EVIL CRIMES a gripping crime thriller full of twists Page 15

  ‘When did this happen?’

  Maria sniffed. ‘In the afternoon. We were meant to be going out, and later too, in the evening, but instead we argued. It was all because of that boy, the one who comes up from Plymouth. He was here yesterday and she didn’t tell me about him. Who does she think she is, lying to me like that?’

  ‘She’s in a coma, Maria, hanging onto life by a thread.’

  Maria started crying again. ‘I don’t want her to die. I love her. When can I see her? I must see her, please.’

  ‘What did you hit her with?’ Sophie wondered just how many arguments Hattie had got herself into the previous day. Maria seemed to be describing a pretty low-level one.

  Maria looked up at Sophie. ‘Just my hand. I slapped her. It wasn’t too hard. It couldn’t even have hurt her that much. She didn’t even fall over. It was me that got hurt when she pushed me into the wall and I fell.’

  ‘What did she do afterwards?’

  ‘She walked off. She didn’t even look back to see if I was hurt. I don’t know where she went. Maybe she was planning to see her new boyfriend. She wouldn’t tell me about him but I know he came here last weekend, and someone said they were together yesterday, in town.’

  ‘Where did you have this argument with her? What time?’

  ‘It was about five o’clock. We’d arranged to meet up, and get something to eat before going out for the evening. It was here, outside my room.’

  ‘Did you see her later?’

  Maria shook her head. ‘I didn’t go out. I just felt sick at what had happened and I decided to stay in.’

  Sophie checked her watch and thought rapidly. ‘I have to go, Maria. I’ll leave DC Gregson here with you to ask you some more questions about what happened yesterday. But we’ll need a full interview with you, and you’ll have to make a formal statement. Maybe that can wait until tomorrow, but we’ll need to know where you were last night and who can vouch for you. And we need to know more about this boyfriend, okay?’

  Sophie drove back to the hospital, hoping she’d arrive before Marsh and Hattie’s mother, although she was more than ten minutes late. Barry’s car wasn’t in the car park. Sophie made her way to the ICU. There was no sign of the visitors there either. She entered Hattie’s room and knew at once that something had changed. A young doctor was at the bedside.

  ‘Has something happened?’

  ‘She’s becoming agitated,’ he replied. ‘There’s no physical movement, but it’s showing up on the monitors. And her mother isn’t here yet.’

  Sophie thought for a moment. ‘Would you like me to sit with her? I’ve only met her once, a few days ago, but I have two daughters of her age. I know what I’d do if they were lying in a hospital bed in her condition.’

  ‘Well, if you don’t mind. There’s nothing else we doctors can do for her.’

  Sophie sat down on the left side of Hattie’s bed, remembering the young woman’s favoured hand from their interview the previous week. She took Hattie’s hand in hers, and gently stroked her forehead, brushing aside a lock of hair that peeped out below the dressing that encased half of her head.

  She leaned forward, and whispered. ‘Hattie, it’s fine. Everything will be alright. Just rest and concentrate on getting well. Your mother will be here soon.’ She gently squeezed the limp fingers, and stroked the back of the slim hand. ‘You’re in good hands. The staff here are very experienced, so there’s no need for you to worry. You’ve a bright future ahead of you. Just relax and rest.’

  The doctor was watching the displays on the monitoring equipment. ‘There’s still uneven mental activity, though whether it’s good or bad I can’t say. She may possibly be floating in and out of consciousness.’

  Chapter 27: Flickering Thoughts in Deep Coma

  Dark. Blackness. Nothing. Nothingness. Black as hell. Hell. Brutal. Brute. Hell. Angry. Pain. Pain. Lonely. Blackness. Lonely. Alone. Alone. Always alone.

  * * *

  Black. Float. Drift. Hang. Emptiness. Empty. Empty. Bare. Desolation. Godforsaken. Waste. Hell. Ruin. Alone. Lonely. Lonely. Lonely. Lonely. Alone. Always alone.

  Silence. Cold. Alone. Deserted. Wilderness. Ruin. Abandoned. Alone. Lonely. Lonely. Lonely. Lost. Tired. Tired. So tired. Pain. Tears. Dark. Trapped in the dark. Lonely. So tired.

