Silent Scream

by Lynda La Plante

  Sheila Cox was calm and spoke softly, saying encouragingly how impressed they had been by Anna’s application form. The meeting would be an opportunity for the three of them to assess Anna’s competency in answering questions, and they would be asking her about the case examples she had written up in her application.

  ‘You will be given a folder, and you will leave the meeting to prepare a fifteen-minute oral presentation on how you would deal with the situation described on the pages inside. Then you’ll be given a written exercise which is a report on how you would deal with that same situation. Is that all clear?’

  ‘Yes, thank you.’

  A small side door opened and Anna’s heart stopped.

  ‘Detective Chief Superintendent James Langton,’ Miss Cox said, gesturing towards him.

  Anna now knew who the hardnosed one was. He gave her barely a glimmer of recognition, merely nodding his head as he took his seat.

  ‘Sorry to keep you waiting,’ Langton said to the panel, again pointedly ignoring Anna.

  Miss Cox waited for him to open his file. She then glanced to her right and received a nod from Superintendent Smith.

  ‘Right, I think we should begin.’

  It was almost an hour later, and Anna felt drained. Both Cox and Smith had questioned her case examples in detail. Langton appeared to be almost bored, leaning back in his chair, clicking his ballpoint pen on and off. He said not a word until she finished discussing her part in her second murder enquiry, and then he remarked abruptly, ‘There was a very worrying leakage to the press during this enquiry. What do you have to say about that?’

  Anna explained nervously that, to her knowledge, the leaks had helped garner information that the murder team were able to use to their advantage, especially as the killer was manipulating the press himself.

  On every one of Anna’s application cases that had involved her working alongside Langton, he brought up specific areas she knew he had queried at the time and even warned her about. Eventually she was excused to return to the waiting room and prepare for the next session.

  ‘Shit!’ she muttered as she began to read the folder. Can you really sleepwalk into a crime was the heading. The file highlighted the case of a murder which had been committed by a suspect who claimed he had been asleep at the time. It showed how worrying the concept was to the police, how difficult a task they faced to distinguish legitimate sleepwalkers from those using it as an excuse for their behaviour. One expert claimed that sleepwalking, once seen as an eccentric and harmless activity, was rapidly taking on an altogether more sinister aspect. Anna started to make copious notes.

  It was almost midday when she was called back into the hot seat to embark on her oral presentation. She was allowed to refer to her notes, but knew it would make a better impression to keep her head up and show confidence.

  ‘I believe that family history plays an important part in the truth of a suspect’s claim to have been sleepwalking while committing a crime. So if there is a history of sleepwalking in childhood, then it’s possible it can continue into adulthood, but the reality is that it would also require a hereditary disposition. Triggers such as stress, lack of sleep and alcohol can set off a sleepwalking incident, but the controversial element is …’ She hesitated. She couldn’t remember what she was going to discuss next. There was a long pause as they waited. She tried to recall some of the most pertinent facts she had just read, but she couldn’t think. Her mind had gone blank.

  Langton leaned back in his chair clicking his pen again, while Smith tapped the table with his fingers as if bored.

  ‘So, Detective Travis, explain to us how you would deal with a perpetrator who had killed his mother and then pleaded sleepwalking as his defence …’

  It was only 3 p.m. when Anna handed in her written report but it felt much later. She waited to be interviewed by the psychologist. By this time she had consumed too much coffee and felt bloated, and her nerves were ragged.

  In the ladies’ room, she washed her face in cold water, but felt no calmer. On the contrary, she was anxious about her performance. She was certain that Langton would be giving her a bad report. He had appeared distracted throughout, and had hardly asked any questions about her presentation. He had made plenty of notes, but whether they had anything to do with the process, she had no idea.

  The next session did little to boost Anna’s confidence. The psychologist took so long in between asking her questions, she sensed that there was a hidden agenda. She wondered whether or not his slow delivery was designed to make her more nervous than she already was, or more paranoid because he kept on repeating one specific query.

  ‘Explain to me what you want to achieve.’

  ‘Promotion,’ she said rather sharply. ‘That’s why I am here.’

  After another lengthy pause, he came up with another question.

  ‘Can you explain to me why, on numerous past cases, you have been reprimanded for perhaps appearing to be an over-achiever?’

  ‘I don’t understand your question.’

  As he slowly repeated it, Anna knew that Langton had to have given, in his report, details of the times he had reprimanded her regarding her continual habit of working alone. She became so enraged that she clenched her hands into fists.

  ‘If by over-achieving you mean getting a result in a case, then I still don’t understand your question. I have never, on any case, considered achievement to be an objective. I love my work, I only want to give the best of myself and to gain the best possible result – that is, the arrest of a perpetrator.’

  ‘Do you think that is what you have done?’ This time, his question came hot on the heels of her last answer.

  ‘Yes, I believe so.’

  ‘What about working as a team member? Do you find that difficult?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Can you give me a more expansive answer?’

  ‘Well, I am here to gain promotion. That would make me a leader of a team, rather than a sheep, and I think that I have all the right qualities for that position.’

