The History Suite (#9 - The Craig Modern Thriller Series) (18 page)

It was two-thirty by the time Cooke and Taylor were ready for re-interview, and Cooke’s solicitor McIvor had decided to be his girlfriend instead and leave. She’d recused herself from Taylor’s defence as well, much to his chagrin, to be replaced by a shiny-faced associate from her firm who looked almost as young.

Craig took Taylor first. The professor had decided that discretion was no longer the better part of valour. Instead he talked so fast that the tape had trouble keeping up. What he said didn’t add much. Yes, he’d lived with Eleanor Rudd for just over a year, but it was years ago, before he was married. He’d like to deny that anything had happened between them since but, well, Ellie was a sexy girl and there’d been a few times…

Because he’d stood in front of a vicar and said “forsaking all others” Taylor nodded contritely in a mime of shame, but he couldn’t hide his pleasure at his memories of Ellie Rudd or his complete lack of guilt at his lustful thoughts. Craig had pitied Mrs Taylor since he’d met the prof; until he’d found out that she’d left her student boyfriend for him, a richer, consultant bet. It sounded like they deserved each other.

By the time Taylor had stumbled and stammered his way through his list of transgressions with Ellie Rudd, it became obvious that Rudd’s timelines for carnal knowledge of Taylor and Cooke had overlapped. That meant they couldn’t rule out jealousy as a motive for her murder, although Craig’s bet for that motive was on Adrian Cooke. After thirty minutes of listening Craig had heard enough. Taylor had lied but he hadn’t killed her so he was released without charge to concoct a story with Shiny Face that would prevent a ruckus at the University, and Craig and Liam were left mulling over their next steps as they waited for Karl Rimmins to appear.

As Liam picked his way through the leftover sausage rolls and cheesecake from Sandi’s girly lunch, Craig stared into space. Liam waved a roll in his face.

“Sausage roll for your thoughts, boss.”

Craig pushed it away, wondering where Liam managed to put it all. They’d had a big lunch at The Merchant and an hour later he was hungry again.

“I was trying to work out the timeline, but it’s much easier when Davy displays it on a screen.”

“It is that. Especially when he colour-codes the perps for you.”

“Taylor and Eleanor Rudd ended their live-in relationship in 2008. Adrian Cooke joined the ward in 2012 and that’s probably when he and Rudd met. What we don’t know is when they started their relationship.”

Liam looked puzzled, as if the answer was obvious. “We can ask him.”

Craig gave him a sceptical look. “Now why didn’t I think of that? Of course we can ask him, but that doesn’t mean he’ll tell us the truth! Or the truth about what their relationship was.”

Liam’s puzzled look deepened. “What do you mean, what it was? It was a relationship!”

Craig went to sigh and then stopped himself. Liam was right; that was the obvious answer, and Liam couldn’t be expected to follow the random meanderings of his mind. He vocalised his thoughts.

“What if their relationship was more than a romantic one?”

“What do we have that points to that?”

Craig shrugged. “Nothing, but…”

“But your brain’s seen something that none of the rest of us have.”

The team were used to Craig’s eureka moments. They usually occurred when an answer seemed obvious to everyone, then Craig would announce that the truth was actually something else. Liam felt one coming on but instead Craig leapt to his feet and headed for the station’s back door.

“Where are you going?”

“I just heard a car pulling in. If it’s Karl, we can start.”

It was and after a few seconds’ chat they headed for the interview room. The room was small and Cooke and his new solicitor were already there so Craig glanced meaningfully at Liam. Only two of them would fit in the room and Karl needed to be there. That meant either he or Liam should be in the viewing room. Liam took the hint, secretly pleased. He had a cheese sandwich in his pocket that was about to find a good home.

When the preliminaries were over Craig readied himself to start but the solicitor held up his hand. He was a partner from Morris and Harden’s; Shiny Face would have had a conflict representing both men. This man was older and his only shine was on shoes that had doubtless cost him hundreds of pounds.

