Emma Holden Mystery 03-The One You Fear

by Paul Pilkington

  ‘Which he said just to scare us,’ Lizzy said.

  ‘That’s right.’

  ‘So the next step is to go and see Guy Roberts,’ Emma said. ‘And find out what he knows about this person.’

  ‘Do you think he’ll tell us?’ Lizzy asked. ‘I mean, we can’t assume he’ll cooperate. We know what kind of person he is.’

  ‘I agree it might be difficult. I’m not assuming anything.’

  ‘And we can’t particularly trust him either,’ Dan replied, ‘but we haven’t really got any other options, have we?’

  ‘No,’ Lizzy said.

  ‘So the question is, when?’

  Emma glanced at the clock. ‘How about after we eat?’

  Lizzy raised an eyebrow. ‘Not tomorrow morning? I thought we might want to sleep on it.’

  ‘He’s more likely to be in at night, don’t you think?’ Emma replied.

  ‘And I want to be there too,’ Dan added. ‘Work gets in the way again tomorrow.’

  ‘Okay,’ Lizzy said. ‘At least it gets it over with. So, we eat first and then go and see him. Who votes for a chippy tea?’

  ‘Sounds good to me,’ Emma said. ‘Although let’s eat now, before I lose my appetite thinking about having to see that man again.’

  ***

  ‘Emma, how nice to see you.’ Guy Roberts stood at the front door of his exclusive Notting Hill home: the place where, just four weeks ago, Emma had walked out on her dream of starring in the movie that he was casting. She hadn’t regretted it for a moment. And now, seeing this man, acting all friendly after everything he had done, cemented the belief that she had definitely made the right decision.

  She would rather walk away from the business than be associated with people like Guy Roberts – or Diana Saunders, for that matter.

  ‘Can we come in for a moment?’ she asked.

  Only then did Guy look at her companions, as if he’d just noticed them. ‘Certainly. Come on through.’

  They followed him past the framed movie posters, and into the lounge with the piano in the corner. Emma had already told Dan and Lizzy how amazing the house was, and it was as good as she remembered. The place was pristine and resembled an upmarket show home.

  ‘Take a seat,’ said Guy. ‘Can I get you some drinks?’

  Emma remained standing. ‘We’re okay, thanks.’

  He looked at Dan, and then Lizzy. ‘Are you sure?’

  Dan was stony-faced. ‘I’m fine, thank you.’

  ‘I’m okay too,’ Lizzy added.

  ‘Right, okay.’ For a second Guy seemed a little slighted at the rejection of his hospitality. ‘So, what can I do for you, Emma? I’m afraid if you’ve changed your mind about the movie role, we’ve already found a more than adequate replacement. You’ve heard of Jenna Dawson?’

  ‘I’ve heard of her, yes.’

  Jenna Dawson was an up-and-coming soap actress, about the same age as Emma. There were definite parallels in their careers. But it seemed that the big break that was once Emma’s was now hers.

  Guy smiled. ‘Then you’ll know that she’s a real talent. I think she’s got what it takes to go right to the top.’

  ‘I’m sure she’ll be perfect for the part.’ Emma interpreted Guy’s comment as a thinly veiled criticism. She was in little doubt that Guy Roberts would still be bitter about her pulling out of the movie, even though he had been the one to blame. But she couldn’t rise to the bait. They were here for a single reason – to find out who the stalker was. And as Guy was the only person who could tell them what they needed to know, it wouldn’t be sensible to be anything other than polite to him.

  ‘Oh, she will,’ he said. ‘She’s a true professional.’

  Emma continued to hold her tongue, but she could see Lizzy bristling with anger. ‘The reason we’re here is nothing to do with the movie,’ she explained. ‘We need your help.’

  Guy looked amused. ‘My help? Go on.’

  ‘Someone came to see you yesterday.’

  ‘A few people came to see me yesterday.’

  ‘A man, in his mid-twenties, tall, sandy brown hair – he came to see you yesterday afternoon. We’d like to know who he is.’

  Guy took a moment to reply. ‘Two questions – one, why do you want to know? And two, how do you know who has been visiting my home?’

