She could now see the naked man squatting on the dirt floor. His hands were out to his right, still encased in the metal manacles.
In a trembling voice, the man asked, ‘What the fuck’s going on? Who are you?’
As Wade had instructed, Melissa said nothing.
She stood facing the man, with her back to the small window.
Barnes’s eyes constantly darted from her face to her breasts and back again. With a whimper, he said, ‘Why are you doing this to me?’
Still, she said nothing and just stared down at the stricken man.
Barnes began to beg: ‘Please, can’t you just let me go? I’ve done nothing to hurt you. I’m sorry if I offended you when I gave you a light. I really didn’t mean anything by it. You’re a beautiful woman. I thought I was being polite.’
There was a faint tapping noise on the small glass window above her head.
Braithwaite took it as her cue to leave and walked out of the room.
Barnes wailed, ‘Don’t go, please! Just let me go. I’m begging you. I need water. Can you get me a drink, please?’
She ignored his pleadings and stepped back outside into the sunlight.
Wade was waiting for her when she got outside.
He was holding a claw hammer.
‘Go back inside and tell him you’re going to keep him here for sex, and that if he does as he’s told, you’ll let him live.’
Physically shaking, she asked, ‘What’s the hammer for, Jimmy?’
‘You need to show him you mean business. Get back inside and give him a few whacks with the hammer. Don’t hit his head though; go for his ribs.’
‘I don’t think I can do that.’
‘What did you say?’
In a voice little more than a whisper, she said, ‘I don’t think I can do that to him.’
Wade’s face flushed red, and he growled, ‘You’ve got a choice, sweetheart. Get back inside and give him a couple of clouts or spend the rest of the day in there chained up with him. Your choice. Don’t make me tell you again!’
Fighting back tears of fear and frustration, she grabbed the hammer and turned to go inside again.
Wade stopped her, closed her blouse with the one remaining button, and said, ‘For fuck’s sake, cover yourself up, you look like a tart!’
She quickly straightened her ripped blouse until her breasts were covered, and walked through the door.
Barnes instantly saw the hammer and recoiled.
Like a woman possessed, Braithwaite launched a flurry of vicious blows at the defenceless man. The hammer landed squarely on the ribcage of Barnes, and there was an audible crack as one of his ribs snapped under the force of the blow.
Hearing the noise as the bone snapped, she heaved and stopped her assault. Gagging, she turned and stepped out of the building.
Wade was laughing and snapped the padlock shut on the door.
He took the hammer from her and said, ‘You see, that was fun, wasn’t it? I knew you could do it. We’ll come back again this afternoon; you can watch through the window when I introduce myself to Mr Barnes. I want some fun with him before we get his dopey sidekick this evening. Are you going to watch me have some fun, sweetie?’
‘Of course, darling. I wouldn’t miss it.’
22
24 June 1986
Tall Trees Children’s Home, Bilsthorpe, Nottinghamshire
Detective Sergeant Wills and PC Bracewell arrived at Tall Trees Children’s Home. Andy parked the CID car in the main car park at the front of the building.
The children’s home was already a hive of activity. Several CID cars were parked up alongside other vehicles that belonged to the staff at the home.
Andy and Dave walked towards the front door of the home and were met by Caroline Short standing in the doorway.
She was standing alone smoking a cigarette, leaning against the open front door.
Seeing Dave Bracewell approaching, she took a long pull on her cigarette and said, ‘Hello, Dave, it’s nice to see a friendly face this morning. Your lot are everywhere inside, talking to all the kids and the staff. What brings you out here?’
Dave glanced at Andy Wills and replied, ‘I’m here with Detective Sergeant Wills. We need to speak to Tommy Quinn.’
With an almost smug grin, Caroline replied, ‘You’ll have a job. Quinn ran off about an hour ago. I was just about to ring it through to your control room. I think he got pissed off at the thought of being spoken to by the CID.’
Dave exclaimed, ‘Bloody hell!’
