Free Fairytale of Headley Cross by Clare Revell Page B

Carson has been arrested and charged with murder. Frank said there is no doubt he did it. Good job you weren’t with him last night. It might have been you he killed. Once a bad man, always a bad man. The sooner we are rid of him, the better.
    Maggie pressed her hand to her stomach, willing her lunch to stay down. That scenario had never even entered her head. He wasn’t capable of that, surely? After a moment, she scrolled to the next text.
    Wesley wrote: I told you he was no good. He should have left you alone.
    Maggie pushed open the door to the meeting room and let it swing shut behind her.
    Nate looked at her, his brows furrowing. “Are you all right?”
    “No. Why didn’t you tell me he’d been charged with murder?”
    “Who told you that? You were only gone a minute.”
    She held up the phone. “Church grapevine. I had a text from Jan Diamond, who got it from Frank. Apparently, it’s no more than Carson deserves and there’s no doubt he’s guilty. And Wesley thinks the same.” She dropped back into the chair, her eyes burning with unshed tears. “I don’t believe this.”
    Nate held out a hand. “May I?”
    She handed him the phone and closed her eyes. “He wouldn’t kill anyone, not even in anger. I know he wouldn’t.”
    “We’ll need to access your phone records,” Dane told her. “And don’t delete those texts.”
    “OK.”
    “Maggie…” Nate’s voice was hard again. “This Wesley—is he the bloke you were telling me about last night?”
    “I didn’t say it was me.”
    “We both know what asking for a friend means.”
    Maggie took a deep breath and forced herself to surrender the point. “Yeah, OK, it’s me. He’s been hounding me since I broke things off with him, and started seeing Carson.” She filled in the details for them.
    “So it wasn’t an amicable split?”
    “No. All Wesley knows is how to control people. Carson is so different. He knows how to treat people with respect and love and gentleness. He’s not capable of murder.”
    Dane looked up from the phone. “Carson was found kneeling over the body, covered in blood, holding the murder weapon in his hand. It was his knife.”
    “Carson didn’t carry a weapon anymore. And he told me he hadn’t seen his knife in years. Not since before he was arrested at the bank.”
    “When did he tell you this?”
    “Over a week ago. He was telling me about how he got the scars on his chest and back. He gave the knife to someone else in the gang to look after, but he doesn’t remember who. Does he have a lawyer?”
    “Not as far as I know. He didn’t even want to see the duty solicitor.”
    “Can I see him?”
    “I’m afraid not. He’s being held in Whitechapel for now.” Dane handed back her phone. “We’ll be in touch. Don’t delete anything. We may need your phone as evidence.”
    Maggie nodded and signed the statement papers that Nate gave her. She saw them out then made a phone call. “Hi, can I speak to Harrison Jacobs, please? Yes, it’s Maggie Turner.”
     
    ****
     
    Carson walked back towards the interview room, his hands once again in cuffs. God must really hate him, he decided. He’d been charged with murder and with his record, the fact he didn’t do it would be irrelevant. He sat at the table in the stark empty room and glanced up at where he knew the cameras were.
    Did the pub have cameras? If it did, had the police checked them?
    The door opened and a tall man with short blond hair and steel rimmed glasses came in. “Mr. Armitage, I’m Harrison Jacobs, your lawyer.”
    “I didn’t ask for a lawyer.”
    “Maggie Turner requested me.”
    Carson slumped lower in the chair, shame flooding him and causing his face to burn. “Maggie knows I’m here?”
    “The police have already interviewed her. They’re accessing your phone records to confirm her story.”
    “Maggie has nothing to do with this and nor does any phone conversation we may’ve had.”
    Harrison sat down opposite him and