Mrs Field nodded. 'But not according to James once he came back from visiting his relatives. According to him, they weren't bloodthirsty terrorists who hacked innocent civilians to death. No. They were freedom fighters nobly trying to reclaim their land from an occupying force. They weren't even Mau Mau, they were the Kenyan Land and Freedom Army. They'd filled his head with all this stuff about British penal camps. How our troops tortured Kikuyu suspects in their thousands. Terrible stories, not like anything I've read in any history book.'
'What had that got to do with James's past?' Jon asked, trying to keep up.
Mrs Field waved a hand, voice stronger now she wasn't talking about the boy they'd tried to raise. 'Who knows? He wouldn't let us in on that. We were now part of the problem, part of the system that had ripped him from his true past. I could see that was what he thought. I shudder to think what part his relatives over there had played in the uprising.'
Jon stared down at his notes. He was fairly certain Peterson was killed because of what he'd done to Danny Gordon. But what linked Rose Sutton and Trevor Kerrigan? Why had they died? And who was the last person James Field was after? Was it his adoptive parents? It could be anyone from the staff on the maternity ward at the Wythenshaw to the members of the social services team who decided to name him James. Too much was being revealed too fast. How could they possibly trace and protect all these people before James made his final attack?
His phone started to ring. 'Excuse me,' he said on seeing Summerby's name on the screen. He got up and walked through to the kitchen. 'Yes, boss?'
'Jon, what have you got?'
'Loads, Sir. I think we'll have to come back in to discuss it all.'
'Exactly my sentiments. The team sent back to the Silverdale have also called; they're returning here with some vital evidence.'
'Sir, I think we should place the staff there under guard.'
'Don't worry. Uniforms are on the doors.'
'We also need to trace the hospital staff involved with James Field's birth at the Wythenshaw. And the social workers involved with the adoption. They may be in danger too.'
'OK, I'll get some people on it. Are you ready for this? The DNA test on the skin caught on Kerrigan's ring has finally come back. Forensics thought the sample had been contaminated, hence the delay. It matched James Field's sample taken after his arrest for ABH in nineteen ninety-nine.'
'That caused confusion?'
'No, this did. Trevor Kerrigan was James Field's biological father. He ripped his own dad's throat out.'
Thirty-Five
They arrived back at Longsight early in the afternoon. The incident room was alive with activity, everyone skirting past the table in its centre. Sitting in silence down each side were several members of the Outside Enquiry Team. At the top of the table Summerby and McCloughlin were conferring over a raft of reports.
Jon looked at the top of McCloughlin's head and felt his hackles rise. 'I forgot that bastard had wormed his way on to the investigation,' he whispered to Rick.
Summerby beckoned. 'You two, take a seat. Gardiner and
Murray are on their way back from the photocopier.'
Jon and Rick had just squeezed a couple of chairs in at one corner when the two officers hurried into the room, a pile of paper in Murray's hands. Once they were seated, Summerby nodded. 'Let's hear it then.'
Murray took in a breath. 'The director at the Silverdale called any staff that had dealings with James Field. There's this retired teacher who goes in and tries to get the kids going with academic work. He said he had something very interesting. Apparently James Field had turned up at his house quite a while after leaving the Silverdale. He wanted the teacher's help in making a project.'
'When was this?' asked Jon.
'Summer of last year.'
After he'd returned from Kenya, thought Jon.
'The tutor said Field had got all this stuff with him, letters, bits of library books, photocopies of pamphlets, all sorts. He said James was by far and away the most naturally intelligent offender he'd ever dealt with. He didn't mind helping him turn it into a coherent project. This is a copy of what they produced, the tutor kept it to use as an example for other offenders of what could be achieved with a little effort.'
The two officers began to distribute stapled batches of A4-size paper. As Jon picked his up he could feel they were still warm from the photocopier. When he saw the writing on the front cover, he felt the blood slow in his veins.
'Field titled it, “Kuririkana”,' Murray announced. 'As we all now know, it means “Remember” in Kikuyu, an African dialect.'
McCloughlin whistled. 'Talk about incriminating yourself. He may as well have just signed his own life stay in Broadmoor.' Murray smiled grimly. 'The tutor took us through the project. It's heavy stuff but, according to him, genuinely researched. If you look at the contents, you'll see it starts with a chapter called
Repressed People, you've then got Shoot to Kill, Breaking
Resistance, Murder Camps and lastly, State Lies.'
'We can all read, DC Murray,' McCloughlin butted in.
'We're also in a bloody hurry here. So just one thing. What the hell has this got to do with finding James Field?'
Murray looked uncomfortable. 'I don't know how it links to the killings so far. It's about the Mau Mau uprising in Kenya during the late fifties.'
'Try and give us a quick summary and we'll see if it rings any bells with what anyone else has got,' Summerby instructed.
'Right,' Murray replied. 'Repressed People is all about how the British claimed to be on a civilising mission when they invaded Kenya. In reality they were after its natural resources. They declared all of its land… erm, I forget the phrase.' He turned a couple of pages and his finger started tracing down.
'Here we go. Crown Land. Basically the Kikuyu and other tribes were shunted into reserves while fertile areas were given over to white colonists. These became known as the White Highlands. Most of it was the ancestral lands of the Kikuyu tribe. Eventually, they were allowed back on to farm it, but were paid a derisory amount and taxed on their huts. It was essentially a feudal system, not seen in Britain since the Norman Conquest almost a thousand years ago.'
'So the Empire sucked,' interrupted McCloughlin. 'Is this relevant?'
Jon glanced at Summerby. Come on, Sir. Don't let him start to take things over.
'Bear with us,' DC Murray replied. 'After World War Two, the Kikuyu started forming organisations to lobby for the return of their land. In nineteen fifty the authorities responded by arresting the leaders and banning many of the groups.'
McCloughlin sighed. 'In nineteen fifty. That's the last bloody century.'
Summerby's head jerked with irritation. 'It somehow connects to what we're dealing with today. Will you let my officers speak?'
Jon kept looking at Murray, but a small smile escaped him. About time, boss, he thought.
Murray looked back down at the page. 'The tutor underlined this bit, said it's quite pivotal.' He began to read. ' “The Kikuyu grew ever more rebellious and in October nineteen fifty-two a State of Emergency was declared. Thousands of British soldiers were brought in. When leaders such as Jomo Kenyatta were arrested, hundreds of Kikuyu nationalists fled for the forests of Mount Kenya to establish a resistance movement. They formed themselves into the Kenyan Land and Freedom Army. Members who'd fought with the British during the World War organised them into units, even allocating ranks including General.' ” Murray glanced up. 'They began attacking white property, then the settlers themselves.'