Outside Looking In

by Michael Wood

  ‘Am I under arrest? Can I leave?’

  ‘Of course. You can leave whenever you want to.’

  ‘Right,’ she stood up quickly, pushing her chair back. ‘I don’t know why I should be surprised really – you’re focusing on the wrong thing. You couldn’t find Carl Meagan and you’ll not be able to find my husband’s killer either.’

  Matilda could feel Aaron’s eyes burning into her. She didn’t dare to look at him in return. She didn’t want him to see the look of dismay on her face. It was the first time anyone had thrown Carl Meagan at her, apart from former DI Ben Hales. From him she expected it. From Alice she didn’t.

  ‘Show her out,’ Matilda said quietly to Aaron.

  He jumped from his chair and led Alice out of the interview room leaving Matilda behind with her thoughts.

  She pictured Carl in her head. From the many photographs she saw of the cute blond, blue-eyed boy with the cheeky smile, he was permanently etched on her mind. Whenever he was mentioned he came racing to the front. She saw him now, but she wasn’t seeing him in his school uniform mugging to the camera, or playing in the back garden dressed as Batman, or on the sofa with his Labrador puppy. She was picturing him lying dead in a ditch somewhere; the life torn out of him, his face pale, bruised, and cold. The innocence in his young face and the cartoon pyjamas he had been wearing when he was snatched appearing in stark contrast to the horror of a murder scene.

  Aaron re-entered the interview room, and startled her. She shuffled her papers and had a drink of her cold tea to make it look like she hadn’t just been wallowing in his absence.

  ‘Are you all right?’ he asked quietly.

  ‘Yes I’m fine. What did you think of her?’

  ‘I don’t like her,’ he replied.

  ‘Me neither. You go first.’

  ‘She’s avoiding the burglary. She says she interrupted him but when me and Rory went round we saw the state of the place: the hallway, kitchen, dining room, and living room were all a complete mess. You’re not telling me the burglar couldn’t have found something worth nicking in any of those rooms.’

  Matilda thought about that. ‘So, either the burglar did take something but Alice doesn’t want us to know about it because it was already stolen or illegal or whatever, or, he came round for some other reason entirely.’

  ‘Such as?’

  ‘To scare her maybe?’

  ‘Why would he want to scare her?’

  ‘I’m not sure. There’s something about that family that I don’t quite understand. I can’t put my finger on it. She refused to make eye contact either. Did you notice that?’

  ‘I did. She looked everywhere but straight ahead. Do you think we should put a surveillance on her?’

  ‘The ACC won’t go for that on the basis of a funny feeling. We need to interview the sister and find her sodding brother.’

  ‘I’ll go and see where we’re at with finding Lucas Branning then,’ Aaron said. He seemed in a hurry to leave the room, not that Matilda could blame him.

  He closed the door behind him leaving Matilda alone. The clock on the wall ticked loudly and she sat perfectly still. She went over the interview with Alice Hardaker in her head. When she brought up Carl Meagan she looked straight at Matilda; she looked directly into her. She knew exactly what she was saying. Was she really suffering from grief, lashing out at the police force as a whole, or was she personally attacking Matilda? What was it that she didn’t want Matilda finding out?

  THIRTY-TWO

  ‘Hang on Rory, let me make a cuppa before you start.’

  Sian trotted over to the mini kitchen the Murder Investigation Team had created at the back of the room and flicked the kettle on. Rory had come bounding in all smiles after locating and chatting to the three lovers that Lois Craven had cheated on her husband with. After a long and tiring day, Sian was ready for a bit of gossip.

  She came back with two mugs and sat down. She even took out a full packet of Bourbon Creams from her snack drawer, opened them, and placed them on the edge of the table for Rory to help himself to. This was unprecedented.

  ‘Right, I’m ready, let’s hear all the juicy bits.’

  At that point Aaron Connolly walked in, his face ashen. Although with his dour expression and permanently wrinkled brow it was difficult to tell whether he was tired, happy, scared, or angry.

  ‘Aaron, you’re just in time. Grab a drink and pull up a chair.’

  ‘I’m ready for a pint actually. You’ll never guess what that Alice Hardaker said to Matilda.’

