The Rules. Kerry Barnes

and through reception before heading to a room at the back. It was similar to a police interview room. As Patton opened the door and stepped aside, Mike walked in. There, behind a long table, were two men, who quickly rose to their feet. Right away, Mike knew he wasn’t there to be arrested. No police official would have stood up in respect if that had been the case.

      ‘Please take a seat, Mr Regan,’ said the bigger of the two men. ‘I am Detective Simon Lowry, and this is Police Commissioner Conrad Stoneham.’

      Mike politely nodded while sussing each man out in turn.

      Lowry was dark-haired with pale skin and sores in the dip of his chin. His large hands also had very dry skin. Mike assumed the thickset man suffered from eczema. His other distinguishing features were his hooded eyes and the round belly that was prominent in the tight blue suit, which had seen better days. The collar on his pale-blue shirt was at least two sizes too small and was pinched by a navy-blue tie that appeared to strangle him. Mike guessed the detective was in his late fifties. The Commissioner, however, was much smarter-looking altogether. Dressed in a beige jacket, white shirt, and dark trousers, he could just as easily have stepped off a yacht. His silver hair didn’t match his dark eyebrows and wide-open green eyes. It was hard to assess his age, but he was probably in his late forties.

      Lowry looked at Stoneham to start the conversation, but his boss was still eyeing over Mike and hoping he’d made the correct decision in coming to see him.

      Mike was huge and unusually very self-controlled. His grey eyes were intense, and they revealed a lot about him. He was a no-nonsense, straight-up kind of person. There was no point in beating about the bush with Mike.

      ‘Mr Regan, I have a proposition for you. You have a parole hearing in a year’s time, and it is possible that you may be out in eighteen months, but your prison records suggest you may not get parole. The amount of time spent in solitary confinement doesn’t look good for you.’

      He paused and waited for Mike to respond, but he was left feeling uncomfortable by Mike’s cold stare and tight-lipped expression.

      ‘So, would I be right in thinking you would like to see the back of this place sooner rather than later?’

      Mike remained silent, much to the annoyance of Lowry, who felt he needed to jump in. ‘Well?’

      ‘Well what? You’re assuming a lot, gentlemen, and I’m still none the wiser as to your visit.’

      Stoneham clasped his hands together and leaned forward. ‘This conversation is highly confidential, so whatever you decide to do after our discussion has to stay strictly between the three of us.’

      Mike smirked. ‘Oh, come on. Seriously? I am in prison, so I owe you guys nothing. Therefore, don’t ask anything of me, unless I’m going to benefit from it myself!’

      His words were firm and left Lowry with a positive view that Mike was the man for the job.

      Stoneham nodded. ‘South-East London’s knife crime rate has hit an all-time high. We have a serious problem on our hands, and the fact of the matter is . . . ’ he sighed, ‘the gangs are growing bigger by the day. Harsher punishments to make examples of these characters aren’t a deterrent. The truth is, these kids, if you can call them that, are out of control.’

      Mike’s face remained impassive. ‘So, what’s all of this got to do with me? Unless, of course, you think I can make a great therapist, in which case I charge by the hour. I just don’t get why you’re ’ere.’

      Stoneham gave a short, uncertain laugh. It was a trait of his when he was at a loss what to say. It was quite clear Regan wasn’t going to make things easy for him, and he certainly wasn’t buying what he’d come to tell him.

      ‘Let me answer that. I know you see me as the enemy—’

      ‘I never said that,’ Mike interjected. ‘Don’t tell me what I think, feel, or believe. You, Mr Stoneham, can only tell me what you factually know. Please don’t assume you know anything about me.’

      Stoneham had done extensive research on Regan. He’d read every statement, every file, and he knew right this minute that all the previous quashed convictions were because this man was smart and premeditated. Even the rise of his eyebrow was done with thought. He also guessed that Regan would coldly torture information out of his enemies without even flinching. What he needed to be sure of was that Regan had a moral compass and an appreciation of the rules to keep the streets safe to walk on.

      ‘No, quite right. It’s probably a habit of mine, being in the police force since I left school.’

      Stoneham knew he needed to come off his perch, lower his own guard, and be honest with the man, for Regan to trust him.

      ‘I know one thing about you, Mr Regan, and that is this. You’ve never been arrested for anything other than a few heists, and, of course, the murder of Scottie Harman, but I also understand you believed he had kidnapped your son.’

      Stoneham watched Mike’s chest rhythmically move up and down as he breathed evenly.

      ‘I may have done the same if I had believed that he had kidnapped my daughter.’

      Mike sniggered. ‘Come on. Don’t fuck with me. You’re the Filth, and I’m not. In your tiny mind, you would want whoever kidnapped your daughter, God forbid, dead. But would you do it yourself? Nah, not in a million fucking years. Why? Because the law runs through your veins and you would believe that your boys in blue would have the power to catch the person who did your family wrong. Me, all I have is my own blood running through my veins. You don’t believe in an eye for an eye, but I fucking do.’

      ‘And so, it appears, does your mother!’ exclaimed Stoneham, with a sharp tongue. He stared straight into Mike’s eyes and looked for just a hint of anxiety, but, again, there was nothing.

      ‘We have a good enough reason to suspect she was responsible for Tracey Harman’s murder.’ He hoped that would stir some emotion and he could then barter Regan’s mother’s liberty.

      ‘If you suspected my muvver, you’d have had her down the nick, but, as far as I’m aware, she’s at home pruning her roses. Now, I suggest you get to the point or fuck off.’

      Stoneham could see that there was no point in trying to use emotional blackmail with Regan. ‘I need you and your men back on the outside working for me, and before you laugh it off, take note. Last week in Bromley, we had two knifings. One was an old lady, who was attacked as she stepped off the bus, and the other was a twelve-year-old kid, who was similarly attacked on his way home from school. Seventeen pensioners were held at knifepoint – robbed and battered in their own homes. Luckily, none were killed. And a baby in a pram was snatched and held with a knife to his throat, all for eleven pounds fifty. These are just a few examples of what I’ve come to talk to you about, and, believe me, they are off the top of my head. Crimes like these are soaring.’

      Stoneham clocked Mike’s lips turn down at the corners. He thought he may have hit a nerve, so he paused and waited.

      ‘And this meeting between us is your idea, is it?’

      Lowry coughed and wiped his brow: the room was stifling.

      Stoneham turned to Lowry. ‘Could you wait outside? I think Mr Regan may feel more comfortable with just myself present . . . and before you question my safety. . . ’ – he turned to Mike – ‘I think I am pretty safe. Do we agree, Mr Regan?’

      Mike held up his huge hands and sighed. ‘Of course you are. I’m not a fucking caged bear, ya know!’

      Lowry looked somewhat miffed by his boss’s request.

      ‘And, Lowry, ask one of the officers to bring us some coffee, please.’ He watched as the detective begrudgingly rose from his chair and left the room.

      ‘Right, yes, you surmised correctly. The initiative isn’t mine, and I won’t pretend otherwise because you’re a clever sod, and I won’t waste your time or mine.’

      Mike