Authors: Cath Staincliffe
‘If they come again, say they’ve found the body?’ her voice shook.
‘I hope they won’t, that’s all there is.’
She looked out of the window where it had begun to rain, thin drops scattered across the glass by the wind.
‘Tea?’ he said
She tried to smile, almost succeeded. ‘Thanks. That’d be nice.’ And she closed her eyes and listened to the pattering of the rain.
Ken Stafford was fuming, Janine didn’t blame him but she had to present a united front. ‘Why on earth are we here?’ the man said bitterly, a half snarl on his face, ‘this is a bloody outrage.’
‘
There’s a very good reason we’re here,’ Janine said calmly, ‘we are conducting two very serious investigations. A child murder inquiry and a search for a missing child and when my officers spoke to you, Luke,’ she looked the boy in the eyes and he glanced away, ‘you failed to mention your connection to Phoebe Wray and you also failed to mention the fact that you and Phoebe spent time together on the day you were being asked about. Why was that?’
‘
They just asked me where I was,’ Luke said defensively.
‘
Didn’t you realise it might be significant, or that withholding such information might impede our inquiries and waste time?’
Luke shrugged, a blush crept
up his neck, glowed in his cheeks.
‘
Luke, think carefully before you answer me now, do you know anything about the abduction of Sammy Wray?’
‘
No,’ he said.
‘
Did you and Phoebe leave your house together that afternoon?’
‘
No.’
‘
What time did Phoebe arrive?’ Janine said.
‘
About half-one.’
‘
And what time did she leave?’
‘
Four.’
‘
You didn’t see Phoebe?’ Janine checked with Mr Stafford.
‘
No, I was asleep, I work nights,’ he said as though tired of repeating it.
‘
Did Phoebe say anything to you that day about Sammy?’ she said to Luke.
‘
No … oh,’ he caught himself, ‘yes, she said she wished it wasn’t all such a mess, that people could just get on. That maybe it would be cool having a little brother.’ Janine thought of Tom and his fears about Pete and Tina’s baby.
‘
And why did you not tell us about Phoebe being with you?’
‘
It’s her mum,’ he said, ‘she’s got it in for me.’
‘
She doesn’t approve of your friendship?’
‘
No, she thinks Phoebe’s too good for me,’ he said.
‘
Is it more than a friendship, Luke?’
‘
What’s that got to do with anything?’ Ken Stafford broke in.
Janine ignored him.
‘Luke?’
‘
We’re just mates,’ he said.
‘
An item was recovered from Phoebe Wray’s possession.’ Janine showed him the book. ‘Is this yours?’
He swallowed. Paused. Don
’t deny it, thought Janine, it’s got your name in, for God’s sake.
‘
Yeah. It’s just a book,’ he said quickly.
‘
You were interested in it?’
‘
Yes. That’s not a crime is it?’ A flash of anger there and Janine wondered for a second exactly what Luke was capable of.
‘
No, but given the investigation I am interested in what made you buy a book like this.’
‘
We were doing crime and punishment – at school, in sociology. Stuff about the age of responsibility and that,’ he said.
‘
And why give it to Phoebe?’
‘
Same – she’s doing it as well.’
‘
What about the child found at the house next door, can you tell me anything about him?’
‘
No.’ Alarm flared in his eyes. ‘I swear. How can you think that?’ He blinked hard and Janine saw how upset he was.
‘
Would you have any objection to giving us a hair and DNA sample to help eliminate you from the inquiry?’ she said, thinking of the hair found in the sheet, short and dark like Luke’s.
‘
You don’t seriously think he had anything to do with it.’ Ken Stafford got to his feet. ‘That’s absolutely ridiculous.’
‘
Please, sit down,’ Janine said.
‘
I can’t believe you people—’
‘
Mr Stafford, please sit down. This isn’t helping.’
He sat and Janine said,
‘Would you be prepared to give us a hair and DNA sample, Luke?’
Luke looked to his father. Ken Stafford rolled his eyes and flung up his hands.
‘What does that involve?’
‘
We take a mouth swab from Luke and a couple of hairs from his head. It will only take a few minutes.’
Luke nodded.
‘
Is there anything else you wish to say?’ Janine asked him.
‘
No.’
She
paused a moment, in case he volunteered any more, but although his face was working, and he chewed on the inside of his lip he didn’t speak again. ‘Is there any detail you remember that you didn’t tell us in your earlier statement, anything about comings and goings at the house next door, any unusual activity, noises late at night, people you didn’t recognise in the area, anything at all?’
‘
No. Where’s Phoebe?’ Luke said.
‘
She’s going home with her mum,’ Janine said.
‘
She’s all right?’ Luke said, his voice almost breaking with relief. Janine felt like hugging him, the poor, daft lad.
‘
Yes,’ Janine said, ‘thanks for your help. Can you just wait outside for a minute, in the other room?
Once L
uke had left, Janine said, ‘The problems that Luke’s been having – they started after your wife’s death?’
‘
What problems?’ Ken Stafford said with hostility.
‘
Fighting, suspension from school and so on.’
Ken Stafford
looked uncomfortable, ‘He took it hard.’
‘
Did you try and talk to him? Did he get any help?’
Ken Stafford
shuffled in his chair. ‘There’s no point in dwelling on it.’
‘
So you did nothing,’ said Janine. ‘Are you aware that Luke’s struggling with depression?’
