Two Little Boys: DI Ted Darling Book II

by L M Krier

  'Flip, I'm really sorry to have to tell you this, but I'm afraid Aiden has been found dead,' Ted said, as gently as he could.

  The boy stared hard at him for a long moment. Then, to Ted's surprise, Flip jumped up from his chair, knocking it over backwards, and flung himself at him, locking his arms around his waist and sobbing against him.

  Ted threw an apologetic glance at Flip's foster mother, who was looking disapproving. He risked one gentle pat on the boy's back then carefully extricated himself from his embrace. Flip ran out of the kitchen and disappeared noisily up the stairs.

  'He's never hugged me or my husband and he's been here a good few weeks now,' she said in a slightly accusatory tone.

  Ted felt acutely uncomfortable. 'I'm sorry, he's never done anything like that with me before either,' he said awkwardly. 'I just wanted to tell him myself because I'd promised to find his friend.'

  Still tight-lipped, the woman led the way to the door to show him out. As he was leaving, Ted turned and said, 'Please don't take this the wrong way, Mrs Atkinson. I know how interested Flip is in martial arts and I wondered if I could give him a judo outfit for his birthday? It wouldn't be new, just to get him started. Through the various martial arts clubs I'm involved with, I can easily get a good second hand one, if that would be all right?'

  'I really don't think that would be at all appropriate, but thank you for the offer,' she said, and shut the door firmly in his face.

  CHAPTER Five

  Brave spring sunshine was still making its presence felt when Ted arrived home that evening, earlier than usual. Trev's beloved red Triumph Bonneville motorbike was already safely locked away in the garage when he opened it up to put his Renault away.

  As Ted went into the house, he could see the back door from the kitchen was wide open. He went out to the patio and found Trev, still half in his leathers, sprawled in a steamer chair, making the most of the weak sun. The cats were spread out around him, lying on the warm flag-stones, soaking up what heat had been accumulated during the day.

  'You're home early,' Trev commented as he looked up. 'Hard day?'

  Ted sank wearily into the other chair and turned his face up towards the sun, eyes closed.

  'The worst,' he said. 'That young friend of Flip, Aiden, was found dead today, in a skip. Raped and strangled, from the early look of things.'

  Trev sat up immediately and reached out to put a hand on his arm. 'I'm so sorry,' he said. 'That must have been dreadful for you. I haven't started to cook yet, did you want to go out to eat?'

  'What I want,' Ted said, 'is to crawl into a fort made of blankets and chairs and stay there with my colouring books until the madness has passed.'

  Trev smiled gently. 'You can do that if you want to,' he said. 'I'll cook something, so you don't have to go anywhere. This must be so hard for you. Are you all right?'

  Ted patted his hand reassuringly. 'I will be,' he said. 'Except tomorrow I will have to come out of my blanket fort and be a grown up policeman again, and probably have to go to this young boy's post mortem. Oh, and I think I may have done something rather stupid.'

  'Do you want to talk about it?' Trev asked.

  Ted opened his eyes and sat up.

  'I thought I'd go and tell Flip myself, on my way home,' he began. 'His foster mother was there. She was a bit reserved from the start. Then when I told Flip, he suddenly flung his arms round me and hugged me. The foster mother looked at me as if I was a child molester.'

  'But she was with you all the time, she could see what was done and said?' Trev asked. 'Just like in the dojo when you were talking to Flip, we could all see you. You've never been alone with him anywhere?'

  'Even I am not that stupid,' Ted said with a rueful grin. 'It was just the way she looked at me. It was very unexpected, the way Flip behaved. Then I made it worse. As I was leaving, I asked if I could get Flip a judogi for his birthday. He's so keen on martial arts and he was so upset. But if it was ever the right thing to do, it was certainly the wrong time to do it.'

  'You know the kids at the club all look up to you. I suppose it was that, the way Flip reacted and knowing that you're a policeman. I'm sure the foster mother just saw it as a kind, if misplaced, gesture.

  Although Ted hardly ever spoke about his work at home,' Trev asked, 'Do you want to talk about the case?'

