by Bill Kitson
‘He’s at the police station for the time being. I thought it was safer for him there. I got our doctor to have a look at him yesterday. He’s not in very good shape, I’m afraid. He doesn’t know the full extent of what’s been done to your family; I haven’t let him read those files. I thought it better to wait until you were with him. He’ll need your support. I’m afraid what little he does know has affected him very badly. I got the doctor to take a blood test – I’m fairly sure they’ll have been feeding him drugs, but we can’t do much until we know what we’re fighting against, and how long it’ll take to get them out of his system.’
‘I’ve got something to give you,’ Jessica held out her hand. ‘That’s the key to the end one of the lock-up garages round there.’ She pointed to the end of the street. ‘Inside, you’ll find what you’re looking for.’
‘My sergeant will be here in a few minutes, and my DC. Between us we’ll take you and the prisoner back to the station. In separate vehicles,’ he added hastily.
‘Before they arrive, I assume the man who abducted you is still as much a mystery to you as he is to us?’ Nash saw the look of surprise on her face and smiled. ‘Of course, we could speculate as to his identity, but without a description, which you are obviously unable to give, as he wore a balaclava all the time, we’ve no way of identifying him. Or the vehicle either because he just dumped you in the street and drove off. It was sheer chance that you happened to knock on Sonya’s door. Sheer fluke that she happens to be a friend of mine.’
Jessica’s smile broadened throughout Nash’s little speech. ‘You know, Mr Nash, S—, my abductor, said you were a nice, kind person. Now I know what he meant. Before your people arrive, I’d better tell you what you’ll find in the garage.’
As Jessica finished speaking, Nash heard the sound of cars arriving and glanced outside. ‘My sergeant and DC,’ he explained.
‘I’ll let them in.’ Sonya hurried to the door.
Nash waited until Clara had driven off with Jessica, before turning to Pearce. ‘Drive down to the end of the street, where the garages are and wait for me. ‘I’ll be about five minutes, no more.’
‘OK, Mike.’ Pearce hid a smile until he was out of the door.
‘Thanks for all your help, Sonya,’ Nash turned to leave. ‘Sadly, now that this is over, I haven’t a good excuse for coming to see you.’
‘If you don’t, who’s going to drink that enormous jar of coffee?’
‘Which enormous jar of coffee?’
‘The one I’m going to buy as soon as I can get to the shops.’ Sonya laid her hand on his arm. ‘And, if that isn’t excuse enough.’ She leaned forward and kissed him.
He wasn’t sure if it was seconds or minutes later when he surfaced for air. ‘When?’ he asked, gasping slightly.
‘How about tonight? Unless you’re going to be too busy.’
‘It might be late,’ he warned.
‘Better late than not at all, but if I’ve to wait until then, I’d better have another of those.’
He kissed her once more. ‘Now I must go, whilst I still can.’
Pearce was standing by his car. ‘Have you got a penknife?’ Nash asked.
Viv held up a Swiss Army knife.
‘Ideal.’ Nash slipped the key in the lock and turned the handle. They stared in, and saw the bound figure in the corner, eyes blinking in the glare of the low winter sun that flooded the concrete shell with bright light. ‘Good morning, Dr Dunning. Or should I say Colonel Dunning?’ Nash smiled. ‘Caroline Dunning, you are under arrest for the murder of Lara North, Adam North and one unidentified male. You are also charged….’
Smith parked opposite the entrance to the police station car park. From his vantage point he had a good view of the building and the area alongside it. He saw a car pull up, recognized the young woman who climbed out of the passenger seat: Jessica North. If the police had her, that was very bad news. He maintained his vigil, and saw another car pull in twenty minutes later. He saw the two men get out and relaxed. To his horror, he then saw one of them open the back door and extract a prisoner. At the sight of Dunning, her wrists handcuffed together, his panic became horror. He started the engine and drove away. He needed to get onto military premises as quickly as possible. The nearest barracks was more than half an hour away. He needed to get there fast. Once there, he was safe. The police wouldn’t be able to get to him on army premises. But not before he’d made a phone call. One that would ensure not only his safety; but the release of Colonel Dunning.