  ‘Someone has been following me,’ Emma replied.

  ‘Another stalker! Oh Emma, you do attract them, don’t you?’

  She ignored the jibe. ‘We know it is the person who came to see you. We know he visited you because a friend of ours was following him.’ She wasn’t going to give away David Sherborn’s involvement: he didn’t need or deserve to be part of this.

  ‘You don’t think I’m something to do with this, do you?’

  ‘We just want to know who this person is,’ Dan said.

  ‘I’ve not done anything wrong.’

  ‘As Dan said, we just want to know who he is,’ Emma said. ‘Please, tell us.’

  ‘Okay, I’ll tell you. His name is Scott Goulding.’

  Emma breathed an inward sigh of relief that he had given them a name. ‘Is he a friend of yours?’

  Guy snorted. ‘Hardly. He’s a real headache. The man thinks he’s acting’s next big thing, but I’m afraid he’s more than a little delusional. Since auditioning for me six months ago – and failing miserably – he refuses to take no for an answer. I’m this far,’ he said, indicating with his fingers, ‘from calling the police and reporting him. He was back yesterday, begging to be given a part in one of my new projects. I told him there was no chance. I’m running a business, not a charity for third-rate actors.’

  So he was an actor. ‘What do you know about him?’

  ‘Very little, but more than I’d like.’

  ‘Do you have any contact details?’

  ‘I may have.’

  ‘Please…’ Emma said.

  ‘Okay, okay. I have his address. Just wait here while I get it.’

  ‘I really don’t trust him,’ Lizzy whispered, once Guy was out of the room.

  ‘Me neither,’ Emma replied.

  But already Guy was back. ‘Here you go,’ he said, handing Emma a piece of paper. The address was a flat in North London. There was also a mobile number. ‘So what exactly has he been doing, then?’

  ‘He’s been stalking me, pretending to be Stephen Myers.’

  ‘Method acting.’ Guy nodded. ‘Maybe I misjudged his abilities.’

  14

  They called the police as soon as they got back to the apartment. Armed with a name and an address, plus the evidence from David Sherborn, they believed that action could now be taken. Two hours later, just on ten o’clock, two uniformed female officers arrived to take a statement.

  But it was an ultimately frustrating experience. The message was still essentially the same – there wasn’t enough evidence at this point to take things further. The officers challenged their assumption that there was a connection between what had happened in Cornwall and the man Emma and Dan believed was following them in Windsor. And it was right that they had no evidence that this man, Scott Goulding, was the one who’d been pretending to be Stephen Myers. In addition, nothing overly sinister had occurred since that episode at the Minack. So again, the message was one of vigilance. Be on their guard. Report anything suspicious. The officers did promise, however, that if Emma or Dan saw this man again, they would pay him a visit.

  ‘Do you fancy watching a movie?’ Dan asked, as they all settled down in the living room.

  ‘Something light,’ Lizzy said, stretching back onto the sofa. ‘A rom-com maybe. I need to be taken away from what’s going on.’

  They decided to go for a comedy, but Emma couldn’t concentrate. Halfway through the film she got up. ‘I’m going to call Miranda,’ she said, moving into the kitchen.

  She thought explaining their theory about Edward’s disappearance might help to reassure Miranda that it wasn’t anything to do with her or the baby, but
by the end of the call Miranda still seemed very down. Then Emma called Will, to update him on what had happened with Adrian Spencer. He was out with Amy having a meal. Amid all this renewed torment, Will’s blossoming relationship with Amy was the one bright spot, and it was so good to hear him so happy.

  ‘You’re doing what?’ exclaimed Emma. ‘A parachute jump!’ She couldn’t believe that her brother – the man who for as long as she could remember got vertigo at the top of a flight of stairs – would jump out of an aeroplane tomorrow. He didn’t even sound nervous. The tandem jump would take place at a small airfield just north of the M25.

  Emma returned to Dan and Lizzy. ‘You won’t believe what Will is doing tomorrow. A parachute jump.’.

  ‘Wow,’ Dan said, ‘I didn‘t see that one coming.’

  ‘It must be love,’ Lizzy said.

