The Blue Notes

by J. J. Salkeld

  ‘I know. We’ve read them. So he’s your boyfriend, is he?’

  ‘No. No, he’s not.’

  ‘But you’d like him to be, wouldn’t you?’

  ‘I’m sorry’, Thomas said quickly, ‘but can we keep this interview to matters of fact, please? Josie, you don’t have to answer that.’

  ‘OK.’

  ‘But it was DC Armstrong who arranged for Mr. Thomas here to represent you?’

  ‘It was, yes.’

  ‘And why did he do that, do you think?’

  Jackson turned to Josie, and shook his head. ‘DS Jarvis….’, he began.

  ‘It’s all right, forget it. Because what your client is saying, quite clearly, is that she made no voice calls whatsoever last night, isn’t that right?’

  ‘It is.’

  ‘Then how, Ms. Jackson, do you account for this? I’m now showing the suspect exhibit 52/c, the call log for the telephone that she has confirmed to be hers. Do you see the voice call made at 21.18pm last night?’

  Josie looked at the call log.

  ‘I didn’t make that call. I don’t recognise the number. It wasn’t me, I promise.’

  Jackson put a hand on her arm, smiled, and shook his head. Jarvis looked straight at her.

  ‘So you’re saying that someone else used your phone.’

  ‘I’m saying that I didn’t make that call.’

  Jarvis glanced across at DI Dixon, in a way that suggested to Josie that she’d said what they’d expected her to. But it made no difference. She hadn’t made that call.

  ‘Where were you at 19.18pm last night?’

  ‘On duty, in the CCTV analysis room.’

  ‘Was there anyone else there with you?’

  ‘No, I was on my own. I was preparing some evidence….’

  Jarvis cut across her.

  ‘Did you leave the room at around that time? Between 9pm and half-past, say?’

  For the first time since she’d been arrested Josie’s face lit up, and Dixon knew, in that moment and with complete certainty, that she was innocent. But that wouldn’t stop him, not for a second.

  ‘Yes,’ she said, ‘yes, I did leave the room. I had to go to one of the evidence lockers in another office to retrieve a back-up DVD. The one I was watching was corrupted or something. And I didn’t take my bag. And that’s where my phone was, you see.’

  ‘You left your bag unattended?’

  ‘Well, this is a police station.’ Even Thomas smiled at that. The poor kid really was green.

  ‘And did you see anyone else, when you left your workstation and went to this other office?’

  ‘No, I don’t think so.’

  ‘There was no-one in this other room that you say you visited? Which one was it, incidentally?’

  ‘That’s right, there was no-one there. It’s just a store room, really. It was 17A, that’s two or three doors down the corridor.’

  ‘And you saw no-one when you were in the corridor either?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘And how long were you away from the CCTV analysis room?’

  ‘A few minutes. Five, maybe. It took me a bit of time to find the right DVD.’

  ‘And this was at 21.18pm, was it?’

  ‘About then, yes. Sometime before ten, because that’s when I had my break.’

  ‘Did you log off your own machine, while you left the CCTV room?’

  ‘No, I don’t think so.’ Josie’s smile had faded now. ‘Sorry…’

  ‘But that is policy, isn’t it? All staff should log off the system whenever they leave their workstation unattended.’

  ‘Yes, but…’

  ‘You didn’t. And since you didn’t follow procedure, and because you didn’t see anyone when you went to room 17A, that simply means that you don’t have an alibi of any kind, doesn’t it, Ms. Jackson?’

  Thomas leant forward in his seat, and raised his voice. Even he was surprised. He couldn’t remember the last time that it had happened during a police interview.

  ‘DS Jarvis, I’m most disappointed in you. It isn’t my client’s role to prove her alibi to you, if that’s what this is about. It is your job to prove that she’s lied, if that’s what you really believe. My client has been very clear, and I’d strongly suggest that you now seek to verify her account, or to disprove it.’

  ‘And how do you propose that we do that? She says she didn’t meet anyone. Rather convenient, wouldn’t you say?’

