Dead Guilty

by Helen H. Durrant

  Annie glared at her friend. “You think that’s all I care about? Rick’s money? I don’t care about any of that. I just want Sophie back. Rick’s selfish. His business has always come first. I swear he only stays with me because of Sophie.”

  “It’s the shock talking,” Ruth said. “I’m sure Rick will return just as soon as he’s able.”

  “Perhaps.” Annie did not sound convinced. “Do you know what I think?” She had a defiant look on her face. “I think the wedding was merely a ploy to keep the peace. Up until a couple of months ago, Rick wasn’t keen. He thought we were fine as we were. But I kept going on. I wanted proper security for Sophie. In the end, he gave in. But I think the whole event was his way of keeping me occupied and out of his hair.” Annie Alder looked Ruth in the eye. They were cold, hard, and Ruth shuddered inwardly. “Find my little girl. I can’t stay with Rick without her.”

  Chapter 4

  “Get anything?” Calladine asked Ruth as they walked back to the car.

  “The laptop.” She had it tucked under her arm. “And a recent photo of Sophie Alder. We’ll need one if there’s to be an appeal.”

  “Any gossip? Any hint that all is not as it seems? There was a right atmosphere in there.”

  Ruth’s expression hardened. “That was down to the sister, Frankie. First-class attention seeker that one.”

  “Anything else?”

  “Annie more than hinted that she and Alder are not the loving couple everyone imagines them to be. All she wants is the child back. Without her, their relationship has no meaning.”

  “Not quite the stuff of fairy tales then. Does Annie suspect her husband of taking the child?”

  “No, she’s just upset. It’s his lack of input Annie is livid about, and I can’t blame her. Just when she needs him, Alder goes missing, and that sister of hers is something else! Nasty piece of work, she is. Where Alder is concerned, the business comes first, even before the threat to their daughter. I find that very odd. You’d think his PA would be able to keep things ticking over at work. Even though they’ve been married for such a short time, Annie’s had enough. She’s woken up to the reality of what life with Alder will be like.”

  Calladine pursed his lips. “You saw the email. ‘She’s safe now.’ Do you think the girl has been kidnapped or taken by someone concerned for the child’s welfare?”

  Ruth frowned. “It’s a difficult one. There has been no ransom demand yet. Whoever has the child may be playing a game, letting the pressure build. That will drive Annie nuts. I know it would if it were me.”

  Calladine paused. “The lock on the gate was forced. It looks as if it was jemmied off. But apart from that it is a secure garden.”

  “Someone breaks the lock on the back gate and no one hears or sees anything? Surely the thing would blow open in the wind.”

  “We’ll speak to Julian, see what he has to say. While I was wandering around, I bumped into the gardener. He knew nothing about the gate either. Comes once a month, that’s all. But they do have other staff. We will have to interview them all.”

  “Whoever took the child must have planned it,” Ruth put to him. “They knew she was here, knew about the gate, and worked out what needed doing to get to her. This wasn’t an opportunist attempt, Tom.”

  Calladine nodded in agreement. “I think you’re right. I also think the child knew whoever took her. You’re a mum, what would the normal reaction be? Would your Harry run to anyone who called him?”

  Ruth shook her head firmly. “No. I tell him constantly about talking to strangers. And you’re right. We will have to talk to the little boy, Jack, see what his take on it was.”

  “Despite what Annie Alder says, I want family liaison with her. Should contact be made, we need to know about it fast.”

  * * *

  It took the pair half an hour to reach the Duggan Centre, the forensic facility they used. The senior forensic scientist in charge was Professor Julian Batho, a valued expert, and a friend of theirs.

  Julian was not given to humour, and lately he hadn’t smiled much. He had been engaged to another member of Calladine’s team, DC Imogen Goode, until her murder during a case. Julian was still struggling with the loss.

  Calladine gave the scientist a cheery smile. “Okay, Julian?” He lived in hope that Julian might be starting to recover from his grief. “We’ve inherited the Alder child abduction case off Long,” Calladine said. “CSI were there yesterday. Did you turn up anything?”

