Date: Thu, 20 Feb 2003 12:27:57 +0000 (GMT)
From: Steve Rose <cutrose40@yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: Martin roberts Investgates - 9

DISCLAIMER:

This is a story. None of the characters in the story
exist and the events that take place are purely
imaginary. This is a detective story with sexual
overtones. I hope that you like this as a piece of
writing.


WARNING:

Do not read this story if you are in any way offended
by acts of a homosexual nature.

Do not read this if you are under the legal age for
accessing adult sites.

Always indulge in safe sex.


MARTIN ROBERTS INVESTIGATES

Chapter 9

It was another two hours before Martin and Mark
finally got back to Scotland Yard and found the
information Bob Matthews had been anxious for them to
see. Beside a single newspaper cutting there was a
short note from the conscientious Inspector. Martin
read the note and handed it to Mark. The note read as
follows:

"I have spent most of the day sifting through the box
of belongings that were once the possessions of Darren
Evans. Most of the stuff was draft notes for essays,
revision notes for his A levels and a few newspaper
cuttings from a local newspaper, giving details of
either his old swimming club or other items that might
be regarded as keeping him in touch with his past. The
only exception was the one I have separated out. It
seems to be the same as the other pictures of the
swimming club but is different in two respects. First,
from the typeface it can be seen that it is, in fact,
an entirely different publication from the others.
Second, although it is a picture of the swimming club,
it is clearly much earlier as Darren himself appears
in it. I think that the lad he has his arm around
could be the one over which he left the club and
eventually his home. The question is why he should
keep this cutting and where is it from? The answer to
the first part may be the desire to keep a record of
his lost love. I believe the answer to the second is
that the paper is some kind of small weekly
publication, possibly dating from when Darren and the
club were in a swimming gala in some other part of
Wales or even in London."

Mark and Martin studied the piece of fading newspaper.
The photograph was of poor quality and few features
could be distinguished but both men agreed that Bob
was almost certainly right about the significance of
the photo. If they could find the publication, from
which it came and then get a better quality photo,
they might get even further. Martin left a warm
message of congratulations for Bob at his home
thanking him for his hard work and for his
thoroughness. Martin looked at Mark and said in a
kindly way,

"It's been a very long day especially for your first
day back and I'm sure you want to get back to Ruth and
young David so why don't you get off now. Thanks for
today, it's good to have you back!"

Mark thanked Martin and walked slowly away, torn
between his desire to see his wife and baby and his
desire to help Martin with the investigation. Seeing
him still there, Martin shooed him away and then
picked up the newspaper clipping and said,

"I'm going home as well in a minute. This is not the
best photo I've seen but at home I have a very
powerful magnifying glass, which I use to look at
coins. I'll take a copy of this and take the original
home with me and have a closer look at it there. If I
find anything, we can follow it up in the morning and
if I don't we'll have a little 'chat' with our
suspects. In fact, either way I think we'll do that!!"

Mark nodded and made his way to the exit. After the
Inspector had finally left Martin placed the original
clipping in a clear protective wrapping after he had
photocopied it and then placed the copy in his
briefcase and placed the original back in the file.
Before walking to the nearest underground station to
make his way home, Martin checked in with the rest of
the team that would keep the investigation ticking
over during the night shift. This was one reason why
people liked to work for the Superintendent; he rarely
forgot a name and always showed concern for those
working for him if they were on night duty and rarely
saw much of him.

Martin got home and found a note from Tom saying that
he had been delayed at another conference over his
current case and would eat out. Disappointed that his
lover was going to be late, Martin grabbed a
ready-made meal from the freezer and ate it quickly.
Making a virtue out of the absence of his partner,
Martin spent the time examining the rather grainy
photograph under his powerful magnifying glass.
Intuition told Martin that there was something
significant about the photo but he could not put his
finger on it. Even under the strong magnification and
bright light the photocopy was too poor for him to see
very much. It was vital that he got hold of the
original photograph or a better quality copy and
examined that.

Tom was very late returning that evening and he had
Martin had only the briefest conversation before they
retired to bed. Neither of the two lovers felt like
having sex but the reassuring togetherness as they
held each other close comforted both of them. Tired
and contented the two lovers quickly drifted off to
sleep.

