Send in the Clowns, a Detective Mike Bridger novel Read Online Free PDF Page B

Mike…, you have a lot of support in Dunedin from what I can
see, I have been told you are a good Detective. I will put in a
recommendation before the interview; hopefully it will not be too
drawn out. You do have another murder too solve unfortunately.
Speaking of which, let’s hear where you are at with that
enquiry…”
     
    Bridger left the
Inspectors office with a little bit of guilt at his earlier
thoughts about her lack of experience. After putting his mind at
rest in relation to the Jonas Clifton incident, ‘Ma’am’ or Amanda
as he was now aloud to call her, had been quite open to a civilised
discussion on the progress of their inquiry, a marked improvement
on the dictatorial style of Gregg Matthews. He was surprised at
some of the suggestions she had put forward and found himself
slightly impressed with her interpersonal skills, making him feel
relaxed in her presence was never going to be an easy task after
the Jonas Clifton thing. Although he was now expecting a call from
the IPCA, he actually felt quite upbeat as he entered the small
office area housing his team.
    Jo Williamson looked up
from her desk and smiled as he entered the room. Although she was
on light-duties, and office bound, she still managed to keep up the
impression of being engaged in her work, and that impressed him. Jo
was on an attachment too his squad from the uniform branch, but one
he was reluctant to let go of, even in her fragile state. The
reasons were very sharp in his mind. It had been an ugly run in
with some local gang members and no one really spoke about what had
happened, preferring not too relive those moments, but he knew it
would be going through Jo’s mind every day.
    The other glaring
reminder of that time was the obvious empty desk at which Detective
John Mouller used to sit. He had not been so lucky that day, as a
result he had not been able to return to work yet due to some
debilitating injuries. During a visit too John’s flat recently he
had let it slip too Bridger that he was thinking of getting out of
the job and trying something new. John had confessed that he felt
like he had let Jo down by putting her in a bad situation and then
not protecting her. He had told him he could not help questioning
his ability as a police officer and even a man. Bridger did not
blame him for thinking this way but told him that his job was
waiting for him when he felt ready to return; he just had to heal
first. In the mean time the rest of the team had begun to use his
desk as a file tray and it was littered with paperwork and other
assorted items. The sight of his empty desk reminded Bridger that
Inspector Allyson had asked him to visit John this evening and nail
down a more definite timeline for his return to work. He was sure
the answer would still be the same, but he had to follow procedure.
He was also a little worried about John’s state of mind; it was
more of what he did not say when he spoke to him last that had he
was worried. Males, by nature, needed to feel effective, to be in
control, the hunter and provider. John’s confidence was at an all
time low, he was questioning himself and his ability. It was a dark
path to tread for anyone, let alone an injured police officer, who
blames himself for his and his colleague’s injuries. Bridger got
his cellphone out sand sent a quick text too Johns mobile letting
him know he would call in on the way home.
    Pocketing his cellphone
he looked up again, Brian Johnson and Grant Wylie were standing
beside the whiteboard attached to the rear wall. It contained a
collage of pictures and scribble, the sum total of the murder
inquiry after twelve hours. It did not look like much more than a
child’s picture of an abstract octopus, but it would start too
spread its tentacles once they had completed more enquiries using
the information already on that board. It was an old-fashioned
method and seemed outdated in the modern computer era, but there
was nothing like a visual indication of the