Only the Brave (19 page)

9.00 P.M.

Allie rang Nick and updated him as she arrived with Perry at the Royal Stoke University Hospital.

‘This can’t be a coincidence, sir,’ she said. ‘Leah Matthews allegedly falling and Stella Elliott being beaten up on the same day that Jordan Johnson is murdered? I know Harrison House is renowned for its trouble but even so, that’s a lot of things happening at once.’

‘I agree. Can you stay with Leah Matthews and get a statement from her? Gauge her reaction when you tell her how Stella Elliott is, see what she has to say first. Get Perry to stay with Stella, see what he can find out.’

‘Yes, sir. I haven’t managed to catch Craig Elliott to question him yet about his timing, although I did speak to Stella earlier and she was still adamant he was in around midnight,’ she added. ‘Her face was a mess then, too; said she’d fallen.’

In A&E, Leah had been transferred onto a hospital trolley. The paramedics at the scene had strapped a padded brace around her neck to support it until she was fully assessed. When the nurse attending to her left to find a blood pressure monitor, Allie leaned on the bed frame.

‘How are you feeling?’ she asked.

‘Like I’ve fallen and landed on my back,’ Leah replied.

‘Oh, good. You have a sense of humour.’ Allie’s smile was full of sarcasm. ‘That means you’re able to answer me a few questions. Care to explain what’s been going on at your flat?’

‘I told you – I can’t remember. I must have blacked out or something.’

‘Cut the bullshit.’ Allie leaned in closer. ‘We went up to your flat and found Stella outside on the walkway. She’s been beaten really badly. She’s across the other side of A&E being tended to now. Whoever hurt her is in a lot of trouble. Want to tell me about that?’

Leah’s eyes flitted around in confusion. ‘I wasn’t with Stella!’

‘The door to your flat was wide open.’ Allie sighed. ‘Stop
pissing
me about.’

‘No, Stella wasn’t there when I – I fell. Is she okay? What’s happened to her? I want to see her.’

Allie took hold of one of Leah’s hands.

‘You see?’ Leah cried. ‘No marks. I haven’t been fighting.’

‘I wouldn’t put it past you to hit out with something else. Tell me what happened.’

‘It wasn’t me! It must have been that bastard. He hit her
earlier and –’

‘Who did?’

‘I – I can’t remember.’ Tears trickled from Leah’s eyes. ‘Is
Stella okay?’

Allie pointed to the overnight bag placed underneath the seat next to the bed. ‘Were you going somewhere, Leah?’

‘My mum had a break-in this afternoon and was upset so I thought I’d stay there tonight.’

‘Right.’ Allie paused. ‘Did you jump over the side?’

‘No.’

‘Is this anything to do with what happened to Jordan
Johnson
?’

‘No!’

‘Were you running away from something – someone?’

‘I told you – I can’t remember!’

‘Well, something’s not quite right here, is it?’ Allie snapped.

‘Am I under arrest?’

‘Not yet.’ Allie stood up to leave but stopped when she heard Leah crying. For a moment, she tried to put herself in Leah’s position, understand how scared she’d be if someone had pushed her over the edge.

‘Is someone threatening you?’ she asked calmly.

‘No,’ said Leah.

The nurse came back, smiled at them both as she wheeled in the machine. ‘Right then, Leah, let’s get this done and then we’ll get you down for a scan.’

Allie looked at Leah, all compassion suddenly disappearing. ‘I’ll be here on your return. I suggest you get your story straight by then. I’ll keep you updated about Stella’s injuries – your friend, Stella, remember? Your best friend.’

Craig had climbed down the side of Harrison House pretty sharpish after he had attacked Stella. A mile away, he parked up and killed the engine, hearing instead the sound of his racing heart. Although his knuckles were cut and swelling, he pounded the steering wheel in frustration.

He was finished if he didn’t get that money by the end of the day. And now that stupid bitch had fallen from the balcony with the bag, it was bound to be found by someone in A&E. Someone would look inside. He was well and truly screwed.

With the lesser of two evils in mind, he rang Ryan and told him what had happened.

‘For fuck’s sake – how the hell are you going to get it back from there?’

‘I can’t get it back,’ he cried. ‘I can’t go anywhere near the police. They’re going to start putting two and two together right about now.’

‘I don’t give a fuck about that. I want my money and I want it before Burgess gets it, do you hear?’

‘But how am I –’

‘Just get it, Elliott!’

Craig cursed as the phone went dead. There was nothing for it now but to play one man against the other. He rang Steve and told him what had happened, too.

‘Ryan wants me to get the money back and give it to him rather than you,’ he concluded. ‘And he visited that bird
Jordan
was knocking off earlier. She lives next door to me. He –
he coul
d have been collecting the missing money from her. She might have been saving it for Jordan. It might not ever have been missing – just taken from the bag by Jordan. I’ve never trust
ed him.’