In the morning Tom was first to wake and went off to
make himself and Martin a cup of tea, which he brought
back to the bedroom with him. Tom perched on the side
of the bed and began to speak while Martin sipped his
hot tea.

"Sorry to keep bringing this up, Marty, but we both
know that at least one of your suspects, maybe the
prime suspect, is virtually out of the frame if you
believe there is a linkage between this present spate
of killings and the one eight or so years ago. Graeme
Adams would have been only just fifteen or sixteen and
could only just have arrived in London and maybe not
even that. I don't believe that he could have been in
South Wales. If I was his lawyer I'd have your balls
off if you tried to pin the murders on Graeme, except
of course, I forgot, you'd rather enjoy that part of
it!"

As he spoke, Tom pushed one hand under the bedclothes
and fondled his lover's half-hard prick and gently
squeezed his balls. Martin gave a slight smile as his
dick began to harden but still chose to respond to his
lover's comment,

"So fifteen or sixteen year olds don't commit murder,
then Tom?"

Tom stopped his fondling and returned to his argument,

"Well of course they can do, but not very often. And
you didn't answer my other point, how did he meet the
guy from South Wales and how did he get down there to
kill him?"

Marty knew that Tom was almost certainly right on this
point but rather weakly suggested an alternative
possibility,

"What if it was the old man he lived with that did the
first killing and Graeme's merely carrying on the
tradition?"

Tom gave a scornful look and then replied,

"Just possible, I suppose, but highly unlikely to my
mind. I really do think he's the least strong of your
suspects, especially if you go with this linkage
theory. So why don't you drop him from the
investigation or at least only treat him as a
potential witness? Incidentally I recommend you stop
following him as well, he could have you for
harassment! If I were his lawyer, you'd already have
had a writ!!"

Martin sat up in bed and said,

"I'm sure I would but at the moment I have a number of
reasons for not dropping him completely from the
investigation. I tend to agree with you that as the
evidence build up he seems an increasingly unlikely
suspect. To be honest I was never that keen on him as
the murderer anyway. Against that it has to be said
that he has treated the investigation with a degree of
contempt. He's given my officers the run around and I
don't like that. They think he has something to hide
and maybe he does. It also gives them a degree of
satisfaction in continuing to cause him trouble.
Secondly, and rather more seriously, if it isn't
Graeme I don't want to alert the real murderer to the
fact that we are closing in on him. Nor do I want any
one of the suspects to know that we think there might
be a link to the murder of Darren Evans. I'd have to
give a reason for easing up on Graeme and that might
drive the killer either to commit more desperate
crimes or to go to ground completely."

"It's a high risk strategy, Marty. More people could
die, if you get it wrong."

"I know, Tom, but if I can get hold of that original
photo or enhance a good copy of it, I believe that we
will find the key to the case. Hopefully I can then
confront the killer and put a stop to these killings."

Tom shook his head but decided not to pursue the
matter further. He had given Martin his point of view
and knew that it would be properly considered. There
was little more he could do and he needed to get on
with his own work, so he went off for a shower. Martin
joined him shortly after and they spent a short time
soaping each other and playing around before both of
them realised that there was not enough time to take
matters further and stopped. They ate their breakfasts
quickly then left together, parting as usual at the
end of the road.

Martin was in his Office ahead of all his colleagues
except Bob Matthews who came to join him as soon as
the Superintendent had settled at his desk.

"Thanks for that stuff last night. Excellent work,
it's extremely useful and I believe it will turn out
to be vitally important. However, I really could do
with a better copy than the one we have. I agree with
your conclusion that it's not from Darren's usual
source of reading material. Do you think you could
track it down?"

"Well, sir, I had a chat with a friend of mine and he
thinks it's definitely not London as I originally
thought but it could be one from South Wales or that
general area anyway. Didn't Darren go on a number of
swimming galas and training camps? Might be worth my
while chasing up to see where they were the year
before Darren left the club. Looking at the photo I'd
say he was about fifteen or sixteen when it was
taken."

"Good idea, Bob", Martin replied, "Let me know if you
need any help."

