Page 48 of Her Hidden Shadow

‘Yeah. I had to call the super anyway.’

Gina shook her head and turned away from him. Shortly after, the pathologist called them over and led them to a room where all three took a seat. Gina couldn’t wait any longer to find out what his team had bagged. It might be the one item that proved Jacob’s innocence. ‘I couldn’t see what was found in the victim’s jeans.’

‘It was a gold wedding ring,’ the pathologist replied.

Robbie and Lauren hadn’t married so it wasn’t likely that it was Robbie’s ring. The killer was either missing a wedding ring, or the ring had some relevance to the case.

The pathologist continued. ‘It is inscribed with the words, forever mine. There are visible partial fingerprints on the inside and outside of the ring along with bloody smears, so that, amongst other things, will be sent straight to the lab.’

‘That’s great. We’ll need that fast-tracked.’ Gina felt her excitement building. Just one of those fingerprints could belong to the killer and that might be all that was needed to prove Jacob innocent and bring the perp in. Her phone rang. ‘I just need to take this, it’s my DCI.’ She stepped out of the room leaving DI Collier with the pathologist. ‘Sir.’

‘Gerard Hale is back. And we’ve got him.’

As soon as the call ended, she punched the air. The truth was surfacing and she needed to get back to see Sullivan’s face as it unfolded.

Thirty-Six

Nancy

Nancy let out a snore and Fifi’s wet tongue on her cheek told her she’d accidentally fallen asleep. Where had that last three hours gone? She rubbed her side and legs. That fall had knocked her sick. Grabbing her phone, she checked to see if she’d had any more horrible texts, but her inbox was empty. Lauren’s words had been whirring through her head earlier and still they were as loud as ever. Calling the police wasn’t an option but there was something she could do. She reached under her mattress, pulled out her old iPad and wiped the smeary cracked screen with her dressing gown sleeve. She had to reactivate her Facebook account and warn him off. Snatching the charger from her bottom drawer, she plugged it in, then she hid the gadget under her pillow. Maybe it had been wrong telling Lauren she had nothing to connect to the internet on, but she took the decision to keep Lauren away from social media and away from all the online chatter that would have upset her even more. She’d hate for Lauren to see that she did still have her iPad.

The house seemed silent, and her heart began to pound. If Lauren had left, she might be in danger. It was a good twenty-minute walk down a creepy lane to reach the nearest bus stop and then she’d have to wait alone for who knows how long. What if her attacker had returned and had watched Lauren leave? Nancy nudged Fifi away and stepped into her slippers. ‘Where’s your sister, Fifi?’ The dog whined and tilted its head. ‘Lauren,’ she croaked, but there was no answer.

As she walked across the bedroom, everything swayed just a little bit. She shook her head with her eyes closed and gave it a moment before continuing. The dog pawed at the slight crack in the bedroom door, opening it further and Nancy stepped out. ‘Lauren.’ The dog thundered down the stairs. Nancy stepped across the landing and pushed Lauren’s bedroom door open. The bed was unmade, and her clothes were strewn across the floor, but that was nothing unusual. She crept across the landing and nudged the bathroom door open. It was just as she left it, except the shower was dripping. Lauren must have used it a short while ago.

One step at a time led her into her dark hallway. She checked her watch. It was almost four and dusk was already upon Malvern. She rushed to the front door and peered through the spyhole. Her car was still on the drive. Not that she thought her daughter would take it as she’d never passed her test, but why was the house in silence? ‘Lauren.’

She heard Lauren say shush from the kitchen. Heart now banging, she crept a few more steps past the lounge door. As she pushed the kitchen door, it bounced back at her. ‘Lauren, what’s going on?’ she asked, in a loud whisper.

‘Don’t turn the lights on and don’t say anything. Get on the floor,’ her daughter said in a hushed voice.

Nancy gently lowered herself to the floor until she was on all fours. Fifi wagged her tail and darted through. Only then did Lauren gently push the door open to let her in. That’s when Nancy saw Lauren on the floor too. Her eyes wide and her body shaking as she sat in almost darkness. ‘My phone is dead so I couldn’t try to call you, and I saw someone in the garden. He might still be there. I’ve been too scared to leave the kitchen floor in case he sees me. We need to call the police because he must have seen you. We’re not safe.’ Visibly shaking, Lauren ran her hands through her tangled hair. Fifi began nudging Lauren’s arm from under the kitchen table.

‘I’m going to lean up and look out the window, okay?’

Lauren shook her head. ‘No, just crawl to the living room and call the police. He’s standing by the gate. I saw his coat flapping in the breeze.’

Nancy held her hand out. ‘It’s okay. The door is locked. No one can get in. You’re safe.’

Lauren shook her head and tears began to slip down her face. ‘He’s been in the house. I left my phone on the worktop and when I came back into the room, it was on the table.’

‘Was the door locked?’

A confused look spread across Lauren’s face. ‘Yes, but he had to have come in because my phone had moved.’

‘Are you sure you didn’t move it?’

‘Yes. I’m not going mad.’

‘Sorry, sweetheart. I know you’re not, but I am going to look out that window.’ She shuffled closer to it and leaned up on her knees.

Lauren tugged the bottom of her dressing gown. ‘Don’t, please.’

Too late. Nancy pressed her nose on the cold glass and peered across the dusky garden, right into the corner where Lauren said the man had been standing. She stood.

‘Mum, get down. What are you doing?’

She held out a hand to help her daughter up. ‘Stand up, Lauren. It’s okay.’ She glanced at her garden patio set where the plastic covering had come off. It had blown from the table and ended up caught in the corner by the gate where it remained flapping in the breeze.

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