Woman in the Water - Katerina Diamond

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pulled up the report form onscreen and stared for a moment, unsure where to start.

      ‘We’ve got two dead bodies and a missing woman,’ Adrian said, breaking Imogen’s trance.

      ‘But at least we have a lead. Something happened at their last job; you could see it in his eyes. I’ve never seen anyone go from mildly uncomfortable to such extreme agitation so quickly. He was beside himself. Was he distressed about something he had seen? Was he afraid of someone? Whatever it is, the answers are at that construction company.’

      ‘He was fine when we got there, a little on edge maybe. I just don’t understand what happened,’ Adrian said. ‘Maybe we need to look at why he moved back in with his parents, too? Did he lose his flat, or did he choose to move back home to look after his mother, like he claimed? Was it a financial decision or something else?’

      ‘We definitely don’t have all the pieces to the puzzle at this point,’ Imogen said, staring at her hands again.

      ‘Are you OK?’ Adrian said.

      ‘I just … I don’t understand how anyone could do that. That wasn’t a cry for help. The force he stabbed himself with, he wanted out.’

      ‘It was crazy.’

      ‘What could be that bad that he would rather end his life than talk to us about it? He was terrified.’

      ‘We’ll get the answers eventually. At least we have someone else to work on,’ Adrian said.

      ‘Where the hell is that woman?’ Imogen said.

      In all this, that was the part Imogen had the most trouble understanding. Neither Jane Doe nor Leon Quick would speak. She risked her own life by leaving the hospital to avoid any questioning and Quick ended his for the same reason. Who were these people and how were they connected?

      ‘Gary said he checked MisPers against her photo; there was no one matching her description reported missing.’

      ‘How is that possible? Does she not have a mother or father? We assumed she was married, but maybe the ring was something else.’

      Adrian leaned closer to Imogen and lowered his voice. ‘Stay at mine tonight? I don’t think either of us want to be alone right now.’

      ‘You’re not wrong.’

      She stayed at his most nights; in fact, she rarely went home. After a couple of months seeing each other in secret, they were on the brink of being in a serious relationship, she could feel it. It was exciting but at the same time, as usual, it came with a whole host of other complications. She hadn’t felt this way about anyone before. It wasn’t the crazy-making irrational lust she usually felt for someone when she thought she was in love with them. It was something much calmer, much more grounded and dependable. Was this the real deal? Did he even feel the same? Adrian was the kind of person who said what was on his mind and she still wasn’t sure how he felt.

      Imogen started typing, filling out the fields on the form as succinctly as possible. Before she had joined the police, she didn’t fully understand how different people react under pressure and she had seen all sorts of things before – but this? This was a new one on her. More than anything, she wanted to know what had caused Leon Quick to do that to himself. The worst thing was accepting that she might never find out.

       Chapter Twenty-Three

      The head office of Corrigan Construction was in Matford Business Park just outside Exeter city centre. The building itself was more substantial than Adrian was expecting. A large red-brick-and-grey structure the length of several houses, with windows stretched across the front so you could see the staff inside at their desks. The lobby was a wide-open space with a high glass ceiling and a reception desk in the centre. The walls were a dark slate grey and the wall facing the entrance had an enormous painting on it, which must have been over twelve foot square.

      Adrian stared at the painting as they both approached the desk, a contemporary swirl of reds and browns; even with his non-existent knowledge of art he could tell this was an expensive piece and not just something off the rack. He turned to the young woman behind the counter, who looked up and smiled. The smile dropped when Adrian held up his warrant card.

      ‘Can I help you?’ She returned her eyes to the computer screen.

      ‘I’m DS Miles. My colleague over there is DS Grey. We need to speak to someone about a former employee of this company.’

      ‘Do you have a name for this employee?’

      ‘Simon Glover. Do you know him?’

      ‘Vaguely. I saw him around. Is he in trouble?’ she said with uninterest, continuing to tap away on her keyboard.

      Adrian couldn’t tell if she was actually busy, or if it was just a pretence.

      ‘Is there anyone here who did know him?’ Adrian asked.

      ‘I’m just checking out which projects he was on and which crew he worked with,’ she said as she hammered away. ‘He worked our biggest contract last year, that new multistorey in town, which means he knew most of the guys.’

      ‘Who is the person in charge, then?’

      ‘Do you mean the gaffer on site, or the head of the company?’ she asked before adding, ‘Actually, on that project it was the same person. The big boss. Mr Corrigan isn’t in just yet. Jimmy Chilton is in, though; he’s the next most senior member of staff on that project. He’s just in a meeting at the moment, but if you wait over there, I’ll get someone to call him out.’

      ‘Thank you.’

      Imogen and Adrian moved to one side and waited as the girl on reception carried on with what she was doing. Imogen turned to face her and put her hand on her hips. No one was better at passive aggression than Imogen. When the girl looked up again and saw Imogen, she finally picked up the phone and called through to someone, rolling her eyes at the same time.

      ‘We’re in the wrong job. Look at this place!’ Adrian said.

      ‘Pretty fancy; there’s obviously a lot of money in construction,’ Imogen said.

      ‘I wonder who or what in this place spooked Leon Quick so much,’ Adrian said.

      ‘Officer?’ A man in his late forties with a scruffy peppered beard and a red baseball cap walked towards them with his hand outstretched to Adrian. ‘Jimmy Chilton. What can I do you for?’

      He turned his hand to Imogen, who reluctantly shook it. Jimmy Chilton looked out of place in this grand lobby, as though he had just clocked off after a long-distance lorry trip.

      ‘We’re here to talk to you about two former employees of yours,’ Adrian said.

      ‘Two?’ Jimmy Chilton said.

      He ushered them to the far corner of reception, away from the receptionist’s earshot.

      ‘Simon Glover and Leon Quick.’

      ‘Ah, right. Yes.’

      ‘Are you familiar with them?’

      ‘Yes, of course.’

      ‘What can you tell me about them?’ Adrian asked.

      ‘They were often late; sometimes their work was sloppy. Spent more time chatting than working. We had to let them go.’

      ‘We were led to believe they both left of their own volition,’ Imogen said.

      ‘I don’t know where you got that information from, but it’s incorrect. They were both fired. Why do you want to know why they left?’

      ‘Who let them go?’ Adrian said.

      ‘Probably me or Reece. Reece Corrigan. We do most of the hiring and firing. I’m afraid I don’t remember

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