  ‘It can wait,’ Sian said. ‘Rory has been talking to Lois Craven’s lovers.’

  ‘I thought you were busy. Aren’t you supposed to be working on identifying the residents in the block on London Road?’

  ‘I’m sure we can all spare a few minutes. I’ve missed lunch again today,’ Sian said. ‘Come on then Rory, spill.’

  ‘I think you’re going to be disappointed, Sian,’ Rory said. ‘I’m not about to read you a chapter from Fifty Shades of Grey.’

  ‘Oh come on, she was having an illicit affair; there’s bound to be some juicy bits.’

  Aaron pulled up a chair, coffee in hand, and settled in. They were like three kids around a camp fire.

  ‘OK. Lois’s first lover was Craig Monroe. He’s a teacher and lives at Meersbrook. He dated Lois for three months about twelve years ago. He was single at the time but he’s now married with triplets, poor bloke. He knew Lois was married but he was young and thought it was a bit of fun. He ended it when she started getting serious.’

  ‘In what way serious?’ Sian asked, perched on the edge of her seat.

  ‘She wanted to move in with him.’

  ‘What? But she had two young kids by then. Was she planning just to leave them?’

  ‘I’ve no idea. Craig said as soon as she started talking about living together he backed off.’

  ‘Wise man,’ said Aaron, reaching across for a handful of Bourbon Creams.

  ‘He’s not heard from Lois since then and his alibi checks out so that’s him off the list. Now then Sian, you’ll love what I’m going to tell you about Sean McCleary.’

  Sian’s eyes lit up. She cupped her hands firmly around her coffee mug and eagerly waited. She was almost salivating.

  ‘When Sean McCleary went out with Lois ten years ago he was working and living in Leeds as a council worker. They met when she went to Leeds on some kind of training course. He now works as a financial coordinator here in Sheffield. They dated for about six months. At the time he was also seeing someone else – a man.’

  ‘No!’ Sian shrieked. ‘You’re joking?’

  ‘No I’m not. Sean’s thirty-one now so at the time he was twenty-one and he was experimenting with his sexuality. He couldn’t decide which way he swung so he had a crack at both. His relationship with Lois was mostly sexual. They’d often meet in car parks and do it in the back of his car or a cheap hotel. He even boasted about a threesome they had with the bloke he was seeing.’

  ‘Oh my goodness,’ Sian almost blushed. ‘And I thought I was being adventurous when me and Stuart went on that boat to the Isle of Man and—’ she stopped, suddenly realizing she was talking to two colleagues. ‘Never mind. Carry on.’

  ‘Anyway, to cut a long story short, Sean decided he preferred the company of men and gave Lois the elbow. He’s been in a relationship with his current partner, Rufus Abbot, for seven years. They’re getting married in September.’

  ‘That’s nice. I’ve never been to a gay wedding. I wonder how they differ,’ Sian mused.

  ‘They’re probably just as long-winded and dull as straight weddings,’ Rory commented.

  ‘Does his alibi check out?’ Aaron asked, clearly the only one interested in the topic at hand.

  ‘Yes it does.’

  ‘Are you saving the best until last?’ Sian asked.

  ‘I am. Owen Masak is originally from Poland but has been living in Dronfield for the last fifteen years. He met Lois about nine
years ago, and, as we all know, it culminated in the birth of her son, Thomas. Owen is a plumber and met Lois when he did some work at the college where she works. They went for a drink together after an afternoon of flirting and then had sex in the back of his van.’

  ‘Blimey, she’s not backward about being forward our Lois Craven, is she?’

  ‘What are you smiling at?’ Rory asked Aaron when he noticed a smirk on his face.

  ‘Just remembering the time me and Katrina did it in the back of a van. We’d bought something off eBay that was collection only. So we hired a van and drove overnight up to Glasgow. It added a bit of spice to our marriage. You should try it Sian,’ he smirked.

  ‘There’s nothing wrong with my marriage, thank you very much. I’ve been married thirteen years to my Stuart.’

  ‘But are you still passionate?’

  ‘At times.’

  ‘At times? You should be passionate all the time.’

