‘So far I’ve spoken to most of his colleagues. Can’t seem to pin down Leonard’s manager though. Last place of employment was a branch of a car spares chain in Kidderminster. I’ve been twice now and the bloke’s never there.’
Kim turned to Bryant. ‘Note it down.’
Dawson continued. ‘Spoken to all of his family, and most of Wendy’s. Nothing but disgust for Leonard Dunn. Her brother is fiercely protective and wouldn’t allow me in the house. But he did make his feelings clear from the doorstep.’
Kim turned to Bryant. He noted it down.
‘Focus on the neighbours, Kev. I want to know everything about visitors to the house. Find the resident curtain twitcher and have yourself a cup of tea.’
‘Stace?’ Kim asked.
‘No new messages on Facebook since the arrest. Another nineteen folks have unfriended him and blocked ’is account. I’ll goo through the ones he’s got left, to see if there’s anything of use.’
From the corner of her eye, Kim saw Dawson take his phone from his pocket and turn away from her.
Bryant coughed loudly and Stacey kicked the wood where the desks met between them.
Kim held up her hand to silence them both, crossed her arms across her chest … and waited.
The room had been silent for almost a full minute when Dawson turned back towards his colleagues.
‘Are you with us, Dawson?’ she asked.
With six unimpressed eyes gazing upon him, he coloured instantly.
‘Sorry, Guv, it’s the father-in-law. He’s …’
‘Kev, shut up. Don’t embarrass yourself any further. Our next conversation will be very different. I will not warn you again. Clear?’
He nodded and stared ahead.
‘Good, okay, everybody get to it.’
Dawson was the first out of the door.
Kim remained seated where she was but tossed Bryant the keys to her car.
He looked at her and then Stacey.
‘Ah. Bryant, get yourself out of the room,’ he acknowledged to himself.
Kim smiled as he breezed past her.
‘Stace, don’t look so worried,’ Kim said with a smile, when just the two of them were left. ‘You’ve done nothing wrong.’
And that was the truth. The DC very rarely did anything wrong.
‘I need you to do something for me. Just to put my mind at rest. Can you do a little digging on the doctor?’
‘Thorne, yer mean?’
Kim nodded. It wasn’t an official request.
‘Yer looking for anything in particular?’
Kim thought for a moment. ‘Yeah, I want to know how her little sister died.’
THIRTY-TWO
Kim brought the Golf to a standstill in front of the car spares warehouse. Bryant visibly relaxed and checked himself for injury.
‘Jeez, Guv, I hate it when your driving speed tries to keep pace with your brain.’
‘A little whiplash never hurt anyone,’ she said, getting out of the car before he could respond.
The entrance to the premises was a heavy, glass push-door that led into a small reception. The area was clean and tidy with a desk that rose to her midriff. A two-seater leather sofa sat to the right of the desk.
‘Ugh … smell that,’ Bryant said.
It was a smell Kim recognised. Oil mixed with grease and a top note of lubricant. To her, it was delicious.
A man stepped through the doorway carrying a front brake assembly, then placed it on top of the reception desk.
Kim guessed him to be early forties, with a receding hairline that was trying to hide behind a short, spiky style that was better suited to a teenaged son. He wore a light blue shirt that was clean despite the environment. A badge marked ‘Brett – Manager’ indicated they had found the elusive employee.
‘May I help you?’ he said, looking from one to the other. His customer-service-training smile was just a second later than the words, indicating he was working from a checklist in his mind. Greet. Smile.
Bryant showed his warrant card and introduced them both.
No longer needed, the smile disappeared. ‘Someone’s already been here a couple of times and spoke to the lads. I don’t know what I can tell you.’
‘Perhaps you could just tell us a bit about Leonard Dunn.’
Asking the man an open question gave them the opportunity to assess him as he spoke freely.
‘He came to us through a government scheme. We got paid to take him on. Started him in the stores but he was making too many mistakes.’
‘Were you required to keep him for a set period?’ Kim asked.
There had been many back-to-work schemes initiated by the government to reduce unemployment figures. And they all did. For a while.
Brett smiled in her direction. ‘Yes, twelve months’ minimum, but it just wasn’t working out.’
‘What did you do about it?’ Bryant asked.
‘Obviously, spoke to him. There wasn’t any improvement, so we put him in a van.’
‘And?’
‘I got two complaints about his attitude and one about his body odour.’
Kim hid her smile. ‘What next?’
‘I offered the government their money back.’
‘You tried for a refund?’ Bryant asked.
Kim didn’t normally like people being referred to as possessions but in the case of Leonard Dunn she was happy to make the exception.
‘Any strange habits?’ Bryant asked.
He shook his head. ‘He was overweight and could have showered a bit more but not particularly remarkable.’
And not an obvious child abuser, Kim thought, knowing that there was no such thing.
If only they could be picked out by skull size, or by the distance between the eyes; once thought to be an indicator of criminality. All she’d need was a tape measure and a notepad and they’d all be behind bars.
‘Did he have any friends here?’ Kim asked.
‘No, and I lost a few for putting him forward.’
‘For what?’ Kim asked.
‘The employment scheme,’ he said, irritably.
Bryant frowned on her behalf. ‘I thought the government put him forward.’
‘It was me that suggested it … after meeting him at a bloody book club.’
Bryant cast a glance her way. She offered no response.
‘Okay, Brett, thanks for your time.’
Kim nodded in his direction and led the way back out the door.
Once back in the car, Kim’s fingers tapped on the steering wheel.
‘Well, that was a complete waste of time,’ Bryant grumbled.
‘You think?’
‘He gave us nothing.’
‘I disagree, Bryant,’ Kim said thoughtfully. ‘I think we might want to have a closer look at this book club.’
THIRTY-THREE
Barry watched as his wife, daughter and brother left the front garden and entered his house through a door frame constructed by him beneath a canopy he had designed.
He had only meant to look, catch a glimpse of Lisa and Amelia, to get a sign, a clue of their suffering, before making any kind of decision. But, standing here now, he knew that he could not go back. Who the hell did Adam think he was? It was his family, and his brother had no right trying to take them from him. Everything he loved was in that house and he was not prepared to let it go without a fight. He owed Lisa that much. Alex had been right.
Barry knocked on the door, mildly irritated that he was forced to seek permission to enter his own property, but that was about to change.
The door swung open and the face he had dreamt about for four years greeted him in horror.
For just a second, neither spoke.
‘Barry, what are you doing here? You know …’
‘I’ve come home, Lisa,’ he said, brushing past her.
He strode into the living room, leaving Lisa no choice but to close the door and follow him.