‘It’s opened a real can of worms. The two women were so different, and sadly, that has been at the forefront of the inquiries.’
‘The press are almost saying that Ella Watson should never have had her life ended in such a manner, but because Keira Bradley lived in the grinding cycle of deprivation, her death was inevitable. It’s disgusting,’ said Amber.
Ted brought in canapés and serviettes. Kelly took some and passed the plate along. She munched happily on the little balls of joy on the end of a cocktail stick and realised that she hadn’t eaten all day. That was probably where her dehydration headache had come from. Instead of taking on water, she’d popped paracetamol at work. Now she knew that her body craved sustenance and asked for the plate to be handed back. Ted said they were apricots wrapped in bacon and roasted with honey.
‘What happened to our society, where kids don’t dream any more?’ asked June.
Kelly stared at June, who fancied herself an intellectual, and had a habit of throwing curveballs into conversations. If she wasn’t so earnest, it would be clichéd.
‘Is that true?’ asked Kelly. ‘Callum, Josie, do you have dreams?’
‘I want to swim with sharks,’ Callum said.
Amber whistled. ‘I want to skinny-dip off a South Pacific island.’
‘That’s two of you who want to be eaten by sharks. No thanks.’ June rejected the idea.
‘I don’t think it’s necessarily guaranteed that if you swim naked in the Pacific you’ll get eaten by a shark. I think there are good odds of not being attacked,’ Callum said.
‘True. More chance of being in a car crash,’ Ted said.
‘Or being knifed.’ Josie brought the tone down, but she had a good point.
‘Come on, Kelly, tell us about the cases. Have you caught anyone yet? The Home Secretary is getting an absolute panning in the press.’
Kelly smiled. ‘I’m visiting the barricade tomorrow. Keira’s mother – you’ve probably seen her on TV – has done some amazing work in pulling the community together. I’ve never seen anything like it. No, we haven’t caught anyone yet, but these things take time: I’ve got to have hard evidence. It’s all very well finding fingerprints and DNA, but I’ve got to have someone to match it to.’
‘I saw her, she’s quite an impressive character,’ Amber said.
‘She is. Why don’t you visit the barricades yourselves; it really is an impressive sight. And now that Thomas Watson has offered two hundred grand for information, I’m hoping that any day now I’ll have the suspects in custody.’
‘Was it someone from the estate? Surely people know who they are?’
‘It’s not that easy. You can’t make an arrest without suspecting someone has committed a crime.’ Kelly tried to keep her answers generic. She didn’t let on that the CCTV was virtually useless because the men covered their faces, nor did she admit that the Cotton brothers and Tyrone Fenton had gone to ground.
‘I want to go to the barricades,’ Callum said. ‘We’re reading Orwell’s Road to Wigan Pier, studying the impact of the Great Depression on society in 1930s Britain, and I want to do a comparison to today.’
The adults in the room stared at him. Ted clapped his hands. ‘Now there’s ambition. Good for you, Callum! Kelly, you have to let him come with you. Or he could come with me. As chief coroner, I’ll need to visit the sites again myself. What about you, Josie?’
‘I don’t think…’ Johnny looked nervous.
‘Come with us if you’re worried,’ Ted said. Johnny couldn’t argue with that. It was sorted. They’d go en masse tomorrow and maybe Kelly would have time to see them.
‘It’s a movement! A social movement! That’s how it’s being reported in the press,’ Ted said, munching on another round of nibbles, this time devilled eggs.
‘The left-wing press, Dad,’ June said.
Amber snorted. ‘We all know you’re a Telegraph reader, June.’
Kelly looked at the sisters and realised that it wasn’t just her family who fought. She hadn’t seen or spoken to her own sister for a long time, and as the gap got wider, she felt less inclined to bridge it. She had two sisters right here and she watched them bicker, enjoying their exchanges.
Ted folded his arms and sighed. ‘They were like this when they were teenagers: one supported Labour, the other Tory. You’d never believe they were raised in the same household.’
‘I’d never have been able to start my business under Labour!’ June said.
