Paula Whittingham shook her head slowly. 'Not a chance. Colin was a bullying, slave-driving son of a bitch, but they all loved him here.'
`How about Mrs Davey, Superintendent,' said Mario McGuire, directly but courteously.
'Did she love him?'
There was a pause, while the woman considered his question. In her way, I think she did.
She certainly loved the prestige of being a Cabinet wife. She and Colin got on well enough. They respected each other, and she gave him the leeway he needed.'
`Leeway?' asked Mackie.
`The most suitable word, I think.' She looked the detective directly in the eye. The Secretary of State for Defence was homosexual Chief Inspector. Not actively, at least not since he became a member of the Government, but it was a part of him, One which went right back to his days at public school.'
`Did he admit this to you?'
`He didn't have to. I was in Special Branch too, once upon time, and before he was a Minister. We kept discreet surveillance on all our rising political stars, and we had a file on him,'
`You had? Do you know what happened to it?'
She smiled. 'At a certain point in his political career, it was shall we say, "swallowed", by another part of the security apparatus. The fact that you two are here asking me questions, and in these circumstances, tells me that either it's been shredded or that it's kept under lock and key by someone in a very senior position indeed.
`Congratulations, boys. You've unlocked Colin's secret, or at least the one I knew about.
But if I were you, I wouldn't count on being allowed to uncover any more!'
SIXTY-SEVEN
‘These should be enough to keep you going for the rest of the week.'
Shana Mirzana stood in the open doorway of Arrow's cramped office, carrying a small mountain of files. Her voice was muffled, as the heap was held secure in her arms by the point of her chin.
`Let's hope not,' said the soldier with a smile. 'I have to keep some time for you.'
She dropped the pile on his desk. 'In that case, can I help you go through them?'
`Not really, love; you wouldn't know what to look for.' She pouted. 'You could tell me.'
`Not so easy, that. I don't know what I'm looking for myself, you see.' He reached up and took a file from the top. 'Are these all in date order?'
`Yes. It's what you asked for. Copies of every submission put before the Secretary of State since his appointment, with a note on his decision in each case. Good hunting… or whatever it is you're doing.'
`Thanks. I wish you could help me on this, honest.' `What about Lieutenant Swift?
Couldn't he?'
Arrow shook his head. 'John's on other duties just now, otherwise he would have.' She turned to leave. 'Hey, not so hasty!' he called. 'How was your concert last night?'
Excellent.' She smiled. 'Wish you could have been there'
If you'd told me about it, I would have been. I haven't heard Van the Man in years.' He looked at her mischievously. `What' my competition tonight, then?'
She tutted and pointed to the files. 'Looks as if that's mine!' Only until seven-thirty, after that I'm calling it a day. My place tonight?' She nodded. 'Stay over?'
She grinned at him, coyness and lust mixing in her eyes. `Let me go home to pick up a change of clothes, then.'
`That's what I like about you London girls. You're so hard to persuade. Okay, you do that.
But don't keep me waiting. I want to have a serious talk with you tonight.'
Shana stared at him in surprise. 'Serious, Captain Arrow? You?'
He stood up from his desk and came towards her, enfolding her in his arms. 'Why not?
We've been seeing each other for a while now. Just to show you how seriously I take you, Ms Mirzana, tonight I'll be home by eight, and I'll even cook. Spicy sausage in tomato sauce, with pasta tubes.'
'Penne Picante. I love that.' She rubbed herself against him.
`That's good to hear. I got into terrible trouble, once, when I asked for that in a restaurant in Spain. It means "Hot Cock" in Spanish!'
She drew him close and kissed him, leaning over him slightly. I'm game for some of that,' she murmured. 'I like it Castilian style.'
`Later!' he said, turning her and propelling her towards the door. For now, woman, back to your silent office.'
She grimaced. 'Must I? It's like a morgue there. All the paper's going to the Minister of State. There's nothing for Joseph and me to do.'
`That'll suit Webber. He'll be able to put in more time in the Red Lion. Between you and me, I heard that Morelli was going to cut his notice period, and let him leave straight away.'
I know. Joe told me this morning. He goes on Friday. Adam, have you heard any gossip about who the new Secretary of State will be, or even when he'll be appointed? All my sources have dried up.'
Arrow continued to ease her gently and very slowly towards the door. 'The hot tip was Andrew Hardy, the Scottish Office guy. But the problem is that they're short of Tories in Scotland, and McGrath's death made it worse. So it looks as if he's stuck there. Now the word is that the Minister of State in Northern Ireland is being lined up, but that his Secretary of State is baffling to keep him. If he wins that fight, then Maglone, the Minister of State here, will get it. But however it goes there'll be no announcement until Sunday, after the memorial service for Davey in his Constituency. Now,' he said firmly, patting her bottom. 'On your way!'
He closed the door on her and went back to his desk, to start his scrutiny of the pile of submissions. The task was easier than he had feared would be the case. He began by eliminating those papers where the decision was purely administrative, where it was wholly routine, or where it was inevitable. This editing process left him with a small pile of contentious decisions.
The great majority involved the continuing battle with Her Majesty's Treasury to hold the Ministry's budget at a level which its establishment felt to be consistent with effective defence. A few involved troop deployments which were not in the public domain, including secret assignments in which Arrow's own SAS unit had been involved. An even smaller group involved purchasing decisions.
Of these Arrow was drawn back again and again to one submission.
It involved the placing of a contract for air-to-ground missiles, to equip Harrier aircraft of the RAF and Fleet Air Arm. Arrow remembered the controversy which Davey's decision had caused at the time of its announcement. He had turned down the option of an English weapon with a revolutionary guidance system developed by a relatively small firm in the Cumbrian town of Workington, in favour of a conventional, work-horse, and, it was said, slightly outmoded missile, built in France by a consortium of European countries.
Arrow read and re-read the submission. Davey's decision had been taken against all Departmental advice, in the face of a field test which showed the home-based product to be far superior to the European concoction, and finally, despite overwhelming cost advantages.
`What the hell!' Arrow muttered to himself, as he read the Secretary of State's curtly delivered decision for the third time. If that isn't worth a bloody good look, I don't know what is.'
He picked up his telephone and dialled an internal number. John Swift, his colleague and number two, answered at once. `Swifty,' said Arrow. 'You still got that SIS contact?'
`Yes,' grunted the Yorkshireman.
`Well, see if you can use it for me. I need a warts-and-all report on a European defence consortium called Aerofoil. They got a bloody big contract from us a few months ago, and for the life of me I can't see why!'
SIXTY-EIGHT
‘You know, Neil, I never realised it before, but one of the advantages of being a copper has to lie in the fact that we never have to stay in court to listen to the Judge's summing-up. What a balls-aching bore of a day this has been! I'm thirty-six, a man in his prime. An unlimited spell on the loose in London should be my dream, yet here I am, just wishing I was back home with my wife.'