Bob nodded and withdrew leaving Martin sitting in his
office. The Superintendent began to plan out what he
wanted to get done that day. Martin had changed some
of the surveillance teams around but ordered them to
continue to watch all four suspects. He decided that
he would have each of the suspects in some time during
the course of the day and question them about Bath and
confront them with the photograph. Martin's mind was
still on the photograph and the feeling in the back of
his mind that he had missed something vital. A
tentative tap on the door interrupted the
Superintendent's thoughts and, after Martin had
responded, a rather timid Constable Mike Rickwood came
into his office.

"Sorry to bother you, sir, but I was talking to
Inspector Matthews and I'd like to volunteer, if I
may."

"Volunteer for what, Mike?" Martin replied slightly
puzzled.

Somewhat surprised that the Superintendent had
remembered his name, Mike Rickwood hesitated for a
moment then went on,

"I'd like to volunteer to be a decoy and try to flush
out the killer. Inspector Matthews explained the
requirements for the role and I think I fit the bill
exactly."

"Thanks for volunteering, Mike, and, if we decide to
go ahead with that option, I'm sure I'll bear you in
mind. At the moment, however, I think it is premature
to go down that route and also dangerous. I don't want
to put anyone at risk unless I absolutely have to."

The Constable looked slightly disappointed but
accepted his superior's decision and turned to go but
Martin called him back,

"As you know, I've taken you off surveillance duties
today but that's not a punishment. I want you to get
more involved with our team. I hope to get your
Inspector to agree that you can transfer permanently
into it, if that is what you would like."

Mike Rickwood looked slightly taken aback but
stammered his enthusiastic agreement to the
Superintendent's proposal. Noting this, Martin
continued,

"You get on well with Inspector Matthews, don't you?"

Mike nodded, still somewhat tongue-tied. Martin
concluded the interview,

"Well then, get along and find him. Tell him he can
have you for the day as his assistant. It'll give you
more experience of working on an investigation team.
Tell him I would like him to speak to your inspector
and arrange for you to be replaced on the surveillance
team."
Mike finally had recovered enough to speak,

"Thank you very much, sir. I won't let you down!"

Having said this, Mike Rickwood was dismissed and left
the office and walked briskly down the corridor in
search of Inspector Matthews. Mark Jamieson passed him
on his way in to see his boss. Mark had collected the
overnight surveillance reports and was anxious to find
out whether Martin had got any further with the photo
although the absence of a phone call suggested -
correctly - that he had not. Mark knocked on the door
and then went in and greeted his boss heartily,

"Morning, sir. Any luck with the photo yet?"

"No, Mark, not yet. I've got Bob working on getting a
better copy of it. By the way, I've assigned that PC
Rickwood to act as his assistant for today and I hope
to arrange his permanent transfer to the team very
soon. As to the photograph, there's definitely
something about it but I'm damned if I can spot it.
Perhaps you'd like to have a look at it in a little
while but I must warn you it's not at all a good copy.
Are those the overnight reports you have with you?"

"Yes, sir. Not much in them, I'm afraid. All quiet on
the suspect front as they say, except for Joe Smith.
He was a busy boy last night after he got home. Took
his mother off to stay with her sister for a few days,
or maybe longer, judging by the size of the suitcase!
Then on the way back picked up a young hitchhiker and
they spent the night together."

"Well I've decided that I want to see all the suspects
about Bath so I think we might as well go and wake Mr
Smith up and bring him in for a little chat. Do that
as first priority please and then you and I will get
to look at the photograph together later."

Mark left Scotland Yard drove south to where Joe Smith
lived. When he arrived, Mark got out of the car walked
up to the door and rang the bell. After several
moments, Joe Smith appeared in a dressing gown,
obviously only just out of bed and still drowsy.

"Sorry to bother you, Mr Smith, but we'd like you to
come to Scotland Yard and answer a few questions. It
about the killing just outside Bath the other day. It
shouldn't take long. Just want to clear up a few
points from your statement."

Joe blinked a couple of times and, as understanding
dawned, indicated that Mark should come into the
house. The Inspector heard muffled voices coming from
upstairs as Joe went off to get dressed. When Joe
returned fully dressed, Mark, slightly disingenuously,
asked,

"Telling your mother you were off out, were you?"