‘And under the Tories, you’ll never get a pension!’ Amber retorted.
‘Girls!’ Ted stood between them. Callum and Josie laughed at the show. Amber flicked her hand as if to say the argument wasn’t worth it, and June rolled her eyes.
‘Right, let’s sit down and get this meal started,’ Ted said. They all helped bring dishes out and squeezed around the table. When he’d bought the small cottage, Ted hadn’t been expecting to entertain so many guests, but he wasn’t complaining. He brought a huge pot from the kitchen and they passed plates around, serving themselves with vegetables and rice. Quiet descended on the room.
‘This is lovely, Grandad,’ said Josie.
Kelly stared at her, and then at Johnny, who was looking at Josie with so much love and pride that she felt a tiny flinch of regret that she didn’t have a child of her own with this man.
Chapter 36
It was gone 9 p.m. when DC Emma Hide called Kelly on her mobile. She felt cosy on the sofa, surrounded by her family, after a wonderful meal and laughter to keep her soul light. Now, her stomach turned over. Emma would never disturb her if it was trivial.
Johnny and Ted looked at her simultaneously and knew what was coming.
‘Guv, Jackson Akers has just walked into the station with Tyrone Fenton.’
Kelly stood up and went into the kitchen.
‘What the hell?’
‘They’re in the interview suite. I thought you’d want to talk to them yourself. They’ve waived their right to a lawyer.’
‘Of course, thanks, Emma, I’ll be there in twenty minutes.’
She hung up.
‘I’m sorry, guys, I’ve got to go back to the office.’
‘How much have you drunk? Want me to take you?’ Johnny asked. He’d only had one glass of champagne and a beer.
‘Please.’
She hugged her father and everyone else in turn, promising to make this a regular occasion.
She was thankful for the opportunity to talk to Johnny in private.
‘It was good to see you relax for a couple of hours.’
‘It was lovely. I could do that every night of the week.’
‘No you couldn’t. You’d all fall out, like any family, and you’d get bored.’
She smiled, knowing that it was the fact that the evening was unusual that made it so special.
‘What’s up?’
‘Ormond basically threatened me again this afternoon.’
‘In what way?’
‘Pretty directly. He keeps reminding me that he chooses the SIO on a case, and his implication leaves me thinking that if I don’t do as he says, my career is in jeopardy.’
‘There’s only one reason to get rid of his best detective.’
‘Because if I really am that good, then I’ll unearth something he doesn’t want getting out.’
‘Have you found anything solid yet?’
‘I’m looking into it. He’s had associations with some unsavoury criminals in the past and I wonder how involved he was. Will seems to be well and truly in his pocket. He’s been cagey with me for the first time ever, and he won’t answer my questions directly. He’s also been working covertly with informants, without my knowledge.’
‘And you think he’s doing it for Ormond?’
‘Yes, but it seems to be coercive.’
‘He has something on Will?’
‘That’s what I’m worried about. I hope not.’
‘You rate Will?’
‘Of course. He
’s part of my dream team. Maybe I’ve been naïve.’
They pulled up outside Eden House and kissed. Johnny told her to call him for a lift, but she said she’d get a squad car to drop her off, and not to wait up.
DC Emma Hide had been busy. The office was empty, and she told Kelly what she’d dug up.
‘I’m trying to trace a shipment of contraband that was apprehended at Kendal services, in four lorries, seven years ago. It was one of the largest drug busts in recent years, not counting Barrow, of course. It was all logged and sent to various holding depots, but the trail stops dead and the paperwork doesn’t add up. I can’t find it beyond 2016. Each component should have been destroyed as scheduled, but I can’t find confirmation that several containers were actually disposed of in the correct manner.’
‘Several? Plural?’ Kelly asked.
‘Four full-sized containers.’
‘That’s a lot of contraband. Who was in charge of the operation?’
‘I don’t recognise the names of any of the drug squad officers, but there is a memo from HQ recommending they have executive authority over the operation because of the size of it. Lancaster was trying to muscle in too, as well as Greater Manchester, because of the provenance of the goods.’
