by M A Comley
“You’ve gone quiet. I know what that means. You’re thinking about Gillan again, aren’t you?” Jack yelled across the room. His chair was tilted back, balancing on two legs.
“Spot on. That case always gladdens my heart and is an excellent reminder why we must continue to plough through the rest of them. So, here goes. Joanna, is there anything that has caught your eye recently?”
“I made a note about something last week that rang a bell. I set it to one side to complete the paperwork on the Ryland case. Hang on… Ah, here it is.”
Sally approached her and perched on the spare desk next to the constables.
“I remembered seeing a story featured on the local news last week about this case. The reporter interviewed the mother of a child who was murdered nineteen years ago. The news team wanted to highlight the case as it was coming up to the twentieth anniversary. I came in the following day to see if the case was one of those in our care, and it was. I meant to say something to you about it, but to be honest, it slipped my mind.”
“Don’t go beating yourself up. We’ve all had a lot on our plate with the Ryland case. That was a complex one for us to deal with. This sounds a heartbreaker of an investigation. Do you want to tell us what you know?”
Joanna smiled, swallowed and left her seat. She approached the whiteboard and spoke as she jotted some names down on the board. Sally sat in Joanna’s chair and crossed her arms. The rest of the team listened in silence as Joanna revealed the true extent of the crime.
“So, we have the mother, Anna Pickrel, who was thirty-three at the time of her daughter’s death. What I gleaned from the interview is that she is riddled with guilt.”
“Why?” Sally asked, leaning forward in her chair and resting her elbows on the desk.
“Apparently, Anna was out on a date that night with a new fella. She left her two children, Millie, aged six, and Louie, aged twelve, in the care of a sixteen-year-old babysitter, a girl called Lisa. During the evening, Lisa received an emergency call from her mother telling her that her father had suffered a heart attack. Lisa contacted Anna immediately. Anna urged Lisa to leave the children and also said that she would be home right away.”
“Okay, so how did the child end up being murdered?” Sally asked, her brow twisting into a deep frown. It was hard for her to fathom any mother telling a babysitter to leave her children alone in the house.
“When Anna arrived, there was an ambulance at the house, paramedics performing CPR on the girl, but they were too late. Louie was in bits. He had the foresight to ring nine-nine-nine when he found a man standing over his sister, smothering her with a pillow. He shouted. The man clearly thought the girl was alone in the house, and he bolted.”
“Hang on, back up a second. So are we to gather that this bloke just walked in off the street and targeted this little girl? A stalker? Had he been watching the house? Wait, what about the phone call from the babysitter, was it genuine?”
“Yes, Lisa’s father died that night along with Millie.”
“Shit! That’s terrible. Horrendous situation for all concerned. There are a lot of unanswered questions to this case from what I can tell. Where was Louie at the time of the attack?”
“He shared a room with his sister. He’d gone to the toilet and came back to find the man attacking his sister. Well, attacking might be a poor choice of words—killing his sister, I should say.”
“Jesus, the poor lad. He must have been traumatised by the events. I can’t believe he held it together enough to ring the emergency services. He has to be admired. Was he interviewed by the journalist at the same time as his mother last week?”
“No. His mother told the journalist that they were both full of guilt and remorse about the incident. They were a loving family. Apparently, the day Millie was murdered, they’d spent the day at the pool together in Great Yarmouth, her way of making it up to the kids for leaving them to go on the date.”
“I’ve heard enough. I think we should take this case on. Who’s with me on that one?”
The team all nodded, except for Jack.
Here we go again! “Jack? What say you?”
He stretched out his arms and placed his hands behind his head. “Well, for what it’s worth, yes, I agree it’s going to be a tough case for us to entertain, even tougher if there is no DNA evidence to go on. Is there, Joanna?”
She returned to the nearby desk where she’d left the file and shook her head. “No, nothing. Which probably baffled DI Falkirk and his team at the time.”
Sally raised a hand. “Stop! We’re so much better than them. That shouldn’t deter us in the slightest. We’ve already proven how efficient we are with these cold cases. I say we tackle this one, give that girl and her family the justice they’re seeking and deserve. Bloody hell, nearly twenty years. You know what I find galling? The fact that I’ve never even heard of the case. Can any of you recall it?”
Joanna shook her head. “Not until last week. I’m with you, boss. Most of these cases we’ve heard about in the distant past, but this one, well, nothing came to mind at all, not until I looked into it. Heartbreaking, isn’t it? It would be great if we could solve this one for the family.”
“I agree. Want to give me a show of hands, team?”
Everyone raised their hands in support. She looked Jack’s way, and he was staring at the floor. “Jack?”
He shrugged his broad shoulders. “If it’s a path you want to take, then who am I to argue with you?”
