‘Not bad, Cass. Just gotta keep going.’
‘Yeah I hear you. Could you do me a favour? We’ve been clearing out the lab in the yard and have had to ditch quite a bit of stock that’s gone out of date. Would you mind contacting the skip hire people and arranging for it to be picked up please?’
‘No problem love, I’ll move it out when they arrive. It’ll probably be tomorrow though, is that OK?’
‘Yeah that’s fine. Up to anything tonight?’ Cass leant on the nearby door frame as he said.
‘No, not really. I’ll probably catch-up on the soaps. Nothing interesting.’
‘Oh, I dunno, bit of time at home with the Mrs, can’t be all that bad?’
‘No Mrs at home for me, she left years ago. Am on my own now, and to be fair I prefer it that way. Just me and the cat. It’s a lot quieter.’ He winked at her as he tugged the cart and made his way down the corridor.
Dave sighed as he pulled the cart out of view. He was tired. He’d had enough of cleaning up other people’s messes, and the early mornings were starting to take their toll. What he should do now though was his main dilemma. He knew changes were coming. There wasn’t a whole lot of choice though, for someone his age whose only experience was serving his country and cleaning.
Still, onwards and upwards. Tomorrow’s a whole new day, or so me old mam used to say anyway.
His thoughts didn’t dispel the impending sense of unease he felt though.
Chapter Eight
Ryhope Police Station – 22 September
Alex poured himself a steaming cup of coffee in the small but functional kitchen in front of the MIT office and headed for his desk. He was late getting in this morning, his longer-than-usual gym session a glaring testament to the pizza he’d lazily opted for last night. He’d eaten the whole thing while sorting through some of the information from the case and making sure HOLMES was updated. He had also checked in on a few of the other cases he was handling, making sure nothing fell by the wayside.
He had a feeling of dread settling in his stomach today. Frowning, he revisited the brief conversation he’d had with Cass last night. She had been in her office, looking forlorn as he popped his head in, and he couldn’t help but ask what was wrong. She had sighed deeply and then progressed to tell him about the proposed job cuts in the department. Shaking his head, he took a gulp of his coffee, acknowledging he had known something was up when HR had scheduled a meeting with the whole team today. It was practically unheard of to pull every available resource in. They had cancelled the rest days, so everyone was in together.
The rumour mill had been working overtime, and his staff believed it to be everything from a pat on the back to life-altering changes. His coffee suddenly turned bitter in his mouth and he put the cup to one side.
Today was not going to be a good day.
Making the decision to at least try to start on a positive note, he picked up the phone and dialled in a number from memory.
‘Hey, Ali, it’s me.’
‘You OK, bro? Kinda early for a phone call.’
‘Yeah am good, just checking in. How’s Mum?’
‘She’s good, fussing over Mary like any proud grandma. You know she’s due to drop any day now?’
‘Yeah I know. I’ve already sent her a care package. A Kama Sutra book, a curry recipe, and some condoms.’ He grinned into the phone as Ali snorted with laughter.
‘She’s gonna kick your arse.’
‘Aye, I know. I’ve sent her the bank details too, for bump’s college fund. That bairn’s gonna be richer than any of us by the time she hits eighteen, same as her brothers. Especially with all of us putting in.’
‘It was a good idea, Alex, I know Mary appreciates it. She’s not been finding things easy with Hamish under her feet all day.’
‘When’s he back at hospital? I haven’t spoken to him in a few weeks.’
‘Next week, bro, it doesn’t look good though. They reckon long-term physio, possibly surgery. I guess there’s a reason Mum never let us have a motorbike.’
‘Yeah, you’re not wrong, bro. I’ll give Mary and Mum a ring later tonight.’
Alex listened for the click, then placed the receiver back into its cradle, mentally making a note to get rid of the Triumph 500 he’d had in storage for the past couple of years. Ali didn’t know about the impulse buy he had made when he turned thirty-five. OK, he’d never actually ridden it, he’d bought it intending to do it up and then get his licence. Luckily enough he’d never found the time to give it the TLC it needed to become a spectacular machine again.
