Urge to Kill (1) Page 16
‘I hope I’m not disturbing you. But I wanted to welcome you. I am sure you and Matt will be very happy, my dear.’ She held out the plate to Eppie.
‘Oh. Thank you.’
‘Careful it’s hot from the oven. Dear, dear, look at me forgetting to tell you who I am. Mrs Davis from number twenty five.’
Eppie took the cake and held it up to let the aroma drift up her nose. ‘That smells delicious. Please, come in.’
‘Well, I will for just a minute. No doubt Matt will be home shortly.’
‘No.’
‘Oh. I hope I haven’t said the wrong thing. John is always telling me to think before I speak.’
‘Matt’s working late on a case.’
Eppie led the way into the living room, pausing only to put the cake on the kitchen counter. Mrs Davis stood and looked at the new scatter cushions.
‘Now that looks brighter already. I said to John that you would liven this place up. All those dark colours. They would still be living in caves without us, wouldn’t they?’
Eppie laughed and agreed before offering Mrs Davis a cup of tea.
‘No. No I don’t want to hold you up. There was something else though. I was putting the rubbish out last night. John should do it but he was watching his football, and there was this young man. I asked if I could help him and he said he was looking for you. Said he wanted to send you a card to congratulate you. I said why didn’t he come up, but he didn’t want to disturb you, just send a card.’
‘He wanted me, not Matt?’
‘Yes. He definitely said Mrs Turrell.’
‘I can’t think who that would be. What did he look like?
‘Well, he was tall. But then he would be to me. I’m only a smidgen, like you. I hadn’t got my glasses on, so I can’t tell you anything else.’
After Mrs Davis had left, Eppie still couldn’t think of who the man might be. But it was probably nothing to worry about. Still she wished she could run it by Matt.
CHAPTER 28
Matt woke, slowly realising that he wasn’t in his own bed. The space was too small for him, and as he began to stretch out his limbs felt cramped. In his dreams, he had been in a cave searching for Eppie down the many different passages but only catching glimpses of her every now and again. He was glad to be awake, although he still felt tired and wrung out.
Fully awake he sat up remembering that he was in McRay’s office. Memories of last night and Fluff flooded back. He realised with a shock that he was glad it happened.
As he had flicked Fluff’s hair from his eyes she had paused. He hadn’t responded and Fluff had moved to place the blanket at the other end of the couch. Matt touched her arm.
‘I’m sorry.’
Fluff sat down next to the blanket. ‘For what?’
Matt felt awkward. ‘I couldn’t…Eppie.’
‘Don’t worry. It wasn’t on offer.’
Matt tried to gauge her voice to determine if she was angry or hurt but couldn’t detect anything. He realised he was a little disappointed. ‘Oh, my mistake, I thought—’
‘That’s well in the past.’ Fluff looked at her watch. ‘And someone will be wondering where I am.’ Fluff rose and made her way to the door turning only to say, ‘Drink your cocoa while it’s hot.’
Matt did as he was told before lying down on the couch. Fluff always played her cards close to her chest, and he wondered who she was seeing. If it had been just an act then it had been pretty convincing.
Matt wondered how Eppie would be this morning and if she would speak to him after last night. Most wives would be a bit miffed, and he wished now he had called her himself. Berating himself for being a coward, he reached for his mobile, suddenly needing to hear her voice and to make sure everything was right between them.
No one answered and, looking at the time, Matt guessed she could be in the shower. Disappointed, he left a brief message that didn’t relay any of the things he really wanted to say.
Although McRay wouldn’t be in this early, he needed to move himself and any evidence that he had been sleeping here. Matt scooped up his shoes, the mug, pillow and blanket, rescued and restored the two mini cushions to their rightful place at each end of the couch, and with a final satisfied look around, he closed the door. McRay would never know he had been there.
As he showered in the locker room, Matt thought again of Fluff. He had surprised himself in not wanting her. He realised with some satisfaction that he had said no, that he didn’t want anyone but Eppie. But he couldn’t help wondering if, at that moment when their heads were so close, had he drawn her mouth down to his, would she have responded?
He still wasn’t sure about her story of someone waiting, and as he shaved, he ran through all her possible suitors within the CID team. He couldn’t think of any single men, except Sam or Grant. Sam wasn’t Fluff’s type and she, like everyone else, certainly didn’t get on with Grant. Of course, it could be a married man, but that sort of thing couldn’t be kept quiet for long. Matt suddenly realised with a shock that he was a little jealous. Laughing at the irony of it, he told himself sternly that it was, after all, none of his business.
Refreshed by the shower, he decided to get an early start and catch up before the rest of the team arrived, but as he entered CID, he found Wendy already busy at her computer. She seemed so engrossed, he merely nodded a good morning and went straight to his office. Then, just as he was settling himself at his desk, Fluff breezed in.
‘Thought you might be hungry, Guv.’
Matt studied her as she placed the bacon bap on the desk in front of him. There was nothing he could detect that said she was the least bit upset about his rejection last night. Surmising that she was telling the truth about someone waiting for her, he gave in to the pangs of hunger that surfaced as the smell of bacon wafted upwards.
