by L M Krier
‘What age is he now, nineteen? Does that mean a place might be easier to find for him, if he’s classed as an adult?’
‘If he’s anything like Darren, he’d flip at being put with adult men,’ Maurice warned. ‘I think it’s fairly obvious that whoever is doing this is a man so there’s a big risk in putting anyone as damaged as these lads are in a unit with adult males.’
‘Maurice has a point, boss,’ Megan put in. ‘I’ve a friend who works in this area. She once told me a lot of young people go on to self-harm after something like this and it’s often something they learn to do much more efficiently because of being put somewhere where there are already self-harmers. You’d be surprised where they can hide things with which to do themselves serious damage. It starts a vicious circle that’s often hard to break. And that would be the last thing either Tim or Darren need now. Tim would need to be on the highest level of monitoring, I imagine, to keep him safe.’
‘This is going to sound crazy, boss, and it is just an idea,’ Virgil began.
‘Whatever it is, let’s hear it, Virgil. It’s high time we started making some progress on this.’
‘Is there any way you could arrange for Tim and Darren to meet? Maybe if they could each see that someone else has been through the same thing, they may find they could communicate with one another and we might get something out of it.’
‘Risky, I would say. I’d want the opinion of a psychologist before we did something like that,’ Ted replied. ‘In fact, I should be seeing the one who did the report on Morgane Edwards during this trial. It’s something I could ask him about. If we don’t handle it very carefully, we could finish up making both of them worse than they are now and losing all hope of getting any information out of either of them. At the moment, they’re our main hope of anything to go on.’
‘Might some of Darren’s friends be able to talk to him, boss?’ Jezza suggested. ‘Perhaps he would feel more at ease talking to them.’
Maurice shook his head. ‘I wouldn’t recommend it. It might be upsetting for them all. I’m not sure how much Darren is truly aware of but I doubt if he’d want people to see him as he is now. Maybe if he gets a bit better, it would be worth trying. I know it means waiting longer.’
‘I’d certainly like the friends spoken to again, of all three victims, see if there’s anything else at all they can tell us that would help. Anyone they can think of who the lads would have gone off with. Sal, can you go over their statements again then phone them and ask. Start off with Darren and work back from there. And let’s keep on looking for links between the schools and colleges our three victims attended.
‘Any news from SOCO about the tyre tracks from Ludworth Moor?’
‘Not yet, boss, and yes, I will chase it up.’ Mike Hallam’s hand was already on his phone.
‘Steve, did you get any further with your theory about the sites being connected? And with whoever this Lud character is?’
‘Nothing, sir, sorry. I’m sure there is something there that makes sense to The Preacher but I can’t get into the same mindset as him to see it just at the moment. I’ll keep trying. It might help.’
‘Right, you help Sal. Perhaps one of you checking out the friends, the other looking for anything at all which links the three victims.
‘Is there anything else that’s come in that I need to know about?’
‘Virgil and I are just off out on a nice little spate of burglaries with assault as a side order, boss,’ Jo told him. ‘From initial reports, we should hopefully be able to wrap it up fairly quickly.’
‘Right, I’ll just clear some paperwork then I’ll be off back to court. I’ll call in again at the end of the day to see what’s new.’
‘What time does Trev get back from his adventures, boss? Do you want one of us to get a bunch of flowers for you?’ Jezza asked him teasingly.
‘Keep it up, DC Vine. I’m sure I can find a nice stack of filing to occupy you if you’re getting bored.’
‘You certainly look a lot more presentable than you did yesterday. Nice scent, too,’ Jim Baker greeted Ted as he arrived at the Crown Court later. Jim wasn’t required to give evidence but he had been in overall charge of the case, above Ted, so he was keeping an anxious eye on how the proceedings were going, when he could spare the time. ‘You’d probably convince a jury that you’re a reasonable policeman, looking like that. How are things with the other cases? Any news of what happened with Trev, or who’s behind that? I know you’re convinced it’s Edwards but have you looked at other possibilities?’
‘He gets home this evening so I’ll do an initial interview …’
‘I bet you will, but I don’t need to know about that,’ Jim said jokingly. Ted was surprised. The Big Boss was usually careful to avoid anything which made him think about Ted’s private life. He guessed his friend was probably relieved that it had ended well.
‘If Edwards farmed the job out to anyone of the same intellect as the toe-rag who ran me off the road during that enquiry, we shouldn’t have any problems tracking them down. As far as The Preacher goes, we’re focusing on trying to find anything which links the three victims. It could all be random but I thought we’d start with the simplest explanation first.’
‘You and bloody Occam’s Razor. You’re obsessed with it. I spoke to the prosecution team again earlier. They think you might possibly get called later this afternoon, but it may not be until tomorrow morning. The defence QC wants the ins and outs of a duck’s arse from every witness so far. He’s leaving no stone unturned, so keep your focus.’
Ted didn’t get chance to find out what the QC was like. By the time he was next to be called it was getting late in the afternoon so the judge decided to adjourn until the following morning. It gave Ted chance to get back to the team for any updates.
