then on it was always difficult. He was a bad drinker.’
‘What happened?’
Mrs Dunn wiped her mouth with a paper napkin, then crumpled it in her hand.
‘Amanda was jealous of her, I know that. She was such a pretty little thing. When he was home, he would bring such lovely presents for them, and I suppose it was Sharon he showed more affection to. She was a little angel compared to Amanda.’
Jack waited, aware that she was finally showing some emotion. She used the crumpled napkin to wipe her mouth again then began to twist it in her hands as tears fell down her cheeks. He reached out to touch her arm, but she pulled away from him.
‘It’s hard for me to talk about it, even now. She was only four and half and Amanda was seven. My husband and I went out to the pub for a drink and Amanda was babysitting. We didn’t often leave them on their own, but like I said, he was in the Navy and not home that much. I didn’t usually leave them on their own because I’d caught her slapping Sharon a couple of times. She had a nasty, mean streak in her and she would take the presents he bought for Sharon and destroy them.’
Her eyes continued to brim over with tears, as she pulled at the paper napkins, tearing off small strips.
‘We got home at about ten, and Amanda was watching TV. When we went upstairs, we found Sharon with the cord from the window blind around her neck. She was still using a cot, you know with sides, and it looked as if she had tried to climb out, got caught up in the cord and choked to death.’
Jack was deeply shocked. Mrs Dunn’s tears ran down her cheeks and she wiped them away with the back of her hand. Her face was distorted with anguish and anger.
‘It was an accidental death, but one thing always bothered me, the sides of the cot was down, so she could have easily got out. Why did she reach up for the cord? Why?’
‘Did you think that Amanda was to blame?’
Mrs Dunn became more composed and reached down next to her chair for her handbag. She placed it on her knee and took out a compact and lipstick. Jack watched as she looked at herself in the compact mirror, took out a worn powder puff and dabbed it over her face. She then opened the lipstick and applied it thickly over her top and bottom lips before rubbing them together. Jack remained silent, and eventually she continued.
‘We got divorced and a few years later I re-married and we changed our names. Whatever I thought, I never told no one. After it happened things was never the same between me and Amanda. I never accused her – but it was like always between us – then I got pregnant again, and it put me on edge, especially after having the baby. I was always watching out for her doing something, and that’s when she started running away. It sometimes felt a relief not having her home, to be honest, because I could never forget what happened to Sharon. We redecorated her room, moved the cot away from the window, but every so often when I went to check on the little ones, I’d see it again. See my lovely little girl, like a broken doll, just hanging.’
Jack watched as she carefully wrapped the uneaten sandwiches in a spare paper napkin and put them in her handbag.
‘I am deeply sorry for your loss, Mrs Dunn, and thank you for coming into the station. I’m sorry that Amanda is refusing to see you. If you’d like, I could talk to her again and see if she changes her mind.’
‘No, don’t bother, I expected as much. She’s eighteen now and at least I know she’s alive. Unlike my little Sharon, who never grows old . . . she’s always as beautiful, always four and half years old.’
Sara tapped on the door and entered. She explained that she had ordered a taxi and had booked a train ticket for Mrs Dunn, apologising for making her wait.
‘That’s alright, love, this nice young man’s been talking with me. He brought me some food, so I’m ready to go home.’
Sara looked at Jack gratefully, as she ushered Mrs Dunn out.
He sat for a moment, digesting everything he had just been told. It both shocked and saddened him and it gave him a different insight into Amanda’s personality. Could she have been responsible for her young sister’s death? He considered the fire at Middleton’s home, and the death of Rodney’s two sisters. Could their similar losses have been some kind of bond between them? Jack was becoming more and more certain that Amanda was not the innocent girl she claimed to be.