by P. F. Ford
‘But what would be the point in me lying?’ Then he had an idea. ‘You can check the flight log. That will tell you what name she was using, won’t it?’
‘Can you remember your seat number?’ asked Wesley, who was writing this down.
‘No, but we were by the centre emergency exits where there’s extra legroom. She was sitting in the window seat next to me.’
‘Let’s assume you’re right and the photo is doctored,’ said Robbins. ‘That still doesn’t explain why a hitman would be looking for you, does it? And how can you be sure it’s got nothing to do with what happened before?’
‘I didn’t say I was sure,’ said Slater. ‘You can never be sure, but why would they come back for me now? The case went stone cold almost straight away. Once we knew they’d all left the country, there was nothing we could do, so we went back to doing our normal jobs. We certainly haven’t been looking for them. Anyway, you don’t know it was going to be a hit. Like I said, maybe he was going to set me up for something.’
‘I think the fact he had a car bomb suggests it was going to be a hit,’ insisted Robbins. ‘But whichever way you look at it, the question remains the same: who would have hired a Russian hit man to kill you or set you up?’
‘I don’t know.’
Robbins studied his face. ‘Are you telling me you’ve never made any enemies? That’s not what I understood.’
‘Oh, I’ve made plenty of enemies,’ said Slater.
‘It’s possible, then?’
‘Well, yes, I suppose so. It’s not something I’ve ever given a lot of thought to.’
‘I think you need to start giving it some serious thought,’ said Robbins. ‘Because of who the dead man is, and because I know you have a habit of making enemies, I believe you were being hunted rather than set up in some way. But it would help if you could be a bit more forthcoming. You’re not exactly making it easy for us.’
‘I honestly don’t know what to tell you,’ said Slater. ‘If you want me to write a list of enemies, it’ll probably be a long one, but I’m not sure I could point the finger at anyone who would actually want to kill me.’
‘I tell you what I’ll do,’ said Robbins. ‘You make me a list of people who might want to get even with you, and we will speak to the airline about your girlfriend.’
Slater sighed. ‘She’s not my g—’
She smirked. ‘Oh yes, sorry, I forgot, she’s just a friend.’
‘You need to speak to her,’ said Slater. ‘She’s the one who might be able to tell you how my car came to be in Winchester, and she might even remember if that guy, or anyone else, spoke to us in the airport lounge. And they must have CCTV at a secure police car park, mustn’t they?’
‘What about the list of enemies?’
‘That’s going to take a while. Can you give me an email address? I’ll send it to you later today.’
She handed him a card. ‘It’s all on there,’ she said. ‘Email, phone, and mobile. And if you think of anything else, I would like to know.’
‘I’ll give you a call if anything comes to mind,’ he promised. ‘And I’d appreciate it if you could keep me in the loop.’
She gave him a wry smile. ‘You know there’s not much I can tell you about an ongoing investigation.’
‘Well, yeah, I know that, but even so,’ said Slater.
‘Right, we’ll be off for now,’ said Robbins, ‘but don’t think you’ve seen the last of us.’
Chapter 12
After another frustrating night trying to contact Watson, Slater had struggled to get his mind back on the job, but Norman was aware of the situation and patiently reminded him what they were supposed to be doing, and why they were driving to a rendezvous with Peter Brooks, the ex-convict who claimed to have information about the Julie Harris murder.
‘People like Brooks are a pet hate of mine,’ Norman had warned Slater on the journey. ‘Sneaking around conning old people out of their savings is about as low as it gets. Some of those people have had to sell their homes because of him.’
‘If you’re going to punch the guy, can you wait until after we’ve spoken to him, or am I going to have to restrain you?’ asked Slater.
‘I think I can probably wait,’ said Norman, reluctantly.
‘I understand you don’t like the guy, but remember, he may have evidence to help our case. Assaulting him is unlikely to encourage him to share it with us.’
Norman mumbled something Slater didn’t catch.
‘At least he never physically hurt any of those old people.’
