Before I Wake Read online

  Mr. Eke nodded. “Yes. Lexi and Susan went to school together.”

  “Do you have an address for Susan? We’ll need to speak to her as well.”

  “Somewhere.” Mr. Eke turned to his wife. “Find it.”

  Zander struggled not to frown at the terse command. No please, or a dear, or even using her name.

  The woman merely nodded and stood up to do as her husband asked.

  “We’ll also need to speak with Lexi’s boyfriend,” Isabel said.

  “She had no boyfriend.” Mr. Eke turned his fierce gaze onto Isabel. “She was a good girl. Very active in my church. I’m the vicar of St. Crispin’s. She’s never been interested in boys—at least not the way you’re implying.”

  Isabel stared at him. “The last time I spoke to her, she told me about her boyfriend. So, we really do need to speak with him.”

  “You knew my daughter?” Mrs. Eke glanced at them and spoke for the first time since they’d arrived.

  “Yes. She used to be my Gran’s home help. She also worked with DC Ellery’s grandfather.”

  “It’s a wonderful work she’s doing. Caring for the elderly,” Mr. Eke spoke before his wife had chance to even open her mouth again. “It’s a shame more children don’t care for their parents the same way. Do you, DC York?”

  “I’m an orphan,” Isabel replied. “It’s just me since Gran died.”

  “And my parents are fine,” Zander said quickly, before the man picked on him as well. “I saw Mum just this afternoon.”

  “1 Timothy 5:4 says, but if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God.”

  Zander changed the subject. “Do you have an up to date photo of Lexi we could have? Maybe one that shows her necklace?”

  Mr. Eke frowned. “Another expensive trinket, a gift she had no business accepting. Or keeping. It’s a sign of vanity and that’s a sin.”

  Mrs. Eke crossed the room back to them. She held out a photo. “Here’s one. And Susan’s address.”

  Isabel took them. “Thank you. If you don’t mind me asking, who gave her the pendant?”

  “She never said, but she wore it constantly.” Mrs. Eke glanced nervously at her husband.

  Zander sprang to his feet and held out one of his cards. “Once again, we’re sorry for your loss. If you need to ask us anything, this is where you can find us.”

  He waited until they were in the car before glancing at Isabel as the curtains twitched. “We’re being watched. Probably best we don’t sit here and talk.” He shoved the keys into the ignition and pulled away from the kerb. “Now is that just me, or was that more than a little strange?”

  “Downright peculiar is more like it.” Isabel eased back in her seat. “She was distraught, and he was emotionless. Are we going to Susan Higgins’ place?”

  Zander glanced at the clock on the dashboard. “It’s a bit late. Almost midnight.”

  “Well I’m not about to turn into a pumpkin, and it’d be better than waking up and hearing it on the news. Besides which, if Lexi was meant to be spending the weekend with her, then why wasn’t she reported missing? Maybe Susan is lying hurt or worse.”

  “Good point.” Even though Zander longed for bed, he had to give her brownie points for that. He whacked up the air conditioning to freezing to keep himself awake and drove across town.

  The house was in darkness as he pulled up outside. He rang the bell three times before a light flicked on and a figure appeared behind the frosted glass door.

  A man opened it. “What do you want?”

  Isabel held up her ID. “DC York and DC Ellery. We need to speak to Susan Higgins, please.”

  “Can’t it wait until morning?”

  She shook her head. “No. I’m afraid not. Can we come—?”

  The man turned. “Sue, get down here now! Two cops to see you.” He slammed the door shut.

  Isabel glanced witheringly at Zander. “It seems to be the night for encountering strange men.” She elbowed him. “Of course, you’re the strangest. That goes without saying.”

  He grunted. “Good. Else I’d have to start sulking and trust me—I’m way too tired to sulk in a nice fashion right now.”

  “There’s a good way to sulk?” She sounded amused. “You’ll have to show me.”

  The door opened a crack.

  A woman in a dressing gown stood there. “Can I help you? I’m Susan Higgins.”

  Zander held up his ID. “Can we come in?”

