Call to Arms

by Rachel Amphlett

  His eyes darted from her to Barnes, and then he stuck out his hand.

  ‘Detectives? How can I help you?’

  ‘Is there somewhere we can talk in private?’ said Kay, ignoring the offered hand.

  He glanced over his shoulder at the woman behind the bar, and then gestured to them to follow him. ‘We can use the office. It’s cramped, but it will have to do. We can’t use the kitchen – I’ve got a gas fitter here fixing one of the chip fryers.’

  He led the way through a door at the back of the bar, before turning left and climbing a narrow staircase.

  At the top step, he turned right and pushed open a door. ‘In you go.’

  Kay nodded her thanks as she passed, then shrank back as she entered the room.

  Ashton wasn’t joking – the office contained a desk, a moth-eaten chair, and not much else.

  ‘Hang on. I’ve got a couple of camping chairs you can sit on.’

  She waited while he unfolded a chair that had been stored behind the door, and then took a seat while he did the same for Barnes.

  That done, he closed the windows that were open on the computer screen, then turned to her and Barnes, and smiled. ‘Now, what did you want to speak to me about? I don’t recall phoning the police about anything – it’s been months since the last break in.’

  Kay held up her warrant card, and waited until Barnes had done likewise before formally introducing them.

  ‘Mr Ashton, we’re here to talk to you about Jamie Ingram.’ She recited the formal caution before continuing, noticing the man’s posture stiffen. ‘My team and I have reopened the investigation into Jamie’s death, and I understand at the time you were serving with him in the Royal Logistics Corps.’

  Ashton ran a hand over his mouth and then leaned his elbow on the desk. ‘That’s right. Crumbs, it seems like a lifetime ago.’

  Kay cast her gaze around the small room, and at the photographs on the wall depicting Ashton with various minor celebrities from the area. ‘You have a nice place, here. How did you manage to afford to set it up on an army salary?’

  ‘I received an inheritance a few months before being demobbed. Came in handy, I can tell you. You’re right – I wouldn’t have been to establish the business on what I earned in the army.’

  ‘It must be hard work, running a place like this. Do you enjoy it?’

  She watched as he puffed out his chest and sat up straighter.

  ‘Well, it’s not easy, this business, you know. It’s long hours, and I’m constantly having to ensure my staff keep up the high standards I insist on maintaining. We have a good regular clientele, though, and since I took the initiative and provided a café-style bistro service on weekdays, I’m seeing good returns.’ He tapped the side of his nose. ‘It’s my experience, you see. I’ve watched a lot of competitors come and go over the years, but they can’t match my entrepreneurial skills.’

  ‘What was your role in the Corps?’

  ‘I was a private. Same as Jamie. We enlisted a week apart from each other, but then ended up being posted together at Deepcut. When we found out we were both from Kent, we became friends.’

  ‘Did you socialise with him much outside of the army?’

  Ashton smiled. ‘Yeah. We used to have a right laugh off barracks. His parents own a fruit farm outside Maidstone – plums, apples and stuff like that. Jamie was into his motorbikes like me, so we used to spend time tearing along the tracks around the property in the summer.’

  ‘So, you knew his family well?’

  ‘Sort of, I guess. His sister was a looker, I remember that. His mum was German, right?’

  ‘Correct.’ Kay took a moment to run her gaze over her notes, even though she knew them by rote. Often, witness interviews were about pacing, and it wouldn’t do to rush her questions. ‘Were you also posted in Afghanistan with Jamie?’

  ‘Yes. Every single time. We were in the same unit, see?’

  ‘What did your role entail?’

  He leaned back. ‘Well, when we were in Afghanistan we were responsible for making sure the equipment was fit for purpose. If anything was broken, we either got the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers involved if it was a mechanical issue, or we arranged for spare parts to be shipped out to us. We’d crate up anything that we couldn’t fix there and arrange for it to be sent back to the UK.’

  Kay remained silent.

  ‘Is that how Jamie managed to smuggle the cocaine into the country?’ said Barnes.

  ‘What?’ Ashton’s elbow slipped off the desk, throwing him off balance. He recovered, and glared at Barnes, his face ashen.

