by K Pierce
The ring of the phone interrupted her trip down memory lane and she wiped away a tear she hadn’t realised was there. She really would miss him, and she was going to catch this son of a bitch if it killed her.
Out of the corner of her eye Nat saw Emily watching her. She ignored her and reached over the back of the sofa for the phone. She was half tempted to take it upstairs and give herself a little time to censor anything she might need to tell Emily, but she knew the other woman would only follow her. ‘Hello?’
‘It’s me.’ Barry sounded tired. ‘Do you want the good news or the bad news?’
‘Good.’ She answered.
‘He wasn’t in the house when we got there.’
‘I’m not sure that’s good news.’ She said. ‘I would’ve preferred him to be sat on the sofa waiting for you to take him away.’
Barry sighed. ‘Trust me, that’s definitely the good news.’
A muffled automated speaker sounded in the background and Nat’s tired brain registered voices and beeping. ‘Where are you?’ She asked.
‘Supermarket. They have a pay phone and we’re not going to take any chances.’
‘Ok.’ She nodded, steeling herself for what was to come. ‘What’s the other news?’
‘He set fire to her house.’
Nat looked at Emily’s expectant face. ‘Say again?’
‘He must’ve still been in the house when you left, or at least watching. I guess it pissed him off when you left with her. The place was already burning when we got there.’
‘Well that’s definitely new. Is there anything left?’ Nat could see Emily shuffling closer, trying to hear the other side of her conversation.
Barry sighed again. ‘Tell her I’m sorry, Nat. I’ll call you later, hopefully with better news and a safe house.’ She kept the handset pressed against her ear after he’d hung up. She didn’t know if it would fool Emily, but she was trying to buy enough time to think of a way to break the fact that she was now homeless.
A hand on her thigh stopped her breathing. ‘He hung up. You can put it down now.’ The sofa shifted as Emily moved back to her corner. Quinn had long since vanished, as if sensing that things were about to get a little dramatic. Nat envied him. ‘So?’ Emily asked quietly.
Nat cleared her throat. ‘He was still around when we left.’
‘They caught him?’ Emily said hopefully.
‘No.’
‘So how do they know? Come on, what’s going on?’
‘I’m sorry, Emily.’ Nat started, and stalled, the words stuck somewhere in her chest.
‘Sorry for what?’ Emily sat up straighter. ‘What happened?’
‘He torched your house.’ She hadn’t intended on being so blunt, but it was the only way she could force the words past her lips. ‘We pissed him off, and he burned down your house.’
20.
The footage was grainy. CCTV was all well and good but in the dark, and in the rain, it was as useful as a chocolate teapot. Barry fiddled with his wedding ring in frustration. The screen showed the station car park on the night of their surveillance operation. While the team had been up in the conference room ironing out the last of their plans a man slipped between the hedge and Emily’s car, disappeared for a few minutes and then reappeared and strolled casually away. Barry had no doubt that he’d tampered with her brakes.
‘I’m sorry, boss.’ Ryan tapped at the keyboard again. ‘The camera’s too far away to pick anything up that might help. The weather and lighting don’t help us any either.’
‘And this is the only camera?’
‘The only one that shows up that part of the car park.’
Barry’s frustration finally got the better of him and he slammed his hand hard onto the table. ‘We’re a police station for Christ sake! How is our CCTV so shit?’
Ryan’s fingers stilled, and he turned away from the screen. ‘I suppose nobody ever really expects anyone to commit a crime at a police station.’
Barry ran his hands over his thinning hair. ‘Ok, let’s get a rough description. Can we at least do that?’
‘Height, weight and build maybe.’ Ryan said.
‘It’s a start. Put this footage on a USB stick along with anything else that might be useful. I’ll get it to Nat, maybe it’ll help.’
***
It was just after midday when the doorbell rang. Nat gestured for Emily to go upstairs. Easing down the hallway she took in the shadow of the figure on her doorstep and cursed the inventor of frosted glass. She picked up a large umbrella from the rack on the hallway. Testing the weight in her hands, she unbolted the door and pulled it open a fraction.
