Looking back at the case files from Jude Cameron’s death, Gus saw the trajectory the investigation took. After death by suicide had been ruled out, the police attention turned to Jimmy who immediately confessed, providing a detailed, largely unprompted statement detailing that he’d found Jude in the marital bed, high as a kite, with some punter from the docks. He said he tossed the punter out and strangled his wife. The punter, a sixteen-year-old lad called Mickey Heggarty confirmed Jimmy’s statement and, as they say, the rest was history. But not to Gus. Smiling, he sent two texts, one to Sadia, asking her to get her colleagues to locate Mickey Heggarty and the second to Compo asking him to obtain as much information about Mickey Heggarty as he could.
While not prepared to commit fully to Jimmy’s innocence, this was one avenue that might prove fruitful. What sixteen-year-old, caught with his pants down would contradict Jimmy Cameron’s statement? However, that sixteen-year-old was, if they could locate him, a grown man now and maybe, just maybe he could shed a little bit of light on what really happened that day in 1996.
Energised by the fact that possibly they might have a lead to follow, Gus opened up the files on Rory’s wife’s death. With the image of the nervous, quiet man that he’d seen that afternoon in his mind, Gus found it difficult to focus. He had real difficulty imagining him able to physically hoist his wife up to a hook on the ceiling. However, Rory was a diagnosed schizophrenic and, Dr Mara had intimated in their meeting earlier in the day, that she thought Rory’s mother would have been diagnosed similarly had she been born in a different decade. The similarity between Rory’s wife’s crime scene and Jude Cameron’s was marked. A hook, a rope, an upturned chair. Yet, there were differences, the main one being the very definite economic gulf between the two situations. While Jimmy’s home had been cheaply decorated and was a bit grubby round the edges, Helen and Rory Robertson had lived a more affluent life. Their home had been tastefully furnished with artworks, some of which appeared to be Rory’s own work, strategically displayed on the walls beneath carefully directed spotlights.
Not for the first time, Gus cursed the fact that the delay in digitising old case files meant that many similar files couldn’t be cross referenced. The similarity between these two scenes and the MO, despite being ten years apart, would have sent up flags all over the place nowadays. As it was, Gus wasn’t sure what to make of it. Rory had fallen to pieces on finding Helen; no doubt haunted by his memories of his mother’s death that had featured so prominently in his artwork. Already medicated for his condition, he could barely function. His confession wasn’t coerced, yet, it was accepted very readily. Would he have done the same? Despite liking to think he wouldn’t, Gus was aware that a confession from a viable suspect was any detective’s dream.
What Gus had to consider now was if the alternate scenario, laid out by Jimmy, blaming Ben for Helen’s death, was viable. There seemed little to go on and after hours poring over the crime scene images and the various statements, there was little to uphold Jimmy’s assertions. It was an absurd accusation for Jimmy to make. It seemed far-fetched to blame Ben for the murder of a woman neither he nor his father had actually met. But, then again, the killing mind was abhorrent and occasionally their thought processes did rely on far-fetched links. Despite his doubts, Gus tried to keep an open mind. Perhaps clarity would come when Fergus got back to him with his thoughts on the post-mortem evidence.
The final file was on John Cameron’s wife, Tracie. This murder had occurred after a long catalogue of instances of Jimmy stalking both of his sons and put him directly in the spotlight for this murder. After all, he’d been convicted of committing a similar one only a few years previously. Jimmy had broken down before Carlton and Gus could ask him about that, but Gus was interested. He suspected Jimmy would insist that Ben had committed this crime too. The fact that they could find neither of Jimmy’s sons was worrying and left various scenarios in play. Had Jimmy killed them too? Rolling his shoulders to release a crick in his neck, Gus exhaled and shut his laptop. Today had been far too long and far too emotionally charged. Slipping off his jeans, he flung himself onto his bed and allowed a troubled sleep to overtake him, with snippets of dreams where Jimmy and Rory worked together to hoist bodies onto a pulley before escaping by crawling through a dark tunnel.
Chapter 69
Scotland
The little quartet sat in the hotel breakfast room, each lost in their own thoughts, each sporting bluish bags under their eyes indicating their troubled sleep. Whirling thoughts buzzed in Gus’s mind and although he wanted to offer his mum some support, some comfort, he just couldn’t summon the energy to do so. He’d even sacrificed his usual morning jog because his limbs were so heavy.
Despite being used to operating on limited sleep, this was different. His energy levels were low where they should have been pumping through him, making him alert. In an attempt to manufacture some energy, Gus refilled his coffee cup for the fourth time, ignoring Corrine’s disapproving glance as he did so. Opposite
