by M A Comley
“All right. I said I’ll deal with it. Back off!”
Blackbird left the table and turned the key to the cellar door. “I’m going to check on them.”
“You worry too much. That’s your problem,” Magpie shouted as he walked down the steps.
Blackbird felt the familiar stirring of excitement creep up his spine as he approached the large cage. The room was dark, except for the shard of light coming from a missing brick in the building’s façade. His eyes adjusted quickly and homed in on the three sets of terrified eyes staring back at him. “Hello, girls. How are you doing? I hope you’re behaving yourselves.”
He watched the girls huddle together, heard their breathing come in fits and starts, the odd gasp now and then as one of them flicked an insect off their skin.
“Please, let us go...”
He peered closer at the girl who had dared to beg. She hid behind one of the other girls.
“You’ll be free to go soon. Never fear, little one. Until then, you must remain here, like good little girls. Don’t forget, any trouble, and we’ll kill your parents. Understand?”
The three horrified girls nodded.
With morbid fascination, he watched their wide eyes fill up with tears then spill over onto their cheeks. “Are you hungry?”
Again, the trio nodded.
“Good, chips are on the way.” He moved back towards the stairs and sat on the second step, just watching the girls’ reactions to his presence. Something about their fear caused a satisfying glow within him. He strained an ear to hear the crunching of gravel. Not long after, Swift appeared at the top of the stairs.
“Here you are. While you’re down there, you might as well feed them yourself.”
Blackbird rushed up the stairs and took the hot packages from Swift.
“Get them some water,” he ordered, then descended the stairs again to distribute the food.
The bars were too close together for him to pass the packages to the children. He took the key from the hook on the far wall and unlocked the cage. The three girls were too terrified to rush at him to try and escape. They had chosen younger girls who were far more compliant than the older kids he’d dealt with in the past. He entered the cage and presented each of them with a parcel of food. One by one, they grabbed the bundles and ripped them open. He watched with amusement at the way they bolted down the chips, as if they hadn’t eaten for days. Perhaps they hadn’t. Maybe Swift had lied about feeding them that morning.
Swift appeared behind him with three glasses of water on a small tray. When he walked into the cell, the girls dropped their packages on the floor and clung to each other again. Blackbird’s suspicions were raised. Is he abusing them during the day while I’m at work? He took the glasses from the tray and distributed them to the girls, then both men left the cage. Blackbird turned the key in the lock and replaced it on the hook. Swift ran up the stairs, eager to get out of the dark cellar, but Blackbird assumed his position on the stairs and watched the starving girls resume their meal with gusto.
CHAPTER SEVEN
“We’re going to call it a day soon,” Kayli announced to the team after spending the afternoon going over evidence. “Let’s start over in the morning. I think we should begin turning the screws on a few people. In the morning, we need to interview Kelvin Watson’s four male friends, shake the tree a bit there, and I want to try and track down his brother Troy, plus visit Kelvin’s place of work for a character reference if nothing else.”
“What about the alleged abuse by Kelvin?” Dave asked.
“I need to hold fire on that accusation at present. Let’s see if we can find out more about Kelvin before we tackle him over that issue. The only way we’re going to do that is by interviewing his friends.”
The team agreed, all except Dave, but now and then, he was prone to digging his heels in about something. Kayli wondered if he did so intentionally, just to piss her off.
“Also, the sketch artist is due to see Samantha, the teaching assistant at the school tomorrow, so let’s hope something comes of that. All right, peeps. Let’s call it a day. Well done on what we’ve managed to achieve so far.”
“Goodnight, boss,” Donna and Graeme shouted after switching off their computers.
Kayli smiled and waved at them and then turned to Dave who was sitting at his desk lost in thought.
“Something wrong, matey?”
“Not sure. I’ve got an inkling that we shouldn’t delay speaking to the father again. I don’t think we should ignore such a vital piece of information that has been handed to us on a plate.”
