‘We could do without this, with all that’s happening lately,’ Jacob said as he and Gina passed the large, flustered looking man in the garden.

‘The man said it was a hand,’ Gina replied.

Bernard’s lanky frame blocked the sunlight as he approached. He pulled down his mask, allowing some of his long grey beard to escape. ‘We beat you to it. The bad news is, the hand has been dried out, due to being exposed to the sun. We found gnaw marks on the bones from the wildlife. The good news is, if you can call any of this good, we have found the rest of the body and it wasn’t too far away. More bad news though, it is in a shallow grave, resulting in some of the limbs being missing. As you know, this happens quite a lot. The wildlife gets a whiff of death and comes looking for a meal. We have crime scene investigators searching for the rest along with the officers that arrived first.’

She gazed into the woodland and watched the CSIs in their white suits erecting a tent. ‘Is that where the grave is?’

‘Yes. The tent is to preserve the body as much as we can. It’s not a pretty sight. Both of the left limbs were taken and have since dried out as has the rest of the body. The animals in question probably caught the scent of the cadaver, dug a little, exposing the body, leaving it out for the elements and heat, and it has been hot for a while now.’

‘Can I see?’

‘Yes, suit and boot, then head over. I’ll come with you.’

‘Thanks.’ Gina grabbed a forensics suit, boot and hair covers, and gloves. ‘Jacob, will you go and take statements from Bryn Tilly and Jack Dunn? Find out what they were doing here and who owns this house. Find out who’s keeping a scene log and make sure they have Bryn and Jack’s shoe sizes and prints etcetera.’

Jacob nodded. ‘Will do, guv.’

As she zipped the forensics suit up, she began the walk over to the tent, being careful to step on the plates that had been laid down.

Bernard beckoned her over. As the investigators were finishing off with the tent, Gina stood back. She could see the grave and the body. One CSI walked around with a camera, taking photos of the exhibits they’d discovered. ‘The left femur is over there, exhibit two. The radius is over there.’ He pointed into the distance.

‘They weren’t scattered too far.’

‘Thankfully not,’ Bernard replied.

‘Right, talk me through your initial observations.’

‘I’ve had a chance to see the body close up. The hip formation shows that of a girl, I’m estimating fifteen at the youngest, possibly up to adulthood. It’s hard to tell and I’ll know more when we’ve taken her away from here and examined her properly. As you can see, she is lying on a blanket, which will also be taken away and analysed for forensic evidence once we’ve carefully removed her bones. Look at what’s left of her hair.’

Gina leaned to the side as the crime scene photographer walked in front of her. ‘The hair looks red.’

‘Yes, pheomelanin adds the orange colour to the hair and this doesn’t break down with oxidisation. The red pigmentation has been left behind. She had shades of red in her hair.’

‘Height?’

‘Again, a good estimate. As you can see, she’s been scrunched up into that position, almost like a very compressed foetal position. She would have been buried very soon after death otherwise she’d have been too stiff to bend. Between five foot four and five foot seven. As you can see, what was once a white nightdress was pulled over her body. She is also wearing underwear. Stating the obvious, but this will also be sent to the lab for analysis. I don’t know what we’ll get from it. At least three months have passed for the body to be at this stage, could be as many as six. Given the weather patterns, extreme wintery conditions to heatwave, and the geographical location, the soil etcetera, I would say it’s more likely to be about four months. Further testing is needed, so don’t take that as exact.’

Gina nodded as she made further notes. Her gaze locked onto the grave. The girl looked as though she’d been carefully placed, dressed in a decorative white nightdress with broderie anglaise around the neckline, cuffs and hem. She had been dressed in underwear. There had been a certain amount of dignity applied in her burial suggesting that the victim may have been cared for.

‘Jennifer over there is just taking samples of the soil.’ She focused on the CSI kneeling down and placing the sample in a tube, before filling out the evidence bag and placing it in her box. ‘We will be looking at the soil concentration as this will help in pinpointing the time of death. The soil’s make up varies with how decomposed the body is. There is a little muscle attached to the bone, which we will also be testing. There are also nails to swab. There may be traces of something telling underneath. Teeth may identify her through dental records but you know all that already. Her bones will be examined, giving us an even better indication of her age,’ Bernard said.

