Send in the Clowns, a Detective Mike Bridger novel (16 page)

Jo looked up
and held Bridger’s gaze. “I am up to this Sergeant, I need to work.
Last night was…, was…” She looked to be struggling with the word
she wanted.

Bridger let
her off, “Just tell me when you are ready to Jo”

There was a
knock on the door, which turned their heads.

“
Excuse me Mike.” Julie Downie’s friendly smile looked in on
them “Ms Little and her client are here to see you; she told me you
had an appointment?” Julie Downie was a civilian employee; she did
a number of things around the police station, including fetching
errant police officers who did not answer their phones. Looking at
his wristwatch, he realised the time. Bridger felt slightly bad
that he had made her come up to the second floor just to tell him
something he should already know.

The previous
evening, Jane had talked him into releasing Maria into her care,
guaranteeing she would have her come back of her own free will this
morning to speak to them as arranged. It was not ideal, but he had
no option, he did not have the evidence to arrest her. There had
been an ulterior motive behind her request as well though; she
thought it would be better to have a certain Detective Sergeant in
her house to help keep an eye on her. Bridger sniffed at his smoky
clothes, he wished he had had enough time to go home and change
this morning before work.

He thanked
Julie and motioned for Jo to follow him out of the office. Whether
or not Maria were guilty would come clear in the next couple of
hours, she had already indicated her denials, but if she provided
the top as promised she would have a hard time explaining the blood
on it. There were also other things to clear up, thanks to Kate
Atkinson and her judicious reporting of the life and times of
Wilson’s Circus. He looked forward to hearing Maria’s
story.

Chapter
Fourteen

Reece Coster
wanted to scream for help, he wanted to be out of this dark, smelly
place, he wanted to go home, but he could not do either. He had
felt steel walls on every side of him, close enough to touch with
his arms outstretched, and when he had yelled for someone to help,
all he got was a deep rumbling reply. An animalistic sound that had
intensified with every shout he made. It frightened him, the noise,
hidden in the darkness. It had to be the lion, he must be very
near, and so he remained silent, sitting against the cold wall,
staring into the darkness. He could hear it breathing and snorting,
moving from side to side. Agitated and trapped. If he moved, he
knew the Lion would sense it, and it would tear him to bits. Better
to remain silent.

Six years
with P.A.A.I.N and he had not actually thought a lot about the
reality of what they stood for. He felt it now though, trapped,
caged, and scared. The darkness closed in on him and he started
crying. The things he had done came back to him, bad things, not
done for the animals, but only for him. P.A.A.I.N had just been a
way to feed his ego, build his legend. He wanted to go back and
start again but he knew it was impossible. He was sorry for the
fire. He was sorry for the girl; she did not know what she was
doing. She was so out of it on something; he was able to do as he
pleased with her. He was most sorry for not speaking up though;
telling someone, anybody, what he did that night. Telling them how
that Circus man had died.

“
Why did I go into that alleyway…, it all started there.” He
felt his breathing quicken, he was getting a little panicked. “It
is not too late, I can put this right. I just need to tell the
truth…” He was talking aloud, looking into the darkness for his
saviour. “If I get out of here that is the first thing I will do.”
Closing his eyes against the blackness he did something he had
never done before, he started praying. “Please God… or whoever in
the hell you are up there; get me out of this shithole. I am sorry…
I want to go home now.”

Maria
Staverly sat across the table from them dressed in sweat pants and
a t-shirt. Jane Little was sitting on her right, she had dressed in
a more business like jacket and skirt, which was different from
what Bridger remembered her wearing that morning. Then she was not
wearing much when he had left her flat just before seven, something
Bridger was trying to put to the back of his mind. Maria was
glancing furtively at Jo who was sitting next to him and he noticed
Jo was starting to blush and kept looking at the notes she had
placed in front of her. Jane was all business, but she had brushed
his foot beneath the table with hers as they had sat down. The
atmosphere in the small stuffy room was electric.

“
Right, let’s get started then…, Maria, do you have the item
of clothing you promised us?”

Maria reached
down beside her chair and lifted the bloodied costume onto the
table. “This is the top I was wearing the other night…, when Mick
died…. It has blood on the front…, I have no idea whose blood it is
or how it got onto the top. I’m here to answer your questions as
best I can…” Maria’s voice sounded mechanical and she looked at
Jane for confirmation.

“
That’s right,” Jane was looking directly at him “as we
discussed Mike, Maria is here of her own free will and will answer
your questions to the best of her ability. However I would like it
formally noted that she denies having anything to do with the
murder of Michael Wilson, and she does not know the current
whereabouts of Reece Coster.”

Well that was
him told. Bridger took the package with the top, placing it down
beside him then looked at Jo to start the interview as they had
discussed. Jo began speaking in a semi formal manner and he
switched off slightly as she went through the process of outlining
Maria’s various rights while she was with them, his mind was
already contemplating what her answers would be to the questions
they had for her now. He looked closely at Maria, the arrogant look
was still evident but a slightly nervous slant had found its way
in. The way her eyes kept glancing around, not making contact with
his, and the way she kept wetting her lips with her tongue. These
things he had seen before on the guilty and the nervous alike.
Which was she? He could not tell. Reading the female species was
not his strong suit.

He tried to
imagine her on the ropes, doing what she did for the audience on a
nightly basis. She looked physically fit and strong enough, but
then she would have to be. When he was a child his parents’ had
taken him to the Circus, everything and everyone had seemed larger
than life. The Clowns, the Acrobats, the animals, it was a magical
world. The girl sitting before them just seemed so ordinary in
comparison, was she an ordinary killer? She was denying it. Her
response to Jo’s first question was to claim amnesia, due to having
been on extremely strong painkillers. She could not remember
anything after leaving the hospital. From what the medics had told
him last night about her drug of choice, it was not surprising she
did not remember anything when she took them.

