by Emily Selby
'Yes.' Katie copied the number from the screen and added Amanda's mother name to her notes.
'So, that’s what I wanted to say. But I honestly, can't see how this message can be connected to my daughter's tragic death.' The woman's voice trailed off in a slightly exaggerated manner.
Katie stifled another sigh. If she'd ever blamed Amanda for not keeping in touch with her mother, that was no longer the case.
'This must have been important, otherwise Amanda wouldn't have bothered asking,' Katie said seriously. 'Do you know what's happened to those children?'
Or a complete red herring, she added in her thoughts.
Having said that, Amanda cared about children. Like the twins she was making the origami zoo for.
'The older one ended up in hospital just before we moved three months ago. And the baby is dead, I think. Yeah, I think it was on the news recently. The parents are trying to sue the landlord, but the landlord is refusing to accept liability. He blames the previous owner.'
'Why would it be the landlord's fault?'
'Oh, you don't know, do you? The house was a P-lab.'
'A what?'
'One of those things. It's a plague here, in New Zealand. Google it. But that's what I wanted to tell you - the message from Amanda.'
'Just one question about your old neighbours' children.'
'Yes.'
'Did she know those children?' Katie asked, ignoring Mrs Lee's comments.
'She did some baby-sitting for the family. I can't recall all the details, she was always economical with telling me what was happening in her life. But it wasn't for long. She got that real estate job shortly afterwards.'
'But obviously, she remembered the children.'
'Yes, obviously, and obviously cared about them more than about her own mother,' Mrs Lee said, adding a huffing noise.
Katie's shoulders tensed again.
'Oh, thank you, ever so much, Mrs Lee. I'll certainly pass it onto Inspector Heaton.'
'You're welcome.'
The woman ended the call. Katie put the message on Jack's tray and dropped onto the nearest chair.
Sick children more important than her own sick mother? Why would she even worry about the children?
Katie sat at the desk, drumming her fingers, but it didn't help much.
Should she review her notes? Had she missed anything? What were P-houses?
She needed a coffee to clear the fog in her head. She climbed to her feet. With the coffee machine gurgling in the background, Katie booted her computer and opened the browser.
What did Mrs Lee say? "P-lab houses"?
Katie typed the phrase into the search bar, adding New Zealand to narrow the scope. Her jaw dropped, seeing a long list of hits - information about houses contaminated with chemical substances in the process of illegal production of a powerful drug - methamphetamine, known as "P" in New Zealand.
With a steaming cup in one hand, and a pen to make notes in the other, she was so engrossed in her research, she didn't hear the staffroom door opening.
'Hi, Katie, you're in early,' Jack voice boomed by her side. She jumped, jerking her head in the direction of the voice. The kiss, probably intended for her cheek, landed on her lips.
It was nice. Meltingly hot nice.
'What are you looking at?' he asked, when their lips disconnected. He stretched his neck. 'Methamphetamine?' Suspicion crept into his voice. 'What's happened? Julia?'
'No, nothing to do with anyone close,' Katie said promptly. 'It's just something I heard from Amanda's mother.' She told him about the telephone conversation.
'Interesting,' he said, stroking his chin. 'I vaguely recall something in the recent searches done on one of the computers in the hotel lobby. I ignored it at the time, because it looked as though it might have been one of the guests,' he added.
'What was it?'
'Something about contaminated houses and news from New Zealand. It stood out, because most searches were to do with local weather forecasts, train and plane departures, as well as news and gossip sites. Usually UK- or US-related.'
'Not on Amanda's PC?'
'No. And not on her personal computer either. By the way, her Skype history was all wiped. We’re quite lucky her mother was able to recover the message.'
'Amanda was really good at hiding her traces, wasn't she?'
'Pretty good, but not totally. Fortunately,' he added. 'We're working on her deleted history.'
'Why would she be interested in contaminated houses in New Zealand? She hadn't been to the country for ages, and didn't seem interested in her mother's health,' Katie mused.
