Two Wrongs (Detective Inspector Ross Reed Book 1) (16 page)

The metal stairs started to vibrate a little as Tyler began her climb. This made Reed realise how still he had been standing. His body was tense and he had to force his muscles to relax a little before looking at Garrood for some indication as to where Alan Westwood was. Garrood nodded in the direction of the brick building, “He's behind there.”

When Tyler reached the top, she was instructed to come with him but to keep her distance. She nodded her approval and fell into line as they walked across the roof. The gravel that had once been stuck down with roofing tar had been worked loose and made a crunching sound as they walked across it. With no way of arriving unannounced, Reed shouted, “Alan! Alan, it's the police!”

There was no reply.

Reed walked a large arc around the brick hut to try and improve his field of vision; Alan Westwood was sat with his back against the wall that surrounded the roof's edge. His head was hung low, looking down between his slightly parted legs.

“Alan, it's DI Reed. Are you OK?”

Alan didn't move a muscle. Reed wondered if he had drunk himself unconscious, “Alan?”

“I heard you the first time.” Alan said but didn't look up. He was dressed in blue jeans, a red t-shirt and black shoes. His words were slightly slurred.

“Your wife is worried about you.” Reed said for want of a better opening gambit.

“She always worries. Always fussing about nothing. Ever since Tina was killed, she treats me like the flaming child in the family.”

Tyler appeared at the opposite side of the brick building as Reed moved closer to Alan. “This must be a difficult time for both of you.”

Without speaking, Alan rose to his feet with a slow caution of somebody who had been drinking and wasn't sure of the effects. There was a half empty bottle of whisky sat by the wall. Alan steadied himself before looking at Reed. Then, with a quickness that was totally unexpected, Alan charged, making up the three metres or so between them, he wrapped his hands around Reed's throat before there was time to react. They both tumbled to the floor, Alan letting the body beneath him break the fall so he could keep his grip on Reed's throat. Their eyes were locked. Reed's filled with fear, Alan's with hatred.

Alan's face was red with rage as he shouted, “You have no fucking idea how hard it is!”

Reed felt the alcohol smelling air hiss across his face as the words came out. Spittle hitting his skin. Tyler came into view over Alan's shoulder with her police baton raised.

“Get off him. Now!”

Alan didn't look at Tyler. He didn't release his grip either, his skin and eyes were now a matching shade of crimson, anger still flowing through his veins and his eyes bloodshot from drink. Reed guessed he must have had a similar complexion too through a lack of oxygen, as though one of the men was looking into a mirror.

“Now!” Tyler shouted as she shook the telescopic baton to its full, attacking length.

Alan slowly eased his grip. He laboured to a standing position without taking his eyes off the man now hacking and coughing below him, a man who was now gripping at his own throat giving the impression that he had somehow enjoyed the pressure there. Alan retreated to his bottle of whisky and took a greedy gulp. Reed, just as greedily, filled his lungs with air. 

After the oxygen had returned to Reed's bloodstream, he stood up and dusted himself down, he walked over to the wall where Alan was standing, leaving a few metres between them, not wanting to crowd him. Both men sat in silence and Reed took in the view; off to the left was Thetford town centre which appeared as an enlarged maze, the tip of the church's peak was around eye level and the sudden sense of height made him feel slightly dizzy. In complete contrast, over to the right, the edge of Thetford Forest was laid out like a lush green canvass, not yet painted with buildings. Bridging the gap between the two areas was a mixture of housing estates and industrial buildings.

“Can I have a sip?” Reed asked, nodding towards the bottle of whiskey.

Alan held it out for Reed to take, which after taking a few steps closer, he did, before retreating to a safe distance again. He turned to Tyler and gave her a shrug. He hated whiskey, all spirits actually. Taking a pretend sip, he placed the bottle down by his own feet and hoped Alan would forget about it.

“This is all I have now. This job.” Alan said, gesturing at his immediate surroundings with his hands.

“I know it won't bring Tina back Mr. Westwood, but I believe we're close to catching her killer. There are undeniable connections between her case and the recent murder of Carmella Chapman. Maybe that will finally give you closure. You and your wife.”

“It's been ten years. Ten. I've had hope before detective, for a long time I had hope and when that begins to fade it leaves nothing but pain.”

