False Witness (John Steel series Book 3) Read Free Page B

metal against concrete was deafening. Brian covered his ears as best he could and closed his eyes.
    Brian knew it would only be a matter of time until it stopped, the only question was how long. He didn’t have long to wait for the answer as he felt himself smash against the seats, there was another loud explosion and the bus came to a halt.
    Half dazed, he felt himself being carried along, and then the sensation of wet and cold against his skin, before he was outside. He looked up through half-closed eyes and saw the two large black men that he had shared the back row with. His body felt heavy and he could feel himself losing consciousness.
    He felt himself become light, as though he was leaving his body, then slowly he closed his eyes once more and fell into the darkness.
     
     
     

THREE
     
     
     
     
    Detective McCall peered curiously past the shower curtain and listened hard to the faint sound of her house phone ringing beyond the closed door of the bathroom.
    “You have got to be kidding me!” she moaned at the inconvenient timing. Getting quickly out of the shower she rushed naked through the apartment to the sitting room, leaving small puddles on the dull wooden floor as she went. McCall held a towel which she was quickly attempted to wrap around her athletic form as she rushed for the telephone.
    “What’s up, Tooms?” She had recognized the caller ID as that of her colleague, Joshua Tooms.
    “Captain wants all hands in on this one, there was an accident with a bus from Rikers. I’ll fill you in when you get here.” McCall looked over at the clock that hung over a 32-inch flat-screen television and saw that it was almost six in the evening. She grunted to herself as her plans of a quiet evening at home were shattered by the news of the crash of a bus from Rikers Island, New York city’s major jail complex.
    “Okay, where are you?” She picked up a pen that sat next to a large jotter pad and got ready to write. “Give me fifteen minutes,” she told him as she stopped writing. “I’ll meet you there.”
     
    *
     
    The address was at the junction of Kenmare Street and Lafayette Street. It was a massive built-up area with a large bend onto Lafayette.
    McCall had to park near Petrosino Square, which was a large concrete park where people could just relax from the day to day. Police tape and barriers closed off the road, meaning traffic had to be diverted to Broadway, and the two lanes were full of debris.
    Detective Samantha McCall stopped for a moment and just looked at the scene from a distance as she stood at the junction, and her head moved slowly as she took in the scene through her own perspective.
    The rain had stopped but the lakes on the road and sidewalks remained, as droplets of water fell from overhangs and store signs, causing ripples in the otherwise motionless water.
    McCall took out her small digital camera and began to take photographs of the scene, starting at the junction. Satisfied she had enough, she moved slowly towards the police tape, where a tall uniformed officer stood ready to steer off any members of the press or of the over-interested public.
    “Hey, Tom, how’s things?” she asked the large uniformed officer, who smiled as he lifted the tape for her to pass under.
    “Hey, McCall. Things ain’t too bad, at least it’s stopped raining.”
    She smiled back at him as she stood up straight and headed for a group of men who were standing around a police unmarked black Dodge Charger.
    The three men were Captain Alan Brant, Detective Joshua Tooms and Edgar Marks—who was the CSU (Crime Scene Unit) tech in charge of this scene. McCall didn’t move up straight away, she stopped and looked at the surroundings, taking in impressions of what she considered to be important.
    The police bus lay on its side. There was a large slash mark embedded in the rear of the vehicle, which went from left to right, and the back door lay on the ground a couple of feet away.
    Detective Tooms