Their Lost Daughters (DI Jackman & DS Evans #2)(95)
Marie grinned. ‘I knew we’d find it one day! Well, it’s taken a while, but now that whole nasty episode is finally sewn up.’
Jackman smiled grimly. ‘And about time too.’ His eyes widened. ‘But hey! Have you seen the memo regarding Asher Leyton?’
Marie puffed out her cheeks, ‘Now if ever there was an argument for karma, that’s it. A man with a serious addiction to risky sex takes a bullet in the head, against all the odds he survives, only to find that he has totally lost his libido! If he wasn’t partially paralysed and spending a very long time in a secure psychiatric hospital, it would be really funny.’
‘Something the report didn’t mention was the fact that Kenya was encouraged to write to him. Grace Black told me. It was decided that if all ties were severed, she would have to go through a full-blown grieving process, and on top of everything else, it could have been the straw that broke the camel’s back. So she writes.’
‘Well, she’s confirmed what he told us about saving her from his psychopath brother, Toby. Asher seemed to lose touch with reality at that stage. If he’d gone to the police, he’d have been a hero.’
‘And his brother would have been locked up in a tiny space, just like when he was a child. Asher couldn’t let that happen again, and although I’m sure he’ll never tell us, I think he saw an opportunity to try to recreate the perfect childhood with Kenya, something he never had with his real brothers and sisters. Grace says she signs her letters, “Little Sis,” and I think he honestly wanted for them both to be happy, to be a proper little family. I believe that is why he never touched her.’
‘Sounds about right, as long as he got his jollies elsewhere. The evidence that was taken from her room showed lots of children’s games for two, all well-worn and apparently well-loved. He taught her to read, for heaven’s sake! And from the waste left there, it looks as if he even tried to make sure she ate well.’
‘And they did go outside sometimes, Kenya confirmed that. It must have been when Micah was not working on Windrush, and when Asher knew that Toby was busy on his farm.’
‘Sounds almost idyllic, if you ignore the fact that Grace Black and her family were torn to shreds by his actions. Her marriage failed and she lived in purgatory for all those years. He saved Kenya, and condemned her mother to hell on earth.’
‘Which is why he is in secure psychiatric care.’ Jackman frowned, ‘It’s a wonder that Philip never saw them. He said that he went out to Windrush every single day.’
‘He spent his time below ground, and you wouldn’t see the lodge house from the tunnel entrance. Asher would have been very careful indeed with his “little sister.”’
Marie looked back towards the end of the marsh path. ‘We’ve got visitors.’
Four figures were making their way towards them. ‘I thought the team should all be together out here for one last look around.’
Marie looked at him. ‘Why?’
‘Wait for the others and I’ll tell you.’
He watched as a black and white oyster-catcher winged its way low over the lagoons.
Marie waved at Max, Rosie, Charlie and Gary, trudging along the uneven path. Jackman and Marie noticed that Rosie and Max were holding hands.
‘So where’s the picnic?’ asked Max. ‘Boiled eggs and pork pies. Love them.’
‘Sorry, guys, the pork pies are off. Will this do?’ Jackman leaned down and took a bottle of champagne from a bag at his feet. He pulled out six clear plastic glasses and offered the bottle to Marie. ‘You do the honours, Sergeant.’
When everyone had a drink in their hand, he raised his in a toast. ‘To you all. I can’t begin to thank you for all the work you’ve put in over the last twelve months.’
As the salty sea breeze caressed their faces, they touched glasses and drank.
‘Why here, sir?’ asked Rosie. ‘I like fresh air and all that, but this usually happens in the CID room.’
‘Because in a few months’ time this area will be gone. This part of Roman Marsh is to become a marina. The old sanatorium site is to be razed to the ground, and Hobs End Marsh will be flooded to give waterway access to the new moorings and boatyard.’
‘Best thing ever!’ Gary exclaimed. ‘This marsh has been a place of fear and death for far too long. My sister would have been thrilled.’
Suddenly Marie’s eyes narrowed. ‘Then someone has made a killing, so to speak, selling off all that land. Can I guess who it is?’
‘You won’t need a second guess. Benedict Broome is a very wealthy man.’
‘Jammy git,’ muttered Max. ‘Still, you have to hand it to anyone who can come through something like that more or less unscathed.’
Unscathed? Jackman looked across the marsh and followed the flight path of some pink-footed geese. He remembered Philip Groves saying, “We are all damaged. We all have secrets, each one of us.”
As they walked in comfortable silence back to the sea-bank, Jackman wondered about the “capable” Benedict Broome.
Philip had been their physician and their healer, but Benedict had been the one they turned to for answers. Benedict sorted the problems. Benedict found ways to provide for them, protect them, and bring them back to the fold.
So Benedict was the fixer. Which left only one mystery unsolved, as far as Jackman could make out. The murder of Charlotte and Simeon Mulberry. Had Benedict fixed that too?