I frowned. We were being dismissed. This was strange. Lee had depicted a man determined to catch his prey and on first impression he’d come across the same way to me. And now, here he was closing us out. What had got under his skin so much?
‘Well, thank you for your time, Robert. I appreciate it.’ I looked hard at him, met his eyes. ‘Is everything okay?’
He let out a long breath. ‘If we’d have caught him for the drugs job then Blake would still be alive. And I have to live with that.’ He stared down at his hands. Then back to me.
‘Oh, Robert. You can’t say that. We all have jobs that we can’t bottom and who knows what happens afterwards. It’s all part of us chasing our tails sometimes. We do the best we can.’
‘It was personal when it was the drugs job. I let my family down as well as the Blake family.’
I furrowed my eyebrows at him.
‘My youngest, Sean. It was a mess.’
‘Sorry to hear that,’ said Aaron at the side of me.
‘It’s tough when they go out into the world on their own,’ I added. ‘You can’t protect them from their own actions.’
‘But I should have protected him from Talbot. He started to deal for Talbot and I had to get him into rehab to get him away from him. It was a real difficult period for us.’
Damn. No wonder he was driven. No wonder he didn’t see Talbot’s murder as a loss. I couldn’t say I blamed him. I’d probably feel pretty much the same way if I was in his shoes. ‘He’s good now?’ I asked hoping to hell I hadn’t put my foot in it.
Summers gave a slow nod. His eyes off somewhere else in the room. ‘Yes, it was a long stint in rehab and I rented him a small place away from the drug scene when he came out.’
‘Glad to hear it. Thanks again for your time, Robert.’
Aaron thanked him as we walked down the hall to the door. I couldn’t help but look at all the family photographs on the wall. Robert and his wife, lots of travels. Their two boys, now grown, looked to be in their very late teens or early twenties.
‘I’m sorry to have missed Mrs Summers. Maybe another time,’ I said as we got to the door.
‘We lost my wife a couple of years ago. Cancer.’
‘Oh.’ Damn. ‘I’m sorry, Robert.’ I’d not heard that on the force grapevine, which was usually pretty good at keeping everyone up to date with such tragic losses. This man really hadn’t had it very easy.
‘Don’t be. We had some wonderful years together. I’m grateful I had her in my life.’ He seemed to drift away slightly. ‘It was then that Sean got hooked on drugs. They were his escape from the pain.’
I didn’t know him but I put my hand on his arm. ‘If there’s anything I can do.’
He patted my hand with his free hand and then opened the door for us. Aaron stepped through into the cold air. I turned. ‘Thank you again.’ Then walked out.
‘Hannah?’
I turned back to Summers.
‘He’s better off dead you know.’
Hannah
My phone vibrated in my pocket. Aaron was driving us back to the incident room. I pulled it out. Withheld number. Likely to be work. I answered. It was Pasha. I listened to what she had to say. Rubbed my head for something to do as my skin had gone cold and I began to freeze the more she spoke. As though someone had let loose a slug on my neck and it was sliding down my bare skin and this was my natural reaction to it.
‘We’ll be there in about ten minutes. Get everyone together if you can and we’ll have a briefing before we go from here. Thanks, Pasha.’ She was a good cop. I had to remember that.
I ended the call. Aaron looked at me, raised an eyebrow, then put his attention back on the road.
‘They found a body in the river yesterday. Called in at 2 a.m. the night before last, by a guy with a night fishing licence. No ID on the body. Thought to be a drunk who had wobbled their way in. He’s now been ID’d as our guy Brent Davis.
‘Shit.’
‘Yeah. That’s both witnesses who have turned up dead.’
‘Has the PM been conducted?’
‘Yes, because they didn’t realise it had any bearing on our case. What, with the assumption of it being a drunk, but the PM found that he had a blunt force trauma to the head and his tongue was missing. That wasn’t cause of death though. There was water in his lungs. He was still alive when he was tipped in. He drowned.’