  ‘Or insanity,’ Dan joked.

  For a moment it broke the tension. But they all knew that the serious situation needed talking about. Emma found herself standing at the window, looking down at the street from behind the curtain. There was no one loitering outside. ‘I can’t believe this is happening again.’

  Dan came over and placed an arm around her. ‘It’s going to be okay, Em, I promise.’

  ‘I hope you’re right.’

  He pulled her closer. ‘It will be. I know it doesn’t feel like there’s an end to this, but we’ll come out of the other side.’

  ‘Ever since Will’s phone call on the Hen Night, it’s felt like we’re trapped in this nightmare – as if we’re in a dark tunnel, walking, sometimes running, blind. Then there’s a flicker of light ahead, and you think there’s a way out, but the more you move towards it, the further away it seems to get. I thought I was handling this, but now I’m not so sure.’

  ‘Oh, Em, it will be okay.’ Lizzy was standing on her other side. Now the three of them were looking down at the street, as the film continued without an audience. ‘So what do we do? Watch and wait? Or find out what Scott Goulding is playing at?’

  That was the question they had all been avoiding since the police left. Should they do nothing, or something?

  ‘I don’t know,’ Emma replied. ‘I just don’t know. It could be dangerous, just turning up and challenging him.’

  ‘I agree,’ Dan said.

  Lizzy stepped away from the window and flicked the lights on and the TV off. ‘Then we just sit back?’

  Dan shook his head. ‘No.’

  His response took Emma by surprise. ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘We have his telephone number. Why don’t we call him, and let him know that he’s been found out? Tell him to leave you alone, and let that be the end of it.’

  Emma wasn’t so sure. ‘You think he’ll listen to us?’

  Dan shrugged. ‘Maybe if we pretend to be the police.’

  ‘I like it!’ Lizzy replied. ‘Just warn him off. It might work.’

  ‘It’s still risky.’ Emma directed the comment at Dan. ‘It might backfire.’

  ‘In what way?’

  ‘I don’t know.’

  ‘The alternative,’ Dan said, ‘is to let him carry on thinking that he’s getting away with it, which surely is more likely to mean that he’ll carry on doing it. And then what – we wait until something worse happens before the police will take action?’

  ‘Okay,’ Emma said. ‘Let’s do it.’

  ‘I don’t mind doing the talking,’ Dan offered. ‘Shall we do this now?’

  Emma nodded. ‘Why not – get it over with.’

  ‘And then it might be over,’ Lizzy said.

  They went into the kitchen and planned what Dan was going to say – he would keep it professional and to the point. A few minutes later, at eleven o’clock, Dan dialled the number that Guy Roberts had given them. He looked at Emma and Lizzy. ‘It’s ringing.’

  Emma felt heartsick as she watched Dan. But just as she began to relax, thinking that Scott Goulding wasn’t going to answer, Dan began talking through the script that they had planned.

  ‘Hello, is that Mr Scott Goulding?’ He’d moderated his voice, lowering the tone slightly, just in case the guy knew what he normally sounded like. He nodded at Emma and Lizzy, indicating that they had the right man. ‘This is Detective Inspector Mark Gasnier from the Metropolitan Police.’ They’d decided to use his name for authenticity. ‘We have reason to believe that you have been causing a nuisance to a member of the public, Emma Holden, including following her and sending communications that could be construed as being menacing in nature. This is an informal warning on our part to stop doing this. We will be watching the situation carefully, and have asked Emma to report any suspicious behaviour to us immediately, in which case we will take stronger action. Do you understand?... that’s very sensible. I hope we don’t need to speak about this again. Goodbye.’

  ‘Well?’ Emma said. ‘What did he say?’

  Dan placed the phone on the desk. ‘He said that he was sorry, and that he’d stop doing what he’d been doing. I think it worked.’

  ***

  Emma woke with a start. She’d been having another nightmare – it had been the wedding dream again. It had just got to the part where Dan had morphed into Stuart. This time he had handed her a letter: the letter given to her by Stuart’s sister.

  You really need to read this.

  She had just slid a finger under the seal when the noise had woken her up.

