Unfinished Business

by Heather Atkinson

  “What are you doing here?” she asked him a little breathlessly.

  “Hoping to talk to you. You don’t mind, do you?”

  “I never mind talking to you.” The sweet act fell away when she saw Cass standing just behind him. “Who is she?” she spat, jabbing a finger in her direction.

  Brodie was surprised by the vehemence in her tone. “That’s Cass, she works for me.”

  Lauren relaxed. “She’s not your girlfriend then?”

  “No, she’s not.”

  “Do you have a girlfriend?”

  “No,” he said, becoming increasingly uncomfortable. “Lauren, I really need your help,” he hastily went on before she could follow that train of thought. “Can you help me?”

  “Yes, I’ll help you Brodie but only you. I don’t want to talk to her,” she said, frowning at Cass.

  “Give me a minute and I’ll send her away.”

  “I can’t talk with you yet. Seth’s picking me up, he won’t let me.” She chewed thoughtfully on her lip. “Can you meet me in an hour at The Bluebell Café? It’s just a few streets from my house. I always go there for a brew and a cake in the afternoon, Mum won’t think anything of it. Seth will be working so he won’t know.”

  “I’ll be there.”

  She threw Cass another glare. “Just you.”

  “Just me.”

  “Good,” she smiled. “Now hide before Seth sees you.”

  “See you later,” he said with a wink that made her glow.

  He nodded at Cass and the two of them jogged back through the door of the hospital. From this vantage point they watched Seth’s battered car draw up and Lauren hop inside. Seth was visible from the driver’s seat, as usual glowering out at the world. The car sped out of the car park far too fast then onto the main road, the roar of the engine fading away.

  “What did she say to you?” said Cass.

  “She wants me to meet her in an hour where we can talk without interruption.”

  “Great, I bet she’s got some stories to tell,” she said eagerly.

  “Don’t get excited, she doesn’t want you there.”

  “Jealous, is she?”

  “Yes.”

  “Fine, I’ll stay away if it gets her to talk.”

  Brodie was a little put out that she didn’t seem at all bothered by Lauren’s crush. Was it so much to ask for a little jealousy?

  “Shame though,” she went on. “I was looking forward to meeting her.”

  “I’ve got something much more interesting you can be doing.”

  “Ooh, go on.”

  “Lauren said Seth’s working this afternoon. He doesn’t know who you are, he hasn’t met you. He works in a bar in the city centre. Go for a chat and see what you can get out of him. Apparently he likes the ladies.” Cass had done a lot of honey traps and was good at dazzling men. Brodie didn’t like giving her assignments like this, he felt it was beneath her but Cass didn’t mind, she could handle most situations. However at the moment he had no choice. He knew Seth would never tell him anything useful, the only information he’d give him would be what he wanted him to know. “Is that okay with you?”

  “Fine.”

  “He’s dangerous so be careful.”

  “Don’t worry, I’ve handled worse than him.”

  “Just remember he could have killed his own dad and he might be a serial killer.”

  “What do you expect him to tell me?”

  “One thing I’ve learnt about Seth is expect the unexpected. I’d just like you to gauge him. This case is turning me all around, I need a second pair of eyes.”

  “That’s what I’m here for.”

  “Do you want to take the car? The café where I’m meeting Lauren isn’t far.”

  “No way am I driving that accident waiting to happen. I’ll get a bus, it’ll fit in better with the cover I’ve chosen - the helpless university student lost in the big city.”

  “Okay, just be careful.”

  “I can handle him,” she said before walking away.

  Brodie watched her go, worry niggling him. Cass was tough but Seth was a possible monster.

  Once she’d vanished from view he decided to take his car even though the café wasn’t far. If Lauren got frisky he might need to make a quick getaway.

  After looking up directions to the Bluebell Café on his phone he drove around aimlessly for a bit, killing time until his meeting with Lauren, thinking the case through, attempting to puzzle out what the hell was going on but, despite his best efforts, he got nowhere.

  Eventually the time came for him to meet Lauren and she was already waiting for him in the café, a cup of tea and a Chelsea bun on the table before her. She greeted him with a shy smile.

  “Did you find this place okay?” she said as he sat down.

  “No problem, I looked it up on my phone.”

  “You’re so clever,” she said bashfully.

  “I wouldn’t go that far.”

  Her sweet smile fell. “You left Cass behind?”

  “Yes. It’s just you and me.”

  She fluttered her eyelashes at him before taking a sip of tea. He ordered a brew of his own along with a vanilla slice and they sat in companionable silence until the waitress had deposited his order unceremoniously on the table, coughing up phlegm as she walked away. Brodie looked down at his pastry and felt sick.

  “I’m guessing you want to talk about my brothers?” said Lauren after a large bite of bun.

  “Would you mind?”

  She shrugged. “Depends what you want to know.”

  Brodie decided not to charge straight in and start quizzing her about her father’s murder, that would be completely unfair and he didn’t want to spark off an arson spree. Instead he decided to start gently and try and gain her trust. “What do you like doing Lauren?”

  The question made her smile. “No one’s ever asked me that before.”

  “Then it’s time they did. Have you got any hobbies?”

