DS Jessica Daniel series: Think of the Children / Playing with Fire / Thicker Than Water – Books 4–6 (46 page)

Ryan was staring at his house which was no longer there. ‘Are you okay?’ Jessica asked.

‘What’s it to you?’ he replied, not meeting her eyes.

‘I know this must be quite a shock to you . . .’

‘What are you going to do about it?’ Ryan turned to face Jessica. His face was half in shadow but she could see him shaking.

‘We’ll do what we always do. We will investigate what happened and hopefully, at the end of it, we will find out who did it and prosecute them.’

Jessica spoke as calmly as she could, deliberately slowing her words. On the previous occasion they had met she had wanted to see how Ryan might react to a gentle bit of winding up but this time
she needed him to stay composed.

Ryan turned back to the house and replied, barely moving his lips with his teeth clenched tight. ‘You know who did it.’

‘No we don’t.’

‘It was in the paper. He said he was going to do this.’

Jessica stifled a sigh. ‘He didn’t, Ryan. I promise we will go talk to Anthony but you’ll have to be patient.’

The man said nothing for a while and Jessica watched the plume of air from his nose evaporating into the cold evening air. He was still staring at the destroyed property. ‘He could have
killed my dad.’

‘There’s something else I’ve got to ask you about.’

‘I wasn’t here. I was out with friends.’

Jessica spoke firmly. ‘That’s not what I was going to ask. Can you come for a walk to my car?’ Ryan looked over his shoulder. ‘Your dad will be fine. He’s being
well looked after.’

He seemed reluctant but silently followed Jessica as she headed along the road towards where she had parked. Jessica heard Rowlands jogging behind them to catch them up before appearing at her
side.

‘Where are you going?’ he muttered quietly so only Jessica could hear.

‘Stay close.’

As they walked, she could see that even more people were outside the houses than when she had first arrived. Some were taking photographs on their phones as others chattered away. She smiled as
she saw a burly fireman sipping from a small teacup, thinking he could crush it with one hand if he so chose. The older lady from before was standing next to him gossiping as if it was a coffee
morning at a local church, instead of a major residential fire.

Jessica unlocked her car and reached into the passenger seat, picking out a cardboard document wallet. She put it on her bonnet, separating out the contents, the overhead street lamp offering
enough light for what she needed.

‘What’s going on here?’ she asked.

Ryan picked up the piece of paper with a puzzled look on his face. ‘Where did you get it?’

‘I’m asking the questions, Ryan. What’s going on?’ Jessica kept a firm but steady tone.

He didn’t answer for a moment and she wondered if he was thinking of what the best answer to give might be, rather than simply telling the truth.

‘I’m feeding one of my friends a chip by the look of it,’ Ryan said.

Jessica couldn’t detect any emotion in his voice. ‘Do you know she’s dead?’

‘Sienna?’

‘She killed herself last night some time after this was taken.’ Jessica knew this hadn’t been confirmed but was watching Ryan to see if he would react. They hadn’t
tracked down all of Sienna’s friends from the previous evening, largely because they didn’t know the names. At least initially, they hadn’t had Andrew’s photographs to work
with. Jessica wondered if Ryan knew. With mobile phones, news travelled quickly among friends.

Ryan didn’t react to the news that the young woman he apparently seemed very friendly with had died, continuing to stare at the photo, apparently transfixed.

‘It wasn’t anything to do with me.’

‘I never said it was. In fact, I said she killed herself.’

‘I know what you were thinking though. Why aren’t you out arresting Anthony Thompson instead of harassing me?’ Ryan’s tone had risen again and he thrust the picture
towards Jessica.

‘Were you in a relationship with Sienna Todd?’

‘No.’

‘Then why is she sucking your fingers?’

Ryan shrugged dismissively. ‘I dunno.’

Jessica passed him the next photo, the one that had a male squeezing Sienna’s backside. ‘Who’s this?’ she asked. They already had a name because one of the witnesses they
had spoken to that morning passed it on. At the time, they hadn’t known he might be romantically involved with Sienna, given that Andrew had seen them kissing, but Jessica wanted to know if
Ryan would tell her who it was.

He glanced at the picture, before quickly looking up. ‘I can’t tell from that photo.’

