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Mandy Redwood, School Administrator, Parkside Primary School, 1998–present day
‘Alix Summer’s kids were both at Parkside. Lovely kids. Some families just light up a school like ours, you know, and the Summers are one of those families. And so it was surprising when Alix came to me that day, back in 2019, asking after the Fairs. You couldn’t imagine two more different families, two more different mothers. Obviously, at the time I had no idea that Alix was making a podcast about the Fairs. So I told her what I remembered. But it was only after everything happened, later on, that I went through the records, and that’s when I remembered other things too. Like the day that Roxy broke a child’s finger in the reading corner when they were in reception. Trod on it. Just stood there, crushing it under the sole of her shoe. The kid screaming.’
Mandy shudders and smiles drily.
‘Of course we had to bring the parents in after that and they were just …’
Mandy looks down at the tabletop while she searches for the right word.
‘Emotionless. Completely emotionless. It was the strangest thing. I put it down to shock at the time, but now … now I know what was really going on in that house. Well, it all makes more sense.’
She shudders again.
Then she shakes her head slightly and sighs.
The screen fades to black and changes to footage of an empty recording studio.
The camera pans around the room.
Below, the text reads:
Recording from Alix Summer’s podcast, 14 July 2019
Alix: ‘What did Walter do, when you told him about the child with the broken finger?’
Josie: ‘Well, I didn’t tell him. He went off to work early back then, out of the house by seven o’clock most mornings, not back until five or six; the school day was a total mystery to him. I think he set foot on school premises about five times over the years the girls were there. So, I just didn’t say anything.’
‘And Roxy didn’t tell him?’
‘No. Roxy didn’t tell him. It was just … well, his temper. You know. We were all a bit scared of him.’
‘Was he violent? With the girls?’
‘Not then. No. But he was rough. He’d push them about. Especially Roxy. But not violent. That came later.’
Josie sighs loudly.
‘I have not been a good parent. I have not been a good parent.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I just mean …’
She sighs again.
‘I let bad things happen. I didn’t stop them. I just let it all happen.’
***
2 p.m.
Alix’s phone buzzes for the third time in a row. She puts her finger in the air and presses pause on the recording, removes her headphones and says, ‘Sorry, Josie. I should get this. It’s Eliza. Hi, baby.’
‘Mum. Can you come back inside now? Leon’s being really annoying and I’m hungry.’
Alix glances at the time. It’s nearly two o’clock. ‘Yes. I’m really sorry. Yes, I’m coming in now.’
She throws Josie an apologetic look. ‘I’m so sorry. But I’ve really left them alone for long enough now.’
