by S G Read
They walked into the hotel and Clayton collected the key. The room was book under his name and none other, no one asked otherwise. The porter carried their bags to the room and Clayton tipped him before he left.
‘People will talk.’ Rebecca warned as soon as the door closed.
‘I plan to give them something else to talk to.’ Clayton replied.
He walked to where she stood and dropped to one knee, causing her to put her hand to her mouth but she said nothing.
‘Rebecca, will you consent to be my wife?’ He asked.
Rebecca opened her mouth to speak but checked herself to merely say ‘I will.’
Clayton stood up and produced a ring and it fitted perfectly when she tried it on.
‘Now that is all over let us start enjoying this holiday!’ Rebecca declared.
After drooling after the ring for a few seconds more she fell onto the bed, to get the ball rolling. Clayton soon got the idea and after a quick glance at his watch, he leapt on the bed beside her.
In the morning they found themselves in the crowd outside the block of flats where Bill was digging up the floor under the lift. They were dressed in casual clothes, as they were on holiday and out of reach of the chief inspector. Their phones were turned off as well, to make sure no one called them. They kept well back but watched with interest, while inside Bill was digging.
The lift was on the floor above and locked in place, there were also accro props, supports builders use to hold up ceilings, and they were set to stop the lift, just in case it did try to come down, Bill did not want to get squashed by a rogue lift car. He was not one to stand back and watch when there was work to be done.
He was standing in the lift well, a mask covering his nose and mouth, using a machine to break the concrete in the well. As Clayton had asked him to dig the floor, Chastity was in there as well, with her mask on. The noise of the machine made it impossible to talk so Chastity was controlling Bill with hand signals. She had a vacuum cleaner running to suck away the dust as it was produced. The dust was not going to be discarded, it was going back to the laboratory for examination and testing.
When Chastity raised her hand Bill stopped the machine and they both scrutinized the area he had been working on. When nothing was visible Bill started digging again. They continued that way until they found a foot. They were not surprised by finding a foot, if Clayton said dig, there was something to dig up.
Now things slowed. Bill put a smaller point on the breaker to break up less concrete at a time and slowly a body appeared from under the layer of concrete. It was wrapped in plastic apart from the foot which was now uncovered but it was obvious that it was a body. The shoe on the foot was a man’s shoe and it pointed to the body being a man. Chastity directed and Bill broke the concrete until the body was completely uncovered and ready for removal.
‘Are you going to pronounce.’ Bill asked.
They had waited patiently for the dust the vacuum missed to disperse and he no longer wore the dust mask. Chastity pulled her mask off and peered down at the body. The floodlights Bill’s team had rigged up shone down on the body showing the plastic covering most of it.
‘Well he isn’t moving.’ She answered.
She dropped into the hole to ascertain that it was a corpse, even though they all knew it was.
‘Yes, he is dead, you can remove him and do your bit.’ She announced.
Bill waved his team forward and Chastity climbed out of the well. The rest of their work would be done in the laboratory and the area sealed off again, much to the chagrin of the tenants. While Chastity returned her mortuary, Bill walked out the back of the flats and walked right round the flats until he stood behind the watching crowd.
‘It’s a man.’ He said quietly to the incognito pair. ‘Is that what you expected?’
The two off duty policemen turned round and all three walked away, to be out of earshot of the rest of the crowd.
‘I was expecting another body and a male body to boot.’ Clayton answered.
‘Who is it?’ Rebecca asked.
Clayton just looked at her as though he was looking over his glasses, although he did not wear any.
‘No!’ She declared.
‘Oh yes.’ Clayton answered. ‘If I read this right, our missing MP paid someone to kill his mistress, not that we have proved that yet. At the meeting, out in the country the killer wanted more money to keep quiet about his handiwork. A fight ensued and the MP died. Now the killer had another body and after successfully concealing the first body under the lift, he decided to get rid of the MP the same way. He removed the first body, dug a hole and buried the MP underneath, then replaced the body on top. Sometime during the work the plastic containing the first body was damaged and air got in. He covered the old corpse with more plastic to keep the smell from getting out. The plastic swelled like a balloon and the lift made it pop. The resulting smell was the reason we were called in.’
