Page 43 of The Scene of the Crime (Jessica Russell #1)

Jessica had been in her office for nearly an hour, reviewing all her notes and ensuring no forensic opportunities had been missed.

Her mobile pinged with a text message from Chapman informing her that the second interview with Palmer would start in twenty minutes.

She logged into the Met web link on her desktop computer, and the empty interview room appeared on the screen.

Jessica then told Guy she would watch the interview alone and make notes.

‘I’ll let Diane and Taff know,’ he said.

‘Thanks. Do you have Palmer’s criminal record?’

‘Yes, I also contacted social services and got a copy of their file on him. I haven’t had time to read it all, but I’ve printed it off.’ He handed her the file.

‘I double-checked Palmer’s burner phone but couldn’t find anything else on it. I’ve downloaded all the data from his personal mobile, so I’ll start looking through it. Do you want me to continue working on De Klerk’s mobile, too?’

‘So far, there doesn’t appear to be any direct connection between Palmer and De Klerk, so I don’t think it will take us any further. Make Palmer’s phone the priority for now.’ He gave her a thumbs-up and she returned to her office to look at Palmer’s file.

Sitting at her desk, she did some deep breathing before opening the file.

Seeing Palmer as he was now hadn’t triggered any traumatic memories, but this might be different.

The first thing she saw was a photograph of Palmer as a sullen-looking teenager, and she was instantly taken back to the time she’d first met him as a trainee probation officer working with a youth offenders team.

He was fourteen or fifteen and had convictions for theft, criminal damage and burglary.

Back then, he was often referred to as Will or Willy, which she suspected might be why he now preferred to be called Liam.

Reading the social services file, Jessica realised how much she had forgotten about him.

At the age of fourteen, he was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, commonly known as ADHD, due to his hyperactivity and impulsiveness.

Alongside his ADHD, he was also diagnosed as having a conduct disorder on account of his antisocial behaviour and criminal activities.

And Jessica had never been aware of what she read next.

Palmer’s ADHD was believed to have started when he was eight years old after a severe head injury.

His mother had called an ambulance and said he had fallen over and banged his head.

The hospital, due to the nature of the injury, told the police that they suspected William had been assaulted.

A detective from the child abuse unit carried out an investigation and suspected the father, an alcohol and drug abuser with a history of violence, had deliberately smashed William’s head against a wall.

The father denied assault, and the mother stuck to her story.

Specially trained officers interviewed William, but he repeatedly said he fell over.

They concluded that his denial of the truth was due to a fear of further brutality at the hands of his father.

A report was sent to the Crown Prosecution Service, but they decided there was insufficient evidence to charge the father.

Social Services became involved, but shortly after the incident the father died from a heroin overdose, and William was allowed to stay with his mother, even though she had a drinking problem.

Jessica felt some empathy for Palmer after reading what had happened to him as a child, but it would never excuse what he did to her and how it had affected her life.

She recalled the problems in her family life and how her father, Roger, constantly chastised and belittled their mother, Eileen, in front of them.

Jessica never saw him physically assaulting her, but he often snarled, pointing a finger and telling her cruelly how she was overweight and needed to be a better wife and mother for him and the children.

Being so young, she thought all fathers behaved similarly.

He was never very affectionate to her and instead favoured David, buying him more expensive Christmas and birthday presents.

Looking back, she knew it was intended to wound her.

The odd thing was that at the same time, he was forever bragging about her and David’s non-existent successes at school, making Jessica uncomfortable and leading school friends to tease them both mercilessly.

Jessica remembered the night she and David, aged eleven, saw two large suitcases in the hallway and wondered if their father was going away on a business trip, which he had been doing more and more frequently.

It seemed odd to them as he usually just took an overnight case.

They had sat silently by the bannisters on the upstairs landing, clinging to each other as they listened to their father speak to their mother as if she were a piece of dirt.

Although it was many years ago, every word her father said was still engrained in her memory.

‘You are a waste of space, Eileen. I don’t love you, and I don’t think I ever have. Everyone agrees I deserve better . . . so I’m leaving you whether you like it or not. My solicitor is drawing up divorce papers, and I’m putting the house on the market.’

‘But where will the children and I live?’ a shocked Eileen asked.

‘I’ve rented a flat, and you can stay here with the kids until the house is sold.

I am not an unreasonable man, Eileen. I’ll give you a lump sum from the sale and pay child support.

