Descent (A Kate Redman Mystery Novella) Read online

  Descent

  A Kate Redman Mystery Novella

  Celina Grace

  Descent

  Copyright © 2017 by Celina Grace. All rights reserved.

  First Edition: March 2017

  No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to locales, events, business establishments, or actual persons—living or dead—is entirely coincidental.

  Chapter One

  The new year came in hard in Abbeyford, ushered in by weather so wintry it could have blown straight in from the Arctic. Fields ploughed up for the harvest several months ago froze into solid brown rutted waves of dirt. Puddles became opaque circles of ice staring blankly up at the white sky. The trees and grass were outlined with a glittering skin of frost crystals, so thick in parts that it looked as though it had snowed.

  Snow would be better, Kate Redman thought as she sat in the toasty interior of her car in the police station carpark, trying to work up the willpower to plunge herself into the icy air outside. At least if we had some snow we could go sledging. But no snow was forecast yet – just more days of this intense, if seasonal, cold.

  Kate squared her shoulders and pulled on the woolly hat that her friend and colleague DI Mark Olbeck had given her for Christmas. It had a giant red pom-pom on top of it, which Kate had eyed somewhat quizzically when she’d opened the parcel. “It’s so you,” Olbeck had insisted, and so, of course, Kate had thanked him nicely and worn it whenever she was going to see him, although privately she thought she looked as though she was walking around wearing a giant clown’s nose on top of her head.

  Still, it was a warm hat. She pulled on the matching gloves – smaller red pom-poms at the cuffs – braced herself and then opened the door, launching herself out into winter’s frosty embrace.

  She normally used the back door of the station, which opened with the electronic pass issued to all staff. Kate’s pass didn’t seem to be working today. As she waved it towards the sensor futilely, she had the guilty thought that perhaps she shouldn’t have used it to scrape the ice from her windscreen this morning. Giving up, she trudged off towards the main entrance, pulling her clown-nose hat down more firmly around her ears.

  The warmth of the main reception area of the station came as a welcome surprise. It was surprisingly quiet for a weekday morning. Perhaps the icy weather was keeping all the usual petty criminals indoors for a change. Kate stopped to say hello to PC Paul Boulton, who usually manned the desk, and they exchanged all the usual post-Christmas and New Year pleasantries.

  “Oh, not bad, not bad. Quite quiet, actually. How about you?”

  Kate paused. She’d spent Christmas Day with Anderton, the recently suspended DCI of the station. She paused because she wasn’t certain just how far gossip about Anderton’s suspension, or about his relationship with Kate, had gone. Besides, when your significant other was a man in his fifties, what were you supposed to call him? Boyfriend sounded ridiculous. Lover sounded, well, too saucy. Partner? Companion? Main squeeze?

  Kate gave up. “Not bad, thanks. Pretty quiet too.”

  A blast of wintry air hit the back of her legs as the main reception door opened behind her. She turned just as a woman came into the station rather hesitantly, looking about her uncertainly.

  “How may I help you?” asked Paul. Kate stepped away smartly, leaving him to get on with his job.

  The woman came up to the desk. She looked to be in her late thirties, with a thin, pretty face and long, gently waving brown hair. “Oh, hullo – yes – I’m not sure if I’m in the right place—”

  Kate, divesting herself of her many layers of outdoor clothing behind the counter, listened idly. Paul Boulton, highly experienced at helping hesitant members of the public, made encouraging noises.

  The woman said “It’s just – it’s my friend. I think – I think she’s missing. She’s gone missing. “I don’t know whether I should report it or not.”

  “Has she been missing for long?” Paul asked.

  “Well, that’s just it. I think so, but I’m not absolutely certain. It’s just that a couple of days ago we arranged to meet for coffee and yesterday she didn’t turn up. It’s not like her, she’s normally so punctual. And I’ve been trying to get in contact with her, and she’s not answering her phone or her emails.”

  Paul reached for a notepad. “Let’s just take a few details from you. Could I have your name?”

  The woman clasped her hands together. Her fine leather gloves had a furry edging at the wrists and her woollen hat was obviously cashmere. Now why couldn’t Olbeck have given her something like that, thought Kate, and then chastised herself for her ungratefulness.

  “I’m Louise, Louise White. My friend’s name is Karyn Denver. She spent Christmas Day with us and went home the day after Boxing Day. I haven’t actually seen her since then but like I said, we were supposed to meet up for coffee yesterday, after New Year, and she just didn’t turn up.”

  Losing interest, and conscious of her own work waiting for her, Kate headed off. She’d thawed out quite nicely by now and was positively glad to be back at work. Excluding Anderton, she’d seen little of her colleagues apart from spending New Year’s Eve with Olbeck and his husband, Jeff. Practically bouncing into the office, she collided with DS Theo Marsh who was mid-yawn with his eyes closed.

  “Ouch!”

  “Oops! Sorry, Theo.”

  Theo grinned. “Kate, mate, I know it’s been a while but there’s no need to jump me. I’m glad to see you too.”

  “Ah, how I’ve missed your sexist banter.” Kate gave him a just-this-side-of-friendly punch on the arm.

