Impression (DI Gardener 4)

“Until he gets home. No one knows how good a marriage is unless they’re in it. Maybe he’s going home now to deal with her.”

“Leaving us to wonder which side of the fence his born-again Christian attitude falls down on.”

“Meanwhile, Chloe is still missing.” No matter how the case proceeded, there was still the problem of the girl hanging over his head. He might have been searching for a killer, but she was still playing a central part. Her abductor must have something on her parents. But where did the other girl fit in?

Benson came through the door and approached Gardener.

“Got something for you, sir.”

Gardener took a seat while Benson had his say.

“Frank Fisher sued the builder, Sean Rydell. Cleaned him out completely. Compensation was about thirty thousand in cash. The business went belly up, and Sean Rydell committed suicide. But here’s the big one: Alan Sargent testified in court that it was all Rydell’s fault. He claimed that the yard had never been maintained, and was a health and safety nightmare.”

“Is that so?” Reilly asked. “How did he know?”

“I went round to see Sargent’s widow, Vanessa. Apparently he’d done some odd jobs for the company. They were thinking of expanding, he was about to be offered a full-time position. Obviously, that all went tits up when the business folded. Sargent was given a lifeline by Barry Morrison, which helped with their financial problems.”

“Why did Sargent speak up for Fisher in court?”

“She doesn’t know. There’s only one reason I can think of: Frank Fisher must have been blackmailing Alan Sargent.”

“Or convincing him,” replied Gardener.

“What do you mean?” asked Benson.

“That Sargent was being offered a payout of the compo,” replied Reilly.

“Something doesn’t add up,” said Gardener. “Maybe Fisher didn’t pay up. That court case was over two years ago. The money would have been through well before now, easing their financial situation. According to Billy Morrison, the taxi job was a lifeline for the Sargents.”

“So, if anything, Sargent had a reason to kill Fisher.”

“But not Morrison or Stapleton.”

“And very likely not himself.”

“So we’re still no further on,” said Gardener.

Patrick Edwards nearly pushed the door from its hinges.

“Sir, Chris Rydell is a patient of the clinic. The Pendlebury woman has a copy of his files at the clinic, if we want to send someone over. Seems he was there on Friday. His first visit was six months ago, when he was diagnosed with hepatitis B. On Friday he found out it’s developed into full-blown cirrhosis.”

“We’ll go and see her, Patrick.”

Before the young officer left, Gardener called out to him again. “Do we have any news on Raymond Allen, or from the Municipal Buildings in Leeds last night?”

“Nothing from the Municipal Buildings. All was quiet. Colin Sharp has been to see Raymond Allen’s family. They haven’t heard anything at all since his escape. He reckons they’re living in fear that he does turn up. Before he got sent down, he nearly poisoned them all. Father said son was responsible for the death of his mother, and if he never saw him again, it would be too soon. Wasn’t suspected at the time, and they couldn’t exhume the body for tests because she was killed in a car crash which resulted in a fire. Anyway, Colin asked them about Allen having a driving licence. His father said that Allen had never even learned to drive.”

“I’d still like to know where he fits in with everything. It’s not impossible for him to have done everything even though he can’t drive.”

“Unlikely, though. I doubt anyone in Rampton would have taught him.”

“Is he our killer, or is he simply using the situation to his advantage to frighten Vincent Baines to death?” Gardener asked.

“Wouldn’t take a lot to frighten that idiot,” said Reilly. “I’m more concerned with this Chris Rydell character. If his father committed suicide, is he using that as an excuse to gain revenge?”

“Possibly,” said Gardener. “He has a means of getting around. He’s a motorcycle courier.”

“But can we connect him to all of the deceased?”