Jane wondered if it was true, or if Kingston was just trying to make out he was on her side so she’d soften towards him.

‘If you’re just trying it on again, you can forget it – I’m not interested.’ She got in her car.

He put his hand on the door as she tried to close it.

‘I meant it when I said it wouldn’t happen again. I like you as a person – and I respect you as a detective – but believe me, if what you’ve uncovered gets positive results, Murphy will take the credit for all your hard work then drop you like a ton of bricks.’

‘Leave me alone!’ she said, slamming the door shut.

He pulled his hand away just in time.

‘Have it your way, but don’t say I didn’t warn you.’

She started the engine, shoved it into first gear and sped off, leaving him on the pavement, shaking his head.

On the way home, she nearly went through a red light. What Kingston said had really touched a nerve. She no longer felt so sure about anything. Either he was lying about Murphy to try and get her into bed, or Murphy was just using her until he could kick her off the squad. She even began to wonder if Stanley was playing games with her when he said the rest of the team were impressed with her work. Her good mood had definitely vanished.

‘Screw ’em all!’ she said to herself.

From now on she was just going to focus on the investigation and keep a detailed record of everything she did, to cover her back. That way, she knew, if it was her hard work that solved the Leytonstone robbery, then no one could take it away from her.

Chapter Twenty

CHAPTER TWENTY

Jane had a cheese sandwich and a glass of wine when she got home, then went to bed, but she found it hard to get to sleep, unable to get what Kingston had said out of her mind. Eventually she gave up, got out of bed and switched on the TV, then lay on the sofa under her duvet to watch the late film. It was New Face in Hell, starring George Peppard as a private eye who’s set up for a murder by Raymond Burr. It was odd seeing Burr playing a bad guy, as she always thought of him as Ironside, the San Francisco detective in a wheelchair. The film was gripping enough to take her mind off the evening’s events but, feeling exhausted, she switched it off before the end and went back to bed. She fell asleep almost at once.