Breach of Trust: Adam & Sarah, #1

By Molly Garcia

Some victims are hard to find sympathy for but it's the job of Adam Trent, a jigsaw officer and civilian investigator, Sarah Roberts to see past that and find out what happened.

The death of a tenant from a local hostel brings together the police and a civilian investigator, the investigation leads them into a dark, murky world where the vulnerable are manipulated and the guilty are being punished one by one. Each victim has a likely suspect but no one person has the means, motive and opportunity to be responsible for all the murders, who is the common link and can they find out before someone else dies?

Sarah is an experienced service manager in social care, when she's called in to investigate the death of one of the residents at a hostel she becomes embroiled in a criminal investigation.
Adam is a police officer in the jigsaw team but someone is killing off his caseload one by one, can he catch the killer before they strike again?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Molly Garcia
• Release date: Oct 17, 2022
• ISBN: 9798215373323

Molly Garcia

Molly Garcia lives in Spain with her partner of over 30 years, they have two grown-up children. Molly has worked in social care and the NHS since 1991 and uses her experiences to guide her writing and to create complex and realistic characters and backgrounds 

Book preview

Breach of Trust

Adam & Sarah must dig into the victim's dark pasts to find the killer

Molly Garcia

Copyright © 2022 Molly Garcia

All rights reserved

The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

Cover design by: Art Painter

Library of Congress Control Number: 2018675309

Printed in the United States of America

This was my first ever self published book and I couldn't have done it without my family and friends who encouraged and supported me.  

Prologue

Tuesday 10th October

The man was short and fat, his hair was greasy and hung in dark clumps beneath a dirty green woolly hat, he was bundled up in a ripped brown fabric coat and his hands were covered in worn leather gloves. He focused on pushing the wheels of his wheelchair and trying to avoid colliding with the army of legs marching around him as though he wasn’t there.

If anyone had stopped to look at his plain pudding shaped face, scrunched in concentration with its pot marked skin and a sheen of sweat and dirt poking out from above the equally grubby green scarf wrapped around his neck he wouldn’t have been especially memorable. Had they looked more closely they may have noticed his small, dark eyes that glinted coldly and the white scar that snaked down from his brow to his flabby jowls.

The only other noticeable detail was the folded over left leg of his creased, dirty jeans leaving only his right foot on which he wore a tartan slipper.

He veered his wheelchair over to the edge of the pavement and stopped for a moment, scrunching and un-scrunching his hands and catching his breath. He wouldn’t usually go much further than the off licence outside where he lived to get a pouch of baccy and a few cans of cheap cider but today he was headed further afield. He dug in his pockets and pulled out his rolling tin and deftly made up a cigarette, cupping his hand against the wind to light it as his eyes darted around, watching.

A woman noticing that his gaze was fixed on her 4-year-old daughter glared at him, she swiftly changed hands, so her daughter was on the other side of her where her body protected her from his watching eyes. The man smiled, there was no warmth in it, and she shuddered as she walked swiftly away.

Waiting until she’d scuttled out of sight the man threw his dog end on the ground and started pushing himself on again, staying on the pavement until he saw the big iron gates that led to the canal path.

The wind was getting fiercer, Autumn was here, and the wind was making the golden brown and red leaves skip across the path, the cold bit through the holes in his jacket but he ignored the discomfort and pushed on faster.

Getting to the canal he carried on under the bridge, finally out of the wind he could feel the sting on his face, his scar tingling. He leaned back in his chair to wait, the anticipation of what was to come meant he didn’t care about the cold or how much his hands ached from pushing.

Thinking about it he pulled off his gloves and his hands wandered to the front of his trousers as though with a mind of their own, he could feel the warmth of wanting, he closed his eyes to imagine the gift that he’d come to get.

Lost in his thoughts he didn’t hear the light steps coming his way, he didn’t even realise at first that someone had taken the handles of his chair, so it came as a shock when he started to move forwards. His eyes popped open, and he tried to spin around to see who was behind him, he didn’t even have time to scream before he felt the cold water of the canal hit him. There was silence as the water swallowed him up and filled his lungs.

