A Blind Eye

For June, my oldest and most wonderful friendEven though she made me late for school, almost every single day! Day 1: Tuesday, 4th April Chapter 1Detective Inspector Clare Mackay looked round the hall. It was an attractive room, the light oak panelling as far from her own inner-city school as she could imagine. Towards the back of the hall was an impressive honours board next to a bank of framed photos showing the senior teaching team. Immediately beneath the stage a grand piano stood, its black polished wood gleaming in the sun that streamed through the casement windows. Yes, she thought. It’s a lovely building. That, of course, didn’t always make for a happy, accepting environment… but it probably helped.She drew her eyes away from the room and scanned the rows of pupils. They’d been a more attentive audience than at the last school. No fiddling with phones from this lot. Not with the head teacher’s beady eye on them. But the air of disinterest was palpable. One or two cast glances at their wrists and she took the hint. They’d been sitting long enough.‘PC Stapleton and I will be here for a bit longer so if any of you are considering a career in the police…’ she tailed off and turned to the head teacher who moved forward.‘Room five,’ the head teacher said crisply. ‘Please allow us to leave first then anyone who wishes to speak to the officers should wait outside the door.’ She moved to the steps at the side of the stage, and they followed her down and out of the hall. As they left a murmur of chatter began to build.‘They were very attentive,’ Clare said as the head teacher opened the door to a small room, flicking on the light. It was cheerfully decorated with two small sofas arranged either side of a light oak coffee table.‘We do insist on good manners at Melville Academy,’ the head said. She turned to Clare and Sara, her hand indicating the room. ‘Will this be suitable? We use it to meet with parents.’‘Perfectly.’The head smiled. ‘Lunch is in half an hour. If you think you’ll be any longer…’‘Half an hour’s fine,’ Clare said. ‘We can always follow up any interest later. And if you could just leave the door open.’The head teacher raised an eyebrow at this then swept from the room, her black gown flying in her wake.‘I can’t see any of them being interested,’ Sara said. ‘They’ll all be off to university or having gap years at Daddy’s expense.’Clare nodded. ‘You’re probably right. But it’s worth a shot. We need a broad spectrum these days.’A girl of about sixteen appeared at the door. She raised her hand to knock and let it fall. Then she turned to leave, and Clare moved forward.‘Hello,’ she said. ‘Please – come in. We could do with seeing a friendly face.’ She smiled at the girl who remained in the doorway as if deciding whether or not to enter. She was slightly built, her fine blonde hair scraped back in a tight ponytail. Her face was pallid, the only adornment a tiny pair of gold studs in her ears and Clare wondered if there was a school rule banning make-up. The girl had a ghost-like quality and seemed on the point of flight when Sara held out a hand.‘I’m Sara,’ she said. ‘Sara Stapleton. One of the officers at St Andrews. Please,’ she indicated the low sofas, ‘have a seat.’The girl came slowly into the room and glanced over her shoulder. Sara steered her gently towards the sofas, but the girl’s eyes were trained on the door.‘I’ll just shut this,’ Clare said, closing the door quietly. As she did so she thought she saw another girl step quickly back. ‘Is your friend waiting for you?’The girl edged towards the door. ‘Maybe. I should go…’‘Are you interested in joining the police?’ Sara said, trying to distract her from looking at the door.Clare joined Sara on the sofa and gave the girl a smile. ‘I’m Clare,’ she said. ‘I’m the DI at St Andrews. But we don’t know your name.’‘Eilidh.’ Her voice was little more than a whisper. ‘Eilidh Campbell.’‘Nice to meet you, Eilidh. Why not sit for a moment?’The girl hesitated then sat down, perching on the edge of the other sofa.Clare smiled. ‘If you are interested in the police as a career we can give you some leaflets, tell you a bit about the job. Maybe arrange a visit to the station.’She shook her head. ‘No,’ she said. ‘It’s not that.’Clare sat forward. ‘Is there something worrying you?’Eilidh looked down, fiddling with the cuff of her navy cardigan. ‘I’m not sure.’Sara opened her mouth to speak but Clare made a slight gesture with her hand and Sara took the hint. Eventually the girl spoke again.‘If I knew something – I mean something that wasn’t right, and you found out—’Clare met her eye. ‘Eilidh, have you witnessed a crime?’She hesitated. ‘Not exactly. I just wondered – if I knew something and I didn’t tell anyone—’‘Failing to report a crime isn’t an offence,’ Clare said. ‘You wouldn’t be charged or anything like that. If you do know something, it’s best to tell us. But we’d need an appropriate adult to be with you for your statement.’The girl rose, avoiding Clare’s eye. ‘No, it’s nothing like that. I don’t know anything. I just wondered—’ And before Clare could stop her, she’d opened the door and was gone. Clare followed her out, but Eilidh was down the corridor and out of sight in seconds. She turned back to Sara.‘What was that about?’Sara shrugged. ‘Maybe friends doing drugs, bit of shoplifting.’Clare frowned. ‘I’m not sure. Stuff like that doesn’t normally bother kids her age; and I think she was worried about being overheard.’ There was a tap at the door and a tall red-haired girl appeared.‘Can I take one of your leaflets?’ she said. ‘My brother – he fancies the police.’They waited another twenty minutes