‘Found this,’ he said. ‘Could be something. Looks like denim, maybe?’ He fought the urge to grin at her.
‘Sean?’
‘Police Constable Denton, if you don’t mind.’
‘Bloody hell. You did it! I knew you would.’
She had been the first to encourage him to apply for police college, to move up from PCSO to fully badged officer, but by the time he’d qualified, she’d disappeared to London. Khan turned round at the doorway to the first floor landing and Sean thought he saw the flicker of a smile, but it didn’t last.
‘Are you coming? We’ve got a statement to take.’
‘Thanks,’ Lizzie said. She took the bag and held it up to the light. ‘I see what you mean. It’s not quite white, more like a very pale blue. We’ll get it sent off. Check out Mrs Armley’s coat hooks while you’re in there. See if she’s got a denim jacket she does her cleaning in.’
Inside Mrs Armley’s flat, it was clear she wasn’t the denim jacket type and it seemed unlikely she’d leave a single thread of anything where it wasn’t supposed to be. All her furniture was in perfect condition; spotless as the day she’d bought it. Mrs Armley herself was about five foot tall and looked like she was in her early sixties. She was wearing a brown, nylon housecoat buttoned over her thin frame.
‘I told the young lady to let me know when they’ve finished,’ she said. ‘I’ll give it a good going over.’ Her voice was soft, Irish underneath, but as if she’d been in Yorkshire for a long time. ‘I’ll have to get started soon, if I’m to get it all done today.’
‘There’s no need Mrs Armley,’ Khan said. ‘We’ll send out a specialist cleaning team. It’s very unpleasant.’
‘I quite agree. But I can’t be waiting around. If the day warms up any more, we’ll have bluebottles before we know it. And you know what that leads to, don’t you?’
The two men shook their heads.
‘Maggots.’
DCI Khan looked around the room, taking in every detail. The walls were white, the woodwork even whiter. There were no paintings or ornaments on display, except in a glass-fronted cabinet where a set of ornate, crystal glasses stood next to a pair of school photos. Two young boys, slim and freckled, with red hair and blue eyes. Sean knew the uniform. It was the Catholic high school that his own school used to fight on a regular basis.
Khan cleared his throat.
‘Is that what you’re worried about? Maggots? Now, I have an idea. Why don’t you come with us, and we can take some information down at the station? Then you don’t have to worry about the mess and it’ll all be cleared up by the time you get back.’
‘Oh no. That’s not what you do. That’s most irregular. I’ve seen it on the television. You’d only do that if I was a suspect, and I’m not a suspect am I?’
‘We just want a statement, and we want to do things properly. Our cleaning team will come, but they can’t come yet, because we’re not ready for them.’
‘Is it still there?’
‘It?’
‘The corpse.’
‘Yes. The victim’s body will be removed soon.’
‘The sooner it gets cleaned up the better. Disgusting …’ her legs folded under her as she sank down onto a brown velour settee.
‘Are you all right?’ Sean instinctively bent towards her. She was staring into space.
‘I don’t like to go out. I stay in, you see. It’s my nerves.’
‘Don’t worry, Mrs Armley …’
‘I know you. Don’t I?’ She looked at him sharply.
‘It’s possible, I …’
Khan cleared his throat, as if warning him to say nothing.
‘I know,’ she smiled. ‘You look like that one off the telly. I don’t go out much. I’m phobic. But I like my programmes.’
‘Mrs Armley. We need to talk about the man out there on the stairs, about what’s happened.’ DCI Khan was pacing now, not that the room gave him much scope to pace.
‘Was it a man?’ she said. ‘Or a boy, do you think?’ She looked straight at Sean.
‘Sorry?’
‘I saw someone running. And I wouldn’t say he was much more than a boy. A fast runner.’
‘Can you describe him?’ Sean asked.
‘Dark.’ She dropped her voice to a stage whisper and nodded in Khan’s direction. ‘Like him.’
Sean winced.
‘When was this?’ Khan said.
‘Last night.’
‘But you only called us this morning.’
‘I saw him running. And I said, there’s someone up to no good. Then I couldn’t see him any more. I lost sight of him. This morning there was all this mess, footprints outside. I always wake up early, wake with the dawn. Anyway, I thought it was mud so I started to clean it up, then I stopped, when I saw …’ She fanned her face with her hand.
‘But what about last night?’ Khan said.
‘I didn’t hear a thing.’
‘And what did you see, Mrs Armley?’ Khan said, looking out of her window, as if it would all replay in front of him and tell him what he needed to know.
‘I’ve told you. I saw the boy running and then I lost sight of him.’
‘Who was he running from? Did you see anyone else?’
‘No. There was nothing else.’
When they got back outside, Gav was standing by the squad car looking at his watch, but Khan took no notice. He turned to Sean.
‘Do you think Mrs Armley was telling the truth?’
Sean was surprised the DCI was asking his opinion.
‘About what, sir?’
‘Any of it.’
‘Something odd about the way she described the body. She said “it”. Then she talked about seeing a boy running.’
‘But only after I’d told her it was male.’ DCI Sam Nasir Khan sighed and rubbed at a crease between his eyebrows. ‘I think we might need to get her in for a proper chat, which is going to be a nightmare if she really is agoraphobic.’
‘There’s not much soundproofing from the stairwells to the landings,’ Sean said, recalling the sound of footsteps running up and down, voices calling out in the night, which had punctuated his dreams as a child. ‘Unless they’ve done some improvements in the last few years, she must have heard something.’
‘Is that so? Let’s test that idea.’ Khan started to walk towards Eagle Mount One. ‘Come on, you know your way around. Let’s get out of the SOCOs way and find a flat in one of the other blocks. They must be pretty much the same. We’ll see just how soundproofed they are.’
Sean looked back at Gav.
‘I’ll be right here, son,’ Gav said quietly. ‘Just remind him there’s no budget for overtime.’
Khan was already heading up the path to the block.
‘I’ll go inside,’ he said, ‘you imagine someone’s stabbing you in the privates and we’ll see if anyone comes to save you.’
Sean thought he knew the answer to that. He also thought the chances of anyone willingly opening their front door to two police officers was slim. There was one option he could try.
‘Hang on a minute, sir. I’ve got an idea.’
He took out his phone and dialled. There was no reply. He rang again. This time the phone was picked up. A rasping breath and finally the familiar cracked voice.
‘Hello, who’s this?’
‘Dad? It’s Sean.’
‘Who?’
‘Sean. I’m round the corner. Thought I’d come in and see you.’
‘What for? It’s the middle of the fucking night.’
‘It’s the morning and I’m right here on the estate.’ He hesitated. Khan was looking at him, waiting. ‘Thought I might see if you needed anything getting in.’
‘Don’t bother, I’m skint.’
‘Well, I can sub you.’
‘I wouldn’t mind,’ Jack cleared his throat. ‘You know what? Eileen’s not coming back.’
‘Sorry to hear that,’ Sean could feel Khan’s impatience. ‘So shall I come up?’
There was a pause, punctuated by his father’s laboured breathing, and the sound of him lighting up.