Death on Account (The Lakeland Murders) (18 page)

‘And did it ring any bells?’

‘No, none. I probably went to school with a few Caffertys, but that’s only to be expected. Everyone was second generation Irish, except for the two families of Italians who lived near us.’

‘So you’ve never met any of the Cafferty family?’

‘Not as far as I know. Certainly not that I remember. Maybe when I was a child, but I don’t know.’

Ray Dixon’s Blackberry vibrated, and he looked at it for a few seconds. Jane was surprised, but he put a file down on the table in front of him. It was the file on Neil Williams. It had the name Trevor Royal on the front, and was marked as Strictly Private.

‘Have you seen this file before?’

‘No, I’ve never seen that. How could I? I’m just a hobby-bobby. I don’t get to poke around in DI Hall’s filing cabinets.’

‘What makes you think that the file was in DI Hall’s office?’ asked Dixon quickly.

For the first time Gill looked flustered. ‘Nothing, I just assumed. You know, because we’ve been talking about him.’

‘I see, don’t worry, that’s fine. Now is there anything that you’d like to ask me?’

‘What will happen to my mum?’

‘That’s something to discuss with Merseyside. Would you like a name and a contact number?’

Dixon wrote the details down and passed them over. ‘Anything else?’

‘Can I carry on being a Special?’

‘Would you like to?’

‘Oh yes. I haven’t done anything wrong, have I? I didn’t know about my dad, and even if I had there was nothing on the form that I remember.’

‘Tell you what, Gill. Why not just stand down for a few shifts, until all this gets sorted out, eh?’

‘She knows naff all about this’ said Dixon firmly, when he and Jane were with Hall in the observation room and Gill had gone. ‘And they’re not her prints on the file either, that was the text I got while we were in there. And I bet you if we get Tony to ask the mum what Gill knew about her dad it will be the square root of bugger all. Then, if you want to be sure, just get him to ask siblings, friends and family what Gill knew about him.’

‘Oh, I want to be sure’ said Hall. ‘Ray, will you ask Tony to get that sorted? Tell him why as well, obviously. What was your impression then, Jane?’

‘The same, boss. And like Ray says, we can check her story. But I’d say you’re in the clear. I mean she is.’

Hall and Dixon laughed, and Jane blushed.

‘I’ll tell Robinson where we’re at, and let me know as soon as Merseyside can confirm her story. Tell them we need three or four statements please, Ray, and make sure they’re from people who know Gill well, but aren’t related or mixed up with Cafferty.’

‘What about her ex-husband, boss?’

Hall looked astonished. ‘Was she married? I didn’t know.’

‘Yes, in her twenties, but it didn’t last. Seems like they’re a family that likes to keep its secrets, that’s all. I wouldn’t worry about it though, boss. I’m sure it means nothing.’

Tuesday, 7th May

Nobby Styles was on early turn, which he always enjoyed. For a start, foot patrol as dawn was breaking could be magical, especially if he walked west along the river, watching the mist rising, and maybe seeing the odd red deer right out on the edge of town. But having the chance for a few nature notes wasn’t his favourite thing about being on early turn. Because what he liked best was knocking, nice and loudly, on the doors of people he didn’t like, and doing it as early as he possibly could. He loved the sound of swearing in the morning.

It was just after seven thirty when he reached the Walker’s house. He needed to get statements from the two boys after the theft of Alec Mann’s car, and he knew that the whole family would be fast asleep at this time. He knocked hard on the door, gave it twenty seconds, and knocked again. He wasn’t worried about waking Eleanor, because he knew she’d have been up for hours already. He’d pop round for a quick chat and a cup of tea after, he thought, as he stood on the doorstep. It looked like it would be another lovely day, but it was still chilly.

He listened to the shouting and swearing from inside the house, and Nobby couldn’t help but smile. He knew it was petty, but he didn’t care. Eventually Kylie came to the door, and let him in. She didn’t bother to ask what it was about. With kids like Terry’s, and a husband like him, she really didn’t need to.

