Down Among the Dead Men by Ed Chatterton Read Free Book Online Page B

control. His heart is banging around inside his chest cavity as if it has broken free of its moorings. Hastings comes back in and Frank stands.
    'Er, we've got a car outside, sir. Be quicker than an ambulance.'
    Frank nods. 'You get her?'
    'She's been taken to the holding cells, sir.' Hastings hesitates, uncomfortable. There's something else.
    'What?' barks Frank. Deep down, he already knows.
    'The woman who attacked you? She's DI Harris's partner. Linda Black.'
    Frank nods and then puts his face back under water. He holds it there, his eyes open, as long as he can.
    Christ. What a day.

Twelve
    By Friday, Dean Quinner's regretting involving Big Niall and his cretinous mate in this thing with Noone. Sleep, never a frequent visitor for Quinner, hadn't come easy last night and when the morning arrives, things don't look better. Lying awake, his decision now looks like one of the dumbest things he'd ever done.
    What if Niall ends up hurting the actor? Won't that be as disastrous as anything that would happen if the theft came to light? It's only a fucking wallet. Quinner wonders if it's himself he should be worrying about, not Noone. What kind of lunatic puts his faith in someone like Niall?
    Shit.
    Quinner looks at his watch and reaches for his phone before stopping, his hand in midair. Anything that's happened will be over by now. It can wait. With luck the big idiot won't have done anything and Quinner will be able to call off the dogs with no one any the wiser.
    He leans back in the chair and closes his eyes. As he does, the quiet of the flat is cut by Quinner's ringtone signalling an incoming text. Quinner reaches across the coffee table and picks up.
    It's from Niall.
    Quinner presses 'open' and the message appears. There are no words. Instead an animated hand walks onscreen, forms itself into a fist and then flips Quinner the finger.
    Quinner closes the phone and switches it to silent.
    Fucking Niall.

Thirteen
    The doctor at the Royal, a young Asian woman wearing a headscarf who looks more tired than Keane, sees him immediately. A uniform from Canning Place drives him direct.
    'No permanent damage.' The doctor peers into Keane's eyes using a powerful light which feels more painful than the acid. 'You'll need to make a follow-up appointment with an ophthalmologist to double-check in case there's been any tissue scars caused by scrubbing at the eyes, but I think you'll be fine.'
    She stands and passes Frank a paper towel.
    'Thanks.'
    Something occurs to him as the doctor turns to leave. 'What was it she threw at me? Do you know?'
    'Not sure. But I would guess something like surgical spirit, or white vinegar.'
    'Vinegar? I could smell vinegar but I thought acid just smelt like that.'
    'It does, sometimes. But in this case I think your attacker may have been just trying to scare you.'
    Frank levers himself off the examination couch.
    'She succeeded.'
    The doctor smiles bleakly and leaves.
    Frank picks up his damp jacket and looks at his watch.
    Fifteen minutes later, he's walking down Copperas Hill towards Lime Street. He could call a car but the walk will help clear his head. He cuts past the faded grandeur of the Adelphi and then through the shoppers on Ranelagh Street, heading for the Pier Head. There are a few half-glances in his direction at the damp patches on his shirt.
    His phone rings as the Cunard Building comes into view.
    It's Harris. Frank hesitates before pressing the answer button.
    'Frank,' she says and he knows instantly that she has heard. 'Where are you?'
    'I'm going to sleep. Call me in, say, three weeks.'
    'We need to talk about Linda. She's in the lock-up at Canning Place. I just got a call from her. What happened, Frank?'
    'Didn't she tell you?'
    'Yes, sort of. Not really.' There's a pause. 'She mentioned acid.' Frank hears the fear in Harris's voice. It's not something he's ever heard before and it's something he'd rather not hear again.
    'She threw what I thought was acid at me. Outside HQ. It wasn't,