Date: Mon, 20 Jan 2003 14:42:48 +0000 (GMT)
From: Steve Rose <cutrose40@yahoo.co.uk>
Subject: Martin Roberts Investigates - 5

DISCLAIMER:

This is a story. None of the characters in the story
exist and the events that take place are purely
imaginary. This is a detective story with sexual
overtones. I hope that you like this as a piece of
writing.


WARNING:

Do not read this story if you are in any way offended
by acts of a homosexual nature.

Do not read this if you are under the legal age for
accessing adult sites.

Always indulge in safe sex.


MARTIN ROBERTS INVESTIGATES

Chapter 5

Later on the Sunday afternoon after they had left
South London and returned to Scotland Yard, Martin
Roberts and his Inspector, Mark Jamieson, decided to
go out to Essex to interview the other person Graeme
Adams had mentioned. The journey was quite quick as
the roads were relatively clear. As they drove along
Martin and Mark conversed happily about other matters.
Mark's wife, Ruth, was expecting a baby and Martin
asked Mark how long it would be before the baby was
due. Mark told him that it was due in about 10 days
and both men agreed that they hoped that the case
would be solved before then.

Within an hour they were pulling up outside Peter
Collins' house in a leafy suburban street well within
commuting distance of central London. Mark and Martin
walked up the drive, crunching the gravel as they
approach the front door. Mark rang the bell and a
tall, elegant woman in her mid-30s came to the door.
Mark introduced himself and his superintendent and
asked to speak to Peter Collins. The lady at the door
explained that her husband was away on business - he
was sales executive - and had gone to Birmingham to
help set up a trade stand for the following week's
show at the National exhibition Centre. Mark used the
same ploy as he had with Joe Smith's mother explaining
that they wished to talk to Mr Collins about being a
possible witness to an accident, Martin left his card
and then the two men walked back to their car.

Walking back towards the car, Mark thought how sad it
was that Peter Collins' wife seemed to be so unaware
of her husband's bi-sexual nature. Mark was surprised
that Martin had taken this information in without
batting an eyelid. That Martin had noticed was
undeniable but the superintendent was a man of the
world and had, in his younger days, had several
encounters with apparently happily married men.

So the two policemen walked back to the car in
silence. However, once inside the car Martin let his
frustration pour out,

"Fuck and Bugger it, Mark!! Well, that's about it
then!! Every bloody person we need to see is in
sodding Birmingham. I guess we'll have to go up there
in the morning and try to track down these two people.
Hopefully the traffic boys will have found Joe Smith's
whereabouts by now."

Martin Roberts' temper was not improved by the news
that the traffic boys had found no trace of Joe
Wright. It was not until much later into the evening
before the traffic police managed to establish that
far from driving his lorry to Birmingham as they had
thought, Joe Smith's vehicle was safely parked in his
secure parking area near his home. Now it would be a
case of trying to find where Joe's own private car
was.

Martin went home where Tom, his partner, decided to
keep well clear of him. Martin in a foul mood was not
a frequent occurrence but when he was it was best, Tom
had learned from experience, to keep one's head down.
Martin roamed around the apartment like a bear with a
sore head, tidying up, setting things straight and
finally banging about in the kitchen. Every now and
again Tom would hear a string of expletives emerge
from his partner. Finally Martin emerged from his
self-imposed rampage and smiled apologetically at Tom
who knew that now was the time to offer comfort. Tom
would have liked to forego dinner and spend some time
in bed with martin, not necessarily engaged in sex but
in comfortable cuddling and mutual reassurance. If
truth were told Tom had had almost as bad a day as
Martin but it would be inadvisable for him to mention
this at the moment. Martin's cooked offering appeared
and was better than it looked. They ate in
companionable silence and Tom suggested that they
retire after they had cleared their plates. Martin
agreed but said that he needed to check back with the
office at the Yard before he did so. The news from the
Yard was not very encouraging but Martin decided there
was nothing he could do right away so he went off to
join his partner in bed.

The phone ringing just after five in the morning gave
martin a sinking feeling as he struggled back to
consciousness. The voice on the other end confirmed
Martin's worst fears.

"Another body? Let me guess, in Birmingham?"

By the time Tom realised what was happening, his lover
was almost halfway dressed and preparing to leave.
Martin knew that with this murder taking the number up
to four he would have to face awkward questions not
only from his superiors but also from the press.
Martin was confident that he could handle the senior
officers and the press but it would be hard going and
in any case he really ought to be in Birmingham.
Before leaving the house, martin called Mark and told
him the news and arranged to meet him at Scotland
Yard. They both lived relatively close to the Yard and
so it was not long before they had met and were
driving up to Birmingham. Like Tom, Mark knew when not
to talk and this morning was one of those occasions.
They drove immediately to the place where the body had
been found. Martin and Mark were briefed by the senior
police officer in attendance and by the doctor. One
look told them that this was the work of the serial
killer. The doctor gave the opinion that death had
occurred sometime between 1130 the previous evening
and 2 o'clock in the morning, the victim was a young
middle aged man of late thirties or early forties, who
had been in good health. Martin nodded and turned to
Mark,

"Same MO as before and again good cover. We need to
find out who he is as soon as possible."