  ‘Tell us about the half kilo of cocaine that was discovered in an empty fuel tank from a Jackal,’ said Kay. ‘How did it get there?’

  ‘I have no idea.’

  ‘You must’ve been relieved when Jamie died and the investigation was dropped,’ said Barnes. ‘Rather convenient for you, wasn’t it?’

  Ashton rose from his seat, the wheels sending it crashing into the wall behind him. ‘Now, hang on. You can’t walk in here and start accusing me of killing Jamie!’

  ‘I don’t believe my colleague stated that,’ said Kay, keeping her voice calm. ‘So, sit down.’

  Ashton glared at her, but she held his gaze until he sank back into his chair, his hands shaking. ‘You know what? Instead of coming in here, talking about drug smuggling and suggesting I murdered my best mate, why don’t you speak to Glenn Boyd?’

  ‘The adjutant?’

  He sneered. ‘Yeah, him. Jamie was having an affair with his wife, after all. I’d say that’s a pretty good motive for wanting him out of the way, wouldn’t you?’

  Kay rose from her chair. ‘Thank you, Mr Ashton. I think that will do for now. We’ll be in touch.’

  She waited until she and Barnes were outside, and then turned to him as the door to the bar closed behind them.

  ‘What do you think?’

  ‘He’s either lying through his teeth, or he’s running a dodgy business. Either way, I think the next interview with him will involve a solicitor.’

  Kay pursed her lips. ‘My thoughts exactly.’

  Twenty-One

  Back at the incident room, Kay pushed her computer keyboard aside, then peered at Barnes.

  ‘How did we not know Jamie Ingram was having an affair with the adjutant’s wife?’

  He paused as he walked past, then shuffled a bundle of papers before dropping them onto his chair and reaching over the back of it for a mug of tea.

  ‘Because no-one volunteered that nugget of information the first time around, or they did and Harrison chose to ignore it.’ He took a swig, then grimaced. ‘Debbie? Tea’s cold.’

  ‘That’s what happens when you ignore it for half an hour after I shoved it under your nose.’

  ‘Any chance of a—’

  ‘Make it yourself. I’ve got Carl Ashton’s witness statement to type up, and your writing’s atrocious. You should take some typing lessons, you know. It’d save me a lot of headaches.’

  ‘I’m too old to learn anything new, Debs.’

  ‘Dinosaur.’

  Kay ignored the banter between her colleagues, and instead turned her attention back to the HOLMES database.

  ‘Was the adjutant interviewed at the time?’ said Barnes.

  ‘Yeah, on the basis that he was the one Jamie had to go through to request a meeting with his commanding officer.’

  ‘And I suppose it was only Sharp’s assumption that the adjutant had something to do with the supply of drugs, because it needed someone high up to sign off the paperwork when the containers arrived back in the UK?’

  ‘Right. Because it was so tenuous, Sharp’s boss in the Royal Military Police didn’t mention it to Kent Police at the time, so Glenn Boyd wasn’t formally interviewed about that. They only approached him to check out Jamie’s movements in the days leading up to his death. Let’s face it; Kent Police didn’t have any cause to suspect foul play at the time because Harrison had suppressed
the information Sharp gave him.’

  ‘Jamie Ingram was a bit of a dark horse, wasn’t he?’ said Gavin as he wandered over from his desk and handed Kay a single sheet of paper. ‘These are the details for Mrs Boyd that Debbie dug out. Seems she and Glenn are still married, so I don’t know if her affair with Jamie was ever mentioned.’

  ‘Thanks, Gavin. Can you join me to interview her tomorrow?’

  ‘Sure – there’s a landline number for the property, so I’ll give her a call now.’

  ‘Tread carefully when you do. No point in dragging up the subject of the affair in front of her husband.’

  ‘Noted. How would you describe Ashton when you spoke with him?’

  ‘A braggart.’

  ‘Kay’s being polite,’ said Barnes. ‘What she means is, he could talk the hind leg off a donkey.’

  Kay smiled. ‘Yeah, he certainly fancied himself as a man about town, that’s for sure.’ She paused, and twisted in her seat. ‘Debbie? When you have time tomorrow, could you take a closer look at the history for Ashton’s bar? Right back to when he first purchased it.’

