Heaven's Door (17 page)

“It's Jason, Dad. The police came – about five o'clock – and raided the house. They found …they found …” She began to cry, almost out of control.

“Katey, Katey, please calm down,” said Tom. “Look, it's all a big mistake. They've been here as well. They've found some stuff in Jack's room.”

Katey seemed to pull herself together.

“Stuff? What sort of stuff?”

“You know… stuff.”

“Oh, God!” gasped Katey. “So it might be true?”

“What might be true?” asked Tom.

“Well, drugs, of course,” she sobbed. “That they're doing drugs. I mean dealing.”

“Of course they're not!” Mags almost screamed at the phone. “That's ridiculous! Don't you dare think that!”

“Is Jason there?” asked Tom.

“No, they took him away. And Jack? What have they done with Jack?”

Mags turned onto her side and buried her head in the pillow.

“They've arrested him, Katey.”

“Oh, no! Oh, God, no!”

*

Three days later

Week 4; Friday, 17 April…

Daniel Hastings, Senior Partner, and the third generation member of his family in the firm of Hastings and Medforth Associates Ltd, Solicitors, had been awaiting Jack at Guilford police station when he arrived with Jo Cottrell on the morning of his arrest. Tom had called him the moment the car taking his son away had left the house. Daniel had subsequently agreed to represent Jason as well.

It was 9.30 am and he was pacing uneasily around the front sitting room at Etherington Place, where Tom and Mags were seated separately listening to the details of the investigation which lead to the events of three days ago. Daniel was a distinguished-looking figure, tall, slim, with handsome features and slightly greying hair. He was wearing a navy suit with white shirt and red silk tie.

“The investigation got underway around two months ago,” he said. “That was after the police had received a number of phone calls from drug users – seven in all – about some dodgy crack cocaine being distributed in the Woking area. All seven, and quite a few others it seems, suffered significant side effects. They gave the names of the dealers responsible as Jake and Jasper, and their descriptions pointed to Jack and Jason, who are on record as known associates of Mickey Kadawe, following the police surveillance of Kadawe the previous year…”

“I bloody knew it!” Tom almost exploded, addressing the comment to Mags. “I've said it time and time again! I thought he'd be behind…”

Daniel held up his hands to stop him. “Hold on, Tom. Kadawe is
not
under suspicion. He was closely observed for half of last year, and the police were satisfied that he's clean. He's a licensed trader, but there was no evidence he'd strayed beyond that. So he's out of the picture; all his previous convictions were as a minor – no point in going down that road.”

Mags glared at Tom. “Too bad. You'll have to try and fix him up for something else.”

Daniel looked from one to the other before continuing.

“Around three weeks ago, four of the users were persuaded to come forward, and three of them actually provided samples of the substandard goods. These were analysed and confirmed as being contaminated. Also, in the opinion of the examiners, they could have produced the side effects described.

“And I'm afraid it gets worse. The fourth user who came forward claimed to have gone to the home of one of the dealers. He couldn't remember the address, but he described it pretty accurately and picked your house out from a number of photographs he was shown of different properties. He says he had intended to confront Jack but couldn't get in because of security. Instead he threw the bag with what was left of the stuff in it over the property wall. Can't imagine why he did that, but during the search of the grounds here on Tuesday, they found a small packet near the boundary wall. His fingerprints were on the pack which goes a long way towards confirming his story.”

“Compelling stuff, I'm sure,” said Mags, “but he didn't do this, Dan. I can tell you that for certain. So instead of accepting all this as gospel, you – we – need to be thinking how it was done.”

“I totally agree, Maggie, but you should hear the whole story first. No point in trying to work out alternative scenarios until we know alternatives to what.”

Mags nodded but said nothing.

“Three of the four separately identified Jack – as Jake – from photographs taken on last year's surveillance. The other identified Jason – or Jasper, as he knew him. The three who didn't come forward after the phone calls, by the way, had all named Jasper as their supplier. There is also CCTV footage of Jack in brief conversations with half-a-dozen known drug users, and a couple of encounters also picked up through police shadowing.”

“Christ Almighty!” said Tom, slumping forward in his chair. He turned to Mags. “We can't ignore all that just because we don't want to hear it. Blind denial isn't going to help our son.” His voice was rising and shaking at the same time.

“So what's that supposed to mean, exactly? You're not seriously thinking …!”

“Look, hear me out and then we can talk about what we think and what we believe – and more importantly – what we need to
do
,” Daniel said. “Arguing amongst ourselves isn't going to help Jack either.”

They both became silent and turned back to him.

“On Tuesday, last week, the police received a tip-off from someone – anonymously, by phone – informing them that he had information that drugs were being stored in the homes of both Jack and Jason – Jake and Jasper. That is what prompted the raids earlier this week.

“Two mobile contact numbers provided by all seven witnesses were being operated on a pay-as-you-go basis by two people who had given false names and addresses in acquiring them. DI Cottrell phoned both numbers while they were searching Jack's bedroom. The first call was answered by a DI Waters at Jason's house on a mobile phone he'd just found under the floorboards there. Her second call wasn't picked up but the number was later confirmed as that of a phone hidden in the wardrobe in Jack's room under a panel next to the one where the drugs were. Apparently the phone was switched on but the battery had been discharged. With that phone was a half-empty box of disposable surgical gloves. Traces of the glove material were later found on the phone itself and the packets.”

He stopped pacing for the first time and sat down on the end of the sofa.

“That's it; the full story,” he said. “That's what we've got to work with – or against, in fact.”

They were all silent for a long time.

“So, what do we do, Dan? You make it sound hopeless,” Tom said.

