Broken Skin

57

He sighed and closed the wardrobe door. Insch would have been over the moon that they’d finally caught someone, but as far as Logan was concerned, this wasn’t going to end well for anybody. Tina hadn’t killed Jason on purpose. It was just a case of kinky sex gone tragically wrong, but she’d get dragged up on charges anyway, the trial would be splashed all over the papers, her life would be ruined. And it wouldn’t make Jason Fettes any less dead.

He headed back downstairs, trying not to hear the Battle of the Somme noises coming from the bathroom as he passed. He could hear Rickards moaning in the kitchen, complaining about being blackballed from the Aberdeen scene, Tina telling him he could always try the Ellon lot instead.

She looked up, saw Logan standing in the doorway, smiled, and asked him if he’d like a chocolate biscuit. He asked her where she was the night Jason Fettes died.

The kettle gave a click and fell silent while she stared at him, face going pale. And then it all went wrong. She wrenched open a cutlery drawer, pulled out a huge, serrated bread knife and grabbed Rickards by the collar. He got as far as, ‘What the f-’ before she spun him round. Now she was directly behind him, putting his body between Logan and herself; using Rickards as a shield. She grabbed a handful of hair and yanked the constable’s head back, pressing the blade against his throat. He squealed. ‘Argh, Jesus, Tina!’

‘Whoa!’ Logan held his hands up, not moving. ‘You don’t need to do this. Fettes was just an accident. We-’

‘I … I’d like you to leave, please,’ she said as Rickards’ terrified eyes locked onto his.

‘It’s OK, you’re not in any trouble.’

She almost laughed. ‘Not in any trouble? I killed a man!’

‘Sir, I-’ Rickards made a strangled noise and stopped talking, a thin trickle of blood running down to soak into his black T-shirt.

‘I fantasize about it all the time. All the time! You understand? I watched that film of Jason dying over and over again, till I knew every word off by heart. All the sounds, the screams. Again and again and again.’

‘Come on Tina, let …’ Logan had to wrack his brains for Rickards’ first name, ‘John. Let John go. You don’t want to hurt him.’

‘No?’ She let go of Rickard’s hair and ran her hand down the front of his stabproof vest, across his belt, until she was cupping him through his trousers. ‘John wants me to hurt him, don’t you John?’ She squeezed and the constable whimpered, closing his eyes. ‘Yes he does …’

‘Tina, you’re a bottom, remember? You only did what Fettes asked you — it’s not your fault.’

Steel’s voice, muffled from upstairs. ‘Hello? The lock’s stuck. Hello?’ The sound of a door being rattled.

Tina looked Logan in the eye. ‘It is my fault.’ The tears started. ‘I’m a serial killer.’

‘Oh for fuck’s sake. You’re not a serial killer, OK? Fettes was into rough sex and it went too far. It was an accident, that’s all. End of story.’

‘Hello?’ The rattling got louder. ‘Where the hell is everyone?’

‘I am a serial killer! I fucking am! I got the books off the internet — I read them. It’s me! I tried to make it happen again, with the other one, the bastard who stole my bloody stuff, but he wouldn’t die!’

‘You’re not a serial killer!’

Steel had obviously run out of patience. She was hammering on the door, yelling, ‘WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON OUT THERE?’

Tina stared at him, shaking her head softly. Telling him to keep his mouth shut.

Logan shouted over his shoulder: ‘Ms Peterson’s taken Rickards hostage. She’s got a knife to his throat.’

Tina’s eyes went wide. ‘You bastard!’ She clutched tighter at the constable’s crotch and he whimpered. Then groaned.

‘WHAT? Fuck …’ The rattling turned to booming. From the sound of things Steel was trying to kick the door down. And then it went silent, followed by a one-sided, muffled conversation. ‘You’re not a serial killer, Tina. It was an accident. Yes you fantasize about it, but it’s a long way from there to holding a police officer at knife-point! You know what she’s doing right now?’ pointing up the stairs to where Steel was still talking to herself. ‘She’s calling for an armed response unit. They’ve got guns.’

Tina let go of Rickards groin and fumbled her way round his belt till she got to the handcuffs in their leather holster and pulled them out, keeping the knife against his throat. ‘Wrists together, behind your back.’ The constable did as he was told. There was a metallic click, then another. Her hand worked its way back to the front and tugged at the belt buckle.

Rickards said, ‘Please don’t!’ but she shushed him, and undid it anyway, then unbuttoned the top of his trousers.

‘Come on, Tina, they’re on their way here now. It’s not too late to let John go before this gets out of hand.’

She put her lips against the constable’s ears as she slid his zip down and his trousers fell round his ankles. ‘They don’t understand, do they?’ She worked a hand into the waistband of his underpants and tugged them down as far as she could reach. Rickards’ erection sprang free and she smiled. ‘But we do.’

‘Please-’ Tears sparked at the side of his eyes.

‘Shhh,’ she grabbed him and started stroking, ‘you need to be silent unless I say so.’

‘But- Aaargh!’

She dug her nails into his penis. Then went back to stroking it.

‘Oh, Jesus.’ Logan really didn’t need to see that.

A loud bang from upstairs, a pause, and then Steel limped down the stairs. ‘Now what the hell is everyone …’ she drifted to a halt as she saw a shivering Rickards with his trousers round his ankles, his pants round his thighs, and his dick in Tina’s hand. The one not holding the knife. ‘There’s a sight you don’t see every day.’

No one laughed.

‘Firearms team’s on its way, five, ten minutes tops.’ Steel said, digging a brand-new packet of cigarettes out of her pocket and tearing the cellophane off with her teeth, adding, ‘You don’t mind?’ as she winkled a fag out and stuck it in her mouth.

‘I’d rather you didn’t smoke in my house!’

‘Aye?’ The inspector shrugged and pulled out a cheap, petrol-station lighter, her hand trembling as she lit up and sooked in the first lungful of smoke. ‘Well, I’d rather you didn’t wank off my constables with a bread knife. So we’re even.’

They stared at each other as the silence stretched, then Tina said, ‘I … I was so sorry when I found out Jason was dead. He was… special. I’d never been a top before …’ She shivered. ‘I felt him scream and wriggle and bleed all up my arm. It was so warm …’

Rickards whimpered again and she speeded up her stroke. Then slowed right down. Keeping him hanging while the blood from his throat soaked dark-red into his T-shirt, making the black material glisten. ‘I didn’t realize till afterwards how special it was.’ She smiled. ‘The power of life over death.’