BURIED CRIMES: a gripping detective thriller full of twists and turns

by MICHAEL HAMBLING

  ‘So is that a yes, then?’

  Chapter 28: Cynic

  Tuesday morning, week 3

  ‘So the DNA matches?’

  ‘Apparently so. And with both of them, so there’s no doubt about it.’ Marsh sat back in his chair and stretched his legs out under the table. ‘We didn’t need the hairbrush after all. Both Kenneth and Li Hua had already been profiled because of how their deaths occurred. They were both on file. All the forensic expert had to do was compare them with the children’s, and those were ready yesterday, as you know.’

  Sophie nodded. ‘So now we know that we’re on the right track and we haven’t been wasting our time. That’s a relief, I can tell you. I’ve been worried since we saw that photo of the two Philippino children in John Wethergill’s flat. We could have switched direction entirely at that point and wasted so much time. I’ll let the ACC know once we’ve finished this briefing. So, we have a family of four, all dead within five years of each other and all, we think, in suspicious or accidental circumstances. What could we be looking at here?’

  One of the local detectives spoke up. ‘Sounds like some kind of revenge. A family feud? Maybe even a gangland payback. Could they have crossed one of the Chinese Triad gangs when they were in Hong Kong?’

  ‘They were both doctors. Is it likely?’

  Marsh said, ‘we do have to think of all possibilities, ma’am.’

  Rae added, ‘Sean could be right with his first suggestion, though. What if it was some kind of personal revenge? Not necessarily Chinese. Could there be a clue somewhere in their past, do you think?’

  Sophie nodded. ‘Yes, you’re right. We need more information about the parents first. I’m going to suggest we reconvene this afternoon after we’ve had another spell of digging into their background. Once we’ve learned more about them, we might be in a better position to speculate. And keep this quiet, everyone. We’ll let people continue thinking that Wethergill’s death was suicide and he was the twins’ probable killer.’ She waited until the local Dorchester detectives had returned to their work stations before speaking to Barry and Rae. ‘It seems that every avenue we investigate brings us to the name Pauline. We need to know if it’s the same one. Was the Pauline Stopley who was having an affair with Wethergill the same Pauline who married Richard Camberwell in Bristol after the death of Li Hua? Does she correspond to the P Camberwell on the residents’ records of Finch Cottage?’

  ‘If she is the same one, do we move in on her?’

  ‘Not yet. It’s all too circumstantial. And by the way, she turned up at the Old Cornmarket yesterday and chatted to Martin while he was clearing up after the local beerex. Would you believe it? But we have no direct evidence on her and I’ll need something much more definite to work with before we bring her in. We need to keep an eye on her, though. Can you arrange that, Barry? Meanwhile, let’s backtrack through Wethergill’s activities over the past week or two. List where he went, who he met, that kind of thing. Rae, could you follow up that restaurant contact urgently, please? You remember, the couple who sat next to his table last week?’

  ‘Already done, ma’am. They’re coming in later this morning.’

  ‘Good work. I’ll see them. Meanwhile, you find out everything you can about Pauline Stopley. She might turn out to be the key person in all this. Put a photo of her up on the incident board. We need to let everyone know that she’s a person of interest, even though there’s nothing definite yet.’

  * * *

  Later that morning Theresa Jackson, the Freeman family’s liaison officer, called into the incident room to let Sophie know that the family no longer needed to see her on a regular basis. From now on they’d call her if a visit was required. Theresa read through the information posted on the incident board. She hurried over to Sophie, who was perched on the corner of Barry’s desk chatting to him about John Wethergill.

  ‘Ma’am, you have Pauline Stopley on the incident board.’

  ‘Yes. Her name keeps cropping up, but we’re not sure how she ties in to any of the events. Why?’

  ‘You remember that I saw Jill Freeman acting a bit suspiciously not long after the twins’ bodies had been discovered? I saw her getting into a car with someone and I thought they embraced? You told me to run a check on the car but not to take it any further unless I thought it was linked in some way. Well, there was no obvious link so I didn’t say anything. But I have to now. That car is registered to Pauline Stopley.’

  Barry pursed his lips. ‘Is there something going on between them? Is that what you’re trying to tell us?’

