“Because they were standing next to one another at a nightclub? And because one of them is wearing jellyfish underwear? Come on DC Reed, you know you’re going to need a little more than that if you’re going to convince the Crown Prosecution Service of any wrongdoing.”
“Sir,” Lucas waded in. “Do you possess the physical copies of the CCTV from the nightclub?”
Callahan sighed. “Yes.”
“Then, based on the intelligence provided by Alfie Spears, shouldn’t we at least task an officer to follow up on the inquiry? If only to make a record of where they were going, and who they were travelling with. If it leads to nothing, then so be it.”
Oliver nodded and had to take a deep breath to stop himself bubbling over with excitement. “And if this investigation has proven anything, it’s that we should expect the unexpected.”
Callahan threw his head back and let out a full belly laugh. “Look at you both. Like a pair of young pups fresh into the job. I told you the mating would do you good, Oliver.”
Oliver flushed, sinking back into his seat. “Sir, it’s not?—”
“Anyway,” Callahan barked. “Regardless of where the inquiry takes us, neither of you will be anywhere near Mr Coletta or his associates. Oliver, I understand that you have a muddy history with the man, which makes you exceptionally vulnerable.”
“Sir, I would never?—”
“Vulnerable to complaints, is what I meant.If, and that’s a big fuckingif, the social worker is linked, his initial response would be to accuseyouof fabricating the evidence in some ill-placed attempt at revenge.
Oliver practically choked on his own saliva. “Sir, I wouldn’t?—”
Callahan raised a hand. “I know you wouldn’t, Ollie. But that’ll be his defence, which might sway some overpaid CPS lawyer sitting behind a desk. So, for the foreseeable, I want you to focus on the victims and how they’re all connected. We know the majority are care-home kids, but we don’t knowhowthey got into the grubby little hands of the traffickers in the first place.”
Oliver could feel himself getting agitated, causing Lucas’ hand on his knee to tighten even further.
Including the victims uncovered during the Tintern-on-Wye warrant, Op Sceptre was sitting at eighteen known child victims. All of whom had been placed in emergency foster care up and down the county. In short, building intelligence profiles for each of them would take fucking weeks.
“DC Purslow will assist you, of course,” Callahan said, reaching across the table to pat the back of Oliver’s hand. “And you, DS White, will be returning to the city.”
“What?” Oliver jumped to his feet. “Boss, that’s?—”
“Sit down DC Reed!” The Inspector snapped, thumping the desk. So he did, but the agitation quickly grew into seething anger. Lucas reached up and squeezed the back of his neck, dulling the rage that had been building all morning. He scowled up at Lucas before taking a deep breath.
“It’s not ideal, I know,” The Inspector continued. “Especially given that you’re freshly mated. But I’m afraid you’ll just have to catch up on your days off. DS White, I need you to arrange a meeting with your resources bureau—secure me firearms officers,air support, cyber, surveillance, the whole fucking shebang. I retire in three years, and there’s no way I’m waving goodbye to a thirty-year career with this hanging over my head. Are we clear?”
Lucas hesitated, and Oliver could see the alpha’s jaw tensing.
“I said, are weclear, DS White?”
Clearing his throat, Lucas said, cool as a cucumber, “I refuse.”
The Inspector’s lip peeled back over his teeth. “That’s an order, White.”
Then Oliver’s fangs were on display, and suddenly they were all standing in the middle of the office, posturing and growling at one another.
The tension was only broken when a wheezing laugh sounded outside the door. “S-Sorry,” the Superintendent said, still laughing as she walked into the office. They all snapped to attention. “I could hear you from down the corridor.
“Ma’am,” The Inspector said, straightening his tie. “Apologies, Ma’am, we didn’t mean to disturb you.”
The Superintendent waved the comment away, before turning her attention towards Oliver and Lucas. She was a short, stocky woman with curly brown hair pulled back into a tight bun. The white shirt and black trousers clung to her frame to show off her thick-set muscle. Oliver knew very little about her—only that she had a reputation for being a formidable woman, but it was only as she stood across from him he fully understood her raw, alpha power. Despite only being five foot three.
“How about we come up with a compromise, hm, George?” The Inspector’s back stiffened as she used his first name. “Why doesn’t DS White return to the citytemporarily, just until we secure additional resources? I don’t think it would benefit anyone for the two of them to be apart for too long.”
“Ma’am, with all due respect, they almost threw West Newton Constabulary into a PR disaster. Do you know how many journalists I’ve had to fend off this morning?”
The Superintendent nodded and gave him a wide smile. “Which is why we’d better move quickly on this, yes?”
“Yes, Ma’am,” they all said in unison.
