Chapter 2

Kate felt the weight of several pairs of eyes on her as she walked into AC12. After several long, tireless hours of questioning, DCI Carmichael had held her in the cells overnight before interrogating her further earlier that morning.

The Gaffer's and Steve's statements from the time of her arrest had corroborated with her own and, until Jo woke up, Carmichael didn't have enough evidence to charge her. So, reluctantly, she'd released her.

Kate had gone straight home and taken a long, hot shower. She'd been able to clean most of the blood off her hands and wrists in the small sink of the cells, but she scrubbed them in the shower to make sure they were irrefutably clean.

She didn't want any more reminders that Jo had almost bled to death in front of her.

Whatever other crimes she'd committed through wilful negligence or outright collusion with the OCG, Jo had still taken a bullet for Kate. She would never forget that.

Kate turned off the shower and stepped out, feeling refreshed. She put on fresh capri trousers and a loose cream shirt, before calling the hospital to find out how Jo was.

The nurse she spoke to apologetically told her that she couldn't give out patient information unless she was the next of kin, but that visiting hours were from 5pm to 8pm, so she could come by then.

Kate thanked her and hung up. She was reluctant to wait until later that evening, but there wasn't much else she could do. Ryan's attempted murder had been deemed an active threat to life, so there would be surveillance outside of Jo's hospital room. She should be safe.

Unless there were other officers like Ryan working with the OGC. That would be a whole other problem. AC12 hadn't identified any other potentially corrupt individuals aside from Jo and Ryan, but that didn't mean they weren't out there.

She needed to speak to the Gaffer and Steve.

Grabbing her car keys and bag, she had headed to AC12, which was where she now found herself under scrutiny.

She made a beeline for her superior's office, letting the stares of others slide harmlessly off her shoulders. They could think what they liked about where her loyalties lay; she, Steve, Chloe, and the Gaffer knew the truth.

Reaching the Gaffer's door, she only had time for two sharp raps before the door opened. Ted stood on the other side looking harried.

His expression changed to relief when he saw her. "Kate, come in."

She entered his office and he shut the door behind her.

"Sorry sir, I came as soon as I could. DCI Carmichael kept me in for questioning overnight and only let me go an hour ago. I went home to change and came straight here."

At the mention of Carmichael, Ted's expression turned thunderous.

"DCI Carmichael has some nerve, arresting you on flimsy grounds, then barring us from being present at the questioning. She wouldn't even let us near the holding cells." He fumed.

That explained why none of AC12 had been present for her interrogation.

"It's alright, sir, your statement and Steve's were part of the reason they had to let me go. Your account of our operation helped prove that I was working with AC12 to bring Ryan and Jo in. They didn't have enough evidence to charge me."

She tried for a smile but knew when Ted's expression softened that she must have looked as tense as she felt.

"Are you OK?"

Kate hid her surprise. She knew that the Gaffer cared deeply for all his officers, but he usually hid it behind sweeping statements or and a gruff tone. It was rare for him to be so openly concerned.

"I'll be fine, sir. I just want to how Jo's doing. I know we're still investigating her, but she did save my life."

Ted nodded, looking troubled.

"Aye and thank god she did. The last I heard from the officers at the hospital, she was in surgery, but the outlook was good."

Kate felt the tightness in her chest loosen slightly.

"That's good, sir. How do we proceed with the investigation?"

"First, I want a full debrief of everything that happened last night."

Kate sat down and recounted everything to the Gaffer. When she told him about how Jo had pushed her out of the bullet's trajectory, getting shot in the ribs instead, she felt her stomach sink once again.

It was her fault Ryan had been able to get away. He'd tried to fire a second time after Jo had slammed into her, but Kate was already reaching for her gun and returning fire.

Her aim was off, of course, because she was lying on the ground, still reeling from the impact of hitting the tarmac.

But it was enough to make Ryan duck behind the car he and Jo had arrived in. The approaching sirens had made him pause, locking eyes with Kate once before fleeing the scene.

She should have gone after him; all her training screamed at her to do so. But she couldn't leave Jo bleeding out on the ground, her eyes fearful and glazed with pain.

Kate moved swiftly on to the next part of the story where AC12 and the other units had arrived and finished recounting all events leading up to her arriving here.

Ted looked grave, his face lined with worry. "I have no doubt that when DCI Davidson is able to, she'll corroborate your account of last night. Our main concern now is PC Pilkington. He's still at large and our officers have yet to pick up his trail."

