Dead Man Walking

  ‘If it really was Parker,’ said Hayley.

  ‘Of course,’ I said.

  ‘I’ve been thinking about that,’ said Penny. ‘If we can’t be sure Parker was Parker, how can we be sure anyone here is who they say they are? I mean we’re all strangers to each other, only brought together for this particular mission. We’ve just been taking it for granted that all of us are who we claim to be.’

  I nodded slowly. ‘Normally there’d be a briefing file, with names and photos. But this was all put together in such a hurry …’

  I could see suspicions growing in everyone’s faces. No one actually pushed their chair back from the table to put more room between them and everyone else, but they all looked like they wanted to.

  ‘I’ve known Bax for years,’ said Redd. ‘I can vouch for him. And he can vouch for me.’

  ‘But who vouches for the two of you?’ Penny said sweetly. ‘How long have you been working at the Lodge?’

  ‘Not long,’ said Redd. ‘We were called in at the last moment, to provide special security for Parker.’

  ‘Did you check their IDs when they arrived?’ I asked MacKay.

  ‘Of course,’ he said. ‘And confirmed their arrival with Headquarters.’

  ‘But IDs can be faked,’ said Penny.

  ‘How do we know that’s really MacKay?’ Baxter said craftily.

  ‘I have worked here for three years,’ MacKay said coldly.

  ‘MacKay has,’ I said. ‘But how do we know you’re him?’

  I turned away from him to look steadily at Hayley and Doyle. ‘The Colonel told me to expect two new interrogators at Ringstone Lodge, but he never mentioned any names.’

  ‘Robbie and I have all the proper accreditation papers,’ Hayley said coldly.

  ‘Papers mean nothing,’ I said. ‘I’ve lost count of the number of false identities I’ve used. And it’s always possible that you could have ambushed the real Hayley and Doyle on the way here, killed them and taken their place.’

  ‘But … we didn’t!’ said Hayley, her voice rising. ‘This isn’t fair! How are we supposed to prove we didn’t do something?’

  ‘You can’t,’ I said. ‘See? Isn’t this fun? Paranoia, a game the whole family can play.’

  ‘I can vouch for MacKay,’ said Martin, his voice coming out of nowhere again. ‘We’re both on record as part of the Ringstone Lodge staff.’

  ‘Ah yes,’ I said. ‘The man whose cameras can’t be trusted. Whose records can therefore no longer be relied on.’

  ‘I’m the only one you can rely on,’ said Martin. ‘Because I’m the one who sees and hears everything. Mostly because there’s nothing else to do except sit and watch and listen.’

  ‘What about our right to privacy?’ said Penny.

  ‘What about your right to survival?’ said Martin. ‘It’s not like I care what any of you get up to. You’d be surprised how fast voyeurism can become boring when it’s all you do, day in and day out. I’m with you all the time because somebody has to be. Your very own guardian angel.’

  ‘Except when you’re sleeping,’ I said.

  ‘Sleep,’ Martin said wistfully. ‘I dream of sleep.’

  ‘We must wait for the reinforcements to arrive,’ said MacKay. ‘They can sort out who we really are.’

  ‘If we’re alive when they get here,’ I said.

  ‘Why shouldn’t we be?’ said MacKay. ‘Lockdown is in place, none of us are going anywhere.’

  ‘I’m more concerned about what happens when the SAS turn up,’ said Redd. ‘What if they decide to shoot everyone just to be on the safe side?’

  ‘Those gentlemen do have a reputation for being very thorough,’ said MacKay. ‘But standard procedure after a lockdown means they will bring a full investigatory team with them. And they will get to the bottom of things.’

  ‘Being the suspicious soul that I am,’ I said, ‘can I just check something? You have had a response to your emergency alert? You are sure Headquarters knows what’s going on here? The urgency of the situation?’

  ‘Mr Martin?’ said MacKay, addressing the ceiling.

  ‘Yes, I have received an acknowledgement,’ Martin said coldly. ‘I’d have said so, otherwise. Reinforcements will be here inside an hour. We can hold out that long, can’t we?’

  ‘It occurs to me,’ said Redd, ‘that if one of us is the killer, whoever it is can’t afford to be here when the SAS arrive.’

  ‘We’re locked in,’ said Baxter. ‘Remember?’