‘Thanks.’ Showing his appreciation, Matt took a huge bite out of the bap, delighted as the sharpness of the brown sauce hit his tongue. Fluff certainly knew his likes and dislikes. He quickly polished off this unexpected breakfast as Fluff went to update the incident board.
The next job would be to get hold of the police artist. He was sure McRay would okay the funding. A picture of how the man appeared when buying his props could then be sent out to all forces, so that it could be shown at the local markets.
The team straggled slowly in. By the time most of them had arrived, Matt felt like he had already done a full day. Sam came in with a long face.
‘Told Pete that we’re not likely to make the practice tonight and even less likely to make the match tomorrow.’
‘I can imagine what he said.’
‘Not repeatable. Never heard some of those words before.’
‘Pete could write a dictionary of swear words.’ Secretly, Matt was relieved. If he did get any time away from the case he wanted to make things right with Eppie.
To take Sam’s mind off it, Matt asked him about the model soldier. Sam cheered up immediately.
‘I couldn’t believe it, Guv. There’s a shop in London where all they sell are model soldiers, well, and all the bits and pieces, like the guns and stuff. The man there was helpful. Apparently, all sorts of people buy these things, even Lords and past Prime ministers. In fact, I couldn’t shut him up.’
Matt thought that must have been difficult once Sam was on a roll but said nothing as he continued.
‘He even invited me down there to have a look around.’
Something in Matt’s look told Sam he was losing his audience, and he got down to the facts.
‘They do keep lists of customers going way back. Most are not computerised, but we are welcome to have a gander, if we get a warrant.’ Sam consulted his notebook. ‘He also gave me the details of two locals clubs. They meet regularly. To enact battles I suppose. Thought I might take a look?’ Sam said, ending on a question.
‘That could be worthwhile. Good work, Sam. Now, let’s get on with the briefing.’ Matt rose and led the way to the outer office.
‘If this was our man, then he is obviously planning at least two other murders, possibly more.’
‘So he’s way ahead of us, then?’ Grant said.
It was inevitable that Grant would have something to say and Matt sighed. He had no patience for the man today. He answered before Fluff could snap back.
‘Yes.’ Seeing the concerned faces in front of him, Matt forced himself to put forward the positive facts, even though, at this point, he felt tired and discouraged. ‘That is exactly what it means. However, we are building up a picture of how this man works and have every chance to catch him before he can kill again.’
Matt paused as Grant mumbled something. He was sure he had heard ‘Fat chance,’ but he chose to ignore it and carried on. ‘Just look at the evidence. We know how he tries to disguise himself.’
‘But how is that going to help us, Sir, if he has already bought all the gear he needs?’ Grant asked.
There was a murmur from the team at Grant’s latest interruption. Fluff spoke for them. ‘Shut up Grant and listen to what the Guv is saying.’
Matt knew they daren’t waste time arguing amongst themselves. ‘No. Grant has asked a valid question. I’ll do my best to answer it. For a start, we now have reason to believe the killer is a local man. We know he has the props to carry out at least two more murders, maybe more. The source of dresses has been identified, and we are expecting more information shortly from the company. This will give us more idea what he is planning. There is also the possibility that we may pick up CCTV footage in the area of that sale. We are working on several angles.’ Matt indicated the incident board. ‘This man thinks he is clever, but he has already made some serious mistakes. We can and will catch him.’ Matt didn’t add that he hoped it would be before he killed again. He knew that worry was already there in the minds of the team.
They seemed encouraged as they dispersed back to work, but Matt knew that they were as worried and tired as he was. No one, least of all himself, wanted to fail.
Now he had better get McRay onboard regarding the artist. McRay grunted as Matt entered his office, and Matt sensed that some of his grumpiness had returned. Matt decided to put a positive spin on the findings from yesterday until McRay stopped him.
‘I’ll OK the artist.’
Matt sensed that McRay had something else on his mind.
‘Sit down, Matt.’
Matt did as he was bid and waited until McRay looked up at him.
‘We need to clear the site, Matt. The owners of the spa are putting pressure on us. I can see their point. It’s hardly conducive to health and well-being to be constantly reminded that a murder took place on the premises, is it?’
‘No, Sir. But—’
McRay held up his hand to stop Matt continuing. ‘No buts, Matt. The Super is leaning on me. The lawyers are getting involved. Unless we have a strong reason to be there, we’ll have to back off.’ McRay watched as Matt compiled his argument against this move.
‘I know that Jason still has some elimination prints to process, Sir. And we have a couple of staff to interview.’
‘Couldn’t these be done off site?’
‘Yes, as long as those people are willing to cooperate.’
‘Good.’
Matt could see that McRay considered the matter resolved and knew he had to have his say, even if it did provoke anger.
‘With respect, Sir, I do feel we need to maintain a presence there. This is no ordinary, one-off killing. We know this killer will be on a high right now. He’ll want to repeat the experience and show off just how clever he is. I feel he will do that by killing again in the same place.’
Matt paused to gauge McRay’s reaction before continuing. ‘There is now evidence that he has purchased at least three of the dolls and several of the dresses, so he obviously intends to continue.’
