by Anita Waller
She was quite surprised they believed her, but they wished her a cheery good night, said they were going home and not back to the office, and she gave them ten pounds each for their trouble.
It was ten past ten when she pulled onto Kat’s forecourt, and was immediately surrounded by police officers.
The tears came easily. She showed them her phone, the broken screen telling its own story of the item being useless.
Eventually Tessa dismissed all the officers, feeling relieved that it was a misunderstanding and that baby Martha was back where she should be, in her mummy’s arms. She felt she should have strong words with Sue Rowe, but could see how upset she was, and recognised what a shitty day she must have had from the onset of darkness, with an immobile car and a shattered phone, no access to phone numbers, and reliant on a car hire company finding her.
Eventually they all left, leaving Sue with Kat and Carl. Martha should have been in bed, but Kat was carrying her around, not letting her go. Her fear that she would never see her daughter again had been too strong.
Sue couldn’t stop apologising. ‘I could do nothing.’
‘So why didn’t you ask the car hire people to ring us? I know they said they were going home, but I’m sure either they would have lent you a phone, or they would have rung us if you’d asked,’ Carl snapped.
‘I was cold, I was concerned with keeping Martha warm because at that point I couldn’t start the engine to keep us warm, and I wasn’t thinking straight. I wanted to get back here.’
‘Okay, another question, Sue.’ Carl felt he couldn’t let it go. Kat was in a dreadful state and he wanted answers. ‘Why did you check out of the hotel in Bakewell?’
‘Because I didn’t like it. I booked a room at the airport hotel, the one I’m staying in the night before I fly back home. I rang them and explained I needed two extra nights, and they sorted me out. I only did it last night, and thought I would fill you in on what was happening when I brought Martha home tonight. I did expect that to be at five o’clock, not ten. You must have known I would never let any harm come to that baby, she’s my Leon’s child. My granddaughter.’
‘Okay, here’s what’s going to happen, Sue. You go from here tonight, and you don’t come back. Martha is out of bounds to you. I’m going to take her up and put her to bed, so you can give her one last kiss before I do. Then you can say your goodbyes to Kat while I’m doing that. It’s up to her what she says to you.’
Carl took the sleeping baby from Kat, who rubbed her red eyes. ‘Thank you,’ she whispered to him.
Kat went outside with Sue and waited while she fastened her seatbelt. ‘Safe journey, Sue,’ Kat said. ‘I can’t forgive you, not yet. I know there’s something not right. You might have fooled the police, but you didn’t fool me any more than you fooled Doris and Mouse. And you didn’t fool Carl, not for one minute. Today you’ve done something evil. Go back to Canada. Goodnight, Sue,’ and she turned and walked back to the house.
‘Katerina!’ Sue called, ‘now you know exactly what it’s like to be waiting for news of your child, to hope that the child is still alive, and to cope with the constant pain of having no news. You caused me to feel that pain, I’ve returned it in spades. I needed you to feel it as well. We won’t meet again, Kat, I’m going back to be with my husband and son. I brought Martha home to you alive – you sent me my son in a coffin,’ she spat and pulled out of the driveway at speed.
Kat, numbed by the anger and the horror of Sue’s words spewing out, felt her head spin, and she staggered back inside.
‘Carl!’ she called before blackness overwhelmed her.
37
Doris and Mouse listened with growing horror as Kat told them what had happened the previous night.
‘What a bloody evil bitch,’ Mouse said, ‘and she came across as so sweet and nice. Has she always had this side to her, this nasty side?’
‘I used to feel she was a little strange,’ Kat said. ‘Within a week of Leon and I getting married, they’d moved to Canada. We joked that she couldn’t bear losing Leon to anyone, but I’m thinking maybe it wasn’t a joke. Rather than see how we were building a relationship that supposedly would last for life, she took her and Alan out of the way. He told me at the wedding he wished they weren’t going quite so soon, that he would have liked to get to know me better first before making such a massive move, but Sue wanted to go, and that was that. Then Alan had the stroke not long after they arrived in Canada, and she was on her own, looking after him.’
