She coloured but met his eyes and smiled.
‘Sure, no problem.’
Next up were Max Delaney and Gabriel Ferrante.
Delaney was taut with anxiety. He stopped in front of Farrell. ‘Thank you. I owe you one. And I’m a man who pays my debts. If anything had happened to them …’
‘We’ll keep an eye on them for the time being,’ said Farrell. ‘Try not to worry.’
Gabriel Ferrante nodded. ‘Nice one, DI Farrell. A pleasing novelty to meet a decent copper.’
‘From you, I’ll take that as a compliment,’ said Farrell.
He stood and watched both men as they were processed at the desk. Ferrante was something of an enigma to him. He couldn’t figure him out at all.
DI Moore walked up behind Ferrante, carrying a jacket, and tapped him on the shoulder. To everyone’s shock he spun round and grabbed her throat with one hand, the tip of a pen pressed against her neck. His face was devoid of emotion and his eyes blank. Suddenly, his expression changed to one of horror, as though he had woken from a trance. He released his grip immediately and DI Moore staggered backwards. Two burly uniforms rushed to grab him, but DI Moore, coughing, held up her hand to ward them off.
Ferrante was ashen and shaking.
‘I’m so sorry,’ he mumbled, ‘I don’t know what came over me. How I could have …?’ He shook his head and held out his hands, wrists together, as if begging her to cuff him.
‘Don’t worry about it,’ she said, with a strained smile. ‘I startled you. You forgot your jacket.’
He took it from her with murmured thanks and the two men were sent on their way.
Farrell motioned to DI Moore to follow him into an interview room around the corner. He too had been shocked by Ferrante’s reaction.
She flopped into a chair and he could see the imprint of Ferrante’s fingers round her throat as well as a red mark where the pen had been pressed against her neck.
‘That’s what I get for coming back in,’ she said.
‘Are you sure you’re okay?’ he asked.
‘Really, I’m fine,’ she said. ‘I admit it was a bit of a shock but it was my own stupid fault. I should’ve known better. My dad was a marine and I was always told never to jump out on him as a kid because they are trained to react first and think later. I forgot once and he spun round and knocked me clean off my feet. I broke my arm.’
She attempted a hollow laugh. This was the first time she’d ever mentioned her family. He could see that she was already starting to regret it.
DC Thomson stuck his head round the door.
‘Boss, that’s our man in Interview Room 4,’ he said.
Farrell got to his feet.
‘I suspect that’s all the drama over for one night, Kate. You might as well get yourself home.’
She glanced at her watch and sighed.
‘You’re not wrong there. If I don’t get home now, I might meet myself coming back in. The multiverse in action, courtesy of Police Scotland.’
‘I didn’t have you pegged for a Sci-fi fan, Kate.’
‘Need to know,’ she said, tapping the side of her nose with a small smile.
Chapter 40
The man sitting across the table from them was heavy and thickset. This was clearly not his first rodeo. Beth Roberts looked more nervous than he was. Farrell leaned over and switched on the recording device.
‘Interview commenced at 11.52 p.m. Please identify yourself for the tape.’
‘Ian Maxwell.’
Farrell, DC Thomson and Beth Roberts did the same.
‘I’d like to remind you that you’re still under caution,’ said Farrell.
‘Address and date of birth?’
‘At 5 Green Court, Lincluden, Dumfries: 13. 4. 87.’
‘Can you tell me what you were doing in the garden of 27 Terregles Court at 10 p.m. tonight?’
‘I was having a quiet smoke until you bloody jumped me.’
Beth Roberts put a restraining hand on his arm and he shook her off roughly.
‘Steady on, sir,’ said DC Thomson.
‘Fine, I admit I shouldn’t have stepped into the garden, but I wanted a smoke and a bit of a rest, like.’
‘You can’t smoke and walk like the rest of us?’ said DC Thomson.
‘I needed a breather. I’d walked there from town.’
