Rhodri gripped his cup. “Not officially.”
“But…?”
“His death is suspicious.”
“Shit. To think I was right next door.”
“So did you see anyone?”
“Sorry, mate. Didn’t see a thing.”
Rhodri slumped in his chair. She’d conned him out of a coffee, and she didn’t know anything. He handed over his card. “If you remember anything, will you call me?”
She smiled. “You hitting on me, Constable?”
Rhodri coughed. “No.”
“Shame.” She winked.
Rhodri blushed. “I’d best be going.” He stood up.
“Ta for the coffee. You might want to talk to the nosey bitch at number 245.”
“Sorry?”
“Mrs Anderson. Most of the houses on Will’s road are students but she’s been there since the year dot. She hates us all, thinks we’re druggies and troublemakers. She watches us. I’ve seen her filming.”
“Why didn’t you tell me this before?”
“Sorry. Didn’t occur to me. I thought Jenson died of a drugs overdose, it wasn’t exactly…”
Rhodri swigged back the last of his coffee. “I have to go. Thanks for the information.”
“Be warned, she’s got a fucking big dog.”
He laughed. “I don’t think I need to worry about that.”
“Nasty bastard, it is. Tries to bite anyone who knocks on the door. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“I’ll take that under advisement.” Rhodri headed towards the main stairs, anxious to speak to the sarge.
Chapter Eighty-One
Zoe walked a hundred yards behind the women, observing their body language. The woman holding Kayla’s arm was mid-height with short brown hair. She’d loosened her grip, but Kayla didn’t look happy. There were three other women: one tall and blonde wearing a bright orange dress, and the other dark-skinned with white-blonde hair that looked like a halo when it caught the light. They walked purposefully, eyes ahead, and showed no sign of having spotted Zoe.
The final woman was Lin, bringing up the rear. Kayla turned to look at her from time to time, which meant Zoe kept having to slip out of sight. But from what she could see, Lin wasn’t meeting Kayla’s eye.
At last they arrived at Boulton Hall. They stopped outside and formed a tight circle. Zoe slipped behind a neighbouring building and peered round a wall. The women spoke to each other, Kayla’s eyes on the ground. After a few moments two of the women peeled off and headed back the way they had come. Kayla, Lin and the brunette walked towards Boulton Hall.
Zoe watched them walk inside, puzzled. They’d dragged Kayla out of her lectures: for what?
She approached the building and looked through the glazed front wall. The women stepped into the lift.
Zoe dashed inside and watched the numbers light up. They stopped at the fifth floor. Kayla’s floor.
Should she go up there, disturb them? Was Kayla in danger?
“Detective?”
Zoe turned to see Doctor Edwards coming out of the canteen.
“Can I help you?”
“Doctor Edwards. I need to go up to Kayla Goode’s room. I believe she might be in danger.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“I think she’s being held against her will.”
“If someone was holding her against her will, I hardly think they’d take her to her room.”
“She didn’t look she was going up there voluntarily.”
“I don’t like you storming around the building. It puts the students on edge.”
“It’s my job to protect them.”
“No, Inspector. It’s my job to protect them. You wait here.”
The warden pressed the button for the lift and stepped into it. “Don’t go creeping around my building while I’m gone.”
Zoe curled her lip as the lift doors closed and the numbers ascended, stopping at five again.
She wasn’t waiting around. She’d seen the look on Kayla’s face.
The lift numbers descended and the doors opened. Lin walked out.
“Oh.” She looked surprised. “DI Finch.”
“Lin. Have you just come from Kayla’s room?”
Lin shook her head. “I was in my own room. Why?”
“I thought I saw you on campus with Kayla.”
“I’m not on campus now, am I?”
“Did you come back here with her?”
“We walked together, yes. She went to her room, me to mine. She’ll be down for lunch in a minute. You need her?”
Zoe eyed the young woman. “It’s OK.” She turned towards the stairs.
As she rounded a bend in the staircase, she almost crashed into Doctor Edwards coming down.
“I thought you might try this,” the warden said.
“Doctor Edwards, I don’t think you understand the seriousness of what’s happening in this building. You’ve had two students die in under a week. Kayla is connected to both of them, and I’m worried about her.”
“I’ve just been to her room. She’s fine.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Look, there she is.” The warden pointed down the stairs. Kayla was in the entrance hall, with Lin. Lin gave her a hug which Kayla returned stiffly.
“She came down in the lift,” said Doctor Edwards. “I came this way, to intercept you.”
Kayla stood between Zoe and the building’s exit. No one could stop her speaking to the girl. She hurried down the stairs. “Kayla? Can we have a chat?”
Kayla looked at Lin and then at Zoe. “I’m about to go in for lunch.”
“It won’t take long.”
Another glance at Lin, as if Kayla needed her friend’s permission. Lin smiled at her.
“OK,” said Kayla. “But I have to be quick, I’ve got lectures in a bit.”
“Don’t worry.” Zoe put out a hand to take Kayla by the arm, but then remembered how she’d been held in the same way not long ago.
“Let’s go outside,” she said. Kayla followed her through the main doors.