The first sound was that of a teenage girl, she’d come under the bridge to meet a boy but instead was greeted by the sight of an overturned wheelchair, one wheel still slowly spinning. Getting closer she saw the top of a green woolly hat and when she realised that it was a body floating in there she screamed.

Chapter 1

Weds 18th October

Sarah Roberts was early, she was always early, usually she let herself into the office block where she worked and had a quiet coffee in the warm whilst she set herself up for the day. This morning however she’d arrived to find that the electronic system that allowed access with her ID card wasn’t working and as the receptionist still wasn’t in, she was stuck outside. It was bitterly cold, and Sarah dug the hand not holding her cigarette into her pocket and moved herself as close to the building as she could to get out of the wind.

Finally, a short, plump girl in her 20s came striding towards the door, she pulled her ID card out of her pocket and tried fruitlessly to buzz in with it. It doesn’t seem to be working Sarah said

The reply was a deep sigh of discontent, the girl’s long nails tapped on the card before she dug through a large leather bag finally pulling out a set of keys. She unlocked the door and bustled through leaving the door to swing back towards Sarah who quickly grabbed it before it closed again.

The warmth of reception made her face tingle and the feeling started to come back into her hands, the receptionist had shed her coat, gloves and scarf It tripped, I’ve put it back on now so the system should be back up

Sarah nodded as she headed towards the lifts, second floor and there was the office. It was one of those hot desk set ups, rows of desks and computers on a first come first served basis, to the side was a kitchenette and next to that was a cubby where a printer stood.

Sarah had just got her coffee and was taking a seat when she heard her name being called Sarah, just the person I was hoping to see today!

Her boss, Chris, was standing next to her holding a cardboard cup of takeout coffee it’s a bit sensitive actually so we’ll find a room to talk in

Sarah followed him over to one of the pods set up at the sides of the office, she took a sip of her coffee and sat on one of the lurid green ergonomic chairs. Chris took the chair on the opposite side of the table and put some papers down on the desk.

Do you know Andrews House? Sarah nodded That’s the hostel in Peterside, isn’t it?

There’s been a serious incident and we need to do a case review; do you have the capacity to take it on?

Yes, no problem, I can do that Chris pulled some of the paperwork over towards him and glanced it through.

Last week one of the residents ended up dead in the canal, he was a wheelchair user, only had one leg and generally wouldn’t stray far from the scheme. Obviously, the police are looking into it, but we need to check that everything was as it should be at the hostel. This one is bound to end up in coroners court and of course the commissioners are asking questions so having our own review would be really helpful.

Sarah scribbled a few notes down Has there been any concerns about the hostel before?

Chris sighed Afraid so, there was a previous investigation after one of the residents had a nasty fall on the stairs and then laid there for 2 hours before anyone found him. The staff member on duty that shift ended up facing a disciplinary and got a final written warning on her record, we couldn’t prove it, but we think she was either asleep or had left the scheme unstaffed as we couldn’t understand why she wouldn’t hear him shouting for help. He was a drinker and the paramedics said he’d had a skinful they could smell it on him, he was barely conscious and slurring his words, but they think he said, fucking pushed me. The CCTV wasn’t working in the stairwells at the time so there was no proof anyone pushed him and that he didn’t fall because he was so drunk, so the police didn’t take any further action on the case. He was in intensive care for weeks and when he was discharged, he was sent to another accommodation that could better manage his physical health.

Sarah added some more notes Could you send me that investigation too please? Chris nodded of course it’s got to be kept confidential, but it would help for you to get some background on why we’re concerned that there could be more to it this time as well. The guy who fell was called George Caulfield and when we looked into it we found that the staff hadn’t seen him for at least 2 days and considering that he was in poor health and drinking heavily that wasn’t great to say the least.

Chris glanced at his phone Shit, another meeting in 5 minutes, if I want time for a wee and coffee refill I’d better go, you okay to make a start? I’ll get my PA to send everything over to you.

Sarah stood up as well and smiled No rest for the wicked I take it? Chris chuckled none whatsoever!

Chris must have been pretty sure she’d take it on as when Sarah finally managed to log on to her computer the email from his PA was already there complete with a large number of attachments.

