by AB Morgan
‘Sit down and shut up. Then you’ll find out, won’t you?’ Rory’s face was set hard as he spoke firmly from the television screen. ‘And you can give up on those pathetic crocodile tears.’
Gemma made as if to leave, picking up her handbag from the floor next to her seat, but she halted on hearing Lorna’s words as they emanated through the speakers into the lounge.
‘Hello, Gemma. My real name is Lorna. When we met I introduced myself to you as Julia, you probably remember me. We met at the hospital where your mother was dying.
‘Let me explain. The hospital had your new phone number and it wasn’t that hard to mislead them into thinking I was making police enquiries into your apparent disappearance. All I had to do after that was contact you to discuss funeral plans and wills. Can you think back to the conversation we had? You were quick to snap up any special offers. I recall you selected a very sensible package to pay in instalments for a funeral, and one that included Blenkinsopp and Wilsons’ will-writing service. I know you were under the impression that I worked for them and that the hospital had put me in touch with you, and I’m sorry about that, but as Blenkinsopp and Wilsons don’t exist it does explain why you never heard from them again. Time must have been against you with your mother so ill, but really, you should have asked for some ID before disclosing your family finances.
‘We knew you were up to something, but it didn’t quite make sense until I found your details through a request to the public guardian’s office. You had Lasting Power of Attorney for your mother. No big surprise there. But what I also uncovered was that you had replaced your cousin Anna in that role. She was the one your mother trusted. Not you.
‘You found your mother’s will, I’m guessing, because her original one split the inheritance fifty-fifty between you and Anna. All you had to do was to set about demonstrating that your cousin was mentally unfit to carry out the role of appointed attorney, so you disclosed her medical history and diagnosis when you placed an objection with the public guardian’s office, then bullied your mother into changing the nomination of attorney. In addition to this, you persuaded Anna that you should take on Lasting Power of Attorney for her affairs, should she ever become psychotic again.
‘Yes, that’s right, Katrina Waterford wasn’t dead when you put your plan into action. You also knew that your cousin was desperately mentally unwell. You made sure of it. The truth is that you expected Anna to be found and whisked off to a psychiatric hospital where you could then prove your case for activating your powers to decide her future and she would not be in a position to accuse you of financial wrongdoing. Clever girl.
‘It went horribly wrong because Anna never made it to hospital.’ Lorna shook her head slowly and took two paces forward before speaking into the camera again.
‘Jealousy, envy, revenge and ultimately money, that’s what it was all about. Unbelievably, your selfish calculating nearly cost Rory Norton very dearly.’
The camera shot changed. Rory was centre of the screen again and he continued the story.
‘The plan very nearly worked. Anna’s mental health couldn’t withstand the onslaught from you, Gemma. The calls and texts by day and night, the lack of sleep, all took their toll. It wasn’t the DVD of a pornographic film that set Anna on a mission to follow Leo Fewtrell all over town, it was a constant campaign of messages and a bombardment of unnerving events, instigated by you, that drove Anna’s psychosis.’
Gemma jumped out of her chair again, screaming at the television set. ‘You can’t prove any of this. It’s rubbish! I searched for the stupid cow.’
Rory glowered back at her through the television screen.
‘Give us some credit,’ he said. ‘You may have looked as if you were searching for Anna, but you didn’t report her missing to the police, her parents did that. And you didn’t even employ the services of an organisation that helps search for missing people. What you did was for show, and in your spare time you spread lies about me, keeping the spotlight away from yourself.’
‘Hold on. Are you accusing me of deliberately making my cousin go mad? That’s preposterous.’ Gemma had approached the small camera clamped to the top of the television, barking her protestations.
‘Yes, Gemma.’ Konrad replied. ‘Our investigations have revealed that you went to Anna’s house quite frequently; neighbours report seeing you there. You must have witnessed how unwell she was becoming, so why was it that her concerned neighbour phoned her parents? Why not you? Anna wrote in her emails to the police about how intruders were moving items around, removing them, and unmaking beds, but that was you, Gemma. Wasn’t it? You even took to writing and printing parts of articles to make Anna believe she had produced them. Your writing style is quite different, by the way.
‘Your attempt to disinherit her went horribly wrong when Anna became ill, just as planned, but didn’t get assessed or admitted to hospital. No wonder you needed to tidy up and leave police to conclude that your mother had a hand in Anna’s disappearance. How do we know this? It’s quite simple really; the DVD and letter were never posted, the envelope wasn’t franked nor was it even sealed, so obviously you took them to the house or created them there. Who else could have done such a thing? Also, the phone you so conveniently lost at the fair was never found, but that didn’t stop police from accessing the time and the number of calls and messages, did it? Technology is so wonderful these days.’
Gemma sat down and sneered at the screen, fists clenched as the rage fired from her tongue. ‘I hated her. She fucking deserved it. All she ever did was to take what should have been mine. My parents, my money, my happy ending. She died anyway so what does it matter?’
Rory unfolded his arms and walked across to sit back on his motorbike. The camera followed him.
‘Anna is dead, your mother is dead, your father is dead, and you have been exposed as the vile woman you made Anna out to be, but is that enough of a punishment? Perhaps you think you’ve got nothing to fear except loneliness, but you see, even though Anna wasn’t deliberately killed, Dylan Fewtrell has been sentenced for a crime he didn’t commit, and therefore you should answer for your actions.
‘Take a look behind you. DS Quinn should be standing in the doorway. Amongst other things, he’d like a word about financial, emotional, psychological and physical abuse of two vulnerable adults. Your own mother and Anna Chamberlain.’
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THE END
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Acknowledgments
With thanks for their help in naming the following characters:
Dr Janice Dalby - Debby Horsman
Rory Norton - Cherry and Brian Howkins
Reverend Gerald Fairbrother - Louise Evans
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My gratitude, as always, goes to the team at Bloodhound Books and to friends and family for their unerring support and encouragement.
* * *
And most especially thanks go to:
The real Steve and Dave for inspiring a story and helping me to pass my motorbike test.