Philippa Goodwin put her hand up to her mouth, ‘you mean she was left chained up next to a corpse . . .’ tears welled in Philippa Goodwin’s eyes, ‘and clothing . . . any sign of clothing?’
‘None, I’m afraid, but please see that as something merciful.’
‘Merciful? How?’
‘There was no injury to Veronica’s body . . . none detected . . . and if she was left naked in the winter time, being when she was abducted, then death would have come quickly.’
‘Can I see her body?’
‘I am afraid that will not be possible, her remains are in an advanced state of decomposition and it is not the last impression that anyone would want of their loved one, not an image to hold in your head.’
‘And speaking of which, you will have removed the head anyway to send to a facial reconstruction expert.’
Again, Ventnor and Pharoah turned and glanced at each other.
‘I told you, I work in A and E, when there is a large-scale disaster the police remove the hands from victims because it’s easier to take the fingerprints that way than trying to remove fingerprints from a hand which is still attached to the body. I did a stint in the mortuary of the hospital as part of my A and E induction course. It’s very necessary. A and E is not for everyone but I like the crisis management, I like the life saving bit. I wouldn’t be any good on a ward, the long term getting them better and fit for discharge nursing, that’s not for me, but if you cannot handle death and corpses you are no good in A and E, and so a stint in the mortuary is an essential part of A and E induction. So I know what happens. I have assisted when a head had to be sawn from a skeleton to permit facial reconstruction. So you can tell me.’
‘Well, since you know,’ Carmen Pharoah replied softly, ‘yes that has happened. It was before we found the missing person’s report, which so neatly fitted the details obtained from the remains: sex, height, matching date of disappearance, along with the state of decomposition. We probably did jump the gun there but the head and face were badly decomposed. The same will be true of all known victims; all will have their heads removed.’
‘All known? You mean there may be more?’
‘Yes. We have to make a thorough search, the house, the grounds; all will have to be searched. So far we have five known victims and we have to assume that there will be others until we know otherwise.’
‘Fair enough.’
‘We still have to make a definite identification.’
‘It will be her.’
‘We will use dental records or DNA for that.’
‘What do you need?’
‘The name of her dentist and/or a sample of her hair if you have kept her hairbrush . . . failing that . . . a sample of your DNA.’
‘You can have all three . . . our dentist is Mr Pick,’ Philippa Goodwin smiled, ‘appropriate name for a dentist don’t you think? He has a surgery in Gillygate . . . and yes, I have kept Veronica’s hairbrush. It has strands of her hair within the bristles.’
‘If we could take the hairbrush with us, that will suffice.’
‘You’ll return it?’
‘Yes, I will personally see that it is returned to you.’
‘I’ll let you have it before you go.’
‘Appreciated. Are you happy for us to proceed on the assumption that the deceased is Veronica?’
‘Yes,’ Philippa Goodwin nodded slowly, ‘I am.’
‘The missing person’s report on Veronica states that she didn’t return from a night out with friends. Can you elaborate on that statement?’
‘Elaborate? Well, I recall the last time I saw her, I remember that day like yesterday. The last time you see someone you love, you never forget it.’
Carmen Pharoah smiled in response. ‘You don’t, do you?’
‘Well . . . that day she came home from work . . . she was a telephonist . . . and she came home from work . . . it was a Friday. She looked a picture, even in her frumpy winter clothing she was still
‘None, I’m afraid, but please see that as something merciful.’
‘Merciful? How?’
‘There was no injury to Veronica’s body . . . none detected . . . and if she was left naked in the winter time, being when she was abducted, then death would have come quickly.’
‘Can I see her body?’
‘I am afraid that will not be possible, her remains are in an advanced state of decomposition and it is not the last impression that anyone would want of their loved one, not an image to hold in your head.’
‘And speaking of which, you will have removed the head anyway to send to a facial reconstruction expert.’
Again, Ventnor and Pharoah turned and glanced at each other.
‘I told you, I work in A and E, when there is a large-scale disaster the police remove the hands from victims because it’s easier to take the fingerprints that way than trying to remove fingerprints from a hand which is still attached to the body. I did a stint in the mortuary of the hospital as part of my A and E induction course. It’s very necessary. A and E is not for everyone but I like the crisis management, I like the life saving bit. I wouldn’t be any good on a ward, the long term getting them better and fit for discharge nursing, that’s not for me, but if you cannot handle death and corpses you are no good in A and E, and so a stint in the mortuary is an essential part of A and E induction. So I know what happens. I have assisted when a head had to be sawn from a skeleton to permit facial reconstruction. So you can tell me.’
‘Well, since you know,’ Carmen Pharoah replied softly, ‘yes that has happened. It was before we found the missing person’s report, which so neatly fitted the details obtained from the remains: sex, height, matching date of disappearance, along with the state of decomposition. We probably did jump the gun there but the head and face were badly decomposed. The same will be true of all known victims; all will have their heads removed.’
‘All known? You mean there may be more?’
‘Yes. We have to make a thorough search, the house, the grounds; all will have to be searched. So far we have five known victims and we have to assume that there will be others until we know otherwise.’
‘Fair enough.’
‘We still have to make a definite identification.’
‘It will be her.’
‘We will use dental records or DNA for that.’
‘What do you need?’
‘The name of her dentist and/or a sample of her hair if you have kept her hairbrush . . . failing that . . . a sample of your DNA.’
‘You can have all three . . . our dentist is Mr Pick,’ Philippa Goodwin smiled, ‘appropriate name for a dentist don’t you think? He has a surgery in Gillygate . . . and yes, I have kept Veronica’s hairbrush. It has strands of her hair within the bristles.’
‘If we could take the hairbrush with us, that will suffice.’
‘You’ll return it?’
‘Yes, I will personally see that it is returned to you.’
‘I’ll let you have it before you go.’
‘Appreciated. Are you happy for us to proceed on the assumption that the deceased is Veronica?’
‘Yes,’ Philippa Goodwin nodded slowly, ‘I am.’
‘The missing person’s report on Veronica states that she didn’t return from a night out with friends. Can you elaborate on that statement?’
‘Elaborate? Well, I recall the last time I saw her, I remember that day like yesterday. The last time you see someone you love, you never forget it.’
Carmen Pharoah smiled in response. ‘You don’t, do you?’
‘Well . . . that day she came home from work . . . she was a telephonist . . . and she came home from work . . . it was a Friday. She looked a picture, even in her frumpy winter clothing she was still
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