  Ted shook his head emphatically. 'I don't even want to think about the case unless I have to. Shall we go out somewhere? Take the bike, go for a bit of a walk, blow away the cobwebs, then have a meal out?'

  'Is this going to be one of your cheap dates?' Trev asked smiling. 'A walk up a country lane and a bag of chips?'

  Ted gave a small laugh. Trev always succeeded in raising his spirits, no matter how grim things were at work. 'Come on, we can be in the High Peak in twenty minutes,' he said persuasively. 'Do us both good. Just let me get out of these clothes and put something comfortable on.'

  He fairly sprinted up the stairs to get back into casual clothes, while Trev herded cats into the kitchen and got himself back into his leathers. Trev handed Ted his helmet when he came back down and said, 'I've had a brilliant idea. We'll head 'em off at the pass!'

  This time Ted's laugh was spontaneous and genuine as he finished off Trev's quote from his favourite film, Blazing Saddles. 'Head 'em off at the pass? I hate that cliché,' he said, and mimed shooting Trev in the foot.

  Trev knew how intensely personally Ted took each and every murder on his patch, so much more so when the victim was a child. He also knew this one would be especially tough for him, involving child sexual abuse, which was going to unleash dark demons from the past.

  As the big bike roared out towards Hope and Castleton, Ted asked through the helmet intercom, 'So where are we headed?'

  'I thought you were a detective,' Trev joked. 'We're heading for the High Peak and I mentioned a pass. Isn't that enough of a clue for you?'

  'Winnats Pass?' Ted asked. 'Just what I need to relax, the scene of a historic double murder.'

  'God, Ted, I'm sorry,' Trev said apologetically. 'Do you want to go somewhere else?'

  'Don't be daft, it's fine,' Ted reassured him, 'that was three hundred years ago. Come on, open the throttle a bit, there's no policemen watching you, honest.'

  Trev needed no encouragement to let the big bike have its head so they were in the Peaks in no time. They were soon peeling off helmets and breathing in clean country air, away from the town.

  As well as the martial arts club where they had first met, hill walking had always been their thing. Their relationship had developed on long walks and leisurely picnics in hills and mountains. They'd shared their first hesitant kiss in the High Peak.

  It was always out in the hills that Ted felt able to open up and talk about himself other than in his usual joking, self-deprecating way. He seemed to feel safe outdoors, talking about himself in a way he never did at home, even in the intimacy of the bedroom. With each hill walked and each mountain climbed, he opened up a little more until Trev felt he knew almost all about him. Ted told him things he had never told anyone else, but Trev suspected there were still dark secrets in hidden corners of his mind that his complex partner was not yet ready to let go of.

  They walked until the light went, then headed to the nearest pub which was serving food. Their choices from the impressive menu spoke volumes about their different personalities. Traditional to the point of old-fashioned, Ted went straight for the steak and ale pie, Trev for the seared swordfish with courgette tagliatelle.

  A non-drinker, Ted offered to ride the bike home so Trev could enjoy a glass or two of decent wine and sit in Ted's usual place on the back. Ted could handle the bike well enough and borrowed it on rare occasions, though he had none of the flair and natural ease of Trev. To his surprise, Trev agreed and ordered half a bottle of a good French white wine.

  The image of the little boy in the skip was never far from Ted's mind but good food and excellent company were going a long way towards healing the hurt of the d
ay.

  'Would you mind if I had a cognac to finish off?' Trev asked him.

  Ted shook his head. He was delighted to see his partner so obviously enjoying himself. Living with a copper was never easy on the social front and Trev was hugely sociable. A lot of their evenings out centred on their martial arts.

  Trev went over to the bar in search of his drink as there was no sign of a waiter. Ted watched him through the open archway that separated the bar from the dining room. There were two women sitting on bar stools, drinking cocktails. Ted smiled to himself as they both immediately started talking to Trev who was soon laughing and joking with them.

  When Trev came back with his brandy, he told Ted, 'Get your coat, you've pulled. The older one at the bar thinks you look cute. She was quite disappointed when I said I did too and you were with me.'

