The Next Girl(Detective Gina Harte #1)(53)

‘Thank you, Mrs Hastings. Can we just ask about your current staff? Has anyone left since?’

The woman glanced aside and looked back as she recalled the information. ‘Oliver Stain in production sadly passed away six months after Debbie’s disappearance. Leukaemia.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that,’ Gina said.

‘It was a sad time for all of us here. What with Debbie too. In production, we still have Callum Nelson and Lukas Bosko. As you can appreciate, many have come and gone, but I think the rest were eliminated from your enquiries at the time.’

Gina glanced at her notes. The rest of the production team had alibis for the evening in question. One had stopped at a petrol station, a group of four had gone to the pub together straight after work and the others had arrived home on time, long before Deborah had left. The time of her leaving had been confirmed by the setting of the company security alarm and the CCTV that showed her walking away, across the car park and down the path. Lukas had been picked up by his girlfriend and she’d provided his alibi. He’d been home by five thirty and had been Skyping his mother in Poland at the time Deborah left work. She’d placed a question mark next to Callum’s name. ‘Can we speak to Callum Nelson first?’

‘Of course.’ Lynne lifted the receiver on the phone and pressed a single number. She requested that they send Callum up. ‘He’s on his way.’

‘Could we ask you to leave while we speak to Mr Nelson?’ Jacob asked.

‘Is he in trouble?’ Lynne asked as she stood.

‘We just need to speak to him,’ Jacob said, giving her a reassuring smile. The woman seemed more at ease and returned his smile as she left the room.

Jacob grabbed another tissue out of his pocket and proceeded to hack up phlegm. He pulled out a lozenge from his pocket and popped it into his mouth. ‘Nice one Gov. I wish you’d be more like O’Connor and share some cake instead of your diseased bacteria.’ Gina smirked as Gabby entered with a coffee. She worked in accounts administration; Gina had interviewed her the first time around.

‘I’ll just pop it here,’ Gabby said as she placed the chipped and stained mug in front of Gina and hurried out of the room.

‘I think I’m about to be infused with more dodgy bacteria from this cup,’ she said as she reluctantly took a sip. ‘Good coffee though.’

The door knocked again. Callum entered and sat opposite the two detectives. ‘I never did anything, you can’t still be trying to pin this on me,’ he said as he stared at Jacob.

‘We were never trying to pin anything on you, Mr Nelson, just trying to get to the truth of what happened to your colleague and friend Deborah Jenkins,’ Jacob replied as he sucked on the sweet. The scent of cherry menthol filled the air.

‘Sorry. Most people who know me know I’d never harm anyone. I mean, I can’t even run a spider down the plughole.’ He rubbed his stubbly chin and looked away.

Gina leaned forward. ‘Mr Nelson, can you please go over what happened on the day of Deborah’s disappearance? I know we have your statement, and it was a long time ago, but I want you to think back. Did anything stand out to you? Please tell us again about when you left.’

The man leaned back in the chair and ran his fingers through his greasy hair. ‘I’ve already told you everything. Do you think I can remember like it was yesterday? It was years ago. You have my statement.’

‘Please try, Mr Nelson,’ Gina said.

The man looked up at her and dropped his shoulders. ‘It was a really miserable night, that much I remember. I got soaked. Debbie was working away in the main office when I left. I poked my head through the door and said bye. I left and that was it.’

‘You say you left on foot,’ Jacob said.

‘I always walk home. I don’t live too far away. Takes fifteen minutes. In the summer I cycle. You haven’t pulled me in here to check out my damn travel habits, have you?’

‘Calm down, Mr Nelson,’ Gina said. ‘We are doing this for your colleague, Deborah. Anything you can tell us may help.’

‘Have you found something? Please tell me you’re going to find her?’

Gina looked at the man. His finger-tapping, the show of anger and the look of despair in his every feature all led her to believe that Callum had a thing for Deborah. It was an angle she was going to press.

‘Did you and Mrs Jenkins have a personal relationship?’

‘No. I already told you that at the time.’

‘I know what you told me at the time. Look at me.’

Callum lifted his head and looked over, his gaze darting from hers to Jacob’s.

‘Did you and Deborah Jenkins have a personal relationship of any kind?’

‘No, I mean, it’s nothing.’

‘Let me decide that.’ Jacob sat poised to write as the man began to speak.

‘Bloody hell. You lot just won’t leave me alone. I haven’t done anything wrong. Look, I know she was a lot older than me but I had a thing for her. It was just a crush, that was all. She knew, but it was light-hearted. I didn’t say anything because I knew you’d think it was me. She was married and I didn’t try to make a play for her. I just liked her, that’s all. Look, I’m married now,’ he said as he pointed to his wedding ring. ‘I love my wife and I don’t want this brought up. Besides, not a thing happened, nothing, zilch. I left her that night. I walked down the path outside the building, in the dark. You saw me leave on the CCTV footage. That was the last I ever saw or heard of Deborah.’