The Liar's House: An absolutely gripping thriller with a fantastic twist (Detective Gina Harte Book 4)

by Carla Kovach

  ‘Do you know what time this was?’ Jacob asked.

  She shook her head. ‘I have no idea. It was way after midnight. I went to bed and lay there hoping that Steven would be in a good mood when he arrived back.’

  ‘So now we can establish that Steven wasn’t home when you arrived?’ Wyre glanced at Jacob.

  ‘Yes. I’m sorry I said he was already there when I arrived home but he came back not long after I got in. I just got confused with what had happened and times. I heard him unlock the door and swear as he kicked my shoes in the hallway. He didn’t even come up the stairs. I spent all night awake and upset, wondering if he was angry with me.’

  ‘Why would he be angry with you?’ Wyre asked.

  The woman shrugged her shoulders. ‘I don’t know. Maybe he was fed up I’d not gone back to Sarah’s house. Maybe he’d not managed to get off with Sophie, he hates rejection and I think he had his eye on her.’

  ‘Can you remember when you left Sarah’s house?’ Wyre moved her black fringe from her eyes and tucked it behind her ears.

  ‘No. Now I know what happened to Sophie, I wish I knew when I left the party with Ralph. I wish I’d looked at the time when Steven came home. I was too busy lying there with a nervous stomach wondering if he’d come up the stairs and start a row. Thankfully he didn’t.’

  ‘Did he drive home?’

  ‘His car was on the drive when I woke up in the morning and I did hear him pull up, so yes. He was parked just outside the grounds of the house. He doesn’t like getting the car blocked in.’

  Gina watched the woman intently through the glass, bouncing her leg under the desk as she waited for Dawn to say more.

  ‘Harte, I can’t hear a thing with you making a racket,’ Briggs said. ‘You know when you tell O’Connor about being annoying?’

  It pained her to think she was as annoying as O’Connor. ‘Sorry, sir. It was him, I know it.’

  ‘It’s not looking good for him, I must say, but with him knowing you, we need more than usual. You know what Wyre is going to ask next?’

  Gina nodded and hoped that Dawn would agree to what they would ask.

  Wyre let out a small cough. ‘Dawn, may we have permission to search your house? We know Steven has his own flat but from previous notes, we know he lives with you most of the time. It would really help us to eliminate him from our enquiries.’

  ‘Are you saying he could have done this? That he could have hurt Sophie or killed Jade? Am I living with a killer?’

  ‘I’m not saying any of that. We would simply like to eliminate you both from our enquiries.’

  Dawn began to weep. ‘I just want this to all be over. I’ve been stupid thinking it could work between Steven and me. My friends, my family, they all hate him, say he’s been bad for me but I didn’t listen. I’m listening now. Yes, go ahead. I want to know who hurt these two women and I’m not prepared to get into any trouble with you lot for Steven.’

  ‘Yes,’ Gina said as she punched the air. ‘Did we take Steven’s DNA while he was here?’

  ‘Yes, but no results for that test as yet. I’m hoping we find something at Dawn’s house to hurry the process along.’

  ‘I’ll go and get ready and we’ll head over there immediately. We can’t give him time to find out we’re going in. He’ll be straight over to destroy any evidence.’

  ‘You’re not going, Gina.’

  ‘What?’ She waited for his reply. Open-mouthed. She needed to be there, to see everything unfold in real time. She wanted to be the one to arrest Steven. ‘I need to be there.’

  ‘I said no and you know why.’

  ‘Please, can I at least wait in the car? Please, sir, I need to be involved.’

  ‘You can wait in my car at the other end of the street and I’ll keep you updated at all times. I will be there to supervise the search. I want everything done by the book. You interfere and I will suspend you. Got it?’

  She smiled. ‘Thank you, thank you, thank you!’ She flung her arms around his neck then quickly released him. He straightened his collar up and smiled back.

  ‘Just tell me, Harte, is there anything else you’re not telling me?’