  ‘Well, far be it from me to do your job for you, but how about checking the details of the account that my client has just given you?’

  ‘Like what?’ Jarvis was shouting now. ‘She’s already told us that she was alone. She has no bloody alibi.’

  ‘Rubbish. What about the corrupted DVD? What happened to that?’

  Jarvis sat back, looking surprised, and not a little shocked. He’d missed that, and now he’d lost control of the interview. His boss sensed it too, because he took over immediately.

  ‘All right, Ms. Jackson. What happened to the corrupted DVD? Did you dispose of it?’

  ‘No. I left it on the work station I was using at the end of my shift, along with a note for my boss. I wasn’t sure what to do with it.’

  ‘And how about the replacement? Where is that?’

  ‘I left it with the corrupted one. I left them together. I sent an email too. I can find it for you, if you like.’

  ‘All right, thank you, Ms. Jackson. We will check that, certainly. But you do understand that this doesn’t prove that you were away from your desk at the time you say that you were? It’s just a shame that you didn’t log off the system, as you should have done.’

  ‘So discipline my client, DI Dixon. She’s a volunteer worker, you know. So do your worst. But be aware that any such matter has no bearing on the alleged offence for which she has been arrested, and further that I will defend her against any such disciplinary action, and that if she is disciplined I will require the station Superintendent to confirm in writing that 100% of sworn officers always log off when leaving their desks, even for very short periods. Now, I can see that my client is in need of a break, so why don’t we leave it there, while you establish the veracity or otherwise of what you’ve just been told?’

  Davey Hood’s shoulder muscles were shouting, but not yet quite yelling in pain, and he was enjoying it. The sweat was starting to run down his back too, and he grinned at his mate Rod, at the other end of the huge Victorian dresser. Rod smiled back, then laughed. He was enjoying himself too.

  ‘At least this is the biggest piece, Davey’ he said. ‘I just hope they’re flogging this stuff by the pound. They’ll make a bloody fortune.’

  ‘Aye. You’re not wrong there, like.’

  Hood knew that he’d under-priced this house clearance, but he didn’t mind. It was a lot cheaper than a gym membership, that was for sure. And when they got out to the van Alan, the third member of the team, helped them load the dresser onto the truck.

  ‘Let’s have a blow’, said Hood, knowing that neither of the lads would ever suggest it. As far as they were concerned he was the officer now, and not just the boss of Hood’s Haulage of Carlisle.

  The three of them were standing by the cab, chugging from their water bottles and sharing a joke, when Hood noticed the big, black Merc pull up just down the street. The other lads must have seen it too, because he sensed them close in behind him, and he had no doubt that Alan’s hand would already be on the handle of his knife. He’d told the lads everything as they’d been driving to the job that morning, and they’d all laughed about his Robin Hood act. But they both also understood why he’d done it. And they wouldn’t be at all surprised if the opposition launched a rapid counter offensive, any more than he would be. So even here, on a busy street close to the centre of the city, he knew that his mates would get stuck right in if it came to it, without a single thought for their own safety, the odds of success, or the long term consequences of their actions. They wouldn’t back down, so Dai Young h
ad better have sent his handiest lads, or this would be a short and bloody engagement.

  But Young hadn’t sent any lads at all, because he stepped out of the driver’s door, dressed for a board meeting.

  ‘Mr. Hood?’, he said, walking up and holding out his hand.

  ‘Aye, I’m Hood.’ He didn’t offer to shake. ‘You got my message?’

  ‘Aye. Could I have a word?’

  ‘Not the car, Davey’, said Alan, from behind him.

  ‘It’s all right, lads’, said Hood. ‘I’ll be fine. Why don’t you two get back to work? You’ll both know Mr. Young again, won’t you?’

  Hood nodded to the lads, then walked round to the back of the van, sat on the tail-lift, and took a swig from his water. He offered the bottle to Young, entirely from force of habit, and Young smiled and shook his head.

  ‘What can I do for you, Mr. Young?’

  ‘You’re not an easy man to get to talk to.’