One of the DCs entered and he pulled his head back into work-mode, loaded up his email, opened the Vehicle Examiner’s Report from Cass, hit the print key, and then did the same with the copy of the report from the post-mortem.
Alex had never felt quite so bewildered or angry. The meeting with HR had not gone well. The force, in its infinite wisdom, had deemed it necessary to cut the Major Incident Team by half. This was across the whole force but still, losing twenty-three members of staff was ridiculous.
He had tried to explain that having half the staff, who would still be working shifts, would mean that the force would be under manned at the best of times. All it needed was for two or more major incidents to occur at the same time in different areas and they would all be up shit creek without a paddle.
But HR had refused to acknowledge his concerns, His boss, the Superintendent, sitting there meekly as he tended to do. The Super was one for letting the ball roll and stop where it may. He was OK in the respect he kept out of the major decisions, but as a boss he was the worst. He was almost at the end of his thirty years. Hell, he’d probably already submitted his request for early retirement. Alex wondered how many of his team he would lose to the proposed Voluntary Redundancies. The words shuddered in his brain; it was hardly voluntary when they were telling staff that they would lose their jobs after three months’ consultation, followed by six months on the redeployment register if some of them didn’t consider VR.
Sometimes this police force did things completely back to front but Alex knew enough to realise they would do as they pleased. The government had said cut costs in the police force, given a time limit of three years in which to do it, then sat back on their heels smiling in that ‘we’re doing this for the good of the country’ way as every police force went into a complete state of panic and began implementing immediate strategies to make the cost reductions happen.
Alex had only been out of the meeting a few hours and he was aware that some of the older members of staff had already looked at the figures, and submitted their requests. He had tried to reassure the staff that they would stand together and fight, but he knew for many this was the last straw that would break the proverbial camel’s back.
He sighed deeply, this was one of the few times he wished he had stayed a lowly DC and let someone else have all the responsibility. His staff were already stressed with the amount of cases they were handling, he already had three off on long-term sick. In one hour, HR had managed to increase the stress by a level he didn’t quite know how to address since they were all in the same boat.
He held back the grimace as the annoying jingle of his mobile ringing interrupted his train of thought. Looking down, he felt his heart lurch a touch as it flashed ‘Mum’ calling. His mum never rang his mobile.
‘Ma? What’s the matter?’
‘Alex, it’s Mary. She went into labour a couple of hours ago. The hospital told her to wait until the contractions are five minutes apart, but she’s in agony. She wasn’t like this the last two times, I don’t know what to do, son.’
Alex heard the desperation in his mother’s voice, rapidly followed by an agonised scream in the background.
‘Ma, phone an ambulance now. Tell them she’s having problems, hell, tell them she’s bleeding, anything. She needs a doctor, now.’
He could almost see his mother’s face, pale with the worry he knew she’d be feeling. It was always
the same when any of them were hurting, that feeling of complete panic knowing she had to let her child get on with the pain themselves while not being able to do anything to help.
‘Where’s Ali?’
‘I don’t know, son, I phoned you first.’
‘I’ll call him – call the ambulance, Ma.’
Before she’d clicked off the call, he was dialling in Ali’s number for the second time that day.
‘Hey, bro, two calls in one day, I’m privileged.’
‘Ali, it’s Mary. You need to get home now, Mum just called. Can you blues it?’
‘That bad? OK, I’m en route. Call you when I know more.’
Alex tried to swallow the lump that had appeared in his throat. Right now, he wanted nothing more than to go home and see his baby sister, feel his mum wrap her arms around him and kiss his cheek as she had when he was a kid, telling him everything would be fine.
But he had staff to deal with, meetings to attend, and several active murder cases to solve. He knew Ali would keep him updated, would let him know if he needed to get home urgently. It didn’t make it any easier to be miles away though. Feeling a sudden need to talk, he made his way down the stairs to Cass’s office.
