by Sara Dalton
Chapter
Fifteen
30th March 1981
Brentwood, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
Ian had finished school early today and he decided to go straight home. He knew that the house would be empty as mum and dad were at work and Alan was probably with his girlfriend. Alan had told the family at dinner that he had a girlfriend and that he would want her to meet everyone. Ian did wonder what she would be like, a woman that Alan fell in love with.
Ian finally arrived home and noticed that his father’s car was in the driveway. He was worried what he would walk into, but he knew that his father would never bring his affair home. It was too much of a risk for the family, especially with his mum. As he walked through the front door he could hear Alan’s voice. They were arguing again. Ian stood in the hallway as he listened, he didn’t know when to enter. So he carried on listening.
“She’s pregnant dad, what am I supposed to do?” Alan shouted.
“You are going to be the man I brought you up to be. Look after your girlfriend and her child. Your child.” Anthony said. Ian noticed that his father was very calm. Alan was tugging his hair and Ian could feel his frustration.
“Don’t be a hypocrite dad, you didn’t bring me up to be anything. I am the work of mum, she made me this way. If I’m going to be a good man, she gets the credit not you.” Alan seethed. He started pacing around the room.
“It’s funny that you call me a hypocrite, son, you are here asking for my advice although those childish threats you made about my affairs. I could just turn my back on you to deal with it yourself.” Anthony said. He crossed his legs as he sat down on the sofa with a glass of whiskey in his hand. Alan glared at his dad and sat down beside him taking the glass from his dad and downing it in one full gulp. They both sat in silence and Ian felt that this should be the moment to enter but he stopped when Alan spoke again.
“What should I do?” Alan asked.
“Love and care for your child when it’s born. It will change your life but for the better. Because I know mine did.” Anthony chuckled softly as he thought about when he first held his sons. Ian smiled.
“But you don’t mind ruining the family now.” Alan retorted.
“Shut up Alan, you’ve got other things to worry about now, you have got to grow up, son,” Anthony replied. Ian used this moment to enter and Anthony looked up to see his youngest son walking into the room. Alan saw his brother and wondered how much of the conversation he listened in on. He knew that Ian would have listened to some of the conversations if not all. They both stared at each other daring for the other to talk first.
“You’re home early.” Alan started.
“I finished early,” Ian answered.
“You sure you’re not skipping school?” Alan joked.
“I finished early,” Ian said again. Alan put his hands up as Ian joined them on the sofa. “I heard what you were talking about.” He confessed. Alan crossed his arms.
“I’m not surprised, you like listening in on conversations,” Alan said.
“Well, I wonder who made me like that.” Ian retorted.
“Now, now boys. There is no need for this. Mum will be home soon and she will have dinner ready. Let’s not upset her to coming home with you two fighting.” Anthony said. Alan glared at his father’s comment.
“Us? Upset her? I think you’ve got the wrong person.” Alan got up and headed upstairs to his room. Anthony glanced over at Ian who got his school textbooks over the table to do his homework.
“Do you need any help?” His dad asked.
“No thank you,” Ian answered. There was a long silence before Anthony got up and left the living room. Ian heard his mum’s car pull into the drive and her keys jingle as she opened the front door.
“Ian, you’re home early.” Shirley smiled at her young boy.
“I finished early today for my good work.” He smiled back at her.
“Did you show dad?”
“Nope, he will only laugh at me.”
“No he wouldn’t, he would be proud of you.”
“Somehow I don’t think so,” Ian carried on doing his homework as his mother went into the kitchen and came back in with a glass of water. She placed it on the table in front of Ian.
“What’s gotten into you and Alan lately?” She asked. She propped herself down next to him as she tucked a long strand of hair behind his ear. “I think you’re due to have a haircut.” She laughed.
“Nothing is wrong, there isn’t anything to worry about. We are growing boys, mum. What do you expect?” Ian convinced her. She laughed at him and ruffled his hair as she got up to go and start the dinner.
Chapter Sixteen
9th April 2016
Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
The sound of her phone jingling woke her up. Addison rolled over and grabbed her phone, answering whoever was calling her so early in the morning. She knew the only reason why she was getting this call so early which meant there was another murder.
“Ads, get your butt over here. Robert wants you here right now.” Fletcher sounded just as tired as she did. She let out a long yawn as she sat up in her bed.
“Where’s here?” She asked with another yawn.
“I’ll text you the address, just hurry up,” Fletcher told her.
“Yeah, I’ll be there in half an hour.” She replied.
“Robert said to make it in fifteen,” Fletcher said and then he hung up the phone. She knew she was going to be late, but she still tried anyway. She showered and dressed within five minutes, tying her wet hair into a tight bun. She grabbed her keys, badge, and bag then was out the front door getting into her car already on her way.
