‘This case was looking clear-cut until the Killys came up. Why are they involved? I’m trying to find a link between the drugs and the religion here, but other than those steroids it’s all hearsay. How are you doing on that sequencer machine in Shepherd’s flat, what’s it called? The Revelon?’
‘Slow going. Almost a hundred of this model were sold last year alone, so it’s a case of tracing the serial numbers to their owners one by one. We need more manpower.’
‘I know. But that could be the Killy link. A missing serial number implies it’s stolen. Maybe the Killys stole it for Shepherd, maybe he borrowed money from them to buy it, maybe he was procuring drugs from them, maybe he became indebted… I’m clutching at straws.’
He finally prised his gaze away from the crucifix and smiled grimly at Quinn. ‘You can follow the training manuals all you like, tick all the boxes, but it goes out the window when it comes to getting inside people’s heads.’ He leaned forward so that he was almost in a prayer position, and rubbed his face with his hands. ‘This case is doing me head in.’
Colette tentatively put a hand on his back. ‘It’s getting to all of us, boss. It’s getting to the whole of Liverpool. Apparently churches are packed to the rafters all over the city. Mad, isn’t it?’
‘It shouldn’t even be about the religion. It should be about all the vulnerable people just passing through the case, the people who can just disappear unnoticed. Chelsea McAllister wasn’t even registered missing – can you imagine, her parents were so wasted they weren’t even bothered that she’d been gone for weeks. And I keep dreaming about that baby. But it’s the whole Bible thing that’s freaking everybody out. Stupid, isn’t it? I mean, we’re in the realms of fantasy land.’
‘Yes, but what’s fantasy land to us is real to someone. You can’t discount the power of other people’s beliefs.’
‘But who do you know who actually believes in God?’
‘I do,’ said Colette.
‘You what?’
‘I do! Loads of people I know do.’
‘But when you think about, really think about what that means… the logical conclusions of that… it just doesn’t make sense to me.’
‘It doesn’t have to make sense. And you don’t have to go to church to believe. Everyone has to believe in something.’
‘But it just isn’t possible that people can do things, kill each other, based on belief.’
‘Think about what you just said, and think about the world.’ said Colette. ‘That’s exactly what people do, all the time, throughout history.’
‘Yeah. Sorry. The truth is.…’ He paused and took a deep breath. ‘The truth is I did used to go to church. For years, growing up. Me parents were – are – members of Mainstreet.’
At this he looked at Colette to see if that meant anything to her.
‘Mainstreet. Aren’t they those happy-clappy nutters who do exorcisms, try and convert gay people and that?’
‘Nutters, yeah,’ he nodded. ‘That’s about the size of it. The church was the biggest thing in our lives. So I did used to believe, because I didn’t think there was an alternative. But once I hit me teens I couldn’t wait to get out of there.’
‘My God. That’s mad. Even in a place like Liverpool you can get these pockets of intolerance. I dread to think what Mainstreet are saying about this case in their sermons. No wonder you’ve got a thing about nuns. Listen, you’re doing great, Boss. Everyone is impressed. And everyone is behind you.’
‘Sometimes I feel like I’m just arsing about with paper clips and marker pens, making it up as I go along.’
He leaned forward again, rubbed his hands on his face, and she shuffled a bit closer along the pew to put an arm around his shoulder. It was awkward, but it was a moment, she thought.
‘Let me tell you a secret. Nobody knows what they’re doing.’
‘What, you’re telling me Dr. Colvin doesn’t know what he’s doing?’
‘Fine. Some doctors know what they’re doing. But the rest of us are just arsing about with paper clips and marker pens, making it up as we go along, joining the dots, hoping something will stick. You’re heading a murder investigation by yourself, aged twenty-eight. And you’re teaching everyone else how to do it as well. Believe in yourself. Since you don’t believe in God.’
‘Nice one, Colette. What would I do without you as my right-hand woman?’
‘You’d have, Dave, mate.’
‘Fucking hell. That lad. If he stopped joking around for five minutes he could become a great police officer. And if I grew a pair I could become a great police officer too. Come ’ed.’
They edged out of the pew and walked back down the aisle.
‘Tell me the truth, Colette. Do they all think I shagged Canter to get this job?’
‘No! Jesus, that hadn’t even crossed my mind! Come on, grow a pair, and let’s get back and sort that lot out.’
‘What do we do now then?’ he asked as they reached the church door and turned around to look back at the crucifix. ‘Is it the sign of the cross? Oh, you religious expert. Is there anything you’re not an expert on?’ he nudged Colette.
‘Yeah, it’s spectacles, testicles, wallet and watch.’ She did the movements solemnly.
‘You what?’
‘Oh no, that’s Catholic isn’t it! What are we in now, Church of England?’
They doubled over with giggles, which they hushed to a whisper, then realised the pointlessness of whispering, which made them laugh even more.
***
A few minutes later, Swift and Quinn restored their solemnity for the incident room.
