this the real Andie Bell, hiding behind that perfect smile, behind those sparkling pale blue eyes? Everyone in her orbit so dazzled by her, so blinded, that they didn’t notice the darkness that might lurk beneath. Not until it was too late.
Pippa Fitz-Amobi
EPQ 25/08/2017
Production Log – Entry 11
UPDATE : I researched to see if I could find the owner of the car with the number plate Sal had written down in his notes: R009 KKJ. Ravi was right. We’d need to know the make and model of the car to send a request to the DVLA. I guess that particular lead is dead.
OK, back to the task at hand. I just got off the phone with Chloe. I tried a different tactic this time; I didn’t need to go over the same things I’d learned from Emma and I didn’t want to hinder the interview with any dormant Andie emotional issues.
But I stumbled into some anyway . . .
Transcript of interview with Chloe Burch
[I’m getting bored of typing out the interview intros; they’re all the same and I always sound awkward. Skipping from now on straight to juicy bits.]
Pip:
OK, so my first question is how would you describe Andie and Sal’s relationship?
Chloe:
Yeah, good, he was nice to her and she thought he was hot. Sal always seemed really calm and chilled; I thought he would mellow Andie out a bit.
Pip:
Why would Andie have needed mellowing out?
Chloe:
Oh, just because she always had some drama going on.
Pip:
And did Sal mellow her?
Chloe:
(Laughs) No.
Pip:
But were they quite serious about each other?
Chloe:
I don’t know, I guess so. Define serious?
Pip:
Well, excuse the question, but were they sleeping together?
[Yes, I do cringe hearing this back. But I need to know everything.]
Chloe:
Wow, school projects have changed since I left. Why on earth would you need to know that?
Pip:
Did she not tell you?
Chloe:
Of course she told me. And no, they weren’t, actually.
Pip:
Oh. Was Andie a virgin?
Chloe:
No, she wasn’t.
Pip:
So who was she sleeping with?
Chloe:
(Small pause) I don’t know.
Pip:
You didn’t know?
Chloe:
Andie liked her secrets, OK? They made her powerful. She got a thrill out of me and Emma not knowing certain things. But she’d dangle them in front of us because she liked us to ask. Like where she got all that money from; she would just laugh and wink when we asked.
Pip:
Money?
Chloe:
Yeah. That girl was always shopping, always had a load of cash on her. And, in our final year, she told me she was saving up to get lip fillers and a nose job. She never told Emma that, just me. But she was generous with it too; she’d buy us make-up and stuff, and always let us borrow her clothes. But then she’d pick her moment at the party to say something like: “Oh, Chlo, looks like you’ve stretched that. I’ll have to give it to Becca now.” Sweet girl.
Pip:
Where did her money come from? Did she have a part-time job?
Chloe:
No. I told you, I didn’t know. I just presumed her dad was giving it to her.
Pip:
Like an allowance?
Chloe:
Yeah, maybe.
Pip:
So when Andie first went missing, was there any part of you that thought she had run away to punish someone? Maybe her father?
Chloe:
Andie had things too good to want to run away.
Pip:
But was there tension in Andie’s relationship with her dad?
[As soon as I say the word ‘dad’ Chloe’s tone flips.]
Chloe:
I don’t see how that can be relevant to your project. Look, I know I’ve been flippant about her and, yeah, she had her flaws, but she was still my best friend who got murdered. I don’t think it’s right to be talking about her personal relationships and her family, however many years later.
Pip:
No, you’re right, sorry. I just thought if I knew what Andie was like and what was happening in her life, I could better understand the case.
Chloe:
Yeah OK, but none of that is relevant. Sal Singh killed her. And you’re not going to get to know Andie from a few interviews. It was impossible to know her, even when you were her best friend.
[I inelegantly try to apologize and bring us back on topic, but it is clear Chloe is done. I thank her for her help before she hangs up.]
Grrr, so frustrating. I thought I was actually getting somewhere, but, no, I blundered into a giant minefield of raw emotion with both of Andie’s friends and ruined it. I guess even though they think they’ve moved on, they still haven’t quite broken free of Andie’s hold. Maybe they are even still keeping some