Lost Innocence

by Susan Lewis

  A shiny face with bulging eyes peered in. ‘Your brief’s here,’ the custody sergeant told him.

  Nat’s heart rose to his mouth as he forced himself up. He watched the door swing open, and his knees almost buckled when he saw Jolyon’s strong, familiar face. For one bewildering instant he thought it was his father.

  ‘Nat, my boy,’ Jolyon said, coming to embrace him. ‘Don’t worry, son, everything’s going to be all right. We’ll have you out of here in no time.’

  ‘You can use the interview room at the end,’ the sergeant informed them.

  A few minutes later Nat and Jolyon were sitting either side of a scratched Formica table in a soundproof room that was no bigger than the cell Nat had just left, and had no windows at all.

  ‘Sorry it’s taken me a while to get here,’ Jolyon said. ‘I came as soon as I could. Are you OK? Do you need anything?’

  Nat shook his head. ‘Only for this to be over.’ His eyes burned with emotion. ‘I didn’t rape her,’ he said fiercely.

  ‘Of course you didn’t,’ Jolyon assured him, seeming to think it went without saying. ‘Now, I’ve had a chat with the custody sergeant and DC Croft, so they’ve brought me up to speed with everything so far. I’m told Detective Sergeant Bevan’s handling the case. He’s on his way, and should be here in the next ten minutes or so, but you don’t need to worry about that. We can take as long as we like to go over this, and then we’re going to prepare a statement to hand him. This means you won’t have to answer any questions if you don’t want to. Do you understand that?’

  Nat nodded. ‘Do you know him?’ he asked. ‘What’s he like?’

  ‘I’d say he’s tough, but he listens and I’ve generally found him to be fair.’ Reaching into his briefcase, he took out a legal pad and a pen. ‘Right,’ he said in a businesslike fashion, ‘let’s get straight to it, tell me what happened, starting from the beginning.’

  Nat sat forward, clenching his hands on the table, and rocking back and forth as he psyched himself up to begin. After a few false starts he managed to tell Jolyon what time he’d arrived at the rave, who he’d gone with and how much he’d had to drink by the time he saw Annabelle. He then went on to describe how she’d come up to him and dragged another girl away.

  ‘She was totally out of it,’ he said, watching Jolyon’s hand moving across the page.

  ‘Do you know what she’d taken?’

  ‘There was loads of E around, and cannabis.’

  ‘Did you actually see her taking anything?’

  Nat shook his head. ‘OK, go on.’

  ‘I could tell by the way she was looking at me that she was going to start coming on to me, so I turned around and walked away. I didn’t really want to be there anyway, so I thought I’d just go home.’

  ‘Has she ever come on to you before?’

  ‘Kind of, yes.’

  Jolyon nodded and made a note in the margin. ‘We’ll come back to that,’ he said. ‘What happened after you walked away?’

  ‘She followed me, but I didn’t know that until I stopped at the top of this bank. She came up behind me, grabbed my hand and dragged me down into the dip. At the bottom I snatched my hand away and tried to walk on, but she kept coming after me. She was saying, “Come on, you know you want to do it.” I told her to leave me alone, but she wouldn’t. She started going on about me being a virgin and did I want her to show me how to do it. I was getting pretty mad by then, because she wouldn’t take no for an answer. She just kept on and on, saying stupid things… All this rubbish was coming out of her and in the end…’

  ‘What kind of rubbish?’

  Nat’s head went down. ‘I don’t really remember,’ he mumbled. ‘It was crazy stuff, and I couldn’t make her shut up. I got hold of her… She pushed me off and started to run away, but then she tripped and fell. I was so mad I hardly knew what I was doing. I wanted her to take back everything she’d said, but she wouldn’t, so I threw myself down on top of her to try and make her. She was…’

  ‘What had she said that you wanted her to take back?’

  ‘I can’t remember now, it was just getting to me at the time, like she was really trying to wind me up.’

  Jolyon’s eyes came up from the page.

  Nat swallowed and clenched his hands more tightly.

  Jolyon continued to regard him. ‘OK,’ he said finally, ‘was she on her front or her back when you threw yourself on her?’

  ‘Her front.’

  ‘And what did you do then?’