  ‘I don’t know. But Karen, the daughter, is convinced there’s something wrong between her parents. She told me this morning when I called in on my way to work. She asked if I could give her a lift to school instead of her getting the bus. It’s the first time she’s done that. I twigged that she wanted to talk about something, but thought it would be about the case. Instead she told me that she’d overheard some talk between her parents at the weekend and says that her mum is acting a bit strange.’

  Sophie asked, ‘did she say how long it had been going on?’

  ‘Recent, I think. She says that she’s only noticed it in the past couple of weeks. Probably that incident I told you about was the first. That’s what made her suspicious. She’s a perceptive young woman, considering the strain she must be under. I think she’s really worried. She’s been nosing about and says that her mum bought some sexy underwear at the weekend. She’s worn it, but not with Karen’s dad. At least, she doesn’t think so. The poor girl is really worried. She was in tears. Of course, she won’t suspect that her mum’s having an affair with a woman. She’ll be worried about her running off with another man.’

  ‘Thanks, Theresa. We needed to know. Listen, would you mind if I got you seconded onto our team for the duration of the investigation? I know you’ve been keeping me updated, but we could use your insight into the family if there’s something going on. What do you think?’

  Theresa put her hand to her mouth. ‘Oh, I’d love to, ma’am. But d’you think it would it be okay with my bosses?’

  ‘Leave it with me. Go and waste time for five minutes. By the time you get back to your office I hope it’ll have been cleared. I’ll do it now. You’ll be working for Rae over there but reporting to Barry. And you’ll stay as the family liaison for the Freemans. Okay? Plain clothes, but keep them smart.’

  Theresa was beaming as she left the office. Sophie turned to her sergeant.

  ‘Well, what does this latest bit of news mean? Pauline Stopley’s quite some woman, isn’t she? And there’s something else I should tell you that I was keeping quiet about. She’s already made passes at two members of my family, Martin and Hannah.’ Marsh looked confused. ‘I’d better explain, hadn’t I? From what I can tell, it’s a wonder she didn’t make a pass at me while I was interviewing her last week. Maybe I should be feeling disappointed.’

  Barry’s look of bemusement was still there after Sophie had finished her tale.

  * * *

  Sophie had chosen the most comfortable interview room in the police station, and had ordered a tray of coffee and biscuits.

  ‘It’s just horrible to think that he died that night after his evening out at the restaurant. We were sitting at the next table. He seemed such a nice man. How’s his partner taking it? Or shouldn’t we ask?’

  ‘We interviewed her the next day and she was understandably upset. They weren’t longstanding partners, though. They’d only met the previous week.’ Sophie threw this in deliberately, to see the reaction. Barry Marsh leaned against a wall, watching.

  ‘Gosh. That’s really, well, surprising. I mean, they were obviously deeply involved with each other.’ The young woman, Rachel, was blushing. She took a sip of coffee and a bite of biscuit to hide her embarrassment.

  ‘I’ll need to know why you thought that, Rachel. Nothing you say will go outside these four walls, don’t worry. Okay?’

  She nodded, then took a dee
p breath and repeated the conversation they’d overheard at the restaurant.

  ‘So you’d say that the two of them seemed to be getting on well?’

  ‘Yes, absolutely. And he was so obviously disappointed when she said she couldn’t go home with him that night. But it didn’t last long. He cheered up when she invited him round to hers a few days later. That’s when we got embarrassed, wasn’t it, Jordan?’ Her boyfriend nodded but said nothing, nibbling at a biscuit. ‘It was when she told him to wear his silk briefs again and expect some more adventures. She could tell we’d overheard, but she just smiled at us and winked. I mean, it was all a bit brazen.’

  ‘Did they definitely go separate ways when they left the restaurant? They could have changed their minds, you see.’

  Jordan spoke for the first time. ‘Yes. They chatted outside the door for a few minutes, and then they went in opposite directions. Rachel couldn’t see, but I could ‘cause I was facing the door. He went into town but she walked away from it.’ He seemed about to say more but stopped.

  ‘Is there something else, Jordan?’ Sophie asked.

  ‘Someone might have been watching them from across the street. There was a figure in a shop doorway that I spotted a bit earlier. Whoever it was came across the road just after your couple parted.’

  ‘You didn’t tell me about it, Jordan.’ Rachel sounded annoyed.

