‘I want to be treated the same as my male counterparts—’
‘You’re not firearms trained—’
‘Then maybe you could send me on a firearms course... as another experiment,’ she added with deliberate sarcasm.
Murphy shook his head. ‘I don’t want my men worrying about your safety in an armed situation as it will reduce their effectiveness and put their lives at even greater risk. Even if the suspects weren’t armed, you’re not as strong as a man and could be badly injured in a one-on-one arrest situation.’
‘You should ask the rape suspect I put down with a kick to the groin if I can handle myself.’
‘That’s different — you were a decoy and no doubt had male backup close at hand. It’s true that when we carry out static observations on premises we think are about to be robbed, we can’t be sure the robbery will take place. But when it does, speed and surprise is of the essence on a pavement ambush — if you don’t want to get shot.’
‘I hear what you say, sir, but I won’t be going back to Division to appease you or anyone else on this squad. If you won’t let me be involved in arrests, can I be part of the surveillance team?’
‘The mobile surveillance team often find themselves in a position where they have to react quickly and some of them are armed. Have you done static observations before?’
She nodded, determined to persuade him she could be a useful asset to the squad.
‘Yes, both in premises and an observation van. Some of them were with DS Stanley, who, as you no doubt know, is an experienced and highly respected surveillance officer from whom I learned a lot.’
Murphy paused, and Jane could feel her heart beating as the silence lengthened.
‘You’ve got balls, Tennison, I’ll give you that... I’m OK with you being a silent observer to start with, so you can see how we work — but if you fuck up, the experiment is over, and I will be the first to recommend your return to Division.’
Chapter Eight
Jane felt a mixture of dismay and anger as she left Murphy’s office, but she was determined to show him, and the other squad officers, that she was a good detective and not just a token female. She didn’t doubt what Murphy said about getting rid of her if she messed up and knew he would be watching everything she did closely and going over her paperwork with a fine-toothed comb. She also realized that being accepted by the team was going to be hard work, especially if Murphy and Kingston told them she was nothing more than an ‘experiment,’ but even if they did, she’d make sure they got the message that she was staying put and they could like it or lump it.
At the back of her mind, though, was another thought that had come from Murphy’s mention of Countryman. What if the real reason he didn’t want her on the squad was because they had something to hide? She hoped it wasn’t the case, but if she did stumble across any evidence of corruption, that would put her in an even more difficult position.
She saw Dabs sitting at her desk and looking through the open exhibits book as he tapped away at her typewriter.
‘What’s the problem?’ she snapped, still angry with Murphy and suspecting Dabs was scrutinizing her entries in the book.
Dabs looked up in surprise. ‘Nothing — I was just looking through everything we collected today and typing up the lab form for the priority exhibits for submission and forensic examination.’
Jane took a deep breath. ‘Sorry, Dabs, I didn’t mean to be rude and snap at you. Are the entries in the exhibits book OK?’
‘They’re excellent. I wish the rest of the team were as thorough when listing and describing exhibits. I’d like to use this book as an example to the others, then they can see how it should be done.’
‘Thanks, but I’m not sure they’d appreciate that.’
Dabs looked at Jane more closely. ‘Are you all right, Sarge?’
‘I’ve got a bit of a headache from dealing with all that burnt material.’
He stood up to let her sit down.
‘So did I earlier. The smell of burning rubber from that car was really nauseating. I’ve got some strong aspirin in my office if you want a couple.’
She thanked him but said she’d already taken some. As she was a supervising officer, he asked if she’d sign the lab form when he’d completed it. Jane knew a DS’s or DI’s signature was required before the lab would start any forensic examination.
‘I think it’s best you ask DI Kingston since he’s running the investigation.’
‘OK, but as the exhibits officer you should be present when we discuss the submissions. I think he’ll be quite impressed when he sees the exhibits book and hears about your idea to seize the garage lock in case we find a key that fits. I’d appreciate your input regarding the forensic strategy as well.’
She shrugged. ‘If DI Kingston wants me to be present, I’m sure he’ll ask.’
Murphy had put her in a position where she was nervous about any form of confrontation with her superiors, and it really annoyed her.
Dabs leaned forward and spoke quietly. ‘Don’t let it get to you, it’s just—’
‘Let what get to me?’ she interjected, worried he knew the real reason she’d been posted to the squad.
‘The Colonel’s childish behavior with the poster. Everyone gets a bit of stick when they start here. God knows I did — they kept calling me Nick Nack. At first I thought it was something to do with the fact I was a civvy and couldn’t arrest anyone, but then I found out it was because of my height.’
‘Your height?’ She was confused.
‘Yeah, Nick Nack’s a dwarf villain in a James Bond film.’
She remembered the film and had to stop herself smiling at the comparison as she didn’t want to offend Dabs.
‘Thanks for your concern, but I’m fine with a bit of banter. Besides, I didn’t expect to be welcomed with open arms by everyone.’
‘From what I’ve seen so far you’ll soon settle in; you’re a thinker and a hard worker — and that’s what counts most.’
He picked up the typewriter and said he’d use one of the empty desks next to Teflon to complete the lab form. The way Dabs treated her with respect made Jane feel even worse about the way she’d snapped at him, and now she could feel a real headache coming on. As she took out her pocket notebook and pen she noticed a blue folder in one of her filing trays. She supposed Katie must have put it there. She looked inside and saw that it contained the completed house-to-house forms, none of which had been signed or marked up for further, or no further, action. She assumed Cam would have been checking and supervising the forms as he’d told her DI Kingston wanted him to organize the house-to-house enquiries. Jane glanced up and saw Cam watching her out of the corner of his eye, then say something to the Colonel, which made him grin. She walked over to his desk and put the folder down in front of him.
‘I thought you were dealing with the house-to-house forms.’
‘I spoke to DI Kingston and he wants you, as a DS, to check them and raise any further action if it’s needed,’ he said with a self-satisfied smile.
She wondered if he was lying because he was too lazy to check them himself.
‘Then why didn’t Kingston tell me personally?’
Cam shrugged. ‘Probably because you were with DCI Murphy when I spoke to him. I expect he’ll want to go over the results of the house-to-house during the meeting.’
‘Right, we can get the meeting started, now WDS Tennison has honored us with her presence,’ Murphy’s voice boomed out as he strode into the squad room, followed by DI Kingston.
Cam had a smug look as he spoke to Jane. ‘Don’t panic, I’ve looked through the forms and there’s nothing that needs an urgent follow-up and I’ve told Kingston about the owner of garage twenty-nine.’