Dead To Me (33 page)

Good, starting to fudge, knowing they were getting dangerously close.

‘Visiting a client, perhaps?’

‘No, I don’t think so.’

‘Visiting Lisa Finn at Fairland Avenue. Am I correct?’

He swallowed.

Rachel placed a second document down on the table. ‘I am now showing the suspect exhibit number TC2. This is a transcript of the text sent from your phone to Lisa Finn’s phone that morning. Please will you read it out to me,’ Rachel said.

A look of hatred flashed over his face and Janet tensed. It was not unknown for suspects to lash out during an interview. And who knew how Rachel would deal with physical violence. If her chase after the taxi driver was any guide, she’d probably break the guy’s nose, which would not play well with CPS. But then Janet saw Raleigh close his eyes, calming himself before reading the message, his tone wooden. ‘“See you at two babe.”’

‘And the last letter?’ Rachel said.

‘An x.’

‘A kiss,’ Rachel said.

‘Yes,’ he replied, between his teeth.

‘I’ll ask you again: did you visit Lisa Finn at Fairland Avenue that afternoon as arranged?’

He didn’t speak. His eyes were hard, full of loathing. Keep it steady, Janet willed Rachel.

‘No,’ he said quietly.

‘No?’ Rachel repeated. ‘Would you like to reconsider that answer?’ He stared at her hard, defiant, then Janet saw his gaze falter. He was weakening, she was sure. As the evidence built, he was being forced into a dead end with no way out.

‘Can you explain to me how your DNA ended up in Lisa’s bedroom?’

Raleigh flinched, eyes blinking shut. Then he gave a shallow laugh. ‘All right …’ He raised his hands briefly, let them drop. ‘I was there. We had sex. That’s all. And she was perfectly fine when I left.’

That’s all? Just abusing my position of trust, fucking the clients
. Janet noted his admission.

‘You had sex with Lisa on the Monday afternoon?’

‘I just told you that.’ Arsey again.

‘What time did you arrive and leave?’

‘I got there about two and left around half past two, to go to the town hall.’

‘While you were at the flat, please describe to me which rooms you went in,’ Rachel said.

‘The bedroom and bathroom.’

‘Nowhere else?’

‘No.’

He wasn’t scared, Janet thought. He was angry that he had been caught out, but he didn’t appear to be frightened of what else they might have on him. Was that because he had no more to reveal, or because his personality type made him overly arrogant?

‘On Monday, did Lisa resist you? Try to stop you?’

‘No, she wanted me there. She likes me,’ he said.

‘Lisa was expecting to have sex with you?’

‘That’s why I was there.’ Sneering, puffed up with his own inflated self-worth.

‘This had happened before?’

‘Yes.’

‘How many times?’ Rachel said.

‘Eight, maybe ten.’

‘When did you first have sex with Lisa?’

‘I can’t remember.’ Something else he didn’t want to admit to? Why?

‘But you had been seeing her for sex on a regular basis for some months?’

‘She was seventeen,’ he said, as if that made it all right.

‘And she was your client,’ Rachel said.

Tricky ground, Janet thought, ethics. Best left to the lawyers. Morally repugnant, but Rachel’s job was to tease out the facts and figures, and only that.

Raleigh didn’t even have the grace to look ashamed. Said nothing.

‘When you left, where was Lisa?’

‘In bed.’

‘What was she wearing?’

‘A robe thing.’

‘While you were there, did Lisa go into the living room or kitchen?’

‘No.’

‘Lisa was found dead shortly after your visit. What can you tell me about that?’

‘Nothing. I told you: we had sex, I left and she was fine.’

‘Did Lisa take drugs in your presence?’

‘No, I think she had some before I arrived.’

‘What made you think that?’ Rachel said.

‘She was high, uninhibited.’ He gave a slight smile, made Janet want to vomit.

‘Did you attack Lisa Finn?’

‘No. I’ve told you I didn’t. Why would I?’