‘Which was?’
‘It’s unclear. North-west, I think, but Cumbria won it. The final authority checking the figures submitted by the drug squad from there on was Superintendent Ormond, who was also the senior officer overseeing every transaction and movement of the goods.’
‘Where were they supposed to go?’
‘Preston depot. And that’s where the paperwork gets lost.’
‘Jesus. What was the contraband?’
‘Class A and B drugs, cash and firearms.’
Seven years ago was way before Kelly had returned to Cumbria from the Met, and she hadn’t heard of this case before. She couldn’t help thinking that Ormond was somehow involved with making the contraband disappear, no doubt for huge personal financial gain. Again Tombday came to mind, because part of Barry Crawley’s involvement had been using his haulage company to move illegal immigrants.
‘Did you notice the name of the haulage company?’
‘I was getting to that. It was Crawley and Son.’
Kelly’s mind wandered to London and the Coryn Boulder case, which had led to her shameful departure from a job she had loved almost four years ago. It was her first and only experience of misogynistic betrayal at the Met. But now she couldn’t help thinking that she faced a similar threat. And it caused the same anxiety. In her core, she knew that Ormond was up to no good; she simply couldn’t explain his behaviour any other way. Now she had something to work on. It was something to take to the counter-corruption intelligence unit.
She tried to concentrate on her job in the moment, to distract her. Worrying about everything wouldn’t get them answers.
‘Any new intel on where the Cotton brothers are?’
‘No. But I did get a message from the lab on the bag of clothes found in Tyrone Fenton’s flat. They performed a Kastle–Meyer test, and it’s positive. It’s blood.’ The test used the chemical phenolphthalein to detect haemoglobin.
‘Encouraging. DNA profile?’
‘They’re working on it.’
A call came through to Kelly’s personal mobile. Superintendent Ormond.
‘Shit.’
She took the call with clenched fists and heart pumping. She felt sick. She’d begun to believe his threat was all hot air.
‘Sir.’ She spoke firmly.
‘Porter.’ He sounded drunk. ‘What can I tell Tom Watson?’
‘It’s early days yet, sir.’ She didn’t want to let on that Tyrone Fenton had just walked into Eden House, nor did she want a lengthy exchange with an aggressive high-ranking officer under the influence.
‘I’ve come to expect this from you, Porter. It’s a bit like that case that finished you in London, isn’t it? Leaving loose ends, going your own way. Find the evidence, or you’re finished. You’re close to suspension as it is over your bungling of the interview notes of a prime suspect.’
‘Excuse me, sir?’ Kelly’s stomach dropped to her feet.
‘Losing vital interview records; I have the report in front of me now. A technician familiar with HOLMES has confirmed that you were responsible for the interview of a key witness and potential suspect, and there’s no record of it. Check your notes, Porter. Sloppy work. This is your final warning.’ He hung up.
‘Guv?’
Emma’s voice was a low hum in her head. Kelly’s hands were shaking, and it took all of her strength to compose herself. She was aware that she was crumbling in front of a junior officer and a valued member of her team. Her world was falling apart, but why? The only reason could be that she was getting too close to something.
‘You all right, guv?’
Kelly looked at Emma and nodded. ‘I’m sure there’s been some mistake. He said I was responsible for messing up information on HOLMES. To be honest, I don’t know what he’s talking about. He sounded as though he was slurring his words.’
‘I’m here until midnight, boss, I’ll find out as much as I can about the Preston depot and the missing contraband. Are you planning to talk to Fenton and Akers?’
‘Who? Oh, of course! Yes. Let’s go.’
Chapter 37
Kelly and Emma walked to the lifts and took the elevator down to the interview suites. Jackson Akers and Tyrone Fenton had been asked to wait inside, and as the officers entered, Tyrone stood up. Jackson pulled him down and Tyrone sank back into his chair. Kelly studied both of them and made the introductions. She wished for an instant that Rob was here, but reassured herself that Eden House contained more than enough manpower to protect her.
Tyrone looked uncomfortable. Kelly watched Jackson for signs of deceit, trickery or game-playing, but found none.
