Page 73 of Watching You
‘Beth didn’t end your mom’s life, Karl. I think you know that. She’s a doctor who cares about her patients. She helps other members of staff and does charity work. That’s not someone you want to kill, is it?’ Connie took a step towards him.
‘My dad had a stroke after my mum died! She didn’t just kill my mother.’ He pulled Beth’s head up to fully expose her throat and stepped in close so her back was hard against his legs. ‘And she tried to kill me.’
‘You stalked my daughter and drove her half-mad,’ Beth said softly. ‘Then you came after me and you’d have killed me if I hadn’t fallen down that slope. All I did was defend myself.’
‘Then you should have made sure you finished the job,’ he said. ‘Because now I’m going to.’
‘No, Mrs Smith,’ Connie said to the far corner of the lounge with so much certainty in her voice that everyone followed her gaze. ‘Don’t blame Karl. I don’t accept that. I think you’re responsible for the things he’s done. For all of it.’
‘Stop talking to her!’ Karl shrieked.
‘She’s saying it is your fault. She’s saying you were always an angry teenager, that you were bullied. I think she bullied youtoo, though, Karl. That’s the impression I get of her. She seems angry, unforgiving. You must have felt so furious at the world when she reappeared. Even after she died, she just wouldn’t leave you alone, would she? I can understand completely why you killed all those other people.’
‘What?’ he stared at her.
‘You knew about it, didn’t you, Mrs Smith?’ She paused and nodded.
‘You stop talking to her!’ He pointed the knife away from Beth’s throat and waved it towards Connie instead. ‘She’s not here. She wouldn’t come here and she wouldn’t talk to you! She always hated people like you, people who thought they were better than her!’
‘Hold on, Karl. I want to listen to your mother a bit longer. She’s telling me some very interesting things about you. Nasty things. Honestly, I’m not sure your mother even liked you.’
He charged at her, knife out front. Beth grabbed at the backs of his knees and he crashed to the floor. Lively, ankles still tied, managed to move far enough to throw himself onto Karl’s feet and keep him down.
Karl rolled halfway over, thrashing, holding his hunting knife to his own throat as Beth got up and ran into a corner.
‘Don’t do that,’ Connie said. ‘Karl, I think you need help. I believe you’ve been seeing your mother and that she’s been influencing your behaviour.’
‘Fuck you,’ he sobbed.
‘I mean it,’ she said. ‘I think the people you killed – Dale Abnay, Archie Bass, Divya Singh, Vic Campbell – they were reflections of yourself. It seems to me that it was you who wanted to die, and I give you my word that I will make sure there are psychiatric reports prepared—’
‘What the fuck?’ Karl said, lowering the knife without eventhinking about it. ‘You’re not pinning that on me. I didn’t fucking kill anybody. What I did with my dad was a mercy not a murder. Don’t you even fucking think about saying I killed those other people. That’s bullshit and you know it!’
Lively punched him hard, once, to the side of the head.
Karl Smith was down.
Chapter 47
Body Eight of Eight
19 June
‘Get the team in,’ Lively shouted. ‘We need him restrained.’
‘Hold on,’ Connie said.
‘No, this bastard needs stringing up for what he’s done.’
Connie checked Karl’s pulse and breathing then took out her mobile and dialled Salter. ‘Christie, could you come in here, alone please. No current threat to life.’
Salter appeared within the minute. ‘Is everyone okay? What happened?’
‘We’re all fine,’ Connie said. ‘Could you stay next to Mr Smith, please? He’ll be coming round soon. And he’s probably lying on a hunting knife that’ll need processing.’
Salter found the knife under Karl’s stomach then cut the cable tie around Lively’s ankles and sat back down next to Karl on the floor.
‘I’m getting Beth out of here,’ Lively said. ‘We can give our statements later on.’
