The Darkness Within, page 9
‘What was Dr Cairns like?’ Molly asked. She noticed a pile of marking stacked on the doctor’s desk, while the screensaver on her computer depicted Bodiam Castle. Molly remembered visiting Bodiam with Jon two years ago. They’d had a picnic lunch overlooking the moat, until a sudden heavy shower had forced them to take shelter under a nearby oak tree.
‘A very quiet man,’ Dr Noonan said. ‘I’d almost say shy. He could have been – some might even say should have been – Head of Department, but I don’t think the idea appealed to him.’ Her sharp blue eyes seemed to dance as her memories were reignited. ‘His main area of research was the late Victorian and Edwardian era, so we had a lot in common. I specialise in early twentieth-century history,’ she explained, gesturing towards some hardback books that sat on a table near her desk. The breeze block of a book on top of the pile was titled: Europe Before the Great War:1899-1914. It didn’t look like light reading. ‘We did once discuss the possibility of working on a paper together on the great social reforms of the Asquith government,’ she continued. ‘But it wasn’t to be.’
‘What happened?’ Molly asked.
‘To the paper or to David?’ The blue eyes twinkled at Molly. ‘Nobody really knows. That’s the real mystery.’ She looked at Molly, her face adopting a serious expression. ‘Sorry, I don’t mean to sound so dramatic. It’s not often I receive a visit from a detective, so forgive me for playing up ever so slightly.’ She sighed. ‘We had all returned from the summer break and were preparing for the autumn term, but there was no sign of David. Then somebody said he’d decided to take early retirement. However, it was very out-of-the-blue. He hadn’t mentioned anything to me about retiring, and I did think he might have at least mentioned it in passing before the summer break, particularly as he’d already been allocated his teaching quota for the autumn term. There was a rumour he’d left due to ill health, but I couldn’t say if there was any truth in the rumour. One of the admin staff organised a card and some flowers which were sent on to his home. I did think he might have come back and said goodbye to everyone. He didn’t even empty his office before he left. And then we had to find someone to cover his teaching at short notice.’
‘When you say “ill”,’ Molly asked, ‘do you know what might have been wrong with him?’
‘I don’t know exactly. David did suffer from depression, but to my knowledge he was coping with it. But then, depression can be a debilitating illness – very often people who suffer from it become experts at hiding it.’
Molly nodded, silently agreeing with her. She wanted to say that she was all too familiar with the coping strategies used by people with depression, and the levels to which they would try to conceal their true feelings. She’d experienced it so many times with Jon.
‘So nobody actually saw him, or spoke to him prior to his departure?’
‘Universities were different places twenty years ago. We didn’t have summer schools then, or students returning to do resits. The whole campus more or less shut down over the summer months. Just a skeleton admin staff and the occasional academic popping in to use the library. Apparently his partner contacted HR and informed them that David had decided not to return to work. I imagine HR handled all the requisite paperwork at their end. I’m afraid I wasn’t privy to such information so I can’t confirm the details,’ Dr Noonan continued. ‘He was in his early sixties, so he was only a few years off retirement anyway. I imagine he thought “why not go early?”.’
‘He had a partner? You wouldn’t happen to know their name?’
She shook her head. ‘I was surprised to hear he had a partner, to be honest with you. I mean I often suspected David was gay – he never said anything, but you know within five minutes of meeting a man that if they’re not trying to mentally unbutton your blouse they’re more than likely playing for the other side, or whatever the expression is. But David never discussed his private life with me and I never asked him about it. I had no reason to assume he didn’t have a partner, it just felt strange to hear that he did.’
Molly digested this information. The more they discovered about David Cairns, the more layers of his life they seemed to peel away. But that so often applied to the victims of crime: secrets were quickly exposed as the most private aspects of a person’s life were pored over in forensic detail. ‘This may seem like a strange question, Dr Noonan, but can you think of anyone who had a grudge against Dr Cairns? Perhaps a former student who resented him for some reason? Or another academic he had fallen out with?’
