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‘Strange that’s the name I’d have most trouble remembering.’
‘Why strange?’
He shrugged. ‘He wasn’t so much like the others. We got on okay. He fell into the group by accident, I suppose, due to being cellmates with one of the others, but he was quieter, gentler than his friends. He liked to read. He enjoyed the written word.’
Kim could understand why the English teacher might have formed a bond with that one.
‘Lenny told us about a couple of incidents involving the boys. An attempted sexual assault?’
‘Before my time, I’m afraid, but I did hear the rumours.’
‘And of a boy that was terrorised quite badly by Eric and Paul?’
Ryan shook his head. ‘Not during the time I was there, but I could easily believe it.’
‘Did they try anything with you?’
‘Err…besides the human excrement in my briefcase and the ejaculate in my coat pocket, nothing to write home about.’
‘No such problems with your Afghan refugees?’ Bryant observed.
‘Quite,’ Ryan answered with a smile.
‘Nothing violent?’ Kim pushed.
Ryan shook his head.
‘Nor with Lenny Baldwin?’
‘No.’ He frowned. ‘Actually, I don’t think he even got the turds in his bag. Then again, there was gossip.’
‘About what?’
‘Look, I wasn’t there long enough to judge, and we’re talking about a man’s career.’
‘He’s retired, and we’re not going to broadcast it on social media,’ Kim said.
‘Well, his reports held a lot of weight. In some cases, they made the difference between a kid being released early or not. I’m not saying he did anything untoward by promising early release or anything like that, but there was talk,’ he said, opening his hands expressively.
Kim tried to fight down the ball of suspicion in her gut, but it was hard when the man himself had already admitted to operating in the grey area of his job description.
She thanked Ryan for his insight before leaving.
She put in a call to Penn to chase the court order for Welton. She needed to know which boys Lenny Baldwin had recommended for early release.
FIFTY-FIVE
Stacey knocked gently on the door of the house in Lye. She wasn’t sure why, because she had to knock loud enough for the woman to hear her, but she supposed it was an unconscious move aimed at sensitivity and care after what the woman had been through.
The door opened slowly. Behind it was a figure in an oversized woollen jumper with a neck that came up to her chin and a hem that reached down to her knees. Damp brown hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail. Her face was pale, make-up free and wearing a suspicious expression.
Stacey held up her ID and introduced herself.
‘What is this? A second visit to tell me there’s fuck all you can do?’
Stacey shook her head. ‘I’m CID. I understand a sergeant was here.’
‘Yeah, to tell me they weren’t gonna be able to catch the bastard who—’
