Hot Blood (Bloodwords Book 1) (26 page)

Satisfied that they had progressed the issue to
its logical conclusion, Radcliffe stood, ready to leave. The two sergeants followed
suit, as did Charlton.

‘This is a delicate situation Mr Charlton. I
must advise you never, and I repeat never, never ask a serving police officer
to bend the rules for you again. Sergeant
Lescott
is
currently in the mire and it’ll take all my best efforts to minimise that. Plus
of course her own excellent initiative behind the scenes. There have been three
murders and two brutal attacks and Sergeant
Lescott’s
enquiries are beginning to bear fruit. Let’s hope that helps her.’

‘Murder? What’s that got to do with this
inspector?’

‘Don’t ask Mr Charlton. Just be aware that not
only have you dropped Sergeant
Lescott
right in it so
to speak, you’ve also opened up a bag of worms. Now, for everyone’s sake, don’t
ask for any more favours.’

‘Inspector,’ responded Charlton. ‘I have
already apologised. I really didn’t appreciate the importance. And, truly, I
would never do anything to hurt Debbie.’

Radcliffe gave him another warning, then led
his sergeants out of the house.

Stopping part way down the path, the inspector
looked back. “Simon,’ he said, ‘Debbie thinks a lot of you. She has put her job
on the line for you. Don’t treat that trust flippantly.’ Then he turned on his
heel and walked away to join his colleagues.

Charlton watched in silence as the three drove
away. It was the first time that the senior officer had used Debbie’s first
name. And the first time he had called Simon by his. The inference wasn’t lost.

Nineteen

Turning over, Alison looked across at Brian.
Though always a dapper dresser, tucked up in bed he was reduced to the bare
necessities – literally. Thinning on top, the remaining hair definitely
beginning to lose its colour, and more than a hint of middle-aged spread, if
ever there was a peak in life, Brian was over it, though perhaps not yet on the
slippery slope. What had she seen in him? At first she hadn’t taken much notice,
although undoubtedly he had stood out from the rest of the staff. Other
teachers looked and acted like teachers but Brian looked more like a sharp
businessman. With the air of a corporate chairman emerging from a boardroom
triumph, he was extremely confident. Where other teachers drove small
economical cars, he always had a large expensive one – or a sporty
expensive one. And he always dressed well.

Weekends away with Brian were something to look
forward to. The excitement of what was to come. The buzz associated with
deceit. Keeping it all secret from the rest of the staff. And, of course,
keeping it secret from Steve.

For what? Had it really been worth it? Being
perfectly honest, perhaps the greatest pleasure had been the anticipation each
time they had arranged to get away; the anticipation of what was to come. What
actually came certainly wasn’t worth the effort or subterfuge. Stripped of his
designer garb, the slick image was gone, replaced by a decidedly middle aged
– even dumpy – and decidedly lack lustre reality that wasn’t even
half as attractive. And his performance wasn’t all that hot either. Was he
better than Steve? Not really. Or in all honesty, not at all.

Which left the car. Brian had found her a
better car than any of the other teachers and for a lower price – though
not as good as his of course. But so what? Brian had located it but Steve had
bought it for her. So what was new? Steve bought her everything she wanted
anyway. Like her house. And her clothes. Like everything.

Beside her, Brian stirred, rubbed his eyes and
turned to face her.

‘You awake Ali?’

‘Of course, I’ve been awake for ages.’

‘Have you? Really?’ Then, with the beginnings
of a smirk, ‘I would have thought that with all the exertion last night you
would have been tired out.’

Ugh! Brian’s exertion was but a mere canter for
Steve. Was this really worth the effort or risk?

‘Actually, I’ve been thinking,’ he continued.
‘I’ve been thinking of buying a caravan.’

‘A caravan! What the bloody hell for Brian?’

‘Well my love, we’re getting a little cramped
aren’t we? I mean, we are always looking over our shoulders in case someone
from school or your husband sees us. You said that he saw me last time we went
to the Squirrel and you were on edge all the time we were in the Premier Inn at
Southport, but it’s taken an hour and a half to drive up here – that’s
three hours travelling all told out of the limited time we have together. It
doesn’t make sense.’