She gave another tinkling little laugh. ‘David wasn’t the type of person who attracted grudges. He would have gone out of his way to avoid an argument.’ She smiled at Molly. ‘I think the favoured expression is “wouldn’t say boo to a goose”.’
Molly smiled. ‘Did you try to get in touch with Dr Cairns after he left?’
Dr Noonan splayed her hands in front of her. ‘If I remember rightly, I did phone and leave a couple of messages on his answerphone. Partly to see if he was still interested in working on a paper with me, but also to see how he was.’ She looked like she was trying hard to rekindle an old memory. ‘Thinking back, I was slightly concerned when he left so suddenly. I had thought we were… well, perhaps not exactly friends – David was too private to let anyone from work get that close to him – but I would certainly have said we got on well together, and I would have liked to have kept in touch.’
‘Did you follow it up?’
‘Sometimes I wish I had. Unfortunately this all happened at the worst possible time for me – I had been planning to go off on sabbatical the following year and there had been some glitch with the paperwork, which meant it hadn’t been signed off in time. I was so focussed on trying to get that sorted, plus I had an impending deadline for a book I’d agreed to contribute to, so unfortunately David slipped from my mind.’ She offered Molly a sympathetic look. ‘I’m sorry to hear about what happened to him. A friend of my mother’s was mugged a few months ago. It really does knock your confidence when you’re elderly.’
Molly agreed that it did, but reassured her Dr Cairns had now regained consciousness and seemed to be on the road to recovery, at least according to Denning. ‘Is there anyone else at the university who might have known Dr Cairns when he worked here?’ she asked.
Dr Noonan shook her head. ‘I wouldn’t have thought so. Certainly as far as this department is concerned, I’m the only member of staff who was here at the same time as David. I don’t think he had much to do with anyone from other departments.’
Molly wasn’t sure if any of this would answer Denning’s niggling questions about David Cairns. As she thanked Dr Noonan and then tried to find her way back to the main entrance, she was suddenly aware that as well as trying to discover who attacked Dr David Cairns and why, they now had the added mystery of why he had left his job so suddenly.
Chapter Eighteen
McKenna was behind her desk. There was a copy of the post-mortem report on the desk, half poking out of its manila folder, McKenna’s name in bold capitals on the cover. Baker must have typed it up and had it biked over first thing that afternoon. They were certainly pulling out all the stops with this one.
Denning had wanted a quick chat with Molly Fisher before he went in to see McKenna, but she still wasn’t back from Queen Mary University, so he’d have to wait to get the lowdown on Cairns. He was still determined to fight his corner with McKenna, though admittedly with slightly less ammunition in his arsenal than he would have liked.
‘Now we have a date – if not a time – for Buckfield’s death,’ McKenna said, pointing at the manila folder. ‘We can start going over whatever CCTV is working on that estate. Anyone going into, coming out of, or hanging round Buckfield’s flat, we need to trace them and eliminate them.’
‘We’re still no closer to finding a motive,’ Denning offered.
McKenna rubbed a hand through her raven hair. ‘Then keep digging. It’s there somewhere.’
‘I think Kane is worth looking into,’ Denning said. ‘The PM report as good as says this was something akin to a professional killing. That’s very much his territory.’
She gave a throaty laugh. ‘Mr Kane is – as both he and his lawyer are keen to remind everyone within earshot – a respectable businessman these days. Anyway, what would the motive be?’
‘The Security Direct robbery? It links the two men.’
There was a sharp shaking of the head from McKenna. ‘Forget it, Matt. Any link is tenuous at best. Kane was rumoured – but never proved – to have been involved, and Buckfield was one of literally dozens of officers who worked the case. And besides, I don’t see how the Security Direct robbery could be considered a credible motive, even if we could prove Kane was involved, which even the investigation team at the time were unable to do. And then why now? It doesn’t make sense. We need to look for something more concrete.’ She sat back in her chair and steepled her fingers, bashing them against her chin. ‘Besides, the post-mortem didn’t exactly say it was a “professional killing”. It just says that it was neat. We want to be careful we don’t read too much into this.’ She offered him a thin smile. ‘I suggest you look elsewhere for your motive. What about the family? Did your visit throw up anything interesting?’
