Chapter 60
SIXTY
Danny had made it through the ordeal. Another minute, he’d have drowned.
Gina had left him in the care of a nurse with a police officer posted outside his room.
First they’d treat Danny like a victim and when he was in better shape, they’d bring Danny to the station and interview him with regard to his assault on Kain, but now wasn’t the right time. She sipped her hospital machine coffee.
‘I’m shattered, guv.’ Jacob stood there in his standard issue track bottoms and sweater after changing from his filthy clothes back at the station.
‘Same. Can you head to Justine’s room? I’m just going to update DCI Fraser.’
Jacob nodded.
Gina mulled over all that Justine had told to her.
It was clear that Simeon was behind everything, all in the name of justice for his brother and then he got angry with Justine for helping Kain.
Justine had cried when she said how she’d brought Lindy into their friendship group.
She wasn’t to know about Simeon’s past and how Simeon had blamed her for bringing his past to his door.
She went to call Brodie but tapped Briggs’s number first.
He answered. ‘Gina.’
‘Hi, how are you doing?’ She thought of the last time she saw him, all sore and battered.
‘Getting there. I heard what happened. Congratulations.’
‘So many people died or were hurt. It doesn’t feel like a victory.’ She thought of Kain, Zavier and Lindy – all dead.
‘A very dangerous person is off the streets. We can’t win them all.
’ He paused. ‘I’m heading to my brother’s for a short while, to help my recovery.
’ She heard him swallow. ‘I’d appreciate it if you didn’t call.
I need some time to think about this week, my close brush with death, and I want some time alone.
We need some time alone… apart… but thank you for being there and believing in me. ’
A twinge of guilt made her wince. There was a time when she didn’t believe he couldn’t have been totally innocent and she would always wonder if he acted in a way that would make him ashamed to admit.
She knew Briggs well enough to know he wouldn’t purposely hurt anyone in custody, but did they all neglect Barry Yates?
She couldn’t help but feel for the poor lad after having his life taken away so young.
‘Barry Yates died in your custody. The perp blamed you and the others.’
He paused. ‘I know and I always wonder if I could have done more that day. I’ll think about that case for the rest of my days.’
‘Can I see you, before you go?’
‘Like I said. I need some time alone.’
‘Are you still angry with me over the last case?’
‘I’ll always be angry that you gave that memory stick up but no, I just need some time to myself.’
She took a deep breath. Was he telling her that what they had was definitely over?
It felt like it and she wasn’t going to beg him to see her.
The kindest thing she could do was respect his wishes.
He’d been through a lot and he didn’t need her making his life complicated.
‘Of course. Get well soon and I’ll see you when you’re ready to come back to work. ’
‘See you then.’
She swallowed. He didn’t have feelings for her anymore, that much seemed obvious. Maybe they both needed to explore who they were, separately. ‘Take care, Chris.’
‘Take care, Gina.’ He ended the call she was finding so hard to end.
After taking a minute to process everything, she quickly updated Brodie and hurried towards the ward where Justine was recovering.
When she arrived, Justine was up and dressed in something the hospital had obviously cobbled together for her.
The oversized pink jumper and black leggings looked like they belonged to another person. ‘I want to get Danny and go home.’
Gina pulled up a chair as Justine sat on the edge of the bed.
Jacob stood beside her. ‘I’m sure you’ll both be able to go home soon.
Danny is still being treated. Is there anything else you remember now that you haven’t already told us?
’ Gina had spoken to Kapoor who found out that there had been an inquest into Barry Yates’s death.
He’d died of asphyxiation in his cell after being left in a bad way, unsupervised.
There had been rumours that Zavier and Kain had been mocking him.
Someone in the next cell heard them. Briggs had booked Barry in on the night he died and Simeon had blamed all three of them, even more so when the verdict of accidental death was read out.
‘He waffled on, just before he dropped me into the tank. He was so angry,’ Justine said. ‘He was sick and thought he had nothing to lose. Pia has been having an affair with my husband. Have you found him yet?’