  She thought back to Steven’s threats to expose her with his lies. ‘Only that he’ll say or do anything to discredit me. It won’t be true but he hated me when I was with Terry. He stood by, enjoying it when he was cruel to me. I don’t know what I ever did to him and I’ll never know why he is the way he is. I wish he’d just leave me alone.’

  ‘What’s he likely to say?’

  ‘I can’t predict that one, sir.’ She could, but she wasn’t going to tell him.

  ‘You know I’d do anything for you, Gina. If you ever need my help, just say.’ His look almost pierced her thoughts. She could never let Briggs risk himself for her. She’d never take advantage of his feelings like that. No, she’d find her own way out of this one.

  Fifty-Six

  Gina watched from the other end of the street. It was no good, Dawn Brown’s caravan was blocking her view of the search. Briggs stepped in front of the car and was talking to Wyre. A couple of officers came out of the house, carrying evidence bags. She sat bolt upright, rocking the car. They’d found something. Grabbing her phone, she texted Briggs. She needed to know what was in those bags. They’d been rooting through the house for over an hour and only now they were bringing things out. Another officer had his head buried in the boot of Dawn’s car and was feeling around the crevices. Neighbours peered through their windows. Gina wondered if Dawn knew any of them, or if indeed any of them were her friends. She suspected that Steven chose her friends for her.

  She checked her phone, no answer. Tapping on the door handle, it crossed her mind to get out of the car and storm over, demanding to know what they’d found. She was still a part of the investigation team and Briggs telling her to keep back was making things worse. She let go of the handle, she wasn’t risking suspension for Steven.

  Steven wasn’t even there. Briggs had suspected that Steven would have mentioned something to Dawn about being Gina’s ex-brother-in-law. If he had told Dawn, she hadn’t let on during her interview at the station. She had come across as defeated, as needing to end the relationship and the police’s interest in her. She suspected their relationship would be well and truly over when Steven found out that she voluntarily let the police search her house.

  Wyre came out with another evidence bag and filed it in the van.

  A car passed her. Heart in mouth, she turned away. It was Steven. She didn’t catch his expression but she knew immediately that he’d seen what was happening and, at this moment, he’d be seething. Briggs’s fringe blew up as a gust of wind caught it. He looked over as Steven pulled up behind the caravan, parking across the pavement blocking the evidence van in. Leaving his car door open, he stormed over to Briggs. Gina opened the window a touch, trying to listen to what he was saying, but it was no use. She was too far back. The sound of traffic whizzing around the ring road that backed the new estate filled her head.

  Exhaling, she flopped back in the seat. Being there was a total waste of time. She wasn’t involved. Briggs still hadn’t replied and she was clueless as to where the investigation was going. She pulled a pear drop from the centre console and popped it in her mouth.

  Something wasn’t right. Briggs had led Steven back towards his car and was whispering in his ear. It looked like they were having hushed but stern words. He passed something to Steven with gloved hands. Steven’s face reddened and he clenched his fists as Briggs snatched the tiny object back. Her foot tapped in the footwell as Steven stood speechless before storming into the house. Briggs began walking over.

  She opened the door and stood on the pavement, willing him to walk faster. He had something to tell her, she knew it. ‘What was all that about, sir? I saw you pass something to him.’

  ‘Nothing. That was a private chat between Stevie Boy and me.’

  He was holding something back from her. How dare he do
that after all she’d been through. More than anything, she needed to know what was happening with Steven. ‘What have you found?’

  ‘That I will answer. We found a large stash of weed in the spare room, along with a few wraps of what appear to be cocaine. It was stored in a locked cabinet and apportioned into little bags. At the very least, we are pulling him in for dealing. Of course, he might deny it and try to say it belonged to Dawn but we had to bust the cabinet open as she didn’t have a key. And why would she give us full permission to go through her house if she knew that the drugs were there? She didn’t even ask for a solicitor.’

  Gina’s mind flashed back to what Diane had said about Samantha. After seeing her mystery lover, she turned up at Diane’s smelling of marijuana. ‘But—’

  ‘Yes, great minds think alike. His prints will be all over the packets, not hers. They’re off to the lab.’ Briggs stepped into the driver’s side of the car, Gina followed.