‘Oh nasty.’
‘Yes. So, that’s three bodies and no idea who has killed who. Kev is not in the best of moods.’
‘Pasha said that?’
‘Not directly, but I got enough to piece it together.’
‘From what?’
‘He walked into the incident room, told everyone rest days were cancelled and no annual leave would be authorised until this was resolved, then he walked back out slamming the door behind him.’
‘I’m sure that went down well.’
‘I’ll speak to him when we get back. We’ll have the briefing and see where we go from here.’
DCI Kevin Baxter was in his office, head down, scribbling on paper. I knocked, walked right on in and closed the door behind me. The smell of cigarettes lingered in the air. There was also a coolness that surrounded him. He’d obviously been outside for a cig recently. An attempt to calm his fraying nerves.
‘Hannah, come, sit.’
Grey never made me feel like a dog when I entered his office.
I sat.
‘You’ve heard the latest?’
‘Pasha called me as soon as you found out. Brent Davis. Hit over the head and thrown in the Trent to drown but not before his tongue was cut out the same as Paul Miller.’
‘Precisely. Damn shame we didn’t pick the job up from the start.’ He tapped his pen on the edge of the desk.
‘I don’t think it would have made a difference to the outcome of the PM.’
He glared at me. Jaw clenched up tight.
‘I mean, I doubt we have lost evidence by picking it up today, unless you think otherwise of course? It’s not as though we had a real crime scene at the river.’
‘I suppose not.’
‘They’re testing the water to check it’s Trent water though, I take it?’
‘Yes, yes. They’ve taken samples from his lungs to test for diatoms and someone has taken a sample of the Trent where he was recovered. You have a copy of the PM report in your office.’ He tapped once more then looked at me. ‘You have three murders to deal with now. I’m leaving you with them all as I believe they’re all connected. But, what I will do is provide you with extra staff.’
I was about to thank him when he waved his hand at me. ‘Just don’t let there be any more bodies, Hannah.’
‘I can do my best.’
‘You know what effect this has on figures. And we can do without a gang war starting. That’s one of the Talbots and two of the Buckhurst crew. Who knows what will happen next. I will have uniform put extra patrols in the areas of both gangs. Make them visible. Attempt to stop this escalating.’
‘A good plan. You know I spoke to Ryan Buckhurst, don’t you?’
‘No. Why wasn’t I kept in the loop?’ He stood from his chair and paced about a couple of steps. I stayed where I was.
‘Sorry, I told Aaron. The whole case has progressed at such a pace. He said that there was more than those we know about present at the Talbot house at Blake’s murder.’
Baxter snorted. I furrowed my eyebrows, not understanding what his consternation was aimed at.
‘Stone.’
‘Aaron?’ I was confused.
‘You need another sergeant on the team?’
‘One wouldn’t go amiss, but because of the size of the job and because you talked about extra staff, not for any other reason.’ I didn’t understand where this was headed. Then remembered Aaron’s conversation about his issue with Baxter. Who was now pacing a bit more.
‘You think Stone is up to the job?’
‘I wouldn’t be without him. I cou
ldn’t do my job if it wasn’t for Aaron. He’s my right arm.’
Baxter snorted again.
‘Sir, is there an issue I should be aware of?’
He came back to his seat and dropped heavily into it. It swung back under the sudden weight and he flung his hands out onto his desk to steady himself. ‘He doesn’t come across like any officer I’ve met before. He’s… strange.’
I stood. ‘His work ethic and competency is above standard. Thank you for the extra staff, they’re appreciated. Will that be all, Sir?’
Baxter looked up at the ceiling, waited a beat. ‘I’m trusting you on this, DI Robbins.’
If I was prone to outbursts of violence this would have been the perfect scenario for one. Baxter had well and truly wound me up with his short-sightedness. Him and his bloody perfect white smile. How he ever managed as a constable when he had to interact with people and show compassion and empathy I would never know. I liked to keep out of his way as much as I could. But if it meant protecting Aaron then I would stand toe to toe with him as much as I needed to.
