The Value of Life

  Chapter 11: Oh for Fuck's sake!

  When Josef called Bentworth he learned that Mason had been put in charge of the High Street and the cab office. DS Ward was on his way over to collect the ransom note and take the cabbie's fingerprints. Josef updated Bentworth on his interview with the Martins and the tape the Beachams were listening to now, he also explained he had enlisted WPC Whitlock to interview families.

  "Where are you with the psychological profile?" Benworth asked.

  "Working on it Sir. I might come up with something from the tape or from the families but I'm not holding my breath."

  "We're going to have to release a statement to the press soon, and when we do poo and fan are really going to collide and I'm going to be asked a gazillion questions from upstairs," Bentworth said, "and they'll expect answers."

  "I'm on it Sir," Josef replied, but not really feeling on it at all.

  "Sounds like it," Bentworth said, "keep it up," and hung up.

  Josef wasn't really sure of Bentworth's sincerity on this occasion but he accepted it anyway. He pulled the business card from his pocket and dialed the number on the back, it cut straight to answer phone so Josef left a long and rambling update before being cut off by the beep. He called again, apologized to the answering phone and hung up.

  Feeling completely silly Josef parked his own car in an empty space round the corner and as he walked back up to the Beachams DS Ward got out of a traffic patrol car that had pulled up outside the house. They walked in together.

  Josef spent the whole afternoon with the Beachams. He ordered in Pizza for everyone, except the cab driver who was allowed to go after his prints and statement were taken. By five o'clock everyone was exhausted, and they'd found nothing to connect the boys or the families. Occasionally they had used the same supermarket but not often, they used the same DIY shop, they'd both been in Accident & Emergency at the local hospital, but beyond that it was mere coincidence, and Josef believed that more than mere coincidence linked the two families. Josef advised them to start taking stock of their financial assets, if the police were unable to find the kidnapper before the deadline the family may well want to pay and that seemed the only option if the current circumstances didn't change pretty quickly.

  He made his way back to the office and was sitting at a desk in CID trying to type a psychological report when WPC Whitlock came looking for him. She came over, pulled a chair from an empty desk and sat opposite. She looked pleased.

  "Well?" Josef asked eyebrows raised.

  "I spoke to Daniel's grandmother, Rita Martin. She said the father hit the boy once, a bit too hard. She said Daniel was being bullied at school so he threw a bottle through a boy's living room window. The boy's father came and complained and when Daniel admitted it Mr. Martin replaced the window. Trouble was ten minutes later Daniel was being bullied again, because his dad replaced the window, so Daniel broke it again. Apparently the other boy's father complained again and when the truth came out about the bullying, Mr. Martin refused to replace the window a second time. He got into a fight with the other parent. Anyway, behind closed doors Mr. Martin smacked Daniel, she said it was too hard. The grandmother said it was a one off and she never saw any signs of anything again."

  "Could be something," Josef said, "Did Daniel see a doctor or anyone about this, maybe the school nurse, and did the Grandmother know the other boy's name?"

  "No, no and yes, I'm following it up tomorrow after I speak to some of the Beacham's relatives."

  "Good work Martine," he said.

  "Close," she smiled. "Now I'm really knackered, I've had about two hours sleep an' I'm going home."

  After she'd gone Josef spent the next two hours writing up his profile, outlining his major theories based on evidence and psychological profile. When he finished he re-read it. He'd never written anything like it and he wasn't even sure how it was supposed to be presented. He couldn't find a single example anywhere in CID to base his profile on and there was nothing in the Standard issue guide that helped either. He was tired and crabby and there was no one to help him with it so he took it up to Bentworth's office. The office was open and the light was on but the man himself was nowhere to be seen. Josef left the file on the desk and left for the evening.

  Glancing at his watch as he walked through the police station car park to his car he saw it was just after nine. He had his hand in his pocket fishing out the keys when his phone rang. He pulled it out and checked the number. It was Bentworth.

  "Lindahl," he said, and listened.

  "Jo we've had another one."

  "Oh for fuck's sake," he said.