The Drowning Child

67

The full investigation team were gathered in the command center when Ren arrived back at Tate PD. Ruddock was at the top of the room.

Whoa: this looks serious.

‘OK,’ said Ruddock. ‘We have an update on Merrifield. The real estate agent shares a house with a divorced woman called Serena Jones, whose boyfriend is a courier for a pharmaceutical company that delivers to Salem Hospital. Jones’s maiden name is... Lockwood.’

He waited for everyone to process the information.

Oh my God. ‘Lockwood was the supplier in BRCI,’ said Ren.

‘According to Salem PD, Jones and her boyfriend have admitted to getting Merrifield out of the hospital that day in his delivery van,’ said Ruddock. ‘He deliberately held back some of his Friday delivery so he had a reason to be there on a Sunday.’ He paused. ‘Then Jones used her roommate’s key to gain access to the Lyle house.’

‘And was there a plan?’ said Ren. ‘Why were they doing this?’

‘Because Lockwood told them Merrifield threatened to blow his cover,’ said Ruddock. ‘They’re keeping quiet on the rest of it. They admit to supplying Merrifield with the heroin, but they’re not going to admit the OD was deliberate.’

‘So Merrifield thought they were going to release him into the wild?’ said Ren.

‘Apparently, so,’ said Ruddock.

‘Have they taken Rob Lockwood in?’ said Ren.

‘He’s waiting for his lawyer,’ said Ruddock.

Paul Louderback turned to Ren. ‘Do you want to fill everyone in on the Veirs?’

‘Sure,’ said Ren.

After the meeting, Ruddock called Ren into his office, closed the door behind them.

You look haunted in the eye.

‘What is it?’ said Ren.

‘There’s something I want to show you,’ said Ruddock. He handed her a Christmas card.

She read it. ‘It’s from Wiley. And his wife.’ Then she looked up at him. The handwriting – it’s the same as the note in Roger Lyle’s room. ‘Written by his wife?’ said Ren.

‘Isabella, yes,’ said Ruddock. ‘It looked familiar when I saw it, but I didn’t want to say anything...’

Because you know I have my doubts about Wiley.

‘I wanted to make sure I was right,’ said Ruddock. ‘It took me a while to find the card. I haven’t said a word to Gil,’ said Ruddock.

Isabella Wiley’s drink problem, Isabella found wandering drunkenly on Harvest Road the previous Thursday.

‘She must have gone to confront Lyle,’ said Ren. ‘Hearing about Aaron pushed her over the edge.’

‘Knowing that it was the night of the middle school dance and Lyle’s house was so close to the school...’

‘Lyle probably said something vile to her, as these assholes do,’ said Ren, ‘and whatever it was left her in a weeping mess on the side of the road for her husband to pick up. She obviously can’t bear to tell him.’

‘You know, I still have my wife’s photos,’ said Ruddock. ‘I went through the boxes.’ He handed Ren a photo. It was a beautiful, beaming little Latina girl in a swimsuit. A towel was thrown on the bench behind her. Ren could make out the image of a swan.

‘Oh, God,’ said Ren. ‘She’s in one of the CVIP videos.’ She shook her head. ‘Poor Isabella.’ She paused. ‘And poor Wiley.’

Ren went back to her desk and continued going through the images. She stopped when she saw something familiar in a little boy of about ten years old with auburn hair to his shoulders, standing proud, his chest out, a swimming medal on a ribbon around his neck.

The next images were him again, but they were all wrong.

Oh, God. Oh, God.

Not you too.

Fuck.

Ren called Ruddock. ‘I’m going to go out to The Crow Bar,’ said Ren, ‘I need to talk to Seth Fuller. It looks like he was one of Roger Lyle’s victims, too.’

‘I just got a call about Seth Fuller,’ said Ruddock. ‘I’m afraid it’s not good.’