  ‘But if he kills the rest of us,’ said Redd, ‘then all he has to do is go to the security centre and raise lockdown from there. That’s where the controls are. Right?’

  I looked at MacKay. ‘Well? Is he right?’

  ‘Yes,’ said MacKay, reluctantly. ‘Lockdown can be raised from the security centre. If they know the correct codes.’

  ‘They’ve known everything else they needed to know,’ said Penny.

  No one else had anything to say. Everyone was thinking hard. Including Baxter, who looked like he was finding it a bit hard going. Even Doyle emerged from under his cloud, for the moment.

  ‘So we can get out?’ he said slowly. Picking on the only thing that mattered to him. ‘We can leave, if we have to?’

  ‘Hush, dear,’ said Hayley. ‘None of us are going anywhere.’

  ‘But we could get out,’ Doyle insisted. ‘We don’t have to stay in this terrible place, locked up with a killer. I think we should all leave right now. It’s not safe here, for any of us.’

  ‘Where would we go, Doctor Doyle?’ MacKay said patiently. ‘We could drive to the railway station, but there are no trains running at this hour. Do you really think we would be any safer standing around on a deserted platform all night? We could try for the nearest town, but it is many miles away. And anyone could be lying in wait along those deserted roads.’

  ‘The killer could have planted explosives in our one and only car,’ I said, not wanting to be left out of the general gloom and doom. ‘To take us all out if we tried to leave. It’s what I would have done. And anyway, you’re all missing the point.’

  ‘What point?’ said Baxter.

  ‘None of you are going anywhere,’ I said, ‘Because I won’t allow it. You are all suspects, and it’s my job to see that potential suspects don’t just disappear into the night from a crime scene.’

  There was a long pause as they all looked at me.

  ‘You really think you can keep us here?’ Baxter said truculently.

  ‘Yes,’ I said. ‘Don’t you?’

  ‘Brave words,’ said Redd. ‘From a man without a gun, to two men with guns.’

  ‘You really think that makes a difference?’ I said.

  ‘Oh for God’s sake!’ said Penny. ‘Just whip them out and measure them. Slap them down on the table so we can all have a good look. Men! The sooner scientists come up with a viable alternative the better.’

  Hayley surprised me with a brief snort of laughter. MacKay looked quietly pained. Baxter and Redd glanced at each other, then sat back in their chairs with their arms folded stubbornly.

  I looked at Penny. ‘I really have no idea what you’re talking about.’

  ‘Maybe not,’ said Penny, ‘but they do.’

  ‘We need to do this by the book,’ I said. ‘We can’t prove or disprove who we are, so let’s stick to the simple things. Starting with alibis. Where were we all when Parker experienced stabbing pains in the chest?’

  ‘Bax and I were together all the time,’ Redd said firmly.

  ‘Well of course you’d vouch for each other,’ said Hayley. ‘How do we know you’re not working together?’

  ‘How do we know you and Doyle aren’t?’ said Redd. ‘And Jones will swear he was with his girl. So much for alibis.’

  ‘His girl?’ said Penny, dangerously.

  ‘I was alone,’ said MacKay. ‘But I was in full view of the Lodge cameras at all times, as I am sure Mr Martin can attest.’

  ‘Damn right!’ said Mar
tin. ‘If attest means what I think it means.’

  ‘We were all inside the Lodge when Parker was murdered,’ I said. ‘With the cameras offline for a good ten minutes, that’s more than enough time for any of us to get down to the cell, do the deed, and get back again.’

  ‘I don’t like this,’ said Doyle. ‘Not trusting each other. What if this is what the killer wants, to turn us against each other?’

  ‘Welcome back, Doctor Doyle,’ I said. ‘That was surprisingly lucid. Are you feeling better now?’

  He smiled weakly. ‘As well as can be expected. You’ve been through something like this before, at Belcourt Manor. I read the file. What do you think we should do?’

  ‘We need to stick together,’ I said. ‘Keep an eye on each other. No one goes off on their own, because that’s a good way to get picked off. If you need a toilet break, wait till we all need to go.’

  ‘He’s right,’ said Penny. ‘Listen to him. I’ve seen what happens when the group doesn’t stick together.’

  ‘What did happen at Belcourt Manor?’ said MacKay.

  ‘People died,’ I said. ‘Because they didn’t do what I told them to do.’

