When The Killing Starts

by RC Bridgestock

  ‘So, you just wanted to scare him then, right?’ said Vicky.

  ‘Yeah,’ she said labouring on the word. ‘But, scare him good and proper - you know so he shit himself.’ She gave a little laugh. ‘Enough so he wouldn’t mess with us or anyone else again - if you know what I mean?’

  ‘Tell us, what happened the day he died?’ Vicky continued.

  ‘Well most of us went on to the top floor. There were no cars about, and we larked around half-hiding, waiting while a couple of the others hung around in the park. Their job was to get him to chase them - which he did. He didn’t let his brute of a dog off the lead until he got to the car park and he told it to “find ‘em”. But we were ready for it and caught it with Martin’s dad’s gear.’

  ‘So Martin is good with his dad’s gear is he?’

  Farah whistled. ‘Good? He’s bloody fantastic. Council should hire him as a dog catcher. He brought the gear to the park one day and showed us how good he was with Bish’s dog.’ All was silent for a moment or two. ‘Martin got the dog in the loop at the end of the pole. The others surrounded Knapton and the next thing I know he was on the floor not moving. I didn’t see what happened y’see coz me and Dean were...’

  Vicky quickly interrupted. ‘I think we are all aware of what you say Dean and yourself were up to Farah you don’t need to tell us again.’

  ‘I can’t help it if he finds me sexy, can I?’ she said as she scratched her head. Pulling her hand away she looked at her hand and put her fingers in her mouth chewing what she had removed from under her nail.

  ‘What did you do when you saw Knapton lying on the floor not moving?’

  ‘We threw him over the wall.’

  Vicky looked at her questioningly.

  ‘He were dead.’ Farah said, her voice rising a few octaves. ‘You don’t need to look at me like I’m a bloody criminal.’

  Ned cleared his throat. It was his turn now to challenge everything she had said.

  ‘Farah, that’s not true is it?’

  Farah frowned. ‘Yeah it is, ask anybody. They all saw us at it.’

  ‘I’m not disputing that you two had a thing going on in the car park with Dean, but what we are disputing is that you threw Knapton over the wall after he was killed.’

  ‘No fucking way! I’m not having that. You’re making me out to be a murderer,’ she squealed.

  ‘Why don’t you just tell us the truth, all this excited you?’

  ‘Is he some sort of perv?’ she said turning her attention to Vicky. She looked back to Ned. ‘You’re a sad bastard you are. And the drugs were only legal highs for your info.’

  ‘You knew Dean had taken a knife with him to the car park, didn’t you?’

  ‘I’m not saying I didn’t, but he gave it to one of the others when we went off to...’

  Ned stopped her. ‘Who, who did he give it to?’

  ‘Who?’ Farah screwed-up her face, ‘I don’t know who?’

  ‘Who did Dean give the knife to? People we have spoken to say it was you who grabbed the knife from Dean and stabbed Knapton.’

  ‘Well they’re fucking lying then aren’t they?’ Farah splayed her legs and her gaze fell to the floor.

  ‘Dean stabbed Knapton after you didn’t he?’

  ‘Fucking lies. I told you what happened.’

  ‘Why, then, when we called to see you at your flat did you tell us you knew nothing about Freddy Knapton’s murder?’

  ‘Okay, but that was then. I’m locked up now aren’t I? So what’s the point in me lying to you?’

  ‘We’ve recovered the knife that Freddy Knapton was stabbed with. Apart from his blood there are also traces of someone else’s blood on it. Is that going to be yours?’

  Farah looked momentarily shocked. She shook her head. ‘No, no way!’

  ‘Dean is going to be brought here from prison and arrested in connection with Freddy Knapton’s murder, which means there were nine of you in total, against one.’

  Her face lit up. She sat forward. ‘Will I be able to see him?’ she asked eagerly.

  ‘No, I’m afraid it’s not possible for you to see Dean.’

  Farah groaned and sulked like a child.

  ‘What’s he going to say when questioned about the murder do you think?’

  ‘How the hell should I know, and if you won’t let me see him how am I going to find out?’ she mumbled under her breath.

