Chapter 20
DC Copeland’s smile dissipated when she saw that DC Ramouter was not alone. She adjusted her hoodie.
Henley could see a hint of annoyance in Copeland’s eyes as she extended her hand. ‘DI Henley.’
Copeland shook her hand firmly. ‘It’s good to meet you, guv, sorry I mean ma’am.’
‘I’m surprised to see you here,’ said Henley.
‘Oh.’ Copeland was clearly caught off guard by the abruptness of Henley’s statement.
‘I was already out, and I just thought it might be a good idea for Tabitha Ashcroft to put a face to the name so to speak. Also, I realised I hadn’t told her DC Ramouter was now the senior investigating officer on her husband’s case. ’
Henley kept her face passive as Ramouter, who had been standing silently next to her, stifled an embarrassed cough.
‘That would have been incorrect,’ said Henley as she walked towards the bank of lifts and pressed the button. ‘I’m the SIO on the case.’
They stepped into the lift together. The silence grew uncomfortable as they ascended.
‘Do you know where she is now? Tabitha Ashcroft, I mean?’ asked Henley. ‘She told you it would take her forty minutes to get here.’
‘I have a feeling that was a lie,’ answered Copeland.
Henley knocked twice on the door and then pushed it open.
Graham Ashcroft was sitting up in bed, but his wife wasn’t by his side.
A woman was on the other side of the room, standing with her back against the large window.
The oversized black hoodie she was wearing drowned her and she was wearing a black beanie.
If Henley didn’t know better, she would have sworn that the woman was attempting to conceal her identity.
She looked up at Henley with fearful eyes and pulled the collar of her hoodie towards her chin, but it was too late.
Henley had already seen the fading rainbow of bruises along her jaw.
Henley scanned the couple. The space between them felt charged with an emotion that Henley couldn’t yet name.
‘Sorry to barge in like this,’ Henley said softening her tone ‘I’m Detective Inspector Henley and Graham you already know DC Ramouter and DC Copeland.’
‘Yes, yes I do,’ Graham replied, his voice barely a whisper.
‘And you must be his wife, Tabitha?’
Tabitha nodded, keeping her eyes not on her husband but on the door as though she was mentally navigating the gauntlet of three police officers in order to get out of the room.
‘How are you feeling?’ Henley asked.
‘Not the best. They took away my morphine pump,’ Graham smiled unconvincingly, ‘and as you can imagine, it’s a bit of an adjustment to be the patient and not the doctor.’
‘I understand that. And how are you Mrs Ashcroft?’
Tabitha looked past Henley as she spoke. ‘Tired, stressed. It’s so hard to see Graham like this.’
‘It can’t be easy for you at all,’ said Henley. ‘Even though Graham is the one in hospital, it probably feels as though it’s happened to both of you.’
Henley caught the look that passed between the couple, and finally she was able to attach a word to the emotion that was squeezing the air out of the room. It was an emotion she recognised. Guilt.
‘Graham, I’m going to leave you with DCs Ramouter and Copeland,’ said Henley as she stepped away from the bed. ‘We had a quick word with your doctor before we came in and he was confident that you should be able to give a more detailed statement about what happened to you.’
‘I don’t think that I’ll be able to,’ Graham said. ‘I’m a bit tired.’
‘We’ll take it easy,’ said Ramouter. ‘No pressure. We’ll go at your pace.’
‘Mrs Ashcroft. Tabitha,’ Henley said as she moved around the bed and faced her. ‘You’re coming with me.’
‘No. I should stay with my husband,’ Tabitha said quickly.
‘Your husband is in really good hands. Let’s go,’ Henley said in a tone that suggested there was no room for negotiation or argument.
Tabitha’s shoulders sank with resignation as she picked up her bag, placed the strap on her shoulder and audibly sucked the air through her gritted teeth. Henley watched intently as Tabitha dropped her bag into the crook of her arm.
‘Are you ok?’ Henley asked.
‘I’m fine. I’m fine,’ Tabitha replied but when she walked out of the room she did so with a visible limp.
‘It must be difficult, seeing your husband like that,’ Henley said, stopping for the second time in the corridor for Tabitha to catch up with her. ‘Are you sure you’re ok?’
‘I’m fine. I twisted my ankle when I was coming out of the shower this morning,’ Tabitha said quietly.
‘I broke my ankle last year and it still plays up,’ Henley replied, unconvinced by Tabitha’s explanation. She opened the door to the empty family room. ‘This should be fine. Unless you’d prefer to go downstairs to the café and get a cup of coffee?’
‘Here is fine,’ said Tabitha. She lowered herself onto a chair and sat ramrod on the edge of the seat.
Henley sat down on the chair opposite Tabitha. ‘Why did it take you so long to come and see your husband?’
‘I was in Bath,’ Tabitha said quickly, twisting her bag straps.
‘It doesn’t take a week to travel from Bath to London.’
‘I … I didn’t want to disturb Graham. He’d been through a lot. Surgery and he needed to rest.’
