The call came in just after dawn. A man’s body at the bottom of scaffolding, a deceased male, approximately forty years old. The police arrived, and the street began to whisper. Theo.
Of course it was Theo. Todd stood at the edge of the cordon, his face pale. He’d known Theo better than anyone, and worse than anyone. When the detective, Kit, approached him, Todd didn’t wait for the question.
“You always knew he was dead, didn’t you? ”
Kit didn’t answer. He just looked at Todd with that professional calm that made Todd want to scream. “I’m here in a professional capacity,” Kit said.
“But I want to say sorry. I shouldn’t have let him get away. ”
Todd’s throat tightened. “So what happens now?
” He laughed bitterly. “Sorry, stupid question for a funeral director. I know what happens now. ”
Kit nodded.
“Come in, sweetheart. Have a bath. We’ll sort everything. ”
Todd shook his head.
“I can’t pick up the body. ”
“No. We’ll sort everything. They’re a good bunch.
And aside from that, we grieve. Whatever we all thought of Theo. And I hated him as much as anyone. But you still need to grieve.
”
Todd didn’t answer. He couldn’t. Later, at the hospital, Debbie Webster’s phone buzzed. She read the message and her face went white.
“Cal’s had an accident. He’s in a bad way. I’ve got to go. ”
She left, and the others exchanged worried looks.
Ben was already on his feet. “I’m gasping in here. ”
“Coming,” someone said. In the hospital corridor, Sarah ran into Todd.
She’d been discharged early after a scan, and she was still shaky. “Todd? What happened? ”
“You haven’t heard?
”
“No. What? ”
“Todd died last night. Looks like he fell off some scaffolding.
”
Sarah’s face crumpled. “Oh my god. Did you see him last night? ”
“I didn’t see him last night.
”
“His van? ”
“It’s all smashed up. ”
Sarah stared at him. “Sorry, is this you questioning me or—”
“Just trying to find out what happened.
”
“Right. Take it. Come on, just take a breath. We’ll need to speak to you at some point, though.
”
“Of course you will. ”
Sarah turned away. “Come on, Sarah. Let’s get you home.
”
“No. I need to go and see Todd. ”
“Sarah, come on, please. ”
She didn’t listen.
She went to the funeral home, where Todd was sitting alone, staring at the wedding photos that had just arrived in the post. He looked up when she came in. “I can’t believe it,” she said. “I’m so sorry.
”
Todd shook his head. “Who knows what was going on in that man’s head, eh? ”
“No. No, no, no.
Miles and Milly—I haven’t told them. ”
“I’m sure they would have been told. But I’ll check for you. ”
He picked up the phone, but his hand was shaking.
“It should be me,” he said. “No, let him do it, love. He’s good at that sort of thing. ”
Todd put the phone down.
“What’s that? ”
“Just some post. I intercepted the postie on the way to your flat. It’s a parcel for you.
”
Todd opened it. “It’s the pictures from my wedding. ” He stared at them, and his eyes filled with tears. “I can’t—”
“Hey, it’s okay.
”
“It’s not, though, is it? Why am I getting upset over him? He last night I thought he wanted to kill me. I’m not supposed to be upset.
Is it—is it okay to miss him? Or wish that he was here to hug me after all that? ”
“You can react however you want to, okay? There’s no right way to handle this.
”
Todd shook his head. “I feel like there’s too many people here. ”
“You’re right. We’re crowding you.
Come on, let’s give him some space. ”
“No. No, I completely understand. ”
“You don’t.
You can’t, all right? Because I don’t understand it. It’s messed up. I miss him.
I want him—I wish I could go back to last night and stop what happened. I wish that it was him here and not you. ”
Sarah didn’t know what to say. She just stood there, watching him fall apart.
Later, in the pub, Leanne and Toyah cornered Todd. “All right, so everybody’s had a good gossip about you, haven’t they? ” Leanne said. “Did Theo kill himself, or did one of us lot bump him off?
”
“Maybe slipped,” Toyah said. “Maybe, Leanne. Maybe. ”
“Look, whatever happened, people care about you.