  ‘We’re talking now, aren’t we? And just a word of advice. If you ever send an armed man in my direction again make sure that he’s going to shoot me on sight, otherwise he’ll be leaving my home in a body bag. Do I make myself clear?’

  ‘Perfectly. And I apologise for what happened. I wanted to make a point, instead of which, you did. I won’t underestimate you again, Mr. Hood.’

  ‘All right, and in return I won’t over-estimate you.’

  Young smiled, and although Hood had never prided himself on his ability to read people, he was pretty sure that it wasn’t a smile of wry amusement. ‘You have something that belongs to my employers, I believe?’

  ‘A Sig 9mm, with no serial number? Aye, I’ve got it. Consider it a penalty charge for my loss of sleep.’

  ‘All right, I will. Accept it as a gift. A golden hello, if you like.’

  ‘A what?’

  ‘A signing on present, then.’

  ‘Signing on with you? No offence, but I don’t think so, mate. I prefer to earn my money the hard way.’

  ‘I can see that. And it’s admirable as a quality, taking pleasure in hard graft. I wish I saw more of it in my own people, I really do. But tell you what, let’s leave that one, just for a minute. Because there was something in particular that I wanted to ask you.’

  This time it was Hood who smiled. ‘Whether I knew that it was your mates I was nicking that diesel from?’

  ‘Aye. That’s it, exactly. Did you know?’

  ‘You really think it was a co-incidence?’

  ‘No, not really. Just wanted to be sure, that’s all. So if you knew, why did you target me? To get at me, like?’

  ‘No, not really. I just knew that you’d not want to draw attention to yourself, or any of your operations. You’d not be going crying to the cops, like.’

  ‘I get it, aye. But then I don’t really need the police’s help, do I? So you weren’t worried that I’d come after you, when I found out?’

  ‘Not really, no. I doubted that your boys would be all that effective as a private police force, to tell the truth. And so far I’ve not been proved wrong, have I?’

  ‘I suppose not, no.’

  Young smiled again, but no more convincingly. ‘And how about Pepper?’

  ‘You what?’

  ‘Come on, mate. DS Pepper Wilson, your new mate.’

  ‘The copper I helped out in that pub? Attractive lass, aye. And she can certainly handle herself, I’ll say that for her, like.’

  ‘She can that. So you’re working with her now, are you?’

  ‘Don’t be daft, mate. I work for myself, doing this job. I’m not a bloody grass, or owt like that.’

  Young got up from where he’d been sitting on the tail lift, and looked levelly at Hood.

  ‘I respect what you’ve said, but in fairness to us both I really should give you the details of my offer, just so you can consider it properly. Knowing all the facts, like. You’d look after all of our haulage operations. There’s a good basic salary, we’d start you on eighty thousand, all taxed and legit, plus we operate a profit share scheme. You get a piece of our other income, assuming you help out as and when required. That money’s paid offshore, anywhere you like, and last year someone of your grade would have earned about two-fifty.’

  ‘Thousand?’

  ‘Aye, thousand. And that’s pounds, not dollars or owt like that.’

  ‘And what exactly would I have to do for all that treasure?’

  ‘Whatever I say. As simple as that.’

  ‘That’s a pretty wide job description, like.’

  ‘It is, but you’ve got all the skills you’d need, and more. You wouldn’t struggle, not for one minute.’

  ‘But I can’t do much, marra. Hump stuff about, that’s about it, these days.’

  ‘It’s the skills that you acquired in your previous career that I’m more interested in, to tell the truth.’

  ‘Like that, is it? You think I’m a hired thug, a killer too, I dare say? Well, maybe you’re right, at that. So that’s the carrot, Mr. Young. Now, why don’t you tell me about the stick?’

  ‘The stick? No, I don’t need to tell you about that. Because you already know more about it than most, don’t you? Because in the end the stick’s always the same, anyway. It takes the things that you love most, and they never, ever get to come back. That’s the stick. So I’ll leave it with you, yeah? And you come back to me when you’ve decided. But don’t leave it too long, Mr. Hood.’

