Murder Ring (A DI Geraldine Steel Mystery)

by Leigh Russell

  ‘Katy was pretty vague about her, but Jack gave us quite a detailed description. When I’ve finished my coffee I’m going to get an e-fit – hang on.’

  ‘What is it?’

  Geraldine stared at Sam, but the face she was thinking about didn’t belong to her colleague. ‘Jack said the woman they both saw had a wart on her chin.’

  Sam stared back, oblivious of the drops of chocolate dripping from her biscuit on to the table. ‘Hasn’t Gina got a wart on her chin?’

  ‘Let’s go and find out.’

  For once, Sam didn’t complain about abandoning her tea as they hurried from the canteen.

  68

  ‘TAKE YOUR TIME, Jack. Look very closely at these pictures and tell us if you recognise the woman you saw in the corridor outside the toilets at the bar.’

  Jack gave an anxious nod. He understood how much might hang on his identifying the right woman.

  ‘I never got much of a look at her,’ he mumbled, as he gazed at each of the images in turn. ‘That’s the one,’ he cried out with sudden animation. ‘That’s the old tart what was there outside the toilets.’

  Geraldine and Sam exchanged a glance. He had picked out the photograph of Gina.

  ‘Are you sure?’

  ‘She got that same fucking wart on her chin. How you gonna forget that? And her bad skin. If that ain’t the one, she got a twin what looks just like her.’

  Geraldine had heard enough. She nodded at Sam. ‘Let’s go and see what she has to say about this.’

  On the way, they conjectured about the significance of this new development, wondering what might have motivated Gina to shoot David and Luke. There was some sense in her killing David, as they knew she had got her hands on the ring he had bought for Laura. Lenny’s confession that he had stolen the ring from David could easily be a story he and his killer girlfriend had concocted to explain how his DNA came to be on the body, and how they came by the ring.

  ‘So, Gina and Lenny are out together. They come across David who’s drunk and lost, and set about mugging him. But something goes wrong – perhaps he fought back when Lenny assaulted him – and Gina shoots him. That all fits,’ Sam said. ‘But what was she doing in the bar, shooting Luke, and how the hell did she get him out of the window?’

  ‘He was quite slight,’ Geraldine pointed out.

  ‘Even so, it would have been awkward getting him over the window sill.’

  ‘The window’s above the toilet so he could have been trying to climb out, when he saw her aiming the gun. She shot him and he fell, or she gave him a final push, and he was out of the window and on the railings. She ran off, and slipped out of the place while the police were still on their way. Remember, everyone thought it was an accident to begin with. It wasn’t until the post mortem that the pathologist discovered he’d been shot.’

  Gina’s heavy-lidded eyes glared up at Geraldine. ‘He’s out.’

  ‘It’s you we want to talk to,’ Geraldine said, quickly putting her foot inside the front door to prevent Gina from closing it.

  ‘I ain’t got nothing to say to you.’

  Gina’s bony fingers tightened on the edge of the door.

  ‘Gina James, I’m arresting you on suspicion of the murders of David Lester and Luke Thomas. You do not have to say anything –’

  Geraldine continued with the prescribed words throughout Gina’s shrill protests.

  ‘Get your fucking hands off me! Get off me!’

  Once they had Gina behind bars, Geraldine went to report the details of Gina’s arrest. The problem facing them was that the CCTV in the bar hadn’t been working that night. They had only Katy and Jack’s word for it that anyone else had been in the toilet corridor when Luke was shot, and Jack was alone in claiming to recognise Gina. They didn’t have to look far to find a motive for him to identify a fresh suspect. All the same, it seemed unlikely he had picked her out at random, given that she lived with Lenny who was involved in David’s death.

  A check of Gina’s Oyster card showed no travel recorded on the night in question. She could have bought an individual train or bus ticket, or even taken a cab to cover her tracks, so the card didn’t offer conclusive proof that she hadn’t been in Central London that evening. The VIIDO team set to work looking through hours of CCTV from stations and nearby Oxford Street, to try and spot Gina in the area that evening. It was going to take days to complete the search, with no guarantee they would spot her on the busy streets and platforms, if she had been there at all.

