Chapter 51
Her shift was finished and the guard hadn’t returned. Clarice Shaw felt just a niggle of unease. She’d thought the young woman would be back for her food. Hopefully she was safe. Of course she was, she was a guard. Trained and all.
She grabbed her jacket. She had to go to Dunnes Stores and pick up a few groceries.
Maybe a bottle of wine to have with Netflix.
Then again, she didn’t want to be on her own; something about the guards wanting to speak to Liam Scanlan had unnerved her.
There was a good comedy act on in the Court Lounge.
That would pass the night. Better than staying in on her own. She’d still buy the wine.
Out on the street, she squinted up at the first-floor apartment. Even if she was offered a million euros, she couldn’t be dragged up there again. Life was too short for sharing the same air space with shits like Liam Scanlan.
Kirby was in the incident room, floundering around getting nowhere.
The boss and Boyd were probably still at Dermot Macken’s place.
He and Martina had drawn a blank on Liam Scanlan.
Maybe they should go back to Healy’s office and see if Scanlan had returned.
He went to check the general office. No sign of Martina.
‘Hey, McKeown, have you seen Martina?’
‘My life is so much easier without her in my peripheral vision.’ The shaven-headed detective didn’t even look up.
‘Huh?’ Kirby figured it meant he hadn’t seen her.
Garda Lei piped up from behind a stack of reports. ‘She got a call on her mobile and headed out. A half-hour or so ago.’
‘Her hi-vis and belt are here.’ Kirby tapped the back of her chair.
‘Maybe she went out for a coffee,’ Lei said. ‘She had her own coat on. Do you want me to—’
‘No, it’s fine, Lei.’
He should give her a call to see if she was free to go to Hallblack Lane with him.
But then again, she was entitled to her breaks.
They got little enough opportunity to eat or any downtime when there was a large-scale investigation ongoing.
As she had grabbed time out, he should respect that.
He decided to tip home to get some food. And see Amy too.
Smiling at the thought of wrapping his arms around her growing bump, he headed out.
At the sight of blood seeping from her side, Scanlan thought he might throw up.
He grabbed at his hair and paced in circles. What had he done?
‘Shit, Christ, fuck.’
Her stab vest should have saved her. Then he realised she wasn’t wearing one. Unprofessional, so it was her own fault. That thought got his hyperventilation under control. She should have been properly attired. It was not his fault at all.
He slouched onto the hard chair and watched the blood pool slowly around her body.
What had he done? It was a panicked impulse, so no point justifying it to himself. He should not have lost control.
Was she dead?
He chanced a quick glance. Her hair clouded her face, keeping a secret from him. He put out his foot and with the toe of his shoe poked her arm. He still couldn’t determine if she was breathing.
What to do next?
Did anyone know she was here? That tramp behind the bar downstairs. He could deal with her, but the other guards? Shit, it was a mess. All he knew was that he had to act fast.
He sprang from his chair, got his coat and stepped over the blood-soaked woman, careful not to walk in the blood. He noticed her phone on the table. He pocketed it with the intention of dropping it in the canal.
He locked the door and made his way down the stairs. He’d had a plan in place, but this had scuppered it. No, it just sped up things.
The more he thought of it, the more he wished he’d never laid eyes on Caroline and Cameron Healy.