Indefensible (DI Sara Ramsey Book 12), M Comley [world of reading TXT] 📗

me he wasn’t involved with the second murder, but the evidence was there for us all to see. Now, I’m not so sure.”

“What evidence are we talking about here?”

“Zappel was seen taking money from the first victim’s bank account by the ATM cameras and his car was spotted close to the scene of the second crime. Therefore, we put two and two together and banged him up for it.”

“Wait. You actually saw the man’s face?”

“No.” Sara sighed. “When we went to pick him up, he pointed out his hat and coat. In the images, the person was wearing the same outfit. I asked Zappel if anyone had access to his car, and he assured me that no one did. It was a natural decision to take the route I did, wasn’t it?”

“I suppose so. It’s a bit light to say the least, Sara, we’ll find out if the evidence is good enough once we get to court.”

Sara shuffled her feet, suddenly feeling uncomfortable under the chief’s scrutinising glare. “If I’ve screwed up, I’m sorry. If all this is down to me, then I’ll hand in my notice right away.”

“Now you’re being bloody ridiculous. What other evidence do you have? The second victim was raped, wasn’t she? Any semen found at the scene or on her body?”

“I’m still waiting for the PM results.”

“What about the victim last night? Shall we call her victim number three for now?”

“Yes, the pathologist believes the culprit cocked up and left semen in the woman’s body.”

“I see. Well, that’s one piece of good news, isn’t it?”

“I suppose,” Sara reluctantly agreed.

The chief tilted her head. “If he’s had a record for previous crimes of this nature, then his DNA will be on our database, we’re all aware of how this works, aren’t we?”

“True enough. Do I have your permission to keep chasing the pathology department with regard to our initial investigations?”

“Of course. Des Williams is coming on board to oversee Carla’s disappearance only, although I suspect the two will overlap at some point.”

“That’s what I’m worried about.”

“Don’t be. If he becomes too much, point him in my direction and I’ll sort him out. At the end of the day, you need to treat him as a friend and not the enemy, got that?”

“I understand. I hate not being in control, though. Surely you can understand that?”

“Of course I do. You wouldn’t be human if you didn’t feel that way. Now, shoo. Get out of here.”

Sara smiled and jumped out of her chair. “Thanks for listening.”

She returned to the incident room, feeling deflated and unsure how to proceed with the investigation which had blighted their lives all week. You need to get a grip, girl. Get this killer off the streets. Shit! This killer has Carla. How the fuck are we going to get her back when we don’t know who the bastard is?

A nugget of an idea sparked, and she stormed into her office to ring the prison. She was put through to Governor Prentice at Usk prison, where Zappel was being held temporarily on remand.

“Hello, Governor. I’m DI Sara Ramsey of the West Mercia Police, based in Hereford.”

“Hello, Inspector, what can I do for you?”

Sara warmed to the woman from the amiable timbre in her voice. “Hi, one of the criminals I arrested this week is on remand with you, I wondered if it would be possible to pay him a visit today.”

“Today? Any specific reason for this great urgency?”

“There is. Since his arrest, similar crimes have been committed on my patch and I need to know if he has an inkling why.”

“I see. Did you not question him fully while he was in your custody, Inspector?”

Sara sighed. “The questions were asked, but periodically he went down the ‘no comment’ route, which was frustrating as hell, as you can imagine. Since then, we’ve had several more crimes occur, similar to those we thought he was responsible for. Which has got me thinking that he may either have had an accomplice or we have a copycat killer on our hands. The urgency to find this person has escalated in the past hour or so, since the culprit kidnapped my partner.”

“I see. Cruel and devastating circumstances to deal with. Of course, I can authorise a visit for you. When do you need it?”

“As soon as humanly possible, if that’s all right?”

“I’ll get on it. Come over when you like, I’ll make the guard on the gate aware of your impending visit. Give me a ring if you need anything else from me.”

“Thank you. You’re too kind. I’ll get my arse into gear and be with you within half an hour or so.”

“Drive safely.”

Sara ended the call. Relieved she wasn’t dealing with an overbearing, officious nutjob as a governor, similar to ones she’d come across at her previous post. She darted through the incident room and said, “Carry on delving into the background details we need for Zapped. I’ve made arrangements to question him again in prison. An inspector is on his way from Worcester, he’s going to be taking over the case regarding Carla’s disappearance, which is why I need to run now, before he gets here. Fortunately, the governor took pity on me and issued an invitation to join her and her team. Wish me luck.”

“Wait,” Christine shouted before Sara could reach the door.

She turned back and asked, “For what? I’m wasting time, Christine.”

“Boss, you haven’t told us why you’re going. What are we supposed to tell the chief when she drops in to introduce us to the new inspector?”

“Shit! That’s a fair point. I’m following up on a notion I have, what if it’s the son we’re looking for? I won’t know until I speak to Jo. Tell the chief I’m out there combing the streets, retracing my steps from this morning around the area where Carla went missing.” She inhaled a large breath then continued, “Actually, just as an aside, Will, can you take a trip out to the last crime scene, see if