Dishonour. Helen Black

Bell showed his open palms. ‘What more do you need?’

      ‘How about some evidence?’ she said.

      ‘You’ll find plenty of evidence in what I’ve told you,’ he said.

      She threw her notebook on the table in disgust. ‘You say Yasmeen died from an overdose of OxyContin and Perocet.’

      Bell nodded. ‘The pills were ground down and placed in a can of Coke to hide the taste. The can was found by Yasmeen’s bed. The dregs showed traces of both drugs.’

      ‘Enough to kill her?’

      Bell nodded. ‘Even small amounts can prove fatal. Perocet should never be taken with other drugs and OxyContin should never be ground down.’

      ‘Because?’

      ‘They’re designed for slow release; crushing them makes the effects far too strong.’

      ‘Maybe she did that herself.’

      DI Bell folded his arms. ‘Why on earth would she do that?’

      ‘Maybe she didn’t like the taste. Who knows what goes on in someone’s mind before they take their own life?’

      ‘There was no suicide note and no suggestion that anything was wrong.’ He eyed Lilly coolly. ‘She didn’t kill herself.’

      Lilly waved him away with her hand. ‘Perhaps it was an accident.’

      ‘There’s no evidence she had either drug in her possession,’ said Bell. ‘She wasn’t in receipt of a prescription.’

      ‘I’ll bet you can buy them on the net,’ said Lilly.

      ‘Indeed you can. But there’s no record that Yasmeen ever did that and no packaging was found in her room.’

      Lilly had to admit it didn’t sound like suicide.

      ‘That still doesn’t mean that Raffy had anything to do with it,’ she said.

      ‘There were two sets of prints on that can. Yasmeen’s and your client’s.’

      ‘That only means he touched the can, not that he put the drugs inside it.’

      DI Bell licked his lips. ‘We obtained a warrant to search your client’s school locker and guess what we found?’

      Lilly watched Bell open his drawer and pull out a clear evidence bag. Inside were two small boxes. Even before Bell put them on the table between them, Lilly could read the word ‘OxyContin’. Her heart sank.

      ‘When were you going to tell me about this?’ she asked. ‘Or were you going to spring it on us in the interview?’

      DI Bell dazzled Lilly with the whiteness of his smile. ‘I’m telling you now.’

      ‘Because I’m warning you,’ Lilly pointed at him, ‘I will bring a halt to it if you try any more tricks like this.’

      Bell narrowed his eyes but didn’t reply.

      ‘And think about it,’ said Lilly. ‘If Raffy was guilty, why wouldn’t he cover his tracks, throw the packets away? Why on earth would he put them in his locker?’

      DI Bell’s eyes were two dark slits. ‘Who knows what goes on in someone’s mind after they’ve murdered their sister?’

      Raffy sat upright in his chair and stared at the wall. Lilly wondered if he was frightened. He certainly was not prepared to show it.

      ‘The police believe you killed Yasmeen,’ she said.

      He didn’t look at her. ‘I’d worked that out myself.’

      Lilly glanced at Anwar, who had agreed to attend as his brother’s appropriate adult. Anwar seemed much more frightened than his younger brother and chewed his bottom lip.

      Lilly took a deep breath. ‘They say you put Perocet and OxyContin in her drink.’

      ‘Is that right?’ said Raffy, his eyes locked on the wall behind her.

      ‘Do you know anything about those drugs?’

      ‘Nope.’

      ‘The police searched your school locker,’ she said.

      Raffy’s eyes darted to Lilly, then returned to their spot behind her. ‘And?’

      ‘And they found packets of those drugs.’

      Raffy shrugged. ‘Planted.’

      Lilly nodded. It was not unheard of for the police conveniently to find evidence, but it was not as common as her clients would have her believe.

      ‘Right then, let’s do it.’ Lilly stood to let herself out.

      ‘Is that it?’ asked Raffy. ‘Is that all you’ve got to say?’

      ‘What were you expecting?’ Lilly’s hand hovered on the door handle. ‘A preprepared statement?’

      Raffy grimaced. ‘Some advice might be helpful.’

      ‘You don’t seem to want my help, Raffy.’

      The boy gave a low snort in his throat.

      ‘Just keep your answers short, say as little as possible.’ She opened the door. ‘Don’t give them any ammunition.’

      The interview room was silent as DI Bell ensured the video equipment was working. He was deliberately checking and rechecking the plug, the leads, the angle of the camera, letting the tension ratchet. Certainly Lilly could feel the terror emanating from Anwar but the old police tactic wasn’t working on Raffy, whose every pore radiated unalloyed resentment.

      ‘OK then,’ said DI Bell, and took his seat.

      Raffy lifted his chin and stared at the ceiling.

      DI Bell placed his suit jacket on the back of his chair. In just his shirt Lilly could see how slight the man was, his frame almost boyish. Still he puffed out his chest like a robin, enjoying his position.

      He cleared his throat. ‘For the sake of the tape let me introduce myself as DI Bell. Also present is Miss Valentine, the suspect’s solicitor.’

      ‘Correct,’ Lilly nodded.

      ‘We also have Anwar Khan, the suspect’s brother, acting as his appropriate adult,’ said DI Bell.

      Anwar mumbled something.

      ‘I’m sorry,’ said DI Bell, ‘you’ll have to speak up.’

      ‘Sorry,’ Anwar coughed, ‘sorry.’

      Lilly passed him a glass of water, which he gulped loudly.

      ‘Thank you,’ he whispered. ‘It’s just that I’ve never been in a police station before and I’m very nervous.’

      ‘That’s perfectly understandable,’ said DI Bell. ‘Take your time.’

      Anwar set the empty glass down carefully in front of him.

      ‘I just wanted to confirm that I’m Raffy’s brother.’

      DI Bell was a study in calm. ‘Excellent. Now everyone’s been introduced I want to remind Raffique that he’s still under caution. Do you know what that means?’

      ‘I’m not stupid,’ said Raffy.

      Lilly cringed. The last thing anyone should be in an interview was cocky. Frightened, yes. Angry, possibly. Cocky, never. While Lilly understood that bravado was often the refuge of the terrified child, juries imagined only those with lots of experience of the criminal justice system would have the temerity to be cocky.

      DI Bell smiled. Lilly wasn’t the only one in the room who knew how juries thought.

      She put her hand on Raffy’s thigh hoping to remind him of her advice to say as little as possible; not