Page 137 of Slack Tide Kill

The weight of that swelled and filled her. An officer lost, and she'd been so close. Maybe she could have done more.

Maybe…

She caught movement in the corridor outside their training room. Liam. His tall frame, sharp black suit and quiffed black hairstyle struck her like an island of familiarity.

She went to meet him.

He saw her, blinked, and they stopped a few feet apart. No hug, no words even, but there was something there. Something building.

"Good to see you, Sally," Liam said.

She smiled. "You too, Liam."

DI Gemmell approached from the side and nodded. "Ma'am."

"It's Sally, Stephen. Anything new on Spate?"

"Bits and pieces." He gestured over to the table where the team sat. Three officers, battered by events, who'd recently lost a colleague. Sally saw the weight of that bearing down on them, as well as the drive to do something about it.

They headed over.

"Ma'am," the team chorused. "Sir."

Gemmell cleared his throat. "We began by running down all Spate's businesses, ma'am, especially those he was invested in with Reginald Rook."

"Physical searches?"

"Nothing like that, I'm afraid. As far as we can see, there are no premises. Spate sourced it all through Reg, and he kept his gear, like the digger, either at the reactor or Umberside Lodge. No other physical presence, assets, or land."

"And we already searched the Lodge extensively," Simms added. "CSM Akilota's team have been over every inch of that place."

Sally turned to him. Even the big man looked battered. She hadn't thought about Umberside Lodge in days.

"So we're back onto conspiracy," Liam said. "The fifth Rook."

"The DCI's already asked Roarke about accomplices," Gemmell said. "Multiple times. He said no every time."

"But she didn't know what we know now."

"He's in the interview room currently, ma'am. Sally. You want to take a run at him?"

Sally looked at the corridor leading to IR1. Roarke Rook. Her lips felt dry. "I don't think he's going to talk. At least not yet, with what we've got so far." She glanced toward DCI Mayhew. "And something tells me we'll only get one shot."

"Agreed," Liam said. "We need leverage."

"So we're back to Spate."

"The best friend," Gemmell said. He held out a thick wallet of papers. "There's plenty here, and on Meeks. Not much new, though."

"Still, thank you. Keep digging." She looked around at their expectant eyes. It felt like something more was needed, but she didn't know what to say. Words didn't count for much at a time like this. The only thing that mattered was taking the killer down.

"We'll get this bastard," Liam said, seizing the moment. "For Emily."

"Damn straight," Simms said abruptly.

"Then let's go."

"Oh." Simms rose to his feet. "One moment, sir, ma'am." He sped away down a corridor.