Chameleon's Shadow

then it might be in your interest to consult a solicitor.’

Acland tilted his head back to stare at the ceiling. He took several deep breaths through his nose.

‘We can take a break any time, Charles. Perhaps you’d like to change your mind about that cup of tea?’

‘It won’t make any difference.’

True, thought Jones. ‘Did Mr Tutting’s poking finger annoy you enough to follow him home?’

‘Not unless he lives in the tube station and was fast enough to sprint ahead of me after I left the bank. Your inspector said he collapsed in the street. Was that another lie?’

Jones ignored the question. ‘Our forensic staff have found bloodstains on your jacket, shirt and trousers. Do you want to explain how they got there?’

Acland’s dislike flared up again, but this time his anger was palpable. It throbbed in the air between them. ‘I knew you’d plant something on me,’ he snarled. ‘You’re more corrupt than the ragheads we were ordered to protect. They’ll stab anyone in the back if it gives them an edge, but at least they’re open about it.’

There was a short, thoughtful silence while Jones rubbed the side of his jaw with the back of one hand. ‘Let me understand you correctly. Are you saying there’s no way blood could be found on your clothes unless the police put it there?’

‘Yes.’

‘Then why did Dr Jackson tell us it came from Rashid Mansoor’s nose? Was she lying?’ He watched the knuckles on Acland’s fists turn white with suppressed frustration. ‘It makes me suspicious when I’m accused of corruption, Charles. I ask myself what the other person’s trying to hide.’

‘Nothing,’ said Acland through gritted teeth, ‘but at least you know how it feels to be accused of something you haven’t done.’

‘Do you own a baseball bat?’

‘No.’

‘What about a glass paperweight?’

‘Everything I have is in my kitbag.’

‘Which holds how much? Not a lot. For most men of your age, their laptops and stereos would take up several kit bags. Where’s the rest of your stuff?’

‘If you mean the things I don’t use any more, they’re at my parents’ house in Dorset. The stereo’s defunct, the computer’s so old it works by clockwork and I’ve grown out of reading the Beano or playing with model aeroplanes.’

‘Do you have a storage container somewhere?’

‘No.’

‘What about friends? Is anyone looking after anything for you?’

‘No.’

‘I’ve seen what’s in your kitbag, Charles. Are you telling me that’s all you own in the world?’

‘Yes.’

‘No one travels that light.’

‘I do.’ The young man gave an indifferent shrug. ‘You should try it one day. It’s easier to keep going when you’re not weighed down by possessions.’

‘So we’re back to a world obsessed by trivia?’

‘If you like.’

‘And to a man who needs to be on the move all the time. Are you afraid your past is going to catch up with you, Charles? Are you happier leaving everyone behind?’

Acland’s lips twisted fractionally. ‘I wouldn’t want to be in the rut you’re in. You look about as pleased with your life as my father does, and he’s been grinding along the bottom of a furrow for years, carrying the debts of a farm on his back.’

‘Perhaps he feels it’s the responsible thing to do. We can’t all scrounge off others. Someone has to create the wealth.’

‘That’s the general view.’

Jones’s smile was sarcastic, prompted as much by the memory of his own debts as by a political view on individual responsibility. ‘But you disagree?’

Acland stared past him as if searching for a distant horizon. ‘I wouldn’t put my life on the line for it. Chasing wealth is no more ethically justified than turning your back on it.’

‘Which makes you what? A monk?’

‘An idiot,’ Acland said slowly, shifting his attention back to the superintendent. ‘I went to war for people like you and ended up with this.’ He touched his patch. ‘Pretty stupid, eh?’

*

Jen Morley reacted angrily when DI Beale and DC Khan rang her doorbell at ten-thirty at night. She delivered a few choice expletives via the intercom, said they’d woken her up and refused to let them in. ‘How do I know you’re the police?’ she hissed in an undertone. ‘You could be anyone.’