Chapter 37
Thirty-Seven
The house in Wombourne was unremarkable. The front garden bore the remnants of autumn flowers but had now accepted the inevitability of winter.
This address was listed as Nadine Cowley’s home, but Kim had no idea who was going to answer the door. Whoever lived here was experiencing their last few minutes of normal before their life changed forever.
The door was opened by a man in his late sixties wearing navy trousers and a grey zipped-up cardigan. At his heels was a tiny white dog with pink paws and ears that looked like it had been dipped in a tin of pink paint, turned upside down and dunked again.
‘Mr Cowley?’
He nodded. ‘Is something wrong?’ he asked as the dog started yapping and lunging at them.
Bryant showed his ID and introduced them both. The brave ball of fluff gave Kim a good dose of side-eye.
‘Take no notice of Ruby – she’s all bark and no bite. My granddaughter’s dog.’ He looked up and down the street. ‘Has something happened?’
‘May we come in, Mr Cowley?’
‘Of course,’ he said. ‘Ruby, basket.’
The dog gave them one last look before doing what she was told. The man let them in then pointed towards the door through which the dog had disappeared. The lounge was pleasant and comfortable, if a little dated. A photograph of an elderly lady sat on the mantelpiece. An unlit candle sat beside it.
‘Can I get you something to drink?’ he asked.
Kim shook her head. She always felt there was something wrong in accepting someone’s hospitality right before upending their world forever. Instead, she nodded towards the dog that eyed them suspiciously from her plush bed beside the fire.
‘Your granddaughter’s dog, you said?’ she asked.
The man rolled his eyes. ‘Yeah, loves the little monster to bits. Part Shih Tzu and part hormonal teenager, I think,’ he said, smiling fondly at the dog.
Sensing a softening, Ruby started to wag her tail. The man patted the arm of the chair. She left her bed and jumped up onto his lap. She quickly settled but kept her suspicious gaze locked on them, as though she knew no good was going to come of this visit.
‘Is it about that burglary up the road? I wasn’t in so I—’
‘It’s not about that. It’s about your granddaughter.’
He checked his watch. ‘She’ll be back in a minute. Gone to meet friends, but I can’t imagine she’s in any trouble. She’s a good girl. Moved in here to take care of me after a hip operation three years ago and never left. She’s a—’
‘Mr Cowley, there’s been an incident involving Nadine.’
His hand paused on the dog’s back. ‘In-incident?’
‘I’m afraid to say that she has been killed.’
His face lost colour before his brain had digested the words. He reached for the comfort of denial as his head began to shake.
‘No… no… there’s been some kind of mistake. She just went to lunch with some friends. She’s taking Ruby to the groomer’s tomorrow. Give her a call. She’ll answer,’ he said, taking his phone from his pocket.
The dog raised itself to a standing position and fixed them with a hard stare, as though she knew that the man was distressed and that they were the cause of it.
Kim waited while he made the call, knowing full well that the phone was ringing in an evidence bag in Mitch’s van.
His call went to voicemail, and he frowned. ‘She always answers.’
‘She can’t, Mr Cowley. There’s no doubt about the identity of our victim. It’s Nadine.’
‘Victim?’ he asked as the frown deepened. His mind was still searching for a loophole. She had to usher him slowly towards the truth.
‘It was deliberate, I’m afraid. Nadine was murdered.’
The man just stared at her as though he wanted to throw them out of his home so she would take the horrific news with her. Only then would Nadine return as planned to take Ruby to the groomer’s.
‘Is there someone we can call?’ Bryant asked.
‘Her parents are away until the end of the week. Canada. I’m collecting them from the airport. Oh my God, what am I going to tell them? How am I going to tell them?’
Those questions, along with the tears filling his eyes, signalled that he was finally accepting the truth.
Bryant leaned forward. ‘We can call if you—?’
‘No, no, I’ll do it. Better they hear it from me. Can I see her?’
‘Not yet,’ Kim said but chose not to elaborate on the reason. He didn’t need that picture in his head yet.
‘But why? Nadine wouldn’t hurt a soul,’ he said as the tears rolled over his cheeks.
‘That’s what we intend to find out,’ Kim said. She wanted desperately to ask why Nadine had been wearing a recording device to lunch with friends, but she suspected that wasn’t the truth. The landlord had seen no such friends with her. Best to play it by ear at this stage, she decided.
‘No mention of strange phone calls or interactions with strangers that made her feel uncomfortable?’
‘There’s nothing, Inspector. Nadine gets on with everyone, always has. She’s always had lots of friends.’
‘Boyfriends?’
‘Sometimes, but nothing serious for a while now. She was just focussed on enjoying herself and having fun.’
She was sure Stacey would be able to track down her friends on social media, leaving her free to pursue another avenue.
‘Did she tell you who she was meeting today?’
‘She’s twenty-one, Inspector. She doesn’t report in to me.’
Oh, how much easier her job would be if that was the law.
‘She had no issues at work?’
‘Her colleagues love her, and she loves her job.’
‘What does she do?’ Kim asked.
‘She’s a model. She works for an agency in Stourton.’
Kim hid her puzzlement as she felt the first stirring of unease. As far as she knew, there were no modelling agencies in Stourton, which begged the question.
What had Nadine Cowley really been doing for a living?