Ghigau 12

 

 

 

Sam Tate pulled up outside the address she had for the artist Exa. ‘What a dump,’ she thought. Somehow she had expected something different, she wasn't sure what, but this unprepossessing block of local authority flats wasn’t it. She climbed the stone steps, turning her nose up at the pungent smell of ammonia, made worse by the stifling heat. She knocked on the door of number twenty-four and waited. After a few seconds a young girl with wild hair, dressed in what appeared to be a tie-dyed romper suit, opened the door and glared at her suspiciously.

    “Yeah?” The girl said.

    Sam flashed her badge. “DS Sam Tate, to see Exa?”

    The girl rolled her eyes and, leaving the door open, went back inside, calling ahead of her in what sounded to Sam like a fake cockney accent, “It’s the Old Bill.”

    Sam was used to a negative reception from the public. She didn’t wait to be invited but stepped inside the flat and stood in the hallway. The soaring temperature was making her feet hurt and she longed to slip her shoes off. After a few seconds another young woman appeared, taller and better dressed than the first, although that wasn’t saying much. Sam spotted the resemblance straight away and guessed siblings, this woman didn’t look old enough to be the younger one’s mother.

    “Exa?” Said Sam, extending a hand.

    “Yes, please come in” Exa shook her hand and then apologised for leaving a smudge of paint on Sam’s palm.

    Sam followed Exa down the hallway and into a room that looked like a squat from the 1970s. She took the seat offered to her and waited while her host cleared debris from a sofa and sat herself down.

    “This is about Nikki Talbot right?” Exa said.

    “Yes, you’re aware that Mrs Talbot went missing after she left you three days ago?” Sam said.

    “Yes, her husband called me, it’s very odd.” Said Exa.

    “Obviously we’re very concerned for Mrs Talbot’s well-being and as you were possibly the last person to see her that day, I’d just like to ask you some questions if that’s ok with you?” Sam’s feet throbbed and she could feel a headache building. The heat and the smell of paint thinners and marijuana wasn’t helping. How the fuck do people live like this? She took out her pad and recorder.

    “Yes, sure,” said Exa. “It’s really strange, I mean she seemed absolutely fine at our meeting.” She shrugged.

    Sam nodded as if she had learned something really interesting. Her first impression had been wrong, she thought. Exa, and presumably her sister, was definitely from the right side of the tracks, she could tell from the accent and by how at ease she was in the presence of the Police. Just staff to you aren’t we love, she thought.  

    “I see. Firstly, Exa? Is that a pseudonym? I mean is it your actual name or?” She left the question hanging.

    “It’s the name I create under.” Exa didn’t offer any further explanation.

    Sam nodded. “I understand, but I’m going to need your given name for our records if that’s all right?”

    Exa hesitated. “I wouldn’t want that getting into the public domain though.” She said nervously.

    “Because?” Sam asked, raising an eyebrow.

    “Because, I just wouldn’t. My family don’t exactly approve of my work.” Exa said.

    Everyone has secrets, Sam thought. “There’s no reason this information should go any further.” She said. “But for our internal purposes we need to know who we are talking to. You understand I’m sure.”

    Exa looked doubtful. “Do I have to?”

    “You’re not under any obligation at the moment of course.” Sam said. “But if I have to caution you officially, that could possibly end up in the public record so best to just keep it between us don’t you think?”

    Exa sighed. “It’s Hughes, Arabella Hughes.”

    “And the young lady who answered the door?” Sam went on.

    “My sister, Tilly — Matilda.”

    “And was Tilly here when Mrs Talbot visited you?”

    “Yes, she was.” Exa seemed uncomfortable.

    Sam paused and let her notebook drop to her lap. “I appreciate this can be stressful Miss Hu—— , Exa,” She corrected herself. “But a woman is missing and it’s important we do our best to find her.”

    “Of course, sorry. It’s just that I don’t ever use my real name and in fact I don’t really feel like that person any more.” Exa said simply.

    Families, thought Sam. I wonder what the story with this one is. “I really do appreciate your help.” She said. “So, tell me about your meeting with Mrs Talbot, I assume it was for business?”

