Page 11

10

She was greeted by the aroma of freshly brewed coffee. The café was a nice open space with black PVC tables surrounded by white chairs. A long stainless-steel counter stood to one side, and at the end wall a nook was lined with high stools. The shop was unoccupied except for Garda Lei and a teenager. They had takeout cups of coffee on the table, but neither was drinking.

She held out her hand. ‘Detective Inspector Lottie Parker. You must be Shane.’ Pulling out a chair, she sat. The nineteen-year-old’s jet-black hair was cut short and his brown eyes were filled with the horror of what he’d stumbled upon.

‘I couldn’t believe it,’ he said. ‘She… she was just lying there like that. Like she fell or was asleep or something. I thought I’d have a heart attack. I’d have chucked up my breakfast, so it’s lucky I didn’t eat this morning.’

His hands shook violently as he spoke. When he’d finished, he pushed them down on his lap under the table, out of sight, and nestled his chin in the cowl neck of his black sweatshirt as if that might disguise his trembling.

‘I’m so sorry you had to witness what you did, Shane. You are a very important witness and may be able to provide us with information that might help us find out what happened to the young woman. Do you think you can answer a few questions?’

‘Yeah, sure. Whatever. It’s shocking.’

‘Did you see anyone else around this morning before you found the body?’

‘No one. I swear. It was so awful.’

‘Do you know who the dead woman is?’

‘Me? Know her? No way. I’ve never seen her before in my life. Swear to God.’ He paused, and ran his hand under his nose. ‘But I didn’t look too closely. Her eyes were open. She was dead. Oh my God… I’ll never sleep again.’ He lowered his head, sniffing continuously. Lottie looked from Lei to Kirby for a tissue and received shrugged shoulders in return.

‘What did you do after you hopped the wall?’ she asked gently. ‘After you saw her lying there?’

‘I backed up straight away and rushed over to the barrier. I nearly puked then, but I didn’t.’ He raised his head and eyed her shiftily. A dribble hung from the end of his nose. ‘I phoned 999 immediately.’

She wondered why he was suddenly looking defensive. ‘Did you?’

‘What do you mean?’

Lottie knew all about teenagers, and it was logical to conclude that the first thing Shane might do was whip out his phone, no matter how traumatic the scene. ‘Did you take photos?’

His cheeks coloured. ‘That’s ridiculous.’

‘Can I see your phone?’

‘No, why?’ He backed up, and the legs of his chair screeched.

Garda Lei put a hand on his arm. ‘Shane, it’s best to be truthful now rather than end up in a world of trouble later. I know if it was me, the first thing I’d do is take a snap of the scene.’

Lottie raised an eyebrow at him, and he gave her a quick shake of his head to let her know he was fibbing.

‘It’s not a crime, is it?’ Shane fished his phone out of his pocket and slid it towards her. ‘I was in shock when I found her, but I suppose I always have my phone in my hand and it was a reflex to take a pic.’

‘PIN code?’

He told her, and she opened up the phone, going directly to his photos. He had one photo of the body taken a little distance away. Lottie shook her head. ‘What were you going to do with it?’

‘Nothing. Delete it. I don’t know.’

Sure, she thought. ‘Did you send it to anyone? Post it anywhere?’

‘No. You can check my messages and social media. I just snapped the pic and ran.’

‘Did you walk around the body?’

‘No.’

‘Did you sit and look at her?’

‘What?’

‘Did you move the body?’

‘Are you joking me?’

‘Shane, I can guarantee you, joking is the furthest thing from my mind right now.’ She leaned closer to the boy. ‘This is a very serious situation. I have to tell that young woman’s family that she’s been murdered, and I need your help to find out what happened.’

‘Murdered? God, shit. No. I never touched her. Why did I have to find her?’

She handed him back his phone, along with her card containing her contact details. ‘Send me the photo, then delete it. Now.’

‘You can AirDrop it.’

‘What?’

‘You know…’ he began. ‘Never mind.’ With visibly trembling fingers, he did as she requested. ‘Done.’

‘We need to interview you formally at the station. We’ll have to take your fingerprints and a sample for DNA comparison. Okay?’

‘I told you, I didn’t touch her.’

‘All the same, you were in the vicinity. Like I said, you’ll be helping us.’

‘Sure. Whatever. Can I do it after work? My manager will be in soon and I haven’t even swept the floor.’

‘I think now would be better.’ Lottie worked hard to keep her impatience locked down. The boy was traumatised. ‘No premises will be open today. We need to forensically examine the entire area.’

She rose then, and nodded to Lei. ‘I’ll leave him in your hands.’

Outside, she looked over at the scene and beyond the wall and barrier.

A crowd of onlookers had started to form.

Next the reporters would arrive.

And questions would need answers.

He really shouldn’t have left the house so early that morning. He should go to school, but wasn’t he already in trouble? Rex wiped at the cold tears on his cheeks. Why had he stayed? Why hadn’t he run a million miles away from this horror story? But he was still here. Hiding. Watching. Would they know he’d been there, beside her body? That he’d sat and watched her like she was a statue until that other boy had come along? He’d thought there were blue veins on her skin that made her appear as if she was made out of marble.

He’d heard the boy whistling outside the wall in the cold air and had scampered away just in time. He’d almost forgotten his school bag but remembered it at the last minute.

Now the white-suited CSI guys were all over the place. Searching. For him? Did they know he’d been right up beside the body? More tears pooled in his eyes, and he wiped them away with stone-cold fingers.

He watched as the tall woman walked around with a small fat guy, giving him orders before she headed off. It might be a good time for him to leave too. But he couldn’t go home and he couldn’t face school. Or maybe that was what he should do. Which way was best? Well, he couldn’t leave by the main entrance; the guards had it all blocked off. Instead, he’d have to make his way behind the cinema and hop through the gap in the ditch to his housing estate, which backed onto the complex.

Still he waited and watched, not knowing why he couldn’t tear himself away. But in his heart he was sure the dead woman was linked to what he’d seen from his bedroom window during the night. And he became very afraid.