Emilia nodded vigorously, willing the fallen police officer to find the strength to survive.
‘Am I OK to …?’Emilia asked, gesturing towards the ICU.
‘Sure.You can’t see much, but it would be good for someone to be there with her.’
For a minute, Emilia was tempted to ask Helen where she was going, baffled as to why she was leaving her old friend’s side, but instead she simply nodded again.For once, it was not her place to pry.
‘Of course,’ Emilia replied reassuringly.‘I’ll obviously let you know straight away if anything …’
Her sentence petered out, neither woman wanting to contemplate a sudden change in Charlie’s condition.Helen offered her thanks with a tight smile, patting Emilia briefly on the arm,before heading off.This friendliness, this strange rapprochement, was just another bizarre detail in Emilia’s increasingly surreal existence, very little of which seemed to make sense anymore.But shaking off her disorientation, Emilia walked on, heading swiftly towards the ICU.She had come here to do a job and there was no point putting it off, however unnerved and un-settled she might be feeling.
Soon she was in the small viewing area opposite the ICU, exchanging brief, sympathetic nods with the other hospital visitors, who huddled in the small room, tense and fearful.Turning away from them, Emilia peered through the glass, just able to make out Charlie Brooks in the far-left hand corner.It was a sight that pierced Emilia’s heart, the officer’s lustrous hair now flat on her scalp, her huge, expressive eyes taped shut, her mouth straddled by a bulky breathing tube.This vibrant woman, usually such a ball of energy and emotion, was perfectly still, the only sign of life now the dancing line on her heart monitor.It was an image of quiet desolation that struck Emilia forcefully.This was what this diligent, spirited officer had been reduced to by one vicious thrust of the knife.This is what Visser had done to a healthy, happy mother of two.
And now amidst Emilia’s sorrow and grief, the embers of her anger started to flare.The same man who’d tried to destroyherhad tried to kill Charlie Brooks.Once more Visser had shown himself to be a man without scruples, without conscience, without pity.He was a monster, devoid of humanity or emotion.A fiend who remained at large to inflict yet more damage and ruin more lives.This was why Emilia knew it wasn’t over yet.Whatever happened to Charlie, wherever Visser might have fled to, the journalist knew she could not let this lie.This ghastly narrative could not end in his triumph.Such an idea was outrageous,appalling, and Emilia would not sanction it.This man, who had haunted her dreams for so long, must be made to pay for his crime.Shockingly, unjustifiably, Visser had escaped justicetwicenow.
Emilia would make sure he did not do so a third time.
Chapter 109
She strode across the floor, her heavy footsteps echoing around the lobby.Startled, PC Mark Drayton looked up sharply, surprised to see Helen back at Southampton Central yet again.For once, however, there was no caustic comment, the impact of the last few days making themselves felt, the custody officer sombre and respectful today.
‘Good morning.How can I help you?’Drayton asked, his voice shaking slightly.
‘You can buzz me through,’ Helen answered curtly, without breaking stride, her eyes locked on the staff entrance.
Without hesitation, Drayton reached under the desk and punched the button.Nodding her thanks, Helen heaved open the door, briefly clocking the relief on Drayton’s face, before pushing inside.
Moments later, the lift doors slid open on the tenth floor.Helen was quick to emerge, her boots sliding over the lush carpet that smoothed the passage of the top brass in this lofty outpost.Heading fast along the corridor, she made her way to Holmes’ office, the Chief Superintendent’s long-suffering PA, Susan, rising from her desk on Helen’s approach, her expression a mixture of surprise and alarm.
‘Helen, how nice to see you.Do you have an appointment or …?’
Holmes’ gatekeeper clearly knew the answer to this, but Helen ignored her intervention, striding past her.
‘You can’t go in there, Helen.The Chief Super’s on a call …’
But Helen barely heard her, stepping purposefully into Holmes’ office and shutting the door firmly behind her.
‘It’s completely out of the question.’
Holmes’ tone was defiant, but Helen could see the uncertainty and alarm in her eyes.It had been a difficult few days for the station chief, but she had not been expectingthis.
‘I know you’re deeply upset by what’s happened to Charlie, weallare, but it changes nothing,’ the station chief continued quickly.
‘On the contrary,’ Helen shot back, ‘it changeseverything.Visser stabbed your best officer, my oldest friend.I will not be shut out of the hunt for this bastard.I’ve known Charlie too long, owe her too much, to let this go.’
‘No one’s letting this go,’ Holmes countered vigorously.‘Visserwillbe found, hewillbe arrested, hewillbe brought to justice.We are working night and day to root him out, liaising with the NCA, Interpol, as well as with the Dutch police in Rotterdam.Our strong suspicion is that he will return to his hometown and, when he does so, the authorities will be waiting for him.’
‘Who are you dealing with out there?’Helen demanded.‘Who is your point of contact in Rotterdam CID?’
‘I can’t tell you that,’ Holmes replied sharply, shaking her head.
‘So who’s running it this end then?’
For a moment, Holmes appeared lost for words, stunned by the relentlessness of Helen’s interrogation.
‘You?’Helen continued.
‘Of course not,’ Holmes stammered.‘It has to be CID-led, you know that …’
