Scarred for Life Read Free Page A

our members. Perhaps a first year? The newbies only join in September or sometimes October, so I don’t know everyone yet.’
    ‘How many members do you have?’
    ‘Active? Eighty or so – I’m not sure. We have a membership secretary. Then there are life members, alumni, the president and so on.’
    ‘And you’re affiliated to the university?’
    Holden’s head bobbed from side to side before he nodded. ‘Traditionally, yes, but we have our own constitution. Members must come from the university but we’re not a part of the students’ union, or the university itself.’
    ‘Do you get funding from them?’
    ‘A little.’
    ‘And how do you get to become student president?’
    Holden glanced at the constable, wondering why he was being questioned. ‘Look, it’s getting late. I thought there’d been a break-in, or something. Is there a problem with the club? Or Damon?’
    Jessica checked her watch, making the point that it wasn’t that late, and then nodded. ‘It’s not been confirmed but Damon’s body was found dumped in one of the bins at the back of your clubhouse.’
    For a moment, Holden stared at her. She could almost see the cogs whirring in his head. ‘He’s dead?’
    ‘Yes.’
    ‘How?’
    ‘We don’t know yet. When did you last see him?’
    Holden ran his hand through his thin mop of curls and noisily blew out through his mouth. A thin stream of breath spiralled into the air, making Jessica realise that it was now colder than it had been. ‘I’m not sure – we have a lot of new members at this time of year. Most of the first years row in their own teams because we already have established line-ups. I’m in the final year of my master’s and don’t necessarily know everyone. We have our own schedules for practising and so on.’
    Jessica took a business card from her pocket and told him to call her if he remembered anything else about Damon. He asked if he could check the club over but she told him not until their search teams had picked through everything. After his previous confidence, Holden now seemed distracted, scratching his head and rocking back on his heels, losing an inch or so of height. He read the details on Jessica’s card before pocketing it and turning to walk back the way he’d come. They would need to talk again properly but she wanted to know her facts before she went eyeball to chest with him again – she was certain he hadn’t told her the entire truth.
    As Jessica was about to call the station to find out where the search team was, the first drops of rain began to clatter onto the path. She felt sure that whoever had left the body knew what they were doing and wouldn’t have trampled across the grass at the back of the club – but an evening of rain wasn’t going to help.
    Welcome to Manchester: mild one minute, chilly the next, pouring down moments later.
    For now, the late team could deal with things but tomorrow someone was going to have to dig through the contents of both bins. Jessica knew just the people for the job.

3
    The lights flickered in the newly refurbished incident room at Longsight Police Station. After a temporary spell upstairs without heating but with an increased risk of everything from asbestos poisoning to Legionnaires’ disease, everyone was allowed to work in the basement again. Well, ‘work’ being a subjective term considering the electricity had been on the blink since they’d moved back the previous month. That was combined with the fact that it still reeked of fresh paint.
    Jessica scowled upwards as the white strip bulb chuntered angrily before deciding it wasn’t going to douse them in darkness. Below, the mix of uniformed officers and CID officers rabbited to each other.
    Quieting them with her trademark ‘all right, shut it, you lot’, Jessica glanced at the scrawl of notes she’d made. Her handwriting really was appalling. Behind her on a whiteboard, images had been pinned up of the area at the back of the rowing