‘He’s controlling his responses,’ Sean said, ‘look at the muscles in his forearm. Tight as anything.’
Lizzie flicked a switch and the sound of Khan’s voice reached them.
‘… at Halsworth Grange you kissed her and said goodbye. Was she still alive?’
The brown envelope containing the DNA result lay on the table between them. Kamran shook his head.
‘You’re indicating that she was already dead?’
The young man looked up and opened his mouth but no sound came out. His hands went to his face and he covered his mouth and nose, but it was too late; the truth was forcing its way out.
‘Are you going to tell us how it happened, Kamran?’
Khan’s voice was gentle. Lizzie squeezed Sean’s hand and they waited.
‘It will be up to the court to get to the bottom of why you did this, but I want to know for myself, so humour me,’ Khan said. ‘You kill your sister’s boyfriend and then you kill her. Because you’re jealous of her?’
‘No.’ It came out as a whisper. ‘I couldn’t stand by and let her bring shame on the family.’
‘Who was bringing shame, Kamran?’ Khan said. ‘She’d done well. Got a degree. She was working with women who’d been in prison, helping them get back on track. What’s shameful about that? It seems to me that she was doing something any parent would be proud of.’
‘No!’ Kamran Ahmed suddenly raised his voice. ‘If she wasn’t ashamed, then why all the secrecy? If she didn’t know it was wrong to have sex with that piece of trash, why sneak around behind everyone’s back?’
‘What right do you have to call anyone trash?’ Khan’s voice quivered with rage. ‘Mohammad Asaf was going straight, Kamran. He was doing what he could to get out of the very same culture of drugs and gangs that you were so keen to get into. How dare you sit here before me and try to defend yourself, when your own father won’t send his lawyer to stick up for you.’
The room was silent and Kamran Ahmed slumped back in his chair. Sean held his breath. Lizzie stood so close to him their hips touched.
‘Why did you kill her, Kamran?’ Khan said. ‘It’s too late to pretend you didn’t, because we know you did.’
The young man’s eyes filled with tears.
‘What was I supposed to do?’ He blinked and the tears streamed down his face. ‘After that boy was dead, she shut herself in her room; wouldn’t speak to anyone. She wouldn’t tell my parents what was wrong. And then I started to get scared. I thought they’d get it out of her sooner or later, about the boy. Or that girl in the shop would say something.’
‘Go on.’
‘When there was nothing on the news, I thought, I don’t know, maybe Terry Starkey had cleared it up, but then there was that fire at the shop and Terry was on the TV, talking about it, like he hadn’t been part of it. I had to do something and …’
‘You panicked?’
‘Yes, no …’ Ahmed sniffed back the tears and rubbed his eyes. ‘She shouldn’t have been seeing that boy. Why couldn’t she have waited? Been more like my other sister and let our parents choose?’
‘That’s a smokescreen, Kamran, and I think you know it.’
‘I need a glass of water.’
Somewhere off camera they could hear water being poured and a uniformed arm reached forward to put a plastic cup down in front of Kamran Ahmed. He sipped slowly.
‘He’s buying time,’ Lizzie said.
‘Why’s he bothering?’ Sean said. ‘He’s up to his neck in it, isn’t he?’
‘I don’t know, but it’s almost as if he wants Khan’s approval.’
‘How did you persuade her to meet you at Halsworth Grange?’ Khan had dropped his voice to a calm, relaxed tone and it appeared to work. Kamran nodded two or three times, gathering his thoughts before he spoke.
‘I told her I knew who’d killed her boyfriend and we could meet him, trick him into admitting it, then call the police. I told her he used to work up at Halsworth Grange, in the garden, and he’d be going there to pick something up.’
‘I see.’
‘He stayed in the car.’
‘Starkey?’
‘Mm. He wasn’t needed. Just …’
‘Yes?’
‘He gave me the knife and the gloves. Told me what to do. She was waiting by her car.’ He paused. ‘I said, let’s walk across the meadow. She came with me.’
‘She didn’t want to know why?’
Kamran shook his head. ‘I asked her if she remembered it, when we used to have picnics there, when we were kids. She said, yes. Then she wanted to know what I had in my hand. I said it doesn’t matter. We walked towards the edge of the field and she said she didn’t want to live any more.’
‘And you went ahead?’
‘It was my duty.’
‘No,’ Khan’s fist came down on the table and the crash distorted the observation room speakers. ‘It is never anyone’s duty to take an innocent life.’
Sean turned to Lizzie. She was biting her lip, holding back her own tears. He put his arm round her shoulder.
‘Let’s go.’
At six-twenty that evening Sean and Lizzie arrived at the hospital. A strict ward sister told them they’d have to wait until visiting started at half past. Sean decided not to show his badge to speed things up. He knew that Chloe wouldn’t want any unnecessary attention. They asked a young houseman how she was, and it felt like another white lie, telling the doctor he was family, even though now it was apparently true. The doctor said she’d collapsed due to malnutrition and dehydration, but she was going to be all right. They had her on a drip and a gradual diet and she was waiting to see a psychologist. They had put her in a side room for now, to give her some peace and quiet. The doctor wanted to know if she had any history of eating disorders.
‘I’m sorry, I don’t know,’ Sean said. ‘We haven’t been exactly close.’
He tried not to catch Lizzie’s eye, but he could see she was trying to hide a smile.
‘You’re going to have to decide what to do about publicity,’ she said, as they walked towards Chloe’s room.
‘What do you mean?’
‘It’s a great story. Policeman saves woman’s life, only to discover she’s the sister he never knew he had. You’ll be on the sofa with Fern Britton before you know it.’
‘I don’t think so,’ Sean said. ‘Fern Britton doesn’t do that daytime show any more. Seriously though, I’m not a fan of being on the telly and it’s the last thing Chloe needs. I think we’ll keep it between us, the three of us, if you don’t mind.’
‘Just us? What about your dad? Doesn’t he deserve to know he has a daughter?’
‘Maybe one day, if he ever sobers up,’ Sean said. ‘I’ll tell Nan first. She’ll know what to do.’
Chloe was awake. She turned her head on the pillow and smiled when she saw him.
‘I’ll leave you two for a minute,’ Lizzie said and stepped outside the room, letting the door close softly behind her.
‘You’re the policeman, aren’t you?’ Chloe’s face was pale and her lips barely moved.
‘Yes.’
‘I’m a bit rubbish at trying to kill myself, aren’t I?’
‘It’s a good thing, really,’ he said.
‘People keep trying to save me.’
‘Aye, well. It’s my job but …’
‘It’s OK. Thank you,’ she said. ‘I know now, there was a reason I had to stay alive. I had to tell someone about Terry.’
‘Oh?’
‘Did you hear what I said, on the top of the flats?’
‘Yes.’
‘It was all true.’ She looked up at the ceiling and took a long breath. ‘Jay didn’t want anyone to know, even after he was dead. Said it would destroy his mum. But you can’t keep having secrets, can you?’
‘No, Chloe, you can’t,’ Sean said. ‘Or would you rather be Marilyn?’