Chapter Thirty-Seven: Cut-Off

"I got stuff to do. How long are you going to hold me for?" Gabrielle dared ask Swain the following morning as she was sat for another interview.

Her lawyer Foster just giving a sigh to himself. He had pleaded with her to show at least some remorse for her actions and her husband's victims but she isn't showing any. Gabrielle's main concern is getting out as quickly as she can.

"You're going to be here for a while, Mrs Reid. I don't think you're understanding the seriousness of this situation" Swan responded simply.

"I got a business to run-"

"And we got two murders to solve and a person still missing. And we think you have something to do with one of them. So please, Mrs Reid. Cooperate with me on this in every way you can. It's for your own sake as well as ours...Would you like something to eat before we start or are you alright?"

"No. I had something in my cell"

Swain thus pressed record and began the formal second interview process. They had more questions about Stephen's whereabouts but also about Leo's death and the cause of it. Gabrielle being in the country when he died was one of the things that made them suspicious. Her lawyer was thankfully pretty sure that she would be alright as they have no physical evidence of her having connections to Leo.

"So we recently checked through your credit card history. Apparently you paid for two people to stay in the hotel 'Chelsea Hotel' for Mr Lawrence Gregson and Miss Hannah Tanner. Who are they?"

"You know who they are. They are the fake names I gave to Stephen and Audrey"

"Did you give them fake IDs?"

"No"

"Okay. You're lucky you didn't otherwise your charge would be even higher, we will check when we find them. There was something else we wanted to ask you as well, Gabrielle. Where were you on the 26th September 2022?"

"I don't know"

"The day we found that Leo Thompkins was murdered. What were you doing?"

"I already told you yesterday"

"Then tell me again"

"I came to Weatherfield to visit Stephen about the divorce. I followed him to the factory gantry and we had a little argument about it. And about the money he stole from me and the money he was trying to steal from Audrey. I got fed up and left, going back to my hotel in Manchester. It was called 'The Grand'. And that was it"

"Right. What was he like on that day?"

"His usual self. He was a little agitated but any man getting a divorce he didn't want would be. He was just assuring me I would get my money soon and we parted for the day"

"Why did you divorce?"

"That's none of your business"

"What did you think his motives were for killing Leo? You must have an idea or a theory. What do you think?"

"That's none of your business either"

Gabrielle's lawyer quickly clearing his throat as he asked to speak to his client again. Swain suspending the interview as she could see Gabrielle was resorting to 'no comment' anyway by this point. Swain left the room again, looking at her colleague with exasperation on her way out. Mrs Reid was a difficult person to interview and she sure wasn't giving anything away without being force into it. Her lawyer Foster leaned in again.

"I understand your frustration but you need to stop being hostile. These are serious crimes and the police will not care about your reasons for defending him. You have to drag him down otherwise it will only get worst for you"

"Okay but why is she bringing up the divorce and motives? How am I suppose to know? We weren't even taking much during that time. This is outrageous to keep me in for things I know nothing about"

"She's trying to understand who Stephen is. That's why"

"Will she even tell me if she finds him and Audrey?"

"Yes. They have no reason not to"

"How long will this go on for? I have to sort things out in my business and everything else"

"You may get bail after today but that depends how much they think you were involved. So please stop protecting him and start protecting yourself"

...

There was panic in Toronto when Stephen realized Gabrielle must have been caught already. The lack of that promised phonecall was proof of that. He thus grabbed one of the bags and told his mother they have to leave. The police will be onto them and they have to move quickly. Audrey slowly but surely made her way behind him as they took the lift to the ground floor. Going through the exit and onto the streets of Toronto but with no money and only one plan. He paused as he got out his mobile phone, he still had a couple of friends from his young adulthood in Toronto. He spoke to a handful but only one of them might still help him. He stopped outside a payphone and used that instead of his mobile (which he was planning on chucking soon). Audrey keeping watch of the back as she stood outside with a sigh. She did't hold out much hope and she looked down every time somebody in uniform walked past.