‘Attention please everyone, the victim’s name is Chelsea McAllister.’ Swift spoke while Quinn placed on the incident board a blown-up selfie of the dead girl, obtained from her Facebook profile. ‘The only reason we know that is we went back to Tomlinson asking if Shepherd had any other so-called favourites when he was working there, and they mentioned Chelsea. To be honest I’m kicking myself for not checking that out sooner. She was nineteen years old, from Litherland, hadn’t been seen by her family for six weeks, although they didn’t report her missing.’
‘Why not?’ someone asked.
‘The parents are drug addicts, and barely even noticed she’d gone. She was also a drug addict in the past, and she also had learning difficulties, suspected foetal alcohol syndrome. Her drug dealing, which was what sent her to Tomlinson, was instigated by her parents. She’d been in and out of care but returned to her parents’ home after her time at Tomlinson, and that’s how she dropped off the radar. A very vulnerable young person, who slipped through the net.’
‘So boss, was she the one living in Shepherd’s apartment?’ asked Dave.
‘I think we can assume so, yes, particularly since there was that baby and pregnancy catalogue in her bedroom. But we can verify that with forensics. Speaking of forensics, the crime scene hasn’t yielded anything yet in terms of footprints or fingerprints. Again, tracks have been covered very carefully.’
‘Any CCTV nearby?’
‘Not within a workable radius. It’s probably the most remote church in the Crosby area, and presumably that’s why it was chosen. The only thing we do have to go on is that whiteboard.’ He tapped at the photo on the incident board. Let’s get a handwriting expert to compare that with the scrawlings on Shepherd’s bedroom wall.’
‘How d’you do that boss?’
‘To be honest I don’t know. But I’ll find out. Lads, this is all as new to me as it is to you. Quinn, do you want to carry on?’
Quinn stepped forward.
‘So that’s two victims from the young offenders’ institution. We need to find anyone else who Shepherd was in touch with, especially young people. Try the neighbours again. Try the CCTV in the vicinity of that church on the night. DI Swift and I are going to try and contact other former inmates of Tomlinson, those who had been there at the same time as Shepherd but not swayed by him. Maybe get some explanation from them of w
hat he was trying to do? Some sort of weird experiment gone wrong? Difficult though, as there’s unlikely to be anyone left who was there three years ago.’
Swift took over again.
‘We need to up the urgency now, lads. This is approaching serial killer territory and Stuart Killy is still missing. Who knows how many others are missing. There are nearly two hundred people on the Missing Persons list on Merseyside, and any one of them could be connected. Dave, Baz, have you got anything for me?’
‘Erm, we went back to Zeus last night to talk to more of Jason Hardman’s mates. And it was absolutely chock-a-block. Heaving, wasn’t it?’ Dave looked at Baz, who nodded solemnly to confirm that it had, indeed, been heaving.
‘Never mind nightclubs. What about the timber yards and vans?’
‘Erm, no. No vans spotted on CCTV from Hall Road Station that night by the beach, whoever it was must have driven the other way. No sightings of Shepherd from the CCTV cameras across the road from Kenilworth House. Not so far anyway, but we need to go back further – it’s just finding the time. On the timber – checked a few timber yards locally, nothing. Checked a couple of car hire firms for van rentals, nothing.’
‘A couple? Check them all! Dave, you know what,’ sighed Swift, ‘you are a proper joker. Give me something to show me that you deserve to be here.’ There was stifled laughter around the room, but Dave looked hurt and Darren instantly regretted his severity. In the absence of manpower they had been piling every ad-hoc task on to the poor lad.
Quinn had a question. ‘Boss, how are we doing on motive? What are we saying was the motive at the moment?’
Swift opened his arms in a hopeless shrug. ‘He’s a nutter, and an arch manipulator, preying on vulnerable people, but what was he trying to achieve? Was he testing them for this so-called sin and them bumping them off if they were sinners? Was he trying to change them in some way? The baby is an absolute mindfuck. I know we’re supposed to get inside the mind of the killer, but priorities are forensics, police work, finding this bloke.
There has to be a drug connection. Jason Hardman and Chelsea McAllister both with convictions for drug dealing, and then the Killys get involved. Titan haven’t taken this off us yet, so let’s work on Shepherd.’
Dave, chastened, put up his hand.
‘Boss. How do you look for a baby that might not exist?’
‘Call the local hospitals, put out something to all the doctors’ surgeries in the Sefton area. Other than that, I haven’t got a fucking clue.’
He looked out of the window, at a loss. Outside the police station it was pitch dark, the tarmac glowing orange in the street lamps as the last of the evening rush hour traffic was easing its way into Crosby, crawling through the multiple sets of traffic lights in this busy community. Swift looked around the office at the exhausted faces.
‘Right, who’s coming down the Angel for a quick bev? We need a morale booster.’
