by MA Comley
‘Ross was found shot in a field a few miles away.’
‘Shot?’
‘Yes. His wallet was discovered lying untouched on the ground beside his body. Umm … there won’t be a formal identification called for in this case because whoever killed Ross torched his body afterwards. The pathologist will be calling upon his dental records to confirm a formal ID.’
She gasped and covered her mouth with her shaking hand. ‘So it might not be him? Ross might still be alive?’
‘I wouldn’t raise my hopes on that one, Miss Elliott. We should have the results within the next twenty-four to forty-eight hours.’
‘Why so long?’
Hero shrugged. ‘The pathologist will need to make sure before he informs Mr. Spalding’s family.’
‘Damn, I doubt they’ll tell me anything. Will you ring me, let me know?’
‘I can certainly get one of my team to do that once we have the results to hand.’
They reached the front door of the house. Hero turned to shake the woman’s hand.
‘Thank you, I appreciate that.’ The woman closed the door softly behind them.
Once they were out of earshot, Julie said, ‘Well, that was a turn up for the books, her being an escort.’
‘Yeah, maybe that’s an avenue we should be investigating somewhere down the line. A possible angry ex-pimp or whatever the new unsavoury name is for these guys nowadays. We could be looking at some form of revenge for stealing one of his best workers.’ Hero threw his hands up in the air. ‘Who bloody knows with this case, because I’m at a loss right now. Let’s call it a frigging day and start again early tomorrow.’
Julie nodded as they got in his car.
Back in the station car park, Hero pulled up alongside Julie’s car to drop her off. ‘Enjoy the rest of your evening, Julie, what’s left of it.’
‘You, too, boss.’
Hero drove the short distance home, the different aspects of the case whirling around in his tired mind. Give it a rest for the night, boy. Not a lot you can do at this time of the day.
4
Hero Nelson looked down at his son, Louie, who had been allowed to stay up past his bedtime, and beamed with pride as the nine-year-old waved around his first Boy Scout badge. ‘That’s some achievement, much more than I achieved at your age, Louie. Congratulations to you. And you say you obtained that for your skills using a yo-yo?’
Louie’s cheesy grin lit up his angelic, slightly tanned face. ‘Yep. I wouldn’t have done it if you hadn’t pushed me, Dad.’
‘Nonsense, son. I might have encouraged you a little, but it was your hard work that shone through in the end. We’ll make a Territorial Army soldier out of you yet.’ He looked up to see his wife, Fay, shaking her head. He smiled and winked. He was fond of teasing her when it came to all things Louie. He loved him as his own, even though the boy had been fathered by an abusive man whom Fay had unfortunately spent time with before Hero had drifted into her life around seven years ago. In spite of this, Louie was a well-rounded character. The charming, cheeky chappie adored his twin sisters, Zoe and Zara, who were now four years old and beginning to cause havoc within the Nelson household.
Louie jumped up and down on the spot in front of Hero. ‘Wow, that would be cool, Dad. I’d love to be a part-time soldier at the weekend like you.’
Hero cringed inside, knowing that Fay would pounce on him as soon as they were alone, but he kept the smile prominent on his face as he looked down at his son. ‘Right, well, the only thing we’ll be doing this weekend, young man, is celebrating your achievements. How about that?’
Louie clapped his hands. ‘How?’
‘Yes, how will we be doing that as a family, DI Nelson?’ Fay asked, folding her arms and tapping her foot a little.
‘Well, why don’t we go to that adventure play park that’s just opened?’
Fay closed her eyes and shook her head.
He could tell she was annoyed at the suggestion and added swiftly, ‘As long as it’s all right with your mum, that is.’
Fay’s eyes flew open, and he felt imaginary daggers flying in his direction from her angry eyes. ‘We’ll see. Louie, we’re so proud of you, son. Why don’t you take your badge upstairs and put it on your dressing table until I have some spare time to sew it on your uniform for you. Anyway, it’s way past your bedtime now.’
‘Can we go, Mum? I’d love to go on one of those zip slides. A boy in my class was raving about how much fun it is last week.’
