by Anita Waller
Tessa shook Luke’s hand. ‘Good to meet you, Luke. In here call us Tessa and Hannah, but outside of this office please use our titles.’
Doris laughed. ‘You don’t need to worry about that, he calls me Mrs Lester, and he’s not graduated to Mouse yet, still calls her Beth. It’ll be a while before he graduates to your Christian names, trust me. Am I right, Luke?’
‘Could be,’ Luke said. ‘I’ll make some coffee, shall I?’
‘We’ll go in Kat’s office; it can just about accommodate the six of us.’
Luke smiled. ‘You want me in there?’
‘Luke, you’re a member of our staff, and you want to learn the job from the bottom up, don’t you?’ Doris said. ‘Well, this is the bottom up.’
‘Huh, don’t believe anything she says, Luke,’ Tessa said. ‘This is top down.’
‘Are we here to socialise, or to talk about… something?’ Kat looked at Hannah and Tessa.
‘Both,’ Tessa said. ‘We’re here partly to drink your coffee and eat your biscuits, but because you know Debbie Carter I’d like to fill you in on what’s happening. Six heads are better than two. I imagine Doris has drilled this into you a hundred times, Luke, but I have to reiterate – what is said in this office stays in this office.’
Luke glanced across at Doris. ‘Do you really think I would dare go against Mrs Lester and repeat anything of what’s said here? Don’t worry, DI Marsden, I’m not risking losing this job for a bit of tittle-tattling.’
Tess smiled. ‘I like this lad. You want to be a policeman, Luke?’
‘Not on your life. I’m okay here with my ladies.’
They sat down with much clattering of chairs, and Tessa took out a folder. ‘Here’s what we have so far, and it’s not much. It’s early days. As you’ve probably heard on the news, a body of a woman was found in Chatsworth grounds, and it was obvious it was murder. She had been strangled with a rope, washing line to be more accurate. We found her handbag which had been thrown into a clearing behind where she was left, propped up against a tree. It snowed heavily, making everything doubly difficult.
‘Robbery wasn’t the motive. There was an expensive iPhone in the bag, about a hundred pounds in cash, various cards including one credit, one debit. She also had another phone in the back pocket of her jeans, but it only had one number in it. No name in the contacts, just XXX.’
‘A lover then? Cherchez l’homme, Tessa, cherchez l’homme,’ Kat said.
‘It could be anybody, couldn’t it, if she’s substituting exes for a name.’
‘What if it’s kisses?’
Tessa stared at Kat. ‘Little miss clever clogs strikes again. That really didn’t occur to me. It’s with the tech boys at the moment. If they can’t tie it down to anybody, then I’m going to ring the number and see what happens. Anyway, we found out she’s called Nicola Armstrong, lived in a lovely big house in Baslow, and she is the sister of your next-door neighbour, Kat, Debbie Carter. There’s no love lost between them; I think they were sisters in name only. While I was at the house telling Debbie, the brother arrived. Simon Vicars. He wasn’t quite as openly hostile as Debbie, but I got the impression he didn’t see much of Nicola either. I’m not sure why there’s all this animosity, not yet, but I will find out.’
‘They weren’t upset?’ Doris looked troubled. ‘That’s dreadful. Siblings are usually very close, aren’t they. Nicola must have done something to really upset them, to cause such a massive rift.’
‘They weren’t upset, no.’ Hannah threw her opinion into the mix. ‘But they were surprised. Simon more so than Debbie. He moved across to her and put his arm around her shoulder, but she shrugged him off. She was sort of saying she didn’t need comforting; she simply didn’t care.’
‘Luke,’ Tessa said, ‘any thoughts?’
‘Not really. You’ve obviously to do a lot more digging into the family background. I have trouble understanding how siblings fall out to this extent. I have two younger sisters, and I wouldn’t let anything happen to them, wouldn’t allow anybody to even look at them a bit odd. That’s what you do for sisters.’
‘Oh, we’ll be digging. It starts when we get back this afternoon, now that we’ve notified next of kin. We’ve got a roomful of people working on it at Chatsworth already, digging into backgrounds, looking for any trace of the husband and child.’
