Katerina Diamond - Truth or Die

‘Was anyone close to Doctor Norris?’ Adrian said. Something about this woman was annoying him. Even though she was being pleasant, he found she had a bubbling hostility. It may just have been because they were police officers, or maybe it was something else entirely.

‘He always ate alone, seemed pleasant enough, but I never really saw him with anyone in particular. Sorry I can’t help you more.’

Adrian looked down at his notepad, then flicked back to a previous page, searching for a particular name. ‘What about Helen Lassiter? She’s got an office in this building, hasn’t she?’

‘I’m afraid she’s not in today. She’s away with some students on a trip. I’m not sure when she’s back off the top of my head.’

Adrian felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Caitlin standing next to him.

‘Detective Miles.’ She smiled at him. ‘Are you here to arrest me again?’

‘You weren’t actually arrested, Miss …’ Adrian said, struggling to remember her name.

‘Watts, Caitlin Watts,’ Caitlin replied.

He noticed how she left her mouth open when she’d finished speaking, moving her tongue gently against her top lip. She was flirting with him. He looked away quickly.

‘Excuse me a moment,’ Gillian Mitchell said, ‘I just saw one of the maintenance men disappear around the corner and I really do need to get rid of this damn spider; I have notes in there I need later this morning. If that’s all?’

‘Don’t leave town,’ Imogen said as the woman hurried off, unclear if Gillian Mitchell had heard her or not.

‘You’re here about the murder?’ Caitlin said to Adrian, her head tilted back, the long line of her neck exposed, leading right into the V-neck of her clingy black sweater.

‘Do you know anything about it?’ Adrian asked.

‘Not really, except that there was lots of blood. I heard it was pretty intense.’ She smoothed her hair down, drawing his eyes to her chest. He could feel Imogen’s eyes rolling even though he couldn’t see her face.

‘We’d better be going then.’ Adrian pulled his card out of his pocket and handed it to her. ‘If you hear anything or think of anything else, then let me know.’

Caitlin took it and walked away, turning back once to look at Adrian.

Imogen and Adrian made their way out of the building and back to Adrian’s car.

‘How did you get here this morning?’ Adrian asked, being careful not to mention the fact that they had left from the same place.

‘Matt swung past my place and picked me up.’

‘Oh. OK,’ Adrian said, uncomfortable with the fact that this annoyed him.

Imogen was still trying to figure out DI Walsh. He was charming, and he genuinely seemed nice, but there was something false about him. It was the disguise of someone pretending to be happy, or at least OK. She wanted to get to know him better. From what she knew about DCI Mira Kapoor, she didn’t trust easily and for her to bring him in from another division meant that he was probably on the up and up. Imogen tried to remember a time when she wasn’t so distrusting; it had been a while.

She watched Walsh and Kapoor through the interior window; they were talking, DCI Kapoor had her hand on Matt Walsh’s shoulder, consoling him about something. She wished she knew how to lip-read, even though that was a massive invasion of privacy. She just couldn’t get the measure of him and she wasn’t sure why it was bothering her so much.

Adrian reappeared after going outside for a cigarette. She had given up and it was clearly annoying him. He was the one who gave up first, and she was the one who talked him back into it. The truth was, though, that she hadn’t felt much like smoking since her mother died; her own mortality was suddenly playing on her mind. Her life seemed to be forcing her to make some big changes at the moment, why not at least have one or two of her own choosing?

‘Anything?’ he asked.

‘What do you think they are talking about?’ She nodded towards DCI Kapoor’s office.

‘Not you,’ Adrian said. ‘Why do you care?’

‘I can’t figure him out, that’s all.’

‘What makes you think there’s something to figure out?’

‘We’re detectives, that’s our job.’

‘He’s a nice guy, let him be. If there’s anything we need to know, then we’ll find out.’

‘Are you tired or something?’

‘I’m supposed to be going to see Tom tonight, but he’s cancelled on me. I’m a bit pissed off, that’s all. I had hoped things would change now that piece of shit stepfather of his is gone but if anything, I am seeing him less,’ Adrian said.

‘He’s a full-on teenager now, you need to let him have his space,’ Imogen said, wishing there was a way she could help, but she knew better than to get involved in Adrian’s complicated relationship with the mother of his son.

‘I had space and ended up having a baby at sixteen years old; I want something better for my son.’

‘Don’t let him hear you say that.’

‘That’s not what I mean, and you know it. What are you doing tonight?’

‘Nothing,’ Imogen said, her eyes shifting to the floor. ‘Home alone, again. Elias has asked me to meet my brothers, but I don’t think I can do it.’

‘Not surprised. I can’t even imagine finding out I have siblings. Although it wouldn’t surprise me; my father put it about a bit.’

‘Talking of putting it about … look who it is!’ Imogen said.

Adrian looked up and saw Denise Ferguson standing with Caitlin Watts.

‘I can’t believe you just said that about a teenage witness.’ Adrian shook his head in fake disapproval.

‘I was talking about you,’ Imogen said.

‘Jealous?’ He winked at her.

Denise walked Caitlin over to the desk. Adrian sat on the edge of the table and directed her to his seat. Imogen noted the girl’s submissive vibe with Adrian, head tilted back, looking up at him with her animated eyes. Denise raised her eyebrows at the scene; Imogen was glad that she wasn’t the only one who noticed.

‘We only saw you a few hours ago. What is it?’ Adrian said.

‘You asked me if I knew anything about Doctor Norris.’

‘Oh, you do?’

‘I remembered after you left. A while back he was going out with one of his students. A girl. I don’t know who though.’

Caitlin was painting herself as some kind of damsel; Imogen would have to remind Adrian how they met her. She hadn’t been the victim of a crime. Imogen had met girls like her before, girls who flirted in a bizarrely subservient way, to play to the man’s sense of machismo. The whole idea of it disgusted Imogen.

‘How long ago was this relationship?’ Adrian asked.

‘A couple of months. Everyone suspected everyone at the time.’