by Jack Probyn
Charlotte and Jake approached them.
‘What you got?’ Jake asked.
‘Empty,’ one said. Jake assumed him to be the senior officer. ‘Nobody’s in there.’
‘Any signs of life at all?’
The officer shook his head. ‘Everything’s been shipped out. Whoever was in there has done a full sweep.’
Jake kicked the pavement beneath him.
‘Very well,’ Charlotte said, hiding the frustration in her voice. She turned to Jake. ‘Let’s get forensics in. They might have left something behind. And, if they have, we’ll be onto them.’
CHAPTER 89
RECORDINGS
The soft light of morning, tinted a shade of blue by the low-hanging clouds, filtered in through Liam’s bedroom windows, rousing him. He was a light sleeper – always had been. His mind was too active – bordering on the paranoid – and he always struggled to sleep. Even the slightest disturbance would wake him. And the drugs hadn’t helped either.
Tanya was lying beside him, her body radiating warmth through her soft and delicate skin. Last night it had taken her an entire two minutes to explain herself and defend her actions before he eventually forgave her. It wasn’t her fault at all; that onus lay with Garrison – and the man was exactly where he deserved to be.
And then it had taken them another two minutes to make up.
Twice.
Tanya was wrapped beneath his duvet, snuggled up to her ears, facing away from him. Liam shuffled closer to her body, linking his arms around her. He pulled her gently into his chest and squeezed.
‘Morning,’ she said, keeping perfectly still.
‘Sorry. I didn’t mean to wake you.’
‘It’s all right. I needed to wake up soon anyway.’
‘Sleep OK?’
‘Perfect. You?’
‘Even better.’ He kissed the back of her neck. She wore her bra still, and his hand ran up and down her back before it fumbled the catch and released it.
‘Not now,’ she said, turning onto her back. ‘Sorry.’
‘I just need something to get me in the mood for work.’
‘We could talk about that instead. You didn’t say much about it last night.’
Liam propped himself up on his elbows. ‘And who’s to blame for that?’
Tanya rolled over and faced him, flashing that grin he adored.
‘But in all seriousness,’ she continued, breaking him from his thoughts. ‘We need to talk about it. You don’t seem to be coping well. I’ve never seen you so cagey and tense.’
‘It’s all up the fucking spout. You’re about the only person I can trust at the moment, surprisingly.’
‘How so?’
He hadn’t told her about Drew. And he’d only been brief on the details surrounding Garrison’s accident. He didn’t want her to know how much of an involvement he had, afraid of what she might think of him. Afraid that she might suffocate their relationship and cut off its air supply, the same way Danny Cipriano had died.
‘Garrison went behind my back with you and the Cipriano murders. He was trying to cover them up when I was trying to solve them. And I think Drew might have been responsible for what happened to him. He’s got this rape allegation he’s trying to defend and he’s getting paranoid. Garrison’s the only one who knows what happened. And I think he might have tried to silence him.’
‘But what’s that got to do with you?’
Liam paused. ‘Because Drew knows I’m onto him. He knows I know about it all. He’s paranoid.’
‘Are you sure you’re not just being paranoid? These people have been your friends for years now. I can’t imagine they would betray your trust like that.’
You and me both.
He shrugged. ‘I suppose you’re right.’
‘Of course I am. I’m a woman. We’re always the voice of reason and logic. I know enough about you to know that you assume the worst about all situations.’
‘It’s called being—’ Liam stopped, his mind wandering. ‘Wait, what did you just say?’
‘That I know enough about you—’
‘Before that.’
‘That of course I was right – I’m a woman…’
‘Yes, but no. You mentioned about being the voice of reason.’
Tanya lifted herself onto her elbows, pulling the duvet up to her chest as she did. ‘I don’t see the significance.’
Liam looked away from her, then his eyes fell onto her lap. ‘What other woman is the voice of reason?’ he whispered to himself.