Joe, unaware that his mother's absence was already
known to the Police and anxious not to involve the
young man still naked in his bed, nodded and said,

"Yes. She worries you know, but I told her not to do
so. I told her that I've nothing to hide and I'll be
back home very quickly."

"I'm sure you will be, Mr Smith." Mark replied, his
tone lacking conviction.

Mark drove Joe Smith back to Scotland Yard in almost
complete silence and ushered him unto an interview
room. Joe had a cup of coffee provided for him and he
was still drinking it when Mark returned accompanied
by Martin. The Superintendent brought with him a faxed
copy of the statement Joe had given to the Bath
police. Martin got straight to the point,

"You say here that you went to the gay bar and disco
and stayed there all evening and then went straight
back to your hotel. That isn't strictly true, is it,
Joe?"

The lorry driver was obviously rattled by this
question and started to mumble,

"I don't know what you mean. I was there -- all .. all
evening. I never left."

"We have a witness that says you disappeared for at
least twenty to thirty minutes, where did you go to?"

Joe again looked startled as he began to make his
reply,

"I er ... er .. met someone at the disco and we ... went
somewhere .. you know, quiet."

Joe looked round helplessly hoping that this would be
enough and that he would not have to go into the
details of his oral sex encounter with the young
student in one of the toilets. The young man had shot
a load of spunk into the lorry driver's mouth and onto
his face and then watched as Joe wanked himself off
and shot his cum load onto the floor.

Joe sat looking down at the wooden floor of the
interview room, seemingly unwilling to speak. Martin
looked back impassively and said,

"You mean you had sex with someone?"

Joe nodded and then Mark chimed in,

"And can this person confirm what happened?"

Joe had recovered slightly by now and looked up,

"I don't expect so. We didn't exactly exchange names.
I guess if you asked about you might find him but it
was just a one night stand, pretty unmemorable, at
least on his part, I would guess."

Martin saw no point in going on,

"OK, Mr Smith. That's all for now. We'll no doubt be
in touch again."

As a rather relieved Joe got up to leave, Martin
paused and then produced a copy of the photograph from
inside his file and placed it on the table. The
Superintendent then said,

"One last thing, do you recognise anyone in this
photograph? Take your time looking at it, the quality
is poor I accept but have a good look before you
reply."

Joe looked at the photograph but his manner suggested
that there was no hint of recognition in his mind.
After several moments, Joe slowly shook his head and
handed the photograph to Martin, who acknowledged his
negative response and told him that he really was now
free to leave.

Arrangements were made to take the now rather shaken
Joe Smith back home. Mark had already told Martin that
the suspect had lied about who was in the house when
he arrived to take him to Scotland Yard. Mark thought
that if he lied about one thing he could lie about
others and Martin half agreed but thought that the
interview had shown that Smith was probably telling
the truth. He was about to tell Mark what he thought
when Bob Matthews came up to him looking rather
excited.

"I've found the source of the picture, sir. It's a
small weekly paper from mid-Wales. The swimming club
had a training camp there every year. The picture is
of the group that went there about two years or so
before Darren was murdered. I've phoned the offices of
the paper and they think they might have the original
photo in their archives. They could give it to the
local police and they'll forward it to us or as it's
urgent they said I could collect it myself."

Martin was overjoyed at the news and smiling at the
Inspector said in a warm manner,

"Well, Bob, you'd better go and get it! Take Constable
Rickwood with you for the experience and the company
and he can share the driving with you as well."

"Thanks, sir. We'll be back as soon as we can."

"Thanks, Bob", said Martin as he turned back to Mark
and said,

"Next I think we'll have a word with Mr Collins."

Mark telephoned Peter Collins' office and discovered
that he was working at home and so the Inspector
reported this to Martin, who asked him to go and bring
the suspect in for questioning. It was some time
before Mark returned and Martin spent some of the time
thinking about the photograph and trying to establish
what it was about the photograph that bothered him so
much. The Superintendent was tempted to try to contact
Bob Matthews on the radio to find out how far he had
got in retrieving the original copy but Martin knew
that they would only just have arrived at their
destination and even then only if they had had a clear
run. The Superintendent took the grainy copy into his
office and studied it again but no inspiration came.
The lack of progress put Martin in a bad mood and he
was quite abrupt when Mark announced that he and Peter
Collins were in the interview room. Martin came into
the room and confronted Peter straight away,

"Thank you for coming in, Mr Collins. Tell me, where
did you go after you left the hotel and before you
went to the disco?"

