Fatal Love Read online

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54

  Chapter 55

  Chapter 56

  Chapter 57

  Chapter 58

  Chapter 59

  Chapter 60

  Fatal Love

  Michael Patterson

  Books in the Tom Stone series by Michael Patterson

  Playing at Murder

  Deadly Retribution

  Ring of Truth

  Death or Honour

  Fatal Love

  Crescent books Copyright © 2019 Michael Patterson

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or

  transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical

  including photocopying, recording or any information storage or

  retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from

  the publisher.

  The right of Michael Patterson to be identified as the author of this

  work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright,

  Designs and Patents Act 1988

  First published in the United Kingdom in 2019 by

  Crescent Books Publishing

  ISBN 978-0-9569798-9-6

  To my father-in-law, Jack. It was an honour to have known you!

  Chapter 1

  While DS Milner was reading him his rights, Commander Jenkins didn’t take his eyes off DCI Stone once.

  ‘You really don’t know what you are doing, do you?’ Commander Jenkins asked at last, in a surprisingly calm tone, but nonetheless with a look on his face which bordered on contempt. He didn’t wait for a reply. ‘You just couldn’t wait. I told you that I would soon be retiring.’ He paused. ‘This will soon be revealed for what it really is. A vindictive witch hunt led by an attention-seeking, delusional and renegade police officer. What is almost as inexcusable is that you have also now involved other, more junior officers in your scheming obsession.’

  Moments earlier DCI Tom Stone had announced he was arresting the commander for perverting the course of justice, as well as encouraging a third party to commit a crime. This was related to a case DCI Stone had recently been working on. A case which involved two deaths, indirectly caused and deliberately covered up by Commander Jenkins, a senior officer within the Metropolitan Police Force, and Charles Cope, currently a government minister in charge of UK security. Cope would also be arrested before long.

  Commander Jenkins now turned his attention to DS Milner. ‘And you, whatever your name is, might not know it, but you’ve just ended your own police career before it has even got started.’

  Milner didn’t respond. Instead, he simply said, ‘You are now to accompany us to the station, where you will be formally charged.’

  In the face of Commander Jenkins’ obvious attempt to intimidate him, Tom couldn’t help but admire Milner’s assertiveness.

  ‘Does the Commissioner know about this?’ asked Commander Jenkins, this time in a less aggressive tone of voice.

  It was Tom who replied. ‘He was informed a few minutes ago by one of my officers.’

  A thin smile appeared on Commander Jenkins’ face. ‘So you hadn’t told him? Have you even considered the consequences of what you are doing for the Met? It will be a PR disaster for the force.’

  ‘Or a triumph,’ replied Tom, albeit not too convincingly.

  Chapter 2

  Later that same morning Tom was seated in the Commissioner’s office. There, along with Sir Peter Westwood, were DCS Small and Tom’s immediate boss, Superintendent Howard Birch. Unsurprisingly, given the media interest which would undoubtedly be generated, Sir Peter had convened this meeting as soon as he had become aware of Commander Jenkins’ arrest.

  ‘I thought we had all agreed,’ said Sir Peter, looking directly at Tom, ‘that Commander Jenkins and Charles Cope would both relinquish their current roles at some point in the future.’ He glanced at Superintendent Birch. ‘I’ve already taken the liberty of briefing Superintendent Birch concerning the evidence you have compiled against the two of them.’ He then returned his gaze to Tom. ‘Anyway, what changed?’

  ‘What changed?’ repeated Tom, having anticipated this question. ‘What changed was the fact that a concerted campaign, designed to discredit me, was being conducted by someone in a senior position within the force. I suspect strongly that Commander Jenkins and possibly Charles Cope were at the forefront of this campaign. I was just about willing to accept that they would, at some point in the future, leave their respective positions, but when this happened it changed things completely. Suddenly, rather than Commander Jenkins and Charles Cope being the guilty parties, it had become me. You must have seen all of the media coverage relating to the Emmanuel Aphron case?’

  This was a murder case which Tom had just concluded. During the investigation Tom had come under an increasing and at times quite vitriolic personal attack. An attack which, as far as Tom was concerned, could only have been orchestrated by Commander Jenkins in an attempt to discredit him and therefore protect the commander’s position.

  ‘You say that you suspect Commander Jenkins and Charles Cope were involved,’ said Sir Peter. ‘You know, however, that suspicion is not the same as evidence. Unless you have that evidence there is no way this would actually get to court, let alone secure a conviction. You must have known that.’

  ‘Of course I did, sir,’ replied Tom, ‘but what was I supposed to do?’ There was a momentary silence before he carried on. ‘I took the view that simply letting this happen was not an option. I didn’t, and frankly still don’t, care what happens to me. I came to the conclusion that it was better to finally put a stop to all of this. My only regret is that I didn’t do it much earlier.’

