DARK JUSTICE: The Erin Dark Series

by Taylor Leon

‘What do you think?’ Duke said. He winced with the effort it took to talk.

  The Old Man bent low so he was at his prisoner’s level. Looked him right in the eyes. ‘I think you could be dangerous,’ he said. ‘My people saw you talking to the police.’

  He gripped Duke’s face tightly, squeezed it. Duke Best gave a cry of pain, his breathing hard and laboured.

  ‘What do you really think of me?’ the Old Man said.

  Duke tried to spit out the words. ‘I…think….you……are……the……devil.’

  He released his grip and stood up, holding his hand out for Wayne to pass him the baseball bat that had been resting against a wall. ‘You’re right,’ he said. ‘You are right.’

  ‘You can’t kill me,’ Duke Best wheezed. ‘If I die the whole world will know.’

  ‘And why’s that?’ The Old Man smiled. ‘Your policewoman doesn’t have anything on me. Oh, wait. You mean because you gave a copy of your files to your solicitor, Jack Boyle?’

  ‘Noooooo,’ Duke Best moaned, his head dropping.

  ‘Jack Boyle and I go way back,’ the Old Man said, weighing the bat.

  ‘People will come looking for me,’ Duke whispered.

  The Old Man gave a couple of small practice swings. ‘They will,’ he said.

  He lifted the baseball bat up high. ‘But we’ve gotten pretty good at this now.’

  He brought the baseball bat down, smashing Duke Best’s skull with a mighty crack.

  Wayne winced. He saw the kid in the doorway. He hadn’t even flinched. He thought about how he’d killed Tanner’s daughter and then cut out Tanner’s tongue. He really is one for the future, he thought with pride.

  But the Old Man wasn’t done yet. It had been a long time. Now that he could smell blood in his nostrils again, he was like a recovering alcoholic going back to the bottle. It was an addiction, and he couldn’t let go. He brought the baseball bat down, time and time again, smashing Duke Best’s skull to pieces like a melon.

  Wayne grabbed his arm to stop him. ‘He’s dead,’ he said.

  The Old Man was red and sweating profusely. He stopped and looked at his friend as though he’d just woken up from a dream. He looked at the broken mess in the chair, then back at Wayne again. ‘Clean up,’ he said and dropped the baseball bat on the floor. He opened the door and stepped back out into the front room. Jason held his jacket up which he slipped into.

  ‘You’ll need to burn your gloves and clothes,’ Wayne said following him through, leaving the kid to clean up.

  The Old Man nodded and turned towards the front door which Jason opened.

  He paused in the doorway. ‘Go to his place quickly. Get his laptop, his files, everything.’

  He stepped outside. He’d never intended to stay long. But he had wanted to do this himself. Remind his soldiers that once upon a time he had been one of them.

  That he still was.

  30

  MY FIRST MORNING back at work wasn’t exactly a cascade of streamers and balloons, but I could tell they were pleased to see me. Well, most of them. I hung my mac up on the coat-stand and walked through a chorus of well-wishers to my desk where Cade was standing and waiting for me. His face was serious and I knew why.

  ‘I’m surprised you don’t look as pleased as everyone else to see me,’ I said, hoping I was wrong.

  ‘I tried calling you last night,’ he said lowering his voice so no-one else could hear. ‘Didn’t you see my missed calls?’

  ‘You didn’t leave a message so I didn’t think it was that important,’ I said weakly.

  ‘I needed to speak with you,’ he said.

  ‘I’m sorry,’ I lied. ‘I did mean to call you back a little later, but I fell asleep.’

  His face softened a little at that. The truth was that I had stayed at Victoria’s house for another hour after she and I had spoken, making small talk with Darrell, then a couple of other guests who recognised him and introduced themselves. Shortly after, I excused myself and quietly left. I saw Cade’s missed call on my mobile when I was back in my car, but ignored it. My head was too wrapped up with Victoria’s revelations, and her suggestion that she would let Jessie help me investigate Norris. Besides which, I couldn’t even begin to think how I was going to explain or justify to Cade and Arnie as to why I had approached Norris that afternoon. And if Frankie had been mentioned in Norris’s complaint as well, then I was in even more serious trouble.

