Reginald Hill - Death

'Nice’ he said, looking around. 'Lot brighter.'

'Yes. He's still here though.'

'You reckon? That bother you?'

She shook her head.

'No’ she said. 'They asked me that, not directly of course, but they wanted to move me. And I said no, this was where I wanted to be. You see, I always liked Dick. He was kind to me. Except… yeah, well. Except. Maybe if I'd never gone out to the tarn that day… Maybes, eh? But here in the library, I always remember him as a good friend.'

She busied herself making coffee, but he could see her dark eyes brimming with tears.

Dalziel said, 'He had to be stopped. What happened to you stopped him. Nowt to feel guilty about, luv. But I know how you feel. Couple of times I've had to send someone down that I'd rather not have done. Only a couple of times, you understand. Mainly I'm happy to kick 'em down the dungeon steps and slam the door behind them. But with these two, I sometimes think that if mebbe I'd. done summat a bit different, mebbe looked the other way, I wouldn't have had to… Aye, mebbe's not a spot you want to spend a winter's night in. I'll take mine black’

Rye finished making the coffee and by the time she set a mug in front of him, she was back in control.

'So apart from the fact that I'm a recovered victim and one of your work-slaves' bit of fluff, how come I'm getting the special treatment over a minor crime? From what I've heard, you're stretched enough trying to deal with major ones!'

'We're never so stretched that we can't find time to spread a little comfort and light’ said Dalziel. 'Listen, I reckon I can talk to you straight. Being a victim and surviving doesn't just get you tea, sympathy and congratulation. It can also get you a lot of unwelcome attention from all sorts of weirdos. There's lunatics out there who work out that having been attacked once means you've probably got a taste for it. Or that it's up to them to finish a job half done. Or they just get a kick out of thinking that, because you've been scared shitless once, you're really going to freak out when it happens a second time’

Rye had frozen with her mug poised a couple of inches from her mouth.

'This is comfort and light?' she said. 'What do you do when you bring bad news? Shove a severed leg through the letter box and yell, "There's been a bit of an accident, luv!"'

'You prefer round the houses, I'll send DCI Pascoe’ said Dalziel. 'I'm not done yet. They're the freaks and I'm glad to say there's not a lot of them around. But there's another bunch. Them as reckon you're not the victim at all but some other bugger is, someone who's either been jailed or in your case killed. They reckon that what's happened to this other bugger is your fault. Stands to reason, don't it? You're alive and he's dead. Sick proboscis’

Rye interpreted this as sic probg but was wise enough not to test whether the variation was ironic or ignorant.

She said, 'Is this other bunch a large bunch or do you have someone specific in mind?'

'More than my job's worth to put names in your mouth’ said Dalziel virtuously. 'But you mention a name and it 'ud be my duty to look into it’

He liked the way she didn't hesitate.

'Charley Penn’ she said. That's who we're sniffing around here, isn't it? Two of my neighbours saw him, or someone who fits his description, but you know that. Well, I'll talk about him, but let's get one thing clear. I am not putting in a complaint about him. And I'll deny all knowledge of this conversation if you try to make this official.'

'What about this tape recorder I've got strapped to my groin?' said Dalziel.

'Here's me thinking you were just glad to see me’ she said boldly.

He laughed and said, 'You've been keeping bad company, lass. So, unofficially, tell me about Charley.'

'What's to tell? He can't get his head round finding out that his old schoolmate and best buddy was a serial killer. End of story.'

'End of opening para,' said Dalziel. 'What's he said to you?'

'Not much directly. Just sits out there and glowers. I feel his eyes on me all the time.'

‘That all? Didn't he used to send you. poems or summat?'

'Sort of, in the old days… I mean, before all this happened. Thing was, he used to fancy me. At least I think he did, or maybe it was just some silly game he got off on. Anyway, you know these German poems he's been working on for the past thousand years or so?'

'Heinkel,' said Dalziel.

'Heine. He'd leave the odd love poem lying around where he knew I'd find it. He'd pretend it was accidental, but in that leering way he has which made it clear it wasn't.'

'Can't blame the bugger for trying,' said Dalziel.

'Can't you? All right, it wasn't major harassment, but it became irritating and I might have said something if he hadn't been… if. ..'

'If he hadn't been such a mate of Dee's,' completed Dalziel. 'But he's not been sending you these billy-doos since Dee snuffed it?'

'No, at least I'm spared that. Though maybe it was better having him leering at me lecherously than glaring at me as if he'd like to

… I don't know what.'

'So you feel threatened, then your flat gets broken into, and there's a message on your computer which is a straight link to Heinz

'Heine. You work that out for yourself, or did your pet bloodhound sniff it out?'

Dalziel said gravely, 'Listen, luv, sometimes what a cop needs to do 'cos he's a trained sniffer dog and what he needs to do 'cos he's a love-sick puppy turns out to be one and the same thing. What you grinning at?'

‘Trying to see you as a love-sick puppy, Superintendent.'

'I like my tummy scratched as well as the next man’ said Dalziel. 'Just takes a stronger woman, that's all. Point I'm making is, in this case it weren't a matter of professional versus personal. Brains and bollocks, they all told young Bowler he had to have a word. Now that's sorted, let's get back to onions. Charley Penn's scaring you, the break-in suggests a link with Charley, why aren't you screaming for police protection?'

She ran her fingers through her thick brown hair so that the silver blaze rippled like a fish in a peaty stream.

'I don't know’ she said unhappily. 'I suppose I wanted it to be all over, you know, draw a line and say, that's it, new start. They wanted me to have counselling, all that crap, but I said no. Watching Hat get better, and helping him, that was like a kind of surrogate healing for me. And this weekend we've just had, well, it was great. I felt really happy. Then we got back and I saw the flat and I didn't want to let it register, I suppose. I just wanted to tidy up and carry on like nothing had happened.'

'I can understand that. How do you feel now? Ready to make it official?'

She laughed and said, 'You don't give up, do you? All right. I'll make it official my flat was broken into. But I'm not pointing a finger. You want to talk to Penn, that's up to you. He was in his usual spot earlier, but I expect he's gone down to Hal's for a coffee.'

'Aye, he has. That's where I saw him on my way in.'

She stared at him assessingly then said, 'You've spoken to him already, haven't you? All this stuff about needing me to give the go-ahead was bollocks!'

'Nay, lass,' said Dalziel soothingly. 'I had an unofficial word, that's true. All you've done is make it official. It's just a question of labels. Talking of which, you didn't come into work on Friday carrying a suitcase with a lot of labels on, did you?'

'Sorry?'

'You went off for the weekend Friday evening with young Bowler, right?'

'That's right. But I went home first to pick up my bag then drove round to Hat's.'

'Anyone shouting "Enjoy your weekend away! Give him one for me!" as you left?'

'I don't remember, might have done.'

'And was Penn in the library on Friday?'