Page 31 of Their Burning Graves
‘My, you are astute; you don’t miss a trick. No, I haven’t been given any official timescale, which is why I’m reluctant to strip these monstrous walls bare.’
Morgan smiled. ‘Maybe you’ll come to love it in time or if not, you could open it up as a sixties museum.’
Theo boiled the kettle, pouring the hot water onto the teabag in his large mug, then he finished frothing the milk and pouring her drink. He passed it to her.
‘Chocolate on top?’
She nodded, watching him as he picked up a small canister and sprinkled drinking chocolate on top of her coffee.
‘Thank you.’
He beamed at her. ‘You’re more than welcome as long as you haven’t come here to accuse me of murdering someone. We really need to get over this thing we have going on. I’m no killer, so if you could take my name off the top of the list you have it written down on, I’d very much appreciate that.’
‘I haven’t come to accuse you of anything, I also don’t have your name on any list, at least, not at the moment, but should I? You tell me.’
He nodded. ‘Glad to hear it and no you should not have my name on any list, except the one that is there as a reference for anyone seeking solace or comfort. So how can I help you then?’
‘Have you heard of the saying “the hand of God”?’
‘Yes, I’m a vicar, it’s my thing, why?’
Morgan let out a small laugh. ‘Sorry, of course it’s your thing. What does it mean then? My mum used to say it all the time, that someone had been dealt the hand of God.’
‘It’s an interesting phrase, one which is quite old and outdated now. There are several ways I’ve heard it used. For instance, my nan used to say that too, but she meant it as if the person she was talking about had been judged and their fate was in God’s hands, or that’s what I took it she meant.’
Morgan sipped the coffee whilst she processed this.
‘I think that’s what my mum meant by it too. What else could it mean?’
‘In technical terms from my standpoint? The hand of God is mentioned multiple times in the Bible and there are references to God’s right hand in Mormonism and Judaism.’
‘The victim had a silver crucifix necklace, does that help?’
‘Yes, in that case the one that sticks out for me is, and this isn’t a direct quote but similar, “The hand of the Lord is mighty, it’s also dangerous and deadly against his enemies.” The first time we come across it in the Bible it speaks of the “hand of the Lord” and it’s in connection with the judgement God was going to pour out onto the Egyptians.’
Morgan thought about this, was the killer judging the Lawsons? Had he taken the hands as punishment? If he thought they had been dealt the hand of God then it seemed to mean he had decided they had done something that deserved retribution. What though, what could a beauty salon owner do that was so bad it meant her entire family was killed because of it? Morgan needed to look closely into Sally’s life, her background, had she done something that had caused whoever had killed her to punish her entire family in revenge?
‘Is that any use to you? I could give you actual Bible readings if you like but I don’t think you’d enjoy that much.’
‘Yes, thank you, it’s very useful.’
‘Good, this is nice, Morgan, I like you and spending time in your company is quite enjoyable when you’re not wanting to handcuff me and march me into the station. Although I’m quite partial to a bit of handcuffing now and again.’
He laughed, and she felt her skin crawl. She did not want any more insight into Theo’s preferences – she had enough on her mind without picturing him handcuffed to something. Although, the first time they met Theo had referenced a notorious serial killer, so she hoped that was all he was talking about.
‘Sorry, that was a bit out of order, wasn’t it?’
‘I, erm, I wasn’t really listening to the last part.’
‘You look as if I’ve just scared you to death. Don’t worry, you’re quite safe with me, I’m not after handcuffing you to my bedpost or the other way around. Even though I think you’re a lovely girl who has excellent taste in footwear, it wouldn’t matter how lovely you were. I’m not into girls, women, ladies. Are you getting my drift, Morgan?’
She wasn’t, not one little bit; instead, she was wondering how she could get out of here and quick.
Theo let out a sigh. ‘I think you need to know who I am so you can relax around me, it might make you feel a little more comfortable if you knew.’
‘Knew what?’
‘I’m gay, Morgan, and have been since I was old enough to realise that girls, teenage girls at the time, did nothing for me in the slightest.’