‘And why exactly was that?’ asked Farrell. ‘You were nowhere near your home. Bit out of your way, wouldn’t you say?’
‘I like to go for a long walk every now and then. Last I checked that wasn’t illegal.’
‘Cut the crap,’ said Farrell leaning across the table. ‘You were watching the Delaney house. We know it and you know it. The real question is why?’
‘I’ve no idea what you’re talking about,’ said Maxwell. ‘Who are the Delaneys? Never heard of them.’
‘What are you? Some kind of twisted pervert who gets off on spying on little girls?’
‘What? Where the bloody hell did that come from?’
Maxwell looked startled. Either he was innocent or he’d simply been watching the house on someone else’s instructions, thought Farrell.
‘You know what they do to child molesters round here,’ said Farrell, sensing this was Maxwell’s weak spot. ‘Even being charged with a crime like that is something you’ll never get out from under.’
Maxwell wasn’t acting so cocky now. A fine sweat had broken out on his face. He sent a desperate look towards his solicitor. She couldn’t help him.
‘Look, I’m no pervert, all right? Folk like that are the scum of the earth. I admit I was watching the house. I thought it was for some bloke who suspected his wife was playing around. Nobody said anything about watching a little kid. I just had to report on their comings and goings, that kind of stuff.’
‘If that’s all it was then I’m sure we can come to some arrangement,’ said Farrell. ‘Who asked you to watch the house?’
Beth Roberts stood up.
‘Don’t answer that. I need a moment alone with my client, DI Farrell.’
Farrell ground his teeth in frustration, but had no choice other than to suspend the interview and leave the room with DC Thomson.
‘What the hell’s she bloody playing at, sir? If she was going to shut him down, shouldn’t she have done so earlier? He was just about to spill his guts and then he would probably have been given a deal. I don’t get it.’
‘Me, neither. Maybe she’s realized she has a conflict of interest and that the client she’s acting for at the moment could implicate one of her other clients.’
Beth Roberts stuck her head out of the interview room.
‘We’re ready for you now, officers,’ she said.
They went back in and Farrell switched the recording device back on.
‘Interview resumed at 11.26 p.m. So, Mr Maxwell. Where were we? We were about to offer you a deal if you can reveal to us the details of who instructed your little surveillance project?’
‘On the advice of my solicitor, I have no comment.’
‘Really?’ said Farrell, looking at Beth Roberts, who refused to meet his eyes. ‘That’s where you’re going with this? I don’t know what advice your solicitor has given you, but I can’t imagine how it can improve upon the opportunity you’re being given here. Tell us what we need to know and you can walk right out of here without charge.
‘Why would you possibly want to turn that down?’
Maxwell shot his solicitor a look of absolute loathing. She looked right back at him, her face expressionless, though flushed.
‘On the advice of my solicitor, I have no comment,’ he said, through gritted teeth.
‘Fine,’ said Farrell. ‘Well, you leave me with no choice but to infer you were in that garden unlawfully for the purpose of committing theft. You’ll be remanded overnight to appear from custody in court tomorrow.’
‘What? You’re keeping me in? You told me this wouldn’t happen!’ he shouted to his solicitor, as DC Thomson l
ed him from the room.
‘Trust me, everything will be fine,’ she shouted after him. ‘I’ll meet you at court tomorrow.’
***
She shifted restlessly on the hard chair and looked across the table at Farrell.
‘Do we really have to do this now, Inspector? It’s been rather a long day,’ she said.
‘It won’t take long,’ he said.
DC Thomson returned and sat beside him.
‘I understand that you were at court immediately prior to the afternoon session,’ he said.
‘Yes, that’s right. I had a watching brief on a trial.’
‘So why did you leave before we got there?’
‘I left as soon as the fighting started. I knew the case I was interested in couldn’t possibly proceed once it all kicked off and I had no intention of getting involved either as a witness or a participant.’
‘You weren’t worried about Peter Swift, your fiancé?’
‘Peter? Hardly, he can handle himself.’