‘We’ll see. Go on, make sure you clean your teeth before you jump into bed – and wash the bean juice off your chin while you’re at it. Go up quietly, too. I don’t want you waking the girls.’
He tutted, tilted his head for her to kiss his cheek, and did the same to Hero. ‘I can’t wait, Dad. I’m so excited now.’
Once Louie was out of earshot, Hero walked towards Fay, his arms outstretched, ready to cuddle her. He got to within a few feet of her, and she turned on her heel and rushed into the kitchen. Hero looked down at their Rottweiler cross, Sammy, and sighed. ‘Guess I’ll be joining you in the doghouse this evening, mate.’
He pulled on Sammy’s collar, and together they walked through the kitchen. Amid the noise of the pots and pans Fay was banging around, he asked, ‘Are you trying to wake the twins, or have I upset you, love?’
Fay rarely got upset and only at times when Hero opened his mouth and promised the kids something without running it past her first. Although she ignored him, she became far more lenient with her punishment on the pots and pans, he continued through the kitchen and out the back door to kick the ball around with Sammy for five minutes or so, giving his wife the space and the time she needed to cool off.
He blamed himself entirely. All he wanted in his life was to make his family happy. A contented home life ensured that his day-to-day working life didn’t become a chore. Every now and then, his enthusiasm to spoil his kids backfired. He knew that giving Fay five minutes breathing space would mean their relationship would be back to normal by the time she served up their evening meal. Fay wasn’t like other women in that she rarely, if ever, held a grudge. In that respect, they were both keen on giving the kids a happy environment to be brought up in.
After having a quick kick-around with Sammy, Hero ventured back inside the house. He stuck his head around the doorframe. ‘Do I need to raise the white flag before I enter?’
Fay laughed. ‘Get in here. Our dinner is ready. Lay the table for me.’
He rushed up to her, rested his head on her shoulder, and placed his arms around her slender waist. ‘Am I forgiven? I just got carried away with the occasion.’
‘Yes, you’re forgiven. It’s not as if you purposefully went out of your way to go against my wishes. You didn’t, did you?’
He spun her around to face him. ‘I would never do that to you. Honestly, it was a genuine mistake, and it will never happen again.’ He kissed her.
‘Hmm … we’ll see about that, shall we, Mr Enthusiastic? I’m not angry with you. I’m grateful you take an interest in what the kids get up to. Not all fathers care as much as you do when they come home after a hard day’s work. In future, all I ask is that you tone it down a little and don’t promise the kids things until we’ve discussed them first. I’d hate to end up with a house full of disappointed kids.’
‘Consider me reprimanded. Maybe we could ask the grandparents along, and Cara. We haven’t had a proper family day out in ages, or would that be me pushing my luck a little bit too far?’
‘If you want to. Maybe we should give people a little notice in that case. Not everyone will be available this weekend, love.’
‘You’re right. Let’s get dinner out of the way, and I’ll give them a ring, see what their plans are. No big deal if they can’t make it. We can just postpone it until next weekend.’
‘You see? That’s my point. You’ve already promised Louie we’d go this weekend, and now you’re talking about postponing it.’
Hero tutted. ‘Damn, me and my big mouth, eh? Your anger is justified in this instance.’
‘Crikey, if you think that was me being angry, you truly don’t know me as well as you think you do.’
‘I know that I’m married to an incredibly supportive wife whose tolerance I stretch to the maximum on occasions with my stupid big mouth.’
She kissed him hard on the lips and turned to stir the beans bubbling in the pot on the stove. ‘Nonsense, I couldn’t wish for a better husband or father for my kids. Just make sure you run things past me first in the future before promising the kids we’ll do something. It’ll save so much heartache if you do.’
‘Hey, I’m not likely to make the same mistake twice. I’ll ring the oldies after dinner and see if they can join us. It’s Tuesday now. That gives them a few days to shift anything around if they have to. I’m sure they’ll jump at the chance to join us for a day’s outing. We’ll pack a picnic and have a whale of a time.’
