Cold Justice (Willis/Carter #4)(20)

‘Oh . . .’ She shook her head as she thought. ‘Not sure, really.’ She turned to her son. ‘When was it now?’

‘A couple of days ago.’

‘So, can you tell us, Gareth, when Toby was about to leave yesterday, what were you doing? Where were you when he said goodbye?’

‘I was standing behind the counter.’

‘What did Toby say, do you remember?’

‘He just said, “See you soon.” ’

‘And then you saw him leave?’

‘Yes.’

‘Was it the first time you’d ever seen Samuel?’

‘It may have been; I can’t remember.’

‘Did he say anything about the fact he was on his own with Samuel that day?’

‘He said he’d been to his dad’s funeral. He said he needed some fresh air. He wanted to get back to work but he was taking a few days off to sort out his father’s things.’

‘Did you ever meet Toby’s father?’ Gareth shook his head. ‘Did Toby ever talk about him?’ Gareth shrugged and left his shoulders in the air. ‘What did he say?’

‘Just that he didn’t really know him. That he didn’t feel right going through his father’s things when he didn’t know him.’

‘Did you go with him to his father’s flat?’

Gareth nodded. ‘He asked me to.’

‘Did you have to help Toby do anything there, look for anything while you were in the flat? What did you do in there?’

‘I just waited for Toby. I looked through his dad’s music collection. He had a lot of stuff I’d never heard of.’

‘How long were you there with Toby?’

‘About an hour or two.’

‘And did Toby find what he was looking for?’

‘I’m not sure he had anything in mind.’

‘Did he leave with anything?’

‘Just a backpack with a few things in it.’

‘Okay, thanks, Gareth. You’ve been a lot of help. I don’t expect we’ll need to bother you again, but just in case you remember anything you think might help us . . .’ He handed Gareth a card. ‘And please don’t leave the area for now.’

Carter and Willis walked across the street to the car. Willis opened her notebook on the way.

‘Before you look at that,’ Carter said, ‘what do you think of young Gareth? Gay?’ he suggested as he got into the driver’s seat. Willis got in the car, closed the door and buckled up her belt. She didn’t answer as she thought for a minute. He started up the engine and switched on the lights.

‘I’m not sure if he is or just considering his options,’ she said.

‘What do you mean? You think he’s bi?’

‘I mean, I’m not sure if he’s ever been in a physical relationship. He lives with a much older mum, looks like there’s no dad. I think her son lives a sheltered life.’

‘Toby took Gareth to help him deal with something intensely private, like his father’s flat. He took him instead of his wife.’

‘I think Toby has the same mental age as Gareth – a young nineteen,’ said Willis.

‘I could smell weed,’ Carter said.

‘Yeah, me too. But it could be the mum. She would be in a lot of pain with her illness.’

‘Or it could be that’s what’s in his shed. Could be Gareth has a sideline going. I want to take a look at that shed. Let’s get some officers up searching this street. No sign of a weed patch, we would have heard about it from the helicopters.’

‘What’s the plan for going down to Cornwall?’ Carter looked at his watch. ‘It’s already six. We’ll head down early in the morning. Get down there by lunchtime.’

At six that evening, the wind was picking up at the Gordano services on the M5 on the outskirts of Bristol. It had been busy all day with a steady stream of lorries and cars. Viktor, one of the team of cleaners who were responsible for keeping the services in good shape, was finishing up in the men’s toilets. He checked his watch. He still had two hours to go until the end of his shift. Next on his rota were the outside smoking areas, just in front of the entrance. He needed to check and empty the bins. Not many smokers had braved sitting out there with their coffees today. They had gone back to their cars instead.

As the sliding doors at the entrance opened he felt the gust of cold air almost bowl him backwards. It reminded him of his home in the Ukraine, except Viktor had never actually been there for more than a two-week holiday – he had been born in the UK. He stepped outside; litter was flying about. He went up onto the decked area – the chairs had been removed before they blew away. He checked the bin and bagged up the insides, left the bag to collect on his way back. First he needed to check the bin near the cashpoint just below him.

He walked back and down the steps towards the right-hand side of the car park and noticed how the ornamental hedges had become a magnet for every piece of flying litter.

As he neared the bin he saw something dangling from the conifer in a pot. He noticed it because it was shimmering as it turned in the wind. White snow-flakes on mittens on a string.





Chapter 9


By the time they got back to the Riverview apartment, Jeanie was just leaving for the evening. She stopped to talk with them on the stairs.