‘Why do you need to see Tommy, anyway? I thought the CID were dealing with this?’
Andy Wills interjected, ‘I want to talk to Quinn about something he said to PC Bracewell on the night Evan Jenkins went missing.’
‘Tommy didn’t say anything.’
Dave said, ‘Yes, he did, Caroline. Don’t you remember? You shouted at him to get to bed. Then he said something to me just as I was going out the door.’
‘Well, I never heard anything. Are you sure he was saying something to you?’
Andy had heard enough. ‘Whether he did or he didn’t is immaterial. I still want to talk to him. Now, let’s go to your office and have a look at Tommy Quinn’s records so I can find out where he was found on the previous occasions he’s absconded. I want to know where we can locate him.’
Caroline Short allowed a strained smile to pass her lips and said, ‘Of course, follow me. Do you want your usual cup of coffee, Dave?’
‘That would be lovely, thanks, Caroline.’
‘Detective Sergeant Wills?’
‘I’m fine, thanks.’
Half an hour later, armed with the locations where Tommy Quinn had been found on previous occasions, the two police officers were in the CID car, driving back towards Mansfield.
Andy was deep in thought; he’d noticed the smug reaction of the matron when she told them that Tommy Quinn had absconded and couldn’t be spoken to.
Andy stopped the car at a set of traffic lights as they had turned to red. When the car was stationary, he said, ‘Do you think Caroline Short heard what Tommy said to you that night?’
‘I’m not really sure, Sarge. She could have done, I suppose. It was certainly loud enough for me to hear it.’
‘What was her reaction on the night?’
‘She never mentioned it, just bellowed at Tommy to get back to his room.’
‘So she never acknowledged that anything had been said?’
‘No, not at all.’
‘How did she seem to you today?’
‘Definitely not her normal self. She looked proper stressed out, but she’s going to be with all this carry-on, isn’t she?’
‘I suppose so. Where do you think’s the best place to look for Tommy, then?’
The lights turned to green, and Andy drove on.
‘Reading this file, he’s been found on three previous occasions at the Spinning Palace, a slot machine arcade in Mansfield town centre. I know the manager in there. She’s very pro police.’
‘Could he have got there yet?’
‘It’s doubtful unless he managed to jump straight on a bus when he legged it into Bilsthorpe.’
‘We’ll go there first anyway. I’ll have a word with the manager and get her to call our office as and when Tommy Quinn comes into the arcade. If he’s that much of a regular, the manager will know him. There’s a photo in the file, isn’t there?’
‘Yes, Sarge.’
‘I haven’t asked you yet, Dave. What do you think Tommy meant by his comment?’
‘I’ve been thinking about that all day, and honestly, I just don’t know. He was almost laughing when he said it to me. I got the impression that he definitely knew something I didn’t.’
‘Come on, then, let’s get down to the Spinning Palace arcade. With a bit of luck, we’ll be able to ask him that question ourselves, sooner rather than later.’
23
24 June 1986
Mansfield Police Station
, Nottinghamshire
There was a loud knock on Danny’s office door.
‘Come in!’
Chief Superintendent Bill Wainwright opened the door and walked in.
Instantly regretting the decision to drive straight back to Mansfield before going to headquarters, Danny stood up and said, ‘Good morning, sir. I was just coming over to headquarters to see you.’
‘Well, I’ve saved you the trip. I fancied getting out of the office for an hour, so I thought I’d come over and see how things are progressing with this dead child.’
Both men sat down, and Danny said, ‘Things are moving quickly. We identified the boy late last night. His name’s Evan Jenkins. He was in care of the local authority and was a resident at the Tall Trees Children’s Home over at Bilsthorpe.’
‘Is it definitely a murder? I saw that he was found in woodland. It’s not a case of an absconder getting hypothermia, is it?’
‘Definitely not, sir. I should have come over to headquarters and briefed you fully yesterday, but it was a bit full on, and my first day back. I know that’s no excuse. You need to know what’s going on.’