'Maybe she was simply interested in the housing market over there. After all, she used to be an estate agent, didn't she?' Jack said.
Katie's hand flung to the rogue strand of hair, but conscious of her habit, she stopped herself from twirling it. 'Maybe one of the houses she dealt with was a former P-lab. I’ve just read about recent cases of landlords being accused of renting and selling contaminated houses in New Zealand.'
'That's ugly. Do you think there might be a link with Amanda’s death?' Jack asked.
'Can you ask the Estate Agency for addresses of the properties Amanda was involved with?'
Jack gave her a curious glance. 'I certainly can. Not sure if it'll give us anything useful, though.'
'Did you get the warrant to arrest Mr McBride?' she asked, changing the subject.
'I'll get it if I need to.'
'What time is he coming in?'
Jack glanced at the screen above the desk, streaming the feeds from the security camera in the reception area.
'Any time now, I hope. And, I hope, Mrs McBride comes in with him.'
'I see!' Katie exclaimed. 'Do you think he'll continue denying everything? Even with Amanda's mum admitting she had a relationship with him?'
'She didn't really admit they had a fling. All she said was she'd worked with him in the past,' Jack corrected her. 'I need to stick to the facts. As much as they are facts, and leave enough room for people to make their own interpretations.'
'Ah, so that's how to do it?'
'When necessary. I have a hunch Mrs McBride might be more willing to share that information. And judging from what your friend Dorothy said, she was probably well aware of the relationship with the young Miss Jones at the time.'
'A hunch,' Katie chuckled. It was nice to see Jack had finally included the approach into his professional toolbox.
'Just following on from your insights. If she is the one who has kept him "on the straight and narrow," as your friends said, then, if she knows about any dodgy dealings, she'll tell me straight up. If she doesn't know, she'll be shocked, and I'll be able to see McBride’s reaction as it develops.'
'Sounds like a good strategy,' Katie said, enjoying the warm tingling spreading in her chest. "Following on from your insights..." She did the tip-of-the-hat gesture that he usually performed for her.
'Just learning from the best,' he replied, cocking his head. Katie smiled and blew him a kiss.
'I'd like a real one, please.'
'Come and get it,' she fired back and before she finished the sentence his face was just a few millimetres away from hers. The musky smell of his aftershave and soap tickled her nostrils. The tiny hairs on the back of her neck rose. He moved his head and his mouth brushed against hers, separating her aching lips. A warm wave spilled over her cheeks.
The buzzer in the reception cut through delectable silence. With the delicious ambiance gone, Katie glanced at the screen above Jack's shoulder.
'It's the McBrides. You've got to go,' she whispered into his mouth.
'Mhm,' he replied, with his lips still touching hers. He inched away. 'Tonight?' he asked, watching her carefully.
'Tonight,' she replied.
Her phone rang. This wasn't a morning for lovey-dovey. It was time to get down to work.
26
Jack left the staffroom to interview Mr and Mrs McBride, while Katie fished her p
hone out of her handbag. It was Angie.
'How are you?' Katie asked, keen to hear news from her friend.
'Managing okay. But I wanted to ask if you know when they are going to return the origami zoo collection. The one Amanda prepared for the birthday.'
'Ah, indeed!' Katie remembered. How could she have forgotten? Her gaze wandered towards the folder on the desk. She forgot to tell Jack about it! Now it was too late. He'd be busy in the interview room until at least mid-morning, if this was to be one of those serious ones.
'I know it may be silly and not important, but she really wanted to do that for them, and she asked me to help. I promised her, I want to make sure I ... how do you say it?'
'Deliver on your promise?'
'Yes. That’s right. At least I can do this little thing for Amanda. The kids adored her. She was going to do some paper crafts with them, but obviously, now...' Angie's voice trailed off.
Katie gulped. A life cut short too early, so many unfinished matters. So much grief.
'I'll ask the officer in charge. When do you need them by?' Katie asked, pushing aside the wave of sadness growing in her chest.
