Pray for the Dying

by Quintin Jardine

  Lottie Mann had handled herself well. She had given nothing away, but she had made it clear that the multiple killings at the concert hall would be investigated from origins to aftermath, like any other homicide.

  The one awkward question had been put by a Sun reporter, with whom Mann had history, after arresting him for infiltrating a crime scene.

  ‘Aren’t you rather junior to be running an investigation as important as this one?’

  She had nailed him with a cold stare. ‘That’s for others to decide. I was senior officer on duty tonight and took command at the scene, as I would have in any circumstances.’

  ‘By the way, you did fine in there, Lottie,’ Skinner told her, in the Lord Provost’s small room. ‘You did fine at the scene as well; took command, took no shit from anybody, and that’s how it’s supposed to be.’

  ‘To tell you the truth, sir,’ she confessed, as subdued as he had seen her in their brief acquaintance, ‘I was in a bit of a panic when I heard that ACC Allan had been taken away. I hope he’s all right.’

  ‘He is,’ Payne reassured her, ‘reasonably so. I called the Royal on my way down here. They gave him an ECG in the ambulance, and there’s no sign of a heart attack. They’re going to keep him in, though; apparently his blood pressure’s through the roof and he’s in shock.’

  ‘How about the wounded man?’ the chief asked. ‘What’s his name, by the way?’

  ‘PC Auger. Still in surgery, but the word is that he’ll survive. He was shot in the chest, but the bullet missed his heart and major arteries. It did nick a lung, though, and lodge in his spine.’

  ‘And his colleague?’

  ‘Sergeant Sproule. His body’s been taken to the mortuary.’

  ‘Who’s seeing next of kin?’

  ‘Chief Superintendent Mayfield,’ Payne told him. ‘She’s divisional commander.’

  ‘Okay. And Toni’s next of kin? Was she married? I don’t know,’ Skinner confessed. ‘She and I never got round to discussing our private lives.’

  ‘I don’t know either, sir. Sorry.’

  ‘No reason why you should, but raise the head of Human Resources, wherever he is, and find out. Whoever her nearest and dearest is needs to be told, and fast.’

  ‘Yes, they do,’ Lottie Mann said, ‘because the whole bloody world will soon know she was there if it doesn’t already. Chief Constable Field was a big Twitter fan. She posted every professional thing she did on it. No way she won’t have tweeted that she was chumming the First Minister to a charity gig.’ She scowled. ‘I’d ban that fucking thing if I could.’

  Skinner whistled. ‘Thank God you didn’t say that to the press.’ He smiled. ‘Max Allan would never let either of us forget it. Lowell,’ he continued, ‘do you know where the other ACCs are?’

  ‘Yes,’ he replied. ‘I thought you’d need to know that. Bridie Gorman’s on holiday, in Argyll, I’m told, but ACC Thomas turned up at the concert hall just after you’d left. He was for taking command, but I told him that he’d better speak to Councillor Hanlon down at the City Chambers. He did, and when he’d done that, he went off in what I can best describe as the huff.’

  ‘Oh shit,’ the chief constable sighed. ‘That I did not need. I know Michael Thomas through the chiefs’ association. He was very much in the Toni Field camp on unification of the forces. In fact, at our last meeting, when things got a bit heated, I told him to shut the fuck up unless he had something original to say.’ He smiled. ‘Don’t worry, though, Lowell. I’ll make sure he doesn’t hold it against you when I’m gone in three months.’ He paused. ‘Till then, don’t worry about him. You might still be only a DCI in rank, but working directly for me as acting chief, you’ll be taking orders from nobody else. Now, have you located the CCTV footage?’

  ‘Yes, sir. There was only one camera, and I’m getting the footage. CCTV monitoring in the city is run by a joint body that’s responsible for community safety. Councillor Hanlon and ACC Gorman are on the board, and in a situation like this one, we get what we want. In fact, they were expecting a call from us. Their manager said the monitor person crapped himself when he saw what happened.’

  ‘I’m not surprised.’

  ‘What do you want me to do with it?’

  ‘I want you to keep it close to you. I want to see it on Monday, and obviously Lottie has to have access as senior investigating officer, but, Inspector, you and you alone are to view the footage.’

  She frowned. ‘What am I going to see there?’ she asked.