‘Thanks for that and don’t let me keep you. The quicker this is all done, the better.’

Bernard nodded and waved at one of his assistants. ‘I’ll be back in a moment. Just going to have a close look at the limbs. Do you need anything else from me?’

‘Like I said, only for all these tests to be done immediately. We need to identify her. Someone out there is missing a daughter.’

He laughed. ‘I’ll do my best. I know you always need things now but we’ll work as quickly as we can. We have a lot of staff booked out on holiday, trying to get it in before the kids break up. The samples will be taken to the lab in a short while. This is a big job though.’

‘Do your very best. I’ll see you at the next briefing with at least some results to share? I’ll call you later.’

He nodded and left her in front of the tent. The canvas was now pulled completely over the grave, shading what was left of the body from the sun. The general public weren’t a worry as the woodland was far out from the town. She listened as a tractor chugged in the distance. About thirty yards from the main road, there was a small pull in place on the single-track country road. That particular road provided a barely used cut through, just on the outskirts of Cleevesford. One person could just about manage to drag a body alone for that distance.

Not many people would know the cut through existed and whoever brought the body would probably know that they wouldn’t be disturbed. Someone with local knowledge had to have buried her there. They chose this location for that very reason.

Another girl. The girl who had died in hospital had been found only three miles from the body in the shallow grave. Could they be linked? Both estimated to be in their mid-teens. Maybe the lab results might throw up a connection. Maybe both were taken at the same time and one died or was killed. The other girl could have escaped. From what and who? Gina’s brain was alight with all the possibilities. Maybe they weren’t even connected. Two girls of a similar age was a coincidence though.

‘All right, guv?’ Jacob called.

She turned and walked back. An officer walked past her with a roll of cordon tape. ‘What did we get from the two men working on the house?’

Jacob removed his jacket then wiped the beads of sweat from his brow. The midday heat was at its hottest and the heatwave was set to continue. ‘Bloody hell, it’s boiling. Updates. I’ve just spoken with them. They’re heading to the station now to make a formal statement. I’ve called Wyre and prepped her for their arrival.’ She glanced over at the younger man of the two, probably in his mid-fifties, and watched him pulling his sweat drenched vest over his head before heading towards his car with the older man. ‘The older man, the one on the right, he is Jack Dunn. Friends with Bryn Tilly. He was hired today to come along with a mini digger to help level this land off. They were just about to start clearing the shrubbery when they spotted the bones. The hand to be more precise.’

‘Bryn Tilly, he had access to this property before?’

‘Only since mid-April, the twentieth to be precise. He bought this property at auction with another two investors, a couple called Stan and Elizabeth North. Their aim was to do it up as quickly as possible and make a quick quid.’

‘I suppose he could have come at any time before now, for a look. Entering from the road by foot through the woodland. Who owned it before?’

‘From what he says an elderly lady died in the property about a year ago, of natural causes. From what he heard, she was ninety-six and lived downstairs as she had mobility problems. The place had stank when he started work and it was fairly rundown. He was told that the estate passed to the Crown and was subsequently auctioned.’

‘The Crown?’

‘Yes. She had no surviving relatives and hadn’t left a will. She had no one to leave it to.’

‘I see. Can you call the team and ask someone to verify that? So, the only person who had access to the property was an elderly woman in her nineties, with no family. Maybe the council can help us find out if she had help from carers or if social services had ever been involved.’

Had Bryn Tilly and the Norths had their eye on the property before and had they chosen this property for a reason? She struggled with her thoughts. If they had any involvement, why would Tilly call the police?

‘Oh and, guv, Tilly looked well fed up about us being here, saying we were going to set the work on the house back and they wouldn’t be able to sell it. Jack Dunn kept going on, saying that reporting it was the right thing to do.’

Now her mind was ticking. Maybe Tilly hadn’t wanted Dunn to look too closely. Dunn had spotted the hand and wanted to report it. ‘Where does Bryn Tilly live?’

‘In Cleevesford, near the centre. He has done most of his life. Born and bred, he said.’

‘So he’d know the area well.’

‘What are you thinking?’

Gina turned and headed towards the car. ‘Lots of things, lots. Is that the time? We need to get over to Worcester to speak with Mrs Dawson. Our girl who fell from the van may just have a name.’