'As soon as possible. They are unfinished and we need to make some more. Remember? You promised me.'
A heavy sensation grasped Katie's stomach. Not origami...
'Okay...' Katie replied slowly, fighting her reluctance. She hated making promises when she wasn't sure she could deliver on them. 'How about this Saturday? Will we have enough time?'
'Yes, the birthday is on Sunday,' Angie replied eagerly.
Katie ended the call, her head spinning. She forgot about the origami zoo. She had too much on her mind, so much, in fact she’d started to lose track. The folder was a perfect example.
'Hi, Katie,' Chris called from the door.
'Just the man,' she called back. 'Glad you're in. I've got so much to report, and Jack is busy trying to arrest Mr McBride.'
'At long last, the slick McBride has been caught?'
'Let's not go there,' Katie waved her hands. 'Jack will give you an update on that later. But I need to pass on lots of information,' she said as firmly as she could, grabbing the folder from the desk. 'Get your gloves on, or a pair of tweezers,' she demanded.
Chris blinked but reached into his pocket and pulled out a pair of disposable gloves. He snapped them on.
'What do you have?'
Katie passed the folder across. 'Check out the torn piece but be careful of potential fingerprints,' she said.
Chris fumbled with the content of the folder and pulled out the sheet Katie described. He stared at it for a while in silence.
'What is it?' he asked, confusion growing on his freckled face.
'I think it's the missing piece of the letter from Hamish. Can you check if the ripped edge fits?'
His face brightened. 'You're right!' he exclaimed and strode to his desk. He rummaged in a box beside his computer and a short while later he returned, holding a plastic sleeve with the said letter in the other hand. He put both pieces of paper on the top of his desk and slid them gently together so that the edges met. Katie strained her neck, following the moves.
'It's a match!' Katie squealed. 'The printed words match too.'
'That's right,' he said. 'But what does it mean?' He turned his head to look at her.
Katie inspected the two pieces of paper. '"Your fingerprints are all over it",' she read out. I think it relates to whatever is on the photo. What do you think it is?'
Chris examined the smaller piece of paper. 'A photo taken in the night, somewhere in a park. A box with stuff inside, but I can't see what this is.'
A familiar tugging pulled at her stomach. 'Amanda's fingerprints all over the box and the things inside. No doubt Amanda recognised the box and the threat made sense to her...'
'I think you're right, but we still have no idea what this whole thing with the letter means.'
'We need to find the box,' Katie said determined.
'Any ideas where this might be?' Chris snorted.
'Can't they do something with the photo, the lab people?' Katie asked, struggling to keep her swirling thoughts under control. 'I think, this is yet another finger pointing at Hamish. Are you sure he was at the pub on the day of Amanda's murder?'
'You’ve seen the evidence, Katie. On the security cameras, we can see them both parking the car and going in at about 12.15 pm. And then, they leave the pub and drive away at about 1.45 pm. Amanda was shot at 1.10 pm.'
'One of them could have sneaked out through the back door or even the bathroom window between those times,' Katie said, running the plan of the pub through her mind. 'The back door is used by staff but he might have been unseen. He could have pretended to go to the bathroom, and either jumped through the bathroom window or pushed through the staff door and walk out of the building. Both ways lead to the other side of the pub, onto the back road. They might have had another car parked there.'
'It’s possible, I suppose,' Chris said slowly. 'It would have worked quite well. It's a three, maybe a five-minute drive from the pub to the hotel, so he would have been there and back within ten minutes the most. A bit long for a bathroom trip, but not suspicious,' he added.
'See!' Katie let out a breath. 'I wouldn't take Hamish off my suspect list.'
'We need to talk to Heaton at once,' Chris said, heading for the door.
'He's busy with the McBrides,' Katie reminded him.
'But he shouldn't be. It's clearly this Hamish chap.'