‘Hi!’ The man was small and Asian. His short black hair stuck out in all directions and his coat was damp from the drizzle that hadn’t let up all morning. He held up a carrier bag, bold and colourful, the unmistakeable aroma of Chinese food wafting through the front door.
‘Sorry,’ Nat started, ‘I didn’t-’
‘No, no,’ the man interrupted her, his smile never wavering, ‘From Mr Barry, all paid for.’ He held up the bag, its dragon logo evident on the side. Nat recognised it as Barry’s favourite take out place. Realising that the man was getting wet she took the bag from him and thanked him. He turned and jogged down the path still smiling.
Nat slid the deadbolt back into place as Emily came slowly back down the stairs. ‘I hope you like Chinese.’
Emily’s stomach growled. ‘Apparently I do’ She sat down on the stairs. ‘This doesn’t feel real.’
‘I know.’ Nat sympathised.
‘I mean, some guy burned down my house and wants to murder me and here I am eating take out and acting like nothing’s happening. I just feel so…’ She struggled for the word.
‘Numb? Detached? Hungry?’ Emily met Nat’s own tired eyes and nodded. ‘People have different ways of coping with things, Emily. This isn’t a normal, everyday situation so your body and your brain are having a hard time trying to process it. Don’t beat yourself up about it or overthink it because when the time does come that it feels real it’s probably going to hit you like a train.’
Emily raised an eyebrow. ‘Well thanks for that little gem of reassurance.’
‘You wanted it sugar-coated?’ Nat asked. ‘Want me to lie and tell you it’s all going to be sunshine and roses? No tears? No stress?’
‘I guess not.’ Emily stood.
‘No matter what happens, or how you feel during and after all this, you’re never going to have to deal with it by yourself.’ Nat said. ‘And everybody has to eat, right?’
In the kitchen, Nat began to unpack the bag as Emily grabbed plates and cutlery. Halfway through her task she stopped. A padded white envelope was pressed in between the special fried rice and the chicken balls. ‘Well bugger me.’
‘What?’ Emily stepped up beside her.
Nat waved the envelope in front of her. ‘Special delivery apparently.’ She tugged open the flap and tipped it up. A USB stick clattered onto the counter.
‘Is there a note?’ Emily asked.
Nat pulled a sheet of paper out of the envelope and scanned it quickly. ‘It’s from Barry and Ryan. They didn’t want to risk leading anyone here, so Barry went out to pick up lunch for all of us.’
‘He’s not just a pretty face.’
‘Yep, he’s definitely the brains of the operation. The USB has some CCTV footage and all of the case notes on it, so I can look at it from here,’ Nat said.
Emily grabbed the plates and made her way back to the sofa. ‘Come on then, Columbo,’ she called over her shoulder.
Nat sat the laptop between them on the coffee table and attached the USB. She speared a chicken ball and clicked through the icons on the screen. She chewed thoughtfully. ‘You know, Columbo was a bit of a pillock. I feel like I should be a little offended.’
‘It was either that or Poirot, and I’m not sure how you feel about your moustache.’
Nat threw a chip at her. She liked this woman. Despite t
he few panic attacks she’d witnessed, Emily was confident, cheeky and stunning to boot. Nat realised that she was staring when Emily arched a well-manicured eyebrow at her. It was one of the sexiest things she’d ever seen. She swallowed and almost choked on a chunk of chicken.
Emily couldn’t hold back her chuckle. ‘Are you ok?’
Nat nodded and swiped at her watering eyes. ‘Maybe we should watch the video,’ she croaked and tapped the computer.
The video quality was rubbish. Puddles dotted the tarmac and the orange glow of the streetlighting cast odd shadows, distorting a place that should have been familiar to her. They watched the clock in the corner of the screen. After a few seconds there was movement. A dark figure casually approached Emily’s Corsa. A quick look in the direction of the building and then he disappeared between the car and the hedge.
