stop the release of the murder victims’ names but it would look bad for everyone if it was all linked back to a contaminated sample.
He drifted off into scientific speak she didn’t really understand and then said it was going to take days but Jessica wasn’t really listening. She knew it would all come back to confirm what she felt sure she knew; Donald McKenna had somehow been involved with the murder of three people.
She decided to rest on things that night. Adam had trusted her with information she technically shouldn’t have yet and there didn’t seem too much point in passing it on considering it would be phoned through the next morning anyway, albeit with the proviso that the testers wanted new samples.
The following day, there was definitely a different atmosphere in the station. Big crimes always created a buzz and, although Craig Millar’s killing hadn’t got people going, Jessica knew as soon as she walked in that news had broken about the latest DNA results. She didn’t let on that she already knew as the desk sergeant directed her upstairs for a meeting with Farraday.
As soon as she started to walk past the windows of his office, she could see Cole already sitting inside chatting with their boss. She knocked as a courtesy but was waved straight in and took a seat next to Cole on the opposite side of the desk from Farraday. ‘Daniel,’ the DCI said to acknowledge her.
‘Sir.’ The chief inspector proceeded to tell her everything she had already been told by Adam the previous evening. She nodded along in all the right places. If Cole suspected she already knew the details, he said nothing.
The DCI finished by summing up where he saw everything standing. ‘Daniel, I’m moving you up to take lead on this. I know it should really fall to Cole but so far it’s only three arseholes we’re better off without. There are other jobs to do around here. Take whoever you want to the prison today but then we’ll have to wait until the Bradford Park lot have done their jobs. If any more bodies show up, we might have to look again. All right?’
‘What are we telling the media, Sir?’ Jessica asked.
‘Not much. The press office stuck out the victims’ names yesterday. Do I think they’ll put the pieces together and link it to the other killing? Not unless someone gives the game away. It’s not as if they’re the sharpest bunch of knives in the drawer, is it?’
Jessica grimaced at the question he had asked himself but wanted to laugh at his dig about the local reporters. With her last big case a journalist named Garry Ashford who worked for the Manchester Morning Herald had actually helped her figure out what was going on, albeit not directly. Still, she liked the description and would tell him the next time she saw him.
‘What exactly do you want me to do at the prison, Sir?’ She wouldn’t normally have asked but, with them in limbo waiting for further test results, there was only so far they could push things.
‘Talk to the governor, check McKenna’s cell, put the shits up them all – that kind of thing. Talk to the wardens, one of them might be bent. Do I think someone there must know more than they’re letting on? Maybe.’
It hadn’t crossed Jessica’s mind that someone who worked on the wings could have helped McKenna in some way. It still seemed far-fetched but it was something she would bear in mind now that Farraday had mentioned it. A warden or someone in a similar position would certainly have more chance at getting blood or hairs from the prisoner than someone on the outside if they wanted to frame him. If they were working together, it would be easier, although still difficult in technical terms. It didn’t get her any closer to coming up with a motive.
The three of them held the morning briefing in the main incident room in the basement of the Longsight station. It essentially consisted of them telling everyone what had been decided in the office. The chief inspector
He drifted off into scientific speak she didn’t really understand and then said it was going to take days but Jessica wasn’t really listening. She knew it would all come back to confirm what she felt sure she knew; Donald McKenna had somehow been involved with the murder of three people.
She decided to rest on things that night. Adam had trusted her with information she technically shouldn’t have yet and there didn’t seem too much point in passing it on considering it would be phoned through the next morning anyway, albeit with the proviso that the testers wanted new samples.
The following day, there was definitely a different atmosphere in the station. Big crimes always created a buzz and, although Craig Millar’s killing hadn’t got people going, Jessica knew as soon as she walked in that news had broken about the latest DNA results. She didn’t let on that she already knew as the desk sergeant directed her upstairs for a meeting with Farraday.
As soon as she started to walk past the windows of his office, she could see Cole already sitting inside chatting with their boss. She knocked as a courtesy but was waved straight in and took a seat next to Cole on the opposite side of the desk from Farraday. ‘Daniel,’ the DCI said to acknowledge her.
‘Sir.’ The chief inspector proceeded to tell her everything she had already been told by Adam the previous evening. She nodded along in all the right places. If Cole suspected she already knew the details, he said nothing.
The DCI finished by summing up where he saw everything standing. ‘Daniel, I’m moving you up to take lead on this. I know it should really fall to Cole but so far it’s only three arseholes we’re better off without. There are other jobs to do around here. Take whoever you want to the prison today but then we’ll have to wait until the Bradford Park lot have done their jobs. If any more bodies show up, we might have to look again. All right?’
‘What are we telling the media, Sir?’ Jessica asked.
‘Not much. The press office stuck out the victims’ names yesterday. Do I think they’ll put the pieces together and link it to the other killing? Not unless someone gives the game away. It’s not as if they’re the sharpest bunch of knives in the drawer, is it?’
Jessica grimaced at the question he had asked himself but wanted to laugh at his dig about the local reporters. With her last big case a journalist named Garry Ashford who worked for the Manchester Morning Herald had actually helped her figure out what was going on, albeit not directly. Still, she liked the description and would tell him the next time she saw him.
‘What exactly do you want me to do at the prison, Sir?’ She wouldn’t normally have asked but, with them in limbo waiting for further test results, there was only so far they could push things.
‘Talk to the governor, check McKenna’s cell, put the shits up them all – that kind of thing. Talk to the wardens, one of them might be bent. Do I think someone there must know more than they’re letting on? Maybe.’
It hadn’t crossed Jessica’s mind that someone who worked on the wings could have helped McKenna in some way. It still seemed far-fetched but it was something she would bear in mind now that Farraday had mentioned it. A warden or someone in a similar position would certainly have more chance at getting blood or hairs from the prisoner than someone on the outside if they wanted to frame him. If they were working together, it would be easier, although still difficult in technical terms. It didn’t get her any closer to coming up with a motive.
The three of them held the morning briefing in the main incident room in the basement of the Longsight station. It essentially consisted of them telling everyone what had been decided in the office. The chief inspector
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