'Actually,' Katie said remembering her conversation with Jack the previous night. 'I think there is a lot of evidence against McBride as well. This is messy...'
'Is there something I should know about, but I don't?'
"Do you know about Amanda's mother and Mr McBride?' Katie asked.
'No. Tell me.'
Katie filled him in.
'Okay, I can see why he's interviewing them now,' Chris said, his broad, freckled face furrowed. 'But it's still ... this is ... I don't know. Do you have anything else to report?'
'No. But I'd like to ask if the origami animals Amanda made could be released?' she told him about the birthday.
'We haven't found anything in them,' Chris explained, looking a little distracted. 'I'll get them from the lab,' Chris grabbed the door handle. 'But first, I have to talk to Heaton about this,' he said waving the ripped piece of paper with the strange photo on it. 'I hate the idea of arresting the wrong man.'
27
Getting to the Paper Crafts Club and back with the origami book took her only fifteen minutes, which was incidentally also long enough for Jack to finish interviewing the McBrides.
When Katie walked back into the staffroom, Jack was leaning against the filing cabinet, sipping from a cup. The aroma of freshly brewed coffee filled the room.
'Glad you're back, Katie,' Jack greeted her. 'Everyone seems to have disappeared.'
'Chris has gone to the lab, I think. How did the interview go?' she asked.
'McBride's in with his lawyer.'
'Have you arrested him?'
'Yeah. But we'll negotiate a bail deal.'
'What did you get from him?'
'First it was from her. When I mentioned Rebecca Jones' name, the wife jumped up. "Not that woman again," she said. And it just rolled on from there.'
Katie chewed on her cheek for a few seconds. Everything fitted...
'So, is he Amanda's father?'
'It's possible, but not confirmed. They've mentioned wanting a paternity test. According to Mrs McBride, that horrible girl, quote-unquote, took advantage of a few men at the same time. But he did have an affair with her, and she sent him some letters for a while, asking for money. Once Mrs McBride stepped in, the letters stopped.'
'Dorothy was right then. The letters she saw some twenty-five years back...'
'Looks like it. Then, they moved and it all sort of fell quiet.'
'Until December last year?'
'Indeed. Sometime around mid-December, Mr
McBride received a phone call, asking about available jobs. He replied there were none at that time and that the person should talk to his daughter about it, because she was in charge of hiring...'
'That wasn't quite the case. McBride hired me without consulting Ellen, after all.'
'It seems as though the daughter's been a little too busy with the marketing strategy and Mr McBride took over hiring for a while. I also think he did it to hide the fact that he hired Amanda.'
'Did she blackmail him into hiring her?'
'No. She just said she was coming from an old friend of his and mentioned her mother's name. He was stunned and agreed to meet her. When they met, Amanda was a little more overt in her suggestion of being aware she might have been his daughter. She also told him she was in a difficult financial position and would do any job he could offer her. She claimed to have experience of working with customers, had a certificate in hospitality, and was generally good at handling people and office jobs. So, he offered her the position of a receptionist.'
'That makes sense. What about the money you found in Amanda's safe box "With regards to our mutual friend." Surely, that was blackmail.'
'No. Apparently, he gave it to her out of his own volition. Although, she might have hinted at needing a little more than he was paying her. The blackmailing didn't come up until later.'
'When Amanda asked him to pay me?'
'McBride thinks it was Friday mid-morning. She approached him, looking flushed and asked if he could pay her in advance, because she was in a very difficult situation. She was holding a piece of paper.'
Katie's heart flipped. 'The letter from Hamish?' she asked.
'He says he has no idea what it might have been. She didn't do anything with it, didn't refer to it. But he thinks he saw an envelope in Amanda's cubbyhole a little earlier. He noticed, because the post is usually brought after lunch.'
'Why didn't he tell us about it earlier?'
'Apparently, he was scared the paper she was holding might have been something to blackmail him with, in case he didn't agree to cough up the money. It seems he didn't connect it with the envelope in the cubby hole until now, when I asked him.'