‘Surely to do all that, the killer must be a tenant?’ Rebecca asked.
‘Or the caretaker,’ Clayton answered, ‘and I’d settle for the latter.’
‘So are you going to question the caretaker?’ Bill again asked.
‘Yes, but not today, today we are on holiday and celebrating.’ Clayton answered.
Bill immediately looked as Rebecca and then at her fingers.
‘So you finally found the courage to ask her then.’ Bill acknowledged.
‘How long have you known about it then?’ Rebecca asked.
‘I think I knew before he did.’ Bill answered. ‘You make a lovely couple, both at work and at play.’
‘Talking about play, I think we will go off and play before the CI gets here and cancels all leave, including ours. A dead MP will do that to him.’ Clayton replied. ‘Can you ask Gerald to take the time to look into the background of our caretaker, Bill?’
‘I will ask him for you.’
Bill watched the two civilians walk away. When he returned to the lift the chief inspector was there waiting for him.
‘Do we know who it is?’ He asked.
‘My suspicion is that it might be your missing MP, sir.’ Bill answered.
‘If it is, the shit is going to hit the fan, killing an MP makes lots and lots of waves.’ The chief inspector replied.
‘Time to put on a cossie then, sir,’ Bill answered, ‘at the end of the day Kemo Sabe will bring the killer to book for his crimes.’
‘Crimes, is this linked to the dead girl then?’ The chief inspector asked.
‘This is the same lift shaft she was found in, sir.’ Bill answered in surprise.
‘I thought I recognised the name.’ The chief inspector exclaimed. ‘It is a shame Inspector Moore isn’t here to take charge of things.’
‘Well, if I was running things, I would be talking to the caretaker, he is the only one who can have manipulated things in this way, sir.’ Bill exclaimed.
‘I think you are right, I will find a few men and we will go and see this caretaker.’ The chief inspector answered.
‘If you can find him, sir, were I him I would be long gone!’ Bill exclaimed.
‘Then the sooner we find out and, if necessary, get on his trail the better.’ The chief inspector replied and walked away to arrange it.
Bill watched him go then returned to his work, overseeing the removal of everything from the well in the bottom of the lift. Later the chief inspector returned with an armed response unit and they walked over to the caretakers flat.
Bill watched with interest as they tried to get a response then used a ram to open the door. The armed response team went in first, followed by the chief inspector. It was obvious when the chief inspector came out that the bird had flown. The chief inspector walked over to where Bill stood.
‘Tape the area off and get your team in the flat, I want to find out all I can about the caretaker, even his shoe size.’ He ordered.
‘Inspector Moore did interview him when we found the first body but as it
was just dumped on the surface, he was not considered as any more a suspect than all the inhabitants in the flats, sir, Clayton will have some details.’
‘Well, as he is on holiday and not answering his phone, I will have to find out some other way.’ The chief inspector answered.
‘Seal this area off, Gordon, we need to do a fingertip in the caretaker’s flat.’ Bill called.
He turned to face the lift where Gordon was working, as he did so and then turned back but the chief inspector was on his way out of the door.
With the lift well sealed off and a uniformed officer on guard, Bill and his team methodically worked their way through the caretaker’s flat. It was obvious that the caretaker had left, as there was nothing of his there, apart from cheap furniture and some cheap paintings on the wall. It was all tested for fingerprints and where they could they took DNA samples but there was no telling who it belonged to as anything they found was either on the furniture or the paintings. Each one had a charity sticker still on the back, to show where it had come from, which meant hundreds of people could have come into contact with them as they passed through the shop. It was all bagged and tagged and returned to the laboratory for detailed analysis. The door was closed and sealed with tape and the uniformed police officer moved from guarding the lift well, to the caretaker’s flat door. Bill’s team continued in the well, while he returned to start on the things collected from the caretaker’s flat.
