Storms (15 page)

‘I’m really sorry for dropping all this on you, Jeff’ said Annabel.

‘Nonsense’ said Jeff who almost felt like he was playing truant. He’d rung Rebecca and Ollie to say he would be taking some time this morning to see to a personal matter. The timing was beyond lousy and he really should be leaving it to his Lancashire CID colleagues. But this was personal. This was family. He shouldn’t be investigating but he had to at least start the process of sorting it all out even if it wasn’t entirely professional. ‘You’re my sister, Annabel’.

‘Half-sister’ said Annabel. ‘Same Dad, different Mum, remember?’

‘I don’t keep it in mind, Annabel’.

‘I’ll bet your Mum does’ said Annabel. ‘I’ll bet she wished I’d never come along’.

‘Well I suppose you are a reminder to her that Dad had an affair that you were the result of’ said Jeff. ‘But I wouldn’t know for sure. I don’t speak to mum and dad, Annabel. As you know, they didn’t even come to Lillie Mae’s funeral. Neither did my other sister who’s supposedly full blood and yet takes the same racist line as my parents. You came. Our Lewis came. You two are the ones I think of as family’.

‘I’m sorry I’ve not been in touch lately, Jeff’.

‘We’ve all had a lot on’.

‘That’s no excuse’ said Annabel. ‘I then drop on you when I’ve got a crisis. What does that say about me as a sister?’

‘Don’t beat yourself up, Annabel’.

‘But it’s true’ she insisted. ‘I’ve been a lousy sister and now I’ve been a lousy mother too’.

‘That is not true’ Jeff insisted, firmly. ‘What happened to Kyle is not your fault’.

‘But I’m his mother I should’ve protected him’.

‘But you heard the way he spoke last night? Annabel, I’ve interviewed hundreds of people in my time as a police officer. It doesn’t sound like Kyle was an entirely unwilling participant in the activities with Tim Ryder. But what happened was wrong, it was unlawful and Tim Ryder should’ve been protecting Kyle from Tim Ryder. I understand that teenagers these days are a lot more sexual than even we were at that age and I’ve heard psychologists argue that it is somewhat ridiculous to assume that just because someone becomes sixteen they’re more sexually responsible for themselves than they were a year before. Some teenagers do develop in that way earlier than others. But the law is the law, Annabel, and it’s there for a reason to protect the vulnerable and to protect childhood. Tim Ryder broke it and I don’t care how rich he is or how influential he is he has to pay, simple as that’.

‘Thank you, Jeff’ said Ananbel.

‘What for/’

‘For being there for me’ said Annabel. ‘For being a true and very good brother’.

Jeff followed Annabel’s directions and in broad daylight it was relatively easy to find the house because it stood out as the biggest amongst some very big pads. Jeff said it was one of those places where you could almost smell the money in the air.

‘I’m nervous’ said Annabel. ‘I feel physically sick’.

‘Don’t be’ said Jeff. ‘You’re not the one in the wrong’.

Jeff drove up to the gates. Annabel got out of the car and walked round to the drivers side to press the buzzer. She thought it wouldn’t arouse Tim’s suspicions if it was her voice he heard. After she’d waited a few seconds she pressed it again and when Tim answered she simply said ‘It’s Annabel’.

The gates opened and Jeff drove them through and down the short drive to the house.

‘He’s certainly done well for himself’ Jeff remarked.

‘Better than he should have done’ said Annabel. ‘I’m getting angry now, Jeff. I’m getting very bloody angry’.

‘Good’ said Jeff. ‘Anger is the right emotion here. All that guilt you were feeling before was misplaced’.

They passed a large garage to the side of the house. The door was about halfway open but it was enough for Jeff to be able to see the registration number of what looked like a white transit van. It was P954 GRU. For crying out loud! It was the van that was seen by Ralph Johnson on the Gorton estate when the driver dumped the body of Tyler Moore and which is registered to John Squires. So what the hell was it doing here?’ 

‘What’s the matter?’ asked Annabel when Jeff took out his mobile phone and began dialing.

‘I’m calling for back up’ he said. ‘I’ve just seen something that could throw a whole new light on proceedings here. Stay in the car and don’t move. Your friend Tim may be a lot more dangerous than we thought’.  

Later that day Rebecca and Ollie began interviewing Tim Ryder. Jeff and Chief Superintendent Chambers were watching in the usual way through the two-way mirror.

