by L M Krier
He wanted to take the time to Skype his mother, without being prompted by Trev for once. Knowing that he hadn’t even discussed her VPS with her made him feel guilty. Despite Trev’s assurances, he still lived with the guilt of having let his father down badly. He wanted somehow to make a better job of things with his mother.
She was, as ever, delighted to hear from him. She was certainly looking better for her time away, now she was back in what to her was and always had been her home country.
‘I’m so pleased you called, bach, I’ve been so worried. I’ve had a letter about appearing in court and saying if I don’t, I could go to prison.’
‘It’s fine, mam, it’s just a standard letter. You do have to attend, but it would never come to that. Just let us know when the court date is and one of us will come and pick you up.’
‘Don’t worry, bach, Aldwyth is going to drive me up. She’s never been to Stockport. We can stay at my house, before I sell it. Did you manage to talk to an agent? I know you’re busy.’
Ted made a mental note to go and check there was no sign of Green’s presence there, although he knew there shouldn’t be.
‘I spoke to one, but that’s all I’ve done so far. Are you sure about this? You definitely want to sell up and stay in Wales? You do know that Trev and I will miss you, don’t you? And the cats will.’
‘Aldwyth has said you can come and visit me here any time you want to. There’s plenty of room. And I can always get on a train from Ammanford to Stockport. It doesn’t take that long. I’m not going to be in Timbuktu.’
Ted smiled to himself as he ended the call. He remembered her using that phrase. It made him think of the happy times before she had left him and his father, when he was a small boy. When they had been a family. He promised to call her again soon, to go through everything she needed to know. He’d talk to her then about the statement, and he’d do everything in his power to make sure he was at court on the day of the trial to support her.
He started clearing and setting the table as soon as he heard Trev’s motorbike turn in to the driveway, and the noise of the garage doors opening. Trev always made an entrance. This evening he erupted into the room, smiling broadly, and engulfed Ted in a bone-crushing hug.
‘Hey, you, I hope you’ve been having as much fun as I have. Honestly, I wish I’d thought of doing this ages ago. It’s really rewarding. The reporter came and took loads of photos. It’s going to be up online tomorrow and in the paper next week. I’ll get a copy for Annie.
‘Supper smells good. You remembered a takeaway, then? I’m starving. Tell me how your day was. Did you catch the bad guys?’
Trev sat down as Ted started to dish up the meal, absent-mindedly lifting cats off the table and putting them on the floor. It was a never-ending task, with six of them, each as eager as the next to get a sniff of what the humans were having for supper and to see if it was more appetising than their own food.
‘Not all of them,’ Ted told him as he put their meal in front of them. ‘The ringleader is still at large, but I did get a good lead on him today.’
‘Well, make sure you have him safely behind bars before Saturday, so you can’t use him as an excuse for avoiding your public engagement.’
‘Public humiliation, more likely. I’ll probably have to go in during the day on Saturday, to be sure of getting away in the evening.’
He saw the expression on Trev’s face and went on hurriedly, ‘But I have said I’ll do it and I will do, if it’s remotely possible.’
‘It better be, because I swear, if I have to, I’ll get Jim to suspend you. And if you do this for me, I will be very, very appreciative.’
He shot Ted a suggestive smile. Ted changed the subject rapidly, knowing that otherwise, supper would get forgotten about.
‘I spoke to my mother. She said Aldwyth is going to drive her up for the court case, so they’ll stay at her house.’
‘Has your squatter gone? What sort of state did they leave it in? Do you need me to go up there and get things ready for her?’
‘It’ll be as spick and span as a barracks, but if you could just check it over for me at some point, give it some homely touches, that would be great. I’m not sure when I’ll have the time. I put the keys back on the hall table.’
‘I spoke to Shewee today.’
Trev still used his younger sister’s nickname when talking about her, but no longer when speaking to her, since she’d said that her boyfriend Henry didn’t approve.
