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  “I heard, it wasn’t your idea, at all. I heard Curtis was the brains behind the abduction.”

  Mackinnon kept his eyes fixed on Marlo. He realised this would be upsetting for Ruby to hear, but he wanted to get Marlo so annoyed he let down his guard.

  “That’s bollocks. It was all me. All right, so Curtis came up with the idea for the abduction. But the game, that was all my idea. Has he been trying to take credit for the game?”

  “Curtis?” Ruby said, her voice small. “My brother?”

  She drew Marlo’s attention and he wandered over to her, holding out his knife.

  “Marlo,” Mackinnon said, the warning obvious in his voice.

  Marlo chuckled and stopped a foot away from her. “Yes, Ruby. Your own brother was behind the abduction. He is actually my cousin, so technically, I suppose we’re related.”

  Marlo grinned as Ruby’s eyes widened in horror.

  “Don’t look so scared. We’re not blood relatives,” he said.

  Before Ruby could reply there was a commotion in the hallway. Mackinnon heard footsteps behind him and immediately stood to one side, assuming it would be police backup.

  A dark-haired man rushed into the bedroom and immediately launched himself at Marlo.

  “What the hell did you do to my brother? Did you think I wouldn’t find out?”

  Marlo’s face lost its cocky grin.

  Mackinnon stayed pushed back against the wall and shot a look at Ruby, trying to reassure her. He hoped this newcomer would keep Marlo busy so Mackinnon could get Ruby out of here.

  But as the newcomer turned, Mackinnon caught a glimpse of his face, and he saw it was Rob Morris, the man who’d delivered the flowers to Ruby’s mother, and Benny Morris’ brother.

  “You stabbed him. He’s in the hospital. You tried to kill him! How could you?”

  Rob seemed to be oblivious to the knife Marlo was brandishing. He shoved Marlo hard. This situation was getting out of control.

  Mackinnon stepped forward. “Rob. I am DS Mackinnon. Your brother is safe, and he recovered well after surgery. I just need you to calm down. We’re going to let Ruby go and then we can talk things over, okay?”

  Ruby began to shuffle towards Mackinnon, but Marlo took two quick steps, blocking her path. “No! You are not in charge here.” He held up a finger pointing it at Mackinnon and Rob in turn. “I am in charge. This is my game. You play by my rules.”

  Rob laughed. “It is not a game, you idiot. Nobody is playing by your rules. You are just following somebody else’s instructions.”

  Marlo made a jabbing motion with his knife, and Mackinnon wasn’t sure if he was trying to scare Rob or whether he was really trying to stab him.

  But Rob didn’t step back. Instead, he continued to approach Marlo aggressively, shoving his chest and getting up into his face.

  Mackinnon moved sideways, keeping his eyes fixed on Marlo and Rob, trying to get closer to Ruby. If Marlo turned on her again, Mackinnon was determined that he wouldn’t be able to use Ruby as a hostage. He would be in the way.

  Rob gasped and jerked forward. The atmosphere in the room seemed to change. Mackinnon could only see Rob’s back, but from the way he bent double and clutched his stomach, he knew he’d been stabbed.

  Marlo stared down at Rob and licked his lips as he collapsed onto his knees.

  Mackinnon moved forward quickly while Marlo was distracted.

  The knife was buried in Rob’s torso, so Marlo was now weaponless.

  Mackinnon grabbed hold of Marlo’s arm, put a hand on his back and used his leg to trip him. He hit the floor hard and Mackinnon leaned over him, pinning him to the ground with one knee, leaning on his back and trapping his arm behind his back, pulling it upwards just enough to immobilise him.

  For a second, Mackinnon considered pushing his arm a little harder, causing a little more pain, but then he shook his head. That wasn’t him.

  He wasn’t a monster.

  Beside him Rob groaned and turned over. Mackinnon could see he was losing blood fast. He turned and shouted at Ruby to get outside just as he heard the wail of sirens approaching.

  Ruby scrambled to her feet and darted out of the bedroom door.

  Mackinnon didn’t let go of Marlo, but he leaned over to Rob and said, “Hold on. An ambulance is on the way.”

