‘What?’ Adrian finally managed to push a word out of his mouth; he wasn’t even sure what word it was. His head was thumping and his ears were ringing. This was up there with his worst nightmares. This couldn’t be real. Being accused of rape was one of those unshakable accusations. Once it had happened, everyone would always wonder. Once the seed was planted, there was nowhere to hide. It would be a rumour that would follow Adrian for the rest of his life. He wanted to throw up. ‘Caitlin!’
‘Could you wait outside the room please, Detective Miles?’ DI Walsh said calmly.
‘This is not true. Caitlin, why are you doing this?’ Adrian said – he knew he shouldn’t say anything, but the impulse was too strong.
‘Just for a moment, I’ll be right out,’ Matt pressed.
Adrian looked at Imogen for guidance. She nodded that it was best for him to leave. He walked out of the room and watched intently through the glass of the door as they spoke to Caitlin. Why would she do this?
It wasn’t long before Imogen and the DI came out of the room. Imogen kept staring at Adrian, willing him to look at her; he could see her out of the corner of his eye. He kept his eyes down though. If he didn’t focus on the floor, he would be sick.
‘We have to investigate this,’ DI Walsh said.
‘I swear I didn’t do this. I couldn’t!’ Adrian said, struggling to breathe.
‘That’s not for me to decide, I’m afraid. There has to be a proper investigation. Do you at least have an alibi for last night?’
‘Not really. I went to the pub, someone might have seen me there. What happens now?’
‘We go and tell Mira. She will have to contact the Professional Standards Division and they will send someone to come and figure out who is telling the truth here.’
‘You think I did this?’ The idea of having PSD looking into his conduct at work made Adrian uncomfortable. He had been investigated for evidence tampering before and even though he was eventually exonerated, the process was degrading. He could just imagine the talk that would be flying around the station. It didn’t even bear thinking about.
‘I don’t know you. I think at this point it doesn’t matter what I think.’
‘It matters to me,’ Adrian said, trying to ignore what he felt DI Walsh was inferring.
‘I think you will probably get assigned to desk duty for as long as it takes to clear your name,’ DI Walsh said unapologetically.
‘Imogen. You believe me, right? I didn’t do this.’ He could feel his voice getting higher as he got more agitated.
‘I know you didn’t,’ she said without hesitation, calming the swirling in his head for a second.
‘False rape claims are a lot rarer than people think they are,’ DI Walsh said. ‘There’s a lot of physical evidence that she’s been assaulted.’
‘I’m not saying she wasn’t raped, I’m saying it wasn’t me,’ Adrian said.
‘Well, the PSD will clear it up. Now, let’s get back to the station.’
‘Am I under arrest?’
‘That’s not my call. DCI Kapoor will make that decision. I think there will be at least some preliminary investigation before that happens. See what the rape kit turns up.’
All Adrian could think about was what had happened to Caitlin; it was horrific and brutal. Maybe the head injury she’d sustained had messed with her memory and she really did think he had done it. He had dropped her off, but then driven straight home before walking to the pub. Something was bothering him about the timing of all of this though. For him to coincidentally get mugged on the same day, covered in scrapes and bruises on the exact same night, what were the chances? Maybe the attack on him wasn’t a random mugging, after all. Maybe he was targeted. But why would someone target him? And what did Caitlin have to do with it? Adrian couldn’t help feeling paranoid at this point. After what he had been through in the past with Dominic Shaw, his son’s stepfather – a man who dedicated his life to messing Adrian’s up – he didn’t believe in coincidences and the fact that the attack on Caitlin happened the same night as his attack meant that someone had planned this. But why? What was the end game?
DI Walsh walked in front as they exited the hospital and Imogen dropped back a little until she was by Adrian’s side.
‘What are you thinking?’ she said to Adrian in a whisper, clearly not wanting to draw DI Walsh into the conversation.
‘I swear I didn’t do this.’ Adrian felt compelled to say it over and over again.
‘I know you didn’t,’ she reassured him.
‘I was telling the truth about last night, too. I got jumped. What if that and this are connected?’
‘That seems a little far-fetched.’
‘After everything we’ve seen over the last couple of years you think that’s far-fetched?’
‘OK, say it is connected. What is it about? Hugh Norris? Owen Sager? Is it because of what she told us at the station yesterday? And why would they target you?’
‘Your guess is as good as mine. Do you think she’s lying, or do you think she’s just remembering it wrong?’
‘I don’t feel confident to say; it’s possible she’s got confused, that it was a nasty attack. I say for now we give her the benefit of the doubt. I don’t like to think anyone would falsely report a rape. The amount of damage it does is unbelievable. Not just to the accused but to the whole system. So, for now we work on the assumption that she’s confused. But that’s between you and me.’
‘Thank you,’ Adrian said.
‘What for?’
‘For not doubting me.’
‘I’d like to think I know you well enough to know you weren’t capable of something like that.’ She paused. ‘What was the name of the pub you went to last night?’
‘I went up to The Imperial.’
‘You went to the biggest pub in town?’
‘Someone might remember me,’ Adrian said.
‘Well, let’s hope so. Did you go into her house?’ Imogen said, looking away from him, obviously afraid of the answer.
‘Nope, absolutely not. I pulled up outside, she got out and then I drove away. I swear to God that’s what happened.’
They arrived back at the cars.
‘Adrian, I think you should come back with me,’ DI Walsh said.
Adrian didn’t know whether DI Walsh believed him or not, but he knew in his situation, he would be inclined to believe the victim. A thought that gave him no great comfort. Either way, this was a shitshow and Adrian was the main attraction.
Imogen stood with her arms folded, looking down at DCI Mira Kapoor, who was responding to an email from PSD, the department that were sending someone over to investigate Adrian. She had come in to speak to the DCI on her own, without DI Walsh breathing over her shoulder. She knew he wasn’t actively trying to piss anyone off, and that he was right to question what was going on, but he seemed to have made his mind up already. Admittedly, looking at Caitlin Watts in that hospital bed was enough to give anyone pause. It really wouldn’t make sense for her to make it up, why would she? Wouldn’t she want to see her attacker put away for what he had done to her? Meeting Caitlin before and forming a strong opinion about how manipulative