‘She’s worried, poor lamb. She thinks Henry doesn’t fancy her because he’s not even tried to kiss her yet. He says it’s because he has too much respect for her and doesn’t want to rush things. She still doesn’t get it, that he’s unlikely to do anything, no matter how much he tries to get her to look like a boy. Bizzie, on the other hand, had a wonderful time with Douglas Campbell, with much snogging and even some tongues.’
Ted looked at him in amazement.
‘She told you that?’
‘Of course she did. Women tell me their innermost secrets. I’m a gay man, in case you’ve forgotten. The perfect confidant. The only person who doesn’t open up to me is you. How is this case, really? You look tired.’
‘I’m fine, please don’t fuss. I’ll just be glad when it’s all over and I’m back with Jim and the Ice Queen as my bosses. When it is finally wrapped up, we should try to go away somewhere, just for a few days. A bit of a break.’
‘We should go to Wales to see Annie, in her new home.’
‘We’ll see her when she comes up for the trial. I meant a bit of time to ourselves.’
‘We can do both. We could go to Wales, spend some time with your mother then do some walking somewhere. I’ve never been to the Brecon Beacons. You could show me where you’ve done your training marches, see how I would fare on one of those. Maybe even do some riding, now you’re getting the hang of it.
‘We could find a nice little B&B where they’re not too chapel to allow two men to share a bedroom. Or we could have separate rooms and take turns to sneak along the landing. That would be fun.’
Ted smiled at him. His enthusiasm for everything was infectious. It was moments like these that balanced out the difficult side of his job, brought some domestic normality into his life.
‘And is this one going to be a dangerous one to wrap up?’
‘For me? No. You know I’m just a glorified pen-pusher these days. We may need armed response, but I’ll be snug in a command vehicle. That’s the closest I’ll get to the action.’
Trev reached across the table and took hold of Ted’s left hand, turning it over, palm uppermost, to show the livid scar which ran up his wrist, from a knife injury.
‘I know you, you like to wade in when you can. Just promise me you won’t take any risks this time. You know how much I worry about you.’
‘You should see the risk assessments I have to do before I can do anything. I know you worry. That’s why I gave up Firearms for you.’
‘But you must have done something a bit risky to get that bravery award. Just promise me you won’t do anything else like that. Will you be able to get to the dojo tomorrow?’
‘I’m certainly going to try. I need a good workout, if I’m going to be wrestling a bunch of murderous, armed gangsters single-handed.’
Seeing Trev’s expression, he laughed and raised both hands in a gesture of appeasement.
‘Just kidding. Honestly.’
Ted did make it to the dojo, both for the self-defence club and the adults’ judo session. Things were relatively quiet on the work front, apart from the mundane, methodical side of any big enquiry. Even with his new identity, Kateb was still lying low. There was no sign of him anywhere, no plane tickets booked in his new name. All his known haunts were being kept under close watch, so far without result. He’d simply faded into the background and been swallowed up somewhere in the city, or even further afield.
None of the other gang members would say anything about him or his likely
whereabouts. It was obvious that they had all heard what had happened to Bacha, who was still in hospital, and wanted, at all costs, to avoid a similar fate.
Ted and his team had been given the task of interviewing the gang member known to be Kateb’s deputy, a man called Hamid. Ted let Rob and Sal have a go at him first, as they were on a run of success, but they got nowhere, so Ted tried himself. With his infinite patience, he could often make some degree of progress. Not with Hamid.
Like many of the gang members, he was pleasant, well-spoken, plausible, the perfect front for a conman. He also must have broken the record for the number of times a suspect could say ‘No comment’ during an interview. But that was all they got from him.
‘Going through this stuff on their phones and computers, there’s not a scam I can think of that they’ve not been at, boss,’ Océane said at the last morning briefing before the weekend. ‘It reads like an expanded copy of the Little Book.’