‘Your mum?’ Tanya answered, uncertain.
Without saying anything, Liam leapt off the bed, raced through the hallway and into the living room. The remnants of the previous night’s Chinese takeaway sat on the open-plan kitchen counter – and there, on Liam’s dining room table, was his laptop. He retrieved it and returned to the bedroom.
‘What’s going on?’ Tanya asked. She looked a little frightened.
Liam ignored her and opened the computer, his mind working on autopilot. The home screen loaded, and he launched a piece of software on his desktop. It was the audio software Drew had installed for him after he’d placed the bugs in his targets’ cars. On the home page was a list of devices the software was currently tracking. Beside it was the time and date of the last recording and the location. Liam clicked on the top result, pressed the space bar and listened. The timestamp dated it yesterday lunchtime.
At first there was the sound of background static noise. Then the voices began.
‘Guv?’ Charlotte’s voice said, loud and clear.
‘Liam, what is—’ Tanya interrupted, but he silenced her with a wave of his hand.
‘This is proof that I’m not going insane,’ he replied.
Liam blanked her and returned his attention to the audio recording.
‘I’m OK. We’ve just had another incident. DC Pete Garrison. Road traffic collision apparently. Looks dodgy to me.’
‘What do you need?’
‘Phone and financial records of DCI Liam Greene and DS Drew Richmond.’
‘Anything else?’
‘Search warrants for their home addresses and vehicles.’
‘Leave it with me. Anything else?’
‘No, sir.’
‘Are we near to a breakthrough?’
‘Yes, sir. It’s imminent. DC Tanner and I will have Liam and the contract killers in custody very soon.’
‘Good.’
There was a brief pause and for a moment Liam wondered whether the conversation had finished.
Then the man on the other end continued. ‘How are things? Your health, well-being?’
‘Fine.’
‘Missing the family?’
‘I’ll be all right.’
‘You sure?’
‘Yeah. I’ve got her ashes, some photos. Work is helping take my mind off it all.’
‘I’m sure,’ the voice said. ‘But if you need anything, just let me know. I’ll get those documents over to you as soon as I can.’
‘Cheers, guv. Appreciate it.’
The line went dead and the recording stopped shortly afterwards.
Liam stared into the pixels of the screen until his eyes became fuzzy and accustomed to the harsh brightness. He instantly felt physically sick, like he wouldn’t make it to the bathroom, and his carpet would have a new indelible stain on it.
‘Liam?’ A distant voice called to him. ‘Liam?’
It was Tanya.
‘Liam!’ she said, this time touching him.
He startled back to reality and snapped his head towards her.
‘What was that all about?’
‘It’s… it’s my… I fucking knew it!’ Anger swelled inside of him like a rising tide inside a cave, and he needed somewhere to release it. ‘Those fucking… snakes…’ He screamed, filling the room with a deep roar.
‘You’re scaring me, Liam,’ Tanya replied. ‘Calm down. Please. What’s going on? Talk to me.’
&nb
sp; Liam kept his distance. He’d never hit a woman in his life, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t. Not if she got too close. He hadn’t felt this much rage in a long time, and his knuckles had never recovered properly since then – neither had the man’s face he’d bashed into oblivion.
‘My team. Jake. The new one, Charlotte. They’re coming after me for Danny’s and Michael’s murders – and now Garrison’s incident. I bet they’re working with Drew. I bet they have been all this time.’
‘Why? Why would they be coming after you? Is it true?’
‘No! Of course it isn’t true. I had nothing to do with any of them. They’re looking for someone to blame it on.’
‘Is it going to come back to me?’ Tanya asked. She slid her legs off the side of the bed, clasped her bra together and pulled on a top that had been thrown to the floor before the sex began.
‘What?’ Liam snapped.
‘Is it going to come back to me? The phone calls. The call logs. Are they going to realise we’re working together?’
Liam shook his head in disbelief. ‘You really think that’s what I’m worried about right now?’