  ‘Do you find it difficult to impart information that you have uncovered to others in your team?’

  ‘Not at all. If at any time I’ve appeared to be working alone, then it has been purely down to circumstances.’

  ‘Would you call yourself a risk-taker?’

  Anna was getting increasingly angry. ‘Risk to whom? Myself or losing the case? As a police officer one is constantly at risk, and I am prepared to put myself in that position if necessary.’

  ‘Is that why, in the past, you have not always brought your whereabouts to the attention of your team?’

  This was Langton, it had to be. It was a waste of time remaining in the room. She pushed back her chair.

  ‘I haven’t finished yet, Travis.’

  ‘Well, I have, sir. I can’t see the point of answering any further questions. I believe the examiners have already made up their minds whether or not I am suitable for promotion.’

  ‘That is your mistake,’ said the psychologist. ‘I am simply reading through your files. We will not be making any decision regarding promotion until we’ve had time to digest everything that has taken place today.’

  She was in two minds whether or not to believe him, and then decided she’d blown it anyway. She stood up and, as a parting shot, suggested that at the next promotional board she would prefer not to have to face someone with whom she had had a close personal relationship.

  She missed the psychologist’s look of stunned amazement.

  Anna didn’t want to go home; instead she stopped at the station. Mike Lewis greeted her warmly and asked how it had gone.

  ‘I blew it. I don’t think for one moment Detective Chief Superintendent Langton would have agreed to my promotion, so I walked out.’

  ‘Well, they’ll let you know in a few weeks’ time.’

  ‘I already know,’ she snapped and then apologised. ‘Sorry, it’s been a long day, and thanks for being supportive.’

>   Mike was reassuring, reminding her that it had taken him two attempts. There were so few places available and she was young, she would have plenty of opportunity.

  ‘Now for some good news.’ He took an envelope out of his pocket, and showed Anna two tickets. ‘We’ve been sent them by the director for a cast and crew screening of Gaslight in Leicester Square on Sunday evening.’

  ‘You are joking.’

  ‘Nope. It appears they have pulled out all the stops to get it ready, probably on the tailwind of the arrest of Lester James – you know, for the publicity. We’re all going.’

  There was a loud gasp from the audience when Amanda Delany made her first appearance. She was so beautiful, and the Victorian costume suited her delicate figure. The wig with its blonde ringlets and coiled bun at the nape of her neck enhanced her bare slim shoulders. She played the frightened heroine in Gaslight to perfection.

  Mike, sitting next to Anna in the audience, whispered that he had had no idea of just how beautiful she was. It was her beauty that got to them all, yet it was almost impossible to block out the tragic, skeleton-thin victim lying on the gurney. Whether or not the murder became entwined with Amanda’s performance was immaterial; there was still a sense of terrible loss. Amanda Delany was a star; she burned so brightly in front of them all and when the film ended, there was a moment of silence. Then the entire audience rose to their feet to applaud.

  Langton must have come in when the movie had started, because Anna saw him at the end of their row. He wasn’t clapping like everyone else but stood quietly, head tilted downwards so Anna couldn’t see the expression on his face. As soon as the applause died down, and everyone began moving out from their seats, Anna went in the opposite direction. Some groups of the crew stayed chatting and laughing, but hurrying out, heads bowed, were the two James brothers, Harry and Tony. Anna was one of the first to leave the cinema and took off up the road to hail a taxi. She stood on the pavement in pouring rain. A taxi pulled up beside her and the passenger door opened.

  ‘Get in,’ Langton said abruptly.

  Anna hesitated and then stepped inside.

  ‘That was a hideous event,’ he said, as the taxi moved off.

  ‘Depends. I think the film will be very successful. I was surprised to see you there.’

  ‘I got your spare ticket.’

  She pressed herself back in the seat, and they remained silent. She wondered if he was, like her, trying to think of what to say.

  ‘I know I won’t get the promotion,’ she finally said quietly.

  ‘Correct. You’re not ready for it, Anna, but you won’t know officially for a few weeks.’

  ‘Thanks to you!’

  ‘Not just my decision.’

  ‘Bullshit. You really primed that psychologist, and I knew by the questions he was asking that you’d put your oar in.’

  He shrugged, and it made her furious.

  ‘If I’d known you were going to be on the board of examiners, I wouldn’t have even bothered going in for the day. As soon as I saw you, I knew it would be a waste of time.’

  ‘That depended on you. What you should do is learn from it, and refrain from constantly acting as a one-man band. Until you understand the logistics of teamwork, you will never be a suitable candidate for promotion.’

  She glared at him.

  ‘Also, implying that one of the reasons you walked out of the psychological assessment was that you had a personal relationship with a member of the board was very childish. I wouldn’t be surprised if the gossipmongers have you and Miss Cox forming a liaison.’

  ‘What?’

  He grinned. ‘She’s gay,’ he said, as if there was a need for an explanation.

  ‘Really? Well, I can tell you someone else who is also gay.’

