Death's Cold Hand, J.E. Mayhew [book club recommendations .txt] 📗

and stood looking rather sheepish. The vacuum was replaced with a pack of journalists and photographers and Lex Price was swamped by people asking questions before Blake could intercept him.

“You okay, sir?” Vikki Chinn said, appearing next to him.

“Vikki, am I glad to see you?” Blake said, slumping onto the top step of the memorial. “Check and see if Norton’s alive and if White’s okay. He took quite a mauling there.” Blake watched Vikki hurry off to the paramedics huddled over White.

Deirdre Lanham hurried over to him. “DCI Blake, have you got any comment on this outrage?”

“There’ll be an official statement once we know exactly what happened…”

“A woman was assaulted, DCI Blake, right under your nose. You must have something to say about it.”

“There are many things I’d like to say about it and about the way this whole day was encouraged by shoddy reporting and emphasising social media over actual investigation. I’d love to say that the fact that your colleagues are interviewing that man over there and making a hero of someone who caused this chaos speaks volumes but that’s just my opinion. I’ll wait for the Media and Communications Manager to tell me what I can and can’t talk about.”

Blake dragged himself to his feet trying not to groan in front of the reporter and shuffled across to the ambulance where a paramedic sat him down and started looking at his injuries.

Vikki came back. “Nicola Norton is seriously injured, sir and in need of urgent surgery. We’ll know more about how she is in a few hours. White has sustained head injuries but otherwise seems okay. They’re taking him to A&E…”

“Get a shitload of officers to go with him. All big, anyone who can handle themselves. I don’t want him walking out of hospital on us.”

“Yes, sir.”

Blake looked up at the paramedic. “Will I live?”

Chapter 43

In the bright light of the hospital ward, Terry White looked pale and weak. It was hard to imagine that he had powered through so many people and picked up Nicola Norton as though she weighed nothing. A large bandage covered his forehead and his face and neck were black with bruises. Blake sat by his bedside on a plastic chair that reminded him of his own injuries every time he moved.

“You’ll be charged with the attempted murder of Nicola Norton, Terry, you do understand that, don’t you?”

White nodded. “Is Noel okay?”

“Noel Roscoe. Was he the man who helped you, Terry?”

“Yes. He kept me safe for a couple of days and gave me a lift from Quentin’s house. Is he okay?”

“He’ll pull through. He was hit by a car when he got out suddenly. Nothing the driver could do to stop in time…”

“He was trying to get away from me,” Terry said.

“You’d better wait until you have a solicitor with you Terry before you start telling me…”

“I hit him because he was saying that the commander on the phone was my enemy but he was right wasn’t he? It was Nicola Norton.”

“Yes, Terry, it was. She was trying to frame you so she could get away with murder and theft.”

“I thought I’d killed Paul and Quentin.”

“We think it was Nicola, Terry. We’re trying to find any kind of physical evidence to link her to the deaths but she was clever.”

“I was there that night,” Terry said, quietly.

“When Paul was murdered?”

Terry nodded. “I was told to go to the war memorial just before midnight. I saw Paul was dead then I ran away. I think I stood in the blood…”

“You did, Terry. It’s not your fault, mate. Nicola was setting you up. You have to remember that.”

“But it looks like I did it.”

“What evidence we do have is a load of Pro-Vets money in an account linked to her, so that’s a start. We also have the mobile she used to contact you and we can pinpoint where she was using that.”

“Will she go to prison?”

“She’s regained consciousness after her operation and is recovering now but eventually, I’m sure she’ll get some kind of prison sentence, yes…”

“I don’t ever want to see her again,” Terry whispered. “I trusted her. I thought she was my friend…”

“Don’t worry, Terry, I don’t think you’ll be seeing her again. She’s made quite a few enemies round here, some of them on the wrong side of the law, I suspect.”

“I’m sorry I hurt you, Mr Blake,” Terry said. “I was scared. I wasn’t thinking right.”

“It’s all right, Terry, I understand. You weren’t well. Hopefully, the doctors here will help you get your condition back under control, yeah?”

Blake stepped out of White’s side ward and nodded to the guards that stood at the door. “Keep an eye on him, poor bastard,” he said. “He’s been through hell.” He frowned at the figure stepping out of another side ward further down the corridor.

“Laura?” he said, hurrying towards her.

Laura Vexley turned and smiled at Blake. “Well, fancy meeting you here. You look terrible.”

“Thanks,” Blake said, touching his bruised cheek. “Do you mind telling me what the hell you’re doing in Nicola Norton’s room?”

“I know her. She tutored me when I was studying Psychology at university. I didn’t know she was such a bad apple or I’d have steered clear.”

“You’re being sarcastic, I presume,” Blake said, raising one eyebrow. “So what brings you here now?”

“Professional curiosity, a link with the past. She was quite surprised to see me.”

“Really? There’s a surprise! She’s at the centre of a murder investigation. Are you trying to jeopardise the whole case?”

“No. If you’re that worried about me being here, you’d better let me go.”

“I should arrest you…”

“What for? Visiting a friend? Or do you think I’ve interfered in some way? In which case, please do arrest me and then let’s see how that plays out. Not in your favour, Will. It was nice to see you, Will. I hope you heal. In all ways.”

Laura stuck her hands in her pockets and sauntered up the corridor. As soon as she was out of sight, Blake