Stop Dead (DI Geraldine Steel)

restraining him in the back, only things got out of hand –’
    ‘Like your imagination,’ Geraldine interrupted her quickly. She was pleased to see that the sergeant’s usual good humour had returned, as she smiled at Geraldine’s gentle reprimand. Sam was never bad-tempered for long.
    ‘For a start, the victim was in the driver’s seat. Apart from which we’ve seen nothing to indicate any attempted kidnap. Keep it real, Sam. Anything’s possible at this stage,’ Geraldine continued. ‘So let’s not muddy the water by allowing our imaginations to run away with us. We’re here on a fact finding exercise so let’s focus on the job and gather as much information as we can while we’re here.’
    ‘But you told me yourself facts alone aren’t enough. We have to envisage the bigger picture. I’m not imagining, I’m envisaging .’

     
    Geraldine felt faintly uneasy that her young sergeant seemed to remember everything she said. Of the two of them she was the senior officer, but there were times when the responsibility of knowing that Sam took her words so much to heart made her uncomfortable.
    ‘That’s true, Sam, but without facts we don’t have anything to base our theories on. We can’t just come up with ideas from nowhere.’
    ‘Righty ho.’

     
    ‘How long is this going to take?’ Sam enquired after a pause.
    ‘Do you have somewhere you need to be?’ Geraldine asked sharply.
    She had never had reason to doubt her sergeant’s commitment before.
    ‘I want to look around a little longer and then see if the witness who found the body is home. Is there a problem with that?’ she added, seeing Sam grimace.
    ‘No, but – it’s just that I haven’t eaten anything since breakfast. I wouldn’t mind, only it’s hard to focus when you’re starving. It’s distracting.’

     
    Geraldine couldn’t help laughing.
    ‘I should have known you were thinking about your stomach. Come on then, I think we’ve seen what we need to see here for now. Let’s go and grab something to eat – but I want to be back here soon to question the witness who discovered Henshaw, if he’s in. The sooner we speak to him, the better, while it’s still fresh in his mind.’
    Sam looked shamefaced.
    ‘We should really see him now, shouldn’t we? I can wait, of course I can. Work comes first.’
    ‘You’re sure of that?’ Geraldine asked, her sarcasm lost on Sam who nodded seriously.
    ‘Come on then, it’s number thirty-six. Let’s get this job done.’

     
    They left the tent and removed their suits, gloves and shoes before returning to the street where a small crowd of onlookers, mainly women, had gathered just beyond the police tape that cordoned off the narrow lane leading to the lock ups. Muttering to one another, shuffling and waiting for information about the dead man who had unexpectedly shattered the monotony of their street, they fell silent, watching, as Geraldine emerged from the narrow side turning and looked up and down the street of houses.
    ‘Hey, miss,’ one of them called out.
    ‘What’s going on?’
    ‘We’ve got a right to know.’

     
    Geraldine approached a uniformed constable and spoke quietly so members of the public wouldn’t overhear her.
    ‘There’s no chance any of it was caught on CCTV I suppose?’
    ‘No ma’am. There’s no cameras this far from the main road, and even if the car was filmed driving past the station, or somewhere else in the area, we’re not going to see a dicky bird through those windows.’
    ‘No, I suppose not.’
    As she turned back to the onlookers, a few more voices called out to her.
    ‘Who is it in there?’
    ‘What’s happening here?’
    ‘Has someone been murdered on the street?’

     
    Ignoring the demands from the crowd, the two detectives walked past them to number thirty-six. Geraldine pushed open the gate and Sam followed her across the narrow front yard. It began to drizzle as they waited on the doorstep.
    ‘At least the rain will send the spectators packing,’ Geraldine said, nodding in the direction of the neighbours who showed no sign of dispersing.

CHAPTER 9
     
    ‘T he witness who found the body is called Keith Apsley,’ Geraldine reminded Sam as she rang the bell.
    A moment later a man opened the door. Tall and pale, he stared anxiously down at them.
    ‘Keith Apsley?’
    ‘Yes. Is it about –’
    Geraldine held out her warrant card and introduced herself and her sergeant.
    ‘We’d like to ask you a few