“Before we start the questioning, I’d like to know why a Drug Squad officer is here. Dr Cooke has already told the Drug Squad everything he knows, including giving up his steroid dealer.”

Craig’s words were as dry as a bone. “I’m quite sure Dr Cooke hasn’t told anyone everything that he knows.”

The solicitor retorted swiftly. “Everything that he’s going to without a deal on the table.”

“Let’s see about that.”

He turned sharply to the young doctor, who was perspiring heavily despite the newly cranked air conditioning making the room freezing cold. “Dr Cooke, would you like to rethink your alibi for the time of Eleanor Rudd’s murder?”

Cooke’s eyes widened and he glanced quickly at his brief, who advised him with a swift shake of his head.

“No, I wouldn’t.” The words hit the air at a higher pitch than they’d been inside Cooke’s head.

Craig shook his head, making it clear the answer was a mistake. “Then you should know that your girlfriend, Ms McIvor, is at this moment being interviewed by a member of my team at Stranmillis Road Station and they
will
break the alibi she gave you, have no doubt of that.”

Liam smiled to himself in the dark. Stranmillis Road was Jake’s old station. So that was who Craig had telephoned at lunch; Jake must be up there with McIvor now. Cooke lurched forward until he was almost in Craig’s face.

“Leave Abbie alone. She has nothing to do with this. You’ll ruin her legal career.”

Craig was unmoved. “
You’ll
ruin her career if you insist on having her lie for you.” He slipped out his mobile. “Tell me the truth and I’ll stop her interview. I’m not interested in ruining anyone. The truth, Dr Cooke.” His voice rose to a shout. “RIGHT NOW!”

Liam watched as Cooke’s eyes darted from Craig to his solicitor and then all around the room, as if he might find something on the walls to save him, to prevent him having to say the words that could send him to prison and stop him practicing medicine ever again. He was a good doctor, he cared about his patients, and he’d hoped to make elderly medicine his speciality someday. Now all that would be lost because of a woman that someone else had killed.

Craig read the younger man’s panic and prepared to throw him a life-belt. He’d heard enough from the ward interviews to know that Cooke was liked by both patients and staff; even Katy had heard nice things about him around the Trust. He had no desire to get him struck off but he wanted the truth. He stared hard into Cooke’s eyes and his next question shocked everyone.

“Was Eleanor Rudd dealing cocaine, Dr Cooke?”

The doctor’s eyes widened and Craig read two things there. He’d hit a nerve and Cooke thought he’d found a gap to wriggle through. Karl glanced quickly at Craig, and Liam held his breath as he watched, fascinated to hear what came next. The boss had transformed Eleanor Rudd from innocent victim to criminal in one short phrase.

Cooke dropped his head and his solicitor hissed something urgently in his ear. Cooke waved him away and gazed at Craig, nodding.

“How did you know?”

Craig shrugged. “I didn’t, for sure. Not until now.” Craig paused; the doctor’s reply to his next question might ruin his career. “We already know that you use cocaine, Dr Cooke, do you deal it as well?”

Cooke’s eyes were opaque and Craig knew even Karl was struggling to read what was there, but he knew exactly what was running through Adrian Cooke’s mind. They had him on using illegal drugs which meant a guaranteed sentence and a mandatory rehab programme. He’d have his licence suspended by the GMC but with time and rehab he would probably get it back. On the other hand, if he’d been
dealing
drugs Cooke could kiss goodbye to being a doctor and say hello to a stretch in Maghaberry.

Behind his eyes’ opacity Adrian Cooke was trying to recall anything that linked him to drug-dealing, either cocaine or Roids. Evidently he thought there was nothing if his next words were anything to go by.

“I used coke and steroids, but I never dealt them. That’s the truth.”

His face was implacable and Craig didn’t know if he was lying or not. He glanced at Karl and saw his jaw set hard. Karl spoke for the first time in ten minutes.

“You’re lying, Doctor and I’m going to prove it. Tell us the truth now and we may be able to help you.”

Cooke’s eyes widened as he realised that of the two men Craig had been the softer touch.

