lit up. ‘Looks like we have an early front-runner,’ he said.
‘We’ll see,’ said Phil. ‘We paid him a visit.’ He told the team about the trip to the metal yard, Brotherton’s response and his new girlfriend covering up for him. ‘She was clearly lying.’
‘Do you know why?’ asked Fenwick.
Phil shook his head. ‘Habit? First response? I don’t know. I’d like to talk to them both again, separately. But I’m sure he’ll be keeping her on a short leash at the moment. I’ve got the post-mortem from Nick Lines.’
He shared it with them. The blade used, the drug, the size and build of the attacker.
‘I’m liking this Ryan Brotherton more and more,’ said Fenwick.
Phil didn’t answer him. ‘But Lines did say we have only a limited window to find the baby alive. If it’s not being looked after, it could be just hours. A day at the most.’
Silence as his team took in the words.
Phil turned. ‘Adrian, Jane. CCTV? Door-to-door follow-ups? ’
‘Nothing as yet from CCTV,’ said DS Jane Gosling, ‘but we expect the tapes from the block of flats and the streets by tomorrow morning. We’ve looked into possible sex offenders in the area, anyone known to us with any kind of deviant behaviour that might overlap with this. Nothing. There was this, though. A couple of residents in the flats reported seeing a large figure dressed in a long overcoat and hat in the area last night. No sign of them after what we assume to be the time of death.’
‘Brotherton?’ said Anni.
‘Could be,’ said Fenwick. He had a hunter’s gleam in his eye.
‘Right,’ said Phil. ‘I think we can assume that this was done to get Claire Fielding’s baby. Julie Simpson’s husband has been interviewed, and while we can’t be entirely certain, I’m pretty sure she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.’
‘Like Claire,’ said Anni.
‘Absolutely. But if it’s all about Claire, then that’s one thing. However if this is the same person who murdered Lisa King and Susie Evans, it could be the baby they’re after. Either way, that doesn’t necessarily rule out Brotherton.’
‘What d’you think, Phil?’ said Fenwick. ‘ Gut feeling. Is it him?’
Phil frowned. ‘If it had just been this one incident, these two murders, then I would have said yes. Case like this, it’s almost always the husband or boyfriend. Well, nine times out of ten. But because of the other two . . .’ He shrugged. ‘I don’t know. He’s lying to us, but I think we need something more definite. We need to find a connection.’
‘We need to find the baby,’ said Anni.
‘Let’s pull him in, then,’ said Fenwick, balling and unballing his fists. ‘Get him in the box, sweat him. See what he has to say then.’
Nods all round the room.
‘Good,’ said Fenwick. He stood, impatient to be doing something. ‘That’s a plan, then. First thing in the morning, Phil, get him in. Get him talking. Get him singing.’
More nods, more assents. The team were buoyed, focused on their target. A voice cut through their thoughts.
‘There is one thing you haven’t fully considered.’
All heads turned to Marina. She was looking up from her notebook, waiting until she had all their attention.
‘What?’ said Fenwick, clearly irritated at the interruption.
‘That it isn’t him.’
20
‘ S top it, stop it, stop it . . .’
Hester clamped her hands over her ears and stomped round the room, angrily shaking her head. No good. The baby’s wailing still penetrated. She clamped her ears harder, opened her mouth.
‘La, la, la, I’m not listening . . . no, no, no, I can’t hear you . . .’ Shouting at the top of her voice, stomping all the harder, her eyes screwed tight shut, flinging her body round, letting all the impotent rage out.
‘La, la, la . . .’ Screaming now.
But it was no good. She could still hear the wailing, no matter how hard she screamed.
Hester slammed to a halt, turned
‘We’ll see,’ said Phil. ‘We paid him a visit.’ He told the team about the trip to the metal yard, Brotherton’s response and his new girlfriend covering up for him. ‘She was clearly lying.’
‘Do you know why?’ asked Fenwick.
Phil shook his head. ‘Habit? First response? I don’t know. I’d like to talk to them both again, separately. But I’m sure he’ll be keeping her on a short leash at the moment. I’ve got the post-mortem from Nick Lines.’
He shared it with them. The blade used, the drug, the size and build of the attacker.
‘I’m liking this Ryan Brotherton more and more,’ said Fenwick.
Phil didn’t answer him. ‘But Lines did say we have only a limited window to find the baby alive. If it’s not being looked after, it could be just hours. A day at the most.’
Silence as his team took in the words.
Phil turned. ‘Adrian, Jane. CCTV? Door-to-door follow-ups? ’
‘Nothing as yet from CCTV,’ said DS Jane Gosling, ‘but we expect the tapes from the block of flats and the streets by tomorrow morning. We’ve looked into possible sex offenders in the area, anyone known to us with any kind of deviant behaviour that might overlap with this. Nothing. There was this, though. A couple of residents in the flats reported seeing a large figure dressed in a long overcoat and hat in the area last night. No sign of them after what we assume to be the time of death.’
‘Brotherton?’ said Anni.
‘Could be,’ said Fenwick. He had a hunter’s gleam in his eye.
‘Right,’ said Phil. ‘I think we can assume that this was done to get Claire Fielding’s baby. Julie Simpson’s husband has been interviewed, and while we can’t be entirely certain, I’m pretty sure she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.’
‘Like Claire,’ said Anni.
‘Absolutely. But if it’s all about Claire, then that’s one thing. However if this is the same person who murdered Lisa King and Susie Evans, it could be the baby they’re after. Either way, that doesn’t necessarily rule out Brotherton.’
‘What d’you think, Phil?’ said Fenwick. ‘ Gut feeling. Is it him?’
Phil frowned. ‘If it had just been this one incident, these two murders, then I would have said yes. Case like this, it’s almost always the husband or boyfriend. Well, nine times out of ten. But because of the other two . . .’ He shrugged. ‘I don’t know. He’s lying to us, but I think we need something more definite. We need to find a connection.’
‘We need to find the baby,’ said Anni.
‘Let’s pull him in, then,’ said Fenwick, balling and unballing his fists. ‘Get him in the box, sweat him. See what he has to say then.’
Nods all round the room.
‘Good,’ said Fenwick. He stood, impatient to be doing something. ‘That’s a plan, then. First thing in the morning, Phil, get him in. Get him talking. Get him singing.’
More nods, more assents. The team were buoyed, focused on their target. A voice cut through their thoughts.
‘There is one thing you haven’t fully considered.’
All heads turned to Marina. She was looking up from her notebook, waiting until she had all their attention.
‘What?’ said Fenwick, clearly irritated at the interruption.
‘That it isn’t him.’
20
‘ S top it, stop it, stop it . . .’
Hester clamped her hands over her ears and stomped round the room, angrily shaking her head. No good. The baby’s wailing still penetrated. She clamped her ears harder, opened her mouth.
‘La, la, la, I’m not listening . . . no, no, no, I can’t hear you . . .’ Shouting at the top of her voice, stomping all the harder, her eyes screwed tight shut, flinging her body round, letting all the impotent rage out.
‘La, la, la . . .’ Screaming now.
But it was no good. She could still hear the wailing, no matter how hard she screamed.
Hester slammed to a halt, turned
Similar Books
