Rob knew he was thinking about his own daughters, both of whom were grown up now and at university.
“A very disturbed person, sir.”
“Do we know who they are yet?”
Rob shook his head. “Not yet. We won’t know until Liz does the post-mortems, provided the victims are on file.”
Lawrence nodded. He knew how it worked. If the children hadn’t been reported missing or there were no dental or medical records available, they wouldn’t be able to identify them.
“Keep me posted. As soon as you know how many, I’ll update the Commissioner.”
“It probably won’t be before tomorrow,” Rob said. “I’m heading back out there this evening to see how they’re getting on.”
Lawrence grunted. “I don’t suppose we have any more resources to throw at it?”
“No, sir. We’ve already gone way over budget and Dr Kramer said her unit is stretched to capacity.”
“Very well. We’ll just have to wait, then,” he huffed.
“Sir, I suggest we put together a task force to work on this. Once we know who the girls are, we can put together a pattern of his movements. We may even have to go back further. There’s no saying how long this guy’s been active?”
“Jesus,” groaned Lawrence.
“There might be more girls that we don’t know about. Different counties. Spanning a number of years.”
“You mean like Manchester?” He glanced up shrewdly.
“It’s not impossible, sir.”
He scowled. “Wouldn't that make the killer very old?”
“Not especially. If Rachel – that’s Jo’s sister – was his first, or one of his first victims and he was in his early twenties, that would put him in his mid-forties now.”
“Yes, of course.” He sighed heavily. “Okay, Rob. Pick your task force and let’s get going on this. I can’t believe it’s happened – again – but now it has, we have to be beyond reproach. This is the biggest case this department has ever seen. All eyes will be on us and the powers that be won’t hesitate to send in Serious Crimes or even the NCA if they think we can’t handle it.”
“Yes, sir.”
“That means meticulous records. Everything documented. Any fuckups and it’s both our heads on a block.”
“Is this grounds to get Jo over here? We could use her insight and she has the original case files on her sister’s disappearance.”
He shook his head. “I’ve already spoken to Pearson. He wants her there. I’ve got no sway over how he runs his people.”
Rob gave a curt nod. Jo would find a way, she always did. There was no way she’d sit this one out.
He hadn’t told her about the multiple graves yet. He’d call her tonight, when he knew more. At the moment, they had two definites and three more in the ground. Once they knew for sure they were all linked, all victims of the same child killer, he’d fill her in.
Right now, there was work to do.
The official task force consisted of Rob as SIO and Mallory as his deputy. DS Bird and DS Freemont, the two most experienced sergeants in the department would handle the main investigation into the missing girls, aided by DS Burns, the soft-spoken American who’d impressed Rob with his astuteness and attention to detail, as well as DS Malhotra who had built a rapport with the public over the course of the Katie Wells disappearance.
DC Jeff Clarke and DC Mike Manner would provide assistance where needed, mostly analysing CCTV footage and witness statements, and do most of the groundwork.
“You’ve landed a big one, Rob,” remarked DI Galbraith, his ruddy complexion more beetroot than bronzed.
“How was Tenerife?” asked Rob.
“Magnificent. You should try it sometime. It’s called a holiday.”
The gregarious Scot split his time between Richmond and the bigger, busier police hub in Hounslow. That ought to have been his job, but Yvette’s breakdown and the additional time he’d taken off work in the first half of the year meant he’d let that opportunity pass. There’d be others.
“Let us know if you need a hand,” Galbraith said. “I’ve got additional resources in Hounslow, if needs be.”
“Thanks Clive.” Rob shook his hand. “I’ve already stolen a couple of your boys.”
He gave a wide grin. “I noticed. They’re good lads. Make sure you put them to good use.”
Galbraith was an extremely competent SIO and ran his teams by the book. He’d trained Evan and Harry well, and Rob could see the effects of that in his own investigation.
“Will do.”
Rob moved his task force into Incident Room 3. It was more spacious than the other two, with a twelve-seater boardroom table in the middle. From now on, his unit would work here on their laptops, accumulating, analysing and documenting evidence as they progressed with the investigation.
Mallory was already wheeling in the whiteboard from Incident Room 2 containing the background information on Rosie, Elise, Chrissy and Angie, the four girls who’d gone missing in the last five years.
As he waited for everyone to get set up – underneath the table was an alarming web of wires, power points and USB hubs – Rob removed the photographs and details pertaining to Katie from the board until it was only Arina’s wide-eyed gaze that looked down at them.
“Right, everyone. We have officially two linked deaths and potentially three more, not counting Arina. That’s six bodies found at Bisley Common. I suspect they’ll all be posed in the same way, covered with a shroud and clips in their hair. Celeste–” The young DC raised her brows. “Keep in constant contact with Dr Liz Kramer at the crime scene. As soon as she has an update on the other bodies, let us know.”
“Yes, guv.”
“Also, I want you to attend the post-mortems and give us a full report as and when they’re completed, in case there’s anything else we need to know. That includes the identity of the victims, and any DNA or other evidence found on the bodies.”
“Got it.” She gave a firm nod, her cheeks flushed. This was her biggest role yet, but she was more than capable. Rob