‘Your husband has been asking for you.’
‘I’m here now but what I don’t understand is why I’m talking to you and not DC Copeland.’
‘Because this is my investigation and I’m trying to find the person who nearly killed your husband.’
‘Kill him?’ Tabitha exclaimed. She squinted her eyes as though she’d experienced a jolt of pain. ‘Why would anyone want to kill him. He’s a good man. It was a burglary.’
‘Tabitha,’ Henley said firmly. ‘There are no signs that whoever entered your house was attempting to steal anything. Everything, all your jewellery, bags, laptops were untouched, but your husband was violently assaulted. Someone entered your home and stabbed him. His blood was found in the hallway and outside on the doorstep.’
Henley paused as Tabitha sniffed noisily and ran her hands across her face to wipe away the tears.
‘And then he was attacked again,’ Henley continued.
Tabitha heaved as though she’d been thrown into the sea and was gasping for breath. Henley steeled herself as she pushed away the feeling of wanting to comfort a woman who was reliving a painful experience.
‘They ran your husband over Tabitha and then picked him up and dumped him like rubbish back on your doorstep.’
‘I don’t … I don’t know why anyone would do this to Graham. He’s a good person,’ Tabitha repeated. She opened her bag and rummaged inside, eventually retrieving a box of ibuprofen. She pushed out two caplets and swallowed them whole.
‘You keep saying that Graham is a good person, but that doesn’t explain why someone tried to kill him.’
Tabitha inhaled sharply and squeezed her eyes shut. ‘I don’t know,’ she said.
‘You’re not ok,’ said Henley. ‘You’re in pain.’
Tabitha rocked back and forth. ‘I’m fine,’ she said.
‘Where were you when your husband was attacked Tabitha?’ asked Henley as she leaned in closer.
‘I was in Bath.’
‘I don’t believe you. Where were you?’
‘I told you already.’
‘Someone tried to kill your husband, and you disappeared for six days. You must understand that there are going to be questions.’
Tabitha nodded and then shook her head as though the need for denial was stronger than telling the truth.
‘Your house was examined by the crime scene investigators,’ Henley said. ‘They found blood. Graham’s blood, blood belonging to an unknown person and your blood.’
Tabitha’s face whitened as Henley held her gaze, daring her to blink first.
‘Why would your blood be on your kitchen floor when, at the time of the attack, you were apparently in Bath?’
Tabitha pursed her lips and stubbornly shook her head.
‘What happened?’
‘I can’t … I can’t.’
‘You were in the house when your husband was attacked, weren’t you?’
‘No,’ Tabitha whispered.
‘You know who attacked your husband.’
‘No. No, I don’t. I don’t know what he—’
‘He?’ Henley said as Tabitha placed her hand over her mouth and shook her head again.
‘Did you see who attacked Graham?’
‘No. I wasn’t there. I don’t know who hurt him.’
‘Was Graham protecting you?’
‘I can’t … you’ve made a mistake.’
Henley watched Tabitha become more agitated as her face grew even paler which made the bruises on her jaw appear even brighter.
‘What happened to you? I can help you if you—’
A loud bang interrupted Henley as the door to the family room swung open and hit the wall. Tabitha jumped back and cried out as the back of her head hit the wall. She doubled over in pain, her hands cradling the side of her head.
‘I am so sorry,’ said the man who stood in the doorway, equally stunned and embarrassed. ‘I didn’t realise …’
Tabitha’s face was twisted in pain. This was more than a bump to the head.
‘Tabitha, talk to me. What’s wrong?’ Henley asked, ignoring the man. She kneeled in front of Tabitha and gently took hold of her arm.
‘Is she all right?’ the man asked cautiously.
‘No, she’s not. Get someone in here. A nurse,’ Henley commanded.
Henley felt dread fill her stomach as she looked at the black beanie on Tabitha’s head. ‘Is it your head?’ she asked. ‘Is that where you’re hurt?’
Tabitha’s reply was barely audible.
‘Is it your head?’ Henley asked again.
‘Yes,’ Tabitha replied painfully.
‘Let me take a look.’
Henley carefully placed her hands on the hem of the beanie. ‘I promise, I’ll be careful,’ she said. ‘I won’t hurt you.’
Tabitha’s body grew rigid as Henley pushed the beanie and slid it slowly back.
Her breath caught in her throat. Bloodied pus coated the strands of Tabitha’s hair that was sticking to the wool of the hat.
Henley gently pulled the hairs away and a clump of cotton wool, stained yellowish green and red, fell from Tabitha’s head and onto the floor.
‘Turn your head, Tabitha,’ Henley instructed gently as the putrid smell of an infected wound filled her nose. Henley bit her lip to stop herself from gagging as a nurse entered the room.
‘Is everything ok?’ the nurse asked.
‘No,’ Henley answered, staring at the large seeping wound on the back of Tabitha’s head.
A scalping that a killer hadn’t been able to complete.