‘We’ve received an allegation that it was you who placed the letters on the table in court. Is that the case?’
She sighed.
‘Yes, it was me. I saw them on the court officer’s desk outside the court. I thought it was probably instructions for the afternoon’s court, so I put them on the table at their usual seats. If I hadn’t lifted them, most likely someone else would have.’
‘Are you saying that you had no idea what was in them?’
‘That’s exactly what I am saying.’
‘Are you aware that one of them alleges that you have been having an affair with Jack Kerr?’
‘Yes, I heard. That’s laughable. He’s not my type at all.’
‘Your fiancé seemed to believe it at the time. He was knocking lumps out of Kerr.’
Her face clouded over.
‘He can be a little jealous sometimes. I’ve given him no cause. He’s apologized for doubting me. Is that it, DI Farrell? I really am rather tired.’
Farrell stood.
‘Thank you for clearing that up for us, Miss Roberts, I appreciate you taking the time.’
He showed her out and exited via the back door with DC Thomson.
‘Do you believe her boss?’
‘I’m not entirely sure,’ he said.
He’d decided to stay the night at his mother’s house rather than risk getting in Mhairi’s way. He wondered how her date with Sandy had gone. His gut twisted. He hoped she had finally met someone worthy of her. As he drew up outside Yvonne Farrell’s neat bungalow, he dreaded the thought of going inside. Even though he and his mother were getting on better these days, she still made him feel as though he wasn’t quite up to scratch. A failed priest wasn’t the kind of thing that earned you bragging rights down at St Margaret’s, where she was quite the mover and shaker. This new bloke seemed to have softened her, though. The more Farrell came across him the more he warmed to the guy. Even the exterior of the house somehow had a more cared-for look.
He slipped in quietly and tiptoed up the stairs, not wanting her to see him in such a state. As he heard her acerbic tones and answering laughter from Dermot Reilly, he felt an unexpected surge of loneliness. Reaching his room, he sat on the bed and slowly peeled off his clothes. His muscles still ached and the bruising already darkened his skin. Lifting the covers he slid between the crisp cotton sheets.
Chapter 41
Mhairi woke up and groaned as she remembered the events of yesterday. The phone had woken her, but not in time to answer it. She sat up gingerly and glanced in the mirror. I’d be a shoo-in for Hammer House of Horror, she thought, gingerly stroking her poor swollen nose. The bruising had really come out under her eyes but looked worse than it felt. Yip, she was good to go.
There was a quiet knock at the door. To her surprise, Sandy walked in with a fully laden breakfast tray and a couple of newspapers.
Mhairi smiled tentatively then wished she hadn’t.
‘Ouch!’
‘That’ll teach you to go wading in to the middle of a fight,’ he said.
‘That’s kind of my job. This looks amazing, Sandy! But, er, what are you doing here? How did you get in?’
‘I thought I’d pop in on my only live patient on the way to work. Dave let me in on his way out the door.’
There was a slightly awkward pause.
‘DI Farrell phoned a few minutes ago. I hope you don’t mind me answering your phone, but I saw it was him so thought it might be important. He said to tell you to take as long as you want. Apparently, he was involved in some fisticuffs last night as well.’
‘How on earth did he manage that?’ asked Mhairi, starting to gobble down her food to enable her to get in to the station quicker. Clearly there had been some developments.
‘Look, Mhairi. I hope I haven’t overstepped …?’
‘No, honestly, it’s fine. I appreciate the concern,’ she said.
Sandy kissed her cheek and departed. It felt weird, like they’d suddenly been catapulted into a relationship, rather than had only one date. She wasn’t even sure how she felt about him yet. Things were moving a bit too fast. God knows what Frank had thought when Sandy answered her phone. She glanced down at the headlines in the papers.
LOCAL LAWYERS BRAWL IN COURT
FEMALE POLICE OFFICER PUNCHED IN FACE
Mhairi bristled at the portrayal of her as a helpless victim instead of the truth – which was that she had kicked ass and arrested the buggers. They’d even managed to get a shot of her in her hospital gown looking small and defenceless.