‘
Kids that age—’
‘
Mr Stafford this isn’t some teenage tantrum. Luke has been having suicidal thoughts.’
‘
Who told you that,’ he said as though he didn’t believe it.
‘
That doesn’t matter. What does matter, what is important is that Luke gets some support before it’s too late. He seems like a decent enough lad, he could make something of himself but that’s unlikely if he’s left to flounder.’
‘
He wouldn’t—’ he said but the belligerence had evaporated. It was sinking in.
‘
It happens,’ Janine said, ‘far too often. And sometimes for what seem to be the most trivial reasons. Losing a parent, that’s not trivial. Have you heard of CAMHS?’ she pronounced it
calms
. ‘Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service.’
He shook his head.
‘I’ll give you their details,’ Janine said, ‘they are very good.’
‘
Thank you,’ he said quietly. He’d gone pale. Janine thought he probably needed some therapy himself. He’d clearly not got over the bereavement either. Still, one step at a time.
‘
Oh, God,’ he shuddered, his thoughts obviously still on the awful prospect of suicide.
‘We’ll get those samples taken now,’ Janine said, ‘won’t take long and you can get home.’
He nodded, got to his feet slowly, his earlier antagonism replaced by bewilderment.
DCI Lewis was spitting mad. Butchers stood in her office and took it.
‘
I’m a detective chief inspector not a bloody family therapist. You drag them in here, forcing me to take time away from two critical investigations. Neither of them have anything to do with it, except in your fevered imagination. You latched onto Luke Stafford, the whole teenage killers theory, and made it your mission because it was easier than dealing with personal stuff.’ She shook her head irritably. ‘We’ve all done it but it cocks things up. Here, and at home.’
‘
Sorry boss,’ he said. ‘It’s all off – the engagement.’
‘
Now, why am I not surprised? Happy?’
Butchers shrug
ged. Relief if he had to put a name to it, blessed relief. ‘She was a bit of a slapper,’ he said.
‘
And you’re a prat. Now, you did door-to-door at the Staffords, I want to review your original statements, see how objective they are. Get them now,’ she barked. ‘And don’t pull any stunts like this again. I decide who we pull in and when. Got it?’
‘
Yes boss.’
He was out of there.
Pete arrived with
her laptop in time to hear the tail end of Janine setting Butchers straight. Janine was still angry. With Butchers. With Pete. And her headache had grown worse not better.
‘
Laying down the law?’ Pete said. ‘Looks like he’s done a few rounds with Amir Khan.’
He held up the laptop and she took it and
put it on the desk, plugged it in.
‘
Thank you would be nice,’ Pete said.
Any show of restraint that she had intended went out of the window.
‘Honesty would be nice,’ she snapped. ‘Were you ever going to say anything? Telling the kids and getting them to do it – how pathetic is that!’
‘
I didn’t tell them,’ Pete said affronted, ‘it was Tina.’
It wasn’t me! Like a five-year-old.
‘
Oh, so you were keeping the baby secret from all of us? Forgive me if I don’t congratulate you.’ She wanted to punch him, to slap him.
‘
I don’t want another child,’ Pete said making eye contact, ‘you know that. It was never part of the plan. Look,’ he said more softly, ‘whatever happens I’m not going anywhere. The kids – I’ll be here for them.’
‘
How are you going to fit it all in?’ she said.
‘
I’ll have to find a way,’ he blustered.
‘
So, is she going to want to get married?’ Janine said.
‘
I don’t know,’ Pete said, as though he was fed up with the whole situation.
‘
Oh, go on, Pete, take a wild guess. What is it? A commitment too far?’
‘
It’s not just the baby,’ Pete said, ‘it’s just – I had options. See how things panned out.’
Talk about
pathetic.
‘
And you can’t leave Tina now, can you?’ Janine said. ‘But no, hang on! You left me when I was carrying Charlotte. Don’t tell me you’ve suddenly developed principles. Options!’ She could feel the rage burning behind her breastbone, her temperature rising. ‘And what options did I have? Promotion, three kids and one on the way when you swan off. I didn’t choose this. It wasn’t in my plan.’ It came to her then, what she did want. She wanted rid of Pete, she wanted to seal the separation. He wasn’t ever coming back, things were never going to be how they used to be.
‘
I want a divorce,’ Janine said.
Pete
was taken aback. ‘You’re upset,’ he said.
‘
You don’t say! But I’ve had enough Pete. It’s been two years, it’s not complicated. This isn’t a marriage. It’s over.’ She knew how final it was. Felt a moment’s sadness that this was how it ended, with an ill-tempered squabble in her place of work, prompted by his cowardice and fuelled by him whining about his lot.
‘
Janine—’ he said, moving closer as though to reason with her but she cut him dead, ‘I’ll set things in motion.’ She opened the laptop and sat down to work, ‘And I’ll tell the kids,’ she couldn’t resist adding as he moved to go.
Janine read carefully through the statements. It wasn’t as bad as she feared, apparently Butchers’ years of experience in taking down factual information had served him well. The initial statements were quite bald, perhaps because, as Butchers had said and Janine could imagine, the Staffords were surprisingly uncooperative. Now she knew it wasn’t so much that they had an agenda, a reason to mislead the police but more that father and son were too bound up in their own misery to engage. Of course those initial statements were made at a time when everyone was imagining that the dead child was Sammy Wray.