“The same?”
“You people think your country is so wonderful. That everyone wants to come here to steal your stupid jobs, your so-called benefits, your pitiful healthcare. You just do not get it. We don’t care about your stupid benefits or your jobs. We hate this country. I hate this country. This is the last place I want to be.”
“Then why are you fighting deportation?”
“Because they will kill us if we go back.”
Red sighed. “It’s hard to take claims of death threats seriously when someone is standing on a ledge threatening to kill themselves anyway.”
Tahlia looked deep into Red’s eyes. “There is dying with dignity, and there is dying like my sister. That choice is easy.”
Red was still formulating her response as Tahlia calmly stepped off the edge, a black, beautiful angel in flight, gliding toward the ground where firemen were still struggling with safety nets.
“No!” Red stifled a scream as she leaned forward, grabbing at thin air, barely stopping herself from following Tahlia over the parapet.
The woman’s robes plumed out around her, flapping like wings as she plummeted. Red shielded her eyes as Tahlia’s fragile, weightless body found a ledge, killing her instantly, altering her course irrevocably before hitting the ground. Shouts and screams rushed up from the street below. Red could just make out Tahlia’s impossibly crumpled body, a crimson pool blossoming out onto the pavement beneath her motionless form.
Red felt her legs fail beneath her. She sank to the asphalt, curled up into a ball and let out a cry that was heard on the street below.
Chapter 62.
“Els?” Red stooped to where Ella had slumped against the shop window, eyes staring forward, oblivious to the smartphone in her hand signaling a call. Red shook the child’s shoulders gently. “Ella, it’s Cass.”
In slow-motion, the child swung her glassy gaze in Red’s direction. “Cass?”
“Are you okay?”
Ella stared at Red, uncomprehending. “Cass?”
“Your phone’s ringing, Els.” Red peeled the girl’s fingers from the vibrating mobile, seeing mum flash up on the screen. She pressed to answer.
“Pip, it’s me.”
“Cassandra? Where’s Ella?”
“Right here.” Red ran her fingers gently through the child’s hair. “She’s not feeling too good. I’m taking her home.”
“Is she okay? What happened?”
“Ella’s fine. She’s just witnessed an incident, that’s all. She’s not up to talking right now.”
“An incident? Oh my God!” A long pause while Pippa regained her composure. “Ella said there was a woman? On a roof?”
Red switched the phone to her other ear, nestling it with her shoulder as she urged Ella to move from the shop window. A gentle yet insistent arm pulled the child up. “It’s a long story. Pip.”
“I thought it was one of Ella’s silly pranks at first, until…” Another long pause. “Cassandra, what were you thinking, letting my daughter witness something like that?”
“Now’s not the time, Pippa. Right now, Ella needs to be at home. That’s where we’re going. We’ll see you there.”
“Cassandra, I absolutely insist –”
Red switched the phone off, thrusting it into her pocket. She draped an arm around the child’s shoulders, steering Ella towards a waiting squad car. “Well, at least we can get a free ride home, Els. Come on, let’s go face the music.”
Chapter 63.
Pippa unleashed her tirade as Red and Ella crossed the threshold. “My poor child!’ Pippa cut her eyes at Red, pulling Ella into her arms. “Are you okay, darling? What happened?”
Ella sobbed softly into her mother’s shoulder, unable to speak.
Pippa glared at Red. “Well?”
Red stared at Pip in disbelief. “How the hell did you get back before us? I pulled rank to get us a patrol car. There’s no way you could have –”
“Never mind that, Cassandra. Look at my daughter. She can barely speak.” Pippa made a show of hugging Ella tightly to her, glowering at Red.
Red pulled the door gently to, throwing her keys and phone onto the side table. “Shall we get her inside first? What Ella needs right now is a cup of sweet tea.”
“Sweet tea? She’ll need therapy, more like. Cassandra, how could you let this happen? Look at the poor child.”
“What was I supposed to do? A woman was about to throw herself off Harvey-Will’s! Should I have crossed the road and looked the other way?”