  ‘A confession would be helpful,’ Adam said, as though it was in Geraldine’s power to obtain one. ‘See what you can do this time, Geraldine.’

  With an anxious glance at the duty lawyer sitting at her side, Gina flatly denied having been in London on either of the two nights mentioned. As she spoke, her eyes darted nervously from Geraldine to Sam and back again. She was trembling, and her voice shook.

  ‘I don’t hardly never go out and I do know for a fact I was home the night Lenny was let out because I was at home waiting in for him only he never come home till the morning. No way was I going out when he might’ve walked in any time. Not in a million years. You gotta be joking. And the night the other geezer copped it, you told me that was when Lenny was banged up in custody again – for no bloody reason – so what the hell would I be doing out in London when he was inside? I don’t never go out at night without him. Where would I go? I ain’t got no dosh.’

  ‘If you were there, we’ll find out,’ Geraldine said, in as menacing a tone as she could muster. ‘If you were in London, near Oxford Street, on those two evenings, it would be better for you if you came clean straight away. You’ll only make it worse for yourself if you lie to us.’

  ‘Oh shut it, for fuck’s sake. I told you I weren’t there,’ Gina snapped. Her words were feisty, but her shaking voice betrayed her terror.

  ‘Just think about what you’re saying –’

  ‘My client has made her response to your allegations perfectly clear,’ the brief cut in.

  It was perfectly understandable for Gina to feel apprehensive. She had been arrested on a murder charge. But Geraldine wondered if there was another reason why she was so frightened.

  69

  ‘YOU’VE BEEN OUT and about a lot,’ Neil commented when Geraldine returned to her desk to write up her log. ‘You’ve hardly been here lately. I gather you’re getting somewhere?’

  She brought him up to speed. He must have known she was using the opportunity to review the case for herself, but he listened attentively all the same.

  ‘So you’ve got a new suspect. That’s good.’

  ‘Yes, but we need to get something more definite than an identification by another suspect. He’s obviously trying to get himself off the hook. And we’ve got no evidence to place her at the scene. CCTV cameras at the bar weren’t working that evening –’

  ‘Typical!’

  ‘And the only other possible eye witness didn’t get a look at the suspect’s face. No one else working at the bar remembers seeing the suspect there that night, or any night come to that, and there’s no sign of her so far on CCTV at or near local stations or bus stops. None of that means she wasn’t there, but we’ve not got enough to place her there.’

  ‘No telltale prints on the gun?’

  ‘Nothing. That gun’s been wiped clean so many times it’s not true. Any prints that were there have been smeared and smudged into each other to make them all totally indistinguishable. It looks like it was handled with gloves, as were the bullets we found. It seems like a few people handled it without any direct contact. It’s still being examined but if forensics haven’t found anything yet, it’s unlikely they will. It’s not that easy.’

  Leaving the team studying video footage, Geraldine went home. It had been a long day, full of dramatic developments which had led nowhere. She opened a bottle of her favourite red wine, Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, poured herself a glass, and sipped it as she made herself a huge bowl of pasta, sprinkled
with cheese. It was a simple meal, and quick to make. Ignoring a missed call from earlier on from Louise, she settled down and tried to relax. Sometimes inspiration could strike when she put an investigation out of her mind, but that wasn’t easy to do. Finishing her pasta, she stacked the dishes in her small dishwasher, and returned to her sofa with the bottle of wine. She poured herself a second glass and leaned back, breathing deeply, doing her best to unwind.

  In desperation, she reached for her phone and called Celia. If her sister’s comforting chatter didn’t succeed in distracting her completely, at least it would prevent her from opening her iPad and working. There was nothing really for her to do but be patient and wait for the visual images identifications and detection officers to do their work.

  ‘Geraldine! It’s so nice to hear from you. Tell you what, can I call you back? I’ve only just this minute got back from the hospital.’

  Geraldine glanced at her watch. ‘Hospital? It’s a bit late, isn’t it?’