Same old Jack, digging his heels in at first. She chose to ignore him. “Okay, folks, you know the drill. We need to read through the entire investigation, see who was questioned and when. Then we’ll have to track those people down and interview them a second time. I know we’re talking almost twenty years here, but would people truly forget what happened back then in the circumstances? I’m guessing not. Joanna, can you find me an address for the mother? That should be our first stop, to go and see her. Not that I’m looking forward to it. I think this case is going to be an emotional roller-coaster of a ride for all of us.”
“I’ll search for her address now, boss. Do you want the son’s address, too?”
“Good idea, and any other relatives living in the area as well, but that can be researched over the next day or two. Let’s stick with the immediate family for now.”
“Will do, boss,” Joanna replied, heading back to her seat.
“Stuart and Jordan, I’d like you to try and trace the babysitter and any possible neighbours at the time. Glancing through the file, which should be a darn sight thicker, I’m guessing the neighbours and anyone else living on the street at the time weren’t interviewed very well. Why am I not surprised by that? Also, we need to research any possible connections to other crimes of this nature in that area around the same time. Again, a quick glimpse through the file, and I’m not seeing anything along those lines at all. Jesus, what was Falkirk thinking? By the look of things, this investigation took up a few weeks max of his team’s time. If anybody else was involved I’d make excuses for them, the possibility of yet another major crime coming in that took them away from the case, but we’re talking about an inspector who was not on top of his game.”
“Makes you wonder what was going on back then, doesn’t it?” Jack said.
“With regard to him being accountable to his superiors, you mean, like I am? It beggars belief. I know that’s not the bloody first, or last time, I’m going to say that either when we tackle these cases. What were they all thinking back then? Doesn’t a family, a desperate mother, deserve to have her child’s murder investigated fully? Crap, sorry, my anger is showing again. Seriously, can you imagine any of us getting away with neglecting our duty?”
“No, I’d see to that,” the voice of DCI Mike Green boomed behind her.
Sally swiftly turned to face him. “Sorry, sir, you weren’t supposed to hear that.”
“It’s okay, I understand your frustrations, Inspector. A word in your office, if I may?”
>
Sally turned back to address her team. “Okay, you each have a task to be getting on with. Jack, do a rough background check on the mother and son for me in readiness for our visit later.”
Jack nodded, and Sally walked into her office, closely followed by DCI Green who constantly popped in to check how things were progressing with her and her team. It was a shame the DCI at the time wasn’t as hands-on during Falkirk’s reign as inspector. Maybe there wouldn’t have been a need to set up the cold case team. Sally sank into her chair and motioned for her boss to sit opposite her. “What can I do for you, sir?”
“Nothing really. Just doing my usual, making my presence felt and to assure you that I’m here if you need me. I take it you’re about to begin another case. Care to enlighten me as to what it is?”
Sally ran through the details of the Pickrel case.
All the while, Green shook his head in disgust. “Sickening that this family has been neglected by this station over the years. Make sure you pull out all the stops on this one, Parker. Oops…that is still your name, or is it?”
“For the moment, sir. I thought it would be better not to confuse things at work.”
“Given your background with your ex-husband, I would have thought you’d have pounced on the chance to change it, although I can understand the hassle doing that would give you. I’ll keep my nose out of your personal affairs.”
“In truth, I can’t wait to get rid of Darryl’s name, sir. I thought I’d do all the personal stuff first and then take on Bracknall at work in the next few months, unless you think I should do it all at the same time.”
Green held his hands up in front of him. “Count me out of the decision-making process. Won’t it be odd using your married name along with your partner’s?”
Sally frowned. “In what way, sir?”
“When you’re out and about on a case and you introduce yourselves, Bracknall and Blackman?”
Sally laughed. “The thought hadn’t crossed my mind, sir. It does sound like a firm of solicitors, doesn’t it?”
He offered a weak smile which was all she ever received from him. “Indeed. The choice is yours. Let me know when you decide to make the change. Back to this case… How likely are you to solve it after all this time?”
“We won’t know that for a few days, if not more, sir. It’s still in its infancy. Jack and I will visit the family today. I have to say I fear this one is going to be one of our toughest cases yet.”
“After hearing the facts, I’m inclined to agree with you. I’ll be off, let you get on. Keep me up to date on this one. I know I say that with every case you investigate, but I’m interested in where this one in particular leads.”
“Any reason why, sir?”
He rose from his seat. “You get a gut reaction about some cases more than others. I think that’s what’s happening here. Don’t worry, I won’t pester you any more than usual. I know you’ll do your best, you always do.”
Sally followed him out of the office, her cheeks warming because of the unexpected subtle praise he’d bestowed upon her. “Thank you, sir.”
“Carry on, team,” he shouted over his shoulder as he left the room.
Sally let out a relieved sigh. She hated it when Green showed up unannounced. “Okay, where were we?”
“We’ve got the address for Anna Forbes—yes, she’s now remarried. Her son has still remained Louie Pickrel, though.” Jack said.
“A recent marriage perhaps? We’ll soon find out. Let’s go.”
