Dead or Alive Read Free Page A

Johnstone.’
    â€˜Seymour-
Johnstone. Are you deaf?’
    â€˜Until these crimes are properly investigated we’re required to keep you here, charge you, and present you at magistrates’ court on Monday morning.’
    â€˜Properly investigated my arse! This is political! This’ll be in the Sunday fucking papers, blackening my good name and the name of the party, you twat!’
    â€˜Using obscene language at a police officer is an offence and will be added to your charges … Johnstone.’
    The MP had now lost his “Mr” title. He would never get it back.
    â€˜This is all to do with cuts in the police force.’
    â€˜I don’t believe your party has ever been in power.’
    â€˜We have influence, you brainless twat! We can sway the vote. I have influence – influence with the Home Office, to which you lot of fucking wankers will have to answer!’
    Sep decided to use his seniority to help deal with this obnoxious man. He stepped forward and took the place of one of his officers. ‘Let’s take him straight through custody to the cells. We’ll leave him there for a few hours until he’s sobered up
then
we’ll charge him.’
    â€˜What? Are you saying I’m pissed?’
    â€˜Well, Johnstone, you don’t appear to be at your sober best,’ said Sep, ‘but I’m happy to offer you a breathalyser test and a blood-test, if you wish.’
    â€˜Fuck you and your breathalyser! It’ll be fixed. I know how you bastards work.’
    â€˜I’ll take that as your refusal to take a breath or blood test, in which case we’ll treat you as a hostile and intoxicated prisoner until we consider you sober enough to be charged.’
    Johnstone had the sense to realize he was fighting a losing battle. ‘Just one twat please,’ he sneered. ‘The other twats can let go of me.’
    â€˜I’ll handle him,’ said Sep. ‘You two stay close.’
    â€˜What is it I’m being accused of, twat?’
    Sep was now losing his cool, such as it was. ‘I think you know what you’re accused of. Having sex with under-age children as young as eight. You were caught in the act by my officers and we have statements from several of your victims. Now kindly do as you’re told before I kick you in the bollocks!’
    But he said it with such inoffensive equanimity that some of the other officers looked at each other, as if checking that they’d heard him correctly.
    â€˜That’s ridiculous!’ Johnstone was shouting. ‘All these people are liars!’
    â€˜Would you like us to call your solicitor?’ asked Sep. ‘If you’re as innocent as you say you are, a solicitor will have you out of here in a jiffy; otherwise we’re keeping you here until Monday morning when you go to magistrate’s court.’
    â€˜You can’t keep me ’til Monday! Twenty-four hours is all you get, you brainless twat! Don’t you know your own rules?’
    â€˜That’s the limit we can keep you without charging you,’ said Sep. ‘The CPS have already given us the green light to charge you with enough to keep you away from children for the rest of your life.’
    Johnstone began to struggle again. Sep, himself no midget, took the MP in a tight headlock and bent him forward so that he was almost off balance and unable to struggle without further hurting himself. But the MP continued to struggle and it took all Sep’s considerable strength to hold him. Then Johnstone gave a mighty shudder; his legs collapsed from under him. Sep had no option other than to lower him to the floor where the huge man lay face-up and rigid. His eyes were blinking and he was making gurgling sounds and drooling. He began to twitch and then convulse. Five policemen stared down at him. None of them felt inclined to give this serial child-abuser any help, least of all Sep, whose first aid expertise