Lisa Stone - Stalker

‘Not by itself,’ Beth agreed. ‘But forensics lifted a lot of DNA from the doll and I’m expecting some of it to match yours.’

Derek stared at her aghast and it was some time before he said, ‘No comment.’

‘Why did you fit cameras that had in-built microphones but never told the clients they had them, apart from those at The Mermaid Massage Parlour?’

‘No comment.’

‘I’ll tell you why,’ Beth continued. ‘It was to allow you to spy on these people to gather the information you needed to commit the crimes. The circumstantial evidence is overwhelming. For example, Ron McKenzie only went out in the evening once a month and during that three-hour time slot his home was broken into and trashed. Far too much of a coincidence. A note was left that said “payback time”. What was the payback for, Derek? What had he done to you?’

‘Nothing. No comment.’

Beth took a breath but maintained eye contact. ‘Similarly, you knew when Mrs Hanks would be seeing her lover because you had been spying on them for months. You sent an email alerting Mr Hanks to his wife’s infidelity, for what reason?’

He paused, touched his eye before saying, ‘No comment.’

‘Then there is the matter of Mr and Mrs Williams’ babysitter who invited her boyfriend in when she was supposed to be babysitting. You were watching them and emailed Mr and Mrs Williams alerting them, didn’t you?’

‘Well, she was supposed to be looking after their children, for God’s sake!’ Derek cried. ‘Little Phoebe was only four.’

The silence in the room was deafening.

‘Go on,’ Beth encouraged.

‘My client is due for a break,’ his solicitor put in.

‘In ten minutes?’ Beth asked. He nodded.

‘You were saying?’ Beth prompted.

‘No comment.’

‘You’re a man with very high principles, aren’t you, Derek? And you didn’t like it that little Phoebe was neglected – perhaps it brought back unhappy memories of your childhood – so you took it upon yourself to teach their babysitter a lesson. Just like you taught Mrs Hanks, Ron McKenzie, Tom Murray, Mr Khumalo, Mary Grey and all the others on this list a lesson.’

‘Ridiculous! No comment.’

‘OK,’ Beth said, taking a different tack, ‘let’s go back seven years to the robbery at Meekers garage. You remember it?’

His solicitor nodded at Derek to answer.

‘Yes,’ he said.

‘The thief jumped the cashier at the exact moment she opened the safe to put in the day’s takings. During the police investigation, it was discovered that someone had hacked into their CCTV so they knew exactly when to strike. You were questioned at the time as your firm installed the CCTV but there wasn’t enough evidence to charge you. I think we can safely say that with what has come to light, there is now.’

‘They are two different crimes!’ Derek thundered, clenching his fists. ‘Don’t you know anything about the Internet? They were hacked. They were using the default password and someone hacked into their system. It happens all the time. I don’t hack, I know my clients’ passwords.’

‘Precisely,’ Beth said, pleased. Finally they were getting somewhere. ‘So you were able to log in and watch them when you wanted for as long as it took to gather the information you needed to commit the crime – whether it was burglary, kidnapping or GBH. Your computer is with forensics now and you know as well I do that it will prove what I’m saying is true, despite you trying to delete the files.’

Derek stared at them, the colour draining from his face, then held his head in his hands.

‘It’s time for that break now,’ his solicitor said.

Beth nodded and began gathering up the paperwork. ‘Is a quarter of an hour long enough?’

‘I would think so,’ his solicitor replied, glancing at his client.

‘I don’t want a break,’ Derek said, head still in his hands. ‘I want to go home.’ He looked up at his solicitor. ‘They’ve got my computer; it’s only a matter of time before they find out. I want to tell them what really happened so I can go home.’

‘I recommend we have a break and you discuss this with me first,’ his solicitor said, clearly worried.

‘I didn’t mean her any harm,’ Derek said, ignoring him and looking at Beth. ‘It was a mistake, and now I’m being blamed for all those things I didn’t do.’

‘You need to discuss this with me before you say anything further,’ his solicitor reminded him.

Derek shook his head.

Beth waited, senses alert and tingling. She saw Matt give her the thumbs-up sign out of sight below the table. Derek was about to confess. But whether he told the truth or not was another matter.

A few moments passed and then Derek straightened in his chair, took a breath and steeled himself for what he was about to say. ‘You’re right, I did watch and listen to my clients and I have been doing so for many years. I did it to protect them, to look after them and make sure they were all right. I looked upon it as part of my job, my role in life. They became my friends, my family although they didn’t know it. But I was only trying to protect them, I’d never harm them and you’re wrong about my mother. I don’t hate her, I love her, although she’s a difficult woman sometimes.’ His eyes glistened and he swallowed hard.

‘I understand,’ Beth said gently. His solicitor began making notes.

‘There were no automated messages,’ Derek continued after a moment, his voice unsteady. ‘I made them look as if they were automated. I sent them as and when necessary, either by email, text or voicemail. It made me feel important, in charge and needed.’

Beth nodded as the solicitor wrote and the camera above recorded the interview. ‘Going back, how did you choose your clients originally? One of your apprentices said that you didn’t give quotes to everyone who contacted you.’

‘The clients had to want cameras, not just alarms, and want their system online, otherwise there’d have been no point. I wouldn’t have been able to log in and join them. I had to like them too. I wanted them to be good people, like families should be, which is why I got upset when they behaved badly. But I never intended Mrs Hanks should come to any harm.’

‘So what did you expect to happen when you sent that email alerting Mr Hanks to his wife’s affair?’ Beth asked sceptically.

‘That he would go home, pack a bag and leave. He wanted to retrain as a nurse and I was giving him the chance to leave and start a new life.’

Beth looked at him incredulously. ‘And you didn’t for one moment think that Mr Hanks might be angry seeing his wife of twenty years with another man?’

‘No, he wasn’t like that, not at all aggressive. He was always so meek and mild and never stood up for himself.’

‘They’re often the worst,’ Matt put in.

‘I thought I was helping him; honestly I did,’ Derek said helplessly. ‘I helped Mr and Mrs Williams and lots of my other clients. None of them got hurt. I can’t believe what Mr Hanks did. I went to the hospital and apologized to Maggie – Mrs Hanks.’

‘You’ve visited Mrs Hanks in hospital?’ Beth asked, astounded. Matt and the solicitor were looking at Derek. The only person in the room who didn’t seem to think his behaviour was odd was Derek.

‘I took her some chocolates, her favourites,’ he said. ‘I hadn’t realized she was so ill. She was asleep or unconscious, I don’t know which, so I told her I was sorry and left the chocolates on her bedside cabinet. Do you know if she’s had some?’

Beth stared at him, amazed that he could be so naïve. ‘No, I don’t know.’

‘I passed Mr Hanks on the way out but he didn’t see me,’ Derek continued. ‘He looked very worried.’