‘So where does the caravan come in then?’

‘A mate of mine has a caravan site at
Crosshill
– actually he’s just died and his son has
taken over – but they are expanding and putting in a pool and
restaurant.’

‘If you think that I am even going to set foot
in a caravan you are sadly mistaken. Who do you think I am, a bloody hooker for
heavens sake? Shit Brian, I wouldn’t go to that B&B in Bath Street so what
makes you think I’ll go to a bloody caravan’.

‘No love, just think about it, If I buy a
caravan we could . . . .’

‘If you buy a caravan,’ she cut in, ‘you can go
to it on your own. I wouldn’t be seen dead in a bloody caravan.’

‘Ali, please. They are not like they used to
be. The modern ones are quite plush. All mod cons, central heating, full
kitchen, all the works. But the main point is that we could be there in five
minutes and with a restaurant and facilities on-site we could be
self-contained. There would be no looking over our shoulders anymore.’

‘Go fuck yourself Brian.’ She stormed back,
swinging her legs out of bed. ‘If that’s about the level you think I am you are
very mistaken. I thought we had something special but it seems that all I am is
a quick shag over the weekend. Well I’ve news for you boyo. You’re bloody
lousy; you couldn’t satisfy me and never have. You’re not half the man Steve
is. For God’s sake Brian, I’ve got to work on you for ages before you can do
anything – and then it’s over in a blink. A dirty weekend with you is
more like a rest than strenuous activity. No wonder I woke early.’

Grabbing her clothes she dressed quicker than
she had ever done, and, against Brian’s constant protests, grabbed her coat and
handbag. Storming out of the room she strode down the corridor and out of the
hotel, driving off in a huff.

……….

‘What you are suggesting does seem to be
feasible. If somebody has the guts to brazen it out if they are stopped, using
cloned registration plates would be an ingenious way of moving cars without
putting attracting attention. Nobody looks at old bangers on trailers or trucks
but everyone notices top brands like Ferraris and
Mercs
,
especially if they are new or nearly so. You don’t expect to see new high value
cars broken down and on the back of a wrecker so they attract attention. Just
driving them makes sense, especially if they can be made to pass muster when a
nosey copper in a patrol car uses automatic number recognition equipment. Yes,
ingenious.’

‘It works because it’s simple Don,’ responded
Sergeant Kyle Fraser, ‘and it explains why specific car models have been
stolen. We were trying to put them into lots of five or six of specific types
of vehicles when all the time it was neither the type nor the quantity that
mattered. What was happening – is happening – was cars being stolen
to match specific cloned plates.’

‘We don’t know that yet Kyle,’ responded
Radcliffe, ‘but it does look feasible.’ Then, turning to
Lescott
,
who had been quiet throughout the trio’s visit to Simon Charlton and still
looked uncomfortable, he added, ‘Your guy’s house is in a good spot Debbie.’

‘It’s quiet. The most noise is created by the
boats chugging up the canal and this pub’s only five minutes walk up the
towpath so it is convenient. Good grub too.’ Then, as an afterthought, ‘But
he’s not my guy. He’s just a friend.’

‘If you say so Debbie,’ chortled Radcliffe, a
sly smile sparkling his eyes. ‘But I wasn’t referring to the convenience of
quiet romantic solitude,’ putting up his hands to stop her protest before it
could be uttered. ‘What I meant was that from his window there’s a good view
all around. It is virtually unobstructed. And when we were approaching and
drove over the bridge I could see a balcony. It looked as though it would be
off the room directly above the living room we were in. Presumably that’s his
bedroom. No doubt that’s a good vantage point.’

‘The view from the balcony is superb,’ replied
Lescott
. ‘But it’s not his bedroom, it’s his office.’

‘Well, I wouldn’t know about that would I
Debbie?’ asked Radcliffe. From his expression she knew that a response wasn’t
needed.