  ‘I don’t know for sure, but if I’m right, I’ll be in shot . . . Christ,’ he chuckled, ‘what have I just said? . . . and so will someone else, with me. If that’s so, he is absolutely off limits.’ He paused. ‘Lottie, I hope you didn’t have a big date tonight . . .’

  ‘Only with my husband and son,’ she said. ‘We were going for a Chinese.’

  ‘Well, I’m sorry about that, but I need you to go back up to the concert hall, resume command, and make sure that everything in this operation is done exactly by the book. By now they’ll have found shell casings, probably in one of the lighting booths overlooking the stage, and those two discarded police uniforms. Let’s just pray they don’t have bullet holes in them.’ He gave her a card. ‘That’s my mobile number. Keep me in touch.’

  She smiled. Until then Skinner had not been certain that she knew how. ‘Yes, boss. But . . . I’m only a lowly DI. There’s a whole raft of ambitious guys above me on the CID food chain, including my two line managers. What do I do when one of them turns up and says he’s taking over?’

  ‘One, you ask him why it’s taken him so long to get there. Two, you tell him he’d better have a bloody good answer to that question for the acting chief constable, first thing on Monday morning. Thing is, Lottie, Max Allan was the ACC responsible for criminal investigation. He won’t be around for a while, and in his absence CID will go straight to me. To be frank, even if he was, that’s how it would be. It’s the way I work. Questions?’

  Payne and Mann shook their heads.

  ‘Good. You know where to get me if you have to. Get on with what you have to do. I’m off to stick my head in the lioness’s mouth.’

  Four

  ‘You really are a fucking fascist at heart, Bob, aren’t you?’ she hissed.

  ‘If that’s how you want to see me,’ he retorted, ‘then honestly, I don’t give a damn. I got you out of there because there was a belief that you, not Toni Field, was the target of those people. And you know what? If they had shot Paula instead, who was sat between the two of you, Toni would have done exactly the same as I did. She’d have got you out of there, and fast.’

  ‘I should have stayed in the building,’ she insisted.

  ‘Why? You’re not First Minister any more, Clive Graham is. You were a fucking liability in there, Aileen, somebody else to worry about. I couldn’t have that. Plus,’ he hesitated for a second, ‘you happen to be my wife. I didn’t bend any rules to protect you, but believe me, if I’d had to, I would have.’

  ‘That’s irrelevant,’ Aileen de Marco shouted. ‘I should have stayed there. It was my duty; I’m the constituency MSP. I should have been there but instead I’m hiding in this bloody fortress like some kid who’s afraid of the dark.’

  ‘No, you were hidden, if you want to put it that way, because there was a chance you might still have been at risk.’

  ‘Does that chance still exist?’

  ‘I don’t believe so,’ he replied, ‘although I can’t be certain.’

  ‘But I’m free to leave here?’

  ‘To be honest, you always were. Don’t tell me that hadn’t occurred to you. But you stayed here. Aileen, you’re allowed to be scared! A woman has just been shot dead, a few feet away from you. You may not have noticed this, but her blood is spattered on your dress. The assistant chief constable is in hospital suffering from shock. I am strung out my fucking self! So what’s your problem?’

  ‘I was detained, man, against my will. Can’t you see that
? I’m a politician, and as such I can’t be seen to be showing weakness in the face of these terrorists.’

  He threw up his hands. ‘Okay, Joan of Arc, go. There isn’t a locked door between you and the street, and I will arrange for a car to take you wherever you want to go, even if it’s back to our place in Gullane.’

  ‘Hah!’ she spat. ‘The only time I’ll be back there is to collect my clothes. I’ve got somewhere to go tonight, don’t you worry, and I will not have a police guard outside the door either.’

  Skinner stood. ‘You bloody will. You may leave here, but you will have protection, wherever you are. That’s Clive Graham speaking, not me. He’s ordered it, and I’ve had arrangements made. For the next couple of days at least, you will have personal security officers looking after you. That is not for debate, but don’t worry, discretion is included in their training.’

  It had been a casual remark, meaning nothing, but she flushed as he said it and he realised that he had touched a nerve.

  ‘I don’t want to know, Aileen,’ he murmured.

  ‘As if I care,’ she snorted. ‘Isn’t life bloody ironic? You and I go to war because I’m for police unification and you’re against it, yet here you are in command of a force that covers half of Scotland.’

