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It was an empty threat, but he didn’t need to know that.
‘Because they didn’t deserve it. I judged each one individually and, if you want the honest truth, they were all scumbags who were never going to change. Most of them liked being that way, and the rest knew no better. Either way, they didn’t deserve to be released one minute earlier than their mandated sentence.’
‘And yet the only six you recommended were from the same group? Give us a break, Mr Baldwin.’
‘Purely coincidence.’
‘Purely bullshit,’ she said, caring nothing for his sensibilities. ‘You promised them all a positive recommendation if they agreed to leave you alone.’
‘I don’t think you’ll find any proof of that anywhere. It’s a suspicion on your part and nothing that will be confirmed by me.’
‘Were you that scared of them? Did you really sacrifice your professional integrity so cheaply?’
‘What did they have on you?’ Bryant asked after watching the man’s reactions closely.
His index finger was tapping furiously on the arm of the chair, and Kim could see a bead of sweat forming at his temple.
‘Nothing,’ he insisted.
Bryant stood. ‘Okay, there’s one member of the Psycho Six that’s being really helpful to our investigation. We’ll just go ask him and hope there are no reporters around when—’
‘No, don’t do that,’ Baldwin said, holding up his hand.
Kim appreciated Bryant’s little bluff as he sat back down. She nodded in his direction to take the lead.
‘Were they blackmailing you?’ her colleague asked.
Baldwin paused for a good five seconds before nodding.
‘For what?’
‘I’d rather not say.’
‘And we’d rather you did,’ Bryant said.
He sighed heavily. ‘They found certain videos on my computer. Ones I wouldn’t have wanted to share with my wife.’
‘We’re talking pornographic videos?’ Bryant clarified.
He nodded, wringing his hands.
‘Children?’ Bryant asked sternly.
‘God no. Not at all. Never. No, they were videos of gay sex.’
‘Are you gay? Bisexual?’
He shook his head. ‘I’ve never been physically attracted to a man, but after watching one video, I found I couldn’t stop.’
‘And one of the boys found these videos?’ Bryant asked, needing no more details.
He nodded. ‘Two of the other boys caused a diversion and Ian got hold of my computer. He was smart, found them in no more than a couple of minutes. He told me that if they weren’t all recommended for early release, he’d tell my wife.’
‘He didn’t threaten your job?’ Kim asked.
‘Where would be the gain in that? They wanted me there so I could give them all recommendations when their dates came up. Getting me fired would have served them no purpose.’
‘So you agreed to do as they asked in return for their silence?’ Bryant asked.