"I want to be part of the search, sir." Kate said immediately.

"Aye, I thought you might." Ted said, a whisper of a smile almost appearing on his face. "But I need you to check in with Steve first."

"Steve?" Kate asked, puzzled. "Where is he?"

Ted levelled her with a serious look.

"I don't know. He didn't come into work this morning and he hasn't responded to any calls or messages. I thought you might have heard from him...?" Ted trailed off expectantly.

Kate guiltily fished her phone out of her. It had been taken as evidence last night, but apart from when she'd called the hospital, she'd barely looked it since her belongings had been returned. She'd been too preoccupied with thinking about Jo, Ryan, and the whole situation. She hadn't checked in with Steve.

She tapped in her passcode and looked through her notifications.

No missed calls and no texts from Steve.

"He hasn't tried to contact me since last night, sir." She said, feeling worry stirring in her stomach. "Could he be ill?"

"He didn't mention feeling unwell yesterday," Ted said, frowning. "It's unlike him not to contact anyone if he's ill. I've called him several times and it's gone to voicemail each time. If he were chasing a lead, his phone would be on and he would have come here first or gone with Chloe."

Kate felt her worry magnify. The Gaffer was right, Steve would never be absent without letting someone know. Unless something was wrong.

"Do you want me to go to his flat sir? I've got a spare key for emergencies, so I can check if he's there." She was already standing and picking up her bag, knowing what the answer would be.

"Yes, go straight there," Ted ordered, his voice radiating with undisguised tension. "Let me know what you find."

Neither of them had forgotten how Steve had been targeted by the balaclava man several years back and how badly injured he'd been.

Kate felt a surge of protectiveness rise up in her. She never wanted anything like that to happen to him again, if she could help it.

"I'll update you as soon as I get to his flat." She said, heading for the door.

Ted nodded his dismissal.

On the drive over to Steve's, Kate called his mobile several times, berating herself for not checking her phone earlier. It was completely out of character for Steve not to have messaged or called her at all to find out if she was OK.

When she was undercover, he'd often leave her voicemails or texts with information, knowing that she'd pick them up when she could. He never went radio silent like this, not unless she'd asked him to. Or if something was wrong.

Kate pulled up outside of Steve's apartment and hurried inside. She took the lift up to his floor and walked swiftly along the corridor to his door.

Knocking loudly and ringing his bell, she leaned her ear to the wooden exterior to listen for any movement inside. If Steve was indisposed, she didn't think he'd be too happy about her bursting in unannounced.

No sound came from inside, so she knocked again, louder this time. A few moments more passed and she rang the bell again, while dialling his phone. It went straight to voicemail, just like the previous time.

Kate decided that she'd given him ample time to answer the door. If he was asleep, he would have definitely been woken up by the noise she was making. If he couldn't get to the door on the other hand…

Fishing the spare key out of her bag, she unlocked his door swiftly and opened it. Inside the apartment, the hallway was cool and quiet.

"Steve?" Kate called out.

Only stillness answered her. Something was definitely off.

There had been no signs of forced entry, but Kate was suddenly very aware that she didn't have her firearm on her.

Cautiously, she moved further into the apartment, calling out for her partner again.

"Steve, are you here?"

She moved into the open-plan kitchen and sitting room area, where sunlight was filtering in through the windows, giving the room a more inviting feel.

Steve was pretty tidy by nature, but she'd noticed once that when he was ill, he liked to have tissues and a glass of water within arm's reach so he didn't have to go and fish them out of the cupboards.

Looking around the space, Kate could see that there was nothing on any of the kitchen counters. No mugs or plates sat in the drying rack next to the sink. The cushions on his sofa were all in their pre-determined places.

Kate hurried back through the apartment and checked the spare room and main bathroom. The light was off and all the towels were dry.

With a sinking feeling, she checked Steve's bedroom last. His bed was made and there were no signs that he'd been here recently.

Grabbing her phone out of her pocket, she called the Gaffer. He answered on the second ring.

"Kate. Are you at Steve's?"

"Yes, sir I'm here."

"Is he there? Are you with him?"

"No, sir. He's not here."

"What?" Hastings sounded shocked.

"His bag's gone and his bed doesn't look like it's been slept in." Dread curled through her.

"Steve's missing, sir."