Silent Scream

Seventy-Five

Cerys looked from her to William and then back again.

Kim covered the ground between them and took the weeds from his hand. ‘William, I have to ask you to leave the area now.’

He looked pained as his eyes rested on the area of ground that held Cerys’s attention. He nodded.

She took his right hand. ‘William, none of this is your fault, you have to know that. No one died because of you. It was just made to look that way by an evil, devious man with no conscience.’

His gaze met hers. It would take time for him to believe it.

‘I’ll leave you to it, Detective.’

She squeezed his hand. ‘My name is Kim and I want to thank you for everything you’ve done.’

William coloured with embarrassment. She let go of his hand. ‘Now get back to your wonderful daughter.’

He smiled widely. ‘Thank you, Det— Kim. I will.’

Kim waited until he'd gone and stepped over to where Cerys had laid down the machine.

Cerys turned to her. ‘Whatever’s down there is not very deep.’

Kim nodded and swallowed.

Cerys passed her the keys to the van. ‘There are shovels in the back. Go and fetch them while I mark it out.’

Kim sprinted to the van, grabbed two shovels and ran back down the hill. The painkillers she'd taken earlier were starting to wear off. The pain pounded across her lower back.

Cerys had marked out the area. Kim saw immediately that it was smaller than the rest.

Cerys took one more look at the readings regurgitated from the magnetometer and pointed. ‘You work that side but don't go too hard.’

Kim threw the shovel into the ground. A pain speared the width of her back but she ignored it and focused on what she needed to do.

The two of them worked without speaking for the next half an hour.

‘Okay, Kim, stop and get out,’ Cerys said, suddenly.

The pit was approximately five feet long but three feet wide, with a depth of no more than a foot.

Family pets were buried deeper.

Cerys walked around the perimeter of the pit twice before she got in. She used the hand tools to remove small mounds of dirt and place it to the side of the pit.

Kim didn't speak. Her eyes were on Cerys.

Cerys continued digging. The mounds of earth got smaller. She used the edge of the small trowel to scrape along a section in the middle of the pit.

On the third scrape, sections of white began to appear.

Cerys took a soft brush and dragged it along the surface. More white emerged.

Kim’s stomach turned as she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was looking at bone.

‘That, Kim, is most definitely an arm.’

Cerys continued to dig and dust until she revealed what looked to be a shoulder joint. Kim stared as more and more bone was revealed.

‘Cerys, what’s that?’ Kim asked, staring at something protruding from the shoulder joint.

Cerys dusted it once and Kim could see that it was fabric.

Kim’s heart began to hammer in her chest.

‘Cerys, dust it again.’

She did and Kim swore. Cerys turned and their eyes met.

‘Is this what you were looking for?’

Kim nodded, her feet already moving slowly towards the bike.

‘Cerys ... I have to ...’

‘Go,’ she said, taking out her phone. ‘I'll call it in.’

Kim sprinted up the hill as fast as her legs would move.