  It felt strange, on the short ride back, to have Trev sitting behind him, arms lightly around his waist, as Ted handled the big bike competently but rather conservatively.

  Trev seemed very happy. 'This evening has been really nice,' he said. 'We should make time to do it more often, although I know it's not easy with your hours.'

  Ted felt his batteries had been recharged. He still faced probably the toughest case of his career so far but at least he felt better able to handle the challenges of the days ahead.

  'You're right,' he replied, 'and we shouldn't wait for another poor kid to finish up dead in a skip before we do.'

  CHAPTER Six

  Ted was not the only one in unfamiliar dress the following morning. He was first in, as usual, but Sal was not far behind him, dressed in black shalwar kameez. It was the first time Ted had seen him in traditional dress and he felt a pang of envy – it certainly looked a lot more comfortable than his hated suit and tie.

  'My cousin's set up a meeting today with this taxi driver, sir,' Sal said by way of explanation. 'Khalid, my cousin, says he's as jumpy as a kitten, he's not even sure he will turn up, but even if he does, he doesn't think he'll tell us very much until he's more confident.'

  'We desperately need intelligence, Sal, but not desperately enough for you to panic him at the first meeting,' Ted told him. 'I take it he has no clue that you're a copper?'

  'Not at all, boss. In fact,' he hesitated as if unsure whether what he said would meet with approval, 'Khalid hinted that I was a driver after work and looking for a way to make a bit more money on the side than just doing airport runs.'

  'It's your shout entirely on this one, Sal. Whatever you decide I'll back you, you know that,' Ted reassured him. 'We need information, we can't afford to be all that fussy about how we get it. Just be very careful. If this really is an organised paedophile ring, they will be on the lookout for leaks and they will be ruthless in how they deal with them. Don't put yourself at risk.'

  The rest of the team members were starting to drift in now. Maurice Brown was last, as usual, though still on time. No bag of sticky buns once more, but his clothing smelt strongly of cigarettes. Ted had a mental bet with himself as to how long it would be before tactless Maurice made a crack about Sal's dress. When he did, it raised a laugh from all of them, Ted included.

  'Blimey, Boss, I reckon you should wear some of that get-up, you look a lot less comfy than Sal does.'

  'Sal's out under cover today, as you probably all guessed, trying to find a way to talk to taxi drivers, after the information we got from Flip – Philip,' Ted told them. 'I need as many of you out there as possible today. We need to know where Aiden Bradshaw was in the hours before his death. But it's very important you stay well away from taxi ranks and drivers. If any of you go sniffing round there while Sal is trying to talk to a possible key witness, it could all go pear-shaped on us.

  'First off, Sex Offenders' Register. I want every single name in our area and a bit beyond checked on and accounted for on the day Aiden was killed. Steve, you're the one for computer stuff, get lists, pass them to the DS. If you have any way at all of finding names who aren't on the register yet but should be, give him those as well. Even if it's only rumour. We need any lead we can get.

  'Mike, can you split the team up as you see fit, make as many available to work on this case as possible, without neglecting anything else that's urgent. I'm planning on leaving questioning other kids at the home where Aiden was until our new team member, Sgt Reynolds, joins us. She's the one with the child protection experience, she would be best suited to that role.

  'Sal, when are you setting off?'

  'Soon as I can,' Sal replied. 'I've arranged to meet Khalid about a mile away and I'm going there on foot, just in case. Don't want to take any risk of anyone seeing me meeting up with him too close to the nick. I'll go out the back way and walk a less direct route to the meet-up. I'm leaving my warrant card here, and I plan to keep my mobile phone switched off all the time, in full sight, so he knows I'm not trying to record him or anything.'

  'Good thinking,' Ted nodded. 'Right, get going, good luck, and check in as soon as you can.'

  Sal left the station and walked briskly to where he'd arranged to meet his cousin. Khalid was going to come in his taxi to pick him up, then drive across to the other side of town to a café favoured by many of the drivers in the area. Sal didn't have more than a few moments to wait. Khalid was on time and greeted his younger cousin warmly.