‘He didn’t need to,’ said Norman. ‘He ruined their lives and broke their hearts.’
‘Are you sure it wouldn’t be better if you waited in the car?’
‘I promise I won’t hit him, but don’t expect me to act like I’m pleased to see him.’
‘Okay, I can work with that,’ said Slater. ‘So how about I do the talking while you take notes? And try not to piss him off too much, at least not until we’ve got what we want.’
‘He’s a conman. The chances are this is a waste of time anyway,’ said Norman, sulkily.
‘Yeah, I’m aware of that, but don’t forget, he didn’t ask for money, did he?’
‘He hasn’t yet, but I wouldn’t be at all surprised—’
‘How about we stop trying to speak for him and wait and see what happens?’ asked Slater. ‘You never know, he might have become a reformed character.’
‘How could we tell? The guy’s a conman.’
Slater couldn’t help but smile. He knew he wasn’t going to win this one. ‘Okay, I take your point, but we’re here now, so we might as well find out what he has to say.’
Norman grunted a grudging acceptance of that fact.
* * *
Brooks had agreed to meet them in a quiet pub of his choice. After listening to Norman’s rather graphic opinion of men like Peter Brooks throughout the entire thirty-minute journey, Slater had almost expected to find some creature that was perhaps half man and half snake. He hadn’t anticipated the tall, smartly dressed, silver-haired sixty-something who rose elegantly from his chair and extended a hand in greeting.
Slater shook the hand as he made the introductions, but Norman kept his hands firmly in his pockets. If Brooks was offended by Norman’s actions, he didn’t show it except to incline his head slightly in acknowledgment. He indicated the chairs opposite his own, and they settled around the table.
‘I understand you may find my presence offensive,’ Brooks said, addressing Norman. ‘What I did was very wrong, and I deeply regret doing it, but I have served my punishment, and I have recovered some of the money I stole and handed it back.’
Norman made to speak, but Brooks held up a hand. ‘You don’t have to tell me. I know it won’t make up for the anguish I caused, but I’m doing all I can to make amends. That’s why I’m here.’
‘That’s a great speech, but then what else would we expect a conman to say?’ asked Norman.
Things weren’t going quite as Slater had intended, and he cursed quietly under his breath as he kicked Norman under the table. ‘We’re not here to discuss what you did in the past, Mr Brooks,’ he said. ‘We’re only interested in what you told Debbie Thomas you heard when you were in prison. Why don’t you tell us about it?’
‘As you probably know, I was supposed to serve four years in Lockstock Open Prison. In the event, I was released after two years, but while I was in there I spent some time in the company of a man who was completing a sentence. He spent the last year in Lockstock to prepare him for his return to the real world.’
‘Does this man have a name?’ asked Slater.
‘His name was Scott Mulvaney.’
‘Why was he inside?’
‘I’m not sure exactly,’ said Brooks, ‘but it was something violent, which is why it seemed quite possible he was telling the truth about what he told me.’
‘What exactly did he tell you?’
‘I was reading a newspaper
one day. There was a story about this man, Steve Harris, who was serving life for killing his wife in a caravan in Wales, and how his sister believed he was wrongly convicted and was still fighting to clear his name. Mulvaney came into the room and saw what I was reading.
‘He said he thought Harris probably had been wrongly convicted because, around the time of her death, he had been offered fifty thousand pounds to kill a woman in a caravan in Wales. But it wasn’t Harris who had offered him the money.’
‘Did he do it?’ asked Norman.
‘He said he turned it down because he didn’t agree with hurting women.’
‘Did you believe him?’
‘I could never quite decide, but he only ever said he was “offered” the money, and never that he had taken it.’
‘When did he tell you this?’ asked Slater.
‘Three or four years ago.’
‘And you’ve only just come forward now?’
‘At the time, I thought he was probably trying to impress me and prove how hard he was, so I didn’t think much of it. Then I saw the same story again a couple of months ago. At the end of the piece, it said they were appealing for anyone who had information that might help. That’s when I remembered what Mulvaney had told me, so I contacted the newspaper.’