Reed couldn't begin to understand how Alan was feeling so he said nothing. He hoped Alan would talk it through at his own pace and then they could all go home.

“Don't give me hope Detective. It's a killer itself. A slow killer. All this that has happened recently, it's stirred up hope again and it's not worth it, I know that now.” Alan pushed himself away from the wall and took a few steps towards Reed and picked up the whisky bottle. Reed felt ashamed that he had backed away as Alan approached, maintaining a safe distance.

“I can give you hope, what I won't do is promise you anything. There is hope, it's backed up with facts now, there's new evidence.”

Alan swilled the last of the whisky around the bottle before putting it to his mouth and finishing it off. He then leaned over the wall and let go of the bottle, watching its journey with curious interest. After a few seconds there was the satisfying sound of glass hitting concrete.

“So tell me Detective, what is this new evidence?”

“We have DNA evidence that we recovered from an earring. I was on my way to investigate it further when I got a phone call saying I was needed here.”

“You can't offer me anything.” Alan said, his voice was more sombre now.

Reed thought about telling him that they had found Tina's earring where Carmella was killed and that another person's DNA had been detected. But he couldn't. Nobody knew how it got there or why. It would be false hope.

Alan hitched himself up and sat his bum on the wall, taking a nervous look over his shoulder. Reed took the opportunity to shoot a questioning look in Tyler's direction. What should we do? Tyler shook her head to indicate she didn't know either.

Reed heard a siren in the distance and hoped that it wasn’t heading towards them. He didn’t want to spook Alan in to anything. Tyler removed her phone and walked away a little. So she was dealing with the siren, leaving Reed to deal with Alan. Fantastic.

“Alan, I know your wife is worried about you, how's about we take you home and talk this through?”

Alan turned his head back towards Reed in a slow, measured way, “So you can arrest me?”

“No. I have no need to arrest you, this will all be forgotten about as soon as we get down from here and we can get you home.” Reed said, noticing how Alan was now swaying even though he was sitting down. His words slurring into one another.

“You won't arrest me. You didn't arrest anyone for my daughter's murder. I doubt you'll arrest anyone for Carmella’s murder. That's the problem. Nothing happens. It never does. I fully trust you won't arrest me.”

Reed could feel droplets of sweat running down his back. Dust and grime had stuck to his skin after his little tussle with Alan. He needed a bath.

“I believe you... and that's the whole point.” Alan said quietly.

“You can believe me. I have no need to arrest you and I believe we are so close to catching this killer. There is real hope this time Alan. There is evidence linking the two murders.”

“I don't mean I believe you have new important evidence or that there really is hope. I believe you won't arrest me. You don't get it do you? There isn't going to be an arrest for anything.” Alan said.

“I don't understand Alan.”

“No arrests! It's happened all over again and still no arrest. Don't you think the police should have caught the killer the first time around? If you had, then Carmella would still be alive.” Alan gave the impression that he'd gained all self-control again. His body had stopped swaying. His words were clear as he spat them out.

      Reed didn't say anything. He couldn't. Something was happening in his stomach which made him feel sick. How had he missed it? He held Alan's gaze, waiting for the words to come spilling out.

“The blunt instrument to the head; no sexual assault; the girls were about the same age; they happened in the same area; the bleach on the bodies.” Alan counted out each point on his fingers as he spoke. “The bleach!” He shouted. “Don’t you think the similarities were a little too fucking emphasised?” 

Alan started to sob. His head dropping and bouncing around with his cries. Reed thought about lunging for him. Only problem was, any momentum could take them both over the wall. Alan was drunk, he might flinch or panic and fall over the side all by himself. The options were very limited. After a few seconds, Alan wiped his face and composed himself a little.

“A whole bottle of bleach. Talk about a calling card.” Alan shook his head, “Come and get me! Come and get me!” He made an infant’s voice and waved his hands, “I'm over here.” He dragged out the last word as though playing a game.

Reed was so focused that he had developed tunnel vision. He couldn't see Tyler anymore. He could only hear the noise from Alan's mouth. He didn't hear the birds singing in the summer sun. He didn't hear what happened to the police siren. Did it come close or had it disappeared into the distance? Or had Tyler got the message through to shut up. He didn't dare to take his eyes off of Alan, he couldn't risk trying to locate Tyler.