‘Bloody outrageous,’ she muttered under her breath.
She picked up the other one and growled in rage. It was even worse.
DUMB(FRIES) COPPERS IN COURTROOM BRAWL WHILE CRIMINALS GET AWAY WITH MURDER.
Mhairi finished her breakfast, had a quick shower and got dressed. She remembered to apply the arnica cream and gulp down the anti-inflammatories before she left.
She fed Oscar and Henry and left them curled up in the warm sunny kitchen.
It was going to be another scorcher. To her disgust, she noticed the media scrum at the entrance to the station was getting larger. Despite the gate to the car park being code only, one or two of the leeches had the cheek to try and thrust their tape recorders in her face as she quickly punched in the code. Viciously she rammed up the electric window hoping for a finger or two to be chopped off. No such luck.
Chapter 42
Mhairi headed straight for the MCA room. There were more than a few covert glances at her nose and black eyes, but her thunderous expression did not invite comments.
‘DS McLeod, a word?’ said a firm voice behind her.
‘DCI Buchanan!’ she said, jerking like she’d been electrocuted. ‘This is a … a …’ she couldn’t think what the hell it was.
Her boss must think she and Farrell had royally screwed up to be schlepping it all the way down here. She followed her out of the room and showed DCI Buchanan into a nearby empty office.
‘Relax, Mhairi. I’m not here to give you a bollocking. I simply want to assess where we are with this investigation and to see what additional resources and manpower are required. I take it you got a little too close to the action, yesterday,’ she said, with a wry nod to Mhairi’s bruised face.
‘You could say that, ma’am. The trouble is that what started off as a straightforward murder has become two murders that may or may not be related.’
‘Related how?’
‘They were both stabbed, but no knife or weapon was recovered at either scene.’
‘Isn’t that a bit of a stretch? The victims are a different age and sex. Surely, it’s more likely to be two separate killers?’
‘Perhaps, but the victims are both immediate family of two members of the local Criminal Bar.’
‘A disgruntled client, perhaps?’
‘That was one of the first things we checked. There’s no commonality in their client base. Down in this neck of the woods criminal cli
ents tend to stick with their lawyers for years. Fergus Campbell and Jack Kerr are both competent lawyers with excellent reputations, so it’s unlikely anyone would feel they’d had a bum steer off either of them.’
‘Other theories?’
‘Well, it’s possible that there’s one killer who is targeting the three men because of something that happened ten years ago in Jedburgh. All three men were there for a criminal trial along with a young female lawyer, Colette Currie.’
‘What happened?’
Mhairi filled her in on what had transpired.
DCI Buchanan put her head in her hands and sighed.
‘When I asked if you needed more resources, I didn’t have in mind that they would be required for an investigation of this scope. I’m not sure I can authorize what sounds tantamount to a wild goose chase.’
‘DI Farrell and I can do some digging around in our spare time,’ she pleaded. ‘It’s possible the tenth anniversary was some catalyst in the killer’s mind.’
‘Very well, poke around discreetly as long as it doesn’t jeopardize any other more logical lines of enquiry and keep me in the loop.’
‘There’s something else, ma’am. Late last night DI Farrell arrested a man outside Max Delaney’s house.’
DCI Buchanan leaned forward in her seat.
‘What’s he got to say for himself?’
‘Not a lot. He got his lawyer down here pronto.’
‘Do you think that Max Delaney’s wife and child are in serious danger?’
‘Honestly? It’s impossible to say. It could be someone targeting those close to the three friends. Or some pervert who has got too attached to Mia, the little girl, through their Instagram account.’
‘What have you done to mitigate the risk?’
‘We’ve advised her to suspend the account for the time being but we can’t force her. We posted PC Rosie Green to stay with them overnight and posted a squad car outside the house.’
‘We can’t keep up that level of security indefinitely,’ said DCI Buchanan.
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