‘Are you sure? I’ve been told you turned up in a car with whoever this is. You must have a pretty good idea who it is?’

‘Have you got someone watching me?’

Jessica didn’t want to spell out explicitly that she didn’t. ‘Who says they were watching you? I just happen to know a keen birdwatcher who was taking pictures of the creatures
perched on the roof of the building you were in. Unfortunately their aim wasn’t too good.’

‘Is he in trouble?’

‘I don’t know. I just want to know who he is.’

Ryan bit his bottom lip before finally relenting. ‘It’s Finn. Finlay Pierce. We went to college together but he finished last year.’

Jessica knew that matched the name they already had. ‘Was he Sienna’s boyfriend?’

‘Not really.’

‘Were you?’

‘No.’ Ryan handed the photo back to Jessica. ‘Can I go see my dad now?’

He went to step away but Jessica held out an arm, although she didn’t touch him. Rowlands, who had been standing silently, stepped sideways to block Ryan from moving.

‘Why do you think she killed herself, Ryan?’

‘What?’

‘Sienna. Why do you think she killed herself? You seem pretty close in these pictures.’

Ryan laughed, a snort that sounded genuinely menacing. Until that moment, Jessica had seen him as something of a troubled teenager but the way he dismissively cackled was unnerving.

‘Close? Sienna was close to everyone.’

Jessica wasn’t sure she wanted to hear any more but couldn’t stop herself. ‘How do you mean?’

The man raised his eyebrows mockingly. ‘You need me to spell it out? She fuckin’ loved it. Finn might have been her boyfriend yesterday but he was one of many. She was absolutely
filthy.’

Jessica didn’t know if any of what Ryan had said was true but she was disgusted with the spite with which he had spoken.

The teenager seemed to sense that he had got to Jessica as he broke into a smile. ‘Can I go now?’

When she didn’t respond, Ryan took a step forward but Jessica acted without thinking. She grabbed his arm, yanking his thin frame around so she was forcing him up against the side of her
car. She could still feel pain in her shoulder from where he had barged her but ignored it, digging her elbow into his chest. Almost involuntarily, he let out an ‘ow’ before correcting
himself and pushing back. Jessica felt Rowlands’s hand on her shoulder.

She leant in so Ryan had no choice other than to look at her and spoke firmly but ruthlessly, letting him know she was serious. ‘I’ll let you off the way you spoke to us the other
day and I’ll forget the fact that you shoved Constable Rowlands and barged me with your shoulder. But this is your final warning. If I come across you being a shit once more, there will be
trouble. And not just, “We’ll come knocking at your door and ask you a few questions” trouble but big, bad, “I will kick your arse in front of all your mates”
trouble.’

Jessica stepped back, allowing Ryan to straighten his clothing. She kept her eyes on him. ‘I’ve taken on much bigger, much meaner people than you in the past and I’m still
here,’ she added, spreading her arms as if to prove the point. ‘Now go look after your dad and stop acting like a dick.’

Jessica changed gear and pushed down on the accelerator, missing how her old car would have made a crunching sound in protest. There had been something intensely satisfying
about punishing her previous vehicle’s gearbox and driving the newer one just wasn’t the same.

‘Why is it always you?’ Rowlands asked with a gentle laugh. Jessica eased onto the brake as the set of traffic lights ahead flicked over to red. She knew that there was a lot of
truth in what her colleague was saying despite his amusement. It did frequently seem to be her that brought out the aggression in people. Was it because she was a woman and some found that
intimidating? Or was it something more intrinsic to her personality? Jessica didn’t want to think too deeply, fearing what the truth might be.

‘I didn’t see you stepping in,’ she replied.

‘I didn’t know what was going on,’ the constable protested. ‘I didn’t know what those photos were of, or what you were asking him about.’

Jessica felt a pang of regret at the way she had spoken to Ryan. She had to keep reminding herself that he hadn’t had the upbringing she had. Her parents had always been there to support
her and, if anything, showed too much interest. She found herself ignoring their calls when their number appeared on her phone because she didn’t want to put aside an hour of her day. Ryan
had never had that and it was no surprise he was upset having just lost his house and almost his father. But there was something about the way he talked of Sienna that didn’t sit right. He
had a harsh, unforgiving attitude towards a young woman who had killed herself without giving any indication of why he felt like that. With that and his general attitude towards the police,
something had snapped inside her.