“Only I didn't want you to come and get
me
!”

Parts of this messed up jigsaw were starting to fall into place now. Whitehead had been right. Reed was useless. This scenario had never crossed his mind.

“I wanted you to get my Tina's killer. Carmella, she was messing around with boys in their cars, out till all hours. She disgusted me. My Tina wouldn't have done those things. She didn't deserve to die. I wanted the case reopened but you think it's the same the killer. It's not.”

Reed's heart was thumping. Alan was right, they had begun to think it was the same killer. That's what Alan had wanted them to think and now it had backfired on both of them.

“Alan, people will understand why you've done this. We can still find Tina's killer. Please, let's just get down from here.”

“I'm so sorry for her parents. At least they'll know who done it and why. Susan will understand too.”

“Alan, please.” Tyler shouted from somewhere.

“I'm sorry. So sorry. I just wanted my Tina's killer caught. Nothing was happening.” Alan whispered. Then he locked eyes with Reed. He stopped crying for a second.

“I need to see my Tina.”

With a push of strength, Alan flipped himself backwards like a scuba diver from a boat.

Reed stood static as Tyler came running past him. He closed his eyes to try and block the whole thing out. Then he heard the inevitable dull thump.

“We believe you were with Tina the day she died. We have a statement from somebody who is willing to testify in court that you were involved in her death and we have DNA evidence which backs that up. I'm going to give you one chance and one chance only to explain what happened that day. If I think you're lying in any way, I will arrest you right now for the murder of Tina Westwood.” Reed said.

He was sat next to Tyler in interview Room 7. Opposite them was the man Reed believed was responsible for Tina Westwood's death all those years ago. To some extent, the same person was also responsible for Carmella Chapman's murder and Alan Westwood's suicide. There had been a knock-on effect from Tina's death, much like the ripples that are formed when a stone is thrown into a lake. Small waves form and move away from the point of impact, growing out of control until the circular wave finally hits the banks of the lake and crashes to a stop. The waves from Tina's death had traveled for many years before they crashed, but when they did, it had affected more people than was necessary. It had all happened because of one man's lies.

That man was now weeping uncontrollably as they waited for him to compose himself and tell the truth. Reed felt very little sympathy for someone who, although may have been younger and scared at the time, had composed himself enough to cover his tracks and live a lie for ten years, causing suffering to various people for much longer than any jail term.

“I didn't kill her. It was an accident.”

“So you were with her when it happened?” Reed asked.

“Yes. But I didn't touch her.”

“Tell us what happened. The truth.”

“She was my girlfriend. We met at Ovington Fen that day because her dad wouldn't have approved of her having a boyfriend. We just hung out really. Then Tina climbed this tree.”

Reed wasn't sure if the pause was for effect or just to buy some time to think, but he waited it out anyway. Lee Gulliver had lied over and over for so long he had probably turned it into a fine art. There had been only one chink in his armour and Reed had spotted it by chance. At the time it hadn't made any sense but with a statement from David Jones, it had all fallen into place.

“She fell. I swear to God she fell. I never touched her.”

“So why did you lie about it?”

“I was scared. I thought she was mucking about at first. Then I went over to her. My heart sunk. There was this pool of blood, so I lifted her head to have a look but when I went to put her head back down I moved this big sharp stone so as not to hurt her more. Then I noticed she wasn't breathing. I was really panicking, we weren't even meant to be together.”

“Then what happened?” Tyler prompted gently.

“I... I was going to call an ambulance but then I saw my hands. They were covered in blood.” Gulliver said between sniffles and sobs, “Plus I had probably picked up the stone that had just killed her. There were no witnesses. I was scared I'd take the blame. So I cried. I sat there and I cried.”

“How did David Jones become involved?” Reed asked.

“He became involved when he tried to kiss me, the big faggot. We used to be good mates, then I started seeing his sister and he became, I don't know... jealous I suppose. I was spending more time with her and then one day he just kissed me. I didn't want any of that.”

“So you involved David Jones because he's gay?” Reed asked.

“Kind of. I felt he owed me something for putting me in that position, so I gave him Tina's earrings. He had a secret and I had a secret.”

