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  ‘What are you looking for?’ Downes said, leaning over her shoulder.

  ‘The Little Mermaid sacrificed a lot to become human. Not only did she feel as if she was walking on knives, she also lost the ability to speak.’

  As the diver slowly opened the girl’s mouth, Ruby shone the light inside. Her worst fears were realised. ‘Thank you,’ she said, rising to allow him to recover the body as per procedure. ‘It’s just as I thought.’ Her voice was low and steady as she spoke. ‘The bastard’s cut out her tongue.’

  Reeling from the discovery, she left DI Downes to speak to the diver while she turned to grab some fresh air. As she reached the door a glint of silver caught her eye. Could it be? She recognised the frayed watch-strap immediately. But surely it couldn’t be the same one? Pretending to do up her shoelaces, she stooped for a closer look. She was in the middle of a crime scene and disturbing evidence went against every police code. Yet, her fingers reached out and picked it up just the same. Ruby’s heart fell like a stone. This was not just any watch; it was the echo of a memory. The words on the back were as clear as when she had them engraved twenty years ago.

  To Nathan, love you forever, Ruby.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  ‘You’ve got it wrong,’ Mrs Mead said, her fingers twisting the tightly bound tissue on her lap. ‘That’s not my April. She’s not a prostitute, she’s a model.’

  ‘I’m sorry,’ Ruby said. She had witnessed the whole gamut of emotions with this case.

  Having travelled to Essex to break the news, she found that April’s mother was clearly in denial. Who could blame her, Ruby thought. And on top of everything else, she hadn’t even known she was a grandmother. It had not taken long for her team to find April on their system, given they had her fingerprints for a previous arrest for soliciting. She was better known for a number of domestics she’d had with her ex-boyfriend, who was now in prison serving time for assault. April had been treated as a high-risk victim of domestic abuse in the past, and details of her baby were on their system too. According to her friend, who reported her missing, she was giving up prostitution to go and live in Essex with her. But when she did not show up at the train station, alarm bells began to chime.

  ‘I can’t imagine how incredibly difficult this must be for you and your family, but we’ve checked her fingerprints as they’re already on file. Mrs Mead. . .’

  ‘Joan,’ the woman sniffed.

  ‘Joan. Were you aware that April had a baby in care?’ Ruby had already spoken to social services and clarified that she had not been informed. The decision to keep her mother in the dark was April’s. As an adult, she was entitled to make her own choices but Ruby felt this act of secrecy was bound to deepen the wounds of grief suffered by her mother.

  Joan frowned, the lines in her forehead instantly ageing her. ‘A baby? No, no, no. This just proves you’ve got it wrong. I’d know if I was a grandmother now, wouldn’t I? This is just stupid. How on earth would she have a baby without me knowing?’

  ‘When was she born?’ April’s sister, Lara, asked.

  Ruby sighed. It was tough enough breaking the news of April’s death without adding this bombshell into the mix. ‘She’s six months old. She’s been fostered, but April was working with social care with the view of getting her back.’

  Silently, Lara’s lips moved as she counted back the months. ‘June. I remember she was acting all funny back then. We wanted to come and see her. Do you remember, Mum? But she wouldn’t have it. She said she was going away on a photo shoot. I knew by her voice that something was wrong.’

  ‘No,’ Joan said. ‘We saw her last month. She didn’t look like she’d had a baby. I don’t believe it.’

  ‘It’s been a terrible shock,’ Ruby said, handing her a piece of folded notepaper. ‘Here are the details of the social worker. She’ll be in touch soon about Charley. You can call her in the meantime if you like.’

  ‘Charley? Is that her name?’ Lara said, fresh tears springing to her eyes. ‘We used to argue over the name because I liked it too. We planned everything together when we were kids – our dream wedding, what we’d call our children. Do you remember, Mum. . . Mum?’

  But Joan was staring into space, her face chalky white. Ruby guessed that somewhere in her mind she was turning over the fact that her daughter was never coming home. She had seen such behaviour many times. Overcome by grief, April’s mother had withdrawn from the world that brought such pain. At least she had her family around her. Ruby couldn’t understand why April had not called on them for support when it came to giving up her daughter. At least Joan didn’t ask her for details about her daughter’s death. She knew the time would come, but for now, she had not been able to take any more.