  ‘Temporary command,’ he pointed out.

  ‘So you say, but I know you better than that. You may not have volunteered for this job, but now you’re in it, you won’t want to let it go. Up to now you’ve chosen your own pond, and been its biggest fish. Now one’s been chosen for you, by fate, but your nature will still be the same. Once you get your feet under that desk in Pitt Street, Fettes will never be quite big enough for you again. That’s how it will be because that’s how you are, like it or not!’

  Five

  ‘You might have told me you were goin’ to be on the telly, Mum,’ Jake Mann mumbled, as he disposed of the last of his cereal. ‘I’d have told all my pals to watch.’

  ‘I didn’t have much notice of it, Jakey,’ Lottie replied. ‘Anyway, I wouldn’t have wanted you to do that, given the subject.’

  ‘You should have combed your hair.’

  She raised an eyebrow and glared at the nine-year-old. ‘Maybe, but my hairdresser wasn’t available at the time. I could have done with a bit of lippie as well, but the make-up room was in use.’

  ‘You were good, though,’ Jake said, reaching for his orange juice.

  ‘Good?’ she boomed.

  ‘Brilliant,’ he offered. ‘Pure dead brilliant.’

  ‘You’re getting there, kid.’

  ‘Who was that big man alongside you?’

  ‘That was Mr Skinner. He’s from Edinburgh, but he’s going to be our chief constable for a while.’

  ‘Is that right?’ a voice from the doorway asked.

  Lottie turned, and frowned. ‘Hey,’ she exclaimed, ‘the Kraken’s awake.’

  ‘The Kraken of dawn,’ Scott Mann moaned, as he shambled barefoot into the kitchen, in T-shirt and shorts.

  ‘Dawn? It’s half past eight, for Christ’s sake.’

  ‘Aye, and you didnae get in till midnight.’

  ‘Sorry, but you saw what happened. Didn’t you?’

  ‘Not really. The telly didn’t show much. They just said the chief constable was deid, that was all, even though you and the guy Skinner wouldnae say so.’ He looked at her as he lifted the kettle to check that it was full, then switched it on. ‘Izzat right?’

  She frowned. ‘It’s right.’

  ‘How?’

  She nodded towards their son. ‘Pas devant l’enfant.’

  ‘Eh?’

  ‘It means “Not in front of the child”, Dad,’ Jake volunteered. ‘Mum’s always saying it so I looked it up on the internet.’

  ‘That’s your mother all over, Jakey. She got an O grade in French at the high school, and she thinks she’s Vanessa Paradis.’

  ‘Hah, and you’d just love it if I was, sunshine. I’m closer to being her than you are tae Johnny Depp, that’s for sure.’ She paused. ‘He’s nearer my height and all.’ Her husband was stocky in build but he stood no more than five feet eight. ‘Yes, that’s a deal, you can have Vanessa and I’ll have Johnny.’

  ‘Naw!’ Jake protested.

  Lottie laughed. ‘Chance would be a fine thing, wee man. On you go if you’re finished; see what’s on CBeebies.’

  Their son needed no second invitation to watch television. He grabbed a slice of buttered toast and sprinted from the room.

  ‘So?’ Scott asked, as the door closed. ‘What did happen?’

  ‘Three bullets in the head from a professional. The thing was very well planned. They blew the power as soon as they’d fired. They shot two cops on the way out . . . Sandy Sproule and Billy Auger . . .’

  ‘Aw, Jesus,’ her husband exclaimed. ‘I ken Sandy. Is he . . .’

  ‘Yes, I’m afraid so. He died instantly. Billy Auger will live, but they’re not sure he’ll walk again. Spinal damage.’

  ‘Bastards.’

  ‘Ye can say that again. They’d have got away too, had not Skinner and another bloke arrived just seconds after they’d shot them. I’ve seen the video. The other guy did for one of them straight away. His buddy ran for it, but Skinner picked up Sandy’s carbine and put two rounds through him. Never batted a fucking eyelid either, either on the tape or later, inside the hall. The only thing he was sorry about was that if he’d just wounded the guy he might have given us a clue tae who sent him. But he said that from that range all he could do was aim for the central body mass, as per the training manual. That is one fucking hard man. I couldn’t have done that, I’ll tell you.’

