The Inspector Walter Darriteau Murder Mysteries - Books 1-4 David Carter (autobiographies to read txt) 📖

him and the pilot to delay the sailing until we have her safely off the ship, and I don’t care how long it takes!’

‘Sure, Guv,’ and Jun turned tail and ran away.

15.50. ‘I THINK IT’S too late, Guv,’ said Karen. ‘We’re under way,’ and Walter stood and felt the unmistakable feeling of movement.

‘Damn!’ for it was true, he was not looking forward to clambering down that ladder in a swelling sea.

He knelt down again and whispered, ‘Jessica!’

No change. ‘Jessica!’ and he tapped the far side of her face.

Her eyes flickered open.

Focused on a blurry picture.

Maybe she was hallucinating.

Maybe she was dreaming, for what she saw was the kindly black face of Walter Darriteau, staring down at her like some kind of wise old black angel, looking concerned, whispering her name, ‘Jessica! Jessica!’ and that couldn’t be right, could it?

But it was right. She felt his hand on her arm, his breath on her face.

‘Walter,’ she whispered. ‘What the hell are you doing here?’

Walter smiled, ‘I was just about to ask you the same question.’

Jun came running into the mess. Stood beside Walter. Said, ‘It’s too late, Guv, we’re already underway.’

Walter nodded.

There was nothing that could be done about that.

‘Who’s your friend?’ whispered Jess.

Walter smiled and turned about and grinned up at Jun, and back at Jess. ‘This is Inspector Jun Woo of the Hong Kong Police Force. Jun put her life at risk to break open this inquiry and free all those women held.’

Jessica pulled a weak arm from the bed, waved a silly wave, and they all noticed the missing and broken nail, as she mouthed, ‘Thanks.’

‘I’m a big fan,’ said Jun.

‘Really?’ said Jess.

‘Yes, I have seen you before.’

‘Where? When?’

‘You came to a fashion show in Hong Kong last year. My father’s Jimmy Woo, the tailor.’

‘I know Jimmy Woo, makes great suits. How is he?’

‘He’s well.’

Walter completed the introductions. Karen and Jess shared a smile and Walter said, ‘Are you okay? Can you stand up?’

‘Sure,’ and she pulled her long legs from the bed and made to stand up, and she just about made it, and in the next moment she was towering above them all, and the second after that, her legs gave way, and she slipped her arms around Walter and Karen to save herself from falling, as they led her from the room.

‘What about Pryce and Brinton?’ she said.

‘We believe Pryce is dead, and Brinton’s in custody,’ said Walter. ‘You don’t need to worry about them.’

‘He’s a weirdo, that Brinton,’ said Jess. ‘You want to watch him.’

‘He is,’ said Jun, and then they were helping Jessica onto the bridge, where the captain and his colleagues and the pilot stared at the drained supermodel as if they were seeing a ghost.

They sat her in the captain’s chair and gave her coffee, as the captain barked orders and enquiries that Walter just knew would go on long into the night. Who is responsible for this? Walter imagined he was yelling, and fact was, he was close at that, and he doubted if they would ever get to know who was. But that wasn’t important, the only thing that mattered was that Jessica Stone was alive and well, and in one piece, and would not be exported to China, into slavery, for big bucks, or anywhere else that day, or any other.

The pilot was still busy, barking orders on a phone and a ship-to-shore walkie-talkie at the same time, but he still had a moment to come over and say what the others were thinking.

‘She’ll never make it down the ladder, not in that state.’

Walter nodded and took out his phone.

Winked at Jessica, and rang Mrs West.

Seventy-Nine

16.10. Mrs West answered immediately.

‘Walter! I’ve been trying to get you. Where are you?’

‘On the massive Chinese merchantman, the good ship, State of Divine Providence.’

‘What’s happening?’

‘Good news and bad news, ma’am.’

‘Don’t play games, Walter, not today.’

‘Jessica Stone is alive and well and sitting here, grinning at me.’

‘Lucky you. And?’

‘The vessel’s sailed.’

‘So what does that mean?’

‘We might have been able to get off down a narrow ladder onto the Pilot boat, but there’s no way Jessica could manage that, she’s still under the influence of drugs unknown.’

Mrs West sniffed like an irritated sow and said, ‘You know what that means, don’t you?’

‘Ma’am?’

‘Whirly-birdies in the sky!’

Secretly, that was what Walter was gunning for. He had no great desire to clamber down the side of a heaving metal monster, above the cold and swollen and angry seas of Liverpool Bay.

‘If you think that’s necessary, ma’am.’

‘Is Karen with you?’

‘Yep.’

‘And Jun?’

‘Yes, her too, she has been invaluable... just a second...’ for he had had a thought. ‘Are you coming back with us, Jun?’

Jun nodded and approached Walter and said, ‘I’d like to, Guv, I’d like to see those other guys in custody, see it through to the end.’

Walter smiled and nodded. ‘Yes, Jun’s here and she’s coming with us.’

‘So it’s you and three attractive young women, is that about the size of it?’

‘Yes,’ said Walter, glancing at each of them in turn, all so different, all very special. ‘How’s it going at your end?’

‘We are managing well, things are happening, lots of info, I’ll brief you on your return.’

‘Thanks, ma’am.’

‘Leave it with me!’ and Mrs West was gone.

16.40 THE PILOT HAD trained for seven and a half years to gain his Liverpool Pilot’s licence, and that was only the beginning of his rise up the ranks, before he was entrusted with one of the largest vessels ever to sail in and out of the Mersey. The wind was getting up, taking the sea with it, and Walter wasn’t the only one thinking how glad he was not to have to climb down the side of the ship, to the Pilot launch, bucking up and down below.

He’d popped out for a breath of air and his phone rang as he stepped back inside.

‘Walter!’

‘Ma’am?’

‘It’s all arranged. RAF Valley Sea King to remove four persons from the ship. They’ll be contacting the pilot shortly to