  Dan was moving quickly around the bedroom. ‘Someone’s knocking at the front door,’ he said, pulling on his trousers and hunting out a shirt. ‘I was just getting out of the shower. It’s only seven thirty.’

  Emma swung her legs out of bed and grabbed some clothes as Dan moved into the hallway. ‘Who is it?’ she heard him say. He came back into the room. ‘There’s a man outside. You think I should open it?’

  Again the person knocked.

  ‘Only on the security chain, don’t open it fully.’

  They both moved back to the door.

  Emma spoke. ‘Who’s there?’

  She looked through the spyhole, recognising the visitor just as he replied. ‘My name’s Scott Goulding. I’m here to explain, and apologise.’

  Emma and Dan looked at each another, asking the same question with their eyes. Again, Emma looked through the spyhole. Now Scott was standing further back from the door, his hands on his hips, looking towards the floor. ‘Let’s open it,’ she whispered to Dan. After a second, he nodded.

  ‘Thanks, thanks,’ Scott said, as Emma opened the door. ‘I really need to explain everything.’

  Dan stepped across his path as Emma retreated into the apartment. ‘Wait a second. If we let you in here, you don’t try anything, okay?’

  ‘Of course I won’t.’ Scott held up his hands. ‘I’m here to make peace, not cause any more trouble.’

  They let him inside and into the kitchen. ‘Take a seat,’ Dan said. Scott sat down at the table, but Emma and Dan remained standing. ‘Go on then,’ said Dan. ‘You said you wanted to explain things.’

  ‘I’m… well, you know, my name is Scott Goulding, and I’m… an actor.’

  Emma watched on, her back against the sink, as Scott seemed to struggle for the right words. He looked genuinely embarrassed, maybe even a little scared. So much so that her fear of him dissipated immediately – she felt sorry for him.

  He looked up at her. ‘I’ve been following you for the past couple of weeks.’

  ‘Pretending to be Stephen Myers,’ Emma said. ‘Why?’

  He shook his head, as if lamenting his actions. ‘I did it because someone asked me to.’

  Emma hadn’t expected that. ‘What?’

  ‘Somebody asked me to follow you, and pretend to be Stephen Myers.’

  ‘Who? Who asked you to do this?’

  ‘I don’t know.’

  ‘You must know.’

  ‘I don’t, I don’t. They contacted me via my website at first, and then through an anonymous email account. They’ve never told me their
name.’

  ‘But why did they want you to do it?’ Dan asked.

  ‘They said they were auditioning people for a production about you,’ he said to Emma. ‘And they wanted me to act out the part of Stephen Myers, to see if I was suitable.’

  Dan and Emma exchanged glances. They both knew what the other was thinking.

  ‘So you went along with it, pretending to be Stephen Myers, following me around, scaring me at the Minack. That was you, wasn’t it, in the toilets, standing outside the cubicle?’

  ‘I’m really sorry. It all got out of hand.’

  ‘You dressed like him – you even had the scar.’

  ‘I know a make-up artist. And the people who contacted me, they gave me details of what to wear, how to look. I looked just like him. I even went to see his mother, and she thought I was him – she actually thought I was Stephen Myers. I really regret it now.’

  Emma thought about Margaret Myers. The poor woman was already delusional. Something like that could tip her over the edge. It was so cruel. ‘How did you know where we were?’ she asked, turning her attention back to his actions against them. ‘How did you know we were in Cornwall, staying at those apartments?’

  ‘They told me. They told me exactly where to go.’

  ‘But how did they know?’

  ‘I don’t know, honestly. They would just send me an email, with the instructions and the script.’

  ‘The script?’ This was getting even more bizarre.

  ‘Yes, there was a script. I acted out the script. I’m really sorry; this has all got totally out of hand. It’s just been so difficult for me for the past few years, struggling to get work, going from one bit part to another. I’ve had to do bar jobs just to pay the rent. They were offering me a chance, and I took it, but then it all became much more serious than I wanted. And now the police are involved. Please, I’m so sorry. Can you just let it drop?’

  ‘As long as you leave Emma alone,’ Dan said.

  ‘Yes, of course I will. I promise this is the end of it.’