‘Both claim they hadn’t had any contact with him for some time. His widow has clearly moved on with her life, but there’s no love lost between Buckfield’s son and his late father.’
‘Can we rule either of them out at this stage?’
He shrugged. ‘I think we can safely assume Buckfield’s widow had nothing to do with it. As for his son…’ He gave another shrug. ‘Unlikely, but I couldn’t honestly say for sure.’
‘OK. Find out where he was the day Buckfield was murdered. If he has a credible alibi, then we can leave him alone. Otherwise, he goes on the board as a person of interest.’ She rested her hands back on the desk. ‘Is there anything else?’
Denning decided to grasp the nettle. ‘I’ve spoken to David Cairns.’
She stared at him for a second; her eyes meeting his without flinching. ‘What did he have to say?’
He gave her an edited recount of his hospital visit. ‘He told me he doesn’t want to take things any further,’ Denning concluded, already second-guessing McKenna’s response.
‘Right, then we drop it.’ She fixed him with the gimlet stare. ‘That’s what we agreed, Matt.’
‘I’m not sure it’s that straightforward. For a start, Cairns was so doped up on painkillers I don’t think he knew what he was saying. Secondly, he’s lying – I don’t know what about, but he’s definitely holding something back. There’s the Missing Person’s report, which highlights an inconsistency in his age.’ He scratched at an itch on the back of his neck. She would try her best to shout him down over this, but he would lob his biggest grenade at McKenna and hope the explosion would have the desired effect. ‘And then there’s the fact he recognised Buckfield’s name when I mentioned it.’
McKenna didn’t miss a beat. ‘Hardly surprising. His murder’s been all over the local news. Half of London will have heard the name “Buckfield” by now.’
‘Yes, but Cairns has been unconscious since yesterday afternoon. He wouldn’t have seen or heard the news.’
‘Maybe he overheard some of the nurses talking about it this morning?’
‘Perhaps…’ He could still feel the itch on the back of his neck. ‘I still think there’s more to this than Cairns is letting on.’
She fixed him with another gimlet stare. ‘You have to let this drop now, Matt. OK, maybe there are discrepancies with his story, and maybe he does know who attacked him and why, but if he wants the investigation dropped, then we have no choice but to go along with his wishes.’
‘We can’t let this whole thing drop. Cairns was attacked and left for dead on his own doorstep. There’s a dangerous individual out there who needs to be caught.’
She shook her head, more slowly this time as if to emphasise her point. ‘Even if we were to get someone for this, the CPS will be reluctant to proceed if the victim’s unwilling to press charges. You know how it works.’ McKenna leant forward and drummed her fingers on the desk. ‘I don’t want to get shitty about this, Matt, but I will if I have to. Forget about Cairns. He was the victim of an attempted mugging. And even if he wasn’t, he’s asked you to drop this, and now I’m telling you to drop it.’ The gimlet stare was burrowing into him like a dentist’s drill. ‘I take it you haven’t seen this?’
There was a copy of that day’s London Echo under the folder on her desk. She slid it out from underneath the PM report and pushed it across the desk at him.
Killer Targets Ex-Cops? the headline blared, next to a grainy picture of Buckfield taken some time ago. The story, from the few sentences he managed to read, hinted that whoever had killed Buckfield had a grievance against former police officers and may be about to go after others. It was very carefully worded to suggest this was simply a theory and not one that was backed up by the police. But it would have served its purpose: generate fear and sell papers.
‘It sends out a worrying message, implying it’s open season on police officers, retired or otherwise. Besides,’ she sat back in her chair again and sighed. ‘Harrison’s been doing his nut. He’s threatening to take personal charge if we – if I – don’t get a quick result.’
Denning could feel his eyebrows pointing towards the ceiling. ‘He’s not serious?’
