‘The thing is,’ Tom continued. ‘We noticed both bruises after she was with Martha—’

‘Martha wouldn’t hurt her,’ his mum said. ‘And she’d say if an accident happened.’

‘I know. The other place she’s been is – here.’

His mum frowned. ‘It’s not me, love,’ she said.

‘That’s not what he’s insinuating,’ Roland said. He stood up slowly. ‘He’s saying it’s me.’

‘No,’ Tom said. ‘You’re putting—’

‘That’s OK. I’m used to it.’ Roland gave a sardonic shake of his head. ‘Something goes missing, the junkie stole it. I’m late somewhere – I must be back on the drugs. A baby gets hurt, the smack head did it. Don’t worry.’

‘Roland,’ Tom said. ‘Let—’

Roland held up his hands, palms facing Tom.

‘Forget it. Like I said, I’m used to it. Almost everyone assumes the worst of me.’ He gave a slow shake of his head. ‘I hoped my own brother was different, but I guess not. I’m going for a walk. I’ll see you later.’

‘No you won’t,’ Tom said, a fierce anger gripping him. ‘You’ll wait there. And you’ll cut out the self-pity. The reason people assume the worst, Roland, is because for most of the last decade it’s been a safe bet that whatever you did wasn’t helping. Remember Chrissy?’

‘Tom,’ his mum said. ‘Please.’

‘He needs to hear it. Or I need to say it. Either way, he’s going to stop the self-pity. Yes, he deserves – barely – a second chance, but not a free pass. And not the right to play the victim.’

Roland nodded slowly. ‘Fair enough,’ he said. ‘I can see why you think it was me. But – this time, Tom – it wasn’t.’

Tom and his mum were silent as Roland stalked out of the back gate.

‘Well,’ his mum said. ‘That went well.’

Tom turned to her. ‘You know what? I think it did.’

Saturday, 21 August 2021

Alice

PUBLIC ANXIETY HIGH AS ‘CRUCIFIX’ KILLER REMAINS AT LARGE

By Alice Sark

With two days now passed since the Crucifix Killer’s most recent appearance, the general public remains tense and anxious about where and when the next attack could occur.

Blame for the failure to apprehend the killer is being attached to the police. ‘It’s about time the police did something,’ Marjorie Davies, a long-time resident of Stockton Heath, said. ‘They have a lot of information now – they need to catch this monster before there are any more victims. People are scared. They need to act.’

That is easier said than done. Police sources indicated that the line of enquiry related to this being an Australian male has not turned up any credible suspects. It is still considered a possibility, but their attention is moving to other avenues.