  ‘That’s not all you found, is it?’

  He shook his head. ‘We have seized magazines, some of them pornographic. We know Diane was sent a card and it contained a message spelled out in pieces of magazine. There’s a lot of material to go through in the search for a few missing letters. We also found some receipts in the upstairs waste bin next to the drug cabinet. There were two from Blossom’s Bouquets for the flowers and chocolates. We have now confirmed that he’s been sending you the unwanted gifts. What we don’t know is why.’

  Gina knew why. He was playing with her mind, hoping she’d crack. He’d seen her at breaking point when Terry had played mind games with her. Terry used to send her flowers and chocolates after he’d given her a beating, as if that would ever make up for all he’d done to her. At first, she’d lapped up his apologies, blaming herself for being a bad wife. She had soon realised there was no pleasing him.

  After he’d forced Gina and the prostitute to perform at knifepoint with tears sliding down their faces, he’d sent her those very gifts the following morning. The poor prostitute had left in shock, holding her forty pounds in cash.

  ‘Harte, are you okay?’

  ‘Sorry, yes, sir. You know about Terry and me, what went on. After he’d been violent, the next day he’d always send me flowers and chocolates. I know it’s a familiar story but yes, that was me, a walking cliché. He’s trying to mentally stuff me up because he feels threatened. It’s not going to work, I can tell you that much. I’m not that Gina any more.’

  ‘Good, glad to hear it. That Gina belongs in the past and new Gina is who we all know and love.’ He paused.

  ‘What else?’

  ‘We also found a pair of black gloves in his locked up cabinet. He’s also a smoker, just like our perp.’

  ‘Yes, the cigarette packet we found by Diane’s had Jade Ashmore’s fingerprints on it. He’s been playing with us. I don’t want him to win.’ Gina felt her body tensing. She knew full well that the evidence was nowhere near complete to have him on a murder charge or link him to Samantha. Everything was circumstantial and there was no sign of the murder weapon. Close, but not quite. Forensic evidence would seal the case though. However, the drug possession and possible dealing were tangible and he’d be brought in. He had to crack. She felt a shiver reach her neck and she shrugged her shoulders a few times to eradicate the feeling. If he felt penned in, would he start attacking her character like he’d promised? He was dangerous.

  ‘You’re worried about what he might say, aren’t you? That the rest of the team will get to know about your past and what happened to you. Don’t be.’

  She let out a huff sound. He had the potential to affect her career. Between Rex threatening to speak to the press and Steven threatening to twist her past into something that might turn her colleagues against her, how could she not be worried? She felt her chest tighten. Panic rose. Heart hammering, salivating mouth, sweat prickling her armpits, boiling hot. She began loosening her coat and shirt, fanning her face with a notebook. Breathe, Briggs couldn’t latch onto what was happening.

  He pulled a paper bag from the storage in the side of his door and passed it to her. Grabbing it, she placed it over her mouth and breathed into it until she’d calmed down a little. Sweat began to run down her forehead but she was cold and shivery. ‘Thank you.’ She passed him the bag.

  He blocked her hand. ‘You keep it.’

  ‘I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.’

  He shuffled in the car seat. ‘Look at me, Harte.’

  She turned to face him.

  ‘You can get through this. It’s just another case. Step back and look at everything objectively. It’s not about you. Yes, you got caught up with the wrong people in life but this is all about a murdered woman and a woman who’s been missing for years. It’s about them and we need to focus on that. Do you understand?’

  She nodded as she wiped a tear from her face.

  ‘He’s not going to bring you down, you have to trust me on this one.’

  One further look into his eyes left her unable to speak. What had he done? She felt tears welling up in her eyes, tears she’d save for later, when she was alone.

  The sound of a door slamming caught their attention. Gina stared at Dawn’s house as O’Connor brought Steven out in cuffs and bundled him into the back of a police car. They’d arrested him and now it was all going to kick off. The worse thing about it all was that she wouldn’t know exactly what he’d said until the interview was over.