  ‘I put my hands round her neck. She was choking and shouting at me to get off. Then I realised what I was doing and took my hands away. She started to laugh then and said, “Come on, do me. You know you want to.” His mouth trembled as he stared down at his hands. ‘She wasn’t wearing any underwear and her skirt was up around her waist,’ he said raggedly.

  ‘So she was inviting you to have sex with her?’

  He nodded. ‘I didn’t want to, but at the same time I did.’

  ‘So you were sexually aroused?’

  ‘Yes, no, I can’t really remember. I only know that I wanted to get away from her. I stood up and she rolled over on to her back. Her face looked as though it was bleeding, but she was still laughing and telling me to do her. I called her a slut and said, “I don’t do sluts.” Then I started to walk away, but she came after me again. She tried to punch me, but I stopped her and pushed her away. I think I hit her face as I pushed, I’m not sure. It happened really quickly. She fell over again and started screaming at me, saying she was going to tell everyone I’d raped her. I couldn’t listen to her any more. It was all too crazy. She was stoned and drunk and saying things…I just wanted to get away from her, so I ran home and turned off my phone in case she tried to call.’

  ‘Did she?’

  ‘There weren’t any messages when I switched it on again in the morning.’

  ‘And that was the last time you saw her? When you left her, half naked in the woods?’

  ‘Yes.’

  Jolyon scanned his notes quickly and sat back in his chair. ‘I don’t think we have too much of a problem here,’ he declared. ‘As long as you didn’t have sex with the girl, there’s no case to answer.’

  ‘Robert, it’s me,’ Alicia said, using her Bluetooth to talk to him as she drove. She knew she was breaking the speed limit and presenting a danger to other drivers, but she had to get to Nat.

  ‘Hi,’ he responded. ‘I still haven’t got hold of Sabrina …’

  ‘So you don’t know Annabelle has accused Nat of rape?’

  ‘What?’

  ‘They arrested him a couple of hours ago.’

  ‘Jesus Christ…’

  ‘Your bloody wife is using her daughter to try and ruin my son,’ she cried.

  ‘Where are you?’ he demanded.

  ‘I’m going to Southmead, in Bristol. It’s where they’re holding him.’

  ‘There has to be some kind of mistake,’ Robert said.

  ‘I know that,’ she shouted. ‘Annabelle’s lying, and if she gets away with this she’s going to ruin his whole life. Just tell your damned wife to back off or she’ll be sorry,’ and unable to speak to him any more she tore out her earpiece and threw it on to the passenger seat.

  DS Bevan was pacing up and down the custody area, glancing impatiently at his watch.

  ‘How much longer are they going to be in there?’ he demanded irritably.

  ‘They’ll be preparing a statement,’ Croft told him.

  ‘Yeah, thanks, I’d worked that much out,’ Bevan retorted, flipping open his mobile as it started to ring. ‘Bevan,’ he barked into it.

  ‘Clive,’ a female voice came down the line. ‘I hear you’re investigating a suspected rape.’

  Bevan’s insides sank. Just what he needed, input from Detective Inspector Ash. ‘Hello ma’am,’ he said, ‘yes, you heard right.’

  ‘And the boy you have in custody goes by the name of Nathan Carlyle.’

  ‘He does indee
d.’

  ‘Doesn’t ring any bells?’

  ‘Should it?’

  ‘If you’re me, it does. His father is – or was – Craig Carlyle, QC.’

  Bevan almost groaned aloud. Not only did he hate cases where the families of prominent lawyers were involved, but when the full might of the legal establishment came at him like a tank, there wasn’t a detective in the department who didn’t know how Caroline Ash felt about Craig Carlyle, and it wasn’t good. ‘I see,’ was all he muttered.

  ‘You’ll need to watch yourself on this one,’ she warned. ‘Keep me posted every step of the way, because if that boy’s guilty I don’t want his father’s cronies opening up loopholes for him to walk through. Do you hear me?’

  ‘Loud and clear, ma’am.’

  ‘How’s it looking so far?’

  ‘I haven’t spoken to the boy yet, but the girl’s got injuries and she sounded plausible.’

  ‘Who’s the young Carlyle’s lawyer?’

  ‘Jolyon Crane.’

  ‘Of course. Only the best for Daddy’s boy.’

  ‘Actually, ma’am, the best has just come out of the interview room, so I’ll have to go,’ and with a curt goodbye he rang off.

