‘Are you going to Sevenoaks.’
‘I’m on the road now. I’ve got the two locals from Southwark with me. I’ll be there in forty minutes. Also, I’ve phoned the local station there.’
‘Do you need Larry?’
‘It would help.’
‘I’m on my way,’ Larry said. ‘Give me one hour.’
‘How about you, sir?’ Wendy asked.
‘I’m travelling to Newcastle with Dr Lake. Sean O’Riordan is coming with me.’
‘She should be safe.’
‘With Charlotte Hamilton?’
‘You’re right. If she’s in Sevenoaks, we’ll find her.’
‘And if you don’t, she’s still coming after Dr Lake.’
‘She’s tenacious.’
‘And deadly.’
‘Don’t get too close. She’ll either take your photo or stick a knife in you.’
‘She’ll probably do both if she gets the chance,’ Isaac said.
***
Careful not to be seen, Charlotte left the train two stations before its final destination at Charing Cross. She realised that London Bridge Station was not the ideal location, but she could not delay. It was already mid-morning, and Gladys Lake was due to check out around two in the afternoon. That could only mean that she intended to catch the 4.15 p.m. train from King’s Cross.
Charlotte checked her bag; she still had fifteen hundred pounds. A local shop provided a change of clothes and a cheap wig. She also purchased a kitchen knife in a discount store.
She walked across London Bridge and up Princes Street, before turning into Cheapside Street, eventually connecting with Farrington Road which took her close to King’s Cross Station. She found a small restaurant and ate a good meal.
She knew she was early, but she needed to check out the area: entry and exit points, roads and side streets to vanish down if the police were there.
Charlotte sang her song quietly, repeating all the verses as she waited for the woman.
Stupid Duncan up at the quarry, along came a sister and gave him a push.
Liam thought he was a stud until I stuck a knife in his heart.
Oh, what fun, I slit his throat. Who will be next? Will it be you?
The black policeman thought he was smart, but I killed him anyway.
Charlotte knew that Dr Lake would be accompanied by the police, and it would not be possible to board the train at King’s Cross, as they were bound to be on the lookout for her. She had attempted to kill the woman twice now, once in Newcastle, the other time in London, and they knew that she was determined and unlikely to desist.
Once the knife had entered the doctor’s body, she knew she would have no further use for life. Until she had that blood-soaked knife, there was no freedom from the torment that cursed her: fluctuating between sanity and malevolence, the loving environment of Beaty and Felix, the torture in Newcastle at the mental hospital, the love of her parents for her brother Duncan and their disinterest in her.
The weather had turned colder, and a biting wind blew. Charlotte knew that if Dr Lake was coming, it would be soon.
As expected, ten minutes later, a police car drew up at the station. Gladys Lake emerged, clearly visible. Charlotte felt a nervous tingle knowing that her prey was so close, yet so far. Also visible was the black policeman, DCI Cook, and another police officer that she recognised. The man she had seen with Inspector Marshall at Joey’s, the night she had killed Liam Fogarty, the least satisfying of her murders.
She wanted to rush across the road and to deal with the doctor there and then, but it had an element of risk. Besides, she wanted to savour the moment, not just a quick thrust in and out. She wanted to enjoy the doctor’s death, to hear her plead for mercy.
Realising that killing the doctor was not possible at King’s Cross, Charlotte put her backup plan into action. She walked around the immediate area. A woman struggling with the key to the door of her house, her arms laden with shopping, her car on the street with its engine running. Charlotte jumped into the driver’s seat and took off. In the rear-view mirror, she could see the woman running down the street. The time was 2.20 p.m.
***
Larry Hill, in Sevenoaks, phoned Isaac as he was boarding the train at King’s Cross Station. ‘The local police in Sevenoaks identified her. Apparently, she was seen at the railway station earlier in the day. Also, she went by the name of Cathy Agnew here, and she was well known in the town.’
‘Which train did she catch?’ Isaac asked.
‘Early, 8.45 a.m.’
‘London?’ Isaac asked a rhetorical question.
‘Charing Cross. Unfortunately, she’s back up there with you.’
‘Don’t worry. This time we’re armed, and we’re sticking close to Dr Lake.’
‘She’s going to try again, you know that.’
‘We know it. I’ve stationed plain clothes in every carriage, and I’ll be with Sean O’Riordan and Dr Lake from here to Newcastle. After that, she’s Rory Hewitt’s responsibility.
‘There’s not much Wendy and I can do to help,’ Larry said.
‘Agreed. It’s probably best if you both get back to Challis Street and update DCI Caddick.’
‘I can’t say I like him much.’
‘That’s as may be, but he’s got the ear of the commissioner. If he’s to take over on a permanent basis, then you’d better stay on his side.’
‘What about DCS Goddard? Can he do something?’
‘If we catch Charlotte Hamilton, then anything is possible. Without a result, both the DCS and I are out and back on traffic duty.’
‘A bit dramatic.’
‘At the least demoted or transferred out to the suburbs.’
An announcement sounded in the station. The 4.15 p.m. to Newcastle is leaving in ten minutes from Platform 4. First stop Peterborough.
***
Charlotte, using the GPS installed in the BMW, made good time; twenty