    “She’s going to show my work at her gallery. It’s quite a big deal for me.” Exa said. She stood and lit a roll-up, omitting to offer one to Sam, then paced the room slowly, taking deep lungfuls of smoke, as she recalled the hours spent with Nikki, running through them moment by moment. When she got to the point where she’d left the room just as Nikki’s phone had buzzed, Sam interrupted her.

    “Did you hear Mrs Talbot answer her phone?”

    “I think it was a message not a call. She’d had a couple while we were talking and hadn’t checked them, so I guess she probably checked while I was gone.” Exa said.

    “And when you returned to the room?” 

    “Nikki was ready to leave by then.” She said.

    “Did she appear different in any way? Upset or agitated?”

    “No, she seemed fine.” Exa said. “It was a really good meeting, I like her. We got on.”

    “Did she say anything about her plans for the evening?” Sam asked.

    “Not at that point, but she had mentioned earlier that she was going to be having a ‘quiet night in’.” 

    “And she left you at what time?”

    “I think it was just after five o’clock.” Exa said.

    Sam scribbled some notes and then asked if she could talk to Tilly. Exa left the room and Sam could hear muffled protests from the younger girl, obviously no fan of the police. When they came back in together Tilly had a sullen face and all but dragged her feet across the floor then stood in front of Sam like a schoolgirl waiting to be given a dressing down.

    “Hi Tilly,” Sam said, gently. 

    There was no response.

    “I just have a couple of questions, ok?” Sam’s headache was thumping now.

    “Whatever,” was Tilly’s eventual reply.

    “You let Mrs Talbot in when she arrived didn’t you?” Said Sam.

    “Yeah.” She wasn’t going to make this easy.

    “Did she arrive alone?” Sam rubbed her temple, trying to relieve the pain.

    “Yeah.”

    “Did you talk to her much yourself, before your sister met her?”

    “Nah.”

    The faux Essex accent was irritating Sam. “So you just showed her in?”

    “Yeah.”

    Sam took in the carefully manicured nails and expensive looking piercings. Despite the girl’s attempt to look like a waif, Sam thought she could detect a little princess hiding behind the facade. “You don’t like to say much do you Tilly? You think it’s funny to be uncooperative?”

    Tilly looked stunned. “You can’t talk to me like that.” She spluttered.

    Sam smiled, “So you can string more than two words together then.”

    “Whatever.” Sullen faced again.

    “Well, if you’ve got nothing to say then I guess I’ll be on my way.” Sam stood and turned to thank Exa. “I’ll be in touch if I have any more questions and if you think of anything you haven’t mentioned, however insignificant, don’t hesitate to call me.” She handed Exa a card then turned to face Tilly.

     “It was only a fifteen minute walk home for Nikki Talbot and she never made it.” Sam said, pointedly. She let that fact sink in and then headed for the door.

    “Who says she walked?”

    Sam turned round. “What do you mean Tilly?”

    “Like I said. Who says she walked?” Said Tilly, tilting her chin up.

    “We know she walked from the gallery to get here. She didn’t drive. It was a short walk home. Why wouldn’t she?” Sam said, stepping back closer to Tilly.

    Tilly face was a picture. She seemed to be struggling between speaking and spitting in Sam’s face. “What if she got an Uber or something?”

    “We’ve checked. She didn’t.” Sam waited. “Is there a reason you think she didn’t walk Tilly? Is there something you want to say?”

    Exa put a hand on Tilly’s shoulder. “Tilly, what’s going on?”

    “Nothing.” Tilly shrugged Exa’s hand off. “I saw a car waiting that’s all. If these lot were any good they’d have known already. They’d have looked at the CCTV and all that.”

    Sam took out her pad again. “We’re waiting for the CCTV to come through Tilly. It has to be collated and checked. It takes time.” She sat back down. “Tell me about this car.”

    “Just a car.”

    “Where? And what makes you think it was anything to do with Mrs Talbot?”

    “It was parked across the road when she arrived. I thought she’d got out of it to be honest.”

    “You saw her get out of it?”

    “Nah. But it wasn’t there before she arrived and it was sitting across the road, like — waiting. And it was gone after she left, so I reckon it was hers.”

    “Do you have any idea what car it was?”

    “One of them big Mercs, a black one.”