  Moments later, two paramedics rushed into the room.

  They set about trying to stabilise Rob, and Mackinnon watched their desperate efforts until he realised he was surrounded by uniformed officers.

  He finally released his hold on Marlo and got to his feet but swayed a little, feeling woozy.

  An officer grabbed onto him as Mackinnon staggered.

  “You’re bleeding, sir.”

  Mackinnon looked down and saw the bloom of blood on his shirt. At first, he assumed somehow Rob’s blood must’ve transferred onto him, but then he felt the first twinge of pain. Somehow in the confusion he’d been stabbed. He hadn’t even felt it. Before he knew what was happening, two uniformed officers propped him upright as they propelled him towards the stairs and out into the early evening sunlight.

  There were plenty of police cars and sirens now, enough to make Lila George very happy.

  As they bundled him towards the ambulance, Mackinnon caught sight of Charlotte. Her face paled as she saw the blood on his shirt. He tried to smile and raise a hand to let her know he was going to be okay. But before he knew it, he was in the back of the ambulance. Charlotte’s anxious face appeared at the doors.

  “What happened?”

  “Stabbed, I think.”

  “You think? Surely you would know if you’d been stabbed.”

  A paramedic removed Mackinnon’s shirt and said. “It’s not life-threatening, a clean slice. You’ll need stitches, though.”

  Mackinnon muttered his thanks as the female paramedic selected a dressing pad and held it to the wound. “This should stop the bleeding.”

  “You know Tyler will want to talk to us about this, don’t you? He’ll want to know why we didn’t wait for back up.”

  “Yes, I’ll tell him. It was my fault. I’ll make sure he knows that.”

  “That wasn’t what I meant,” Charlotte said exasperated. “I was worried.”

  The paramedic stood up, and told Charlotte they were going to take Mackinnon in for stitches. “Nothing to worry about, but he’s still losing blood, so we’ll take him in to be on the safe side.”

  As the paramedic closed the doors, Mackinnon got one last glimpse of Charlotte’s concerned expression and felt bad for making her worry. She’d been right. Tyler and Brookbank would demand answers, and Mackinnon needed to have some ready.

  Chapter 63

  “How does that feel?” the male nurse asked. He had just finished stitching up Mackinnon’s wound.

  “Not too bad.” Mackinnon flexed his shoulder. “It’s a bit tender now, but I didn’t even feel it when it happened.”

  The male nurse put the suture equipment in a disposable kidney dish and sealed the bright yellow sharps bin.

  “It was only a surface wound, and cuts from very sharp implements often draw blood before people feel pain. Plus in a stressful situation, adrenaline takes over, and the pain an injury like this would cause under normal circumstances would be lessened.

  “It isn’t a deep wound, and the sutures should hold, but if you get any heavy bleeding or an increase in pain then you may need to come back in.”

  The nurse gathered up the cotton-wool he’d been using and wheeled the trolley away from Mackinnon before opening the curtain around his cubicle.

  Tyler was standing just outside. “So, are you going to be scarred for life, Jack?”

  The nurse said, “I did a good job. His scar will be practically invisible.”

  “Oh, don’t tell him that. He was going to use the scar to get sympathy,” Tyler said smirking and walked up to Mackinnon.

  “How are you feeling, Jack?”

  “I’m fine. I just have to get used to
not moving this arm much for the next few days so I don’t dislodge the stitches. Is Marlo talking?”

  “Marlo won’t stop talking. He’s saying it was all Curtis’ idea.”

  “Do you believe him?”

  Tyler shrugged. “I think Curtis is definitely involved. Having said that, Marlo planned the acid attack and he stabbed Benny Morris. There’s no evidence to suggest Curtis was involved in that. Curtis may be the brains behind the abduction, but there is no reason to believe he was encouraging Marlo in this weird game he was playing.”

  Mackinnon nodded slowly. “I thought he might try and cover up for Curtis out of some kind of misguided family loyalty.”

  Tyler shook his head as the nurse walked back in and handed Mackinnon his bloodstained shirt. “I didn’t think you’d want to wear this, so I brought you something else.” He handed Mackinnon a blue scrub top.

