Page 131 of The Mercy Chair

‘I remember seeing that,’ Eve said. ‘Sky News tried to interview the police officer who’d found the body. He gave them short shrift.’

‘Yes, indeed,’ Poe said, reddening slightly. ‘Anyway, the extra body was one of Cornelius Green and Israel Cobb’s victims. It’s how they disposed of the bodies of the men they had killed. They used pre-dug graves as deposition sites.’

‘Bethany is in one of these graves too?’ Thomas asked, shocked. ‘I assume you’re exhuming them? I think Eve and I would like to give her a proper burial.’

Eve wiped away a tear and nodded. ‘That would be nice,’ she said.

‘I’m afraid that won’t be possible,’ Poe said. ‘Not yet anyway.’

‘Why ever not? I understand there’ll be some police things you have to do first, but surely her body will be released to her family?’

‘For reasons we don’t yet understand, Israel Cobb hid Bethany’s body. He refused to use the grave Cornelius Green had earmarked for her.’

‘And he wouldn’t say where?’

Poe shook his head. ‘Point-blank refused. The most he would say was that it was on the side of a sunny hill, somewhere peaceful with a nice view.’

‘But surely it’s not for him to make that decision?’

‘He made it anyway,’ Poe said softly. He finished his coffee, stood and reached for his wallet. He picked out a tattered business card and placed it on the table, careful to avoid the coffee Eve had spilled. ‘You’ll be assigned a family liaison officer later today, but if you ever feel that you’re being left out of the loop, please, don’t hesitate to give me a call.’

‘Do you think Aaron poses a risk to Eve?’ Thomas asked, getting to his feet as well.

‘I don’t,’ Poe replied. ‘I think Aaron killed Noah and Grace because of what they forced him to do to his little sister, and he came back for Cornelius, almost certainly because that grave in Shap was disturbed. I can see no reason at all why Aaron would hold Eve responsible for anything.’

‘Why did he leave Israel Cobb alive though? Surely, in Aaron’s eyes, he deserves to die as well.’

‘Undoubtedly,’ Poe agreed. ‘But we think Aaron ran into the same problem everyone else has had.’

‘Which was?’

‘He couldn’t find him. Israel wasn’t exactly hiding, but he wasn’t on any publicly available databases. Alice Symonds had looked for over fifteen years without success. That said, Superintendent Nightingale won’t be taking any risks – the FLO she assigns will stay on site until Aaron has been arrested.’

‘Thank you, Sergeant Poe,’ Eve sniffed. ‘That’s reassuring.’

Poe shook their hands. He was about to leave when he remembered Nightingale’s request. ‘Before I go, could you let me have a photograph of Aaron, please?’

Eve’s eyes narrowed. ‘Why?’

‘It’s for my colleague’s age-progression software. Unless he’s had extensive cosmetic surgery, we have the ability to get an incredibly accurate likeness of what Aaron will now look like. We’ll make this age-progressed picture public and, in the words of Superintendent Nightingale, start flushing him out.’

Eve and Thomas exchanged a glance.

‘Is there a problem?’ Poe asked.

Eve hesitated before answering. ‘I don’t know if I want Aaron caught, Sergeant Poe.’

Which wasn’t what Poe had expected at all. ‘Oh,’ he said.

‘He’s my baby brother,’ she explained. ‘And yes, he did something awful, but as Thomas said, he was a child and you made it sound like he had no choice whatsoever. It seems my parents deserved everything they got, and I will not shed a single tear for Cornelius Green.’

‘We still need that photograph, Eve,’ Poe said gently. He cast his eyes over the frames on the kitchen shelf but they were all of Eve and Thomas. Some of her parents. None of Bethany, which was understandable; up until twenty minutes ago Eve believed Bethany had murdered her entire family. She’d kept Bethany’s photographs in the farmhouse basement. But why weren’t there any photographs of her little brother?

Eve saw him frown. She glanced at Thomas and shrugged.

‘Have it your way, Sergeant Poe,’ she sighed. ‘If you follow me into the basement you can root through the filing cabinet and take what you need.’

‘Thank you.’

---