‘She deserves everything she gets,’ Doris said. ‘Are you taking it any further now that you know this was all planned?’
Kat shook her head. ‘No, I’m not. I want her back in Canada, a long way away from us. You know, I’d never understood how Leon could have turned out the way he did, his cavalier attitude towards the law, the murders he committed… but I guess this week has shown exactly where it came from. I thought his parents were lovely, how wrong could I have been.’
Martha, sitting up in her pushchair and nibbling on a biscuit with her four teeth, beamed at the three women, oblivious to the drama in which she had played a starring role. She held up her arms towards her mummy, and Kat unbuckled her.
‘I can’t leave her at the moment. I’m going to take the rest of the day off, spend it with Martha. I’ll only be at home because it’s horrible weather, but I’ll make sure all doors are locked, so don’t worry.’
‘Can I get your signature on this Manchester thing before you go,’ Mouse asked. ‘It’s complete, so I can take a couple of days off if you need me.’
‘Me too,’ Doris said. ‘Shout up if there’s any problems, anything at all.’
Kat smiled. She loved these two women so much; they had her back totally covered.
‘We’ll be fine, honestly. I’ve a feeling Carl will be home early, he really didn’t want to go this morning. Sue’ll not come back, we don’t need to worry.’
‘She flies home Monday?’
‘She does. And if she wants any sort of access to Martha before then, the answer will be no.’
The other two nodded. Calm, quiet Kat had turned into a bit of a martinet, and they felt like clapping.
‘Think you can get rid of Ewan for me?’ Doris said.
‘Point me in the right direction, and call me St George, slayer of dragons,’ Kat said, picking up a biro to practice with. ‘Has Ewan bothered you again?’
‘No, no… I don’t think so. Maybe.’
‘Nan?’ Mouse and Kat said the word at the same time.
‘You know when you get a feeling that things aren’t quite right, they’re a bit out of kilter? That’s how I’m feeling. Maybe it’s because of that damn card, it’s possible the unease has carried over from that, but…’
‘But you don’t think so?’ Mouse asked. ‘You think he’s following you, or something?’
‘He’d be crazy,’ Doris said. ‘He only came near me last time, and he ended up unable to walk properly. And next time it would be both feet I used. Surely he didn’t believe I simply got lucky?’
‘Nan, I’m not happy about this. Next time he may have a knife, or heaven forbid, a gun. So what is it you’re feeling?’ Mouse asked.
Doris sighed. ‘I don’t know. Maybe I’m not feeling anything, maybe it’s only a reaction. I feel… invaded, as though he’s out there watching me. I’m probably being a silly old woman.’ Her laugh was shaky. ‘You know, this stalking proves Helen was telling the truth when she said his actions aren’t normal, and weren’t normal all those years ago. I’m well out of it, aren’t I?’
‘Okay,’ Kat said, ‘his car is a grey metallic Freelander, isn’t it? We need to be on the lookout for it. Nan, you’re not to approach him if you see it, we’ll talk to Tessa and see what we can do. Are you listening to me?’
‘I am, I am. But to follow on from that, I don’t want either of you going up to him. Is that understood? We know how violent he can be, and we know about leopards and spots, so this is an instruct
ion that you don’t go near him. The sad fact is that even if he is following me – and it feels like that – he’s not committing a crime. I don’t want to have to ask Carl to warn him off, but maybe we should make it official this time.’
Kat fastened Martha in the baby seat and drove out of Eyam, hoping Mouse and Doris didn’t notice she was going the opposite way to her home. She fancied having a little run to Bradwell, maybe a stop close by a small dwelling called Little Mouse Cottage. She wasn’t sure that she could do anything if she did spot the Freelander, but at least they would know Doris’s spooky feelings were actually spot on and they could take appropriate action.
