Separated at Death (The Lakeland Murders) (34 page)

‘Are you starting with them?’

‘Yes, with Carl Nelson. The guy we didn’t know is a proper head case apparently, GMP are delighted to hear that he’ll be off the streets for a decent period of time. No chance he’ll grass though, so we’ll just charge him and send him back down the road. They want to talk to him about a couple of drugs murders apparently. They don’t hold out much hope, but they went out of their way to help us, so I’m more than willing to return the favour. And we’ll get him back again if he’s involved in that misadventure out west.’

‘OK, that’s excellent. When we wash up on all this one of the take-aways that I want to highlight is the fact that we don’t need mergers. Forces are more than able to work together, and this proves it.’

Robinson had the look of a man who felt a Powerpoint slide coming on, and

Hall said he was eager to have a chat with Carl Nelson.

‘On you go then. Just keep me informed.’

Hall and Mann went to the interview room.

‘Do you want to take this one?’ asked Hall.

‘Because he’s a bit rough, eh Andy? Reckon he’ll feel more comfortable with an ex-squaddie?’

Hall laughed. ‘Exactly, plus you’re old friends. Seriously, no expectations, anything you get is a bonus. He knows the system and he declined the duty solicitor, so he might have something for us. You never know your luck.’

Carl Nelson didn’t look pleased to see Mann again, as he got the tape running and introduced himself and Hall. ‘Of course we met yesterday, didn’t we?’ said Mann smiling. ‘You’re wondering why we had the whole of Cumbria Constabulary out on this one, aren’t you Carl? Well we did, our Chief was chucking those thunder-flashes at you and your lads himself. Well, almost. Young Ryan Wilson isn’t worth all that effort. Of course he’s not. So you’re wondering who we were after tonight, you or Simon Hamilton?’

Nelson grunted. Mann took that as a sign of interest.

‘Well you can breathe easy Carl. Or easier anyway. Because much as we enjoyed nicking you and your boys Simon Hamilton is our main interest.’

‘Oh yes.’

‘Do you know why?’

Nelson shrugged.

‘We think he killed his niece last week. A seventeen year old girl. We think he lured her to a wood just a few minutes from here, and when she got there he strangled her. That’s right Carl, he killed a schoolgirl. And there are only two possible motives aren’t there? Either sexual, or to keep her quiet about something. What do you think about that?’

Carl looked straight back at Mann and said nothing.

‘Of course, you’ve not done time before, have you Carl? Course you haven’t. Still, not a problem for a bloke like you though, I know that. I expect you’ve got more friends in Strangeways than out on the streets? But the problem is that they might not be so friendly if you’re standing in the dock alongside Simon Hamilton, and he goes down for the sexually motivated murder of a teenage girl.’

Still Carl Nelson said nothing.

‘You don’t have to help us Carl, why should you? No one loves a grass. But the thing is that Simon Hamilton’s not like you, is he? You’ve always known that, and that’s why he’s been useful to you. He’s never been a proper working criminal, not like you. He’s just a rich boy who’s been playing at it. But the problem is that he doesn’t know the rules, how the game’s played. And that’s how he came to kill a teenage girl. And that’s just not on, is it? Not by my code, not by yours.’

Mann was sure that Nelson would keep silent, but he was wrong.

‘He told me about it.’

Hall was holding his breath.

‘He told me he done it. The kid’d heard him trying to get cash out of her mum. She’s a user and he needed cash urgently for one of his property deals. The kid was going to tell her dad what she’d heard, and then it would all have come out. Simon told me he’d planted the kid’s phone on the dad after. Thought he’d been very fucking clever.’

‘Anything else?’

‘Said he was safe. His lawyer said that with no eye witness, no DNA and no proof that he’d planted the phone he’d have a high chance of getting off, but that you lot wouldn’t have the bottle or the money to bring it to trial anyway.’

‘And that’s it?’

‘Yeh. He made me sick. But then Ryan came along, and that changed everything.’

‘Why did you help Simon then? Why not just leave him to sort Ryan out on his own?’

‘I know kids like Ryan. Give ‘em an inch and they’ll take everything. He had to be dealt with.’

‘Murdered?’

‘Of course not. You know I’ve got nothing to say about tonight.’

‘But you have about Amy’s death.’

‘You’ve got it on tape.’

‘Yes, but we need you to sign a formal statement.’

‘What do I get out of it?’

‘You know how this works Carl. You help us and you’ll be helping the court, saving the taxpayer a lot of money I don’t doubt, and judges do like that. But we’re not offering you any inducements. If you make a statement it’ll be because it’s true, and because it’s the right thing to do.’

Nelson smiled.

‘I’ll give you the statement. Me and my crew are nothing to do with what Simon Hamilton’s done. Nothing. He deserves to swing for it.’

Twenty minutes later Mann had Nelson’s statement, and Hamilton’s lawyer had arrived. Jenny Baker from the CPS read a copy. To Hall’s surprise she pumped her fist when she’d finished. He knew exactly how she felt.

‘Charge him with the murder of Amy Hamilton. Simon didn’t say all this to Nelson while anyone else was present, did he?’

‘No’ said Mann.

‘Shame. You do know that we’re going to need to charge the wife with attempting to pervert, don’t you Andy? If you can turn her as well you’re home and dried. Given Hamilton’s history of violence we’d be very willing to listen to her on any coercion.’

‘We’ll get her nicked now’ said Hall. ‘She’s at their house. Do you want to talk to Simon’s lawyer about tonight’s events, show him Carl’s statement, and he can talk to her before we do too. I’m in a generous mood tonight.’