Starting with the resident’s background she noted that he’d been called Trevor Long and had lived at the hostel for the last 2 years since being released from prison with no fixed abode. Pulling up his most recent risk assessment she noted that his keyworker had been light on details, under offending all it said was that Trevor had served a 10-year sentence and was on licence for another 10 years. Next to that under risk controls the keyworker had added at the bottom any concerns should be reported to his Jigsaw officer

Sarah made a note Trevor must have a history of sexual offences to be under the Jigsaw team

Nothing much to note in the risk assessment, the keyworker had made mention of his physical disability and use of the wheelchair which it was noted was linked to his poor management of his diabetes.

Sarah typed up the background and then added a list of what she needed to see or know and who she’d want to speak to, she then tapped out a quick email to the scheme’s senior manager, Debbie, letting her know that she’d like to start off with a visit. Within minutes a reply had come back saying that she was welcome to come today if it suited. Sarah quickly let Debbie know she was leaving now, packed her bag up and rushed back out into the cold heading for the tube station.

Using her google maps app Sarah quickly found the hostel, it was set back slightly on a small side road with large gates blocking entry, on the wall next to the gates was an intercom system and a sign instructing visitors to press 1 for the office. A tinny voice crackled out of the speaker just about audible above the rush of traffic behind her Hi how can I help?

My name’s Sarah Roberts and I’m a services consultant, I have an appointment with Debbie Newlands

The buzzer sounded and the gate clicked, Sarah pushed it open and walked up the wide path into a courtyard, in front of her was a large building the door being held open by a tall, slim built woman. As she got closer the woman put out her hand Hi Sarah I’m Debbie good to meet you and thank you for agreeing to do this review Sarah shook her hand No problem

I only took this lot on 2 months ago Debbie said as she led Sarah through a maze of corridors I knew there were some problems and a previous investigation, but this is really worrying

Debbie pulled a large keyring out of her pocket and opened a door This is my little office; I like to be on site as often as I can

The room was fairly small but there was a large, windowed door at the back letting in plenty of natural light, the furniture was the usual combination of head office cast offs but it felt cosy. Debbie sat in the swivel chair and spun round to face Sarah who parked herself in one of the small armchairs next to a coffee table, she took off her outdoor clothes and got out her notebook and pen.

Coffee? Sarah nodded gratefully and watched as Debbie put on the kettle on the little counter in the corner of the room getting out two mugs and a jar of instant coffee. Once they were furnished with hot drinks Debbie sat back in the chair and wrapped her hands around the mug. I’m guessing you know some of the background and that you’ve been sent some of the paperwork?

Yes, I made a start reading some of it, but the risk assessment wasn’t especially detailed, and his referral form wasn’t included either

Debbie rolled her eyes and let out a deep sigh of annoyance To be blunt Sarah I’m not at all impressed, risk assessments are often out of date and even when they are being done, they aren’t of the standard I’d expect from a staff team who’ve been here for some time. The manager is a man called Michael, unfortunately he seems to find having challenging conversations with the staff difficult and hasn’t addressed any of the performance concerns with them.

I noticed mention of the Jigsaw team on Trevor’s risk assessment which I’d assume means he’s on the sex offenders register and they monitor him?

Debbie turned her chair round to the computer and tapped a few keys, she bought up the notes on Trevor and read quietly for a moment Shit she muttered under her breath before spinning back round to Sarah, her face grim.

Trevor served 10 years of a 20-year sentence for child sexual offences, he’s on the SOR indefinitely and is monitored by a Jigsaw officer

Sarah raised an eyebrow and made a note, Debbie shook her head This really should have been on his risk assessment for obvious reasons, there are regular MAPPA meetings about him and his potential risk to local children according to this Debbie stood up I’ve got a room you can use, obviously you won’t be here all the time but having a room to do interviews in private and somewhere to work from should be helpful. We’re lucky, this is a big rambling building with a lot of communal rooms

Debbie led Sarah to a room just down the corridor from her own and got out the keyring again Do you have a laptop? There’s wifi but no computer in here Sarah pointed to her large bag yep

Excellent Debbie worked the key off the keyring and then dug about in her pockets again producing a small round plastic fob This is the key to your office, and this is the fob for getting in and out of the building, so you won’t need to rely on buzzing the office when you come here

Sarah added the fob to the keyring that held her new office key and thanked Debbie for her help No problem, I want to clear this up as much as you do, I’ll leave you to settle in but give me a shout if there’s anything I can do

I’ll probably want to speak to the staff and definitely the manager Debbie nodded, the office is back up the corridor and through the green door on the left, the building is separated by colours, we’re in the blue corridor which is mainly admin, office and resident communal rooms are green and accommodation corridors are yellow Debbie smiled good luck she called as she left.

