Connie had thought quickly. Ibrahim and his gang were on the trail of Bethany Waites’s killer, and, in her estimation, would probably find the killer. She was right about that, wasn’t she? Connie figured it wouldn’t do any harm to get involved. To help out. The court might look a bit more kindly on her if she’d helped track down a murderer.
So she’d torn up Heather’s note – Farewell, can’t take it any more, something or other like that, she’d only skimmed it – and written her own. Made Heather sound like a murder victim, and cast herself as someone with information. A saviour.
Now Connie knows that Andrew Everton killed Bethany Waites, she can put part two of the plan into action. She just has to invent a bit of evidence to show he killed Heather Garbutt too. The guy in the admin block, the one with the Volvo who had wiped the tapes of her going into Heather’s cell that night? She bets he might just remember Andrew Everton visiting the prison that evening. And Connie will, no doubt, remember something Heather had said to her. Something innocuous about the police. ‘This goes right to the top,’ some nonsense. She’ll have fun inventing the memory.
Everton will be convicted, and Connie will get a few years knocked off her sentence for cooperating with the authorities. Beautiful. And the sooner she’s out, the sooner she’ll deal with Ron Ritchie.
She had to hand it to Ibrahim, he really came good.
Though she remembers him telling her that she cared about Heather Garbutt. And the fact that she cared was proof she wasn’t a sociopath.
And, all the while, she had Heather Garbutt’s torn-up suicide note in her pocket.
Therapy really is a fascinating process. She can’t wait for more.
80
Joyce
You can imagine the hullaballoo here when he said it.
‘Viktor strikes again,’ Elizabeth said. ‘The Bullet never misses.’
There are now more than three million people watching Fiona’s Instagram Live. They have all just heard the same thing, and they are not being shy in giving their opinion. They all want to see what happens next.
I’m typing as I watch. It’s all very relaxed now, the three of them just chatting about bank accounts. Viktor is pouring them each a scotch.
Ron has just been telling a story about a policeman in Yorkshire who hit him with a truncheon. I asked if a lot of people hit him in those days, and he agreed that they did.
Even for us, this was a hell of a team effort. Cracking the names on the financial documents, getting Jack Mason to open up, making friends with Fiona Clemence. ‘Friends’ might be pushing it, although, looking at the numbers on her Instagram account now, perhaps we will be. Henrik doing his bit, lovely Viktor getting the confession. And Pauline and Mike still to come. Pauline is having to reapply Mike Waghorn’s make-up, because he’s been crying. I’ve just told him that three million people are watching, and he says he’s ready.
Earlier, I asked Bogdan how Donna was, and he said how do you mean, and I said how do you think I mean, and he gave me the cutest little smile and a thumbs-up.
Talking of which, a text came through from Mervyn. I was excited to see his name on my phone, and all a flutter as I opened the message.
Alan OK.
Well, we can work on him. We’ve all just wished Mike luck. Time to get back to the action.
81
Donna and Chris are watching on Donna’s computer. Everyone in their office is watching. Everyone in Fairhaven police station is watching. Everyone in Fairhaven is watching. Everyone, full stop, is watching.
It is safe to say that Andrew Everton is today’s newest ‘Most hated man in Britain’。 Though Donna notes that To Remain Silent is currently number one in Amazon’s ‘Movers and Shakers’ book chart.