  Another brief silence followed. This time, though, it was Sir Peter who spoke, in a surprisingly positive tone given the circumstances of their meeting. ‘Incidentally, many congratulations with the Aphron case.’ He paused. ‘At one stage it didn’t look too good for you, did it?’

  Tom redirected his attention towards DCS Small. ‘It didn’t. Especially when DCS Small informed me that he was taking me off the case, due to the increasingly negative coverage about me in the press.’

  Before the tension could increase any further, Sir Peter said, with a slight laugh, ‘Well, thank God you beat him to it. I’m sure DCS Small is mightily relieved that y
ou solved the case before it happened.’

  By now all three were looking at DCS Small, waiting for a response. That response, when it came, was surprising and had the effect of immediately reducing the tension.

  ‘Well, yes,’ he said. ‘It wouldn’t have looked too good for me, would it?’ He shook his head. ‘I think I owe you an apology, Tom. I should have trusted you. But, I’m afraid, at the time I was more swayed by speculation and innuendo, rather than the evidence available. It was an error of judgement on my part. I do hope this doesn’t damage our relationship irretrievably.’ He paused. ‘If it’s any consolation, I have offered to resign.’

  ‘Which, incidentally, I have not accepted,’ said Sir Peter, quickly.

  DCS Small held out his hand towards Tom. For the briefest of moments it was unclear what Tom’s reaction would be. Finally, though, he too held out his hand and said, ‘I suppose it’s possible I might have done the same, if I had been in your shoes.’

  ‘Good. Well, at least that has been sorted out,’ said a clearly relieved Sir Peter. ‘Now, how are we going to handle the Jenkins situation?’ It was not missed by all of the others that his previous, formal reference to Commander Jenkins had now been dropped.

  ‘I understand lawyers for both Charles Cope and Commander Jenkins – and this is highly confidential – have already applied for their immediate release,’ said DCS Small. ‘I don’t know, at this early stage, if they are likely to be successful. But I’m sure we will soon find out.’

  ‘Release?’ asked Tom. ‘Do you mean on bail?’

  ‘At this stage, we really don’t know,’ Sir Peter said. ‘I understand, due to the security implications, this is now with the Home Secretary. In the meantime, let’s do everything by the book. The very last thing we need right now is for it to fall down due to an administrative or technical cock-up.’

  ‘It’s not a cock-up. It’s starting to look more like a cover-up,’ said Tom, anger once again in his voice.

  Sir Peter didn’t immediately respond, instead waiting for Tom’s anger to dissipate. When he did speak, however, it was in quite an assertive manner. ‘There will be no cover-up whilst I’m in charge. As I said, we do everything by the book.’ He then added, in a friendlier tone, ‘You look tired, Tom. My strong suggestion is that you take a couple of weeks off. You need to recharge your batteries and be ready if this does come to trial.’

  ‘If it comes to trial?’ asked Tom, emphasising his first word. ‘Why on earth would there be any doubt?’

  It was DCS Small who answered. ‘The thing is, Tom, when you covertly recorded your conversation with Commander Jenkins you did so using police equipment and without the appropriate approval.’ He paused momentarily. ‘I can totally understand why you did it, but Commander Jenkins and Charles Cope’s lawyers are likely to have a field day with this. I don’t need to tell you that, in past cases where this has happened, any recordings have proved to be inadmissible. In fact, in a few cases it has been deemed to be illegal.’

  Once again everyone was looking at Tom for a response. When he spoke at last, it was, perhaps, not the response they were expecting.

  ‘I don’t care any more,’ he said, almost in a tone of resignation. ‘You have my evidence. I’ve arrested both of them. It’s up to you to now do with it as you wish.’

  There was an extended period of silence whilst everyone took in what Tom had just said. Eventually, Sir Peter said, ‘Tom, I can sense your frustration. All I can say is that you have the total support of all of us in this room.’

  It was clear to everyone that a but was about to follow. It didn’t take long.

  ‘But,’ he added, ‘I have to warn you now, the fact this has potential national security implications will inevitably mean that it will be taken out of our hands. After that, I can’t really say what the final outcome will be. I’m sorry, but I’m only trying to be open and honest with you.’

  ‘Well, at least someone is being honest,’ answered Tom, with a hint of sarcasm.

  It was DS Birch who next spoke. ‘Why don’t you take some holiday leave? You’ve certainly earned it. I’m not sure what else you can do anyway – at least in the short term. Emotions are understandably running high right now. A few weeks away from all of this, I’m sure, would help. There’s also the distinct possibility that news of the arrests will leak out. If that does happen then the press will be all over you.’

