Broken Girls: A totally addictive and unputdownable crime thriller (Detective Bernadette Noel Book 2)

by Joy Kluver

  ‘Don’t come any closer or I’ll break her neck.’

  Bernie stopped at the top of the landing, Kerry just behind her with the two other officers. The PCSO had restrained Barbara Finch but she was calling frantically up to him.

  ‘Come on, son, don’t do anything stupid now. Let her go. It’s over.’

  Bernie looked at Ben. ‘Son? This is your mother’s café? Katie’s your sister?’ Bernie nodded. ‘They’re good liars, I’ll give them that. Bit late for doing stupid things, though, isn’t it? Grooming teenagers online, getting them to send you intimate photos, kidnap and murder too.’

  ‘What?’ said Barbara. ‘Murder? Who?’

  ‘Not to mention ABH on a police officer.’

  Ben looked confused. ‘Police officer? I haven’t done that.’ Bernie noticed his grip loosened slightly.

  Alice swung her elbow back into his stomach before grabbing his arm around her neck. She bent over and threw him down to the ground, twisting his arm back and pinning him with her knee. There was a moment of stunned silence. Then Bernie shook herself.

  ‘Wow! Nice one, Alice. Good to see I have two ninjas on the team. Why don’t you do the honours?’

  ‘Ben Gardener, I’m arresting you on suspicion of grooming underage girls online, for kidnapping two minors and for the murder of Maria Greco. You do not have to say anything. But, it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.’

  Kerry stepped forward and cuffed Ben. The two women hauled him upright.

  Bernie looked at the two uniformed officers. ‘Any chance you could take him back to Devizes for us, please?’

  ‘It’ll be our pleasure, ma’am.’

  Bernie turned her attention to the three closed doors that led off the landing. Alice pointed to the back room.

  ‘He came out of there and I’m fairly certain he wasn’t alone in that room.’

  Bernie turned the handle and pushed open the door. She smiled at the two girls huddled together on the sofa.

  ‘Laura Moffatt, how many times do I have to tell you? Stay off Instagram. You too, Chloe.’

  Tears streamed down their faces as Bernie gently placed her arms around them.

  ‘It’s OK, girls. You’re safe now.’

  61

  Caroline Moffatt rocked her sobbing daughter back and forth. She glanced up at Bernie.

  ‘And the doctor’s sure? She hasn’t been… interfered with?’

  ‘No. She hasn’t been harmed in that way. Psychologically and emotionally is another matter. Tomorrow, we’ll need to take a video statement. That way, when the case comes to court, Laura won’t have to give evidence again. The doctor would like to keep her in tonight, just for observation. Then she can go home in the morning.’

  Caroline nodded and kissed the top of her daughter’s head.

  ‘I’m so sorry, Mummy. I won’t ever do that again,’ said Laura, her head still buried in her mother’s shoulder.

  ‘You haven’t called me that since going to secondary school. And I know you’re sorry, darling.’

  Bernie reached out and lightly touched Caroline on the shoulder. ‘I’m going to leave you to it. Will your husband be here soon?’

  ‘Yes. He’ll stay the night. Laura’s a Daddy’s girl really. I’ll go back to Craig. He’s so relieved she’s safe.’

  ‘I bet. How’s he doing now?’

  ‘Physically, better. But still quite shocked. Do you ever get over finding a dead body? Especially at his age?’

  Bernie remembered her first reaction to seeing Maria Greco. Her stomach lurched just thinking about it. ‘It’s not easy. We can help arrange some counselling for both your children. I’ll see you tomorrow.’

  Bernie walked out of the hospital towards the car park when she realised that she didn’t have her car. Kerry had taken it back to Devizes with Alice and Chloe.

  ‘Oh shit.’

  ‘Do you need a lift, darling?’

  Bernie smiled. She knew that voice. ‘I thought I’d left you in charge of the search at Gardener’s house,’ she said, turning towards Anderson.

  ‘Search is going really well. I was getting in the way and heard on the radio that Kerry and Alice were coming back without you. Figured you’d need a lift back to headquarters. Damn shame that twenty-four hours has already started ticking for Ben Gardener. Otherwise…’

  ‘Otherwise, what?’