  ‘As you are aware we have seized your clothing and footwear and it will be checked for Knapton’s blood.’

  ‘Well there might be some there mightn't there coz, like I said, I’ve admitted to helping the others lift him over the car park wall.’

  ‘Are we going find his dog’s blood on your clothing too?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘But there are others who say you and Dean took the dog away and we know it was beheaded, and if that’s so it’s very likely you’ll have its blood on your clothing isn’t it?’

  Farah threw her head back and laughed out loud.

  ‘You think that’s funny, why?’ Vicky’s eyes narrowed.

  ‘That nasty fucker without its head, now that was funny. So what you going to do about it?’

  Keith Parkin gave her a quizzical look over his half-rimmed spectacles. ‘I think I’d like to talk to my client if we could stop there for a break please,’ he said to the detectives.

  Farah turned her head sharply towards him. ‘Why would you want to do that? I’m just starting to enjoy myself?’

  ‘This interview is terminated at sixteen-hundred hours for the purpose of the tape,’ Vicky heard Ned say.

  The break was short lived when they got a call from the cells to say that Farah Ruwal was ready to be interviewed again. During the free time that had been forced upon them, Vicky and Ned had updated the team with the fact that she admitted being at the scene, knowing about the intention and the knife but denied she or Dean stabbed Freddy Knapton.

  The door of the interview room had been left ajar during the recess but the repulsive odour still lingered on their return. The interview resumed with Farah Ruwal.

  ‘When did you first know Dean had a knife?’ asked Vicky.

  Farah shrugged her shoulders. ‘A few days before? He showed me first because he knew he could trust me.’

  ‘Can you describe the knife for me?’

  ‘He told me it were a proper soldier’s knife. It had a yellow handle. In fact...’ Farah paused, ‘If you find blood on it then it’s probably from then, I remember, he told me not to touch the blade because it were so sharp, it cut my finger badly and I bled buckets.’ Farah held her finger up in the air.

  ‘You’ve still got the scar?’

  ‘Scar?’ Farah looked from Vicky Hardacre, to her solicitor, and back.

  ‘A scar on your finger where the knife cut you?’

  Farah held out hands, palms up, on the table that sat between the detectives, and her and Keith Parkin. ‘Nah,’ she said with a little laugh. ‘I’m one of them folk that heal quick obviously.’

  ‘Why are you lying to us?’ said Ned.

  ‘I’m not, it’s what happened, trust me.’

  ‘The trace of blood we are talking about was found beneath the base of the handle. You see when someone stabs someone else their hand slides down onto the knife, this is how sometimes they happen to cut themselves accidentally. You have a cut, but on your right hand. Is that how that happened?’ Vicky asked.

  ‘No,’ Farah said picking at the scab. ‘That’s from a sharp stone I think.’

  Ned took over the interview. ‘Farah, you’re not helping yourself by continuing to lie. Freddy Knapton was murdered and your friends say you and Dean stabbed him. Some of them admit to kicking him and apart from Tara and Phillip Masters they also admit to tossing him over the edge of the car park. Tell me, how did you know he was dead?’

  ‘Dean said he was. Everybody said he was. He was,’ Farah’s voice rose.

  ‘I’m not saying he wasn’t,’ Ned said calmly. ‘But let�
��s suppose for one minute that he was just unconscious, and you helped throw him over the edge knowing that the drop from that height would kill him?’

  ‘But I told you. He was dead.’

  ‘If he was dead, then why did you need to throw him over the wall? You could have just left him lying on the car park floor couldn’t you?’

  She was silent for a moment. ‘We did it to make sure he was dead.’

  ‘So you wanted Freddy Knapton dead, why?’

  Farah opened her mouth to speak but her solicitor interrupted her. ‘I think I need time to advise my client further. Could we stop the interview?’

  Ned glared at him, ‘I think it’s only fair that we allow Farah to answer the question.’ His eyes went back to Farah’s pale, jowly face. Keith Parkin shrank back in seat.

  ‘Farah?’ Ned said softly.

  ‘I guess we were frightened that he could tell you about it.’

  ‘How could he if he was dead?’ It was Ned’s voice that rose.

