Looking Good Dead

written down, belonged to an untraceable pay-as-you-go phone.
    Grace paused to drink some water. ‘Right. Resourcing. East Downs Division has been very positive in offering manpower. We instigated a search of the vicinity of the area where the torso and limbs were discovered on Wednesday morning, and have been widening and upgrading this further over the past forty-eight hours. I’ve brought in the Sussex Police Underwater Search Unit, and we are in the process of having the USU team drag all local rivers, lakes and reservoirs. I have also requested a further helicopter sweep.’
    He went on through the headings. Meeting Cycles: Grace announced there would be daily 8.30 a.m. and 6.30 p.m. briefings. He reported that the Holmes computer team had been up and running since Wednesday. He read out the list under Investigative Strategies, which included Communications/Media, emphasizing the need to keep the discovery of the beetle out of the press, and that they were working on getting the murder featured on next week’s Crimewatch .
    Then Emma-Jane raised a hand. ‘Are we going to release the information that Janie Stretton had a secret life on the game?’
    Grace had been wondering exactly the same thing. He thought about Derek Stretton, already distraught, his life in ruins. What effect would that information have on the poor man? But would there be any value to releasing it? Would it prompt someone who had hired her services to come forward with some vital clue? Unlikely but possible. It was a tough call. Releasing it would greatly increase the press interest. Broader coverage might just mean that someone would come forward. Maybe a waiter or a barman might have seen Janie and this Anton together?
    ‘Two family liaison officers are with Janie’s father at the moment, DCs Donnington and Ritchie. I will discuss it with them first but my inclination is yes,’ he replied to Emma-Jane. ‘Unless they have very strong feelings that it would be too distressing to Mr Stretton at this stage, we will go ahead and release it.’
    Next was Forensics. Grace reported that, apart from the beetle, there were no surprises from the post-mortem so far, apart from one: there was no sign of sexual assault on the victim. He had the reportfrom Dr Frazer Theobald in front of him, but there was no need to read out the pages and pages of technical details. Janie had died from multiple stab wounds from a long, thin blade. Having her head removed hadn’t exactly helped her survival chances either , he thought.
    ‘At the moment, this scarab beetle is my main concern,’ he said. ‘Has anyone discovered any other murder where a beetle was found at the scene?’
    ‘There was a woman found on Wimbledon Common in April,’ Nick said. ‘The victim was a twenty-six-year-old woman, also missing her head. She was wearing a silver charm bracelet that none of her family recognized. I had a jpeg emailed through. This is a printout.’ He handed it to Grace. ‘There was no sign of sexual assault in this murder either. And it is unsolved.’
    Grace stared at the tiny silver beetle hanging on the bracelet. He recognized the markings instantly. It was a scarab. ‘Good work,’ he said. ‘No others?’
    ‘The Met are the only force to have responded so far,’ Nick said.
    Grace stared at the photograph. ‘My hunch is there are going to be others. Can we get the file on this?’
    Nick looked at his notes. ‘The SIO is a Detective Inspector Dickinson; he’s offered to meet me – or any of us.’
    ‘He sounds unusually cooperative for a Met,’ Grace said cynically. The Metropolitan Police tended to be a law unto themselves – arrogant, considering themselves the best, and not that cooperative with provincial forces. ‘Can you arrange to meet him mid-morning tomorrow?’
    ‘I was meant to be playing for Sussex CID in a police football friendly, but yes.’
    ‘It’s June now; this is the cricket season, not football,’ Grace said in a chiding tone. ‘We have a father I’ve just spent time with today, telling him his daughter has been butchered; I’m not sure he’d be that impressed to know the murder investigation had to be delayed because of a sodding football match.’
    The Detective Constable blushed. ‘No, sir – Roy.’
    When he reached the end of his report, Grace summed up. ‘We have now established a crime scene where the murder of Janie Stretton took place. Bella and Nick have conducted questioning of all JanieStretton’s