‘Husband and child?’ Kat stared at Tessa. ‘Whose husband and child?’
‘Nicola Armstrong had a little boy, Daniel. He disappeared ten years ago, and she always said her husband had taken him. Ex-husband. Does the name Daniel Armstrong ring any bells?’
‘It certainly does.’ Doris spoke slowly, as if gathering in her memories. ‘It made big news at the time. The two of them simply disappeared, both on the same day, which kind of leads you to one conclusion, that the husband took his child. So they’ve never been traced? It’s a cold case?’
Tessa shook her head. ‘I’ve obviously not had chance to look closely at it yet, only had a quick skim through the file, but we don’t know if the two things are connected. Nicola’s murder could be down to something entirely different. Don’t forget we have this phone with only one number in it. Once we find out who that number is, that will open up endless possibilities.’
Tessa reached across and took another chocolate biscuit. She stared at it in disgust. ‘This is my third. What am I doing?’
‘Don’t swallow it,’ Doris advised. ‘It’s the only way to stop the calories counting.’
With a sigh, Tessa bit into it. She needed the extra fat to keep her warm in this cold weather.
‘Debbie Carter’s nice, isn’t she?’ Kat drew them back into the conversation. ‘When we moved in, she came around to ours with a bottle of wine and a box of scones. Bridie was only little then, but she’s had Charlie since. We talk baby talk together now.’
‘I briefly met Bridie; she was off to school on the walking bus. Genius idea. But Debbie came across as quite aggressive. She obviously had nothing to do with her sister, and I got the impression she wanted to blame me for not finding her nephew ten years ago. Have you met the brother, Kat?’
‘Yes, he did some electrical work for us. Complete rewire actually. Nice man, quiet, just got on with it, did the job perfectly and went. Debbie recommended him when she brought the wine. You saw him this morning?’
‘Yes, he’s working at Debbie’s today. He said very little, but I’ve got this feeling…’
They waited.
‘I think he’s been seeing Nicola without letting Debbie know it. As you said, he is quiet, and I’m guessing he wouldn’t want Debbie finding out. It would mean trouble for him; she would see it as disloyalty. I don’t know why she didn’t get on with Nicola, but it goes back a long way. Probably to Daniel’s disappearance. I’m not saying she’s in any way involved with Nicola’s murder, I’m just saying she’s coming across as unfeeling, uncaring and quite aggressive. Which all seems the opposite to how Kat has known her.’
‘You taking on the cold case as well?’ Mouse spoke for the first time.
‘Not without my DCI’s say so. Solving this won’t be easy. Nobody is going to walk into the police station and say I’ve come to confess, are they. And we have a specialised unit for cold cases, they can tackle it if somebody wants one last push on it. But don’t forget no bodies were ever found. During the month before they disappeared, Adam Armstrong systematically took out five thousand pounds in small amounts from their account, two or three hundred at a time, and he’s never used the account again. She had no idea the money was being removed, he apparently dealt with the finances. They could be dead. Or they could have effectively started a new life. Surely that ten-year-old unsolved case can’t impact on this one…’
‘With your luck? Yes. I’d say it could,’ Kat laughed. ‘But feel free to drop in here anytime. We can provide four pairs of ears now. Another coffee?’
Tessa shook her head and stood. ‘No thanks, Kat. We’d best get back, see if anything
’s turned up at Chatsworth. I’m assuming there’s some info on the mobile phone, but if not I’m going to ring the number. We don’t like to do that, ring blind, because it alerts the person on the other end, but sometimes we have no choice. These burner phones are a bloody nuisance. The mobile phone companies don’t do the police any favours… well, apart from being able to triangulate calls and such, anyway.’ She finished her grumbling with a laugh.
Luke stacked the cups onto the tray, clearing Kat’s desk for her. He clicked the lid back on the biscuit box, thinking he’d maybe have to raid the petty cash once more and restock. His ladies could certainly knock back the chocolate digestives. He’d been much too nervous to eat anything, but he knew he would feel so much better next time – maybe he’d manage one or two biscuits then.
The three Connection ladies walked into reception with Tessa and Hannah and amidst good wishes, they left.