  ‘We’re not rabbits, Aaron. Besides, it’s not normal to still be at each other like that after thirteen years of marriage.’

  ‘Excuse me you two,’ Rory interrupted. ‘When you’ve finished with the marriage guidance is there any chance of getting back to our Polish friend here?’

  ‘Oh, yes. Sorry Rory. Go on.’

  Rory looked down at his notes. ‘It doesn’t matter now, you’ve ruined it. Anyway, Owen didn’t realize Lois had become pregnant. They only did it a couple of times before they lost touch.’

  ‘Did you tell him about Thomas?’

  ‘No. He’s married with a child himself. I asked if she ever made contact with him again for any reason and he said no. I left it at that. His alibi checks out too.’

  ‘So it’s not a jealous lover out for revenge then,’ Aaron said. ‘Why do I get the feeling this case is never going to get solved?’

  ‘Because it’s one of those cases with several blind alleys. It doesn’t help that everyone seems to be hiding something either,’ Sian said. ‘On paper the Hardakers and the Cravens are two normal, hard-working families. Their neighbours can’t praise them highly enough, their friends and family love them, there is nothing that opens them up to being a target apart from the affair.’

  ‘The only people affected by that are Alice Hardaker and Martin Craven, and they both have alibis.’

  ‘So we have no suspects, no leads, and no evidence. Well I don’t know about you two boys but I certainly feel proud of a job well done today,’ Sian said heavy with sarcasm.

  Rory stood up to leave when Sian stopped him.

  ‘Rory, you said you saved the best until last. Lois’s affair with Owen didn’t sound too steamy to me.’

  ‘Well you interrupted before I could get to the best bit. I was going to tell you about the time Owen and Lois were cautioned for dogging but I’ll not bother now.’

  He left the room with a smug smile on his face. Sian leaned back in her chair looking dejected.

  ‘That’s your fault,’ she said to Aaron, taking back her Bourbon biscuits.

  THIRTY-THREE

  Trying to park on Williamson Road was almost impossible. It was a short, narrow road with cars on both sides. Matilda had to park around the corner and make her way to Martin Craven’s house on foot. By the time she reached the front door she was cold; the spring breeze had increased to a stiff wind. Trees were still bare from the harsh winter and thick branches swayed and creaked as they waved.

  The door was answered straightaway by fifteen-year-old Anna. She took one look at Matilda and knew that the mood for the rest of the evening would depend on what information she was about to reveal.

  ‘We’re just about to have tea,’ Anna said with all the moody vigour of a typical teen.

  ‘I’m sorry for the timing but I really need to speak to your father. Is he home?’

  ‘Of course he’s home. You’d better come in.’

  Anna showed Matilda into the living room and went straight upstairs. She didn’t need to be told this was going to be a private conversation. She obviously didn’t want to hear about what was happening with her mother.

  ‘Mr Craven, I’m sorry for calling so late but I was wondering if I could have a word?’

  Martin was sitting on the sofa, his son next to him. Thomas was signing and saw Matilda first. He stopped and looked up at her, leaning into his father for safety at the sight of a stranger.

  ‘Of course, come on in.’ He turned to his son and signed, ‘Thomas, go upstairs and play with your sister for five minutes. I’ll let you know when tea is ready.’

  Thomas smiled and left the room.

  ‘Is it difficult to learn sign language?’ Matilda asked, sitting down.

  ‘It was at first but I soon picked it up.’

  ‘Was he born deaf?’

  ‘Yes he was. Lois had an infection while she was pregnant, they put it down to that. So, what do you want to talk about?’

  ‘I wanted to talk to you on your own about Lois, your marriage.’

  ‘I thought as much,’ he gave a half-smile. ‘Lois said you’d been to see her afterwards to talk in private. I knew she wouldn’t have told you everything with me there. I’ll not ask what she said. What do you want to know from me?’

  ‘Lois has had more than one affair …’ Matilda began. This was a very delicate subject. She wondered how much Martin knew of his wife’s indiscretions and didn’t want to jump in with both feet and be the cause of a scene, especially not with his kids upstairs.

  ‘She’s had four. That I know of.’

  ‘How did you feel when you found out?’

  ‘I was furious. I didn’t think Lois was the type.’

