The two Gardai exchanged a glance but offered no protest; no cop wanted to blow a potential future case with tainted evidence. And Mullins said reluctantly, ‘Very well, but do it quickly. I’m sure I don’t need to stress how important it is to find this guy quickly. If he is a maniac God knows who he’ll go after next.’ He pursed his lips again, ‘Except I don’t believe he was a random nut, and I don’t think he intended to attack you at all.’
‘What are you talking about?’
‘You’ve been assuming that you were the focus of last night’s attack,’ said Mullins heavily, ‘possibly because of your unfortunate personal history. But look at the facts. According to your statement his guy walked into your office without stealth, rattling the doorknob on the way and alerting you to his presence. In fact, he was so noisy you thought he was Sean, or one of the college cleaners. Then he opened your door and just stood there staring at you without saying a word. Not did he offer any violence until Sean surprised him. Doesn’t that strike you as odd?’
‘I haven’t had the time or inclination to think about it,’ said Kate tiredly, ‘What are you getting at?’
‘I think the assailant last night was as surprised to see you as you were to see him,’ said Mullins, ‘It was late, wasn’t it?’
Kate nodded, ‘After eleven.’
‘And you wouldn’t normally be there at such an hour?’ Kate nodded again and the detective continued, ‘I think he was trying a spot of burglary, and the knife was simply to force open any locked doors or desk drawers. I think he was after this mysterious file of yours and was as shocked to see you as you were to see him.’
Kate scrubbed at her face with both hands, trying to take this in. At last she said, ‘You’re right. If he’d been after me he’d have sneaked in and attacked me straight away, wouldn’t he? And not just stood staring at me?’
Mullins nodded, ‘Which brings us back to your briefcase, which has already been the cause of a burglary and the murder of Jimmy Shiels. Which is why you’re going to go through it again, looking for a motive to kill. And why you’re going to hand us over a copy of everything not prohibited by law, so we can track down this guy and put him away.’
‘First thing in the morning you can have the abridged version I prepared for Sean,’ agreed Kate, who needed no more persuasion, ‘I’m not going in to my office to get it now. I’ll leave it at the porter’s desk in Trinity for you to collect.’
Mullins got to his feet and started towards the door, ‘And if you think of anything else, or if anything else happens, however trivial, please ring either myself or Detective Rafferty on these numbers.’
He handed her a card as he walked, which Kate put beside the hall phone as she passed, replacing the handset on the hook at the same time. ‘Is there nothing else you can tell me about Sean?’
Mullins paused at her front door and suddenly became a full member of the human race as he replied, with a smile, ‘Like I said, he’s off the critical list and is officially stable. In a comfortable condition, which I think is Doctor-talk for starting to get better. He’s still in Intensive Care, though.’
Kate smiled back in relief, ‘Thank God. They said he was out of danger this morning but...’ Her voice tailed off and she shrugged, ‘You never know, do you?’
Mullins recognised her genuine concern and allowed a little more warmth into his eyes and voice, ‘Sean’s a pretty tough nut. Don’t worry about him.’
Kate was about to speak when the phone rang. She moved to answer it and Mullins said, ‘We’ll see ourselves out. And we’ll be in touch if we have any more questions.’
Kate nodded distractedly and gave them a half-wave as they left the flat. Then she picked up the phone and said, ‘Hello?’
‘Kate!’ Michael Riordan’s voice exploded out of the phone, causing her to wince and hold the receiver away from her ear, ‘I’ve been trying to get hold of you all day! Are you okay?’
‘I’m fine,’ said Kate resignedly, Apart from the burst eardrum, ‘It’s the unfortunate policeman who saved me who is far from okay. How did you hear about it?’
The concern in Michael’s voice was replaced by a trace of amusement, ‘I have spies everywhere, and very little happens anywhere without me knowing about it. Particularly where people I care about are concerned. Besides, it was on the news.’
‘What? Are you kidding me?’ Kate almost shrieked, her eyes snapping wide open in alarm.
