Hi - I'm reading "Ultimatum: (Tina Boyd 6)" by
Simon Kernick and wanted to share this quote with you.
It's a great read, pity I started with book 6 though
Beyond the
corridor walls, Tina could hear the faint sound of cell doors clanking and the
staccato shouts of prisoners. The air felt hot and artificial, with an
unpleasant undercurrent of cleaning products, reminding her of a hospital.
The
guard’s words unnerved her, even though she’d heard the same thing from
different sources plenty of times.
It was always disconcerting to know that
however hard you fought, the war against the bad guys was ultimately
unwinnable.
‘The whole country’s a tinderbox, Officer Thomson,’ she said.
‘The
riots in 2011 showed that. We’ve just got to make sure we do our bit and keep
blowing out the matches.’ She decided to change the subject.
‘This attack on
Garrett by Eric Hughes. Do you think it was spontaneous, or planned?’
‘It’s
difficult to tell. Hughes is a nasty piece of work –they both are –but there
was no history of conflict between the two of them. The men in here are some of
the most dangerous in the country, and they’re living in unnatural conditions,
so their behaviour can get unpredictable.’
‘What about the camera? I heard it
was tampered with.’ ‘It was broken, but we’re not sure it was deliberate.’
‘Do
you know how long it was broken for?’
Thomson shrugged. ‘Things like that are meant
to be fixed straight away for health and safety reasons, but we’re like
everyone else. Short of money and short of staff. So it could have been a
while.’
‘Would the prisoners have known the camera was out of order? I mean, it
would explain why Hughes attacked Garrett where he did.’
‘I honestly don’t
know,’ he answered, but Tina’s antennae picked up something in his voice that
made her think he might be lying. She filed it away for future reference. They
stopped at a set of heavy double doors and Thomson used a card to swipe them
through.
He nodded at a guard on the other side, who unlocked another set of
doors, and then they were into the maximum-security section of the prison. It
was far quieter in here, and the smell of cleaning fluids stronger, making Tina
feel slightly nauseous. Thomson turned to her as they walked down a windowless
tunnel illuminated with garish strip lighting.
‘Be careful of our Mr Garrett.
He might be polite and quiet, but I wouldn’t trust him an inch.’
‘Don’t worry,
Officer Thomson. I can look after myself.’
‘So I’ve heard, Miss Boyd. So I’ve
heard.’
They stopped outside a door where two more prison officers stood guard.
‘He’ll be handcuffed for the duration of your interview, and there’s a panic
button in case he tries anything. Press it and we’ll intervene immediately.’
Tina smiled. ‘Thanks, but I’m sure he won’t do anything stupid. He knows
there’s no way out of here.’ Officer Thomson nodded.
‘Exactly,’ he said,
opening the reinforced door. ‘Right now, he’s got nothing to lose.’"
"‘No. I’ve got to say I’m surprised. I’m not even
working on the Stanhope case.’
‘The reason is I trust you. And I also think you
can get things done. Most people do what they’re told, fill in the forms
they’re meant to fill in, and let their bosses make the big decisions. That’s
why this country’s in such a parlous state. Nobody likes taking responsibility
any more. If it had been any other copper sitting where you are today, things
would move slowly. With you, I think we might be able to get somewhere.’
Tina
resisted telling him that as a DC in a mid-sized CID department, she really
wasn’t in that powerful a position.
‘I’ll do what I can,’ she said. He nodded
slowly
‘I know you will. I hear there’s a team still investigating the events
at the Stanhope. I’m assuming they briefed you before you came here.’"
"within the police service itself, he ran eleven
crackhouses across north-east London that were reputed to net him more than two
hundred grand a week. And they were never shut down because one of Tyndall’s
front companies bought the properties being used to sell the dope as well as
the properties next door (usually at knockdown prices) so that complaints from
neighbours were kept to a minimum, which meant the cops weren’t too interested
either.
If no one reports a crime, there’s an argument that a lot of
target-obsessed senior coppers subscribe to that says it’s not actually being
committed.
Ergo, everyone –dealers, addicts, civilians, the law –stays happy.
One of the headaches you’ve got as a crack entrepreneur, though, is getting the
cash out of your establishments and into your own grubby mitts. You need men
you can trust for this. Men who are reliable, and who scare"
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