‘Your excursion to the seaside may have accidentally led us down the right road’ said Geraldine. She was hurting all the way down her left hand side. Her partner Hazel had been particularly desperate last night and Geraldine thought one of her bones had broken or at least fractured. But the painkillers were taking care of it so it can’t have been that bad. It was horrible to go through though. She was frustrated with herself that she hadn’t done anything about it yet. She was a senior police officer for god’s sake. She wasn’t the sort who was afraid of spiders or the dark. It was crazy that she let Hazel take out her own frustrations on her. She’d like to open up to Jeff. She thought he might be able to understand. He was certainly probably the only one of her professional colleagues she’d trust to tell all to.

‘It’s just a shame my nephew had to go through what he did in order for the right road to come to me, ma’am’.

‘Yes, I’m sorry Jeff that was insensitive of me’.

‘No it wasn’t’ Jeff assured. ‘You were stating a fact, that’s all’.

Geraldine leaned forward and rested the palms of her hands on the wall.

‘Are you alright, ma’am?’ Jeff asked.

‘Yes’ said Geraldine as brightly as she could manage. ‘I’m fine, Jeff’.

Jeff didn’t believe a word of it and made a mental note to question the Chief about it once the case was wound up. She was clearly in pain of some kind.

‘I don’t expect you to understand’ said Tim in a soft voice that betrayed the fear that was building inside him. It had been a long road that he was just coming to the end of but he knew what they did to men like him in prison. The day of reckoning was near. 

‘What don’t you expect us to understand, Mr. Ryder?’ Rebecca asked.

‘That what happened between me and Kyle … I didn’t mean him any harm’.

‘We have a detailed statement from Kyle Matheson, Mr. Ryder’ said Rebecca. ‘A very detailed statement. I’m just wondering what you would want to add to it’.

‘I would’ve remained faithful to him. He’s a beautiful boy’.

‘And how long would that have lasted, Mr. Ryder? Until he reached eighteen and therefore a bit too old for your particular taste?’ 

‘You are disgusting’ Tim spat. ‘I’m not the monster you think I am’

‘Mr. Ryder’ said Rebecca. ‘The facts are that you are forty-three and Kyle Matheson is fifteen and so therefore it is not only wrong for the two of you to engage in sexual activity but it’s also against the laws that are there to protect children’.

‘That’s what he said’ said Tim.

‘Who? Who said what to you?’

‘My father. All those years ago he used all that as an excuse to beat the shit out of me. Oh I knew the day would come when I’d have to answer for what I’ve done. But do you want to know why I’m like this? Do you want to know what happened to make me this way? You think you’re so clever sitting there in judgment on me’.

‘I think you’d better tell us, Mr. Ryder’ said Rebecca, feeling like she was about to hear another sob story.

‘If you go into my background you’ll know that my father died in a fire when I was a teenager. This was way back in Rhodesia where we had a farm. He was beating me up on the night in question and do you know why? It was because I’d fallen in love with one of the other boys at school. His name was Jonathan and my father caught us that afternoon in my bed. There was a terrible scene. I managed to break free of his grip somehow and ran as fast as I could out of the house. I knocked over an oil heater we had and because there was so much wood in the house the fire caught straight away and my father was trapped. He died in the fire and my mother and brother disowned me after that. They blamed me entirely for my father’s death. I was sent to England where I was taken in by my mother’s parents. They’d never liked my mother’s choice of husband so this was like power to their cause. I ended up changing my surname to theirs because I didn’t want to be reminded of my immediate family’s rejection of me. They gave me the money to start a business which is how I became wealthy but you see, Jonathan also died in that fire. He was trapped too. The pain of knowing that I got out but Jonathan didn’t has tortured my soul ever since. You have no idea of what it’s put me through. And because I never wanted to let go of Jonathan, because I wanted so desperately to go back to those days before we were discovered and because I wanted so badly to somehow bring him back to life, I found I could never love anyone of my own age. They had to be the same age as he was. Do you see? Can you find it in your hearts to see the pain I’ve been in all these years? I had to try and bring him back to me because I’d never stopped loving him. Detectives, I’ll give you dates and time and names of all the other boys like Kyle. Because of my wealth I was able to pay them all off. That’s why I don’t have a criminal record. I thought I’d be able to pay Annabel off but it seems she’s too principled’.

