When the news filtered through to the station the air was thick with apprehension. Adams considered how utterly unimportant his trepidation over the conversation with Bradstock had been by comparison. That had been but a blip on the Richter scale of unease. It had also gone surprisingly well. In fact Bradstock seemed to relish having a bona-fide reason to do some internal snooping, because the American guru was pretty sure the Intranet breach had come from within.
*
Clive Donoghue was given the bag of goodies tagged Reginald Powell, and despite his workload he promised priority analysis. His people had also worked around the clock in shifts on the partial prints from Renton’s French doors. The perplexing news was that the ‘patching’ technique clearly pointed to Friend, whose prints were on file from the altercation at the Mission, for which Man had been charged. This provoked a recap by Adams, who reminded everyone that Renton had said the figure in the garden looked like Friend, but was nothing like as tall. It became obvious that in the split-second the Boss had to visualise both what was behind and in front of him, with the aid of the flash, his perspective could have been altered by the refraction of the slightly opaque double glazing. Donoghue’s assistants had reconstructed a computer model from observational measurements and the most likely answer was that Friend was crouching or on his knees, trying to avoid being seen.
*
Frank pondered what to do, having somehow heard of Renton’s relapse. He was busy with Man’s work in following up on the influx of new friends, and placement with their keepers. The trial was still some four weeks away and it didn’t look good for the accused. Friend was not capable of this kind of monitoring responsibility, and Frank decided to postpone some of his planned activity.
*
Stephanie was disappointed to hear that there was nothing of interest on Gerry Walton. She’d felt confident that it could have opened a new line of enquiry. At least she could resume interest in her personal life. She texted her friend to that effect and they arranged to meet at Shearer’s Bar, which was part of St. James’ Park stadium. It was a popular venue, and one which was almost equidistant for both of them. David Miller was considered by Stephanie’s mates to be quite a catch, and she was happy that he had a similar attitude to work as she did herself. Her career as a police officer and regularly having to cancel social arrangements didn’t bother Miller, as he often had to travel to London at short notice to meet international clients. He was interested in her work without being overly inquisitive, and he only talked about his work when specifically asked about it. They were both realistic about the chances of the development of a long term relationship, and this seemed to add to their mutual attraction.
*
The internet was still infatuated with the meaning of the Yin Yang symbol. Apart from the main fascination with what it conveyed about the victims, there were increasing numbers of threads which delved into why Frank had uploaded the image as a ring, and placed it on his own finger. It was argued that there must be some resonance with the finger he had delivered to the police via Friend; this was extrapolated to it having significance to his choice of victims. This progression burgeoned into rather unhealthy speculation that it specifically referred to the methodology of choosing the two victims stitched together like Siamese twins. The discussion raged until there was a post which claimed confirmation of this. ‘The postulation of the Siamese twins is very perceptive. It has to be emphasised that these two victims were joined together at death, not birth. So, unlike true Siamese twins, the purpose is to illustrate that they are inextricably linked forever, whereas the objective with conjoined infants is to separate them’. The debate then took a sharp turn, as to whether Frank had posted this himself.
*
Bradstock’s American expert had quickly found evidence of tampering with several chunks of archived data, and it covered a wide spread of information. However, to the trained eye of Kyle Jennings, there was a definite link to authorisation codes of his former Boss, Bruce Middleton. Bradstock was preening over his foresight in firing this man, but that had merely been for incompetence. Corruption had a much higher currency, and the subsequent analysis by Jennings clearly showed most of the ‘scrubbing’ was associated with people or activities of the Colony. Adams was asked to transmit the profile of the DNA from the genitalia of the Frankenstein corpse.
*
Jack Renton had been gradually drifting back toward full consciousness, and his overriding priority was to inform Adams of the implied threat to Daniel and Jane by Frank. Jane was the only one who he could persuade to contact D.I. Adams. The doctor had made it crystal clear that there would be no more concessions to, or deviations from his recuperation plan. Jane was not happy to break this edict, but Renton pressed her every time they were alone.
“Jack, you really are irresponsible. The doctor has every right to throw you out of here. He’s advocating an operation to remove troublesome blood clots. It’s going to be scheduled in the next couple of days, subject to checks, including your blood pressure, and you want to talk shop to Ben. It can’t be said any other way – your life is a risk. Forget work, I’m not going to compound your stupidity.”
“I just want to tell him exactly that. You know, that I won’t be back for quite a lot longer than the leave I took, and….”
“Fine, I will call him and tell him that. I’m going back to Daniel’s ward and I’ll phone on the way. By the way, your son is improving steadily now and is having physiotherapy and hydrotherapy.” Renton conceded to her resistance to involvement and began to think of another means of getting a message to Adams, then decided to leave it to Ben to make contact.
“You’re right Jane, forget about calling Ben.”