  “The gate in the garden,” Julian began. “The lock had been broken some time ago and the thing had been wired together so that it would not swing open inadvertently.” He held up a clear plastic bag containing some twisted wire. “Apparently, the gate is rarely used, so it wasn’t noticed. For whoever took the child, it was a simple matter of a few twists and they were in. There were splinters of wood lying on the ground. The grass had grown over some of them, so I’d say the lock had been dealt with sometime in the past.”

  Calladine frowned. “Planned then. We thought as much.”

  “We’ll run tests on the wire but I wouldn’t get your hopes up. The wood splinters, however, are another matter. We collected them and found a substance on some. If it proves to be blood, we might get a DNA match.”

  “Whoever bust the lock hurt himself in the process. Nice one.” Calladine smiled. “Let me know as soon as you have the results. Annie Alder got an email this morning.” He handed over her laptop.

  Julian nodded. “I’ll pass it to the tech people.”

  “We’ll likely be in the Wheatsheaf Friday teatime if you want to join us?” Ruth offered. “A couple of pints with the gang, catch up on the gossip. What d’you say? Do you good to get out.”

  Julian looked at her with his hangdog expression. “I’ll see,” he said at last. “I might be busy.”

  She patted his arm. It was no good pushing him. “You know where we are if you fancy it.”

  Ruth joined Calladine in the corridor. “He’s hard work.”

  “He could do with finding another woman. It’s been a while since Imogen. A dose of romance might fix him,” Calladine said.

  Ruth grinned. “Like it fixed you, you mean?”

  Before he could reply, a female voice called out. “Tom, Ruth, what are you pair doing here? Not more work is it?”

  It was Natasha Barrington, one of the Home Office pathologists who worked at the Duggan. She’d helped the team with a number of recent cases.

  Calladine smiled at her. “No, you can relax, Natasha. We’re here to see Julian. Why, got a lot on?”

  “We always do,” she said. “I’ll walk with you to the car park.”

  “Out for lunch?” Ruth asked as they left the building.

  The pathologist looked solemn. “No. I’m going to speak to a grieving parent, try to convince him that a second PM on his son is not the answer. Not an easy one.”

  “Not your usual role,” Calladine said.

  “He’s spoken to everyone else. I’m the last resort. Remember that concert up on Clough Hill this summer?”

  Calladine nodded. “Rowdy, got out of hand. Had to get officers in from Oldston to help sort the rabble. Not that I attended.”

  “As is usual, there were a number of casualties. But there was also one tragic death. The victim was young, a twenty-year-old local lad. You may know him — Alex Geddes, the son of a man called Bill Geddes.”

  Calladine shook his head. The names meant nothing to him.

  “According to those who saw him, Alex was drinking solid for the entire day and he took a number of pills. You might recall there was a batch of dodgy ecstasy doing the rounds. Alex became ill and was admitted to Leesdon Infirmary. Sadly, they couldn’t do much for him. Despite the excessive amount of alcohol in his system, the death was attributed to a bad reaction to the pills. The usual hospital post-mortem was conducted.”

  “And the parents can’t accept it?” Calladine asked.

  “There’s only the father, and he’s having
none of it. He believes his son was got at in some way. Had the booze and pills foisted on him, and didn’t know any better than to take them.”

  “Twenty years old?” Ruth looked sceptical. “He must have known what he was doing.”

  “You’d think so. But Geddes has asked for a second PM, and is refusing to organise the funeral until he gets one. I’ve got a copy of the report from the original PM to show him and just hope it makes him see sense.”

  “He’s lost his son and doesn’t know what to do. It’s understandable in a way,” Ruth said. “But he can’t refute the PM. If there was anything, it would have been found, surely?”

  Natasha frowned. “I’ve known them miss things. Hospital post-mortems for deaths that have a known cause, or are not suspicious, are different from the ones we carry out at the Duggan, less rigorous, shall we say. The pathologist at the hospital can do up to five at a time. They don’t even use different scalpels.”