Peter looked straight back at the police officers and
said, calmly,

"As I said in my statement, after dinner I went into
the centre of Bath. I wanted to see the architecture
and check where places were in case I got a chance to
go back before the end of the conference. I wanted to
see the Roman Baths, the Assembly Rooms and the Royal
Crescent. So I drove in after dinner, Ed wanted to do
something else so I arranged to meet him at the disco.
After that we were together until the morning."

Peter's answer matched almost exactly what he had said
in his statement but Martin pressed on,

"You went straight to Bath from the hotel and did not
leave the main road?"

"Well, I did get a bit lost leaving the hotel. The
roads were dark and I took a wrong turning. I was on a
very narrow road and eventually came to a village
where I hoped I could find my bearings and then,
having done so, went straight to Bath. I guess the
detour took about twenty minutes."

This response also matched the surveillance report
that said that Peter Collins had been `lost' for about
fifteen minutes as the car following him had been held
up by a tractor on the road and had not caught up with
him until he was driving back from the village. The
village was not that far from the road where the
latest victim had lived. Martin wondered if he would
have had time to kill the victim and still return to
where his tail regained contact with him. If he'd been
quick, he probably could just have done it. Mark was
thinking much the same thing but knew there was no
proof so he sought an alternative to confirm the
suspect's story

"So did anyone in the village see you? Did you ask
anyone in the village for directions?"

"Didn't really need to. There was a big signpost in
the centre of the village by a crossroads. I stopped,
looked at the sign, realised I was going away from
Bath so I turned round and drove back. When I got to
the city centre it was a bit late so I drove round,
saw the Royal Crescent and then parked near the Roman
Baths and checked out the opening times. By then it
was nearly time to go to the disco and meet Ed, so I
drove over to the pub."

"One other thing, Mr Collins", Martin said, producing
the grainy photograph and showing it to the sales
executive, "Do you recognise anyone in this photo?"

Peter Collins squinted at the photograph for several
minutes and then, shaking his head,

"No, I'm afraid I don't, Superintendent."

"That's Ok and thank you, Mr Collins", Martin sounded
less annoyed by now. "You have been most helpful and
you've cleared up a number of small points. We may
well need to speak to you again but in the meantime,
you're free to go."

Peter Collins looked relieved but also slightly
annoyed himself. He clearly resented being forced to
come in from work to answer what he regarded as
unnecessary questions, which could just as easily have
been answered at home or at a Police Station nearby.

Before he had gone down to interview Peter Collins,
Martin had left orders that Ed Wilson was to be
brought in as well. The Superintendent did not want
the two suspects to speak to each other before he had
a chance to talk to them. Thus, as soon as Peter
Collins was out of the building and on his way home,
Ed Wilson, who had protested loudly at the intrusion
into his work place, was sitting sullenly in another
interview room. Martin and Mark conferred briefly
before going in to meet him. Martin looked slightly
more amiable than he had been when he met Peter
Collins but, after thanking Ed for coming, he became
more aggressive,

"So, Mr Wilson, you left the dinner early and went out
for a drive. Precisely where did you go?"

"I'm not exactly sure, to be honest. I'd arranged to
meet Peter later on at the disco -- he wanted to look
round Bath first. After he left I thought I might
catch him up but I decided to look round the country
area to see what it was like. I am looking for a
weekend place and often thought that this area might
be a possibility. I wanted to go in the direction of
Wells but the roads round there are complicated and I
got lost, very lost indeed."

"I see", said Martin coldly. "Can you remember any of
the places you saw on the way?"

"Not really. I did eventually come to a small village
and found a signpost and decided that my best course
would be to try to head towards Bath. I eventually
found my way onto to a main road and then back to Bath
where I met Peter at the disco. We spent the rest of
the evening and night together."