Worry lines marred the faintly tanned skin around Alex’s eyes, and he realised he had been biting his lip while he worked. It had been a long day and he was tired, but he knew he wouldn’t get a great deal of sleep tonight. He was almost tempted to ring the Super and tell him he had a family emergency. Susan’s case wouldn’t fall to the wayside; he had plenty of people he could delegate to. But his sense of responsibility forced him to reconsider. Mary was in the hospital, the best possible place for her. His family were there and would take care of her. And he knew Ali would let him know the second he knew anything. Besides he had a set of three rest days starting in a couple of days, and he had already made the decision to visit before the phone call from his mum.
Tonight though, he would return home to his empty flat, and spend the night worrying about Mary, worrying about the job cuts and just generally keeping himself awake. He was too frustrated for the gym; for once he wanted company.
He could go to the local, he knew the DS and several of the DCs drank there, but he put this idea to bed. He knew they became uncomfortable when the DCI attended social events; he had often pondered over the change in people when he was with them. They became quieter, withdrawn even, and he understood it was to do with his rank, but it still niggled at him. It wasn’t like he rubbed it in people’s faces. He had worked damn hard to get to where he was, and he knew it. It did feel a little unfair however, when other people didn’t realise it.
On the cases he had worked, and the social events they’d been at together, he had never felt that way about Cass. She’d left the office before he had got there that afternoon. Deena had told him she had a dentist appointment so had taken a flyer. He knew he was probably being selfish; Cass probably had plans already; but he really didn’t want to be on his own. He tidied his desk, grabbed his keys, and headed to the car park.
He felt a sense of unease as he pulled onto the driveway that led to her cottage. What on earth was he thinking? He didn’t just turn up at people’s homes unannounced. Hell, he rarely went to people’s homes unless it was work related. What if she didn’t want him there? Would she tell him or be all polite and let him stay regardless, all on edge? Alex knew he was being irrational; he had no way of knowing how Cass would react. But still.
He shouldn’t have come here.
Cass couldn’t consider him a friend; she barely knew him. He pulled onto the gravel at the front of the cottage, spun the car around with the intention of leaving, and braked suddenly as Cass came into view through the trees, Ollie lolloping beside her, his pink tongue hanging out as he panted.
‘Crap. You are such an idiot, McKay,’ he muttered to himself.
He watched as Cass approached the vehicle and smiled at him.
He felt his spirits lift slightly, maybe she wouldn’t mind after all.
‘Hey, Alex, what’re you doing here? Everything OK?’
‘Yeah, sorry for just turning up like this. I uh…’ he paused, not knowing quite how to say what he felt.
Finally, he opted for the truth. ‘I needed some company tonight, tough day, and I didn’t think you’d mind. But if you’ve got plans it’s no problem. I’ll just leave you to it.’
‘Plans? No, I don’t have plans, just walking Ollie as usual. Are you coming in for a cuppa or are you gonna sit in the car all night?’
Alex followed her inside, and strangely, felt calmer immediately. Her home was serene, it had an ambience of peace inside, and he knew it was this feeling that eased some of his tension. He remembered her reaction when he had startled her the morning he’d stayed over, and wondered if she’d created the peaceful space consciously, an escape from whatever demons were following her. That morning already felt like a lifetime ago.
The kitchen smelt heavenly as he entered, and his stomach growled in response. She grinned at him as she heard the deep rumble. ‘Hungry? I’ve made chicken and chorizo casserole. There’s plenty if you’d like to stay?’
Alex just nodded. ‘That would be great, smells amazing.’
After supper she led him into the lounge and they sat, and she finally asked what had made his day so bad.
‘My baby sister, Mary, is pregnant. She’s been rushed into the hospital today. Ma sounded absolutely distraught. She hadn’t phoned Ali. It’s been a tough couple of years.’
‘Are Ali and Mary your only sisters?’