  The woman glanced nervously over her shoulder. “Not really.” She tugged the dressing gown closer, but not fast enough to hide the red marks on her chest.

  “We can’t discuss this on the doorstep,” Zander said. “We can go down to the station if it’s easier.”

  “What’s this in connection with?” she asked.

  “We need to ask you about Lexi Eke. She was meant to be staying with you this weekend.”

  “Who…who told you that?”

  “Her parents.”

  The woman started shaking. “I’m sorry. I can’t help you. I don’t know anyone by that name. I have to go. Barney needs me.” She shut the door.

  “O-K.” Isabel shrugged. “We tried.”

  Zander jerked his head and turned to go. A crash and scream from behind the closed door had him whirling back. “That’s probable cause.”

  Another scream echoed.

  Zander kicked open the door and ran in.

  The woman lay on the floor, trying to defend herself from the bloke who’d originally opened the door. He had raised fists and a knife.

  Not needing to think, Zander rushed over and pulled the man off her. A short scuffle later and the man lay face down on the carpet, Zander’s knee in the middle of his back. Grabbing his wrists, Zander cuffed him. “What’s your name?”

  “Barney Terrance. And I ain’t done nothing wrong.”

  Zander resisted the urge to tell the man that a double negative actually counted as an admission of guilt. He read the bloke his rights.

  Isabel was calling for an ambulance.

  He glanced over. “Everything OK, Is?”

  “She’s bleeding. The knife must have caught her. Ambulance and back up are on the way.” Isabel had one hand clamped over a wound in the woman’s side. “What about you?”

  Zander nodded. “I’m fine.” Sirens wailed as the back-up arrived. “Go to the hospital with Susan. I’ll book this bloke in and then come and find you.”

  2

  Despite it being Sunday, Zander sat in the office filing paperwork.

  Isabel was also busy at her desk, filing Susan Higgins’ statement.

  They’d both decided to do it while it was fresh in their minds and before they became bogged down in the murder investigation again on Monday.

  DI Holmes strode across the floor towards them. Zander had rung him and asked him to come in, not fully expecting him to do so. “OK, you’ve got five minutes to fill me in and then I need to get to church. I’m on the door this morning.”

  Zander glanced up. “They found somewhere to meet?”

  “Yes. Headley Cross Secondary are letting us use the hall for the time being.” DI Holmes perched on the edge of the desk. “So, talk. What’s so urgent you’re both here at eight thirty on a Sunday?”

  Zander leaned back in his chair. “We spoke to Rev. and Mrs. Eke last night. Lexi was meant to be staying with a friend for the weekend—Susan Higgins. The sister of our artist, Dominic Higgins.”

  “The short version, Zander. The full one can wait for the briefing tomorrow.”

  “This is the short version, Guv. Anyway, we go there to find her being attacked by Barney Terrance. She’s in hospital with a knife wound. He’s downstairs sitting in a cell sobering up. We’re doing the reports now.”

  DI Holmes frown encompassed both of them. “Did you get any sleep?”

  Isabel la
ughed. “Sleep is for wusses, Guv. Running on pure caffeine this morning.”

  “Couple of hours, Guv,” Zander said, rolling his eyes at his partner.

  “Good. Because I’d like you both in church in time for the morning service. It’s important to reflect and recharge.”

  “Is that an order or a suggestion?”

  “I can make it an order if you prefer.”

  Zander shook his head. “Are you preaching as well today?”

  DI Holmes grinned. “Not this week. Some point in July, I think. I’ll see you there.” He paused. “Is he our killer?”

  “I’d like to think so, but who knows? I can talk to him now.”

  “Tomorrow.” DI Holmes stood and headed to the door.

  Isabel dropped her pen to the desk. “Seriously? Tomorrow?”

  “I agree with you there, partner.” Zander was quick to back her up. “How about now?”

  “I heard that.” DI Holmes spun. “Let him sober up completely. He’s not going anywhere. We have twenty-four hours, right? We’ll use them.”

  “The twenty-four hours runs out at about 1AM tomorrow morning.”

  “Courts aren’t open until ten,” DI Holmes glanced back. “Do it first thing tomorrow.”

