Mr Simmonds shot out of his chair and rushed to the sink. He turned on the tap, filled a glass with water and downed it in one go. “What are you saying? Someone deliberately drove over our son? That’s inconceivable. Are you sure?”
“The evidence was there for all to see, Mr Simmonds. I’m sorry the news couldn’t be better.”
“Better as in, our son isn’t really dead?” He returned to his seat and slumped into it.
“I’m sorry. It’s a difficult job, trying to explain to loved ones how their relative has died. I appreciate you’ll want to remember him as he was.”
“Difficult? And you think the last ten minutes of you going around the houses has been a walk in the park?”
His wife placed a hand over his. “You’ll have to excuse my husband, he’s hurting and lashing out.”
“Don’t make excuses for me, love. I’m behaving the same way most parents would who have just heard their son has been killed. That is what you’re telling us, isn’t it?”
“Possibly. However, until the post-mortem has been carried and we have the report to hand, we will not be in a position to determine the facts, Mr Simmonds.”
He shook his head and growled. “I can’t bear the thought of him being cut open. You should be there with her… questioning her, interrogating her. Anne’s the culprit, I would lay ten grand on it if I had the funds.”
“You’re talking nonsense as usual, Robert. Stop this. All you’re going to do is cause the officers more work if you insist on suggesting Anne is involved.”
“So what? What if it’s the truth, love? Are you prepared to let her get away with it? With killing our son in order to gain financially? That’s what this all amounts to. You have to investigate her if there’s any doubt in your mind, don’t you, Inspector?”
“You’re right. We do. We’ve already checked out her alibi, sir.”
He stared at her and fell silent. “In that case, we have nothing else for you. Our son generally got on with most people. We’re distraught to learn of his death. Maybe if you leave us a card, we’ll discuss the matter when you go; something might come to mind. It’s the pressure of having you here, my brain has turned to mush. What about you, love?”
Mrs Simmonds nodded. “I agree. I’m finding it extremely hard to keep focussed right now.”
“Okay, we’ll leave you for now if that’s what you want.” Katy slid a card across the table and Mr Simmonds put his hand over it.
Katy and Charlie stood and said their farewells. “I’m so sorry for your loss. You have my assurance that my team and I will do everything possible to find the person responsible.”
“Ha, don’t forget to dig deep where Anne is concerned.”
“Robert!” his wife warned.
He left his chair and showed them through the bungalow again. He refused to shake their hands. “I’m not kidding when I say this, Inspector, either you take my son’s death seriously or I will take matters higher. Some of my best friends are ex-police officers and they still have contacts on the force.”
Katy’s head tilted to the left. “Is that a threat, Mr Simmonds?”
“Call it a warning. I know how these sorts of cases pan out; my advice would be for you not to cast this particular case aside, if you know what’s good for you.”
“It was nice meeting you, sir. We’ll be in touch soon, should anything arise.” Katy smiled even though she was seething inside.
She felt the waft of the door behind her when he slammed it shut.
“Bloody hell, that was uncalled for,” Charlie mumbled.
“Come on, let’s get out of here.”
Charlie walked a few steps behind Katy. They stepped back into the car and Katy sighed heavily.
“Are you okay?” Charlie asked, concern written into the creases on her face.
“Yeah, he took the wind out of my sails. What the hell was that all about?”
“Maybe conducting an in-depth search into the family will reveal what his problem is.”
“Can you make that a priority when we get back?”
“I’d be honoured. His anger was totally off the scale for me. Silly man, he might have just opened up a can of worms.”
Katy sniggered. “You do amuse me, even when things are against us, you always seem to come out fighting.”
“I do? I hadn’t noticed. His attitude sucked, there has to be a reason why he turned on us in an instant.”
“Ever the intrepid sergeant, I’m sure you’ll discover the reason soon enough.”
5
Armed with a coffee, Katy left the team doing the research and headed for the office. Needing to hear AJ’s voice, she snuck in a quick call to home before she settled down to attack the onerous chore of opening the brown envelopes which were, thankfully at a minimum today.
“Hey, you, how are you enjoying your Saturday morning?” She sat back in her chair and peered up at the sun’s rays radiating through the clouds overhead.
“You’ve just caught us. I asked Georgie what she fancied doing today and she’s chosen to go to the adventure park in town.”
Katy’s heart skipped a beat at the thought of her baby exerting herself when she’d only just recovered from meningitis and the significant strain that had put on her already weak heart.
“Katy, are you still there?” AJ asked after a moment’s silence.
“I am. Do you think that’s wise, in the circumstances?”
“We can’t wrap her up in a blanket all her life, sweetheart. I’ll be extra vigilant with her, I promise.”
“That wasn’t a slight on you and your care for her, AJ. I just turned hot and cold within a few minutes there at the thought of her doing too much.”
“I appreciate that. It’s what she wants to do, who am I to stop her?”
“I want to visit Santa in Lapland mid-summer just to see