  ‘Jolyon,’ he said, holding out a hand to shake as the lawyer came towards him.

  ‘Clive. Good to see you,’ Jolyon responded. ‘We’ve prepared a statement. It shouldn’t take long to read.’

  Bevan nodded and signalling to Croft to come too, he followed Jolyon back into the interview room. This time Jolyon sat the same side of the table as Nat, and spoke to him quietly about what was going to happen next, as Bevan broke the seals of two audio tapes before slotting them into the machine.

  After everyone present had identified themselves, and Bevan had cautioned Nat and made sure he understood his rights, Jolyon read out the prepared statement, giving Nat’s account of what had happened on Saturday night, while Bevan made notes.

  When Jolyon had finished Bevan said, ‘Thank you. Can we have a copy of that?’

  ‘Of course,’ Jolyon agreed.

  Bevan turned his attention to Nat, regarding him intently. Nat could feel his insides churning. Sweat was making the paper overall cling to his body. His chest was too tight, he needed some air, but he only went on staring at the detective in a way that made his eyes look glassy and wild.

  ‘OK, so you’re denying you had sex with Annabelle Preston on the night of the twenty-ninth of July,’ Bevan began.

  Since it wasn’t a question, Nat said nothing.

  ‘Is that true?’ Bevan asked.

  Nat’s face turned crimson. ‘Yes,’ he said faintly.

  ‘You say she was egging you on, inviting you to have sex with her, but you turned her down. Is that right?’

  ‘Sergeant, you have the statement,’ Jolyon reminded him.

  Bevan’s eyes remained on Nat. ‘You and Annabelle Preston are cousins by marriage, aren’t you?’ he said.

  Nat nodded.

  ‘Can you answer in words, please,’ Bevan said, glancing towards the mic on the wall.

  ‘Yes,’ Nat said.

  ‘So you’ve known her for what…? Most of her life?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Have you ever had any kind of sexual relations with her? I mean, prior to Saturday night.’

  Nat flushed again. ‘No,’ he answered. ‘Well, I guess we messed around a bit when we were younger.’

  ‘What do you mean by messed around?’

  ‘It was like kids experimenting, you know.’

  ‘No, I don’t know. Tell me.’

  ‘Sergeant, this isn’t relevant,’ Jolyon interrupted.

  Though Bevan begged to differ, he decided not to pursue it for the moment. After a beat he said, ‘You say she made you really angry when she followed you from the party, but you don’t explain what she said to make you…’

  ‘Irrelevant,’ Jolyon cut in.

  Bevan looked at him.

  ‘My client has denied raping Miss Preston, so whatever she might have done or said to make him angry is beside the point,’ Jolyon expounded.

  Bevan sucked in his upper lip as his eyes slid back to Nat. ‘You admit hitting her?’ he said.

  ‘Accidentally,’ Nat replied. ‘I think, when I pushed her …’

  ‘You also admit trying to throttle her.’

  ‘Yes, but not for long. I just…’

  ‘That’s enough,’ Jolyon cautioned, putting a hand on Nat’s arm. ‘You don’t need to say any more.’

  Bevan shot the lawyer a virulent look. ‘You say when she rolled over and looked up at you her face was bleeding,’ he said to Nat. ‘How do you suppose that happened?’

  ‘I don’t know. Maybe she hit it on a stone when she went down.’

  ‘Are you sure you didn’t knock her down, with your fist?’

  ‘I’m sure. I didn’t hit her at all, not deliberately.’

  ‘And you didn’t rape her either?’

  ‘No. Definitely not.’

  Bevan sat back. ‘OK,’ he said shortly, ‘I think we’re finished here,’ and after stating the time for the record he turned off the tapes.

  Nat looked at him warily, unable to believe it was over so soon, but it seemed to be because everyone was getting to their feet.

  ‘What happens now?’ he asked Jolyon as they followed the detectives into the corridor.

  ‘The nice custody sergeant here is going to bail you,’ Jolyon replied. ‘Isn’t that right, Bob?’

  The custody sergeant, who was at his desk behind a high counter top, looked at Bevan who was coming in through a side door of the office. Bevan gave a brief nod of his head. ‘We need to set conditions,’ he said.