‘Not your name,’ he hastened to assure her, ‘But when I heard that a female lecturer had been attacked in the Psychology Department at Trinity I made a few enquiries. Actually, I nearly went out of my mind until I heard you weren’t injured. I’ve been trying to ring you all day. I even called round but there were reporters and cops outside your place so I just kept going.’
Kate groaned softly, ‘I can’t believe it! I’ll have to ring my Aunt and my cousins again and assure them all that I’m okay. They’ve probably been ringing all day, too. My phone was off the hook and my mobile is in my bag.’ Which I think is in my office, or lost.
‘But you weren’t hurt, were you?’
‘No, no, honestly, I’m fine. And it looks as though Sean Morrison will be okay too, thank God. As it stands I owe him a debt I can never repay, but I don’t think I could have taken it if he had died.’
Michael was silent for a moment and then said, ‘You can’t repay it but I can. I’ll make sure the right people get the word. Don’t worry, your friend will get a decoration for his actions, and a promotion too.’
Kate felt a flash of irritation but bit it back. It was her debt; she didn’t want him handing out rewards like sleazy pay-offs or a tip to a waiter. But she said nothing; she wasn’t about to open her big mouth and hurt his career. Besides, it wasn’t as if he didn’t deserve anything that was going, and it might even salve her guilty conscience about almost killing him. After a brief struggle she managed to say, though without any real warmth, ‘Thank you, Michael, if you can arrange that I’ll be very grateful.’
‘Grateful enough to give me another chance?’ he immediately asked, ‘I know I messed things up and I’d very much like to straighten things out between us.’
Is that why you’re so concerned about Sean’s future? she wondered. Is your generosity just part of your strategy for getting me back into your bed? She said nothing but she was seeing a whole new side to Michael’s character that she did not like one bit, and filed the information away for future reference. Foolish, really; why would she expect anything more from a politician, of all people?
The silence began to stretch and Michael filled the void by saying, ‘Well? Will you agree to see me again?’
She sighed, ‘Michael, last night I thought an intruder was trying to murder me. Another man almost died stopping him, and I spent a sleepless night in the hospital worrying about him and trying not to see his wife’s grief. I’ve just finished reliving the whole horrible mess for the benefit of the two policemen who just interviewed me. Do you really think this is a good time to be hounding me for a date? Or sex, or whatever the hell it is you want from me?’
‘Sorry,’ he said contritely, at least having the grace to sound truly ashamed of himself, ‘In business, and in politics, when you see an opening you go for it. Please don’t think that it makes me any less sympathetic about your ordeal. I want to help you, but I want to see you too. Okay, so I’m a selfish pig!’
Kate offered no argument and after a pause he said, ‘I never exactly cover myself with glory where you’re concerned, do I? One of the problems of being rich, and, let’s face it, powerful, is that people kowtow to you so much that you start to think that everyone else is less important than you, that they’re all secondary characters in your play. That they’re not as real as you, perhaps. You do a good job of bringing me back to earth, Kate. I think that’s why I like you so much; you make me see things in their proper perspective.’
Kate couldn’t keep the edge out of her voice as she replied, ‘Well, of course I’m al
ways glad to be of service but I’m afraid I have to go now. I have to talk to my family, let them know I’m okay.’
‘Of course. Just one other thing. Will you be taking a holiday or anything, to help you recover from your ordeal?’
‘Jesus, I don’t know! I hadn’t thought about it. Why?’
‘Will you continue to treat Grainne?’
There was a tension in his voice as he asked this question, an air of apprehension that Kate could not miss. She supposed it was natural enough; he was a selfish person, and she could understand him not wanting his daughter’s treatment interrupted for anything. It was a point of view any parent would appreciate but it didn’t increase her liking for him.
‘Do you think the attack on me was anything to do with Grainne?’
‘What? No, of course not! How could it be?’ The surprise in his voice was totally genuine and Kate replied, ‘Then I have no reason to stop working with her, do I’?’
