the phone. Technically it had been for professional purposes but she guessed the ‘need be’ could end up being some sort of invitation for a pint or something. Given the guy’s nervous behaviour, she couldn’t imagine he had ever asked a girl out in person.
‘Okay,’ she said. Adam turned and walked back towards the door, tripping over in the exact same spot as before. Jessica smiled and turned back to her colleague.
‘I didn’t say a word,’ Cole said. He hadn’t had to, his raised eyebrow said it all.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Back at the station, it was now pushing late afternoon and clocking-off time. Jessica wasn’t too bothered by keeping to set hours and most of the team ended up working unpaid overtime as and when required. Jessica had gone over their records and, according to everything they had on file, Donald McKenna was an only child. He was born locally and she would send some poor constable out to check the register office’s records but there was no reason to think there would be a mistake in the information she had access to. Names could sometimes be spelled wrong but she had never known an instance where an entire person was simply missing from a record.
From everything Adam had told them, Jessica could only see three possibilities. First, someone had access to the inmate’s blood and somewhere to store it securely, plus the knowledge of how to plant it at a scene. Second, Donald McKenna had an identical twin, not just a brother or sister, who no one knew about. Third, the prisoner had simply walked unnoticed out of a maximum-security prison and stabbed someone to death before returning.
Regardless of which option was correct, it was going to take some figuring out.
SIX
The media hadn’t bothered reporting the stabbing of Craig Millar in much detail. Some crimes were given more prominence than others when it came to running orders on news bulletins or the front pages of newspapers. Jessica always made a point to look for how her cases were being reported. It seemed clear that whoever was in charge of the various decisions relating to the importance of the story had decided a dead young man on an estate notorious for anti-social behaviour didn’t rank too highly. Jessica sighed at the front-page story in the local paper about a soap star who was having a baby.
She was sitting on the corner of Rowlands’ desk on the main floor of the station and held the paper up for him to see. ‘Why are people interested in the contents of the uterus of whoever this person is?’
It was a rhetorical question she didn’t really expect an answer to. She got one anyway.
‘I’d pay special attention if it were me.’
Jessica rolled her eyes. ‘You’re a real charmer, Dave?’
He winked at her. ‘So what do you want me to do with this list then?’ he asked.
Jessica grinned. ‘Well, you know you put together all those names of people who might have it in for Craig Millar? I want you to put together another list for people who could have it in for, or be associated with, Donald McKenna. Then I want you to check the lists with each other to see if anyone shows up twice.’
‘You are joking?’
‘I’ll leave you this to keep you company.’ Jessica dropped the paper on his lap, with the front-page photo of the soap star on top. ‘Have fun.’
It was the day after her visits to see Donald McKenna and Adam Compton and Jessica knew she would definitely have to return to the prison. The governor would have to be put in the picture this time so Detective Superintendent William Aylesbury was going to make the initial contact and then Jessica and DI Cole would visit. DSI Aylesbury had been the DCI at Longsight up until six months ago. He had been the natural replacement when the previous incumbent had retired. Jessica hadn’t really got on with the chief inspector until the last few months of his spell at the station where she had begun to understand the way he worked. His promotion meant he
‘Okay,’ she said. Adam turned and walked back towards the door, tripping over in the exact same spot as before. Jessica smiled and turned back to her colleague.
‘I didn’t say a word,’ Cole said. He hadn’t had to, his raised eyebrow said it all.
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
Back at the station, it was now pushing late afternoon and clocking-off time. Jessica wasn’t too bothered by keeping to set hours and most of the team ended up working unpaid overtime as and when required. Jessica had gone over their records and, according to everything they had on file, Donald McKenna was an only child. He was born locally and she would send some poor constable out to check the register office’s records but there was no reason to think there would be a mistake in the information she had access to. Names could sometimes be spelled wrong but she had never known an instance where an entire person was simply missing from a record.
From everything Adam had told them, Jessica could only see three possibilities. First, someone had access to the inmate’s blood and somewhere to store it securely, plus the knowledge of how to plant it at a scene. Second, Donald McKenna had an identical twin, not just a brother or sister, who no one knew about. Third, the prisoner had simply walked unnoticed out of a maximum-security prison and stabbed someone to death before returning.
Regardless of which option was correct, it was going to take some figuring out.
SIX
The media hadn’t bothered reporting the stabbing of Craig Millar in much detail. Some crimes were given more prominence than others when it came to running orders on news bulletins or the front pages of newspapers. Jessica always made a point to look for how her cases were being reported. It seemed clear that whoever was in charge of the various decisions relating to the importance of the story had decided a dead young man on an estate notorious for anti-social behaviour didn’t rank too highly. Jessica sighed at the front-page story in the local paper about a soap star who was having a baby.
She was sitting on the corner of Rowlands’ desk on the main floor of the station and held the paper up for him to see. ‘Why are people interested in the contents of the uterus of whoever this person is?’
It was a rhetorical question she didn’t really expect an answer to. She got one anyway.
‘I’d pay special attention if it were me.’
Jessica rolled her eyes. ‘You’re a real charmer, Dave?’
He winked at her. ‘So what do you want me to do with this list then?’ he asked.
Jessica grinned. ‘Well, you know you put together all those names of people who might have it in for Craig Millar? I want you to put together another list for people who could have it in for, or be associated with, Donald McKenna. Then I want you to check the lists with each other to see if anyone shows up twice.’
‘You are joking?’
‘I’ll leave you this to keep you company.’ Jessica dropped the paper on his lap, with the front-page photo of the soap star on top. ‘Have fun.’
It was the day after her visits to see Donald McKenna and Adam Compton and Jessica knew she would definitely have to return to the prison. The governor would have to be put in the picture this time so Detective Superintendent William Aylesbury was going to make the initial contact and then Jessica and DI Cole would visit. DSI Aylesbury had been the DCI at Longsight up until six months ago. He had been the natural replacement when the previous incumbent had retired. Jessica hadn’t really got on with the chief inspector until the last few months of his spell at the station where she had begun to understand the way he worked. His promotion meant he
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