  Ruby stood, just as there was a knock on the door. She hoped it was a family liaison officer. She would take the heat of their anger and frustrations, and Ruby felt nothing but admiration for her.

  * * *

  ‘Right, guys, what have we got?’ Ruby asked as she faced her team. She had grouped them together just as she returned from her visit to Mrs Mead, and they had been given numerous tasks to add to their existing burgeoning workload.

  ‘April’s flat is being searched right now,’ DC Ludgrove piped up. The youngest member of the team, Ruby had been impressed with his performance so far. A young man with no children or partner to answer to, his time was generously given to the job. ‘She’s been working through an online escort site as far as we know. Her computer’s being seized for examination.’

  ‘Good,’ Ruby said. ‘I want that examined as a priority.’ She sighed, knowing the tech department were snowed under with requests. ‘In the meantime, find out everything you can about the site she worked for. Contact them directly, see what information you can get by asking nicely. I want a list of her clients on my desk. Usually, with these sites users pay by credit card, and a percentage goes to the escort, along with cash in hand for any extras on the side. They’ll have names and addresses. See if you can match any of those clients with the intel we have on Ellie Mason.’

  She turned to DC Ash Baker. ‘I want you to. . . Ash, are you OK?’ she asked, watching the colour visibly drain from his face. She had meant to catch up with him about his wife’s situation.

  ‘Sorry,’ he said, rubbing his chest. ‘Just some pains, it’s probably indigestion. I’ll be OK in a minute.’

  ‘Come into my office,’ she said. ‘I’ll get you a drink of water.’ She turned back to the heads still bobbing from behind their computers. ‘C’mon, guys, you know what you have to do. We’re under the cosh here.’ There was one task she would have to carry out herself. It was too much of a coincidence that both Ellie and April were working girls. She needed to contact the Crosbys and find out if April was ever on their books.

  ‘Here, let me open the window, let in a bit of air,’ Ruby said, allowing a blast of petrol-polluted air to waft inside. She turned back to Ash, whose expression was tight and drawn. ‘You look awful. Do you want me to call you a doctor?’

  Ash shook his head, keeping his eyes on the floor. His hand had dropped away from his chest, and his fingers were now tightly interlinked. It was something she had seen before, and it could only mean one thing.

  ‘You’re not in any pain, are you?’

  ‘No, Sarge,’ he said. The use of her title raised another flicker of concern. This wasn’t good, not good at all.

  ‘What’s happened? Is it your wife? Your daughters. . . do you need to go home?’

  Ash tugged at his tie, loosening the knot. ‘No, the wife’s fine. She’s settling in, and the kids are at my sister’s.’ He sighed, waving away her offer of a drink of water. ‘It’s just that. . .’

  Ruby caught the slight tremble in his bottom lip as the words seemed to get stuck in his throat. She rose to close the blinds. It was a signal to her fellow workers that she was not to be disturbed. Pulling her chair up next to his, she spoke in soft, comforting tones. ‘C’mon, mate, it can’t be that bad,
can it?’

  ‘It is.’ Ash swiped away a tear from the corner of his eye, but it was instantly replaced by another. His face bloomed pink, and Ruby laid her hand on his shoulder.

  ‘Mate, it’s me. If you need to speak to me in confidence. . .’

  ‘Oh God, I can’t believe I’m about to tell you this.’ The words came out in a long exhale. ‘But it’s going to get out at some point.’

  Ruby craned her head to one side. ‘You’re talking to the Queen of Fuck-ups. I’m sure it won’t come as any great shock to me.’

  Pulling a tissue from his pocket, Ash blew his nose. ‘You don’t understand. If this comes to light, I’ll lose my job. I’ll lose everything.’

  Ruby straightened in her chair. ‘Consider this conversation off the record. The sooner you tell me what it is, the sooner we can figure out what to do.’

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  ‘Ruby, what brings you to my door?’ Downes said, looking past her to the adjacent townhouses across the street. He had a right to be surprised. Ruby was well aware that several of his neighbours were senior police officers. This was her first visit to his home, and the last thing she wanted was to give them something to talk about.

  ‘It’s work related,’ she said. ‘Can I come in?’