  “Not really. I quite like watching telly.”

  “Any programmes in particular?”

  “Reality stuff.”

  “Like X Factor?”

  “God no,” she laughed. “That’s hideous. I mean real stuff about real lives, you know, like Hoarders.”

  “The one that helps people who’ve filled their homes with crap?” he said, thinking of Elspeth and her cats.

  “Yes, that’s one of my favourites. Their lives might not be great but they’re more exciting than mine. They’re out there doing stuff. My life feels like it’s stuck, it’s been the same for years,” she said to the tabletop, looking miserable.

  “You could shake it up a bit. Get a new hobby, start evening classes.”

  “That’s not for me, that’s for normal people.”

  “You are normal.”

  She shook her head. “No I’m not.”

  “Why not?”

  “I have these weird thoughts sometimes.”

  “About what?”

  She stared down at her cup. “Do you mind if we change the subject?”

  “Not at all, if that’s what you want.”

  When she raised her head again she was smiling. “It is.”

  “Okay, what do you want to talk about?”

  “You,” she purred.

  Brodie shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “There’s not much to tell. Born in Glasgow forty something years ago, stayed there all my life.”

  “Single?”

  He nodded.

  “Kids?”

  He shook his head.

  “Don’t you want to settle down?”

  “I’ve not met the right woman yet.” That was a lie, he had, but he couldn’t tell Lauren about his history with Cass. “And what about you? Have you got a boyfriend?” he said, keen to turn the focus of the conversation back onto her.

  “No,” she said, colouring to the roots of her hair.

  “Why not, pretty thing like you?”

  “I’m not pret
ty.”

  “Yes you are.” He was aware he was on dangerous ground here, he really didn’t want to lead her on but it might be the only way to find out what he needed to know.

  “I’m quite ordinary really,” she said, flicking her long black hair over her shoulder.

  “No you’re not. Why don’t you have a boyfriend?”

  “Mum and Seth won’t let me,” she said, eyes filling with sadness. She started to worry the threads of her sleeves again, just like she had at Dr Prosser’s office.

  “Why not?”

  “They say I’m not ready and they don’t want outsiders sticking their noses into our business. It’s not fair, Mark married Sarah. I’m twenty and I’ve never had a boyfriend. How pathetic is that? I’m still a virgin,” she exclaimed loudly.

  A few heads turned their way and Brodie cringed. He wasn’t sure what he should say to that admission. Prosser had said she rarely opened up and now she was shouting out personal information like that. “Have you told Dr Prosser any of this?” he eventually said.

  “That pervert? No, he’d enjoy listening to stuff like that.”

  “Does he make you uncomfortable?”

  “Yes, at least he used to. He was okay today, not creepy at all. I actually told him stuff.”

  “What stuff?” Brodie, you are a complete bastard.

  She blushed again. “Just feelings and things. Nothing much.”

  “Has he ever touched you in a way you don’t like?” he said, lowering his voice. He really was concerned for the girl.

  “No but sometimes the way he looks at me…it feels like his eyes are touching me. Does that sound silly?”

  “Not at all Lauren. You should find another therapist, he doesn’t sound like a good man.”

  “I told Mum I don’t like him but she said I have to stick with him, it’s no good chopping and changing therapists.”

  “You’re an adult, you can choose your own therapist. You’re the one who’s got to see him, not her. Put your foot down, it’ll make you feel so much better.”

  “I don’t think I could.”

  “Course you can. You’re a strong woman, you just have to believe in yourself a bit more.”

  “I bet you’re frightened of no one. You’re so big and strong.”

  “One thing I’ve learnt is that no matter how big you are there’s always someone bigger.”

  “You should tell Seth that, he thinks he’s invincible.”

  “How do you mean?”

  “He’s so aggressive all the time, picking fights. I’m worried that one day he’ll pick a fight with the wrong person and they’ll hurt him really badly. When he was shouting at you I thought he shouldn’t be doing that, Brodie could beat him easy, I saw that in you. Sometimes Seth can be so stupid.”

  “Is he stupid?”

  “No, not at all. That was the wrong word. He’s reckless but actually he’s really smart. Everyone thinks Mark’s the clever one but Seth’s just as brainy. If he could have been bothered to work at school he’d be as successful as Mark.”

  “Seth seems to be successful, your house is very nice, it’s got lots of gadgets that not many people can afford.”

  “He does some work for Mark.”

  “At the antiques shop?” he said, surprised.

  “Yeah, I’m not sure what though. They’re always talking on the phone about business.”

  “What sort of business?”

  “I don’t know. Seth doesn’t like people listening in on his conversations.”

  “Have you ever asked Mark?”

  “No, none of my business,” she shrugged.

  Brodie put that to one side to puzzle about later. “What do you think about Sarah?”

  “I don’t like her,” she instantly replied.

  “Why not? She said she likes you.”

  “No she doesn’t, she only pretends to. She thinks I’m weird like everyone else does, I’ve seen the way she looks at me.”

  “How’s that?”

  “Like I disgust her.”

  “I’m sure that’s not true.”

