‘Will, what’s going on? I’ve never known you behave like this. Why did Ormond make such a rash decision? It’s all gone tits-up; it was a folly on a gigantic scale. Did he get it past the chief constable?’

‘Yes.’

‘How the hell?’

‘He’s very convincing.’

‘I can see that! This derails everything we’ve done so far to finally break down some barriers on the Beacon Estate. It makes us look like fools!’

‘Ma’am—’

‘Call me Kelly, for Christ’s sake, Will. We’re behind closed doors.’

‘Kelly, I…’

‘Tell me! What is it?’

‘I can’t.’ He sat down heavily and put his head in his hands.

Kelly was taken by surprise and utterly confused. She also sat down and reached across her desk, placing her hand gently on his arm.

‘Will? What is it? Is it that Ormond doesn’t think I’m getting answers quickly enough? Is it his friendship with Thomas Watson?’

‘I think he thought he could pull it off and look the hero.’

‘But you didn’t believe that, did you? What about Liam?’

‘It’s not easy for me and Liam to disobey orders. We came from a place we don’t talk about. Ormond has been telling us what to do our whole careers. When you arrived, I thought it would all be different. And it is! You’re not in his pocket at all, and he hates that.’

Kelly thought about what Will was telling her and it made her confusion even worse.

‘Who the hell is in charge of this investigation? I need to be sure of my position and your loyalty. I’m forbidding you to have direct contact with Superintendent Ormond without going through me, do you understand?’

He laughed, and Kelly pulled her hand away.

‘You have no idea what you’re dealing with, do you?’ he said.

Chapter 21

Jackson’s brow was covered in sweat. Since the coppers had left, he’d been pacing up and down trying to make a decision. He kept looking out of the window from which he’d seen Keira Bradley arguing with Tyrone. The whole estate had erupted into chaos and he’d given the two officers a couple of old jackets that he knew he’d never see again to escape unnoticed from the estate.

He’d never witnessed anything like it. Sharon Bradley seemed to have mobilised an army and Jackson felt something stir inside him that he hadn’t experienced for a long time: pride. He heard noises outside and wondered if it was all kicking off again. He flicked on the TV: the footage was all over the news. News channels were calling it a raid. The police had been made to look like dicks. Some high-ranking bird had given a statement backing the force, yet at the same time praising the residents of the estate as heroes for helping with ongoing inquiries. What a load of horse shit.