LITMIR.BIZ

       5

      Beth Chambers

      Nigel Fuller was staying at a terraced house about fifty yards from his daughter’s place. It was just outside the police cordon and I was surprised there were no uniforms standing out front.

      I fully expected him to decline the opportunity to speak to the press but decided it was worth a try. As any reporter knows you can never be sure how loved ones will react when approached. Some consider it the ultimate intrusion. Others just slam the door in your face, or refuse to even answer it in the first place. But a sizable number do actually open up and perhaps even find it cathartic to talk about how shocked and grief-stricken they are.

      I had to play this carefully. Mr Fuller might well still have been here because the detectives wanted to interview him again, in which case they wouldn’t want me anywhere near him. But if I could persuade him to talk to me it would put me way ahead of the pack.

      When a woman answered the door I knew it probably meant that there were no police officers inside. That was a result. She was plump and middle-aged. She wasn’t wearing any make-up, and her face was a grey, washed-out colour.

      Before she could get a word out I flashed my press card and said, ‘My name’s Bethany Chambers and I’m a reporter with The Post. I’ve come to have a word with Mr Fuller.’

      Her eyes narrowed and her expression became wary.

      ‘How did you know he was here?’

      ‘The police told me,’ I said. ‘They’re keen to put out an appeal for information and they believe a quote from Megan’s father would ensure it has maximum impact.’

      Okay, that was stretching it, but it wasn’t actually an outright lie since the cops would soon be using the media to reach out to the public anyway.

      ‘Of course I’ll understand if he’s not up to it having gone through such a traumatic experience.’

      ‘But I don’t understand,’ she replied. ‘The detective told us not to talk to anyone. He said Nigel should wait here until he came back, and that a family liaison officer was on her way over. That’s who I thought you were.’

      ‘The thing is the sooner the appeal can go out the better,’ I said. ‘The police are desperate to contact anyone who might have seen or heard something last night.’

      The woman bit down on her lower lip and looked back over her shoulder. I could tell she was anxious and confused. And I knew that if I didn’t get over the threshold in the next few seconds I never would.

      ‘Perhaps you should ask Mr Fuller,’ I prompted. ‘It might be something he wants to do. I promise I’ll only ask a couple of questions.’

      She was about to respond when a man appeared in the hallway behind her.

      ‘Who is it, Martha?’ he said.

      The woman turned.

      ‘It’s a newspaper reporter. She wants—’

      ‘The name’s Bethany Chambers, sir,’ I cut in. ‘I’m with The Post. Are you Mr Fuller?’

      He stepped forward and stood next to his neighbour in the doorway.

      ‘I am,’ he said. ‘What is it you want?’

      I cleared my throat and weighed my words before I spoke.

      ‘Well, let me begin by saying that I’m truly sorry for your loss, Mr Fuller. What has happened to your daughter is truly shocking. We’re now cooperating with the police to get as much publicity as possible. My paper is about to publish an appeal for information and it’s been suggested by the police that you might like to include a few words about Megan.’

      I had used the same spiel on numerous occasions before and it had worked about fifty per cent of the time. There was no easy way to approach a grieving relative, and it was always hard not to come across as insensitive, or even callous.

      I studied the man as he thought about what to do. He was in his late fifties, and tall enough to look down his nose at me. His grey hair was cropped short, and his eyes were red and puffy.

      After a few seconds he gave a stiff nod and said, ‘Very well. You’d better come in.’

      I followed him along the hall and Martha closed the door behind us. In the living room he sat on the sofa and gestured for me to sit on an armchair opposite. Martha asked me if I wanted a cup of tea; I declined, but she said she would put the kettle on anyway and left the room.

      I took out my notebook and pen and rested them on my knee. Questions stormed into my mind, but I didn’t want to rush things. I was acutely aware of how upset Mr Fuller must be and that he might break down at any moment. Therefore I had to tread carefully.

      I pulled in a heavy breath and said, ‘Perhaps you could start by telling me what sort of person Megan was. Most people will only know her as Lisa Fawkes from the TV soap.’

      His eyes grew sorrowful and the muscles in his jaw tensed.

      ‘She was wonderful,’ he said after a beat. ‘She got on with most people and was very thoughtful.’

      ‘I understand she’d been at a low ebb since losing her job with the BBC.’

      ‘That’s true. It came as a shock, and this last year in particular was hard for her. She was quite depressed. I think she found it hard to accept that her life had changed so much.’

      ‘Were you close?’

      He nodded. ‘Of course, although I now regret the fact that we didn’t see much of each other in recent years.’

      ‘What about her mother, your wife?’

      ‘Trisha passed away six years ago. Cancer. Megan was very much like her mother and we were both so proud of her.’

      I felt a lump rise in my throat and had to pause before

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