me full details of your attacks? That means I need you to describe the victims and where and when the attacks occurred.’
Allard started talking. It transpired that there had been two other attacks the police didn’t even know about. Moran tapped the desk with his pencil as if mulling over everything he had just heard.
‘OK, I notice that you haven’t admitted exactly what you did to these women.’
Allard shook his head. He took another long deep breath before he said quietly that he felt ashamed and found the details difficult to talk about.
Moran leaned closer to Allard. ‘OK, Peter, I can understand you have feelings of guilt, who wouldn’t, but see how much better you feel after telling the truth about what you did?’
Allard nodded.
‘And I can also understand that it must be even harder for you to admit to rape. I took a statement from the young victim . . . it was harrowing, even for me, so don’t make her relive the whole thing in court. Tell me the truth . . . tell me exactly what happened, in your own words.’
Allard looked Moran in the eye then slowly turned to face Jane. For the first time she noticed that without that flare of anger in his face, Allard was exceptionally good-looking. His thick hair was well cut, he had high cheekbones with wide apart, deep set, dark brown eyes, and when he lowered them in a submissive manner he had long, thick eyelashes.
‘I have never raped anyone and I am so sorry for what I did to you . . . I honestly never meant to hurt you. I was just trying to get away . . . please believe me. I am truly sorry.’
Jane jumped as Moran suddenly banged the flat of his hand down on the desk.
‘You scared the shit out of her! If she hadn’t resisted and we weren’t there you would have raped her, wouldn’t you?’
Allard looked shocked.
‘No . . . No! I swear before God, I never raped any of the women! That was never on my mind. I only touched them and masturbated.’
‘Indecent assault wasn’t enough for you . . . you wanted more. You needed full sex to satisfy your urges and the only way you’d get that is by raping a young girl.’
‘No . . . No, you’re wrong, I—’
‘Then why did you have a flick knife on you? The exact same type of knife that the teenage rape victim described seeing?’
Allard began twisting uncomfortably in the chair.
‘Please! . . . I didn’t commit any rapes! You know I wasn’t carrying a knife. I’ve never carried a knife, not even in my cab.’ He nodded towards Jane. ‘I only told her and the others I was carrying one so they wouldn’t scream!’
Moran accused him of being a liar. But Allard was adamant, claiming that he only ever committed the indecent assaults and he would plead guilty to those in court.
‘You think we’re stupid? You’re only admitting the assaults as the lesser of two evils . . . Right? Right?’
Allard looked pleadingly at Jane.
‘Honest, I wasn’t carrying a knife . . . I was never going to rape you . . . I’ve never raped anyone!’
‘Bullshit! You couldn’t have consensual sex with your wife, anal or otherwise, so the only way you could eventually satisfy your needs was to commit a rape.’
Allard refused to answer. Moran accused him again. Allard still said nothing.
‘You think I don’t know steroids make a man sexually violent, and that you’re remaining silent because of your guilt about committing rape? She was seventeen the same day you raped her, and she’s now so traumatized she won’t leave her home.’
Allard said nothing as he sat up straight. Moran paused, looked him in the eye and nodded, as if he’d just realized something.
‘You also don’t want to admit to the rape because of your wife. You think she’ll accept the indecent assaults because they are in some way her fault, but raping a teenage girl, she won’t accept that. Well, even if you don’t confess, believe me, I will make sure she comes to realize it was you and sees you for the animal that you really are.’
Allard looked helplessly at Jane.
‘Why don’t you tell him the truth? I might have said I had a knife, but I didn’t . . . that was only to frighten you. I thought you were someone else. Why are you lying? You know I’ve been set up with the flick knife, because he wants to charge me with a rape I didn’t commit.’
Jane didn’t know whether to believe Allard or not. There was something about his desperate pleas that made her feel uneasy about the whole situation. Moran picked up his desk phone, called the duty desk and asked for a uniform PC to be sent up to his office. He then told Allard that they would conclude the interview for now as he had further enquiries to make. Jane partially held up the pen in her hand as she had a question she wanted to ask. Irritated, Moran repeated that the interview was over.
Feeling frustrated, Jane went to the CID office, where
DC Edwards was sitting at his desk writing.
‘Where is everyone?’ she asked.
‘They’re in the pub celebrating one of the detectives’ birthdays. As soon as I’ve finished these notes on the search of Allard’s house I’m joining them, if you want to come?’
‘DI Moran is with DCS Metcalf and he wants you to prepare the charges against Allard for all the indecent assaults.’
Edwards looked annoyed and mumbled something about having enough bloody work to do already and missing out on the booze-up.
‘I have to do the CRO 74, but could give you a hand as well if you need it?’
‘I have to go downstairs and get some blank charge sheets and the Guide to the Wording of Police Charges for an indecent assault and assault on a police officer,’ Edwards said as he walked towards the door.
Jane shouted across the room, ‘Moran said the list of the victims’ names was on his desk.’
Edwards raised his hand to acknowledge he’d heard her as he left the room.
Jane thought she’d be helpful and get the list from Moran’s office. She looked on his desk and to one side in a plastic desk tray she saw the list on top of a thick file. She picked up the list and noticed the file underneath had
‘DI Moran’ and ‘Indecent Assaults’ written on it. She was curious, picked up the file, placed it on the desk in front of her, sat down and started to flick through the victims’ statements. It quickly struck Jane that not one of the six victims mentioned actually seeing a knife, but in all of the cases the suspect had worn a stocking mask and said ‘I’ve got a knife so don’t scream!’ Jane remembered Allard saying something similar, but couldn’t quite recall his exact words.
She was about to replace the file when she saw another file with Moran’s name on it marked ‘Lamb Lane Rape’ in the plastic desk tray. She knew that Lamb Lane was only a stone’s throw away from London
