Martina had a sister, but were they close? Caroline had no idea. For the first time in years, she found herself missing her family. She’d had good reason to run away from home – though no one ever acknowledged that – but she regretted it bitterly now. Her mum was ineffectual but not nasty and her dad – well he wasn’t cut out to be a dad or a husband really – but he wouldn’t have wished her harm. Why hadn’t she got back in touch? Their sixtieth birthdays had come and gone, Christmases, Easters, there were plenty of opportunities to bridge the gap and effect a reconciliation, but she’d never made the effort. Would they have asked her to explain her midnight flit? Would they have been disgusted by the way she lived her life now?
Anger surged in her heart and Caroline knew exactly why she’d never got back in touch. Because she did blame them. For not noticing. For not protecting her. She was still furious at their neglect and that was why she was alone in the world. That was why there was no one looking for her now. Did she or Martina have anything – or anyone – to live for? How close was Martina to her sister? She felt like asking her but what was the point. It wasn’t a competition.
Was it?
Predictably Detective Superintendent Whittaker had not taken the news well.
‘What the fuck are you telling me? That a cop gave her this?’
The macabre nature of the killings had required an absolute information lockdown. The Evening News and a couple of the national newspapers had picked up on the spike in local deaths and were scratching around for more, but none had yet divined the unseen puppeteer orchestrating these terrible crimes. Forensics and other ancillary staff were unaware of the deadly ultimatum delivered to the victims. Access to that information – the phones, the interview footage and transcripts – had been kept very tight. Obviously Whittaker and Helen knew, as did Mark and Charlie and a couple of other core team officers, but that was pretty much it. So unless a data officer had been tipped off as to their content, or had stumbled on it accidentally, then they would have to look close to home to find the source of the leak. Whittaker didn’t beat about the bush. Every member of the team would have to be investigated for evidence of possible corruption or collusion. It must be done dispassionately and it must be done quickly.
Helen made quick progress. These days there were no interview tapes or mini-discs – all that obsolete stuff was long gone. The interview footage was now recorded straight on to a secure digital network. Once the interview was completed, the digital file was then encrypted and uploaded to their secure server. Stored recordings and transcriptions could only be accessed by approved users. There was only one source – the server – and anyone accessing it would leave a trace.