Outside, it had started to rain. Zoe hurried to an open-sided bike shed and turned to face Kayla.
“Kayla, are you OK?”
“What d’you mean?”
“I saw you with some women, outside the English department. What were they doing?”
Kayla scratched her cheek. “They’re my friends.”
“They didn’t look very friendly to me.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Did they pull you out of your lecture?”
Kayla blushed. “The lecturer was sick. They told us to study privately. No point in hanging around.”
“But you were in such a hurry to get back when I interviewed you.”
“I didn’t know he was going to be sick.” Kayla turned towards the building. “I need to go now.”
“Kayla, tell me if you feel unsafe, will you?”
“I’m fine.”
“Two people have been killed, and you knew both of them.”
“You think there’s a serial killer around, and he’s going to target me next?” Kayla gave a shaky laugh.
“You need to be careful.”
In the space of a few hours, Zoe had gone from thinking of Kayla as a suspect, to worrying she might be the next victim. “Have you got somewhere you can stay for a while?”
“No. Why? Do I need to?”
“Until we find whoever killed Jenson.”
“And Laurence.”
“Yes.” Zoe wasn’t going to tell Kayla about the DNA they’d found.
“I’m fine here,” Kayla said. “I’ve got Lin and Gina looking after me.”
“Is Gina one of the women you were with earlier?”
“She might be.” Kayla stepped away. “Just leave me alone, OK? I’m fine.”
Kayla ran into the building. Zoe stared after her, not sure if she was right to be so worried.
Chapter Eighty-Tw
o
Mo stared at his screen, flicking through witness statements. His phone rang.
“Sarge?”
“Rhodri. You want a lift?” Mo looked out of the window. Rhodri wouldn’t have thought to take a sensible coat.
“It’s not that, boss. I’m with Mrs Anderson, lives over the road from Jenson.”
“You went back there?”
“Shonda told me she was a” – Rhodri lowered his voice – “busybody.”
“Every street has one. Does she have information?”
“Better than that, Sarge. She’s got video. Camcorder, old-fashioned thing. But it does the job.”
“Of Wednesday night?”
“Yup.”
“And?”
“Sarge, have you looked at the witness statement from number 245?”
“Hang on.” Mo flicked through the files onscreen. “Here. Mrs Anderson. Same woman you’re talking to.” He enlarged the text. “How did we miss this?”
“She says the PC who spoke to her was dismissive, Sarge. Thought she was just a nosey parker.”
“And you’re saying there’s more to it than that?”
“Sarge. She’s got video. We’ve got the woman on camera.”
Chapter Eighty-Three
Kayla ran back into Boulton Hall and up the stairs. Doctor Edwards gave her a sharp look as she passed, but she didn’t slow down.
Her room was on the fifth floor. By the time she got there she was out of breath. She fumbled with her key, her heart racing.
She crashed into the room and slammed the door behind her.
Two women were inside: one sitting on the bed and another in her desk chair.
“Kayla.” Lin stood up from her perch on the bed and stepped towards her. Kayla shrank back to the door.
“How did you get in?”
“Don’t worry about that. We want to look after you. What did that detective want?”
“She… she just had some questions. Wanted to know about what Laurence did to me.” Kayla’s eyes flicked to Gina. Gina didn’t know what had happened with Laurence. Did she?
She glared at Lin. “Did you tell her? I told you it was confidential!”
Lin shook her head. “I’m sorry, Kayla. But Gina can help you. She’s helped other women like you. Victims.”
“I’m not a victim!”
Gina gave her a patronising look. “I volunteer at the student welfare office. You were Laurence’s victim. You were Jenson’s victim.”
“I was Jenson’s girlfriend.”
“Did he ever let himself be seen with you outside this building, Kayla?” Lin asked.
“Yes. At the house.”
“That doesn’t count.”
Gina was picking at her trousers. She looked up at Lin. “We don’t want to hurt you, Kayla.”
Kayla was trembling. “Why do you have to tell me you don’t want to hurt me, unless you’re planning to hurt me?”
“You can’t trust the police.”
“What?” Kayla grabbed the door handle behind her. Lin ran to her and put her hand over Kayla’s. She pulled Kayla away from the door and pushed her to the bed.
“Why are you doing this?”
Lin sighed. She nodded at Gina.
Gina picked something off her trousers and rubbed her fingers together, depositing it on the bed. Kayla grimaced: dog hairs.
“OK,” Gina said to Lin. “You’ll be OK?”
“Fine.”
Gina gave Kayla a long look then left the room.
“Better?” Lin asked, when they were alone.
“I didn’t know you two were friends.”
“I used to go out with her. She can be a bit full-on, I know. But I thought she could help you.”
“I don’t need help.”
Lin sat down at the end of the bed, her hands in her pockets. She dipped her shoulders and cocked her head in an expression of concern. “It’s OK, Kayla. Why can’t you trust anyone?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Have you got lectures this afternoon?”
“I’ve got an essay to write.”
Lin stood up. “I’ll leave you to it.”
“OK.”
Lin went to the door. She looked back at Kayla from the doorway. Kayla shivered. None of this made sense.
