‘I’m sorry, sir,’ said Frost, not sounding it, ‘but this is a very serious matter.’ He opened the brief-case.
Knowles sobered up instantly. ‘What right have you to open a locked brief-case?’
‘No right at all,’ replied Frost. ‘It came open in the car and the contents fell out.’
Gilmore squeezed even further into the background, hoping Frost wouldn’t seek his corroboration.
‘In the brief-case was a large amount of money in used notes. Can you account for it, sir?’
Knowles took a red-banded cigar from his dressing gown pocket and lit it with a snap of his gold Dunhill. ‘I can, but I have no intention of doing so. You have far exceeded your authority and you will very soon suffer the consequences.’
Ignoring the threat, and the mute pleading for caution from Gilmore, Frost ploughed on. ‘We found a quantity of these in your car.’ He held up two tapes. ‘They are locally made, pornographic videos involving bestial and disgusting acts against children.’
‘Just what are you insinuating?’ asked Knowles, his voice soft and menacing.
‘I’m insinuating sod all. I’m stating that you are involved with a pornographic vice ring. So get your clothes on. I’m taking you back to the station.’
With a chilling smile Knowles drew deeply on the cigar, then flicked a cylinder of ash on to the carpet. ‘I’ll happily come to the station with you, Frost, and then you can kiss your career goodbye. Those videos were given to me by an outraged member of the public. If you check, you will find that I have already given notice that I intend raising this matter at the next meeting of the Denton Police Committee. I will also be raising the matter of your outrageous behaviour.’
Oh my God! thought Gilmore. This is it. The stupid fool’s done it now. Well, he’s not dragging me down with him. But he couldn’t help feeling a pang of pity for the inspector who was shaken rigid and looked older, even more shabby and useless than usual.
With the cigar clenched in a gloating grin, Knowles retrieved the brief-case and quickly checked through the contents. ‘I hope, for your sake, all the money is intact, Inspector. I suggest you leave now. I’ll be speaking to your Chief Constable first thing in the morning.’ He opened the front door. Outside it was raining again.
Defeated, Frost couldn’t think of a thing to say. Mullett would demand his resignation and he would have to give it.
But luck, which all too often deserted him in his hour of need, suddenly remembered it owed him a favour. Some where at the end of the darkened passage, a door opened and a rectangle of light fell out. ‘Is everything all right?’ a woman called. Then a scamper of feet and she yelled sharply, ‘No come back!’
But the dog bounded up the passage towards its master, wagging its tail happily and whimpering. An enormous dog. A Great Dane. A brown and white Great Dane. Its left ear was torn.
Frost stared, then grinned happily in warm, sweat-trick ling relief. He marched back into the house, closing the front door firmly behind him. ‘What a beautiful dog, Mr Knowles. He looks just like he did in the video.’
Dawn was scratching at the small window of the main interview room as Knowles and his wife were hustled in. They sat sullenly, refusing to say a word until their solicitor was roused from his bed. Outside, from a police van in the car-park, boxes and boxes of videos, raw tape, and video cameras were carted into the station.
The door opened and Frost slouched in and mumbled a few words to PC Collier who was guarding the prisoners. Collier nodded and left to stand watch outside, ready to warn the inspector of the solicitor’s arrival.
Frost dragged a chair over and sat facing Knowles and his wife. ‘Alone at last, Councillor.’
‘I’ve nothing to say,’ said Knowles in a flat voice. His wife, a superior-looking blonde some ten years his junior, stared aloofly ahead and wrapped her fur coat tighter around her. The early morning cold still clung to the room.
Slowly, Frost lit up a cigarette. A clatter of footsteps in the corridor outside made him look up in concern, but he relaxed as they passed on. He lowered his voice. ‘I might be able to do a deal.’
Knowles’ tiny eyes glinted. He was a pretty shrewd judge of character and he had this foul-mouthed tramp summed up as someone who could be bought right from the start. He leant forward. ‘I’m listening.’
‘The girl you filmed performing with your dog. Did you know she killed herself?’
Knowles lowered his gaze and found something on the floor that held his full attention. ‘I heard something to that effect,’ he said vaguely.
‘It would do you a lot of good if we could stop it coming out in court,’ said Frost.
‘You could arrange that?’ whispered Knowles.
‘I can arrange for the videos of the girl and the dog to go missing. That part of the charge could not proceed and would not be mentioned in court — unless your side raised it, of course.’
‘We’re not likely to do that,’ said Knowles, mentally working out how much this piece of good fortune was likely to cost him. ‘Naturally, I would be extremely grateful if the tapes did go missing
… extremely grateful. The death of the girl was unfortunate — nothing to do with me — but the court might not see it in that light.’ He gave Frost a patronizing smile. ‘Tell me how you would like me to express my gratitude?’
‘You admit to all the other charges. Both of you. You don’t dispute any of the facts. You plead guilty. You don’t make us call any of the kids involved to give evidence. In return, the tapes go missing, which should knock at least three years off your sentence.. and the girl’s mother will never know what perverted things you pair of bastards made her daughter do.’ He stood up and moved to the door. ‘I want a “yes” or “no” right now, or the deal’s off.’
Mullett strode up and down his office, pounding his fist, shaking his head in disbelief. ‘You’ve lost a box of video, tapes? Vital evidence in a serious case? I can’t believe it. Even by your sloppy standards, this is disgraceful. I take it you’ve looked everywhere?’
‘Everywhere,’ mumbled the inspector, head bowed, looking very ashamed of himself.
‘This entire operation was mismanaged from the start. You dashed into it, head first without any thought of the consequence should proof not be forthcoming.’ He returned to his desk and looked again at the typed, signed statement on his desk. ‘You can count yourself lucky that Knowles has decided to do the right thing and make a full confession of the other offences. It does show a certain amount of character. I’m sure it will count in his favour at court.’
‘I’m sorry it turned out to be your personal friend, sir,’ mumbled Frost, trying hard to suppress a grin of delight.
Mullett glared at him grim-faced. Two could lie if they wanted to. ‘He’s no friend of mine, Frost. I never trusted him from the start.’
Friday morning shift
Liz slammed the eggs and bacon on the table and stamped off back to the kitchen without a word. ‘Thanks,’ grunted Gilmore, eyeing with wary disfavour the flabby bacon floating in grease and the under-cooked eggs. He liked the bacon crisp and the eggs well done, but he held his tongue. She was spoiling for a fight and was just waiting for him to complain.
His knife sawed away at a tough chunk of meat which squeaked across the plate and defied all efforts to cut it. Liz returned with his tea. ‘Anything wrong with the food?’ she snapped.
‘No, no — it’s fine,’ he lied. ‘I’m not very hungry.’ He risked a sip of the tea. Near-cold and milky when he liked it hot and strong. He replaced the cup on the saucer and made one more effort to restore peaceful relations. ‘Look, Liz, I’m sorry.’
This was her chance. ‘Sorry! I’m left on my own all night. You come in hours late, too tired to talk or do any bloody thing, then you tell me you’ve got to be out again. I never bloody see you.’
‘It won’t be for long, love, then things will be different.’ He reached for her, but she shook him off.
‘It’s always going to be different, but it never bloody well is. I’m sick of your job, I’m sick of this dead and alive town, I’m sick of everything.’ The door slammed in an angry explosion behind her.
Gilmore sighed and took his plate to the kitchen where he emptied it into the pedal bin. He hated to admit it to him self, but he was getting sick of Liz.
Frost wasn’t feeling very happy either. That damn inventory form had reappeared. Mullett must have quarried
