The Danger Within by Hilary Bonner

Author:Hilary Bonner [Gould, Howard Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Severn House
Published: 2021-08-04T00:00:00+00:00

TWENTY-THREE

Saslow swung off the main drag onto The Pill, an area of town close to the banks of the tidal River Torridge, just as a police patrol car arrived, all lights and sirens blazing. Two uniforms, one male, one female, emerged swiftly, looking suspiciously at Saslow’s unmarked car as she pulled to a halt. Vogel quickly jumped out of the car holding up his warrant card for the uniforms to see. He and Saslow were not yet known throughout the local force.

‘I’m SIO on the Quinn murder, and we think it possible there may be a connection as Thomas Quinn’s offices are in this building,’ he announced by way of explaining his presence.

‘Right, sir,’ said the male officer. ‘We’ve been asked to wait for Armed Response before we do anything. The man who called in saying he’d heard shots, wasn’t sure exactly where in the building they’d come from.’

Vogel nodded. He wasn’t good at being patient. He wondered if he dared knock on a few doors. Just as he was deciding that wouldn’t be a good idea because, if indeed gunshots had been fired, he could put others at risk as well as Saslow and himself, a second police vehicle roared up to the front of Tide Reach. It was a BMW X5, the high-powered four-wheel drive typically used by Armed Response. They’d been commendably fast. But then, the AR boys and girls were probably relishing the chance of some action. Vogel didn’t think North Devon was an area of the UK that was exactly overrun with incidents involving firearms.

It took AR only minutes to find the source of the disturbance, in a first-floor office, and to check out the rest of the building. They reported ‘man down’, and called in the paramedics, who had also just arrived.

Vogel and Saslow could now enter the building. Vogel dispatched Saslow to the top to see if she could locate the resident who’d made the emergency call. Vogel headed for the first-floor office which was clearly the location of the incident. An AR officer standing outside instructed him to remain on the landing for the time being. The first thing he noticed was the name embossed on the door. Quinn-Patel Associates. Then, moving forward very slightly and peering through the doorway, Vogel saw the fallen man, lying on his back, spreadeagled on the floor. He appeared to have been shot. At least twice. His head was towards the door and his legs pointed into the room. Blood was seeping from a wound to his right shoulder and from a second wound, probably more dangerous, a little lower. Two paramedics were at his side applying CPR.

Were they too late? Was the man already dead? Vogel couldn’t be sure. He certainly wasn’t conscious. Had he been shot as he tried to enter the offices? Vogel couldn’t be sure of that either.

The DCI took a careful look round. The room in which the fallen man lay was open-plan, very modern in design and containing several desks. It seemed to have been ransacked.

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