‘Cash and instructions arrived with a parcel delivery service.’
‘You’ve got to be kidding! No one sends money with a man with a van!’ Gary exclaimed. ‘What company was it?’
Danny stared at the scratches on the table and mumbled, ‘I dunno. It was an unmarked car.’
Jackman shook his head. ‘Better and better. So, where are these “instructions?”’
‘I burnt them. It was part of the deal.’
Jackman leaned forward. ‘Why not start telling us the truth, Danny? You really liked the girl, didn’t you? And you wanted her. We’ve seen the pictures on your wall, Danny. You didn’t take them for someone else, did you? They were just for you.’
Danny’s eyes narrowed, but he said nothing.
In the ensuing silence, Jackman decided to try a different tack. ‘Okay, Danny. Let’s say I believe you. I don’t, but let’s assume I do. Did you know Leah before Mr Anonymous contacted you?’
‘I’d never seen her before.’
‘Right, so he sent you money and you started . . . what? Putting cards through her door? Something like that?’
Danny nodded. ‘Cards, yes. And notes, then roses.’
‘So they weren’t really from you, but from another guy who fancied her?’
Danny didn’t seem happy with this idea. ‘It wasn’t like that.’
‘How do you know? It sounds like it to me. Someone giving you money to spend on an attractive young woman? I’d say they definitely wanted something from her.’ He shot a knowing glance to Gary. ‘What I don’t get is why, if you had the hots for someone, you would take them flowers and love tokens from another man?’
Gary rubbed his chin thoughtfully. ‘Well, I certainly wouldn’t.’
Jackman could almost hear Danny grinding his teeth.
‘Help us out here, Danny. We are struggling.’
‘It’s about revenge! Alright! It was payback time! Then I saw Leah and, well . . .’
He threw up his hands, and then his voice fell to a whisper. ‘I’d only ever heard of love at first sight. They didn’t care about her, they never did. It wasn’t about her at all, just revenge. But for me, it was a dream.’ He slumped forward and put his head in his hands. ‘A dream.’
Jackman nodded towards the door and he and Gary stood up. ‘Interview suspended at fourteen hundred hours. DI Jackman and PC Gary Pritchard are leaving the room.’
Outside, Jackman beckoned Gary into an empty room and closed the door.
‘We need to get Leah out of uni and back under close observation. Do you agree?’
Gary nodded. ‘Someone is after the super, aren’t they?’
‘I’m sure of it. Danny Hurley is infatuated with Leah, that’s a fact. But I reckon he was telling the truth about a retribution thing.’
‘Me too.’
‘I’m going to see if there is anything in his statement that could point us to the villain who is behind this. You speak to your sergeant and get Leah taken to a place of safety. Danny might have cocked up, but she’s still in danger.’
Gary turned to leave. ‘Let’s hope that Danny’s bungled mission and his arrest have scared the bastard off.’
‘Let’s hope so, but in the meantime, belt and braces.’
‘I’m on it, sir!’
‘And for heaven’s sake, hurry! Whoever paid him is still out there.’
*
Three-quarters of an hour later, Jackman sat opposite Ruth Crooke, wondering how much more the woman could take. The invincible superintendent he was used to seeing had gone. He understood why, but found the transformation dispiriting.
‘I never told you, Rowan, but my sister did not have a good death, if there is such a thing. That is probably why I try to compensate when it comes to Leah. I only want the best for her, and whereas we can’t ensure the easiest passage through life, I did want her journey to be a safe one.’ Ruth pushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear. ‘She found her mother’s body.’
Jackman already knew that Ruth’s sister had taken her own life, but not that her daughter had found her. ‘I am so sorry, Ruth. That’s a terrible thing to happen to someone, especially a young person.’
‘I think that’s why she’s studying psychology. She wants to help save others from the same fate.’
‘A very good reason.’ He smiled. ‘I thought she was a very strong young woman. Now I’m certain of it.’
‘So, what have you gleaned from the Hurley creature?’
Jackman explained about the interview. ‘The second time I went in, I took Rosie with me, and we found out a bit more.’ He leaned forward. ‘We believe that this mystery man only intended to put the frighteners on you via your niece. It was Danny Hurley who upped the game. We’ve pieced together what he was actually instructed to do, and the rest he did off his own bat. Both Rosie and I believe that the intention was never to kidnap or abduct her, but Danny changed the plan.’
Ruth frowned. ‘So he was out to scare me, not take Leah.’
‘That’s what I think. The instructions this man, if indeed it is a man, left were quite convoluted. Danny had to use gofers and keep himself in the background, out of sight. He was to conduct the orchestra, not play the instruments himself.’
‘Well, that didn’t work, did it? They really should have done their homework before hiring him.’
‘Yes. He, or she, certainly picked a wrong one there.’
‘Hearing this makes me feel a little easier, although we can never assume anything, can we?’
‘Of course not, ma’am. But I feel the same. Danny’s unpredictability could have caused some really serious damage.’
‘So how can we trace his unknown “employer?”’
‘Well . . .’ Jackman hesitated. ‘I was thinking I’d deploy Carter out on the streets. He knows more about the local thieves and villains than all the rest of us plods put together.’
‘And has more connections in higher circles than the chief constable.’ There was a hint of bitterness in Ruth’s words. ‘He’s an enigma. But like it or not, he’s a valuable asset. Just never, never let him know I said that.’
‘As if!’
‘Okay, let him go digging, but for God’s sake, keep him on a short rein.’
‘I’ll do better, ma’am. I’ll hand over the reins to Marie Evans.’
CHAPTER TWENTY
Carter looked worried. ‘I’ll do my best, but I’ve probably used up most of my loyalty points tracking the bastard down in the first place.’
‘Try money.’ Jackman looked around. There was no one within earshot. ‘I’ve made a few minor adjustments to my budget sheet.’ He held out an envelope.
‘I don’t need that, sir. I think Ruth should have this one on me, after all she’s gone through.’
‘Take it. She was the one who authorised it.’
Marie took the envelope and pushed it deep into her jacket pocket. ‘Well, while you two are forming the Saltern debating society, I’m making the decisions. Come on, Carter, let’s get back out there.’
Carter threw up his hands in surrender. ‘Gotta go. Orders.’