Russell Revenge Killing

DI Steel: 21
1. Auflage 2024
ISBN: 978-1-83501-046-4
Verlag: No Exit Press
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: 6 - ePub Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, Band 21, 304 Seiten

Reihe: A None

Autoren/Hrsg.

Russell, Leigh

Leseproben

6

Lauren had been too scared to go back and check that Jay was all right. Telling herself he would be fine, she tried to act as though nothing unusual had happened, and they hadn’t rowed at all. But she had seen him hurtling down the stairs and was convinced he must have injured himself, perhaps seriously. Just thinking about it made her feel sick. She kept wondering whether she could have done anything to stop him from falling, but she had been knocked over as they struggled. By the time she had clambered to her feet he was already halfway down the stairs.

Everything had happened so quickly she had scarcely had time to take in what was going on. One minute she had been threatening to leave him, and then he was looming over her, pressing his hand against her mouth, dragging her out of his flat. All she could remember after that was how she had fought against his vice-like grip on her wrists. She had kicked him as hard as she could. If she had been wearing her canvas trainers, she would probably have bruised herself. As it was, the pointed metal toecaps on her black patent shoes were sharp and unyielding and must have hurt his shins. She vaguely remembered stamping on his foot with her heel, and that was what had startled him into releasing his hold on her. The next minute, he was gone. It had all been over in a flash. She had seen his hands flapping around in a vain attempt to hold on to something as he fell, and then he was lying in a heap at the bottom of the stairs.

Some spirit of self-preservation had sent her racing back into his flat to seize her bag so she could flee before he recovered. She had no recollection of rushing down the stairs to the street door, but she must have clambered across his body, or perhaps leapt over it, because somehow she had found herself outside on the pavement. She had a hazy memory of making her way to the bus stop, rain mingling with her tears. On the bus, damp and wretched, she had stared resolutely out of the window, avoiding looking at other passengers, as the bus carried her away from his flat and his inert body lying at the foot of the stairs. Not until she was nearly home had it occurred to her that he might be dead.

Her flatmate, Natalie, was away visiting her parents for a week. Arriving home to silence, Lauren had gone straight to bed, shivering. She didn’t know whether her relationship with Jay was over, or if he was even still alive. Nearly delirious with grief, she lay in bed, crying and aching for what felt like hours. At last, she hauled herself her out of bed to make herself a mug of tea. Having drunk it, she felt a lot better and went back to bed where, at last, she fell asleep. Having slept fitfully through the rest of the night, she woke up with a pounding headache. Seeing herself in the bathroom mirror, she was startled by her appearance, her face pasty and her eyes red and blotchy as though she had been rubbing them for hours. After phoning her manager to say she had flu, and would probably be off work for a few days, she had some breakfast and then slunk back to bed and tried to sleep.

After a few days, she was feeling a little better, and able to think about Jay without bursting into tears. Luckily her flatmate was still away, so she didn’t have to face any awkward questions, but she had decided to tell Natalie that she and Jay had split up. For all she knew, it was true. In any event, it would account for her crying and would give her a plausible reason for refusing to talk about him. Turning on the television, and waiting for the weather forecast before her soap, she was shocked to see him mentioned on the local news. The police were investigating the death of a man who had died after a fall down some stairs. She had a horrible feeling she was responsible for the accident. The horror of what had happened came flooding back, and she felt faint. Jay was dead and she would never see him again, never feel his arms around her or his lips on hers. As if to confirm her suspicion, the face of the old woman who rented the apartment below Jay’s flashed up on the screen. Her wrinkled lips moved and she announced that she had heard her neighbour fall down the stairs. Bursting into tears, Lauren wept hysterically for a few moments.

Only when she calmed down a little did she register the significance of what she had heard. The news report had said the police were investigating the circumstances of Jay’s death. That must mean they suspected he had been murdered. She trembled, wishing she could remember exactly what had happened when he had fallen. She wondered if the police could prove she had been there, watching. As it turned out, she had witnessed more than an accidental tumble. She had been watching her boyfriend die. Given that she had not called for an ambulance, but instead had fled the scene, it was almost inevitable the police would conclude she had deliberately pushed him down the stairs.

