‘What about her?’

‘Don’t you want to find out who killed her?’

‘Of course I do. That’s why the murder detectives are there.’

‘But they aren’t any closer to finding out who did it than they were at the beginning. I’m the best shot you’ve got at finding out who killed her and you know it.’

‘Look, Bailey, it made sense for you to investigate the murders if it seemed like they might tie into the drugs. But now that’s finished for the time being, there’s no reason for you to be in there any longer. The operation is over. We’re pulling you out.’

‘I’m not leaving,’ she said bluntly.

‘You’re what?’ She could visualise the disbelieving expression on his face.

‘You heard me. I’m staying.’

‘That’s insubordination.’

‘I have to find out who killed Alice. And the other girls. And I have to find out why. I owe it to her.’

‘You’re letting it get personal. That’s not professional.’

‘You could have used someone else instead of me, but you knew Alice was my friend and you knew that because of that I’d be much more motivated to get to the bottom of whatever was happening in here. And now you want me to forget about her?’

‘I’m worried about you, Bailey,’ he said gently. ‘You’re in there all alone with no backup and I’m worried that the psychological pressure of working undercover is getting to you. Maybe I made a mistake in asking you to come back. Maybe you weren’t ready.’

‘You didn’t make a mistake. And I appreciate that you care about me. I know that you cared about Alice in the same way. And I know that you’re itching to find out what happened to her just like I am. You owe it to her almost as much as I do. She was one of us, remember?’

There was a silence on the other end of the phone. She knew she had him on the fence.

‘Bailey, I don’t have any choice in the matter. The drugs squad own this operation and they’re the ones who—’

‘Tell them I’m working a new angle,’ she said. ‘Tell them anything. Just stall them until I’ve found out a bit more information. Something’s going on in here, Frank. Something very odd. And I’m determined to get to the bottom of it. It killed Alice. And it killed Poodle, Natalie and Sharon. And if I’m not mistaken it’s going to kill more inmates before we’re through. And we don’t want their blood on our hands, do we?’

‘Nice to know you care about them even if they’d likely kill you if they found out who you really were.’

Ignoring him, she pressed on. ‘You’ll do it won’t you, Frank? You’ll stall the drugs squad for me. You’ll buy me a little more time.’

There was another silence, a longer one. And then an audible sigh.

‘All right, Bailey. You win. I forgot just how stubborn you can be. I guess that’s one of the reasons you’re so good. You never give up.’ He paused. ‘You’ve got two weeks, maximum. If you can’t establish anything solid by then, we’re pulling you out. End of story.’