"William. Long time no speak I know...How are you doing?"

William Hudson was a very old friend. An old schoolmate actually who knew Stephen since his bad-tempered boyhood. The sixty-five year old seemed startled to hear his old friend's voice. Thankfully for Stephen's sake, he didn't really watch the news. Not that 'old garbage' as he liked to call it.

"I'm doing good. How's Nippersnapper or whatever business venture you're onto these days? It's been weeks" William responded.

"Alright. It came and went as businesses do...I'm in Toronto actually with my mother. I lost my credit card would you believe. Do you have room at your place? My mother's-"

"Ha! Your mother? How old did she have ya? 12?"

"16 actually. Look, William; do you have room or not?"

"I do. But how long do you need to be here? The wife might not be happy but then again. Look, stay where you are and I'll pick you up. Where are you?"

"Near the Chelsea Hotel"

"Oh. I'll put it in the GPS...Should take me around half an hour or so. Wait outside the hotel for me"

"Can't you be quicker?"

"Stephen. I'm in a car, not a time machine. I can't be quicker than that, this isn't Back to the Future. Give me half an hour and no more"

Stephen had to agree to this and thus the arrangement was made. He slammed the phone down and came out. Dropping his mobile on the ground and smashing it up until it was a mere shell of a phone. He told his mother what was going to happen, a friend of his was willing to put them up.

...

"Thank you for coming in, Sarah. We just needed you and your mother to collaborate Gabrielle's story. May I ask what she was doing on the 26th September 2022?"

"Erm...Sorry, that's a long time ago"

"We know but the day Leo went missing. What was she or Stephen doing? Do you have any recollections from that day or the days after?"

"She came over from Milan for a few days I remember. She and Stephen were in the middle of getting a divorce. She didn't stay for very long, she was only there for the divorce as far as I knew"

"How did she seem?"

"Okay yeah. Just as woman would be going through a divorce"

"And how did Stephen seem?"

"A little on edge but I didn't think anything about it. He kept going on about the bins and the factory gantry being open. But I didn't know what to think about it, did I? It didn't feel important"

"Was Gabrielle with him during this?"

"No. She gone back to her hotel by that time, Stephen was booking a cruise for my gran and my nephew Sam. The last thing I remember about her was her coming back and looking slightly better. They resolved whatever differences they had by the time she left"

"Did you think it was odd at all that Leo went missing?"

"No. Everybody just presumed he left Jenny and went to Canada. We had no reason to think anything else. I hardly knew the guy"

Swain thus wrote down the last detail and thanked her. That was everything she needed to know and Gabrielle could at least be happy to know she may no longer be a suspect in that. Sarah was thus free to go as she left the interview room, returning to the waiting room with a sheepish smile to her mother. The two of them thus walked out after giving the police all the information they needed. Gabrielle would still be needed though and she had another night in the cells. Nick was waiting outside with his car as his mother and sister got back into his car to be driven back home.

"How was it then? Is Gabrielle allowed out yet?" Nick began asking as he got onto the road.

"No. She's still got another night at least I reckon...It was nothing, just more questions about Leo and what everybody was doing during that day. I had to tell them about the cruise" Sarah responded.

"No problem. They already came round about that...Sam felt proper grown-up collaborating it. They don't think Gabrielle's involved in Leo's death, do they?"

"I don't know but she didn't do it. She only came down for the divorce, I remember her going back to the hotel that night and she never came back out. I guess because they don't have uncle Stephen-"

"Don't call him that again" Gail interrupted with a shudder.

"Don't tell me what to say, mum. I'm sick of you, David and Martin thinking you can boss the rest of the family around. Bethany's too scared to even ask questions around you lot in case you snap her head off" Sarah argued.

