Shattered Bones, page 19
He was crossing the car park, shivering against the early morning frost, when he was suddenly ambushed by the latest addition to the SOCO office, Tara Coleman.
‘Hi,’ she shrieked gaily in a way that hauntingly reminded him of Laurel.
‘Morning, Tara.’
‘Do you know, every time I see you, I always think you should be with an adult. You look so young.’
‘Great, thanks for that.’
‘I bet a lot of the suspects take the piss out of you.’
‘Not really, no.’
‘And most of the victims too, eh? Do they ask if your uniform is from the Early Learning Centre?’ She cackled raucously, pleased with herself. ‘So, where are you off to then?’
‘I’ve got an interview with someone who knew Trevor.’
‘Family? I thought it was just the three of them.’
‘Erm, no. It’s a friend, a fellow Mason.’
‘A Mason. No way. Aren’t you nervous?’
‘No. Should I be?’
‘Duh, yeah! You know they’re all into funny handshakes and witchcraft and stuff, don’t you?’
‘I know there’s a lot of mythology about the Masons, but I wouldn’t necessarily say it was witchcraft.’
Tara shook her head vehemently. ‘They’re not myths, Sean, it’s all true. A friend of my aunt used to be married to a Mason.’
‘And?’
She winced and closed her eyes before leaning in and whispering conspiratorially. ‘At certain times in the year, he’d come home with blood on his gloves.’
‘Blood from what?’
‘Animals. Usually goats. They used to sacrifice them. They bludgeon the poor thing to death with a gavel. Then they eviscerate it using other tools. Chisels and stuff.’
She shuddered. ‘It got too much for her. She left him in the end. Apparently, he came home one night drunk after one of their “ceremonies” and when he fell asleep, he started bleating like a goat. That was the last straw for her.’
‘No way,’ Sean said sceptically.
‘Yeah, honestly.’ Tara nodded, wide-eyed and serious. ‘That’s why they wear gloves during the rituals, to keep their hands clean. Although, I’ve also heard that they have more than one handshake and one is really taboo and is actually a way of cursing the other person. I’d keep my hands firmly in my pockets if I were you.’
She walked off, leaving him to find which pool car he’d picked the keys up for. He wasn’t surprised to discover it was the most iced-up of all the cars in the car park. Or that the can of de-icer on the passenger seat was empty.
* * *
Jonathan Forbes had agreed to meet Sean at his home address. He followed the satnav until it led him to an opulent bungalow on the leafier side of town. Before he’d even had time to turn the engine off, a man in his early sixties appeared at the front door. He was dressed in what could only be coined as seventies’ geography-teacher-chic; boot-cut grey trousers and a maroon V-neck jumper with leather patches on the elbow. He was squat, with a prominent beer belly and flushed, porcine face that hinted he liked one too many whiskies. Sean could feel the man’s eyes follow him out of the car and up the garden path.
‘Mr Forbes?’ Sean called.
‘Please call me Jonathan,’ replied the man as he extended his hand.
Sean froze, panicked. He recalled what Tara had said. He reached his own hand out so they could shake but lost his nerve at the last minute. He was horrified to see himself instead, raise his palm in the air, fingers splayed. A voice that sounded like his and came out of his mouth announced, ‘High-five, Jonathan.’
Forbes high-fived him back in a moment that was excruciatingly painful.
‘So,’ Forbes said, clearly amused. ‘You’ve heard all the lies about our “funny handshakes” I take it?’
Sean winced. ‘It’s not true, is it?’
‘Come on in, son and I’ll put you right.’ Jovially, Forbes stepped back and ushered Sean into the hallway. His face was burning with shame, and he was inwardly cursing Tara. Sean was led into an airy looking lounge. It was tastefully decorated in pastel colours. In pride of place on the mantelpiece was a decorative picture frame with a wedding photograph of a much younger Forbes stood proudly next to his bride.
‘My wife, Adele.’ Forbes smiled as he noticed Sean looking at the picture. ‘I still can’t believe she’s gone. I miss her terribly.’
