One of the girls got up to answer it and two well-dressed women came into the room.

JoJo stood up and took them out to the kitchen. Joey watched from his vantage point on the floor as they did the deal. Three thousand tabs of Ecstasy were handed over for a thick wad of notes.

Joey relaxed, happy in the knowledge that for the next few weeks at least, the place wouldn’t run dry of drugs. It was just as the two women were leaving that the pandemonium started. Police seemed to be crawling everywhere.

Lizzy was so far gone by this time that she just smiled at them as they took her out to the meat wagon.

Kate and Caitlin were both going over ‘suspect’ evidence. This involved taking apart any statements made by known offenders and seeing if they could pinpoint a flaw somewhere along the line. As yet they had got precisely nowhere.

Caitlin yawned loudly.

‘There’s nothing here, Katie, you know that and I know that. This man, whoever he is, isn’t your normal nutter. He’s one of the new breed.’

Kate smiled despite herself. ‘New breed?’

‘Sure isn’t that what I just said? I’ve noticed over the years that the violent attacks are changing subtly. If you go back to the fifties and sixties, there were a few killers around like this one. But their attacks, bad as they were - well, they weren’t as violent as now. Look at this man we have here. He batters the girls to death. Now most rapists get off on their domination of the woman. The struggling, the fear, the knowledge that they are committing the worst violation a woman can experience. This chappie here, though, he seems to want them still. As still as death, in fact. It’s almost if he wants the ultimate submission. As if the woman’s acquiescing, if you like. Giving him permission.’

Kate stared at Caitlin’s ruddy face and nodded. ‘I think I understand you. But even knowing that, we’re still as far from finding him as we are from the Holy Grail.’ Her voice was flat.

‘Oh, we’ll find him, don’t you fret. It’s just when. That’s the bastard of it all. When. He’ll make a mistake. They always do.’

The phone on their desk rang and Kate picked it up. Caitlin watched her face register astonishment.

‘I’ll be right there.’

‘What is it, Katie? Another one?’ Caitlin’s voice held disbelief.

‘Oh, no, it’s not another murder. But it could bloody well end up as one.’

Picking up her bag she rushed from the incident room, leaving him staring after her.

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen

Kate slammed into her house, banging the front door behind her. Dan and Evelyn heard her stamping up the stairs and both followed her. They found her in Lizzy’s bedroom, systematically tearing the room apart.