‘I’m not going to argue with that, Danny. The chief constable stopped me this morning for an update when I arrived at work. Needless to say, I blagged it, but it was slightly embarrassing.’
‘I can only apologise for that.’
‘No harm done. So, fill me in now. What do we know so far?’
‘Okay. As I said, we now know the dead boy is Evan Jenkins, eleven years of age. He was in care of the local authority and a resident at Tall Trees Children’s Home. His home address was Valley Walk in the Hyson Green flats. I’ve been there this morning to see his mother, Tania. I wanted to break the news of her son’s murder to her in person.’
‘How was she?’
‘Understandably, terribly upset. She made the point that the authorities had taken him into care to keep him from harm, and now he was dead. I thought it was a very valid point.’
‘Definitely. Some of those kids’ homes are like a revolving door, aren’t they? They’re not secure accommodation, so the kids come and go virtually as they please. They get up to all sorts of mischief and crime, as well as exposing themselves to all kinds of risks. How did the boy die? Have you had the result of the post-mortem yet?’
‘I’ve not received Seamus Carter’s written report yet, but I attended the post-mortem myself yesterday. There, he identified the cause of death as asphyxiation. The boy had been smothered. He’d also been badly sexually assaulted.’
‘Sexually assaulted in what way?’
‘He’d been raped by several men.’
‘Bloody hell!’
‘Seamus is of the opinion that the boy had been assaulted by several different men on a single occasion, as opposed to a single man on several occasions.’
‘I know that man is bloody good at what he does, but how the hell can he tell that?’
‘Something to do with the internal damage suffered by the boy and the different patterns of bruising on his back.’
‘So what are your thoughts? Do you think we’re looking for an established paedophile ring?’
‘Obviously, I’m keeping an open mind, but yes, that’s the way I’m leaning.’
‘Jesus Christ. You’re going to have your work cut out, Danny. These bastards really know how to cover their tracks.’
‘I know, sir, that’s what’s worrying me.’
‘So what enquiries have you got running?’
‘We’re concentrating on background knowledge at the moment. I’ve got all my staff out at Tall Trees today. They’re interviewing the other residents and staff who work at the home. Rachel Moore and Tina Prowse are still with Tania Jenkins, getting all they can from her. I’m expecting the full post-mortem report from Seamus any time now. He thinks the toxicology reports will also be significant. The matron at Tall Trees, Caroline Short, has inferred that Evan, although only eleven years of age, was already abusing class A drugs.’
‘Bloody hell! This just gets better and better. Have you considered a press release yet?’
‘Now that Tania Jenkins has been properly informed, I’m organising one for this evening. My intention was to keep it deliberately vague; you know the sort of thing; the police have launched a murder enquiry after the body of an eleven-year-old child was found in woodland near Mansfield yesterday. The family have been informed, and police enquiries are ongoing.’
‘Sounds spot on. I know it’s still early days, but have you got any suspects yet?’
‘Not really.’
‘That’s a strange comment. What do you mean “not really”? Either you have, or you haven’t.’
‘Sorry. I mean no, there aren’t any suspects. It’s just that Jimmy Wade’s still out there somewhere.’
‘Surely this isn’t his sort of thing, though, is it?’
‘I don’t know what his sort of thing is. I know he’s a bloody psycho, and I wouldn’t put anything past him.’
‘Carter said several offenders.’
‘That’s true, he did. But don’t forget, Wade committed offences with an accomplice last time. I suppose Wade will always be in my head until he’s recaptured and locked away again.’
‘I think we can probably discount that particular maniac from this enquiry, Danny.’
The Chief Superintendent stood up. ‘I’d better be getting back to headquarters. I’ll see the chief and brief him properly how the enquiry is progressing. If you need anything, you know where I am. Good luck, Danny.’
