The Breakdown(71)
‘Can I call you back?’ he asks. ‘I’m in a meeting.’
‘I think someone’s been in the house,’ I say cautiously.
‘Hold on a minute.’
I hear him excusing himself and the scrape of his
chair as he stands up and a few seconds later he’s back on the line.
‘What’s the matter?’
‘Someone’s been in the house,’ I say, trying to hide my agitation. ‘I went for a walk and when I came back I could tell someone had been in the kitchen.’
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‘How?’
‘I don’t know,’ I say, frustrated at sounding crazy again.
‘Is something missing? Have we been burgled? Is that what you’re trying to tell me?’
‘I don’t know if we’ve been burgled, all I know is that someone has been in the house. Can you come home, Matthew? I don’t know what to do?’
‘Did you put the alarm on when you left?’
‘Yes.’
‘So how would they have got in without triggering
it?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘Are there signs of a break-in?’
‘I don’t know. I didn’t stay long enough to find out.
Look, we’re wasting time. What if he’s still there? Don’t you think we should call the police?’ I hesitate a moment.
‘Jane’s murderer is still on the loose.’
He doesn’t say anything and I know it was stupid of me to have mentioned it.
‘Are you quite sure that someone has been in the
house?’ he asks.
‘Of course I am, I wouldn’t make it up. And he might still be in there.’
‘Then we’d better call the police.’ I sense his reluctance. ‘They’ll get there quicker than me.’
‘But you will come?’
‘Yes, I’ll leave now.’
‘Thank you.’
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271
He phones back a minute later to tell me that the
police will be with me shortly. Although they come
quickly, they also come quietly, so I know Matthew
didn’t mention the word murderer to them. The police car pulls to a halt in front of the gate and I recognise the policewoman who came the time I set off the alarm.
‘Mrs Anderson?’ she says, walking down the drive
towards me. ‘I’m PC Lawson. Your husband asked me
to come by. I believe you think there might be someone in your house?’
‘Yes,’ I say quickly. ‘I went for a walk and when I came back I could tell that someone had been in the kitchen.’
‘Did you see any signs of a break-in – glass on the floor, that sort of thing?’
‘I only went as far as the kitchen so I don’t know.’
‘And you think they’re still there?’
‘I don’t know. I didn’t stay around to find out. I came straight out here and phoned my husband.’
‘Can I get in through the front door? Do you have
a key?’
‘Yes,’ I say, giving it to her.
‘Stay here, please, Mrs Anderson. I’ll let you know when it’s safe to come in.’
She lets herself into the house and I hear her calling out, asking if anyone is there, and then for the next five minutes or so, everything goes quiet. Eventually, she comes back out.
‘I’ve made a thorough search of the house and I can’t find anything to suggest there was an intruder,’ she says.
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‘There’s no sign of a forced entry, all the windows are secure and everything seems to be in order.’
‘Are you sure?’ I ask anxiously.
‘Perhaps you’d like to come in and have a look
around,’ she offers. ‘Check that nothing’s missing, that kind of thing.’
I follow her back into the house and go through every single room but although I can’t see anything out of place I know that someone was there.
‘I can just sense it,’ I say helplessly when she asks me to explain how I know.
We go back down to the kitchen.
‘Maybe we can have a cup of tea,’ PC Lawson suggests, sitting down at the table.
I go to put the kettle on and find myself stopping in my tracks.
‘My mug,’ I say, turning to her. ‘I left my mug on
the side when I went out and now it’s gone. That’s how I know someone’s been in here. My mug isn’t where I left it.’
‘Maybe it’s in the dishwasher,’ she says.
I open the dishwasher and see my mug sitting on the rack.
‘I knew I wasn’t going mad!’ I say triumphantly. She looks at me doubtfully. ‘I didn’t put it in here,’ I explain.
‘I left it on the side.’
The door opens and Matthew comes in.
‘Everything all right?’ he asks, looking at me nervously.
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273
I leave PC Lawson to speak to him, while my mind