Chapter 14

‘Shit, shit, shit,' Kim said after ending the call from Penn. She was annoyed but relieved at the same time.

She had known to proceed with caution after Katie's performance in the custody suite, and it appeared the on-call doc agreed with her.

There were exceptions in the regs that allowed an interview to take place even when someone was under the influence of alcohol and drugs, or when someone had a mental disorder or disability, but to get permission she had criteria to prove. And that was a struggle here.

Katie was unable to interfere with evidence. She couldn't interfere with other people; she couldn't harm others or lose or damage property, confer with co-conspirators or delay recovery of property connected to the offence. There was no reason to question her urgently.

Kim understood the reasons for the protection. In England and Wales, a person could be convicted of a crime solely on confessional evidence, meaning that any interview was admissible.

‘So, what now?' Bryant asked, taking the motorway island and heading towards Oldbury.

‘She'll be transferred to Bushey Fields pending a full mental health assessment.'

Bushey Fields was a psychiatric hospital attached to Russells Hall Hospital. Within the facility was a suite where the police could place anyone with suspected mental disorders. The unit was secure but separate from other patients. During the seventy-two hours they were authorised to hold her, Katie would be assigned a team of professionals including a psychiatrist.

‘All I know is she's now off limits. Can't ask her anything. Not even why she lied to her landlord about her mum being dead. We need to get our information elsewhere, and let's hope this is a good place to start,' she said as Bryant parked the car in a road behind the Sainsbury's superstore.

The woman who had answered the number they'd found at Katie's had been very cagey about who she was until Kim had given her a brief rundown of why she had the card.

The woman had given them her address and stated she was free for the rest of the day. Free from what Kim had no idea.

The property was a two-storey detached Victorian terrace. There was no sign at the front door to indicate the occupant was practising her profession at home.

Kim's curiosity was increasing as she rapped on the stained-glass window.

The door was answered by a plump woman in socks, jogging bottoms and an incredibly tight sports top.

Kim held up her ID. ‘DI Stone. We spoke earlier. This is my colleague DS Bryant.'

‘Please come in. I'm just through there.'

Kim headed to the back of the house and into a spacious kitchen that looked out onto a small tidy space. A number of strategically placed red robin bushes offered both privacy and shade. The bifold door was open despite the threat of rain, and the exercise bike was pointed towards the garden.

‘Makes me feel like I'm actually riding somewhere,' the woman said, approaching a state-of-the-art coffee machine that wouldn't have looked out of place at Costa. ‘What's your pleasure?'

‘We're good, thanks,' Kim said, taking a seat.

‘Oh, please don't make me feel guilty for the extra-shot double-froth cappuccino I'm going to have.'

‘Okay, an espresso,' Kim said.

‘Whatever you're having,' Bryant told her.

‘With chocolate?'

He hesitated, and Kim felt sure an image of Jenny's wagging finger passed before his eyes.

‘Best not.'

‘Okay, why all the secrecy?' the woman asked.

‘Ironic, given we don't even know your name,' Kim countered.

She slapped her own forehead, ‘Sorry, Judith Palmer. Call me Jude – everyone does.'

‘And what is the Girls' Club?' Kim asked as Jude put an espresso in front of her.

‘Don't you owe me the answer to a question now?'

‘Maybe, if we weren't actual police officers investigating a very serious crime.'

‘Fair enough. One sec,' she said, focussing her attention on the milk frother that was blowing into Bryant's cup.

Kim took a sip of her own drink. It was excellent, but she wasn't going to be seduced by good coffee.

‘Jude, if you could just give us a clue what it is that you do.'

‘I offer support,' she said, placing Bryant's cup before him.

‘You're a psychologist?'

‘No.'

‘A trained counsellor?'

‘No.'

Unable to compete with the volume of the frother, Kim took another sip of her drink and remained silent while Jude continued to fix her own cappuccino.

‘You offer advice without training?' Kim asked dubiously, once Jude sat down.

‘I didn't say advice. I offer support.'

‘To whom?'

‘Girls who need it.'

‘Based on what?'

‘Experience.'

‘Hang on,' Kim said. ‘You charge people for counsel without any type of accreditation?'

Jude regarded her with interest. ‘Wow, two assumptions in one sentence. Pretty good. Are you always this judgemental?'

‘Yes, she is,' Bryant said, clearly enjoying his cappuccino and probably hoping for a refill by sucking up to the barista.

‘I don't offer counsel and I don't charge. I offer support.'

‘Yes, you've said. Did you offer support to Katie Hawne?'

‘I did indeed.'

‘May we see your records?'

‘I don't keep them.'

‘We could get a court order,' Kim said.

‘That won't make them suddenly exist. People come here. They have coffee like you're doing now. We talk and then they go away again.'

‘Why?'

‘Cos I don't want them moving in,' Judith joked.

Kim took a sip of her drink.

‘All right, not funny. They contact me because of my blog.'

‘Which is about what?' Kim asked, trying not to lose her patience. The woman was forcing her to ask many questions for very little information.