“When you have my daughter with you and she’s in your charge, yes, that’s exactly what you should have done. It was not your problem. They have trained people to deal with that sort of thing.”
Red let out a long breath. “I was there. They weren’t. I’m a Chief Inspector, for God’s sake. I had to do something. With rank comes responsibility.”
Pippa’s expression wavered briefly. She hugged Ella again. “Yes, well… I suppose, Cassandra, we should be proud of you for saving the woman’s life. She might have jumped if you hadn’t intervened.”
Red’s mouth dropped open. Quietly, “Pip, she did jump. She’s dead.”
Pippa threw her arms around her daughter again. “Oh my God! Ella!” She stared daggers at Red, pressing Ella to her chest.
Red looked back, eyes full of despair. “She just stepped off the ledge in front of me. There was nothing I could do.”
Pip sank onto a kitchen stool, pulling her daughter with her. “Ella, darling.”
Ella stiffened. Through barely stifled sobs, “Mum?”
“Darling, I’m so sorry. I didn’t realise,” Pippa wailed at Ella. “Oh my God.” Pippa sat up as the likely scenario unfolded in her mind. “Did you see her…” Pippa stopped herself, turning to Red, eyes asking the question Pippa couldn’t voice. “Did she…”
“Not from where she was standing,” Red said. “You just saw her jump, right, Els?”
Ella nodded, struggling against her mother’s embrace. “I’m okay. Mum.”
“No, darling, you are not okay. No child should have to...” Pippa’s voice trailed, unwilling to repeat the incident. “You need to rest, sweetheart.”
Ella pushed herself upright, eyes still to the floor. “Can I have a drink?”
Pippa got up on autopilot, oblivious to the English language transgression. “Of course, darling. Sweet tea?”
“Coke?”
“Ella, you know that’s only for… Yes, of course, darling.” Pippa took a bottle from the fridge, and selected a glass, her hands trembling.
“Count me in too, Counsellor,” Red said. “I need a sugar injection just now.”
Pippa returned to the table with one glass.
Ella said quietly, “What was her name?”
Pippa stopped in mid-pour, looking anxiously from Ella to Red, uncertain how to handle the situation.
“Tahlia,” Red said. “Her name was Tahlia.”
Ella nodded, her voice distant. “That’s a nice name.”
Pippa placed the chilled glass of Coke before her daughter. She draped an arm around the girl’s shoulders, sliding into the other seat next to her. “Drink this, Ella, Then it’s a nice warm bath and into your pajamas.”
Ella scooped up the glass with both hands, downing the sugar confection in one. She held out the vessel for more. Pippa refilled it without objection, then put the bottle back in the fridge, ignoring Red’s outstretched hand. “Okay, bath-time, sweetheart. I’ll come up with you and make sure you’re okay.” Pippa stroked Ella’s hair.
“Good night, Els,” Red said quietly. “Sleep tight.”
“Good night, Cass,” Ella responded in monotone. The child turned as if to say something else but Pippa edged her through the doorway.
A withering glance from Pippa told Red all she needed to know.
Chapter 64.
Red was finishing the last of the Coke when Pippa came back into the kitchen ten minutes later. She watched as Pippa quietly but firm
ly closed the door.
“Coke?” Red asked.
Pippa glared at the almost-empty bottle. “How dare you.”
Red shrugged. “Sorry. Completely out of Pepsi.”
Pippa’s voice was a fraught whisper, the glare as cold as the ice in Red’s glass. “Don’t try and make light of this, Cassandra. I’ve just left my daughter almost in tears up there. Thanks to you.”
“I’ll go and see her. Talk things though.” Red started to get up but Pippa slapped her hand on the table.
“You stay away from her, Cassandra.”
“I’m sorry?”
“You heard me. The last thing she needs is your interference again.”
“My what?”
“How could you, Cassandra? What in hell’s name were you thinking of?”
Red held Pippa’s gaze. “Since you ask, I was thinking maybe I could have saved that woman’s life. What was I supposed to do? Escort Ella home first and then casually stroll back?”