  * * *

  Alone. No one. Nowhere. Tears. Why? Why? Why me? Hell. Hell. Brute. Brute. Beast. Angry. Savage. Cruel. Cruel. Cruel. Hell. All hell, all of it. Force. Force me. Kick. Punch. Pain. Pain. Pain. No. No. No. No. No. No. Pain. Pain. No. No. Scream. No. No. No. Weep, sob, cry. Tears, always tears. Blackness. Hell. Alone. Lonely.

  * * *

  Mummy. Bitch. Hurt me. Mummy let him hurt me. Hate. Hate. Hate you. Hate you. Mummy. Hate you.

  * * *

  Touch. Someone’s touch. Finger touch. Forehead touch. Whisper. Whisper. Voice. Whisper. It’s her. She knows. Green eyes. Witch woman. She knows. Can’t go back. Pain. Always pain. Always tears. Always voices, whispering voices. Always alone. Always lonely.

  * * *

  Pointless. Aimless. Dream. Nightmare. Ghost. Ghosts. Voices. Lost souls. Daddy. Daddy. Daddy. Left. You left. Daddy. You left me in hell. Why did you leave me, Daddy? Why didn’t you keep me safe? Why didn’t you look after me?

  I want to die. Cry. All my life, cry. Please, Daddy, let me die. Cry. Cry. All my life, cry. In hell. Don’t want to be in hell any more. Let me die. Cry. Tears. Let me die. Oh, Daddy, let me die. Come for me, Daddy.

  Chapter 28: Squabbles

  Barry Marsh skidded to a halt near the staff entrance to the intensive care unit. He’d radioed ahead during the last stage of the journey, asking for a squad car escort, and had managed to cut several minutes off the journey time. Even so, he wondered if they would be too late.

  He got out and hurried round to the rear passenger door to help Hattie’s mother out of the vehicle. She just didn’t seem able to move quickly, and he found himself silently cursing the woman. That last phone message from the boss had not been at all encouraging, yet the woman didn’t seem at all agitated. A staff member met them at the door and ushered them towards the ward area, where a doctor was waiting for them. Marsh noticed his boss sitting in a side room, so he slipped away from the group to join her.

  ‘She died five minutes ago,’ she said. ‘What was the hold up? What took you so long?’

  He shook his head in exasperation. ‘It was her, the mother. She knew exactly when I was due to arrive, but she wasn’t ready. And she insisted on fussing around the house, checking unnecessary things before she decided she was ready to go. I was at least fifteen minutes late leaving. I just don’t understand it. And we’re too late? By five minutes? Bloody hell. I told her there might be no time to lose. It just doesn’t make sense.’

  Sophie saw how upset he was. ‘Has anything made any sense since we stumbled on this case? Maybe it’s a case of like mother, like daughter.’

  Marsh was clearly angry. It wasn’t often that he forgot to use an occasional ma’am when addressing Sophie. ‘I’ll tell you the other odd thing. She refused to sit in the front of the car with me. She insisted on sitting in the back as if I were a mere chauffeur. It meant we couldn’t carry on a normal conversation, so all those questions you suggested I ask were non-starters. I think the sum total of her conversation was along the lines of, “the sun is shining,” “isn’t everything pretty.”’ He scowled. ‘I ask you!’

  Sophie poured him a cup of coffee from a flask she carried in her bag, the remnants of the drink her grandmother had made her early that morning. ‘Have this. Maybe it will help you calm down. One thing is certain, we need to see Hattie’s brother. Fingers crossed he’s not as nutty as the rest of the family and can shed some light on their behaviour.’

  ‘We haven’t even met the father yet. Where’s he, for God’s sake?’

  ‘Do you think there is one?’

  ‘What?’ Marsh looked at her.

  ‘Think back to those photos on display at the house. None o
f them showed two parents, just the mother. I know she mentioned a husband, but I wonder if he’s imaginary, someone she makes up to fend off awkward questions.’

  He shook his head slowly as he finished the cup. ‘This is all too much for me. I was hoping for a nice quiet day relaxing with Gwen. Then all this happens.’

  Sophie poked him in the ribs. ‘You love it really, you know you do. Listen, drive up to the campus and help Rae out. Then we’ll meet for lunch before deciding what we do next. I need to be here for a while longer to speak to the mother. I was with Hattie when she died.’