*
Stephanie felt that with three colleagues still trawling for information on Driscoll in the Salford area, she would give Gerry Walton a shot herself. She spoke to the unit he retired from, after his final tour in Yemen. The Green Howards had survived several attempts by the M.O.D. to reduce the intake to a point where it would fall into the category for consideration of disbandment. She spoke to a Captain Rudge.
“My colleagues may have already explained why they wanted to trace Mr. Walton, but I’ve just returned from visiting the injured son of a close friend of his. This young man has lost both legs in the service of his country, and I would really like to speak with Gerry to see if he has the time to visit Alex Blake.”
Rudge didn’t reply at first, and Stephanie briefly thought she’d been disconnected.
“Are you saying that it’s not a police matter, but a personal one?”
“To be absolutely honest it’s both, but the personal side is why I’m talking to you now. Any contact Alex can have with those who knew his late father would be appreciated, especially as his mother and uncle have both died recently. He’s basically adrift in an emotional sense, as well as being physically disadvantaged.”
“I see, in that case I’ll make some enquiries. We don’t have a current address for Gerald Walton, but maybe we can speak with others from his unit who can help. Give me the whereabouts of the young man and I’ll do my best. I’ll let you know if I have any success.”
“Thank you. He’s at Broad Meadows care home near Southampton. His father’s name was Robert Blake.”
Chapter 24
Frank was reinvigorated because the internet blogs were once again predominantly focussed on his actual agenda, and not the copycat killings. According to most of the world news agencies, this imitative butchery was waning. He considered his next move to be critical because the timing was right, in view of the spike in global interest. Guiding the populous toward his reasoning, and therefore the suggested action, was now a priority. It was still a precarious balancing act, simply defined by him having to disappear if his identity was revealed. Phase two could begin, and the final act of undermining the credibility of the police would be deferred until Jack Renton had recovered. If he was kicked while he was down, sympathy would shift the mo
mentum. It wasn’t personal between Renton and Frank. The police force just happened to suit his cause, being taken for granted, as long as they were improving their statistical measurement of accountability. Nobody seemed to cry out even though these numbers were dominated by clear-up rates of motoring offences and unsubstantiated alleged racism. Frank accepted that such transgressions were important, but not at the expense of some of the real evils of society. If the police could no longer solve cases involving the taking of human lives, the priorities must be politically skewed. Repetitive shock treatment seemed to be the only way. He made another painful visit to his deep freeze store.
*
Bradstock had arrested and questioned his former head of I.T. - Bruce Middleton, who thought he had retired comfortably. When confronted by corruption charges, he knew his life was going to change. One way could be the termination of it, efficiently carried out by those in the Colony who had assured him he’d be safe under their umbrella. The alternative was to take the fall and the consequent long sentence demanded. That route was also tricky because the Colony didn’t like scenarios in which a patsy could have a change of heart. Recourse to a protection plea was not an option with Bradstock, because of such a senior defection to the mob, and in any case, the conviction was considered to be rock solid without a confession. Middleton made an impassioned appeal to Bradstock on behalf of his family, and their future safety.
“You should have thought about that when you crossed the line. Anyway I am sure you have sufficient capital squirrelled away for your family to take care of this before you go on trial. Unless you give us more than admission of generally assisting organised crime rings, we will simply proceed with the charges we have made.” After some discussion with his brief, Middleton asked Bradstock to spell out his demands. “Fine, we need the names of all Colony personnel you dealt with, and your testimony regarding the precise purpose of their recruitment of you, and any others within the wider police organisation. We know you cannot be the only tentacle they have in our ranks. Start talking and we will see if there is merit in your plea.” Middleton declined to say any more, accepting that he wouldn’t survive his sentence, but at least the Colony would know, because of his silence in court, that he hadn’t confided in his family. They would be safe. Bradstock would have to find a weaker link in the chain.
*
Donoghue confirmed to Adams that Reginald Powell’s possessions had provided cross-checked matches to the DNA of the legs of the Priory corpse. Adams immediately gathered his staff around the whiteboard once more.
“We must surely be looking right at the motive without seeing it. With three definite identities, and one possible out of five, there has to be a link. Anyone disagree?”
Sam Gibson sat quietly, as did the two new recruits, and Stephanie was always prepared to speculate.
“I don’t disagree with you Sir. But maybe we’re looking at it from the wrong angle. On the face of it there isn’t an obvious connection of the victims themselves or we’d have seen it by now. Rory Davenport, a student protester, Martha Blake, a drug addict who shafted the Colony, and Reginald Powell a gay eighteen year-old keep fit fanatic, don’t exactly look like they would frequent the same social circles.”
“And now enlighten us with the point of your ‘wrong angle’ argument Steph.”
“I’m only saying that the connection could be through other people and not directly between them – the actual victims.” Sam didn’t completely endorse this reasoning.
“The same logic would have to take in Brett Driscoll if he becomes the fourth match. He does have a direct connection of sorts with Martha Blake, albeit one of reporting her disappearance, and impersonating her brother.”