“No child should have to see what Ella saw.”
Red slumped into her seat. “Let’s deal with facts. Pip. We were there. I didn’t plan it that way. It just happened. I’m a police officer, for God’s sake. I have a duty to protect the public.”
“You had a duty,” Pippa said slowly, “to protect my daughter. I entrusted her to your care.”
“Ella will be fine. She saw the woman jump. She saw me try to stop it happening. At least she didn’t see the woman hit the ground. I did. And so did a lot of kids who happened to be there at the front of the crowd. I don’t suppose they’re feeling too good right now either. But shit happens.”
“Shit happens? Is that the best excuse you can come up with?”
“It’s not about excuses, Pip. I’m talking simple facts. It happened. We have to live with it. Which is more than can be said for Tahlia.”
“It wasn’t your bloody business! You had my daughter with you.”
“Yes, Counsellor, I’m well aware of that fact. Unfortunately, being a DCImeans that urgent police business has to take precedence over baby-sitting duties.”
“This isn’t a joke, Cass. You wanted to share responsibility for my children’s upbringing. They were your words. That means taking it seriously, always.”
“Oh for Christ’s Sake, Pippa. I’m a cop.”
“And I’m a barrister. But first and foremost, I’m a mother. Something you will never understand.”
“Don’t push your luck, Counsellor.”
“Meaning?”
Red shook her head, lips drawn in a tight line. “I don’t need this shit.” She thrust her chair back. Slammed the glass on the table.
“Where are you going?”
The slamming of the door behind her was Red’s only response.
Chapter 65.
DC Terri Miller risked a quick glance in her DCI’s direction. “More wine, Guv?” She tipped the bottle in Red’s direction, knowing the answer.
“You think I made the right call?”
Terri shrugged. “Sure, from a cop’s point of view.” She filled Red’s glass before adding, “But Pippa’s not a cop.”
“As much of a cop as I am a mother,” Red said quietly. “That hurt.”
“Guv?”
Red drained her glass in one. “Best not ask. The bitch.” She gestured for another refill. “Keep up.”
“Are you sure, Guv? Going home blotto isn’t going to help soothe things.”
Red gestured to the barman. “Another bottle, mate.” To Terri, “I’m going home to sort things, not soothe things.” Red rattled the base of her glass on the table. “Come on, let’s get that one emptied. We’ll look like a couple of alkies with two bottles on the table.”
Terri held the bottle steady. “But Guv…”
“That’s an order, Detective Constable.”
Terri put the bottle down. “We’re not on duty now, Guv. And you’ve had enough.”
“I’ve just started.”
Terri took Red’s glass from her hand. “There’s what, three kids at your place?”
Red glared at Terri. “And?”
“And you’re going to stomp home and start a blazing row with Pippa? At this time of night?”
“That’s exactly what I’m going to…” Red’s voice trailed as Terri’s words sunk in. “Okay. So what do you suggest.”
Red looked up to see the barman uncorking the next bottle. “Too late.” She took her glass back from Terri. Refilled it. She said, “If I’m gonna go home and grovel, I’m going to need this.” Red downed it in one to stress the point.
“This isn’t helping, Guv.”
“The thing is, Terri,” Red slurred, “I hadn’t banked on acquiring a ready-made family at thirty-eight. Just the opposite. The combination of my lifestyle and my job made it pretty much inconceivable. I was too focused on climbing the ladder. DI by forty, that was my only goal in life.” She poured another glass. “Now look at me. DC bleeding I, and I’m not even thirty-nine.”
“You make it sound like it’s not a good thing.”
“Yeah, well it’s not as if I earned it, is it.” Red pressed fingers to her creased forehead. “Jesus, I even got that by default, because Bill died.”
Terri watched the already half-empty bottle return to the table. “You’d have got the promotion anyway, when the Guv retired. You’re a good cop, Guv. One of the best I ever worked with.”
