always was – put us ahead of anything else. He could have made at least superintendent if he’d sacrificed a bit more but it wasn’t in his nature. Not that he wasn’t dedicated to the job; he was. He cared about people and about the right thing being done. He was my hero. He still is.’
Rachel stopped and took another swig of wine. When she spoke again, her voice was stronger.
‘Anyway, you’ll remember the Lady in the Lake case, the winter of 1993 and ’94.’
Danny’s eyes furrowed.
‘Lake of Menteith?’ he answered. ‘Young woman found battered to death on the island in the middle? I remember it. It made headlines for weeks, months.’
‘Inchmahome,’ she confirmed. ‘My dad worked the case. Worked it for months, maybe the only time in his whole career he lived and breathed a case twenty-four hours a day and me and Mum never saw him. The victim wasn’t that much older than me and I always wondered if that was part of it, why it got to him so much. But I think it was just because he cared, wanted justice for her. You know how it is, Danny.’
Neilson nodded slowly and gravely. He knew how it was all right. He’d worked on a series of high-profile killings back in the early seventies: four young women who were murdered after nights out in Glasgow. They’d never caught the killer and there weren’t many days that went by that Danny didn’t think about it and feel guilty about not having done his job.
‘Yeah, I know, love. It eats away at you and it doesn’t stop.’
‘Yes, it does,’ she agreed, her voice wavering again. ‘My dad’s not well, Danny. He’s been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.’
Rachel let the sentence hang there and Tony flirted with the notion that she was playing this for sympathy. He immediately reproached himself for thinking it.
‘I’m sorry to hear that, Rachel,’ Danny comforted her. ‘It must be hard’
She nodded, her eyes on the table.
‘It’s hardest for him. He’s a proud man, used to looking after us and now he’s struggling to look after himself. He can’t always tell you what day it is and he forgets people’s names. He puts the oven on and leaves food to burn; he misses appointments and forgets birthdays. It might not sound much but it’s . . . it’s like you said, it’s eating away at him. I can see my dad slipping away bit by bit.’
Tony got out of his chair to go to comfort Rachel but she waved him back down.
‘His biggest regret is that girl who was found on Inchmahome – his last major case and the one that stays with him. He frets about it, Danny, and I know he wakes up in the middle of the night haunted by it.’
Neilson sat with his chin on his hands, looking at Rachel, taking in every word she said but giving nothing away.
‘I can’t do much for him,’ she continued. ‘I can’t give him some magic pill to make it all better. I can’t pay for some Harley Street doctor to cure him because there is no cure. I can’t even look after him because he’s in a home. There’s only one thing I know how to do and that’s my job.’
Danny slowly took one of his hands away from beneath his chin and held it up in front of him, his palm facing Rachel in a ‘stop’ gesture.
‘I don’t want to interrupt you, Rachel, but I can see how much this is hurting you. I know you are going to tell me what you want from me when you’re good and ready. Whatever it is, if I can do it, then I will. Okay?’
Rachel smiled sadly and nodded.
‘I know you wouldn’t be asking unless you felt you really needed to,’ Danny continued. ‘Just tell me what you want.’
It hurt Winter to see Rachel upset and that was bad enough but it also stung that he was being held at arm’s length. She was the one who had to help her dad, he knew that, and it made it difficult for her to let him in. There had always been this invisible police tape between them when it came to her work and he could feel it again now, putting him in his place.
‘Why did
Rachel stopped and took another swig of wine. When she spoke again, her voice was stronger.
‘Anyway, you’ll remember the Lady in the Lake case, the winter of 1993 and ’94.’
Danny’s eyes furrowed.
‘Lake of Menteith?’ he answered. ‘Young woman found battered to death on the island in the middle? I remember it. It made headlines for weeks, months.’
‘Inchmahome,’ she confirmed. ‘My dad worked the case. Worked it for months, maybe the only time in his whole career he lived and breathed a case twenty-four hours a day and me and Mum never saw him. The victim wasn’t that much older than me and I always wondered if that was part of it, why it got to him so much. But I think it was just because he cared, wanted justice for her. You know how it is, Danny.’
Neilson nodded slowly and gravely. He knew how it was all right. He’d worked on a series of high-profile killings back in the early seventies: four young women who were murdered after nights out in Glasgow. They’d never caught the killer and there weren’t many days that went by that Danny didn’t think about it and feel guilty about not having done his job.
‘Yeah, I know, love. It eats away at you and it doesn’t stop.’
‘Yes, it does,’ she agreed, her voice wavering again. ‘My dad’s not well, Danny. He’s been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.’
Rachel let the sentence hang there and Tony flirted with the notion that she was playing this for sympathy. He immediately reproached himself for thinking it.
‘I’m sorry to hear that, Rachel,’ Danny comforted her. ‘It must be hard’
She nodded, her eyes on the table.
‘It’s hardest for him. He’s a proud man, used to looking after us and now he’s struggling to look after himself. He can’t always tell you what day it is and he forgets people’s names. He puts the oven on and leaves food to burn; he misses appointments and forgets birthdays. It might not sound much but it’s . . . it’s like you said, it’s eating away at him. I can see my dad slipping away bit by bit.’
Tony got out of his chair to go to comfort Rachel but she waved him back down.
‘His biggest regret is that girl who was found on Inchmahome – his last major case and the one that stays with him. He frets about it, Danny, and I know he wakes up in the middle of the night haunted by it.’
Neilson sat with his chin on his hands, looking at Rachel, taking in every word she said but giving nothing away.
‘I can’t do much for him,’ she continued. ‘I can’t give him some magic pill to make it all better. I can’t pay for some Harley Street doctor to cure him because there is no cure. I can’t even look after him because he’s in a home. There’s only one thing I know how to do and that’s my job.’
Danny slowly took one of his hands away from beneath his chin and held it up in front of him, his palm facing Rachel in a ‘stop’ gesture.
‘I don’t want to interrupt you, Rachel, but I can see how much this is hurting you. I know you are going to tell me what you want from me when you’re good and ready. Whatever it is, if I can do it, then I will. Okay?’
Rachel smiled sadly and nodded.
‘I know you wouldn’t be asking unless you felt you really needed to,’ Danny continued. ‘Just tell me what you want.’
It hurt Winter to see Rachel upset and that was bad enough but it also stung that he was being held at arm’s length. She was the one who had to help her dad, he knew that, and it made it difficult for her to let him in. There had always been this invisible police tape between them when it came to her work and he could feel it again now, putting him in his place.
‘Why did
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