Page 77 of Copper Script
“He’s thinking about it.Which— I’m not a nark, Mr.Sabini.I don’twantto consult for the Met.Well, it isn’t for the Met, it was ‘in a private capacity’, but it’s still working for the busies, isn’t it?But like you say, I’ve a record, and if a detective sergeant is telling me what I need to do for my own good, I don’t have much choice.The dinner was him being nice about it, and I don’t want him to be nasty, but...”He gestured helplessly.“I suppose you’ve called me here because you don’t want me to do it, and I understand that, I truly do, but I’m between a rock and a hard place.I can’t just tell CID to piss off.”He looked plaintively at the gang lord.“What should I do?”
“Maybe I can tell him to piss off for you,” Darby said.“If you give me the information I need.”
Joel perked up.“Could you?What do you need?”
“Enough to get rid of Mr.Fowler for good.”
“But I don’thaveanything like that,” Joel said, and heard the very real crack of fear and frustration in his voice.“Honestly, if I could get rid of him, I would.”
“And what’s to stop you saying he made a pass?Who’s to know?”
Joel had been afraid of that.He grimaced.“Well, him?He’s bigger than me.Got more hands.And the last time a policeman made a pass at me, I ended up doing two months, so I don’t want anything to do with all that.”
“Then what have you got to offer me?”
“Nothing,” Joel said wretchedly.“I did say, Mr.Sabini, and I’m very sorry.Well, except that Mr.Fowler did say not to tell anyone?But—”
“Tell anyone what?”
“About me working for him.He said he’s shown me confidential documents so I need to keep my mouth shut about all of it, and that I couldn’t put it in my advertising—‘Consultant to the Metropolitan Police’, you know, which, if Ihaveto do it you’d think I might at least get the benefit, but he said no.He said that my readings wouldn’t stand up in court, and a decent defence brief might even get a case chucked out just because he’d involved me, and then he, Mr.Fowler, would get in trouble.So I wasn’t to tell anyone he was consulting me, and especially not that I’d seen any documents.”
“What documents?”
“A couple of written statements and some letters,” Joel said earnestly.“He said they were evidence in an investigation, but he didn’t say what.He wanted me to tell him if someone had committed a crime.Which, as I said, I can’t do.”
“Well,” Darby said slowly.“Well, now.”
Joel gave him hopeful eyes.“Is that useful?Because I honestly don’t know anything else.”
“We’ll see.I expect you’d be willing to swear your affydavy to all that, would you?”
“Where?”Joel said, with panic he didn’t have to feign.“I’m not going back to court.Or crossing a copper, either.He’s a sergeant, Mr.Sabini!”
“I wouldn’t worry about that,” Darby said.“I don’t reckon it’ll get as far as court.I reckon I bring this to certain people and your problem goes away like that.”He clicked his fight-thickened fingers.
“You can do that?Really?”
“Fowler’s only a sergeant.Some of us have friends in high places, sonny.”
“Yes, butIdon’t, and you’re talking about me swearing to things and getting on the wrong side of CID, and now I don’t know what’s going on!Mr.Sabini, please.”Joel let his voice wobble.It didn’t take much acting.“Could you just tell me?Because I don’t want any of this, and if I do have to do something I’d rather not get it wrong, and I don’tunderstand.Please?”
Darby clicked his tongue, with almost fatherly patience.“Here’s how it works, son.You want rid of Fowler, right?Well, say there’s a certain other person of the same mind, in a position to do something about it.I pass on what you just said to him.If it’s enough for him to see Fowler off, well, that fixes my pal’s problem, and it fixes your problem too.Simple as that.See?”
“So this other person says ‘You’ve been a bad boy, consulting graphologists when you’re not allowed,’ and that makes Mr.Fowler back off me?”
“That’s right.So I’ve done you both a favour.And...?”He gave Joel a meaningful look.
“And now me and your important pal both owe you a favour?”
“You’re a bright boy,” Darby Sabini said.“All right, you can pop off now.Make sure you’re ready for a chat when I tell you, and don’t you worry, I’ll sort it out.We’ll talk more about that favour you owe me in a while.I could use a man of your talents.”
“Of course, Mr.Sabini,” Joel said faintly.“Whenever you like.”
***
JOEL WOULD HAVE LIKEDnothing more than to fling himself into Aaron’s arms, blurt out the whole horrible conversation, and be reassured that he’d done the right thing and wasn’t going to find himself in permanent hock to a gang lord.Or worse.He and Aaron had agreed the lie he’d tell Sabini, but now his mind was filled with the awful prospect of being asked to testify, of his words being used against Aaron.
He’d had to give Sabini something, though, and he’d got at least circumstantial confirmation of their suspicions.A high-up in the Met gunning for Aaron, getting Darby Sabini to lean on Joel, owing a gang lord favours.
