Quintin Jardine - A Rush of Blood

‘Does that make any difference?’

‘Should it?’

‘It does with some women.’

‘Not with this one. I don’t choose who I fuck on the basis of their occupation.’ She pulled him, drawing him with her as she lay down once more. ‘As I’m about to prove,’ she whispered. ‘Unless,’ she added, ‘you’ve got to go to work, or make some other sort of sharp exit.’

‘Not that sharp; we were late the other night and the overtime budget’s strapped. I don’t start till midday.’

‘You weren’t working last night, were you?’

‘No danger. I was there with Jack. . my sergeant. . and his girlfriend. Strictly off duty. Indigo’s a popular hang-out for cops, because it’s well run and there’s never any trouble.’

‘Jack. Was he the big tall guy?’

‘That’s him; Jack McGurk.’

‘His girlfriend looked nice.’

‘She is; they haven’t been together long.’

‘Neither have we.’

‘So that means we are together,’ Sauce ventured.

She rolled him on to his back. ‘What do you think?’ she hissed. ‘Not getting cold feet, are you?’

‘I promise you, Cheeky,’ he replied, ‘at this moment, not one single part of me is cold.’

‘ Are you ready for your command group meeting, Chief?’ asked Gerry Crossley. ‘Will I call everybody in?’

Skinner nodded to his office manager. ‘Yes, I’d better get on with it.’ He tossed aside the copy of the Saltire that he had been reading, landing it neatly on top of the pile on his coffee table. ‘That bloody traffic’s getting worse, you know. I’ve just been reading about how tough the recession is, but it seems that more people than ever are going to work in the morning. Do you find that?’

‘It’s hard to tell. The work on the new tram system’s having such an effect.’

The chief constable snorted. ‘Hah! One of the craziest decisions the City of Edinburgh ever made, in my private opinion, pouring incalculable amounts of money into a transportation system that was outmoded fifty years ago. I’m glad I pay my council tax in East Lothian.’ He stood up, behind his desk, and moved towards the informal seating. ‘Ask ACC Steele to come in first,’ he said. ‘I want five minutes with her before the rest join us.’

He was glancing at the Scotsman when he heard a soft knock on the half-opened door. ‘Mags,’ he exclaimed, as the newcomer stepped into his room. His eyebrows rose. ‘In uniform, this early in the morning?’

‘I’m going round the divisional HQs within the city this morning,’ Margaret Rose Steele explained, as she took a seat at the coffee table. ‘I was off for so long that some of them must have forgotten what I look like.’

‘Fat chance. You could have been off for longer, you know. You were entitled to more maternity leave than you took, and the job would have waited for you. There’s no overtime at our level, you know.’

‘How about job-sharing?’ For the merest instant, a hint of alarm showed in his eyes. She laughed. ‘Don’t worry. I’m still living in the real world. Bob, I came back to work this early because I had to. My illness, losing Stevie, having the baby: if I’d stayed away any longer I might have forgotten who I was before it all happened, and who I still am. I’m a police officer, with ambitions that I want to fulfil and a command level job has been one of them for a long time.’

‘And have you settled in? That’s what I wanted to ask you. Is everything OK? Do you have all the support you need?’

The ACC nodded. ‘Everything’s fine. You’ve been great, Brian Mackie’s been great, David Mackenzie’s the picture of efficiency.’

‘How about domestically? Is there any way we can help there?’

‘Again, I’m handling it fine. My sister’s given up any thought of going back to Australia. She’s living with me permanently, working from home and looking after Stephanie. I go home at lunchtime whenever I can, and on the odd occasion that Bet has a presentation, or a meeting, I bring the baby into the office. That’s all the domestic life I want for the moment. I’m not ready for socialising. . although I did say I’d look in on the Central Division dance on Friday, if only for half an hour or so. Are you and Aileen going?’

Skinner hesitated for a moment. ‘I am,’ he began, ‘but unaccompanied. It might come with the territory for me, but not for my wife. The fact is, Mags, given the size of our force, there are a hell of a lot of social functions through the year. My predecessor regarded it as his duty to go to each and every one, and somehow the organisers got the idea that an invitation was expected. They also came to expect him to put his hand in his pocket for a round of drinks. Cost him several thousand over the years. Maybe you’d put the word around all the divisions, discreetly, mind, that the new incumbent will not take it out on any organisers who leave him off the guest list, and that any who don’t can expect him to turn up in uniform, and loom over the proceedings like a rain cloud. If I want to go to an event I’ll buy a ticket or chip into the kitty like everybody else.’

‘Will do. Does that go for Brian and me too?’

‘Of course, if that’s how you want to play it. I’m not thinking of myself alone here, you understand. I’m as sociable as the next guy, but given Aileen’s position, there’s always going to be someone at these dos who has a few drinks and tries to talk politics. Sure, she could see them off, but why the hell should she have to?’

‘Why indeed?’ Maggie agreed. She smiled. ‘I hope you don’t mind me saying this, Bob, but she’s really good for you.’

‘I don’t mind a bit, ’cos you’re right. She found my soft centre right away. Third time lucky, no mistake. I was devastated when Myra died, but there was angst there amidst the bliss. Sarah and me? Sure, we’d the hots for each other at the start, plus at that point in our lives we each needed someone, but it was never quite right. We were very different personalities, and there was a culture clash there from the start. But at least we liked each other enough to part amicably. With Aileen, though. . sometimes I just can’t believe I’m this happy.’

‘Then long may it last.’

Bob’s mouth fell open. ‘Aw, Jesus,’ he exclaimed, ‘listen to me. What a clown! You’re the last person who should be hearing this.’

‘No,’ she said, firmly, ‘I’m the very person, because I’ve had the same experience. I’ve lost Stevie, yes, but do you think that makes me wish I’d never met him? The opposite: it makes me all the happier that I did. The truth, Bob, is that you and Aileen are both going to die, and barring accidents. . literally. . one of you is going to die before the other. You’re in the same boat as Stevie and me, as every other lifetime partners on the planet, and I’m here to tell you to grab every good moment you can.’

He threw his head back. ‘I’ve never thought of it that way, you know,’ he sighed. ‘You’re right, of course. We are on the same journey.’ He looked at her. ‘You’ve got an extra passenger too, the wee one, wee Stephanie.’

‘So. .?’

‘Hey, I’ve already got four of those, even if one of them is grown up, and one’s adopted.’

‘But Aileen hasn’t.’

‘She’s got her career.’

‘So have I.’

‘Kids aren’t on her agenda.’

‘They weren’t on mine either, as you know very well. Maybe I should bring Stephanie out to see you at the weekend, and you should ask Aileen again after that.’

He shook his head, smiling. ‘Wonders of the world, Maggie Rose Steele, advocate for motherhood. You do that, Mags; you and your sister come for lunch on Sunday, about one o’clock. Bring wee Goldilocks and watch us trying to keep our three bears in check.’