  “It is, she’s always looking down her nose at me. I don’t like to say anything because Mark worships her and I don’t want to upset him.”

  “You really love Mark?”

  She nodded. “He’s the best of all of us, he’s so sweet and kind, unlike…” She looked down at her hands.

  “Unlike the rest of your family?”

  “You’ve met them, they can’t exactly be called nice.”

  “True.”

  “I know why you’re here with me,” she said, dark eyes sweeping his face, studying his reaction.

  “And why’s that?”

  “Because you want to know if Mark really killed Dad. I’m telling you now I won’t say a word against him, I love Mark. So if that’s why you’re here then you may as well leave now.”

  “I admire your loyalty,” he said. “So no, I won’t ask.”

  Her smile was a relieved one. “Thank you.”

  “But I would like to ask you another question, about your dad. Is that alright?”

  “I suppose,” she said uncertainly.

  He looked around the room before leaning in closer, which delighted her. “If you don’t want to answer that’s fine but it would really help me if I knew.”

  She nodded bravely. “Go on then.”

  “Did he ever hurt anyone outside the family?”

  She fixed him with her black eyes and he noticed the lashes were very thick and long. Pretty.

  “He had a few fights at the pub, he got mean when he was drunk, but that’s it,” she said.

  “I mean, did he hurt other women?”

  “You mean did he kill those women in Camden?”

  She said it so off the cuff that he was momentarily lost for words. “Yes.”

  She shrugged. “He was nasty enough. He didn’t like women, he called me and Mum bitches all the time, said we deserved it when he hit us.” She smiled when Brodie’s eyes darkened with rage. “I love it when your eyes do that.”

  He jumped when her foot slid up his inner left leg.

  “Sexy,” she breathed.

  He cleared his throat. “That must have been so hard for you,” he said, attempting to keep her on track.

  “It’s amazing how you adapt. It became normal after a while, it was all I’d known since I was little.”

  “No one should have to live like that.”

  She shrugged again and took a sip of tea.

  “Did you ever go in your dad’s shed Lauren?” he said casually, taking a bite of sticky bun.

  Lauren slammed her mug down on the table as though it had come alive. “No. Why are you talking about that?”

  “Just curious,” he said as casually as he could although her reaction intrigued him.

  “We were never allowed in, well, me and Mum weren’t anyway.”

  “And your brothers?”

  “They went in. Dad did his woodcarving in there and he wanted them to learn his trade.”

  Brodie forced himself to remain still in his seat and not give away how momentous this information was. He also tried to ignore her hand, which rested itself on his left knee under the table. He cleared his throat. “Did they enjoy it?”

  She scrunched up her forehead. “Not sure. Sometimes they didn’t always look keen when he dragged them in there, they were teenagers and wanted to do their own thing but it was always best to obey Dad. If you didn’t you got hit.”

  “Did they ever tell you about what they got up to in there?”

  “No. Dad told them not to discuss it with me. They were both good at art though so I suppose they got something from it. Mark once said that it was the only time Dad didn’t get angry with them, he really loved woodworking, it calmed him.”

  “Who do you think is killing the women in Manchester?”

  “Who knows?” She gave him a sly look. “You think it’s Seth, don’t you?”

  Lauren was more astute than anyone
gave her credit for. “Do you?” he said, trying not to leap out of his seat when her hand started to run up and down his thigh.

  She just smiled at him before taking another bite of her bun, her hand under the table tightening on his leg. He wanted to push it away but didn’t like to in case she stopped talking.

  “Tell me about your Aunt Jenny,” he said.

  “Why do you want to know about her? She died years ago.”

  “I’m curious,” he smiled, trying not to look relieved when she released his leg to dab her lips with a napkin.

  She picked up her cup of tea and stared into the contents. “She was Mum’s older sister. I didn’t like her much, she wasn’t very nice. She kept calling Mark names, saying he was no good and a murderer and when he was released from prison we should have nothing to do with him. It didn’t seem to matter to her that Dad had hurt us all our lives. She got ill just before Mark was released and was relying on us to look after her, so she couldn’t complain when he came to live with us. It took her two years to die,” she said coldly. “I was glad when she finally pegged it, she was horrible. She did one good thing for us though, she left us the house.”

  “Did she ever meet your dad?”

  “A few times. We lived in London and she moved to Manchester when I was a baby. She married a local man and when he died ten years later she decided to stay up here. Good thing she did too because it gave us somewhere to run to after Dad died.”

  “Did you have to run?”

  Her eyes filled with hurt. “People called us names, painted nasty things on the front of the house, Seth got into fights. It was horrible.”

  “Some people have nothing better to do. They’re not worth getting upset about.”

  “That’s why it upsets me when you start talking about The Carver. I’m frightened it’s going to start all over again.”

  “I’m sorry Lauren, the last thing I want to do is upset you but this man has to be stopped before any more women are hurt.”

  “I know. Mum won’t let me read the newspapers, she says they’ll make me depressed but sometimes I watch the news on telly when everyone’s out. I don’t want to see another picture of another victim.”

  “Then help me Lauren, if this is Seth then…” He broke off and jumped in his seat when her hand landed firmly on his groin.