A Full Churchyard (17 page)

‘Absolutely, Detective Inspector Pluke.'

‘So do your volunteers maintain work-time diaries, Mr Furnival?' Wayne Wain suddenly joined the debate. ‘Or is there a master diary in Head Office? I'm thinking of a record of all cases dealt with . . . I would have thought a log of duty operations would be essential for your own security. We do live in an age when people can be sued for the most innocent of actions and for very trivial reasons.'

Mrs Jarvis had been listening intently and now responded, ‘We keep very detailed records, Sergeant. Remember, we are entering peoples' homes and dealing with very personal matters, so our volunteers are advised, for legal and practical reasons, to maintain an accurate daily record of all their activities. I check them regularly to keep them on their toes!'

‘A very wise and necessary procedure, Mrs Jarvis.'

‘We wouldn't want to lay ourselves open to accusations of any kind from our clients or their families. I'm sure both of you realize that most of our clients are elderly and forgetful, they lose things and it is not unknown for some of our volunteers to be accused of theft or worse, Sergeant. In fact we have one old man who has an extremely valuable oil painting hanging above his fireplace . . . I do worry about it because he leaves his doors unlocked and invites all sorts of people in, just for companionship. . . .'

‘That's exactly the sort of thing that needs to be recorded, for your own safety. And the old man does need some good advice too! So what is recorded in your master diary?' asked Pluke. ‘And who's responsible for maintaining it?'

‘I'm ultimately responsible,' said Furnival. ‘But Sarah does the donkey work.'

Sarah Allanby, sitting next to him at the head of table as she took notes of this meeting, looked up and smiled.

‘We keep a duty rota, Mr Pluke,' she explained. ‘We need to know what our volunteers are doing, where they are and whom they are visiting. We maintain what might be called a duty sheet to ensure there are always volunteers available at short notice, and here in the office, we need to know where they are at any given moment when on duty.'

‘It sounds like a police operation,' smiled Wayne.

‘We're very strict about such things. Mr Furnival and both our professionals make sure we maintain very detailed records of all official activities. As the full-time secretary, I compile the duty rota and diary with help from our professionals and Mr Furnival checks it every morning. We look to see whether any of our volunteers have done something that might give rise to dissatisfaction or complaints and if they have, our professionals give them suitable advice and guidance. In addition, Mrs Jarvis covers evenings on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, with Mrs Frankland doing Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Mr Furnival does Sundays but they can swap with each other if necessary – that's when they give help and advice to the volunteers. I might add that it is not easy, being a volunteer carer. There is much to consider.'

‘Even so, I would imagine most of their work will be innocuous stuff – helping an elderly person to get up on a morning, have a bath and breakfast, and then do a bit of shopping for them, washing and ironing, or whatever is needed.'

‘It is, Mr Pluke, but we do ask that our volunteers be very specific when compiling their records – they can be tempted to write stuff like “domestic help – 8 a.m. until 10 a.m.” when in fact we like them to itemize their work:
“helping Mrs So-and-So to get dressed, shopping for her at Brown's corner shop to buy groceries – £5.66p spent.”
We think it is important to keep very detailed records, Mr Pluke, just in case we get complaints.'

‘That's exactly why
we
keep such comprehensive records.'

‘There are lots of complainers in our society, Detective Inspector, not only our old people but their friends and families.'

‘Don't we know it! And do you find the volunteers reliable in compiling their records?'

‘As good as possible, I feel. I know some will pop into a house if they are passing en route to the shops for their own needs; they like to check whether the occupant also needs anything . . . that kind of visit might go unrecorded. I'm sure there are many similar examples but to date nothing of that nature has given rise to concerns.'

‘So how do volunteers gain entry to the clients' homes?' asked Pluke.

