‘ASAP, I like those words.’
‘There’s something else.’
‘What?’
‘Ligature marks on her ankles, wrists and neck. She’s been tied up, possibly to the chair that she died in. There are also marks at the corners of her mouth and cheeks. She’d been gagged. One other thing, the skin on her lips has been torn. I’d need to examine her further but I’d say her lips were glued.’
Gina shuddered. All those injuries and it was the thought of the skin ripping from the young woman’s lips that turned her stomach. Why would her murderer glue her lips together?
She closed her eyes as she tried to recall what Amber looked like in the photo that Lauren Sandiford had shown her and she hoped that the woman in the lake wouldn’t be her. She crept around the screen, wobbling a little on the last plate and stared down at the heap of a body that lay on the muddy shore. She could see what Bernard meant about the purplish shade on the woman’s buttocks, visible where her nightshirt had ridden up. Dumped in a lake after being stabbed in the chest. An assault that was so final that Gina shuddered and looked away. ‘Any sign of sexual assault?’
‘None that I can see but that doesn’t mean anything at the moment.’
Glancing across the lake, Gina could see an officer moving the photographers on. She wondered if any of them were from the press. She turned her head back to the young woman and bent over slightly so that she could see the side of her face better. Her long black plaits mingled with the muck and her pointed chin was covered in a gunky film. Her nose ring glinted in the light and her lips had patches of missing flesh on them. ‘That’s our missing woman.’ She grimaced as she took in the waxy appearance of the woman’s skin. ‘Can you tell me how long she’s been here?’ Gina looked away.
‘The cold water makes this difficult. Given her temperature and the condition she’s in, I’d say at least eight hours but that wouldn’t be accurate.’
Wyre clanked on the stepping plates as she came up behind them. ‘Is it her, guv?’ Wyre sniffed.
Gina nodded. ‘I’m afraid so. Thanks, Bernard.’ She headed back up the bank, ushering Wyre to go ahead as she spoke. ‘She was last seen about seven in the evening last Friday and she entered this lake at least eight hours ago. That would be two in the morning on Monday. The killer would have had all day Saturday and all day Sunday to do this. We need to refine this timeline a little more. I hope the post-mortem will be able to do that for us.’
She glanced back at the crowd, albeit a much smaller one. Some of the earlier watchers had gone and a few new ones had replaced them. So many people were coming and going, Gina knew it would be impossible to keep a track of everyone. She removed her forensics suit and started walking towards the witness. ‘We need to know what happened to Amber Slater after she left to catch the bus that evening.’
Wyre’s brow furrowed. ‘Poor woman. Goes out for a date and never comes home. That could happen to any of us.’
Gina swallowed as she thought about her own past dating disasters. One of them had even become embroiled in a case, making her wary of dating again. Besides, no one had ever matched up to Briggs. She’d tried and each time she was with someone else, all she could see was his face. She shook those thoughts away. ‘I want to know who this man was. Did she arrive for her date? We need to get everyone back at the station up to date with an initial briefing, then I want to head over to the Fish and Anchor when we leave here. That’s where she was meant to be meeting her date. You going to come with me?’
Wyre nodded. ‘Definitely.’
Gina shivered as she glanced back. She pictured Amber in a seated position being stabbed in the chest while prising her stuck lips apart; that almost made her stomach turn. The ligature marks made it all the more sinister; an abduction. She ground her back teeth as she imagined the life seeping out of Amber and a slight dull headache began to throb above her brows. Amber must have begged and pleaded for her release and her killer thought nothing of stabbing her. Then, they’d callously dumped her in the lake, semi-naked. All for what?
‘Can you contact her friend, Lauren, and ask about next of kin? If she doesn’t know, the university should. I remember Lauren mentioning that Amber went home to stay with her father sometimes. We definitely need to speak to the university too. Maybe one of her tutors can lead us to more of her friends or they may have heard or noticed something.’
Wyre nodded and walked to one side to make the call.
‘Guv!’ Kapoor called to her in her screechy voice.
‘What is it?’ Gina began removing her crime scene suit.
Kapoor shuffled from foot to foot to keep warm as she pulled her gloves on. ‘The witness is talking. I think he saw the killer.’
5
I can’t bear to think about it. On Friday, the empty chair had been filled with so much hope but we weren’t meant to be. I now see that you weren’t Hailey. Deep down, I know the failure was my fault but that’s what second chances are for.
My hands itch for more and my head screams failure. That word won’t leave me alone. It could have all panned out so differently but now I have nothing. The cold is biting and I really want to be inside and warm but I know my failure will be brought up as soon as I walk through the door.
The park was always a place I loved to visit but now, with Amber being pulled from the lake, it will always be tainted. There are two women at the murder scene that I can’t get out of my mind. The one, sleek, black hair, petite and pretty. The other one is definitely senior in position and age. She has an air of authority in her mannerisms, hair wavier but still dark. She stands tall and looks strong. Her face tells a story. Maybe there’s pain in there somewhere. The way she tilted her head while looking at the body, I know she cares. I need someone to care about me. She’s a little pale, possibly not wearing make-up, but she doesn’t need it. I like her and I’m torn. I like them both.
Glancing around, my gaze locks on to one of theirs for the briefest of moments but that’s just enough to transfix me. I’ve decided who the best one is and I know I’ve made the right choice. I’m in a quiver and I shake my head a little. I can’t go there. It’s too risky. She’s in the police. I have to get out of here before I make a huge mistake. Walk and think, that’s what I’m going to do. There’s nothing like a wintry day to clear the mind. My boots crunch on a stack of undergrowth and I become still. I have to fade back into the background before someone wants to speak to me or take my address.
Confused. What should I do? I need guidance. I need a plan. I need something. Anything. My mouth is dry and my heart beats fast. A distraction, that’s what I need. I pull my phone from my pocket and log on to my favourite app as I disappear from the crowd. AppyDater is the way to go. This is where I will find what I’m looking for, not here.
Forget what I saw here today and keep looking for someone new. Leave the police alone. I search through the listing of local women once again.
Keep looking and don’t give up. I will find her amongst this sea of women.
She’s out there and if she won’t come willingly, I will take her and I will transform her, like a caterpillar becoming a butterfly.
