Betray Them All by Keith Nixon

Author:Keith Nixon [Nixon, Keith]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Gladius Press
Published: 2020-03-23T16:00:00+00:00

Sixteen

Gray sat in an interview room in Odell House, beside Worthington, opposite Niven and his accompanying duty lawyer; Tina Yaxley, who’d represented his cousins Karl and Kris.

“Where were you two nights ago, Mr Niven?” asked Gray.

Yaxley got a pair of horn-rimmed glasses out of a case and put them on.

Niven fidgeted; hands pressed between his thighs. He behaved more like a scared child than a hardened adult who’d been in and out of police cells throughout his life. Maybe this was down to Saoirse Jupp’s threat.

“What’s all this got to do with me?” asked Niven. “I was quietly paying my respects before you jumped me.”

“Nobody jumped you, Mr Niven, you ran.”

“I didn’t know who you was.”

“Not true, I stated we were police before you did a runner.”

“I didn’t hear you. I felt threatened!”

“Tell me about Aidan.”

Niven paused briefly, like he was fighting back emotion. “I can’t believe he’s gone. He’s been there my whole life, looking out for me, and now... God, I miss him.”

“Declan, I’m trying to get to the bottom of why and how Aidan ended up dead. Anything you can do to help that process would be greatly appreciated. By me and, I’m sure, by Aidan’s parents.”

“You heard them,” said Niven. “They want to punish me. I didn’t do nothing!”

“Then tell me where you were on the night in question.”

“In my caravan, watching telly.”

“What programme?”

“Dunno.”

“Less than forty-eight hours and you don’t recall what was on?”

“A Mission Impossible film, maybe?”

“Maybe?”

“Yeah, that was it.” Niven grinned, happy like he’d pleased Gray, somehow. “Tom Cruise, getting blown up.”

Yaxley adjusted the glasses, so they sat on the end of her nose. She read her notes through the lenses, glancing over the top of the frames to look at Gray when the occasion arose. Like now. “Why is this line of questioning relevant, Inspector?”

It should be obvious. Gray said, “Clearly, I’m aiming to establish Mr Niven’s whereabouts at the time Mr Jupp was injured.”

“Carry on then.”

Worthington threw Gray an irritated glance. “Thank you,” said Gray. “And what time was this?”

“Maybe ten o’clock?”

“And after the film finished, what did you do?”

“Went to bed.”

Gray deliberately shared a long glance with Worthington before he said, “We have footage of Aidan Jupp’s van on the streets of Margate at around 3am, prior to and after the break in at the Sowerbys’ house.” Gray slid two photos across the desk. The same ones Worthington had produced yesterday, showing the van’s registration and the blurred faces. “Is this you?” Gray tapped the person in the passenger seat.

“I told you, I was in my caravan, asleep.”

“Alone?”

“Unfortunately.” Niven grinned at Yaxley, receiving a shrivelling glare back. Niven blinked. “I’d been drinking, though, so I may have fallen asleep. Makes it hard to remember exactly what happened.”

“When I came around to the Lido yesterday you weren’t there.”

“I was in my pit.”

“One of the kids told me otherwise.”

“Everyone knows never to admit anything to a cop.”

“Like where you were at 3am, Mr Niven?”

“I was there, tucked up in bed.”

Yaxley cut in before Gray could respond.

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