Half an hour later Nobby was back on the pavement, and his good mood had faded slightly. But a cup of tea and a cheeky biscuit would soon sort that, so he rang the bell on Eleanor’s door. There was no reply, so he tried again. Still nothing. He knew Eleanor’s routine pretty well, and he was slightly surprised, so he bent down, felling his utility belt dig in to his stomach, and looked in through the letterbox. He was surprised to see Gemma’s wheelchair in the hall, and the stairlift at the top of the stairs. It was very late for them to be still in bed.

He stood up, and decided not to ring the doorbell again. He was starting to regret having rung it at all, because if anyone deserved their rest then Eleanor did. So he made a mental note to call back before his break, after he’d gone and roused a couple of his other usual suspects to take statements about Alec Mann’s old car.

Andy Hall had been in his office since six. He’d already watched the tape of the interview with Eileen McGrath that Tony Sheridan had sent him, and when he saw that Jane Francis and Ray Dixon had both arrived he asked them to join him, and started the video again. Eileen McGrath was younger than he’d expected, much younger looking than his own mother. But, Hall thought guiltily, Gill was much younger than him too. He fast-forwarded over the first few questions, pressed play, and sat back.

‘Let’s talk about your car first of all, Eileen’ said Sheridan. ‘How long had you had it?’

‘Only a few months. It was almost new. I can’t believe that someone set fire to it.’

‘Who else drove the car?’

‘No-one. My daughter lives up in the Lakes now, and she has her own car.’

‘Think carefully, Mrs. McGrath. In the time you’ve had that car, no-one else has driven it with your consent. Is that right?’

‘Yes, No-one has.’

‘How about without your consent? Has it ever gone missing?’

‘No, of course not.’

‘How many sets of keys do you have for the car?’

‘One. Well, I used to have one, but of course they were used to drive the car away.’

‘And you bought the car new?’

‘Yes, brand new. I always do. I don’t know a thing about cars.’

‘But don’t new cars usually come with two sets of keys?’

‘Inspector’ said Eileen McGrath’s lawyer, ‘you really can’t expect my client to be an expert in the car trade. She’s already told you that she’s not.’

‘New cars do come with two sets of keys, Mrs. McGrath. So if I ask an officer to come home with you after this interview, do you think you’ll be able to find the other set?’

‘Yes, I expect so.’ She sounded doubtful. Hall reached forward and stopped the video.

‘No keys were found’ he said. ‘Tony mentioned it in his covering email.’ He started the video playing again.

‘So let’s talk about your previous cars then, shall we?’ said Sheridan. ‘Who else drove those?’

‘Well, my husband, when he was alive, and the children, after they passed their tests but before they had cars of their own. They’ve both got good jobs, and their own cars now.’

Hall could hear the pride in Eileen McGrath’s voice. He found it rather touching.

‘And no-one else has driven your previous cars? Is that right?’

‘I don’t think so. I may have loaned my car to a friend or relation on occasion, but I don’t remember.’

‘Are these the details of your last car, the one you replaced a few months ago?’

Sheridan pushed a print-out across the table.

‘Yes, that’s it. I traded it in for my new car at a garage in town.’

‘We’re going to recover that car from its current owner, Mrs. McGrath, and when we’ve got it we’re going to put our full forensic team on it. They’re very good, honestly you wouldn’t believe what they can find, even after years and years. A few months are nothing to these people, absolutely nothing. So when they look at your old car will they find evidence that you loaned it to anyone?’

For the first time Eileen McGrath looked flustered. ‘But lots of people will have driven it since I sold it, anyone could have. It’s nothing to do with me, is it?’ She looked at her solicitor for reassurance.

‘We take prints and DNA samples from the current owner of course, but we’re looking for specific people. And we have all of their fingerprints, and their DNA on file already. And do you know why that is, Mrs. McGrath?’

‘Please don’t invite my client to guess, Inspector. And I do wish you’d get on with this. I can barely remember when you last asked my client a question.’

‘It’s because the people we’re looking for all have serious criminal records, and they all have one man in common. They all work for Billy Cafferty. Have you heard of him at all?’

‘Yes, everyone has.’

‘And do you know him?’

