The Intruder by A.J. Wills

Author:A.J. Wills [Wills, A J]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-01-31T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 28

The duty solicitor had a pleasant, avuncular face, with a drooping moustache and whiskery sideburns that wouldn’t have been out of place in a Dickensian novel.

‘The name’s Mapp,’ he said, as the cell door slammed closed. ‘Peter Mapp. North Kent duty solicitor. Sorry it took so long to get here. It’s been a hell of a day.’

Jez had been waiting for hours. They’d taken the laces from his shoes, and the belt from his trousers, checked behind his teeth with a torch, and stripped him of his watch. Dehumanised, and treated like a criminal.

Mapp took a seat on the edge of the bed, a thin plastic mattress on a concrete plinth attached to the wall. He placed a pile of papers on his lap, and shook Jez’s hand with a firm grip.

‘They think I killed my girlfriend,’ said Jez.

‘Did you?’

‘No, of course not.’

‘Then you have nothing to worry about.’

The tension lifted from Jez’s shoulders. At last, someone who believed him. ‘Do you think you can get me out of here?’

Mapp pulled a single sheet free from the bundle of papers, and squinted at the printed text through thick glasses. ‘What did you tell them?’

‘Nothing,’ said Jez. ‘Well, only the truth.’

‘Which is?’

‘Alice is missing, and I have no idea where she is.’

‘Hmmm,’ said Mapp. ‘Did they ask if you wanted legal representation?’

‘No.’

‘Right, well from what I can see, their evidence is pretty flimsy, so no wonder they didn’t want a lawyer in with you. It’s a complete abuse of power, of course, but that will only strengthen our case.’ He grabbed a pen from the briefcase he’d set down by his feet, and jotted down a note on the top of the sheet of paper. ‘Nothing more than a fishing expedition. We should have you out in no time.’

‘Thank God. I was beginning to lose my mind in here.’

‘Mind you, you shouldn’t have said anything to them without a solicitor in the room.’

‘But I have nothing to hide.’

Mapp peered over his glasses, giving Jez the once over. ‘That’s immaterial. Now what we have here is all largely circumstantial. Nothing to indicate your involvement in the woman’s disappearance at all.’

‘Her name’s Alice.’

‘What?’

‘My girlfriend. She’s called Alice.’

‘Of course. And when did you last see her?’

‘Saturday morning. We had an argument. I walked out. I moved back in with my parents, and I’ve not heard from her since. She’s been ignoring my calls and messages.’

‘One of the detectives says he found blood on the stairs at the house, and that none of Miss Grey’s belongings appear to have been taken.’

Jez stared at the solicitor blankly.

‘So how do you explain that?’ Mapp asked.

‘I don’t know about the blood. It could have come from any of us.’

‘And why hasn’t she taken any of her things with her? These are the sorts of questions a jury can attribute a great deal of significance to.’

‘Maybe she was in a rush. It doesn’t prove anything.’

Mapp ran his tongue over his teeth. ’What about this yacht, the Fare Winds?′

‘It’s my uncle’s boat.

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