Sam breathes deeply, pushing Harry from her mind, and turns on to Holland Walk, a narrow alleyway with the park fence on one side and a high wall on the other. At this time of year it’s brimming with vegetation and feels like a secret passage. Although Sam loves it, she would be surprised if many women ventured down it alone after dark.
A father and young child on a balance bike come toward her and she moves aside, but the man stops. Sam pulls her headphones out.
“Sorry,” he says. “I just wanted to let you know that the path up ahead is closed.”
“Oh, really?” she replies. “Thanks for—”
“Something bad’s gone on, that’s for sure,” he confides, and Sam notices his neck is flushed and there’s a glint in his tired eyes. “The police took my details and everything. Must be something serious. Apparently the entire park is closed, and there are those people in white suits. You know, like that woman onSilent Witness?”
“SOCO,” Sam says, her eyes trailing up the shady path. “Scene of crime officers.”
“Yeah. Anyway, I wouldn’t bother going up. You can’t get through.”
An unfamiliar curl of curiosity unfurls within her, and she lingers a moment. A few more people wander back from the direction of the crime scene, all chatting excitedly. Sam stands, uncertain which direction to take. A couple passes her and she catches their conversation.
“… must be dead for that amount of fuss,” the woman says.
“Probably just an overdose, love, nothing to worry about,” the man replies.
But they wouldn’t close Holland Park entirely for a suspected OD. Something bad has happened. Something very bad. Sam walks slowly, and then with more purpose, along the lane. At the end is the promised police barrier, deep in the shadow of the dense foliage. A young officer turns pedestrians away. Sam approaches, rifling in her handbag and finding her ID. She flashes her warrant card at the tall, blonde-haired officer holding a clipboard, who smiles and nods deferentially.
“Suspected homicide, ma’am,” she says, without Sam having to ask. “Young, female victim. I’m afraid it’s a child. Discovered in the early hours.”
“A known misper?” Sam asks.
“Yes, ma’am,” the officer says. “A Missing Person Report came in from the father in the early hours of the morning and the description matches. Formal ID of the body still pending but…”
The officer sniffs. “She was strangled and positioned underneath a big oak tree over there. The man who found her thought the girl was sleeping. It was sort of… arranged, ma’am—the crime scene; organized, I mean.”
“Meaning this might not be the first kill,” Sam muses aloud.
“I couldn’t possibly say, ma’am,” the officer says. “That’s just how it looked to me. I was first on the scene.”
“Who’s running it?” Sam asks.
“Detective Chief Inspector Blakelaw. He’s just left. We haven’t been told who the lead detective will be, yet,” the young woman says.
“Thank you, Officer,” Sam says, but the woman is looking away from her now, wiping her eyes.
“It’ll never get easier, will it?” she sniffs. “When it’s a child.”
“I’m not sure it should,” Sam says with a sad smile.
The officer shakes her head. “She was just walking home.”
Aren’t they always, Sam thinks, and she thanks the officer and walks away, pulling her phone out of her pocket and hitting Dr. Thomson’s name. When he answers, she doesn’t hesitate, worried she’ll change her mind.
“OK, Doc,” Sam says. “I’ll go back to work.”
How Serial Killers Really Get Caught
Getting away withmurder can be tricky, but it is far from impossible and has been accomplished by men and women with far lower IQs than yours. The fact that you’ve purchased this book suggests an openness to self-improvement; a desire to learn. These qualities will serve you well.
In this chapter, we’ll consider how to avoid becoming a suspect and, ultimately, being caught by police. Let me start by sharing a list of the most common mistakes killers make. This is not a list derived from my own experience—many academic studies exist on this topic. Most of these research papers focus on our greatest role models and their often spectacular blunders—Teddy Bundy driving around with his headlights off, for example.
For your convenience I have collated a few of these studies, and throughout this book you’ll find my top tips and personal practices to keep the little piggies from the door. I have focused on Europe and the US only, as these are my territories of expertise—and we all know the rest of the world is a beautiful cesspit of lawlessness, anyway.
Reasons You’ll Become a Suspect—in order of probability
