Contents ( 83)
- ONE
- TWO
- THREE
- FOUR
- FIVE
- SIX
- SEVEN
- EIGHT
- NINE
- TEN
- ELEVEN
- TWELVE
- THIRTEEN
- FOURTEEN
- FIFTEEN
- SIXTEEN
- SEVENTEEN
- EIGHTEEN
- NINETEEN
- TWENTY
- TWENTY-ONE
- TWENTY-TWO
- TWENTY-THREE
- TWENTY-FOUR
- TWENTY-FIVE
- TWENTY-SIX
- TWENTY-SEVEN
- TWENTY-EIGHT
- TWENTY-NINE
- THIRTY
- THIRTY-ONE
- THIRTY-TWO
- THIRTY-THREE
- THIRTY-FOUR
- THIRTY-FIVE
- THIRTY-SIX
- THIRTY-SEVEN
- THIRTY-EIGHT
- THIRTY-NINE
- FORTY
- FORTY-ONE
- FORTY-TWO
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-THREE
- FORTY-FOUR
- FORTY-FIVE
- FORTY-SIX
- FORTY-SEVEN
- FORTY-EIGHT
- FORTY-NINE
- FIFTY
- FIFTY-ONE
- FIFTY-TWO
- FIFTY-THREE
- FIFTY-FOUR
- FIFTY-FIVE
- FIFTY-SIX
- FIFTY-SEVEN
- FIFTY-EIGHT
- FIFTY-NINE
- SIXTY
- SIXTY-ONE
- SIXTY-TWO
- SIXTY-THREE
- SIXTY-FOUR
- SIXTY-FIVE
- SIXTY-SIX
- SIXTY-SEVEN
- SIXTY-EIGHT
- SIXTY-NINE
- SEVENTY
- SEVENTY-ONE
- SEVENTY-TWO
- SEVENTY-THREE
- SEVENTY-FOUR
- SEVENTY-FIVE
- SEVENTY-SIX
- SEVENTY-SEVEN
- SEVENTY-EIGHT
- SEVENTY-NINE
- Acknowledgements
- OUT NOW IN PAPERBACK
‘And yet his building was raided, which led to a shoot-out in the middle of Brixton.’ If Hale’s response had also persuaded Rogers, it had not made him happy. Rogers continued. ‘Which is another incident – within twenty-four hours – of public violence brought about by a misconceived arrest by MIT officers. Does no one else see the problem with this?’
‘But it led to a major drugs bust, sir.’ Levy interceded on Hale’s behalf. ‘The biggest on British soil in a decade. Surely that justifies it?’
‘Guns, Joelle. Fired on the street of London.’ Rogers’ voice was rising close to a shout. ‘We cannot have that happening for the wrong reasons, regardless of who fires first. This isn’t about right and wrong. It’s about perception. About how it will be reported. We cannot have our officers in pitched shoot-outs for arrests that turn out to be groundless.
‘The drugs were lucky. Justification after the fact. But if the press gets wind that the reason for the raid in the first place was bad intelligence? A false conclusion? Dare I say it, bad police work? What the hell happens then? I’ll tell you what happens. We get the same treatment as Longman. We get bloody crucified. That’s what happens.’
No one responded. Not Levy. Not Hale. Not Walker. All stayed silent. Rooted to their chairs as Rogers rose from his own. They watched as he walked around the room. As he used its square footage to the full. The Chief Superintendent thought carefully as he paced to the door and back. Once. Twice. Three times before retaking his seat.
‘Burrell was behind Ferris’s death.’ Rogers’ voice was firm when he finally spoke. ‘That’s the official line, for now at least. I want you giving a press conference on that within the hour.’
‘But sir, he wasn’t. Surely you can—’
Hale was interrupted by Rogers’ raised hand.
‘The truth is irrelevant on this one, Inspector. It’s not like there’s going to be a trial anyway. Not since you killed the bastard.’
‘Can I ask why, sir?’ Levy spoke on Hale’s behalf. ‘I mean, if Steve has to lie. Doesn’t he deserve a reason?’
‘I don’t think he deserves anything, Joelle. But perhaps it will assist him in the future if he understands.’
Rogers turned to Hale.
‘The public need to have faith in us, Inspector. They need to know that when we raid a gangster’s lair and risk a gun battle in which civilians could have been killed, that we do so for the right reasons. That we do so because we know what the bastards have done. You secured your search warrant on the basis of Ferris’s murder. That can’t be changed. But if suddenly we were wrong about the murder? Well, that’s public confidence all gone to hell, isn’t it. And you can bet your bottom dollar that the press would happily expose it. So Burrell had Ferris killed. Now he’s gone too and everyone is happy. Understood?’
Levy saw Hale glance at her uncertainly. She sympathised; what he was being asked to do was outside of his experience. Hale was a cop. Not a politician.