She was referring to the Little Book of Big Scams which the Greater Manchester Police published on their website and other places to warn members of the public of the dangers of ignoring the maxim, ‘If it seems too good to be true, it usually is.’
‘There’s everything here from identity fraud, through bogus lottery wins, investment scams, bogus speeding fines, and lots of banking and credit card scams. The other geeky types are telling me much the same. Some door-to-door stuff, too, phoney pollsters, collecting personal information.’
‘That’s why the members like Hamid are ideal. They look perfectly presentable,’ Rob put in.
‘I wonder if the Book hinders more than it helps? I know we need to warn the public, but does it also give the scammers new ideas, perhaps?’ Ted speculated. ‘If they’re into identity theft, does that mean that somewhere there is an Antoine Fournier who might be surprised if someone suddenly buys an airline ticket in his name? And I still don’t quite understand why Kateb’s not yet made his move, or seems not to have.’
‘Giving himself time to change his appearance, boss?’ Steve suggested. ‘Grow a beard, perhaps?’
‘Nice one, Steve. Océane, can we find if there is an Antoine Fournier on our patch and what the real one looks like?’
‘Will do, boss. But there’s a simple explanation of why he would choose to create a fake ID from scratch rather than travel on a stolen one. We all know, from this line of work, that bizarre coincidences happen all the time. It could create all sorts of problems if he used the ID of someone who just happened to be flying somewhere on the same day he decides to make his getaway.’
All they really knew so far about Kateb was that he wasn’t married but he did have two women on the go, one with a small child. They had both been blissfully unaware of the existence of each other until officers questioning them had casually let slip the facts. They’d hoped that by angering them, one or other might decide to start talking for vengeance. But although clearly furious at the news, both had stayed tight-lipped.
Counter Corruption officers were slowly working their way through checking everyone involved in Croesus. They’d begun by going through the files of all the senior officers who’d been present at all the briefings then interviewing them all, asking probing questions of each of them about members of their team.
Although Ted knew he had done no wrong and doubted if anyone under his command had either, he still felt uncomfortable being interviewed by them. He didn’t like the idea that someone within the force was in the pay of a gang who would take money from sometimes vulnerable people.
The mere presence of CCU was making people nervous, closely watching colleagues they would usually trust unreservedly. There was a lot of bad feeling about what had happened to the surveillance team members who had been sprayed, although both were doing better. Whoever was responsible was probably hoping that if they were discovered, it would be by CCU and not their fellow officers.
Ted decided, despite the lack of a satisfactory conclusion to the case, to finish up the week with a drink for the full team together after work. He wanted to get the first round in, as he usually did, but the team wouldn’t hear of it. They were determined to get him a drink to toast his commendation. It was good to spend a bit of down time with them. Ted always appreciated it, although the sessions sometimes stirred uncomfortable memories for him.
‘Neil’s got his interview with CCU tomorrow, boss. He’s worried sick.’
Jo was sitting next to Ted, talking quietly so none of the others could hear. They were busy chatting amongst themselves, letting their hair down, gearing up for the weekend.
‘If he’s done nothing wrong, he should have nothing to worry about.’
Jo took a long swallow of his lager.
‘You know how it can be though, within the force. Like I said, Neil’s a Quaker. That means he stays away from the funny hand-shake brigade, as well as the gambling and the drink. And I think we both know they have a way of protecting their own.’
‘Not everyone in the force is a Mason. It’s no secret that I’m not and never would be. But the leak came from somewhere, Jo, and two officers were injured as a result, not to mention our prime suspect getting away. Twice. Stones need to be overturned until we find out who the mole is. Then, whoever they are, they’ll be hung out to dry. Very publicly, with any luck.’
Chapter Twenty-five
‘Oh, you both look so handsome. You do make a lovely couple,’ Ted’s mother was beaming with pride as she spoke via Skype, looking at her son and his partner, dressed up to the nines for their black tie occasion.
