‘Are you okay?’
Irvine looked up at the sound of the woman’s voice. She was leaning against the doorframe of her flat staring at Irvine.
‘Did he hit you?’
Irvine nodded and pushed herself up. She bent down to lift her bag and felt her head swim, light flashing in her vision. When it passed, she grabbed her bag and walked towards the woman, the wad of tissues still pressed against her face.
‘Are you Suzie Murray?’
She nodded.
‘I’m a police officer. Can I use your bathroom?’
Murray straightened and looked inside her flat. Her eyes darted furtively back to Irvine.
‘I don’t care what you’ve got in there,’ Irvine told her. ‘I came to ask you about Joanna Lewski.’
As she drew level with the door of the flat, Irvine saw that Murray’s lip was cut and there was swelling to her jaw. She had been crying.
‘Did he do that to you?’
Murray nodded but said nothing. Irvine thought that she looked to be in her mid-thirties, with a bad blonde dye job showing dark roots, but was probably five to ten years younger than that. Being in her line of work tended to age women rapidly.
‘Can I come in?’ Irvine asked, taking the tissues from her face and looking at the crimson stain on white.
‘What is it about Joanna?’ Murray asked, unable to look Irvine in the eye.
It hadn’t occurred to Irvine that Murray would not know that her flatmate was dead. Had nobody told her?
‘Let’s go inside, okay?’
Irvine went past Murray into the flat. She followed Murray’s directions to the bathroom, a narrow room at the far end of the hall. The bath was stained where the tap dripped constantly and clothes were strewn across the floor.
She went to the sink and looked in the mirror, turning her face to see the damage that had been done. There was a half-inch cut running down past her right eye and the side of her face was already swollen and discoloured.
Irvine took some more tissues from her bag and dabbed at the cut. Murray came into the room and took a box of Elastoplast from a drawer under the sink.
‘It’s all I’ve got,’ she said, handing it to Irvine.
Irvine took them from her and said thanks. Murray left her alone as she tore the backing off two plasters and crossed them over the cut, pressing down and seeing a bloodstain rise where she had applied pressure.
She was going to have some heavy bruising but there was nothing she could do about that for now.
Murray was in the living room when Irvine came out of the bathroom. The place was a mess — dirty clothes and dishes all over the place and a single, stained sofa against the wall opposite a window which looked down on to the street outside. Irvine decided she would stand.
Murray pulled her hair back from her face and looked at Irvine.
‘Place is a mess.’
Irvine wasn’t sure what the correct response to that was. She said nothing.
‘You said this was about Joanna?’
‘Yes. I’m sorry but she died yesterday.’
Murray looked away but otherwise did not react.
‘We found her body in the river. She was naked. Somebody stripped her and dumped her.’
Again, no reaction.
‘You don’t seem surprised or upset, Suzie.’
Murray shrugged.
‘Stuff like that happens to us, you know. Comes with the territory.’
‘How well did you know Joanna?’
‘Not that well. She moved in a month ago.’
Irvine knew the score: getting any worthwhile information from Murray was going to be difficult. Her inherent distrust of the police.
‘Sounds like maybe you didn’t have a choice in the matter? Her moving in, I mean.’
‘I don’t own this place. Someone else does.’
Her handler. Pimp. Irvine made a note to check the Land Register to see who the owner was.
‘Who was that man? The one who was just here.’
Murray rocked back and stood, walking over to the window and wrapping her arms around herself. Irvine couldn’t tell if it was because she was scared or trying to avoid talking about him.
‘Suzie?’
‘I don’t know his name.’
‘That’s not really an answer.’
Irvine heard her sigh.
‘He sold us some stuff.’
‘Drugs?’
She nodded, still looking out the window.
‘Have you used any of it?’
‘No. He came here with Joanna the other night. Said they were going to party.’
Irvine looked around. Not much of a place for celebrations.
‘Did they?’
‘What, you want the details?’
Irvine said nothing.
‘They didn’t stay here long. They went out.’
‘And they took the stuff with them?’
Murray nodded.
‘Had he sold you drugs before?’
She shook her head.
‘He showed up a couple of weeks ago with Joanna. She was the one who knew him. Said he had better stuff than anyone else.’
‘And he didn’t take cash from Joanna for it?’
‘You want a prize for figuring that out?’
There was a knock at the door. Murray looked at Irvine, her eyes wide with fear.
Another knock, louder this time.
5
Irvine held her hand up, telling Murray to stay where she was. It didn’t sound like whoever was out there had gone away.
Irvine’s mobile rang. It was Armstrong.
‘Where are you?’ he said.
‘I’m in Suzie Murray’s flat. Someone was here. I think it might have been the guy who dumped Joanna Lewski’s body. And I think maybe he’s come back.’
‘I don’t think so.’
‘What?’
‘Well, I mean, I’m standing outside her door waiting for someone to answer and I’m the only one here.’
‘That was you?’
‘Yeah.’
Irvine ended the call and went to open the door. Armstrong looked at her face and winced.
‘Jesus Christ,’ Irvine almost shouted. ‘Why didn’t you say anything when you knocked?’
‘It’s not something I’m in the habit of doing.’
‘Wait here.’
Irvine went back to the living room and gave Murray one of her cards. Told her to call if she could remember anything else that might help. Asked if she had anywhere else to stay in case he came back.
‘What do you care?’ Murray said. ‘And, anyway, there’s nowhere else.’
‘I’ll have someone call in on you. Take a full statement.’
‘Look, lady. No offence, right, but I’m not telling you any more.’
Irvine stared at her.
‘Want to know how I keep out of trouble? I don’t get involved. You’ll have to sort it out without me.’
Irvine wanted to say more, couldn’t work out what might help.
‘Let’s go,’ Armstrong said, from the hall outside the flat.
Irvine turned to look at him.
‘She’s said all that she’s going to say,’ Armstrong told her. ‘That’s the end of the story.’
Murray shrugged at Irvine.
‘Unbelievable,’ Irvine said, stepping out into the hall and closing the door to the flat.
‘Where to now?’ Armstrong asked.
‘You’re taking me to the hospital to get this looked at,’ she said, pointing at her face.
‘It wasn’t my fault.’
Irvine stopped at the top of the stairs, looked around and kneeled to lift the canister of pepper spray from the floor.
‘Was lucky I had this.’
Armstrong looked at her and shrugged.
‘Sorry.’
Irvine turned and went down the stairs without waiting for him.
6
Logan was sitting at the Cahills’ dining table when he heard the phone ring through in the study. He looked at his watch and saw that it was after nine. Wondered why Becky hadn’t called yet.
Cahill got up and went out to answer the phone. Noises sounded from upstairs where Ellie had gone to play with the Cahill children. Sam looked up at the ceiling and then at Logan, smiling.