‘We have copies of their keys,' Furnival told him. ‘We have a secure key board with spares for all our clients' homes. And each house is also fitted with a key-safe for emergencies – a small secure box on an outer wall where a code will release a key if required. Mostly, we are admitted by the occupants, either by leaving doors open when they expect us or unlocking them when our carers arrive. But if our staff can't gain entry and the need is urgent, then we use keys from our stock – and each one is booked out and booked back in. Our cabinet is secured by a coded lock, the code is known only to myself, Sarah and our two professional carers.'

‘Everything seems to be very well organized, Mr Furnival, you have my congratulations,' smiled Pluke.

Mr Furnival responded, ‘We do our best, but I have to say that the Crickledale Volunteer Carers were up-and-running most effectively when I arrived on the scene. I'd say they are the best-run of all the groups I have been associated with, both professionally and in the voluntary sector.'

Sarah butted in now. ‘Shall I print off a list of volunteers for Mr Pluke?'

‘Good idea, Sarah, and include a list of our clients too. Then Detective Inspector Pluke can ask them for their observations.'

As Sarah left the room, Mr Furnival smiled at Pluke. ‘I think we can come to some agreement here, Detective Inspector Pluke. Your efforts might help also us to save money too, and reduce staff requirements. That can only be good for everyone. So what sort of things will you be asking the volunteers?'

‘As I said earlier, my prime purpose is to determine the circumstances in which they would call the police. There may be times when they've wondered what to do, cases when they didn't need to call the police but did so because they couldn't think of an alternative. It's not a case of being critical, Mr Furnival, it's being objective, trying to reduce costs, avoid wasting time and establish workable procedures. And as this is a Home Office initiative, it is highly confidential at the moment.'

Mrs Jarvis now interrupted. ‘So will you want to chat to me, Mr Pluke? I must say I entirely agree with what Mr Furnival has said but I must admit there are times when even I, with my long nursing experience, have been uncertain who to call first at the scene of a sudden or unexpected death.'

‘I'll be interviewing all the carers in due course,' acknowledged Pluke. ‘Perhaps I could interview you after I've spoken to the others? That might help. We will draft a questionnaire to ensure everyone gets the same attention.'

‘Well, I'm not sure about that, Mr Pluke . . . more forms to fill in, boxes to tick.' Mrs Jarvis sounded concerned.

Furnival interrupted. ‘It's very important that we cooperate, Juliet. We must make the most of our funding and this initiative from the Home Office can help us as well as the police. So yes, Detective Inspector, we're pleased to help in any way.'

‘So can I ask you a question at this point, Mrs Jarvis,' asked Wayne. ‘What is your personal first action at the scene of a problematical death? Sudden or unexpected?'

‘I would call the police,' she shrugged her shoulders. ‘They would know what to do next, who else to call and so on. But I've never thought I was wasting police time by doing that.'

‘It's certainly never a waste of police time,' acknowledged Pluke. ‘But things are changing and the question is whether, in view of the Government cuts, we can reduce the time the police spend on call-outs that may not be strictly necessary. It is a very important and delicate matter and any views from you and your staff would be appreciated.'

‘I'll help all I can,' Mrs Jarvis assured them.

At that point, Sarah Allanby returned with the list of volunteers and another file containing a list of clients; she handed copies of each to Pluke.

‘Their full names and addresses are there, Mr Pluke, along with any special skills that some might possess. I am sure you will find them – volunteers, carers and clients, past and present – all most delightful and helpful, especially Mrs Pluke. She always helps with our Thursday night rounds too, she is loved by all our patients and clients.'

‘I might discover something I never knew!' he smiled. ‘I hope I can persuade Mrs Pluke to help me with this initiative! But thanks, all of you. We shall get to work immediately and will keep in touch with all the CVC members through Mr Furnival. Thanks for your time.'

‘A pleasure, Mr . . . er . . . Detective Inspector Pluke,' said Furnival.

‘Thank you all for your help, it was most useful. So come along, Detective Sergeant Wain,' Pluke rose to his feet. ‘We can't delay, there is much to do.'