‘Boss, we have a possible link between the three victims,’ Sal told him when they got together at the end of the day. ‘We think it’s possible that all three did NCS through their schools.’
The name meant nothing to Ted. He looked to Jo for enlightenment. He and Virgil were already back from the other case, reporting that it was mostly concluded apart from statement-taking, which they’d left to the local officers. Jo had six children. He was the office mine of information on anything to do with schools or children of any age.
‘National Citizen Service, boss. Two of mine have done it so far, most of the others are mithering to do the same because George and Sophie liked it so much. It’s a personal development scheme, government-backed. They do stuff like adventure training, social skills, leadership. It involves staying away from home, which was blissful in a large family like mine. A bit of peace and quiet while they’re away.’
‘Did all three of our lads do it? Is it affordable? Tim’s mum was a single parent, wasn’t she, and doesn’t appear to have had the money to look after the lad let alone pay for stuff like that.’
‘We’re not sure yet if they all did it, boss, we’re still looking at that,’ Sal told him. ‘But certainly it was on offer at all the schools they attended. And it’s made affordable and accessible to anyone so yes, he could have. And it’s something which would have looked good on his application to join the Navy. Steve’s chasing up a list of participants at each school.’
‘But surely anyone involved with young people through a scheme like that would need DBS checks? There’d have to be a thorough screening process?’
‘Just because someone has no previous, it doesn’t mean they won’t go on to offend, Mike. It’s certainly worth looking into. Keep me posted. I’m giving evidence tomorrow and from what’s been seen of the defence QC in action so far, I expect I’ll be there for most of the day, if not longer.’
‘Make sure you get plenty of sleep tonight then, boss – if you can,’ Jezza told him with a wicked grin. She had more respect for Ted than for any other senior officer she’d ever served under. Her teasing of him was her way of showing her estimation and affection.
‘Point du
ty, DC Vine. I’m sure Inspector Turner would be glad of an officer of your calibre to help with the smooth running of traffic around the town.’
Ted went straight to the railway station from work, pausing only to pick up a takeaway so there’d be something to offer Trev to eat when he got back. Knowing him, he’d be starving. He knew his partner had two changes to make on his journey, once at Glasgow and once at Preston, and that he had less than ten minutes to make his connection at Preston. Ted was on pins waiting for him, especially when the Preston train was running late.
Then finally the train came trundling towards him, brakes squealing. As soon as the doors were released, Trev erupted out of one of them and came sprinting up the platform, crushing Ted in a bear hug which nearly lifted him off his feet. He was grinning from ear to ear.
‘What larks, Pip! Apart from being bashed over the head, shut in a car boot and scared half to death, I’ve had such an adventure. But I’ve been so well looked after. Jean even washed all my clothes for me because they had puke on them and these are my good jeans.’
‘They’re very nice, too. You look good in them. Are they new?’
‘Oh Ted, you are hopeless! You never notice what I’m wearing. I’ve had these old things for ages,’ Trev lied shamelessly. ‘Come on, take me home, and once I’ve finished showing you how glad I am to be back, I’ll tell you all about it.’
Chapter Sixteen
‘If you spit on your hanky and start rubbing marks off my face with it, that’s the point at which you and I might just cease to be friends, Jim,’ Ted told the Big Boss, who was looking him over intently before he was called into court.
Jim Baker wasn’t appearing as a witness in this case so he would be sitting inside the court as Ted was giving his evidence. He clearly wanted him to be looking his best. They’d had a lengthy discussion earlier with the prosecution team who wanted to stress how important it was that, no matter how much the defence counsel needled him, Ted remain calm and professional, without rising to the bait.
‘I don’t want to put any more pressure on you, Ted, but there’s a lot riding on this. I know you can do it. Just keep your cool and don’t let him provoke you.’
‘Yes, boss,’ Ted smiled patiently.
There were a lot of press and public attending the trial. The judge had, as was normal in such cases, made an order prohibiting the reporting of anything which might identify the defendant because she was a young offender. There was a possibility that the order could be reversed if she was found guilty. It was a high profile case because of the age of the defendant and the severity of the crimes.
When Ted was called and Jim slipped quietly into a seat from where he could watch the proceedings, Ted was surprised to see that the defendant, Morgane Edwards, gave him a beaming smile, as if he was an old friend she was delighted to see at a social occasion. Her fine blonde hair was pulled back into a neat French plait, she wasn’t wearing any make-up and she looked about twelve instead of her real age of sixteen. Ted could almost sense that she already had the jury feeling sorry for her with her little girl lost appearance.
Ted always declined the oath, preferring instead to affirm. He wasn’t religious at all and he refused to be a hypocrite.
The prosecuting counsel took him through his evidence which he presented clearly and concisely. Then the defence QC rose to cross-examine him. He was tall and good-looking, well-spoken, with an air of privilege about him and a self-assurance bordering on arrogance in his bearing and his way of posing questions. Ted had earlier given his credentials but he knew the man now facing him had a vested interest in bringing them and everything about him into question.
‘Chief Inspector, you haven’t always been a plain clothes criminal investigator, have you? Would you tell the court what your police role was before that.’