Addison arrived at the scene and Robert, Fletcher and the DCS Brian Dowell were already waiting for her arrival. They were already dressed in their white Tyvek suits. Robert pointed to his watch also knowing that she would be late, he knew how far away she lived but still annoyed at her for giving her the benefit of the doubt. Addison now has her work cut out for her if she wants Robert to respect her. Being late isn’t one of them.
Being late, big no no, noted.
“Joan Charles is the victim this time.” Robert said as she followed him into the house.
“This time? Same killer?”
“So far, yes.”
“Children?” Addison asked. Robert nodded and then stopped to glance around at her.
“Rebecca Charles, she was taken to hospital because she was found unconscious,” Robert told her.
“A neighbour called the police because they heard screaming in the middle of the night from the Charles household.” Fletcher filled in.
“Nora Williams is on her way. She will be with us shortly and walk us through the crime scene. Dr. Richards has already been and gone, if you were here you could have listened to what he had to say. Now you can wait for the autopsy report. The victim, Joan Charles was found in her bedroom when uniform arrived. The daughter was lying face down on the floor on the other side of the bed. She was breathing and taken straight to the hospital. She had slash marks on her wrist.” DCS Dowell informed. Addison quickly put on her white suit before entering the house while the DCS explained everything they knew so far about the crime scene.
Addison glanced at Robert who started walking into the house, she followed behind him and made their way up the stairs. Robert entered the bedroom and widened the door for Addison to take a step inside the room. She saw Joan on the bed facing upwards with a knife through her heart. The bed sheets were blood-soaked and it was spread all over the floor. She stayed in the corner avoiding stepping over the scene while she watched the forensics team dust for any fingerprints anywhere in the room.
Robert walked around the bed to the side of the woman, he stepped over the blood patches on the floor as he leaned over looking at the wound and knife. He glanced up at Addison and nodded for her to come over to him. She stood on the other side of the bed opposite Robert and glanced down
at what he had found. Joan was wearing a light coloured shirt and Addison could see that the killer had carved her stomach just like Wendy Willis.
“This is a problem,” Addison spoke.
“A problem? We’ve got an almost serial killer on the loose. I want to find out what connects Joan Charles and Wendy Willis as his victims. We need to catch him before he strikes again.” Robert yelled as he exited the room. Everyone stopped working and glanced at Addison. She shrugged her shoulders and followed him out of the room.
Nora Williams was with DCS Dowell walking through the scene. She spoke to a couple of her co-workers who have told her what they’ve found. She finally made it up the stairs and into the bedroom where the body was. Addison had passed by as Robert went back up to see what Nora had to say. She went into the living room to see the blanket on the sofa. She wandered out into the kitchen and had a look around, two knives were missing from the block on the counter. Addison took a closer look at the block, wondering why two were missing. DCS Dowell had come into the kitchen as Addison examined the scene closely.
“The young girl was unconscious?” Addison asked. Even though she heard them say she was taken to the hospital, she wanted to be sure.
“She was found by the officer who arrived at the scene after being called. They entered the premises because the door was already open and there were drops of blood on the porch.” Dowell explained. Addison glanced back to the front door where it was still open for the forensics team who are coming in and out.
“Who was the person who called this in?” Addison asked.
“Her name is Sienna Walcott, she is the neighbour next door,” Dowell told her. Addison took her book out and headed out the front door. She noticed the woman sitting on her front porch with a couple of officers talking to her. Addison made her way over and introduced herself to the officers, they nodded and left so Addison can talk to the witness.
“Hi Sienna, I’m DS Addison McCain. I’ve been told that you were the one who called the police about a domestic?” Addison said.
“Yes, yes that’s me. I called because I could hear screaming next door. It was only a little bit, but I ignore the screaming at first. I thought it may have been drunk people who were passing by. But after a few minutes, I heard shouting, I’m sure it was Joan’s daughter. She was shouting for help and that someone had killed her mother. That was when I heard her screaming again, I glanced out of the window and I saw someone dragging her back inside. That’s when I called the police, but he had gone by the time they got here. It went quiet.” Sienna rushed all at once and started to cry. Addison had written down everything into her little notebook. She placed it in her pocket once she was finished and put a comforting hand on Sienna’s shoulder.
“Did you recognise the man at all?” Addison asked. Sienna shook her head.
“He was wearing a mask, a ski-mask I think, he was a lot taller than the young girl. He must have been about six feet at least. He was dressed all in black.” She told her.
“Thank you for your help Sienna, if you do remember anything at all you can give me a call on this number,” Addison handed a small piece of white card, pointing to the number for the distraught woman.
Addison made her way back to the house and she saw DCS Dowell waiting for her to return.
“Sienna saw the man attack the young teen, that might be how she ended up unconscious. After he left, I believe he may have come back to finish the teenager. The neighbour said she was very devastating, screaming for help.” Addison told him.
“He dragged Rebecca back up the stairs when he came back for her. She put up a good fight, but he overpowered her. He knocked her out.” Robert joined the conversation with Nora beside him.
“I think the killer thought Rebecca was still in bed.” Nora started.
