SECRET CRIMES a gripping crime thriller full of suspense

by MICHAEL HAMBLING

  Her mobile beeped. It was a text message from Jen Allbright, stationed outside. “He’s here.” Sophie glanced at tall, burly Greg Buller, and nodded. He spoke briefly into his phone, turned back and nodded at Sophie. They were off.

  Nothing seemed to happen for several minutes. Then she became aware that the team members she could see were all advancing unobtrusively in the same direction. Greg Buller was moving down an escalator, towards the centre of the check-in area. Sophie caught her first glimpse of their quarry, making his way through the clusters of people gathered in the vast concourse. She could just make out several members of the team, closing in on him slowly.

  Then things went badly wrong. A group of people, obviously a choir, suddenly stood up and broke into song at one side of the concourse. A second group, some yards away, also stood up, singing a response. Naturally, people’s heads turned towards the sudden musical distraction and several started to clap along with the unexpected entertainment. From where she stood, Sophie could clearly see what happened next. Their man slowed and looked around uneasily. He must have seen that a number of people had not switched their attention to the singing. They were all straining to keep him in view as they made their way through the surging crowd. He’d seen that he was being watched.

  The reaction was instant. He turned and ducked away, bending his tall frame so that he could be seen less easily. He headed into the thickest part of the crowd, now gathered around one of the singing groups. Then he doubled back towards the nearest exit. Even Sophie was having trouble keeping him in sight.

  * * *

  Down on the concourse Rae realised instantly what was happening. She could see their quarry pause. She guessed he must have realised that there were security officers and police personnel in the concourse, all looking out for him. She slowly rose from her seat and moved diagonally across the open area towards him, all the time pretending to read her magazine while she surreptitiously undid the clasp of her shoulder bag and fumbled inside it. So, when it happened, she was in the right place and fully prepared.

  * * *

  Sophie was beginning to feel panic herself. She knew there were officers outside who would prevent his escape, but the whole idea had been to detain him quickly and efficiently when he wasn’t expecting it. He now knew. What would he do? Would he attempt to escape by himself, or grab a nearby person as a hostage? A hostage situation was every officer’s worst nightmare. So much depended on the reaction of the hostage taken. It was impossible to plan for every eventuality. Who knew how a terrified member of the public would react to being held against their will? She looked again. What was Rae doing? She seemed to be wandering towards their man, her eyes on the magazine held in front of her. And then Sophie understood. Rae was putting herself forward as a potential hostage. Her disguise was perfect. She was just a slightly dozy tourist, who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. And it worked.

  * * *

  An arm snaked round Rae’s neck, pulling her in close. She gasped and then relaxed into his movements, giving no resistance. He pulled her back towards an exit doorway.

  As the police and security team closed in he shouted, ‘I’ve got a knife at her back!’

  They stopped. Greg Buller was closest. His fists clenched and unclenched in helpless anger. Barry Marsh stood still beside him.

  ‘Do what I say or I’ll use it. Clear a path to the door and let us through.’

  He started to move backwards towards the exit, one arm around Rae’s neck. She gasped. Then she saw his feet. Soft suede shoes. Rae was wearing high, wedge-soled sandals with a small, hard heel. It was now or never. She stamped down hard onto the front of one foot, grinding her heel into the toes. She felt his body stiffen but, before he had time to react, she jabbed her elbow into his midriff with all the force she could muster. Then she spun around and kicked him hard in the groin. He crumpled to the ground. Rae kicked out again, knocking the knife from his grasp. She pulled a can of incapacitant spray from her bag and pointed it at his face.

  ‘Just don’t,’ she panted. ‘Don’t make me use it.’

  By now Marsh and Buller were beside them. They turned him over and fitted the handcuffs. Rae replaced the unused canister into her bag, just as Sophie arrived. Rae’s boss looked down at the figure with grim satisfaction, then across to Rae, still panting hard from her exertions.

  ‘You do it, Rae. You deserve it.’

  Rae looked around her at her fellow officers, the crowds of gaping people, and finally at her new boss who had given her the chance to show what she could do. Rae, still breathing rapidly, looked back at her and nodded. She calmed herself for a moment before speaking.

  ‘Patrick Adams, I am arresting you on suspicion of murder. You do not have to say anything. But it may harm your defence if you do not mention, when questioned, something which you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.’

  Rae turned to Sophie and gave a broad smile. Greg Buller gave her a bow. Barry Marsh shook her hand. The crowd, silent until now, broke into spontaneous applause. Rae had never felt happier in her life. It couldn’t get any better than this. She walked across to Sophie Allen and gave her a hug before breaking into tears, her head buried in the older woman’s shoulder.

  * * *

  Talking to Adams was like trying to communicate with a serpent. Gone was the carefully-controlled, moderate manner of Sunday morning. His eyes burned, smouldering with pure hatred.

  ‘Why?’ Sophie asked. ‘Why did you do it? What was the point of it, for goodness’ sake?’