Emily leaned closer. ‘Where did he go? I’m assuming it is a he?’
‘Looks like it. He’s a big bugger.’ Nat’s shoulder brushed Emily’s as she squinted at the screen. She ignored her body’s reaction to it. ‘Best guess is he’s under your car messing with the brakes.’
‘In the dark?’ Emily was sceptical.
‘I suppose if he’s good with cars it wouldn’t make much difference. He could also have a torch or his phone under there with him.’
They watched in silence as the seconds ticked on. Emily hadn’t moved away, and Nat could feel her warmth through the thin fabric of her shirt. It was distracting. She hadn’t registered that Emily was speaking until she felt the gentle nudge. ‘Sorry?’
‘You didn’t hear any of what I just said?’ Emily asked.
‘Erm…’ Nat fumbled.
‘I just identified the guy and cracked your case and you weren’t even listening to me? And they pay you to do this? As a job?’
‘I…you…wait, you know him?’ Nat felt a rush of adrenalin. She turned to face the woman beside her. ‘You actually know --‘
‘No, I don’t!’ Emily’s eyes twinkled in amusement. ‘But maybe you’ll start listening to me more now instead of thinking about what you want for dinner.’
Nat blushed. ‘I wasn’t thinking about dinner.’ As soon as the words were out, she realised her mistake.
Emily’s voice dropped lower. ‘So, what were you thinking about?’
Nat’s mouth opened and closed a few times as her mind went blank. Emily regarded her carefully with a knowing look. Then she nodded slowly, one corner of her mouth turning up slightly in a smirk. ‘I see.’
Blushing even redder, Nat resisted the urge to slap herself. God, what is wrong with me?!
Emily chuckled quietly, fully aware of the effect she was having on the other woman. ‘Well,’ she almost whispered, ‘when you’ve reached the…climax of those thoughts, maybe we should get back to it?’ She bit her lip to stifle her reaction to Nat’s wide, guilty eyes. God, what is wrong with me? There’s some psycho after me and I’m sitting here flirting like a horny teenager! The thought sobered her up and Emily gave herself a mental shake and escaped to the bathroom.
Nat sat in stunned silence. That had been actual flirting. Movement on the coffee table brought her back to the task at hand. A car had driven past the camera and she tutted when she noticed how much time had elapsed. Clicking a button, the video started to rewind. She watched the man walk backwards from the right of the screen and slide back underneath the car.
Emily returned to her side. ‘Anything useful?’ All of the playfulness of their previous exchange had disappeared. This Emily was all business.
‘Not sure, we missed a fair bit of it.’
Emily said nothing but sat down beside her, the gap between them noticeably larger than before. A head emerged next to the bonnet, a flash of white and then he strode away from the car. Nat rewound again. As he stood she clicked the pause button and he froze.
‘What?’ Emily asked.
‘Look at his clothes.’ Nat said.
‘What about them?’
‘Dark jacket, white top underneath.’ Nat pointed out.
‘So?’ Emily frowned, not grasping what she was getting at.
‘It’s a shirt. A white shirt, black pants and a dark jacket.’
‘So, he’s a smart guy.’
‘No, he’s at a police station. Wearing dark pants, a white shirt and a dark jacket. He’s a fucking police officer.’
21.
Nat had begun to pace. Back and forth, until Emily became concerned for the welfare of the carpet.
‘Lots of people wear white shirts. It’s not really the greatest evidence to base that conclusion on. He could just be trying to blend in. Besides if he was one of you lot wouldn’t he know where I am? Or at least know I’m with you.’
Nat stopped. ‘We haven’t told anyone.’
‘But surely he’s not too stupid to figure it out. Look at everything he’s done so far. According to you he’s managed to kill at least three women in different areas and not get caught.’
‘Three that we know of. We’ve still got people checking the nationwide databases. If he changed his methods as he went, we might never know the actual number.’ Fear slid across Emily’s face. ‘Not that you need to be thinking about that at all right now, or ever.’ Nat tapped a finger against her lips in thought. ‘Ok, so let’s say he isn’t a police officer. He used that as a way to move around the station car park without anyone taking too much notice.’
