The child smiled at Ejona, but looked nervously at Paolo.
“I’m going to sit over here in the corner as far from her bed as possible,” he said.
He waited until CC had settled on one side of the bed, ready to take notes, and Ejona sat on the other before framing his first question.
“Could you ask her how long she’d been in the orphanage?”
Ejona translated and turned to relay the answer. “All her life. She has no idea who her parents were.”
“And the other girls who were on the coach with her. How long had they been in the orphanage?”
Ejona chatted a while and then translated again. “Between two weeks and just two days. They came in one by one at different times, but were all put into the same dormitory. Adelina says they were all taken on the way to school or from a park near their homes.”
“Why didn’t they call for help on the journey? The bus must have made several stops.”
Paolo wished he hadn’t asked the question when he saw how distressed Adelina became.
“She says they were too scared. One of the girls did try to run away, but the driver caught her and beat her. After that they slept all the time.”
“I expect they were drugged,” CC said. “Like the girls who were being shipped out of the country.”
“It shows the driver was definitely involved,” Paolo said. “Not that there was ever any doubt about that. Would you please show her the photograph of Gazmend? He is claiming ignorance of the trafficking, putting all the blame onto Edar and Bekim.”
Ejona took the photograph from Paolo and turned it so that Adelina could see it. Immediately, she began to sob and cried out.
“No, no, no, no!”
When Ejona and CC were able to calm her down, she told them what had happened when they arrived in Leicester.
Ejona’s voice shook as she translated. “Gazmend looked her over, lifted her dress and pulled her pants down to see what she was worth. He told her he had a buyer for her and wanted to make sure she was clean and hadn’t been used at the orphanage. They spent one night in a cellar in Leicester and then they were moved to the place where you found her. She was farmed out to a man for two nights and had only been brought back earlier that day. Edar raped her twice. The second time was when you arrived.”
Paolo felt sick listening to Adelina’s experiences, but he had to ask the questions if they were going to be able to put Gazmend and his sick accomplices away for a good long stretch.
By the end of the interview he would have given anything to spend a few hours alone with Gazmend in a soundproof room. He stood and thanked Adelina, asking Ejona to tell her that he would make sure she was well cared for. If he had anything to do with it, she wouldn’t be going back to the orphanage. He intended to do everything in his power to ensure she stayed in the UK. At least he could pass on her testimony to Interpol as proof the orphanage was involved.
Ejona came out of the room with them, leaving the child to rest.
“I’ve been meaning to call you, Paolo,” she said. “I’ve listened to the music tape you found in Pete Carson’s studio and translated the Albanian. You were right, it was a child’s voice. She was crying ‘help me, mama’ and that man recorded it to use on his record.” She took a deep breath. “I’ve never hated anyone, but I am glad that man is dead. I hope he rots in hell for all eternity.”
“So do I, Ejona,” Paolo said. “So do I.”
He and CC walked back to the car park in silence. Paolo was glad he felt so comfortable with her that he didn’t need to make small talk. The last thing he wanted right now was to discuss inanities. His mind had been bludgeoned by what that poor child had gone through – and she was just one. God alone knew how many had been subjected to Gazmend’s brutality.
They reached the car and Paolo pressed the key fob to open the doors. As he got in, he glanced over at the STD clinic. He wouldn’t have noticed the man if he hadn’t acted so furtively, looking around as if scared of being spotted. Paolo smiled to himself, that was another mystery solved. No wonder Isuf Xhepa, the owner of the language school, hadn’t wanted to say why he’d been at the hospital that day. Paolo cast his mind back to the floor button Isuf had pressed. The lab was on that floor. Isuf must have been sent to get a blood test. Owning up to having a sexually transmitted disease wasn’t something anyone would find easy, and it would have put him high up the suspect’s list if Paolo had known about it.
“Where to now, sir?”
“The station, CC. I want to tell Gazmend face to face that his empire has collapsed. I also want to let him know that everyone he shares a cell with will know exactly why he’s inside. Pete Carson may or may not be burning in hell, but once the other prisoners know what he’s in for, Gazmend will experience hell on earth and, you know what, I don’t have a single shred of sympathy.”
CHAPTER FORTY
18th December
Only a week to go before Christmas, Paolo mused as he looked at the pile of files that had once again grown to ridiculous proportions. He wondered if he’d be able to clear his desk before he took a few days off. Probably not, he decided, but couldn’t work up too much regret at the thought.
Gazmend’s little empire falling apart had cleaned up a great deal of crime in Bradchester: prostitution, loan sharking and protection rackets, just to think about a few, but as a direct result, Paolo’s paperwork mountain had escalated. It seemed a fair price to pay.