‘Was that all he told you?’ asked Slater. ‘He didn’t mention a name?’
‘That’s all I can recall. I’m sure I would have remembered if he had mentioned any names.’
Norman didn’t look impressed. ‘It’s all a bit vague,’ he said. ‘How do we know this isn’t more conman crap?’
‘You don’t,’ admitted Brooks. ‘But why would I lie? What could I possibly have to gain? It’s not as if there’s a reward or I’m asking for money.’
Much as Norman didn’t like Brooks, he didn’t argue the point any further.
‘Do you have any idea where this Scott Mulvaney is?’ asked Slater.
Brooks smiled indulgently. ‘I may be a convicted criminal, Mr Slater, but Scott Mulvaney is a thug. I’m afraid he’s not someone I would choose to include in my social circle. When I was released from prison, I had no desire to keep in touch with my fellow inmates, and I have no idea where any of them are.’
* * *
‘That man is an arsehole of the finest order,’ observed Norman as they headed for home.
‘Really? You mean you don’t like him? I would never have guessed,’ said Slater.
‘I don’t shake hands with people like him.’
‘Yes, I get it. I’m just pleased you didn’t decide to shake him by the throat.’
‘I was tempted.’
‘But I’m pleased to say you didn’t, so we live to fight another day,’ said Slater. ‘And he had a point, right? What has he got to gain by lying to us now?’
‘He might think it’s fun to waste our time.’
‘But why would he? We’ve never met him before, and we didn’t put him away. Besides, the newspaper must have thought he was okay.’
‘I dunno,’ said Norman. ‘If they had thought there was a story in it, I’m sure they would have followed it up.’
‘That’s a good point,’ admitted Slater, thoughtfully. ‘But we can’t be sure, can we?’
‘I guess not.’
‘So, what do you want to do, Norm, ignore it, or follow it up?’
‘Much as I hate to admit it, we have no choice but to take it at face value for now,’ conceded Norman. ‘We’ll have to try and find this Scott Mulvaney and see if he’ll talk to us. I just hope it won’t turn out to be a waste of time.
Chapter 13
It was just after 7 p.m. Norman had insisted they sit down and compile a list of enemies as soon as they got back to the office, but it had taken much longer than they had expected. Making a list together had opened their eyes to the fact that although Slater had several possible suspects who would like to do him harm, Norman had even more.
They had just emailed it to Robbins and were now in Norman’s car on their way home. ‘I’m knackered,’ said Slater.
‘Yeah, me too,’ agreed Norman. ‘I didn’t realise so many people might want to get their own back on me.’
‘But most of those people would be happy just to punch us in the face,’ said Slater. ‘Planting a bomb is a bit extreme, don’t you think?’
‘And hiring an assassin to do the bomb-planting requires money,’ added Norman. ‘That sort of narrows the field down.’
‘If we rule out the possibility this is linked to what happened before, I reckon there’s only one real suspect, don’t you?’
‘Yeah, it has to be Bradshaw. But isn’t he in prison on remand?’
‘Yeah, but that doesn’t make much difference, does it? A man with his contacts could still have ordered a hit. Maybe Robbins can find out who’s been visiting him.’
They drove on in silence for a minute or two.
‘Can I ask a question?’ asked Norman.
‘Sure.’
‘I notice you’ve not exactly been honest with Robbins.’
‘I haven’t lied to her.’
‘No, you haven’t lied, but you haven’t told her everything, have you? For instance, you didn’t tell her you’d spoken to Watson.’
‘She didn’t ask me that. She asked if Watson had answered her phone, and she hasn’t, so technically I didn’t lie.’
Norman thought it was a moot point, but he wasn’t going to argue about it. ‘You didn’t tell her Watson’s address either. I thought you’d been there.’
‘I’ve only been there once, and I was rather preoccupied. I didn’t notice the address.’
