Chapter 10

[chilly658]

10
Task force HQ, Police headquarters, Wigmore Street, Marylebone
Thursday 27th January 2011

Sam Henning had his mocking impersonation of chief Martin Roberts perfected and was giving a private performance to detective sergeant Nicola Garwood while they were alone in their office.  "Good god Henning, I mean, she's a bloody woman for heaven's sake!"  Henning mocked and although Nicola Garwood was staring at her pc screen she couldn't help but laugh.  "Now you know what you'll end up like if you don't retire."  She teased him and Henning nodded.  "How can somebody so sexist and racist make it so far up the ladder and get himself an OBE on the way?"  He asked.

Henning grinned at Nicola Garwood who was still quite engrossed in whatever she was reading.  "Henning can you imagine if she was black or Asian?"  He continued with his mimic. "Why she'd probably have her eyes set on my job!"  He added in his pursuit of perfecting chief Martin Robert's voice.

Just then a young police detective gently tapped on the glass door and stepped inside.  "Guv?"  He said and looked to Henning first and then Garwood.  "I've just taken a call that I think you'll find of interest." the young policeman told them both.

Detective Dave Parker was just twenty five years of age and had somehow been selected for this task force mainly due to him being a considered up and comer within the force, he had short cropped dark hair and stood at five feet eleven inches in height and obviously worked out in the gym very regularly.

Nicola Garwood looked up from her pc.  "What is it?"  She asked and then pondered for a few moments.  "Dave, right?"  She asked and Parker nodded his head.  "Parker ma'am, Dave Parker."  He told her.

Nicola looked over to Sam and grinned before turning her attention back to detective Parker.  "What is it Dave Parker?"  She asked, attempting to jest with Parker in an attempt to shed the belief that was going around the Ops room that she was someone who resembled a cold hearted and single minded officer concerned only with her own progress, she had been nick named 'The Ice Queen' in private circles around the task force.

Parker took in a deep breath.  "Ma'am I just took an anonymous tip off."  He told her and then revealed the contents of the anonymous call which had been made just five minutes ago.  "From a call box in Fulham."  He added.  "Somebody had given us a name of one of the ring leaders of the outfit abducting the homeless." Parker added.

Nicola looked over at Sam Henning with widened eyes before she turned again to detective Parker.  "What's the name?"  She asked and immediately he told her.

Nicola tapped the mane into her keyboard and began to read the file in front of her.  "We pulled her twice for soliciting but have never charged her."  Garwood revealed as she looked at the police file on Jade Harris, Indigo bosses had thrown in a new diversion for the police to continue to look in the wrong direction and had made a call giving Jade's name as a ring leader.

She looked up at Sam.  "Bloody hell, it's beginning to make some sense."  She told him and now Sam sat up to listen to what Nicola had to say.  "She's connected to Carmen Richardson."  Nicola told him.

Parker now interjected. "The property tycoon ma'am?" and looked to Sam Henning who nodded his head.  "But Carmen is worth millions now through property development, she doesn't need to be involved in something like this."  He told them both.

Nicola slowly spun her pc monitor around and showed him a photo fit of Jade Harris.  "That's as maybe but she isn't the multi millionaire, is she?"  As she pointed to Jade Harris and then she turned her attention back to Parker.  "Can you find me an address for Jade Harris?"  She asked and Parker smirked.  "Already did ma'am, she owns a shop selling clothes in Lambeth."  He told her. 

Nicola Garwood stood up and Sam Henning raised his eyebrows.  "Where are you going?"  He asked as Nicola headed for the door.  ?Lambeth, coming?"  She asked and Sam shook his head.  "You know who I have a meeting with in twenty minutes."  He reminded her and Nicola grinned.  "Good luck with that."  She told him but Sam called her back and asked her to close the door for a moment.  "Nik just remember that you've been given a name by someone who didn't give their own."  He began his lecture.  "Tread very carefully."  He advised her.  "If she's connected to Carmen we could end up with their legal team stomping all over us."  He added.

Nicola Garwood looked at Sam with a puzzled expression.  "Sam, are you on first name terms with Carmen Richardson?"  She asked and he nodded after a pause. "I've known her for a long time, I'll find out where her office is and pay her a visit for old time's sake later today."

Twenty five minutes later Sam Henning was in the office of chief Martin Roberts with the same map unrolled on top of the chief's desk with new small coloured sticky circles placed onto it, black ones.  "These sir are where the moles are to be placed from tonight and for the next two weeks."  Sam told him. "And then they'll be rotated into other Havens."  He informed Roberts who again studied the map intently.  "So these are the hidden cameras?"  She chief asked as he pointed and Sam nodded.  ?Yes sir.?

The chief studied again.  "These are the same houses you call Havens?" The chief enquired and again Henning nodded. "That's correct sir."

Roberts now stood there staring down at the map. "Very good Henning, very good indeed."  The chief remarked which surprised Sam considering he had already informed his boss that this was all Garwood's work.

Suddenly chief Roberts looked up to Sam.  "Do you fancy a cup of tea Henning?"  He asked Sam who shrugged his shoulders.  "Why not sir?"  He asked and the chief actually smiled.  "Why don't you pop down to our lovely new canteen and the end of the hall and get you and I a nice cuppa?" The chief suggested.

Henning walked out of the office and toward the new canteen at the end of the hall. "Now I'm not just his snitch, I'm his bloody tea boy snitch." He said under his breath.

When Sam finally returned to the chief's office his trained eye immediately spotted the blank note pad on top of Robert's desk and also noted the chief's lack of desire to remain in their scheduled meeting. "Henning, something's come up."  Roberts told him. "I've been asked to attend a meeting elsewhere.'

Sam nodded and put the two cups of tea onto the chief's desk and started to roll his map up again. "Yes you clear up here and we'll talk again later Henning."  The chief said as he headed for the door of his own office. "No problem sir." Henning smiled as the chief left and closed the door behind him.

As soon as the chief had left, Henning tore off the top sheet from the blank note pad and slipped it into the inside pocket of his suit jacket, rolled up his map and headed out of the door himself.

When Sam arrived back at his shared cubicle office he found Nicola Garwood once again sitting at her pc. "You didn't go to Lambeth?" He asked and she looked up. "Oh we went, she hasn't been there in a couple of days judging by the mail on the other side of her letterbox." Nicola informed him.

Sam sat down at his desk. "I'm sure she'll turn up." He told Nicola who nodded as she still stared into her pc screen. "I think she knows we're onto her and she ran."  She told Sam.

He then took out the blank sheet of paper from his pocket, which he had removed from the chief's pad and scribbled over it lightly with a pencil to reveal whatever the chief had written on in and then removed and could see clearly that the information on the paper was the whereabouts of everything on their detailed map."Does the chief answer to anybody?" Sam asked her as she fixed a picture of Jade Harris to the top of her board because Jade Harris was now wanted for questioning.   

She turned to face Sam. "Only the home secretary." She told him. "Why?"

Sam handed her the piece of paper and told her how he had found it.

She looked at him again. "The chief did this?" She asked and Sam nodded his head. "How bizarre."  Nicola responded and Sam Henning nodded this time. "How bizarre indeed." He agreed as he looked up and saw Jade Harris's picture at the very top of a white board as Nicola pointed her finger at it. "I want to talk to her."  She told him.