'DS Webb, can I see you in my office? And DS Garrett as well, please.' Bryce shouted over to them across the room.

'What've I done now?' Michael growled, sotto voice, and was met by the easy laughter of his colleagues. They were his mates now, well able to tease him.

'Nothing, DS Webb,' Bryce responded quickly to his comment, and the strict formality with the DCI reminded him vividly of Meadows and how it had been before. 'Come in, sit down, both of you.'

He waited until they were both settled and the door shut. 'This is based on information I've only recently received; the possibility of corruption amongst some high-ranking CID officers at Sun Hill station.'

No, not again. He couldn't physically breath for a moment. The memory of all the damage that Beech had caused was too clear, even five years on. Eventually, he choked out a few hoarse words. ' Not Jack Meadows, sir. Not the DCI there.'

Bryce regarded him steadily for a while. 'I know that you spent several years at Sun Hill, Michael; that's why I asked for you on this one. They'll trust you, be more willing to open up, but I don't want you trusting any of them. Not even Meadows.'

'Jack isn't bent…I'd stake everything on him not being involved in it…Sir.' He could feel his face burning; was very aware of the curious looks that Bryce and Liz were giving him, but he was compelled to defend Meadows.

'Why'd you have so much faith in him?'

Because when you've lived with someone for a year, slept with them, been so close to them that you know everything about them, then you know what they're doing and whether they've got any spare cash floating around the place that they shouldn't have. 'Cos I was there for a long while, and I frequently worked closely with DCI Meadows.' Well, that's one way of putting what we did. 'In all that time, I never had any reason to doubt his honesty or anything. Me and him were there through another similar problem; he was so totally against it that I can't image he's involved.'

Unless he was covering up for someone, maybe; he would have done that for me, I guess. Unwillingly, he caught Bryce's eye. 'Meadows isn't like that. And he used to work here, years back…surely you've got records or maybe people here that worked with him.' That hadn't occurred to him before.

'What about the others there, then? Okaro, DI Manson, DI Onsloe? Any of the sergeants?'

Michael shrugged. 'Don't know. Onsloe wasn't on my shift, I hardly knew the guy. I think most of the sergeants I knew aren't there anymore, and I never really had much to do with Okaro.'

'Manson?'



'Didn't know him at all; he arrived after I'd gone but…he never really got on with the DCI. I know that - somebody told me.'

Both of them caught the change in his voice but it was Bryce that responded first. 'Is it a problem then, that Manson didn't get on with Meadows?'

'Only because, well…Jack, he don't normally take against people like that.' I don't think he ever has done, actually, except for maybe Ray or Delaney, and I guess that he had cause for that.

'Jack being DCI Meadows?'

'Yeah. Look, me an' the DCI were mates. Good mates.'

Bryce smiled, the expression flickering over his face in an instant. 'I'm glad you were so close to someone at Sun Hill - they shouldn't be surprised to see you back there for a while.'

Michael stood so abruptly that he knocked the chair over; Liz, alarmed at his reaction, sprang to her feet as well. 'Sir…guv…you want me to go back to Sun Hill? Back to the CID there, to investigate this?' Walk up those stairs, be in the office…Smithy on the desk, Jack there watching us…I can't go back to that and I want it so much…

'Is that a problem? You just said you hardly know anyone there now, and if you're so close to the DCI, that'll be alright. Say you're in the area or something. He'll believe that, won't he?'

'Yeah…No…It'll be alright.' The problem with the DCI is that I left and he started screwing Debbie and I don't ever want to see him again, ever, because I don't know what I do think about him and it all hurts too much. 'Look, I'll do it if you want.'

'Good. Liz can work with you; you've made a good pair in the past.'

She can meet Jack. 'Yes, sir.' I don't think that I could stand to see the two of them together or have him at the wedding. Couldn't do that, not and walk away from him without looking back. 'Do the best we can, Sir.'

Bryce dismissed them shortly after; Liz went off to take a statement from someone - Michael only half-heard the details she related, and he went to sit, alone, in the sergeants' office.

I should phone Jack, warn him, tall him what's going on. He ought to know. His finger hovered the numbers on the phone, the realisation that he still knew Jack's number by heart shocking him. If I tell him, Bryce'll kill me. Oh, God, Jack…You need to know, you have to know because maybe you can stop it but I can't tell you. I'm going to have to go in and rip everything apart in front of you and you don't know it's going to happen. I'm so sorry, Jack…

Heavy hearted, he gathered up what he'd need for the week Bryce expected them to be at Sun Hill. A suit for the wedding rehearsal - Liz had explained to him that he was attending. Shirts with long sleeves that would hide the scars across his arms, a few months old now but still vivid slashes of thickened skin. The last thing he stuffed into the kit bag was the Celtic ring Meadows had given him, so long ago now. He hadn't worn since Liz had presented him with a thick gold engagement band, but the familiarity of it was comforting. 'Be lucky, Jack. Let this all be a mistake, be nothing that can hurt you or make things worse than they are now.'