Angel Kiss - Laura Jane Cassidy [79]
As he drove back down the road, he noticed something under the passenger seat. A brown leather handbag. He had to get rid of it. He couldn’t throw it out the window. He was too near the village. What if somebody saw him? He couldn’t go back up to the mines. What if somebody was there? People might already be out searching for her. He knew who would take care of it. He swerved into Alf Meehan’s driveway and ordered him to burn the bag.
I never dreamed about Beth Cullen again.
The search for Beth Cullen began on 21 December when her parents started to worry. They rang Des, who told them he hadn’t heard from her since that afternoon. The bike and the shopping bags were found the next day but the body wasn’t discovered until the 28th, one week after she was murdered. The body had been well preserved due to the very cold conditions. It had so many bruises. That’s what Lily Cullen would always remember. So many bruises.
For twenty-five years Sergeant Michael Reynolds made Des Butler’s life a living hell. Convinced that he had killed Beth, he dragged his name through the dirt, so that Des often found it difficult to get work close to home. He had no alibi for the night of 21 December so many people believed him to be guilty.
Following the discovery of Beth Cullen’s body, blood samples were taken from approximately one hundred men living in Avarna and its surrounding areas. The blood samples, as well as the semen found on Beth’s body, were preserved. Having been given new evidence in the form of the bag and its contents, after hearing my story and interviewing Alf Meehan, the Gardai decided to reopen the case. That day Sergeant Michael Reynolds requested a transfer from Avarna. He couldn’t face the embarrassment that the man he had accused so publicly was actually innocent. He told Mary, Nick and Rosie that they were moving house. Mary refused to go. She stayed with her children in Avarna.
Why did Beth Cullen wait twenty-five years to get in touch? Because she wanted to wait until her father had passed on. She knew that if Jim found out that Peter Mulvey had killed her, he would have tried to kill Peter himself. So she waited until he had died, then she chose somebody to contact. She chose me.
I never received any official recognition from the Gardai. I didn’t want it. I’d told them about my special ability, but I didn’t want to publicize it. And I guess they didn’t want it known publicly that crimes were being solved by fifteen-year-old girls who could communicate with spirits. I didn’t hear from them again. Not until last night.
Epilogue
Still clutching the brown envelope, I dodged the puddles on the path that led through the grounds of Kilkenny Castle. I closed the top button on my trench coat and wandered along, taking in all the beauty of those noble surroundings. I’d gone for a walk to clear my head, to gather my thoughts and decide what to do. I had a choice. I could help with Operation Trail, or forget it existed.
I wasn’t sure what to do, but I was almost certain that if I was to help Sergeant Lawlor I might have to go through the headaches and the nightmares all over again. But I couldn’t exactly abandon those women in the photographs. They needed help, and I was one of the few people who could give it to them.
My head throbbed as I recalled what had happened in Avarna the previous summer. I wasn’t sure if I could go through all that again. But maybe it would be easier this time around, now that I knew what to expect. I just wished somebody would decide for me.
The castle grounds were particularly beautiful that spring morning. The grass was damp with dew and the trees were pretty with their new leaves and small buds. I walked along, following the path, trying to reach a conclusion.
I sat down on one of the benches, opened the envelope and