The elevator doors slid open. Sally let out a breath. She’d managed to say what she needed to say. She turned her head to watch the men leave.
DI Hannah Robbins was staring at them from inside the elevator.
41
Sally
* * *
Sally still felt nervous being called into the DI’s office, but Martin winked at her and she knew she had nothing to worry about. It was her first day back after a week off work.
That night at the hospital, her DI had ordered her back to be examined, which resulted in her spending the night under observation, as they found she had been concussed.
Luckily Jason made it, though his fight was a more difficult one than her own. His brain had been deprived of oxygen for a short period of time and he’d suffered a ischaemic attack that left him with some numbness; but the hospital expected it to ease within a couple of days.
Sally had been released back home with a sick note for a week. Tom had been so worried about her that he refused to let her out of his sight. He’d taken a couple of days’ leave from work himself to take care of her, and when he went back, he phoned her every hour to make sure she was fully conscious.
She was glad to be back at work. Although that time with Tom had been precious.
The investigation had shown her how important family was, and how she couldn’t take Tom for granted. It had also shown her how capable she was at her job and had given her renewed drive for it. She had to balance the two now. Work hard and make time with Tom special because she adored him. He was her life.
DI Robbins said she was pleased to see her back at work. She had been an invaluable member of the team and had proved her worth in getting Jason to open up, in identifying the tracking device, and in saving Jason’s life.
‘It took a while to piece everything together. Paul didn’t want to talk to us at first – for obvious reasons – but once we had the extension in place and a holding statement from Jason, he gave us more. Plus, he couldn’t argue with what we seized from his address.’
‘And what was that?’ asked Sally, eager to know what she’d missed while she’d been at home.
‘He had the USB drive with Jason’s fingerprints on it, taped to the underside of the drawer in his bedside table. Pretty damning evidence.’
‘Was Masaaki in it with him?’ She was shocked.
‘No, he didn’t know anything about it and he’s struggling to come to terms with the betrayal. Paul was friends with another guy from uni who wanted in on the action. So, as well as keeping the money they made from the sale to the banks, they also wanted to be able to access the banks from the back of the ATMs. But Paul knew he couldn’t do it because they’d know it would have come from inside SHIRO, so he planned the theft cover-operation from start to finish.’ She pulled at her fringe. ‘Including getting his pal to arrange the accident for Lisa on the roundabout. They knew what time she left for work every day and followed her several times, recording her exact timings. Then the partner tried to be in the right place at the right time and eventually he was. He ran into her on purpose on that roundabout. I think they hoped she’d die outright, but it still worked in their favour.’
‘No...’ her voice trailed off in disbelief.
‘I’m afraid so. They thought that a dead body would be easier to handle than a live one.’
‘Poor Jason.’
‘Yes, it’s been a lot for him to take in. And let’s hope he doesn’t have to go through a messy trial. Paul has made admissions in interview and we’ve picked up his accomplice.’
With that, the DI’s mood changed and became even more solemn. Sally wondered if, amongst the list of positives she’d listed, there was something she had done drastically wrong.
‘While you were on sick leave, I had the CCTV seized from the hospital, Sally, and what I overheard you say that night about Gordon standing by and watching events in the doorway was correct, I’m sorry to say.’
Sally gulped. Nodded. She didn’t have any words.
‘I spoke to him about it. It seems he didn’t have faith in you, in your ability to do the job, and he admitted to giving you a hard time since you came onto the unit. It’s to your credit that you stood your ground with him.’ She gave Sally a stern look. ‘But you should have come to me if a team member was giving that kind of problem.’
‘Yes, Ma’am.’
‘Gordon has been suspended pending investigation by the Professional Standards Unit. You won’t have any further trouble. But I want to know if there is any backlash from this, do you hear me?’
‘Oh my God.’ She put her hand to her mouth.
‘This is not your doing, Sally. This is his.’
Sally didn’t look convinced.
‘Did you hear me about what a great job you’ve done?’
‘Yes, Ma’am.’
‘Great, now get out there and build yourself a sterling career.’
About the Author
Rebecca Bradley is a retired police detective who lives in Nottinghamshire with her family and two Cockapoo’s Alfie and Lola, who keep her company while she writes. Rebecca needs to drink copious amounts of tea to function throughout the day and if she could, she would survive on a diet of tea and cake.
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If you haven’t read Shallow Waters, with DI Hannah Robbins, the first book in the series, the next one to this, you can find it on Amazon.
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The follow on to Shallow Waters is Made to be Broken where Hannah and her team are trying to recover from events in Shallow Waters as the same time they are pitted against a killer with a point to prove and a very unusual MO. You can find that at your local Amazon.
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You can find Rebecca on her website: http://Rebeccabradleycrime.com
On Twitter: http://Twitter.com/RebeccaJBradley
And on Facebook: http://Facebook.com/RebeccaBradleyCrime
Please look her up, as she would love to chat.
Acknowledgments
I was surprised to find this novella a difficult task. I thought I could throw it together quickly. That it was a lot less words than a novel, so was obviously going to take a lot less time. How wrong I was.
Three Weeks Dead took as much thought and problem solving, head scratching, staring into space and hair pulling as a novel. I became so frustrated with it I wanted to give in. But, the nugget of an idea that had driven me to start it, wouldn’t let go and the staring into space continued until I figured my way through.
I could never have managed it though, without the help of a few special people. People who are happy to take the time to answer questions and talk things through. So, thanks go to author and doctor, Rosie Claverton for her answers surrounding Lisa’s death. If it were left up to me Lisa would have very blandly been in a car and died. End of story for her. But, you need more, you need some depth and Rosie helped provide that for me.
Thanks also, to Ian Hipkiss, ex-DC, ex-colleague, who came to my rescue one sunny afternoon in the pub, when he talked to me about things that very nearly went over my head. Ian was the brains behind the computer software plot. Or rather, he solved the huge plot holes I had written myself into. A great couple of hours which we should really do again, Ian. I need to borrow those books!
To my beta readers, Jane Isaac, Ian Patrick and Dave Sivers, thank you. Having you there to bounce this book off was incredibly helpful.
With thanks to Martin Ouvry for making copy-editing a painless and simple process. Thank you to Harry Bingham, simply, for the Writers Workshop. And as always, thank you to my proofreader, Helen Baggott for that final polish, I couldn’t send this out without you.
To Ed James, who jumped in with tech support help when I was in danger of losing much of my hair. I don’t have enough to start losing it. So, thanks Ed!
My acknowledgements wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the crime writing friends who support me every single day in an endeavour that is wonderful and stressful in equal measure. And t
o my loyal team of readers who support me with masses amount of enthusiasm. Much of it needed!
And to my family who support me by giving me peaceful time to work and then bullying me to stop when they think my body might be under too much pressure. I love you.
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