Chapter Thirty-Four

As soon as he was showered and dressed, McFarland looked at the clock which sat on his dressing table. It was time. He picked up his phone and dialled. ‘Morning, sir…’

‘Good morning, James. What’s on your mind?’ Jasper knew that he was only ever contacted by McFarland this early in the day when he was after something.

‘Well, sir, we think that we should call another press conference and appeal to the public for help,’ McFarland cringed.

‘Not a bad idea. Though haven’t we already done that recently, James?’

‘But, sir, this time we want Terry in front of the camera.’

‘Terry Bane can’t be seen and you know that.’

‘Sir, with respect, he’s part of this investigation,’ McFarland interrupted.

‘I’d like to remind you who is the superior officer here.’

‘Sir…’ McFarland took a deep breath, ‘Terry has been contacted directly by the guy who has been orchestrating these recent crimes.’

‘What?’ Jasper interrupted.

‘He calls himself “The Ultimate” and we know that he’s the real deal because he phoned Terry using Hector Hylie’s mobile phone.’

‘He would have to come back on to the payroll James. That’s the only way I would be able to wangle it.’

‘No, that is not what this is about, sir. It’s about catching this guy. It’s about public safety, let’s forget the pride of The Yard and concentrate on why you called Terry back in.’ McFarland felt like he was almost clutching at straws but continued, ‘To catch the person responsible for these hideous crimes. We thought that it was a one-off until he struck again, now we are helpless, waiting for him to dish up another corpse. Why shouldn’t the public know that you’ve had to call Terry back in? Tell them that we have been contacted by this monster and that this monster has named himself as “The Ultimate”. Get this on the front of every newspaper. Sir, I guarantee that you’ll have their undivided attention, along with their full backing.’

‘I don’t know about this… I agree with you regarding the public’s right to know, but we don’t want people running scared… what I mean by that is we don’t want vigilantes roaming our streets, James.’

‘What then? What do you suggest we do, sir? Terry and I are dancing in the dark. What exactly have we got? We have two people in custody, we have an eyewitness who told us what we already know. What I’m trying to say, sir, is if we don’t appeal to the public, we are no further forward than when we started this investigation. It is our opinion that we tell the public as much as we legally can. Sir, please trust us with this. We’ve always delivered results in the past.’

‘OK, James. Meet me at The Yard, in about…’ Jasper checked his watch, ‘let’s say, a couple of hours. We can debrief and draw up a statement for the press. James…’ Jasper growled, ‘don’t keep me waiting,’ Jasper hung up.

‘Yes,’ McFarland yelled, punching the air. He then dialled Terry.

‘You’ll have to come back full-time you know?’ McFarland stated, in a quiet tone.

‘Jasper agreed? Fucking hell, wonders will never cease,’ Terry chuckled. ‘And no I won’t,’ he replied calmly.

‘It’s the only way he’ll agree for you to face the press and be in full sight of the cameras, mate.’ A silence followed.

‘Did you tell him about the contact with The Ultimate, McFarland?

‘I had to, mate, but it was your idea, and listen, we have to keep him in the loop. He would never have agreed to it if I hadn’t. We’ve been summoned to his office – a couple of hours. We need to go through the press release, agree on a formal statement, and blah-de-blah, mate.’

‘I was just checking… If it means me putting pen to paper.’

‘How do you want to play this press conference then?’ McFarland interrupted.

‘Let’s see what Jasper says, hey?’ Terry knew that he would be provided a script, which would have been edited over and over.

‘I’ll be with you in about thirty minutes.’