Paul Gitsham - The Last Straw

“OK, I’d figured that something along those lines must have happened — I still don’t see what your problem is though.” Warren had the feeling that he was being told something significant here, something that would impact upon his entire stay at Middlesbury, but he couldn’t see what.

Sutton took another gulp of his pint. “Gavin Sheehy was a good man.” He raised a hand as if to still any protest. “I know, what he did was absolutely wrong and he deserves everything he gets. Still doesn’t change the fact that fundamentally he was a good man who fought for what he believed in. The battle to keep Middlesbury CID was messy and bloody and more than one promotion was earned based on the savings achieved from the merger. But Gavin wouldn’t give up and he fought his way up the food chain, arguing his case. Eventually he won his battle. But it cost him. He never went higher than DCI. He pissed off too many people and burnt too many bridges.”

Warren tried to hide his incredulity. Stick tens of thousands of human beings together and ask them to get on with a job as complex and important as policing and factions would inevitably emerge, but this seemed too far-fetched.

Seeing that he still had some way to go in convincing his superior, Sutton took a deep breath and tried again.

“When Gavin was caught, it was seen by many as proof that we’d be better off under the direct control of Welwyn.” He made a bitter face. “That way they can keep a closer eye on us and spot rogue officers like Sheehy before they do too much damage. Gavin’s greed and stupidity might just scupper his whole dream. Our whole dream.”

With that, Sutton slumped into a moody silence.

It’s personal, Warren realised. Sheehy convinced Sutton and goodness knows how many others to go along with him and then turned around and betrayed them with his corruption.

Warren already had his suspicions what the answer would be but he asked anyway.

“I’m still not seeing why you have a problem with me or how I am dealing with this case.”

“Isn’t it obvious? With Gavin out of the picture, they’ve appointed you to do their dirty work.”

Despite himself, Warren bristled. “I’m not here to do anybody’s dirty work. I’m here to solve crime and do my duty.”

Sutton raised a hand in a half-hearted gesture of placation.

“I’m not saying that you have anything but the best of intentions. There’s no way you would be briefed in on this, but you are the perfect man for the job.”

Warren listened in growing anger; he couldn’t work out if he was being accused of naiveté or dirty tricks. “And what job would that be, Inspector?” His voice was now icy cold as he forced a lid onto his temper.

“To close down Middlesbury CID and see it merged with the rest of Herts and Beds Serious Crime.”

Warren was aware that his mouth was open in surprise.

“Why on earth would anyone think that? Let me assure you, I have not been given any other job, other than to lead this unit to the best of my ability, and I am offended that anyone could think otherwise.”

Sutton repeated his calming hand gesture.

“Don’t get me wrong, sir, nobody thinks otherwise.”

He took another sip of his pint.

“Before you came here, I did a bit of digging about you and it turned up a couple things. That you are a good copper, well regarded and that you are ambitious.”

“OK,” drawled Warren, unsure where this was leading.

“As to the ambition, it’s figured that you are tapped for greater things, that Middlesbury is just a stepping stone before you move on to senior officer positions. Give it a couple of years and there will be a few vacancies in Welwyn that you can pursue.” Warren said nothing; Sutton wasn’t completely off the mark. But ambition wasn’t a crime, was it? He said as much.

Sutton agreed. “Far from it. But ambition can be used by others. If Middlesbury CID closes, we’ll all be transferred to Welwyn, closer to the rest of the force. Some might say, ‘closer to the action’. Some might suggest that such a move would be advantageous to those with ambition…”

Sutton took a long sip of his pint, eyeing Warren shrewdly over the rim of the glass, watching for his reaction. Warren’s head spun at the implication.

“What about Grayson? His opinion will carry far more weight than mine.”

Sutton all but snorted. He paused, then, clearly emboldened by drink, leant forward. “Between you and me, guv, Grayson’s just marking his time card. He’s got a few more years before he can retire and everyone reckons he’s just after one more promotion to boost his pension. It doesn’t matter to him if the promotion is here or at Welwyn.”

Warren was slightly shocked at the man’s candour, but decided to let it slide. “So why are you so keen to cosy up to him?”

“You’re right that Grayson’s opinion carries more weight than yours, but he’s a follower, not a leader. If you make it clear that Middlesbury is the place to be, then he’ll probably take your advice. But failing that we’ve got to make it attractive for him to stay here and an easy collar like Severino makes the likelihood that he’ll be promoted in post more likely.”

Warren sat back, his head reeling and not just from the effect of two pints of bitter on an empty stomach. What the hell had he landed in? He’d come to Middlesbury expecting to further his career and his education in an environment that would allow him to experiment and stretch himself, away from the pressure cooker of big-city policing. Instead he had stumbled across a rat’s nest of intrigue, politics and back-biting. Listening to Sutton talk, Warren felt himself wondering if he was witnessing the start of a mutiny. He said as much.

“Look, we’re fighting for our survival here. Shutting us down as soon as Gavin was arrested would have been too obvious — he acted alone and you can’t punish a whole CID unit for the actions of one man. However, rumour has it that we will be subject to a review in a few months’ time and they’ll probably claim that we just aren’t cost-effective enough to justify maintaining.

“That’s why solving this case so quickly is so damned important. We’ve also earned the gratitude and admiration of the university, local politicians and saved a major conference from being moved out of the region. All of these are vital for the survival of our CID.

“Yet now, you want to turn this whole thing around. Tell everyone we’ve got the wrong person. You want to announce that out there a killer is still loose and we’ve got an innocent man in prison?” Sutton’s voice was starting to rise, his cheeks flushing.

“With all due respect, sir, are you fucking mad?” he carried on before Warren could interrupt. “We’ve got a man with a prior conviction for assault, with a huge motive, no credible alibi and to top it all the murder weapon, his blood-splattered clothes and CCTV footage and computer logs placing him at the scene of the crime. Jesus wept, sir, what the hell else do we need? Are you really going to scupper this entire prosecution and with it the future of this police unit on the basis of a fucking hunch?

“Christ, sir, you know how a murder investigation works. There is almost never a single piece of irrefutable damning evidence. Every piece of the jigsaw can be removed and discarded if needs be, every bit of evidence can be argued to be circumstantial with enough imagination — it’s what it all adds up to that counts. And this adds up to a clear conviction. It might not be as polished as we’d like, but who gives a shit? We’ve done our job. Now we let the lawyers and the courts do theirs.”

Sutton leant back in his chair again, breathing heavily, his face flushed. Warren said nothing, letting the man cool down as he got his own thoughts in order. When he judged enough time had passed, he started again.