There was no emotion in his voice, and certainly no relief, as he said, ‘Good. Listen, do you want to spend the night at my place? Or have me stay there with you? You might feel safer. And you might be safer. Er, no strings attached.’
‘My hero!’ she laughed, though not without a touch of warmth, ‘Thanks, but no, I’ll be fine. I have a police guard outside my front door, remember?’
‘I’m glad to hear it. Can I call you tomorrow?’
Kate sighed, ‘No. But I might call you. If you’re lucky.’
‘I hope so. For someone to talk to, a shoulder to cry on, casual sex, you name it.’
Kate shook her head in bewilderment; he just never gave up! He was like a horny version of the Energiser bunny. ‘I’ll let you know. Bye.’
‘Wait!’ he said sharply. ‘Er, there is one other thing. I hate to even mention it but the press are going to go absolutely berserk about this. After the other two stories, I mean. They’re going to love it. I’m sorry, Kate, but I think you’d better be prepared for a media frenzy. I told you I saw some reporters outside earlier, waiting for you to emerge. Well, they aren’t going to go away until you talk to them.’
She closed her eyes and pressed down the cut-off but kept the receiver in her hand. That was all she needed. She sighed; what can’t be cured, must be endured. And a big bloody help that was. She took a deep breath and dialled her Aunt’s number, dreading the barrage of worried questions that was coming but knowing that it had to be done. And as it was inevitable, she might as well get it over with now. And in the end her family reacted in pretty much the ways she would have expected, with Josie doing everything she could to persuade her to visit them. She even enlisted Uncle George to the cause and he, in his quiet way, left Kate in no doubt how warm her welcome would be if she accepted the offer. The youngest boys, Martin and Gary, who still lived at home, both had their turns on the phone too, first pleading with her to visit and then offering to come and stay with her, as bodyguards.
Kate, touched by their concern, refused without laughing; at fifteen and thirteen respectively they took their masculinity very seriously indeed, and even loving, grateful laughter would have been a cruel blow to their burgeoning masculinity. But although she did it kindly Kate refused all offers of aid, and was finally allowed to hang up only after promising to set off for Cork if she were molested again in any way. She then rang her older cousins, first Sean and then Oisin, both of whom reacted in a similiar way to their younger brothers, save they both demanded that she set out immediately for their homes, to stay until the police captured the madman who had attacked her. Again Kate rejected their offers, and eventually they gave up, though Oisin seemed near tears at her refusal, and only let her go after she promised to ring him at the first sign of trouble.
When she finally got off the phone Kate was both mentally and emotionally drained. And yet there was a good feeling, a satisfaction, underlying the exhaustion. A feeling of being loved and wanted. Of belonging. And that feeling comforted her more than any words could have.
She made coffee and began thinking about food, but not with any great enthusiasm. There we go! she thought as she sat down in the kitchen, making a mental note for the thousandth time to change the awful, blue-flowered wallpaper that had been already there when she had purchased the apartment, I’ve invented the perfect diet. Personal trauma was the key. And if one can tie one’s personal life up into a sort of Gordian knot at the same time; why, so much the better. So long fat, forever!
In the end she settled for a Cup-A-Soup, wishing she could go and visit Sean Morrison but knowing that there was no point at this time of night; the staff would run her if she showed up so long after visiting hours. And nurses could be such bitches. It was strange; she had never met a man with a bad word to say about nurses, and rarely a woman with a good word to say about them. Which said a lot about the type of woman who went in for nursing. Or at least about her mood just then.
Her vague and slightly off-kilter musings were interrupted by the doorbell, and she closed her eyes and thought, Jesus Christ! What now?
She put her dirty cup and side plate into the sink and went out to answer the door, deciding that if it was Michael she would kick him in the balls and slam the door in his face. Not very lady-like, perhaps, but then she had never claimed to be a lady. And the past twenty-four hours had just about used up her store of patience and sympathy towards oversexed ego-maniacs.