Sarah looked around her temporary office, it was about the same size as Debbie’s, but the desk was bare, there were two armchairs and a small side table at one end and a counter with one cupboard above it and a small fridge under it. There was a slightly grubby looking kettle on it and a microwave, opening the cupboards Sarah found a rag tag collection of mugs, in the drawer there were some small spoons and an assortment of cutlery. No tea or coffee and definitely no milk in the empty fridge though.

Sarah pulled out her laptop and set it up on the desk easily logging onto the service WiFi, opening her emails she started reading through the attachments and making notes.

Sarah became aware that she was hungry, her stomach rumbled, and her mouth was dry, she glanced at the clock and realised that she’d been sat here for 3 hours already. Her list was getting longer, so many questions to get answers to.

Just as she was thinking about heading out to find a shop for a sandwich and some stocks for her little coffee area, she heard the office door open. Thought I’d better bring these over for you Debbie had a small bag which she put on the counter unloading a jar of coffee, a bag of sugar, a small container of milk and a packet of biscuits. Digging into the bottom of the bag she produced a sandwich container I popped out myself just now and thought I’d pick you up some bits, hope you don’t mind tuna?

No, I love tuna, thank you, you must be a mind reader!

Trevor’s keyworker has come on shift; she’ll have finished handover by now, so I thought I’d give you a bit of time to wolf that sandwich and get a drink and then bring her over for a chat?

Yes please Sarah had already opened the sandwich and was taking a huge bite, she wandered over to the little sink and put some water into one of the mugs that was least stained. The food perked her up and the water got rid of that horrible sticky feeling in her mouth, Sarah looked over at the windowed door at the far side of the office, she looked at the keyring she was given earlier and saw there was a small key that fitted the lock to open it. Cold air raced in, and the door let out onto a small walled area, Sarah huddled out there and lit a cigarette, thinking while she smoked about her up and coming conversation with Karen the keyworker.

Sarah had not long put out her cigarette and shut up the doors when she heard a knock on the office door come in

The door swung open and a short, plump woman in her 30s came in, her face was round and her eyes small and sunken, her black trousers were tight on her thighs and she wore a baggy shirt which may have started life as white but was now a washed out grey. Her brown hair was scrapped back in a ponytail and strands had escaped and frizzed round her face.

You must be Karen? Sarah held out her hand, Karen looked at it for a moment and slowly took it for a brief damp shake.

Sit down, would you like a hot drink? Karen shook her head and slumped into one of the armchairs looking at her feet.

Sarah took the other chair and got out her notepad Thanks for coming to speak with me

Not as though I had any choice, is it? Karen muttered Sarah leaned back and put her pen down I know this must feel very uncomfortable but when there’s a serious incident, we really need to look at any circumstances leading up to it. That way we have all the information we may be asked for at a later date but also so we can make any changes or improvements that will make things easier for the service as a whole

Karen shuffled back in her chair and lifted her head a bit Yeah I get that, but I’ve been here before, and I ended up with a written warning and nearly lost my job Sarah nodded I’m aware there was an investigation before but at the moment this is a fact-finding review

Karen nodded; she looked a little less hostile

Okay, let’s start with you telling me about Trevor and your experiences of keyworking him

I was his keyworker from the start, in the beginning he was okay, turned up for his appointments and kept his accommodation pretty clean but about 4 weeks ago he started not showing up. I’d go and knock for him and he’d just shout fuck off and not answer the door and when we did our last health and safety check the place was a right tip.

Sarah looked at her notes I didn’t see any mention of that in his support plan or risk assessment though?