  ‘I’d take you home,’ said Anderson. He winked.

  ‘I think we should go on a date first.’

  ‘A date? Seriously?’

  ‘Yes. I want a day out and the full works.’

  Anderson gave a wicked grin. ‘Oh, I can promise you the full works.’

  Bernie playfully hit him on the arm. ‘I bet you can. Come on. We need to go and deal with Ben Gardener first.’

  She took his hand. It felt right – his fingers slotted between hers. They walked towards Anderson’s car.

  ‘So, tell me everything you’ve found out from Gardener’s house,’ said Bernie.

  The roads were fairly empty as they drove back to Devizes.

  ‘Well, Forensics started off in the shed and have taken lots of samples and swabs. Hopefully we’ll get something that will place Laura there. Obviously, we have her necklace and owl pendant. That should have her DNA on it. But we need more than that. On the computer front, we have plenty. Tom managed to get in through a ridiculous bit of luck. Shut down had got stuck on an app so Tom just cancelled it. Oh boy. There’s some seriously sick stuff on there. We’ve only just scratched the surface but there’s got to be thousands of images and videos.’ Anderson sighed and shook his head. ‘I don’t understand these guys. But I’ve saved the best for last. We have Ria’s suitcase, her phone and the teddy bear camera. Guess what else was hidden inside the bear?’

  ‘I don’t know.’

  ‘The original SIM card for Ria’s phone when it belonged to Bruno Manetti. Inspector De Luca is a very happy man.’

  ‘I bet he is. And at the café in Salisbury?’

  ‘Matt’s taken charge of the search there. Nothing much to report yet. Gardener’s mother and sister are at headquarters, waiting to be questioned.’

  ‘And Gardener himself?’

  ‘Worth is dealing with Gardener for the time being. He’s been shoved in a cell while we build the evidence around him. The DCI wants lots of ammunition first so he has no chance to deny anything. We’ll probably be able to get an extension, though, as there’ll be multiple charges.’

  ‘I’m pretty certain he’ll go “no comment” for everything,’ said Bernie. ‘I think our biggest problem is pinning him for Maria Greco’s murder. We’re going to need forensic evidence for that which will take time. But with Chloe’s statement and Laura’s, we should have enough to get him on remand. Assuming the CPS backs the charges.’

  Anderson glanced across at Bernie. ‘After what I’ve seen today on those computers, he’s definitely being charged.’

  Worth was pacing the MCIT office as Bernie walked in.

  ‘Finally,’ he said.

  ‘I’m sorry, sir. It was important to make sure Laura was OK and reunited with her family.’

  ‘You could have got Alice to do that.’

  ‘Alice was the arresting officer so she had to come back to book Gardener in. She did an excellent job and deserved to do Chloe’s interview. Anyway, I’m here now. What’s your plan of action, sir?’

  Worth coughed.

  Have you even got one?

  ‘Well… it seems to me we have enough to go on with the abductions. I’ve seen Chloe’s interview. I suggest you take a look before you interview the suspect.’

  ‘I’m interviewing Gardener? Don’t you want to do that, sir?’

  There was a shifty look in his eyes. ‘No, I want you to do it. I’ll watch in the viewing room. I suggest you have DS Anderson with you.’

  ‘Really? You don’t want him collating all
the evidence from the house?’

  Bernie’s mind began to tick.

  ‘No, I want him to present the evidence,’ said Worth.

  ‘In that case then, it would be good if either Alice or Kerry are watching with you, sir, since they did Chloe’s interview.’

  The DCI nodded slowly. ‘Yes, I’ll get Alice in. Now, I suggest you hurry up and watch Chloe’s statement and then prepare for Gardener’s interview.’

  Worth left MCIT just as Anderson came in with two cups of coffee and some packets of crisps.

  ‘Thought you’d need some nourishment,’ said Anderson. He nodded towards the door. ‘Is the DCI OK?’

  ‘I’m not entirely sure. He seems a bit… jittery. I thought he’d want to interview Gardener himself but he wants you and me to do it.’

  ‘Not Kerry or Alice? They’ve just done Chloe’s.’

  ‘I know. Worth wants Alice with him in the viewing room. This afternoon, I was absolutely convinced she was Worth’s spy but I gave her a chance and she came up trumps. In fact, I’d like to keep her on. Mick too.’