2
Jack insisted on driving to the location. Anna Forbes lived in a row of newly built detached houses on the edge of Acle, with the river running along the back of the property.
Joanna had paved the way for their visit, ringing ahead to notify Mrs Forbes they would be there shortly. She was looking out of the bay window, waiting for them to show up, when Jack drew up outside the house.
He ducked down to view the house from the driver’s seat. “Nice pad.”
“I love it around here. I hope the developers don’t spoil it by building dozens of new homes.”
“They will. They always do. There’s a housing shortage, remember.”
“I know. It concerns me when they throw up homes willy-nilly and don’t consider the impact it has on a community.”
“Get you. Are we going in, or do you want to sit here discussing something that is totally out of our hands?”
“Don’t you care what happens in our community, Jack?”
“Not really. I live a good twenty miles from here so I don’t class this as my community.”
Sally sighed. “And that’s where the problem lies.”
“Meaning what?”
“People don’t care enough. The planners probably feel the same way as you do.”
“Can I remind you we have a case to investigate?”
“Sorry, okay. I’m back with the programme now.”
They exited the car to find Anna Forbes holding the front door open for them. Sally introduced herself and Jack and then entered the property. Anna led the way to a large kitchen-diner at the rear of the house. The view out into the garden revealed that although the sides had fences erected, there was nothing to block the view of the river at the bottom.
“This is lovely. Is that a jetty I can see?” Sally asked.
Anna came to admire the view beside her. “Yes, my husband is a keen sailor. Our boat is in for its annual service at the moment. We usually have it moored up here. Would you like a tea or coffee?”
“Coffee for me, thank you. Jack?”
“And one for me, too, thanks.”
Anna smiled and switched on the kettle she’d already boiled in anticipation of their visit. Within seconds the drinks were made. “Please, take a seat at the table.”
Sally and Jack sat on a bench on one side of the table. Anna carried a tray and distributed the mugs then placed a bowl of sugar and a plate of chocolate digestives between them. She made herself comfortable on the other side of the table and wrapped her hands around her mug.
“Okay, first of all, Mrs Forbes…”
Mrs Forbes interrupted her. “Please, call me Anna.”
“Thank you. As I was saying, before we get down to the nitty-gritty, I’d like to give you a little background information as to why we’re here. My team has recently been formed to investigate several cases that have been highlighted over the years. One of those cases is yours.”
“What you’re telling me in a roundabout way is that the investigating officer screwed up and you’ve been tasked with clearing up his mess.”
“That’s about it in a nutshell. However, I also want to assure you that during our time working on the cold case team, we’ve had major success in the cases we’ve reinvestigated. I don’t mean to raise your hopes by telling you that. All I’m trying to do is reassure you that you’ll be in safe hands this time around and to apologise for the way the police have failed you in the past. It’s unforgiveable. We’ll do everything we can to make up for your past disappointment and hopefully achieve our aim, to give you the outcome you and your family deserve.”
“Thank you, that means a lot. We were treated abysmally by the inspector in charge in those days. He never took our claims seriously back then. I got the impression that he was punishing me for leaving the children alone. I would never have done that ordinarily. There was an emergency, something neither Dean or I could have accounted for. My children always came first.” Her gaze drifted over to the shelf beside Sally.
Sally followed Anna’s gaze to a photo of two happy children. The photo was a little dark and dated.
“Is that Millie?” she asked.
“Yes, that’s my darling daughter. I know every mother will tell you their children were or are angels, but she truly was. I never had to tell her off, ever. Both children were good from day one in my eyes.”
“That’s lovely to hear. I must admit, it does make a change. If it’s not too much trouble, maybe you could go over the
events of that evening as you remember them.”
“They’re seared into my memory. I will never forget them as long as I’m walking this earth. The guilt still pricks my soul every day.” She bowed her head, gazing at her mug, and retold what had gone on that evening. Once she’d finished, she glanced up at Sally, her eyes brimming with tears, and said, “I remember it as if it were yesterday. There are some things in this life you can never forget, no matter how hard you try. And believe me, over the past nineteen years, I’ve tried my hardest to let it go and failed.”
“I’m so sorry this is still affecting you so deeply. They say time is a great healer. I guess in certain cases that simply isn’t true. Believe me when I tell you that we’ll do our very best to get to the bottom of what went on that night. Do you think your son will be up to speaking to us? As he was there at the time, it would be better if we went through the events in more detail with him.”
“He’s aware that you will want to speak with him and has told me he’d be willing to go over the traumatic details once more if it means bringing this case to a satisfactory conclusion. In truth, I can’t believe this is happening after all these years of neglect by the police. The fact is that there is a murderer out there, walking the streets of Norfolk, and yet very little has been done to apprehend that person in the past two decades. No, let me correct that statement, nothing, absolutely zero has been done to find the culprit. Tell me, before you picked up the file, were you even aware of my daughter’s murder?”