Karen shrugged I hadn’t got round to updating it, it’s busy here

I was sent his most recent risk assessment and I noticed that there wasn’t much detail on the offending section?

Karen shrugged again I think there was more on some of his older ones, and it didn’t seem worth keep adding it all again. I guess you know that he’s a kiddie fiddler then?

Sarah winced, child sex offenders weren’t anyone’s favourites, but you had to be professional about it, she made a note but didn’t challenge Karen on her terminology.

Yes, Debbie looked him up and I’ve noted that he’s on the sex offenders register for sexual offences against children, one of his referral documents details those offences and I can see that he was imprisoned for inappropriate touching of three children under 10 years old, sexual intercourse with one of those children and that the police found a collection of child pornography on his computer

Karen scrunched up her face I don’t know why they let him out

He was on the register, monitored and on licence with strict conditions though, wasn’t he?

I guess so but none of that would matter if he got near another kiddie

Sarah moved on When did you last have contact with Trevor before he died?

Karen looked thoughtful a moment Must have been about 3 days before I think, I knocked for him and he shouted fuck off you fat bitch through the door. I told him that we didn’t tolerate verbal abuse towards staff and that he was putting his tenancy at risk. Trevor yelled back that he didn’t fucking care

Sarah held back a smile, she’d worked in hostels as a support worker herself for 20 years before moving up into this role and it was a common routine that at least a few of the residents would talk to you like that on a regular basis.

I can see you were on shift the day he died?

I was on the early, but my child minder got sick, and I had to leave earlier to fetch my kid, I didn’t see him going out

Did he usually go to the canal when he went out?

No that’s what’s strange about it, he hates pushing his own chair and he can’t walk far with his crutches so the furthest he goes is that little off licence next door, he gets his baccy and some ciders and then back to his room

How long have you worked here?

Karen made a show of thinking Must be 6 years now

Karen glanced at the clock I need to get back, I’m seeing one of the residents with his care coordinator in 15 minutes and I need to get his paperwork out and prepare Sarah nodded no problem, we’ll probably need to talk again but that’s really helpful as a starting point

Karen heaved herself out of the chair and muttered her goodbyes as she left the room.

Sarah tapped her pen thoughtfully for a moment, she gathered her notes and added the conversation to her typed up records. She wasn’t impressed with Karen at all.

Sarah slipped back outside for a smoke, and she’d just finished up when there was another knock at the door when she called come in a short, slight girl walked quietly in, her long honey blonde hair was pulled back in a messy bun and her small face was clear of makeup. The girl was wearing black skinny jeans and had on a blue baggy hoody that drowned her small frame, her pretty face was serious but there was something about her that made Sarah feel at ease despite the intensity of her stare.

Sorry to bother you, I’m Milly, Debbie said you were looking to talk to the staff about Trevor?

Sarah gestured to the seats thanks for popping in, would you like a hot drink?

Yes please a warm smile lit up the serious little face coffee with two sugars and milk please

Sarah couldn’t help smiling back at her coming right up!

There was a comfortable silence while Sarah made the drinks and then sat down opposite Milly What are your thoughts on Trevor?

Milly leaned forward I’ve been here about a year now and despite how young I look I’m actually 20 Seeing Sarah’s face Milly chuckled I know, I know, I look about 14 on a good day!

You’ll be grateful of it when your older you know

Apparently so, according to my mum. With Trevor, I’d see him most days, usually he’d come to the office and if not, I’d go and knock for him before I went off shift, I like to know that everyone is okay before I leave. Sarah smiled I was much the same in my support worker days, I’d guess that Karen saw him the most often as she was his keyworker? Sarah noticed that Milly looked uncomfortable and dropped her gaze to the table as she mumbled Yeah I guess so Sarah waited quietly and Milly fiddled with the toggle on her hoodie, eventually Milly spoke again I don’t want to cause trouble for anyone Sarah nodded I understand but one of the residents is dead and you seem like someone who does the right thing even when it’s tough? Milly blushed and looked down, she was clearly pleased but uncomfortable with the compliment, then she straightened up and looked intensely at Sarah "Your right, it is important to be honest and as you’ve met Karen, I’m sure you’ve already got the idea that she isn’t the