A Dreadful Past by Peter Turnbull Read Free Book Online Page A

nonetheless, you must feel so proud,’ Jenny observed. ‘But the Middleton family murders. I assume that there has been a development? I mean, I don’t think that you’d be here otherwise.’
    Hennessey explained how Noel Middleton had seen the Wedgwood vase which had been stolen during the burglary in the window of an antiques shop and had purchased it, brought it into the police station and told DC Ventnor the story.
    â€˜How hugely interesting.’ Jenny raised an eyebrow. ‘That could be potentially quite a significant development. You’ll be tracing the ownership of the vase back, I assume?’
    â€˜Yes, among other things,’ Hennessey replied. ‘Two of my officers are doing that at the moment, even as we speak.’ He glanced to his right and saw the grey cloud edging steadily closer to Fridaythorpe. ‘Rain soon, methinks,’ he added.
    â€˜Might hold off,’ Jenny grunted as he followed Hennessey’s gaze. ‘With a bit of luck it might hold off.’
    â€˜So yes, the Middleton murders is a cold case which has just been warmed up,’ Hennessey confirmed. ‘We seem to be in a relatively quiet period at the moment, which has provided us with time to take another look at the case.’
    â€˜Well, good for you,’ Jenny grunted. ‘Good for you. I confess it has always annoyed me that we never felt anybody’s collar for those murders. Three members of the same family, one blind, battered to death in their own home and with no evident motive. It was a very high-profile case and it was a real tragedy, but with no leads and no information forthcoming the inquiry went cold very rapidly. Have you read the file, George?’
    â€˜We have recovered it from the archives,’ Hennessey told Jenny, ‘but I have not personally had the opportunity to read it, although I fully intend to, of course. One of my team has read it.’ Hennessey paused. ‘So it’s really a question of anything you can tell us, Frank – anything at all that you can recall. You know the sketch – anything, no matter how trivial and which may not have seemed relevant at the time, but with all the advantages of hindsight might now seem to be relevant.’
    â€˜Yes … yes, I know what you are looking for. I know exactly. As you say, I know the sketch.’ Jenny glanced skyward as a zephyr blew across the landscape for a few seconds, causing the trees at the bottom of the garden to sway to the left. ‘Are you going public with the fact that you are poking the embers of the case?’
    â€˜Oh, yes … yes, we are,’ Hennessey advised. ‘We certainly are. The press release will go out later today in time for the evening papers and the local television news.’
    â€˜Good. Good.’ Frank Jenny smiled contentedly. ‘By doing that you’ll rattle a few cages. Some persons out there will be thinking that they have gotten away with it. After twenty years they’ll be feeling quite smug. I’d like to be a fly on the wall when they turn on their television sets this evening. So … well …’ Jenny paused, ‘… my first and lasting impression is that the felons were outside the criminal fraternity or were out-of-towners.’
    â€˜Yes, we are also of that opinion,’ Hennessey replied. ‘Any burglar with a modicum of common sense and experience would know to break into a house only when the occupants were absent or in bed. That gang must have known the Middletons were up and awake yet they still broke in … they must have been brain-dead.’
    â€˜Yes, we thought the same at the time. Real cowboys,’ Frank Jenny snorted. ‘We thought there was a team of thugs … three, four, five, perhaps six. We were not able to lift any fingerprints, as you’ll know, and the only blood was from the victims. That wretched bird is back …’
    Hennessey looked down the