The Hidden

by Sally Spencer

  ‘But you’d lost your hard-on, and nothing you could do would bring it back,’ Crane said.

  ‘It was not my failure,’ John Green said. ‘The Holy Spirit, which resides in all members of the Hidden—’

  ‘You couldn’t get it up – and that enraged you so much that you punished her poor dead body with scalding tea,’ Meadows interrupted him.

  ‘I used the tea to purify her,’ John Green said calmly.

  ‘She didn’t need purifying,’ Meadows said. ‘When she told you she was a virgin, it was no more than the truth.’

  John smiled. ‘She was the whore of Babylon, and like all of Satan’s agents, you are attempting to deceive me – but it won’t work because I have the strength of Almighty God behind me.’

  ‘You saw Monika Paniatowski as you were leaving the woods, you realized that she’d recognized you, and you knew you had to kill her?’

  ‘Yes – I didn’t want to, of course, but I had no choice in the matter.’

  ‘No choice?’

  ‘That’s right. If I hadn’t done anything, I’d have been arrested – and God could not spare me.’

  ‘Well, it looks like he’ll have to spare you now,’ Crane said.

  John Green smiled again. ‘Oh ye of little faith,’ he said. ‘God will rescue me from your wicked hands, just as he rescued Daniel from the lion’s den. How do you think I could have found my way to Monika Paniatowski’s room, without his help?’

  ‘It seems to me it would be a pretty dumb kind of god who would lead you straight into a trap,’ Crane said.

  ‘On this occasion, the devil managed to deceive Him, but the ultimate victory belongs to the Lord,’ John Green said.

  ‘It wasn’t so much a case of the devil deceiving God as DI Beresford deceiving you,’ Meadows said. ‘DCI Paniatowski had shown none of the signs of improvement they said she had on the radio – that message was just for you. And it wasn’t God who caused the power cut – that was us.’

  ‘But why would you …?’

  ‘We’d been following your progress since you entered the hospital, and you’d clearly lost your way. The power cut was the only way we could think of that would put you back on the right track without arousing your suspicions.’

  ‘You’re lying, aren’t you?’ John Green asked.

  ‘You know we’re not,’ Meadows said.

  Green looked at her blankly for a moment, and then he began to bang his head on the table – lightly at first, and then with increasing ferocity.

  It took three officers to restrain him until a straitjacket could be found.

  DS Higgins stood awkwardly in front of DCI Dixon’s desk.

  ‘I’ve had Barry Hodges released,’ Rhino Dixon said.

  ‘So I’ve heard, sir,’ Higgins replied, noncommittally.

  ‘And now, I’d like you to place your warrant card and your handcuffs on my desk,’ Dixon said.

  ‘I don’t understand, sir,’ Higgins protested.

  ‘Of course you do,’ Dixon said. ‘You’re being suspended, prior to an investigation into your conduct during the Mary Green investigation.’

  ‘But you went along with the whole thing, sir,’ Higgins whined. ‘You said we had a solid case.’

  ‘Yes, I did, didn’t I?’ Dixon agreed. ‘But, you see, I didn’t have all the facts then. I didn’t know, for example, that though it was DC Bell who discovered Mary’s knickers in Barry’s room, you’d been in the room yourself for a full ten minutes before Bell began his search. What does that suggest to you?’

  ‘I wanted Bell to search because he had a fresh pair of eyes.’

  ‘You wanted Bell to search because it’s always wiser not to discover evidence you’ve planted yourself.’

  ‘I did it for you, sir,’ Higgins said pleadingly. ‘I did it to make up for the cock-up when we raided Jim Coles’ house.’

  Yes, he probably had done it with the best of motives in mind, Dixon conceded, but it had only served to make matters worse.

  He could not touch Beresford now – the bastard was probably laughing behind his hand, because though he had initially been wrong about who had killed Mary Green, he had not been all that wrong, and anyway, now he had made an arrest, nothing else mattered.

  And then there was the press – they would mock him for arresting the wrong man on top of raiding the wrong house, and he supposed he couldn’t blame them.

  The chief constable wouldn’t be exactly his biggest fan, either.

  And worst of all, he had handed his wife enough ammunition to torture him unrelentingly for at least a month.

  ‘Sir …’ Higgins said tentatively.

  ‘The force doesn’t need bobbies like you,’ Dixon said. ‘Put your handcuffs and warrant card on the desk – and then get out of my sight.’

  EPILOGUE

  There had been the first frost of the autumn overnight, and there was still a nip in the air as Louisa, dressed in her smart cadet’s uniform, had made her way to the hospital.

  Now, she was looking down at her mother, who looked so peaceful that she might just have been asleep.

  ‘I’m loving being a cadet, but it’s been a tough first week, Mum,’ Louisa said. She smiled. ‘Of course, I expect you and all the other old hands would say we’re having an easy time of it compared to your day.’ She paused. ‘The boys are missing you. I’ve told them that they’re such hard work that you needed a holiday from them, but you’ll be back soon. And you’d better not prove me a liar – or there will be hell to pay.’

  She walked over to the window, and looked out. The trees in the hospital’s grounds were starting to lose their leaves, and soon they would be nothing but blackened skeletons.

  ‘What else?’ she asked. ‘Oh yes, they’ve made Uncle Colin acting DCI. He didn’t want it, but Kate and Jack said that if he didn’t agree to keep your seat warm for you, they’d probably bring in someone from outside – and that’s the last thing anybody wants.’

  She looked down at her watch.

  ‘I have to go, Mum, but I’ll call in again later.’ She hesitated before speaking again. ‘I hope you don’t mind, Mum, but I’m using Dad’s name at work. It wasn’t an easy decision to take, but Police Cadet Louisa Rutter can just be judged on her own merits, whereas Police Cadet Louisa Paniatowski would always be expected to live up to the legend that is her mother.’ She examined Paniatowski’s face for a reaction, but could see none. ‘Anyway, as I said, I have to go,’ she concluded.

  Paniatowski listened to her footsteps, and heard her close the door with gentle consideration behind her.

  Ah, my beautiful, wonderful Louisa, she thought to herself. I wish I could tell you how very, very proud I am of you.

  And then, for the first time in a long time, she thought she felt a physical sensation.

  It was a tear running down her cheek – she was sure it was.

  Or was she?

  Maybe it was just her mind playing tricks with her – making her think there was a tear when there was really nothing at all.

  But real or imaginary, she chose to take it as a sign of hope.