  “Again, ouch.”

  “Oh, shush.” Kate headed straight for the coffee machine that had finally replaced the ancient old kettle in the kitchen.

  Theo followed her. “So, happy New Year and all that. How was your Christmas?”

  Again, Kate paused. Then, feeling she should at least be honest with one of her colleagues, she tried for a casual tone and said, “Quite nice, thanks. Anderton and I spent it together.”

  There was just a fraction of a second’s pause before Theo answered in an equally casual tone, “Oh, right. Nice one. How is the guv?”

  Kate paused for longer. How was Anderton? She wasn’t entirely sure herself. Oh, he seemed happy enough, pottering around his cottage, going to the gym and catching up with old friends, but even so, Kate could sense a slight shrinkage in Anderton’s normally ebullient personality. He must feel adrift – he must. So many years as a DCI. Managing his team, hunting down murderers and rapists and other violent criminals and all of a sudden – retirement. Because that was what he essentially was. Retired.

  Kate sifted through all the possible answers before deciding on a minor lie. “Oh, he’s fine.” Because Theo looked as though he were waiting for more, she added, “Desperate for us all to get together for a drink. You know, catch up.”

  By now, DC Rav Cheetam had joined them in the little kitchenette. “Are you talking about Anderton?” he demanded. “How is he?”

  Kate gave him the same non-committal answer and repeated the line about getting together for a drink.

  “That would be great,” said Rav. “It�
��ll have to be a soft drink, though. You know, Dry January and that.”

  Theo snorted. “Yeah, I do Dry January too. Strictly no drinking – except at weekends, in the pub and if I get thirsty.”

  Kate rolled her eyes and left them bickering over the subject while she went over to her desk. Her desk mate, DS Chloe Wapping, was still on holiday, which was annoying. Kate relied on her fellow female officer to dilute some of the laddish tempo of the office. Although – a thought occurred to Kate and she looked to see if Olbeck was in his office. Hooray – he was. Kate got up to see him and, on an afterthought, pulled on her woolly clown-nose hat.

  “Hi.” She stuck her head around his office door and waggled it, feeling the pom-pom bounce.

  Olbeck looked up and chuckled. “I told you. It suits you.”

  “Hmm.” Kate walked in and found herself a chair. “Anyway, I wanted to ask you. Who’s taking the lead? Who’s our interim DCI?” A further thought occurred to her and she leant forward in excitement. “Is it you?”

  Olbeck shook his head. “No. To be honest, Kate, I didn’t want the job. Not that they asked me.”

  Kate was opening her mouth to ask why not when she shut it again. Olbeck had undergone a fairly traumatic couple of months recently, due to their last high-profile case. It had only been a few weeks since he’d returned to work from sick leave. She nodded, understanding. “So, who is it?”

  “I got an email this morning. It’s Nicola Weaver.”

  Kate was surprised at the jolt the news gave her. She only knew Nicola Weaver by name – the DCI had worked in Bristol and had obviously transferred to Abbeyford for the job – but her immediate reaction to the news was shock at the realisation that her new boss would be a woman.

  A second later, she told herself that it was brilliant news. God knew there were precious few women in positions of high power in the force. Hadn’t Kate just been bemoaning the blokey atmosphere in the team to herself? This could be great, she told herself, ignoring a flicker of disquiet.

  Olbeck was speaking. “I know Nicky, a little. She seems very competent, and she’s done really well for herself in a tough field.”

  “I can imagine.” For a moment, Kate drifted off into a reverie where she herself attained the coveted position of DCI. Maybe even Superintendent?

  She came back to reality with a start, realising that Olbeck’s phone was ringing. He picked up the receiver and gave the usual greeting.

  Kate knew, even without hearing whoever was speaking on the other end of the line, that something had happened. And by something, she meant a body. Something like that, anyway. She’d worked with Olbeck for so long that she could read his body language almost subconsciously; the slight stiffening of his shoulders, the almost imperceptible tension in his face.

  She waited until he said goodbye and raised her eyebrows. “Something for us?”

  Olbeck nodded. “Patrol called it in. They’ve found the body of a woman in Blackdown Woods.”

  “What a lovely start to the new year.” Kate pushed herself upright and sighed. “Right, well, I await your orders. Or do we have to wait for our new DCI?”

  She was half-joking but Olbeck looked serious. “I’m not sure when she’s starting – I don’t know. Perhaps I should—” He began hunting for something on his desk, gave up and looked at Kate. “No, we need to get going, Nicola Weaver or no Nicola Weaver.” He handed a slip of paper over to Kate. “Here’s the details, and they’ll be on the system in a minute or two. Can you take Rav or Theo and head on over?”

  “Your wish is my command.” Kate inclined her pom-pom at him in acquiescence and waved a hand in goodbye as she left the room.

  Chapter Two

  Blackdown Woods was a local beauty spot; a hundred acre spread of thick, ancient woodland clustered around a natural stone gorge. Footpaths and bridle paths meandered throughout the trees, with one path running along the foot of the gorge. It was here that an early morning dog walker had found the crumpled body of a woman, splayed and broken, on the frosty mud of the path.