  Scott squeezed her hand. ‘You know what, love? I’m glad about that.’ The kettle boiled. ‘Want another?’ he asked.

  She handed him her mug. ‘Quick one. I’ve got to be out again. I’ve had crime scene people workin’ all night up at the hall and in Killermont Street. I’ve set up a temporary murder room, I have to get up there to pull everything together. Killermont Street’s still closed to traffic and there’s another event due in the hall tonight. Some golden oldie rocker; it’s a sell-out and they’re desperate not to cancel, so time is, as they say, of the essence.’

  Her husband stared at her. ‘Can they do that? Just open the place the night as if nothin’s happened?’

  ‘As long as they put a patch in the carpet,’ she said. ‘They won’t get the blood and the brain tissue out with bloody Vanish, that’s for sure. And they’ll have to get joiners in to fix the boards in front of the stage. They had to dig a couple of flattened bullets out of there. They’ll maybe keep the lights low all the time, that’ll help.’

  His eyes widened. ‘Imagine. Somebody’s goin’ to be occupying a seat tonight, and last night a woman was . . . Wow.’

  ‘Ah know,’ she agreed. ‘It’s a bit ghoulish. Listen, Scott, if I could, I would close the hall tonight as a mark of respect. Any polis would. But the hall manager says that people will be coming from all over Scotland to hear this guy. Some’ll have left already.’

  ‘Not any polis,’ he said.

  She looked at him, surprised. ‘Come again?’

  ‘Ah still have pals in the job,’ he replied, ‘even though I’ve been out for five years. From what they tell me, Antonia Field won’t be missed by too many people. A lot of people, me included in my time, liked Angus Theakston, the deputy chief, and I know you did too. It’s an open secret that she more or less sacked him. A guy Ah know worked in his office. He says they had a screamin’ match one day that folk in Pitt Street could have heard, and that Mr Theakston put his papers in next morning, and was never seen in the office again. She treated old Max Allan like shit too, my pal said. The only one she had any time for was Michael Thomas.’

  ‘He’s a fucking weasel,’ Lottie muttered. She sipped her tea. ‘You never told me any of this before.’

  ‘Ah was told on the QT. You’re a senior officer; Ah didn’t want to get my pal intae bother.’

&n
bsp; ‘Eh?’ she exclaimed. ‘Do you actually think that I would come down on a guy because of something you told me?’

  ‘Come on, hen,’ he protested, ‘you’re a stickler and you know it. We used tae work thegither, Ah’ve seen you in action, remember; been on the receiving end too.’

  ‘Aye,’ she retorted, ‘and had your own back too. Let’s not go there, Scott. Just don’t keep anything else from me. Okay?’

  ‘Okay.’

  ‘Good, now I’ve got to go.’

  ‘When’ll you be back?’

  ‘Soon as I can.’

  ‘You’ve forgotten, haven’t you?’

  ‘Forgotten what?’

  ‘We promised Jakey we’d take him to Largs.’

  ‘Bugger!’ she swore. ‘I’m sorry, Scott.’

  ‘Don’t say sorry tae me. Save it for the wee man.’

  ‘Aw, don’t be like that. You know what it’s like. Look, when I say as soon as I can, I mean it. But I will have to put a report on Skinner’s desk first thing tomorrow, ready to go to the fiscal. And I will have to work out where the hell we go from here, given that our new acting chief’s gone and killed the only possible bloody witness.’

  His expression softened. ‘Ah know, love, Ah know.’

  She picked up her purse from the work surface and extracted three ten-pound notes. ‘Here,’ she said. ‘Take him wherever he wants to go with that.’

  He raised an eyebrow. ‘You’re takin’ a chance, aren’t you?’

  She frowned. ‘I’d better not be.’ She headed for the door. ‘Have fun, the pair of you. See you.’

  Six

  The bedroom door creaked as she opened it, jerking him from a dream that he was happy to leave. ‘Are the kids awake yet?’ Bob mumbled, into the pillow.

  ‘Are you joking?’ Sarah laughed. ‘It’s five past nine.’

  Their reconciliation, which had come after a burst of truth-talking only a day and a half before, had taken them both by surprise, but the next morning neither of them had felt any guilt, only pleasure, and possibly even relief.