Lorraine pored over the pictures. Her head felt as if it was splitting in half. She hadn't slept a wink all night, she had seen, as she'd tossed and turned, those very same images captured on the board. It wasn't until Sanderson coughed behind her that she turned and realised that all of her officers were in the room.
She straightened her shoulders, took a deep breath before saying, "Alright, here's what we do know. The farmer was out checking his fences. It was his dog that raised the alarm. We also know that the vict..." Lorraine swallowed past a lump in her throat as a fleeting picture of Amy laughing on her bike flashed through her mind.
"Forensics haven't come through yet." She shook her head.
"No footprints? Dinwall asked.
"The ground was rock solid, nothing to lift."
"Anything found on her?" Dinwall shrugged. "Anything to give a clue as to why?"
Lorraine shook her head. "No."
"What?" Peters poked Dinwall's back. "You think this sicko wrote the reason down and put it in her pocket, like a game or something?"
There was muted laughter in the room that was quickly silenced by a look from Lorraine. Her headache was fast becoming the mother of all and she felt sick, but she had to go on. I'll do everything I can to nail this bastard, and when we catch him there's going be no way on earth for this weasel to wriggle free. Taking a deep breath, she went on. "Death was caused by strangulation ... After she'd been bitten and raped."
She turned to the pictures and looked at them for a moment, knowing her team would be looking at the close up of Amy's horrendous bite marks, before turning back and carrying on. "The grazes on her wrist proved she'd been tied up ... The bastard was free to do just about anything he wanted. Nothing in her finger nails to say she'd even put up a fight."
"Do you think she might have been drugged?" Peters asked.
"We're waiting for her blood tests to come back later this morning."
Hearing the door open, she frowned and turned to see Clark standing there.
"Could 1 see you in my office, DI Hunt?"
But sir ..."
"Now, please." Clark's tone held a hint of warning.
Gritting her teeth, Lorraine gestured for Luke to come up and take over, then she followed Clark out of the door and along to his office. Clark didn't even wait until Lorraine was seated before he said, "I'm taking you off the case, Lorraine."
Lorraine was stunned. "You're what? But why?"
"I think you know why."
"But, sir!"
"No buts, Lorraine, it's far too personal. Officially, you're off the case. DS Daniels will take over, he'll keep you in the loop seeing as you work so well off one another, and use your knowledge. But he's in charge."
She looked at him tor a for a moment. Inside she knew he was right, but she wanted this case, she wanted to catch whoever the sick bastard was, she wanted it so much the longing was an actual ache. She stood up. "'That's your final word?"
He nodded. "Have you told DS Daniels what happened that night?"
Lorraine shook her head.
"Don't you think he needs to know?"
"I'll get to it." She rose from her seat. "Is that all, sir?"
"For the moment."
Lorraine resisted slamming the door though she sorely wanted to. Prick, she was thinking as she marched back to the incident room, in time to see the backs of most of her officers heading in the other direction, towards the canteen.
She went into the incident room where Luke was standing holding the case notes and staring into the middle distance.
"All done?" Lorraine asked.
"Oh, oh yes. Here." He held the notes out to her.
"Keep them. It's your case," she snapped, then instantly regretted it. "Sorry. It's not you ..."
"What do you mean it's my case?"
"You're starting to sound as dopey as Carter, for God's sake, how explicit do I have to be? Clark has taken me off the case, so it's yours."
"Why?"
"Too close... Amy was once one of my best friends." She shrugged and looked him in the eyes.
"But that was years ago."
"Makes no difference. What's so maddening is that he's possibly right. Come on, I'm dying of thirst here and this bloody heat is absolutely killing me. Can you ever in your life remember it being so hot before?"
Luke followed her out of the office to the canteen, wondering if there was something she wasn't telling him. For one thing, no way would Lorraine hand a case over without a fight, and ever since last night she's been so preoccupied.
OK, so Amy had been an old friend. He sighed inwardly, his mind made up. I know there's something you're not telling me, girl.
To find out what happens next, read Sheila Quigley's exciting novel, The Road to Hell.