  Kate and Theo had, by necessity, parked their car some distance away, in one of the two small carparks provided for visitors. As they walked towards the winding steps that led to the foot of the gorge, miniscule white flakes began to flutter down from the sky. Kate turned her face up to the clouds above. “Is that snow?”

  “Looks like it. Bloody hell, it’s cold.” Theo banged his gloved hands together as they strode along. “I hope SOCO have already covered up the body.”

  “I’m sure they’re on the case.” Kate gripped the handrail as she made her way gingerly down the stone steps hewn out of the walls of the gorge many years ago. “Careful, it’s icy here.”

  They reached the ground with no incident and hurried towards the other end of the footpath, where they could see a great deal of activity. Kate looked up at the steep cliffs either side of them. “Who owns this, anyway?”

  “What?”

  “The land. The woods. Is it private?”

  “Nah. I think it’s National Trust. We can find out later, anyway.”

  As they got closer, they could see the white forensic tent had been erected to hide the body. There were various people milling about: Scene of Crime officers in their white overalls, a few uniformed officers. Kate looked for the civilian who had discovered the body but couldn’t see anyone. Perhaps they’d already been taken back to the station to give their statement. There were no curious onlookers, which made a change. It was obviously just too cold for people to be out and about as they normally would be in Blackdown Woods.

  Kate and Theo gloved up, slipped on their shoe covers and covered their heads. Then they ducked, thankfully, inside the tent which was a fraction warmer than the frigid air outside.

  Kate recognised the pathologist bending over the body immediately – it was Andrew Stanton, an old – very old – boyfriend of hers. It was one of the few triumphs of Kate’s personal life that she felt that she’d managed to retain him as a friend.

  He greeted her and Theo and added, “I’d say happy New Year but it doesn’t seem very appropriate in the circumstances.”

  “No.” Kate looked down at the body for the first time. With a slight shock, she realised that it was frozen solid, just as if it had been refrigerated. “What have we got?”

  She could see for herself before Andrew began to tell her. A woman, fairly young, with blonde hair covering her face. She lay on her side, arms and legs in a tangle. She was dressed in running gear: Lycra leggings and a matching jacket, wearing trainers and thick sports socks. The circumference of frost crystals around her head glittered red.

  “My first thoughts? She fell,” said Andrew, simply. “But don’t quote me on that. She’s got significant traumatic head injuries and I suppose they could be from an assault. But she’s also got several compound fractures – look, there and there—” He pointed to bulges in the Lycra on the woman’s arms and legs and Kate realised, queasily, that the lumps were edges of protruding bone. “I’d say that’s also commensurate with a fall.”

  Theo crouched down carefully for a closer look. “She’s been out here for a while. Look, she’s a block of ice.”

  “Yes, that could be a problem” said Andrew. “Once we thaw her out, the frost damage could hinder some of the findings. But we’ll try our best.”

  Kate crouched down too. “Any ID yet?”

  “Not yet.” Andrew was beginning to exhibit the testiness that was customary when he began to feel pressured. “Look, this is all preliminary at the moment. Let me get on with it, and I’ll see if I can find something conclusive. Otherwise you’ll have to wait.”

  Kate and Theo exchanged a grin behind Andrew’s back as he turned back to the body. “Right you are,” Kate said, standing up with a groan. God, if she was like this in her mid-thirties, what was she going to be like at fifty?

  Theo had sprung up
with the ease of a man well acquainted with the gym. “Shall we have a look around, Kate?”

  “Yes. I’m thinking up there to start with.” Kate pointed to the top of the tent but she meant the top of the gorge. Theo understood.

  “See if there’s any obvious signs of falling off the cliff face or something?”

  “You got it.”

  They ducked out of the tent again and both shivered as the cold air hit them anew. Snow was still falling, although not thickly and it didn’t seem to be settling yet. There were still no onlookers at the blue and white police tape cordoning off the area – something of a first for a case, thought Kate. No visible press either. Good, that made things easier.

  Kate walked back to the furthest side of the gorge where the woman had fallen and craned her neck upwards. The top of the ravine was just visible from here but she couldn’t see if there were any signs of a disturbance, any grubbed up grass or flattened bushes. They’d have to walk up there. She gestured to Theo and they went to try and find the closest path to the top of the gorge.

  It was a steep climb, and even Theo was puffing by the time they reached the top. Kate followed the gently winding path through the leafless beech trees. Undergrowth and bramble bushes hid the edge of the gorge from view, although here and there, they cleared enough for the sharp drop to be visible. Gingerly, Kate walked towards the edge, trying to see over to determine whether they were immediately above the body.

  Theo followed her reluctantly and stopped well back from the edge. Kate could see the square white top of the forensic tent directly below her. She looked around carefully. They stood in a kind of natural clearing encircled with beech and hazel trees, thorny clumps of brambles and the dead brown stalks of bracken. The frosted grass was short beneath their feet and over on a tree-stump to the side, Kate could see rabbit droppings frozen into oddly beautiful little pearls.

  “There’s nothing here,” muttered Theo, who had also been having a look.