‘I didn’t know they were still there,’ she said, her eyes darting round the room. ‘Like I said, I’ve not been for ages.’
‘Do you know whereabouts in Nigeria they came from?’ Rachel said.
‘Just Nigeria,’ she said.
‘Any relatives over there?’
‘No idea.’
‘Did Victor talk about Nigeria, why he’d come?’
‘No. Just said it was a nightmare, horror show and that was that. This was his life now. He was getting by. He wanted to go back to school, get an apprenticeship, but he was illegal.’
Rachel thought of the post-mortem report, the historic injuries. She knew fuck all about Nigeria but imagined war, rival factions, chaos. Sound reasons to get out, run and hide.
‘Were either of them religious?’ Rachel said. ‘For the funerals?’
Shirelle swallowed. ‘Christian,’ she said, blinking quickly, ‘both of them.’
‘Shirelle Young, that’s your full name?’
‘Yes.’
‘And your date of birth?’ Rachel said.
‘Why?’
‘I need all your details. There’s a chance you may need to give a witness statement, be prepared to come to court.’
‘No way,’ she said abruptly, ‘I’m not a witness. I don’t know anything about it.’
‘You’ve been very helpful, you’ve given us their identity, you knew them and even if you’ve not been in touch recently I’m sure you want us to catch who did this,’ Rachel said. ‘Date of birth?’
Shirelle still hesitated. Finally, ‘May third, 1992.’ Making her twenty.
As she stepped out into the fresh air, Rachel considered what she’d learned. There were plenty of questions in her head. Not least how someone on Jobseeker’s Allowance paid for designer furniture, a new kitchen and a state-of-the-art TV.
Rachel, in the car outside Hawkins House, called in the ID information on their latest victims. She also requested someone check out the pizza delivery and establish whether the courier from Gino’s could confirm seeing Shirelle Young on Friday and what time that had been.
Rachel didn’t have to wait long before Shirelle came out of the tower, wearing fancy neon trainers and with a small rucksack on her back. A minicab drew into the side of the road and the girl climbed in. Rachel followed as the cab drove out on to Shuttling Way and headed left away from Oldham town centre. They crossed the ring road and drove into Werneth. Rachel slowed down and allowed a people carrier to overtake her, putting it between her and the taxi so as not to arouse suspicion.
When the taxi stopped outside a house on Crescent Drive, Rachel drove past, noting the number, and parked further down the road outside a barber’s.
The taxi didn’t leave and five minutes later Shirelle came out of the house and got back into the car, which took her home. Shirelle went into Hawkins House again and twenty minutes later she came out and went on foot to the other tower block.