Gina shook her head. She already knew about the affair.
‘Simeon wanted to drown us all so we’d know how it felt for Baz, his brother.’ She looked into her lap. ‘I didn’t know that video was on Danny’s laptop…’ She swallowed. ‘What will happen to Danny?’
‘He’ll be interviewed at the station when he’s well enough. We know he had nothing to do with Kain’s murder so we’ll just be speaking about the assault.’
Gina thought about how everything had unfolded a few hours ago.
Pia had been released after helping them throughout the night and she’d known nothing about the box that Simeon had kept in the loft.
He’d never even told Pia he had a brother and that he’d been estranged from his parents.
Gina realised that the memories must have been too painful for him.
Hiding them away and not speaking about Baz or his parents had been Simeon’s way of coping, that was until Lindy came into his life.
Justine continued. ‘Simeon kept muttering about how he found someone called Zavier. He’d gone back to the pub his brother used to go to.
He saw Zavier and followed him to a warehouse.
’ She paused. ‘I think I mentioned it before, but he knew all Craig’s passwords.
He’d known everything about Craig, about Pia, about us.
He was able to log in to everything and pretend to be Craig whenever he chose.
I don’t think I’ll ever believe a message again as long as I live. ’ She shivered.
Gina had informed Garth of this already, so he’d be able to look into all of that. From what she’d seen and the message Pia had received, she knew that Simeon had been creepily playing them all. ‘Do you know where Craig is?’ Gina asked. ‘We know he also had nothing to do with Kain’s murder.’
Justine frowned. ‘I don’t. I’m sure he ran to protect Danny and himself.
He said he was being set up. He said he needed to get to the truth before you falsely arrested him and Danny.
I honestly don’t know where he’s been staying.
’ She sniffed and wiped her watery eyes.
‘I seriously don’t want him back though.
We’re over. His affair with Pia… I never want to see that woman again. ’
Gina knew Craig couldn’t stay hidden forever. ‘Did Simeon mention anything else about Kain’s murder?’ Gina asked, trying to get all the information she could.
She frowned and took a moment. ‘He, err, he kept going on about booking a parking space and having to wait a day for it to become free.’ Tears trickled down her cheeks.
‘He left the body in the car, parked up in the woods. He stole Craig’s hoodie…
’ She held a hand to her chest. ‘Simeon found the hoodie in Pia’s car.
Craig must have let her use it. He watched us all.
He hated us all. After the inquest for his brother’s death, he said he saw Lindy celebrating in the pub with Kain and he never forgot that moment.
I can understand the pain he went through back then but I can’t understand the pain he put me and the others through.
But if what happened to Baz had happened to Danny, I think I’d also be full of rage. Can I see my son, yet?’
Gina nodded. ‘I’ll get a PC to take you to him.’
The nurse walked in. ‘I need to ask you to leave for a short while?’ She took Justine’s chart from the pocket at the end of the bed.
Gina nodded. She and Jacob left the ward.
She let out a long sigh. ‘What a tangled mess this all is. I’m trying to think like him.
His diagnosis along with Lindy coming into his life sent Simeon over the edge.
He’d spent years living with the injustice of what happened to his brother and he finally exploded and now he’s dead, so we don’t get to question him. ’
Jacob frowned. ‘It’s odd that he blamed Briggs. He just booked him in but I guess he was lashing out.’
Gina let out a long breath. ‘Briggs is one of the most upstanding people I’ve ever met.
I can’t imagine him hurting anyone but Simeon obviously could.
He blamed everyone whose names had come up in the inquest.’ She looked away.
Briggs had his secrets like she did. She knew he could lie, she knew he could play the game when he needed to.
He’d kept her secrets, threatened people who were in danger of releasing them and she wondered, did Briggs keep Kain and Zavier’s secrets too?
Could Briggs have given a statement at the inquest, helping them get away with being negligent?
It was a question she’d never be able to answer.