Virtual Justice (24 page)

“I’m going to meet a pa—I mean a lady friend of mine. We met a few months ago when—oh, that doesn’t matter. What I want is for you to help me kill her. I’ve arranged to meet her at a pub. After half an hour or so, I’ll ask her if she fancies going on to a restaurant for a meal. She’ll jump at the chance, I’m sure. When we get outside, I’ll take her around the back of the building. Once we start kissing, you sneak up on her and kill her. All right?”

Bella stared straight in front of her. Confused by what had taken place in the last fifteen minutes or so, she wasn’t quite sure how to react. In the end, she nodded her agreement.

“I can’t hear you,” he demanded.

“Okay.”

“Good. I’m looking forward to this. We’ll get you back on track, and then you can try out your seduction techniques again with another conquest tomorrow evening.”

She swiftly turned to look at him, her mouth gaping open. “Tomorrow? I have to kill someone else tomorrow?”

“No. You haven’t been listening to me,
again.
Tonight, you’re going to kill my friend, and then tomorrow, I’ll be trusting you to go it alone again. Have you got a problem with that plan?”

“Of course not. I understand.” She folded her shaking hands in her lap and contemplated how she could escape this man.
Yeah, I want to escape him, but then, when he shows me his gentle side, I want to love him and be loved by him. It’s a no-win situation.

He squeezed her leg and eased his way through the thick traffic to their destination. The pub’s car park was fairly quiet when they got there. Morris parked near the entrance, evidently thinking about his get-away. “Stay here for twenty-five minutes and then go round the back of the pub and wait for us. Be sure to keep well hidden until you’re needed. As soon as I start kissing her, you attack. I don’t want to be glued to her lips for long.” He wiped his mouth in disgust at the thought of the task ahead. Morris left the car, leaving his keys dangling temptingly in the ignition. However, Bella wasn’t foolish enough to entertain driving off and leaving him there. She knew if she did that, she would end up in a body bag.

Instead, she decided to bounce around a few ideas of her own concerning what would happen the following evening. She was so caught up in her thoughts that she almost missed her cue to leave the car.

Keeping to the shadows, she dashed across the car park and crouched at the end of the pub behind the skip, which with her hapless luck, happened to be full to bursting. She pinched her nostrils to ward off the putrid smell and pulled from her bag the knife that Morris had supplied her with. She twisted it beside her and wondered if she might go ahead early with the plan that had been playing out in her mind. Deciding that she needed more time to put all the details together, she got ready to strike.

In the distance she heard voices and a soft girlish giggle. Her hand almost dropped the knife as her palms grew sweatier the closer the voices came. Then she saw them. She could just make out the girl’s slim features and bobbed haircut, but that was all. Morris had his arm around her shoulders. Seeing that, Bella’s pulse escalated and her lip turned into a snarl. She was ready, as he knew she would be. Morris leaned against the wall and pulled the girl into his arms. Bella stood up and crept over to the kissing couple, the knife poised, the blade angled down ready for impact. She plunged the knife into the girl’s back. Morris turned the girl around when he saw Bella withdraw the blade. He placed a hand over the shocked girl’s mouth and urged Bella to get on with the assault.

Bella repeatedly plunged the knife into the girl’s chest, trying to make amends for messing up the previous night. She watched the smile broaden on Morris’s face and knew that she was back in his good books and that the sex would be fantastic between them when they got back to his flat.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

L
orne spent the morning being twitchy at home. Charlie complained she was in her way more than once, and Tony shook his head continuously as she busied herself with cleaning out the kitchen cupboards.

“Stop!” He took the saucepan from her, guided her over to the chair, and gently pushed her into it. “You’re making me exhausted. Give it a rest, love.”

“I can’t just sit around and do nothing until six o’clock tonight. I’ll go out of my mind. If I had my way, that Bella Croft would be sitting in an interview room right now, being torn apart.”

“I know, but Katy did tell you she had a heavy workload at the moment, didn’t she? I’m sure she wants this woman off the streets as much as you do. I’ll make you a nice cup of coffee. How’s that?”

Lorne nodded. The sound of the telephone ringing made her bolt out of her chair again. Tony let out an exasperated breath as she left the room.

“Hello?”