“Dave, I hear you. But, please, let’s do things my way. Gather all the evidence we can from his friends, something else might come to light, then we can hit him with the accusations, all in one go.”
“Okay, hear me out, boss. The reason I think we should say something now is the fact there is another child in that house—that’s my biggest concern.”
“Damn, I’d forgotten about that. All right, then maybe you’re right. Look, delaying things twenty-four hours won’t hurt.”
Dave raised his right eyebrow. “Are you seriously willing to take that risk?”
“Sorry, but yes, I am, Dave.”
With a shrug, he stood up, slipped on his jacket, and headed for the door. “If anything happens to that little girl, it’s on your conscience, not mine. I need to put that on record here.”
“Noted. Goodnight, Dave.”
He left without responding, leaving Kayli pondering whether she was indeed doing the right thing. She went into her office, picked up her handbag, and switched off the light.
During the drive home, Dave’s words constantly filled her head. Kayli pulled up outside her home to hear laughter coming from the lounge. Inserting the key in the front door, she removed her shoes in the hallway and walked into the living room.
“Hello, Giles. This is a surprise. What do we owe the pleasure?” She walked over to her brother and bent down to kiss him on the cheek, then she kissed Mark on the lips. Her fiancé pulled her onto his lap. It felt good to be in his arms after a long day at work.
“Hey, sis, just thought I’d pop in and see how you were both getting on.”
“Always good to see you, Giles. Do you want to stay for dinner?”
“Already agreed to, and the dinner is in the oven. Mark and I have had a productive few hours in more ways than one.” Giles emptied his can of beer.
“Wow, two surprises in one evening. How will I ever cope? Dare I ask what’s on the menu?”
Mark handed her his can of beer. “Pizza and oven chips. Nothing fancy. Good news, love. Giles might have a job for me.”
She took a sip from the can then smiled. “Wow, really? What is it?”
Giles tapped the side of his nose, his brown eyes sparkling with amusement. “I need to keep schtum about it for a day or two.”
“What? You, secretive little toe rag. Why?”
“Because... stop interrogating me as if I’m one of your suspects. By the way, in all seriousness, how is the case going?”
“Slowly. We questioned everyone at the school today. They’re all devastated that Jamillia disappeared under their watch. The poor teaching assistant who virtually handed the little girl over to the perp is mortified. She’s been off work for weeks...” She waved her hand in front of her. “Sorry, you don’t want to hear about my grim day. When will dinner be ready? Do I have time for a quick shower?”
“Sure, we’ve got it covered. Should be ten minutes, but we can delay it if you’re not down in time.”
Kayli kissed Mark and wriggled off his lap. “I’ll be down in eight. I’m starving.”
After having a swift shower, Kayli rejoined Mark and her brother. One look at the broad smile on her fiancé’s face told her that all was not lost for him and their relationship. The man she had fallen in love with a few years ago was still very much there, underneath the heavy layers of self-doubt that had descended upon him of late.
&nbs
p; Between them, Giles and Mark entertained her all evening, regaling some of the fun times they had experienced during their spell in the army. Seeing Mark so happy, she wondered if it would have been better for him if he had remained in the army or if there was any way back for him.
At eleven, Giles called a taxi, refusing Kayli’s offer to stay in their spare room for the night. She saw him to the front door and lowered her voice, “Thanks for tonight, love. It was what we both needed. You weren’t winding him up about the job, were you?”
Giles kissed her on the cheek. “Hey, you know me better than that, sis. I have a contact getting back to me in a few days. I’ll be in touch then. I better go. Annabelle will be wondering where I’ve got to.”
“Give my love to that adorable wife and son of yours. Maybe we can arrange a family barbeque at the weekend or something.”
“Sounds like a great idea. I’ll have a word with Mum and Dad, see if we can use their gaff. You know how Mum likes to fuss over us.”
