Toxic Justice, page 17
part #18 of DI Lorne Simpkins Series
Lorne placed a comforting arm around the shoulders of the distraught headmistress. “But he didn’t, did he?”
“No. I managed to talk him around. I’m really not sure how I had the strength to do it. I’m sorry for breaking down like this. The whole experience has taken its toll on me. I’ve never had to deal with an instance such as this before. I hope I never have to in the future either.”
“Why was the lad willing to end his life?” Lorne asked, not wishing to take anything for granted.
“He received a vile text, instructing him what to do.”
Lorne turned to Katy. “Do me a favour and ring the headmaster at Leyton Manor. See where Billie and Brian were at the time the text was sent.”
“Please, there’s no need to do that. I already rang Mr Chapman to ask that very question. The pupils were in a science exam. Their phones had been temporarily confiscated during the exam. It couldn’t have been them.”
“Thanks for doing that. Where is the boy now?”
“I rang for an ambulance. He was taken away about ten minutes ago. His mother is with him at the hospital. I’m so relieved he listened to me. I’m not sure I could have coped with having his death on my hands if I’d failed to convince him not to go through with his intention.”
“You did well, Mrs Lowe. Thank you for being so brave.”
“It’s my duty to care for my pupils, no matter what the circumstances are, Inspector. If the Swallow children didn’t send the message, then who did? Have we got this all wrong? Is that why you haven’t managed to solve the case yet?”
“We’ve just discovered who the culprit is. We were on our way to arrest them when your call came in.”
“May I ask who? I think I have a right to know after what they put me and that poor lad through today.”
“We believe the mother is to blame.”
Mrs Lowe gasped. “No, not Sandra. I can’t believe it.”
“You know her?”
“Yes. She used to work here as a teaching assistant. I had to let her go when I was forced to make substantial cuts to meet our targets.”
“That explains why she would focus on the kids from this school then. Okay, thanks for the insight. If you’re okay, we’re going to shoot off and pick her up.”
“Go. I’m fine. Don’t let her get away with these abhorrent crimes.”
“We won’t.”
Back in the car, Lorne started the engine and pulled away from the school. “Can you ring the station, Katy? Arrange for backup to meet us at the Swallow address. I’ll ring the chief, let him know what’s about to go down.”
“On it,” Katy replied, punching in a number.
Lorne dialled Sean’s direct line. “Hello, sir. Sorry to interrupt you, I wanted to make you aware of what’s going on.”
“And what’s that, Inspector?”
“We’re on our way to make an arrest.”
“Are you going to tell me who?”
“Mrs Swallow.”
“Whoa! On what grounds?”
“Last night, at home, I had a brainwave. This morning we visited Dylan Swallow in prison. He told us what a cruel manipulator his mother is. He took the fall for her, that’s why he’s banged up. She was the mastermind behind the armed robbery he was involved in.”
“I don’t understand. Why didn’t he dob her in when he was arrested?”
“She used Billie and Brian as leverage.”
“What a sick woman. I knew there was something off with her during the interviews yesterday.”
By this time Katy had ended her call and was listening to their conversation.
Lorne turned and rolled her eyes. “Funny, you didn’t mention anything?”
Lorne saw Katy cover the snigger trying to escape.
“Well, I didn’t like to step on your toes, Inspector. Okay, so this means the kids are in the clear?”
“Yes, as I suggested yesterday, my gut instinct was telling me the kids were innocent, hence my urgency to let them go.”
“Is this about one-upmanship, Inspector?”
“Me? No, not at all, sir. This is me recapping how things went down.”
“Hmm… You could talk yourself out of a crocodile’s gaping mouth, I suspect.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll touch base with you soon.”
“Do that. Good luck with the arrest. Have you arranged backup?”
“Yes, Katy has just done that, sir.” Lorne ended the call and laughed.
“God, you really know how to wind him up, don’t you? Not sure I would have got away with talking to him like that when I was an inspector, but then you do have a past together.”
Lorne shook her head. “Don’t pull that one on me. Damn, I forgot to tell you, he and Carmen have separated. He dropped the bombshell at the end of last week right in the middle of the investigation.”
“Bloody hell. Maybe there was more to that kiss you shared after all.”
“Shared? I refute that. He kissed me. Perhaps he was testing the water, to see if I’d respond, which I didn’t, before he took things further. I’m so glad I put him in his place at the time.”
“I hate to hear about anyone splitting up, especially if they have a young family. Did he say why?”
“Carmen has had enough. That’s all he said. It’s not my problem anyway. I read him the riot act the other day. He was full of self-pity when we arrived at one of the victim’s houses, and I told him to stay in the car. I could have done with the support, but you should’ve seen him, he was like a broken man, Katy. Anyway, when I returned to the car I gave him a tongue lashing, and he appeared to buck his ideas up after that. As if I didn’t have enough on my plate, what with you being off work caring for your sick child.”
“Sorry, it couldn’t be helped.”