24
24 June 1986
The Spinning Palace Arcade, Mansfield
The manager of the arcade had telephoned Andy Wills just over an hour after the detective had left his number, instructing her to call him straight away if Tommy Quinn came into the arcade.
She had recognised Tommy from the photograph straight away. He was one of her regulars. He loved playing on the new video games that were all the rage.
When they returned to the arcade, Andy had sent PC Bracewell to the rear of the premises to cover the back door before walking in through the front.
The arcade was very noisy with loud sci-fi sounds emanating from the machines. The arcade itself was gloomy. The only lights in the building were the flashing lights incorporated in the various games. It was surprisingly busy, and the air was thick with cigarette smoke.
Andy stepped to one side of the front door and allowed his senses to acclimatise to the surreal surroundings.
The manager of the arcade, a young woman in her mid-twenties, had seen Andy walk in. She walked over to him and shouted above the din, ‘Hello again! Young Tommy came in about twenty minutes ago.’
‘Where is he? I can’t see him.’
‘He’s just nipped out the back to the toilet. He’ll be back in a minute. He’s asked me to make sure nobody goes on Alien Attack from Mars.’
‘What?’
‘It’s the latest game. It’s the big one over there.’
She pointed to a large machine standing in the far corner of the arcade.
Just as she did so, Andy saw a young blonde-haired boy emerge from the nearby toilet. He instantly recognised Tommy Quinn.
Unfortunately, Tommy Quinn knew a CID man when he saw one. As soon as he saw the manager talking to the cop, he turned and sprinted towards the back door.
Andy gave chase, racing across the arcade, dodging the other punters.
He followed Tommy out of the rear door and into the bright sunlight.
Dave Bracewell was standing near the back door and was holding the wriggling Quinn securely by his right arm.
Dave grinned and said, ‘Alright, Sarge, what kept you?’
‘Well done, Dave. So this is the elusive Tommy Quinn.’
The blonde-haired youngster found his voice. ‘What you after me for? I haven’t done anything.’
‘I know you haven’t, Tommy. I just need to ask you a few questions about something you said to my colleague when he w
as at Tall Trees the other week.’
Tommy grinned and replied sarcastically, ‘I’m sorry, Mr Policeman. I didn’t mean anything by it. I’m not the only one; all the kids do the grunting pig noises when a copper comes in.’
Andy grinned and said, ‘Yeah, yeah. Very funny, Tommy. Let’s get you to the police station so we can have a proper chat before we take you back to Tall Trees.’
The three of them walked to the car in silence.
As soon as the car pulled away, Tommy said quietly, ‘I know what you’re on about, really.’
From the driver’s seat, Andy made eye contact with the boy in the rear-view mirror. He said, ‘Go on then, Tommy. Tell me what the comment was.’
‘I just said Evan wouldn’t be coming back.’
‘And what exactly did you mean by that?’
‘Look, Evan’s a creepy little fucker. He doesn’t talk to anyone. He’s the matron’s favourite. She’s always taking him out for special treats. He never tells any of us what he gets treated to. He’s a right mardy little fucker. He gets money from the matron as well as the treats, and he doesn’t share fuck all. None of the other kids at the Trees like him. He’s just a bit weird.’
‘I still don’t understand. Why did you say he wouldn’t be back?’
‘I said it because matron had taken him out in the van earlier that night. When that happens, he never comes back until the next day. Even then, he’s allowed to sleep in while the rest of us either have lessons to do or gardening work with Bill.’
‘How do you know the matron took him out? Did you see him go?’
‘No, I didn’t see him go, but he didn’t come to his room after tea. So that could only mean one thing, he’d been taken out again.’
‘Where does he go?’
‘I don’t know where he goes. Like I said, he’s a creepy little fucker who never says anything.’
‘Okay, Tommy. Who’s Bill, by the way?’
‘He’s the matron’s old man. He makes us work around the grounds, doing the gardens. He’s a creepy fucker as well.’
A Cold Grave: A DCI Danny Flint Book Page 9