  Downes drew back the red varnished door, risking one last cautionary glance outside before closing it behind her. ‘You do know this is meant to be your day off, don’t you?’

  Ruby threw him a wayward grin. Rest days were a memory to her, and it wasn’t going to change. Not with Doctor Tanner on the loose. More and more officers were being drafted in to help with the murder investigation, but she could not rest. Her personal connection to the case meant she was not going to squander time off by sitting at home and watching TV. ‘This is important,’ she said, slipping off her boots before entering the living room. ‘I’m not interrupting anything, am I?’

  The top two buttons of his shirt were undone, revealing a smattering of chest hair. A pair of pink Mr Men socks peeped out from beneath his faded jeans.

  Ruby smiled.

  He caught her grin and returned it. ‘No, I was heading in myself a bit later on. A man can get fed up with his own company. Will I wet the tea?’

  Ruby’s eyes fell on the family photos that graced the cream stone fireplace. Happy and smiling, they reflected better times as Downes posed for the picture with his wife. She realised he was watching her, and tore her eyes away. With the smell of vanilla scented candles and the freshly polished surfaces, it was almost as if his wife had just stepped outside. This feminine home was not what Ruby had expected at all. She smiled, trying to hide her surprise. ‘Sorry, what was that?’

  ‘Tea?’ Downes said, plumping up a fluffy cushion for her to sit down.

  ‘No, thanks, I don’t have time,’ Ruby said, enjoying the feel of the plush cream carpet between her toes. It was a huge contrast to the cheap linoleum and thin red carpet gracing her floors. And, unlike her flat, Downes’s home was spotlessly clean. ‘Sorry to come out of the blue, I didn’t want to be overheard.’ She wrung her hands, remembering her vow to keep things strictly professional from now on. ‘This isn’t about me. It’s Ash. He needs help, and I don’t know where else to turn.’

  ‘Right,’ Downes said, his brows furrowed. ‘What sort of trouble has he got himself into?’

  ‘Do you know about his wife being sectioned?’ Ruby said, hoping a potted history of his family background would present a buffer for what was to come.

  Downes nodded.

  ‘Right. Well, he’s been suffering from depression. The last couple of years have been tough on him.’

  ‘He’s always laughing and joking at work,’ Downes said. ‘Did you see those posters on his wall? Jesus, there were words there I’ve never heard of in me life!’

  ‘He’s good at covering things up,’ Ruby said. ‘The poor guy’s been through the mill.’

  ‘We’ve all got our crosses to bear,’ Downes said, his gaze landing on the photograph of his wife.

  It was true. Ruby had had her own share of family problems, her mum’s dementia being one of them. Moving her from their cosy shared home into Oakwood Residential Care had been tough. Now, her budget living accommodation was just within her means. She hated her flat but was happy to sacrifice her comfort if it meant her mother received better care. And she was not the only person who had been under stress: Downes had lost his wife to cancer the year before. For both, work had been a lifeline in some very choppy waters. It still was. She gave up trying to soften the blow of what was to come.

  ‘Well, there’s no easy way to tell you, so I’m just going to get on with it,’ she said, clearing her throat. Downes and Baker went back a long way, and she hoped he would not hang him out to dry when the going got tough. It was something their superiors had a habit of doing.

  ‘You know that I’ve instructed officers to come back to me with a list of April Mead’s clients?’

  Downes shook his head, a low groan escaping his lips. ‘You’re not telling me that. . .’

  ‘Yes, I am,’ Ruby said. ‘He’s been using her services on and off for the last couple of years. Not just April either, he knew Ellie Mason and some of the others too.’

  ‘For feck’s sake,’ Downes said. ‘If the papers find out about this. . . Worrow’s gonna do her nut.’

  ‘I know,’ Ruby said, not wanting to stop in case she changed her mind. ‘And there’s more. April and Ellie used to work for the Crosby escort service. They were both fired within the last year.’

  ‘So there is a connection,’ Downes said. ‘Which means they’ll be scrutinising their clients even more. Did Ash use the girls when they worked for the Crosbys?’

  ‘Yes, apparently he booked them online. He said he didn’t know who they worked for.’ Ruby sighed. ‘It’s not good, is it?’

  ‘Flamin’ idiot! Why didn’t he come to me with this?’

  ‘I guess he thought I’d soften the blow.’