“Hey, enough, I wasn’t having a dig. I meant that I was concerned about Georgina, and he was there expecting me to offer my shoulder to cry on because he was having marital problems. He’s not my concern any more, and I had to get that message across. Anyway, he always calls me a hard bitch. All I was doing was living up to my reputation in his eyes.” She laughed and turned the corner. They were a few roads away from the Swallows’ address by now.
“Enough said. We’re nearly there. I told the backup team to meet us a couple of streets away from the house. There, that’s them now.” Katy pointed ahead.
Lorne left the vehicle and informed the PCs in the squad car what her intentions were. Then she rushed back, hopped in behind the steering wheel and slipped into first gear. They approached the house nice and slowly, pulling into a large gap a few houses down.
“Are you ready for this? I’ve got a feeling she’s going to kick up a stink.”
Katy held up her pepper spray. “Let her try.”
The four of them walked up the path, and Lorne knocked on the door.
When there was no answer, she ordered Katy to take one of the constables around the back. “We’ll break the door down if necessary. The warrant is still in place, so we’re covered.”
Katy and the male PC scooted around the back of the house.
“Are you up to breaking it down?” Lorne asked the large-framed PC standing alongside her.
“No problem, ma’am. Stand back a little.” He effortlessly shoulder-charged the front door, which gave instantly under his brute strength.
Lorne led the way into the house, Taser in hand, and the PC followed her. They met up with Katy and the other constable in the kitchen. Lorne slammed her fist against her thigh. “Don’t tell me she’s not at home.” Then she held her finger to her lips, listening for signs of life. A stray creak groaned in one of the floorboards overhead, and she raced into the hallway with the others close on her heels.
She inched up the staircase, cautiously using the outer edge of the tread in her ascent in case any of them creaked and gave away their arrival. The others followed suit. Reaching the top, Lorne had four doors to choose from. She moved towards the closest one first—it was a small room decked in shocking pink that she presumed belonged to Billie. The next door she tried revealed bedding and curtains that would be at home on tour at an army base.
That left one bedroom and the bathroom to try next. Taser aloft in front of her, Lorne eased open the door to find an angry-looking Sandra facing her, a large butcher’s knife in her hand. “You come near me and I’ll use it.”
“Now, Sandra, you know how foolish that would be. Come with us peacefully. I’m not afraid to use the Taser. I’d rather not, of course, but if you persist in threatening me with the knife I’ll have no alternative.”
“Get out of my house. If I attack you I’m only protecting myself in the eyes of the law,” she shouted, her eyes scrunching up into narrow slits in her contorted face.
“That part of the law won’t protect you when it’s the police entering your house. Now put the knife down. I’m going to give you five seconds to comply before I pull the trigger. One…”
“You have no right coming here like this. My kids are innocent. Why do you persist in persecuting them?”
“Two…”
Her glare intensified as the countdown continued. Lorne could tell it was going to be a battle of wills until the very end. She had no intention of being the one to give in. “Three…”
Sandra took a step forward then retreated, the knife solidly placed in her outstretched hand still, not quivering in the slightest.
“Four…” Lorne’s finger was itching to pull the trigger as her palm grew sweaty.
All of a sudden, when she was least expecting it, Sandra, who was only four feet away from her, let out a maniacal scream and charged at Lorne.
“Pull the trigger, Lorne. Do it,” Katy shouted.
Lorne did as she was instructed. However, her finger slipped off the trigger. Sandra reached her before she could react, and the knife plunged into Lorne’s stomach. Lorne felt the pain but was in shock. Everything happened in slow motion around her. Someone lowered her to the floor—it was Katy. The last thing Lorne saw was the constables cuffing Sandra Swallow and leading her out of the room. As she passed Lorne, she laughed and spat at her.
“Katy…Katy, tell Tony and Charlie I love them…”
Katy gripped her and rocked her gently in her arms, shushing her, telling her to be quiet and to conserve her energy.
An ethereal glow lit up one corner of the room. “Pete’s here. He’s come to collect me. Dad’s just appeared, too. They’ll take me from here. I’m not alone. Oh my…now Jacques has arrived. What a lucky lady I am.”
“Lorne, please. Don’t go. I need you. We all need you. Stay with me. The ambulance is on its way. Don’t you dare leave me, not now, not ever. I won’t let you go, you hear me?”
The darkness enveloped her quicker than anticipated.
Epilogue
Tony received the call from Katy while she was still at the house. He flapped around for a moment or two, devastated by the news. With tears running down his cheeks, he rushed to the hospital. Charlie was already there and flew into his arms the moment she saw him.
“Tony, it can’t be true, can it?”
He had to battle the suffocating pain in his chest to try to remain calm for her sake. “I’m afraid it is, love. Are you up to seeing her?”
“I’m not sure if I’m ready for that. Katy looks absolutely bereft. She was by her side when…”
“I know. At least she had her best friend with her. I can’t believe it’s happened.” He wrapped his arms around the young woman he thought of as his own daughter, and together they openly sobbed.
