The light from Joe’s torch began to flicker, before turning off completely, leaving the three of them trapped in the pitch darkness. Charley’s six-year-old self was more than ready to flee and scramble back up the steps, had it not been for Annie’s hand clamped firmly to her arm, encouraging her to go on. For Charley knew, such was the influence of an SIO, that if she ran away screaming, so would her credibility.
The darkness remained for what seemed like an age, but the sound of the tap, tap of the torch being hit on the wall was followed by light once more, and the beating of Charley’s heart returned to a less erratic beat.
Immediately Charley eyes swept the room, lit only by the moving beam of light. She caught sight of a mangle, and on the shelf above, flaked washing soap and a scrub board. It was as if her childhood nightmare had returned.
When Joe turned sharply to the left, the light from his torch shifted with him, and it felt like a curtain had fallen on wash day.
‘Over here.’ His voice echoed, and its urgency startled her. ‘We discovered a false wall.’
Charley swallowed hard.
‘Why, I ask myself, would anyone build a false wall in a cellar?’ Joe continued, ‘That was until we found more human remains.’
Charley crept across the dark shadows to gaze into the hole in the wall that had been partially demolished, with what looked like the swing of a hefty hammer. Joe shone his torch through the hole. Charley felt Annie’s fingers curl round her arm again. A muffled cry escaped her lips. ‘Holy Mother of God!’
A body lay spread-eagled in the centre of the hidden room, the ribs glistening, in the torchlight. Joe flicked the beam up and down the skeletal remains. This corpse, it was plain to see, had been laid out carefully, as if this was its final resting place, unlike the one behind the fireplace. The torchlight caught something else that shone, between the ribs, in the darkness. Whatever it was they’d have to wait until the body was removed to find out.
Careful scrutiny of what was visible of the skeleton showed them that, from where they were standing, the body appeared complete. There was no flesh on the bones which bore a yellow tinge, and what looked like coins were placed in the eye sockets. From Charley’s experience, she knew that these bones had been in situ for some considerable time. Just how old the skeleton was she had no idea, but one thing she did know was that this corpse had been here far longer than the one behind the fireplace.
She scrutinised the remains with expert eyes for a moment longer, and could see what looked like the remnants of cloth. She wondered if they might be the remains of a shroud.
‘Crownest is certainly living up to the reputation it has long held locally,’ she whispered through dry lips.
‘“Munster Mansion”, by any chance?’ said Annie.
‘Close… “Murder House”,’ said Charley straining to see Joe’s face. ‘I’m open-minded, but neither gossip, hearsay, rumour, nor folklore will stand up in court. I read that since the day the soil was first broken, it has been documented that countless people involved with the building of Crownest, on the site of the old farm, have experienced strange activity, that paranormal investigators have gone on to describe as demonic. We know that even recently, unexplained fires have, it appears, spontaneously manifested, and we also know that there have been a number of deaths, both recorded, and as suggested now, non-recorded, which have occurred within its walls.’
‘I think I heard all them stories when I was about to undertake its demolition,’ said Joe.
‘You did,’ said Annie, ‘and you didn’t run a mile? I would’ve.’
‘A building foreman apparently drowned himself, so affected was he by the shadowy figures devoid of human features he was said to have encountered. I don’t know who spread that particular rumour. Probably my opposition for the contract, to see it dropped to the ground.’ Joe chuckled.
‘You’re not superstitious?’ said Annie.
‘I’m not superstitious at all,’ he replied.
‘Good job,’ said Charley.
‘Well, theories might be varied, but one thing that I do agree with, is that there are some seriously bad vibes here. And come on, why else would you conceal a body unless something sinister had gone on?’ asked Annie.
Joe raised his brows. ‘Exactly!’
Charley pursed her lips. ‘Well, that’s our job to find out,’ she said. ‘Could you, and a couple of your fellas make yourselves available to help us a hand if required?’ Her request felt more like an order to Joe. Without waiting for a reply from Nevermore’s owner, she turned back to Annie.
‘We need Forensics at the scene as soon as possible. Call Senior Crime Scene Investigator Neal Rylatt will you? I think his expertise is required. As quickly as he can, before we lose the light. The recovery is going to take days, rather than hours.’ The words tumbled from her lips, expecting disappointment.
Joe’s reply was far from expected, ‘I don’t have a problem with that.’
Did Charley detect lightheartedness in Joe’s voice? ‘You don’t? What about the contract with Thomas?’
‘I don’t have any time restraints for completion. I made damn sure of that before I signed anything. If he didn’t read the amendment, that’s his problem. I’m too long in the tooth to take chances with the unpredictable Yorkshire weather.’ There was a hint of one-upmanship in his tone. ‘Anyway,’ he continued, ‘he can hardly refuse to pay us, or try to wriggle out of a contract with a police investigation to be solved, can he?’ He paused for a moment. ‘Do you think we’re likely to discover more bodies?’ Joe sounded intrigued, and even excited to be party to the enquiry.
‘Hopefully not, two human skeletons are enough, don’t you agree?’
Chapter 6
Joe threw log after log, followed by branch after branch on the fire, but the garden waste didn’t appear to be receding. However, this didn’t appear