Red managed a wry smile. “Make sure you remind me of that in the morning when the Super is hauling me over the coals for getting involved today. I’ll probably get the blame because the girl jumped.”
“You did what you thought was right,” Terri assured her.
Red leaned forward conspiratorially, lowering her voice. “Let me share some hard-earned wisdom with you, Detective. What’s right, and what the book says you should do, are rarely ever the same thing. I should have stayed on the ground outside the store today and waited for a trained negotiator to turn up.”
“By when she might have jumped anyway.”
“But she might not have,” Red said quietly. “I’ll have to live with that possibility the rest of my life.”
Terri reached out her hand to Red’s. “From what I saw, she deliberately stepped off the ledge.”
“You were there?”
“Internet,” Terri said. “Plenty of people below with camera cell-phones. It’s all over the net. Probably on TV by now. And I’ve gotta say, Guv, you looked pretty cool up there. Very professional.”
“Let’s hope the Super saw it,” Red sighed. She put her own mobile flat on the table.
Terri forced a smile. “I forgot to tell you. Someone called in at the station this morning, looking for you. Didn’t leave a name.”
“Can’t have been that important then. Hold on. What the hell were you doing at the Station? I told you guys to take time out.”
“Sometimes it helps to go over things on your own. I might have spotted something that gives us the break we need.”
“And did you?”
Terri lowered her eyes. “No. But it was worth a try.”
Red shrugged. “Anyway, drink up, then you can find me a cab. Pip will be calling any minute.”
“Guv?”
Red managed a sheepish grin. “Whenever we have a fight Pippa always calls me three hours after I walk out.”
“Sounds like you make quite a habit of it.”
“Let’s just say it happens. It’s like a cooling off period. For us both.” Red picked up the empty bottle and held it up to the light, glazed eyes staring through the glass. “We each say sorry over the phone, so neither can see the other’s insincere expression, then I return home and we carry on as if nothing ever happened.”
“Sounds like a sensible arrangement,” Terri agreed. She reached out her half-empty glass to chink it against the bottle in Red’s hand. “Cheers to that, Guv.”
As Terri raised her glass Red swung the bottle round with a heavy hand to meet it. The two collided in mid-air. The bottle
survived intact. Red watched in glazed slow motion as Terri’s glass shattered, the ruby liquid spilling down. Instinctively Red raised her other arm to deflect the broken glass. The wine splashed over her chest, staining the white vest top deep purple in the dim light.
“Oops,” Red giggled. “Don’t waste it, gal!”
Terri stared in horror at the spreading stain. “Rinse it out in the ladies and you might get away with it.”
The barman arrived equipped for the emergency.
“My most sincere apologies,” Red said with mock solemnity. “Put it on my bill. Back in a minute.”
Terri watched Red enter the ladies’ room. “Sorry,” she said to the barman. “She’s not normally like this.”
The barman smiled. “Actually, she is. I used to work at the Union. Served her all the time. Drunk as a skunk some nights, she was. Coppers are always the worst.”
Chapter 66.
Terri picked up Red’s phone on the third ring. The call display read Counsellor. Terri hesitated. Why would an attorney be calling the Guv at this time of night? Sorry, lawyer, she mentally corrected herself. Solicitors and barristers. She’d get used to it eventually.
Terri cast a long glance at the ladies’ door, then pressed answer. She opened her mouth to speak, then realised she had no idea how to respond. Cass? Red? DCI Rose? She elected to stay silent and let the caller speak first.
“Miss you, babe,” said a seductive female voice.
Terri blinked twice. Miss you, babe?
“There’s a Voignier on ice and I’m wearing that new underwear you bought me for my birthday.”
Terri looked anxiously around the room, as if fearing the other patrons might overhear. She looked hopefully at the door to the ladies. Still firmly shut. Into the phone, hesitantly, “Hello?”
“Oh my God. Wrong number. I’m so very sorry.” The phone went dead in her hand.
Terri stared at the phone. Wrong number? The why did it come up on Red’s caller ID?
As she pondered the possibilities the display lit up again.
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