‘That’s all very touching, Mr. Ryder’ said Rebecca who had little sympathy for the man sitting opposite her. Childhood traumas were one thing and she understood the kind of deep, long lasting effect they can have on someone. But surely there comes a point when you have to stop using them as an excuse for the wrong you commit years later? Tim Ryder was an otherwise intelligent man so why couldn’t he have taken the decision to stop chasing underage boys for sex? He knew it was against the law. He knew it was reckless and potentially damaging to the young boys concerned. So why did he carry on doing it for the sake of a memory, a tragic memory but still only a memory nevertheless. ‘But the fact remains that you had sex with a minor’.

‘He consented’.

‘However much he consented the onus was still on you to stop it happening’.

‘As a matter of interest, Mr. Ryder?’ said Ollie who was going on a feeling that had come to him whilst Ryder had been talking. ‘What did you change your name from?’

‘Squires’ Tim answered. ‘My name before was Tim Squires’.

The following morning as the squad were gathering the news came through about Ralph Johnson.

‘Apparently, his usual nurse didn’t turn up for work this morning and they had to send one of the other nurses to make the regular call on him to dress his leg’ said Ollie. ‘She says that the front door was ajar so she went in. She found him on the kitchen floor. He’d been battered to death’.

‘Have they managed to contact the nurse who didn’t show up?’ asked Jeff.

‘No’ said Ollie. ‘She’s not answering either her mobile or her home phone’.

‘Her name is Monica Parkinson’ said Rebecca. ‘Ralph Johnson told me about her. Remember he said he’d sent us a letter but we never received it? Well it was her that he gave the letter to for posting. I know it’s a big leap but can you see where I’m going with this?’

‘But what would she have to do with the Gorton boys?’

‘Who knows but what’s interesting for us here is the fact that her partner is called Joe Briers’.

‘The same Joe Briers who works for our friend Tim Ryder?’ said Rebecca.

‘The very same’ said Ollie. ‘As an assistant and housekeeper’.

‘Well, well, well’ said Jeff. ‘Why do I feel like the pieces are beginning to come together?’

‘Well let me add to that feeling, sir’ said Ollie. ‘The search team have been at Tim Ryder’s house since yesterday afternoon, sir. Now downstairs in the basement they found a large reinforced metal door that it’s taken them some time to get through. But they’ve just made it and beyond the door they found a large cavernous room with various items of torture and execution equipment inside, including a garotte, a guillotine and an iron maiden’.

‘So that’s where he took them’ said Jeff. ‘But which he are we talking about? Tim Ryder or Joe Briers? Do we know where Joe Briers is, Ollie?’

‘No, sir. He’s gone to ground just like his wife’.   

Before they were able to return to questioning Tim Ryder a young heavily pregnant woman turned up at the station. She said her name was Charlotte Briers and she wanted to tell her story to one of the detectives handling the investigation into the killing of members of the Gorton boys. She looked clean and her clothes well kept despite her assertion that she’d been sleeping on friends sofas for nights on end.

‘I think it’s my Dad you’re looking for’ she said.

‘Why do you say that?’ asked Jeff.

‘Look, I’ve been in hiding for weeks now’ Charlotte announced. ‘I’ve been hiding from my Dad and from that bitch Melanie Patterson’.

‘Tell us why?’

‘My Mum and Dad divorced years ago when I was about eight or nine’ said Charlotte. ‘My Mum had met someone else and she wanted to go off with him. It was never very fair on my Dad but once he gave her the divorce she wanted she started turning funny about him seeing me. It was as if she wanted to wipe him out of our lives completely and concentrate on this new man she’d met. I didn’t think that was fair on my Dad but what could I do? I was just a little kid who cried herself to sleep every night because her Mummy told her that her Daddy didn’t want to see her. But it was all lies. My Mum was telling a pack of absolute lies. Anyway it turned out that I didn’t see my Dad or have any contact with him for years. My Mum and me used to argue a lot when I was growing up and I resented her for being so obstructive about me seeing my Dad. I hated my step-Dad. He was just a flash bastard with a nice car. Anyway, I fell in with the Gorton boys. Some of them went to my school and I became Leroy Patterson’s girlfriend. He was lovely to me. He treated me really well and we really got on. But his mother Melanie didn’t like it. She didn’t like him having a white girlfriend. So she arranged to have me raped’.