Alex coughed as the smooth coffee hit his throat. He chuckled as he put the cup on the coffee table.
‘Ali is short for Alistair.’
Cass smiled widely as he continued.
‘I’m the oldest, then there’s Ali. Mark and Annie are twins, then there’s Joseph, then James and Max, and finally our little Mary. She was a surprise.’
‘Seven siblings? I can’t imagine what that would be like, especially with twins too. There was only me and Mum when I was younger. Bet your house was like a zoo at times.’
‘Yeah.’ He smiled fondly. ‘I miss them. Especially at times like this.’
‘What made you come to Sunderland?’ asked Cass, looking at him intently. He let himself glance at her for a moment; she was sitting opposite him on the sofa, her legs curled up underneath her, her coffee cup grasped in both hands as she maintained his eye contact without hesitation. She looked comfortable, at home, and relaxed with him being there.
Taking her cue, he pulled his own leg onto the overstuffed seat, picked his coffee up, and told her a little about Helen.
Chapter Nine
Ryhope Police Station – 23 September
Charlie Quinn entered the office purposefully. She was acutely aware of the stares she received when she entered the room. She accepted it, she turned heads. People appreciated her form. End of.
She’d never let the fact that she looked more like a supermodel than a police officer interfere with her work; she knew appearances could be deceptive.
Striding confidently, she made her way to Alex’s desk.
He had requested she dig into the life of Susan Mackintosh, uncover any skeletons hidden in her closet. And she’d found said skeletons.
She paused at his desk, nodding silently as he indicated he would be another minute on the phone call.
He replaced the receiver and turned to greet her. ‘Charlie, how’s it going?’
‘OK thanks, Alex. You told me to come straight over if I found anything pertinent. Seems Susan has been having an affair. There were messages on her phone, not from the husband. I’ve checked with the network provider, and it looks to be an unregistered pay and go phone. I’ve tried ringing it, but the mobile is turned off. The network said it hasn’t been used since the day of the murder. Could be motive.’
Alex felt his face convey the surprise he felt. Everything so far had leant towards a stable family environment. Now, despi
te an alibi, there was something that could potentially implicate Brian Mackintosh in his wife’s murder.
‘Thanks, Charlie, good job. Can you get the mobile to Jacob Tulley over in the Digital Forensics Department at HQ? I’ve already briefed him on the case and he’s expecting you. We’ll see if there’s anything else on the phone.’
‘No probs. Anything else you need, boss? I’ve got a few statements I need to prep for court. You’re on rest days for a few after today, aren’t you?’
‘Yeah, I am. Nothing else at the minute though. Thanks again, Charlie.’
Alex watched as she sashayed down the office. He saw the leering glances from the male officers, and the hint of jealousy from the females. Charlie was a beautiful woman. A little young for his tastes but he could appreciate her beauty. He also knew she was very happily married. The door clicked behind her and the low murmur of people talking resumed in the office.
For a moment his mind pictured Cass. There was something about her shuttered eyes that made him want to pull them open and find the person inside. He frowned to himself; Cass deserved more than him. He had no idea where these sudden feelings had come from. He hadn’t been attracted to anyone since Helen, and if he was honest, it scared him.
The phone rang suddenly, pulling him from his thoughts.
‘McKay,’ he answered, spinning the chair around to grab the file teetering on the edge of the filing cabinet behind him.
‘Alex, Nigel Evans. Have you got a sec?’
‘Yeah sure, Nigel. I take it the bloods have come back from Susan’s PM?’
‘Yes. Were you aware she was pregnant? Around six weeks along I’d say, based on the levels.’
‘Pregnant. I wonder if her husband knew? Or if it was her lover’s baby?’ He paused, waiting for Nigel to comment.
‘Well, I’d say that ball’s in your court. Nothing like having your cake and eating it. I’ll take a sample from the foetus in case you need DNA for paternity reasons.’
‘Great thanks, Nigel. Anything else I need to know?’
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