McRay was silent for a moment. ‘Matt, we both know that you could have a hundred officers on the scene, and it wouldn’t stop a crazy killer like this one.’
‘No, Sir, but it might put him off for a while. Give us time to catch him. We do have a description now and evidence that he is local.’
Matt filled McRay in on the findings from yesterday and waited. The old McRay would have no problem doing what he felt was right.
‘Right. There is to be no overt police presence. If you or the forensic team need to go there, you will keep a low profile and not go around upsetting the guests by acting like Inspector Morse.’
‘Could we at least have a patrol car on the drive? It would be a good deterrent, plus the guests would be reassured.’
‘Oh, alright, but only if there is nothing else for them to do, mind.’
He nodded, knowing he had to be content with half winning the battle. Matt knew how these things worked. He stood and began making his way to the door.
‘How’s that new wife of yours, Matt?’
‘Fine. Thank you, Sir.’ Matt would have been happy to leave it at that, but McRay followed him to the door.
‘Damn bad luck, dealing with all this right now, lad. Look after her.’ McRay gave Matt’s shoulder a pat before turning back to his desk.
Matt detected a glimmer of wistfulness in McRay’s voice. Did he regret what had happened with his marriage? For the first time, Matt felt some understanding for the man. McRay used to have a life outside of work, a wife and family. He hadn’t always been this grumpy, aging man.
Was this what lay ahead for him? There seemed little chance that he would be able to get home early tonight. So he would have no opportunity to heal the rift with Eppie.
CHAPTER 29
Walking into the office knowing he would never hear Anne’s shrill voice again was such a pleasure. Clive’s first task was to erase all the phone calls he had made. He thought the police could possibly trace calls from his mobile, but they would have to suspect him first. Anne’s mobile would be filled with muddy water by now, like her mouth and every other orifice of her skinny body. The thought pleased him and he almost giggled aloud.
Gloria arrived and, without waiting to take her coat off, came across to his office. Clive knew he had to be careful how he played this.
‘Well. Did you set her straight? Or do I start collecting?’
He shook his head as if puzzled. ‘She didn’t show.’
‘Get away.’
‘Did you know she had booked theatre tickets?’
‘Really?’
‘RSC. I kept calling her from there, but there was no answer.’
‘She’s changed her mind. You’re losing your touch, Clive. It won’t be long before you will have to give old Gloria a run for her money.’
He dutifully laughed. Some of the office staff were arriving so Gloria turned to leave. ‘It will be interesting to hear what she has to say today.’
‘Bet she won’t want to show her face. She’ll take a sickie, you see.’
With the matter of Anne finally concluded, it was time to turn his attention to his next venture. Everything was now in place for the next statement, the last detail carefully planned. The timings would be tricky, but as long as dear Mother played the part he had mapped out for her, Clive was confident he would be able to present DI Turrell with another little problem.
If only it was as simple to sort out his muddled feelings about Ben. Clive couldn’t even walk by him without the accompaniment of what felt like a brass band beating in his chest. All day, Ben had been avoiding eye contact and there had been no opportunity to talk to him alone.
The outer office was rapidly emptying, as it always did on a Friday afternoon. He glanced across to where Ben was sitting, head down, as if concentrating. He was usually the first to leave on a Friday, and Clive suspected he had many friends and a lively social life. He wouldn’t want Clive ask
ing him out for a drink, even if he could find the courage. He decided to put Ben out of his mind and go home to recheck the details for Saturday night. It was also important to keep Mother happy and on line for Saturday, or all his preparation would come to nothing.
It had been a busy week. Aside from his debut murder and the drowning of dear Anne, he had just finished a contract for the prestigious Governor Hotel. The software had been fully tested and delivered to the client, tested again on the client’s premises, and signed off. That was the end of his responsibilities; it was now over to the service engineers.
With a sigh, Clive turned his back on Ben and began fastening his briefcase ready to leave. But before he could make it out of the office, the phone rang. He could choose to ignore it and pretend he had already left. Everyone dreaded that Friday afternoon call. He hesitated, then put his briefcase back on the desk and picked up the phone.
Mr Norris, manager of the Governor Hotel, sounded agitated. During the installation of the new software, it had become obvious that he was a worrier, always expecting things to go wrong. Now he was panicking, saying he had piles of bookings that could not be inputted. His area manager was visiting tomorrow and his job could be on the line.
After running through the usual suggestions, none of which worked, Clive said he would book one of the support engineers to call on him as soon as possible. However, Mr Norris had already been down this route only to be told that there was no engineer available. En Jay’s had three support engineers to take care of just this sort of problem, but Clive knew one was off sick and the other two were already out working on other emergencies.
Looking around the office in case anyone might like some overtime, he found most had left, and the rest were studiously avoiding his eyes and hurrying their preparations to escape. Only Ben was still at his desk, eyes down and seemingly busy.
Giving in to Mr Norris’s urgent plea, Clive resigned himself to making a visit to the hotel on the way home.
Ben looked up as he passed.
‘Problems?’