‘I must have met him, years ago, when my husband was alive. They used to work together.’

‘You mean that they used to commit crime together?’

‘I don’t know about that.’

‘But your husband did spend time in prison?’

‘You know he did.’

‘Do your children know about that?’

‘No, they don’t. They were young when my husband died, so I didn’t see the point in telling them.’

‘And do you still see any of your husband’s old, er, colleagues?’

‘No, I don’t.’

‘You’re quite sure?’

‘Yes.’

‘You used to work as a school secretary, at St Mary’s Primary, is that right?’

‘Yes, for over twenty five years. The Sisters were good to me, and kept me on even when Aidan was in trouble.’

‘And did you manage to buy your house, run your car and bring up your children on your income from that job?’

‘I had some life insurance.’

‘Really, which company?’

‘I can’t remember. It’s a long time ago. But that paid off the mortgage.’

‘We can check, Mrs. McGrath. It’s not difficult.’

She shrugged.

‘And have you had any financial help since then, Mrs. McGrath?’

‘My family has been generous from time to time, when I’ve needed a bit of help.’

‘Which family members? Different, or always the same one?’

‘Usually my brother Pat, Patrick Murphy.’

‘Patrick James Murphy, born 21st September 1955?’

‘Yes, that’s right.’

‘We know your brother very well, Mrs. McGrath. But you probably know that already. He’s been away often enough.’

‘He hasn’t been in trouble for years. He’s got a business now, and he’s doing very well.’

‘And when we look at your old car, we won’t find Pat’s prints or DNA on it?’

‘You might do. I expect he’s been in that car. I see him quite often, and I sometimes drive him home if he’s had one too many.’

‘And had Pat been in your new car?’

‘Yes, I’m sure he had.’

‘I expect you think we’re making a lot of fuss about a stolen car, don’t you, Mrs. McGrath?’

‘You don’t seem very interested in my car at all.’

‘Oh but we are. You see we believe that your car was used to pick up a contract killer, and drive him to the airport last Tuesday evening.’

Eileen McGrath looked surprised. But watching it for the second time Hall wondered if there was something slightly rehearsed about it. She seemed to react just a moment before Sheridan said ‘contract killer’, and not after.

‘It can’t have been. I was out last Tuesday. I went to Southport, shopping. I met friends.’

‘And did you drive?’

‘No. One of my friends drove. It was her turn.’

‘So you can’t be absolutely certain that your car wasn’t used in your absence.’ Eileen McGrath didn’t answer. ‘Who has a key to your house?’

‘But whoever stole my car broke in. They didn’t have keys to the house.’

‘Who has a key to your house?’ repeated Sheridan, patiently. Hall had noticed how his machine gun delivery slowed substantially when he was interviewing. He sounded almost relaxed, and very much in control.

‘My children, a neighbour. Why do you ask?’

‘Anyone else?’

‘I don’t think so.’

‘You don’t think so. Isn’t that a strange thing to be vague about?’

‘I’ve lived in that house a long time. But I don’t think anyone else has a key. I’m almost sure in fact.’

‘OK, Mrs. McGrath, we’re about finished for now. But we will be looking in to your finances, as well as taking a good look at your old car, because we mean to find whoever it was who helped the contract killer who came to this country to kill Neil Williams. And I meant to ask, did you know Williams at all?’

‘Nice’ said Dixon admiringly. Hall had thought so too.

‘Yes, I did know Neil, may he rest in peace. It was a long time ago though.’

‘Of course you knew him. He stood next to your husband in the dock, the last time that Aidan was sent down. Friends, were they?’

‘Yes, I expect so. I wouldn’t know anything about that.’

‘Hear no evil, see no evil, and don’t worry too much how the house and the car were paid for, is that it? Look Eileen, we’re not interested in putting you away. We’re interested in some of your husband’s old friends, who we think had Neil Williams killed. And we’re going to work very hard, and expend a lot of resources proving that they were implicated. And the way we’ll do it is by establishing a connection between Sanchez, the killer, and Billy Cafferty and his organisation. And if you’re in that chain, even playing a small part, maybe turning a blind eye while your car was borrowed, then you become a very serious target for us. So if you know anything that you think could help us now is the time to tell me, it really is. So can you help us at all?’