  'I'm not sure this driver's going to turn up,' he warned him. 'He's clearly very afraid. He's been working a night shift, he'll be going to the café for breakfast in the next hour or so, if he shows up. If he does, he won't acknowledge me at all when he first sees me. He really is scared. He told me he wants to make sure there is no chance of anyone he knows seeing him there talking to me when I'm with someone else.'

  The café was quite busy doing breakfasts. Khalid went to order cups of tea while Sal picked a table close to the entrance. From force of habit, Sal took a seat where he had a view of the entire room, leaving Khalid a chair facing the door so he could see who came in. There was room for the other driver to sit down with them, if he arrived.

  They had a long wait, chatting about family affairs and getting to their third cup of tea each before Khalid said very quietly, 'He's just come in and is heading to the counter.'

  Without appearing to watch, Sal carefully noted the newcomer as he went to order breakfast. He was small and thin, with an anxious face and dark eyes which darted ceaselessly round the café as he waited for his food. Like all the other drivers in the café, he was wearing western clothing, a dark suit. Only Sal and the off-duty drivers were in shalwar kameez.

  Once his food was ready, he headed over towards the front of the café, studiously ignoring Khalid, who looked up and greeted him casually.

  'Would you like to join us? There's a spare seat here. This is my cousin, Abisali, and this is my friend, Mohnid.'

  The man hesitated a moment, his eyes still sliding right and left, from one diner to another. Sal stood up and greeted him politely in Urdu, shaking his hand, then the three men sat down.

  They talked all round the houses for what seemed to Sal an interminably long time before there was any chance of steering the conversation in the direction he wanted it to go. He forced himself to be patient as it was clear from the way he reacted every time the door opened that the man was extremely jumpy.

  Finally Khalid saw an opportunity and said, 'My young cousin is looking for driving work at the moment. There's nothing where I am, but I wondered if you knew of any openings for a keen young man with a clean licence?'

  Sal kept his face impassive as the man's dark eyes scrutinised him at length. As he'd said at the morning briefing, he had deliberately put his mobile in full view on the table, switched off.

  He smiled in what he hoped was a reassuring way and said, 'I find myself in the unfortunate position of owing rather a lot of money to some people who are not at all patient. I'm prepared to work long hours to clear my debts but I fear that might not be enough soon enough to get me out of my current predicament.'

  After a
long pause, the man said evasively, 'I have heard there are ways of making extra money.'

  'How could I make contact with people who might show me how it's possible? Sal asked, trying not to sound too eager.

  ''It's stupid to be so impatient,' the man said scornfully. 'You don't contact these people, they make contact with you, but only when they have observed you for long enough to know that you can be trusted. They are very dangerous people. You are going to cause trouble if you ask things like that. You will make danger for yourself and for others. You must go now and leave me alone.'

  Khalid tried to smooth things over, but the man was adamant and refused to talk any more. Sal felt like kicking himself for pressing on too quickly and blowing possibly his best lead to date.

  As they walked back to the car, his cousin tried to console him. 'I told you he was very nervous,' he said. 'I'll talk to him again, you may not have blown it. I'll explain you too are involved with dangerous people, chasing you for money, so you were a little hasty. Don't worry about it, it may still be possible to move forward.'

  Ted said more or less the same thing when Sal got back to the station and reported on his meeting. Knowing how keen the DI was on encouraging his team with positive feedback, Sal wasn't sure whether he meant it, or was just saying it.

  'If I could just get in there under cover, sir, get a job driving and start asking for more and more shifts,' Sal began.

  Ted shook his head emphatically. 'Out of the question at this stage,' he said. 'We don't know who we're dealing with, or how dangerous they really are. I'm not sending anyone in under cover until we do, and the Superintendent would never allow it even if I suggested it.

  'You did well, you made initial contact, we have more intelligence than we had before your meeting. Don't beat yourself up about it, it's a start and a start is what we needed.'

  CHAPTER Seven

  Ted's desk phone was ringing as he walked through his office door the next morning. As soon as he answered it, a woman's voice began speaking as if he should know who she was.