‘Deadly. He claims that now the press is running with these kinds of batshit crazy stories, then it’s only a matter of time before this whole thing explodes in our faces.’ She reached out and grabbed the newspaper, pulling it back to her side of the desk. ‘But, between you, me and the goalpost, I reckon it’s got more to do with him wanting to make a name for himself.’ She lowered her voice, even though no one else could hear them. ‘I was chatting to a mate over at Scotland Yard last night. It seems Harrison was considered a rank outsider for the DCS’s job until Morrow put a good word in for him. It would appear that Justin Morrow is not a man without influence.’
‘What’s it got to do with Morrow?’ Denning asked, barely managing to conceal his surprise. ‘Are they friends? In any case, he shouldn’t have that kind of influence. The Mayor’s office only has any say over senior appointments: Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner. A DCS appointment is usually an internal decision. And Morrow isn’t even part of the Mayor’s office, he’s only on the committee that oversees it.’
It was McKenna’s turn to shrug. ‘Who knows how their minds work? The Met is certainly a lot more political these days than it ever used to be. But ours is not to reason why, et cetera.’ She shot him a serious look. ‘I mean it, Matt – I’ve got Harrison kicking my backside over this, so I’m kicking yours. I want all efforts focussed on finding Buckfield’s killer. We need to be seen to be doing fucking something.’ She leant on her desk again and offered him another thin-lipped smile. ‘Forget Cairns. If either of us wants to keep our jobs, then Buckfield takes priority.’
* * *
When Denning returned to the main office, Molly Fisher was just sitting down at her desk. He was on the point of heading over to speak to her when Neeraj waved at him.
‘I’ve heard back from Islington nick,’ Neeraj said. ‘Uniform have finished doing the door-to-door around Cairns’s place. Nothing much to report. Most neighbours confirm that he was a recluse who never spoke to anyone. Someone said he was an unfriendly bugger who wouldn’t give you the time of day; someone else said he was rude to her once when she asked if he wanted to join the neighbourhood watch.’ Most of this Denning already knew, or wasn’t surprised to hear. And now that McKenna had put the kybosh on any further investigation, the whole exercise was academic, no pun intended. ‘One old geezer in the next street said he and Cairns used to play bridge sometimes,’ Neeraj continued. ‘This was years ago apparently, then Cairns suddenly cut off all ties: didn’t answer the phone, was never in whenever he called round. He hadn’t seen him for ages and was surprised to hear he was still alive.’ Denning nodded, waiting for him to finish before telling him to hand the whole thing back to Islington CID, when Neeraj glanced down at his notes and said, ‘But this is the interesting bit. Seems this old geezer says he thought Cairns had had a lodger living with him at one time. Didn’t know any more details. Says he never met this lodger and couldn’t tell us anything about him.’
‘Him? So the lodger was male?’ Denning was turning this over in his head when Molly Fisher suddenly piped up.
‘Sorry, boss, I couldn’t help overhearing that last bit. I’ve just got back from the uni where Cairns used to work. Not much that was useful, but I think I can clarify the lodger situation. It seems that Cairns had a partner. Kept himself to himself at work as much as he did with his neighbours. Nobody at the uni knew about his private life, but a colleague definitely remembers mention of a partner around the time Cairns retired.’ She briefly looked at Neeraj before returning her gaze to Denning. ‘Could be worth trying to trace this lover/lodger and hearing what he has to say about the assault on Cairns? Maybe there was some unfinished business there.’
Denning wanted to agree, but McKenna had spoken: this was no longer their concern. However, if Fisher’s lovers’ tiff theory had any meat on it, then it was more likely they were looking at a possible attempted murder rather than a random mugging. It might also go part of the way towards explaining why Cairns was so keen to drop the investigation. And there was another searing question that needed to be answered.
‘Did this colleague say how old Cairns was when he retired?’
‘Early sixties. Why?’
That tallied with the age on the Missing Person’s report, which clearly hadn’t been an admin error after all. ‘When was this?’
‘About twenty years ago.’
‘So around the same time he was reported missing by his sister?’ Denning was thinking aloud, attempting to join together lots of dots. ‘Meaning Dr David Cairns would be in his early eighties now.’
