The Doll's House

‘Sorry, Kate. It was a mental day.’


Kate didn’t know if the coffee would do the trick, but as O’Connor was taking up a chair in her kitchen, she decided to continue. ‘I’ve been going over my case notes and a number of things have cropped up, although nothing’s conclusive.’

‘Very little ever is …’ He took a large gulp of coffee.

‘We’ve already talked about the stabbing being frenzied,’ Kate wondered if O’Connor was drifting, ‘and the drowning as a form of cleansing.’

‘A religious nut?’

‘Not necessarily.’

‘So what is he getting out of it?’

Kate topped up O’Connor’s mug. ‘He could be trying to purge himself of something rooted in his psyche, an earlier emotional trauma, and takes risks for it.’

‘Meaning?’

‘As I said before, that the fear of being caught is not uppermost in his mind. We know we’re not dealing with a young guy, yet despite his maturity, his emotional drive is the overriding force.’

‘The CCTV footage showed Jenkins talking to a perceived stranger.’

Kate was relieved that O’Connor’s brain was beginning to function. ‘But there’s something else.’ She hesitated. ‘There are important issues around location. I don’t think our killer is travelling far, or if he is, he has some previous connection in the area, either through work or home life. Listen, O’Connor, I’ll be honest with you. I’ve been under a bit of pressure with personal stuff, which might explain why I missed this, but we all take mental shortcuts, and something is bringing the killer there. The taking of the ring ties him strongly to Jenkins’s life.’

‘You’re not the only one who’s been distracted. Any more thoughts on why the drowning is floating his boat?’ O’Connor let out a snigger.

‘You need more coffee, O’Connor, if you’re starting to think you’re funny.’

‘I need a cigarette.’

‘Not here. This is a no-smoking zone.’

‘Right. Keep pouring,’ he gestures towards the coffee pot.

‘If it’s a cleansing ritual, it tells us the wounds go deep. People seldom commit murder unless the stakes are high.’ Kate poured the dregs from the coffee pot. ‘Whoever it is, O’Connor, as I said in my last report, they’ll have shown clues to others, probably the person closest to them. You haven’t mentioned how you got on looking into Dominic Hamilton and Clodagh McKay.’

‘I’ll be chatting with them tomorrow, along with Martin McKay, her husband.’

Kate swallowed the last of her coffee. It tasted bitter. ‘What’s the delay?’

‘Fucking cul-de-sacs going nowhere. Do you think this is all connected to Adrian Hamilton’s death?’

‘If it’s some form of emotional revenge, the killer has kept his hatred at bay for a prolonged period of time. It’s a difficult one. It means he waited until after Lavinia Hamilton died to take action. That’s a long wait. Emotions don’t work in isolation from our behaviour. Much and all as we try to control them, O’Connor, our emotional selves, especially where deep wounds are concerned, are hard to keep at bay.’

‘So?’

‘It’s not my role to play detective, but if Lavinia Hamilton’s death was the stressor, it could be because she or someone else revealed something before she died. It might even be something she needed to purge herself of.’

‘The physical description fits Dominic Hamilton, but it also fits a few hundred thousand others.’

‘I’m not pointing the finger at anyone. Any number of other connections are possible. It would be dangerous to latch onto one suspect. I don’t need to tell you, others who knew the Hamiltons or, for that matter, either of the victims could still come forward as potential suspects. We’re aware of certain factors, but we also need to acknowledge that there’s a hell of a lot we’re unaware of.’

‘Maybe.’

‘As I said in my report, whoever’s doing this, O’Connor, they’ll be showing cracks. That’s why we need to look at Dominic Hamilton, Martin McKay and any other important links very closely.’

‘First thing tomorrow, Kate, I’ll be looking at them all.’

Kate stood up, hoping O’Connor would take it as his cue to leave, but O’Connor didn’t look in any particular hurry to go anywhere.

‘I hear you’ve been talking with Stuart Hennessy about the Susie Graham rape,’ he said, still sitting down.

‘Who told you that?’

‘Never mind.’ He slumped back in the chair, spreading his bulky frame as if he had no intention of moving.

‘I was interested in the case, that’s all. The girl had looked vulnerable, and I thought it might be connected with the Rachel Mooney rape.’

‘That bastard Hennessy, he fucking hates me.’

‘He struck me as a fair-minded individual,’ she said, but she knew O’Connor was building up to something. The sooner she got it out of him, the sooner she could get him out of her kitchen.

‘Can I be honest with you, Kate?’