‘I’m so sorry,’ Sean said sincerely. ‘Has she been dead long?’
‘I hope not. She’s only gone to Runcorn to stay with her sister for the week.’
Forbes’ booming laugh filled the room as he slapped Sean avuncularly on the back, gesturing for him to sit. ‘Don’t look so bloody nervous, son. You’ve clearly heard the lies about Masons. All the conspiracy theories? I can assure you none of it is true. I’m a semi-retired physics lecturer for goodness’ sake. And before you ask, I’ve never sacrificed an animal.’
Sean grinned. ‘Not even a goat?’
‘Especially not a goat. Have you ever tried to catch one? Nifty little buggers they are.’ He suddenly straightened up; a frown passed like a shadow over his face. ‘So how can I help you? Poor Trevor. I can’t believe it. It’s surreal, I don’t think it’s even sunk in properly yet.’
‘I’m sorry I had to be the one to break it to you. We’ve had confirmation from fingerprints this morning that a deceased male we found in the canal several weeks ago is Trevor. We had been treating his disappearance as a missing persons enquiry, but now, sadly it is a murder investigation as we believe he was strangled.’
Forbes nodded solemnly. ‘What do you need to know?’
‘I need to know everything you can tell me about Trevor. So far, he’s a bit of an enigma to us. His wife is understandably distraught and it’s difficult to get information from her. Unfortunately, his mother also passed away recently.’
Forbes’ head shot up. ‘Rose too? When? How?’
‘Several days ago. At the moment we’re treating her death as unexplained.’
‘Jesus Christ,’ Forbes exclaimed. ‘His poor wife. No wonder she’s a mess.’ Forbes sat back and Sean allowed him a moment to let the additional news sink in until he was eventually ready to speak.
‘I’ve known Trevor for about eighteen years,’ Forbes began. ‘His late father was a Mason too and introduced Trevor to the Lodge. They were both so similar; quiet, traditionalists. Both solid, good, dependable men. Trevor was very intelligent. It always surprised me that he didn’t have a much better job. I don’t mean that to sound condescending, just stating fact. He was humble and quite shy, which I guess is what held him back.’
Forbes sat quietly for a moment as he gazed out through the window. ‘It’s strange, I’ve known him for so long, but now you’re asking me about him, I suppose I didn’t really know him that well at all. He was very reticent. Being a Mason was everything to him. I had to warn him on a couple of occasions.’
‘Warn him? About what?’
‘How much time he was spending at the Lodge or researching scripture. We’re a charitable organisation that’s steeped in tradition. Because a lot of our rituals are secret, people view us with suspicion. Our four main principles include integrity, friendship, respect and charity. We believe that a man has a responsibility to behave honourably in everything he does. Morality is our lifeblood.’
Sean could feel his cheeks flush as he recalled the horrible moment he high-fived Forbes to avoid shaking his hand. He was clearly in the presence of a good man, and from what he was being told, Trevor had been one too.
‘Trevor contributed so much. Too much, if I’m honest,’ Forbes continued. ‘Our main priority has always been to put our own families first and I was concerned he didn’t always do that. I warned him about neglecting Bernadette. I suggested a few times that he needed to spend a little more time at home with her and also hinted that he didn’t need to be so financially… generous. But he insisted there wasn’t a problem. He said that Bernadette was more than happy for him to do Mason work and she didn’t mind him being out of the house so much.’
‘And what do you think, did he seem happily married to you?’
Forbes shrugged. ‘I know if I spent as much time on Mason business as Trevor did, my Adele would have something to say about it. But Bernadette is like Trevor, she’s shy and reclusive. She strikes me as someone who is content in their own company. She joined him at a few of the Masonic dinners and they always seemed very happy and affectionate towards each other. He was very chivalrous; he’d pull out the chair for her and they held hands and whatnot. They were well suited, made a good pair.’
‘Did the fact they lived with his mother ever seem like it might have caused a problem?’