  Marsh opened his eyes wide. ‘You were with her? What, at her bedside?’

  ‘Holding her hand. Not just me, there was a nurse on the other side, and a doctor fussing about. But she needed someone at that moment, just talking gently to her. She had another haemorrhage, massive this time. She was gone in seconds.’

  ‘Did she regain consciousness at all?’

  Sophie shook her head. ‘No. Not a sign. Not even a flicker.’

  * * *

  Sophie watched Mary Imber leave Hattie’s room and make her way to the reception desk. She passed the small waiting room and glanced in, then stopped, frowning.

  ‘What are you doing here?’ she asked. ‘Your man drove me, so I expected to see him around somewhere, but you?’

  Sophie was somewhat taken aback by the sharpness in her voice. She looked pale and emotionally drained, but her tone was challenging.

  ‘I’ve been here for several hours. The message reached me just after eight and I drove directly here.’

  ‘It’s scandalous. She had no one with her when she died. Why couldn’t your man have got me here quicker? Why was I so late in arriving? Even the medical staff couldn’t understand it.’

  Sophie thought carefully. The woman was clearly on the verge of tears, but was fighting hard to hold them back. Better to avoid a confrontation just now.

  ‘DS Marsh did everything he could to get you here on time, as did the local police. You must realise that. And Harriet wasn’t alone in those last few minutes. I was with her, and so was a nurse. I held her hand and talked to her, though she probably didn’t hear me.’

  ‘Why you? What gave you the right to be with her?’

  ‘I have two daughters of about the same age, Mrs Imber. If it had been one of them, and I couldn’t get there in time, I know what I’d have wanted.’

  ‘But what were you doing here?’

  Something in this conversation jarred. ‘I was in Gloucester and drove here quickly once I got the message. One of my team was in Exeter last night and called me as soon as she heard, but that was still after the local police had contacted you. Apparently you told them that you preferred to arrange a lift from a neighbour or friend, so they didn’t make any further arrangements. They were waiting for a call from you. Look, can I make it clear that in my opinion the local police did everything by the book? I’ve checked the log. But this isn’t the time to be pursuing these things, Mrs Imber. You’re clearly distraught.’

  ‘But why did the doctor let you sit with her? At her bedside? A total stranger?’

  Sophie sighed. ‘I’m not a total stranger. I spoke to Harriet on Wednesday, so it seemed to be the right thing to do. What would you have preferred me to do? If you must know, I liked her. We only spoke for ten minutes or so, but we connected, if that makes sense. I was merely trying to help in a desperate situation, for goodness’ sake. I’m sorry if the decision I made has upset you, but I can’t see why it should.’

  ‘You didn’t tell me on Friday that you’d already spoken to Harriet. That was trickery.’ Mary Imber was agitated, but still confrontational.

  Sophie said nothing for a while. ‘I think it would be better if we continued this conversation some other time. I can only imagine the distress you must be feeling. I’m remaining in Exeter for the rest of the day, in an advisory role. The local CID will do a thorough job of investigating Harriet’s death, I’m sure of that. I shall be joining them. Look, Mrs Imber, we’ll ensure that you’re kept well informed about the progress of the investigation and, although the local Exeter squad will be in charge, you can rest reassured that there’ll be a Dorset presence. The chief constable has made that request and it’s been agreed at the highest level. We haven’t been idle, far from it.’

  * * *

  Despite her calm appearance, Sophie was uneasy. One of her team had been monitoring the activities of the very student who’d been killed, and she knew questions would be asked. It had been done with the knowledge of Exeter’s CID, but even so, how would she feel if it had happened in reverse, to a Bournemouth student being investigated by a Devon detective? She knew she’d be asking all sorts of questions. She would just have to get to the bottom of Harriet’s erratic behaviour.

  Sophie and Barry joined Rae on campus. The three of them were sitting in a quiet corner in a café, eating slightly stale sandwiches and drinking bottled water.

  ‘Rae, it’s time you told us why you decided to stay here an extra day. What went on yesterday?’