  ‘Did you separate?’

  Martin looked away. ‘No,’ he said, almost in whisper. ‘I should have done. I always put my kids first and believe they should have both parents to bring them up. We had many arguments, several nights of sleeping in different rooms but I forgave her.’

  ‘And the second time?’

  Martin gave a loud sigh. ‘Are you married?’

  Matilda’s heart skipped a beat. ‘No. I’m not,’ was all she said. She couldn’t bring herself to refer to herself as a widow just yet.

  ‘It’s easy to sit there and judge but until it happens you never know what you’re going to do. I never thought I’d put up with a wife who cheated and slept around, but when it came out I just thought of my kids. I couldn’t put Jack and Anna through a divorce. It would have destroyed them.’

  ‘I’m not judging you Martin. What about when Lois became pregnant with Thomas?’

  ‘When she first told me she was pregnant I almost fell through the floor. I thought that was the end. It was the final slap in the face. I threw her out. I was outraged.’

  ‘How did the children react?’

  ‘They were upset that their mother had left, but I explained that we couldn’t live together anymore but that we both loved them and they would always come first. I shouldn’t really have said that. I had no idea how Lois felt but I could hardly tell them their mother was a slag who slept with any man who smiled at her.’

  ‘If that’s how you felt, why did you take her back?’

  Martin suddenly exploded. ‘Because I’m weak and pathetic, that’s why. She slept with three other men, got pregnant by one of them and I still loved her. I’m a doormat. I let her walk all over me, wipe her feet on me, and I still loved her and wanted her living in my house.’ Angry tears fell down his face.

  ‘What you did was very brave,’ she placated. ‘You took on another man’s child as your own. Not many would have done that.’

  ‘Brave or gullible? Once again she’s got me where she wants me. She knows now that she can do anything she wants and I’ll take her back because that’s what I do.’

  Matilda left it at that. She allowed the silence to grow while Martin composed himself. He was angry, but who with? His wife for her constant betrayals or himself for allowing her to get away with it?

  ‘Did you know about Kevin Hardaker?�
�

  ‘No. I honestly thought she was playing tennis. Naive aren’t I?’

  ‘Did you know him?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Does the name Gerald Beecham mean anything to you?’

  ‘No. Who’s he? Another one of Lois’s lovers to come out of the woodwork?’

  ‘No. It’s not important. I’m sorry to have brought up painful memories for you.’

  ‘You haven’t. They’re always there. Sometimes they’re hidden, like when I’m playing with Thomas or when I’m at work, but they’re always there just waiting to come out and slap me in the face.’

  I know that feeling.

  Matilda dug in her inside pocket for a business card and handed it to him. ‘If you think of anything about who you might think is responsible, or if you just want to talk, give me a ring.’ She smiled at him warmly.

  ‘Thank you. I will,’ he said, looking her in the eye and smiling back.

  Matilda stood up and headed for the door to leave but stopped and turned back. ‘I was married. My husband died.’

  ‘I’m sorry.’

  ‘To be honest with you, if my husband had cheated, I probably would have forgiven him too. I loved him so much that I sometimes ached when we weren’t together. I’ll see myself out.’

  THIRTY-FOUR

  While Alice Hardaker had been at the police station her sister Jenny had been tidying up the house as best she could. The threatening phone call had been preying on her mind. She had told Alice the second she walked back through the door. Although Alice told her not to worry, it was obvious she was scared for her life and those of her children.

  As darkness fell, Jenny went around the rooms closing the curtains while Alice settled the children in front of the television for the hour before it was time for them to go to bed. After that it would be their turn to play with the remote.

  It seemed strange for Alice to be in the house with the knowledge that her husband wouldn’t be coming home. It was usually around this time – 6.30 – when she’d hear him pull up on the drive, his key in the lock, the sound of him wiping his shoes on the mat so as not to stain the recently laid hall carpet. She tried to grieve. She wanted to be upset at the thought of never seeing his face again but every time she tried she pictured him with another woman. If he hadn’t had an affair he wouldn’t have got himself shot and killed in the first place. This was all his fault. Why should she waste tears on a lying, cheating, piece of shit like Kevin Hardaker?