Maria had
fallen asleep as soon as she reached Jane’s house the previous
evening, a side effect of the drugs pumped into her system to
counteract the ones she had taken. She had no idea Bridger had
stayed over with Jane.

Would Maria
be capable of the killing in that state? It was possible, but Reece
Coster was now his first choice as killer, possibly working with
Maria…

Jo had
already shown Maria the CCTV footage of her leaving the hospital,
and had now started the clip of her and Reece from the P.A.A.I.N
website. Bridger watched her face to gauge any reaction. Jane was
trying not to look at what the flickering screen portrayed, an
unfamiliar redness was showing on her cheeks, but Maria was
starring at it intently. The look on her face was one of interest,
not one of embarrassment or repulsion at having her intimate
actions broadcast for all to see. He even saw a flicker of a smile,
very brief, but still a strange reaction to her
predicament.

Bridger heard
Jo draw in a deep breath beside him. “As you can see, the top you
were wearing does not have any blood on it when you leave the
hospital, but it is plainly visible in this shot, can you explain
that?” Jo’s voice was sharp and she looked embarrassed, or it may
have been a slight anger in her expression, having watched the clip
for the first time in front Maria.

“
Are you Jealous?” Maria’s smile had a cold edge to it. “I
didn’t ask you to come over last night, you just turned
up.”

“
Answer the question please.”

It sounded
like things were about to get heated between the two younger
females in the room. He saw Jane was biting her bottom lip. It was
something they needed to clarify for the record so Bridger waited
for her answer.

“
If it makes you feel any better Jo, I’m seeing this for the
first time myself, and I don’t remember anything about that night.
I don’t even know who that is…” Maria looked at Jo and Bridger in
turn, then at Jane. Jane’s expression did not give anything away;
she just nodded at her client and Maria continued. “I don’t know
how the blood got onto my top. You have it there, test it and see
whose blood is on it, I have no idea. I cannot explain
it.”

Bridger
believed her that she did not remember, but ignorance or
incapacitation is never an easy alibi to sell. She would have a
hard time explaining to a jury why it was she did not recall,
especially as, if the blood belonged to Wilson then the evidence
clearly pointed to her being at the scene of his death. Bridger
just had to work out what her involvement in it would have been. He
looked at Jane. “Can I speak with you outside a moment, Ms
Little.”

Jane nodded
and they both stepped out of the room, Jane brushing close to him
as she went through the door. Bridger closed it behind them,
leaving Maria with Jo. “Jane, would your client be open to
revisiting the scene? Maybe walk through the area from the hospital
to where it happened. It may jog her memory a little, she may
remember something she saw or heard.”

Jane looked
back at the door to the interview room and pursed her lips. “I
don’t see a problem with that; it would be good to get out of that
stuffy little room. You still smell faintly of smoke and its
playing up with my sinuses. Maybe you should have changed your
clothes this morning.” She smiled conspiratorially “When do you
want to do it?”

“
Now would be good.”

It did not
take long to drive from the central police station a couple of
blocks north to the entrance to the accident and emergency clinic
at the Dunedin hospital. Bridger parked just inside the ambulance
entrance, in what was normally reserved for staff, there were no
free spaces on the roadside anywhere near the hospital at this time
of the day, and he had seen a parking warden prowling nearby on his
motor scooter. Jane had followed him in with Maria and parked a few
spaces along. Bridger and Jo got out of the car and stood beside
it, waiting for Jane and Maria to make their way over. Jo hadn’t
said anything on the short journey, she may have been still
slightly embarrassed about their earlier talk, either way it suited
Bridger as he was at a loss as to her behaviour and would not know
what to say to her at this point anyway.

“
Are you sure this is okay Mike” Jane said as she approached,
indicating their parking choice.

“
It won’t take long Jane, we just need as quick walk through,
by the time they realise we are parked here and arrange for someone
to do something about it, we will be gone again.”

Jane grinned.
“That’s what I like about you Mike, your devilish attitude to
rules.”

Maria stood
off to one side; she was glancing around the place, as if she was a
little nervous. Jo had stayed on her side of the car, as if using
it as some sort of barrier between her and Maria, very odd
behaviour.

Bridger
addressed Maria, making her jump a little, as he interrupted her
nervous glancing. “Right Maria, we need to walk you through what
happened the other night. The purpose of this is to see if it will
stir a memory, you may see something that may help.” Maria just
nodded. “Let’s start over by the door of the hospital shall
we?”

Jo had taken
out her notebook as she joined them by the door and began writing,
Bridger had not thought to bring his, and not one for note taking
normally he tried to rely on his memory. He would sometimes miss
things if he spent too much time trying to record every detail, so
had given the practice away. He was still glad Jo was taking some
notes.

“
Maria… Maria, look over here please.” Bridger recognised the
lilt in the voice and looked behind them to see Kate Atkinson
standing with her camera. How did she know what they were doing? He
looked at Jane who would not catch his eye, preferring to look at
Maria.

Maria stood
in the doorway of the hospital, except for the clothes it was
almost like watching the CCTV footage, and Kate was clicking away
on her camera capturing a similar scene to that of the other night.
Maria had noticed the camera and her demeanour had changed
slightly, the performer taking centre stage once more. Her
movements became almost practiced, more precise, as if she was
following a script. Bridger watched as she looked up at the CCTV
camera and smiled, exactly as she had the other night. Maria began
to move, almost trance like, placing an imaginary item in the bins
before walking slowly out towards the road. Kate followed close
behind, her camera working overtime. All Bridger could do was to
follow the performance a short distance behind, along with Jane and
Jo. Whatever affect Kate’s camera was having on the young acrobat,
he did not want to break the moment.