  ‘You know why I wanted you, don’t you?’ Cade said.

  I thought silence at this juncture was the safest policy.

  He looked around to make sure no-one else was trying to listen into our conversation, although standing at my desk in the middle of the open plan office did draw attention to us. I’m sure our body language told everyone I was being reprimanded for something; on my first day back as well. That would give me the sympathy vote with the others. Not that that was worth much.

  ‘How could you question Norris without discussing it with me first?’ he said.

  ‘It was a spur of the moment thing-’

  A voice cut across, calling from the other side of the office.

  ‘John, the boss wants to see you with Erin as soon as she arrives,’ DI Hunter called across.

  Cade sighed and pushed past me. Half a dozen heads turned and watched as I followed him out of the open plan office.

  The noose was waiting for me. Norris carried some clout. I may have got the reading I wanted from Frankie, but it was going to come at a price.

  He wants to see us?’ I said to Cade’s back.

  ‘Yes, us,’ he snapped, turning around. ‘We’re partners, or had you forgotten?’

  ‘I didn’t mean –’ But he had already turned and continued walking.

  ‘Why did you do it?’ he called back.

  ‘I was angry, and needed to lash out at someone.’

  ‘Well, you chose the right one to lash out at.’

  He stopped at the office door and faced me. ‘Look, if we are going to work together, then I need to trust you. We do things together.’ He paused, perhaps looking for the right words. ‘And whatever the provocation, we don’t go bursting in and accusing people like you did.’

  I was about to have a go back. It was one thing to be reprimanded, and there was no doubt I deserved it, but it was quite another to be spoken to like a naughty schoolgirl. But then the door opened behind him, and Arnie was standing there, scowling at us both. A special look of disdain was reserved for me. Maybe he was wishing they had blown me up after all.

  ‘Come in,’ he growled.

  We followed him inside, Cade closing the door quietly behind us. Arnie walked back behind his desk. He paused for a second and looked out the window. An ordinary London street on an ordinary London day. The blue skies had been replaced with a white blanket. The news had warned last night that summer was going to end abruptly.

  Arnie turned, sat down and clasped his hands. He nodded for us to sit opposite him.

  ‘You approached Anthony Norris yesterday,’ he said looking me right in the eye.

  I nodded.

  ‘Under the guise of official police business,’ he added. It wasn’t a question.

  ‘Sir,’ I whispered.

  ‘But it wasn’t, was it?’ he said. ‘You had no business questioning him like that. No business and no reason.’

  I didn’t answer. I knew this was coming, and I should have prepared better. I should have prepared full stop.

  ‘I’m told you were with someone when you questioned Anthony Norris. Who was she?’

  ‘A friend.’

  ‘A friend?’ He laughed in disbelief. ‘My God Erin, are you out of your mind? I’m under enormous pressure to take your badge away right here and now.’

  I felt a panic attack coming on. Sure, I’d expected a reprimand, and had been willing to take that to get the reading from Norris, but I hadn’t expected to lose my job. I clasped my hands together tightly on my lap and avoided looking at Cade sat next to me.

&
nbsp; Arnie pressed his fingers together. ‘Give me a good reason why I shouldn’t do exactly that.’

  I swallowed hard. ‘Because Norris is guilty,’ I said.

  ‘Guilty of what exactly?’

  Now I turned to face Cade, but his face was set in stone, his gaze fixed on Arnie opposite us.

  I looked back at Arnie with a sigh. ‘You know Anthony Norris and his One Identity Party are a front for the NID.’

  ‘The NID doesn’t exist anymore.’

  ‘Not formally, but the people who killed Lloyd, Angel and the Halls are almost certainly ex-NID. You know these are revenge attacks, and I believe Norris knows who carried them out.’

  ‘You’re speculating, Erin.’

  I shook my head.

  ‘I was approached by someone yesterday morning after the funeral. His name is Duke Best. You can look him up, but I already checked him out. His family were killed in the NID pub bombings five years ago and he has been collecting evidence against Anthony Norris ever since.’

  Arnie raised a hand to stop me speaking. ‘Did you know about this?’ he asked Cade.

