Chapter 12
Twelve
The door opened as Penn lifted his hand to knock. It was a long shot, but he was hoping the woman living at the house not far from the crime scene might have something to add.
A woman in her mid-fifties clutched her chest with the hand not holding a dustpan and brush.
‘Jesus, man, you nearly gave me a heart attack,’ she said, stepping back.
Penn produced his identification.
‘That don’t help my bloody ticker none, copper or not,’ she said, leaving the house and stepping past him.
She was wearing a light blue tee shirt and navy slacks. There was a logo on her left chest pocket, but he hadn’t read it before she bent down to sweep up the cigarette ends.
‘Suppose you’re here about that ruckus up the street,’ she said with her head down, focussed on the task at hand.
‘I am. Did you happen to see…?’
‘I don’t live here,’ she said, straightening up. ‘I’m just the home help. It’s Irene you want, but she wouldn’t have seen anything, and if she did, she probably wouldn’t tell you.’
Penn frowned as she continued. ‘Cantankerous old goat she is, especially today.’
‘I can bloody hear yer,’ shouted a voice from behind them.
The woman rolled her eyes before nodding to the open doorway.
‘You’d best go in and see for yourself. Give my ears a rest for a minute.’
Penn stepped inside and found a large woman, probably early seventies, sitting in a wheelchair by the window. A packet of cigarettes and a lighter sat on the windowsill.
She eyed him suspiciously as he introduced himself. She didn’t even try to look at his ID. ‘Been a good twenty years since I’d have been able to read anything that small.’
‘You can call Halesowen station to check, if you’d like.’
‘Don’t reckon you’re here to rape and pillage me, but if the housing association sent you, you ain’t sitting down.’
‘Why would they do that?’ he asked, taking a seat.
She tapped the cigarette box. ‘Ain’t supposed to smoke in here.’
‘Not really my area,’ Penn said, hiding his smile. ‘I’m a detective. We work on major incidents like—’
‘It’d be just like her to report me,’ she said, leaning forward but whispering loudly.
‘But isn’t she here to help?’ he asked, leaning forward as well.
‘Pfft, help? She’s a lazy bugger, that one. She’ll park herself in the kitchen with the radio on and make an occasional noise so it sounds like she’s working, but she’s drinking coffee and looking at her phone.’
As if on cue, Penn heard the sound of two plates scraping together as though being stacked in the cupboard.
‘She doesn’t even bloody vacuum unless I’ve made a mess. Never mind the dust. She’s just damn lazy.’
Penn was tempted to mention he’d just seen the woman cleaning cigarette ends from beneath the window but decided against it.
‘Shaaaaron,’ Irene shouted, demonstrating no issue with her lungs.
The helper appeared in the doorway.
‘This nice man would love a cup of tea, and I’ll have one while you’re at it. Three sugars in mine.’
Sharon looked his way, and after a warning glance from Irene, he chose his side in this particular battle.
‘Milk, no sugar, thanks.’
‘And a couple of biscuits,’ Irene called after the woman.
‘So is this about that lot up the road?’ she asked. ‘I’ve been trying to watch, but it’s too far away.’
There was genuine disappointment in her voice. As macabre as it was, Penn could understand the fascination if she didn’t get out much. It looked like this was her window to the world.
‘Do you know anything about it?’ he asked, wondering if any news had yet reached her.
She shook her head. ‘I went to bed at eleven, and when I got up at seven, there were lots of vehicles up there.’
‘I’m afraid to say there was a serious incident last night. A woman lost her life.’
‘Oh no,’ she said as Sharon came in and lowered a tray onto the table. On it were two mugs and a plate with a selection of biscuits.
Penn thanked her as Irene took a biscuit from the pile.
‘Was it some kind of domestic?’ she asked, breaking the rectangular shortbread in half. Crumbs fell onto her lap.
He shook his head. ‘We don’t think so, but it was definitely targeted.’
He watched as Irene brushed the crumbs from her trousers to the floor. She put half the biscuit in her mouth.
‘We’re appealing for witnesses, anyone that might have seen anything at around nine thirty last night.’
‘My boy, I can barely see anything at nine thirty in the day. Someone could have come within five feet of me, and I wouldn’t recognise them again. I can make out shapes pretty well but no detail,’ she said, breaking the half biscuit in half again. Like before, she swept the crumbs onto the floor.
The small golden flecks were scattered on the light brown carpet, and she didn’t even look like she was enjoying the biscuit. Penn realised that she just wanted to get the carpet vacuumed.
‘Now, if it was my hearing you wanted to interrogate, that’s another story. What time did you say again?’ she asked, frowning.
‘Between nine and ten,’ he answered.
She took another biscuit, and Penn felt his sympathies shift towards Sharon.
‘I have my last smoke at half nine, before the news comes on, and I did hear something strange. I heard footsteps running on the other side of the road.’ She closed her eyes and focussed. ‘It wasn’t a jogger cos they were like proper running. And then a car started up.’
‘So, the person running got into a car, started the engine and drove off?’ Penn asked. It was pretty much what they’d assumed had happened, but without a description, the confirmation was useless.
‘The person running got into a car, but they weren’t the driver.’
‘How can you know that?’ Penn asked as Irene opened her eyes.
‘Because the sound of the car starting drowned out the footsteps, but the footsteps didn’t pause before the car started.’
Penn said nothing.
‘Young man, I can smell your scepticism. Although my eyesight isn’t what it was, my other senses have strengthened because of it.’
Penn opened his mouth to reassure her as he didn’t want to appear rude, but she continued speaking.
‘Did you hear that click a few seconds ago?’
He shook his head. He hadn’t heard a thing.
‘It was Sharon putting the kettle back on to make her own drink, lazy bugger, but any second now…’
Her words trailed away as the kettle started boiling.
‘I’m telling you, young man, that the car started up before the runner got to it.’
Penn wasn’t sure he could disbelieve her, which led to a definite new possibility.
There had been more than one person involved.