The content of what he had said also didn’t ring quite true. Sienna had cut herself high on the inside of her thighs, presumably to hide it from anyone else. If she was as
‘easy’ as Ryan claimed, lots of different people would have known about them.

‘It’s green,’ Rowlands said gently. Jessica snapped back to the present, wondering if she had dozed off for a second or two. She eased the car away from the lights. ‘Have
you heard from Iz?’

Detective Constable Isobel Diamond was their colleague and friend who had recently gone on maternity leave. ‘She texted me earlier to say that she and baby Amber are doing fine,’
Jessica replied. ‘Apparently her husband is waiting on her hand and foot, so there’s a lesson for you.’

Dave snorted. ‘If I ever have a kid, I’m going to make sure it’s a boy. I read this article about how you can guarantee the sex of your child if you eat certain
things.’

‘What’s so special about boys?’

‘You can take ’em to the park and play football, things like that. They get all the cool toys.’ Rowlands spoke as if his argument was the most obvious one going.

‘You can do that with girls too. Or, better yet, you could let them develop their own interests, then get involved with that,’ Jessica pointed out.

‘Nah.’

‘You just want a mini you, don’t you?’

Rowlands laughed and replied in a put-on accent that was either American or Australian. Jessica wasn’t sure which. ‘There’s only one of me, baby.’

She couldn’t stop herself from giggling, observing that she was laughing at him, not with him and adding: ‘You’re such an idiot.’

After a few moments, Dave spoke again, but more seriously. ‘What are we going to do when we get to Anthony’s? We can’t keep turning up at his house.’

Jessica knew he was right. ‘We can’t do much else at the moment. The fire investigators say they won’t have even the basics from Martin’s house until tomorrow, although
they are pretty sure it was arson. Regardless of what they end up with, the fact the back door and window were secured to try to keep Chadwick in shows it was a deliberate act. This was attempted
murder. None of the neighbours say they saw anything – at least not yet – so he’s our only lead.’

‘How do you think he’ll take it?’

She didn’t reply, instead reaching forward to turn up the heaters. Jessica didn’t know if Anthony was responsible but felt trapped in the middle of a dispute between two sides which
was only going to end with one or both parties either locked up or dead. From her only encounter with him, Anthony seemed too eccentric to get through to, while Ryan was fuelled by hatred. Martin
was also caught between them – although it was down to his actions.

Jessica parked a few doors away from Anthony Thompson’s house and the two officers got out of the car, although not before Jessica had reached onto the back seat for the jacket she
hadn’t yet returned.

‘Is it just us two?’ Rowlands asked.

Jessica slammed her door and walked around to the pavement where he was waiting.

‘For now. We still have no evidence that Anthony is involved, so we can’t go stomping in. I want to make sure that everything I told him the other day has sunk in. It won’t do
any harm to ask where he was this evening either.’

She led the way to the house, pointing towards the front window as they walked along the short path. ‘Curtains open but no lights on,’ Jessica said.

She knocked as quietly as she could on the door so as not to disturb the neighbours. Given the time of the evening, she didn’t want to draw attention to what they were doing. As she
knocked a second time, Rowlands edged along the window frame, pushing his face up to the glass.

‘See anything?’ Jessica whispered loudly.

‘No. Why are we whispering?’

Jessica noted that he had lowered his own voice. ‘Because it’s dark and we don’t want to annoy the neighbours.’

The constable stepped away from the window, walking backwards across the small patch of lawn. ‘I can’t see anything upstairs,’ he said out loud.

Jessica knocked a third time, although she knew it wouldn’t be answered. Rowlands rejoined her at the door. ‘It doesn’t look good, does it? This guy threatens revenge and is
nowhere to be found on the night the other person’s house burns down.’

‘Anthony didn’t threaten revenge,’ Jessica said. ‘He said that people had to pay for what they had done.’

‘What’s the difference?’

Jessica sighed. ‘At the moment, I don’t know. He might have been referring to the price Martin had already paid by being in prison.’

She was hoping there was a simple explanation for the man not being at home. Hopefully he was somewhere public where his presence could be checked. Jessica nodded towards the path that stretched
around the side of the house.