Within a couple of minutes of setting off, Martha fell asleep, so when Kat reached Bradwell, she turned right at the village green and drove up the road towards the cottage. She pulled into the Ye Old Bowling Green Inn car park, swung her car around and sat facing the road that ran by Little Mouse Cottage. She felt safe there; if Ewan’s car did drive past the cottage she would see it, but he wouldn’t be looking up the hill towards the car park, he would be too busy negotiating the tight bend in the road.
She pressed play and settled down to listen to her audiobook, keeping a watch on the road. Martha continued to sleep, and Kat almost wished she could join her. It hadn’t been a good night, and she was feeling tired. The temperature began to drop and she covered Martha with a pram blanket. Fishing around in the glove compartment gave her a bobble hat, and she put it on, pulling it well down over her ears. The audiobook seemed rather muffled but it didn’t matter. She would stay for another half hour, and then head home. She didn’t think she would freeze to death in thirty minutes.
The book was good, and she decided it was actually quite a pleasurable thing to do, surveillance. Only one car drove past the cottage, a small red Fiesta, and she smiled. Definitely not even related to a Freelander.
Twenty minutes later, Kat leaned forward to start the car, and saw another car, a small red Fiesta, turn into the car park.
‘Good grief,’ she said quietly, not wanting to disturb the still sleeping baby in the back, ‘two red Fiestas passing Nan’s cottage within an hour. And they’re the only two cars that I’ve seen. Come on, Kat, get your act together, there’s something odd about this.’
The car headed to the top of the car park, swung around and dropped back down. It stopped about ten metres away from Kat’s car, and the driver cut the engine and the lights.
At the same instant, in the increasing gloom of early evening, the car park lights flickered into life. Ewan climbed out of the car and Kat gasped. He walked up the incline and into the pub, only just opening its doors. He disappeared inside.
Kat pulled up her hood and covered the bobble hat, her hair and a significant portion of her face. Then she took out her phone.
‘Mouse, where’s Nan?’
‘Putting her coat on. We’re closing.’
‘Bugger. Can you keep her there for a bit? Take her up to the flat or something?’
‘Kat… where are you? What are you doing?’
‘Detecting. It’s in my job description.’
‘You’ve not answered the first part. Where are you?’
‘Bowling Green.’
‘And?’
‘And I’m in the car park. There’s only two cars in it, mine and a little red Fiesta. The other driver is Ewan Barker. He’s seen my car, but he’s not recognised me, and he doesn’t actually know my car. I hope he doesn’t anyway. It might be all perfectly innocent, he might like to eat here because don’t forget he used to live in Bradwell, but it seems odd that he’s not in his own car. I’m doing surveillance.’
‘We’ll be there in ten minutes.’
Kat stared at the phone still clutched in her hand. ‘How rude,’ she said to herself. ‘She’s gone.’
She almost felt relieved that they were heading over to join her, because she hadn’t actually expected to get a result, and she simply didn’t want to go home. Her own home almost felt violated by Sue’s actions, and Kat had quite enjoyed listening to the book while Martha slept.
She kept her hood up and waited for the cavalry to arrive.
Doris parked her car at the bottom of the hill, locked it and walked across the road to climb in beside Mouse.
Mouse drove up the hill and parked a hundred metres away from Little Mouse Cottage. They walked back towards the pub, passing the cottage and then moved as fast as they could towards Kat’s car. Mouse got into the passenger seat, and Doris the back seat. Both women copied Kat, pulling their hoods up to hide who they were.
Mouse looked around. ‘Kat, when he comes out the pub and heads back to his own car we need to act. Start the engine, but leave all the lights off. When he moves I want you to put your foot down and get to the entrance before he does, and block it. He’ll not get round this big car, no matter what he’s got. Then we’ll get out, Nan and I, and you stay in this car with our precious one. Okay?’
‘But this is my collar,’ Kat argued.
‘Your collar is a small white one that fits around your neck, along with your cross and chain. Stop being stroppy, and leave the fighting to the grown-ups.’