‘Most of us started out in uniform in the days when I joined. It’s different now. I’m a former SFO, a Specialist Firearms Officer, Your Honour.’
Although the barrister was posing the questions, it was to the judge that Ted correctly directed his answers.
‘Firearms. I see. So you shot people. Did you actually kill anyone whilst in that role?’
The prosecuting counsel was going to get plenty of exercise for this phase of the trial with the number of times he would leap to his feet to object to a line of questioning. On this, his first attempt, he was not successful.
‘I did, Your Honour. It was part of my job.’
‘What sort of personality is required to shoot people as part of a job?’
‘A trained police firearms officer’s personality, Your Honour.’
‘Would you describe yourself as a violent man, Chief Inspector?’
‘No, Your Honour, I would not.’
‘But you are a practitioner of martial arts, are you not? Holding several black belts?’
‘I am, Your Honour, which is why I would not describe myself as violent. Martial arts training teaches self-control, the opposite of violence.’
‘But is it not, in fact, the case that on the first day of this trial, Tuesday, to be precise, when you saw Mr Edwards, the defendant’s father, approaching you in this court building, you lunged violently towards him? And that you had to be restrained by a senior officer wielding a walking stick and two Police Constables in uniform, preparing to use batons and sprays?’
‘That’s not exactly how it happened, Your Honour. I did stand up rather suddenly to speak to Mr Edwards on another matter, totally unrelated to the trial. My Superintendent advised me against doing so, so I left the building with one of the PCs.’
‘He advised you with his walking stick, did he not, Chief Inspector? With a blow to your midriff? Does that not rather indicate that he feared you were about to carry out an act of violence?’
‘I can’t speak for what was going through my Superintendent’s mind, Your Honour.’
The prosecutor was still trying valiantly to get the line of questioning changed. The judge indicated that he wanted to see it move on significantly before much longer.
‘And what about obsessive, Chief Inspector? Would you describe yourself as an obsessive man?’
‘I would say no more so than any police officer dealing with a difficult and complex case, Your Honour.’
‘Paranoid, then? Do you consider yourself to be paranoid?’
‘Not in the slightest.’
‘But it is true, is it not, that during the course of your investigations following the death of the defendant’s mother, Stephanie Mason, you went to see her father, Clive Edwards, to accuse him of hiring someone to try to kill you?’
The exchange went on remorselessly. Ted played some racquet games when he got the chance - badminton, squash. He was starting to feel as if he was on the end of a long and vicious rally with a player of a higher calibre. He felt he was only just managing to return the shots.
When the judge called a halt for a lunch recess, the prosecuting counsel, looking daggers, jerked his head in Ted’s direction, a silent but clear summons to another briefing. Ted groaned inwardly. He wanted to check his phone, which had been switched off whilst he was in court, but Jim Baker caught him by the arm and hustled him along to the office the prosecuting team were using. There was a table laid with coffee and sandwiches waiting for them. It would be a working lunch, but at least they were going to be able to eat something.
As soon as the door closed behind them all, the senior prosecutor rounded on Ted.
‘You were about to attack a defence witness in a public place and had to be beaten off with a walking stick? For god’s sake, Ted, when were you going to share that nugget with us? And what’s all this about accusing him of taking out a contract on you? Why is this the first we’re hearing of any of this?’
‘It wasn’t like that at all, it’s been blown out of all proportion,’ Jim Baker put in, hurrying to defuse the situation. ‘I didn’t think for a moment Ted was going to attack him. I thought he was going to speak to him and that it was ill-adv
ised. I’m not very swift on my pins since my accident so I stuck my stick out to deter him. I certainly wasn’t beating him off.’
‘But the damage has probably already been done. The jury now clearly think the enquiry has been run by a violent maniac with paranoid delusions. We are going to have to work like hell to airbrush that impression out of their minds.’
It took a long time to smooth feathers and find common ground going forward to the afternoon session. Ted was itching to check his messages, to see what progress was being made on The Preacher case and if there was yet any word from Océane on who was behind Trev’s kidnapping.
He only had a few moments on his way to the gents to prepare for the afternoon’s grilling. Jim Baker fell into step behind him, growling ominously.
‘That’s the last time I dig you out of the shit on this one, Ted. Whatever you think is going on between you and Edwards, for god’s sake find some evidence of it or shut up about it. Even I’m starting to think you’re getting paranoid on the subject.’
He finally got a few brief moments to call Océane. As he’d hoped, she had left a message for him to do so as soon as he could.
‘Good news and bad news, boss. Which would you like first?’
‘Save the best for the last, please. I’ve not had a good morning.’
‘Okay, the bad is that it’s highly unlikely we’ll ever be able to trace the mobile that sent you the photo of Trev. It’s an unregistered pay as you go. It could possibly be done eventually but it would take forever and make all kinds of a hole in your budget.’
‘And the good news?’
‘Is very good. Because we now know roughly where Trev was taken to, up in the Highlands, we were able to look at mobile phone traffic in that area. And there’s very little of it. I assume sheep don’t have their own smartphones and the human population seems low. Anyway, shortly before you received that message, we picked up a trace of a call from the same place. But not from the same phone number.’
