Kim introduced herself and Bryant.
‘Mr Laing?’
He nodded, stepping aside to allow them entry.
A comfortably furnished living room appeared to have had a baby explosion. The carpet and furniture were covered in toys, blankets, cuddly toys, activity mats. Something squeaked underfoot as she stepped into the room.
A woman with blonde hair and a defeated expression sat on the single chair while holding the baby dressed in a pink Babygro on her lap. Her hand rhythmically rubbed the baby’s back as it continued to cry. Kim guessed it was a little girl.
‘Detectives,’ Mr Laing said over her head, explaining the two strangers who had entered her home.
Mrs Laing nodded as Mr Laing cleared a space on the sofa for them to sit.
‘We’re very sorry for your loss,’ Bryant said. An officer had been despatched to deliver the news first thing.
‘Thank you,’ Mrs Laing said as her eyes filled with tears. ‘The officer said someone would be along to see us later, but I don’t think we’ve processed it yet,’ she said, swapping the baby to her other leg. She reached for a bottle and tried to put it in the baby’s mouth. The little girl shut her mouth firmly and scrunched up her face before bawling again.
They really did have their hands full, and if Kim could have delayed her questions for a more suitable time, she would have done, but they needed to know about Sarah as soon as possible.
‘Mrs Laing, I’m so sorry to have to ask you about Sarah at this time, but…’
‘Please call me Elaine, and this is Pete. We’re still new to this.’
‘Been a while?’ Bryant said, taking out his car keys.
‘Not ever,’ she answered, trying to bounce the baby into contentment. ‘Sarah was adopted, eighteen months old. We skipped this part and went straight to fishing her out of the kitchen bin.’
Despite the gravity of the situation, Kim couldn’t help the smile that lifted her lips as Bryant dangled the car keys in front of the baby.
Silence fell in the room and both grandparents looked at Bryant in awe. Even she was impressed.
‘Shiny and jangly. Worked on Laura every time,’ Bryant said, holding out his hands. ‘May I?’
Elaine nodded and gratefully handed over the baby.
‘I’m so sorry that we have to intrude but we’re investigating your daughter’s murder.’
The restrained tears broke free and washed over her cheeks. Her husband handed her a tissue.
She wiped at her face. ‘It definitely wasn’t suicide?’ she asked. ‘The officer didn’t offer too much detail.’
‘No. Sarah didn’t take her own life. The scene was staged to look like suicide.’
Kim realised there was no relief in either scenario.
‘But why?’ asked Mr Laing as he came to sit beside his wife.
‘We don’t know that yet,’ Kim said honestly. ‘But could you tell us more about her?’
Elaine took a breath and composed herself. ‘We’d been fostering children for a couple of years. Short-stay cases, mainly. Sarah came to us as an emergency case in the middle of the night after a raid on a drug den. She was found playing with needles beside her overdosed mother. There were no traceable family members so Sarah was brought to us. Her mum died two days later.
‘We fell in love with Sarah straightaway. She was bright, intelligent, eager to learn and remarkably well-adjusted given her short life. The main barrier was physical contact. For years she wouldn’t let us hug her or kiss her, and when she did it was on her terms. We knew that it was something she’d never had and just didn’t understand.’
Tears began to escape again, and Mr Laing dabbed at his own eyes.
‘Didn’t matter. We already loved her like our own, and by the time she turned two it was official. She loved school, had every kind of doll there was, loved making tea parties. We both spent many hours eating invisible cake.’
A sad smile rested on her mouth as Elaine reached for her husband’s hand.