  “Yes, Guv.” Zander waited until the man was out of earshot and had closed the squad room door behind him. He glared at the board. “Six women. Six commandments.”

  “So, what happens when he reaches ten?” Isabel twirled her chair around a couple of times.

  Zander grinned, tempted to do the same thing just to relieve the tension in the room. “He stops as he’s made his point.”

  Isabel braced her hands on the desk, bringing the movement of the chair to an abrupt halt. “And what is that exactly? That the judicial system isn’t up to his high standards? That religion needs to take a bigger and better part in the life of society, as it did years ago when everyone attended church each week?”

  “Don’t know. Wish I did because we’d be halfway to catching him.” Zander tapped his pen on the desk. “What was the name of the church Rev. Eke is vicar of?”

  “St. Crispin’s.”

  “So maybe we go there this morning. Talk to a few people about her.”

  Isabel grabbed her bag and pushed to her feet. “I guess that way we’re still going to church.” She leaned over the computer and tapped fast. “OK. Morning mass is eight-thirty. We’ve missed that, but if we leave now, we might catch the end of the service or people as they are leaving.”

  Zander stood. “Sounds good, then we can get to church ourselves. The Guv is right about that. We ought to go, especially now.”

  ~*~

  St. Crispin’s wasn’t what Isabel was expecting. She’d imagined a tall, imposing, ornate building with stained glass windows and huge grounds. Instead it was a simple yellow building, one tower in front of a single story, and a tiny congregation of no more than twenty people. She and Zander slid into the back row a few minutes into the sermon.

  Dressed in a black robe and white dog collar, Rev. Eke was in full swing. “We must resist the devil, or he will find you. He will track you down. He will possess you. And when he is finished with you here, he will take you to hell. Our children are not safe. None of them. A demon walks the streets of this town, slaughtering our daughters. None of us are immune from the evil that surrounds us. One mistake is all it takes for him to get hold of our daughters.”

  Isabel shuddered and glanced uncomfortably at Zander. This wasn’t a good idea. They should have sat in the car outside the church and waited for the service to end.

  Zander leaned closer. “He’s using his own daughter as a sermon illustration. Bit rich. Even for a vicar.”

  “You must confess and repent.” Rev. Eke thumped the pulpit hard. “Repent. Repent. Repent and be baptised. It is only by confession and baptism and prayer that your eternal soul will be saved from the fiery furnace of hell.”

  Goosebumps ran down Isabel’s spine. She’d heard about fire and brimstone preachers but never experienced it for herself. And honestly, she never wanted to again. As the words of the sermon rang out, they pierced her mind. Rev. Eke’s smouldering gaze burned into her, and she became more uncomfortable. She had to get out of here, but found it almost impossible to move, the hypnotic words pressing her down in her seat.

  Somehow, she forced herself upright and staggered to the exit. She leaned against the car, sucking in deep breaths, praying hard against the evil in that room. Slowly in the warmth of the summer sun, her mind began to clear. Singing came from inside the building, yet not joyful singing. It was more the opposite, yet not a dirge. There was simply no life in it, as if all the gladness had been siphoned from the congregation.

  Zander joined her. “Are you all right?”

  “Yeah.” Isabel straightened. “I just had to get out. I wasn’t just uncomfortable, but something else. As though I was really dirty.”

  Zander nodded. “I felt the same. I wanted to leave but couldn’t.” He shivered, despite the heat of the sun. “What’s the time?”

  She glanced at her watch. “Nine fifty-five. Did you want to hang around a bit?”

  He shook his head. “No. I know that was the original plan, but right now I just want to go to our church where God is good.”

  A woman with wavy dark hair approached them. “Excuse me. Are you visitors?”

  “Police officers,” Zander said, pulling out his ID.

  “I thought so. Are you here about Lexi?”

  “Did you know her?” Isabel asked.

  The woman nodded. “We all did. She’s the vicar’s daughter. Lovely girl, very frugal tastes. Why did he choose her?”

  “What do you mean?” Zander asked.

