Three Hours(51)
‘He was Jamie’s,’ Antonella says. ‘But Jamie dumped him, didn’t he? Wouldn’t have anything to do with him.’
Jamie is missing and Victor is murderous.
‘I’m sure Jamie is safely hiding somewhere,’ Daphne says, not sure, a shake in her voice. Get a hold of yourself, they’re all looking at you.
‘The police asked if he’s friends with Malin Cohen,’ she says.
She’d taught Malin in junior school and hoped he’d grow out of his behavioural problems, but a year ago he’d tried to punch a teacher and been expelled.
‘God, no, Victor would never hang with Malin,’ Josh says. ‘Too fucking mental.’
‘Yeah, right,’ Antonella says. ‘And Victor …?’
‘Perhaps they were friends secretly, then, or some shit; or became friends after they left here.’
‘In a way it’s good it’s Victor,’ Luisa says. ‘When you think about it. Victor’s really fucked off with Mr Marr for not letting him stay here. Gone bloody mental about that. God. But he hasn’t got anything against anyone else, has he? Frank’s done nothing to him. He’s never even spoken to Frank. Wouldn’t talk to someone like Frank. And Malin too, if it’s him too. This is just against Mr Marr, against adults.’
‘I think you’re right,’ Daphne says. ‘Victor and his henchman’ – henchman, new words for Victor now – ‘I think they’ve done what they came to do. So we just need to wait it out. And while we do, let’s continue the rehearsal.’
‘Seriously?’ Tracey asks.
‘Yes,’ Daphne says. ‘We’re not going to let them stop us. We will pick up from where we left off. Duncan, Lennox, Malcolm and Donalbain on stage, everyone else ready for your cues.’
Behind her, Zac is walking up the steep banked steps of the auditorium, fast, as if he can outpace his thoughts; reaching the top and no way out, so back again; and as he gets closer Daphne sees his body shaking as if he’s in freezing water.
*
Dannisha Taylor, lead hostage and crisis negotiator, has joined Rose’s team in their command and control vehicle. She’s sitting close to Rose and Rose is grateful both for her composure and for her lemon soap smell, which is helping to relieve her nausea. Dannisha has told her she has five children at home, five, bloody hell. There’s something reassuring about being close to Dannisha.
Rose will use her training and experience in forensic psychology to assist Dannisha with negotiation. She has briefed Dannisha on what they know so far about Victor: he wrote a violent rape fantasy that he managed to explain away; he is off-the-chart bright; he was expelled from the school but they don’t yet know the reason; he didn’t want to be at the school in the first place.
Now they have Victor’s mobile number, Dannisha has a channel of communication.
Dannisha types a text.
Can we talk?
‘Nothing confrontational and not giving away that we know who he is,’ Dannisha says. ‘A place to start.’ Rose nods and Dannisha sends the text.
‘Do you think he knew we’d find out who he is?’ Dannisha asks.
‘Yes. He’s using his own mobile and his mother’s car is parked in Junior School’s car park. If it wasn’t for the snow we’d have found out his identity sooner.’
‘He could be tremendously idiotic,’ Dannisha says.
‘I’d go for tremendously arrogant. I think he wants us to know who he is.’
‘Yes, I agree with you.’
There’s a live feed to their command and control vehicle from the police team outside Victor Deakin’s house. Rose is glad they had the foresight to dispatch teams in advance to all the suspects’ houses, not wasting any time, especially in appalling driving conditions. A neighbour has told them that Victor’s parents are away, a riding holiday in Chile. Rose thinks Victor Deakin planned this for when there were no parental eyes on him.
She watches the screen and for a few moments she isn’t in the cramped police vehicle but hurrying along an icy path, a shortcut across the lawn, footprints in snow; other officers are at the back of the house. The sound of a battering ram against the door. A burglar alarm shrieking. Then footsteps, lots of footsteps, doors banging, voices. They’re in.
Perhaps they’ll get lucky and find a journal or letter outlining what Victor Deakin intends to do and the name of his accomplice; or failing that, perhaps he’s confided in someone and they will find something to lead them to that person, or maybe he’s been seeing a therapist and they’ll find a note of an appointment, a contact number, and she’ll be able to get a psychiatric evaluation. But if that isn’t the case, if they don’t get lucky, no journal, no confidant, no therapist, then it’s Rose’s job to help find the ID of his accomplice and predict their behaviour.
Her team and other officers are talking to Victor’s teachers and fellow students, anyone that can help. Under normal circumstances the gunman’s identity would not be made known, but nothing about this is normal and they have to find out everything they can about Victor Deakin as quickly as possible.
‘Who’s computer forensics lead at the house?’ she asks.
‘Lysander Kiehl,’ Thandie tells her.
Rose is glad it’s Lysander, his surname redundant not only because of his extraordinary first name, what were his parents thinking, but because of his reputation as being mind-blowingly brilliant on computers. Getting into Victor’s computer and what he’s been doing online is a way of getting inside his mind; it could well be Lysander who finds out what Victor Deakin intends to do.