“We’ve got another victim, Lorne,” Katy told her glumly.

“Damn. I knew we should have picked that Bella up quickly.”

“It’s a female victim. A Madeline Vincent, single, aged thirty-four.”

“Killed on another date in a restaurant?”

“Nope, this was at a pub on the outskirts of town.”

“Do you want to go and pick up Bella early? Any witnesses at the scene?”

“Hang on a minute. No, there were no witnesses, and no, thinking things over, I think we should stick to our plan. The rate these incidents are happening, male, female, male
et cetera
, I think if we follow her this evening, we’ll either catch her in the act or when she meets up with her partner in crime.”

“You’ll be working the case as normal until then, won’t you?”

“That was a daft question, Lorne, and you know it. I was just keeping you up to date on things. I’ll see you later, as agreed.”

Lorne hung up and kicked out at the table next to the sofa.

“Hey, don’t take your bad mood out on the furniture. That cost at least fifty quid.”

“Sorry.” She tried to smile but was too angry. “That was Katy. They’ve found another victim, a woman.”

“Shit! Does she still want to go ahead with the plan this evening?”

“Yeah. She’ll be up against things all day. I’m hoping she doesn’t back out.”

“She wouldn’t do that. Have faith, love.”

•\ \ \ \ \ •\ \ \ \ \ •

At five minutes to six, Katy pulled into the drive. Lorne was out of the house and running towards the car before she’d even pulled on the handbrake.

“You’re keen.”

Lorne appraised how tired Katy looked and felt guilty for suggesting they add probable hours to her already-long day. “We’ve got a killer to catch. Rough day?”

“Could’ve been better. Let’s see what tonight brings, eh? I’ve got a feeling we’re getting close to catching these buggers.”

“If things go according to plan. Have you got the appropriate backup organised?”

“Yep, everyone is on standby. Remember, we’re only going to follow the suspect, if she leaves the house, that is.”

“Yeah, I know. Things could get ugly, though, if she does make a move.”

“I realise that, Lorne, and I’ve made the necessary calls. Stop worrying. I had a good teacher to this police lark, remember?”

Lorne smiled and let go of the harsh breath she felt as if she’d been holding in all day. “I know. I’m sorry. Just slap me down if I go OTT, all right?”

“Er, don’t worry. I will.”

During the trip, Katy went through how her day had panned out and ended with the information she had managed to gather about the victim so far. “No boyfriend, ever. She’s been in and out of hospital, suffering from anorexia for years. I visited her mum today, and she was understandably devastated by her daughter’s death, especially as she seemed to be on the road to recovery, finally.”

“Does her mum know how she met the person she was on a date with? Was it online?”

“Madeline lived with her mum, and according to her mother, she said that she didn’t really use the computer that much.”

“So how did she meet this man? Maybe we’re missing something here. Could be that the killers have changed their MO.”

“You mean after the online site was closed down. Do you think that’s a contributing factor?”

“That’s what I’m thinking, but how are they meeting their victims now? The women, at least.”

“You’re right. Phil Parkinson met the woman online. This doesn’t make sense, does it?”

“Let’s hope we get to the bottom of this tonight.”

The evening had suddenly grown dark, which was a blessing, as they drew up in Bella’s road. Katy parked in a space on the opposite side of the road and about twenty feet away from the woman’s flat. They sat and watched the street’s comings and goings. People came home from work, several take-away vans delivered meals for the next hour or so until, finally, Bella left her flat.

“Here we go.” Katy turned on the engine and eased the car out of the space.

“Don’t get too close.”

Katy shook her head. “Me, no novice, remember?”

Bella walked briskly to the end of her road. At the bottom, it joined a main B road. “I think she’s going to look for a taxi. Hold back.”

Lorne was right. Within a minute, a taxi drew up alongside Bella, and she hopped in. They followed the taxi into the heart of the city. “Damn, if she gets out now, we’re up shit creak with regard to parking.”

“If that happens, you get out and follow her, and I’ll dump the car somewhere and come back to you.”

The taxi crawled to a stop. Lorne frantically glanced around, searching for a space. “There, the driver is indicating to come out.”

“I see it. Keep an eye on which way Bella goes while I park.” Katy pulled up behind the car exiting the space and drummed her fingers impatiently on the steering wheel.