  ‘If he was alive.’

  ‘So your intention was to help make sure he was dead?’

  She looked at her solicitor, the corners of her mouth turned downward. ‘No reply,’ she said.

  Terminating the interview seemed like the most sensible thing to do. Vicky and Ned left the cell area and walked back in silence to the incident room. Vicky headed for the kitchen and Ned followed. He stood with his back to the wall. ‘Everyone present says she stabbed him. She tried to kill him for god’s sake and she admits she thought they had. One way or another by throwing him off the top floor of the multi-storey, she was making sure he was bloody dead.’

  Vicky’s face was set. Taking three mugs out of the cupboard she banged them each, in turn down onto the worktop. She kept her eyes on the kettle as she spoke. ‘You’re right Ned, but I still wish she’d just drop Dean in it.’

  ‘But she luvs him,’ he said in a stupid voice.

  Vicky tutted. ‘Who said romance was dead.’

  ***

  Dylan had just put down the phone to Detective Inspector Hawk to update him on their visit to Redchester Regal Hire Cars and the seizure of the Mercedes when the pair burst in his office.

  ‘Do you want coffee?’ asked Vicky.

  ‘Is the pope catholic?’ Dylan grinned. He lifted the drink that she had placed down on his desk and looked up at them apprehensively.

  ‘Go on, what’ve you got for me?’

  ‘Not much, Farah’s still trying to make out that her and Dean only joined in the attack after the stabbing, when Knapton was laid flat out on the concrete floor of the car park, unresponsive. We pushed her. She admits she knew about the knife. Dean showed it to her but she tells us he handed it to someone else in the car park, and guess what?’ Vicky raised her eyebrows. ‘She doesn’t know who.’

  ‘She admits her and Dean helped toss him off the roof of the car park. Of course she says they thought he was dead,’ said Ned.

  ‘What was the point if he was dead?’ said Dylan.

  ‘That’s what we said. She couldn’t answer that one. So we dropped it on her toes that the only reason to push him over the edge was to make sure he was dead and she agreed that was true,’ said Vicky.

  ‘So she doesn’t deny helping to throw him from the car park onto the pavement, just to the stabbing,’ said Ned.

  ‘We told her about the second blood trace being found on the knife and she came back at us with an excuse. She’s lying her arse off but she’s implicated herself in the process.’

  ‘Did you ask her about Knapton’s dog’s death?’

  Ned nodded. ‘We asked her if we would find the dogs blood on her clothing. She denied it. But she found it highly amusing.’

  ‘Like I’ve said before let’s wait until we have gathered the data from all their mobile phones to see if it implicates them any further,’ said Dylan.

  ‘Her solicitor is a new kid in town,’ said Vicky. ‘He’s from Lancashire, a Keith Parkin have you come across him before?’

  Dylan shook his head.

  ‘He tried to jump in when he realised she was incriminating herself,’ said Vicky.

  ‘And?’

  ‘And Ned...’ Vicky sniggered looking his way, ‘wasn’t having any of it was you tiger?’

  ‘Good, so what happens now?’ Dylan looked from Vicky to Ned and back to Vicky.

  ‘We’re going to have another interview with her and then bed her down for the night.’

  ‘I’ll chase up forensics and mobile analysis,’ said Dylan.

  ‘I’d love to place the knife in her hand, which of course would support everything that the others are saying,’ said Vicky.

  ‘I still think it’s bloody annoying that we have to wait so long for information to come back from the mobile phone providers. All we’ve got so far is people telling us what footage they took at the scene?’ said Ned.

  ‘Well if we view it, we might not be able to retrieve it and then we’ve lost what potentially could be damning evidence. So, we’ll just have to be patient and wait for the experts to present us with the evidence,’ said Vicky.

  ‘I’ll liaise with Jackie Stanley again after the next interview. I think we should charge Farah with murder and go for a remand in custody, there is nothing to keep her around here and let’s face it she would certainly intimidate the others involved if she was on the outside.’ Dylan’s smile was satisfying. ‘Well done. I’ll catch up with you tomorrow. Any problems later call me.’

  Chapter Twenty Four

  Dylan’s mobile rung the next morning. It was Vicky.