  Fifty-Seven

  The clunking had continued for what seemed like forever but suddenly, quietness enveloped her small space. All Aimee wanted to see was the sky, she didn’t mind if it was raining or dark. She wanted to see the moon, street lamps; cars driving with headlamps on, pubs lit up at night, anything but this dark void she was shoehorned in.

  As the drug wore off, the clunking monster had turned into machinery. Was she near a factory unit or on the industrial estate? Had he buried her in the grounds or was she stuffed into the wall, where forever she’d stay until she finally let out her last breath? Maybe she’d lie there rotting until one day, someone would come along and find her bones. Gasping for air, she began to weep as she thought about her kidnapper.

  She’d only met him the once. Thoughts flashed through her mind. She jogged around the area on many occasions. Maybe he’d seen her then. They both lived in Cleevesford. Maybe he’d seen her in one of the shops or at the pub. Rhys, he still hadn’t made further contact. Maybe he’d been angry and they’d plotted this together. He hated her enough and he’d never let anything lie if anyone dared to upset him.

  Rhys would often move things in her garden, leave her gate open in the night to make her think she was going crazy or being watched. He was a game player and maybe this was one of his games. He’d told her these stories with a certain level of humour in his voice when she’d caught him out. She’d even laughed at one point, especially when she’d forgiven him after catching him in the act. What had seemed like a practical joke back then now seemed sinister. She should have seen it. It was now her turn. How he’d teamed up with her kidnapper, she had no idea. All she knew was that if he had any involvement, he’d be around watching and laughing, sitting in the darkness waiting to say it was all some kind of joke.

  ‘Rhys, if you’re there, please let me out now.’ Something dropped to the floor. She could hear behind the thick walls. She wasn’t in a grave. Whoever was out there was sitting at the same level as her.

  They weren’t going to answer. She had to be wrong about Rhys. Would he really conspire to kidnap her and confine her to this hole to make his point? Her mind was all over the place. She recognised her captor, she knew he’d got on with Rhys at the party. They’d even shared a spliff together at one point. She thought he’d seemed nice enough, but not now. Not now he’d invaded her home, hurt her, kidnapped and imprisoned her. Not now. She began to shiver. ‘Please, I know you’re there. We can talk about this. You can’t leave me here forever. I need the toilet.’

  She flinched as he c
leared his throat. A second later, a door slammed. ‘Come back!’ Once again, she was alone in the dark. It was worse now, she was fully aware of what was happening to her. Sobbing, she curled her arms around her cramping legs and rocked back and forth in the tiny space.

  Fifty-Eight

  What to do, what to do? Aimee has made things difficult for me. I stare out of my windscreen and watch Gina’s house. I know about her alarm and CCTV system so I stay back, observing. Maybe I could leave a note.

  ‘Argh!’ I pummel the dashboard until my knuckles are red raw. How had I let this happen? I wanted Aimee to like me, meet me at the right moment and now I’d lost that chance forever.

  I stare at the fields and all I see is darkness. There are no street lamps around here. Don’t know what to do. Hitting the side of my head as I ponder that thought, I watch as the DI pulls up and greets her cat before she disables her alarm.

  Write a note now – I could post it quickly and drive off. I have a hooded jacket, she won’t see me and my car is too far away from the camera. No, I won’t write a note. Maybe I won’t say anything. I got it all wrong.

  Now I see it. Aimee was wrong for me. She’d never willingly go for a man like me. Just because I’ve researched her and know her well, it doesn’t mean she knows me. She knows nothing about me apart from what’s on my Swap Fun profile, even then, she doesn’t know it’s me.

  Gina closes her curtains. Now I can’t see a thing. What did I expect? She’s not dippy like Aimee. Gina is a real woman, experienced and tough. I like that. Sorry Aimee, I don’t think I can help you out here. Gina, I may help you if you stop being a bitch to me.

  How can I get closer to you, see what you’re doing. I want to watch as you get changed into your casuals or your nightclothes. I want to see you in the comfort of your home, stroking your cat, eating your dinner – normal everyday things. I gently close the car door and place my dark hooded jacket on. What the hell. I’m going for a look. Maybe after, I’ll know if I want to help you or not.