They watched as he left the pub and walked back to his car, skirting around half a dozen other cars that had arrived while they’d waited. Martha had woken and they were all trying to keep her amused when Kat spotted Ewan in the brightly lit doorway of the old pub. She nudged Mouse. ‘He’s walking across to his car.’
They watched as his headlights lit up the scene, and then Kat drove slowly down the inclined car park. He too set off and she put her foot down, swinging the car to the left as she hit the bottom of the slope, effectively blocking the entrance. Either side of the gap was a dry stone wall. He had no way out.
Doris leaned in the driver door, and looked at him. ‘You waiting for me, Ewan?’
‘Of course not,’ he growled.
‘But you’ve been driving around here today, certainly all afternoon. Hoping for some revenge, are you?’ She punched her hand inside the car, stopping the volition two inches away from his nose. He jumped back as Mouse opened the passenger door.
‘You upsetting my nan, Mr Barker?’
‘No, no, of course not, Beth.’
‘Miss Walters.’
He looked terrified. His eyes flashed between the two women and it was clear that he knew he was defeated. ‘Move the car, please.’
‘Is this a hire car?’ Doris asked, her words conversational, pleasant.
‘What if it is?’
‘Why do you need to hire one? Or did you lie about the Freelander being yours? What’s the matter, Ewan? Did you think it would be easier to track me if you had a different car?’
He shifted in his seat, and she knew she had hit on the right answer.
‘Okay, Ewan. Here’s the information you need. You’ve seen me in action. When I want to hurt people, I find it to be quite therapeutic. I have a talent for it, along with my black belt. My sensei taught me well. However, that is as nothing, it pales into insignificance at the side of Bethan, who not only achieved her black belt some considerable time ago, she is now a fifth dan.’
His eyes flicked from side to side as if he didn’t know which black belt to look at first. And he was deeply scared.
‘Are you understanding me, Ewan? If I ever see you within twenty yards of me, you will pay for it. Painfully. Get out of my sight, before I ask Bethan to give us a demonstration. DI Marsden is aware of all of this, as is DI Heaton, Kat’s fiancé. You really don’t want to tangle with us again.’ She slammed Ewan’s door shut at the same time as Mouse slammed the passenger door, and the sound echoed around the car park.
Kat backed her own car out of the way, and they could see him fumbling to get his seatbelt fastened. He roared off, and they held it together until they climbed back into Kat’s car.
Even Martha joined in the laughter.
‘You think that’s it?’ Kat asked.
‘Oh, that’s it for sure. He was scared shi
tless.’ Mouse grinned into the darkness. ‘But to be on the safe side, I’m going to stay with Nan for a week or so. Fifth dan, indeed, Nan. What were you thinking?’
‘How many is it?’ Doris frowned.
‘Fourth.’
‘Oh, that’s okay then. I’ll remember next time.’
Martha was a little late in bed for the second time in succession, and Mouse and Doris drank a bottle and a half of wine before retiring for the night. Kat snuggled in Carl’s arms, feeling much happier than she had twenty-four hours earlier, and silence was present in all bedrooms by midnight.
Ewan Barker was surfing the Internet looking for a two week holiday in the Canaries. He’d see if he could find a nice widow there, who wasn’t a bloody black belt in anything. He rather thought he’d had some good fortune in being kicked in the balls by Doris, and not by her know-it-all granddaughter with fifth dan attached to her name.
38
Tessa led the briefing and it was a good one. There was chatter about the alibi suppliers, the alibi confirmers and the case in general. It was starting to feel as though all loose ends would be tied up shortly; everyone had supplied in-depth statements to attach to their original one – and yet nothing had moved any further on.
Tessa had moved into her own office, and she could see that the main office was thronged with personnel. She was trying to decide whether or not to finish the final round of statement checking with Hannah, or whether to farm it out and she would concentrate on preparing the report. She could send Hannah and Fiona…
But that meant giving up coffee and cakes at the tea rooms. The only interviewees left to be seen were the owner and employees of the said tea rooms, and their lemon drizzle cake was to die for.
Tessa was mulling over the issue when Hannah popped her head round the door.