‘No, but I am. I’ve got a career to look after too. It’s not all about your sodding life, Liam.’
Liam ignored her. He hurried to his wardrobe, grabbed a white shirt and started pulling it on.
‘Where are you going?’ Tanya asked. It was beginning to feel like they were having a couple’s argument. The kind where he was in the wrong, and he was running away from his responsibility of talking it through with her.
He chose not to answer.
She rounded the bed and approached him. His adrenaline was running and his pulse bounding. She touched him on the arm, and, to his surprise, the anger inside his body dissipated slightly. ‘I’ve never seen you like this. You’re scaring me. I don’t like it.’
‘I’m going to Tanner’s house. I need to have a word with his wife. Speak with his family for a bit.’
‘Why?’
‘There are some things I think his wife deserves to know. No doubt they’ve got the call logs already. Jake is the only one who can stop this from going any further. I’m sorry, Tanya, but I’ve got to go and finish this.’
CHAPTER 90
NINETY-NINE PER CENT
Jake’s head hit the table – hard. It was nearing six o’clock in the morning, and he hadn’t slept a wink. His body was almost running on empty, and it wasn’t something a full English breakfast or copious amounts of coffee could fix. He needed sleep, and he needed it now.
He and Charlotte had returned to the office immediately after their failed raid on the mobile phone shop, dejected and a little defeated.
Their options were running low. And Jake couldn’t help feel like they were rapidly running out of time too. They didn’t know who they were looking for; nor did they know where to look for them. The final piece of the puzzle wasn’t fitting into place. For all they knew, The Farmer and his associates could have left the country by now.
It was something that didn’t bear thinking about. It would do no good to assume the worst.
‘Coffee?’ Charlotte asked, her head peering like a jack-in-the-box over the partition that separated their desks.
Jake paused while the cogs in his brain slowly began to rotate. ‘If I have any more,’ he said, ‘I won’t have anything else left in my stomach. It’s running straight through me.’
Charlotte paused and gave a disapproving look. ‘Disgusting.’
Jake chuckled. ‘Sorry. Sometimes I forget where I am.’
Charlotte smiled and disappeared into the kitchen. As she started to boil the kettle, the office doors opened and Lindsay Gray entered. She carried a laptop bag in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other. She had a set of white headphones buried deep in her ears. As soon as she noticed Jake, she pulled them out and wandered over to his desk.
‘Morning!’ she said vibrantly. ‘Didn’t think I’d see you here this early.’
‘We’ve been here all night. Are you usually here at this time?’
‘Every morning. This place isn’t going to run itself, you know.’ Lindsay took a sip of her drink and paused. ‘Is it just you and Charlotte?’
‘Yeah. She’s out back.’
‘Still trying to get somewhere with this Cipriano case?’
Jake scoffed. ‘And the rest, Lindsay. It’s never-ending.’
‘You guys close, or…?’
‘Closer than we have been,’ Jake said, making sure not to share any particulars. Not because he didn’t trust her, but because Charlotte had instructed him not to discuss it with anyone. He appreciated Lindsay’s effort at making small talk nonetheless.
‘I’m sure you’ll get to the bottom of it.’
Lindsay placed her hand on his back, resting it there. ‘I heard about what happened to Garrison,’ she said, glancing over at Pete’s desk. ‘It’s devastating. Truly.’
‘We’re going to find the cause of it, don’t worry.’
‘Have you heard anything since it happened?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean, have you heard the latest? He’s in a coma. They don’t think he’ll ever wake up.’
Jake’s pulse slowed. ‘How do you know?’ He felt slightly offended that someone outside his team knew that information before he did.
‘I’m here all day every day, almost. I hear the gossip. It must have been while you were out. I think Liam told everyone. Apparently, Garrison put him down as an emergency contact.’
Jake stared up at her, devoid of any emotion and sentiment. Before he could think of anything to say, Charlotte returned.