There was a pause after he’d finished gabbling.

‘I can’t go to the hospital,’ he added. ‘It’s too dangerous.’

‘Why?’

‘Let’s just say trying to get the money didn’t run quite as smooth as I’d wanted.’

‘That’s a bit of an understatement.’

‘I’ll pay you back! I can get the money somehow.’

‘From under the nose of the police?’

‘No, that’s gone. I’ll get some more. I – I just need a bit more time.’ Craig didn’t want to ask but knew he had no choice. ‘I – I need somewhere to get my head down for a bit.’

There was a short pause.

‘I have to keep away from the pigs. It’s best, don’t you think?’

‘Come over to Flynn’s. We’re closed tonight so it’s doubtful that the police will come again until morning.’

9.10 P.M.

Once home, Ryan took the stairs three at a time and went into his bedroom. Closing the door, he was just about to ring Steve when his number flashed up on the screen of his mobile phone.

‘I’ve just had a call from Elliott,’ Steve told him. ‘You know he’s lost the ten grand? It’s fucking gone.’

‘He rang me, too,’ said Ryan. ‘I thought he might be calling my bluff. You think he’s telling the truth? The police have it?’

‘It looks like it.’

‘Fuck! That stupid lowlife piece of shit. What were you thinking, getting him involved? The man’s a liability!’

‘It wasn’t my idea! I was told what to do just as much as you were.’

‘Ryder told you to hire Elliott?’

‘He told me to hire some loser.’

‘Someone we could fucking trust to do the job right would have been better.’ Ryan paused for a moment. ‘We need to sort him out – take him out if necessary, before he gets us into more troub
le. Idiot!’

‘You want me to look into it?’

‘Yeah, see if he’s pulling a fast one or not first.’

‘Leave it with me.’

‘Talk about a cock-up!’ Kirstie said when Ryan joined her in the living room and told her what had happened. ‘What the fuck are we supposed to do now?’

Ryan rested his head on the back of the settee. ‘They’re going to come asking us why Jordan had ten thousand pounds on him. We need to think of another option.’ He clenched his fists. ‘That stupid fucking Elliott. We had it all planned out.’

Kirstie gnawed at her bottom lip. ‘They have no evidence we’re involved, do they?’

‘Not a thing until they had the money.’

‘We could bluff and say we don’t think the money has anything to do with Jordan.’

‘But they’ll dig deeper now.’

‘They would have done that anyway, surely?’

‘Yes, but around Jordan and not us.’

Kirstie sat back in a panic. ‘Shit.’

‘So if you have any favours that you can pull with Daddy, now would be the time to call them in.’

‘What?’

‘You heard. We’re going to need all the help we can get to dig ourselves out of the huge hole we’re in.’

‘In your dreams.’ Kirstie stood up to walk out of the room. ‘I didn’t know he was playing away again so I’m not getting involved.’

Jordan grabbed her wrist as the realisation hit him. ‘Terry wanted rid of Jordan all along, didn’t he?’

‘What?’

‘Is this because he didn’t want to know you anymore?’ Ryan glared at her. ‘It is, isn’t it?’

‘He was a free man, could do what he wanted.’ Kirstie could feel her skin getting hot, giving her away. ‘I didn’t own him.’

‘But you were pretty angry when he ended the fling. Is this your way of getting revenge?’

‘Don’t be stupid.’

He grabbed her again as she walked away.

‘Take your hands off me,’ she warned. ‘And Jordan didn’t end the fling. We both did.’

‘It’s beginning to make sense now,’ Ryan sneered. ‘Do you think Jordan didn’t know that I was fucking you too? Did you think that we didn’t laugh about you behind your back? About how pathetic, how easy you were?’

Kirstie laughed, but all the time thought of Nicole’s spiteful words earlier. ‘Well, you certainly seemed as though you were enjoying it. There are some things a man can’t fake . . . whereas a woman can.’

‘It passed a bit of time away, but mostly we did it to keep you on side so that we could see what was happening with your father and his businesses.’

‘You were spying on us!’

‘Got it in one.’ Ryan nodded. ‘I’d warn him, if you can, to watch his back. He’s not so hard to get at when he’s locked up in one place with a gang of equally dangerous criminals.’

‘You wouldn’t dare!’ Kirstie challenged. ‘If you –’

Ryan swiped his hand across her face.

Kirstie’s head reared to the side. She felt the sting of his fingers, but she stared back at him.

‘I’ve wanted to do that to you so many times, but I didn’t want to mark Daddy’s precious cargo.’ Ryan’s eyes were dark. ‘But now something is amiss with how Jordan died, the rules have changed.’

‘And you think things will get better by hitting me?’

‘I know your father had something to do with Jordan’s death and I’m going to prove it. I hope for your sake that you’re not involved, too.’