”
“Yeah, and you can try, but you’re going to have to run further than the pub if you want to give us two the slip. ”
Todd forced a smile. “I think you’ve had enough of that. Come on.
”
He left, and the two women watched him go. At the hospital, Cal was lying in a bed, his chest bandaged, a tube in his side. His father, David, sat beside him, holding his hand. “It’s all right, darling.
You had an accident. But you’re going to be fine. ”
“It’s hard to breathe. It’s my chest.
”
“Yeah. It’s all going to be fine. They said they found you outside in the hospital car park. Can you remember what happened?
”
“I don’t remember anything. None of it makes any sense. ”
“No. Darling, none of it makes any sense.
My head’s spinning with it all. ”
“I don’t remember being that drunk. What am I doing, Dad? I’m an idiot.
I’m a total idiot. ”
“No, you’re not. You’re not. Calm yourself down.
”
“Everything I touch falls apart. ”
“Darling, no, it doesn’t. You’re going to be okay. ”
“I kept it right.
This is karma. I deserve this. And you were right when you said I’m not lovable. I don’t deserve love.
What are you even doing here? ”
David’s voice cracked. “Let me just say this to you. You do deserve love.
And I am not going anywhere. Okay? ”
Cal looked at the bracelet on his wrist. “Have you been wearing this?
”
“Of course I have. You gave it to me. What do you think? I will always love you.
You’re the best part of me. I love you. ”
Cal closed his eyes, and David squeezed his hand. Meanwhile, Ben was trying to get hold of George, but George wasn’t picking up.
“Still not picking up,” he said to Sarah. “Ben can’t get hold of me, either. Don’t really get the whole space thing, then. ”
“I’m sorry, love.
That was me. ”
Sarah looked at him. “Why did you not tell him about the dodgy blokes and the USB? ”
“Oh, just don’t, okay?
I mean, the same blokes who nearly killed my sister. ”
“We don’t know that Jodie was connected to that, not for sure. ”
“Well, then where is she? ”
“I don’t know.
Did she say anything to you? ”
“No. We don’t know what Jodie’s got herself into. ”
“Exactly, no, we don’t.
I mean, how well do you know your sister, really? ”
“What’s that supposed to mean? ”
Sarah didn’t answer. She just looked at him, and Ben felt the weight of her suspicion.
Later, Ben found Shona in the café. “Why did she not tell the police that Jodie might be involved in all this? ”
“I don’t know, mate. I think she might be worried that she’s got herself into something.
”
“Like what? ”
“Like I don’t know. You know, if he asks, I’m not going to be able to lie to Kit about it. ”
“Well, then don’t bring it up.
All right? I mean, we’ll call the cops, you know, if Jodie does come back. ”
Shona nodded, but her eyes were elsewhere. At the police station, Kit and his colleague were reviewing the case.
“The position of the blunt force trauma suggests that it was not connected to the fall. He was hit before he fell, which is what we suspected. It wasn’t suicide. He was murdered.
”
“Just because we suspected it doesn’t mean it makes sense. I get the guy was unpopular—understatement intended—but murder? ”
“Unpopular? You’re joking, aren’t you?
Half the street hated his guts and with good reason. You heard what he did to Todd. The guy’s a sadist. ”
“Yeah, but even knowing that, you really think that someone would kill him for it?
Batter him and throw him off a building? You reckon anyone close to Todd is capable of that? ”
“I’ve been doing this for years now, and I’m still surprised at what people are capable of. The quiet ones and nice ones.
Ask me. I reckon we’ve got a long list of people who’d want to throw him off a building. And would you really be surprised if Todd snapped? They all spent the last year dehumanizing, brutalizing the person he’s supposed to love.
You heard what he said in his interview. It’s all on tape. This was long-term psychological torture. Months and months of abuse, physical and sexual assault.
And if I was Todd—if I’d been through what he’d been through, and if I had the opportunity—I would have done it in a heartbeat. ”
Kit leaned back in his chair. “So we’re looking at murder. And the list of suspects is the whole street.
”
“Pretty much. ”
Kit looked at the file. “Then let’s start with the one who had the most to gain. ”
He didn’t say the name, but they both knew who he meant.
Todd.