“Not at all. Those are the facts of the case so far.
If
they are charged – and in the face of those facts it does seem likely, I'm afraid – a jury has got to believe they could have done it – not just the mechanical means to do it, but the will, the capability, the …whatever. And it's a difficult one to call. The main person in the spotlight will not be just any nineteen-year-old local man; it will be the son of the Home Secretary. And that could have a bearing on the case if it comes to trial, which, as I say, I am pretty sure it will.”

Mags gave a little sigh, which was really a suppressed sob.

“And that fact could affect it either way,” Daniel continued, glancing at her. “There will be a wave of sympathy for you both, there's no doubt about that. Ellen Gormley wasn't just speaking for the House yesterday, she was reflecting pretty much the feelings of the whole country. So that's good; that could have a knock-on effect with the jury.

“On the other hand, this can work against us. They could see it as a challenge to its impartiality, and that could sway them the other way into the face of that public sympathy. Because they – the courts – know, that the very people who say they can't believe the son of Tom Brown would do such a thing, will be the same ones who, after an acquittal, would say ‘well, it was obvious they wouldn't let him be convicted'. And that could be a big problem going forward.”

“Jesus, Dan, you're a real comfort,” said Mags, standing up and walking across the room to stare out of the window. “You're saying that the judiciary might convict him just to show that there's no favouritism, even though he's innocent.”

“No, Dan isn't saying that …” Tom started to respond, but Mags cut him short.

“Isn't that what you just said, Dan?”

“No, Maggie,” said the lawyer. “Not exactly. …”

“Okay, what
exactly
did you say, then?”

Daniel hesitated. “Well, firstly, the judiciary can't convict him – only the jury can reach …”

“Oh, for God's sake, Dan, you know what I mean. Even with the new jury system, the judge can still swing it in most cases.”

“Some cases, certainly,” he replied. “But I wouldn't say most. Look, Maggie, I'm just trying to lay this out objectively. Just trying to make you see the dynamics of the thing. And please don't tell me you weren't both already aware of them anyway.”

“No, you're right,” Mags sighed. “But let me tell you something – again. Jack is innocent. Of that I am one thousand percent certain. Right, Tom?” She almost shouted the question at him.

Tom said nothing, but nodded his reply. She glared at him as she continued to address Daniel.

“If you had seen him that night, before they showed us the … stuff, it was obvious – absolutely obvious – that he had no idea it was there. He was worried about them finding the porno mags, worried because he thought we'd be upset. And when we said it wasn't those they were looking for, it was drugs, he just laughed. He was so thankful because he genuinely believed he wasn't going to be in trouble. Surely you felt that, Tom?”

“Yes, that's right,” Tom said. “It was clear he didn't think …”

“And do they seriously think he would draw their attention to where he was keeping the stuff by clearing everything on top of it out of the way?” said Mags. “What did they think he was going to do – flush the lot down the toilet while they waited outside?”

“I understand that
is
a bit of a sticking point for the CPS. But on the other hand, are people likely to believe that he seriously thought the police had raided the Home Secretary's property at five in the morning to confiscate some naughty magazines. And when I say people, I mean a jury.”

Mags snorted. “It's ridiculous. And where's the
circumstantial
evidence, Dan? It's all hard, forensic stuff, nothing vague or questionable. Don't you think that's unusual?”

“I don't think I follow you, Maggie.”

“Well, it's all so neat. The calls, the packages, the mobiles, the gloves – all linked and seemingly rock solid. But what about the missing bits? Jack's behaviour – no sign of any change – where's the money? I suppose he spent it on the magazines! And Jason – Katey has hardly left his side over the past God knows how long. Wouldn't she …?”

It was the lawyer's turn to interrupt.

“I really don't think we should pursue that line of argument,” he said. “If, God forbid, Jason is convicted, they could use that very fact – that Katey has been with him continuously – to look again at
her
possible involvement. I mentioned this before, Maggie; it's best we leave Katey out of this as far as possible.”

“Christ, Dan,” said Tom, “you're not saying she's still a suspect, are you?”

“I couldn't say categorically that she
isn't
, although they appear to be satisfied for the moment. What I
am
saying is that convincing the jury that Jason couldn't have done it without Katey knowing, is more likely to put her in the frame than take Jason out of it.”

As he finished speaking, his mobile sounded softly in his inside jacket pocket. He took it out and looked at the display.

“I'm sorry,” he said, getting up, “but I should get this. It's Amanda – it might have some bearing on the case.”

Tom and Mags nodded and Dan walked out into the hall to speak to his assistant. Mags sat down again and they waited for him to return in complete silence. When he did he was shaking his head.

“I'm afraid that was more bad news. The police believe there could be a link between this case and a recent death on the Lawns Estate near Byfleet. About ten weeks ago a young addict died after using some bad cocaine. Forensics said the composition of the lethal dose was very similar to the stuff recovered from Jack and Jason. We requested independent testing of the samples, and that was Amanda with the results. I'm afraid our tests support the original findings. What they
can't
say for certain – and won't be able to prove – is that it came from the same batch. It is statistically possible that there were two similarly contaminated batches on the streets in the same area at the same time. Highly unlikely but statistically possible. Also, there is no obvious connection between the dead user and the seven witnesses who contacted the police – different groups, different markets, so it's unlikely they will put a lot of effort into establishing a link.”

Mags sank back in her chair and put her head in her hands. Tom went to her, putting a comforting arm around her shoulder, which she shrugged off. She turned to Daniel, her eyes glistening.

“But if they
can
make a link, Dan …what then? How much worse would that be?”

“Surprisingly enough, Maggie, legally no worse at all. It won't bring any further weight of proof to the charge of trafficking, and that's what we're dealing with. If the charges are proven and the link
is
made to the death, then they could in theory also be charged with unlawful killing.”