‘Not at all. Trevor was always very close to his mum. He was close to his dad too, when he was alive, the two of them were best friends. It sounded like Bernadette was close to Rose too. The three of them all got along well.
‘When Trevor met Bernadette, it didn’t surprise me when he said she was moving in with them. I know not many women would relish the prospect of living with their mother-in-law. There’s no way my Adele would have even considered it. But for Trevor and Bernadette, well, it seemed natural for them. Let’s just say I would have been more surprised if he had told me they were buying a place together and leaving Rose on her own.’
‘And what about starting a family. Did Trevor ever talk to you about that?’
‘Not to me, no. That sort of thing would have been far too private for someone like Trevor to share.’
‘I can believe that from what you’ve told me about him,’ said Sean.
‘I’m sorry, detective, I don’t feel like I’ve been much help to you.’
‘On the contrary, you’ve helped me piece together a much clearer image of the kind of man Trevor was. When we were treating him as a missing person, he was something of an enigma to us, so it’s useful to have his personality described by someone independent.’
‘Doesn’t really help with your investigation though does it, son?’ Forbes said wearily. ‘Now you know what he was like it really begs the question, who on earth would want to kill a man as harmless and inoffensive as Trevor?’
* * *
It was nearly dark when Dominique got to the garden of remembrance to leave flowers for her dad. She wrapped herself up against the cold, reluctant to leave the warmth of the car. She didn’t find this as soothing as Maya did. She came out of a sense of duty rather than any sentiment. Dominique believed that when you were dead, you were gone. She was merely going through the motions, more for Maya’s sake than anyone else’s.
Shivering, she dashed along the path that carried her to her father’s ashes. She hesitated when she arrived. She looked around confused and disorientated for a moment. She double-checked she was in the right place. Futile really as she knew she was. What she couldn’t understand was why the heads of orange carnations had been ripped from their stalks and stamped into the ground.
56
Maya arrived at work to find the office in high spirits. Not only was it the day of the Christmas do but the grin on Connor’s face revealed there was even more cause for celebration.
‘You got it then? Congratulations.’ She gave Connor a huge hug and listened as he told her all about the interview and the call he had received to let him know he’d been successful. Tara sat in the corner with a face that looked like she’d been sucking on a lemon, but everyone chose to ignore her.
Maya made a brew and left hers to cool while she headed to CID to see if there were any updates on Operation Mermaid. Spotting Sean and Malone at their desk, she made a beeline for them.
‘Morning, gents. How did you all get on yesterday?’
Sean gave her a sheepish grin. ‘I high-fived a Mason who could be an integral witness in Operation Mermaid.’
‘What? Why?’
‘That bloody Tara got in my head, telling me a load of bullshit about how Masons sacrifice goats and can curse me with a handshake.’
Maya was bent double laughing as Sean continued to explain that the Mason in question was a friend of Trevor’s. ‘Seriously though, Masons are usually really good people. They do a lot for charity.’
‘So I’ve been hearing. How do you know so much about them?’
‘I’ve met a few Widows Sons when I’ve been on charity bike rides. That’s the name of their Masonic Bikers Association. I’ve met a few regularly at the Ride to the Wall event.’
‘What’s that?’
‘An annual fundraising ride to the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire. It’s to recognise the sacrifice of servicemen and women. It’s a huge event.’
Sean nodded. ‘It sounds it.’
‘Take everything Tara tells you with a pinch of salt,’ Maya said. ‘She’s a bloody gossip.’
‘I won’t need telling twice,’ he said glumly. ‘Is she going tonight?’
‘Yes. Are you lot still able to make it with Operation Mermaid ongoing?’
‘I believe so. DI Redford said MIT are going to hold the reins for what it’s worth. The bloody investigation seems to be going nowhere. We’ve got a murder victim who appears to be the most inoffensive man that ever walked the face of the earth and a murder suspect who’s still in ICU.’
‘Is there any update on Laurel’s condition?’