‘You should smell his aftershave, Annie, it’s nearly knocking me out. I’m sure he’s only put that much on so he can have a coughing fit to stop him from singing.’
‘I wish I could hear you sing, Teddy. I taught you to sing in Welsh when you were little. I don’t suppose you remember any of it now. You always had a lovely voice.’
She began to sing herself, softly, a gentle Welsh lullaby, her voice full of nostalgia. She too had a good voice.
‘Huna blentyn ar fy mynwes
Clyd a chynnes ydyw hon.’
To his own amazement, Ted joined in, hesitantly at first, the words long forgotten.
‘Breichiau mam sy’n dynn amdanat,
Cariad mam sy dan fy mron.’
His mother’s eyes were suddenly bright with tears. Trev’s were the same.
‘Stop it, you two. That is so beautiful, you’re making me fill up here. I am so going to film the two of you singing together one of these days. But right now, I’m going to drag him away with me and make him sing some country. Bye, Annie, love you.’
Try as he might, Ted still couldn’t tell his mother that he loved her as easily as Trev did. He did love her; it was just that there were too many years of feeling abandoned by her which still formed a gulf between them, from his point of view.
‘Bye, mam, see you again soon.’
‘Have you got your lozenges?’ Trev checked as they went out to the car. ‘I don’t want you crying off with a sore throat at the last minute. I know you’ll be looking for any excuse.’
Ted patted the pocket where his Fisherman’s Friends were. His go-to comforter for the bloodiest of his murder cases. As far as he was concerned, the coming ordeal was likely to be worse than any of them. He’d never before wished for another murder to occur on his patch. He did now.
Trev had been right about not wanting to tell Ted their destination in advance. He simply directed him where to drive. When Ted saw the imposing Jacobean style building, one of Cheshire’s most sought-after wedding venues, he nearly turned the Renault round and made a break for it. He would probably never feel he belonged in such a place. He certainly didn’t feel he should be singing in public there. But more than anything, he wanted to make his partner happy.
Willow and Rupert were waiting to greet their guests. Trev hugged and kissed both of them. Ted, always more reserved, gave Willow a peck on the cheek, for which she had to bend down slightly, and shook Rupert’s hand.
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‘I’m so pleased you could both come,’ Willow told them warmly. ‘And Ted, I really am looking forward to singing with you later on . Trev tells me you’re very good, so I do hope I won’t let you down with my efforts.’
Ted didn’t think he could feel any more sick, but he did. The buffet was amazing, possibly the best he had ever seen, but his stomach was too full of butterflies to contemplate putting much else in it. It had been a long time since he had felt as desperate for a drink, too.
Trev was clearly in his element, eating like a horse, drinking plenty of good wine, posing tirelessly for photos with Willow and Rupert and the others for the many society and celebrity magazines which had photographers there. He even managed to drag his partner into a couple of shots, though Ted refused to give his name for any of the captions.
When the time came, Trev had to practically drag Ted on to the small, raised stage at one end of the dance floor. Ted felt even more ill with nerves, if that were possible. Trev’s suggestion of imagining the audience naked didn’t help one bit. It made it worse, somehow, as if he had no business being up there, staring down at them, blinking in the glare of spotlights pointed his way.
Trev was on fire. He grabbed a microphone to introduce Ted and Willow for their first duet of the night. Ted fervently hoped it would be their only one. He couldn’t imagine what had persuaded him to agree. Except that he was not entirely joking when he said he loved Trev beyond reason. He would do anything legal for his partner.
‘So please put your hands together for our very own Kenny and Dolly – Ted and Willow.’
He finished with a flourish, backing away, whistling enthusiastically through his fingers. He looked like a big kid, so excited and bursting with pride in his partner.
The main lights dimmed, leaving just a couple of spots pointed at Ted, towards the front of the stage, and Willow, standing further back. They’d decided between them to work it like the real thing, with Willow walking forwards to join Ted after the first verse, which he would sing alone.
