Yarrow: The Smiley Killer

14:45

Doug Chaney sat in the Condor Coffee shop staring aimlessly out the window from his arm chair. He had gradually sunk further and further back in the floral fabric until his tea had nearly gone cold. He rubbed the bags under his eyes as if it would remove the soot that framed them. He was starting to feel tired for the first time since the case had been assigned.

"Never understood why they give you a teapot, especially when you buy it for one."

"Christine, nice of you to join me," Doug answered without moving.

"Dougy, I know you're getting old but I never thought you were getting senile. Staring out the window like that. I feel I should put a tag on you in case you go walkies."

"Not funny, my father had Alzheimer's."

"Well maybe you need to keep your mind active."

Doug finally stared at Christine, putting all the energy in to keeping his head upright.

Christine continued, "I don't know, maybe you could do a crossword or join a photography group or... you know.... maybe solve a murder case? I assume you've hit the wall?"

Doug smiled a strained smile, he had always told Christine a murder case was like a marathon. It didn't take huge amounts of talent, just persistence. You would start fast, gathering all the data you could, then let things play out as you found your pace, then you'd hit a wall where you just want to give up, and that's when you become a detective.

"Could say that," he replied, "this one has been more like a sprint than a marathon though, I'm not built for these cases where time isn't on your side."

"Well I'm glad you hit the wall, it means we're close."

"Depends what you've got for me."

Christine carefully put her coffee down first before emptying the contents of her carrier bag on the table in front of them.

"What's that?"

"All the ideas I've had. Let's start with the obvious."

She took the rolled up A3 sheet that stood out amongst the a4 stack. It was a map of the local area. She picked her red pen out of her bag and circled four spots on the map and made two crosses.

"These are where the murders happened," she pointed to the four circles, "or at least where the bodies were found."

"Correct," Doug said.

"And here are the two main suspects houses."

She pointed to the two crosses, one almost directly between two circles, the other far out.

"Who's that one," Doug said tapping the more suspicious one.

"Teddy."

Doug nodded and returned his gaze to a young couple holding hands outside the window.

"Don't be a creepy old man Doug."

"Teddy's definitely hiding something. Im just not sure it's to do with this."

"But it fits in perfectly. I did a sear..."

Doug gave Christine a look, the look a parent gives when they've really been pushed to far. Not when they're annoyed but when annoyed is a distant memory. This was one of the few times Christine had seen it. It soon dissipated as Doug realised he had essentially quit his job.

"You went in to the office," he whispered as if someone in the coffee shop cared enough to listen in.

"Well, yes, but I did find that Teddy was bought up by his mother alone, a Miss Sarah Cladwicz."

"So?"

"Doug, she's a Jew, daughter of two holocaust survivors and by the looks of it a rather strict mother with some child protection cases under her belt. It all adds up, he fits the profile we're looking for perfectly."

Doug bit his lower lip in thought, "he doesn't strike me as a serial killer."

"Why not?"

"When I told him Lacey died..."

"You told him? Doug you muppet, the second you tell him is the moment he'll start covering his tracks. Was he saddened?"

"Well no, not at all."

"So he's a psychopath, did he seem physically able and smart enough?"

"Yes"

"Then why don't you think he did it?"

"I think he's an alcoholic," there was a pause as Doug looked down at his luke warm tea and Christine stared at him, "from all the alcoholics I know they couldn't organise something like this. I'm not saying he's innocent in anything but I don't think he's the killer. Apparently he's been so drunk the last few nights he could barely walk."

"Perfect alibi."

"I don't know, the way he was putting them back at lunch. It's easy to fight off someone that drunk, even if he had managed the post-mortem would have shown more of a fight."

They had an awkward silence. Christine thought back to when her mother died and her dad had taken to the bottle, his work and life had begun falling apart.

"Okay Christine, let me ask you this - if you weren't personally involved with the victim and a suspect, would you jump to this conclusion?"

She didn't answer, she didn't need to - they both knew the answer.

"What does your gut tell you?"

"It's too easy."

"So what you thinking now?"

"Well we haven't got the time to look at the case again. We have two solid leads. I've got what I want on Carl now, I'll go see him. You tail Teddy."

Doug gazed at Christine as she jumped to her feet. "Just..." he murmured.

"Just what? We have a case to solve."

"Just let me finish my tea."