John Steel Collection - Books 4-6

Chapter 6

McCall drove back to the precinct as fast as the midday traffic would allow. The sun was now hidden behind massive billows of white clouds. The thick traffic gave her time to reflect about what had been said back at the shipping company. Her thoughts were all heading in one direction.

And it wasn’t a good direction.

Steel could see the frustration in her face. Samantha McCall and Tony Marinelli had worked together for a long time and been through a lot during that period. She was angry at what Becca had said: that Amber had a boyfriend called Tony.

Had as in past tense.

HadHad Tony lied about being with Amber? Had they broken up and he had taken it badly? Steel had not known the detective as McCall had done, but Steel normally had a pretty good take on people, and for him, Tony was one of the good guys. Someone you wanted watching your back.

“Maybe there is another guy called Tony?” Steel said, hoping to dilute the trail Sam’s thinking. He held on to the seat belt as she put her foot to the gas after seeing a space to charge into. He shot her a look of disapproval as she raced through the traffic as though she was in the Indy 500.

“Yeah, right. And this other Tony just happens to look like him as well?” she growled, and her knuckles whitened as she gripped the leather-bound steering wheel.

John Steel had to admit to himself that the whole thing did sound all too much of a coincidence. The ex-boyfriend, whose name was Tony and the guy had the same build and hair colour as their friend!

“Maybe she has a type she goes for. It can happen.” Steel kept his eyes on the road but tried to hide the need to jump out of the car in fear of his life.

Soon they would be back at the precinct, and he hoped that she wouldn’t jump in with both feet by tackling Tony without asking him first. She was mad and wounded. Suddenly Steel realised they were heading back to the crime scene. He didn’t question it. In fact, it was probably a better idea than going back to the office and her jumping all over Tony.

She pulled in next to the kerb, stopping near the junction and killed the engine. Steel turned to her slowly. She just sat there for a moment as if gathering her thoughts.

“Sam,” he began, “when we get back, take it easy on Tony, just in case what Becca told us happens to be a coincidence. Don’t forget he just lost his girlfriend.”

McCall shot him an angry look as if he had said something to insult her.

“All I am saying is be careful. You can’t ‘un-say’ something. If you’re wrong, he may not forgive you.”

McCall’s face calmed as she took in the words. He was right. She was angry because of something that could be, not something which had been proven.

“OK, we let him know what was said. If he is hiding something, I will know.” McCall smiled at Steel. He had saved her from making what might probably be a massive mistake that could have changed everything. Tony was a friend, and she didn’t want to lose his friendship. Steel went to say something to McCall, but his mouth remained open as if dumbstruck by a thought. McCall looked at him curiously until she saw the reflection in his glasses. She turned to see a tall man standing outside on the sidewalk. He was wearing a white shirt, blue jeans, and was covered in blood.

They both jumped out of the car and rushed over to the man, who appeared to be in a daze.

“Sir, are you OK? Are you hurt?” Samantha asked. The man looked up as she finished her sentence. He looked at her with a confused expression.

“Sir, what’s your name? Can you tell me if this is your blood?”

He looked around at his surroundings then back at McCall. He now had a panicked look on his face.

“I don’t know,” he muttered. “Oh, God, I don’t know anything!” The man screamed out the words and then fell to the ground, unconscious.

“Well, this could complicate things,” Steel said. McCall just shot Steel a look that said it all as she pulled out her cell to call for an ambulance.

Steel sat back in the comfort of the leather and cloth seats of the muscle car, while McCall followed the ambulance to the hospital. In a way, McCall hoped that this injured man was somehow connected to the Amber case, but then life was never that simple. The trip over was silent. Steel was thinking about a million other things; McCall’s thoughts went back to Tony. The route to county hospital was anything but straight forward due to construction. Another new building was taking shape; for the moment, it was just the bare skeleton of the steel framework. John Steel was born and had lived in the country on his family’s estate for most of his life. After that, he had travelled with the Army. In truth, this last year had been the longest he had stayed put in one place for most of his adult life, so the pleasant chaos of Manhattan was somewhat alien for him, the city of constant change. McCall found a parking spot near the hospital, placing the plastic-covered NYPD parking pass in the window she looked over at Steel.

