08 - Murmuring the Judges by Quintin Jardine

Author:Quintin Jardine [Quintin Jardine]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Headline Publishing Group Ltd
Published: 2012-02-10T05:08:31+00:00

37

The acting Chief Constable looked around the drab meeting room in the Musselburgh Police Station. ‘It’s a fucking awful place this, Andy,’ he said. ‘All that’s missing are a few bloodstains on the walls, or it would pass for a Stasi interrogation centre.

‘First thing tomorrow, I’m going to take a look at our renovation programme. If this place isn’t right at the top, I’m going to put it there.’

Martin laughed. ‘That’s right, Boss. What’s the use of having all that power if you don’t use it? You seem to be settling well into Proud Jimmy’s chair.’

Skinner shot him a dark frown. ‘Don’t you believe it, mate. I’ve made three decisions today, and I’m almost certain of a fourth. The first was to go to Raglan’s with Pringle and Steele. No way would Jimmy have done that, nor I if I was full-time in the job. Yet if I hadn’t, Stevie would be dead now, and probably Pringle too. Christ, those Russian bastards might have killed everyone in the place.’

He let out a weary sigh. ‘The second thing I did was to end the career of PC Mark Green. It had to be done, but I hated it, even though I did my best to let the lad go with dignity. Christ, Andy, he even thanked me at the end.

‘And the business with Karen Neville, that was as embarrassing for me as it was for her.’ He broke off with a smile. ‘Man, but you should have seen Maggie Rose’s face when she thought I was going to transfer her to Special Branch beside her Mario!’

‘Aye,’ Martin responded with feeling. ‘But just you make sure that Alex doesn’t get to hear any of this now that she’s coming to work for me!’

Skinner put a hand across his mouth. ‘The matter is closed. Neville’s learned her lesson, and she starts with a clean slate.’

‘I’ll keep an eye on her and Sammy though, just in case. Anyway, what’s your fourth decision?’

The DCC stared out of the dirty window. ‘That’s about me, Andy. I’ve just about made up my mind that I don’t want to be Chief; here or anywhere else.’

‘What! That’s a bit premature, isn’t it? You’ve only been doing the job for two days.’

‘Even so.’ His right index finger stabbed out, pointing towards the street. ‘I belong out there. I belong alongside Dan Pringle and you, and all the other people putting their lives at risk, not stuck in a big office taking run-of-the-mill decisions, and not playing politics with bloody councillors.

‘Know what I did with Topham today? I threw her out of my office. She came in whining about the bank robberies, and I just fucking lost it and showed her the door. Jimmy might have the patience to deal with people like her, but I sure as hell don’t.’

‘Come on, Bob,’ the DCS protested. ‘Jimmy would have thrown her out too if she’d tried to lecture him about operational matters.’

‘No, he wouldn’t. He’d have given her a biscuit and explained to her, very politely, where her role came to an end.

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