Gavin appeared to be enjoying himself immensely.
‘Gavin was determined to be a part of this family. He targeted Rachel initially and, I’m sorry to say, he met you and you became the easier target. I think he knew Rachel would suss him out eventually.’
Kim didn’t mean to be unkind. Zach had been as much a victim in this as the rest of his family.
‘He infiltrated your family by any means necessary.’
‘Is that why you took every opportunity to come here alone?’ Zach asked. ‘Just to spend time with my parents?’
‘Ask her. She has all the answers.’
‘Yes. He wanted his rightful place in the family. He wanted to be first son; the elder, the one to be looked up to, to be admired, to be steady. He married you for your family.’
Kim recalled his question in the morgue.Oh, Helen, what did you do?
He hadn’t been talking about Helen shooting her family; he had been talking about what she’d done to him.
‘He loved them, and he killed them.’
Zach’s mouth fell open. ‘Rachel?’
Kim nodded. ‘He knew Rachel was still in love with him and would go to the place they met. Did he not pop out while you were minding the baby?’
‘For nappies. He said the ones in the bag were too small.’
‘And did he have any nappies when he returned?’
‘I never gave them a thought, and then we got the call to go to the hospital.’
He shook his head as though trying to sort his thoughts into order.
‘It’s all true, Zach. I know you’re trying to find a loophole, but he killed Rachel because the whole family now has to die,’ she insisted.
‘But he was with me all night when my parents were killed,’ he said, forcing back the tears that had come into his eyes. Some part of him was accepting the truth and another part was still rallying against it, despite the fact the man in question was pointing a gun in his direction.
‘Are you sure, Zach? You came home on Saturday afternoon and repeated the conversation you’d had with your parents?’
‘Of course.’
Kim remembered the strong smell of alcohol on Zach’s breath the day after.
‘And then what?’
‘We had a few drinks.’
‘Both of you or just you?’
Zach narrowed his eyes, searching his memory.
‘I passed out. We were drinking shots. He put me to bed. and I woke up beside him. I assumed…’
‘That he’d been there all night?’
Zach nodded.
‘He killed your family and staged it to look as though Helen had done it, started a small fire by the kitchen window, then hid until the emergency services arrived, and sneaked out when they turned their attention upstairs.’
Zach said nothing, as though waiting for Gavin to deny any part of it.