  When Tom replied it was in a surprisingly calm and conciliatory manner. ‘You are probably right. I do feel physically and emotionally drained.’ Realising what he had just said, he quickly added, ‘That doesn’t mean I’m ready to be put out to grass yet, though. I’ve still got a few years left.’

  ‘Okay, that’s all agreed, then,’ said Sir Peter. He looked directly at Tom. ‘Yes? Agreed?’

  In truth Tom had never really enjoyed holidays. In fact, over the years, he had come to realise his commitment to the job, ahead of his family life, was one of the reasons why his marriage to Anne had failed. Right now, though, he genuinely was feeling tired and drained and could see the advantages of taking a short break.

  Nonetheless, it was with something less than total enthusiasm that he answered, ‘Agreed.’

  Chapter 3

  ‘So, what happened?’ asked Mary, almost before Tom had set foot through the front door of their house. It was later in the evening and, unsurprisingly, Mary had been on tenterhooks all day. Although Tom was not the type of person who readily showed his feelings and emotions, she had, nonetheless, over the preceding days, recognised the signs suggesting a build-up in his stress levels. Of more concern, though, were the clear indications of his inner turmoil.

  Tom and Mary had been together for a couple of years now, with Tom moving into her house in Bagshot just a few months earlier. Initially, it had been agreed that this would be a temporary move, allowing Mary to take better care of him during his rehabilitation. During an earlier investigation, Tom had been shot by the son of a criminal he had previously arrested. Whilst his injuries were not life-threatening, they had necessitated regular physiotherapy, together with time for rest and recovery.

  The temporary arrangement had, however, turned into a more permanent move, and in fact Tom had recently even put his own house, in Staines, onto the market.

  Tom and Mary had originally met via a dating website, something which Tom, even now, could not quite believe he had actually subscribed to. Although he’d had one or two brief relationships since he and Anne had divorced, the truth was that he hadn’t entered into them with any great enthusiasm. It always seemed as though his career, somehow, had managed to get in the way.

  Indeed, this was probably the reason why his marriage to Anne had failed. Even the birth of their son, Paul, early into their marriage hadn’t changed his priorities and, in retrospect, that was probably the final factor. Anne and Paul had subsequently emigrated to Australia and, over the years, contact had been lost completely.

  Recently, Tom had begun to think more and more about Paul. With those thoughts, though, came an increasing sense of guilt and shame. Guilt about the reason for the marriage breakdown and shame that he hadn’t even tried to find out what sort of life his son had made for himself in Australia.

  When Tom and Mary had met, he had undoubtedly been at the lowest point of his career. Although, at the time, he was only in his early fifties, he felt much older. His enthusiasm and energy levels had reduced appreciably, and it just seemed, both to himself and to his colleagues, that he was simply passing time until he could retire. Looking back, he could now see how he had been in danger of descending into a sort of spiralling paranoia. He no longer seemed to be assigned to any of the more complex or interesting cases and, worse, felt his colleagues, some of whom he had worked alongside for many years, were all too aware of this and had started to feel sorry for him. During his career, he had always looked forward to going to work, but at this time he had begun to almost dread the thought. He spent most of the night awake, thinking these thoughts
, and then spent his work day looking for details that supported his pessimistic mental narrative.

  The one good thing that had come out of this period of his life was that, for some inexplicable reason, he had decided to subscribe to the ‘Never Too Old for Love’ dating website, and it was through this that he had met Mary.

  Coinciding with this personal milestone, his career had suddenly taken a dramatic turn for the better. He had become involved in one of the most high-profile serial murder investigations of recent times, almost by accident, and it was largely due to Tom’s contribution that the case had finally been resolved, resulting in him becoming a media celebrity. More importantly, as far as he was concerned, it had renewed his love of policing.

  Since then his reputation had continued to increase, especially as he had been brought back into some of the more interesting cases, which provided him with the opportunity to demonstrate his true investigative skills. In fact, his professional reputation had never been higher. But his natural wariness was never far away and he knew that what could go up quickly could just as quickly come down again. This defence mechanism, he knew, was an integral part of his personality and, in many ways, had served him well over the years. Experience had told him that there was always something, just around the corner, which he might suddenly crash into.

  Perhaps he had crashed into it already. There was a real danger that, by taking action against Commander Jenkins and Charles Cope, he had destroyed his career. Mary had known his intentions and the risks, but, to his surprise, she still gave him her unconditional support.

  ‘Did you do it?’ Mary asked now, before Tom could reply to her first question.

  ‘I did,’ he answered in a matter-of-fact tone.

  ‘Well?’ she said, the inflection in her voice making clear her impatience.

  By now they were both standing in the kitchen. ‘Of course, Commander Jenkins made all manner of threats. In fact, he even threatened Milner.’