Forty-five minutes later, I was walking down the corridor towards the office that Kingston occupied next to mine. I was about to walk in when I heard him in conversation.
‘Yes, ma’am, it’s looking good. We found the Adidas top Grantmore described at Holland’s house along with a bottle of bleach under his sink. And of course we have the attack in the Crown Court in front of dozens of witnesses… you probably read about that in the Mail?’
He paused, obviously listening to the other side of what I now surmised was a telephone conversation.
‘Actually, no, he wasn’t charged. I’ve been in touch with the custody suite who have checked his custody record and believe it or not… Superintendent Darnley cautioned him.’
My little secret was out.
After another pause, he continued with obvious glee.
‘Yes, I agree. A caution was totally inappropriate. The man should have been charged. This is going to be a very high-profile case. Such an unusual and cruel scenario will attract much press interest… even nationally, I suspect. When I charge Holland with this attack, Darnley’s ill-judged decision is bound to come out and it will reflect badly on the force. But between you and me, ma’am, Darnley enjoys bucking the system… he thinks he’s a law unto himself.’
Again he went quiet.
‘Exactly, ma’am. Grantmore will now discover Darnley cautioned him and try and sue the force.’ He was so enjoying this.
Again he listened, this time for a while longer, before continuing in what was a much more subdued manner.
‘I thought it was a good tactic to arrest the girl, ma’am. I thought it might put some pressure on her father to admit his crime.’
I realised he must be talking to Jane Greenhall, one of the force’s two assistant chief constables. He was obviously just letting her know what a clever chap he was, so quickly netting his prisoners and – as a bonus – what a liability I was. But from the abrupt change in his tone and the way he was now backtracking, I guessed the ACC was not happy with his decision to arrest Lisa Holland. I heard him hang up.
I quietly stepped down the corridor, went into my office, closed the door and rang the custody suite at Priory asking for Jo Young. As luck would have it, she was about to start the interview with Lisa Holland and I just had time to explain what I wanted her to do and why. I then returned to Kingston’s office and rapped on the still open door before walking in.
‘Afternoon, Dave,’ I smiled, knowing damn well he preferred David. ‘I hear you’ve got a bit of a job on’
For the first time I could recall since he had been posted into the CID about five months ago, for career development purposes, he looked genuinely pleased to see me. He immediately began to recount the incident, stressing how he had made the immediate connection to the rape of Lisa Holland and her father’s attack in court and how, acting decisively, he had ordered immediate arrests and a search of their home. On occasion, the tactic of arresting a relative in order to apply pressure to a chief suspect is legitimate and I agreed with him that the suspicion to justify such action was present in this case as, in principle, Lisa could have been the attacker. She had the motive and the attacker was masked, albeit I knew from Jo Young that Grantmore had described a man. So in these particular circumstances, he was on very dodgy ground, particularly in light of Lisa’s vulnerability. From the telephone conversation I had overheard, I reckoned that was what the ACC was also worried about. Imagine the fallout on the force if it went wrong. An already traumatised rape victim, further damaged by her attacker’s acquittal – and then we go and lock her up – without evidence.
Still unsure if the plan I had been hatching since Jo Young had tipped me off was built on safe ground, I explored further.
‘Apart from the obvious, what evidence have you got against him?’
‘Well, there’s plenty of potential forensics. We’ve got the handwritten note that was stuck on Grantmore’s chest… so we might get a handwriting match from Holland… or Lisa. We might find the cardboard packaging that matches the torn piece the message is on. SOCO are going over the room where it happened so there are obviously possibilities there. We’re swabbing Holland’s hands for traces of bleach and we might find the modelling knife he used with Grantmore’s blood on it. Then there’s the syringe… so I’m hopeful.’
He didn’t look as confident as he sounded but ploughed on: ‘We’ve already found a newly-opened bottle of bleach under his sink and an Adidas top in a cupboard of his bedroom that matches the one Grantmore describes.’
I nodded enthusiastically. ‘If you get some of those forensics back you’re laughing. If you don’t, the Adidas top and the bleach mean nothing… circumstantial… everyone has got bleach under their sink and even I’ve got an Adidas top… they don’t really add much to the motive and the attack in court. Your best bet would be to trace the girl who cuffed him. She’s obviously involved. Any ideas who she is?’
‘She only started there a few days earlier, pretending she was an illegal from the Eastern Bloc, so no questions were asked. I reckon she was deliberately put there by Holland to set this up.’
‘Prove that and you’ve cracked it. So how are enquiries going to identify her?’
I was starting to sweat a bit now as there were clearly plenty of ways this could all fall to Holland, and I was looking at trouble.
‘Christ, I haven’t even started that line of inquiry yet. How do you keep all the plates spinning?’
I could see he was already feeling the pressure. Since he’d joined the CID, he hadn’t run a major incident, so I thought I’d turn up the heat.
‘Don’t worry, mate, let’s draw up a plan of action. First thing, have you updated the top corridor? This is a job that could blow up in the force’s face because of what happened in court.’
Since he had already discovered I had cautioned Holland, I decided to pretend I had never tried to hide it. ‘You ought to know I cautioned Holland for the attack in court… so that’ll add to any bad publicity… he might even try and sue.’ I shook my head in self-recrimination.