  ‘If my parents had listened to Ishmael, they’d still be alive,’ said Penny. ‘Listen to him. He knows what he’s doing.’

  ‘But then you would say that, wouldn’t you?’ said Redd.

  ‘The only way to stay safe,’ said Hayley, ‘is to figure out who the killer is ourselves. Find him, lock him up, sit on him till help gets here. Come on, we can do this! We’re all professionals …’ She smiled briefly. ‘If we are who we say we are.’

  ‘Where do we start?’ said Penny.

  I looked thoughtfully at Hayley and Doyle. ‘You were the last ones to see Parker alive.’

  ‘But he was still alive when we left,’ said Hayley. ‘Martin’s records will confirm that.’

  ‘She’s right,’ said Martin, without waiting to be asked.

  ‘What did you talk about?’ I said.

  ‘That’s classified,’ said Hayley.

  ‘Even now?’ said Penny.

  ‘Especially now,’ said Hayley.

  ‘Just bullshit,’ said Doyle, staring into his cup. ‘Nothing that mattered. Nothing you could trust.’

  ‘Hush, dear,’ said Hayley. ‘Drink your coffee.’

  ‘We only agreed to work for the Organization because it seemed like a step up to better things,’ said Doyle.

  Hayley put a hand on his arm, and he stopped talking. And perhaps I was the only one to notice just how hard she squeezed his arm.

  ‘You have to get back to the security centre!’ Martin said suddenly, his voice almost hysterically loud and urgent. ‘Right now!’

  ‘Calm yourself, Mr Martin,’ said MacKay, just a bit wearily. ‘What is the matter now?’

  ‘You have to see this! Something’s happened.’

  ‘What could be so important?’ I said. ‘Parker’s not going anywhere.’

  ‘That’s what you think,’ said Martin.

  We hurried back through the Lodge, pounding through the empty corridors as fast as we could without leaving anyone behind. MacKay led the way again, but this time we were all keeping a watchful eye on each other as well as our surroundings. When we finally arrived at the security centre, the door swung open before us. Martin had been watching and waiting. We hustled into the centre and pretty much filled it wall to wall. Martin bounced impatiently on his swivel chair.

  ‘It happened again! One of the screens went blank when I wasn’t looking!’

  He pointed a shaking finger at one particular screen, showing Parker’s cell. The bars were still closed, but the bed was empty. There was no trace of Parker anywhere in the cell. The bedclothes looked undisturbed, as though he’d just got up and walked away.

  ‘He was gone when the cameras came back on!’ said Martin. ‘And now I can’t find him anywhere in the Lodge.’

  ‘He must be somewhere!’ said MacKay. ‘He can’t have just vanished.’

  ‘I thought you were keeping an eye on Parker?’ I said to Martin.

  ‘I can’t watch all the screens at once,’ he said defensively. ‘I just keep up a regular routine to make sure I cover all of them in turn. But when I looked back at this screen, it was blank. The camera covering the cell had shut itself down. And while I was struggling to get it up and running, the system started working again all on its own and the cell was empty!’

  ‘Whoever took the body can’t have got out of the Lodge,’ I said. ‘We’re still locked in. We are still locked in, aren’t we?’

  ‘Yes!’ said Martin. ‘We’re still sealed up tight. But so was Parker’s cell … The computer records swear it hasn’t been opened.’

  We all took a good look at the rows of screens, but there was nothing to see. The whole house was still and quiet and empty. Just as I expected. Someone was running a game on us.

  ‘Shouldn’t the alarms have gone off?’ said Redd.

  ‘If anyone opened the cell, yes,’ said Martin. ‘But it was never opened.’

  ‘You’re not making sense, Mr Martin,’ said MacKay.

  ‘I know!’

  ‘At least we can be sure none of us were involved,’ I said. ‘We were all together in the kitchen when it happened.’

  Everyone looked startled, and then relaxed a little.

  ‘Unless … the killer has an accomplice,’ said Hayley. ‘Someone able to remove Parker’s body while we were all busy giving each other an alibi.’

  She turned to look at Martin. And, one by one, so did everyone else. He glared back at us defiantly.

  ‘My presence in this room is recorded by the computers. Every time that door opens and closes, the computer time-stamps it. You can check the permanent record for yourselves, if you want.’