  A shudder went down Ruth’s spine. “You’ve got your work cut out,” she said. “I don’t envy you.”

  Chapter 5

  “I’ve got as much background as I can find on Alder,” Rocco reported when Calladine and Ruth arrived back at the station. “It’s as expected — pillar of the community, climbed high very fast and appears to be reaping the rewards.”

  “What d’you mean, appears? Is he doing well or not?” Calladine asked.

  “It’s the figures, sir. Granted the factory is profitable. He’s expanded fast, there are new buildings and equipment. I checked the statistics on Companies House website. There are no financial problems that I can see. The only thing I’d question is where the money came from for both that expansion and the house he had built. It wasn’t in the profits he’s made over the past few years. Despite the business being solvent, given the spending, there’s quite a shortfall. A look at his bank accounts would be interesting.”

  “Alder isn’t a suspect, he’s the victim,” Calladine reminded Rocco. “We’d never get a warrant.”

  “He could have got a loan?” Ruth suggested.

  “The amounts are huge,” Rocco told them. “The bank or whoever must be backing him up to the hilt.”

  “He’s a safe bet,” Calladine shrugged. “Alder’s business is now the biggest employer in this area.”

  “Even bigger than Buckley’s?” Ruth queried.

  “Yes, I should say so. The rapid expansion has seen to that. Anything else?”

  “He’s recently married his childhood sweetheart, Annie.”

  “All is not as it appears there,” Ruth told them. “So double-check. Look for dirt — I’m sure there must be some. Sweetheart or not, Annie expressed doubt about their relationship when we saw her this morning. Odd, don’t you think, for a pair of newlyweds? And while you’re at it, have a look at Frankie Halliwell, Annie’s younger sister. She struck me as trouble. Check if she’s on the system.”

  Calladine flicked through his emails. There was the expected report from Julian outlining what he’d already told them. The blood found on the wood splinters was crucial. That and the fact they were sure that the child, Sophie, had known her abductor. That meant it had to be a family friend or relative.

  “Ruth, you know Annie, go and see her again. You are a familiar face, she might open up to you. See if you can get anything else out of her. And check if the family are known to social services.”

  “I wouldn’t have thought they’d have attracted their attention,” Ruth said.

  “You’re forgetting where they came from. Richard Alder still has family on the Hobfield. A father and an older brother. I presume the family see them?”

  “I would imagine Alder rarely sets foot on the estate these days.”

  “Nonetheless, they are still his family. Find out if Alder has ever been pressured to help them financially. Perhaps he refused and they’ve taken matters into their own hands. You might see if either his father, Alf, or his brother, Billy, is on our system too.”

  “You think Sophie’s grandfather took her?” Ruth looked dubious. “Alf Alder is a drunk, he’s in the pub most nights. He isn’t the childminding type.”

  “What about the brother? Billy?”

  “Don’t know much about him.”

  “Find out. Get the details up there,” he nodded at the incident board.

  “Inspector Calladine!”

  It was DCI Birch.

  “My office. I’d like an update on the Alder case.”

  Calladine dutifully followed her into her office. “Not much to tell yet, ma’am. We’re chasing forensics and there has been communication from whoever took the child. Not asking for money though, simply stating that she’s safe.”

  “Safe for now,” she said. “I’ve had Richard Alder on the phone again. He is not a happy man. He wants action and quick. Doesn’t think we’re throwing our all into this.”

  “The team are on it, ma’am. From what we’ve been told, we believe the child knew the person who took her.”

  “I’ve had Chesworth on too. He’s asking for updates on a daily basis. I do not want him here,” she insisted. “This must be sorted urgently. I suggest you take Thorpe under your wing and make optimum use of uniform to help with the legwork. They’ll complain. Apparently, there’s a run of petty crime locally.”

  “Yes, I know,” he responded. “My home was broken into last night.”