Hannah
The briefing room was a riot of noise. Phones were ringing, people were talking at volume, all wanting to be heard over each other. This latest development had caught their attention.
‘Okay, okay, quiet down. I know we’re busy, but I’m sure we don’t have to implode, do we?’
A hush descended on the room other than a couple of people still on the phone.
‘That’s better. Thank you.’ I moved to the front of the room. ‘You’ll be pleased to know that DCI Baxter has authorised more staff, so we’ll soon have some extra hands on deck to help us out. In the meantime, it’s up to us.’ I looked at the room. ‘Tell me what we know about this body.’
‘Brent Davis was pulled out of the Trent at East Bridgford yesterday. Fay Pride did the PM in the afternoon as she had some space free. He wasn’t in the water that long so an ID was possible.’ Martin read from a sheet of notes in front of him.
‘Do we know the last person to see him alive?’
‘Not yet.’
‘Okay, make that a priority. I want a time-line. Canvass neighbours. Family, friends and associates. I want to know what he was doing, who with and when. And who knew his plans, locations, habits.’
Martin made a note on his sheet.
‘I also want to know his every link to the Talbot case. I want to know which of the name-redacted statements is his so I can read it with that knowledge and I’ll get on to Hilary Byrne at the intelligence unit. How the hell can two protected witnesses end up like this? He won’t be happy. Then I’ll go and speak to Fay Pride if she has the time.’ Though I had the report on my desk, I preferred to understand it from the horse’s mouth.
I looked at the room, so much to do and not enough staff. Hopefully Baxter would come through with the extra staff quickly. I turned to Aaron’s desk and watched as he tapped notes into his computer. I wouldn’t be without him and I hated the friction between him and Baxter, or rather how Baxter had taken a dislike to him. I would not allow him to drive Aaron out. He was a great cop and personal preferences had no place in this workspace.
I moved towards the door to head to my office then stopped and looked towards Lee. ‘Lee, this is all connected to the Talbot case. Can you tell us about the time directly after the shooting? You never know what will be relevant and what isn’t.’
Lee
Lee looked around the room. All eyes, were on him, again. He felt like a museum exhibit. It had felt like a good idea at the time to come here and ask to be seconded to the investigation, he’d even told them it was his link to the previous case that had driven him here and that they could use it, but he hadn’t quite prepared himself for what that had meant. Or, he suspected, he hadn’t quite expected them to actually use him in this way. He’d thought they would agree but not find much he could do on a useful basis.
This was difficult.
He felt like a rabbit caught in the headlights. To run or stay and risk being caught in the wheels?
‘Lee? You okay?’ the DI spoke to him again. He’d taken too long inside his own head. He needed to pull himself together.
‘Yes, sorry. It’s difficult you know. And I’m not sure what it is I can help you with after the event.’
She moved closer to him, perched herself on a desk and gave him a gentle smile. ‘I’m not sure either, Lee. But unless you talk about it, we won’t ever know if you hold a useful snippet in there or not.’
He nodded mutely. If only he could stay mute. Stay in the room with these people. Stay with the investigation but not have to open himself up this way. That had been the plan when he had asked to be attached. A not very well considered plan.
‘Okay?’ she prompted again.
‘Okay.’ He took a breath. ‘Where do you want me to start?’
‘How about from where you last finished. You’d found out about Ken. Tell us about the time after that. What happened? What was said?’ She leaned back. An attempt, he knew, not to crowd him.
They had kept him in hospital a couple of nights because of the blow to the head and the length of time he had been unconscious. They were concerned and were cautious. It frustrated him but he had a slew of visitors, which in turn frustrated the nursing staff who cared for him. They wanted him to rest but his colleagues wouldn’t stay away. They told him that the minute the back-up had arrived at the Talbots’ house and they saw what had happened it was like a war-zone on the streets. Every cop in the city was out and staff from the next shift were called in early. The area was flooded with cops, with uniforms and suits alike.