His thoughts were interrupted by a tap on the door. He looked up to see Dave peering round it.
“Come in,” Paolo said, pleased to see his young detective sergeant back again. “Take a seat.”
“Thanks, sir,” Dave said. “I’m sorry about the way I reacted when we found the children. I, er, I wondered if you had a moment. I need some advice.”
“If it’s to do with Rebecca, you know my advice there. Get in touch with her and make it up.”
As Dave looked across at Paolo he was shocked at the look on the younger man’s face.
“That’s just it, sir. I want to, but this case, it’s done my head in. I can’t sleep, I can’t think straight.”
Paolo thought about the best way to handle the situation. Dave was clearly in need of a sympathetic ear, but if what Paolo suspected was true, Dave needed professional help, not simply a chat with his boss.
“Dave, right from the outset you’ve taken this case personally. Is there a reason for that?”
Dave nodded, but didn’t answer.
“Something in your childhood?” Paolo asked.
Dave nodded again, but this time opened his mouth to speak. No words came out, so Paolo waited. Eventually, Dave grimaced.
“No details, sir, but when I was a kid, really young, our next door neighbour used to babysit.” He shrugged. “I suppose you can guess the rest. I should have excused myself from this case, but I couldn’t. I needed to see people being brought down. Made to suffer for what they did. Unlike Uncle Greg. He died last year, and I had to go to his funeral and pretend he was as great as all my family thought he was.”
“You want my advice?”
Dave nodded again. “That’s why I’m here.”
“Get in touch with Jessica Carter. I don’t know if she’ll be able to take you on as a patient because of her role in helping the girls we’ve rescued from Gazmend. There might be a perceived conflict of interest, but she’ll certainly recommend you to someone she trusts.”
“That’s what I want to do. Finally deal with all this crap in my head. Maybe then I can get back together with Rebecca.”
As he heard the pain in Dave’s voice, Paolo’s heart went out to him.
“Why not talk to her?”
“I don’t want her to know,” Dave said.
“You don’t have to tell her what happened to you as a child, but you could allow her to be there for you now.”
Dave stood up. “I’ll give it some thought, sir.” He smiled. “Thanks for listening. If Ms Carter is as good a listener as y
ou, I’ll be in safe hands.”
Paolo watched him go. As good a listener as Jessica? No one could be. Paolo smiled at the thought of getting to know her better. Katy was making such excellent progress that she would soon be out of counselling. Then there would be nothing to stop him from asking her out properly. He wondered if she would go to the Italian restaurant over the Christmas period. As Paolo had no plans, other than spending some time on Christmas Day with Katy, he intended to visit the restaurant every evening, just in case Jessica made an appearance.
Was he falling in love with her? He wasn’t sure, but one thing he did know, he loved spending time in her company.
Forcing himself to stop daydreaming, he took the top file and opened it. Work was the best way of getting Jessica out of his head. Not that he wanted to, but he had to be sensible.
A couple of hours later another knock on the door gave him the opportunity to take a welcome break from the reports. He looked up, surprised to see Lydia standing in the doorway.
“I hope you don’t mind me turning up like this,” she said, closing the door behind her and coming into the office.
Paolo’s heart began to race. “Katy? Has something happened to Katy?”
Lydia shook her head. “No, she’s fine. May I sit down?”
Relief made Paolo feel weak. “Yes, of course. I’m sorry, I should have offered.”
Lydia smiled. “I took you by surprise. I didn’t think, though I should have known you’d assume I was here about Katy.”
“I’m not saying you’re not welcome,” Paolo said, “but, why are you here?”
“Firstly to congratulate you. I should have guessed it would be you who’d find that young girl.”
“I can’t take credit for that. I had no idea she would be on the bus. It was pure luck – for her and for me.”
She smiled. “That’s as may be, but it doesn’t change the fact that Katy thinks you’re even more of a hero.” She crossed her legs and leaned back, looking nervous. “Secondly, I suppose in a way, I am here about Katy, but not because there is anything wrong with her.”
Paolo must have looked as confused as he felt because Lydia sat forward.
“I don’t know how to put this, Paolo, so I’m going to come straight out with it. Katy loves you and she loves me. She would really like us to get back together again and, believe it or not, so would I.” She smiled again, not realising she was taking Paolo visions of the future and crushing them. “I’d like you to come home. Not just for Christmas. For good.”
THE END
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Someday Never Comes (#2 - D.I. Paolo Storey Crime Series) Page 26