  ‘Will do.’

  ‘Also, any licensing infringements, police involvement, that sort of thing. He mentioned a break-in a few months ago, so there’s probably something on the system about that.’

  ‘You still think he used the drugs to pay for the business?’ said Barnes.

  ‘Yes, I do. And I want to know if he’s continued to deal. I mean, you’ve seen the statistics in the news – pubs were struggling before the recession, and it hasn’t improved much since.’

  ‘What about his accusation regarding Jamie and the adjutant’s wife, then? Do you think there’s some truth in that, or is he telling us that as a way to send us off on a fool’s errand?’

  ‘I’m sure he’s using it for deflection, yes.’

  She turned to Gavin. ‘Can you do me a favour? Can you look into Glenn and Penny Boyd’s background and check to see if there are any offences on the database in relation to either of them?’

  ‘Will do. I might not have that for you before we speak to them, though.’ He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. ‘I’ve just had a car theft job land on my desk, but I’ll do my best.’

  ‘Great, thanks.’

  Barnes pushed away from the wall and crossed his arms. ‘All right. Now what?’

  Kay stretched her hands above her head with a groan, then cricked her neck.

  ‘Pub. First round’s on me.’

  Twenty-Two

  The next morning, Kay sat in the passenger seat of the oldest pool car they had found in the car park, and blew on her fingers.

  Steam rose from two Styrofoam cups of coffee that had been placed in the holders between the seats, and Gavin leaned over the steering wheel to wipe away the condensation that had formed on the windscreen.

  ‘Remind me again why we picked the car with no heating? This thing is a heap of rust – the gearbox is falling apart, and I’m sure the handbrake is going to give way at any time.’

  ‘Yes, but it doesn’t look like a police car, either. Much easier for us to go unnoticed.’

  She raised her chin as a door opened at a house further along the street, and a man hurried along the garden path and through a gate, before unlocking a blue hatchback car.

  ‘There he goes.’

  They turned their attention away from the car as it passed their vehicle, arguing in case the driver glanced their way, and then dropping the pretence the moment he was out of sight.

  Kay turned in her seat and watched through the back window as the car indicated right and joined the flow of traffic on the main road heading towards Maidstone town centre.

  ‘Where did you say he worked?’

  ‘At a firm of solicitors. He studied for a law degree while he was in the army, and pursued a career with one of the local firms after he was demobbed.’

  She checked her watch. ‘Okay, we’ve got half an hour before she’s due to go to work.’

  They climbed from the vehicle, and made their way along the narrow pavement towards the house. The door opened the moment their feet began to crunch on the gravel path leading to it.

  A woman peered out at them, concern in her eyes.

  ‘Mrs Penny Boyd? I’m DI Kay Hunter. You spoke to my colleague here, DC Gavin Piper, yesterday. We’d like to talk to you about Jamie Ingram.’

  Penny beckoned to them. ‘Hurry up. Before the neighbours see you.’

  Kay wiped her feet on the doormat, and stepped over the threshold into a hallway. She shuffled along to make room for Gavin, and waited while the woman slammed the door shut.

  She turned to Kay and Gavin, her dark eyebrows a striking contrast against her pale blonde bob hairstyle, and played with a single silver chain at her neck. She wore a business suit, and was clearly agitated.

  ‘I’ve got to get to work. I really don’t have time for this.’

  ‘Can we sit down somewhere?’

  The woman’s fingers fluttered away from the necklace, and she pointed a shaking hand over Kay’s shoulder. ‘Living room’s through there.’

  ‘Thanks.’

  Kay waited until Penny led the way, and then followed her into a bright room that overlooked the street.

  Net curtains obscured the neighbours’ view of the room, and a sofa had been placed beneath the windowsill, facing a large television on the opposite wall. Two armchairs were against the far wall, and it was to these that Penny gestured.

  ‘Take a seat.’

  Gavin pulled his notebook from his jacket pocket as Penny lowered herself onto the sofa and curled up her legs underneath her.

  ‘When you phoned, I thought it was about the break-in further up the street last week.’