Eileen McGrath sat still for a long time.

‘I don’t know what you’re talking about. I’m just a retired school secretary whose car has been stolen. This has got nothing to do with me. My husband was mixed up in all this, but that was many years ago now.’

Hall reached forward and pressed stop.

‘Bollocks’ said Ray Dixon firmly. ‘That woman in is the mire here.’

‘Jane?’ asked Hall. ‘Thoughts?’ He wondered if they’d been thinking about the same thing.

‘Yes, I agree with Ray, she knows more than she’s letting on, and unless they’ve been careful in covering their traces Sheridan might well get a connection in to Cafferty’s organisation from here. But did Gill know anything about all this, and her mum’s dirty little secret? I’d say not. I’d guess that when her husband died Eileen needed help, and she wasn’t too fussy about where it came from. But she still looks like the kind of mother who would keep her kids as far away from the likes of Billy Cafferty as she possibly could. I bet she was a good mother to Gill.’

Hall nodded. ‘Thanks, Jane, and I agree with you both. It’s all about pressure from here, isn’t it? How much pressure can Tony and his team put on Eileen McGrath, and where will that pressure take them? Let’s not get our hopes up, but this isn’t quite over yet.’

Nobby didn’t get back to Eleanor Barrow’s house until well after he’d had his bait break, but he wasn’t especially concerned. He rang the bell, got no answer, and looked in through the letterbox. Everything was exactly as it had been that morning. He couldn’t get down the side of the house because Eleanor had grown so sick of the local kids getting down there that she had a high, sturdy wooden gate put in, and Nobby didn’t fancy climbing over it. So he went and knocked at the Walker’s door. One of them was always in.

When Terry came to the door Nobby pushed past him with little more than a nod. He was seriously worried now.

‘I need to get in to Eleanor’s garden’ he said, as he pushed past. When he was outside Nobby didn’t even need to climb over the fence, because one panel was so damaged that he was just able to push it to one side and walk through the gap.

‘Oi, I hope you’re going to pay for that fence, Nobby.’

Nobby turned round and faced Terry Walker. He wasn’t smiling. ‘Go inside, Terry.’

As he walked towards the house Nobby saw immediately that Eleanor’s dining room curtains were drawn, and when he tried it he found that the kitchen door was locked. Nobby knocked on the door, hard. He thought about kicking it in, but instead he radioed in.

‘Can you phone Eleanor Barrow’s GP and find out if young Gemma is in hospital? Maybe call the Royal Lancaster Infirmary direct too, while you’re at it’ he said to the dispatcher.

‘Stand by.’

He sat on the back step in the sun, and felt in his pocket for his mobile phone. He pulled it out, looked at it for a moment, and then called Ian Mann.

‘Ian, can you pop round at meet me at Eleanor’s place? Now would be good.’

Then he went back to the fence, crossed over, and walked back in to the Walker’s house. Kylie was in the kitchen.

‘Have you seen or heard anything of Eleanor in the last day or two?’

‘No, but we had a bit of a do, so we wouldn’t have heard much.’

‘When was this?’

‘Started Sunday lunchtime, finished last night. For the Bank Holiday, and with all this lovely weather. You know how it is.’

‘And you haven’t seen an ambulance come round for Gemma, nothing like that?’

‘No. Why, is something wrong?’ Nobby liked young Kylie. Because despite years of living with the Walkers she still looked genuinely concerned.

‘It’s probably nothing. Just stay here and keep Terry under control. I’m going to go round the side of Eleanor’s house and back to the front, but I’ll see you in a bit.’

Nobby Styles walked back through the garden, along the side of Eleanor’s house, and unbolted the gate. Then he tried knocking at the front door of Eleanor’s house again, and waited for word from the hospital. When he heard his number over the radio he acknowledged immediately.

‘Nobby, negative on the RLI, and Eleanor Barrow’s GP hasn’t seen them in weeks.’

