Half Moon Investigations - Eoin Colfer [32]
‘I did,’ said Sergeant Murt Hourihan, who had come to pick me up that evening.
‘Well,’ said the doctor, ‘that’s what happened to Fletcher.’
Murt had to sit down, he was laughing so hard. It didn’t strike me as funny; then again, I’d heard it before.
They sat me in a wheelchair, rolling me down the hospital corridor. I felt like Hannibal Lecter on tour. Nurses and interns lined the walls, whispering things like, ‘Don’t let him near the matches.’ I was happy to be leaving, even if it was for an interview in the police station.
My parents had agreed to a formal interview, provided they could be present, along with Terry Malone. After this interview, Chief Quinn would decide whether or not there was enough evidence to send a file to the Director of Public Prosecutions. I was hopeful that this entire mess could be cleared up in a couple of hours.
Murt’s squad car was parked across the ambulance bay by the main entrance. I transferred myself from the wheelchair to the back seat. Murt took off at speed, honking impatiently at a line of elderly patients on the zebra crossing.
We pulled on to Rhododendron Road, passing May’s house on the right. She had not come to see me in hospital. Why would she? May probably thought I was the lunatic who burned her dance costume. And even if she didn’t believe that, her dad had surely crossed me off the list of welcome visitors.
‘George Montgomery is filing a complaint, you know,’ said Murt over his shoulder.
‘Who?’
‘Colonel George Montgomery. The Devereux’s neighbour. He’s filing a trespass complaint. He phoned Quinn at home right after you showed up outside his house.’
I groaned. ‘I thought I was in –’
‘Yeah, yeah, May Devereux’s garden.’ Murt blew out noisily through his nose. ‘What’s going on, Fletcher? Are you going through some kind of rebellious phase?’
I sat up. ‘No. Of course not. This is all a mistake. Red Sharkey assaulted me. He probably started the fire too.’
‘Red Sharkey. Right. We questioned him. He was at home the entire night. His family backed him up. As a matter of fact, his father requested protection in case you go after his son next. But about the assault, we found his hurl in the next garden to yours. With any luck we’ll match the blood and fingerprints, so we should get him for that at the very least, but you’re definitely in the frame for starting fires.’
My nose was throbbing. ‘This is ridiculous, sergeant. You know me. You can’t believe any of this.’
Murt shrugged. ‘It doesn’t matter. As far as Quinn is concerned, the case is solved. Your file has already gone to the DPP.’
‘That’s not fair,’ I blustered. ‘He was supposed to wait until after the interview.’
‘Well, the chief didn’t want to miss the last post. Don’t worry, Fletcher, we’re not beaten yet. I won’t give up my best civilian consultant so easily.’
Murt cocked his head suddenly, sniffing the air.
‘Do you smell that?’
Moments later I did. Wisps of black smoke were floating through the air vents. Murt sniffed the fumes.
‘Oil line, I’d say. There’s a leak somewhere and she’s coating the engine.’
‘Is that dangerous?’ I asked.
‘Absolutely,’ said Murt conversationally. ‘The whole engine could go.’
He pulled over to the pavement, double-parking on a white line.
‘All out.’
Murt opened the door and set me sitting on the pavement twenty metres away from the vehicle. The smoke was billowing from under the bonnet, engulfing the entire car.
Murt winked at me. ‘I presume I can trust you not to run away, Fletcher.’
I half laughed. I barely had the energy to stand up, never mind run away.
The smoke was thicker now, almost solid. It didn’t seem to bother Murt; he strode into the middle of the cloud, rolling up his sleeves. No doubt he sucked down worse every day from the cigars in the interview room.
It never occurred to me that I was being busted out of custody. Things like that just didn’t happen in Lock. Nobody had been rescued in our town since Father Gannet Roche had broken young Bill the Butcher Turner out of reform school