Martin knew that this was a fairly accurate account as
again it accorded with what had been reported by the
surveillance team, which had also lost Ed for quite a
while in the narrow lanes, and with Ed's own statement
to the Bath Police. It was frustrating not knowing
exactly where Ed had gone and again Martin believed he
might have been close enough to the victim's home to
have met and killed him before the surveillance had
been resumed.

Mark again interposed with the alibi question but got
a similar reply to Peter Collins' response in that Ed
had not spoken to anyone but had used the signpost and
his detailed road atlas to get back to where he wanted
to be. Mark concluded that, as with the interview with
Peter Collins, he and Martin had ruffled a few
feathers but had not got any further forward either in
terms of elimination suspects or placing them more
firmly in the frame.

For the third time, Martin produced the copy of the
photograph and placed it on the table in front of a
suspect, asking Ed if he recognised anyone in it. Ed
jumped slightly when he saw the photograph but
otherwise showed no reaction. Like the others he
studied the grainy photograph for a few moments before
shaking his head and indicating that he did not
recognise anyone in the photograph.

After Ed had gone, Martin looked at Mark with an
expression that invited the Inspector to comment on
the interviews and the Inspector responded by saying,

"Well, sir. I don't think we can eliminate any of them
although I'm not so sure about Joe Smith. I'm
certainly not ruling out either of the last two.
Either one or both of them could have done it. The
only question is whether they would have had time to
dispose of the body. I doubt it, myself. They alibi
each other for later, but do you think there is a
chance that one of them could have slipped out and
finished what they started?"

"I agree Mark we can't rule them out. They really
don't have an alibi  for the earlier part of the
evening and they were both in the area at the time the
victim lived and probably died. I agree the disposal
issue is a problem but it could have been done,
especially if it was well planned. As far as the
photograph was concerned I was not convinced that any
of them paid that much attention to it. Of the three I
thought Joe Smith gave the most honest reaction."

Martin did not add to these cryptic last remarks and
did not have time to hear Mark's response because the
telephone rang. It was Bob Matthews reporting that he
had acquired a better copy of the photograph, although
the original could not be found. The Inspector said
that he and Mike Rickwood would be back at Scotland
Yard as soon as he could. Martin told him to make sure
that he shared the driving with the young PC and to
get back as soon as possible while still taking care.
The last thing Martin wanted for them to have an
accident.

The news from Bob Matthews put Martin in a better mood
and he was in a rather better frame of mind for the
last interview of the afternoon when Graeme Adams was
to be questioned. Graeme had been picked up at his
apartment and the disc jockey had been slightly
disappointed that his favourite policeman was not
present to accompany him to Scotland Yard. On arrival,
he was shown into a small room containing a table with
several wooden chairs arranged around it. A tape
recorder sat at one end of the table. An elderly
policeman produced a cup of insipid and almost
undrinkable tea, which Graeme chose to ignore. Moments
later Martin and Mark entered and the interview began.
It was clear to Graeme that his statement had been
thoroughly pored over and he was about to be
cross-examined. This time it was the Inspector who
began the interview,

"Thanks for coming in, Mr Adams. You are not under
caution and are free to leave at any time. You may
also seek legal advice at any time."

Graeme nodded that he understood what had been said
and Mark started the questioning,

"You left the disco for about fifty minutes around ten
thirty. Where did you go?"

"I had sex in a wooded area at the back of the pub
with a nice willing young student. He had good thick
lips and a nice tight hole and a large cock to play
with. Do you want any more details?"

Mark ignored the slightly mocking tone in Graeme's
voice. Not only did the idea of more details not
attract him but also he was more than a little
irritated by the attitude and tone that Graeme Adams
had adopted during what was a quite serious interview.
Ignoring this prejudice, however, Mark continued,

"And this young person can confirm this?"

"Yes, I'm sure he could if you asked him, although we
didn't get round to exchanging names and addresses.
I've seen him around before at clubs but never had the
pleasure until the other day. I'm sure if you asked a
few other regulars they'd give you his name."

Again Mark ignored the tone of Graeme's reply and went
on with his questioning,

"Did you spend all the time with this person? You did
not leave the area at all until you went back to
complete your disco programme?"