Meanwhile, Clayton and Rebecca were touring the sights of London like day trippers. They arrived to visit the natural history museum but the long queue outside put them off. Rather than use their position in the police force to go in, in front of the queuing masses, they decided to visit somewhere else, vowing to come another day to the natural history museum.
By the time they returned to the hotel they were very tired but happy. When they turned on their mobile phones, they were soon flashing, showing messages waiting. The phones had to wait until they had had a rest, which turned into less restful activity. They lay there, knowing that as soon as they read the messages, the holiday was over and put it off as long as they could.
Rebecca was the first to read hers.
‘It was the missing MP, Clay, what made you suspect?’
‘Little things and I really wanted the two to be connected, in the light of all the thieving these MPs have been doing of tax payer’s money.’ Clayton answered. ‘Her mother thought it was a VIP who was paying the rent on the flat and, if it was him, I wondered if he was claiming the flat as part of his expenses.’
‘Another slap in the face for the British tax payer.’ Rebecca complained.
‘And how, claiming his mistress’ flat as expenses, just so he could get his oats whenever he wanted to.’ Clayton complained. ‘It could be why Gerald is having such a hard time tracing the payment. Still we will find out when we get back. I take it all leave is canceled?’
‘Oh yes, as soon as the CI found out that it might be the MP under the concrete.’ Rebecca answered.
‘Best pack our bags and go face the music then, Mrs. Moore to be.’
‘Mrs. Rebecca Moore, sounds good to me, Clay but where does it leave us where the station is concerned?’
‘That I don’t know Rebecca, but if I have to I will resign and you can apply for your inspectorate.’
‘Don’t be silly, I need you there to teach me what to look for, Clay, although I am getting better at it.’ Rebecca declared.
‘You are ready to become an inspector and you know it.’ Clayton declared.
‘When one comes up.’ Rebecca retorted.
‘Exactly.’ Clayton answered.
They packed their bags in silence and Rebecca drove them to the police station. Outside the chief inspector was holding a press conference when they drove past and Clayton remained in the car until it had finished. Only then did he follow Rebecca inside. They made it to their office, before the chief inspector found out that they had returned and he joined them in the office.
‘So you thought it might be Nathan Carswell?’ The chief inspector asked accusingly.
Clayton opened his mouth to answer but did not manage to say anything before the chief inspector continued.
‘And just when were you going to tell me?’ He added.
‘I would have looked extremely silly if they hadn’t found a body chief inspector.’ Clayton answered.
‘And it did not matter that I looked silly when I did not know anything about it?’ The chief inspector asked.
‘I assumed that you had worked it out yourself from the same information I had, sir,’ Clayton answered, ‘it seemed the logical place to look. The girl was over the cement laid on top of Carswell but she had been dead a lot longer. When the killer took her out there was bits of cement on the plastic. Before he laid her back in when the cement was set, as the plastic was damaged, he covered her in more plastic and sealed the top corpse in. The air inside caused it to swell which allowed the lift to pop it when it came down. Then we were called.’
‘It makes you wonder where any other bodies might be hidden in the flats.’ The chief inspector remarked.
‘It does. We need to find out where this caretaker came from and where he is now!’ Clayton replied. ‘If he has been the caretaker at other flats, they might have hidden surprises as well. There are a lot of blocks of flats in London and a few are in Pimlico!’
‘Well this needs to be dealt with, so use what resources you need to bring it to its conclusion.’ The chief inspector ordered and walked out.
‘He must be ill.’ Rebecca remarked when the chief inspector was out of earshot.
‘Pressure from above, I suppose,’ Clayton replied, ‘and the press waiting on his every word. One word out of place could leave him as our chief inspector forever.’
