Nine Lives by Anita Waller (best english books to read .txt) 📗

other items he had placed on the table. She pushed them across the desk to him, and he refilled his pockets.

‘Now your backpack, please.’

By the time he had emptied it, there was quite a pile on the desk. Paperwork from whatever tutorial he had attended, a journal, several pens, a book on criminology, a bag of Skittles, a pencil case… Erica frowned. The pens were lying around loose in a bag when he had a pencil case. She carefully unzipped it, but it contained nothing more sinister than rulers, coloured pencil crayons and a rubber. She looked through everything while Beth searched the bag itself.

Eventually they handed everything back to him. He said thank you.

They waited, but he didn’t ask why they had checked him out, so Erica spoke.

‘You’re not curious why we’ve checked everything you have on your person?’

‘No, you didn’t find the dagger down my sock.’ His face was deadpan.

‘Our killer doesn’t use a dagger.’ Erica’s face was equally straight.

Beth laughed. ‘Stop it, you two. We’ve looked at everything for a quite simple reason, Dom. We’ve heard you ask Jenna to wait for you, and you’ll see her home safely. That’s the sort of line our killer seems to be using, so we’re making sure you don’t have the killer’s trademark tools on you before we let you take Jenna anywhere.’

‘As if,’ he countered. ‘As if I’d hurt a hair on that lass’s head. So you’re happy I’m not going to bump her off on the way home? Do I need permission to take her for half of lager?’

‘No permission needed,’ Erica responded, ‘but you might need more than that tenner in your wallet. Now, can we take you back to Sunday evening. Macbeth.’

‘Excellent performance,’ Dom said. ‘A really good night. Heavy rain of course, but we dry, eventually, don’t we.’

‘You were outside before Clare and Susie?’

‘Yes, I saw Susie with Jenna, so we waved to them to let them see where we were standing. Jenna drove up to us, and left Susie by the roadside. Jenna said Susie was waiting for Clare to come from the ladies and they’d see us in the pub. We left straight away, and walked down.’

‘Okay,’ Erica said. ‘I need you to go back to that scene. The rain is tipping down, there are cars collecting theatregoers to transport them home, what else can you see?’

He hesitated, and Erica knew he was taking himself back to Sunday night.

‘Umbrellas. Lots of umbrellas. A couple of people struggling with theirs because it was windy as well as raining heavily. People huddling together. Groups. No individuals on their own except Susie. Waving.’

‘To you?’

‘No, she was looking up the main road. Her back was to me.’

‘You’re sure it was Susie?’

‘Yes. She had on a bright red coat with a hood with fur round it. Quite distinctive.’

Erica and Beth exchanged a glance. Could this be the first clue as to what had happened on that dreadful night? ‘After she waved, what happened?’

‘I don’t know, I’m sorry. Jenna reached us, and we set off to walk to the pub straight away. We were soaked by this time, we didn’t have an umbrella.’ He smiled. ‘We got to the pub pretty quick, I’m telling you. It got really busy, and I didn’t think any more about Susie and Clare, because I’d spotted Becky Charlesworth at the bar, so assumed the four of them were all together. They always seemed to be together, didn’t really do anything separately. I can’t imagine how Becky and Katie are feeling. They okay? They’ve not been here today.’

‘We’ve moved them away for their safety. We’ll get them back as soon as we can.’

‘Shit. You think this bloke’s after all four of them?’

‘We don’t know. No doubt Jenna will tell you, but there has been a third victim today, there’ll be something about it on the news tonight. As far as we know the latest victim has no connection with uni, she worked at a solicitors. But obviously we’re taking no risks, so Becky and Katie will be held safely until we catch who is doing this.’

Erica stood and held out her hand. ‘Thank you for coming in, Dom, and I apologise for checking everything you have on you, but now is not the time to take chances. Enjoy your lager, and make sure she arrives home safely.’

Dom grinned. ‘Not my job. Danny will take over when we get to the pub. I’ve never known him have a dagger in his sock, but there’s a first time for everything… he’s got a bit of a thing for Jenna, and she’s got a bit of a thing for him, so I reckon he’ll see her safely inside, not merely to the door.’

Erica and Beth sat for a moment, discussing the two interviews. ‘It seems to me,’ Erica said thoughtfully, ‘if Jenna hadn’t zoomed on that nifty little chair up to Dom and Danny, Susie might still be alive. Jenna going left Susie on her own, and whoever planned this took the opportunity to get her in the car. She waved at him, for fuck’s sake! She knew him well enough to recognise him, or her, through a rain-covered windscreen. Or did she simply recognise the car? I want every house and every business on that stretch of main road, both sides, visiting. I want CCTV checking. Let’s see if we can find this red coat with an arm raised, waving at somebody, and let’s see who the bloody hell she’s waving at.’

‘You’re swearing,’ said Beth.

‘Too damn right I am. We’re clutching at tiny straws like Dom saw her wave at somebody. We have no idea who that could possibly be, or even if we can find any evidence of that action on any CCTV. We know it’s not on the theatre’s, that’s been checked. And I do swear. Occasionally.’

‘It wasn’t a complaint. It was an observation of different behaviour in my ranking officer.’

‘You’ve changed.’ Erica stared at Beth. ‘What’s with this frivolity?’

‘Evan’s gone. It’s given me