  Rae pulled a face. ‘Hattie seemed to be intent on pissing everyone off, and I mean everyone, ma’am. She had arguments with every single one of the people she’s been meeting, and each row seemed to be worse than the one before. I tried to keep my eye on her as best I could. She went back to her room mid-evening and I thought she was okay. I hung around for another hour but she stayed put. She must have gone out after I went back to my lodgings and met Craig. It was about nine o’clock and we were both starving.’

  ‘It’s alright, Rae. What’s happened isn’t a reflection on you. You were here to do intelligence gathering and had already gone way beyond what I’d asked you to do. So, take us through the sequence of events.’

  ‘My guess is that there were a couple of preliminary spats before I even arrived here yesterday morning. I caught up with her mid-morning, here on campus, and she was in the middle of a real humdinger of a row with a young man I haven’t seen before, someone called Matt, although the argument was a bit one sided. She was hurling abuse at him, while he just stood rooted to the spot. I felt a bit sorry for him.’

  ‘Do you think he might have been this boyfriend we’ve heard about?’

  ‘He’s not a student, that’s for sure. I spent a couple of hours checking up on him, but I couldn’t find anyone of that name that looked like him on any course here. I got the impression they only met about a week ago in a city centre bar.’ Rae paused for a moment. ‘Maybe met is the wrong word. I think she picked him up and my guess is that they had sex pretty soon after that and maybe a couple of times since, from the few comments he managed to get in. I don’t think he’s local though. Once he found his voice yesterday he said he’d come up from Plymouth specially to see her and that he loved her. She just laughed at him. I felt really sorry for him, hard-bitten soul that I am. She ridiculed him, right in front of the other students that were milling around. He looked distraught and completely out of his depth. Shell-shocked would be a good description.’

  ‘But would he be affected enough to react in an extreme way? Once he’d had time to think it all over?’

  Rae shrugged. ‘It’s possible. Maybe he’s the quiet, deep type and it took a while for the anger to boil over. He didn’t react much at the time though, he just slid away.’

  ‘Any reaction from the other students?’ Sophie was wondering how many witnesses there were to this argument. Maybe the local police should be rounding them all up to get their statements.

  ‘Not as much as I expected. But maybe they’d seen her tantrums before. They looked a bit embarrassed by it all and most just hurried by, looking the other way.’

  ‘What about the other fights you mentioned?’ Barry asked.

  Rae pursed her lips. ‘Well, from what this Matt said, she’d already had a run-in with Markham in his driveway. He’d seen it on his way up from the station. That makes sense if he got the train here. Markham’s flat is on one of the roads leading up from St David�
�s station. Hattie kept her car at Markham’s place. Apparently she spat at him and called him an unmentionable pervert, that’s how Matt described it. The thing is, he seemed genuinely puzzled by what he’d witnessed, and just wanted to understand. He wasn’t criticising her. Oh, the other thing is he was confused by her appearance, that’s what he said. He wondered why she’d changed her hairstyle so radically. I think he was being genuinely nice about it, but Hattie didn’t take it that way. She reacted really viciously, and it all blew up from there.’

  Sophie shook her head. Yet another person to add to the ever-growing list of Hattie’s possible enemies. It seemed probable that she was even more troubled than they’d suspected.

  ‘And Maria? The spiky-haired friend?’

  ‘They had a row later in the afternoon, and it turned really nasty. I was on my way back after trying to find out whether this Matt was a student. I could hear them screaming at each other as I came up the stairs, and when I turned the corner Maria was on the floor crying and holding her arm. Hattie was walking away. She disappeared up the stairs at the far end. I helped Maria up and went after Hattie, but she wasn’t anywhere to be seen. I’ve no idea where she went, which is really curious. The only explanation is that she went into some other student’s room. I only saw her once more, when she came back in, mid-evening.’

  Sophie was making a list in her head of all the people to be interviewed during the coming afternoon. They’d need to talk to every student with a room in the vicinity of the altercation. ‘This Matt, her boyfriend, does live in Plymouth. She told us that when we interviewed her last week. You said she’d had a row with all of them. Does that include the professor? Murey, or whatever his name is?’

  Rae nodded. ‘Yes, I think so. A student heard her shrieking at him outside his house yesterday morning. She was really bad-mouthing him. The other students are starting to gossip about it.’