‘Is The Lemon in?’
Richard nodded and she went to see if her boss could be of any help.
‘I’ve arrested Harper on suspicion, sir,’ Janine told DCS Hackett. ‘I need to begin interviews with him soon as his brief arrives. He was seeing Rosa Milicz as well as managing the brothel where she lived.’
‘And Stone?’ Hackett’s shrewd eyes scrutinised her.
‘He’s implicated too. He drove the van, bringing the women in. I’m hoping the women can tell me more about both men – and about Sulikov; we’ve still very little on him. Can we keep them here until I have a chance to talk to them, properly?’
‘Sorry, I’ve already had Immigration on, they want them at the removal centre near Leeds as soon as possible.’
‘I don’t want them deported.’
He leant forward, his head tilted to one side. ‘There’s not much chance of that – this is a murder enquiry. I’ve made that quite clear. Will the girls talk?’
‘Probably not – especially as we’re treating them like criminals. They’ve been falsely imprisoned to all intents and purposes; no passports, no outdoor shoes or clothing. They signed up for dancing or waitressing, not prostitution.’
‘Are we talking murder or trafficking here?’ He was warning her to stick to the case.
‘The two may well be linked.’
‘Don’t lose your focus.’
‘No, sir. But I won’t get much chance to find out, will I?’
‘Not unless you get a move on. Though there is a road network between here and Leeds, Janine, if push comes to shove.’
Sarky git.
She got up to leave.
‘And your leak?’ he said sourly.
As if it was some fault in her own plumbing. ‘Plugged,’ she told him.
He waited.
‘Ian Butchers. He was too close to the case, had a young brother killed in a hit and run.’
He gave a weary sigh, made as if to speak, hesitated. Then, ‘You disregarding procedure?’
‘Chris Chinley has been exonerated.’
‘Nevertheless. Can you imagine…’
‘But it didn’t, sir.’ She blushed as she interrupted him, aware that this was dicey ground. Never interrupt a senior officer. Hanging offence; drawing and quartering too with a boss like Hackett. But she ploughed on, ‘We’d gain nothing from launching a formal disciplinary – we’d lose a decent copper with over twenty years’ service.’
‘I don’t know that I can approve that decision.’
She felt an edge of anger that he would dismiss her arguments. And an eddy of anxiety as she prepared to tackle him. Her skin felt slightly clammy. ‘I don’t think you need to, sir. It’s sorted.’
He glared at her, gimlet-eyed. She could tell it was touch and go but she didn’t volunteer anything more. She’d had plenty of run-ins with Hackett in the past and had come to learn that he appreciated it when his officers stood their ground and confronted him head on. She felt heat crawl up her back as she waited, her mouth dry.
