“As it happens, there is. The victim’s handbag and clothes were left in a pile beside the body.” He leaned in and said quietly, “The vicar thought he was doing the right thing by covering the body—’shielding it from the kids’ prying eyes,’ he put it. Well, you don’t have to be a genius to know that he’s probably contaminated the crime scene.”
“Or did he do it on purpose? That makes him the main suspect then,” Jack offered.
Sally shook her head. “Don’t be so bloody absurd. How did you ever get to be my partner, thinking dumb shit like that?”
Jack shrugged and grinned. “Lucky, I guess.”
“If I might interrupt, as my time is pretty valuable, Inspector—he appears to be too upset to be involved in this,” Simon said.
“I’ll have a word with him after I’ve seen the victim. Can I go in?”
Simon raised his hand, asking her to wait for a moment, and called over to a member of his team. “Geoff, is it safe now?”
The pathologist’s bearded colleague put his thumb up and nodded. Simon entered the tent before Sally and Jack.
“Oh, crap! Well, he did a good job of disguising the body,” Sally announced, looking down at the blanket that totally hid the body.
Two members of the forensic team spread out a plastic sheet on the ground and carefully removed the blanket to reveal the victim.
“Why did I have it in my mind that she would be younger?” Sally asked.
“Who knows? Is there an age limit to naked women being found in graveyards?” Simon replied smugly.
“No, I didn’t mean that. On the way over here, I just had an image in my mind… all right, ignore me. What can you tell us, Simon?”
The pathologist knelt beside the body and inspected it thoroughly without saying anything for the next few minutes. Then he stood up again. “Looks like traces of semen on her thighs.”
“What? That’s a good sign, isn’t it?”
Simon shrugged. “Only if it matches someone already registered on the database. We won’t know that for at least a week.”
Sally sidled up to him and winked. “Couldn’t you possibly push it through quicker, just for little ol’ me?”
Simon sighed heavily. “Christ, everyone wants their results yesterday. No wonder the lab is under stress with cases. I’ll see what I can do for you, like I always do, Inspector.” He bent down and lifted the woman’s handbag. “Let’s see what we have here.” His gloved hand dipped into the bag and emerged with a black leather purse. He opened the purse and withdrew a credit card. “Brenda Fisher.”
“Is there a driving licence in there, by any chance?”
Simon thrust his hand back inside and pulled out a plastic holder. “She was organised anyway. Here you go.”
“Get this down, Jack,” Sally instructed her partner.
“Fifteen Jacoby Street,” Simon read out.
Sally trawled her mind. “That’s not far from here. We’ll chase that up. Thanks, Simon. Is there anything else for us to go on?”
Simon shook his head. “That’s as good as you’re going to get, apart from the cause of death.”
“Which is?” Sally asked.
“Almost certainly strangulation, judging by the amount of petechial haemorrhaging present.”
“So we’re looking for a possible rapist who goes on to strangle his victims. Should be a clear-cut case then, especially in a small village like this,” Sally said with more than a hint of sarcasm.
She and Jack left the marquee and made their way over to where the distraught vicar was standing, observing the scene. Sally showed him her warrant card. “Hello, I’m DI Sally Parker, and this is my partner, Jack Blackman.”
“Harold Wheeler, vicar of the parish. This is shocking, truly shocking.” The man acted as if Sally were blocking his view of the marquee. Folks often became transfixed at a murder scene. Some experts reckoned it was a sign that shock was about to set in.
“I agree. Is it possible for us to chat inside?”
“Yes, sorry. My mind is all over the place. Whatever are my parishioners going to say about this?”
“One thing at a time, Mr. Wheeler.” Sally gently turned the man towards the church and walked alongside him while Jack brought up the rear.
They entered the small church, and the vicar led them through the curtained area to the vestry. He sat behind his desk and instructed Sally and Jack to sit in the two chairs opposite him.
“What can I tell you, Inspector? Apart from that I found the body and covered her up first thing this morning.”
“What time exactly, Mr. Wheeler? Do you remember?”
“Around seven. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I parked up and came around the corner. I always unlock the main doors first thing. If I’d come in the back way, I would be none the wiser about her lying out there.” He buried his head in his hands and shook his head. “Can you imagine the trauma the kids would have gone through if they’d seen that? Lord, it doesn’t bear thinking about.”
“My thoughts exactly when we pulled up this morning.” She gently eased into her question. “Do you know the victim?”
He dropped his hands from his face. “No, I don’t recognise her.”
“Apparently, she lives not far from here, in Jacoby Street. Does that help?”
He shook his head. “No, not at all. I’ve been here nearly twenty years and can’t say I recognise her in the slightest. That poor child. Who would do such a thing? Who on earth would think to leave the body resting against a grave like that—and on sacred ground, too?”
“That’s what we intend to find out. I didn’t check the name on the gravestone. Do you think that’s significant?”
“I don’t understand, Inspector. Significant, in what way?”
“Sorry, my mind tends to run at a hundred miles an hour. Can you tell me who the gravestone belongs to? Maybe there’s some sort of connection with the victim there.”
“I see.” He squeezed his temple between his thumb and forefinger as he thought. “Old Man Johnson. If I recall correctly, he had no living relatives. The parish raised the funds between them to bury the poor man last year.”
“Seems unlikely to be a link there, then. Did you see any cars parked in the vicinity when you arrived this morning?”
He shook his head. “No. Nobody was around. There very rarely is at that time of the day. I’m not being much help, am I?”
“You’re doing fine, considering the shock you’ve experienced. It’s a long shot, I know, but I don’t suppose the church has any form of CCTV cameras installed, has it?”
“No. There have been discussions along those lines, though, given the spate of robberies and vandalism the church has suffered over the past few months.” He thumped his clenched fist on the desk. “It’s all down to raising enough funds to pay for the equipment. I should have been firmer with the council when they cited it as an unnecessary expense.”
“Hindsight is a wonderful thing, Mr. Wheeler. Please don’t beat yourself up about this. These things happen. If there is nothing else you can tell us, we’ll be on our way. We need to visit the victim’s address, see if she has any family living there.”
“I’m sorry I’ve been so useless. Will you keep me informed, Inspector?”
“Yes, of course. Will you keep an eye open for anything or anyone acting suspicious for us? Someone put that woman’s body there and went out of their way to deposit the body in your front yard, as it were.”
“I’ll definitely keep my ears and eyes open,” Mr. Wheeler agreed.
Sally offered him her card with her contact details. “Thank you. I hope the forensic team aren’t going to inconvenience you for too long. It’s important for them to check the scene thoroughly.”
“I know. I feel stupid for covering the body over now.” Mr. Wheeler rose from his chair.
“You did what you felt was right at the time. I wouldn’t worry about that side of things. The team have already discovered some vital evidence.”
“That’s great. Can I ask what?” Mr. Wheeler asked as they walked back through the church, where their voices echoed.