  Rex Copeland had kept his distance that morning, because Hood seemed to have eyes in the back of his head, but he was still able to get a couple of decent photos of Dai Young talking to Davey Hood. And when Young had gone he looked at the pictures on the back of the camera. They looked pretty bloody pally, just chatting like old mates, and even Pepper wouldn’t be able to deny that. Young was even smiling in one of the shots, by the looks of it.

  ‘I’ve got you now Hood, you bastard’, he said, as he started the engine.

  Friday, 17th April

  10.17am, family meeting room, Carlisle Divisional HQ

  Henry Armstrong waited until he thought that Josie stopped crying, started to speak, and then realised that she hadn’t. She was just coming up for air. Eventually the sobbing subsided, and then she spoke before he could.

  ‘Why are you helping me, Henry? Or is this some kind of trick? Have they sent you in to get me to admit it? Is that it? Well I won’t, because I didn’t do anything. I didn’t make that call.’ It all came out in a rush.

  ‘Of course not, love. I’d never do that. I know that you didn’t do anything wrong. Someone else used that phone. It’s bloody obvious, is that. And you’ll never be charged, whatever happens.’

  ‘Are you sure about that? The way that DS Jarvis was talking I’m going to be convicted for certain, and then I’ll go to prison. He said they’d eat me alive in there.’

  ‘Ignore him. That’s just talk. He’s trying to scare you, that’s all. You’re not going to prison, I promise you.’

  ‘Are you sure? And is this how you operate too, Henry? Putting innocent people under that kind of pressure. It’s sick. It’s just fucking sick.’

  ‘No. No, of course I don’t. But listen, love. We don’t get a lot of innocent people in here, to tell the truth. And most of the rest already know the ropes, and how to play the game.’

  ‘Well I don’t. And it’s not a bloody game, Henry. We’re talking about the state trying to take away my liberty. Do you even understand what that means? How serious it is?’

  ‘I forget sometimes, Josie. We probably all do. The job makes you, you know, cynical.’

  ‘Even you, Henry?’

  ‘Aye, I suppose so. Even me. But tell me again, exactly what Jarvis and Dixon said to you.’

  Josie told him, and Henry didn’t interrupt once.

  ‘They checked what I told them about the email and the corrupt DVD too, Henry. It was there, just like I said it was.’

  ‘Of course it was, love. Christ, I’ve never doubted you. Al
l right, let’s think this through. You’re absolutely sure that no-one saw you at about this time? There was no-one about at all? Not even the cleaners?’

  ‘I’m absolutely sure. The lights were out in the corridor, I do remember that. You know, the automatic lights.’

  Armstrong jumped up from the sofa next to her.

  ‘That’s it. Shit, that’s it. The lights go on and off automatically, don’t they? Not just in the corridors, but in the offices too.’

  ‘Aye, they do. What of it?’

  ‘I bet they’re linked to the computer. This is a new building, love. The bosses are always going on about how smart it is, and how green too. So I bet you this will have been logged by a computer somewhere. Did Jarvis or Dixon not ask about it?’

  ‘No. They don’t really look all that tech savvy, to tell the truth. Jarvis especially, I’d say.’

  ‘I’m not surprised. Right, you stay here. I think Pepper wants to pop in, and have a chat, if that’s alright. So I’ll go and see what I can find out. And I’ll let you know what I find out, OK? I’m not promising, but if we find that someone triggered the lights after you were in the room where the DVD was, then we’ll know for sure, won’t we? Those bastards will have to leave you alone then.’

  Armstrong ran along the corridor, then up one level and along to the office that belonged to the civilian facilities manager. He hadn’t been a copper before, in fact the word was that he’d previously run a council tip, and he seemed to regard all bobbies as being just like criminals, only a bit less trustworthy. It took Armstrong ten minutes to explain what he wanted and for Mr. Hamilton to admit, reluctantly, that the system did indeed log when the lights went on and off in all the rooms and corridors in the station. Then he told Armstrong that he’d need authorisation from his superior at HQ before allowing him access to the data, and Henry replied, rather to his surprise, that Hamilton would do it right now, or he’d have Acting DI Wilson to deal with.