Gail just scoffed in return and could see Nick biting his tongue. There was still tension left in the different fractions of the family. Some were closer than others or some had more history than others. Sarah and Bethany clearly still had great fondness of Stephen and Gabrielle but they wouldn't admit it directly. It wasn't easy to just write them off like a speck of dust.

"No. That's unfair...David is just traumatised over Richard. This brings back those horrible memories. And you know what, it does for me too"

"And you think me and Bethany loved it, do you?"

"I didn't say that-"

"There's a lot of things you haven't said, mum. David or Martin aren't here now so why don't you just tell me what you're really thinking about all of this"

"You really want to know?"

"Yeah"

"I feel hatred, Sarah. That's what I feel...My so-called perfect brother comes back into our lives and messes everything up. Yet my mother is still on his side and is still defending him. I messed up once with Lewis and she cut me out for months, she wouldn't let me help her with drink problems but she let him. I was only born because she wanted a chance to get him back. Did you know that?"

"No"

"I once heard her crying when I was a little girl. And I went in to try and comfort her. But she yelled at me to get out and that I couldn't do anything. She stormed out and left me alone confused. My granny came in minutes later and told me my mam had to go out. I was only five and had no idea what had happened. I found out years later that was the day she found out Stephen was being took to Canada. I think she just went out and got drunk until she passed out. She did that sometimes"

"I'm sorry and you know I'm not defending him. It's just hard...We're all in shock and grieving for the man we thought he was. Bethany's taking it harder than you think, she can barely believe he's even a fraudster. Never mind the other stuff. She's still in denial"

"I'm sorry too and I do miss him despite my mother treating him like a saint. I never blamed him for that. I'm just angry and confused. And I don't think the man we thought he was ever really existed"

...

That night in Toronto meanwhile. They were put up in the spare room of William's house after Stephen lied about them being on vacation and having lost his credit card. He knew that lie would only get him so far but he had nothing else. He was pacing around the room on this cold night. Muttering to himself about needing to get across the border as they are onto to him here. Audrey watching him as she sat on the bed with a borrowed dressing gown from William's wife.

"Get some sleep, Stephen. You had less than me" Audrey suggested which broke him out of his mutterings.

"I can't...We have to get across that border"

"What? Stephen...This is madness. You hardly had any sleep, you didn't sleep on the plane and you hardly slept in the hotel. You're delirious"

"I can't sleep"

"Yes you can. Come on" Audrey began as she got up and tried to lead him towards one of the twin beds..."You're safe, they aren't coming here; nobody but us knows where we are"

She took his jacket from him and chucked it on her own bed. He slid out of his shoes much to her relief. He finally got into bed despite his mind and heart racing, thinking his time was over but he was panicking for nothing right now. The police didn't know where he was currenty. Audrey picked his shoes and jacket up, shoving them into the wardrobe along with their bags. Audrey switched the lights off and got into the other twin bed in the room. Her son was still beathing heavily though while he tossed and turned. Audrey waited and waited for him to stop but he wouldn't. She doesn't know how long she laid and listened, she went back over when she could hear him muttering again. She heard words like 'Leo' and 'Fingerprints'.

"Come on...Get to sleep, you got nothing to worry about. That's what coming here was about" Audrey tried to say as she sat on the edge of his bed.

Putting her fingers through his hair which made him stop moving temporarily. She felt like such a failure but she had to remember she didn't raise him. Malcolm and Joyce did but she doesn't even know if she can blame the way he was raised. He's clearly got something wrong inside his head.

"I keep hearing sirens" Stephen muttered.

"You're just hearing things because you had no sleep in two or three days. There's no sirens, there's just wind my love. Get some sleep please"

"No sirens?"

"No. I wouldn't lie to you...Come on now"

This seemed to have calmed him down slightly as he could hear the wind now. Audrey felt him finally lower himself and get into a more comfortable position. She doesn't know how long she stroked his hair for but he was asleep by the time she stopped and went back to bed.

...

TBC