  ‘I think they’d like that. Mick was asking if there were any vacancies on the team.’

  ‘Really? The DCI is in for a very rude awakening.’

  62

  Ben Gardener stretched and yawned in his seat in the interview room. His shirt pulled tightly across his torso and Bernie could see he was quite muscular underneath. Such a good-looking man. You could have any woman. Why are you going after teenage girls? Anderson was right – she didn’t understand either.

  ‘You have to admit,’ she said, ‘it’s not looking good for you, Ben. You were found with Laura Moffatt and Chloe Hampton.’

  Gardener folded his arms across his chest. ‘No comment.’

  ‘I was at the hospital with Laura and her mother. She’s in no fit state to give a statement tonight but she should be able to do so in the morning. Chloe, however, was able to give us a statement. Shall I read you some of it?’

  Ben glanced across at his solicitor, a man in his forties, who clearly wasn’t happy to be at the police station at eleven o’clock at night.

  ‘As I’ve already told you, my client will be conducting a “no comment” interview,’ said the solicitor.

  ‘And as I told you,’ said Bernie, ‘I’m still going to be asking your client some questions. He’s facing some very serious charges, including murder. So if you don’t mind, I’m going to carry on.

  ‘This is from Chloe’s statement: “I was just about to leave class when Mr Gardener called me back. He said my mum had called school to say she couldn’t pick me up after all and I was to go straight home. I hadn’t had a chance to check my mum’s mobile – I was borrowing it. Mr Gardener said that with everything going on with Laura, he’d be happy to drop me home. I wasn’t sure. It didn’t seem right really. But he said it was no trouble and on his way. I’m not sure why I agreed but I was feeling a bit nervous with Laura missing. We got into his car in the staff car park. There were no other staff around to see us leave. I think there was a staff meeting. I knew something wasn’t right when the car locked. He said it did that automatically and not to worry. But then I realised we were going the wrong way. I asked him to stop and let me out but he wouldn’t. He told me to ‘relax, babe’. And then I knew. I knew he was Luke.”’

  Bernie leaned back in her chair. ‘“Babe” is your catchphrase, isn’t it? Or rather it’s Luke’s. You used it with all the girls you chat to online. I wonder if it’s because you sometimes forget who you’re chatting with – there are so many. Detective Sergeant Anderson has been at your house, looking at your computers.’

  ‘Yes,’ said Anderson, ‘and we’ve already found a significant amount of intimate photos and videos of teenage girls. And by teenage, I mean under sixteen. You like them young, don’t you, Ben? I suppose getting a job as a teacher in a girls’ secondary school has been a bit of a perk. Watching all those girls, day in, day out. Did you like it when Laura and Chloe started arguing over Luke? Did it make you feel good?’

  Ben Gardener looked at the ceiling. ‘No comment.’

  ‘And to think you’re the one who talked to them about online safety,’ Bernie said. ‘Did you find it funny that the girls were listening to your teaching at school during the day but ignoring your advice and talking to your alter ego at night? Bit risky taking your motorbike to school some days, though. Or did you want the girls to guess? Did you want the online adulation to turn into something real? What were you going to do with them, Ben? Leave them to rot in the woods too?’

  Gardener looked directly at Bernie, his eyes locking with hers.

  ‘No. Comment.’

  Bernie leaned forward, without breaking eye contact.

  ‘The problem is, Ben, every time you say “no comment”, that confirms your guilt to me. This is your chance to put your side of the story and you’re not taking the opportunity.

  ‘Maybe we should change the subject for a moment. Let’s talk about Rosa Conti, aka Maria Greco. Look, she had two names, just like you.’

  Bernie glanced at Anderson. He pushed some photos towards Gardener.

  ‘I’ve seen Maria’s Instagram page,’ said Anderson. ‘She used to be very pretty. Not so pretty any more, is she?’

  Ben blinked his eyes and shifted back in his seat.

  ‘Not very pleasant, is it?’ said Anderson. ‘You should consider yourself lucky that you’re only seeing a photo. DI Noel and I saw her first-hand. You see, with photos, what you don’t get is the smell. I can’t even begin to put into words what that smell is like.’