He pretended to look surprised.
I ploughed on. ‘Secondly, arresting the victim in that same case was a brave decision, Dave, and I can see your reasoning, but if anything goes wrong there… well… you’ve really stuck your neck out. Does Grantmore say it could have been a woman?’
Kingston was shrinking before my very eyes. He never answered and I knew Grantmore knew his attacker was a man. He loosened his tie and undid the top button of his shirt. Blimey, he never did that – I almost felt bad but kept going.
‘So update the top corridor… then start a policy book and get one of them to sign it… then you’re covered. Have you alerted Priory to put Lisa on suicide watch when they put her in a cell? She’s obviously very vulnerable… that’s why you decided to use her as a lever in the first place.’
I sat back, shaking my head, and feigned a worried look. ‘Brave decision, Dave, arresting her. Bold tactic. Not sure I’d have had the bottle.’
He couldn’t take his eyes off me, waiting for my next piece of advice. He was hooked.
‘I made a mistake at the start of this job by cautioning Holland. We now have to make sure, for the reputation of the force, that you don’t compound it. Oh and by the way, how’s Grantmore? In severe pain, I hope.’
He visibly slumped as he saw his next rank fading into the distance.
‘I’ve already briefed the ACC and to be honest she was anxious that I’d arrested Lisa. She saw the same dangers you brought up. As for Grantmore, he’s going to lose his eye and he’s gone into severe shock but he’ll survive.’
Come on, Darnley, final push, he’s nearly over the edge.
‘Well, just be careful. It doesn’t pay to piss Jane off… she can bear a grudge. Bloody hell, Dave, you’ve copped a right dodgy job here… bit of a make-or-break case. Good experienc
e for you, though.’
I paused. Gauged his reaction – that should do it!
By now, the Chief’s insignia he envisioned on his own epaulettes had, for the time being, disappeared and I knew he was on the verge of asking me exactly what I wanted him to ask me, when bugger me, the phone on his desk rang, breaking the spell.
‘Kingston’, he barked into the phone.
I watched as the colour drained from his face.
‘But is she okay?’
Followed by, ‘Is the ambulance there yet?’
Then the plea. ‘Ring me straight back.’
In my head, I punched the air in triumph. Good girl, Jo, you’ve come up trumps again. But of course I maintained an outward air of concern.
‘What’s up, Dave?’
Head in hands, his carefully coiffured greying locks now dishevelled, Kingston looked like he was about to cry for his nanny, something that I had no doubt he had at one time done regularly.
‘Shit, shit, shit! Lisa Holland has had some sort of fit during interview and is unconscious. They’re waiting for an ambulance.’
‘Better let the ACC know straight away, particularly as she wasn’t happy anyway. Better she hears it from you first.’
I was loving this.
‘I think I’ll wait until the ambulance gets there. They might not have to take her to hospital… it might not be too bad.’
Indecision was written all over his face. It was my duty to help him decide.
‘Or she might die on the custody suite floor… tell her now.’
I picked up the phone handset and handed it to him.
He took the phone from my hand but placed it back in the cradle. He stood up and walked to the window and looked out, clearly thinking things through. For the life of me, I couldn’t think of anything else to say that might make him react how I hoped he would, so I just kept quiet and joined him at the window, as if in silent but comradely support. After about thirty seconds, he let out a heavy sigh that marked a decision made.
‘You’re right. Would you mind leaving the room, Matt? I’d rather do this alone.’
I was jubilant. ‘I’ll be next door when you’re done.’
I walked to the door and then stopped as if I’d just had an idea. ‘Tell you what, Dave, in light of these unfortunate circumstances, but only if you want… I’ll take over the inquiry. I’m familiar with the original rape case, was present in court when Holland attacked Grantmore, and I made the mistake cautioning him, so maybe I should clear up the mess. Suggest it to the ACC… but only if it suits you.’
I returned to my office, confident he’d use my offered escape route and try and swing the job on me. I was equally sure the ACC would accept. The last thing the force would want was a scandal if anything happened to Lisa, and the ACC knew I was far more capable of handling such a case than Kingston. More importantly, and somewhat uncomfortably, I also knew that if things did go wrong they would much prefer to sacrifice me than him. After all, he was destined to be one of them, while I was fast becoming an anachronism in modern policing and often a thorn in their sides.
The beauty of it was that I knew nothing was wrong with Lisa Holland. There was no danger of a comeback from that direction. The fact that I’d cautioned Holland was now known but once in charge of the inquiry, I could make sure how I’d fiddled the paperwork remained hidden.
Knowing that Jo was no longer busy interviewing, I rang her mobile. She answered on the first ring. ‘How’s that then, boss? Worth a G ’n’ T tonight, I think.’
‘As ever, Young, your timing was perfect. Are you free to speak?’
‘I spoke to Lisa just before we went into interview and told her to trust me but to pretend to collapse ten minutes in. I got to know her really well when we were investigating Grantmore, and she could see I was disgusted about her being arrested, so she didn’t even ask any questions. You should have been there, boss… I was nearly convinced by her performance. It’s really upset Linda. She obviously believes Lisa’s had a fit because of the stress, and she’s shitting herself, but adamant she was only following Kingston’s orders to lock her up… and intends to say so.’