“She’s going in there.” Lorne pointed to a high-rise apartment-type building.

“Go. I’ll catch you up when this dumbo has stopped pratting around.”

Lorne yanked open the door and jumped out of the vehicle. She weaved in and out of the waiting traffic and followed Bella into the building. Holding back, she watched as the woman headed into the basement car park.
That’s strange. Why isn’t she using the lift in the main building?
From her hiding place, tucked behind a pillar, Lorne watched Bella go through the car park, swinging her handbag as if she didn’t have a care in the world. Lorne felt a hand on her shoulder and turned sharply to find Katy panting behind her.

“Let’s move with her but keep hidden behind the pillars.”

They moved through the car park, keeping a fair distance between themselves and Bella, until she reached the door at the end. As soon as Bella disappeared, Lorne and Katy ran the rest of the way, then halted at the door to spy through the glass panel at their suspect. Bella was waiting for the lift to arrive.

“How shall we play this?” Lorne asked.

“Would it be best to see on which level the lift stops and then take the stairs?”

“I’ve got a better idea. As soon as she gets in the lift, I’ll take the stairs. You ring me to let me know what floor she gets out on. How’s that?”

“Yep, then I’ll take the lift up when it comes back down.”

Lorne shook her head. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea. What if he lives in the penthouse, and the lift goes directly into the apartment?”

“I never thought of that. In that case, I’d rather go up first, if that’s okay?”

It wasn’t. However, Lorne agreed. “Get ready. She’s getting in.”

The lift doors opened, and Bella entered. The second the doors closed behind her, Katy bolted past the lift and up the stairs. Lorne held her phone at the ready. She dialled Katy’s number when the lift reached its destination.

“Top floor, Katy. I’m on my way.”

“I’m halfway there. See you in a mo.”

Lorne took off up the stairs in pursuit of her former partner and the suspect. Ten flights up, she caught up with Katy. Both of them were panting hard. Katy pointed at the only door on the floor. “She must have gone in there.”

“I think you need to call for backup.”

“I don’t. Not yet. Let’s get closer, see if we can hear anything.”

Lorne shrugged. Katy was in charge of this operation. She could make suggestions as to how to proceed, but at the end of the day, it was Katy’s call.

They didn’t go far before they heard raised voices and then a scream, which froze Lorne and Katy in their tracks. “Call for backup, now,” Lorne urged.

Katy opened up her phone and gave the go-ahead for the primed teams awaiting her call.

Lorne continued up the carpeted hallway, towards the door, to see if she could hear what was being said.

“You stupid, bitch. I told you to dress up. You call that a nice dress?” A slap accompanied the man’s insult. Then another followed. A woman’s sobbing filtered out of the room.

Lorne felt sorry for the woman taking a bashing until she remembered that she was a probable killer, too. Katy joined her and mouthed, “They’re on their way.”

“Good. The sooner they get here, the better. It’s all kicking off in there,” Lorne whispered in return, aware of the necessity to keep quiet and not to show their hand too soon.

They listened to the numerous insults and the anger in the man’s voice. It went on for a number of minutes before the room descended into quiet.

Lorne and Katy exchanged worried glances. Then Bella pleaded for the man not to hurt her anymore.

“I’m sorry. Please forgive me. I didn’t mean to take it out on you. Now, go into the bedroom and get changed. Your date will be expecting you shortly,” the man said.

Lorne’s mouth turned down. “Shit! We need to find cover, fast.”

“No, wait. Listen.”

The woman screeched at her accomplice, “I’m not going to do it anymore. If you want to kill anyone else, you’ll have to do it yourself.”

“What?” the man shouted threateningly.

“You heard me. No more,” Bella replied with a trembling voice.

When a scuffle broke out, Lorne’s eyes widened, but Katy shook her head and warned, “We have to wait.”

“For how long? Until he kills her?”

Katy got out her phone, which she had on vibrate, and read a message she had received. She gave the thumbs-up signal, and Lorne breathed a relieved sigh. Backup had arrived and were making their way upstairs.

The seconds ticked by. Lorne tried to hear what was going on inside the flat. However, things had gone ominously quiet again.