Tony felt a hand on his arm. “I’m sorry to break this up. You can see her now if you’d like to come with me,” a young male doctor said.
Tony nodded and clasped Charlie’s hand. They stopped to collect Katy and entered the softly lit hospital room.
He tried his hardest to keep his emotions in check as he supported Charlie and Katy. He led them towards the bed, his heart exploding into tiny pieces as he stared down at the woman he’d loved so deeply for the past ten years.
“Oh, Mum,” Charlie’s voice shook as she uttered the words.
Everything surrounding her was white. It was wonderful to meet up with her father and her dear friends again, if only for the briefest of moments.
People mumbled around her. She recognised the voices as the ones she’d left behind. Someone was stroking her hand and calling her name. They seemed miles away and yet so near.
“Lorne, are you awake? Come back to us, love.”
Dare she open her eyes? She was afraid of what she might find.
“Mum, please, we need you. You can’t leave us yet, I won’t allow it.”
Lorne smiled, recognising her daughter’s voice.
Her finger twitched, then her eyelids fluttered open. Her vision was blurred to begin with. She had an odd pain in her stomach, too.
“Mum, oh my God, you’re going to be all right.”
Lorne ran a hand down her daughter’s cheek. “It would take more than a crazy bitch with a knife to get rid of me, love.” She looked around the room and smiled at Tony and Katy. If only she was an octopus, she could reach out a hand to all of them at the same time. Her energy was sapping quickly. “Katy. Tell me you’ve thrown the book at Swallow?”
“Sean and I banged her up. Laid a ton of charges on her, including attempted murder of a police officer. She’ll rot in prison for the rest of her life, Lorne, no fear about that.”
She let out a satisfied sigh. “Good. Anyone who uses their kids like that deserves to be locked away for a hundred years. Why? Why did she do those terrible things to those poor kids?”
Katy shrugged. “It was all about revenge on Mrs Lowe, and it got out of hand. She revelled in the kids killing themselves. It was all about the control she had over them. The willingness for them to end their lives when she ordered them to.”
“What a sick and twisted individual.”
“Yep. We found a couple of pay-as-you-go phones at her house when we conducted a proper search.”
“I’m glad the case is over. Any idea why she targeted the kids from the other schools? How did she get their information?”
“We’re working on that part with her.”
Lorne winced. “Is someone going to tell me what the prognosis is?”
“You had a gaping hole in your intestines. They’ve repaired it during surgery but said you’ll experience some pain for a few weeks yet. You’re here, that’s all that matters now, Lorne,” Tony told her, smiling.
She reached out for Katy’s hand. “Tell Sean that I won’t be coming back to work, love.”
Katy, Tony and Charlie all gasped. “Don’t go making any hasty decisions, love, not from your hospital bed,” Tony advised.
Lorne shook her head. “I can’t carry on any more. I’m getting too old for this shit. I’ve had my fill of chasing madmen and crazy women.” She ran a hand down Charlie’s cheek again. “It’s time to pass over the baton to the next generation.”
Katy shook her head and appeared shocked by the revelation. “I can understand that. What will you do now, Lorne?”
“I have to discuss this with my husband, but I think we’ll sell up and retire to Norfolk. We can get a bigger property up there with a lot more land.”
Tony smiled and shrugged. “Hey, it suits me. We’ve got my compensation money stashed away still. More land? Don’t tell me, does that mean more dogs?”
“You read my mind. There are far too many dogs out there that need our help.” Her eyelids became heavy. “I’m tired now. One more thing… Tell Carol I’m all right, and the people who I’ve loved and lost over the years sent me back. Maybe they all decided they’re not yet ready to deal with me again yet on a permanent basis.”
She heard her loved ones’ laughter as she drifted off to sleep.
THE END
Letter to you, the readers
Well, that was a sad case for Lorne to end her career on. I’m sure you’ll agree that she deserves her retirement after nearly twenty years of chasing London’s vilest criminals.
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about Lorne and her tenacious team and family over the years? This isn’t the end though, I’ll still be penning the Justice novellas starring Lorne and Pete, so watch out for those in the future.
It’s time for the new kid on the block, DI Sara Ramsey and the rest of my other main characters to flourish now.
If you want to try another one of my series why not start with the gritty Hero series? Read the first chapter of TORN APART
Thank you as always for choosing to read my work, if you can find it in your heart to leave a review I’d be eternally grateful.
M. A. Comley
Keep in touch with M. A. Comley
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About the author
M A Comley is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of crime fiction. To date (December 2018) she has over 82 titles published.
Her books have reached the top of the charts on all platforms in ebook format, Top 20 on Amazon, Top 5 on iTunes, number 2 on Barnes and Noble and Top 5 on KOBO. She has sold over two and a half million copies worldwide.
In her spare time, she doesn’t tend to get much, she enjoys spending time walking her dog, Dex in rural Herefordshire, UK.
Her love of reading and specifically the devious minds of killers is what led her to pen her first book in the genre she adores.
Look out for more books coming in the future in the cozy mystery genre.
M A Comley, Toxic Justice
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