Page 125 of The Mercy Chair

‘I’ll do no such thi—’

‘Say it!’

Joshua looked round for support. Got nothing from the massed ranks of Nightingale’s cops, technicians and ancillary staff. They didn’t know everything, but they knew enough. For a moment, Poe thought Joshua was going to capitulate. But an excited chatter at the far end of the hall caught his attention. Some Children of Job members had entered, no doubt drawn to the shouting. They were standing around aimlessly, like there had been a badly organised fire drill.

Poe saw Joshua’s resolve harden.

‘If what you say is true, that’s unfortunate,’ he said. ‘But—’

‘That’s it?’ Poe said. ‘That’s all you have to—’

‘Buthomosexualityisa sin, Sergeant Poe.’

Nightingale joined her two cops. She turned her back on Joshua and said, ‘Go home, Poe.’

‘I’m not going any—’

‘I won’t ask again. Go home. Spend some time with Estelle. We can take it from here, and rest assured if this man does know something, we’ll find out.’

Bradshaw placed a hand on his shoulder. ‘Come on, Poe,’ she said. ‘I’ll drive you home and stay with you until Estelle gets back.’

Poe slumped in defeat. ‘We can’t let them . . . how did he put it last time we were here? . . . “redirect the narrative”, Tilly. Not this time. This time the world has to know what their hate led to.’

‘They will, Poe. I’ll help you.’

Joshua offered a sad smile. It didn’t reach his eyes. He doesn’t care, Poe thought. Worse than that, heapproves. He knows the timelines make him bulletproof.

‘And what about Bethany Bowman?’ Poe said, his voice steady. ‘Was she a sinner too?’

‘I don’t know who that is.’

‘She’s the fourteen-year-old girl Cornelius Green and Israel Cobb murdered. She wasn’t gay, she was just a schoolgirl whose parents didn’t like her. Cornelius put her in the chair anyway. Had her brother throw rocks at her head. And when that didn’t kill her, Israel Cobb slit her throat.’

The mood in the hall changed again. This was news to almost every cop in the room. Even the cult members at the back of the gymnasium looked uneasy.

‘Learn her fucking name, Joshua,’ Poe said. ‘She’s about to make you famous.’

Joshua cleared his throat nervously, aware that every eye in the room was on him now and not Poe. ‘Well, yes, that does seem to have been a regrettable lapse of judgement,’ he said.

‘A regrettable lapse . . .’

‘I’ll pray for her.’

Poe lunged.

Chapter 110

‘You hit him?’ Doctor Lang asked.

Poe shook his head. ‘Superintendent Nightingale’s cops stopped me.’

‘And if they hadn’t been there, or if you’d managed to break free?’

‘I don’t know. Probably not.’

‘Do you think you were fully in control?’

‘I do.’

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