PEEL-BEHIND THEIR EYES. Book 1 (Complete)

Chapter 15. Morning

Lying face down on a soft pillow, and buried within the folds of a warm comforting duvet, the last thing he wanted to do was to get up, it just wasn't going to happen. The raised voice that echoed around the room had different ideas, this time though, the voice was joined by a hefty kick to the bed frame. Peeling back an eyelid and then quickly closing it against the stab of pain from the burning light bulb above, he moaned at his attacker "for Christ's sake it's the middle of the night"

The unforgiving voice chided "it's 5am, now get your arse out of bed Mason, and drag it downstairs to the kitchen, breakfast is in ten. There's a mug of morning juice on the side. Don't be long."

Listening to Roberts footsteps recede out from the room and carry on down the stairs, Mason vowed to remain exactly where he was, that was until the smell of coffee enticed him to at least sit up. The hot liquid rushed down his throat into his stomach spreading its heat throughout his body, but also creating a sudden need to empty his bladder.

"Oh hell, I was so comfortable"

Robert looked up from his cup as Mason walked into the kitchen dressed as if everything had just come off the hanger, neat and tidy. Looking down at his own attire he thought "my clothes have actually come ironed from the closet and I still have a look of shabbiness."

A plate of bacon and eggs waited as promised along with a second cup of coffee on the kitchen table. Mason pulled out a chair, sat and began to demolish the most important meal of the day.

Never wishing to interrupt a man on a mission Robert waited for Mason to wipe everything clean with the last of the buttered bread, for knife and fork to clatter down and for the plate to be pushed away with satisfaction before he asked "well, what's your take on the file I gave you"

Emptying half the coffee in one gulp Mason set down the cup and faced Robert, now feeling fully awake he leaned back on the chair. "I read through the case as you asked and I'm not sure you will like my take at all. You see Robert I'm not emotionally tied to either its content or the man who compiled it as you are, I am impartial you are not, so don't bite off my head for doing as you asked OK"

Robert accepted Masons point and asked him to carry on.

"Well for a start there's a lot more that's dissimilar between this cold case and the one you are currently working than is similar, for a start in the Barringer case three families were targeted, their homes were broken into, all but one of the parents were brutally killed, the mothers posed, the fathers slashed to death and discarded. The two young girls that were killed were buried, not posed as Tina Phillips. These are just the 'in your face' differences; there are many smaller inconsistencies as well" Mason waited for argument but none surfaced.

"As for the similarity's there are really only two, first, the current killer has targeted young blue eyed girls and has taken the first dead girls eyes, and second there's the dress. Other than that there is no real proof that the gouger is back, just possibly a very clever copycat who somehow managed to get his hands on Julia Barringers dress"

Robert listened to everything Mason had to say and said "I hope you are right, otherwise the shits going to hit the fan if and when the papers connect the dots and start pointing fingers"

Mason raised a finger of his own "there is a couple of things I sort of wondered about as I read the file. Remember I'm only theorizing not judging"

Mason lift the folder from where he had placed it on the table "your father circled the name here, Julia Barringers mother, he circled it a lot. And here he underscored Julia's name writing heavily 'Oh no!!!' Both seem so personal as if he was writing whilst upset. If you looked back in the case he doesn't do that with the previous two families, why does he seem so fixated on only Julia and her mother? I also noticed that he had written in pencil against the mother's name's, the first says 'shop assistant' the second says 'milk lady' but strangely writes nothing by Julia's mother, not job description, not housewife, mother or wife. I wonder, did your father find a connection between them, he doesn't mention it in the report. It makes me wonder if the women worked near to each other, is there a connection with Julia's mother, where did she work, if she did. I think your father may have been onto something, something he never reported revolving around Julia's mother. I may be completely wrong, more than likely I am, but it's worth checking out don't you think"

Robert stared down at his hands as Mason talked without interrupting, he just listened and hoped Mason didn't see what he already had. "Shit, I had hoped it was just me who saw that, I thought maybe I was just reading too much into to it. Even after all these years, my father is still causing problems in my life."

Dejected, Robert admitted "Yeah I saw it too, what's more, if you take a closer look you will see that my father has rubbed out the word 'my' by their names 'my shop assistant' 'my milk lady'. There's nothing written by Julia's mother name, though, so I don't know where she fits in. I'm starting to think that my father had a serial killer stalker. If all this checks out, none of it makes a jot of difference with today's case. It has to be a very clever copycat, it has to be. I can't be expected to finish what my father failed to finish all those years ago, it wouldn't be fair to me"

Mason nodded sympathetically even though he didn't quite fully go along with Roberts's logic; he knew that at some point Robert was going to have to deal with the possibility that his father knew more than he let on. Instead, he allowed Robert his denial, and said "well it's something to think about, in the meantime isn't there a briefing to be attended. I think I'll come along and join in if you don't mind"

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Waking slowly and in pain Havers wonder where the hell he was, looking through strained eyes he saw that the room he lay in was rather pink and flowery "where......" was all he managed to say before the cover beside him erupted upwards and the grinning lipstick smeared face of Samantha filled his view, and with a cheerful voice cut through his blinding headache and said "well hello detective, did you find what you were looking for" she held up her hand holding his handcuffs and laughed "good job you brought these along with your truncheon, hmm"

Somewhere in the back of Havers aching head alarm clocks were ringing. Blurry eyed he looked at his wrist watch "Oh fuck, I'm going to be late, the boss is going to have my balls"

Samantha now standing naked by the bed giggled loudly and said: "me first." Climbing excitedly back onto the bed she straddled him and swirled the handcuffs around.

Havers smiled through the pain in his head and placed his hands on her hips and said "Peel's gonna be pissed"

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