Shot of Silence (Justice Again Book 3) by M Comley (best contemporary novels txt) 📗

that sort of money, I would be using it wisely, like buying a boat and taking my family around the Med and farther afield. I’d leave all the criminals in the UK far behind me. Ah, a girl can dream.”

The three of them chuckled.

“Exactly, you wouldn’t gamble it trying to make more money for you, would you?” Andrea stated.

“No, I don’t think I would, but people have different needs and desires in this life. Has he been in touch since, to invest more money?”

“No. He told Grace, in an unkind manner, where she could stick her advice and that he would be taking his portfolio of investments elsewhere. We haven’t heard from him since that call.”

“We’ll chase it up once we leave here. So are you telling us that you were close to Grace?”

“Very. We confided in each other a lot, being the only women on the team.”

“Perhaps she confided about her personal life, did she?”

“Yes and no. All I know is that she adored her husband and her kids.” Her words came out strained, and a few tears flowed.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“You haven’t. The killer did that when he took her life. Are none of us safe these days? She was so looking forward to spending time with her family Christmas shopping, it was a rarity for her to have a full lunch hour. She could usually be found at her desk, munching on a sandwich while she continued to work. I was so pleased to see her away from her desk and happy at the thought of her going out for lunch…and then this happened.”

“It’s very sad. So this was a novelty, you say, her going out for lunch?”

“Yes, definitely.”

Katy nodded as the cogs started churning. Therefore, the crime couldn’t have been premeditated unless the killer targeting Grace was unaware of what her routine was. “Okay, that’s given us another line of enquiry to rattle down. Can you think of anything else untoward that has happened over the past few months?”

“No, not really. Grace and I were truly excited about her obtaining her promotion. She was about to set a few things in motion to change certain criteria that would be less restrictive to a woman’s ability in the workplace.”

Katy inclined her head. “Things that might have stirred up a hornet’s nest, perhaps?”

“Undoubtedly. It’s a shame she hadn’t instigated anything before her death.” Her head dipped again.

“Were any of the other team members privy to the plans she wanted to introduce?”

“No. It was privileged information between the two of us. I would never have let on to anyone, not before she’d implemented them.”

“So people weren’t likely to take umbrage at something they didn’t know about?”

“No. Truly, they weren’t anything major, just slight tweaks which might have stepped on a few toes, nothing more than that. Even if they felt they had been put in place, I couldn’t see anyone going out of their way…”

Shouts and cries for help broke out in the hallway.

Katy raced out there to find the other team members darting around like headless chickens. “What is it? What’s going on?”

Ben and Steve were standing outside Colin’s office, just pointing, their mouths hung open in stunned silence.

3

Katy pushed past them and into the room. “Shit!” she murmured. “Charlie, get in here,” she bellowed.

She made her way over to the man stretched out on the floor beside his desk. Blood pooling into the grey carpet surrounding him from two wounds; one to his head and the other to his chest. Katy felt for a pulse even though she could tell he was dead by the way his glazed eyes stared at her.

“Fuck!” Charlie cried from the doorway.

“Get them back, put them in another office and call for backup. No, forget that, I’ll do it. Just get them out of here.”

“Come on, guys, you don’t want to see this.” Charlie ushered the two men away from the door.

“What’s going on?” Andrea asked.

“It’s Colin. He’s been shot,” Ben advised her, his voice trembling.

“Come on, stay back. Is there a room we can use that has no windows?” Charlie asked.

“Yes, at the end of the hall,” Andrea replied.

Charlie motioned for one of the men to lead the way.

Once they had all moved from the doorway, Katy fished out her mobile and called the station. “Hi, Mick, it’s DI Foster. I need another set of officers at Zedex, there’s been a shooting.”

“Shit! Want me to call an ambulance?”

“Nope, it would be a waste of time. I’ll ring them in a moment after I’ve called the pathologist. Just get a team over here pronto. Are your guys still at the scene down below?”

“Yes, they were just packing up. I can reappoint them to you now.”

“No, leave them in situ. What the fuck is going on? How does someone take a pot shot at someone when there’s a police presence at the scene already?”

“They’re either brave or stupid. I’ll get this actioned immediately, ma’am.”

“Thanks.” She ended the call and moved over to the window, back against the wall, edging alongside it to peer out, cautious that the killer might still be out there, ready to take another shot at any time. A few rooftops on the opposite side of the street were visible as well as possibly a couple of hundred windows to choose from where the shooter could have taken a shot from.

“Don’t get too close,” Charlie warned from the doorway.

“Jesus, you scared the crap out of me. Are the staff all right?”

Charlie walked into the office and kept to the edge of the room to join her. “They’re shaken up. How could this happen with us here?”

“You tell me. Uniformed police down below as well. I need to ring Patti, get her and Forensics back here.”

Katy stepped away from the window, and Charlie swapped places with her.

Katy tugged on her arm. “Not too close. The last thing I need right now is to train up yet another partner.”

“You can’t get rid of me that easily.