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Well, John isn't convinced by O'Neill's statement, but what can he do about that?

Chapter 24

"He's lying!"

Kate stared at him for a long moment and no matter how often he said it, somehow, she still wouldn't believe him and John was running out of ideas how else he could make it plain to her that something about that man was very, very wrong. Eventually, she crossed her arms in front of her chest and sighed.

"Okay, prove it," she demanded angrily. "Prove that he's lying, give me something, anything that is more than a wild accusation."

"We've been in the same room," John growled. "We've seen and heard the same things-"

"What I've heard is Ciaran O'Neill telling us that he doesn't know Clara Oswald or Bonnie Moore."

"And you believed that?!" he barked at her. Right now, John was ready to think that he had completely overestimated Kate if she fell for a suspect's lies that easily. But not him. It was the man's smile and the coincidences that kept piling up. There had to be more to it than the simple explanation Ciaran O'Neill had given them.

"What I believe doesn't matter," Kate replied eventually. "Did I find his behaviour strange? Yes, I did."

"Then why aren't you doing something about it?" John demanded to know.

"Because that's not how this works!" Her voice cut through the air like a knife and John realised too late that his boss was properly infuriated. "We can't arrest someone for being strange or creepy. Even if the coincidences are there, they could be just that. Coincidence. What we need is evidence!"

John let his shoulders sink, not knowing how on earth he would get that.

"Do you have any of that?"

He shook his head.

"We can keep an eye out for strange activities," Kate told him after a moment, her voice now softer. "We can bring him back the next time he does something odd, but that's it. Until he actually breaks the law, my hands are tied."

In return, John uttered a weary sigh because, in his heart, he absolutely knew that Kate was right about everything she had said. They just had no reason to hold O'Neill, but that didn't mean that John couldn't keep looking for one. However, as his boss turned to leave, he realised that there was something he still hadn't told her and even though now was possibly the worst time to do that, John had to get it over with or he would never find the courage.

"Kate," he said carefully and his boss turned back around. "There's something I need to tell you."

A small frown appeared on her forehead as she stepped closer and John dearly hoped that she wouldn't be too angry. She wouldn't, would she? He was handing her the evidence – just a little bit later than he should – and he was handing it to her with an explanation on top. That had to count for something. Carefully, John reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out the note before he wordlessly handed it to Kate.

She took it after a moment of reluctance and John waited as her eyes trailed over the few lines written on the piece of paper and he watched her frown deepen.

"What is this?" she asked eventually, the confusion audible in her voice. "Where did you get it from?"

John cleared his throat and shuffled his feet a little awkwardly because he knew that he had messed up. Not on a huge scale, but once the truth was out, Kate would most definitely give him a lecture. "I, uh, I found it in Bonnie Moore's pocket," he confessed and dropped his voice until it was hardly more than a mumble. "The day after the body was found."

"You've had this note the whole time?!"

"I meant to hand it in, but-"

"But what?!" his boss shouted and when John looked at her, the anger was now visible on her face. She wasn't just angry, she was furious. "John, you've worked for the police for a very long time now, I'm sure I don't have to tell you that withholding evidence is a very serious matter."

To underline her statement, she threw the note back at him, almost slamming it against his chest and John only caught at it at the last moment before it could flutter towards the floor.

"I'm handing it in now, am I not?!"

"Not good enough!" Kate shouted and crossed his arms in front of her chest in a defensive gesture. She suddenly appeared a little taller as if she was deliberately pushing herself up on tiptoes to be more intimidating. However, her voice had now lost some of its anger. "John, I didn't want to bring it up because I know you're a good detective, but you have a history."

"That has nothing to do with this case!" he argued in his defence.

"It has everything to do with this case!" Kate spat. "You disobeyed orders, you disregarded rules and you were fired for it."

"I left."

Kate ignored his protest. "Withholding this note? That is disregarding one of the most basic rules that we have," she went on. "I will overlook it this once because you've given it to me now, but I will not tolerate it again, do you understand me?!"

"I was waiting until I had found an explanation for it!" John tried to explain, but judging by the look on Kate's face, she wasn't buying it and he could feel it now before she had even said the words. The true reason he had kept it hidden.

"Oh, and what explanation would that be?" she demanded to know, her voice dripping with sarcasm because she knew the truth now. His boss has seen through him quicker than he had seen it himself.

John swallowed hard before he replied. "Bonnie obviously found out that Clara was her twin sister and came here to find her."

Suddenly, Kate reached out and jabbed his chest with her index finger. "You wanted to protect Clara Oswald," she half shouted at him. "Which, given that it's you, is quite noble, but you didn't think it through, did you?!"

Slowly, John raised his eyebrows at his boss and Kate, in response, scoffed sharply before she continued. "Let's assume you're right," she said. "Bonnie Moore figured out she had a sister, tracked her down and came here to find Clara, address in her pocket. Then what happened?"

All of a sudden, John had an idea and he knew that it should have occurred to him right after they had found out Bonnie's name. How had she even come to the island in the first place? By plane? By ferry? No matter how she had done it, there had to be a record of it somewhere and with that, they could pinpoint the exact moment she had arrived on this island. He was so stupid not to have thought of it before.

"John, what happened next?!" Kate demanded, throwing him a stern look.

"I, uh, she died," he replied. "We don't know how."

"Exactly," his boss said. "And right now, the only connection that we have is Clara Oswald. You can't deny it."

"She had nothing to do with it," John argued. "She repeatedly said she didn't know about Bonnie until I told her."

"Yeah, well, remember five minutes ago when you told me that you think the suspect was lying? I think the one who is lying here is Clara Oswald," Kate said sharply in a tone that was almost a growl. "We need to bring in her for questioning."

John uttered a groan. That was exactly why he had held the note back, that was why he hadn't mentioned it to Kate and now what he had feared would happen was actually happening. "She had nothing to do with it," he repeated, trying to remain as calm as possible. "Clara looked at the body and said she didn't know her. She insisted she didn't have a sister when she took the DNA test and she was shocked when I told her about the results."

Kate squinted her eyes at him and he could feel her anger return. "Excuse me for not taking your word on that after you've withheld one of the most crucial details of this investigation," she barked. "Just because her pretty face has turned your head doesn't mean I'll let you compromise this investigation with your unfounded instinct to protect her. As of now, Clara Oswald is a suspect and I will question her whether you like it or not!"

John opened his mouth to reply, to shout something back at her, to tell her that she was wasting her time, but he never got the chance as Kate spun on her heels and the door was slammed shut behind her. As soon as he was on his own, John felt his heart sink. Kate was not only looking in the wrong place, she was defying his theories in her stubborn attempt to get back at him. Not that he couldn't relate to that, but in this case, it was Clara Oswald who would suffer the consequences of his actions. Maybe it wasn't entirely wrong what Kate had thrown at him. Maybe her pretty face had turned his head. But if that was all Clara was guilty of, John could absolutely live with that.