  ‘Oh, it wasn’t a check-up. I had a bit of an accident, but it’s fine.’

  ‘Oh my God, what happened? Are you all right?’

  ‘Yes, of course. But they wanted to make sure.’

  ‘What happened?’

  ‘Well, I was out shopping this afternoon and some idiot wasn’t looking where he was going and he barged straight into me and I went flying. I had shopping bags in both hands – getting bits and pieces for the baby, you know. Anyway, I felt fine but Sebastian insisted on driving me straight to the hospital just to check and once you’re there they keep you hanging around for hours, doing all sorts of tests, you know how it is. Anyway, everything was all fine but we’ve only just got in so I’ll call you back, OK?’

  ‘As long as you’re all right.’

  ‘I’m fine.’

  ‘Well, let’s speak later. And for goodness sake be careful.’

  ‘I know my balance isn’t the best, but this wasn’t my fault, really. The idiot barged straight into me.’

  Geraldine hung up and took another sip of wine. And another. She closed her eyes and pictured her sister being sent flying by some moron who wasn’t looking where he was going. He had probably been in a hurry. The incident jogged something in her memory but she couldn’t remember exactly what it was. She had drunk too much to drive to the station but the thought niggled her so much that she opened her iPad, reluctantly, and began scanning through Gina’s statements. She found nothing there so she went right back to the beginning and read through everything Lenny had said, and then Jack. Again she found nothing that helped. On the point of giving up, she tried a search. It was the word ‘barged’ that had alerted her so she typed that in. At once the system called up a statement made by Katy. ‘She barged right into me so I knew she was there.’

  The contact between Katy and the woman in the corridor might provide the proof they needed. This couldn’t wait until the morning. It was nearly ten o’clock. She grabbed her phone and called Sam.

  ‘Sam? Are you sober?’

  ‘Yes. Are you?’

  ‘Are you sober enough to drive?’

  ‘Yes. What’s up?’

  ‘Pick me up on the way. We’ve got work to do.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘We need to get forensics on to something. But first we need to collect the evidence. Just pick me up will you? I’ll explain when you get here. I’d drive myself only I’m probably over the limit and in any case I want you to come along in case I miss anything.’

  ‘I’m on my way.’

  A few moments later, Geraldine’s phone rang.

  ‘I can’t talk now. I’ve got work to do.’

  ‘What are you talking about?’ Celia replied. ‘It’s ten o’clock.’

  ‘I’ll call you tomorrow.’

  ‘Are you pissed?’

  Geraldine hung up and ran to the kitchen. She was gulping hot coffee when her doorbell rang.

  ‘What’s so urgent it can’t wait until tomorrow?’ Sam asked.

  ‘She could go to the dry cleaner’s! Come on!’

  ‘Geraldine, what are you talking about? How much have you had to drink?’

  ‘Enough to make me pissed, not so much that I can’t still think clearly.’

  ‘If you say so. Where are we going?’

  70

  KATY LOOKED TROUBLED at the sight of Geraldine and Sam standing on her doorstep at eleven o’clock at night. She opened the door with a tentative smile which faded at once.

  ‘How come you’re here so late?’

  ‘May we come in?’

  Katy looked nervously from Geraldine to Sam and back again. Detecting a strong scent of cannabis coming from the flat, Geraldine quickly assured her that they were there in pursuance of the murder enquiry.

  ‘I figured. I mean, you investigate murders, don’t you? To be honest, all right, I was just having a little smoke, but it’s only a tiny bit, just for myself. Personal consumption’s legal now, isn’t it, so you can’t bust me for the occasional spliff, can you? I mean, it’s not a crime, is it?’

  ‘Cannabis isn’t legal, but if this is a first offence we’ll just issue you with a warning,’ Sam began.

  Geraldine interrupted her colleague. ‘But only if we catch you in possession of it.’ She frowned at Sam who took the hint and stepped back, staring at her feet.

  Katy’s frown relaxed. ‘I suppose you’d better come in then. I mean, I can’t stop you, can I?’ Geraldine didn’t contradict her. ‘Just give me a minute, will you?’