Nash and Pearce handed Dunning over to Sergeant Binns. The paperwork took about twenty minutes to complete, largely because of the prisoner’s complete refusal to cooperate, even to the extent of providing an address. When it was done, Nash told Binns, ‘Get a female officer to search her, then chuck her into a cell until we’re ready for her, and, Jack’ – Binns looked up – ‘don’t stand any nonsense. The woman’s a multi-murderer and worse, despite her cut-glass accent and high sounding titles. Keep her in seclusion until we’re ready to interview her. No visitors, no phone calls.’
‘But, Mike, I can’t do that,’ Binns protested. ‘It’s against the rules.’
‘Official Secrets Act,’ Nash told him. ‘She’s in possession of highly sensitive information. Can’t risk her passing it on to a potential enemy.’
‘Can you do that?’ Pearce asked as they went upstairs.
‘I’ve no idea. But if I don’t know, it stands to reason other people don’t.’
Nash walked into the CID suite to find Jessica and her father sitting with Clara. Both of them were in tears, whilst Clara also looked upset. ‘Dr North, Jessica,’ Nash winked at the girl, a gesture unseen by everyone except Mironova. ‘I’m glad to say we have the person responsible for ordering the murders of Mrs North and Adam in custody. Unfortunately the hitman himself is still at large, so for the time being I think it would be safer for you to remain here until I can find you suitable accommodation. Please excuse me for a few minutes, I have some phone calls to make, then I can tell you both exactly what all this is about.’
Nash went into his office. He was about to pick up the phone when it rang. He glanced at the number on the display. ‘Ruth, I was about to ring you.’
‘Good idea, wrong person.’ The voice was that of Chief Constable O’Donnell.
‘Sorry, ma’am, I wanted to tell Superintendent Edwards—’
‘That you’ve just arrested a high ranking army officer,’ she finished for him.
Nash gasped. ‘You knew about it? How?’
‘I’ve just had a phone call from the MOD. It would appear that the excrement has collided with the ventilator: big style. They’re sending a bigwig up by plane to secure your prisoner’s release. He’ll be here tomorrow.’
‘Before you agree to anything, ma’am, I think you ought to hear the case against her. I was going to leave it until later, but I think we should interview her straight away. Before that, I’d like you to look through the evidence. It will take a long time, I’m afraid.’
‘Very well, Ruth and I will be over in about an hour. One thing’s for sure, life’s never boring with you around, Mike.’
When Nash put the phone down he went to the safe and took out the file. He called Pearce in. ‘Viv, I want you to make four copies of these transcriptions. Put them in envelopes, marked for Dr North, the chief constable, Superintendent Edwards, and the MOD.’
‘What do you want doing with the disks?’
‘Nothing. They remain in the safe at all times. Clear?’
‘OK, Mike. Speaking of the files and disks, I’ve got the results back from the forensics people. There are several sets of fingerprints on each.’
‘Get me the report, please.’
Whilst he was waiting, Nash ran downstairs. ‘Jack, have you got that set of Dunning’s fingerprints handy? I’d like to borrow them for a while.’
Binns passed them over. ‘She’s a cocky bitch, that one. Reckons we can’t hold her. Said she’d be
walking out of here within forty-eight hours.’
Nash gritted his teeth. ‘We’ll see about that.’
As he returned to the CID suite, Nash braced himself for the ordeal of interviewing Dr North. He was about to go in when the door opened, and Clara came out. ‘I’ve just got the results of Dr North’s blood test,’ she handed him a sheet of paper. ‘The doctor rang before he faxed it through. He’s really angry, and concerned for Dr North’s safety, and that of those around him. He believes we ought to consider having him sectioned until they can assess the long term effects of the drugs they’ve been feeding him.’
Nash read the first part of the report, which was mostly incomprehensible. It contained a list of seven different chemical formulae, which meant nothing to a layman. The conclusion, however, where the doctor had summed up the effects, was dynamite.