Everyone else drifted back to their own offices as Luke disappeared into the small kitchen to wash the cups. He wiped down the tray and stacked it by the side of the microwave. He had learnt to balance it carefully; the kitchen was too tiny to be anything but precision tidy. He’d just put his hands into the soapy water when the reception phone rang.
He grabbed a tea towel and quickly dried his hands before picking up the receiver.
‘Connection, Eyam,’ he said into the phone.
‘Oh, hello.’ The voice was tentative.
‘Hi there. Can I help you?’ Luke smiled. He’d read somewhere that if you smiled when on a phone call, it showed in your voice to the person on the other end of the line. As a newcomer to reception work, he needed all the tips and hints he could muster.
‘I’d like to make an appointment, please.’
‘Certainly. Let me just pull the appointments screen up on the computer and we’ll see when we can fit you in.’
‘It needs to be soon. If it isn’t soon, I might change my mind.’
The appointment screen flashed up and he scanned for the following day. Both Doris and Mouse had three appointments each, Kat only one, at church, and it was an early one. He also checked the physical diary, aware that Kat sometimes put things in it when she picked up random bookings such as Martha’s injections. Nothing had been added, so he lifted the receiver once more.
‘I can book you in with Mrs Rowe at ten o’clock, if that is any good to you,’ he said.
‘Thank you. That will be perfect. I’ll have to bring the baby with me, but I’m sure he’ll be sleeping after the walk down into the village. It’s with Kat, at ten?’ the woman confirmed.
‘It is. You know Mrs Rowe?’
‘I do, we’re neighbours.’
Although he knew the answer, he had to ask the question. ‘Can I have your name, please.’
‘Yes, it’s Mrs Carter, Debbie Carter.’
8
Tessa checked her emails as soon as they reclaimed their desks at Chatsworth. The report on the phone found on Nicola Armstrong revealed nothing other than the one random number. The phone hadn’t been registered to her, a throwaway once it had served its purpose. If Luke was right about the three Xs, she guessed it wouldn’t have been thrown away.
The number she had called possibly only minutes before Nicola died wasn’t attributable to anybody, so Marsden took out the phone from the evidence bag. She waved across at Ray Charlton who gave her a thumbs up to show he was ready, took a deep breath and rang the number.
There were five rings before it was answered. ‘Nic, for fuck’s sake, it’s over. I can’t take any more. That was just one time too many.’
Tessa had to think fast. From somewhere deep inside herself she produced a tearful voice, keeping it quiet. ‘Why?’ She prayed this man wouldn’t be able to tell it wasn’t Nicola.
‘Why?’ His voice rose an octave. ‘Why? Try the broken wrist, sweetheart. You can’t bash somebody with a baseball bat and not expect something serious to happen. I had to tell Paula I’d fallen in the snow. So that’s it, Nic. No more. It’s over. I’m dumping this phone now, I suggest you do the same with that one, and get out of my life.’ His tone was becoming angrier.
Tessa tried again. ‘But…’
‘But nothing. All that talk about wanting to become the next Mrs Ireland… listen, sweetheart, I don’t even want to see you again, never mind marry you. Paula might be a boring old fart, but she’s never put me in hospital.’
Tessa was writing furiously. She had names. Time to let him know who she was.
‘Mr Ireland,’ she said. ‘Thank you for being so helpful. My name is DI Tessa Marsden, and I’d like to come and have a chat with you.’ Ray walked across and pushed a piece of paper towards her. Baslow. ‘Now I know you live in Baslow, so can you give me your full address, please.’
There was silence and then the man spoke again. ‘What? Police? Where’s Nicola? This is her phone…’
‘We are aware of that, Mr Ireland. Now, your address, please.’
‘No…’
Tessa sighed. ‘Mr Ireland, it will take us approximately thirty seconds to find it, you may as well tell me what it is.’
He sounded a broken man as he told her where he lived. She suspected he was trying to come up with something to tell the boring old fart, but guessed he might need a bit of luck on that one.
‘Thank you, Mr Ireland, you’ve been very helpful. So far. Please do nothing with that phone, you don’t want a charge of obstructing the course of justice hanging over you, do you. We’ll be there in about fifteen minutes.’