Chapter 13

‘S
o what was
all that about?' asked Wayne Wain as they walked back to the police station. ‘I had no idea what you were getting at Sir, you lost me in all that nonsense about cuts and wasting police time. The Home Office hasn't initiated any such policy and I've never heard those theories from anyone else. It goes without saying that ordinary citizens will call the police when they're confronted by a dead body. That applies even if they are trained volunteers working for a charity. What else can they do?'

‘You'll recall I said we may have to use subterfuge, Wayne, and so I was. I was softening him up, as they say. I wanted to get him talking so I produced a sound reason for interviewing him and eventually his volunteers. I want to know more about the CVC carers without asking Millicent and, at this stage, I don't want him to think I'm suspicious of him or his staff. I've no doubt, however, that we'll have to interview them before too long to establish their movements in cases where there have been suspicious deaths. By that, I include old folks on the floor! If we get a match between a CVC visit and such a deceased person, then we shall have to delve even deeper. You can understand why I had to disguise my motives but I think he'll cooperate – and we do need his cooperation.'

‘I had no idea you could be so devious but we've got what we wanted from him.'

‘Exactly, Wayne. It's a very positive start. We can examine cases where their patients or clients died even if the deaths did not come to the attention of the police. And we got something else.'

‘What was that?'

‘Permission to speak to volunteers and clients without any formal involvement of the police. Strictly speaking, I needn't obtain his consent to talk to his volunteers but by seeking his permission I made him feel good towards us. It was a very useful concession he thought he had made, but it means I can now discreetly ask his volunteers about some of the deaths. This could become a truly productive cold-case review, Wayne. If someone is using the CVC as a smokescreen for their activities, then we shall blow that smoke away.'

‘I never thought of it like that but it does make sense.'

‘We must find ways to outwit the villains, Wayne. If someone is duping the police, doctors and all the other CVC members and officials, we must find out who it is, and why. Why are these helpless old folk being targeted, Wayne? Are their deaths a cover for other crimes? Now consider what we must prove if we suspect murder – we must show the killer had the ability to carry out the crime, the opportunity and the means to do so,
and a motive for committing it
. Not kindness, Wayne, not helping a person to die out of love or compassion. If the first three requirements are present, it's vital we find the fourth – the real motive. By talking informally to the volunteers and using our disguised reason for our questions, we shall gain a very positive start. Quite suddenly, I can feel my cold-case review quickly getting warmer.'

‘Furnival will alert them, surely? I know you asked him not to, but he or those women will warn their friends and colleagues, that's for sure. Somebody will let the proverbial cat out of the bag and those volunteers will rehearse their responses or say nothing at all.'

‘But if he tells them what to say, I shall recognize that that is happening. If he does so, it means he'll be covering up something or someone, doesn't it?'

‘That will mean he is an accomplice?'

‘It will, but at no point in the early stages will we hint at deaths or murders – we must give the impression we are there to help both the CVC and the police to save money and become more efficient.'

‘You're a cunning old devil, aren't you!'

‘Not so much of the old, Wayne!'

‘All right, I'll say you are an experienced old devil!'

‘That's better. But I know, Wayne, that it takes a cunning old police officer to ferret out facts, so I'm merely doing my job. I know it is shocking and even unbelievable to suggest there is a killer among the carers, but by doing that, we might find out there isn't one, just someone using them as a cover for their own nasty work. . . .'

‘So you're now saying you
don't
suspect any of the carers of murder?'

‘I'm not saying that, Wayne. I'm open-minded. Our enquiries will reveal the truth.'

‘So you'll be interviewing Mrs Pluke?'

‘No,
you'll
be doing that, Wayne! Very discreetly. And you must do it whilst I'm nowhere near her. Try to make it appear nothing more than a chat. I want to know if she suspects anything unsavoury within the realms of the CVC. I feel sure that something is bothering her, but she won't tell me.'

‘So now what are we looking for? You've confused me with all that talk of unnecessarily calling the police to sudden deaths, and then you say you don't really suspect a CVC volunteer is helping clients to die. Just what are we doing?'