Forensic evidence of her DNA would be all over his flat, and they could probably prove she had been present when he fell. Appearances were against her. Her memory of the incident was confused, but she did recall struggling with him. Perhaps she had pushed him, but if so, she had acted in self-defence. He was the one who had dragged her along the landing, seemingly intending to push her down the stairs. In any case, it was the fall that had killed him, and that had been an accident. She hadn’t even known he was dying. She was almost sure she had heard him moaning as she reached the front door and ran out into the street. Taking in a few deep shuddering breaths, she tried to think clearly. If she went to the police and told them exactly what had happened, they couldn’t possibly suspect her of murder.

‘I had no idea he was so badly hurt,’ she muttered to herself, rehearsing what she would say to the police when they questioned her, as they were bound to do.

‘Why did you run off and leave him if his fall was accidental, as you claim?’ she imagined a stern-faced policeman demanding. ‘Why didn’t you call an ambulance when you saw he was hurt? You say you heard him moaning when you were leaving, so you must have realised he was injured. You knew he was alive, yet you left him to die.’ At her side, a grim lawyer would sigh and shake his head, and advise her to confess to the murder of her boyfriend.

‘You had a row,’ the policeman would press on, ignoring her denials. ‘You discovered he was cheating on you with another woman, so you killed him. Confess! Confess! Confess!’ she imagined the policeman shouting at her. She could picture the scene. In her imagination, the policeman looked just like her headmaster at school. The longer she thought about it, the more hazardous her position seemed. It was true she had accused Jay of two-timing her and they had argued about it. The nosy old cow from the downstairs flat had doubtless been eavesdropping, and would be only too eager to come forward to accuse her.

From watching crime dramas on television, Lauren knew exactly what the police would be looking for, and was aware that she had an obvious motive for wanting to lash out at her cheating boyfriend. Added to that, she alone had had the opportunity to attack him, and the means had presented themselves right in front of her. She might attempt to convince a jury that his death hadn’t been planned, but the fact that she hadn’t summoned help when Jay had his accident would confirm her guilt. She wasn’t even sure any longer that it had been an accident. In the terror of the struggle, had she deliberately pushed him to his death?

There was no time to beat herself up about what had happened. She would have to worry about it later. For now, she needed to focus on evading arrest. The police were probably already looking for her. She had to get away without delay. Dashing to her room, she packed her rucksack. She had no idea where to go; she knew only that she had to hide somewhere the police wouldn’t find her. Once they caught her, it would all be over. No one would pay any attention to her protestations of innocence. She would be convicted of murder and given a long prison sentence. What kind of defence could she put up when she herself wasn’t convinced she was innocent? Tears streamed down her face as she crammed clothes and a random hand towel into her bag, her thoughts spinning wildly. She wondered whether to leave a note for her flatmate. Her best option would be to hurry to the station and jump on a train, any train, and get as far away from York as possible. Her mother lived in Leeds, but the police would probably be looking for her there. She had to move fast, and find a place where she could never be found.

As soon as she saw a car cruising along Gillygate, Lauren was afraid the police had come looking for her. When her doorbell rang a few minutes later, she knew it was them. She struggled to control her panic, but it was hard to think clearly. One thing was obvious: they were bound to suspect she had killed Jay. She couldn’t stay where she was, waiting for them to find her. On the other hand, she wondered whether it would be an overreaction to run away. After all, she had done nothing wrong and there was no reason why she shouldn’t talk to the police. It wasn’t her fault Jay had tripped and fallen down the stairs. For a couple of days she hadn’t even realised what had happened to him. It wasn’t until she had gone back to see him, and had seen the police activity at his lodgings, that she had believed he was dead. Now the police were ringing her doorbell while she sat on the floor, hiding her face in her...