But he stopped, because Tracey, on the phone in the corner, had raised her hand and was flapping it about, to indicate the significance of the call she was on. A hush fell over the room and everyone waited in silence as the call wound down with, ‘Right, thank you very much, Father, that’s brilliant and we’ll be back in touch very shortly.’ She put the phone down and stood up to a sea of expectant faces:
‘So – that was a response to the Most Wanted appeal we put out on Shepherd. It was Father Anthony,’ she read from her notepad, ‘who runs St. Cuthbert’s Hospice in Croxteth. Apparently Shepherd has been going there recently as a volunteer, visiting sick people, you know. He was last there three weeks ago, and apparently he was acting strangely.’
‘Three weeks ago – so that’s the most recent sighting of him, and that’s after the death of Jason Hardman. Nice one. Right, Quinn let’s get down there.’
‘Oh, sorry, boss,’ Tracey stopped him in his tracks as he was grabbing his coat, ‘the Father also said he’s happy for us to go over there, but would we mind not coming tonight – visiting hours only you know, for the sake of the patients.’
Swift paused for a moment, turning and turning about.
‘Oh right, yeah. But fuck that, this is the best lead we’ve had. Let’s go, Quinn.’ He clapped his hands together, feeling buoyed. ‘The rest of you: bevvies.’ Where are you Shepherd?
***
Deaconess Margaret Mills was in full flow, reading from the Gospel of Matthew, holding her Bible up to the rafters and waving her other hand flamboyantly.
‘And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus tells us the parable of the ten virgins. Then the Kingdom of Heaven will be like ten virgins, who took their lamps, and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. Those who were foolish, when they took their lamps, took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. Now while the bridegroom delayed, they all slumbered and slept. But at midnight there was a cry, "Behold! The bridegroom is coming! Come out to meet him!" Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, "Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out." But the wise answered, saying, "What if there isn't enough for us and you? You go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves." While they went away to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was shut. Afterward the other virgins also came, saying, "Lord, Lord, open to us." But he answered, "Most certainly I tell you, I don't know you." Watch therefore, for you don't know the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.’
She paused, and looked at her congregation for a long time, lingering on each pair of eyes until they were forced to look down in wretchedness.
‘Are you watchful? Are you truly watchful, like the five wise virgins? Are you ready, for the Second Coming of Christ? For the Bible tells us that we must be ready at all times; that the time of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. So there is the good news; Christ is coming. But why must we be ready? Because here is the bad news: the Bible also tells us that the end times will not come in peace and safety, but with plague and terror!
‘Thessalonians!’ She pulled down the finger of one hand to begin her bulleted list. ‘While people are saying ‘Peace and Safety’, destruction will come upon them suddenly, as labour pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
‘James!’ She screeched this second bullet point so suddenly that several people jumped in shock, as she reeled off more passages of the Bible by heart. ‘The Judge is standing at the door! Thessalonians again!’ Third. ‘And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendour of his coming.
‘The lawless one: Satan. Satan is here already, I tell you! Daniel tells us that “He shall speak pompous words against the Most High, shall persecute the saints of the Most High, and shall intend to change times and law.” The Revelation tells us to beware the beast with seven heads and ten horns; that this beast was mortally wounded but survived.’
The Deaconess said this last word as a terrifying whisper, the volume of her rage subsiding suddenly just at the moment when Helen sneaked in at the back of the church, trying to close the heavy door as quietly as possible, and failing. Margaret stared at her for the whole length of her theatrical pause. Attendance at Margaret Mills’ commanding weekly sermons was effectively compulsory for the Sisters of Grace residents, as well as being relatively well attended by locals and guests. Helen had noticed their leader’s firebrand quality becoming more and more pronounced in recent months. The regular themes of humility, faith and hard work were gradually morphing into themes of readiness, watchfulness, a new era approaching. The Sisters joked amongst themselves that she had been watching too much Game of Thrones, known to be her weekly televisual indulgence. Helen’s adorati
on for Margaret had dissipated in recent months, and was building into a negative feeling that she didn’t like and was fighting against.
‘Let’s talk about the Revelation,’ continued the Deaconess, with a sardonic tone. ‘Is it as crazy as you might think? Is it? Because the Revelation tells us about plagues, famines, earthquakes… yes, these things are here already! The prophets warn that the earth will experience great turmoil, wickedness, war, suffering! The prophet Daniel said that the time before the Second Coming would be a time of trouble such as the earth has never known. Sound familiar?’
She nodded, looking out at each terrified, gulping face of her congregation.
‘And most important of all, the Bible tells us to beware of false prophets. False prophets!’
Helen had a fleeting thought that her fiery eyes reminded her of Mikko when he was performing.
‘False prophets! They are mentioned all over the Bible! And perhaps they are all over our world! Mark: “For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall show signs and wonders, to seduce, if it were possible, even the elect.”
‘Matthew: “At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved… For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect – if that were possible. See, I have told you ahead of time.”
‘You see, we have even been warned. So be watchful. Be as the wise virgins. And remember Revelation 22: “Behold, I am coming soon! Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, because the time is near. Let him who does wrong continue to do wrong; let him who does right continue to do right; and let him who is holy continue to be holy.”
‘These things cannot be changed.’ She emphasised these words with her theatrical whisper again. ‘It is the word of the Lord.’
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