Fay shook her head in disbelief. ‘Heaping yet more work on my shoulders, thanks for that.’
‘Damn, I’ve done it again. Sorry, love. I can help with the preparation.’
She turned and raised an eyebrow at him. ‘There’s all the shopping to do first. Picnic food doesn’t magically appear in the fridge overnight.’
‘Okay, I get your drift. Let’s see what the others say first. I know Mum will be keen to help out with that side of things.’
‘Sit down, and I’ll dish up. I hope fish, chips and beans is all right?’
‘Sounds perfect to me. Did the kids have the same?’
Fay placed the plates on the table. ‘No, they wanted fish fingers. Gobbled it all up without any hassle, too.’
As usual, over dinner, they discussed what had happened with the kids at school, a safer topic entirely than Hero telling Fay about his ongoing case.
‘Go on, I’ll clear up. You better get on the phone to the oldies and organise the weekend trip ASAP.’
Hero kissed his wife, left the table, and went through to the lounge. Three phone calls later, he’d been given the thumbs-up from his mum and dad, as well as Fay’s mum, Deirdre, who had promised to help Fay prepare the picnic. However, when he rang his twin sister, Cara, she was in two minds whether to accept the invitation or not. She’d not been herself since her boyfriend had been killed in the line of duty by a suspect a little over a month ago. But Hero’s persistence paid off eventually. She also agreed to help Fay prepare the picnic and even offered to make a caramel cheesecake for the occasion.
Fay joined him in the lounge around ten minutes later. She exhaled a large breath. ‘I’m exhausted. I had a lot of hassle to sort out for a client today. Numerous irate phone calls back and forth. It’s all sorted now, thank goodness.’ Fay worked from home as a bookkeeper, something she had continued to do throughout her two pregnancies. It was unusual to hear her complain about a client because she loved her work.
‘Fancy a glass of wine, love?’
Fay nodded. ‘Just what I need. Thanks, love.’
Hero poured the wine and handed a glass to Fay. They clinked the rims together. ‘To family life,’ Hero announced with a wink and a smile.
‘Roll on the time when they all leave home. I love them all dearly, but it would be nice to have some time off occasionally.’
‘Sorry I added to your busy schedule. I’ve done my very best to recruit reinforcements.’
‘I know. Ignore me. I’m just feeling my age today, that’s all.’
‘Are you sure there’s not more to it? Maybe you should go to the doctor for a check-up.’
She waved a hand in front of her face and snuggled into him. ‘It’s nothing a nice cuddle and a glass of wine or two won’t put right. How was work today?’
‘Same as always: busy, a mixture of achievements and setbacks in several of the cases we’re working on right now. A new case landed on my desk that’s a tad puzzling. That’s why I’m late. Julie and I had to visit the next of kin to inform them of their loved ones’ deaths.’
‘How has Julie been lately? Did you suggest she see the counsellor? Her mother’s death must have hit her harder than you first thought.’
‘She has good days and bad days. If her mum had died a few months ago, I would agree that her seeing a counsellor would indeed be a good idea, but we’re talking at least eighteen months since she passed away. How long is her grieving likely to last?’
‘It depends. Everyone is different. She was really close to her mum, wasn’t she? Didn’t she share a home with her?’
‘I think so, yes. Maybe that’s why she’s finding it hard to come to terms with her death. It must be hard living in the same house where her mother lost her life.’
Fay nodded. ‘I think you’ve nailed the problem right there, Hero. Give her some time and leeway, yes?’
‘I will. Like I said, it’s a case of taking the rough with the smooth. Never know what kind of mood she’s going to turn up in from one day to the next. That’s the frustrating part. I try to be patient with her, but I don’t always succeed.’
‘At the end of the day, as long as she does her job, that’s all that matters, right?’
‘I guess. I’ve had no cause for complaint in that department for a little while now. I’ll keep giving her the space she needs to deal with her grief. I asked her if she wanted to go for a promotion today.’
Fay sat up. ‘I hope you said it tactfully? Otherwise, she might think you’re trying to get rid of her.’
