Chapter Nine

Sunday 18th May

'If you think that I don't mean, ev'ry word I'm saying, Don't, don't, don't, don't,'

"Leo is that you?" Harry asked; the Skype ring tone having done its thing. He'd been overjoyed to see Leo online at lunch time on a Sunday afternoon. It was bizarre talking to Nikki and having to call her Leo, but it was Sunday at one and it was talking and he had so much he wanted to tell her about.

"Hello?" Harry heard a voice.

"Hi, it's Harry. Turn on your camera."

"What?"

"There's an icon, looks like a video camera," Harry shouted. He didn't know quite what it was about Skype but it did always seem necessary to shout. No wonder his mother preferred the phone.

"Leo?"

The picture appeared to reveal Leo sat at his desk at the Lyell Centre.

"Hello Harry. Were you expecting someone else?"

"No, of course not. Why would someone else be Skyping from your computer? Hello Leo, how are you?"

"I'm well thank you. How are you?"

"It's finally warming up a bit here, another month and everyone says it will be too hot to breathe again, but I like the sunshine after all the snow. How's everyone there?"

Harry saw Leo stare hard at him. He'd not imagined Skyping Leo would have felt so awkward, but maybe things had moved on in the nine months he'd been gone.

"Are you still enjoying being back in the lab more? Nikki told me about the restructuring you had to do."

"Hmm," Leo replied.

"Jack's still there?"

"Yes, he does good work, once he gets into something he's like a dog with a bone, he won't give up until he's sorted everything out. He's a lot like you that way."

"I learned it from the best," Harry said sincerely.

Leo laughed. "You were quite capable when you arrived Harry; I've never seen anyone develop as fast as you did. You could have had the job when Sam left, I still don't know why I got to be the boss and you didn't."

"Because you were the better choice Leo. I was hot headed and impulsive and rude at times, the department wouldn't have gotten anywhere with me at the wheel. You made that place Leo, you should be proud of what you've achieved. You've moved with the times, you've adjusted you've embraced new technology; you've done it all Leo. And I wouldn't be where I am now, if I hadn't learned so well from you. And not just the science, I never found that difficult it was the everything elses, calming my temper, dealing with people, holding it all together when the world is falling apart. That's what you taught me Leo, and I am grateful."

"What about you Harry?" Leo asked, slightly embarrassed by all that Harry had said. It really wasn't like the old Harry at all; he'd even picked up the odd Americanism in the way he spoke. Not that he didn't agree with what he had said, he knew it was true but it just wasn't the sort of thing you said to someone's face, it was more likely to be said about them after they'd died. It was refreshing to hear. Perhaps America was good for Harry.

"I couldn't have done it if you were still here." Leo admitted.

"What do you mean?"

"The budget for three senior pathologists, it would have become unworkable, one of us would have had to have left."

"Last in, first out fire the girl," quipped back Harry repeating something he'd said years before.

Leo gave another chuckle. "I would never have fired Nikki!"

"So what would you have done?"

"You left, I didn't have to make the decision. You made it for me."

"But what would you have done?" Harry asked curious as to how his friend and mentor would have solved this difficult problem.

"I was thinking of the Freddy Patel case."

"Freddy Patel?"

"He was the pathologist who did the post mortem on Ian Tomlinson."

"Oh yes," Harry remembered. "The newspaper man, that was killed during the G20 protests."

"He ended up getting struck off, not just for that there had been a series of problems, but I got to thinking who can investigate these problems independently? If we're all home office certified, then when things go wrong and things do go wrong, how can you investigate or get a second opinion if all the pathologists are in the Home Office's pocket?"

"Hang on," said Harry. "You were going to fire yourself, and go independent? Is that what you're saying?"

"It is."

"Blimey!"

Leo smiled.

"Who would you have left in charge?" Harry asked with a wicked grin.

"Harry!" Leo chuckled.

"It's a good idea though," Harry said. "I'm sure there would be enough cases to keep you busy, you could have done some teaching on the side, exam supervisions. It could work. You wouldn't have to take all the crap from the DI's either. So what were you going to do start your own clinic?"

"I'm not sure I'd call it a clinic…'The Dalton Clinic,' sounds a bit like an upmarket rehab centre, don't you think?"

"Maybe it does. How about just 'Daltons'?"

"That sounds like a dodgy holiday time share company, or even worse one of those holiday camp things! I didn't spend a great deal of time thinking about a name Harry, it was just an idea."

"'The Daltons?'" Harry suggested.

"It's only 8am Harry, how are you this bored already?"

"Sorry, I just thought it was a good idea." Harry chuckled.

"It is a good idea," Leo stopped and smiled at his old friend. "Dalton Pathology would have worked," he suggested.

"So you did think about it!" Harry insisted.

"Yes I did! But I didn't have to do anything because you left. Look Harry, there's something else I want to talk to you about."

"Hmm?" Harry noted Leo's serious expression. It was a stark contrast to the laughter they had just shared. "Is Nikki alright?" he asked an edge of worry to his voice.

"It's not really about Nikki."

"It's not?" Harry asked disappointedly.