‘There is little doubt that the person who administered these drugs to Dr North was well aware of the effect they would have. It is a combination no ethically minded physician would prescribe, and no pharmacist would make up. Briefly, the combination is that of a complex variety of hallucinatory drugs, aphrodisiacs, mood suppressants and sedatives. The combined effect would be to render Dr North incapable of decision making, outside of his own sphere of work. He would be compliant to the wishes of others and subservient to the sexual demands of persons close to him to whom he felt attracted. Although it is difficult to judge how the balance of the drugs was arrived at, or the length of time they had been administered, my own examination of the patient would tend to suggest a period of months, if not years, and the resultant state of mind is that Dr North is in urgent need of long term, in-depth psychiatric care.’
Clara watched Nash’s face change as he read it. His expression was grim. ‘The problem’s going to be how we get round this.’ He tapped the report.
‘Having him sectioned, you mean?’
He nodded. ‘Let me have a word with Jessica, alone. Tell Dr North I need to take a statement from her about the kidnapping. Get him another cup of tea or something.’
Nash opened the door. North was still clutching the photograph in one hand, whilst the other was holding Jessica’s. ‘I’m going to ask my sergeant to get you another drink, whilst I take a statement from Jessica about the man who abducted her. If I was you, I’d opt for tea, her coffee’s lousy. Either that or ask DC Pearce to make it. Clara’s coffee tastes like something that’s been drained out of a car engine.’
North seemed to accept this. He let go of his daughter’s hand. ‘You won’t keep her long, will you?’ North asked; his voice tremulous.
‘Not a minute longer than necessary,’ Nash reassured him. ‘And she’ll be right next door.’ He pointed to his office.
North smiled, a major achievement given the contents of the report in Nash’s pocket. Jessica followed the detective into his office; a worried frown on her face. As soon as Nash closed the door she asked, ‘What do you need to know. I mean, that you don’t know already?’
Nash studied her. Something about Jessica, the way she acted, the way she spoke of the time she’d spent with Hirst made him suspicious. He decided to test her out. ‘Nothing you’re not prepared to tell me.’ He smiled. ‘And I guess there could be quite a bit, one way or another.’
‘I’m not sure what you mean.’ Jessica’s blush gave Nash his answer.
‘It’s all right, I was only teasing you. I only met Steve once, and that was in awful circumstances. But I liked him a lot. Obviously not as much as you did.’
Jessica’s face was beetroot. ‘Please, don’t tell my father. He’s in a bad enough state to begin with.’
‘What could I tell him? I don’t know anything. I might have my suspicions, but that’s probably my dirty mind. And in any case that wasn’t the reason I asked you in here. I don’t want to know anything about your abduction; or your relationship with Steve Hirst. That’s your private business. What I wanted to get you on your own for was this.’ He fished the report from his pocket. ‘Sit down before you read it. Along with everything else you’ve learned it proves what evil bastards they are. And when I tell you about the phone call I’ve just had, you’ll realize how dangerous they still are.’
She wouldn’t sit. She was too strong for that. Nash realized the core of steel within her, much as Hirst had done. She read the report, her face whitening with anger. At the end she was ashen; her lip trembled as she fought with her tears. ‘Is there no end to this?’ She turned towards Nash and almost flung herself into his arms, weeping, inconsolable. Nash put an arm round her shoulders, stroking her, soothing her.
The door opened and Clara coughed. Nash looked up. ‘Jessica’s a bit upset, Clara. Come in, close the door behind you. I don’t want Dr North to see her in this state.’
Jessica pulled herself upright, as much a mental act as a physical one. She dried her eyes on her sleeve and managed a watery smile. ‘Sorry,’ she muttered, ‘everything just got to me. I was all right before. I got used to hating Mother and Adam for the way they behaved. But knowing they were being poisoned, that makes it unbearable. Then to find out they’ve been doing the same to Dad; that was too much. Why didn’t they have a go at me, I wonder?’
‘I think I can answer that. You were unavailable for two thirds of the year, being away at school. The drugs they used were designed for long term effect. They couldn’t get to you. Now, what do you want to do about this?’ Nash tapped the paper.