“Eek... that reminds me, I haven’t given them a call in weeks. I’ll do it at work tomorrow, if I get the chance.”
He walked towards the taxi and called over his shoulder, “They appreciate how busy you are. Don’t beat yourself up about that, hon.”
“Goodnight, Giles. Thanks again for dropping by. It’s always a pleasure seeing my favourite brother.”
He laughed. “Your only brother. Take care out there, sis.”
Kayli blew him a kiss then closed and bolted the front door. When she turned, Mark was standing at the bottom of the stairs, grinning at her.
She sashayed towards him. “Hello, handsome.”
He leaned forward, and their lips met in a kiss that took her breath away. Then he grabbed her hand and led her upstairs to bed.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Kayli left her car and ran for cover in the torrential rain. During her short sprint from the car, the rain soaked through the layers to reach her skin. Damn! Why did I take my brolly out the car, for fuck’s sake?
She was just shaking the excess rain off her coat when Dave ran through the door behind her. “Bloody hell. What a nightmare of a day. I hope we don’t have to go out in that for a while,” he said.
Kayli shrugged. “It depends what kind of crap has landed on my desk overnight. Plus, we have all those interviews to conduct today.”
“Yeah, I’d forgotten those were on the agenda. We could always invite the men to come down here to speak to us.”
“You’re impossible, Dave Chaplin. Never thought I’d see the day you were afraid of a drop of rain.”
He rushed back to the door and pointed out the pane of glass at the side. “Are you kidding me? A drop of rain? That’s bloody monsoon weather out there.”
“Hardly. Come on, you wuss.”
When they strolled into the incident room, they found Donna with her head in her hands at her computer. Kayli rushed across the room. “Donna, what’s wrong?”
The young constable looked up at her and shook her head. “I’m so sorry, boss. I have no idea how I bloody missed it.”
Kayli glanced at the screen, and for a second had no idea what she was looking at, but then one name caught her eye. “Shit! Is that what I think it is?”
“Yes, I’ve been kicking myself for the last twenty minutes, dreading you arriving. I’m sorry.”
“What is it?” Dave asked impatiently. He peered over Donna’s shoulder and let out a long, low whistle. “Holy crap!”
Kayli dropped into the chair behind her. “Print it out for me, Donna. We need to think about this before we put anything into action.”
The printer churned into life and swiftly produced a page. Donna left her seat to collect the sheet and handed it to Kayli. She stared at the information for a few seconds then looked up at Dave. “This should be our first priority today. We need to find Troy Watson.”
“I’ll get on to his place of work, see what his schedule looks like. He’s on the road a lot if I recall, right?” Donna handed him Troy Watson’s employment details.
“Yep, tell them it’s urgent, that we need to speak to him right away.” Kayli smiled at Donna and pointed. “Now don’t you dare go blaming yourself. You hear me?”
“But I should have spotted it sooner, boss. When I was carrying out the background checks.”
“I’ve put an awful lot on you in the last few days. Mistakes happen, Donna. We’ll put it right, so don’t worry. It says here that Troy had a sexual assault charge against him. Look, it could be nothing. If it was against a work colleague, I’m not sure we can link that to the sexual abuse of a child. There again, it’s not something we should be ignoring, either. Can you keep digging for me, Donna? Run his name through everything we have and get back to me ASAP.”
“I’ll do it now, boss.”
Kayli walked over to the coffee machine and bought three coffees. She placed one in Donna’s hand as she passed and put the other two on the edge of Dave’s desk.
Busy talking to someone on the phone, he raised his thumb in appreciation. “Yes, we need to see him urgently. When is he due back in the area?” Not long after, he slammed the phone down and smirked. “The weasel should be at the office around two, the secretary told me.”
“Ring her back and tell her to ask him to come in and see us at two thirty, Donna.”
“Yes, boss.”
“Why the change of heart?” Dave asked.