  He turned to face her, inching around in his seat.

  ‘Your dear friend and massage guru, Gordon. And in case you are not aware of it, he has the hots for you.’

  She didn’t expect Langton to burst into laughter.

  ‘It’s the truth,’ she said angrily.

  ‘I’m sure it is. I always thought he was a bit light on his feet!’

  ‘Is that all you have to say?’

  He was smiling as he nodded, and then leaned forwards to tap on the window of the taxi driver.

  ‘Tower Bridge, sorry.’

  She sat back, arms folded.

  ‘Unless you’re hungry and we could grab a bite to eat?’

  Anna shook her head.

  ‘Sad tonight, didn’t you think?’ Langton went on.

  She made no reply.

  ‘Mind you, if she’d carried on sniffing coke and using crack cocaine she probably would have destroyed herself. That’s the saddest thing – so beautiful, so talented, and if she’d lived, this movie would have made her an even bigger star. Instead she ends up with multiple stab-wounds and a body that was ready to cave in.’

  Anna looked out of the window. The rain was still pouring down. She jumped when Langton took her hand.

  ‘Don’t get angry, Anna, get smart. I believe in you and I sincerely think you have a big career ahead of you.’ Relieved to be giving the driver directions to her block of flats, she nonetheless felt awkward as Langton held onto her hand. Not until the taxi had pulled up did she try to release her hand from his. Langton pulled shut the window between them and the driver.

  ‘I love you, Anna.’ His voice was low. ‘You know that, don’t you? I want to look out for you. Don’t get into a situation where you can’t come to me, talk to me. I’ll always be here for you.’

  She faced him. His dark eyes bore into her and for the first time she really took on board what he was saying, how much older he looked, how perhaps he was being kindly rather than having any ulterior motive.

  ‘Goodnight,’ she said softly.

  ‘No, don’t get out yet. Talk to me.’

  ‘I don’t think there’s anything more to say.’

  ‘Of course there is. You think I don’t know how disappointed you must feel? Never mind how much you’ve been bottling up inside you about me.’

  ‘I haven’t bottled anything up,’ she snapped.

  ‘Of course you have. You think after all this time I don’t know you? And bringing up that crap about Gordon – how did you expect me to react?’

  ‘I just thought you should know.’

  ‘Really? Well, his private life is his own business, but yours is important to me. I don’t want us to part with any grudges against each other, Anna. Like I said, I care for you and it’s quite possible we’ll work together again.’

  ‘Don’t worry, I won’t embarrass you.’

  ‘For Christ’s sake, stop this. You’re acting like a child, when I am trying to be as positive as I can be about us.’

  She faced him. Said hotly, ‘Us? It seems to me that you feel like you have the right to call in and see me at all hours of the day and night. You turned up uninvited when Gordon was there, and you knew we had slept together. You couldn’t have made it more obvious that you felt you had the right to interfere in my private business!’

  Langton laughed gently. ‘Well, as it turned out, I needn’t have worried.’

  ‘You think it’s funny?’ Her voice sounded shrill and she wished she didn’t feel like bursting into tears.

  ‘I was jealous as hell, all right? Is that what you want to hear?’ He sighed. ‘There you have it. And you are right – I shouldn’t still feel that I can call on you when I choose. To be honest, I never thought about it until now. Maybe the hardest thing for me is to let you go.’

  What he was saying confused her to such an extent that she closed her eyes. She was even more confused when he put his arm around her.

  ‘Anna, you took good care of me when I needed you. Sometimes, I feel that I never really showed you how much I appreciated all your patience and, if it wasn’t for you, I doubt if I would have ever got myself back together – well, not physically anyway. I’m still emotionally screwed up.’


  ‘About me?’ she whispered.

  ‘Of course about you. I meant it when I said I loved you. I do, and I can’t help feeling jealous when I think I’m losing the one person I feel so protective of. But this is not me wanting us to get back together. I don’t want you to think that is what I want.’

  ‘Why not?’

  He slowly moved his arm from around her.

  ‘Anna, I’m married and have two kids. Whether or not I got into this for the wrong reasons, it’s my life now. I am going to make it work, just as much as I want you to know how special you are. I want you to trust me and know that what I did at the promotion meeting was because I want you to succeed – and I believe you will, given time.’

  ‘Can I go now?’ She needed to be on her own.

  He sighed, then cupped her face in his hands and kissed her. ‘Yes, you can go, sweetheart. No hard feelings?’

  ‘No hard feelings. I really appreciate everything you’ve told me. You’re right, I’m still young, there’ll be another opportunity. I’ll show them!’

  Langton gave her a lopsided smile as she got out, and waved to her as the taxi drove off. Then he sat back, wishing he could light a cigarette because no matter what he had said, all he wanted to do was to stop the taxi, run back to her and kiss her again. Anna represented youth and freshness and, beside her, he felt jaded and old, too old to continue their relationship even when it had been a possibility. For once though, he told himself, he was behaving responsibly.

  Until the next time, at least.