Page 32 of One Left Alive
Morgan kept quiet; none of this was anything to do with her. She wanted to say that not all of her family were dead, but she didn’t. Declan let them out and they walked to Ben’s car.
‘Should we go and check on Bronte while we’re here?’
He shook his head. ‘Not now, it’s been a long day and Amy texted me before the post-mortem to remind me about speaking to Harrison. I need to go back and see what he has to say for himself. He’s had a good few hours to stew now.’
‘Are you allowed to keep him that long when he’s not under arrest?’
‘Yes, because he hasn’t been detained. He’s free to go whenever he wants. For all I know he might have already walked out.’
‘But you don’t think he has.’
He shook his head. ‘Not if he’s got any common sense. His girlfriend is on life support and her family are dead. He discovered her mum’s body, so I should think he’ll want to cooperate fully unless he has something to hide.’
‘And do you think he does? I don’t know how I feel about him. He was so distraught yesterday when I arrived on scene. He looked genuinely shocked at discovering Olivia’s body. He’s an excellent actor if he is.’
‘I don’t know, usually there’s some connection between the victims and the killer. The way their faces were covered suggests it was someone who knew them, someone who didn’t want to look at them after they were dead. But if that’s the case, I just don’t know why they staged Olivia’s murder to look like a suicide.’
‘Maybe she came back later than the others and he panicked? Perhaps by hanging her the killer was trying to throw us off-guard, give themselves enough time to get their act together. Sort out an alibi, get rid of any evidence that could be linked to them?’
He nodded. ‘You’re pretty good for a rookie, you know. I think you’ll be okay at this.’
‘Cheers, I appreciate that vote of confidence, Sarge.’
* * *
By the time they arrived back at the station it was hours after Morgan’s shift had finished for the day. As they went inside, Ben looked at his watch: it was almost nine. It was also a good few hours after the end of his shift.
‘There’s not much for you to do now, so it’s up to you. If you want to go home you can, or you can see how the CCTV enquiries are going.’
Morgan wanted to go home; she was tired and every now and again she caught the awful, lingering smell of death, which seemed to have attached itself to her. She wanted a hot bath, but wasn’t sure if they’d think she was wimping out by leaving.
‘I’m okay for now. How long a shift do you normally work under these circumstances?’
‘Twenty-four, thirty-six, sometimes forty-eight hours with the odd kip and shower in between.’
‘Oh, then I’m good.’
He nodded. ‘You crack on with viewing CCTV then. There was an expensive camera around the Potters’ property. The hard drive should have been seized by the search team and booked in by now. If you go and see John in the video-imaging unit he’ll show you how to access them. For starters, I want to know everyone who came in and out of the property in the last forty-eight hours before they died. Then we’ll go back further.’
‘Fine.’
She left him and went in search of the video-imaging unit. She could do this.
John showed her to a small room with a monitor inside and how to work the equipment. Realising she needed something to eat first, she went to the canteen and got herself a coffee from the vending machine along with a couple of bars of chocolate and a flapjack. Stopping off to grab a notebook from the stationery cupboard, she went back to settle in to watch the hours of footage.
There was no recording from the external camera the day Olivia Potter’s body had been found; it was all fuzzy. She made a note to get someone to check the outside camera and see if it had been tampered with. Dan was on shift tomorrow; she would email him and ask him to check for her. There was footage of the day before, though, and Morgan sat through it, her eyes brimming with tears as she watched the beautiful, seemingly happy family go about their business.
The girls had gone out to the car in the morning with backpacks on, Beatrix in her uniform, Bronte in jeans and a hoodie. The camera was very clear, and Morgan found herself leaning forward on her elbows, engrossed. Saul came rushing out of the house and got into the front seat of the car, and Olivia waved her family off from the front door. He forgot something, got back out of the car and walked back towards his wife, who he pulled close and kissed on the lips. There was no sound, but the girls were leaning out of the car windows pulling faces and shouting at their parents. Morgan’s heart felt as if it was about to tear in half. How sad. This was obviously a very happy family who loved each other deeply and now they were all lying dead. Except for Bronte, but she might very well wish she was if she ever woke up. Who knows what kind of brain damage she was going to have after such a violent, vicious assault?
As the car made its way along the drive it stopped at the bottom. A figure came into view, but it was difficult to make out who it could be until they began to walk along the drive. Morgan let out a small gasp as her hand lifted to her mouth.Surely not, why would he be there?It took forever, but the slightly hunched, shuffling figure finally became clear on the monitor in front of her. Morgan felt the blood begin to rush into her head as her heart started pounding and her hands began to shake. It was Stan, her father; there was no mistaking him.
Pushing her chair back, she stood up and rushed to the nearest toilet, dry heaving into the toilet bowl. When she was done, she went to the sink and splashed cold water against her cheeks and ran her wrists under the tapYou’re completely overreacting; so what if he was there. It doesn’t mean he killed them. Does it?
When she felt composed enough to face Ben, she stood up and went straight to his office. It was empty. There was no one in CID either, and she realised they must be talking to Harrison Wright. The best thing to do, she decided, was to go home and speak to Stan, ask him what connection he had with the Potter family. For the first time ever, she hoped he hadn’t done what she’d asked and had stayed in her flat. Once she’d spoken to him, she’d approach Ben and tell him: that was the best thing to do. It made sense; there was no point dragging Stan into it unless she’d found out why he was there.
Morgan wasn’t sure what to do: did she book off with the control room or did she just go home when she was tired and exhausted? Going back into Ben’s office, she scribbled a note on a yellow Post-it.
Gone home. If you need me ring and I’ll come straight back. No CCTV of the day Olivia was found hanging. Camera malfunctioned. Morgan.