  His lip curled, but no words came out, just a slight hiss.

  ‘You know why you’re here, Mr Adams. There are two people dead, another is hanging onto life by a mere thread. We don’t even need to question you, not really. We have all the evidence a court will ever need, with more due over the next few days. We have your fingerprints all over John Renton’s house, even in the bloodstains on the knife you used to stab him. All I want to know is why. How did it come to this? How did you, an educated, apparently rational man allow yourself to reach this state? Why did you have to take such a barbaric course of action?’ She shook her head.

  His eyes glittered. He didn’t speak.

  ‘And last night? Did John finally work out who’d been masquerading as him? How did it happen? Were there a few questions? Some half-baked explanations on your part? Gradual realisation? And then a knife in the gut as a reward. Stabbed by the man he considered a close friend, but in reality his sister’s killer.’ She stared back across the table at him. ‘You don’t intimidate me, you perverted creep.’

  She spoke to Marsh. ‘Let’s get him back to Dorset, get the duty solicitor in and charge him.’ She turned to Adams. ‘You’re looking at thirty years at least. How old will you be when you get out? Eighty? Eighty-five? Ninety? Is it likely, really, that you’ll ever get out?’ She let her words sink in. Was any of it worth it? When you stand back from it all, Mr Adams, and consider what you’ve done, you have to ask yourself that question. Was it worth it?’

  Chapter 27: Barbecue

  Saturday afternoon

  It was one of those warm, mid-October days that seem to be sent from heaven. It was now mid-afternoon. All the heavy morning dew had disappeared from the lawn. The flowers and shrubs were well past their best, but were making a valiant effort to recapture a little of their summer glory. One of the apple trees still bore its crop, a late variety whose fruit glowed in the sunlight.

  On the patio, Martin Allen sipped at his glass of beer while tending the barbecue. Hannah, his and Sophie’s elder daughter, was pouring a glass of ale for her boyfriend. Jade was trying to sip from a small glass of beer while keeping hold of her companion, who was clearly nervous at being in her parents’ company for the first time. He didn’t seem to be sure whether he ought to be holding hands with Jade. Barry Marsh smiled and wondered if he should be feeling pity for this young man. Did he know just what he was letting himself in for? Jade was certainly v
ery attractive, but so far this afternoon Marsh had managed to steer clear of her. He never knew what she was going to say and how he should respond to it. Best to avoid her. Gwen put her hand on his arm.

  ‘Let’s go and chat to Jade,’ she said. ‘She’s such a lovely young woman.’

  ‘Hello, Barry,’ Jade said. ‘I saw you watching me. I don’t bite, you know.’

  How had she seen him watching her? It had only been a couple of surreptitious glances, for goodness’ sake. Before he could speak, Gwen burst into laughter.

  ‘She’s joking, Barry,’ she giggled. ‘She’s teasing you. Don’t take it so seriously. If you could just see how worried you look!’

  Jade took Barry by the arm, pulling him away from Gwen towards a bench seat on the lawn. ‘Sit down,’ she ordered. He did. She sat down beside him, then leant towards him and spoke quietly. ‘Barry, I want you to know how much I appreciate how you’ve looked after Mum at work. How much we all do, really. It’s great to know that you’ll be there most of the time now. It means we can all rest a bit easier. I don’t think anyone realises how worried we were about her over the past few months. Things are going to be so much easier now we know that you’ll be there to keep an eye on her. You’ll do that for us, won’t you? Keep looking after her, I mean?’

  ‘Of course,’ he replied. ‘I mean, I’ll do my best to.’ He couldn’t think of anything else to say. Jade kissed his cheek, then pulled him to his feet and took him back to Gwen and the nervous boyfriend.

  ‘Why does she do these things?’ he said to Gwen, once the young couple had moved away. ‘I never know how to react.’

  ‘I think she likes you,’ Gwen replied. ‘I don’t blame her. I like you too. In fact I like you rather a lot. What was the kiss for?’

  ‘I think she was thanking me, but I’m a bit confused by it.’

  The two of them walked over to have a chat with Benny Goodall, the county’s senior pathologist. He was standing quietly to one side, glass of wine in hand, admiring a bed of late-flowering dahlias. He looked up as they approached.

  ‘I’m glad you got it solved quickly,’ he said. ‘She’s still not fully fit, as I’m sure you’ve guessed. I would have worried if the case had dragged on too long.’

  Barry nodded. ‘We were lucky. That, coupled with some determined work from the team, saw us through.’

  ‘Do you have the whole picture yet?’