Reed thought it must have been hard for David Jones being a gay mechanic. Reed had never seen a calendar of topless men hanging next to the standard issue female versions that all garages had. Most gay people wanted to declare their sexuality in their own time, if at all. They didn't want to be forced in to it by some low-life like Gulliver.

David Jones had explained that he hoped some of Gulliver's DNA was still on the earring that had been handed to him all those years ago. He had handled the earring over and over, wondering if Gulliver’s secret was worth keeping anymore. If his own secret was worth keeping anymore. Then when Carmella was killed he had decided enough was enough. If Gulliver was a killer then he deserved to be caught and if people found out he was gay then it was a small price to pay.

“So you threatened him?” Tyler asked with a look of disapproval etched on her face.

Gulliver wiped his eyes clear of the last few tears before saying “A little. I was scared. I went to his house straight after I left Ovington. I chucked the earring on his bed where he was sitting and he picked it up. I told him the whole story and said I needed an alibi. He wasn't sure, so I told him his DNA would be on the earring and I would do anything not to go to jail. Anything.” Relief was flooding over Gulliver's face for finally telling all. It was a shame he hadn't done so a few years earlier.

“What about Carmella? What really happened that night?” Reed asked. They knew Alan Westwood had killed her to draw attention to his own daughter’s death but they didn't know how he had got her to Thetford Common.

“I couldn't believe it was happening again. I was involved in another girl’s death that wasn't my fault. After we left the club we stopped at the Common. We... well, you know, started kissing and stuff but Carmella wanted to stop. We had an argument and I drove off. I left her there.”

“You left a young girl in the middle of nowhere, late at night and you don't think any blame lies with you?” Tyler spat out.

“It’s right on the edge of town, I thought she could walk. I was angry. If she didn't like me why would she want to share a car with me?”

“Sharing a car and sharing her body are two different things you little...”

Reed put his hand on Tyler's arm to stop her saying something she would regret.

“Was there another car on the Common car park when you got there?” Reed asked, trying to work out when Alan had come to be there.

“Yeah. We parked away from it for some privacy, you know. I don't know who or what it was.”

Reed could only guess that it was Alan. Having left his hotel early perhaps he had stopped for a break. Maybe he couldn't face going to the home where his daughter no longer was. After witnessing Lee and Carmella kissing he must have made himself angry about how his daughter wouldn't have been doing such a thing and attacked Carmella. Believing she didn't deserve to live when his daughter was dead. In fact, Tina had been seeing Gulliver at the time of her death behind her parents back.

Did Alan panic? Reed believed he did. That's why he moved her body. If he wanted to make a statement about his daughter’s death, why not leave her where she was, where she would definitely be found? Reed thought the bleach idea was an afterthought, Alan turning a situation created from rage to one that would at least serve the purpose of reigniting interest in his own daughter’s murder. Gulliver had met Tina after work on the day she had died and the traces of bleach that had been detected on Tina’s chest and hands was testament to what they had been up to.

Gulliver's lies had caused two further deaths and endless amounts of grief for a lot of people. Grief that had stretched into Reed's own life. This investigation had played its part by absorbing all his time. That was one of the reasons that Kate was on the verge of leaving him. No time for his family. In the future there would be more murders demanding his time. He could change his career but he would only resent the decision further down the line, feeling as though he has been forced into it, resulting in arguments and possibly a split anyway.

When Reed hadn't been there for Kate, a mystery man had been pulling her away from him. A man he knew nothing about and probably couldn't compete with anyway.

Evie had lashed out by throwing a rock through their window. All that had achieved was to re-affirm Kate's beliefs that Reed's job was a dangerous intrusion on their lives. He didn't have the heart to tell Kate the truth and he felt it was better for Evie to think she had got away with it. She had no idea the effect her actions would have; she was lashing out at the atmosphere they had somehow created. That one rock had smashed through their lounge window and smashed the last chance of rescuing their relationship. Kate had gone to stay with her sister that night and hadn't returned. What would have happened if they had enjoyed their meal and spent the night talking things through? Maybe slept in the same bed?

What would have happened if Gulliver had told the truth at the time of Tina's death? Would Alan Westwood and Carmella Chapman still be alive?

For two chapters of his life that were supposedly over; his relationship with Kate and the whole Tina Westwood, Carmella Chapman and Alan Westwood scenario, there were still a lot of unanswered questions. Questions that would always stay that way.