Killing a Stranger (24 page)

‘Clara, Clara are you all right? Oh what a dreadful thing.'

Her neighbour and her neighbour's husband stood on the front lawn waving a torch about. Clara stared at them in stupefied surprise.

‘Someone threw a brick,' she told them. ‘It's here. It landed on my floor.'

Alec arrived to find the beat officer already there and taking Clara's second statement of the day. SOCO had been called, but it might be a while. The offending brick still lay where it had landed and glass sparkled against the blue of the carpet.

‘The curtains absorbed most of it,' Alec said. ‘It's lucky they were closed.'

‘I always close them as soon as it gets dark.'

Alec nodded and got on the radio to see if he could hurry things along with SOCO and make sure an emergency glazier could be found from the list they had at the station.

The beat officer came and found him in the hall. ‘Not been a good day for her,' he said.

‘Oh, more than this then?'

‘It's in the day book. She had a visit this morning relating to an assault.'

‘Ah. Assault with coffee mug.'

‘The, er, victim made a formal complaint. I took his statement as it happens.'

‘Lucky you. What's the betting the two incidents are related?'

‘I'll lay odds.'

‘So would I. If you've finished, you get off. I'll take it from here.'

He returned to Clara's kitchen. ‘We should have someone round to collect the brick in under an hour,' he said, ‘and a glazier in about two. I could get it boarded up for tonight if you'd rather. Late callouts do cost.'

Clara shook her head. ‘It'll have to go on the credit card,' she said. ‘Bastards. You know it was the toad, don't you?'

‘No. I don't know. You only suspect.'

‘Right, ever the sceptic. You know what that … did?'

‘I've just been informed. Clara, I'm sorry.'

‘Nothing you can do. I threw the mug. I just … I wish it had been hot, that's all. Burned the bugger.'

‘It wasn't then?'

‘Not really, no. I'd drunk half of it. Not that it matters, I suppose. The intent was there.'

‘There is that. Clara, I hate to add to your troubles, but I saw your mother today.'

‘My mother? What the hell for?'

‘I wanted to know for certain whether or not Rob had made contact with her.'

‘Christ, you expect her to tell you the truth?'

‘Why would she lie about it? Look, I know how you feel, but Rob did go, several times in fact. He knew about Aiden Ryan and about James Scott long before we thought he did.'

‘I don't understand.'

‘According to your mother he stopped coming when he was about sixteen. She thought you must have found out and put a stop.'

‘I'd no idea.'

‘But she more or less admitted that their names had come up in conversation during one of his visits. It wasn't finding Aiden's picture that set him off the month or so before he died. It was something else. It's perfectly possible he didn't find the Ryans until recently, but Aiden was certainly on his list from some time ago.'

‘But James Scott. There was nothing on his computer.'

‘Not that we've found so far. He may have kept other records.'

‘She told him. She went behind my back and she told him.'

‘He went behind yours and asked her,' Alec pointed out.

‘That bitch.' Clara wasn't listening.

‘You're sure James Scott didn't mention a meeting, not when he came over?'

‘I'd have remembered that. Damn right.'

Alec nodded. ‘OK,' he said. ‘I'll be speaking to Mr Scott in the next day or so, about Rob and about a certain brick. I'll see what he knows.'

She nodded weakly. ‘It just gets worse, doesn't it?'

Patrick had done his best to keep the conversation neutral. He wasn't sure it was always a good idea to talk about the same thing over and over again, especially when it was so clearly personal. Jennifer, it seemed, had rowed with her mother again, this time about the name of the baby. Her mother had asked if it was a boy that Adam should be included in the name somewhere. Jennifer didn't want it. She was, at least, sensible enough to understand she couldn't get away with naming it Robert, but she was still trying to get as close as possible.

Did he have a second name

Who? Rob. I don't know.

You must know you were his friend

It never came up in conversation

Find out for me

I'll try but anyway, what if it's a girl

I'm sure it's a boy. I told them at the scan I didn't want to know but I wishes id asked now.

Patrick sighed. His machine chimed and Charlie popped up in a second box. He'd changed his signifier again. Lyrics from something or other, Patrick guessed. Charlie was a fan of seventies rock and his designators usually reflected that. Last week he had been, simply, Marc Bolan. Now he was something about black dogs.

Hi, hows things

OK. Done your essay yet.

Did it already so I didn't need the extension.

Well get you.

Jennifers on. She's driving me mad. Can I invite her to chat?

I don't know about that.

Please Charlie. I like her but she's so intense I don't know what to say to her most of the time.

Shouldn't have got involved. OK, if we must
.

Thanks Charlie.

Relieved, Patrick relayed Charlie's invitation to Jennifer. The result was not quite what he had expected.

Bored with me are you? Want to talk to someone else? Patrick youre the only person ive got to talk to right now surely you can spare me a bit of your precious time.

Don't be like that. Charlie's OK. Well have a laff.

Maybe I don't feel like laughing.

Maybe it would do you good if you did.

Across the network, Patrick could almost feel the frozen silence.

I think I ought to go now and leave you to talk to your friend
.

That wasn't what I meant.

Patrick hated people who tried to manipulate him this way. Irritated, he fired back.
OK, if that's the way you feel good-night then
.

He waited, but she made no reply. A minute later she was gone. Patrick sighed.

Why don't you block her,
Charlie asked

Don't know. I'm thinking about it. I just wanted to be friendly but she acts like she tried to own me.

Wonder if she was that way with Rob

Don't know
, Patrick replied.
But its driving me nuts.