  ‘Detective Inspector Noel,’ said the solicitor, ‘is this line of questioning from your sergeant really necessary?’

  ‘Yes, I think so. We’re not in court yet. So your objection is overruled. The point we’re making is that Maria was left in those woods to rot. Now, while you were clever enough to not take your helmet off, Ben, we have quite a few witnesses who will recognise your motorbike and your leather jacket. It’s quite distinctive. And we have the helmet and jacket that Maria wore. They have her DNA on them, and that of an unknown male. All we have to do is check that sample against yours. In fact, Forensics are doing that right now. We were fortunate to find them, though, it was a good hiding place…’

  Bernie stopped. Her conversation with Stan Willis began playing in her mind. She propped her elbows on the desk and rested her chin on her hands. ‘But you knew it was a good hiding place, didn’t you?’

  Ben’s breathing was starting to quicken. A sheen of sweat appeared on his face.

  ‘You’ve used that hiding place before. As a child. That’s why you knew the track and the woods so well. It was probably just a bicycle you used back then. You hid five-year-old Ryan Willis in that cave and left him there. You see? We’re establishing a pattern of behaviour.’

  Bernie bit her lip. ‘Oh dear oh dear oh dear, Ben. You really are in trouble now. It’s one thing to hide a child in a cave, it’s quite another to murder a young woman and leave her to rot in the woods until she looks like this.’ She picked up the photo.

  Gardener suddenly stood up, his chair screeching across the floor. He leaned forward on the table. ‘I did not kill Maria. And I wasn’t going to kill the girls either.’

  ‘Then who did, Ben? We’ve spoken to all the people there that evening and they all say they didn’t race you. So, it’s looking like you are—’

  ‘Check my sent emails.’

  ‘Pardon?’ said Bernie.

  ‘Check my outbox on my computer. Everything you need to know is in there. Everything.’

  63

  Bernie tapped her fingers on her desk as she waited for Tom to phone her back.

  ‘What’s in those emails?’ she said as she looked across at Anderson. They were alone in MCIT.

  ‘I have no idea. What do you want to do about Ben Gardener’s mother and sister? They’re still downstairs in separate rooms. Their statements have been taken by Kerry. His mother’s been pretty tight-lipped
apparently but Katie’s been more forthcoming. She’d had enough of it all.’

  ‘Bail them for now, pending further enquiries.’

  ‘OK. By the way, what was that cave business with Ryan Willis?’

  ‘When Ryan was five, he was hidden in the cave along the track – the one where Kerry found the helmet and jacket. You’d have to know it was there to hide something, particularly in the dark. Both Ryan’s brothers swore they hadn’t done it. I think if we look more into Ben Gardener, we’ll find he went to school with Gareth Willis. I’m sure Ben’s mother could help us with that.’

  Bernie rubbed her head as Anderson got up to leave.

  ‘Another headache?’ he asked.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘You have far too many of those. You need to get them checked out.’

  Bernie pulled her hand away. ‘I know already what the doctor will say – cut back on caffeine, get some good sleep and try to relax more. As if I can do that.’

  Anderson bent over and kissed her gently on the head. ‘You’re probably right but it could be more serious, like your blood pressure. I’ll keep on nagging you until you go.’

  ‘Fine. Once this is all sorted I’ll book an appointment. Now go and sort out Ben Gardener’s family.’

  Anderson nearly collided with Alice as he opened the door to leave.

  ‘Sorry, sir.’ Her face was flushed.

  ‘Are you OK?’

  ‘Yes, I just need to speak to the DI.’

  Bernie smiled as Alice came over.

  ‘Well done on Chloe Hampton’s interview, you did a good job. And as for how you handled yourself with Ben Gardener, well, I’m seriously impressed.’

  ‘Thank you, ma’am. But that’s not why I’m here. Um… I’m not too sure whether to say something or not but…’

  Bernie leaned forward in her chair and beckoned Alice to sit down.

  ‘Something’s bothering you. What is it?’

  Even though they were alone, Alice looked around the room before speaking. ‘I was with DCI Worth when you were interviewing Gardener. He was writing a few things down. But when Gardener stood up and said to check his emails, the DCI went pale and left the room abruptly.’