  Cade glanced at me. ‘No,’ he sighed.

  ‘He only approached me yesterday,’ I reasoned. ‘He would only speak to me. Norris has kept in contact with ex NID members, and I’m sure one of them is the person we are looking for. Duke Best was going to meet me yesterday afternoon to look through some pictures.’

  Arnie shrugged. ‘Well, did he meet you and present this evidence?’

  ‘He never showed up.’

  Arnie shook his head. ‘So maybe he’s not as sure-’

  ‘He was scared,’ I cut across. ‘He was convinced Norris has some of our people working for him.’

  Arnie shook his head and wagged a finger at me. ‘Don’t even go there.’

  ‘Why not? You’ve been told we can’t approach him.’ I turned to Cade who reluctantly met my look. ‘John, you said you thought that was wrong.’

  I swung back to Arnie. ‘I know you think it’s wrong!’

  ‘It’s all hunches,’ Arnie said. He was almost shouting. ‘We cannot just go accusing a politician a few weeks before an election. Especially a controversial one like Anthony Norris. It’ll look like police harassment, and if anything, that would boost his ratings.’

  ‘But we can’t sit back and just wait for the next attack either,’ I said.

  ‘What next attack, Erin?’ Arnie said. ‘Do you know something we don’t?’

  I raised my own voice without thinking. ‘There’s a reason you’re wearing a vest and why there are protection teams watching your family.’

  If looks could kill, I would be dead a hundred times over. Then Arnie glanced at Cade accusingly. He knew he was the one who had told me, and I suddenly felt awful for dropping him in it. Again.

  ‘Those are precautions’ Arnie said to me. ‘At this stage, nothing more. There’s no evidence. None.’ He leaned over his desk. ‘I have to deal with my superiors who right now want you out.’

  He waited in silence as we both drew breath and calmed down.

  Finally, I nodded for him to continue, ready to accept my fate.

  ‘But it seems that they and Anthony Norris don’t want a scandal over this,’ Arnie said. ‘Norris, because he’s trying to erase any reference to his past association with the NID, and us because as I said before, perceptions of harassment may sweep him into power.’

  ‘So what happens now?’ Cade asked.

  ‘What happens now Detective Inspector, is you take this young lady over to apologise to Anthony Norris right away. He’s expecting you.’ He looked at me, his eyes narrowing. ‘You do that and beg for his forgiveness.’

  ‘And then?’

  Arnie leaned back. ‘Then you go home,’ he said to me. ‘Wait for my call and hope Norris accepts your apology and doesn’t take things any further.’

  ‘But-’

  Arnie held his hand up. ‘That’s all. Now get out.’

  31

  ARNIE SHENKER’S WIFE worked in the tall building on the left-hand side of the busy A-road. There weren’t many places for a car to stop and blend in inconspicuously, and so the unmarked police car stood out. It was a navy Vauxhall, with two shadowy figures sitting up front. It was parked down a side road, opposite Janet Shenker’s workplace.

  They drove past twice, just to be sure.

  ‘No doubt about it,’ Wayne said. ‘They’re watching the place.’

  The kid nodded, conscious he needed to keep a steady speed. Slow down and they might be noticed. The police surveillance team were expecting something.

  ‘Same thing outside the school yesterday,’ the kid reminded him unnecessarily.

  Wayne looked down at the hand-written notes on his lap. ‘Let’s not be too surprised,’ he said. ‘They were always going to try and protect as many as they can. The only question is how far their resources will stretch.’

  ‘You want to double-back again?’ the kid asked as they approached a roundabout.

  ‘No point,’ Wayne said without looking up from his notes. ‘Keep driving.’

  ‘To the third option?’

  Wayne nodded. ‘There was nothing on him yesterday. That’s no surprise either. They can only afford to cover so many. They don’t see him as important as the others. They’re right, of course. He wasn’t our first choice of target.’ Now Wayne looked across and grinned. ‘But he’ll do.’

  32

  MY JOB WAS on the line, big time, and the only person who could save it was a scumbag killer.

  Cade was driving, his eyes fixed on the road ahead. He hadn’t said a word during the first few miles.

