‘You’re doing fine, keep going.’
‘There was some stuff about Dad, nasty stuff that Jim said but Mum wouldn’t let him. I think she attacked him with something then, I don’t know what, a pan maybe, something metal because it clanged on the ground afterwards. There was a lot of noise, a lot of screaming after that, but I never heard Jim’s voice again. Then Mum ran out.’
‘Where were you?’
‘I was outside by then, I ran out. I stayed over the road, it was raining and dark. I saw Mum stumble into the wall, then she fell in the garden. I couldn’t look, I just buried my face in my hands and wanted it all to go away, but then that old bat from the house across the road appeared, she said something to Mum and I just ran. I wanted it to be all over, I didn’t want to think. I just ran away and sat under a tree trying to block it all out. I didn’t move. I didn’t do anything until the police came … and that’s when I called you.’
Darry sat quietly. He watched Jade sobbing and wiped the tears from her cheeks. ‘You’ve done well, Jade. You don’t need to tell me any more.’
‘Darry, I know you blame Fin now, but you shouldn’t.’
‘That’s enough, Jade. You don’t know what you’re talking about.’
‘I do, you think he should have been looking out for me but he couldn’t be there every minute of the day. Fin was good to me, he said he would help, said he would help me get this sorted.’ She rubbed her stomach. ‘He said he’d pay for it and make sure that we could get away and start again if we had to.’
Darry turned around the newspaper, flicked the pages. ‘Stop now, Jade. You don’t understand, if it wasn’t for Fin then Jim Tulloch would never have been anywhere near us. He was a psychopath and Fin brought him into our home, he followed Fin to Ayr, and that’s what all this mess is about – Jim’s twisted revenge for something that happened in Afghanistan. Fin has wrecked our family, Mum’s in hospital, you were raped for Christ’s sake, Jade. A friend should never have let that happen, and he was supposed to be my friend.’
‘You’re just looking for someone to blame, you’re angry and want to hit out. In a while, Darry, you’ll calm down and see that this was nothing to do with Fin.’
Darry fell silent, stared at the newspaper spread out on the table in front of him. He didn’t listen to Jade, because whatever she said it wouldn’t change the monumental news looking back at him from the pages of the newspaper.
‘Darry, do you hear me?’
He looked up from the tabletop. His eyes were glazed over, like he had just wakened from sleep.
‘Darry, what is it?’
He turned back to the newspaper and flipped the page over for Jade to see what he had just read. ‘It’s Mum, she’s been charged with the murder.’
‘They can’t.’
‘There.’ He tapped at the page. ‘It says so in the paper.’ His eyes closed. ‘It says they have evidence she killed Tulloch.’
44
DI Eddy Harris raised his face to the ceiling, closed his eyes. He appeared to be awaiting divine intervention or at least a lifeline from the chief super: neither appeared. With each second that ticked away it seemed the room became more claustrophobic, like the walls closed in and the oxygen supply was depleted.
Valentine’s gaze flitted between Harris and the others, everyone was staring at Harris, waiting for a response to the allegation he’d been paid by Leask. Could it be true? Could a police officer, even one like Flash Harris, really be so stupid? ‘Nothing to say for yourself, Eddy?’
He opened his eyes. ‘Nothing that changes the situation.’
CS Martin slapped the heel of her hand on the desktop. ‘You’ll have to do a damn sight better than that, Eddy, or I’ll pick up the phone and reserve a nice cell for you downstairs, one with hot and cold running recrimination. Don’t think about saving your job, think about saving your skin because without some mitigation in your defence I’m throwing the book at you.’
Major Rutherford started to rise from his seat, he looked like he wanted to be invisible too. ‘I don’t think you need me here for this, Marion. I’ll see myself out.’
‘You’ll sit your arse down,’ said Martin. ‘As soon as I’m finished with him, you’re up next. And if I need Home Office approval to see those case files on Tulloch and Finnie, I’ll get it, along with a warrant for your arrest on charges of impeding a murder investigation which resulted in the death of a minor. Am I making myself clear enough, Tom?’
‘But, but … Look this is silly, we have the case tied up.’
‘No buts!’ Martin blasted. ‘You have made me look a bloody muppet today, and on television too. I won’t forget that in a long time. If you think I’m going to let you slither off back to barracks and forget your involvement, think again.’ She moved in front of Harris, pointed a finger in his face. ‘Now spill your guts from start to finish, Eddy, or so help me God I’ll make you such a poster boy for bent coppers that they’ll be writing you into the textbooks.’
Harris gathered his breath and looked about the room as if surveying the exits. If he was thinking of making a dash for the door he declined and spoke up instead. ‘What do you want to know?’
‘Everything,’ said the chief super.
Valentine prompted him. ‘How about you confirm the robbery was planned by Leask and that you knew all about it.’
‘Now come on, Bob …’
‘No, you come on. I have statements confirming you were there when Leask put up the job.’ He was stretching the facts again, but time was running out and there’d never be another opportunity where the pressure on Harris was so intense.
Harris leaned forward, spoke to his hands: ‘There was a punch-up between the pair of them, it’d been on the cards for some time but Leask let it fester because he wanted them for the job – they were ex-army so it was like hiring proper professionals. He liked that idea, didn’t want any balls-ups, you see.’
‘Go on,’ said Valentine.
‘He hauled them in after the fight, made them think they were both getting the bullet from the Meat Hangers, but then drew it back.’
‘Made them an offer they couldn’t refuse, you mean?’
‘He said if they staged the robbery that they could keep their jobs and that he’d put a good drink in it for them too.’
‘And they went for it just like that?’
‘No. Not at first. That’s where I came in, we agreed to stage the robbery on one of my shifts so I could make sure the investigation ignored them.’
‘You bloody idiot, Eddy.’
Martin turned around, she folded her arms as she stared out the window of her office. ‘How much was in it for you?’
‘From the robbery, nothing. Honestly, I never took a thing.’
‘Oh, come on …’
‘No, I’m serious. I never took any because I was just protecting my investment, if the Meat Hangers went under then I did too. I couldn’t stay afloat now without the money Leask feeds me, I’m a bloody fool, I know, but I didn’t have a choice, I’ve got debts up to my eyeballs.’
It was an old story and one that Valentine had heard too many times already to summon an ounce of sympathy. He had financial difficulties of his own but he had never been tempted to put his fingers in the till. ‘So, what went wrong? Tulloch and Fin screwed Leask I take it?’
‘I don’t know, and that’s the God’s honest.’ Harris looked up from the floor and pleaded, ‘I didn’t know there was going to be a murder, Bob, I’d never have got involved with anything like that, I swear to it.’
‘Well something went tits up.’
‘Yes, big time. But don’t ask me what. All I know is the money went missing and Leask went ballistic.’
‘He also went missing,’ said Valentine.
Martin responded, ‘Where’s Leask now?’
‘I don’t know,’ said Eddy.
‘Don’t tell me you don’t know. Tell me you do know or you’ll find out and have the answer with me in under a minute or I’ll throw you to the wolves, Eddy.’