As she crossed the road, the dark brickwork of the police station came into view and her jaw dropped as she saw the cause of the delays.
Two television vans were parked opposite the police station, the crews’ cameras aimed at the front steps of the building while at the same time capturing the excited reports from the journalists standing in front of them. Beside them, a huddle of reporters stood with smart phones poised ready to take photographs and record the comings and goings of uniformed personnel.
Confused, she tried to recall whether she’d seen a notice or an email to say the Chief Superintendent was due to make a media statement, as it was rare to see such a large gathering of reporters at the police station. Normally, they could be found hanging around police headquarters looking for a story, but not here.
She kept her head down and hurried round the side of the building, swiping her card against the security panel and hurrying through the security gate as it opened rather than trying to push past the reporters on the front steps.
She swiped her card again to enter the building from the side door and made her way up to a subdued incident room. Faces turned as she entered, and her heart ratcheted up the beat as she sensed the change in tone.
She held her breath and slipped her handbag under her desk wondering what had happened, but afraid to ask.
She didn’t have to wait long.
DCI Larch appeared from Sharp’s office. ‘Get in here, Hunter. Immediately.’
She locked eyes with Barnes as she passed his desk, but he shook his head.
‘I’ll meet you outside afterwards,’ he murmured. ‘We need to talk.’
As she entered Sharp’s office, Larch slammed the door.
Sharp leaned against the wall, his hands in his pockets, his face grey.
‘What’s going on?’
Larch pointed at one of the visitor chairs next to the desk. ‘Sit.’
Larch stalked past her, snatched up a newspaper from Sharp’s desk and thrust it under her nose.
Her heart sank as she read the headline.
Eminent local businessman linked to high society murder.
‘Care to explain yourself, Hunter?’
‘Nothing to explain, sir. This didn’t come from me.’
He sneered at her. ‘Read the fourth paragraph.’
She swallowed, her eyes skimming over the words.
Detective Sergeant Kay Hunter confirmed that police were investigating a large cash withdrawal made by Blake Hamilton in the weeks leading up to Sophie Whittaker’s death.
‘I’ve never spoken to the press,’ she said, and tried to stop her voice shaking. ‘We have policies and procedures that set out very clearly how the media will be kept informed during the murder investigation. And you, sir, have made it very clear how important it is that this case remain out of the press given the parties involved.’
‘Then how do you explain this, Hunter?’
‘I can’t. There’s obviously a leak here, but it isn’t me. Someone’s trying to set me up.’
Larch flung the newspaper back onto the desk and spun on his heel to face her once more.
‘I have a meeting with the Chief Superintendent in five minutes. I would be very surprised if you don’t find yourself facing another Professional Standards investigation over this.’
He moved to the door and wrenched it open, slamming it shut in his wake, the frosted glass panel in the middle of it shaking with the force.
Sharp eased himself away from the wall at last, and crossed the room to the desk before sinking into the chair next to Kay.
‘I’m not the source of the leak.’
‘I believe you, but someone was and they’re determined to make it look like you were. Have you got any idea who it could be?’
Kay fought down the panic, her thoughts turning to Barnes’s cryptic words before she’d entered the office.
Was he the source of the leak?
Or was somebody trying to tear the team apart, forcing her to question who she could trust?
And why?
‘No, I haven’t,’ she said eventually. ‘I can’t believe anybody out in that incident room would do this to us, to me.’
‘I’ll make some phone calls. I’ll speak to the reporter who authored this article, and see if I can find out who she spoke to. If it wasn’t you, and somebody has contacted the newspaper impersonating a police officer, I want it investigated.’
Thirty-Four
Kay’s mobile phone vibrated as she closed the door to Sharp’s office.
She glanced down and saw it was Barnes’s number, and then opened the text message he’d sent her.
We’re in the cafe up the road. Get here as soon as you can. Coffee ordered.
Kay grabbed her bag and hurried from the incident room before one of the admin team could waylay her. She left the building via the back door and skirted around the side of it before crossing the road in a break in the traffic, and made her way up Gabriel’s Hill.
It took her five minutes to reach the café the team frequented, and as she pushed the door open she spotted Barnes sitting with Gavin and Carys at a table near the back. Gavin turned as she closed the door behind her and pointed at a mug of coffee in front of the empty seat next to him.
‘Thanks,’ said Kay as she put her bag on the floor and sat down. ‘What’s going on?’
‘We were going to ask you the same thing.’ Barnes jerked his chin towards the door. ‘We all know you’re not responsible for the vultures being out there this morning, and I certainly wasn’t.’
Kay managed a small smile. She turned to Carys. ‘I need to apologise to you. I realise it wasn’t you who spread the rumours about my miscarriage. I should have known better.’
Relief flashed across Carys’s features before she frowned. ‘Who on earth is spreading these rumours about you, then? Who broke the story about the Hamiltons to the media?’
‘I don’t know. But whoever it is, he or she seems determined to make life difficult for me, don’t they?’
