Soft Target

bringing the West to its knees.

The Qur’a?n promised unlimited sex with seventy-two black-eyed virgins to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for Islam. Virgins as beautiful as rubies, with complexions like diamonds and pearls. The Qur’a?n said that martyrs went straight to heaven and that places would be saved for seventy relatives. There would be eighty thousand servants to take care of them. And they would see the face of Allah Himself. It was all nonsense,the Saudi knew. The Qur’a?n also said that suicide was wrong. A sin. And it forbade the killing of women, children and old people, even for jihad. The Saudi didn’t believe in the virgins and didn’t believe in heaven. But he did believe in punishing America and her allies, striking where it hurt until they removed their forces from Muslim territories around the world.

He walked over to his prayer mat and knelt facing Mecca. For the next hour he bowed and prayed, offering his life to the jihad and asking to be lucky again.

Shepherd and the superintendent walked together along the path through the gravestones, some more than a hundred years old. The superintendent’s driver stood by the official Rover at the entrance to the churchyard, ready to open the rear door. ‘It was a good service,’ said Hargrove.

‘He was a good cop,’ said Shepherd.

‘A good cop gone bad.’

There was going to be a headstone, but there had been no coffin and no body. Rose’s Kevlar vest had been found intact, and there was some metal from his weapons but not a fragment of bone or soft tissue.

‘Rose did what he did for his family,’ said Shepherd.

‘He killed two people for money.’

‘They were drugs-dealers and they shot first.’

‘That was his story,’ said Hargrove.

‘I believe him.’

‘He was ripping off drugs-dealers, and because of that Andy Ormsby died along with the two Yardies, don’t forget that.’

‘I won’t,’ said Shepherd. ‘But he was still a good cop.’

‘And as far as the world’s concerned that’s all he was,’ said Hargrove. ‘His family gets the insurance, his pension and a medal for the sideboard.’

‘No one gets to know?’

‘Just you and me. And the commissioner. He figures we should let sleeping dogs lie.’

‘That’s one hell of a decision.’

Hargrove shrugged.‘Rose is dead. The money’s probably hidden offshore where no one will ever find it. What’s served by going public? We tell the world that the capital’s armed police can’t be trusted? The way it is now, Keith Rose was a hero. And the way things are at the moment, we need all the heroes we can get.’

Ken Swift walked out of the church in full uniform. With him was Rose’s widow, dressed in black and clutching a shiny black handbag. She had her arm through his and as they walked he bent down to whisper something in her ear.

‘And Rose’s daughter gets to go to America for her operation? On the insurance money?’

‘The Met is footing the bill. She’s the daughter of a dead hero. They didn’t have a choice. So all’s well that ends well.’

‘Depends which way you look at it,’ said Shepherd.

‘If he hadn’t died as he did there’d have been a court case followed by life in a cat-A prison and the kid would have died in an NHS hospital. Given the choice, I know which I’d prefer.’

Shepherd sighed. ‘Maybe you’re right.’

Swift helped Mrs Rose towards a waiting limousine. Briefly he locked eyes with Shepherd, then nodded, almost imperceptibly, and got into the car with her.

‘Swift?’

‘We can’t charge him without revealing Rose’s wrongdoing. He’s taking early retirement next week.’

‘Keeps his pension?’

‘Let it go, Spider.’

The limousine drove away.

‘He told us where Ormsby was buried,’ Hargrove added. ‘Now the lad can have a proper funeral.’

‘What about Ormsby’s family?’

‘There isn’t one. He was an only child. Parents died when he was a teenager. No wife.’

‘Swift knows who I am. And what I did.’

‘He can’t say anything. He knows what will happen if he does. You did a good job, Spider.’

‘I’ll take some convincing of that.’

‘Take some time off. Go and be a dad for a while.’

‘For a while? It doesn’t work like that and you know it. You’re either a good father or you’re not. Over the last few months I’ve been a crap one.’

‘That’s why I said take some time off.’

‘And then what? I come back to investigate more cops? Hound some other poor bastard until he decides that his only option is to kill himself.’

‘Keith Rose didn’t kill himself. He died trying to save lives.’

‘You can keep telling yourself that,’ said Shepherd, ‘but we know what really happened.’

‘It was his choice,’ said Hargrove.

‘I know,’ said Shepherd. ‘But you know as well as I do, sometimes choices aren’t really choices at all.’