  ‘Hello boss,’ came a muffled voice.

  ‘Vicky, where are you?’

  ‘Farah decided she wanted to speak to us so the early-turn sergeant gave me a shout and me and Ned came in. We’ve just been in and done a quick interview.’

  ‘Are you eating?’

  ‘On the hoof again, cold bloody toast while I’m writing up the charge sheet. Sticks in your throat when you see the prisoners’ getting hot food delivered to the cells.’

  ‘What did she want to speak to you about that was so urgent?’

  ‘Let’s say a night locked up still works wonders. She’s now remembers holding the knife and lashing out at Freddy Knapton in the car park. But she still denies stabbing him. She tells us she dropped the knife when Dean took her away for a...’

  ‘Slowly but surely; that’s enough to charge her in my book. Liaise with CPS will you and let’s charge her and get her to court for a remand in custody. Like I said yesterday, I don’t want the others intimidated and I don’t think for a minute she’ll hang about if she gets bail.’

  ‘Will do.’

  ‘Dean McIntyre is being produced from prison today so if you’re available, you and I will interview him. It’ll give me a break from paper shuffling,’ said Dylan.

  ‘I’ll leave Ned to charge Farah, and I’m all yours.’

  ***

  After the formalities had been completed in the presence of Dean McIntyre’s solicitor, Dylan told him that he was under arrest for the murder of Freddy Knapton. His reply was direct and straight to the point.

  ‘Not fucking guilty!’ His stance was robust and aggressive. Dylan gave a wry smile. He was more than a match for the prisoner and, in the mood he was in, he was going to enjoy the interview.

  ‘Not fucking guilty, eh?’ Dylan mocked. ‘I should remind you that you are not in a court room yet Mr McIntyre, you’re in an interview room at Harrowfield police station. Eight other people have been arrested and interviewed in connection with this murder and have given us their accounts of the incident. And, surprise, surprise...’ Dylan’s eyes were bright. ‘They all say Dean McIntyre, you, were in the car park when Freddy Knapton was killed.’

  ‘Just because I’m on remand, inside, of course they’ll blame me. Are you thick? Let them tell me that to my fucking face?’ McIntyre showed his teeth and growled.

  Dylan couldn’t hide a snigger. ‘Or maybe, they’re just saying it as it is. You’
re a bully, that’s why you’d like to be in their presence when they speak to us. Even your girlfriend Farah Ruwal says you were there.’

  McIntyre looked bemused. ‘Fat Farah? Are you taking the piss? She’s not my girlfriend.’

  ‘Well, she says she is. Although, why anyone would boast about having you as a boyfriend I’ve no idea.’

  McIntyre scoffed. There was a pause as he shuffled his legs apart, slumped back in his chair and concentrated on picking the skin around his nails.

  ‘It is our understanding that more than one person in your group took video footage on their phone of what took place that day, the mobile phones of your friends are being examined by the experts as we speak.’ Dylan leaned forward.

  Dean stopped and lifted his sullen eyes to meet Dylan’s. He remained silent.

  ‘We are satisfied that your prized hunting knife was the weapon used to kill Freddy Knapton,’ said Vicky. ‘Perhaps it’s time you thought about telling us the truth. What do you say?’

  McIntyre’s solicitor demanded the interview be terminated. ‘This is new evidence about possible mobile phone footage that I was unaware of. Therefore, I cannot possibly advise my client until I have seen it. This feels like an ambush.’

  ‘No problem,’ said Dylan. ‘We’ll terminate the interview and give you time to digest the evidence, although I’m sure your client is well versed on ambushes.’

  Vicky and Dylan went back to the incident room. ‘You knew the solicitor would do that so why didn’t you disclose the fact that we were examining the mobile phones for film footage before we went into interview?’ asked Vicky.

  ‘I wanted to see the look on McIntyre’s face when he heard about it.’

  ‘I didn’t think I’d ever say it but I feel a bit sorry for Freddy now, he didn’t stand a chance did he?’

  ‘And the killers, just an angry mob of young adults who thought they could do what they want when they want. Led by a thick bully who can only speak with violence.’