‘Perhaps she argued with you, got aggressive – she had a history of such behaviour,’ Rachel said.

‘No, we were fine. We went to bed, then I left.’

‘What did you do with the condom?’

He moved his head back in surprise. ‘I flushed it down the toilet.’

Rachel put a photo on the table. ‘I am now showing the suspect exhibit number TP3. This is an item of jewellery that belonged to Lisa. Do you recognize it?’

‘Yes.’

‘Was she wearing it on Monday?’

‘Yes, I think so.’

‘Did you take it off her?’

‘No.’ He frowned, apparently not understanding why he was being asked about the cross and chain.

‘Did Sean Broughton know you and Lisa were having a sexual relationship?’

‘No, nobody knew.’

‘Why was that?’

He stared at Rachel, his eyes flat. ‘Because I’d lose my job.’

‘Lisa lost her life,’ Rachel retorted.

Nooo, thought Janet.

The solicitor complained as Raleigh said hotly, ‘That has nothing to do with me.’

Rachel sat back. ‘Let’s go over everything you’ve told me in greater detail.’

He sighed bitterly and moved in his chair.

‘Starting with when you first met Lisa.’

Another hour and Janet could see that he was finding it hard to maintain the veneer of civility, but even so his account had remained unwavering. Rachel finally declared they would take a break and Pete stopped the recording. Rachel went outside to smoke and Janet joined her there.

‘OK?’ Janet asked.

‘Slimy bastard,’ Rachel said.

‘Yes, you need to be careful with that, letting it show.’

Rachel rolled her eyes.

‘You were fine ninety per cent of the time, really. It’s not easy.’

‘You think he’s lying? About the murder?’

‘I’m not sure,’ Janet said. ‘I think he is telling the truth about the sex being consensual: the text messages, what we know about Angela, all makes that plausible.’ She shuddered. ‘I’m freezing. I’ll go up.’

‘I don’t think he’s got a clue, that we’re after him for Rosie too,’ Rachel said, blowing out smoke. ‘D’you want coffee fetching?’

The first time Rachel had offered to get her anything. ‘Thanks. Need something to keep me awake.’

‘Boring you, am I?’

‘Never that,’ Janet smiled, and hurried in as another gust of icy wind blew round the corner.

43

AS FAR AS
the high-tech crime unit could see, James Raleigh had been circumspect in his use of the computer for his sexual activities. No email traffic with the women he manipulated, no Facebook friends or chat-room sites. Nothing with other men that implicated him in any wider abuse.

Gill summarized for the team: ‘He’s been careful to target women who were over sixteen and so avoid prosecution for statutory rape if found out. Of course his behaviour is totally unprofessional and we’ll see him struck off for what he’s disclosed so far. We’ve nothing on him for the murder. He’s put his hands up to consensual sex with Lisa and that’s our lot. We ask him about Rosie Vaughan next. Now, riddle me this – Lisa’s cross and chain: DNA traces from skin cells on the chain tells us it’s a woman. No hits, no previous record.’

‘Her mother,’ Rachel said. The girl had a real downer on Denise Finn.

‘Her mother gave her the necklace,’ Janet pointed
out
, ‘she would have handled it. That could easily account for it.’

‘Back in April – that’s eight months ago,’ Rachel said.

‘Dating DNA is a minefield,’ Gill reminded them. ‘It can last months, years even, and there’s no reliable way to pinpoint when it was left there. Thankfully, that didn’t occur to James Raleigh or he could have blown you off by saying he shagged Lisa weeks ago and the mucky mare hadn’t washed the sheets since.’

‘Probably hadn’t,’ Rachel said.

‘What about Angela?’ said Andy. ‘She’s besotted with Raleigh. If she caught wind he was two-timing her with Lisa—’

‘The pair have a history of animosity, fights at Ryelands,’ Mitch agreed.

‘Angela was slagging Lisa off when we were there,’ said Janet.

