somewhat self-conscious smile. He looked to Fratfield. ‘Would you like to take over explaining the details?’
‘By all means.’ Fratfield pulled a pocket-projector out of his briefcase, connected it to his data tablet and drew the curtains. ‘I’ve included all the relevant information on here,’ he skimmed a USB drive across the table which Shining snatched up and dropped into his waistcoat pocket, ‘but it’s worth mentioning a few especially curious factors. As I mentioned earlier, there are some unsettling details to be found on the security camera footage from the Tube station.’
He swiped his fingers across the screen of his tablet and a grainy shot of the platform at South Wimbledon appeared on the far wall. ‘Can everyone see that clearly?’ he asked, tinkering with the focus on the projector.
‘Oh, do get on with it,’ sighed Sir Robin.
‘Right,’ said Fratfield, clearly irritated.
He started the footage and they watched as Sonia Finnegan took her seat on the platform, waiting for her train. She pulled her mobile phone from her pocket and then flung it away before looking around in embarrassment and moving over to the platform edge in an attempt to retrieve it. Then she flinched, stood up and fell over. Fratfield paused the footage.
‘It’s hard to tell as the quality isn’t all that good, but this is the point when, well, the water appeared.’
‘Sprinkler system?’ Toby asked.
‘You would have thought so, but the fire alarm wasn’t engaged and all evidence points to the system having remained inactive.’
‘So where did the water come from?’ asked Shining.
‘If we knew that we would hardly be talking to you,’ said Sir Robin.
‘It gets stranger still,’ said Fratfield, resuming the footage.
They watched as Sonia shouted at what appeared to be an empty platform. Then she moved further along and reached out towards thin air. As if trying to grab something that was suspended above the rails.
‘There’s nothing there,’ said King.
‘Nothing captured on film at least,’ qualified Shining. ‘That’s not necessarily the same thing.’
Suddenly the train appeared. The whole room winced as Sonia Finnegan tumbled forwards, her body hitting the train.
‘Play that again,’ said Shining.
‘Do we have to?’ asked Sir Robin.
‘Just the moment when she’s leaning out over the tracks.’
Fratfield did so, pausing the footage just before the collision.
‘She’s reaching out to somebody,’ said Shining. ‘It’s what overbalances her.’
‘Here we go,’ sighed Sir Robin.
Fratfield played it again. ‘I see what you mean. But surely there’s nobody there?’
Shining shrugged. ‘As I said before, nobody we can see. She certainly seems to believe there is. What about the mobile phone?’
‘Yes,’ said Fratfield with a smile. ‘Curious, eh? Even more so when I tell you that a damaged mobile was found at the scene of the other deaths too. In all cases the phones were completely fried. Not a working circuit left in the things.’
‘Anything interesting on the call records?’ asked Toby.
‘In each case, there’s no record of any received calls or texts at the time of death, first thing I checked.’
‘And yet, Sonia clearly received one,’ said Shining. ‘She wasn’t just reaching in her pocket to check something, surely?’
Fratfield rewound that portion of the footage. ‘Hard to tell for sure. She certainly acts like someone responding to an alert.’
‘You say Holley was run over by his own car?’ asked Toby.
Fratfield nodded. ‘Sounds absurd I know. He and his wife had been in New York for two days, flew in last night. Rather than stay in a hotel, they were driving from Gatwick to their home in Weedon, little place just outside Aylesbury. Presumably, Holley had things he wanted to do at home before travelling back into London the following morning.
‘Unfortunately, his wife has yet to regain consciousness otherwise we would know
‘By all means.’ Fratfield pulled a pocket-projector out of his briefcase, connected it to his data tablet and drew the curtains. ‘I’ve included all the relevant information on here,’ he skimmed a USB drive across the table which Shining snatched up and dropped into his waistcoat pocket, ‘but it’s worth mentioning a few especially curious factors. As I mentioned earlier, there are some unsettling details to be found on the security camera footage from the Tube station.’
He swiped his fingers across the screen of his tablet and a grainy shot of the platform at South Wimbledon appeared on the far wall. ‘Can everyone see that clearly?’ he asked, tinkering with the focus on the projector.
‘Oh, do get on with it,’ sighed Sir Robin.
‘Right,’ said Fratfield, clearly irritated.
He started the footage and they watched as Sonia Finnegan took her seat on the platform, waiting for her train. She pulled her mobile phone from her pocket and then flung it away before looking around in embarrassment and moving over to the platform edge in an attempt to retrieve it. Then she flinched, stood up and fell over. Fratfield paused the footage.
‘It’s hard to tell as the quality isn’t all that good, but this is the point when, well, the water appeared.’
‘Sprinkler system?’ Toby asked.
‘You would have thought so, but the fire alarm wasn’t engaged and all evidence points to the system having remained inactive.’
‘So where did the water come from?’ asked Shining.
‘If we knew that we would hardly be talking to you,’ said Sir Robin.
‘It gets stranger still,’ said Fratfield, resuming the footage.
They watched as Sonia shouted at what appeared to be an empty platform. Then she moved further along and reached out towards thin air. As if trying to grab something that was suspended above the rails.
‘There’s nothing there,’ said King.
‘Nothing captured on film at least,’ qualified Shining. ‘That’s not necessarily the same thing.’
Suddenly the train appeared. The whole room winced as Sonia Finnegan tumbled forwards, her body hitting the train.
‘Play that again,’ said Shining.
‘Do we have to?’ asked Sir Robin.
‘Just the moment when she’s leaning out over the tracks.’
Fratfield did so, pausing the footage just before the collision.
‘She’s reaching out to somebody,’ said Shining. ‘It’s what overbalances her.’
‘Here we go,’ sighed Sir Robin.
Fratfield played it again. ‘I see what you mean. But surely there’s nobody there?’
Shining shrugged. ‘As I said before, nobody we can see. She certainly seems to believe there is. What about the mobile phone?’
‘Yes,’ said Fratfield with a smile. ‘Curious, eh? Even more so when I tell you that a damaged mobile was found at the scene of the other deaths too. In all cases the phones were completely fried. Not a working circuit left in the things.’
‘Anything interesting on the call records?’ asked Toby.
‘In each case, there’s no record of any received calls or texts at the time of death, first thing I checked.’
‘And yet, Sonia clearly received one,’ said Shining. ‘She wasn’t just reaching in her pocket to check something, surely?’
Fratfield rewound that portion of the footage. ‘Hard to tell for sure. She certainly acts like someone responding to an alert.’
‘You say Holley was run over by his own car?’ asked Toby.
Fratfield nodded. ‘Sounds absurd I know. He and his wife had been in New York for two days, flew in last night. Rather than stay in a hotel, they were driving from Gatwick to their home in Weedon, little place just outside Aylesbury. Presumably, Holley had things he wanted to do at home before travelling back into London the following morning.
‘Unfortunately, his wife has yet to regain consciousness otherwise we would know
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