  “Thanks very much.”

  After the nurse left them, Tyler said, “Actually, if anything, the family connection is what has caused Marlo to turn against him. In his mind, Curtis had all the advantages, and he got nothing.”

  “So what’s the next move?”

  Tyler let out a deep sigh. “I need to talk to the DCI. You do know he is on his way here, don’t you? He wants to make sure you’re all right. He’ll probably be interested to know why you went inside that flat without a stab vest, too.”

  Mackinnon grimaced. “He doesn’t need to do that. I am fine.”

  Tyler rolled his eyes. “I don’t think he’s really doing it for you, Jack. It’s politics. One of his officers has been injured in the line of duty, and it would look bad if he didn’t come and pay a visit.”

  Mackinnon let out a low whistle. “That’s cynical even coming from you.”

  “I’m just a realist.”

  “So, where do we think Addlestone fits into all of this?”

  Tyler shook his head. “I’m really not sure, but it’s starting to look like Curtis fitted him up.”

  Tyler glanced at his mobile phone again.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Tyler shook his head. “It’s probably nothing. But I can’t get in touch with Zelda Smith. I promised to take her to Drake House so she could talk to Curtis, but the interview with Addlestone ran over. Evie told me Zelda left the station to get something to eat, but I left a message on her answering service, and she hasn’t called me back.

  Tyler frowned and looked at his phone again.

  “I am starting to think she ignored my instructions and went to talk to Curtis alone.”

  Mackinnon looked up sharply. “She wouldn’t do that, would she?”

  “Hopefully, she’s not that stupid, but I am going to go over to Drake House anyway and check. Curtis will have heard the girls have been released. I want to see how he reacts.”

  “Are you going to bring him in?”

  Tyler shook his head. “There’s no hurry to bring him in as long as we keep a close eye on him. Now that the girls are no longer in danger, we can take our time. It is not going to be easy to pin anything on him.”

  Mackinnon grunted as he tried to pull on the blue top the nurse had given him. Eventually, tired of watching him struggle, Tyler stood up and helped him yank it on.

  “Ow, I hope you’re not considering taking up a role in the medical profession. I don’t think much of your bedside manner.”

  “Stop complaining.”

  “Am I interrupting?” Collins asked cheekily, appearing behind Tyler. “I can come back later if you two would like some time alone.”

  “Very funny,” Tyler said dryly. He patted Collins on the shoulder as he walked out of the cubicle. “I’m going to check on the girls’ parents and then head over to Drake House. I will catch up with you later.”

  He left Mackinnon to tell Collins about the events of the last hour and relate how things had unfolded with Marlo in the basement flat.

  * * *

  On his way to check up on Ruby Watson and see her parents, Tyler spotted Charlotte walking along the corridor towards him.

  She looked tired and had dark circles under her eyes.

  “How’s Mackinnon?” she asked.

  “He’ll be fine. He’s all stitched up now and ready to go home. Have you seen Ruby Watson?”

  Charlotte shook her head and bit down on her lower lip. “No, not yet. She looked okay when she came out of the flat, physically at least. Mentally, I am sure both girls are pretty messed up at the moment. I’ve just been talking to the doctor who treated Rob Morris when he was brought in. He was declared dead five minutes ago.” She took a deep breath. “I’m going to go and tell Benny the news now.”

  Tyler sighed and put a hand on Charlotte’s shoulder. “You don’t have to do that. I can do it for you.”

  But Charlotte shook her head. “I think it would be better coming from me. I spent some time with Benny earlier today, and I think I owe him that much.”

  Tyler nodded, “Well, if you’re sure?”

  “Yes. I’m not looking forward to it, though. I know what Rob Morris did was awful, but when you listen to Benny talk about him, it was like Rob was the perfect brother who could do no wrong.”

  Tyler and Charlotte stood to one side as a porter came past, wheeling a bed, containing a small, frail elderly man almost swallowed up by the bed sheets.

  “I have already seen the Georges,” Tyler said. “They’re over the moon to have their daughter back, but it’s going to take a lot of time in counselling to get over what happened to them. We still have to build the case against Janice George for throwing acid with intent to harm. I’m not looking forward to that.”