  ‘Of course,’ Jolyon replied affably. ‘Is my client’s mother here yet?’

  ‘She’s waiting in the front office.’

  ‘Mum’s here?’ Nat said. He didn’t want her to see him like this, but at the same time he could hardly wait to feel the familiar comfort of her arms around him.

  ‘I asked her to bring you some clothes,’ Jolyon told him, ‘so I’ll go and get them. When do you want him to report back here?’ he asked the custody sergeant.

  ‘Let me see,’ the sergeant said, consulting the bail diary. ‘About a week?’ he said to Bevan.

  Bevan nodded. ‘OK, next Monday at four o’clock,’ the sergeant announced, ‘if that works for everyone. In the meantime you’re not to go anywhere near Annabelle Preston, or have contact with her of any kind. Do you understand that?’

  ‘Yes,’ Nat answered.

  Leaving the sergeant to explain the consequences of breaking bail terms, Bevan went back to shake Jolyon’s hand, said a polite goodbye and used his swipe card to exit through the back door.

  ‘You seemed to let him off pretty light there, Sarge,’ Croft said, as they walked to their cars. ‘What happened with the girl?’

  ‘She says he did it, of course, and frankly, as things stand, I’m inclined to believe her, because my gut instinct is telling me that boy’s lying. However, let’s keep our minds open, shall we? At least until Wednesday evening.’

  ‘Why then?’

  ‘That, my friend, is when the all-important DNA is due back.’

  Chapter Fifteen

  Robert was waiting as Sabrina and Annabelle came into the kitchen. ‘What on earth’s going on?’ he demanded. ‘I’ve been trying to call you…’

  ‘I’m sorry, I had to turn my phone off,’ Sabrina apologised. ‘Are you OK?’ she asked Annabelle.

  ‘I think so,’ Annabelle answered in a thready voice.

  Robert’s eyes dilated with shock as he registered her bruises. ‘I didn’t realise …’ he stammered, a chill of horror going through him. Surely to God Nat hadn’t done that? ‘Are you badly hurt?’ he asked, not sure whether to go to her, or what to do.

  Sabrina put an arm round Annabelle, saying, ‘It’s been a long day. You must be exhausted. Do you want anything to eat or drink?’

  ‘No, I think I’ll just
go up and lie down,’ Annabelle answered.

  Alarmed by the uncharacteristic meekness, and still thrown by the injuries, Robert watched her walk to the door. Suddenly, to his surprise, she came back and hugged him. ‘I don’t want to be a nuisance,’ she said, squeezing him tight.

  ‘You’re nothing of the sort,’ he assured her, smoothing her hair. ‘If someone’s hurt you…’

  ‘I don’t want to talk about it,’ she said, pulling back. ‘I’m going to my room.’

  For several seconds after she’d gone Robert stood staring at the door, afraid to assimilate his thoughts because of where they were heading. Then, turning to Sabrina, who was unpacking all the literature she’d been given by Lisa Murray, he said, ‘Is she all right?’

  ‘You saw her, so what do you think?’ she replied crisply.

  Feeling horribly out of his depth, he said, ‘You should have called me. When Alicia rang to tell me…’

  ‘Don’t mention her name to me,’ Sabrina cut in.

  At a total loss how to handle this, he let a few moments pass before he said, ‘So what happened exactly?’

  Sabrina’s head came up, her eyes dark with loathing. ‘He raped her, is what happened,’ she seethed. ‘Your nephew, her son, sexually assaulted my daughter.’

  ‘But if that’s true…’

  ‘What do you mean, if it’s true?’ she snarled. ‘Are you saying Annabelle’s lying?’

  ‘No, of course not, I…’

  ‘Well that’s what it sounded like, and since we know you’ve always put your sister first, I guess it stands to reason that her son’s innocent and my daughter’s a liar. I wouldn’t expect anything else from you.’

  ‘That’s not what I’m saying,’ he protested. ‘I’m just trying to…’

  ‘No! I don’t want to hear any more,’ she snapped furiously, and cutting him a scathing look she returned to what she was doing.

  He watched her helplessly, trying desperately to think of something to say that wouldn’t trigger another explosion. ‘I thought she was at Georgie’s for the weekend,’ he ventured finally. ‘So how did…I mean…’

  ‘She was at Georgie’s, but they went to that damned rave.’