Letters To My Daughter's Killer - [46]

‘Yes, stresses around work are often given as excuses.’

‘Excuses, not reasons,’ says Mr Cromer.

‘That’s correct. The stresses are real enough but the perpetrator does not hit anyone else; only his spouse, the one person who he believes he can dominate and control and who is unlikely to report him,’ says Dr Martinez.

‘If we accept, for the sake of argument, that Mrs Tennyson was being violently beaten by her husband, how would you account for her silence, her denials when her friend suspected domestic violence last summer?’

‘Denial and a “behind closed doors” approach is endemic with this behaviour. Lizzie Tennyson may have feared her husband and feared what would happen if she told anyone, even her close friend, about the violence. It is textbook typical behaviour of a victim in this situation. The victim is walking on eggshells.’

‘If I’ve understood you correctly, low self-esteem, a sense of being partly responsible for the violence and feelings of shame and fear might prevent a victim from disclosing what is happening to her?’ says Mr Cromer.

‘Yes,’ she says.

‘You have described to us the fact that the man can control his violence and plans his attacks, but the assault on the victim in this case was uncontrolled, and fatal. Isn’t that a contradiction?’

‘We usually see a pattern of escalation in the violence, and there are situations where the man abandons his attempts to conceal what he is doing and gives in to his desire to dominate in the most extreme way possible.’

‘By taking a life?’

‘That is right.’

‘How many women die every year as a result of domestic violence in this country?’ says Mr Cromer.

‘Around a hundred.’

‘Presumably, though, it is rarer among educated people, people without significant social disadvantage?’ he says.

‘No, that’s a myth. Domestic violence affects all sectors of society, all races, all classes.’

‘Is there any link between pregnancy and domestic violence?’ Mr Cromer says.

‘Yes. We estimate that up to thirty per cent of abuse begins in pregnancy, and it is common for abuse to get worse during pregnancy. The British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology reports that one in six pregnant women will experience domestic violence.’

‘And if the victim was seeing less of friends and family, cancelling plans, but maintained that all was well?’ says Mr Cromer.

‘Again consistent with the abuse. Warning signs, in fact. Withdrawal of contact with outside relationships suits the abuser; isolating the victim adds to his domination, and denial is extremely common.’

‘One question.’ Miss Dixon gets to her feet. ‘Do people ever make false allegations of domestic violence?’

‘Yes, that happens. Though it is very rare compared to the prevalence of verified allegations.’

‘Why would anyone do that?’ says Miss Dixon.

‘There are many reasons. To attract sympathy or attention, to punish a partner, sometimes to disguise their own role as the abuser, so they can explain away any injuries acquired when they beat someone by saying they were the victim.’

You wouldn’t. Surely you would not accuse Lizzie of abusing you? We don’t know yet. We don’t know what the props of your defence will be beyond ‘It wasn’t me!’ and I reason that if you’re claiming innocence, you will deny any prior violence.

Rebecca comes to visit that evening. She can barely sit still, so incensed is she at the experience of being mauled by your barrister. ‘She made out like I was inventing it all. Because I was jealous of Jack. That is so fucking mental.’ She jolts to a stop and casts a guilty glance my way. I smile and shake my head. Swearing is irrelevant.

‘She made me out to be some loser, flaky, unreliable. Did the jury believe me?’

‘I don’t know.’ I find it impossible to read those twelve faces. Not that they are expressionless; far from it. They exhibit surprise, concern, interest, repulsion and sometimes boredom. Would Lizzie have found it easier, with her expertise in nonverbal communication? Could she have told from the body language who was favouring who?

Walking on eggshells. Did she have to do that? Placate you, play nice, alert to the slightest shift in tension. How long had it been going on? From the start, before the marriage? From her first pregnancy?

‘When she told you about it, did Lizzie say if it was the first time he had done it?’

‘No. I assumed it was,’ Rebecca says. ‘I’ve got to go back to London tomorrow. I wish I could stay, but I can’t take any more time off. If he gets away with it…’ She chews her lip and tears spring to her eyes. ‘If only I’d told someone.’

‘She’d probably have denied it,’ I say. Though I wish Rebecca had told me. If I’d been alerted, put it together with the fact that I was seeing less of Lizzie, could I have done anything? Were we all gradually being excluded? Were you steadily cutting the ties to make her ever more dependent on you?

‘If only I’d rung her, made more of an effort,’ Rebecca says. The agony of hindsight.

‘You’re not to blame. Not at all. Don’t think like that. There’s only one person in the dock. Yeah?’

She brings out the spotted hanky again. ‘Yes.’ Dissolving into tears.