  “Did you report it?”

  “No, ma’am. I know him, he’s a neighbour. Got his mother to deal with him. Far more effective,” he smiled.

  Birch frowned. “We shouldn’t give them an inch. These young villains see it as weakness.”

  “Not much we can do though, is there, ma’am. We don’t have the manpower to walk the streets. They have a new leader, too. Not a name I’ve heard before, but whoever this ‘Street’ is, he’s got some clout.”

  Birch’s face clouded. “What did you say? Street?”

  “Yes, ma’am. He’s the new villain encouraging the recent mayhem. I’ve been trying to find out who he is, but there’s nothing.”

  “Drop it.”

  Calladine paused. “With respect, ma’am, I can’t. He’s behind most of the robberies. It’s vital that I find him for questioning.”

  “Leave this, Calladine. I won’t tell you again.” Birch’s eyes were hard.

  “Can I ask why, ma’am?”

  “No, you can’t. We’ll discuss this another time.” She paused. “I’m not oblivious to what’s going on, you know. I do look at the crime statistics for the area. But that’s not our prime concern right now. Our priority has to be the Alder girl.”

  “We’ll do our best, ma’am,” he said.

  “I want her found. Alder has a lot of influence. We do not want to make an enemy of him.”

  “We could get the press involved, ask the parents to make an appeal?” Calladine suggested.

  “I’ve already put that to him, but he’s not keen.”

  Calladine was surprised. “Why not? If whoever took her is known to the family, the glare of publicity could have them running scared.”

  “I explained how it would work, but he’s having none of it. As far as Alder is concerned, the fewer people who know, the better.”

  Calladine couldn’t work out why Alder would shy away like this. Back in the incident room he made a note on the board.

  “Annie has been given a sedative and is resting,” Ruth said. “Frankie, the sister, doesn’t think she’ll be awake before the morning.”

  “Okay, try again then.” He sat down at his desk. “This is a weird one. I know the kid is missing but something is wrong. The email with no ransom demand. The fact that the boy, Jack, reckons it was someone Sophie knew.”

  “An inside job?” Ruth asked. “But why? I can’t see any reason, can you?”

  “We’re missing something, Ruth. But what exactly?”

  Chapter 6

  The fist hit the lad full in the face, sending him reeling backwards, cracking his head against the wall. />
  “You hold him tight and I’ll empty his pockets,” Bill Geddes told one of the men. Like the others, Geddes had a scarf over the lower half of his face, and a hood over his head. After his chat with John Wells, he’d decided to take him up on the offer, and meet the group. He needed an outlet for the rage. Beating up the thieving ruffians who were terrorising his town would do for now.

  “Well, look at this,” he said, holding up a bag of small wraps. “The little git’s a user.” He lashed out again, sending the lad flying to the floor. “Who did you get this off?” Geddes passed the bag to another bloke, who emptied it down the nearest drain.

  “Come on, who did you buy it off?” Geddes leant over and took him by the scruff of the neck. “Tell me and we’ll go easy.” He leaned in close. “The last thing we want round here is your type flooding the streets with that poison.”

  The lad said nothing.

  “Don’t want to tell me? In that case you’re getting a good kicking. That’ll teach you to cross us.”

  The men looked at each other, holding back. None of them were violent as a rule. Geddes had every reason to be angry, but he was taking things too far. The lad lying on the cold concrete wasn’t responsible for what had happened to his son.

  “We could drag him down to the nick, let them sort it out?” one suggested.

  But Geddes was having none of it. He aimed his foot at the boy’s stomach and struck out hard with his boot. There was a sharp yelp, followed by coughing as the lad threw up.

  “That should teach him. C’mon lads, we’ve still got work to do,” Geddes told the others.

  “What if he complains, tells someone?”

  Geddes shook his head in disgust. Vigilantes? Carry on like this and they’d soon be a laughing stock. “You lot need to toughen up. You’ve got these kids scared, don’t let that slip.”