A Darker Domain by Val McDermid

Author:Val McDermid [McDermid, Val]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Fiction, Mystery
Publisher: HarperCollins Canada
Published: 2008-01-06T05:00:00+00:00

Peterhead, Scotland

Karen studied James Lawson as he approached. No more ramrod bearing, head high and back straight. His shoulders were slumped, his steps small and tight. Three years in jail had put ten years on him. He lowered himself into the chair across the table from her, fidgeting and fussing till at last he settled. A small attempt at controlling some part of the interview, she thought.

Then he looked up. He still had the flat, hard cop stare, his eyes burning, his face stony. ‘Karen,’ he said, acknowledging her with a tiny nod. His lips, pale and bluish, compressed in a tight line.

She couldn’t see any point in small talk. There was nothing to be said that wouldn’t lead straight to recrimination and bitterness. ‘I need your help,’ she said.

Lawson’s mouth relaxed into a sneer. ‘Who do you think you are? Clarice Starling? You’d need to lose a few pounds before you could give Jodie Foster a run for her money.’

Karen reminded herself that Lawson had attended the same interrogation courses that she had. He knew all about probing for your opponent’s weaknesses. But then, so did she. ‘It might be worth going on a diet for Hannibal Lecter,’ she said. ‘But not for a disgraced cop that’s pulled his last trout out of Loch Leven.’

Lawson raised his eyebrows. ‘Did they send you on a smart-arse course before you took your inspector’s exam? If you’re supposed to be buttering me up, you’re not exactly going about it the right way.’

Karen gave a resigned shake of the head. ‘I haven’t got the time or the energy for this. I’m not here to flatter your ego. We both know how these things play out. You help me, your life inside these four walls gets a wee bit less horrible for a while. You walk away from me, who knows what shitty little stunt is going to make your life that wee bit more miserable? Up to you, Jimmy.’

‘It’s Mr Lawson to you.’

She shook her head. ‘That would imply more respect than you deserve. And you know it.’ Her point made, she’d refrain from calling him anything. She could hear him breathing hard through his nose, a faint wheeze at the end of each exhalation.

‘You think you could make my life any more miserable?’ He glared at her. ‘You have no bloody idea. They keep me in isolation because I’m an ex-cop. You’re the first visitor I’ve had this year. I’m too old and too ugly to interest anybody else. I don’t smoke and I don’t need any more phone cards.’ He gave a faint snort of laughter, phlegm bubbling in his throat. ‘How much worse do you think you can make it?’

She stared back at him, unflinching. She knew what he’d done and there was no place for pity or compassion in her heart for him. She didn’t care if they spat in his food. Or worse. He had betrayed her and everyone else who had worked with him. Most of the cops Karen knew were in the job for decent motives.

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