She hung up, and grinned at Hannah. ‘Yes,’ Tessa said and punched the air. ‘Did I sound like a broken-hearted lover?’
‘Not exactly, boss, but down a phone line you would. We going now?’
‘We are. Then we’ll head off home, unless he falls prostrate at our feet and confesses to murder, but I hardly think that’s going to happen when he clearly doesn’t know she’s dead.’
Neil Ireland opened the door to them, his face immobile. Nothing showed, no anger, no upset, just piercing blue eyes that settled first on Hannah, then on Tessa. He was a tall striking-looking man with short steel-grey hair that lightened to a white grey around his ears. His skin was tanned, and Tessa guessed he’d been somewhere warm for Christmas. With Nicola? With Paula? His left arm sported a cast, presumably doing its work healing the broken wrist.
They held out their warrant cards and he nodded without speaking. He held the door open and they entered the hallway. Wooden floors with brightly coloured rugs welcomed visitors to this home, despite the current frostiness of the male resident.
‘First room on the left,’ he said.
The lounge was beautiful. It was exquisitely decorated in grey and pale mustard, with two huge sofas also in grey. The fire was burning brightly, and they waited patiently for him to ask them to sit. He didn’t, so Tessa moved towards a chair, sat, and took some papers out of her bag.
‘Hannah, can you take notes, please?’ she said, and for the first time Neil Ireland began to look uncomfortable, rather than pissed off.
Hannah sat at the other end of the same sofa her boss had commandeered, and took out her notebook and pen.
She waited patiently for something to happen, but when it did it made her jump. The lounge door swung open, and a striking blonde woman came in, carrying a tray with drinks. She was around five feet nine, and carried her height gracefully.
‘I hope you drink tea,’ she said, and Hannah thought they wouldn’t dare deny it.
‘This is my wife Paula,’ Neil said, and Paula inclined her head. She placed the tray on the coffee table then sat at one end of the other sofa. Neil took his place at the far end. There was an ice-cold space between them.
Tessa leaned forward and grasped one of the cups. She added milk, passed it to Hannah before doing the same with her own drink, and then turned to speak to her host. ‘Thank you, Mrs Ireland. This is very welcome. It’s so cold out there.’
‘My husband says you need to have a few words with him.
I trust it’s okay if I’m here as well.’ The frostiness had passed from husband to wife. The husband seemed to be deflating in front of their eyes.
‘That’s fine, Mrs Ireland,’ Tessa said, and watched as Neil Ireland dropped his head. ‘We have found a body at Chatsworth. Before we go any further, Mr Ireland, may I have the phone on which I contacted you earlier?’
He reached into his jeans pocket and eased out the mobile. Paula stared at it, but said nothing.
Tessa leaned across and took it out of his hands. ‘Thank you. We’ll have our tech boys recover everything that’s ever been on it. Did you buy it new?’
Neil nodded; misery was written all over his face. The bravado when he had first opened his front door had gone.
‘We now know the body is of a woman who lived in Baslow, Nicola Armstrong.’
Tessa heard Paula gasp, but kept her eyes on the man in front of her slowly imploding.
‘No…’ he moaned.
‘Neil? What’s wrong?’ Paula turned to her husband.
Tessa interrupted, not wanting this domineering woman interfering with anything her husband might be about to say. ‘Can you tell me where you were between the hours of 10pm and midnight on Monday, please?’
‘He was here,’ Paula said. ‘It was Monday when he fell in the snow, and we didn’t get back from the hospital until about nine. He went to bed almost as soon as we got in. He took some painkillers and when I went up about half past ten, I checked on him and he was fast asleep.’
Neil lifted his head, ignored his wife and looked at Tessa. ‘She’s dead? She rang me about ten that night but I didn’t answer. I didn’t want to speak to her, or ever see her again. This isn’t the first time she’s hurt me, but this is the most serious. I realised it couldn’t go on, but I was in no state to speak to her Monday night. The pain was too bad. By the time you rang this afternoon, I was ready to tell her it was over. Only it wasn’t her…’