CSIs and cops were all over. Working and moving together with one aim in mind. To identify and locate the offender who had killed one of their own and taken down another. Lee was told he’d had an escort to the hospital. A true-blue transit. They wouldn’t allow him to get there without them. There was an anger in the air as well as the distress of those who were friends of both Ken and Lee. Bosses strove to turn the distress into a determination to track down the assailant but it was hell.
Lee felt some comfort when he knew he had been protected and in knowing that they’d had his back.
He stopped and looked around him. Many of the faces who had been watching him now looked away. Most were staring at the floor. It was hard to hear a first-hand account of an incident like this, an event where a fellow officer had been killed. Whether they had been on duty and turned out or not. Lee looked at the DI. Her face had softened. She inclined her head for him to go on.
Inspector Sahni was the person who was his official link to the force and had kept him up to date with the inquiry as well as seeing if he needed any support. Of course the chief constable had paid him a visit that night. He had promised to hunt down and make the offender pay for what they had done. He was stern and yet quiet and respectful of where he was. Respectful of Lee’s condition and loss. But he wanted as much information as he could get so they could progress the previously stated promise. And that was the problem. He was to be treated with kid gloves but they also needed his help as he had survived the attack. The one to walk out alive when his colleague and mentor hadn’t. The nursing staff attempted to keep people at bay but it was a difficult situation for all concerned. Lee was more than aware of this.
He was also concerned about the situation at home, but Sheila had promised to take care of his nan until he was released from the hospital. She told him it wasn’t much different than when he was on nights, she would stay as long as needed.
He provided the senior investigating officer with as much information as he could. He wanted to help. But it was a one-way street. For all they said they would keep him updated, it had started to get closed off. He was treated more and more like an everyday witness. Pushed out of the investigation and prosecution. Held at arm’s length. He got fragments from colleagues who had been seconded, but they had been warned against doing as such, so were wary.
‘And what action did you take?’ as
ked DI Robbins.
‘Action, Ma’am?’
‘When you couldn’t find out where the case was at.’
‘I went directly to DI Summers and pleaded with him to let me on to the team.’ He dropped his gaze. It was exactly what he’d done to get himself on this unit.
‘For what purpose?’
He lifted his head and looked her in the eye. ‘My mate had just been killed. I wanted in on the case. Like everyone else in the job did. But I had more reason than anyone else to want in on that role. I was there.’
‘I get that. And what did DCI Summers say?’
‘I couldn’t because I was a witness.’
‘While you were there did you hear or see anything that maybe isn’t in the file? People talk while they work. Maybe someone talked to you?’
What could he tell them? Make it personal. ‘Yeah, they talked to me. They asked how I was—’
‘And what did you say? How were you?’ The DI butted in. Stopped his flow. Stopped his train of thought.
‘I was, erm, I told them, I was, erm, okay, and wanted to be back at work. I wanted to be with them. Getting the bastard who had done this to Ken.’ This loss was real. It hurt. More than he could comprehend. He had never felt or experienced anything like it. He wanted to go, to leave this team. To go home to his nan and to stay there. He’d had enough.
‘I interrupted you, I’m sorry. Carry on.’
Lee scrubbed at his head. ‘They said they had him banged to rights and I wasn’t to worry. He wouldn’t get away with it.’
‘How long were you off work?’
‘Four days. I was stir-crazy at home so I had to go back to work. I’d been signed off for a week but my GP was fairly happy to sign me back to work on restricted duties, for the remainder of the week, so I was in the station assigned to paperwork only.’
‘Anything else you can remember?’
Lee shook his head. He was finished.
The DI Hannah Robbins Series: Books 1 - 3 (Boxset) (Detective Hannah Robbins Crime Series) Page 60