‘The fact that she’s still with us is a good sign. She’s been heavily sedated up to now, but they’re hoping to ease her off it later today and see how she responds. If she comes round and is okay, we’ll interview her as soon as the consultant gives us the go-ahead. It’s a waiting game at the moment.’
‘How did you get on with Councillor Hanford?’ Maya asked Malone.
Malone leaned back in his chair, hands clasped, as he raised an eyebrow. ‘We had an interesting chat. Despite the fact he presents the façade of a respectful councillor and businessman, personally I think the man’s a crook. He’s clearly slipping cash and favours to the bloke who works in the CCTV room to make sure his shop is looked after 24/7.’
‘Did he know Trevor?’
‘Yes. Not just from the town hall though.’
‘Oh?’
‘Our councillor is also a Mason, although I get the impression it’s something he’s ingratiated himself into, again to accentuate his respectability and standing within the community.’
‘I’m going to speak to Jonathan Forbes again and see if he knows much about Hanford and in particular his relationship with Trevor,’ Sean said.
Maya nodded as she recalled seeing the Mason tapestry when she’d attended Hanford’s burglary. ‘Do you think there could be a connection with Trevor’s death? Could he have had some kind of involvement?’
‘At this stage, we’re not ruling anything out. It’s the closest thing we have to a lead. What has intrigued me more after talking to him, is hearing how well he knows Bernadette.’
‘Really? I suppose that’s not unusual though, she works at the town hall too, and he’s probably met her at some of the Masons’ dinners.’
‘It’s not a question of him knowing her,’ said Malone with a sly grin. ‘It’s the fact he speaks of her with some affection. I have a suspicion that Councillor Hanford might know Bernadette a little too well.’
‘You think they’re having an affair? He’s much older than she is.’
Malone shrugged. ‘Some women like that.’
‘Eugh, but he’s a horrible man. Personality and looks.’
‘Not judging, but didn’t you once go on a date with Jack?’
‘Well, yes, but a date that lasted about two hours before I realised what an arsehole he is.’
Malone laughed. ‘My old mum used to say that there’s someone for everyone.’
‘Exactly, and from what we’ve heard, Bernadette and Trevor were loved up. So why would she be interested in Hanford?’
‘That’s exactly what I said,’ added Sean.
Malone rubbed his chin as he considered it. ‘Maybe it was unreciprocated. And could possibly supply a motive. If Hanford does have feelings for Bernadette, wouldn’t he have a better chance with her if the husband were out of the way? I’ll be having another chat with him soon, once we find out what Forbes can tell Sean about our good councillor.’
Maya nodded. ‘It’ll also be interesting to know what Bernadette thinks about the type of man Hanford is.’
* * *
Maya’s mobile rang as she headed back to her own office, she looked at the caller ID as she answered. ‘Hi, Mama. Everything okay?’
‘Yes, it’s fine darlin’. I’d not heard from you so just checking in.’
Maya laughed. ‘Because you distinctly told me the other day to stop phoning you every five minutes because it was driving you mad.’
Dominique’s husky laugh resonated down the phone. ‘I know, sorry, it makes me a hypocrite. I just wanted to wish you a good night tonight. You’ll be careful, won’t you?’
‘I’m out with cops and SOCOs, Mama.’
‘That’s what worries me.’ Dominique laughed again. ‘Don’t drink too much and don’t go home alone. Make sure you share a taxi with Chris or someone.’
‘Yes, Mama,’ Maya said as she rolled her eyes. ‘Got to go because I’m at work. Speak to you soon.’
Maya hung up, smiling to herself as she shook her head. She couldn’t believe that at her age Dominique was still lecturing her on being safe on a night out. She was never anything but sensible when she was drinking.
Mothers!
57
The Lamb & Flag was an old boozer within walking distance of Beech Field police station. It was the distance, rather than the ambiance which made it the go-to option every Christmas or retirement do. The pub itself wasn’t much to write home about. It was an old-fashioned pub with dated décor, toilet doors that didn’t lock and a landlord who was prone to barring people for the most random of slights.