  MacKay reached out a hand, and Martin handed over his keyboard. MacKay slowly entered a series of commands, pausing to remember the correct passwords, until the required information flashed up on one of the screens. MacKay studied it, and then gave the keyboard back to Martin.

  ‘The computers confirm Mr Martin never left the centre. They also confirm Parker’s cell hasn’t been opened since I let you in to examine the body, Mr Jones.’

  ‘The computers should have sounded an alarm the moment someone started down the corridor to that cell,’ I said. ‘Are you sure no one can override the Lodge’s systems from outside?’

  ‘Yes!’ said Martin. ‘Positive!’

  ‘Then there must be an intruder inside the Lodge,’ Baxter said flatly. ‘Hiding in some secret place no one else knows about.’

  ‘But we checked everywhere, Bax,’ Redd said patiently. ‘So did MacKay, and he knows this place better than anyone.’

  ‘It’s the only answer that makes sense,’ Baxter said stubbornly.

  ‘Unless Parker got up and walked away,’ said Penny.

  We all stopped and looked at her.

  ‘The stories say he’s unkillable,’ said Penny. ‘What if the knife in the chest didn’t kill him, after all? What if he just bided his time, then got up and walked away? And now he’s let loose in the Lodge, looking for the man who tried to kill him. Looking for revenge …’

  There was a long and very uncomfortable silence, as everyone considered that idea and decided they really didn’t like it.

  ‘I want to go home,’ said Doyle.

  ‘You have the most experience with the darker corners of the world, Mr Jones,’ MacKay said slowly. ‘Is such a thing possible?’

  ‘I’ve seen stranger things,’ I said.

  ‘Ghosts?’ said Baxter. ‘Men who can’t be killed? Stick to what makes sense! You know the Lodge inside out, MacKay. It’s an old building. Could there be hidden rooms, secret passageways?’

  ‘I never heard of any,’ said MacKay, ‘But it is a possibility, I suppose. We’ll just have to search the Lodge again, top to bottom. Mr Baxter and Mr Redd, you will take the upper floor. Look for hidden doors and sliding panels. You have my permission to be as
rough and destructive as you see fit. I will take the ground floor. Mr Jones, Miss Belcourt, take the basement. Doctors, I think it best you find a room and barricade yourself in till we have determined the truth of the situation.’

  ‘What did I just say about sticking together?’ I said loudly. ‘Splitting up is always going to be a bad idea.’

  ‘The security of the Lodge must come first,’ said MacKay.

  He strode out of the centre, with Baxter and Redd all but treading on his heels. Hayley and Doyle looked at each other.

  ‘We’ll go back to the lounge,’ said Hayley. ‘Stay out of everyone’s way. Join us there when you’re finished.’

  She left, pushing Doyle ahead of her. I looked at Penny.

  ‘Why does no one ever do what I tell them to?’

  ‘I don’t know,’ said Penny. ‘Maybe you should go on a course.’

  ‘Excuse me?’ said Martin. ‘What am I supposed to do?’

  ‘Keep an eye on everyone,’ I said. ‘And yell out if you see anything.’

  ‘Like what?’ said Martin.

  ‘I think you’ll know when you see it,’ I said.

  I led Penny out of the security centre. The door started closing before we were even properly outside.

  ‘First it’s ghosts,’ said Penny. ‘Now it’s a dead man walking. What next? The old Ringstone Witch rising from her grave?’

  ‘Hush,’ I said. ‘You never know who might be listening.’

  FIVE

  Who’s That Knocking at the Door?

  Out in the entrance hall I paused for a moment, feeling the weight of history pressing down on me. For many years Ringstone Lodge had stood alone, miles from anywhere, the better to preserve its secrets. And once it became an interrogation and debriefing centre, there was no telling how much pain and horror these old walls had soaked up. All the years, all the people who had passed through, and the things they said and did to each other … Could this old house be haunted by so much awful history?

  Considering how many strange things I’d dealt with in my time, why was I finding it so hard to accept the possibility of ghosts? If aliens and monsters were real, why not the walking dead and spirits from the vasty deeps? Was it simply that I couldn’t stand the thought of all the people I’d killed for the greater good coming back to accuse me? All the men and women with bloody holes in their chests and backs, or with heads lolling limply on their shoulders from snapped necks, all the burned bodies and waterlogged corpses … What would I say to them if they stood before me?