Sarah Hamilton was well briefed by the time they saw her. She said that her husband had pressured her into saying that he’d been home by 9.30pm, and that it was actually almost certainly later.

‘How much later?’ Jane Francis asked.

‘I’d say at least fifteen minutes, maybe almost half an hour. But it can’t have been after ten, because I remember he was showering while I watched the news. That was true. I had to turn the volume up because you can hear the water draining away.’

‘But you’re quite sure about the times now?’

‘Yes. He told me that it would give him a problem if I said it was any later than half-nine. He made me say that.’

‘Made you how?’

‘My husband is a violent man.’ The line sounded rehearsed, and probably was.

‘How do you mean? Has your husband assaulted you?’

‘Not physically, but mentally he’s always been very dominant, very insistent on getting what he wanted. He’s very controlling.’

‘And you didn’t lie because you knew that your husband was involved in a drug deal, and asked you to provide an alibi for that?’

‘No. I’ve told you. I’m frightened of him. And I was even more frightened when I knew that he’d probably killed Amy.’

‘What makes you say that?’

‘When you said that his car had been seen parked by Serpentine Woods I knew it had to be him. That’s when I saw why it was so important that I said he was home earlier than he was, because he must have known exactly what time Amy died. So he needed me to say that he was at home then, didn’t he?’

‘You do understand that, if you make a new statement saying that your husband did not arrive until after nine thirty, but was home by soon after ten pm, then you will probably face criminal charges?’

‘I have explained the position to my client.’

‘And you still want to make that statement?’ asked Jane.

‘Yes.’

‘And has your husband admitted to you that he killed Amy?’

‘No. What do you take me for?’

Jane Francis didn’t answer. She was glad that what she thought didn’t count for anything.

Simon Hamilton’s solicitor asked to consult with his client when Sarah’s statement had been signed. It was past midnight, but Hall had never felt more awake. Robinson was still there, looking as immaculate as ever.

‘Will you get a confession?’

‘I expect so’ said Hall. In a way he was hoping that Hamilton would stick to his story. It would be nice to be able to lay it all out for him piece by piece, and to let him see his wife’s statement. After what he’d done he was going to be alone for the rest of his natural life.

But as soon as he walked into the room Hall knew how it was going to go. Simon Hamilton was crying. But Hall wasn’t feeling judgmental about that, and in Hamilton’s position he was sure that he’d have done much the same. It took Hamilton a couple of minutes to compose himself. Hall was his usual self; quiet, almost solicitous.

‘Did you kill Amy Hamilton last Wednesday night?’

‘Yes.’

‘How did it happen?’

‘I called her on my way back to Kendal, because Carl had wound me up about what would happen if what I was doing came out. He said I’d lose everything, and go to jail as well. Amy had overheard me talking to her mum, because I needed money and I told her that if she didn’t loan it to me then I’d tell John that she was a user. Anyway, when I called Amy she said that she’d been thinking and she was going to tell her dad what she’d heard, because she was worried about her mum, and I asked to meet her. She called back and said she’d meet me for a minute on Queens Road, because she was on her way to a friend’s house.’

‘How did you get her to go up into the woods?’

‘I never planned it, but there was no-one about, so I told her that I was being followed, and I more or less pushed her up the first bit of the path. When we got to the top it was very dark, and when she said she was scared and that she wanted to go back down I just grabbed her to stop her. I never meant to kill her, just to quieten her down.’

‘You strangled Amy.’

‘I never meant to, I swear.’

‘And then what?’

‘I tried to make it look as if she’d been molested, you know, but then I panicked and went back to the car. I watched a couple of dog walkers go by from the path, and then I slipped down to the car and drove away. I was lucky. I was sure no-one noticed me.’

‘And Amy’s phone?’

‘I took it from her bag. It was silly because I used a pay-as-you-go SIM in my carphone when I called, and I chucked it away the next day, but when I got the phone home I realised that it might be useful.’

‘How do you mean?’

‘I could plant it on my brother. So I took it with me when I went round there the next day, and there was so much going on it was easy. Everyone was out of their minds with the shock. If anyone had seen me coming downstairs after I would have just gone back and got it, and disposed of it properly.’

‘So you killed your niece to stop her from telling your brother that his ex-wife was using drugs, and that you were supplying them, and trying to blackmail her over it?’

‘Yes.’

‘But what made you so certain that he would tell us about what you were doing? That doesn’t sound all that brotherly. I’m not sure it sounds like your brother anyway.’

Hamilton looked up. He looked angry, and he looked certain.

‘You don’t know him. You don’t know what he’s like. He’ll love this.’

‘I doubt that very much’ said Hall mildly. ‘But moving on to tonight, you and Carl and the others intended to kill Ryan Wilson did you?’ Hall made it sound like something that people did most days.

‘I didn’t, but they probably did. Carl said that he knew people like Ryan and they had to be sorted out, just like they killed that kid out west last year.’

‘Do you know who they meant?’

‘I don’t remember his name now, but they drugged him and chucked him into the harbour.’

‘How do you know this?’

‘Carl told me. He said there’d been others as well.’

‘You mean other killings?’

‘Yes.’

‘And you’re willing to make a statement to that effect?’

‘Yes.’

‘OK Mr Hamilton, you’ve been very helpful. I do understand how stressful this must be for you, so why don’t we get a statement of the main facts relating to Amy sorted out now, then we can arrange for you to go through everything else in detail in the morning. How’s that?’

When it was over Hall sat in his office. He was surprised at how many people were still in the station, and they all seemed to want to congratulate him. He felt drained, and the last person he wanted to see was Robinson.