Ultimate Dilemma (Justice Again Book 2) by M Comley (best books under 200 pages txt) 📕

on Patti’s arm. “Sorry about that. Let’s call a truce, shall we?”

“Done.”

“The woman on control said that you’re linking the crime to the others. Can I ask why?”

“Pure speculation at this time. Let’s call it a hunch. I didn’t want another team turning up to this one in case they muddy the waters. It would be best to have you guys involved in this from the outset. That was my logic anyway. Was I right to call you?”

“Only time will tell. What have we got? Apart from a bloody mess.”

“ID says he’s Robin Hewitt.” Patti extracted an evidence bag from a pile near her feet and held it up for Katy to see.

Her mouth dropped open when she saw the man’s photo on his licence. “Shit, damn and blast!”

“Don’t tell me you know him?”

Katy’s nod sped up. “I do. You’ll never guess where from.”

“Go on, surprise me.”

“The first victim’s funeral. I’ll stand corrected if I’m wrong but I’d swear this man was one of his pallbearers.”

“Fuck, really?”

“I’ll need to do some digging to get clarification, but yes. Shit, Patti, tell me you’ve got a time of death for him?”

“I can give you a rough idea; nothing concrete as yet, not until I’ve performed the PM.”

Katy motioned with her hand for Patti to hurry up. “Well, what is it?”

“Any time between eleven and eleven-thirty. May I ask why?”

Katy stared at the hedgerow, trying her hardest to remember what time she and Charlie had left Nadia’s house. “Damn, I have a suspicion about a certain person. We were with her just before that time last night. If I recall, we left her gaff at around ten-fifteen, give or take a few minutes. Which means she had the time to get out here and kill him.”

“Whoa! She? Who are we talking about here?”

“The daughter, Nadia Crawford. Something isn’t sitting right with me. She acted strangely towards the men at the funeral. Finding her father like that and being covered in his blood, most SIOs would probably brush away my concerns but, she’s a nurse; yes, instinct would kick in to save him, but surely, wouldn’t she also take a step back, knowing it wouldn’t be right for her to end up covered in his blood? Or am I guilty of overthinking things here?”

“Possibly. Put yourself in her shoes. Wouldn’t you step up to the plate and help a loved one in dire need of your help?”

Katy sighed. “I guess. I can’t explain why or what I’m feeling, Patti…” She spread a hand over her stomach. “It’s here, something deep in my gut. Charlie and I paid her a visit last night to question her about Dale Peters’ death. She had no alibi—she’d finished work at six, she could’ve easily followed him home and killed him. And now this. Obviously, I’ll need to check if she stayed at home last night after we left or not. She did tell us she had to get up early, so I presumed she would’ve climbed into bed not long after we left.”

“Maybe she did. What about coincidence, or doesn’t that come into it?”

“You know I’m not really a believer in that. Okay, let’s set that aside for now. Tell me how he died.”

“He was clobbered is the best way to describe it, numerous times. Maybe the perpetrator carried out the attack over a few minutes, having a conversation in between, but the man suffered a fractured skull in several places, a broken jaw, plus dozens of other bones on his arms and legs. I will be noting this down as a frenzied attack, and you know what that means.”

“I believe you’re intimating that the perpetrator knew him well.”

“That’s often the case and would be my first port of call with any assumption I’m likely to make either before, during or after the post-mortem.”

“Good to know. Shit, what a way to go out and in similar circumstances to the second victim. By that, I mean, out in the sticks. Why? I’m taking it that the perp knows where these guys live, follows them and attacks once there is no chance of someone witnessing the murders.”

“I think you’re right. The perp would definitely need to know where these guys live and the possible route they’re likely to take home. Why would people pull over whilst driving, would you?”

“Nope, not a cat in hell’s chance. What if the perp was coming in the opposite direction and blocked their path?”

“Plausible, I suppose. Who knows? I think the only person likely to tell us that would be the perp themselves.”

Katy nodded and scanned the lit area. “Any DNA or evidence around?”

“Nothing so far.”

“What type of weapon do you think they used, Patti?”

“Hard to say. My guess would be a heavy bar, possibly a crowbar. I’ll be able to give a definitive answer after—”

“The PM,” Katy finished off for her.

“How did you guess? Anyway, that’s as much as I can tell you. Sorry for getting you out of bed early, I hope you can forgive me for that.”

“Nothing to forgive. If you believe the crimes are linked, then yes, I should be here. I don’t mind telling you, Patti, I don’t know where to turn with this investigation. We’re desperate for some form of evidence to show up, aren’t we?”

“Too right. I have a suggestion to make, but you can tell me to butt out if you want.”

“Go on, I’m all ears.”

“Would it be worth putting a tail on your prime suspect?”

“I think I’m veering that way. At least if we tail her, we can pounce if we feel she’s about to bump someone else off. Getting back to the victims: if she is guilty of killing them, we need to find out what her motive is. It would take a lot of angst to kill your own father, right?”

“Angst and a vast amount of courage. What age is she?”

“Around the twenty-eight mark, I believe.”

“So, if, and it’s a big if, she’s the guilty party, something must have happened lately to have triggered