She peeked through the glass panel and saw, to her horror, Peter standing there looking in at her. There was no escape; he had seen her so she had to open the door. But why didn’t I have a God damned shower? Or change yesterday’s slept-in clothes? Or even just brush my hair, for God’s sake? She steeled herself and opened the door, saying unenthusiastically, ‘Peter. Hi.’
There was a uniformed Gardai standing beside him him, though overshadowed a little by him, who now said, ‘Is this a friend of yours, miss?’
Kate nodded, ‘Yes. You can let him in.’
The cop vanished and Peter took a step forward. His face was hard and his dark brown eyes bored into her as he demanded, ‘Are you okay? I was driving up from Sligo and I heard what happened on the news. They didn’t mention your name but I knew it was you, and your guard-dog outside confirmed it. He was most reluctant to let me in until I explained who I was; he seemed to think I was a reporter, or something. There’s a gang of them across the road, by the way; your pet copper won’t even let them stand outside your gate.’ He paused, aware he no longer had the right to drop by unannounced, before saying awkwardly, ‘Er, I tried ringing but the phone’s been engaged and your mobile just rings out so I thought I’d come over and make sure you were okay.’
‘There was no need,’ she said, peeping around his bulk towards a small knot of reporters who were taking photos from across the street. She ducked back hurriedly, lowering her head to hide the sudden, unwanted tears that were welling there; Thank God she had returned home at an hour when most of them were still unconscious; she couldn’t have faced running that gauntlet. ‘I’m fine.’
His jaw tightened and there was a rasp to his voice as he said, ‘Aren’t you going to invite me in? If you don’t I assure you I’ll spend the night right here on your doorstep.’ He gave her a half-smile, ‘And it’s very cold!’
Kate gave a half-laugh, half-sob and simply turned and walked into the sitting-room. But she left the front door open and he took this as an invitation and followed her inside, firmly locking the door behind him. Kate sat in her armchair and Peter kneeled on the thick carpet in front of her, placing one hand on either arm of her chair and fixing her with his dark eyes as he asked, ‘Are you really okay? Were you hurt?’
She shook her head, ‘No, Sean came along before he could…do anything.’
‘Sean? Oh, the policeman. How is be?’
‘Out of danger, last I heard.’
He nodded, ‘I sent him a note, and flowers. I’ll have to call in and thank him in person as soon as he’s up to it. What about his family, do they need any help? Does his w
ife need anyone to help with the shopping or to run errands or anything?’
Kate shook her head but gave him a little smile, ‘His wife’s a Dub so she’s got her family to look after her. But thanks for the thought.’
He shrugged and went silent for a moment, before saying, ‘It’s not much, in view of what he did. Do you have any idea who it might have been?’
She shook her head and he asked, ‘Do the police?’
‘No. I thought it was some sort of random maniac at first, with a grudge against mental health professionals.’
He raised his brows, ‘Do I hear a but in there?’
Kate heaved a huge sigh, hating to do it but ready to tell him to mind his own business and just go away. But instead she somehow found herself telling him everything that had happened recently, up to Mullins’ idea that burglary had been the intruder’s aim rather than murder.
He listened intently before saying, with a frown, ‘He’s right, you know; you have to give him a copy of that file. Obviously we can forget Meagher or Straub as suspects, so all that leaves us with is whoever paid this Shiels guy to break in here. If he really exists, if this Madelyn girl was telling the truth, then he has something to hide, something worth killing over.’
‘I’m tired of telling people that there’s nothing in that file,’ snapped Kate.
Peter looked at her in amazement, as if she were an idiot, before saying simply, ‘That’s nothing to do with it. There probably is nothing in it. The point is that this guy clearly thinks there’s something in it. Fears there could be. And is willing to do almost anything to find out if there is or not.’
This silenced Kate as she realised that he was of course right. But it didn’t help uncover the identity of her unknown stalker. ‘I can’t think straight,’ she said at last, ‘I’m just going to sleep on it and worry about it tomorrow.’
Peter made no reply but from the expression on his face she could see him thinking; Same old Kate. Face nothing now, resolve nothing now, put everything off till later.
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