It was worth following up. ‘Mitch and Kevin, can you go fingerprint Angela and get a DNA sample. If necessary, we ask Denise after that. But I don’t see any reason to go disturbing her at this time of night.’

‘So, how you fixed, lads?’ Gill looked from Rachel to Janet. ‘Round two?’

‘Yes, boss,’ said Rachel.

‘Think on,’ Gill said to her. ‘He’s getting tired, but so are you. Collected, clear, impersonal – yes?’

‘Yes,’ Rachel said impatiently. Gill raised an eyebrow. ‘Ma’am,’ Rachel added.

That attitude showing again. Gill wasn’t going to pull her up now; she’d been very pleased with Rachel’s conduct in the first suspect interview and hoped she would maintain it in the second one.

‘I told you earlier that there were two matters I wished to discuss with you,’ Rachel said. ‘I now want to ask you about your relationship with Rosie Vaughan.’

His face set, frozen like a rabbit in headlights, except Rachel couldn’t see any fear in his eyes. She wanted to see it there, she wanted him to be petrified, chattering with panic, the way Rosie had been.

‘What about it?’ he said.

‘You had a sexual relationship with Rosie Vaughan?’

‘Long time back, yes.’

‘When was that?’

‘Two or three years ago.’

‘How did you meet her?’

‘I can’t remember.’

‘Perhaps I can help you there,’ Rachel said. ‘You worked on a placement in Ryelands in the spring of 2007, April and May. Rosie was resident there. You began the relationship then.’

‘OK,’ he was dismissive.

‘Is that correct?’ Rachel said.

‘Yes.’

‘Rosie moved out of care in February 2008, into a flat in New Moston. You continued to see her, to have sex with her?’

‘For a bit.’

‘Could you be more specific, Mr Raleigh?’

‘No, I can’t remember.’

‘So the relationship might have lasted until 2009 or even into this year?’

‘No not that long, it was over by the Easter, I’m sure.’

‘Easter 2008?’ she checked.

‘Yes,’ he said.

‘On June twentieth 2008, Rosie Vaughan was the victim of a serious sexual assault, rape, carried out at her home address. Can you tell me where you were on that date?’

‘How the hell should I know? It’s two and a half years ago.’

‘Was your relationship with Rosie Vaughan consensual?’

‘Yes.’

‘Like your relationship with Lisa Finn?’

‘Yes.’

‘And Angela Hambley.’

He closed down, his face impassive.

‘Or is that not consensual?’ Rachel said.

‘No, it is.’ He stretched his neck, discomfited.

‘We have forensic evidence that places you at the scene when Rosie Vaughan was attacked and beaten, when she was raped at knifepoint. Forensic evidence that you carried out that assault.’ Suck on that and swallow.

He shook his head, said vehemently, ‘No, no way.’

‘Rosie didn’t like the idea of sharing you, of you leaving her. She had threatened you in the past, that if you messed her about she would report you. Did she threaten you on that date?’

‘No, I don’t know what you’re on about.’

‘Did you rape and beat her to keep her quiet?’

‘I wasn’t there,’ he said.

‘The science suggests otherwise.’

He stroked at his head, the blond hair still shining, thick and healthy. ‘I wasn’t there,’ he said again. He kept it up like a parrot. Rachel was pissed off with him. She knew he had done this. There had been something satisfying about seeing him in his police-issue jumpsuit, stripped of his status symbols: no neat wool sweater, no fancy watch, no trendy shoes. Something sad too, when the DNA was confirmed, in the knowledge that she had been right about Rosie: she had known her rapist. This was the man who had brutally battered Rosie, robbing her of her hope and sanity, setting the seal on her descent into a twilight world of drugs and paranoia. Rachel had to trap him, but they had no other evidence to confront him with. All she could do was try and wear him down.

‘Rosie Vaughan had bruising to the face, her arms, back, legs, vagina and throat. She soiled herself in the course of the beating. She never recovered psychologically. On Thursday she took her own life.’