  ‘I am sorry you have to do this,’ he whispered eventually.

  I looked away from him, out the side window as bland residential North London passed us by.

  ‘It’s my own fault,’ I said. ‘I shouldn’t have gone after Norris like that.’

  I didn’t see his reaction. Didn’t want to. The fact that I was about to apologise to someone like Norris was stoking a fire inside me. I felt like I could blow at any moment.

  ‘Norris is bad, I do know that,’ he conceded.

  I shrugged. ‘So, what does giving in like this make us?’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  Now I turned to him. His whole demeanour had changed from earlier. The anger was gone and replaced by…what? Sympathy?

  ‘We are supposed to protect the public,’ I said. ‘And yet here we are apologising to a man who has orchestrated murders. I know, I know. Lack of evidence. Procedures. Innocent until proven guilty. Wrongful imprisonment. I get all that. But sometimes…sometimes….’

  After a few seconds of silence, Cade turned to me. ‘Sometimes, what?’

  ‘Sometimes there has to be another way.’

  Cade shook his head. ‘I’ve only been doing this a little longer than you Erin, but unless you can read minds to get a confession, I’m still waiting for that “other way.”’

  We turned a sharp left into a narrow residential street full of high three-storey terraced houses.

  ‘We’re here,’ Cade muttered.

  Norris’s black BMW was parked outside his house, and we pulled up behind it. There was someone inside behind the wheel, no doubt one of the cronies I’d seen yesterday. His dark brown eyes watched us intently in his rear-view mirror.

  Then, I had a real light bulb moment.

  ‘Give me a minute,’ I said to Cade and climbed out the car. I walked a hundred yards back down the road, away from Cade’s car, and away from Norris’ driver and house.

  Out of earshot, I opened my compact. I had no doubt that if Cade could see me he’d be thinking vain bitch, but right now I couldn’t worry about that.

  I whispered the intonation and Jessie’s face appeared in the mirror.

  At the same time Norris came out of his front door with his PA and started down the steps towards his waiting car.

  He saw me and whispered something in his PA’s ear, then as they reached the bottom
of the steps, she carried on going and climbed into the car’s front passenger seat. Norris waited for me, smiling expectantly.

  ‘Can you track me Jess?’ I said.

  ‘Of course, but why?’

  ‘Just be ready.’

  I flipped the compact closed and walked back over to Norris. He looked relaxed, so much better than when Frankie and I had cornered him a day earlier. But a lot had changed since then, for me at least.

  I glanced back over my shoulder. Cade was watching us intently.

  ‘DS Dark, you’re late,’ Norris said lightly. ‘I expected you half an hour ago. I’m a busy man. I like my appointments to turn up on time.’ He nodded towards Cade. ‘I see you brought a different friend with you today.’

  ‘Is there somewhere we can talk?’

  He looked back up the steps to his front door. ‘I’m afraid I’ve locked up now.’

  ‘Your car?’

  He shrugged. ‘I guess it would be good to have Sandra and Jason as witnesses.’

  We climbed into the back seat of his car.

  ‘Sandra, this is DS Erin Dark, the police officer we spoke about. DS Dark this is Sandra Buckingham, my right hand.’

  His PA looked back at me without smiling. Her thin face was heavily made up but still looked ice cold. I saw Jason staring back at me in the rear-view mirror. His eyes gave nothing away.

  Sandra turned back round to face the front. ‘I take it you’ve come here to offer an apology,’ she said.

  I wanted to reach forward and tear her head off. Instead I took a deep breath, ignored her, and twisted round in my seat so I was facing Norris.

  ‘I want to offer my apologies for what happened yesterday.’ I sighed, a little melodramatically. ‘I knew Lloyd Tanner and his daughter. I’m afraid I took their deaths pretty hard.’

  He nodded. A good politician’s understanding nod. It didn’t tell me anything, except that he might have been half listening.

  ‘What about your friend?’ he said.

  ‘My sister,’ I lied. ‘I apologise on her behalf as well.’

  He gave a half smile. I’m sure he didn’t believe she was my sister, but he probably considered that an irrelevance.