BLOOD STAINED an unputdownable crime thriller with a breathtaking twist (Detective Claudia Nunn Book by Rebecca Bradley (rooftoppers .TXT) 📕

Dominic inclined his head, little understanding the scale of banking across the world. It wasn’t important though, having no bearing on why they were there. ‘You supervise Alex Chapman?’

‘He’s part of the team, yes.’ The tip of her tongue ran along her lower lip which was glossy red.

‘Was he at work eight days ago?’

‘Yes,’ she said.

‘How can you be so sure, without checking?’ asked Dominic.

She crossed one leg over the other. ‘I don’t need to check. Alex is dedicated, like everyone here, and I can’t remember the last time he took a day off.’

Hayley scribbled in her notebook.

‘What’s he like?’ asked Dominic.

She let out a sigh, which reminded Dominic of Alex. Was everyone here impatient with the world around them?

‘Like I said, he’s dedicated.’

‘As a person,’ Dominic clarified.

The woman leaned back in her chair. The chair relaxed with her, then bounced back to its original position. Behind her, through the huge window that framed her desk, the sky was grey and heavy. ‘I’m not quite sure what you mean.’

Dominic tried to keep his own patience. ‘Is he a calm man? It must be a very stressful job.’

‘Alex is excellent at his job. The team couldn’t run without him. He gels very well with his colleagues and we’ve had no complaints about him.’

It wasn’t much. ‘Has he said much about his divorce, his ex-wife?’

‘Not to me. He tends to keep his personal life personal. This is a busy office, we don’t have time for heart-to-hearts.’

It sounded like a pretty cold place to work if you asked him. He thanked her for her time and they were, again, hand-delivered back downstairs to the atrium.

‘We didn’t get much from this visit.’ Hayley tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

‘No, but we did get a bigger picture of a cold-fish of a man. One who isn’t really connected to people. Who works with numbers all day and goes home to an empty house. Who will view the fact that Maddy had custody of their son as a loss in his eyes. He won’t have liked that.’

They handed their lanyards in to the man behind the glossy white desk and walked towards the huge glass entrance doors.

‘You really do fancy him for this, don’t you?’ Hayley was mesmerised by the silent hush as the doors slid open in front of them. There was real money here.

‘I’m not making the narrative fit the man. I’ll wait him out until we have real evidence. But, yeah, I get a real uneasy feeling from him.’

* * *

Back in the incident room Dominic updated the team and HOLMES. Hayley sent Rhys into the kitchen to make a brew. He grumbled as he stalked out of the room, a tray of empty mugs clattering in his hands.

Dominic was engrossed in HOLMES when the door to the incident room was quietly opened and one of the front counter staff crept in and handed the day’s post out onto the relevant desks. There were two items for Dominic which she placed beside him. He ignored them and continued tapping away at his keyboard, writing in reasons Alex Chapman should remain a person of interest. One whom they should refer to when any evidence came to light or God forbid, any further murders occurred. Dominic was aware there was an underlying personal dislike on his part, but there was also sound logic dictating Chapman be kept in mind.

He finished typing as Rhys walked back in with a tray filled with fresh drinks, followed by Kapoor. He was looking for an update.

‘Just what I need.’ Dominic grinned at his DC. ‘Thanks, mate.’ He lifted a mug from the tray that was presented to him and placed it on his desk. ‘We haven’t got much to tell,’ he said to Kapoor. ‘I’ve just typed it all up on HOLMES.’

‘You think he’s good for it?’ asked Kapoor.

‘Thinking he’s good for it and being able to prove anything are two different things entirely.’ He looked down at the two envelopes that had been left on his desk. One in a brown, official looking envelope. It was a report from Social Care on a couple of children that were involved in a case they had picked up six months ago.

‘Did you even boil the kettle?’ asked Paul, scowling at his coffee.

‘Make it yourself next time.’ Rhys wasn’t impressed.

Dominic picked up the second envelope. This one was white and slim.

‘Any further work to do on Chapman?’ Kapoor asked.

Dominic shook his head as he ran his finger along the edge of the envelope to tear it open. ‘I think it’s just a matter of waiting to see what evidence we get and bearing Chapman in mind.’ He pulled out the single sheet of paper that was contained within. He read it, his brain not quite connecting with what his eyes were seeing. He raised his arm as though in school. ‘Erm, sir.’

Kapoor looked at him. ‘What is it, Dom?’

‘I think we might have a problem.’

‘More of a problem than the one we’re discussing?’

Dom looked down at the paper again. ‘Well it’s related.’ He waved the sheet in the air. ‘We’ve had contact, boss.’

Kapoor’s eyebrows shot up to his hairline. ‘What?’

‘I’ve received a letter that appears to be from the killer. Sent directly to me.’

‘Drop the letter onto your desk,’ demanded Kapoor. ‘We need to get a CSI up here to retrieve it and get it fingerprinted, and tested for DNA if he’s licked the envelope.’

As Dominic let go of the sheet of paper it fluttered down to his desk. A desk he was now unable to work from.

‘Can you still see what it says?’ Kapoor asked.

Dominic peered at the sheet. It had been folded