The Last 10 Seconds

But she wasn’t going to let it go that easily. Standing up herself, she faced him down. ‘We know you killed her, and I’m not going to leave a single stone unturned proving it. I’ll have you for this, even if it’s the last thing I do.’

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Grier stand up and stare at her in total shock, as he saw his own career getting caught up in the constant car crash that was DI Tina Boyd.

‘Sir,’ he said, ‘I think we’d better go.’

‘We’ll go when I say.’

‘You’ll go now. Right this minute.’

‘You’re finished, Minister.’

Gore strode round the desk, a confidence returning to his manner now. ‘You haven’t got the power, you little bitch,’ he hissed, coming in close so that their faces were only inches apart. ‘It’s time you realized who you’re dealing with. I’m a government minister. I’m one of the handful of people who run this fucking country. You are just a . . .’ He paused, before spitting out his final words. ‘A small-time copper who thinks she’s Robocop. And who’s not. Now get out of my house. I’ll be speaking to your commanding officer about this. I don’t care who you are, or what you’ve done. You’re going to pay for this. Do you understand? I’ll have your job, and I’ll have your pension.’

Tina felt the anger in her seething beneath the surface. She wanted to hit this smug bastard. She knew he’d done it. Would have bet her life on it. ‘But you won’t stop me,’ she said, facing him down, her expression coldly determined, just so he’d know she’d never give up. ‘Not unless you have me killed, like the others, and I wouldn’t advise that. Not when there’s a witness present.’

Gore’s face darkened. He stared at her with an animal-like ferocity, and she could hear him grinding his teeth. He wanted to hurt her. She could feel his hatred as if it was a physical thing, and she willed him to lash out, to knock her down and give her a chance to turn this situation round and nick him.

Go on, you bastard, hit me. Hit me hard. Put your manicured hands round my neck, just like you did with Roisín that night. Give me the chance to twist your arm behind your back, slam you into that pricey antique desk of yours and finish your career for good.

But Anthony Gore wasn’t that foolish. Breathing hard, he stepped away from her and turned to Grier. ‘If you know what’s good for you, officer, you’ll take your colleague with you and leave right now, and don’t worry about her being your boss. In fifteen minutes’ time, she won’t be. She’s finished. I’m willing to ignore your part in this slanderous fiasco, as I’m sure you were coerced into coming here, but only if you leave this minute. Otherwise, I’ll hold you jointly responsible.’

Grier looked at Tina with a quiet desperation in his eyes. ‘Come on, ma’am,’ he said. ‘There’s nothing more we can do here.’

For a moment, Tina didn’t move, knowing she’d overplayed her hand, and lost the battle. Grier put a hand on her arm, gently nudging her towards the door. This time she didn’t resist, and as they walked out of the study, not looking at each other, Tina focused on maintaining her poise. She didn’t think she managed it, though.

But as Grier opened the door and stepped aside to let Tina into the hallway, she stopped dead. Standing there, facing her, still in her nightgown, was a small woman in her fifties, her tear-stained face a mask of rigid shock. Mrs Gore. And Tina felt a rush of hope, because one thing was absolutely clear.

She was terrified.

Forty-seven

‘Don’t move,’ said Dougie MacLeod. ‘Or you’re dead.’

I was so shocked to hear my old mentor and the boss of one of London’s murder investigation teams threaten me with death that I disobeyed his instructions and turned round.

Dougie stood in the doorway pointing a black revolver at me. He was dressed casually in jeans and a sweatshirt, and his face was etched with a tension I’d never seen on him before.

Seeing that it was me, he lowered the weapon. ‘What the hell are you doing here, Sean?’ he demanded.

‘You weren’t answering your door.’

‘So you thought you’d just walk in?’

‘I need help, Dougie. Badly.’

He sighed. ‘This is a bad time, Sean. We’ve got an emergency on.’

‘What kind of emergency?’ I asked, feeling a terrible lurch of disappointment, followed by resentment. I’d expected a lot more from him.

‘The kind you’ve been watching on the news. The Night Creeper abduction. He was our suspect, remember?’ He replaced the safety on the revolver and put it in the back of his jeans, then pulled a half-crushed pack of Marlboro Reds from his pocket and lit one. ‘I’m sorry I can’t be more help,’ he continued. ‘Perhaps we can talk later.’ He walked past me, picked up the remote control from the arm of the sofa and switched off the TV. ‘Right now, I’ve got to go.’