Gina caught the putrid scent as it carried on the breeze, and was glad that she’d only eaten an apple. ‘Can you fill us in on what’s happened so far?’
‘Yes. We also have a team of officers on the way.’
‘Good, as soon as they arrive we’ll start the door-to-doors.’
‘PC Ahmed has made a start. He left about fifteen minutes ago to start speaking with the neighbours.’
‘Great,’ Gina replied. ‘Where’s the woman who called the incident in and what do you know about the set-up here?’
PC Smith continued speaking and Jacob started making notes. ‘Her name is Tina Wild. She lives with her mother Agatha Wild. She’s fifty, her mum is eighty. Ms Wild rents her drive out. A customer called Maura Pickering booked the space and was only meant to stay for one night but the car has been there since which makes it five nights in total.’
‘So, the body has been there all that time unless it was placed there after the car was parked up.’ Gina knew from previouscases and her training that a body that had been left for five days would have gone through the rigor mortis stage and it would also have bloated because of gasses building up from the decomposition process. If the smell was anything to go by, this was the stage that their poor victim was in at the moment. She glanced up at the lounge window to see Tina, her mum, and a man looking out. ‘Who’s the man?’
‘He was meant to be her next customer. He was about to park his car up when she told him what had happened and he waited with them for us to arrive. His car is parked further down the road.’
‘Thank you. We’ll head into the house to speak with them now. It looks like Bernard is going to be a while.’ She watched as the assistant with the camera took what seemed like a constant stream of photos and the other assistant started placing stepping plates down. A gust billowed through Gina’s hair and she wondered just how much evidence they’d probably lost due to the blustery winds. She also didn’t envy the team with all the oak leaves and bird droppings covering the car and drive, then there was the body in the car. She took a deep breath at the thought of seeing Maura Pickering’s body before having to inform her relatives.
Gina and Jacob walked around the cordon and were pointed towards the back gate by another uniformed officer. They headed alongside the house until they reached the garden and stepped through a barn door that led to a spacious kitchen diner where they were greeted by Tina Wild and the man.
‘Is it okay if I go now? If I leave, I might just make my meeting in Coventry and I gave a statement to a police officer called PC Ahmed a short while back.’
Gina turned to Jacob. ‘Could you quickly check with PC Smith?’ Jacob nodded and left with the man. ‘Ms Wild, are you okay to speak with me in here?’
‘Please, it’s Tina, I prefer Tina, and my mum is Agatha.’ She stroked her grey-threaded braid that fell over her right shoulder and poured a couple of glasses of water, before placing them on the small kitchen table. ‘Take a seat. I’ve told Mum to wait in the lounge for a bit. She’s eighty and, as you can imagine, she’s really upset by what’s happened.’
Gina nodded. ‘Of course.’
Jacob stepped back into the kitchen diner. ‘All sorted, guv.’ He sat down at the table with them and placed his notebook down and pulled his pen from his top pocket.
Gina continued. ‘This must have been a huge shock so thank you for speaking to us. I’ll get an officer to speak to you later about what happens next and offer you some ongoing support. Are you okay to speak now?’
The woman picked up her glass with shaky hands and held it to her lips before taking a nervous sip. ‘I just want to get this over with and then we’re going to stay with my Aunt Sue until you’ve finished here. I’ve already given your officers her address and I packed a few things while we were waiting.’
‘I understand. I’m glad you have somewhere else to stay.’ Gina paused for a moment, hating the fact that they needed information now and poor Tina looked like she could really do with a bit of time to process what was happening. ‘It would really help us if you could tell me how the booking system works and about this booking in particular?’
Tina sipped her drink again and almost spilled her water on placing the glass back on the table. ‘Err, yes. What day is it? I’m so sorry. This has thrown me.’
‘It’s okay,’ Gina replied sympathetically. ‘It’s Thursday.’
‘Okay.’ Tina picked up the iPad on the table and logged in to the app. Her hands began to tremble even more.
‘Do you need a moment?’ Gina knew that shock hit people in different ways.
Tina closed her eyes for a second, then continued. ‘No. Right, here’s the booking. Maura Pickering was meant to arrive on Saturday evening and then pick her car up by midday on Sunday. The booking was made at ten-fifteen p.m. on Friday the fourteenth of November.’
‘Do you have her address and phone number?’
‘I have access to a phone number but not an address. The number isn’t in use.’
‘Do you know the purpose of the booking?’
‘No, but most people I speak to use our space to catch the train into Coventry or Warwick. Our space is cheaper than what the station charge and it’s not always safe to leave a car on the street here. The roads are a bit tight and cars get damaged and scratched.’
‘Do you have CCTV?’
Tina shook her head. ‘No, it’s so expensive.’
‘How about a camera doorbell?’