  She closed the door and they waited impatiently for her to clear away her paraphernalia.

  ‘Is this about Jack? Is he out yet?’ Katy asked when they were all seated in her tiny living room.

  A stick of incense on the table filled the room with its acrid scent.

  ‘Would you mind extinguishing that?’ Sam asked brusquely.

  Katy shrugged. ‘If you like.’

  ‘We’re still working on Jack’s release,’ Geraldine replied, quite truthfully, as she sat down. Her head was beginning to ache, but she pressed on. ‘You’re going to have to think very carefully, Katy, because we need to know what you were wearing on the night of the shooting where you work.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Your clothes. What were you wearing that evening?’

  ‘I’m not sure.’

  Geraldine sighed. ‘I’ll try to explain. It’s not very complicated.’ She frowned, trying to gather her thoughts. ‘You told us a woman barged into you outside the toilets just after you heard a gunshot. That was your word, wasn’t it? You said she barged into you.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘So she must have touched you.’

  ‘Well, her coat did, yes.’

  ‘If we can find any fibres from her coat on your clothes, from when she brushed past you, then we may be able to establish her identity. We need to test the clothes you were wearing at the time. It’s important they haven’t been washed since the contact occurred. That’s why we’re here so late. We came as soon as we spotted this possibility. The longer we left it, the greater the chance was that you might wash your clothes. Please say you haven’t washed them.’

  Katy giggled.

  ‘It’s nearly two weeks,’ Sam hissed.

  Geraldine nodded. She knew it was a ridiculous question, but she had to know. ‘Did you wash the clothes you were wearing that evening?’

  ‘I must’ve washed my shirt and jeans, but possibly not my jacket. I’ve got two, and one is dry clean only which is a pain but my mother bought it for me for Christmas –’

  ‘Were you wearing the jacket your mother gave you indoors on that evening?’

  ‘I can’t remember. I don’t even know for sure that I was wearing it at all that night. I might have been. I probably was. That one or the other jacket I use for work. But the other one might have been washed since then.’

  ‘We need to borrow both of them.’

  ‘Both of them? Oh all right.’ She frowned. ‘But how can you trace someon
e from a few fibres?’

  ‘Leave that to us.’

  There was no need to explain to Katy that they already had a suspect in mind, and would be able to get hold of her coat to see if they had a match. It just depended on the forensic team being able to find the matching fibres on Katy’s clothes. They took both of Katy’s work jackets away in a plastic bag. She had washed her jeans since the evening of the shooting but they took those as well. Ignoring her protests that she needed them for work, they took all of her shirts, as she didn’t know which one she had been wearing on that particular evening.

  ‘What am I supposed to wear for work now?’

  Geraldine handed her a twenty quid note. ‘Buy some clothes.’

  It was past midnight by the time they reached Lenny’s flat and knocked loudly on the door. He took a while to respond.

  ‘What the fuck is this now?’ he called through the letter box, without opening the door.

  ‘Open up, Lenny. We don’t want to have to break it down.’

  Grumbling ferociously, he let them in. Dressed only in grey boxers and a grubby white vest he looked as though he had been in bed when they arrived.

  Sam went straight to the bedroom to search the wardrobe while Geraldine checked the rest of the flat.

  ‘What the hell do you want now? You got a search warrant?’ When Geraldine didn’t answer, he asked her what they expected to find there. ‘If you tell me what you’re after, it could save us all a lot of time. Fucking hell, I want to get to bed tonight.’

  Geraldine explained that they needed to examine any jacket or coat Gina owned. All they found in the flat was a grey cotton jacket. When she had been arrested, she had been wearing a duffel coat that was at the police station.

  ‘Did she have any other coats at all?’

  ‘I dunno what she had. I been away for a long time, or had you forgot?’

  Back at the police station, Geraldine had all Katy’s clothes bagged up and labelled, along with Gina’s coat and jacket. Then she had the whole lot despatched to the forensic lab with specific instructions about what they were to look for. When she had finished, Sam offered to drop her home but she wanted to wait for the results.