Hard Evidence

'And?'

'The police thought it was an accident. The jack slipped and the car came down on his chest, cracked his ribs, slowly crushed him to death.'

'But it wasn't an accident?'

'He brought me in and made me watch what he did.'

'Howard?'

Candy nodded. 'He made me stay in the corner, then called out to Dad. As he slid out from underneath the car, Howard kicked away the jack so that the car slammed down and trapped him like a half-squashed beetle. He screamed and called for help and Howard just laughed at him.'

Sally looked at her. 'I'm sorry, Candy.'

'It took him over two hours to die, and Howard just sat there and watched him the whole time.'

'And you didn't tell anyone?'

'I knew what would happen if I did.'

'Nobody said anything?'

'Who was there to listen? And then Mum died and it was my turn. He saw nothing wrong in it and he still doesn't. You see why I had to take Jenny?'

'You should have come to us.'

'And you would have helped, would you?'

'Yes.'

'Stella told me that Jackie Malone's been murdered. You didn't help her, did you?'

Delaney leaned forward angrily. 'What do you know about that?'

'Working girls in London. It's a bit like the Masons, isn't it? We both get to wear leather and we all get to know each other's business.'

Sally looked at Delaney. 'What's she talking about?'

Delaney shook his head dismissively. 'They break the law, do nothing to protect themselves, but when one of them gets hurt it's down to the system, it's never their fault.'

'It was Jackie Malone's fault she was tied up and murdered, was it? She did that to herself, I suppose.'

Delaney looked away angrily. 'Let's just concentrate on finding your niece right now, shall we?'

Sally looked at Candy sympathetically. 'You showed Howard in the end. You stood up to him; that took a lot of courage.'

'I wasn't brave. I was a coward for years. A victim because I didn't know any different. But when I was old enough to fight back, I did. That one time, and I wish to God I'd been brave enough to finish the job. I wish I'd been brave enough to kill him.'

'Maybe it's better for you that you didn't.'

'No, it's not. He's a cancer and you don't fuck about with cancer. You cut it out. You fucking kill it. Because Jenny isn't like me. She's sweet, she's gentle, she's entirely vulnerable. And he's going to put his cancer in her and destroy her just like he destroyed me.'

Delaney looked across at her, her arms folded tight against her chest, her nails digging into her biceps.

'Where do you think he would have taken her, Candy?'

'I haven't seen the bastard in fourteen years.'

Sally nodded. 'I don't blame you but anything you can think of. It's important we find her quickly. Your brother is clearly out of control.'

'Speak to his pet monkey.'

'I'm sorry.'

'Speak to Jake.'

Delaney stood up. 'Come on, Detective Constable.'

They headed for the door. Candy Morgan called after them, 'What happens to me?'

Delaney looked back at her for a moment, deciding. 'You come with us.'

Sally stood in front of him, registering her concern. 'Boss?'

'She comes with us.'

Sally recognised the tone in his voice. 'Sir.'

Candy stood and smiled gratefully at Delaney. 'Thanks.'

'You can thank me when your niece is safe.'

Fifteen minutes later, Delaney was pacing angrily across the floor of Morgan's workshop. He stopped and glared at Jake, who sat holding his head in his massive hands, his forehead knotted with concentration.

'Come on, Jake, where is he?'

'I don't know.'

Sally walked into the room. 'Her clothes are gone.'

Delaney frowned. 'He was already prepared, then.' He turned back to Jake and put both hands on his shoulders. 'When did he leave, Jake? Did he have Jenny with him?'

Jake stood up. 'I haven't seen Jenny.'

Delaney stepped forward and grabbed his shoulders again. 'Where is he?'

Jake jerked backwards, knocking Delaney's hands away. He was shaking like a frightened child, the fear throbbing in his voice. 'I don't know.'

'He doesn't know, boss.'

Delaney moved back and Jake's eyes widened suddenly. He stepped back against the table, clearly terrified.

'It's all right.' But then Delaney saw where Jake Morgan was looking, and cursed. 'I told you to stay in the car, Candy.'

Candy Morgan ignored him, fixing Jake with a look of pure venom. 'If you know anything, you tell him now, Jake.'

Jake backed further against the table. 'I don't know anything, Candy. Don't hurt me.'

'Nobody's going to hurt you, Jake, I already told you that.'

Candy stepped forward. 'I wouldn't bank on it.'

Delaney sighed. 'You can wait in the car, or I can get the DC to take you back to the nick and from there back to Holloway. Your call, Candy.'

Candy looked at Delaney for a moment. 'You're part of this now, Inspector. You don't want to let me down.' She gave Jake a last cold look and went back to the car.

Delaney bit back a sigh of relief and turned to Sally. 'Take this place apart. There's got to be something here.'

He strode over to the workbench and angrily opened the drawers, scattering their contents, his rage barely contained. He tipped the last drawer over the floor: pencils, screwdrivers, nails, screws, an oil can, a chisel. Nothing that said anything about where Morgan could have gone.

Sally took Jake by the arm and led him over to a couple of chairs that stood against the oilstained brick wall.

'Sit down, Jake.'

His eyes flicked nervously to the doorway.

'She's not going to hurt you. I promise.'

'She burned Howard. She burned him with the hose.'

'She did, but she isn't going to hurt you. She was ill, but she's better now. Do you understand that?'

Jake shook his head slowly. Nothing made sense to him at the moment.

Sally kept her voice soft. 'When she burned Howard it was because she was sick. But she's better now. She's not going to hurt anyone. Not you, and certainly not Jenny. She wants to help Jenny. You can understand that, can't you?'

Jake nodded. 'Jenny's a good girl.'

'She is, and we need to find her.' Sally looked across at Delaney, who was angrily reading through bills and receipts, throwing them aside.

'I don't know where she is.'

Sally sat beside Jake and patted him reassuringly on the leg. 'I know you want to find her as much as we do. So think. Was there anywhere you used to like to visit together? You, Howard and Jenny?'

'We used to go to lots of places.'

'Like where?'

'The countryside.'

'Anywhere in particular?'

'To see the cows. Horses sometimes.'

'Can you remember where that was, Jake?'

Jake nodded enthusiastically and smiled. 'It was the fields.'

'London Fields?'

Delaney looked across as Jake shrugged. 'Just fields, with cows in them and horses.'

Delaney raised an eyebrow at Sally and went back to looking through the paperwork. Sally smiled reassuringly at Jake again. 'You can't remember any of the names?'

Jake shook his head. 'Just countryside. Jenny would say let's go to the countryside and Howard would drive us all.'

'To the fields with the cows and the horses?'

Jake nodded enthusiastically. 'And the river.'

'The river?'

'Yeah, we'd go all over on it. Long journeys.'

'On the river?'

'Yeah, on the big river in his barge.'

Delaney came over now. 'He's got a barge?'

Jake smiled broadly. 'He's got a Dutch barge.'

Delaney swore under his breath and looked at Sally pointedly. 'A Dutch barge is sea-going.'

21.

The gentle swell of the Thames splashed lyrically, rocking the barge slightly from side to side. It was a soothing motion that at any other time, in the hot, still, thick air of the summer's evening, would have lulled Jenny into a gentle sleep. But she wasn't sleeping, she was huddled against the interior side of the boat, her legs wedged under the table that stood against one wall. Her eyes fixed on the still bright sunlight sparkling like a million broken stars on the water outside the window.