Good Bait (DCI Karen Shields #1)(66)

Karen’s eyes brightened. ‘He’s been charged?’

‘Possession of a firearm and ammunition in a public place.’

‘That’s all?’

‘So far.’

‘What’s he saying about the gun?’

‘Not his.’

‘Surprise, surprise.’

‘Thought maybe I should get myself down there, Kentish Town, ask a few questions.’

‘Okay, but don’t go stepping on any toes.’

Costello grinned. ‘Fairy footsteps, I promise.’

Costello stood looking at Cullen through one-way glass as he stonewalled question after question, smirk like a razor cut across his face.

Brendan Cullen. Bren.

One leg was hooked nonchalantly across the other, tapered jeans, white T-shirt under a grey hoodie, one studded ear, a neat blue tattoo along his neck. Twenty-two? Twenty-three? He’d been practising for this since the local beat copper had first dragged him in, kicking and blaspheming, eight years old. Dad and granddad both doing time. Brother, one of them, in care. Another, the oldest, in the army, overseas; matter of time, Cullen thought, sad bastard, before he came home in a box.

So far, he’d admitted little or nothing. Possession of a small amount of a Class A drug for personal use only. Taking and driving away.

And the handgun found in the boot of his car?

Not his.

Not your gun?

Not my car.

Ba-boom!

Stolen, like he’d said, from the free parking area close to the Forum a couple of nights before. As for the unlicensed weapon tucked under the spare, together with a box of shells, no idea they were there. Nicking a motor, you didn’t exactly hang around to search the boot now, did you? A grin, switched off as easily as it had been switched on. Just shows, can’t trust nobody nowadays.

Cullen leaned back even farther; peered at Costello through lowered lids as he came into the room and one of the other officers left. Costello identifying himself for the tape.

‘The pistol, you say you’d no idea it was in the car?’

Cullen looked up in the direction of the camera and yawned. ‘We got to go through all this again?’

‘Before you went off and met your mates, you didn’t tuck it away under the spare yourself?’

‘No.’

‘You’re sure?’

‘Jesus, how many more times—’

‘Then how come one of your prints is on the gun …?’

‘What?’

‘Up against the trigger housing, underside of the barrel.’

‘Bollocks!’

‘Okay, it’s a partial, but enough there to bring it up on the database. Ridges, bifurcations, whorls – amazing what they can do with AFIS nowadays. But you’re a bright boy, you probably know all that kind of stuff, right?’ Not over-egging it, just enough to spread a little confusion, plant a sliver of doubt in Cullen’s mind.

Cullen staring at him and Costello holding that gaze and, without too much hostility, passing it back, beginnings of a smile around the eyes, willing him to believe the lie.

‘Of course,’ Costello said, ‘your brief will tell you a partial print on its own may not be enough to convince a jury, might not even stand up in court, but if I had as much as a partial print of mine on a weapon that had been used in at least one near-fatal shooting, I wouldn’t like to take that risk. Would you?’

‘What shooting?’

‘Woodford, not so many nights back. Unlawful wounding, grievous bodily harm, could be attempted murder, depends which way the CPS want to go. Kid doesn’t pull through, likely turn out to be the real thing. Go down for that and by the time you get out you’ll be lining up for your Freedom Pass and your old age pension both.’

‘Bollocks,’ Cullen said again, but without conviction.

He reached for the plastic glass of water that had sat, up to then, untouched on the table getting warm, and as he did so, Costello reached out also and, for the briefest of moments, covered Cullen’s hand with his own.

‘Your gun, Brendan, fair enough, face the consequences. Not your gun, my advice, say now before you’re in too deep.’

As Costello moved his hand away, Cullen lifted the glass. The water in his mouth was brackish, stale.

‘Liam’s,’ he said quietly.

‘Sorry?’

‘It was Liam’s, the gun. Liam Jarvis. A favour, like.’ He looked away.

Costello did his best not to smile. ‘Why don’t you tell me how that favour worked?’

Karen listened carefully, tapping the tabletop lightly with the end of her pen. Cullen’s story: Jarvis had told him to get rid of the gun, instead of which, Cullen had clung on to it, thinking to lie about it being clean and sell it on – that the reason he’d had it with him that evening, but the prospective buyer had cried off. After which the smack took over and his sense of purpose became a little vague.

‘Last time we went looking for Jarvis,’ Karen said, ‘he proved hard to find.’

‘So eager to get into our good books,’ Costello said, ‘Cullen might’ve given us a hand there, too. Reckons there’s little Jarvis likes better than a few frames of snooker of an afternoon.’

‘Anywhere special?’

‘Snooker hall, Old Kent Road. Not far from the Thomas à Becket.’