‘Jackson, do you want to enlighten me on why you’ve both decided to come in tonight?’
‘Tyrone heard that you guys were looking for him, you know; about Keira.’
At the mention of the dead girl, Tyrone looked down and closed his eyes. Kelly noticed that he had his sleeves pulled over his hands.
‘Tyrone? Why do you think we want to talk to you?’
‘’Cause she was my girl, and I ran away.’
‘Why did you run away?’
‘I was told to!’
‘By whom?’
Tyrone looked at Jackson and Kelly thought he might bottle it and change his mind about whatever he’d come here to tell her.
‘Jason Cotton.’
‘And why did he tell you to run?’
‘He told all of us to lay low, else we’d be taken down for Keira’s murder.’
‘Did you kill Keira?’
‘No, man! I did not!’
Kelly stayed calm, encouraging the same from Tyrone.
‘Do you know who did kill her?’
Tyrone nodded.
‘Were you a witness?’
He nodded again and sniffed, wiping his sleeve over his nose. Kelly caught a glimpse of a cut on his left hand.
‘Who did it?’
‘Jason.’
‘And you saw it?’
Tyrone nodded.
‘Are you willing to testify?’
Another nod. Jackson patted his friend on the back.
Tyrone carried on. ‘Jason gave me his clothes and the knife, and told me to disappear for a while.’
‘Do you have them?’
Jackson produced a bag from under his jumper. Kelly couldn’t believe what she was seeing.
‘Would you be willing to supply a DNA sample and fingerprints to rule you out, Tyrone?’
Tyrone glared at Jackson, then back at Kelly, and nodded. Emma took a swab from a box and rubbed it around his mouth. They could do the prints later.
‘Why did Jason do it, Tyrone?’
‘He said he was told to, but he didn’t know why. It happens. I tried to stop him.’<
br />
‘And that’s how you got that cut on your hand?’
Tyrone touched the wound self-consciously and nodded.
‘Who told him to do it?’
‘Dunno.’
For the first time, Kelly didn’t believe him.
‘When you say “it happens”, do you mean that Jason often kills or maims to order?’
Tyrone looked at Jackson. ‘She means does Jason take orders and carry them out?’
Jackson turned to Kelly and said that he did.
‘Who else?’
‘Adam, his brother.’
‘What about Ella Watson?’
Jackson and Tyrone exchanged glances.
‘We don’t know nuffin’ about that one,’ Tyrone said.
‘That one? It sounds like they were both contracts. Is that the case?’
‘Could be,’ Tyrone said.
‘Why, though? We can’t find any reason to take out Ella. There simply is no motive, unless…’ Kelly fell silent and looked at Jackson. ‘Unless it was a mistake.’
Jackson moved his head almost imperceptibly up and down, but Kelly saw it and she locked eyes with him.
‘They had to take out somebody but took her out by mistake, thinking they were doing the right thing, to make it look like a senseless killing. Did Jason do that too?’
‘I think it was his brother. Adam’s a loose cannon. Jason beat him half to death for something and I think that’s what it was. On Wednesday afternoon, I saw Adam and he was stoned. He was with another guy and they looked like they were wound up, you know? Buzzing about something.’
‘That still doesn’t tell me why they were looking for someone to stab. When you say Adam’s a loose cannon, do you mean he’s killed randomly before?’
Jackson thought about it. ‘I never heard him attack no one for no reason; it was always a rival, for drugs or a girl.’
‘None of that applies to Mrs Watson. Why are you telling me all this? You’re both guilty of withholding information, and Tyrone, you were party to murder.’
‘We thought we could make a deal.’ Jackson spoke quietly and Kelly understood how hard this was for him to admit. He was a young man who’d got away with his life on so many occasions, toeing the line and informing police, but now he was in too deep. The error – if she could prove it – in killing Ella Watson was causing calamitous ripples for the whole Cotton network on the Beacon Estate. But these two men trusted her and she felt deep remorse that she might not be able to protect them. If Ormond took her off the case, anything could happen.
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