Behind Dead Eyes (DC Ian Bradshaw #2) - Howard Linskey Page 0,25

did you some damage in court.’

‘Look, it was a very long time ago and I got run ragged by the girl in question. I lashed out and I have regretted it ever since. Ask Mark …’

‘Your best man? The character witness that didn’t work out the way you intended?’

‘That wasn’t his fault,’ said Bell, ‘the prosecution lawyer tied him up in knots, but he’ll tell you the truth. What happened with Amy doesn’t make me a murderer.’

‘I won’t lie to you,’ Tom said, ‘I could look into this case for you but I won’t sugar-coat what I find.’

‘I did not kill Rebecca Holt. I did not beat a woman I cared for over the head with a claw hammer. I know that saying it out loud won’t make you believe me but I will not give in until I have cleared my name.’

‘Who said it was a claw hammer?’ asked Tom, fixing his gaze on Bell.

‘Well,’ was there a slight stammer in his reply, ‘the prosecution had an expert witness …’

‘He said it was a blunt instrument.’

‘Which was most likely a hammer,’ Bell corrected him firmly, ‘because of the dimensions of the impact marks on Rebecca’s skull.’

‘A hammer yes but he didn’t say it was a claw hammer.’

‘Do you own a hammer, Tom?’

‘Of course.’

‘Usually they have a flat bit at one end of the head to bang in nails and a claw at the other end to pull them out again,’ and he looked Tom right in the eye, ‘hence my use of the words, claw hammer.’

‘Okay,’ said Tom, letting it go, ‘so you were saying … about wanting to clear your name.’

‘Freedom without exoneration is meaningless to me. How can I look my daughters in the eye and tell them their daddy is a killer,’ Richard asked, ‘or try to explain that he isn’t but had to admit to being one just so he could get out of jail?’

‘I understand.’

‘Do you? I seriously doubt that. It’s not as if saying it would even change anything. I’d still be in here with no hope of release for years. What are you planning for the next five years, Tom; meet a girl, settle down, have some kids, get a home, a better job maybe with nicer prospects? That’s what people usually do. They try to improve their lives. All of that is on hold for me until this nightmare is over. No women, no booze, shit food, nothing to look forward to. What do you think most people would say if they knew what my life was really like?’

‘That you deserved it,’ offered Tom, ‘for killing Rebecca.’

‘Yes,’ he admitted, ‘you’re right. I think that’s exactly what most of them would say – but I did not kill Rebecca. You’ve got to believe me.’

‘No, I don’t,’ Tom told him, ‘I don’t have to do anything,’ and before Bell could contradict that he added, ‘but I’ve decided I will look into your case. I’ll do some digging and I’ll see if I can come up with something new and, with permission, I’ll speak to your nearest and dearest to see if they can shed some new light on the events of that day – but you won’t be able to control my opinions or conclusions and you might not like what I find,’ warned Tom. ‘If it’s something about Rebecca that you didn’t know or I discover the real reason she was killed …’

‘Tom, I assure you I can live with anything if the alternative is to stay in here for the rest of my life.’

‘And what if all the evidence I uncover still points to you?’

‘Then I’ll be no worse off but I have every faith you will find the real killer.’

‘How do you want to play this? Do I keep visiting you here with updates?’

‘The governor isn’t too keen on that idea.’

‘Why not?’

‘Because he knows that sooner or later one of his guards will sell the story to the newspapers.’

‘What story?’

‘Journalist reopens Rebecca Holt murder case,’ Bell explained. ‘You can keep my wife informed. Annie visits regularly and this way nobody will ever know you are working with us.’

Tom liked the sound of that. Working for a convicted murderer wasn’t something he was keen to include on his CV. ‘I still have a lot of questions.’

‘Then you’d better ask them.’

She’d asked for a couple of days off and Graham said she’d earned them. He’d told Helen it might be a good idea to keep her head down anyway following the incident