57. Back To Gray
Sally staggered from the coffee shop into the bright light of another gray day. Cars rolled by, people passed, a gentle wind blew. She caught a fragment of audio from a passing truck.
'– amber weather advisory in place for the south coast, which will see rainfall in excess of–'
She stood still, trying to grasp hold of the moment.
Back to Dungeness. She brought up her phone and summoned a taxi.
As they pulled away and London passed by outside, the case came washing back over her.
Richter. Bledd. Mensah. A killer who'd outfoxed them all, who'd killed a police officer and who wasn't done yet.
Her phone turned in her fingers. There was one call she still had to make. She dreaded it, but if there was anyone she needed now, it was her partner.
She hit dial, and Liam answered.
"Hey, Sally." His voice sounded tired, half-defeated, but also somehow different.
"Hey, Liam," she answered, cautious. "How are things there?"
"Oh, you know. Mad. We had a CTP expert in yesterday; now there's armed officers crawling all over Rye."
"Counter Terrorism Policing? They think this is terror-related?"
"After the bomb? Yes. And who knows what the killer's got planned next? CTSFOs are out hardening likely targets; the police station, the church, the castle and the train station. Like there might be more bombs."
Sally took a moment. "Shit."
"That's just the start. We're a Major Incident now, so we've got an influx of manpower.
More local officers, a dozen detectives fresh from London, a new command structure under a Detective Super.
It's chaos. Briefings, meetings, interviews.
Looks like they're bringing everyone back in, starting over with door knocks and interviews, combing through the old case. "
Sally had expected something like this. "How's Mayhew taking it?"
"Not great. She's still SIO, but she's a ghost. Just floating. And it's not just her. Emily's death has gotten everyone shaken up. It's like we're in some kind of holding pattern, with no clear direction anymore. No real leads."
"No leads?"
"Just Bledd, and we've got nothing on him. No sightings, no sign, no property to search since he blew it up. The trail is completely cold."
Sally considered that.
"Then there's your article," Liam said. "Everyone here's read it."
"Yeah. About that. I–"
"I did it, Sally."
Her jaw clicked closed. The words she'd been about to say flushed from her mind. "You did what?"
Liam took a long breath. "The article. Last night, I hit a low.
How I'd screwed both of us, really. Then it just hit me.
A way to bring you back." He was calm, Sally realized.
Strangely confident. "So I called Tania Brown.
Pitched her, I guess, on the trafficking angle.
Now the article's out, and you're calling me, so I'm guessing it worked. "
None of that made any sense to Sally.
"But… But yesterday you hated me. That article's the only reason I'm coming back. Why would you–"
"Because I'm sorry." He paused. "You saved my life on that boat, and I acted like that wasn't anything. I was angry."
"Angry," she repeated. "Because I hit the Rooks with the car?"
"Partly that. You did aim at that boat with me and a civilian in the car. I told you to stop, and you didn't listen."
"Right." She let that settle on her. "I'm sorry about that, too."
"So you've said. But you'd still do it again, wouldn't you?"
"I don't, ah..."
"You don't have to lie. I know you would. You can't stop yourself."
She didn't know what to say to that. It felt bad. Like she was the animal Dr. Knight had branded her. Seconds ticked by until Liam broke the silence.
"What's worse, I can hardly complain now. It's what saved me on the boat. You shoulder-charging Mayhew. Disregarding every rule. It paid off."
Sally couldn't tell if he was angry now, or amused, or some mixture of both. "Sometimes it does. Sometimes not."
"I get it. Throw the dice. It's why I called Tania Brown. Taking something from your playbook."
Sally wasn't sure that was a good thing. "Thank you. Really. But you don't want to be like me, Liam."
"Don't I? Do you remember Dark Peak, Sally?"
She flinched. "Of course I do. I almost died. You saved me."
"Right. And I hated it. I have nightmares about it all the time. You in my arms, so damn cold." He paused. "I couldn't face losing another partner. I couldn't handle the thought of watching you die. It fucking terrifies me. In that situation, I'd much rather be you than me."
Sally shivered. Her mouth opened then closed. This was something different, something far darker than she could have guessed.
"I had no idea. I'm sorry for all of that, Liam. I can't imagine… But... But I will try, OK? I am trying, to listen. To hold back sometimes."
"Maybe that's not the lesson, though." His voice suddenly sounded very distant. "Maybe the lesson is that your way works, and I should do it too."
Sally crushed the phone closer to her ear. It hurt but she needed to be here for this. "I don't think that's right, Liam. I don't think-"
"Don't worry about it. Let's just get back to the case."
Sally didn't want to do that. She wanted to talk more. "You can't just drop that on me, Liam. It's serious. And after the last three months, they've been–"
"You want to solve this or not, Sally?" he snapped. "Let's stop wasting time and get back on the ball."
There was a silence. Sally struggled to get her thoughts in order, a jumble ticking over in the back of her mind. Old ideas. New ones. Maybe, on some level, Liam was right? Maybe now was the time to focus on the job and figure out the rest later. Or maybe doing anything else just seemed too hard?
"OK. Fine. But this is not done."
"Whatever."
She let a moment pass, letting the air clear. "OK. So, you're saying Mayhew, everyone, they're still focused on Bledd and Mensah?"
"Exclusively."
Now things got clearer. The case felt safe next to the rest of it. "Well, I think that's a mistake. I don't think Bledd's the killer."
"I'm listening."