A slight smile played about Graeme's mouth as he
replied,

"Yes to the first and no to the second. I like to take
my time and the young man was enjoying it too! Why
hurry something when you don't have to? We finished
what we had gone there to do, then he got dressed
again and I let him go in a few minutes before I did.
As soon as I saw him go into the disco, I followed."

Martin intervened at this point, changing the
direction of the questioning,

"Mr Adams, we know you've been giving our surveillance
team the run around and I think I have worked out the
car switch scam you pulled off the other day."

Martin paused and noticed that the smile and arrogant
look had somewhat disappeared from Graeme Adams' face
as he spoke and then the Superintendent continued.

"Have you talked to anyone about what you did and how
you did it?"

Serious now, Graeme looked back at Martin and spoke
quietly,

"I might have mentioned it but not to anyone
specifically, certainly nobody in Bath, as far as I
can remember."

"Why did you mention Bath, Mr Adams?"

"Well, the murder took place in Bath and I assumed
that you thought that a car switch had been used in
the course of it."

Martin gave no indication that this was indeed
something that he had given some thought to but went
on to probe whether Graeme might have said something
to anyone anywhere else.

"How about in London, Mr Adams?"

"I talk to a lot of people and I had a party a couple
of days after the scam. I told an old acquaintance
about it at the party, but I know for a fact that he
wasn't in Bath on the night of the murder. He flew to
the United States for a meeting and I saw him off at
the airport, as your people already know. On the other
hand, I suppose one of the other guests might have
overheard me telling him, after all there were quite a
few people present at the party."

Martin homed in on this point and asked Graeme for the
names of the other guests present at the party. The
Superintendent was depressed to learn that among the
favoured guests at the party were the other three
prime suspects. Finally Martin showed Graeme the copy
of the photograph. The effect of this was to bring a
slight smile to the DJ's lips as he asked how old the
photograph was and then he added that he had no idea
who any of the people portrayed there were.

After Adams had left, Martin and Mark returned to the
Superintendent's office. Mark let his annoyance at
Graeme flood out,

"I hate that little shit! I really wish we could pin
something on him."

Martin nodded that he understood how the Inspector
felt but went no further, indicating that while he
shared Mark's sentiment, he also had doubts about the
disc jockey's guilt. Realising that he was not going
to get much further in his campaign again Graeme, Mark
then asked Martin about the car scam he had discussed
with Graeme and whether it really might have been used
in the latest murder. Martin gave a short account of
the incident a few days earlier, which he had finally
resolved to his own satisfaction as a complex but
effective act of deception on the part of Graeme
Adams. Someone else had driven Adams' car to the car
park and diverted the surveillance team's attention.
Meanwhile Adams had followed in another car, picked
his own up and driven it back home, leaving the second
car for the decoy to dispose of. It was not the
subtlest of plans but it had worked and Graeme Adams
would need more careful attention in the future.
Having heard Martin's explanation, Mark then asked,

"So you think the car switch scam was used, sir?"

"Yes. It's the only way it could have been done, if
this method wasn't used then we have difficulty
placing any of the suspects at the location where the
body was found. We'll have been barking up the wrong
tree, going after the wrong people all this time. But
I'm sure we aren't. I know in my bones that one of
those four did it even if I have no proof yet. If they
switched clothes and cars they could easily have got
past our boys, especially with the low standard of
surveillance we have to put up with. The question is,
which one of them was it?"

At this point, Martin gave vent to his annoyance as he
continued hi bitter complaints to Mark,

"Are we never going to get a break in this case? We
can't get any positive evidence to link any one of the
suspects to any one of the victims nor can we find any
compelling evidence to allow for the elimination of
any of them either. Even confronting them with the
photograph and the evidence that we are thinking about
a connection to an earlier killing did not elicit any
strong reaction or any apparent hint of recognition!
I'll tell you something, one of those four is a bloody
good actor!! It's a fucking mess! Not only are we not
making any progress but also the press are not being
very sympathetic. There's been another message from on
high, demanding that I make another statement to the
press. What can I say? At the moment there is
absolutely nothing positive to say that is remotely
optimistic."

Martin poured himself a drink from his secret stock of
whisky and offered one to Mark. They drank in silence
for several moments and then Mark got up to leave.

"Well, sir, let's hope the new copy of the photograph
that Bob has got hold of is better and reveals
something of value."