‘I’ll leave you two to it,’ Lindsay said. ‘You both look really busy.’
Just as Jake’s thoughts began to turn towards Garrison in his hospital bed, his phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID, recognised who it was, and stepped away.
‘Hello?’ he said, keeping his voice low.
‘DC Tanner?’ a bored, robotic voice asked. ‘It’s Jemimah; I’m calling from the lab. I’m calling regarding the document you requested the original, unaltered files for? Case number CS/7163949/E.’
‘And?’
‘I decided to run the evidence through on the case again. We still had it locked up somewhere. A new report’s being sent to your email now.’
Jake thanked Jemimah, told her he owed her one, hung up, and then checked his email.
‘What’s going on?’ Charlotte asked as he returned to his desk.
‘I’m waiting for a—’
His phone chimed. He read the email, his palms clamming up as his eyes scanned the document.
‘I don’t believe it,’ he whispered, a knot forming at the pit of his stomach.
‘What is it?’
‘Hannah Bryant. The engineer witness at Danny’s burial site. One of the reasons you’re here. Well, a few years ago, while he was still a PC, Drew raped her, but the case was brushed to one side and thrown away. This is the file confirming Drew as the suspect, and pointing the finger at him with ninety-nine per cent accuracy.’
‘Jesus,’ Charlotte replied, stunned.
‘I have to go. There’s somewhere I need to be.’
‘Where?’
Jake started towards the exit, stopped and turned to face her. ‘I need to see an old friend.’
CHAPTER 91
CONSOLATION
Jake Tanner lived on a quaint, narrow street. Cars were parked on either side of the road, leaving a gap large enough for one stream of traffic. Giant oak trees were interspersed evenly along the pavement like the holes in a belt, casting large, ominous shadows over the houses.
Liam was seated inside his car with the window rolled down, stationed directly outside Jake’s house. He rubbed his hands up and down the steering wheel, preparing himself. He had a speech in his head, a plan, a sequence he wanted their conversation to follow. He’d rehearsed it several times on the way down. But the reality was, life wasn’t a play: it didn’t go exac
tly how you wanted it to. So far, the past few days had been a testament to that. Liam hoped this next conversation would be different.
He picked up his camera from the passenger seat, exited the car and made his way to Jake’s front door. Sounds of a child screaming echoed from the other side. He knocked.
Within seconds, the door opened and he was greeted by a flustered-looking Elizabeth. She was in her pyjamas and her hair was a mess, yet she still looked elegant and beautiful – the crush that he had on her definitely wasn’t abating. And he thought it never would.
‘Liam! Are you all right? What’re you doing here?’ she asked, wrapping herself up in her dressing gown.
Liam said nothing. It didn’t take long for her to begin thinking the worst.
‘Oh my God.’ She threw her hand to her mouth. ‘Jake? Is it… Is he… Is everything all right?’
‘Can I come in?’
Elizabeth wailed, her voice carrying up and down the corridor. Her eyes welled and her cheeks turned red.
‘Mummy!’ came a voice from within the house. ‘Who is it?’
At that moment, Maisie Tanner entered the corridor, holding a bottle of water in her hand.
‘This is one of Daddy’s friends, sweetie,’ Elizabeth said as Maisie hurried towards her. When she reached her leg, Elizabeth bent down and picked her up.
‘Can I come in?’ Liam repeated.
‘Yes. Yes… Yes, please come in.’ She stepped to the side and allowed him through.
Liam breathed a sigh of relief. One of the hardest parts was out of the way.
He stopped by the entrance, indicated at his shoes and asked, ‘Shall I?’
‘No. Please keep them on. Go into the kitchen. You’re scaring me, Liam. Is everything all right?’
He waited until he was in the kitchen before responding. ‘Jake’s perfectly fine,’ he said, coming to a stop beside Ellie in her high chair. He stroked her cheek and ruffled her brown hair. ‘He’s not in any danger.’