Adams said that the two approaches were not mutually exclusive. “Sam, let’s consider for a moment that Driscoll didn’t actually know Martha Blake personally. We already believe that he was being set up for a fall by the Colony, and he simply had to carry out their orders to help cover up the Hendricks erasure. That’s how they operate; a disposable employee is used to tidy up a potential embarrassment.”
“Ok, but I can’t see any link from Driscoll to anyone other than Martha Blake, and I doubt if Davenport or Powell had any kind of attention from the Colony. I still think we have to find links to Frank. At least forget Driscoll until he’s in or out, because if he is one of Frank’s victims we have a bit of a problem – how could the Colony be responsible? Let’s do as Steph suggests and look for connections in the immediate circles of the three definite victims.”
*
The number of instruments and wires around Jack Renton’s bed had decreased as the procedure to remove the blood clot drew closer. Ben Adams had found out about this, not from Jane, but by ringing reception to routinely check on his friend, because his mobile was switched off. He arrived and was met in the corridor outside the ward by Jane.
“Nobody told me about Jack’s operation and the people at reception were sketchy at best, what‘s going on Jane?”
“He collapsed at the entrance to Daniel’s ward. The doctor warned him that this could happen, but Jack asked for leave to go home again and get clean clothes. I could have done that but he’s so stubborn. Not long after he returned he suffered some kind of blackout. The doctor decided after conducting many tests, that a precautionary removal of a clot should be scheduled. I didn’t want him talking to anyone at work before this operation. You know what he’s like, he thinks he’s indestructible.” Adams was feeling a little guilty himself, thinking that after Renton’s disclosure of his meeting with Frank, he should have blocked the Boss’ meeting with Donoghue, instead of setting it up.
“I don’t know what to say Jane. He puts all of us in difficult spots at times. I know he doesn’t mean to, but it happens. Perhaps I’d better go. Just tell him I came to see how he’s doing - and Daniel too. I’ll go and see the young man now instead.”
“No Ben, he’ll go mad if he thinks I tried to stop his real friends from seeing him. He’s a bit groggy with the medication but otherwise seems ok. Just don’t talk about work.” Adams entered and wagged his finger at his friend.
“I hope they fix your head completely this time Boss, so you can take in their advice. And don’t ask about anything but Newcastle United. Take a lesson from them – get paid a lot for a little work! I’m going to see Daniel in a moment, so I just called in to see how things are and tell the nurses how to handle your little eccentricities.”
“Come in a little closer Ben. I’m not supposed to shout or even raise my voice. They told me that sneezing or coughing can be dangerous. What the hell am I expected to do about that? They say this operation is just a precaution against this clot moving to a dodgy area. I should be out in a few days. That’s why I wanted to call you, but Jane had my phone and she switched it off altogether. She won’t give it back.”
“No, no, I’m not going there. For Christ’s sake, do you ever listen to advice? You’re pretty good at giving it. I’m going now.”
“Ben, Daniel and Jane are in danger. I had my funny turn when he rang me back after our meeting and made the threat, if I didn’t comply with his wishes. You have to help me.”
“In what way did he threaten you?”
“He obviously knows about Davenport from the forensic report he copied. He wants to know which other identities we’ve nailed down. We can’t give him anything, but with me incapacitated, Jane and Daniel need protection. I’d prefer not to tell her about this because I know she’ll overreact and blame me, saying I’m being melodramatic again. She needs to stay with Daniel around the clock until further notice, and we should post plain clothes security around his ward.”
“This isn’t going to go down too well Boss, because it means we have to spill the beans about you talking with him again, and then making a stupid arrangement to meet him. If he publishes the forensic report the information it contains will come out anyway. We really are on shaky ground.”
“I know that. I’m only concerned ab
out my family’s protection at present Ben. I can’t look further than that. You didn’t know about my meeting with Frank – got it? Nobody knows about that until you tell Bradstock today. I will have to take the flak on that even if it produces a lead which warrants his arrest by some miraculous connection. It does however justify posting protection in the hospital. Don’t look at me like that; it’s not the end of the bloody world, just my pathetic career. Promise me you’ll do this Ben.”
“You’re priceless Jack Renton. You know I’ll do it. Just wait until you’re given the all-clear, you won’t recognise me when you are discharged. It will be my turn to make demands.”
As Adams made his way back to the office he took a call from Forster.
“I’ve got promising news Ben. One of my informants has run to ground Driscoll’s housekeeper while he was living up here. It’s helpful that she’s a bit of a mercenary and knows nothing of the Colony. She stopped her visits when he went missing and didn’t pay her, but she still has a key and is willing to show my man around for a fee. She says the house is up for rent again, so we need to move quickly. Apparently the estate agent doesn’t know about her, as it was a private, cash-in-hand arrangement. Strictly speaking, her having a key and letting us in is breaking the law, so we’ll keep our distance from the actual search. If anything of interest turns up I’ll let you know. It’s likely that the Colony has given the place a thorough once-over, but they could have missed something.”