‘OK,’ continued Radcliffe. ‘We have a briefing
tomorrow and some delicate issues to consider. I think that we can contain your
indiscretion Debbie, but only if we keep things under our collective hats so to
speak.’ Turning to Fraser he added, ‘Kyle, who knows about the cloned plates? I
mean, exactly?’

‘Outside of us three there’s just Lou. Debbie
didn’t want to involve Frank so chatted it through with Lou who came to me.
That’s all.’

‘Right then. As well as the cloned
registrations, Debbie’s bloke gave us several more numbers and as you so
rightly pointed out, some of the links are quite interesting.
 
Anything could bring this crashing down
like a pack of cards and we could be barking up the wrong tree anyway, so I
think we need to keep this within the team. And make no mistake Debbie, if your
boss gets wind of how you came by the information or what some of the links
are, you could be for the chop and there could be other repercussions.’

Looking at the two sergeants he drummed his
fingers on the worn pub table. ‘We’ll knock this into shape over another drink.
Your round I think Kyle. But basically we’ll stick to the facts. A member of
the public has given us a lead and we are following it up. There’s no need to
elaborate. No mention of Charlton or putting numbers through Swansea yet or
Debbie’s career is dead. And since we’ve got the car inquiry anyway, there’s no
need to enlighten Frank either.’ As Fraser made his way to the bar, Radcliffe
returned his attention to
Lescott
. ‘I’ll ring fence
you Debbie and one way or another we will get these buggers,’ he said, ‘but
don’t let me down. I know that you work with Frank but I can’t help you if you
let even one word of this slip out.’

‘I’m grateful for that,’ replied
Lescott
, ‘but it might not be that easy. Don’t forget that
Simon found the cloned plates in Peter Archer’s workshop and that Mike Johnson
accused Archer of the first attack. If Archer was part of the car thefts ring
and Johnson knew about it, perhaps Archer did work him over. You know, to shut
him up and keep him quiet.’

‘I know all about that Debbie. I did at least
work that out for myself. But Kyle is working with me on the Johnson attacks so
Frank doesn’t need to be involved.’

‘I know, but Frank and I are primary on the
Archer murder. If I have a lead then I should tell him shouldn’t I?’

‘Trust me Debbie, you need to look after
yourself. If anyone queries your actions, the facts are that you took your info
to Lou because she’s doing the cars, from where it went to Kyle and me. Let it
stop there. Keep out now. If Frank sees the plates and follows up then it’ll be
his move. If he doesn’t, we are on it anyway. Trust me love.’ Then, as Fraser
arrived and put down another ice cold glass, ‘Thanks Kyle. We’ve been
discussing strategy. Debbie, I want you to have a word with Lou, woman to
woman. Lay it on hard and make it stick. No discussions and make sure she keeps
it under wraps. I’ll set the strategy from here on after tomorrow’s briefings.
Eight sharp for a full team briefing. Take your lead from how I set it all out.
Then following that, Frank, Handy Andy and I have the press call.’

……….

‘All right everybody.’ The
chunnering
quietened and heads turned towards the three senior officers at the top end of
the room, where Chief Inspector Handley stood, flanked by Inspector Frank
Davies and Inspector Don Radcliffe, both seated.

‘At our last meeting I stressed the need to
keep some details out of the media. After we have finished here, Don, Frank and
I will be meeting with the press so no doubt some of you will be targeted. So
listen up now and take notice of where we are at. There have been some developments
and we need to be as effective as possible if we are to crack these crimes
quickly. Equally, our best efforts could well be scuppered if there are any
leaks.

‘Since our last meeting there has been another
death. All three deaths looked like heart attacks. But the cause of death in
all three was asphyxiation. And because of the way it has been done, we are
pretty sure that they are all the work of the same person. That information
ladies and gentlemen, is not being released. When we meet the press we will
deal only with the first two deaths. We will detail the
Lydiate
Hall death and the Pole in the car in the drainage ditch but we are not
mentioning the third death yet. And while we are going to announce that the
cause of death was not heart attack, we will not divulge the actual cause. As
far as the media are concerned – in fact, as far as anybody outside of
this room is concerned – we await confirmation of the cause of death.