  ‘Almost. All the major bits and pieces, anyway. John Renton, Sarah’s half-brother, regained consciousness a couple of days ago. He’s been able to fill in a few of the gaps. And we found a lot of stuff at Adams’s house that helped us complete the picture. He’d been seeing Sarah for a long time, since before she split with her first husband. He originally met her through Renton, though Renton didn’t know that they’d become lovers. Apparently they kept the relationship secret because he was in a messy divorce at the time. He was due to inherit some money and didn’t want to put it at risk. Adams had always been besotted with her, but it got a lot more serious when they went on a cruise together and got married on a whim, on a Barbados beach. We don’t know why she did it, not really, since she should have known it would restrict her activities. Maybe she didn’t take it seriously, but Adams certainly did. We think that she regretted the wedding almost straight away, that’s why she didn’t tell anyone. Maybe he got too controlling. But it clearly preyed upon his mind. We think she treated him like just another casual lover even though, legally, they were married. Seeing him when it suited her, refusing to move in with him, keeping her own flat. It was a recipe for disaster.’

  ‘But why now? Why wait this long? And why resort to such extreme violence?’

  Marsh ran his fingers through his hair. ‘That was always our problem. We couldn’t see the motive for why it happened a couple of weeks ago, rather than when they first split. But apparently he didn’t know about the group sex. He just thought she was having occasional affairs, particularly because he was away with the NATO training team a lot. Then he saw a video of her on the internet, performing with two men — Shapiro and Paul Derek. And he felt totally humiliated. He would have seen it as a complete betrayal. He realised that the wedding had just been a bit of a laugh as far as she was concerned, and the resentment built up. He went after all three of them. Shapiro is lucky to still be alive. We still don’t know the sequence of events that Friday night, after Shapiro and Lily Dalton left. We suspect that Adams drugged Renton with some rohypnol on the Friday afternoon in Germany, which is why he went to his room for the rest of the day and slept. That left Adams a clear twenty-four hour window. He had everything timed to perfection. He flew to Bournemouth late that afternoon, taking a return flight on the Saturday afternoon, just after dumping Derek’s body at Burton Cliffs. Military police found some residual rohypnol in Adams’s quarters at Bielefeld, along with some of the benzodiazepine that he used on Paul Derek. He must have been busy even when he returned to Germany, because he traced where Lily lived on the internet. Will we ever get to the bottom of it all? I’m not sure we will. But we are looking into his background. There’s violent stuff there against some other women in his life, including his first wife. Maybe that’s why Sarah left him so soon after their wedding and never spoke about it.’

  * * *

  When Rosemary Corrigan and Ed Wilton arrived, Sophie tapped a fork on the side of her glass.

  ‘I’m glad everyone could make it this afternoon,’ she said. ‘I have a whole list of thank-you messages to make, so make sure you’ve all got a drink to see you through the next few minutes.’ She took a swig of beer from her glass. ‘Summer Lightning,’ she said. Gwen looked at Barry, but he merely shrugged his shoulders.

  ‘It’s the beer,’ whispered Hannah, who was standing nearby. ‘Multi-award-winning.’

  ‘Anyway,’ Sophie continued. ‘Let me start with Rosemary and Ed, who’ve shown such forbearance and understanding in recent days. Something positive has come out of all of this. They’ve found each other. It cheers me up immensely to think that I played a part in that.’

  Rosemary and Ed raised their glasses.

  ‘To Lydia, who’s come across from Bath for the afternoon. I’m so grateful that she could help out with part of the investigation. She has a great future ahead of her. And to Gwen, on completely unofficial loan from Southampton, so unofficial that her boss doesn’t even know about it, who supplied us with a couple of key bits of information. Thanks, Gwen. I’m sure we’ll be seeing more of you.’ Another mouthful of beer. ‘Let me move on to the local crew. Tom Rose will be retiring very soon. You deserve a long and happy retirement, Tom. You may not know this, but you’ve always been one of the most widely-respected area inspectors in the county. We’ll all miss you.’

  Tom Rose’s wife gave him a peck on the cheek.

  ‘To Jimmy, soon off to join Kevin McGreedie’s unit in Bournemouth. Thanks for all of your work, Jimmy, on this case and the previous ones, and I hope you’re looking forward to the move. I’m so glad that I could help you land the transfer you wanted. To Jen and Jack, uniformed duo extraordinaire, a huge thanks. You’ve both been fantastic during the past couple of weeks and I can’t thank you both enough.’ She took another sip. ‘As for the new member of our team, Rae Gregson, well, what can I say? She’s done a stunning job, got herself concussed, bruised, badly cut and still limped back for more. And that performance at Gatwick was just amazing, and so brave. You’ve passed your first test with flying colours, Rae, so I can now officially say, welcome to the team!’

  A spontaneous round of applause broke out and Rae fidgeted awkwardly before replying. ‘I just want to say thanks to you all. You’ve made me feel so welcome and I feel I’ve fitted in really well. I’ve loved every minute of it.’

  ‘Now have I forgotten anybody?’ Sophie asked, looking around. ‘Is that everyone covered?’

  ‘Mum,’ Jade said, ‘Do you want me to put you to bed early with no cocoa? Because that’s what happens to naughty girls.’