"Not everything is about Nikki," Leo pointed out, but he had reasons to suspect that in Harry's world perhaps that wasn't true. "It's kind of on the same theme as before, really. The independent work. I've had someone in to the office wanting to find out exactly how their brother was killed."

"How did he die?"

"It's complicated Harry,"

"Are you taking the case?"

"Yes I've told Scott Lambert, I will go and investigate."

"Go and investigate, go where?"

"Scott Lambert and his brothers were both soldiers."

"Then is the brother's death really likely to be suspicious? Where did he die?" Harry could feel his pulse begin to race; he had a bad feeling about the conversation now. He remembered all the things about Leo that made him so cross in the past, the inability to see the big picture, the attention to detail that caught up the whole team pitting them against each other until the actual reason they were investigating became lost in a mass of theories and inquiries and personal pride. "Leo?" he asked, he could feel his voice beginning to shake.

Leo was calm and composed; his face a picture of serenity as he continued to explain the details to Harry.

"Some bones have been uncovered, during the digging of a well for a water project. They are near to the location that Scott knows his brother disappeared. He has been asking questions for years about what happened to his brother but with no body he had no chance of discovering what actually killed his brother."

"You still haven't told me where, Leo." Harry hadn't felt terror for a while. There were some streets he'd walked down in the City which afterwards he realised had been a pretty stupid thing to do. But terror like this, not since… not since… he could barely form the word Hungary in his brain.

"Leo please, tell me what's happening?"

"I'm going to Afghanistan, Harry. I'm going to perform whatever tests I can out there and repatriate the bones and answer any questions that are still outstanding."

"Afghanistan!" Harry blurted out. "This soldier got killed in Afghanistan and you're going out to find out why? Leo are you insane? There's a war on. People are killed every day. I'll tell you from here what killed this man Lambert, the Taliban killed him that's who, and the how is probably a gunshot to the head. What the hell do you think you're doing? You aren't going to make anything better by going. Is it going to bring peace to that family? He went off to war and he didn't come back. It's tragic it is, but that is what happens in war. You know that when you sign up. You go to war and you put your life at risk." Harry felt himself pulling his hands through his hair. He couldn't believe how calm his old boss was being.

"Harry," Leo began more quietly. "The others are coming too."

"Others?"

"Jack… Nikki!"

The skype broke up and wasn't able to conduct the wail and blasphemy that screeched out of Harry's mouth.

"You said this wasn't about Nikki!" Harry shouted when he'd given the Skype enough time to catch up.

"I said it's not really about Nikki; it's about what happened to a dead soldier. I thought you of all people might understand."

"Did you tell her; no?" Harry yelled, he certainly didn't understand putting people's lives at risk for the sake of a dead soldier. Not when it involved Nikki.

"I can't tell Nikki what to do!" Leo said indignantly. "It's going to be fine, we'll go, collect the bones, observe the local area, do tests, bring the bones back, it'll be quick, 48 hours max."

"Don't!" Harry blurted out. "Don't say that!" He heard himself saying exactly the same thing to her two years before. '48 hours max, in and out.' How badly had that trip turned out?

"Look Harry, the tickets are booked. It's all going to be fine. Besides after all that stuff you said earlier even if it wasn't fine you've said everything you would have written into a eulogy."

"Leo, do not joke about this stuff. Please don't. It's not funny."

"If I do die."

"Leo will you stop!" Harry shouted.

"You have the details of my solicitor don't you?"

"Yes, I have the saved on my phone, on my computer and my mother has a hard copy. But Leo don't talk like this, you said it was going to be fine."

"If I do die; don't come back for me Harry. I'll not know it won't matter to me. You've said what you've said and I'm glad I heard it. Thank you. But don't come back for me; come back for her."

"Leo!" Harry couldn't help the tears forming in his eyes, he didn't care that Leo could see. "It's madness Leo, please don't go. I'm begging you don't go."

"But Harry, this is just the sort of thing that as an independent pathologist would be perfect. A death to investigate that no one is interested in anymore. It's exactly what you said was a brilliant idea."

"Not in Afghanistan Leo, not in Afghanistan."

The two men stared at each other, the silence and fear engulfing Harry as he looked at his friend's peaceful face.

"You'll not change her mind. I did try Harry, but as soon as Jack said he'd come with me, that was that."

"They're not…" Harry broke off.

"No, they're not," Leo replied, answering the question Harry hadn't even asked.

"Be careful please," Harry begged.

"I promise I'll take care of her."

"But what about you?"

"I'll take care of me too. Remember what I said Harry. You've been a good friend to me over the years. But don't come back for me. Come back for her."

"Leo!"

"Bye Harry. It's been good talking with you."

"Bye Leo." Harry was still staring at his blank screen long after Leo's image had disappeared from it.


Don't: Jerry Leiber/ Mark Stoller (Elvis)

I know I'm sorry it has to get worse before it gets better, hope it fits credibly in with what we got to see in S16. Thanks for the lovely reviews so far. Glad you're enjoying it and I know there's a lot of stuff and not action in these bits, but it does all pull together eventually. Thanks for indulging me. Indulge me some more and leave a review : ) Thanks.