At this point, Jo told me the ambulance had just arrived and Lisa had “come round” and was refusing to go to hospital. I told her to ask the custody sergeant to release her without charge, on my instructions, and insist she went to hospital and accompany her. I arranged to meet Jo later to buy her a drink and explain what was happening. I made a mental note to try and get the hugely competent and likeable DC Young onto the Emmerson murder inquiry. I needed officers like her on my team.
Before long, a very dejected Kingston was back from licking arse in the top corridor. I had indeed been asked to take on the investigation and within minutes the ACC rang me to discuss matters. I now asked Kingston to leave me to take the call.
I was contrite about my decision to caution Holland and expressed my desire to make amends by investigating the attack on Grantmore. I was very surprised to pick up the impression that she didn’t want me to try too hard to solve the case. Her rationale of course was that my failure to prosecute Holland for the attack in court could now leave the force exposed if Grantmore tried to sue for this latest attack. That would not be an option if it could not be proved it was indeed Holland that had blinded him. I guessed the fact that the Hollands were a decent family and Grantmore a low-life thug, helped her to justify her thinking. Of course, she voiced none of this, but I knew we were on the same wavelength. She was also keen that the press did not get hold of the fact that we had arrested Lisa Holland, and adamant that I update her as soon as I knew how she was. I took the opportunity to lay it on thick about what an ill-considered decision it was to arrest her and how I would do all I could to keep the lid on Kingston’s faux pas. I reassured her I’d get an overview of where we were and call her back.
Firstly, I debriefed the officers who had arrested and interviewed Russ Holland. They were convinced he had attacked Grantmore – as was I – although after two hours of interview, he had not uttered a single word. Enquiries with Janine at the massage parlour had failed to identify the girl beyond the name she had given. She had walked in off the street looking for work and said she was from Romania – or was it Bulgaria – or Estonia? Needless to say, Grantmore’s HR policies were somewhat lax and she had neither been asked for, nor provided, any proof of identity. The search of Holland’s home had failed to reveal the knife, any syringes, or even washing up gloves, the remnants of the cardboard used for the note, or a red felt tip pen. The Adidas top had been bagged to send to the forensic laboratory to see if it had traces of Grantmore’s blood, although there were certainly no visible signs. We concluded that the bleach under the sink was of no use. How many sinks in Hull have a bottle of Domestos beneath them?
I doubted the scene of the attack would render any evidence. The attacker had worn gloves, and considering what the room was actually used for, the chance of identifying and then eliminating any fingerprints was improbable. Enquiries had also failed to find any witnesses nearby. It already looked likely that we’d only have his very obvious motive, the attack in court and the note – quite a compelling story – but not even a circumstantial case without something linking him to the events at Nicole’s. I appreciated that just a sighting of him, or even his car in the area at the relevant time, could help build that circumstantial case, but I knew that even I would have the devil’s own job of building a case – even if my heart had been in it.
When I reported back to the ACC, she seemed as relieved as I pretended not to be. The icing on the cake was when she rather indiscreetly let slip that DI Swales had made a formal complaint about Kingston’s order to arrest Lisa. Finally, she instructed me to visit the Hollands and apologise for the error of judgement in arresting Lisa and in doing so assess the likelihood of them complaining.
I did not want to meet Russ Holland aga
in, keen just to let sleeping dogs lie, but had no choice but to call round at their home after he was released. He answered the door and curtly invited me in. Both he and Lisa were extremely quiet and obviously did not even want to discuss events. Lisa was a bright girl and must have known her father had carried out this vicious attack on her rapist, and so it was pretty obvious why neither wanted to say much. If that was the case, it seemed unlikely that either of them would then go on to make a fuss about their arrests. They didn’t even mention Lisa’s collapse, trip in an ambulance and brief sojourn in A&E, but he did ask me to thank DC Young for all her support. I thought it best not to reveal that Jo had been following my instructions. As quickly and sensitively as I could, I offered the appropriate words of apology about the arrest of Lisa and her collapse and informed them that I would be the officer investigating the attack on Grantmore. Neither made any meaningful response and I was glad to get out of the house so quickly – and without having to witness Mr Holland’s unsettling anger again.
As I drove back to Central, I had to face the fact that I did not want to unearth the evidence to prove Russ Holland had maimed Grantmore. I felt comfortable admitting to myself that it was through self-interest, and slightly less comfortable justifying it from the ACC’s standpoint of protecting the force’s reputation and preventing Grantmore suing. But deep down, I knew neither of these reasons were what was driving me. The idea that Holland had extracted revenge – taken justice when none had been delivered – gave me a contented buzz of satisfaction. Following my old sergeant’s maxim of “doing right or doing nowt” over his caution had left me with no feelings of guilt. But would this? Could I really go this far? Failing to try my upmost to detect a serious crime was a whole new ball game.
Nine
Nearly Two Months Since the Robbery and Murder
A Duty of Revenge Page 8