“Let’s try and start twisting the screw. There’s no better place to start than with the brother, here on our patch. Until then, let’s continue with the plans we put in place yesterday. Donna is doing an in-depth search on Troy now.”
Graeme joined them a few minutes later. He apologised for being late and blamed his tardiness on a huge crash he’d encountered on the outskirts of town.
Kayli quickly filled him in on what Donna had discovered. “So that makes Troy our prime suspect, right, boss?”
“Let’s just call him ‘a person of interest’ for now. We still need to arrange the interviews with Kelvin Watson’s four friends. Who knows, we could have stumbled on a paedophile ring and find out they’re all in on it together, Kelvin, Troy and the four friends for all we know.”
Donna gasped. “Your suspected paedophile ring?”
Dave swiftly turned to face Kayli. “You never said you were going down that route?” His tone was brash, as if he were annoyed that Donna knew her suspicions on the case before he’d been privy to the information.
“It was just an assumption I made early on in the case. I had nothing to back up my claims at the time, Dave, and we still haven’t, really. Let’s just go along with the plan and get these men interviewed today and see where that leads us. I think we should call them in.”
“I agree. I’d rather question them here than at their gaffs... although, we could use the element of surprise on them and see if they’re hiding anything.”
“Good point, but without a warrant, we can’t go into their homes to snoop around. You know that.”
“Yeah, but there are ways to get around that. You could talk to them while I snoop. I could say I need to use the bathroom.”
Kayli rolled her eyes. “That old ploy, eh? Okay, let’s get these men on the phone and see how things work out. They might prefer to come to the station rather than involve their other halves anyway.”
“I’ll give them a call and get back to you.”
Kayli nodded and took her cup into her office. She sat at her desk just staring at the wall in front of her for a second or two, until she shook herself out of her daydream. Ignoring the pile of post in her in-tray, she rang her mother. “Hello, stranger. Sorry it’s been so long since my last call. I’ve been up to my neck in work.”
“Hello, darling. Don’t ever worry about that. We’re aware of the pressure you’re under. Giles told me that you’re working that dreadful child murder case. It must be tough on you.”
“It is, Mum. Enough talk about work, though. Are you up for a family barbeque soon?
Giles is going to call you about it, but I had a spare few minutes, so thought I’d touch base with you first.”
“Oh, that would be lovely, sweetheart. Although looking at the downpour we’re experiencing today, not sure when we’ll be able to fit it in. September is notoriously mixed. No sign of the Indian summer they promised us yet. Typical weathermen getting it wrong again. Let’s play it by ear for the moment. Say yes for now, but subject to change.”
“I know what you mean. I got drowned just running from the car into the station this morning. Okay, I’ll leave it with you then, Mum. Call me if you need a hand with anything, although you know I’m not that handy in the kitchen, so maybe it would be better if you asked Annabelle to help you in that department.”
They both laughed then hung up.
Dave appeared in the doorway a few moments later. “They’ve all agreed to come in during the day, three of them during lunch. We might have to split up to question them, and the fourth said he can call in after work around five fifteen. I said that was fine.”
“Great stuff. Okay, let’s spend the morning delving into their backgrounds, ensure we don’t miss anything.”
“I’m on it now.”
She clicked her fingers together. “I know what I’ve forgotten to do. Ring Kelvin and Lorella’s bosses. I’ll rectify that now.”
“Good idea. I’ll leave you to it.”
Kayli looked up the number for Crazy Joe’s Place and the Co-op store and decided to call the Co-op first. “Hello, this is DI Bright from the Avon and Somerset Constabulary. Is it possible to have a chat with the manager please?”
“Just a moment. I’ll see if he’s free,” a woman replied.
Kayli waited on hold, listening to a classical music clip, which she found surprisingly soothing. Hmm... maybe I should get some of this for the car. Never liked the stuff before, but this is pretty cool. Maybe I’m mellowing with age!
“Hello, Trevor Stott speaking. What can I do for you, Inspector?”