“Rebecca was sleeping on the sofa,” Addison added. Nora glanced at her for a moment before carrying on.
“She woke up and started looking for her mother. I believe that she saw the killer and she tried to escape. He threatened her and left. But she came outside screaming for help and he came back, this was something he didn’t want. I’m not sure if he planned to come back to kill her. Or is she did something that he didn’t like. He could have just left her, but he didn’t.” Nora finished. Robert noticed Addison was stroking her palm where he saw a large white scar on her right wrist. Addison saw him looking and quickly pulled her sleeve down.
“Addison and I will head back to the station and find out who the next of kin is for Joan Charles so we can notify them. Fletcher, could you go and talk to Carl Willis to see if you can find out if he knew Joan Charles or if Joan and Wendy were friends?” Robert demanded.
“I’ll meet you down at the station.” Fletcher nodded. Robert got into his car and headed off. Addison followed him back to the station and headed up to the department. Robert was already in his office waiting for her to come inside.
“Could you look up Joan Charles to see if she has any past history with the police? Any records? Something we can get a lead on.” Robert asked. Addison nodded and headed out of the office as quick as she came in.
Addison went back to her desk and typed in Joan’s name into the system. She found that her husband is deceased, and her parents live in the area. She had written down the address to Richard and Susie Adams. Joan only has one daughter which is Rebecca Charles.
There is one thing that caught her eye, Rebecca goes to the same school as Anna Willis.
Chapter Seventeen
9th April 2016
Sawbridgeworth, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom
Addison was stood at Robert’s office door ready to knock, but she heard him talking inside. She didn’t want to interrupt him, so she went and sat back down in her seat, waited for the right moment. She carried on doing some research about the school that Anna Willis and Rebecca Charles went to. Addison was sure that the school would link to the murders. Maybe Anna and Rebecca knew each other. There were so many possibilities going through her mind, but she didn’t want to jump to conclusions. But it seemed that was what she was doing anyway.
Addison saw someone emerge from Robert’s office and left the department. She pushed herself up from her chair and was in his office within seconds. She closed the door behind her and was about to say something, but Robert put his hand up to stop her.
“I saw you outside. If you have something you need to tell me straight away. It wasn’t an important meeting, you could have interrupted us.” Robert started.
“Are you sure about that?” Addison scoffed. Robert glanced up at her and she immediately regretted it. She looked down at her feet as she could still feel his eyes on her. He knew she was being sarcastic and she was starting to challenge him. He nodded his head and sat back in his seat.
“Go on, what do you have then?” Robert said waving his hand at her.
“Well, first, I’ve got the address for Joan Charles parents. They live in this town. Second, her husband is deceased who is Rebecca’s dad. And third, I may have found the connection between Joan and Wendy. Their daughters attended the same school.” Addison explained. Robert nodded his head, happy with the information that Addison had found. It was the first lead they have had since the murder of Wendy.
“Well, let's go and deliver the news. This part of the job is always the worst.” Robert grabbed his jacket. Addison nodded and followed him out of the office. She watched his back as they left the department, seeing his shoulders drop. He didn’t like this part of the job, and honestly, she doesn’t blame him.
“Will we be going to the school?” Addison asked.
“We can go and have a word with their teachers, see if anyone know’s something. I want to find out how well Wendy and Joan knew each other, considering their children go to the same school.” Robert mentioned.
“So, are you considering that I’m a worthy partner now?” Addison blurted. Robert stopped and looked at her as if she had something awful, offending him. “Not quite there yet,” Addiso
n laughed at him.
“You’ve done good so far kid,” Robert added.
“Kid? Aren’t we the same age?”
“I’ll take that as a compliment. I’m six years older than you.” Robert answered.
“You don’t look it.”
“Stop sweet talking, it’s not working.”
“It is a little bit, I can see you trying to hide a smile.” Addison said in a sing-like tune. She gave him a big grin when he looked at her over his shoulder. She noticed he was starting to warm up to her, showing different his different emotions. He’s finally accepting her as his new partner.
They finally arrived at Susie and Richard Adams address. Robert knocked on the door and an elderly woman answered. She had blondish grey hair which was tied back and green eyes. She was baking as the smell of cake escaped from behind her as she opened the door. She wiped her hands on the front of her pinafore. When she saw Robert and Addison on her doorstep, she instantly knew something was wrong. Her eyes looked from Addison to Robert as he pulled out his badge to show as he introduced them. Susie ushered them inside and her husband came in from the garden. She took off her apron and hung it in the kitchen while turning off the oven. She came and sat next to her husband in the living room, waiting for the bad news.
“Mr. and Mrs. Adams,” Robert started but was interrupted.
“Is it Joanie? What’s happened? Please, don’t tell me,” Susie jumped in. Her husband put his arms around her and pulled her head to his chest.
“I’m so sorry, your daughter Joan was found dead last night in her home,” Addison started as she noticed Robert hesitated. He glanced at her as she spoke.