He pulled Fay close again. ‘Grant me with some sense, although I’m at a loss how you think she would see me dangling a promotion carrot before her eyes as me trying to get rid of her.’
‘I’m just saying it from a woman’s point of view, that’s all. In case you hadn’t noticed, we’re sensitive creatures.’
Hero laughed. ‘Tonight being a prime example.’
Fay playfully punched his taut stomach. ‘I’ll mould you into shape eventually.’
He tilted her chin up to face him and kissed her longingly on the lips. ‘I’ve been under your spell since the day I met you in that checkout queue at the supermarket.’
‘You old softie … I love you, Hero Nelson.’
‘I love you, too, and the children you’ve given me, Fay Nelson.’
They picked up their drinks and quietly snuck upstairs to prove how much they meant to each other.
5
The morning was very overcast, not usual for early May in Manchester. However, Hero had a certain spring in his step to make up for the dour weather as he walked into the incident room.
‘Morning, all, give me five minutes to see if anything urgent has turned up on my desk, and then we’ll go through the case and discuss which direction our investigation should lead us today.’ He headed towards the office, aware of the team eyeing him with amusement.
‘Sleep well last night, did you, sir?’
He nodded at Julie. ‘I did indeed. Best night’s kip I’ve had in a long while. Maybe you could make a start on the incident board for me. I’ll be back soon.’
‘I will. Want me to chase up the pathologist, too?’
‘Why not. She probably won’t appreciate getting a call so early, but needs must, eh?’
Hero glanced at the pile of brown envelopes on his desk and almost turned on his heel and walked out of the office again. But his inner voice prevented him from doing that. Leave it for a day, and I’ll only have to deal with double the crap tomorrow! Within a few minutes, he’d sliced open all the envelopes and sorted the post into two piles: urgent and non-urgent. Then he divided the urgent pile into a pile he would need to action that day and one that he could put off until the next day. Once he’d decided there was nothing too urgent crying out for his attention, he grabbed a coffee from the machine and joined Julie at the whiteboard. The team shuffled their chairs into position facing the board.
‘Right, this is what Julie and I have so far from the people we interviewed yesterday. We did really well, inter
viewed a lot of people, given the time we had to play with. You’re all aware by now that one of the interviewees ended up having a heart attack while I was questioning him. That is going to open a whole new can of worms. IPCC will more than likely be knocking on my door soon. Hopefully, they won’t slow us down.’
‘Why’s that, sir? Sorry, stupid question – what I meant to say was how did the interviewee die? Did he get himself worked up over the questions he was being asked?’ Jason asked, his brow furrowed.
‘We actually questioned the man twice, the second time after we’d spoken to the other members of the workforce. To be fair, initially, he did tell us he wasn’t feeling very well, which is why we ended the first round of questioning with him. I must say, I didn’t expect him to drop down dead when he entered the room again. Up until that point – and I’m sure Julie will back me up on this – he was our lead suspect.’ Hero shrugged. ‘I still don’t think we can discount him as a suspect, even though he’s no longer with us. Maybe the stress of taking his partner’s life was too much for him to bear, come the end.’ Hero looked at Julie and raised an eyebrow, giving her the go-ahead to voice her own opinion on the matter.
‘I agree. He seemed to be our prime suspect. We still need to check into his background, see what we can dig up there. It looks like he was instigating the company being floated on the stock exchange. The trouble is, Ross Spalding appeared to be against that idea, according to the other members of staff, to the point that Ross and Laurence Whitehall were constantly falling out about the decision and whether to go forward with the plan or not. Seems to me like a pretty damning motive to kill Ross.’
‘Now we need some form of evidence to back up that assumption. Jason, I’d like you to go through the CCTV footage we brought back with us from Spalding Enterprise. Let’s see if anyone returned to the building once the others had left. Laurence told us that Ross was due to meet up with him and a few of the others for dinner at a nearby restaurant that evening, but he never showed up. Was Ross abducted from the building, perhaps? Did he drive to the restaurant that evening and disappear en route?’