Hard Evidence

The car turned the corner out of view and the young girl continued singing as she walked up the gravel path to her house, her head down, watching her feet as they scuffed through the raked stones.

The lock rattled, and Siobhan looked up, surprised to see the door open and a man standing in the hallway, smiling down at her, a wild-haired boy beside him.

'Hello?'

'Hello, Siobhan.'

'You're very pretty,' said the dark-haired youth, his smile revealing crooked teeth, a slash of ugly imperfection in the face of a gypsy choirboy.

Kate gunned the engine, spinning round the roundabout, cutting off someone on the inside and nearly losing control, but she was good, she righted her steering, accelerating again as she willed the traffic to part in front of her.

'Why do they do it, Jack?'

'Who?'

'People like my uncle.'

'Human nature.'

'It's evil. It's not human.'

Delaney's eyes glittered darkly. 'We're all capable of evil.'

Kate glanced at him and shook her head. 'You don't believe that.'

'People like your uncle get hold of children like Andy and do what they do to them because people like us let them.'

Kate looked angrily across at him. 'Don't say that!'

'Children are left on the street like garbage and we complain when the wrong people sweep them up. We trust people in authority and we turn a blind eye when that trust is abused in the worst kind of way. Teachers, policemen, social workers, priests…'

He trailed off. Kate flicked a glance across at him. 'You sound like you're talking from experience.'

Delaney didn't answer for a moment. 'I live with it every day, Kate. It's my job. Cleaning up the vermin that comes crawling out of the gutters when we treat people like garbage. Vermin like Billy Martin and your uncle.'

Siobhan stood in the doorway, reluctant to enter. Walker smiled at her, stroking the pad of his thumb along the scar on his cheek. 'It's all right, Siobhan, my name's Superintendent Walker, I'm your daddy's boss.' He pulled out his ID. 'This is my warrant card. You've probably seen your daddy's, haven't you, just like this?'

Siobhan nodded and looked at the card, then back at Walker.

'Is he in trouble, then?'

Walker laughed, a big fruity laugh. 'No, he's not in any trouble. Why don't you come in? This is Andy. He's a special friend of your dad's too.'

Siobhan smiled, reassured. 'Hello, Andy.'

'Hello.'

Siobhan walked into the hallway, slinging her satchel over a coat hook, and looked round, a little puzzled. 'Where's Aunty Wendy?'

Andy grinned. 'She's gone to the shops to get some lemonade.'

Walker smiled again. 'She won't be too long. Why don't you show me your room whilst we wait? I bet you've got some lovely toys.'

Siobhan shrugged. 'They're all right.'

In the cupboard under the stairs, Wendy whimpered, tried to cry out, telling Siobhan to run, but the gag in her mouth and the rope holding it in place meant she could do no more than make a small mewing sound. She kicked her legs in frustration, but it just dug the wire deeper into her flesh and pulled the rope tighter around her neck. There was no air in the cupboard and the heat was unbearable. She struggled to get some oxygen into her lungs and failed. Her eyes widened for a moment as she heard the footsteps on the staircase above her head, and then they lost focus and closed. Soon she didn't feel the pain in her side where the knife had punched and penetrated her tender flesh; she didn't feel the cruel constriction of her tortured throat. She didn't feel anything at all.

Kate pulled the car to a screeching halt outside Wendy's house. Delaney threw his door open and jumped out, followed by Kate, who shouted after him, 'Don't even think about telling me to wait out here.'

Delaney nodded and headed for the door, taking a key out of his pocket as he ran.

Upstairs in Siobhan's bedroom, Walker smiled as he heard the key turn in the lock. He looked at Andy and put a finger to his lips. 'Sit on the bed, Andy.' Andy sat next to Siobhan, and Walker smiled at the young girl. 'Shush. That's your dad now. Let's give him a nice surprise, shall we?'

Siobhan nodded and whispered, 'Daddy loves surprises.'

'He's going to love this one.'

Downstairs, Delaney picked up the slashed telephone cord and looked at the blood-stained Sabatier blade on the counter beside it. His daughter's scream rang out from upstairs and it felt like someone had plunged the knife into his heart. He snatched it and ran for the stairs; Kate caught his arm and whispered hoarsely, 'Be careful.'

Delaney shook her hand off and took the steps two at a time. Bursting into his daughter's room, he pulled up short as he saw that Walker had Siobhan held in front of him with a knife at her throat.

'Come on in, Detective Inspector.'

Delaney kept his face neutral. He looked down at his daughter and spoke softly. 'It's all right, pumpkin. Everything's going to be okay.'

'Put the knife down, Inspector.'

Delaney hesitated for a beat and then let the carving knife fall to the floor.

'Pick it up, Andy.'

Andy stood up from the bed and picked up the knife.

Delaney watched him as he moved back. 'You in on this, then, Andy?'

Andy shrugged. 'Not to start with.'

Walker nodded, his voice warm, amused. 'He disappeared for a little while, but I think he's rather glad I found him again. Andy enjoyed the filming work I gave him, didn't you, son?'

'Yeah.'

Delaney noticed the flat look in the young boy's eyes, and felt a chill in his soul.

'He used to help find the young stars for our films. He came and went as he pleased. Isn't that right?'

Andy nodded, and Delaney looked at him. 'So what changed?'

Andy shrugged. 'Uncle Billy found me. Saw I was holding some serious folding and wanted to know where I was getting it from.' He smiled humourlessly. 'He beat it out of me.'

'The thing was, Andy knew Moffett from when his mum was making Sin Sisters,' said Walker. 'Billy went to Moffett and put the squeeze on him. Moffett hired Norrell to take care of the problem,' he shrugged, 'and the rest you know.'

Delaney looked at the young boy. 'So what now, Andy? Your mother loved you, you know. She'd have done anything to protect you.'

'Which is why I had Moffett dealt with, as soon as I knew what was happening.'

'So Jackie Malone's death was nothing to do with you?'

'Of course not. And Andy is a bright lad. He's learned from experience. Something it seems you're incapable of doing.'

Delaney turned the full glare of his hatred back on Walker. 'You think you can just walk away from all this? What do you think you're going to achieve here?'

Walker smiled thinly. 'Closure, Jack. Isn't that what we are all seeking in the end?'

'Closure?'

'Because you're taking the fall, as our American cousins would say. I had information that you were keeping young Andy here against his will, and I acted on it. Isn't that right, Andy?'

Andy looked at Delaney, deadpan. 'I told my mother about you and my uncle abusing me. That's why you killed them both.'

'And that's why you killed Sergeant Bonner when he put two and two together. Your DNA is going to be all over him. You couldn't have been more helpful if you'd tried.'

'Put the knife down, Walker, and I'll see you get help. You're a sick man.'

'Because I showed affection and love? Because I cared for those kids when nobody else did?'

'Love,' Delaney almost spat.

Walker was not fazed at all. 'Yes, love, Delaney. Something those runaway kids never knew. Why do you think they do run away? Living on the streets like animals. We helped them. The home Moffett and our associates set up for them was the first real place they had ever felt secure.'

Delaney looked over at Andy. 'Is that right, Andy?'

Andy shrugged. 'They were a lot better to me than my uncles ever were.'