No Longer Safe(111)

The trauma to Alice’s left temporal lobe appears to have affected the amygdala. Head injuries of this sort are known to cause a number of psychological changes to the personality, often swift and dramatic, including loss of control over emotions such as anger, rage and risk-taking. If Alice had sought medical attention immediately after the injury, a full series of tests (including a PET scan) would have highlighted this.

It is common knowledge in the medical profession that a disturbingly high proportion of serial killers have sustained head injuries at some stage in their lives.

The head injury alone, however, does not fully explain the dramatic shift in Alice’s behaviour.



Aggression during sleep



Alice was prescribed sleeping tablets (Zoltratin) in September this year and took the recommended dose (10g) on several occasions during the holiday.

A series of EEG-monitored nocturnal tests were undertaken over seven nights in the London Sleep Clinic as part of my assessment. The results confirmed that following the administration of sleeping tablets, Alice experienced four episodes of sleepwalking during this period.

During one of these episodes, Alice forcibly removed the monitoring electrodes and attempted to smash the bed into the door of the sealed chamber. When restrained by the technician, she acquiesced immediately and climbed back into bed. When shown a CCTV replay of the activity the following morning, Alice responded with shock and disbelief. The analysis of nocturnal rapid eye movement and slow-wave sleep confirms my assessment that she had no knowledge of her actions.



Conclusions



I conclude that this unique combination of factors led to uncharacteristic aggressive and violent behaviour in this patient. I believe Alice was not aware of her actions and requires treatment in a secure psychiatric facility until the prognosis regarding her condition is fully established.





Chapter 58




Two weeks later



I heard on the news that Alice had been arrested and charged with Stuart’s murder. She went straight to a secure psychiatric hospital. She hadn’t confessed; she had no recollection of doing anything wrong. It’s not every day an old friend turns out to be a serial killer! I’m so relieved it’s over.

So – what happened to me?

I didn’t get off scot-free. I was back where I started – a mother without a child. And my lawyer reckons I’ll get a nine-month suspended sentence for detaining Alice against her will. I hadn’t harmed her, and as Alice was proven to be a danger to others, I had mitigating circumstances. My lawyer fell back on a statement that went something like this:

‘Any person detaining another person must have an honest belief that detention is necessary and reasonable grounds for that belief.’

Until Alice burst in and saw Brody in the bathroom, I’d fooled everyone with the switch. Done such a good job of making sure no one saw the baby’s face properly. Alice tried to tell the police I’d taken the boy, but by then no one was paying much attention to her. During her first night in hospital, before they started all the tests, Alice had to be restrained for attacking a nurse with a bed pan. She was a completely unreliable witness by then.

Apart from the obvious glitches, I chose my alibis well. Alice was going to be a teacher, but when I first planned the reunion  , I did a bit of background research on her. I knew she was single, without children, and at Leeds, she’d never been the least bit interested in babies.

Jodie and Mark were the same. Mark had a child, but he was nothing more than a fly-by-night parent. Infants of a young age can look similar and their gender isn’t always obvious. I read up about it when I first started hatching my plan in Holloway, with Pam. My house guests didn’t pay much attention and that was exactly what I wanted. The police contacted Mark and Jodie, of course, but they both said Alice’s accusations were rubbish.

Charlie’s whereabouts is still a mystery and I pray it stays that way. Thank goodness Alice didn’t take any photos when she killed him, or I really would have been in trouble.

I had to intervene, otherwise my own scheme would have been in jeopardy. We had to get rid of him and there was no way she could have got him to the lake on her own. In any case, the whole business about Charlie has gone quiet.

Right until the end, Alice kept her word and didn’t mention him. I’m not sure if that was because, by then, her mind was broken into pieces or whether she still had an ounce of loyalty left towards me. I think, to be honest, it was probably because she was never quite sure about her own part in his death.

Alice turned out to be the most shocking and unpredictable of us all. Who would have thought it? I started locking my bedroom door after we found Charlie, because I knew how dangerous she could be.