for a few agonising steps before the flames consumed her. Oskar opened his car door, removing a silver stiletto from his jacket, and stepped out into the inferno.
The heat was intense, but now that the initial fireball had passed, had become manageable, at least in the short term. Oskar raced through the flames, ignoring his blistering skin and stinging eyes. The heat, smoke and noise confused his senses, his wolf whining at the back of his mind, but he pressed on until he reached the wrecked van.
The back doors had buckled with the impact of the crash and now lay open. Three corpses, little more than blazing skeletons, lay strewn across the inside. Oskar swore under his breath, then leapt over the ruined crash barrier. He rolled down the embankment to extinguish his blazing jacket, picking himself up and running alongside the road until he reached the spot where Gabriela’s car had ‘broken down’. He opened the rear door and got into the back seat.
Troy sat in the front passenger seat, picking shards of glass from his forehead. He turned to Oskar. “All done?”
Oskar shook his head. “No, Simpson wasn’t in the van. Even a fire as intense as that would not have killed him so quickly and there was no wolf scent. Was Connie certain that Simpson left the court?”
“She couldn’t be sure. He was in court with the others, but she thought the cop in charge of the investigation might have recognised her, so she scrammed.”
Oskar sighed. The plan had been perfectly designed and executed, yet Connie had still found a way to ruin things. Gregorz should have sent Daniel, a fact that he’d make very clear when he spoke to him later on.
Gabriela started the car and drove away from the inferno behind them. “So what the hell do we do now? That was our only shot at Simpson before the next full moon. How are we going to get to him and destroy his body when he’s locked up tight in a high security prison?”
Oskar removed his ruined jacket and smiled at her. “Don’t worry, my Italian beauty. I have a plan. Tell me, how do you feel about doctors?”
Chapter 4
5th December 2008. Aykley Heads Police HQ, Durham. 11.25.
Olivia balanced the stack of folders on her left arm, holding them in place with her chin while she struggled to open the office door. She’d only given the documents a cursory glance after retrieving them from the archive, nevertheless she hoped that they might provide the breakthrough they’d been looking for. Phil was not going to believe some of the things she’d managed to dig up. The door swung open, two uniformed officers stepping through it. Olivia nodded a greeting and stuck her foot into the open doorway before it swung closed. Sighing, she pushed the door all the way open with her backside while struggling to control the paperwork.
The office was open plan, with only short partitions on each desk offering any sort of privacy. The levels of background noise made her ears hurt. Constant telephone ringing mingled with the low thrum of the heating system and dozens of different conversations, until it all blended into a dull roar. She had no idea how anyone managed to concentrate in here. Putting her headphones on was the only way to block it out, drowning out the noise with music, otherwise she’d never have been able to keep her train of thought long enough to accomplish anything.
Phil’s desk was at the end of a row, by a window overlooking the car park. He sat hunched over his PC, a cold cup of coffee on the desk next to him. Olivia made her way along the row, grabbed an empty chair and slapped her folders down on his desk.
Phil looked up from his screen. “Jesus, Olivia! You scared the life out of me!”
She grinned. “Yeah, sorry about that, boss. You were off in your own little world, but I thought you’d like to see this.”
He picked up the first folder, opened it and skimmed through its contents, finally turning to her with a confused look. “What am I supposed to be
The heat was intense, but now that the initial fireball had passed, had become manageable, at least in the short term. Oskar raced through the flames, ignoring his blistering skin and stinging eyes. The heat, smoke and noise confused his senses, his wolf whining at the back of his mind, but he pressed on until he reached the wrecked van.
The back doors had buckled with the impact of the crash and now lay open. Three corpses, little more than blazing skeletons, lay strewn across the inside. Oskar swore under his breath, then leapt over the ruined crash barrier. He rolled down the embankment to extinguish his blazing jacket, picking himself up and running alongside the road until he reached the spot where Gabriela’s car had ‘broken down’. He opened the rear door and got into the back seat.
Troy sat in the front passenger seat, picking shards of glass from his forehead. He turned to Oskar. “All done?”
Oskar shook his head. “No, Simpson wasn’t in the van. Even a fire as intense as that would not have killed him so quickly and there was no wolf scent. Was Connie certain that Simpson left the court?”
“She couldn’t be sure. He was in court with the others, but she thought the cop in charge of the investigation might have recognised her, so she scrammed.”
Oskar sighed. The plan had been perfectly designed and executed, yet Connie had still found a way to ruin things. Gregorz should have sent Daniel, a fact that he’d make very clear when he spoke to him later on.
Gabriela started the car and drove away from the inferno behind them. “So what the hell do we do now? That was our only shot at Simpson before the next full moon. How are we going to get to him and destroy his body when he’s locked up tight in a high security prison?”
Oskar removed his ruined jacket and smiled at her. “Don’t worry, my Italian beauty. I have a plan. Tell me, how do you feel about doctors?”
Chapter 4
5th December 2008. Aykley Heads Police HQ, Durham. 11.25.
Olivia balanced the stack of folders on her left arm, holding them in place with her chin while she struggled to open the office door. She’d only given the documents a cursory glance after retrieving them from the archive, nevertheless she hoped that they might provide the breakthrough they’d been looking for. Phil was not going to believe some of the things she’d managed to dig up. The door swung open, two uniformed officers stepping through it. Olivia nodded a greeting and stuck her foot into the open doorway before it swung closed. Sighing, she pushed the door all the way open with her backside while struggling to control the paperwork.
The office was open plan, with only short partitions on each desk offering any sort of privacy. The levels of background noise made her ears hurt. Constant telephone ringing mingled with the low thrum of the heating system and dozens of different conversations, until it all blended into a dull roar. She had no idea how anyone managed to concentrate in here. Putting her headphones on was the only way to block it out, drowning out the noise with music, otherwise she’d never have been able to keep her train of thought long enough to accomplish anything.
Phil’s desk was at the end of a row, by a window overlooking the car park. He sat hunched over his PC, a cold cup of coffee on the desk next to him. Olivia made her way along the row, grabbed an empty chair and slapped her folders down on his desk.
Phil looked up from his screen. “Jesus, Olivia! You scared the life out of me!”
She grinned. “Yeah, sorry about that, boss. You were off in your own little world, but I thought you’d like to see this.”
He picked up the first folder, opened it and skimmed through its contents, finally turning to her with a confused look. “What am I supposed to be
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