Becks still isn't back at school. I thought id just missed her but she wasn't in. I phoned her house and her mam says she's sick and doesn't want to talk to anyone
.

Great. Its not my fault Charlie but I feel bad about it.

Not your fault. She'll get over it.

You think so.

He'd not told Charlie about the list. Charlie had assumed Patrick had backed off from the search. Alec had promised that if anyone should ask, he'd say it was someone on the force that got the information. That's the way it should have been anyway. Patrick was glad and annoyed at the same time. After all, he'd done a good job, finding out. But, if it was a matter of taking credit or losing Becks and Charlie it was a no brainer. His friends mattered more.

OK,
Charlie wrote.
Some of us haven't been little goody two shoes and finished our work early so I must be off. Just wanted to check you were ok.

Thanks. See you t'morrer.

He signed out completely and stared at the screen. Jennifer seemed to be picking fights with all and sundry. He knew pregnant women were often moody, but she did seem to be making a meal of it. Still, he thought, I suppose she's got a lot to be upset about.

He wondered about the pictures she'd avoided telling him about. Hinting so he'd ask for more, not realizing that Patrick didn't play that game.

Pictures Adam Hensel had taken. They had to be of her and they had to be … well, not the sort you put in a family album.

J
ames Scott was not at work. He was ill, apparently, though Alec could see no sign of it. Scott's wife let Alec in, and then went back upstairs. Alec heard the Hoover fire up and suck against the floor above.

‘You've come about my assault, I suppose.' James said. He was squashed into a reclining chair, a mug of tea in his hand. Alec could see no trace of anything on his face, particularly not hot coffee burns.

‘No,' he said. ‘Actually, I came about a brick.'

‘A brick.'

‘Yes. It was thrown through Clara Beresford's window last night at around eight fifteen. Witnesses saw a car drive off at speed and we have a partial number. Then there's the brick, of course.'

‘Why should I be interested in a brick?'

‘Well, if you had nothing to do with the throwing of it, then you don't need to be interested, I suppose.'

‘She assaulted me. Why should I care anyway if someone threw a brick through her window? I go along, offering sympathy and she chucks a mug of scalding coffee in my face.'

Alec studied James Scott's face. He got up to take a closer look and made a big thing of examining him from all angles.

‘You must heal quickly,' he said.

‘I had it photographed. Red, I was, like a lobster.'

‘Hmm. Did Robert Beresford ever visit you?'

‘Visit me?'

‘Well, you might have been his father. Maybe he came to see what you looked like.'

James Scott scowled at Alec. ‘What makes you think I'd have welcomed him if he had?'

‘Well, you did go and see Clara Beresford, assure her of your continued interest.'

‘My continued what?' The Hoover fell silent and both men looked up. ‘Now listen, I don't want any trouble.'

‘No? Does your wife know who you're accusing of assault?'

‘She knows, yes. Clara Beresford owes me. Compensation, that's what I want from her. I've been off work since it happened. Shock and stress and mental anguish she owes me for as well as the damage she did to me face.'

‘Really. So Rob didn't visit you?'

‘You sound like a cracked record. How the hell would I know?'

‘Well, he might have knocked on the door and said “hello dad”.'

Jamie Scott lifted his eyes heavenward again, but Alec didn't think he was appealing to the Almighty.

‘He might have done,' he conceded. ‘But he were a cheeky little bugger and I sent him on the way. He only turned up the once.'

‘Didn't show you the respect you deserved, then,' Alec asked.

‘No, he bloody didn't.'

‘Think you were a bad catch on the paternal front, did he?'

‘You what?'

‘Never mind. Now. About this brick.'

‘That again.'

‘Yes that again. It won't be long, you know, before we can get a handle on who threw it. Then it's just a matter of matching samples.'

‘Samples?'

‘Yes. DNA, you know. Whoever handled the brick … perfect surface for collecting DNA it being a rough surface and all.'

‘He might have worn gloves.'

‘Might have, but didn't. We've got samples for analysis, Mr Scott. I expect someone will be round in the next day or so, to ask you for a little of your DNA for analysis too. For elimination purposes, you understand, you being known to be in conflict with the victim.'

‘I'm the bloody victim.'

‘Not of assault by brick,' Alec said.

He took his leave shortly thereafter, meeting Mrs Scott in the hall on the way out. She was standing with her arms folded across her chest and did no more than nod when he said goodbye.

Alec wondered how much she had heard. He hoped it had been plenty.

Driving away, he couldn't help but wonder how a woman like Clara could have gone out with a man like that. Though, to be fair, they'd both been little more than kids at the time and James Scott may have been much more of a catch. What, he wondered, was the present Mrs Scott's excuse?

He wondered too how long it would be before James Scott dropped charges against Clara. He'd enjoyed himself. He had no idea whether or not there would be DNA on the brick and if there was and it was analyzed it wouldn't be on the fast track at the lab. But James Scott wouldn't know that. Alec hoped that at the very least it would give him a sleepless night.

Jennifer was waiting for Patrick when he came out of college. She'd been standing on the corner about twenty yards from the college which gave her a good view of the entrance.

She'd almost given up on him, the main river of students having flooded from the school on the stroke of quarter past, but Patrick didn't appear until the full half hour.

Her heart sank. He was with Charlie and that girl, Rob's so-called girlfriend. She watched with relief as they parted at the gate and went off the other way.

‘Patrick.'

Deep in thought he'd not noticed her. He looked shocked. ‘What are you doing here?'

‘I came to see you.'

‘Why?'

He looked cross, irritated and Jennifer began to think that this had been a mistake.

‘To apologize, I suppose. I behaved like a moron last night.'