  ‘Well, it wasn’t important then, was it? And I can’t be absolutely sure even now.’

  ‘Which way did this figure go?’ asked Marsh.

  ‘The same way as the bloke.’

  ‘Did you get a good look?’

  ‘Not really. He came across at a slant, so he was sideways on. In a jacket with the hood up. Quite short.’ He picked up another biscuit.

  * * *

  ‘What do you think, Barry?’

  Marsh sat down on one of the chairs the couple had vacated. ‘It proves nothing. Pauline could have called him and said she’d changed her plans. She could have turned up at his flat as a surprise. She could have even got there before him if her car was nearby and she drove. That restaurant must be a good ten minute walk from his shop and flat. It could have all been a deliberate plant, laying a false trail in preparation for when we started our questioning. As for this person who might have been watching, Jordan was a bit vague about it. As he said himself, he was in a lit restaurant staring out onto a dark street. It could have been anybody.’

  ‘You’re a cynic, Barry, particularly about our friend the actress.’

  He laughed. ‘Well, after what you told me, and added to Theresa’s suspicions, I wouldn’t put anything past that woman. She seems totally unscrupulous. To be honest, I can’t get my head round this latest bit of information about her.’

  ‘If it makes you feel any better, Barry, neither can I. Maybe we’d better get her in, although I’d prefer to wait until we get a few more facts in place. Did you post a check on her?’

  Marsh nodded. ‘It’s not a full time watch, just at the times she’s likely to be moving. She’s at work at the moment, in the Arts Council offices.’

  Sophie thought for a few moments. ‘On second thoughts, I think I might pay her a visit this afternoon and have things out with her. It’ll save us a lot of time if she opens up about her past, and her link to Finch Cottage. Do you want to come? Rae can take over from you now that we’ve got Theresa doing some of the donkey work. Our problem is that there’s just no direct evidence against her and we’ll need something definite before we can make an arrest. I think a steamroller approach is called for. Maybe we should rattle her composure a bit. Okay? Give me ten minutes to get my look right. This is the woman who’s tried it on with two members of my family. I want to show her just what she’s up against.’

  Chapter 29: Steamroller

  Tuesday afternoon, week 3

  ‘Can I call you Sophie?’ Pauline was sitting in her office, on one side of a coffee table, with the two detectives facing her. She’d wanted to remain behind her desk, but Sophie had asked for this arrangement, having noticed the low chairs. The sophisticated ex-actress versus his boss. Marsh smiled to himself, knowing that Sophie held all the cards. It would be no contest at all.

  ‘No. DCI Allen will be fine.’ Sophie gave her a thin smile and stretched her slender legs out in front of her, brushing an invisible speck from her immaculate skirt. ‘Tell me about how you met John, Ms Stopley. Everything.’

  ‘Well, it was on Saturday, a week and a half ago. It was my first outing with the walking group. John and I got talking and then had lunch together in the pub . . .’

  She was about to go on, but Sophie stopped her.

  ‘When I said everything, Ms Stopley, I meant it. You’ve already given me this short version, so I don’t really need to hear it again. I want detail. Other members of the group said that you made a beeline for him, that you seemed to have your eye on him from the start.’

  Pauline sat back slightly. ‘That just isn’t true. We didn’t even start talking until the final mile or so. We must have been well past the three-quarter mark by then.’

  ‘And was that the first time you’d ever met John?’

  Pauline was about to speak but paused, seeming to weigh up her options. Finally she said, ‘no. He had an affair with my sister a long time ago. We met briefly then, but only once or twice. He clearly didn’t remember me.’

  ‘Your sister being . . ?’

  Pauline sighed. ‘Dorothy Kitson.’

  ‘I’ll need to talk to her. Do you have her address? It would save us some time.’

  ‘Of course.’ Marsh took down the Dorchester address. ‘But she’s not there at the moment. I’ve been trying to contact her since the weekend.’

  Sophie nodded slightly. ‘Let’s return to the morning of the ramble. You are adamant that you didn’t talk to him until late on in the walk, so let me pose a different question. Did you know in advance that he would be there, on that walk?’

  Again, a pause. Sophie gave Pauline another cold smile. ‘Yes, I was aware that he would be on the ramble. His name was on a list that the secretary emailed to the group.’