  “The Slayer. He’s picking them to pay for their sins is what Rev. Eke says each week—like the ten commandments. Ten sins and ten women. And the sixth is murder. But Lexi never hurt anyone, much less killed them. He’d throw her out of the church like Orla if she did that, no matter if she’s his daughter.”

  “Orla?”

  “Rev Eke discovered Orla had killed someone and done time for it. He made her leave. The worst thing Lexi did was run over a bird on her way to work one morning. She was right upset about it.” The woman glanced over her shoulder. “Better go, Rob’s coming. He doesn’t like idle gossip.” She raised her voice slightly. “Thank you for visiting.”

  A tall man joined them, arm going possessively around the woman’s waist. “Not gossiping are you, dear?”

  “No, just being polite to the visitors. They are on their way to visit family.”

  Zander nodded. “Is, we should go, honey. Don’t want to be late for my parents.”

  Isabel played along. “No. It’s a fair drive, if we want to make lunch. Nice meeting you—I’m sorry, I didn’t catch your name.”

  “Yasmin,” the woman said. “This is my husband, Rob.”

  Zander opened the car door. “Nice to meet you. Come along, honey.”

  Isabel climbed into the car and closed the door. She looked at Zander as he got in the other side. “That’s the reason? The Slayer killed Lexi because she ran over a bird, and it fits that stupid murder of crows painting? Everyone runs over a bird at some point.” She let out a deep sigh. “Is it me or is something off here?”

  Zander started the car. “It’s not just you. This whole thing is just wrong, wrong, wrong.”

  ~*~

  Neither of them said a word as Zander drove to Headley Cross Secondary School. His mind whirled but didn’t land on any firm conclusions. It was only as he parked the car that he realised he remembered nothing of the drive to the school. He sat still, hoping he hadn’t shot any red lights or hit something en route.

  Isabel reached down and picked up her bag. “Do you reckon the Guv and Sarge will keep their wives in protective custody for now?”

  “I would. They’re both on the list the Slayer is selecting his victims from. He also loves tormenting you, and what better way to do it?”

>   She climbed from the car, gazing up at the building in front of them. “Wow. That is one big secondary school.”

  “Over thirteen-hundred kids,” Zander told her. “Several church members teach here.” He glanced over the top of the car at her. “You sure you’re all right?”

  “Half left,” she quipped, then shook her head. “I can still hear his voice echoing in my head, telling me I’m worthless and going to hell.”

  Zander rounded the car and gripped her shoulders gently. “Look at me, partner. You’re not worthless or a waste of space. You are loved, wanted. Jesus died for you, and you have invited Him into your heart. The way that bloke was preaching was wrong.”

  “It was as if he could see right inside me, knew what I was thinking, what I’d done. And those eyes. I’ve seen eyes like that before.”

  “Now you’re being paranoid, Is. You go to church to worship the Lord, learn more about Him, and to be with family. No other reason. Come on. Let’s go in.” He led her to the hall. Honestly, he didn’t blame her for feeling that way. His skin had crawled as well. It still did.

  DI Holmes stood on the door to the hall as they reached it. “You made it.” He held out a hand. “Paperwork all done.”

  Zander shook it. “Yeah. Bit of an interesting morning though. We called in at St. Crispin’s on the way here. Lexi’s father is the vicar there.”

  “Oh?”

  Zander glanced at Isabel. “Is, go on in and save me a seat. I’ll be right there.”

  “OK.” Still looking pale and shaky, Isabel nodded and headed inside the school hall.

  The Guv’s gaze followed her, and then he swung back to look at Zander. “Is she all right?”

  Zander shook his head. “No, and I don’t blame her. There is something off about that church and the vicar, Rev. Eke. He talked a lot about demons and hell, fire and brimstone, but it’s more than just that.”

  “Sounds like St. Crispin’s.” Pastor Carson’s voice came from behind him.

  Zander turned slightly. “Yeah.”

  Pastor Carson nodded. “I’ve heard a lot about that church, and none of it good, I’m afraid.”

  “We only caught part of the sermon. Isabel says she now feels dirty and worthless. And I don’t exactly feel forgiven and saved either.”