  ‘What was that?’

  Penny gave a dismissive wave of her hand. ‘Oh, kids, I expect. One of our neighbours’ cars had its window smashed and a tablet computer taken off the seat.’ She rolled her eyes. ‘As if you lot don’t warn people enough about that.’

  Kay gave her a small smile. ‘No, we’d like to talk to you about Jamie.’

  ‘I haven’t thought about him in years.’

  ‘How well did you know him?’

  Penny’s eyes narrowed. ‘Well, if you’re here about Jamie, you could’ve only heard it from one person. Carl Ashton, right?’

  ‘I’m afraid I can’t divulge my sources, Mrs Boyd.’

  The woman snorted. ‘Of course not. Even if he’s trying to ruin my marriage.’

  ‘How did you and Jamie meet?’

  ‘At a party, the first time they all came back from Afghanistan. God, I can’t tell you the relief. I don’t miss those days at all. Six months of boredom mixed with an unhealthy dose of terror every time they left. I hated it.’

  ‘What happened?’

  ‘I had too much to drink, Detective. Isn’t that usually the way these things happen?’

  ‘I wouldn’t know. Was that the only time?’

  Penny lowered her gaze to her lap and picked at an imaginary piece of lint on her trousers. ‘No.’

  ‘Tell me.’

  ‘We saw each other quite a bit. When he wasn’t out of the country, I mean.’ Penny reached out and plucked two paper tissues from the box on the coffee table, before dabbing at her eyes. ‘I blamed myself for his death, you know. I didn’t kill him, of course, but I may as well have, after everything that happened.’

  Kay caught Gavin’s quizzical glance her way, and then turned her attention back to Penny.

  ‘I’m sorry, Mrs Boyd. You’ve lost me. Can you explain that statement?’

  The woman clenched the sodden tissues in her palm, her face distraught.

  ‘The police never asked me, you see. Not yours, or ours – I mean, the army. I tried to convince myself it wasn’t my fault.’

  She gasped then, a deep sucking breath that made her shoulders heave. ‘Excuse me.’

  Gavin went to rise from his seat as Penny launched herself from the sofa and hurried from the room, but K
ay shook her head.

  ‘It’s okay. Give her a moment.’

  The sound of retching reached Kay’s ears, and Gavin’s face registered understanding.

  A while later, Penny returned, a glass of water in her hand and her cheeks flushed.

  ‘I’m so sorry.’

  She moved to the sofa once more, took a sip of water, and set the glass next to the box of tissues.

  ‘Mrs Boyd? What happened?’ said Kay.

  The woman took a deep, shuddering breath.

  ‘It’s my fault he died that night,’ she said. ‘We’d argued, you see. I phoned him while he was at the farm. It was in the evening – I think he and his parents had already finished dinner, and he made me wait while he got out of the house to talk to me.’

  ‘What did you argue about?’

  Penny’s jaw set. ‘I wanted to break it off. Our affair. It was becoming too intense. I—’ She paused to blow her nose. ‘Look, for me, it was a bit of fun, that’s all. Jamie was good-looking, he was up for it. I don’t know. It was exciting.’

  A hint of petulance peppered the last words, and Kay felt herself losing sympathy with the woman.

  ‘Why is it your fault that Jamie died?’

  ‘You see, Jamie was so angry with me. He didn’t want to stop our affair. That’s why he left the farm so late that night. He was coming to see me. He was going to beg me to change my mind.’

  ‘Mrs Boyd, do you have any evidence to support that assertion?’

  ‘No, of course not. But he was obsessed with me. It’s the sort of thing he would’ve done in the circumstances.’

  Kay exhaled, and took a moment to gather her thoughts before continuing. ‘What does your husband do at the legal firm?’

  ‘He’s a partner now. His team run the accident claims department – a lot of their clients are motor vehicle insurers.’

  Kay caught Gavin’s gaze.

  ‘Thank you for your time, Mrs Boyd. We’ll be in touch if we need to discuss anything further.’

  Penny uncurled herself from the sofa, and led them out to the front door. She stopped with her hand on the latch.

  ‘Detective? You won’t tell my husband, will you?’