Kirstie swallowed, praying her nerves wouldn’t desert her now. As usual she turned to the most powerful weapon she possessed.

‘My father will protect me,’ she said. ‘He always has and he always will.’

9.30 P.M.

After she had questioned Leah, Allie went to find Stella. A nurse told her she was being x-rayed so she sat down to wait for her. Even though she was a mere five-minute walk away from Karen, she didn’t want to go and see her sister just yet. She had to keep her mind clear, focus on the task in hand. She knew she’d get upset if she saw Karen and she couldn’t take the risk, not while she was working. God, she hated herself sometimes for not being stronger.

Perry came in, interrupting her thoughts. He was holding two plastic cups.

‘Bit of a mess, this case, boss,’ he said, handing her a drink of something that resembled coffee. He sat down beside her in the cubicle.

‘Tell me about it. We nearly had another murder to solve. And we still haven’t caught up with Elliott.’

‘Yeah, strange he’s gone off radar. Are the control room still on stand-by to let you know if anyone sees him?’

‘Yes. He’s obviously hiding from us so that makes me doubly suspicious now that he’s involved. I can’t wait to get to the bottom of it all.’

They both looked up as Stella was wheeled back in on a
trolley
bed. Once they’d been given the all-clear to talk to her, Allie moved her chair closer.

‘How are you feeling?’ she asked.

‘A little sore. The painkillers are great.’ Stella smiled, then winced. ‘How’s Leah?’

‘She’s gone for a scan. Are you able to remember what
happened
?’

‘I went along to see her for a cup of coffee.’ Stella swallowed. ‘When I got there, the door was open. I knocked and went in.’

‘Would you normally just walk in?’

‘Yes, we’re really good friends.’

Allie glanced at Perry. ‘What happened next?’

‘I went into the living room and there was a man looking through her things. I asked what he was doing but he just ran past me. I followed him, shouting at him and that’s when he turned back and attacked me.’

‘Did you know him?’ asked Perry.

‘No.’

‘You must have got a good look at him, so close up,’ Allie reasoned. ‘Can you describe him?’

‘He was tall, thin. Had short dark hair.’

‘Age?’

‘Early twenties.’

‘Does he live in the flats, do you know?’

‘I’m not sure, but I don’t think so.’

‘Would you recognise him again if you saw him?’

‘I – I’m not sure.’

‘Was it anyone you knew associated to Jordan Johnson?’

‘I don’t know Jordan that well.’ Stella looked away.

‘Stella, we know you’re lying. Because according to Leah, she can’t remember seeing you. She can’t remember how she ended up falling over the balcony either.’

‘I didn’t see what happened to Leah.’

‘So he just attacked you and then ran?’

‘Yes.’

‘I’m not buying it.’ Allie shook her head. ‘If he was in a hurry to leave, he might have hit you once to get you out of his way, but to do all that damage to you would take up his precious time. To me it looks like you were attacked in anger.’

‘But why would anyone do that to me?’ she asked.

‘Indeed. So for that reason, I think you know who it was, Stella, and I think you’re either too scared to tell me or you’re covering for someone. Which one is it?’

Stella looked down at her hands.

‘I’ll tell you the same as I’ve just told Leah,’ Allie continued. ‘I’ll give you twenty minutes while I go back and talk to her, see what she has to say now, and then I’m coming to see you again. Between you, I’m sure we’ll get to the truth. And if we don’t, I’m going to arrest you both.’ She turned to Perry. ‘I won’t be long.’

She was almost out of the cubicle when Stella spoke again.

‘It was Craig.’

Allie turned back.

‘I was on my way to Leah’s flat when I saw them arguing. They were playing tug of war with a bag. The next thing I knew Leah had fallen backwards over the balcony. It was horrible to see it, like watching something in slow motion.’ Stella wiped tears from her eyes, one already swollen so tight it was a wonder a tear could escape. ‘I went mad and that’s when he attacked me.’

‘Was it an overnight bag?’ Allie thought back to Leah’s story about going to stay with her mum.

‘Yes.’ Stella looked away for a moment before taking a deep breath. ‘Leah found five thousand pounds near Jordan Johnson’s body,’ she said eventually, ‘and Craig wants it.’

Both Allie and Perry were suddenly awake again despite the late hour.

‘Do you know why?’ said Allie.

‘No,’ Stella sobbed. ‘But I do know he is a dangerous, lying, cheating bastard. And he didn’t come in at midnight – or even midnightish. He didn’t get in until half past three. I can’t find the clothes he was wearing last night either. I’ve looked everywhere in the flat for them.’

Allie turned to Perry. ‘Stay with her.’

She raced back to Leah’s cubicle. Leah hadn’t come back from her scan yet but the overnight bag was gone from underneath the chair. Allie opened the cabinet beside the bed to see it had been put in there for safekeeping.