“I’m not lying! Ellie had been dealing for years, long before I met her.”

“Where did you first meet her?”

“At a party at the nurse’s home, about six years ago. I wanted some stuff and someone pointed me to her. I bought some coke and we got chatting…”

“You slept with her?”

Cooke shook his head. “Not then. That came later, when we met on the E.M.U. in 2012. We had a few drinks and one thing led to another.”

“How long?”

Karl’s tone was unflinching and Craig knew it came from years of lying addicts and parasitic dealers – he didn’t have much sympathy left.

“How long what?”

“How long were you buying drugs from her, and having sex?”

Cooke shifted uncomfortably in his seat and glanced at his solicitor for advice. The solicitor had all but given up trying to muzzle his client, but he gazed at Cooke with a final warning to shut up that he knew would be ignored, then he straightened his cuffs, the legal equivalent of a shrug.

“Buying from her since 2008. The sex was on and off from 2012.”

“Until when?”

Cooke’s shoulders slumped and he stared at the table. Craig knew he’d decided to tell the truth, at least about the sex.

“Last week.” He looked up quickly. “But Abbie can’t know about it.”

Rimmins nodded curtly; the sex didn’t interest him. Liam smiled in the viewing room, reckoning that his perfect partner was probably a Goth who slept in a coffin at night. Karl was still talking.

“If you’re lying about not dealing we’ll find out.”

Cooke said nothing, just stared into Rimmins’ gimlet eyes. Karl decided to try a different tack.

“Where did she keep her book?”

The solicitor glanced up from his cuffs and decided to earn his money. “How could my client possibly know that?”

Karl turned towards the man exaggeratedly, as if he’d just noticed him in the room. “Your client was sleeping with the deceased and buying drugs from her for years. I imagine he saw her dealing book and where she kept it many times.”

Craig smiled inwardly, knowing exactly what the young sergeant was at. If Cooke acknowledged that he knew about the book it could be a motive for murder; God only knew what Eleanor Rudd had written in it about him. If Cooke said he’d never seen it, then he was lying again. Adrian Cooke decided to play for time.

“I saw the book but Ellie never let me read it, and I’ve no idea where it is. She used to move it about.”

Clever boy, his brain wasn’t completely screwed by the drugs. Craig knew the first thing Cooke would do when he was bailed would be to search for the book.

He took back the questioning.

“You’re in deep trouble, Dr Cooke. Yes, you’ve given us your steroid dealer but you’re telling us that your cocaine dealer is dead. Eleanor Rudd may or may not have sold you coke, but either way it’s very convenient. You give up the name of a dead woman and we stop looking for anyone else. Why should we believe you?”

Cooke’s eyes raced wildly from the detectives to his solicitor and back again as he reached for words that wouldn’t come. Finally he dropped his head in his hands and his voice broke.

“I can’t prove that Ellie was my dealer, or that I wasn’t dealing. That’s up to you.” He looked up at Craig with frantic eyes. “But I’m begging you to believe me. I’ve used drugs but I’ve never dealt them, and I didn’t kill Ellie, Roid rage or not.”

Craig seized his chance. “Did you pay off Hannah Donard?”

Cooke thought for a moment then nodded. “Yes. She screamed when she found Ellie’s body and I ran to help. I needed her to say that I wasn’t there.”

“That’s tampering with a witness.”

“I know, but I was scared. I asked Abbie to give me an alibi as well. It wasn’t her fault.” A panicked look entered Cooke’s eyes and his tone became pleading. “You have to stop whoever’s interviewing her. Please.”

McIvor’s interview hadn’t even started; Craig had told Jake to lift her but not to start interviewing her till he called back. But he knew that whether he let Abigail McIvor off the hook or not, Cooke had just incriminated her as giving a false alibi in front of a partner from her firm. Craig just hoped the solicitor felt client privilege prevented him repeating anything said in the room. He pressed his advantage.

“Why were you so desperate for no-one to know that you were on the E.M.U. last Thursday?”