  Both the girls would be scarred psychologically from the abduction, but their parents would also suffer from the after effect of this deadly game Marlo and Curtis had been playing with their lives.

  “I’m just going to check on Ruby Watson and her parents and then I’m going to go back to Drake House.”

  Charlotte nodded. “Are you going to take Curtis into custody?”

  “Not yet. I want to speak to Brookbank and see what he thinks is the best strategy, but I am hoping Curtis is going to do something to give himself away.”

  Tyler’s mobile phone rang, and he quickly said goodbye to Charlotte, who headed off to talk to Benny.

  At first, he thought it might be Zelda Smith returning his calls at last, but it was DCI Brookbank.

  Tyler pressed the green button to answer the call, but he had a sinking feeling in his gut telling him he needed to get to Drake House as soon as possible.

  Zelda Smith had been very keen to play a role in this investigation, and it wasn’t like her to miss all the action.

  Chapter 64

  Curtis Watson had opened the door to Zelda Smith twenty minutes ago. Things were unravelling fast, and he could have done without Zelda’s meddling presence.

  She was trying to get at his secrets. But she didn’t stand a chance. Curtis had had plenty of practice avoiding difficult questions. He’d seen dozens of counsellors and even two psychiatrists. After he’d been adopted, his parents had made him attend intensive sessions twice a week. He’d hated it at the time but now realised how much it had helped. He may never be perfectly normal, but he could pretend.

  “It must be very hard for you, Curtis.” Zelda Smith made another pathetically patronising attempt to get him to open up.

  Before he could reply, Kelly Johnson walked into the living area from the kitchen, carrying a tea tray.

  “You must be ever so excited, Curtis. Do you want to go to the hospital to see Ruby? I’m not sure when they are going to discharge her, but I could take you there.”

  Curtis was amused to see Zelda Smith shoot Kelly Johnson an irritated look. For someone who analysed criminal behaviour, her own behaviour was remarkably transparent.

  Curtis shook his head. “No, thank you. I’ll stay here and wait for Ruby to come home.”

  Kelly Johnson smiled, but he knew she found his reaction odd. From the tightening ar
ound Zelda Smith’s eyes, Curtis knew his behaviour was setting off alarm bells. The normal thing to do would be to go and visit his sister. But he was sick of acting normal and he didn’t want to go. The stress of the situation was making Curtis rebel.

  Normally he gauged what was normal behaviour by watching other people’s reactions to what he said or did. It was exhausting, and at times like this, it was almost too much to cope with.

  Kelly chatted on for a few moments, oblivious to the fact that Zelda wanted her to shut up so she could ask Curtis more questions.

  Curtis watched Kelly Johnson with interest. It was odd. She actually seemed happy that Ruby was free. Her eyes were shining as she smiled. He didn’t understand. Why did she care one away or the other? It didn’t affect her? She had never met Ruby. Sometimes, Curtis thought he was the normal one, and it was everyone else who was odd.

  He could really do with getting rid of both of these women so he had time to plan what to do next.

  He was sure that idiot Marlo would turn on him as soon as the police had him in custody. When they had met for the first time at his grandmother’s barbecue, Curtis felt a bond with Marlo.

  His grandmother didn’t care if he smoked or drank, and so they’d sat sharing beers next to the grill. As everybody else messed about and talked about stupid things, Marlo and Curtis had had a very interesting conversation.

  He knew Marlo was jealous of him, of course. He’d seen the glint in his eyes when he looked at Curtis’ expensive watch.

  He had money and Marlo had been brought up by a drug addict. Curtis understood that, and if Marlo had played by the rules, Curtis was prepared to share the wealth.

  He’d given Marlo money – half of the money he’d received from blackmailing Addlestone but that hadn’t been enough.

  Marlo was greedy, and as Curtis got to know him better, he realised he had made a mistake.

  He’d been too quick to judge. On the surface, they had a lot of similarities. They were both confident, and didn’t feel a connection with other people. And more importantly, they both enjoyed manipulating and playing with people’s lives.