‘I used to play there as a kid with my friends. Most kids in Slayton have dared each other to visit that place at some point.’
For a long time, it seemed Gabby wasn’t going to say anything. Then she cleared her throat. ‘They seem to know you very well. An old boyfriend, perhaps?’
‘David was myonlyboyfriend.’ A blush rose to Sarah’s face. This always caused her embarrassment. But it was important in the context of this letter.
‘Your only boyfriend?’ Gabby repeated. ‘Surely there must have been others …’
‘I met him when I was twelve. He was seventeen.’ The words made her feel dirty. It was something that had come back to haunt her with vicious regularity in the past year.
‘And you … did you …?’ Gabby’s tone dropped as she danced around the sensitive subject.
‘Oh no, not until I was sixteen,’ Sarah added hastily. But it was too late. She could see the judgement in her eyes. Her husband was a predator, even then. Except she had been too young to see it. By the time she was sixteen, she was head over heels in love. She rubbed her hands together, feeling like a suspect in an interview. ‘Do you think he’s telling the truth? I mean, about killing Angelica?’
‘The best thing we can do with this is to keep it under our hats for now.’ Gabby was non-committal. ‘We don’t want to worry her family, but we’re trying to find out which other kids were playing the game too. I’ll mark this up as sensitive on the system as it concerns you.’ She returned her attention to the letter. ‘Send it off for forensic analysis on the hurry-up. It’s most likely some local crackpot, and I don’t think it’s related to the case. But they do seem to know a lot about you. Have you anywhere you could stay until things die down?’
Sarah thought about David’s mother, and how she had a spare room. But there was no way she could darken her door. ‘I’m fine,’ she said. ‘I’ve got Sherlock … my cat to keep me company.’ Her smile faded as she remembered the wordseven your cat hates you.For someone to have such knowledge of her life … it was deeply unsettling. Gabby carefully placed the letter into a clear evidence bag. Sarah had penned details of the seizure on the outside, and a half-page MG11 statement would need to be written to cover it evidentially. The anonymous letter would be scanned and uploaded. It made her squirm to think that anyone with access to the investigation would be able to read the words online.
‘I don’t think your cat is going to defend you, Sherlock or not,’ Gabby said. ‘I’ve got a sofa, if you need somewhere to crash until you get your fence fixed.’
‘No, honestly, I’m fine. I can stay with a friend if I need to.’ But she was touched by the unexpected gesture. Gabby wasn’t the ice queen she made herself out to be.
‘I’ll request a tag on your address then,’ Gabby continued. ‘Keep your phone on and charged. You know the drill.’
Sarah had safeguarded enough victims of stalking in the past to understand. Should she call 999, dispatch would be alerted to the flag on her address and allocate officers to attend. ‘I do. Thanks.’ Sarah picked up her bag, which was lying next to her feet. A small sense of relief washed over her. She had done the right thing. Hadn’t she?
Gabby must have read the worry on her face. ‘Don’t stress over this, Sarah. If I had a pound for every weird call or letter I’ve received when a case picks up attention, I could retire on the proceeds.’ Gabby’s desk phone began to ring. She picked it up, keeping her caller waiting as she issued Sarah with one final instruction. ‘But for God’s sake, get yourself some security cameras, and arrange to have your bloody fence fixed.’
‘I will,’ Sarah said, picking up a maternal tone. It made her heart wrench for her own mother, who was taken away so brutally.Not my little girl.The last words she heard her utter. She straightened her posture as she turned to leave. This time she was ready to meet her colleagues’ eyes. She had faced far worse than this and survived.
17
‘Plug in my fan, will you, son?’ Elsie wafted a hand in front of her face. ‘I’m hotter than a goat in a pepper patch.’
In fact, she hadn’t felt this flustered since re-reading the Christian romance series by Caroline Brookes. The doctor who had left couldn’t have been any more than thirty, and wouldn’t have looked out of place on the cover of any one of those books. It was a long time since a man had touched her, even if it was to check her heart rate. And those eyes …
She leaned forward and gulped some flavoured water. No more chocolate milk for her. She closed her eyes, gratefully accepting the cool breeze as Christian flicked on the power switch of the fan. Yesterday’s sudden attack of indigestion had been a warning. Doctor Costello’s words were grave. This wasn’t her first rodeo. She’d had heart problems in the past and she was several stones lighter back then. If she didn’t lose weight soon, her ticker would give up the ghost and she would die.
‘Why don’t I take the router and put it in my room?’ Christian said, his hand resting on the black plastic device. ‘So if there’s any problems with the signal, I can take care of it.’
‘Really?’ Elsie slammed down her empty glass. ‘I’m lying here, near on dyin’ and all you can think of is your darn Wi-Fi? I swear, Christian Abraham, if I upped and kicked the bucket here and now, you’d crawl over my body to get to that thing.’
‘Sorry, Mom, I was only thinking of you.’ Christian gave her an apologetic gaze before backing away from the bed. The only reason he didn’t pay for his own broadband was because he spent every penny on online games. Christian didn’t have any real-life friends. The only life he had was online. Some nights she would hear him, talking to people from halfway across the world. His conversations were engaging, and it was the only time she heard him laugh.
‘Will you park your ass down here?’ She pointed at the chair next to her bed as he fussed about, picking up empty sweet and crisp wrappers. He looked tired. She knew she worked him too hard. Holding down a full-time job as well as being her constant nursemaid … it was too much for him.
Clutching the empty wrappers, Christian did as he was told. Through gritted teeth, she had managed to call the doctor yesterday, as he sat upstairs oblivious, thanks to his headphones. He had lingered in the background, wringing his hands during the house call. She had refused the emergency services. She would not need to suffer the embarrassment of trying to squeeze herself into the ambulance. But something needed to be done.
‘Son, listen to me. This is important.’ She gave Christian an imploring look. ‘This time I mean it. It’s time I changed my life. I need your help.’ She glanced at the shadows beneath Christian’s eyes. ‘This isn’t good for either of us. You deserve a life of your own.’ Not that he could cope without her. Christian was a star when it came to fulfilling his duties. But her father used to say that Christian only had ‘one oar in the water’.
‘You’re not throwing me out, are you?’ Christian’s worried voice broke into her thoughts. ‘I’ll listen out next time. We could get baby monitors … so you can call me if you take a turn.’
Not a bad idea,Elsie thought. Baby monitorswouldsave her shouting at the top of her lungs. An unwelcome image appeared, one of her wearing plus-sized adult diapers because she could no longer reach the restroom. She shook the thought away, taking in her son’s weary face. ‘Heavens to Betsy, I’m not throwing you out! Get that idea right out of your head. I’m just saying … I’m going to diet this time. It’s now or never.’ Having said that, the word ‘diet’ gave her an irrepressible urge to reach for the doughnuts.
Christian smiled nervously, shifting restlessly on the stool. ‘Whatever you want. Write me a shopping list and I’ll pick it up.’
Elsie gave him the beady eye. ‘But you don’t mean that, do you? It’s easier to pick up a bucket of chicken from KFC than to make healthy home-cooked food.’ Despite her son’s smile, she picked up on his reservations. ‘Spit it out,’ she said. ‘What’s tugging your chain?’
Christian’s cheeks reddened, as they always did when he was placed on the spot. ‘You’re so moody when you’re dieting. It’s hard enough now, but when I cut back your food, all you do is scream and shout.’