"Let's hope so, Mark. Bob's on his way back with it
now. I'm not holding my breath though, because every
time I think I'm onto something, it crumbles away. I
think I'm further away from solving this case than I
was when I started! But, who knows, our luck might
change! I think I might hold on here for a while in
the hope that he gets back soon."

"Are you sure that's wise, sir. You might feel fresher
in the morning and we can get some of the computer
lads in to enhance the photo even further. I don't
know about you but I think an early night would be a
good thing."

Martin sighed and said, cheerfully,

"The baby keeping you up, eh Mark? Perhaps you're
right about going home early but I think what I'll do
is give Bob another hour, if he's not here by then
I'll take your advice. I know you want to get home,
that wife and baby of yours will be missing for you."

Mark would have preferred to stay with his boss and
friend especially as he had never seen him quite so
low and depressed but he also did want to get back to
his wife and baby. Before leaving, Mark did enquire
whether Tom would be at home that evening and was
reassured to learn that he would be. The Inspector
decided to call Tom before he got home to tell him how
low Martin was feeling. Mark was about to say
something else but Martin gave him a final wave of
dismissal. As he left the office, Mark muttered
encouraging words to his boss and asked him to
telephone if there was any news. Martin said that he
would let Mark know if there was anything worth coming
back in for, otherwise they would both look at the
photograph together in the morning.

What martin was unaware of was that Bob Matthews had
decided to make on short detour before heading home.
There was a question he needed answering before he got
back from South Wales. He told Constable Rickwood to
drive to Cardiff and radioed ahead to find out the
directions to get to where David Williams lived. The
two police officers arrived at the house and were
warmly welcomed.

"Did you get a good copy of the photo?" David Williams
asked Bob over a cup of tea.

"Yes I think we did, or at least one that we can
enhance using computer technology."

"We never had that sort of thing in my day, more's the
pity", responded David wistfully. "But you didn't come
out of your way just to tell me about the photo, did
you?"

"No, I didn't. I've been thinking and I wondered if
you could tell me the name of the lad in the picture,
the one that aroused such strong sexual feelings in
Darren Evans?"

"I was a little surprised your Superintendent didn't
ask me that question. I suppose he did not think it
was all that relevant. The boy was a minor at the time
and we quickly eliminated him from our enquiries. But
since you ask, his name was Gareth Thomas."

Bob paused for a moment as he wrote down the name and
then said,

"And where might I find him today? I understand you
ruled him out at the first enquiry, presumably on the
grounds of age and other factors, but I think he might
have a connection to this case, or he might have
remembered something now that he did not think was
important at the time. Do you think I could have the
chance to get to interview him or talk to him some
time soon?"

"In one sense those are easy questions to answer. I'm
sorry to say it but you won't be able to talk him any
time soon or indeed in the future. You see, the poor
lad died a few months ago. I read it in the local
newspaper. I'd heard that he had been a victim of HIV
for some time before and finally when the drugs that
held it in check stopped working then he went down
hill quite quickly and some infection like pneumonia
finally finished him off. I really am sorry, but I
don't think he had anything to do with either the
murder of Darren -- I didn't at the time and I don't
now. Whether he had any information that he'd
remembered after all these years I doubt it, but we'll
never know now, I'm afraid. As for these more recent
killings I'd say he was too ill to have carried them
out and, in any case, by the time they really got
under way he was already dead. I can't really see what
other connection there might be that could link him to
the murders."

Bob looked downcast at the news that Gareth Thomas was
dead. The disappointment was written all over the
Inspector's normally impassive face. He'd had a hunch
that the boy had more to do with the case than his
superiors had thought, but now that he was dead this
theory went down completely. Bob decided that there
was little more he could do in Cardiff and was aware
that the Superintendent was expecting him back in
London. Bob terminated the discussion with David
Williams and thanked him and his wife for their
hospitality. As they prepared to leave for the journey
back to Scotland Yard, none of those who had talked in
the Cardiff front room was aware that the apparently
devastating piece of information about Gareth Thomas
meant that the team was significantly closer to
solving the case than any of them realised.


TO BE CONTINUED...

If you liked this part of the story let me know
cutrose40@yahoo.co.uk