‘Understood. Is Inspector Coward on duty now?’

‘Affirmative.’

‘Can you tell him that I’m going to force entry?’

‘Roger. Do you require assistance?’

‘Hold on.’ He looked at the front door. It was a heavy duty, plastic one. It looked like a real shoulder breaker. But just as he was about to reply he saw Ian Mann’s car pull up.

‘Negative, I’ll be fine.’

‘What is it, Nobby?’ called out Mann.

Styles explained, and they walked round to the back of the house together. Mann kicked the back door clean off its hinges, and stood aside for Nobby to go in first. The smell wasn’t strong yet, but as soon as they were inside they both knew what they’d find.

‘Stay outside, Ian. I’m going upstairs.’

Ian Mann did what he was told, until he heard Nobby shout his name. When he got in to the room he took it all in, and the thing that shocked him most of all was Nobby. The tears were pouring down his cheeks, and he was cradling Gemma in his arms.

‘She’s alive’ he said, ‘I think she sicked up whatever Eleanor gave her.’

For a second Ian glanced at Gemma’s face, and he had never seen such pain in anyone’s eyes.

By the time that the ambulance had left with Gemma the SOCO team and DC Jane Francis had arrived. Ian Mann and Nobby Styles stood together in the back garden. They had their back to the door. Jane came out and called out to them but when Nobby half turned towards her she took one look at him and went back inside. There wasn’t any doubt as to what had happened, and she wanted to give him a bit more time. It couldn’t do any more harm, that was for sure.

‘This is the last fucking thing she would have wanted’ said Nobby quietly, before he caught sight of Terry Walker looking over the fence. ‘Fuck off, Walker, we’ll be seeing you in a bit.’

Walker looked as if he was going to say something, then changed his mind and did as he was told.

‘I know what you mean’ said Mann, when Walker was gone. ‘It would have been better for Gemma, well, you know.’

‘I failed her, Ian, both of them in fact. It was me. This is all my fault.’

‘Don’t talk crap, Nobby. You did all you could, I know that. I should have done more the other day, mate, I could have given Walker a lesson that he would never have forgotten. But I was too bloody frightened, and that’s the truth.’

‘Frightened, you? Of Terry Walker? Bollocks you were.’

‘I should have sorted Terry fucking Walker out, and those two little bastard sons of his, while I had the chance. But I was trying so hard to keep my nose clean. That’s why I held back. It wasn’t some new-found self-control, I know that.’

‘We don’t even know this is down to them yet, Ian.’

‘Come on, Nobby. You weren’t born yesterday. Did you flag Eleanor as vulnerable on the system?’

‘Yeah, ages ago. A year, probably. I’ve nicked Walker twice at least since then. We only ended up cautioning him though, mind.’

‘That’s it then. You’re in the clear.’

‘It’s not about that though, though is it, mate? We both saw what we saw upstairs, and that’s what it’s about. We’ve both seen a few things that we wish we hadn’t over the years, but nothing, absolutely nothing, like that.

‘Mr. Mann’ said Robinson from the kitchen doorway. ‘Can I ask you to give your statement to this officer, and then leave the scene please?’ Robinson didn’t give Mann a chance to say anything, but vanished back into the house. Ray Dixon walked out in to the garden, and shook hands with both men. Then he and Ian Mann walked down to the end of the garden, where Dixon took the statement, leaning his pad against the wall of the shed. Mann looked in through the grimy old window at the neatly placed garden tools and child’s toys. He shook his head and closed his eyes. Ray Dixon suddenly took an interest in a yellow bush at the end of the garden, blooming for all it was worth. He tried to think what it was called.

Wednesday, 8th May

Terry Walker was trying to look confident, but Ray Dixon wasn’t buying that as his state of mind. Dixon thought Walker looked tired, maybe even shocked. Dixon was faintly surprised that anything got through to the bloke.

‘Where’s Nobby?’ said Walker, ‘I always talk to Nobby.’

‘You don’t get to choose. What do you think this is, Terry, a drop-in centre?’ said Dixon firmly. ‘This is a formal interview, under caution. You do understand that?’