“You check with the nurses, we need his clothes, I’ll speak to the doctors,” she said, Steel smiled as her request seemed to be more an order. She was a strong woman, tough as nails, he liked that, but he didn’t take been ordered too well.

“Not a problem, but only because you asked so nicely,” Steel said with a smile, his words rang with sarcasm. McCall scowled at him, and she didn’t have time for his pride, antics, or him just been – well, him.

They got out of the car into a bitter wind. McCall pulled her coat tightly around her, Steel just stood with his head high, and his eyes closed, feeling the crisp wind against his warm skin before walking over to the hospital entrance. Inside had a mixture of smelts, the strongest of which was sterilising chemicals. Steel didn’t care much for hospitals or doctors; he had uttermost respect for them but had no great desire to be near them.

While McCall chased after the doctors, Steel perched himself at the nurse’s station and talked to the nurses behind the counter. At the station was two large black women in their mid-forties. Both had eyeglasses that hung from beaded chains around their necks, both held a dreamy look, and shoed away anyone that sought to interrupt their conversation with the British detective. Steel eased the request for the man’s clothes into the conversation, hoping sugar would get more of a quicker response than an order. It took less than a minute to get the clothes along with several phone numbers. Steel just hoped that CSU could find something on the mystery man’s clothes, knowing that they would be able to tell if it was Amber’s blood he was covered in, or someone else’s. While Steel continued to flirt, McCall waited for the doctors examined the mystery man. On the way to the hospital, McCall had phoned ahead to CSU, requesting a tech. She knew that they would need pristine samples. As McCall paced up and down the corridor outside the man’s room, she chanced several glances inside the room. Inside, the doctors examined while a CSU tech took nail scrapings and brushed the man’s hair for trace materials. If he wasn’t their killer, they needed to find out where he had been to get himself so messed up, also whose blood it was that he was covered in.

McCall waited impatiently on the other side of the curtain. She needed to get in there to find out what the guy knew. McCall looked over to see Steel return from the CSU guys, who were walking around with several paper evidence bags containing the man’s clothes.

“Is that all of his stuff?” her words sounded almost disappointed.

“Yeah, unfortunately, there’s no wallet or cell phone,” Steel told her. “I figure he had a jacket that he put all his other items in,” Steel answered, he could tell she was anxious, this was the last thing she needed while there was a possibility that Tony could be incriminated in his girlfriend’s murder.

“Are you still thinking about Tony?” Steel asked, almost knowing the answer. She looked over at him, her face filled with mixed emotion.

“Go, do what you have to do,” he suggested. “I will take care of this, and you can sort it out with Tony.” Sam knew that Steel was right. Besides, she realised that in her frame of mind, she wouldn’t be much use now. She smiled and thanked him.

As Steel watched McCall disappear through the ward doors, his smile faded. He looked over to the curtains as they drew back. The guy was sitting on the side of the bed wearing a medical gown, his legs hanging over the side while the doctor looked at his eyes, searching for signs of concussion. Steel turned to the tech, who was busy packing away his CSU sample jars and swab containers.

“Did you get everything?” Steel asked quietly. The tech nodded as he closed the metalwork case and headed off back to the lab. Steel turned to the doctor and the man on the bed.

“Any ideas, doctor?” Steel asked, hoping for a simple answer. The doctor was in his mid-fifties with thick grey hair and a trimmed beard to match. His white coat covered a striped shirt and a stocky build.

“There was a nasty gash at the side of his head,” the medical man told him. “It was bad, but not bad enough to explain his memory loss. If you want my opinion, he has probably suffered a great emotional shock.” The doctor smiled and shrugged. Steel looked over to the ‘John Doe’—the name police and the legal profession traditionally assign to an unidentified person. The man was in his late twenties, tall with a medium build. His thick strawberry-blond hair was all messed up from the recent medical examinations, giving him that just got up look. His blue eyes were bright but held a sadness. Someone had to get into this guy’s head, and Steel knew just the guy.

just got up