Chapter 52
Sarah stared at the ceiling for a moment, then lifted the phone to her ear.
‘Are you still there?’ Robyn asked.
‘Yes. Yes, I’m still here,’ Sarah said, her voice a whisper. ‘OK, so he’s done a runner, but this is good, right? Once they get him into custody, they’ll be able to take his DNA and match it – not only to the samples from Eve’s hands, but also to the samples from Christy’s clothing.’
A pause. ‘That’s the hope.’
‘So how close are they to finding him?’
‘I don’t know.’ Robyn sighed. ‘They’ve run a check on the Lexus. It’s a hire car, paid for in cash. The likelihood is that he will have got a different one by now and—’
Sarah’s heart sank again. ‘You think he’s left the country?’
‘I just don’t know. It all depends on—’
‘On who is protecting him?’
‘Or protecting themselves. Let’s face it, he’s an embarrassment. And mistakes were made in Christy’s case. Regardless of whether the evidence was deliberately lost or not, there has to be a strong interest in shutting him up.’
Sarah thought about this. ‘And if he helped to convict the wrong man, they won’t want the truth to emerge. They will be doing whatever they can to cover it up.’ She paused, thinking. ‘Maybe he’ll just end his own life. A bent copper in prison – that’s not going to be an easy prospect to face.’
Robyn didn’t argue.
‘And meanwhile,’ Sarah continued, sighing, ‘we have samples but no DNA profile to match them with, and Joe is still in prison.’
‘You might have enough for your application to the CCRC.’
‘I’m not sure. I think the CCRC are going to want more than Bella’s new evidence, and the attack on her doesn’t automatically take us to the attack on Christy. Everything points to Mitchell, but it’s all circumstantial. We need that forensic connection.’
‘So, what do you suggest?’
Sarah closed her eyes. ‘There’s a way,’ she murmured. ‘A way to find out.’
‘Find out what?’
‘If any of the samples in the lab came from Todd Mitchell.’
Sarah heard a pause. ‘How?’
‘Phillipa has a son. She said he’s Todd’s.’
Silence. ‘You’re kidding.’
‘So, if that’s true, they’re going to share half their DNA.’