‘Mommy issues. Katie has issues with her mother.'

No kidding, Kim thought, picturing the scene at Sheryl's house.

‘How serious are her issues?' Kim asked, interested in this woman's perspective.

‘Debilitating,' Judith answered.

‘Interesting word, meaning that she was unable to function normally. She's an adult.'

‘I'm going to assume you didn't have a narcissistic parent, Inspector.'

Kim idly wondered if admitting to having a schizophrenic mother who had constantly tried to kill her and her twin would gain her entry to the club.

‘Care to expand?' she asked Judith instead.

‘No. Katie came to me in confidence, and I won't break that, but I will talk generally and use myself as an example. It's all on my blog if you'd prefer.'

‘No, please continue.'

‘Okay, if you didn't have a narcissistic mother, it would be impossible for you to understand. Generally, narcissists have a grandiose sense of self-importance. They exaggerate achievements and talents so they can be recognised as superior. They are preoccupied with fantasies of unlimited success, power, brilliance, beauty. They require excessive admiration. They have a sense of entitlement, an expectation of favourable treatment. They lack empathy and are unwilling or unable to recognise or identify with the feelings or needs of others. They are often arrogant and have the mindset "I am the best; I can't be wrong, and you should be like me".'

Sounded like most of Kim's bosses over the years.

‘Narcissistic mothers exist on a spectrum from neglectful to tyrannical and will begin the ongoing damage by labelling her children as one of three types.'

Judith paused, and Kim nodded for her to continue. There was something about this woman's knowledge that had drawn Katie here for advice, and she had to find out what it was.

‘Firstly, you have the golden child. This child is worshipped. They are a reflection of everything the mother wants for herself. This one has to fulfil the mother's emotional emptiness and give her attention. This is the trophy child.'

Kim briefly considered Katie's achievements. Was that the label Sheryl had given her?

‘Next, we have the scapegoat child. This one gets blamed for the family's problems. Narcissistic mothers are threatened by them as they tend to click to what's going on in the home. The mother uses unpredictable mood swings and bullying to keep this child in line. The mother takes credit for everything good, and the child takes the blame for everything bad. The child's achievements will always be minimised.'

As Katie was an only child, Kim guessed this wasn't the case for their murderer.

‘And finally, we have the lost child. This one is quiet and causes no trouble and is good in school. They are prone to depression, as being a low-value child carries over into being a low-value adult.'

‘You said narcissists exist on a spectrum,' Bryant said, mirroring her own thoughts. Although speaking generally, Judith was telling them that Sheryl had been one. It was safe to assume that having had no siblings, Katie had been the golden child and had therefore been responsible for her mother's emotional state. But how had Sheryl's emotional dependence manifested itself?

‘Severe narcissistic mothers will lock kids in their rooms. They're completely neglectful and happy for the streets to raise their kids. They simply don't care.'

They both knew immediately that didn't apply to Katie.

‘An enmeshed mother is harder to spot but no less deadly. She applies emotional handcuffs and never lets go. She may seem perfect, but she's turning her kids into lifelong infants. She'll never allow them to grow up. She'll make them feel unsafe outside the home. She'll punish them for being self-sufficient. If they're a boy, she'll turn them into a surrogate husband and suffocate them. She'll ruin them for every other woman in their life.'

‘And if they're a girl?' Kim asked.

‘Phew, now we're really getting to it. The relationship between a narcissistic mother and her daughter is one of the most complex bonds that exists. Remember, this isn't the case for all mothers and daughters. Only the narcissistic ones.'

Judith paused as though to ensure this was understood.

Kim nodded for her to continue. It was insight they desperately needed.

‘The relationship revolves around manipulation and control. Mother is constantly making daughter feel guilty about something. The manipulation is always about guilt. She will pretend to care deeply, maybe by buying things, and then start the guilt trips which are designed to control the daughter's emotions and therefore her behaviour. She will control by withholding affection and giving them the silent treatment. Mothers can go weeks or even months without speaking to their child.

‘The mother will gossip to family members, undermine the child and project their dissatisfaction. She'll play the victim and ignore any suffering as she is unable to show empathy or compassion. Everything is about her. She will attempt to live through her daughter and won't even realise there's a problem.'

‘Physical abuse?' Bryant asked.

Judith shook her head. ‘Abuse is rarely physical. It's verbal, dismissive, with constant analysis and criticism, shouting and swearing, insults, disparaging jokes, steady prodding about weight, body type, denying embraces, disregarding, threatening, confining. The list goes on. She'll use guilt trips and fear or obligation. She'll gaslight and shame her daughter.'

‘And what are the long-lasting effects?' Kim asked, again picturing the scenes she'd witnessed this morning.

‘What's happened?' Judith asked.

‘I can't say, but if you check the news later, I'm sure you'll work it out. For now, I need you to answer the question.'

A pensive expression rested on Judith's face as she collected the cups together.

Clearly the answer to this one called for another drink.