‘I don’t like the thought of him going into an institution.’ Jessica shrugged. ‘But you’ve seen what a state he’s in. That man out there’ – Nash noticed the girl’s hand was trembling. With anger as much as distress, he thought – ‘That isn’t my father. Not the father I knew. Not the father who cared for us, played games with us when we were little. That’s as much a ruined shell as our cottage. So, yes, call your doctor and make the arrangements.’ She sighed wearily. ‘I’ll sign the papers. But what I’ll do whilst he’s in care, I’ve no idea.’
‘Why don’t you have a word with Sonya Williams? She might have some ideas.’
If Nash had any doubt about Jessica’s resilience it was resolved by her retort. ‘I could do, perhaps. She might let me stay for a while. Then I could always go out for the evening, if she was entertaining someone.’
Clara’s laughter and Jessica’s smile were the brightest spots of the day so far, Nash thought. Until he remembered Sonya’s parting promise.
‘Mike, the chief and Ruth are downstairs talking to Jack,’ Clara told him.
‘Right, stall them when they come up, will you. I’ll phone and make these arrangements. Introduce them to Dr North; then bring them in here. I’d like them to meet a very brave young woman.’
Chapter Nineteen
After Pearce left to take North and Jessica to the doctor’s surgery, Nash met with the chief constable and Superintendent Edwards. He handed them each a copy of the file transcripts.
‘Before you read these, they refer to the people involved in this case, so let me fill you in with the details. Basically, the idea was American in origin. It was a development of the MKULTRA scheme, which was dreamed up by the CIA as early as the 1950s. Incidentally, there are documents to confirm this. They found that if they fed soldiers with certain hallucinogenic drugs, principally LSD, it made them less susceptible to both pain and fear. The experiments continued right through the Vietnam War, up until the administration got spooked by the Watergate affair. The CIA was instructed to stop all trials, and any evidence relating to MKULTRA was destroyed on the orders of Richard Helms, the then Director. Although there was no official involvement or backing, it seems certain pharmaceutical companies took up the baton after the Gulf War, and began experiments using the new generation of drugs that was becoming available. Dr North had already been headhunted to work for one of these companies. The American military was approached, but they were unwilling to commit to the scheme in an official capacity, although they probably kept abreast of developments. However, the British forces we
re keen to see what was achievable, so they assigned a high ranking scientific officer to set up a small company that would continue work on the project. Helm Pharm was that company. Dr North, who by now was the leading expert, was brought back from America to work on the scheme.
‘However, he had serious reservations about the use the drugs were being put to, particularly the use of human guinea pigs in the form of soldiers serving in the front line. To ensure his compliance, the head of the project, who we now know to be Dr, or Colonel Dunning, set about a three-pronged attack that would ensure North’s compliance. She fed him mood altering drugs, the main part of these being an aphrodisiac. Then she allowed North to seduce her, ensuring there were plenty of candid photos of his adultery. At the same time she became a “family friend”, spending a lot of time at the North household. She fed Lara North a cocktail of drugs that turned her into an uncontrollable nymphomaniac, and at the same time became her lover too. This “treatment” continued on and off for several years, ensuring the deterioration in the marriage. Somewhere along the line, she introduced North’s son, Adam, to class A drugs, principally cocaine laced with an additional addiction fixer that ensured he couldn’t be weaned off them.’
Nash paused and looked at the two senior officers, noting the look of horror on their faces. ‘If you think that’s cold blooded and callous, wait until you hear the rest. Recently, Dunning found out that Lara had begun to suspect that she was in effect being poisoned. She might well have threatened Dunning with exposure. Unfortunately for her, there was a break-in at the laboratory, and the disks containing all this information were stolen. That effectively signed the death warrant for Lara and Adam North. For Jessica too, but for the fact that someone guessed what they had in mind for her and removed her from harm’s way. Dunning’s second in command, a military intelligence officer by the name of Major Smith, was detailed to carry out the assassinations. You both know what happened. Lara and her lover, a man whose name we don’t know, were burned to death in a fire at the North home, one that was rigged to look like an electrical fault. A few weeks later, Adam North was placed in the stocks and suffocated with superglue.