“See ya, Kayl.” Lin gave Kayla a mock-salute then closed the door. Kayla lay back on her bed, her mind numb.
Chapter Eighty-Four
Zoe headed towards Boulton Hall. Kayla was refusing to speak to her, but that wasn’t what she’d come here for. She needed to speak to the warden, find out about the link between Laurence and Jenson.
Her phone rang as she arrived at the doors: Sheila Griffin.
“Hey, Sheila. This isn’t a great time.”
“I won’t keep you. Got an update on Magpie.”
“You do know you’re not supposed to talk to me about this, don’t you?”
“I won’t tell if you don’t.”
“Thanks, Sheila. What you got?”
“We’ve found Alina Popescu. She came from a village in Romania, seventy miles from Bucharest.”
“Great.” Zoe stood outside Boulton Hall, trying to will the rain from soaking into her hair. “Adi already told me about that.”
“It gets better.”
“OK.”
“Her flight to the UK was arranged by Trevor Hamm’s organisation. Same credit card as paid for the Pichler sisters’ flights.”
“OK. But we knew that.”
“Bear with me, Zoe. I’m passing this on to you because I know who your boyfriend is and I didn’t know who else to talk to.”
“Carl? He’s not really my boyfriend. Not any more.”
“Oh. Sorry about that. Maybe I shouldn’t…”
“Tell me. I can pass it on to him, we’re still in touch.”
“Are you sure? This is delicate to say the least.”
“I’m sure.” Zoe looked into the foyer of Boulton Hall. The warden was inside, staring back out at her. The woman started walking towards her. “Quick, tell me.”
“I’ve found a photo of her with someone we know. At a dinner. Some kind of local business thing. Looks like they had her working as an escort.”
“With Trevor Hamm?”
“Closer to home than that.”
The doors opened and Doctor Edwards stepped out. “DI Finch, are you still hanging around?”
Zoe gave her a wait gesture. “Sheila, who?”
“We’ve got a photo of her with Detective Superintendent Randle, Zoe. She accompanied him to a party, in September last year.”
Chapter Eighty-Five
Connie knocked on Becca MacGuire’s door and smoothed her damp hands on her trousers. It had been drizzling on the way here and the wet had soaked through her cycling gloves.
The door opened and Connie put on a friendly smile. “Hi, Becca.”
Becca shrunk back. “You again.”
“I won’t keep you long, but I was wondering if we could have a brief chat?”
A door along the corridor opened and a woman looked out. Connie gave her a smile.
“Everything OK, Becs?” the woman said.
“Yeah,” Becca replied. “She’s just leaving.”
The woman stayed where she was, watching Connie.
“I need to ask you about the investigation,” Connie said.
“You mean the way they covered up the fact that Laurence raped me?”
“Who did the investigation, Becca? Was it Doctor Edwards, or Jenson Begg?”
“Jenson? Why would he have done it?”
The woman from the other room left her doorway and approached Connie. “Is she bothering you, Becs?”
Connie turned to her. “I’m a police officer.”
“And I’m Harry Potter. Doesn’t mean you can ask her questions when she doesn’t want you to.”
“Jules, leave it,” Becca said. “I’ve got nothing to tell her.”
“B
ecca,” said Connie, “How much did Jenson know about what happened?”
“I reported it to him. He passed it on to the warden. Far as I know, that’s all.”
“Did Jenson talk to Laurence about what happened?”
Becca shrugged. “Not as far as I know.”
Connie lowered her voice. “Becca, how was it that everyone knew about what Laurence did to you?”
Becca paled. The other woman, Jules, put a hand on Becca’s door frame. Her arm separated Becca from Connie. “Time you left.”
Becca licked her lips, her gaze moving between Connie and Jules. She nodded.
“OK, Becca,” Connie said. “Sorry to have bothered you. Hopefully next time we have a murderer on the loose round here, the other students won’t be quite so obstructive.” She gave Jules a pointed look and headed towards the lift.
Chapter Eighty-Six
“You’re here to tell me the results of the DNA sampling, I imagine,” Doctor Edwards said. “Unless of course you want to apologise for storming around my building and making the students anxious.”
“We do have the results, yes,” replied Zoe. “Although they don’t relate to the swabs we took.”
The two women were in the warden’s office, facing each other across the desk. Zoe had her legs crossed and was trying to project calm. In reality, she was furious with the warden. The woman had been obstructive and obnoxious from the start. Did she not want them to catch the killer?
“How’s that?” Doctor Edwards asked.
“None of the swabs we took yesterday were a match for the DNA we found inside Laurence’s mouth.”
“You could have told me that without coming to my office.”
“But we did find a match.”
Zoe studied the warden’s face. She didn’t want to miss the woman’s reaction when it came.
“Not one of my students, in that case,” Doctor Edwards said. She pursed her lips.
“Not an undergraduate, no.”
The doctor raised her eyebrows.
Zoe leaned forward. “The DNA inside Laurence’s mouth, the DNA left there by the person who pushed drugs down Laurence’s throat, belonged to Jenson Begg.”
Deadly Reprisal (Detective Zoe Finch Book 5) Page 25