‘Don’t you all know each other?’ Emily asked.
‘People are in and out all the time. If he walks the walk, then he might get away with it.’ The niggling thought that he might know exactly where they were was playing on Nat’s mind. She’d need to move Emily, and fast.
‘Both are plausible theories,’ Emily said, ‘which puts us back at square one. Is he, or isn’t he?’
‘If he is one of us…’ Nat started.
‘What about CCTV from inside? If he is a police officer, then chances are he would’ve been inside the building at some point that day, wouldn’t he? Either starting or finishing a shift? Otherwise people would think it odd him hanging around when he didn’t need to.’
Nat grabbed the phone off the table. She’d dialled three of the numbers before she hung up. ‘I can’t call them. I have no idea who we can trust right now.’
‘We need to get as creative as Barry.’ Emily said. ‘I have an idea.’
***
Barry looked up from his desk and came face to face with a large bouquet of lilies, his wife’s favourites. He frowned. ‘I didn’t know you cared,’ he said to Bob Deakin, who’d been manning the front desk all day.
‘I don’t.’ Bob replied. ‘These were just delivered. For you.’ He thrust them across the desk and turned on his heel.
Barry loved Bob. He’d been a fixture at Bransford station ever since Barry had been on the beat, and grumpy as he seemed he was one of the funniest men Barry had ever come across, especially after a few whiskeys.
The door clicked shut and he looked at the bunch of flowers in his hand. He scrolled through his mental calendar panicking slightly at the thought that he might have missed an anniversary. Satisfied that he hadn’t he turned the bouquet over until he found the card.
Thanks for lunch. Coppers are the only ones that know how to do it properly. Speak soon about the new house xx
Barry sat staring at the words. A worm of an idea edged its way into his mind, and he smiled for the first time since this whole mess began. His partner was a clever woman. Thoughtful too; Jenny would love the flowers. The message on the card was cryptic but he knew what she was getting at. He’d thought about it himself after he’d watched the video for the fourth time. The fact that she thought it too meant that maybe the idea had legs.
He found Ryan sitting at a laptop in the incident room. Dusk was closing in and the screen cast an eerie light on Ryan’s face. He looked up as the door opened. ‘Hey Boss, what’s doing?’
Barry held up the card. ‘Message from the gods.’ He slid the card across t
he table. ‘And if you ever tell her I referred to her as a god I will have you reassigned to Siberia.’
Ryan mimicked zipping his lips shut and picked up the card. He read it twice and then laid it face down on the table. ‘Does that mean what I think it means?’
‘It’s a possibility. The way he just strolled in here, how he was dressed, no distinct forensics until the semen at Emily’s, which looks like a major fuck-up on his part. We need to check all of the CCTV, inside and out, and see if we can find him that way.’
‘Phil’s funeral is next Thursday.’ Ryan said. ‘He’d have to be there otherwise it would look suspicious.’
‘We can’t wait that long. We need to find him. The powers that be won’t let me move Emily, they think having her under the protection of one of us will draw him out quicker and save on the budget, making everyone look good. Fucking politics.’
‘There’s not a lot to go on and we’re two people down.’ Ryan lowered his voice, ‘If it is what we’re saying then we can’t ask for help from anyone.’
Barry pulled out the seat next to him and sat down. ‘We need Nat and we need to find a way to bring this guy out into the open without endangering Emily.’
‘He knows we’re on to him so he’s not going to use the dating website anymore. He might even go into hiding.’ Ryan said.
‘The website is the least of our worries, and I think he’s too arrogant to hide. This guy is affected by rejection and Emily has rejected and humiliated him in the worst way. He’s not going to stop until he has her.’
‘So, what now?’
Barry bit his lip. ‘Start going through our CCTV on the day we know he was here. See if you can find him anywhere else in the building.’