Cruel Shame (Knights of Templar Academy #3) - Sofia Daniel Page 0,15
bun. Her strong features gave her the look of a young Paloma Picasso but without the dramatic makeup.
“This way.” She turned on her heel and continued down a magnolia-colored hallway.
After a whispered goodbye, I followed her. We rounded the corner, passing signs that lead to the custody suite, and walked past the interview rooms.
The police woman opened the door to the coziest interview room I’d ever seen. It had the same drab walls and tiled ceiling, but consisted of two IKEA sofas arranged around a low table. At the back was a tinted glass wall that I could bet my life concealed a camera.
My lips pursed into a thin line. This wasn’t where they put the suspects or even the witnesses. This must be a special room for victims of crime. I turned around with a protest on my lips, but Detective Chief Inspector Cromar stepped behind the police woman.
“Thank you, WPC Pala.” He placed a thin hand on her shoulder and fixed me with a predatory stare. “I’ll question Miss Hancock.”
Chapter Eight
Constable Pala glanced from me to the Detective Chief Inspector, her brows drawing together. My shoulders drooped. Even if the woman suspected her superior officer was a creep, she couldn’t help me. Nor could she turn to another officer and ask. Constables were the lowest ranks in the police force, and DCI Cromar was three levels above her.
“What are you doing here?” I snapped.
Cromar’s brows drew together. “I understand you’re upset about recent revelations.” He gave the female constable a gentle pat on the shoulder. “Please bring two cups of tea and a plate of chocolate digestives.”
I clenched my teeth. Everyone I knew who’d been arrested for something or other and not once did we get luxury snacks, not even the time I led them to Billy Hancock’s cocaine haul.
DCI Cromar ushered me inside and took the seat facing away from the glass wall. I resisted the urge to plonk myself on the sofa next to him. The benefits of pissing him off outweighed the cost of inhaling his musty, rank sweater.
I perched myself on the edge of the opposite seat and folded my bandaged hands on my lap.
His gaze dropped to the bandages. “What a trying day you’ve had. Myra Highmore attacking you with a gun, followed by the revelation of your father’s horrific abuse.”
“Mr. Burgh is my grandfather,” I snapped. “And he didn’t abuse anyone.”
The detective chief inspector made a see-sawing motion with his hand. It’s obvious what that fucking meant. You say potato and I say potahto—that I could call Mr. Burgh a grandfather all I wanted but there was enough evidence to prove that we were much closer related.
Angry heat surged through my veins and heated my face. Every blood vessel on the left side of my head pulsed in sync with my pounding heart. I wished this concussion didn’t mess with my reflexes. The first time we met, I treated him like the wanker he was, and now he was making me look like I’m some kind of victim in denial.
“Listen,” I said between clenched teeth. “Lady Liddell showed me that fake DNA report, and I tore it into pieces. Mr. Burg is not my father.”
He leaned back in his seat, spread his legs wide, and folded his arms over his thin belly. “How do you know?”
“What?”
“You weren’t there when Duncan Burg forced himself on your mother.” He tilted his head to the side and leveled me with penetrating stare. I supposed that was the police equivalent of striking a triumphant pose.
“Neither were you.” I leaned forward with my fists clenched. “When Lady Liddell spouted those lies, I went straight to London to ask my mother.”
His eyes twinkled. “Because you suspected it was true.”
“I suspected Lady Liddle was planning on using the fake DNA test against my family.”
Cromar shook his head. “How could you possibly know that?”
“I don’t know,” I snarled. “Maybe the smug grin she gave me after I tore up the test and she said she’d made multiple copies.”
“And it’s a good thing that she did, otherwise this information would never come to light.”
I ground my teeth. He’d already made up his mind. Actually, he was either trying to be a dick or was working directly for the Liddells. At a guess, I’d say it was a combination of all three.
“This conversation is going nowhere,” I said with a groan.
DCI Cromar rose from his seat, strolled toward the exit and swept his arms toward the door. “You came to us, Miss