Danielle Ramsay - Broken Silence

Brady couldn’t help but look at her. She was striking; even at 3.50 am. He watched as she closed her almond-shaped, dark brown eyes, sighing wearily. He was trying to ignore the fact that he was starting to enjoy her company and more than he wanted to admit.

‘Remind me never to work with that man again!’ she said.

‘I tried to tell you,’ Brady stated.

‘Yeah, yeah … Don’t fool yourself. You just didn’t think I could handle myself in that stinking strip club. It had nothing to do with Adamson,’ pointed out Jenkins.

Brady didn’t reply. There was nothing he could say. Instead he watched her relaxing on his couch, in his office, drinking his Scotch. He wanted to ask why she was there, but knew if he did, she’d leave.

She opened her eyes and turned to him.

‘Thank you.’

‘What for?’ Brady asked.

‘For not being an arsehole like your colleague, DS Adamson,’ she answered.

‘Is that what you expect of me?’

‘From what I know of you, Jack, what else should I expect?’

She was right; most of the time he had been an arsehole, at least where she was concerned. As his psychologist he hadn’t given her a chance. He had been too scared that if she took him apart she would never be able to put him back together again.

‘I take it Adamson must have really pissed you off?’

‘You could say that. Well, technically, he didn’t piss me off, as you say, but he did offend Trina McGuire.’

‘What did he do to upset Shane’s mam then? From what I remember of Trina it’s normally the other way round,’ Brady replied.

‘Let’s just say Adamson was asking a bit too much from her.’

‘How so?’

‘He treated her like a piece of shit,’ Jenkins explained. ‘Thought because of what she did he owned her. We asked her about the whereabouts of her son Shane, but she had no clue. Genuinely had no clue, you could tell. But Adamson wasn’t having any of it. I don’t know who he thought he was, but it wasn’t acceptable.’

Brady took a drink. He knew he wasn’t going to like whatever it was that Jenkins was about to tell him.

‘After we’d finished questioning her about Shane’s whereabouts, Adamson said he wanted a private word with Trina and told me to go wait in the car. So, I left the office and headed back through the bar. But you know when you havea bad feeling that something isn’t right?’ she asked as she looked at Brady.

He nodded.

‘So, I went back to the office and opened the door which he’d closed behind me and there he was with Trina pinned against the wall, pants round his ankles, demanding that she suck him off or he’d start to make life difficult for her.’

Brady sighed. He wasn’t surprised by what Jenkins had just told him. He’d heard the rumours that Adamson liked to play dirty which was why Brady wanted nothing to do with him.

‘Adamson doesn’t realise who he’s dealing with when it comes to Trina McGuire. She’ll make sure he pays for that stunt. And believe me, Amelia, if you walked in a few minutes later, either Adamson would have been rolling around in agony on the floor after Trina had kneed him in the balls or if he had forced her head down on him, then he would now be missing a big part of his manhood.’

Jenkins looked at Brady quizzically.

‘I know Trina from old, and when a punter gets a bit too heavy, like Adamson, she’s been known to fight back. And when she fights, it’s dirty. One guy nearly lost half his dick by shoving it down her throat,’ Brady stated. ‘Trina has a shit life, but at least the sleazy bastards who go into the Hole know not to touch her, unlike that idiot Adamson. She’s a pretty little thing, and so she’s had to learn to handle herself.’

‘If you like that kind of thing, I suppose,’ Jenkins uncomfortably answered.

‘She’s not as hot as she used to be. The drugs and booze have had their effect. But in a shit place like the Hole, shestill turns heads. Like I said though, she has a reputation, so everyone knows they can look but they can’t touch. And until now, no one’s dared.’

Brady looked at Jenkins.

‘I wish you’d waited a couple more minutes, then Adamson would have got what he deserved.’

‘I’ll be sure to remember that the next time I think a woman’s in trouble,’ answered Jenkins stiffly.

Brady shook his head at Jenkins.

‘Trina isn’t like other women. She can’t afford to be,’ Brady stated. ‘So, what did Adamson do when you caught him with his trousers down?’ he asked.

‘What do you think? He went limp with embarrassment, pulled his trousers up and stormed out the office.’

‘Bet the drive back to the station was fun,’ Brady replied.

‘Not really, the arrogant son of a bitch completely blanked what had happened and started talking about bringing Trina McGuire in for withholding information.’

‘Yeah, that sounds like Adamson,’ Brady said, sighing. ‘What are you going to do? Report him?’

‘I don’t know yet,’ she quietly answered.

Brady nodded. There was an unspoken code of loyalty in the force. And if you were going to report a colleague for misconduct then you had to be absolutely certain that you were prepared to pay the price. Brady knew that Jenkins would be uncomfortably aware of the fact that Adamson was well-liked, particularly by Gates.

He drained his mug and then leaned back against the couch. He shut his eyes, enjoying the closeness of Jenkins’ body as she relaxed into him.

He felt her hand brush against his leg as she moved closerinto him. Even though he had his eyes shut, he could feel her staring at him.

‘Are you sure you’re going to be all right today?’ Jenkins asked gently.

‘Why not?’ he asked as he opened his eyes.

She was staring at him intently.

‘You know why,’ she answered.

Brady shook his head, refusing to even acknowledge what she was talking about.

She had read the files from his childhood, files that had lain untouched for years. Jenkins knew more about his past than anyone else, aside from two people, one of whom was Jimmy Matthews. Even Claudia wasn’t fully aware of his background.

‘Come on, Jack, this is me you’re talking to. Thirty years ago to this exact day you witnessed your mother being murdered. It’s obvious it’s had an effect on you—’

‘Isn’t that meant to be confidential? Doctor-patient crap?’ Brady abruptly interrupted.

‘It’s still confidential,’ answered Jenkins quietly.

‘Yeah, but you’re not my shrink any more,’ Brady replied coldly.

His mouth was dry and he was starting to feel caught out. She had lured him into a false sense of security and then trapped him.

‘I’m not asking as your doctor, I’m asking as your friend.’

‘Is that what you are? A friend?’ Brady sceptically asked.

‘I don’t know …’ she whispered as she stared into his troubled, dark brown eyes.

She searched his eyes, wanting an answer.

Brady suddenly came to his senses and stood up.

She looked at him, confused.

He didn’t say anything. He couldn’t. All he knew was that he needed some fresh air. He resisted the urge to grab his coat and just walk out.

‘Jack?’ Jenkins questioned, startled by his sudden reaction.

Brady looked at her and shook his head.

‘I can’t do this,’ he stated, gesturing at the Scotch on the floor beside her.

Jenkins nodded. She knew exactly what Brady was referring to, she didn’t need him to point it out.

‘I need to get some sleep,’ Brady reasoned.

Jenkins stood up and smoothed down her dress.

‘Thanks for the drink,’ she said as she picked up her coat and bag.

Brady watched silently as she put her coat on, wishing there was something more he could say.