Buried Secrets: The Freeman Files Series: Book 11 by Ted Tayler (highly recommended books txt) 📗

“They didn’t make it onto his most recent phone, Freeman. That’s all I can tell you. Madeleine Mills should be able to offer information on whether Duncan had an address book at home that contained names from the time before they met.”

“Where is Miss Mills today?” asked Gus.

“Married with two children. One of each,” said Kenneth. “The Telfer family live on the Cepen Park estate in Chippenham. Almost on the same street as Wayne and Anna Phillips.”

“Why are they important?” asked Gus.

“Anna is Madeleine’s best friend. They worked together for years. Wayne Phillips had met Alan Duncan through their mutual love of cycling. Wayne introduced Alan to Madeleine. In the first twenty-four hours after discovering the body, the only people Banks and Tallentire spoke with were his partner, parents, and those two. Until the coroner determined the cause of death, they followed the first instincts of one of the uniformed officers who found the body. He thought it was a suicide. Duncan appeared to lead a quiet, ordinary, mostly solitary life. His partner described him as Mr Dependable. When the cause of death turned out to be strangulation, it put a different slant on things. The murder occurred between seven and seven-thirty.”

“A narrow window of opportunity. Who had a motive?” asked Gus. “What about Miss Mills, for instance?”

“She had no alibi until nine-thirty. Someone saw Duncan running alone in the thirty minutes after he left home. He was alive at seven o’clock. Anna Phillips received a call from Madeleine two-and-a-half hours later because she was worried about Duncan not getting home at the usual time. Miss Mills said she was home alone throughout the evening doing housework.”

“Madeleine might not have been at home when she made that call,” said Gus, “but what was her motive?”

“The uniformed officers who notified Miss Mills asked if Alan was depressed, whether they had argued, but Madeleine Mills was adamant there were no financial worries, and there was nothing wrong with their relationship. Alan Duncan’s parents said the same thing when the officers visited them later the same evening.”

“Women rarely strangle a male partner,” said Gus. “What about Wayne Phillips, where was he that evening?”

“He arrived home minutes before his wife received the call from Madeleine. Wayne Phillips played five-a-side football every Wednesday evening. He had plenty of witnesses who confirmed he was kicking lumps out of them between seven and eight-thirty.”

“So, where did Banks and his team turn to next?” asked Gus.

“I imagine they wondered whether they were dealing with the same case. Bob Duncan, Alan’s father, had taken the rest of the week off work to stay at home to comfort, Elizabeth, his wife. Madeleine Mills spent much of the weekend with Wayne and Anna Phillips. All perfectly understandable, life was on hold as they came to terms with the devastating news. You don’t need me to tell you what that period is like, Freeman, between the end of life and the funeral. You exist and little more. Alan’s father returned to work on Monday morning. His colleagues commiserated with him and offered their condolences, but he sensed they were holding back. Later in the day, he visited Alan’s office, where he worked as a draughtsman.”

“He worked at the same factory as his father?” asked Gus.

“He did, well, he had, until Monday the twenty-sixth of May. When Bob spoke to Alan’s boss, he learned that Alan had walked into the office first thing the previous Monday morning and quit. He left without notice or explanation. Bob phoned Madeleine Mills as soon as he returned home. She was as shocked as he had been. Alan had never mentioned being unhappy in his job. He had left for work and returned in the late afternoon at the same time as usual. Then she recalled her conversation with Wayne Phillips on the night Alan died.”

“I thought Madeleine rang her friend, Anna,” said Gus. “Was this part of the same conversation?”

“Yes,” said Kenneth, “Madeleine thought Wayne was more likely to know Alan’s plans for the evening. They spoke every weekend when they cycled together. Wayne didn’t know which route his friend was taking for his run, but he offered to drive to Biddestone to help in the search. Madeleine said she would manage on her own and call back when Alan returned. The police were on her doorstep when Madeleine returned from a drive around the village lanes. When Bob Duncan told her Alan hadn’t been at work that week she remembered Wayne telling her he’d seen Alan in the centre of Corsham on Tuesday afternoon. He was on the pavement outside a bank. My wife and I didn’t live together before we married, Freeman, but we opened a joint account and closed our individual accounts as soon as we were able. That was what one did back then. These days, couples handle their financial affairs in various ways, Madeleine Mills and Alan Duncan had separate accounts in different banks. He transferred a monthly sum to her account by Direct Debit, and she paid the mortgage, utility bills and so forth. When she contacted her bank, that month’s amount had arrived from Duncan’s bank on the fifteenth of the month as usual. Madeleine contacted the police to tell them of this latest development. When they checked with Alan’s bank, they discovered that he’d closed his accounts and withdrawn the balance in cash.”

“How much are we talking?” asked Gus.

“Eight and a half thousand pounds,” said the ACC.

“The police found Duncan’s mobile phone next to the body,” said Gus. “Did any of the eyewitnesses report seeing him carrying a bag?”

“No, it wasn’t a robbery, and blackmail didn’t match what followed. When police visited the house in Biddestone, they conducted a thorough search. In the spare bedroom where the couple stored clothing and footwear, they found over two dozen pairs of Alan’s trainers in shoeboxes. One box contained the