‘What exactly is this job of Watson’s?’
‘I’m beginning to wonder now,’ said Slater. ‘All she would tell me was that her base is in London, and my car was in a very secure police car park, guarded 24/7.’
‘Where is this car park?’
‘She can’t tell me.’
‘What? Why not?’
‘I have no idea,’ said Slater.
‘So, she’s based in London, it’s very secure, and she can’t tell you any more than that,’ mused Norman.
‘That’s what she said.’
‘Sounds like she’s some kind of spook.’
‘You reckon? I hadn’t even considered that, but then this whole situation is beginning to feel like some bizarre, surreal fantasy, so why not?’
‘We used to come across those guys up in London sometimes,’ said Norman. ‘They never tell you anything, only that they’re so special it’s all way too secret to share with normal people like us. I didn’t have much time for them myself.’
‘Are you saying you think Watson works for MI5?’
Norman pursed his lips thoughtfully. ‘Let’s say I have my suspicions she’s something more than just a run-of-the-mill cop. I’ve done nothing but think about this situation ever since our visitors left this morning. At first, I thought I was probably way off the mark, but now it’s inside my head, I can’t seem to shake it off, and the more I think about it, the more it seems possible.’
‘But she was my DS. I would have known if she was a spy.’
‘Why? I mean, no offence, but if she was working some undercover job and she was any good, what makes you think you would have known? Let’s face it, you took her at face value, and why wouldn’t you? I’m sure I would have too.’
‘But we’ve just shared a hotel room for the best part of two weeks!’
‘Yeah, but did she tell you anything about her new job? Did she even want to talk about work?’
‘Well, no, now you come to mention it,’ said Slater. ‘We didn’t talk about anything much, just vague stuff about nothing in particular.’
‘And now she seems to want to put some distance between you, right?’
‘But that’s probably my fault for the way I reacted when she told me about her daughter.’
‘Maybe, but not necessarily,’ said Norman.
Slater sighed. He hadn’t given it much thought before
, but now Norm had mentioned it he couldn’t seem to get past it. ‘Come on then, Norm, let’s hear this idea of yours.’
‘Well, although you had no idea when you went to work for him, Bradshaw was a senior police officer who was pulling strings behind a couple of serious drug dealers, right?’
‘Okay, but how does this make Watson a spy?’
‘Hang on, I’m getting to that. When you took that job, it was a new department, right?’
‘Yeah, it had just been set up.’
‘And Watson was already there?’
‘Yes. She was about to be invalided out, and Bradshaw rescued her career. When I joined, she had been working with him for a few months. She had helped him set up and get the thing off the ground.’
‘Right. But thinking about it now, don’t you think it was a bit odd Bradshaw had identified a relatively unknown DS with a busted knee as the person he needed to set up a new squad?’
‘At the time I only had eyes for the chance of a new start,’ said Slater. ‘I saw no reason to question the setup.’
‘And there was no reason why you should,’ said Norman. ‘I mean, I didn’t either. In fact, if you recall, I encouraged you to go for it.’
‘What do you think now?’
‘I have no proof, so this is just a theory, but what if Bradshaw was already under suspicion, and he was put in charge of this new squad so they could keep him out of the loop and keep an eye on him? Remember you told me once that you thought it was a sideways promotion for a guy with his ambitions.’
‘And you think Watson was undercover, spying on him?’
‘It’s possible, don’t you think? What if he didn’t choose her, but someone recommended her to him and he couldn’t say no?’
‘But she was out working with me more than she was with him.’
‘Yes, she was, but by then she had already been with him for a while and won his trust. Perhaps his reward for her efforts was to put her out with you. The thing is, she couldn’t object because it would have looked suspicious if she had refused, wouldn’t it? Anyway, I bet by the time you joined she had already gathered plenty of information about what he was up to, and he must have been under surveillance as well. Didn’t she insist on being the one who went back to the office to do all the paperwork? That was probably just to keep an eye on him.’
