Page 51 of Little Children

‘Red and Roy agree with us,’ Shirley defended herself.

After the day Kim had had, those were two names she didn’t really want to hear, and the statement was no recommendation.

‘Did you know there was a known paedophile in Coral Island at the exact same time as Lewis?’

‘Wh… what?’ Shirley asked.

‘Not that fucking Skidmore bloke?’ Bobby asked. ‘He’s in that arcade all the time. He’d have no interest in Lewis.’

Kim wasn’t yet prepared to reveal that they knew Lewis had had an exchange with someone in the car park, but she was having trouble stomaching everyone’s dismissal of a known sex offender. If they could get a shot of Skidmore anywhere near the car park, she’d haul him in herself with or without Red’s authorisation.

‘We haven’t yet established any contact between them… But that’s not actually why we’re here.’

‘Why then?’ Shirley asked, frowning.

‘Could we just speak to Kevin for a minute?’ Kim asked.

Bobby stepped into the hallway and called the boy’s name.

‘Why can’t you ask us?’ Bobby asked as footsteps sounded on the stairs.

This man clearly liked to know everything that was going on. It was as though he wanted to answer questions directed to every member of the household. Why would he need that level of control over what his family might happen to say? Kim wondered. She ignored his efforts to control the interview and said nothing in response.

Kevin appeared in the doorway but didn’t come into the room.

‘Got a minute, Kevin?’ she asked.

He nodded.

‘Do you want to do this with or without your parents?’

‘It’s fine,’ he said after just a second’s hesitation, giving Kim the impression he might prefer without. But as he was a minor, she was on dodgy ground trying to insist. Especially as he’d now stated he wanted them present and from the looks on their faces they weren’t going anywhere.

‘Okay, Kevin, why didn’t you tell us you saw Lewis again after he left the house?’

His parents looked at each other and then at Kevin, eager to hear the answer.

‘I just wanted to talk some sense into him. He was being a little shit.’

‘Is that why you hit him?’ Kim asked.

She was rewarded with expressions of surprise on all three faces.

Kevin had to know now that the whole exchange had been caught on camera.

‘I hit him cos he wouldn’t listen. He kept saying he was gonna run away,’ he said, looking to his parents.

‘Told you,’ Bobby said.

‘He was talking about running away at that table and you didn’t bother to tell anyone?’ Kim asked.

‘Bloody knew it,’ Bobby heckled again.

‘Everybody assumed it anyway so there was no point,’ Kevin said, chewing his lower lip.

Kim wasn’t finding this story particularly believable.

‘Why did you offer him your phone?’ she asked.