  Downes began to pace, running his fingers through his hair. ‘You could look at this another way, the Crosbys are bumping off their ex-staff because they know too much. They work on discretion and have some influential names on their books.’

  ‘Come off it, Jack. They’re young girls. They wouldn’t have the brass neck to go up against the Crosbys.’

  ‘Well, they certainly won’t now. Especially not with the last one having her tongue cut out. That’s a warning to keep quiet, not a so-called fairy tale.’

  ‘God! I wish I hadn’t come around here now,’ Ruby said, slinging her handbag over her shoulder as she rose to leave. It had been a bad idea coming here. She thought of Nathan’s watch, and what Downes would say if he knew of its presence. Having discovered it planted at the murder scene, she had risked her career by hiding it in the old biscuit tin beneath the floorboards of her home. Whoever had left it at the pool had damaged the strap to make it appear as if it had fallen from his wrist. But Nathan had not worn it in years, and the leisure centre was not a place he frequented. Its appearance served to confirm just how far the killer was willing to go in order to set him up for the murders. But she had little time to dwell on it, as Downes beckoned her back to the sofa.

  ‘Sit down, will ya. I’m only thinking out loud.’

  Ruby frowned. ‘Can’t you see? Doctor Tanner would have treated those girls. They kept regular appointments with him because they weren’t allowed to practice without a clean bill of health.’

  ‘We need a list of Crosby’s escorts. Do you think they’re up for it?’

  ‘Let me take care of that. What are we going to do about Ash?’ Ruby said.

  Downes puffed out his cheeks as he exhaled. ‘With DCI Worrow heading the investigation? God, she’ll have his guts for garters!’

  Ruby nodded, knowing how hot she was when it came to police integrity.

  ‘We can’t stop the inevitable, we can only delay it.’

  ‘I’m worried about Ash’s mental health,’ Ruby said. �
�His mum’s gone back home, and he’s been left all alone. If I could persuade him to accept some help, maybe it would put him on a steady footing for what lies ahead.’

  ‘Right,’ Downes said, thoughtfully. ‘You think he’s that bad?’

  ‘Yes. No. I don’t know.’ She exhaled a terse breath. ‘He said something about being worth more dead than alive, but when I asked him about it he turned it into a joke. You know what he’s like, always messing about.’

  ‘Hmm… Has Ash used a credit card to pay for April’s er. . . services?’

  Ruby nodded.

  Downes dragged his fingers through his hair. ‘What a. . .’

  ‘I think cockwomble is the word you’re looking for today,’ Ruby said, unable to stop the grin spreading on her face. She couldn’t help it. Black humour was how police dealt with the darkest of times.

  Downes returned her smile. ‘What are we like, eh? How about a drink, a proper drink?’ he said, eyeing the decanter of whiskey. It glinted from behind the doors of the glass cabinet next to a collection of crystal ornaments. The fact it was locked away told Ruby all she needed to know.

  She was not going to provide him with the excuse he needed to open it. His drinking was something that had bothered her up until recently, and the last thing she wanted was for him to slip into the abyss again.

  ‘No, thanks, I’ve got stuff to do. Can I use your loo before I go?’

  Downes paused for the briefest of moments before nodding. ‘It’s straight upstairs.’

  With its shiny chrome and dazzling tiles, the bathroom was just as immaculate as downstairs. Ruby reflected as she washed her hands – there was something not quite right about this house. It had bothered her since she came in. She opened the mirrored bathroom cabinet. To the left was an array of men’s razors, shaving foam and deodorant. But Ruby’s attention was on the right, her eyes dancing over the hair removal cream, Impulse deodorant and make-up remover. She frowned. What use would Downes have of these? The couple didn’t have any children. She touched the bristles of the pink toothbrush stiffened from lack of use. A build-up of toothpaste had accumulated on the side. A small folding hairbrush contained soft blonde hairs within the bristles, the same colour as his wife’s hair. Everything was as she’d left it over a year ago. A pang of sadness overcame her. There she was wittering on about work when he had problems of his own. She couldn’t help but peek through his bedroom door as she stepped out on the landing. Like the rest of the house, it contained what she presumed were his wife’s belongings. Clothes, shoes, they were all there… What am I doing? she thought, feeling guilty for her intrusion.