‘Not a pleasant thought.’ Rebecca noted.
‘No, especially as he would always be like a bear with a sore head.’ Clayton agreed. ‘Have you thought about a date for the wedding?’
‘Not yet, I assumed we would have to sort out this Carswell case as he was an MP before we could plan for a wedding.’ Rebecca answered.
‘I suppose you are right, I’d also like to find the person who killed Leslie Felltham and dumped him behind those flats as well, that case is proving very annoying.’ Clayton replied.
‘I might be retired by then!’ Rebecca declared.
‘That is true. We will set a date when the Carswell case is done and dusted and stick to it, it will be up to me to find Leslie Felltham’s killer before that date, after the date I will pass it to the cold case squad, as one that got away.’ Clayton replied.
‘You won’t like that Clay.’ Rebecca exclaimed.
‘No, but I don’t want to be too old to have children before we start a family!’ Clayton said hopefully.
‘I warn you I want lots of babies.’ Rebecca replied.
‘I didn’t think you were the ‘lots of baby’ type, Rebecca.’ Clayton exclaimed. ‘Not that has any bearing on it, I like babies and what they grow into.’
‘I thought that me taking time off to have a baby might save having to move to another station, just a thought.’ Rebecca replied.
‘If it comes to anyone going anywhere, it will be me. The CI is looking for promotion and his spot will be up for grabs, good results up to then, especially in a high profile case like the Carswell case and I will look good for it.’ Clayton explained. ‘Then my place will be up for grabs and I know a good sergeant who could do it standing on her head, with the right chief inspector backing her.’
‘You make it sound so easy, Clay, but the CI still has to get his promotion.’ Rebecca retorted.
‘This case should help him on his way.’ Clayton replied easily.
‘You have to solve it first, we have yet to find a link between Carswell and Veronica Thomas and then find the elusive caretaker.’ Rebecca observed.
‘The caretaker is nothing of the sort, he is a hired killer who chooses to live as a menial worker, probabl
y fantasizing about killing people who annoy him but in real life, someone who only kills for money. So some people may annoy him but unless someone is willing to pay him to kill them, they stay alive. He has probably taken up another low paid job and is waiting for his next assignment.’ Clayton replied. ‘He keeps his head down and tries not to be noticed and that is what is going to make him hard to find. Now we will go and find out why Gerald has not come up with some answers for us.’
At the word us, Rebecca looked up from what she was reading.
‘It is us now, Rebecca, and I like saying us.’ Clayton continued.
‘It sounds nice to me Clay.’
They walked to the lift and both waited for the lift to arrive, Clayton choosing to ride up with Rebecca, instead of using the stairs as he usually did. Gerald was sitting in his little office, with the door wide open trying to get a little air movement inside and looked up when they walked in. Behind them the lift door closed again and the lift hummed into life.
‘I wondered when you’d come up. I am being blocked by red tape.’ Gerald announced to forestall their complaints.
‘Well I am sure the red tape will be cut, now that we have found the Carswell’s body.’ Clayton answered.
The lift arrived with a ding and the chief inspector arrived.
‘Here is the person who will cut that red tape.’ Clayton added and stood to one side to allow the chief inspector to reach Gerald’s desk.
‘Red tape, I loathe red tape.’ The chief inspector declared. ‘You will have your answer within the hour.’
They watched the chief inspector walk out again and looked at Gerald.
‘Let me know when you have some news.’ Clayton asked with a broad smile on his face and ushered Rebecca out of the office.
Back in his own office Clayton looked through the file on the dead MP, he then looked at his board which had all the relevant details on it. Rebecca religiously altered the board when new information came in. He was now a victim, the same as the girl they found above him but both officers cared more about finding her killer than his, as he had probably paid to have her killed because she was pregnant and possibly refusing to have an abortion. While he was looking at the board, both Chastity and Gerald arrived.