  ‘So you could afford to wait until late on in the walk, knowing that you could introduce yourself at any time. Would your name have been on that list as well? Why didn’t he recognise it from all those years ago? Or didn’t he know your name back then?’

  ‘I don’t know.’

  ‘Did you have the same surname then?’

  Again, a pause. ‘No. I was Pauline Camberwell. I still am in a few historical records. Stopley was my maiden name, my stage name, and the one I’ve always used for work. And as I said, I only met John a couple of times, briefly.’

  ‘Yet you remembered him very well. Isn’t that a bit strange?’

  ‘No, I don’t think so. I have a good memory for names. I was an actress. I had to learn lots of names. I couldn’t afford to get them wrong on stage.’ She was sounding more confident. Marsh, notebook in hand, watched with interest as Sophie played along for a while, letting Pauline think she’d escaped.

  ‘So, exactly when was this?’

  ‘Probably some twenty years or so ago. Maybe longer. I was away a lot in repertory, touring around the country. I was even in the States for a while.’

  ‘Have you lived in Dorchester before?’

  ‘I grew up here. Apart from that, only for a short spell, when I was staying with my sister. I’ve always lived in Bristol or London when I’ve been in the UK.’ Pauline smiled. She was visibly relaxing, back in control.

  ‘Tell me about your life in Bristol, Pauline. Or should I call you Mrs Camberwell?’

  Pauline’s smile faded. ‘Please don’t. It has too many memories. I prefer to use Stopley.’

  ‘Why’s that? So you can keep acting? So you can keep spinning me along in your little play? You in the central role, with all of these other people orbiting around you, being charmed and entertained by you? What is it I read recently? "I live a spectral life, empty of meaning. I
inhabit a ghostly world, vacant of substance." Or something like that. What do you think those lines mean?’

  ‘Sorry. I don’t know what you’re talking about.’

  Sophie nodded. ‘Again, tell me about your life in Bristol.’

  Pauline suddenly spat back, ‘why should I? What’s it got to do with you, any of it? Prying into my private life and my memories. What gives you the right? It’s got absolutely nothing to do with my relationship with John, nothing. He was a lovely man who came to a tragic end, and I’m sad for him. I’m sad for me as well, because I thought at last I was on to something good, something worthwhile that might last. But now? It’s all a mess, as usual.’ Her eyes became moist.

  Marsh wondered if the boss would soften, but he saw that her look was still icy.

  ‘Cut the crap, Pauline. It doesn’t impress me in the slightest. Tell me about Bristol.’

  Pauline looked haggard. ‘What do you want to know?’

  ‘About your marriage to Richard, for a start. I want to know when and how.’

  Pauline stared at Sophie bleakly. She finally spoke, quietly, with little emotion. ‘Richard was the love of my life. We were sweethearts at school and I adored him. I always did. We had a stupid tiff and went our separate ways after we left school, but I never managed to get him out of my head and I always hoped we’d get back together. No one else ever came close, not really. We kept in touch, even when he went to Hong Kong for a couple of years. At least, I thought we’d kept in touch. How wrong I was. When he came back to Bristol, married, I was distraught, heartbroken. I didn’t know what to do at first, but then I threw myself into my work and got through the next few years somehow. Then his wife gave birth to twins and I knew everything was lost. She was really pretty, a successful doctor and the mother of his children. What chance did I have? That’s when I started going on tour for long spells, great for my career, but soul destroying for me.’ She paused for breath, then sighed. ‘Then I heard that Li Hua, his wife, had been killed in a road accident. It was awful for him, so I started visiting. I wanted to help him. I still loved him, for God’s sake.’ She looked across at Sophie, defiant. Her voice softened. ‘It was wonderful. It all clicked back into place. We got married. I was worried about the twins and how we’d get on, but they were lovely children and they seemed to take to me. I was so happy, maybe for the first time in my adult life. It was like paradise. Even work was going well. I landed a couple of good roles in plays. My life couldn’t have been better. Then I came home from a Saturday afternoon shopping trip with the children and found him dead at the bottom of the stairs. He’d tripped over some of the children’s toys, fallen down the whole flight, and smashed his skull on a protruding corner at the bottom.’ She was crying now. She looked at Sophie who answered her coldly.