I have put down an offer on a bungalow in Petts Wood for you and Jessie, which has been accepted.

It will be more than adequate for the two of you, and there is no onward chain, so hopefully, you will be able to move there in a month or two. ’

‘What about David?’ she asked in a shocked tone.

‘A son needs his father. Once I have found a suitable property, David will live with me.’

‘But what about his schooling?’

‘I will send him to a boarding school, which will be in his best interests if he wants a successful career.’

‘But we can’t afford that . . .’

‘There is no more we, Eileen. I’m leaving tonight. My solicitor will contact you,’ he concluded brusquely.

Jessica remembered David’s distress as he pulled himself from her embrace and ran down the stairs.

She followed, watching as David held their father tightly around the waist. She grabbed her mother’s hand and held on tightly.

Tears ran down David’s cheeks as he begged.

‘No, Daddy, please don’t go, please stay with us.

I don’t want to leave school and all my friends.

’ Roger put his hands on David’s shoulders, straightened him up and leaned down so they were face to face.

‘You shouldn’t have been eavesdropping. I’m only thinking of what’s best for you, son. Boarding school will make a man of you. With a good education, you can achieve whatever you want in life.’ David was still crying, but his tone changed as he stepped back from his father.

‘No . . . I want to stay with Mummy and Jessie!’

‘You can for now, but I’ve made up my mind, and you’ll do as you’re told.’

‘You can’t make me!’ David shouted, then rushed to his mother and Jessica’s side.

Roger’s eyes hardened as he stepped forward, pointing a finger at Eileen.

‘This is your fault. You’ve poisoned him against me.’ Eileen ushered the children behind her for their safety, and for the first time, Jessica witnessed her mother stand up against their father.

‘I won’t let you take the children. They need to be together with me. I’ll fight you for custody and take every penny you’ve got.’

‘Fine. See you in court then, but don’t come running to me for help when you can’t cope,’ he sneered.

Roger slammed the front door shut as he left.

It was the last time they saw him. Jessica remembered their mother trying her best to comfort them that night, saying she loved them with all her heart and that they would all be safe and happy in their new home.

Jessica took a deep breath and sat upright.

Although they were harrowing memories, they made her more angry than sad, appalled at her father’s cruelty.

It wasn’t until eight years later, her mother told her – though not David – that shortly after Roger left, she discovered he had been having an affair with his twenty-two-year-old secretary, and the supposed business trips had been nights spent with her.

At the time, Jessica had said that it must have hurt her terribly when she found out, but her mother said it was a blessing in disguise as it enabled her to get a better divorce settlement and avoid a custody battle in court.

Jessica felt a deep sadness when she thought about her mother.

However, she found some comfort in the fact that she was no longer suffering from the debilitating pain of cancer.

Jessica missed her mother deeply and recalled the happy times they shared every day, but she had never been able to come to terms with her father’s cruelty to such a kind and gentle woman.

She often wondered if he had remarried and had another family who suffered like they had.

She knew the experience had profoundly affected her own life and explained some of her reluctance to form steady relationships with men, not wanting to end up a victim like her mother.

Being devoted to her work, on the other hand, had helped her to feel strong and independent.

She took a deep breath, exhaled and continued reading Palmer’s file.

Between the ages of sixteen and twenty-three, he’d had five convictions for theft and shoplifting, four for burglary, two for criminal damage and one for arson.

He had spent time in prison on two occasions, totalling one year.

She scanned the details of his convictions and couldn’t find anything relating to an assault or threat of violence during any of them.

The arson conviction was for setting a skip alight.

Jessica looked at the details of the burglary charge for which he had failed to appear in court.

The crime had been committed two years earlier, just after 1 a.m., while the occupants of the semidetached house were asleep.

Palmer had entered the rear of the premises through a side gate, then forced a kitchen window open with a crowbar.

He’d been searching through the living room cabinet drawers when he heard the deep growl of an Alsatian behind him, and a man asking, ‘Can I help you?’ He fled through the open window, then ran in front of a car and was taken to hospital.

He was treated for a fractured skull, broken leg and dislocated knee before being released six weeks later.

He was immediately arrested and admitted to the offence before being released on bail to appear in court.

She closed the file. She knew she ought to feel sorry for him, especially given his family history. But as she imagined the look of terror on his face on seeing the snarling dog, she couldn’t help smiling.