Then, turning to a local police officer, Martin asked
how far the scene of crime was from the bar Graeme
Adams had been working in the previous night? The news
that the bar was less than twenty minutes by car away
from the spot was both heartening and depressing.
Officers had been following Graeme all the time and he
had no reports of unusual behaviour from the DJ.
Martin was still far from convinced that Graeme was
the killer but he seemed to be always in the right
place at the wrong time. He had also demonstrated a
good ability to lose or shake off his tail.

Leaving the scene, Martin had a number of priorities.
First he needed to know who the victim was; second he
needed to talk to Graeme Adams and finally the two
other people they wanted to interview had to be found.
In addition to the priorities of the murder
investigation, Martin had already been in contact with
his superiors at Scotland Yard and was aware that a
difficult press conference would take place later that
morning. Martin and his Inspector, Mark, decided to
leave the identification to the local police and go to
find Graeme Adams as their first priority. Before he
and Mark had reached the hotel where Adams was known
to be staying, Martin had a piece of good news: the
local police had identified the victim.

It turned out that the victim was a man aged 40,
called Paul Laycock. Laycock was well known to the
local police as someone who often hung around in local
toilets soliciting for sex. It seemed as though the
night before his death Laycock had solicited once too
often and had been unfortunate enough to meet someone
who wanted more than a quick bit of sex. One of Paul
Laycock's haunts was a public toilet about a mile from
where his body had been found and it was reasonable to
assume that he had met his victim there. Martin might
have been expected to return to the spot but to his
Inspector's surprise he did not,

"No Mark. Let's go and talk to Graeme Adams. This time
at least we can surprise him with the name. Look at
his reaction."

They arrived at the hotel where Graeme was staying and
reception rang through to his room. They walked
quickly up the stairs and knocked on the door. The
door opened quickly and a rather flustered young
porter, hastily buttoning up his uniform, ran out into
the corridor as Martin and Mark entered. The scene
inside was one of hastily abandoned sexual activity as
Graeme, naked and obviously half-aroused, lay on top
of the bed. The bedclothes were in a complete mess and
Martin indicated to Graeme that he should cover
himself up and then he and Mark wanted to ask him some
questions. Graeme put on a dressing gown and sat at
the small table in the far corner of the room, Martin
took the small armchair and Mark remained standing.

"Good morning, Mr Adams. Do you know a man called Paul
Laycock?"

Graeme looked startled but then quickly recovered,

"No. I've never heard of him. Why?"

"He was found murdered this morning near the pub where
you were performing last night."

"Well superintendent, as you know because your men
were following me all last night, I came straight back
to this hotel after I finished. It was not a good
evening last night. I think your men put me off."

"You don't seem surprised to learn that this man is
dead", Mark's voice broke in from the doorway.

"Well, Inspector. I didn't know him so why should I
feel anything? But I will tell you something for
nothing, I saw that Joe Smith at the gig last night.
Are you going to speak to him?"

Martin nodded but then added,

"Very much we will but we're not sure where he's
staying."

Graeme smiled and wrote the name and address of the
hotel where Joe always stayed. He handed it to Martin
and said,

"Best hurry. I expect he has a job on and will want to
be off early."

"Thank you, Mr Adams, we will."

Martin and Mark left the hotel and sped off in their
car to the hotel where Joe Smith was staying. They
arrived just in time to catch him. Joe Smith was
paying his bill in reception when the two police
officers arrived and overheard the duty manager
talking to him. The duty manager handed the receipt to
Joe and said,

"There you go, Mr Smith, I hope you had a pleasant
stay and we will see you again very soon."

Martin stepped forward and touched Joe on the
shoulder,

"Joseph Smith? I am Superintendent Martin Roberts and
this is Inspector Mark Jamieson. May we have a few
words with you, in private, please?"

Joe Smith looked startled and, Mark and Martin
thought, guilty as he stammered,

"Yes, I'm Jo .. Joe Smith. What ... what do you want to
talk to me about?"

Mark looked at the duty manager enquiringly and he
indicated that they could use a small room behind the
reception area and the three men walked inside. Joe
started to speak again,

"Honestly officers, if I'd known Billy was under age I
would never have touched him. I'm not a paedophile. I
like them young but I don't go in for very young boys
honestly."

A look of distaste had crossed Mark's face as Joe was
speaking and then he realised that Martin was also
about to say something.

"I don't know what you are talking about Mr Smith but
I advise you to say no more about it. We are here
investigating a murder and we understand that you have
attended parties given by Mr Graeme Adams on a number
of occasions. Is that correct?"

Joe looked slightly shocked and then nodded,

"Yes I've been to his parties. I saw him last night.
But what murder are you talking about?"

Martin told Joe that he was heading an investigation
into the serial killing and mutilation of a number of
gay people. Another body had been found that morning
near the hotel where Joe was staying and other bodies
had been found near venues where Graeme Adams and his
friends sometimes went. Joe was looking even paler
after this explanation and stammered,

"Y .. You d .. don't think I had anything to do with
these dreadful murders, do you?"
"Well we need to ask you some questions to eliminate
you from the enquiry. OK?"

Joe nodded and Mark now took over. The Inspector
hardly concealed his distaste for the man they were
interviewing,

"Now .. sir, can you tell us where you were between
ten o'clock last night and five o'clock this morning?"

Joe told them everything, explaining his picking up of
Billy and the return to the hotel and then how he had
dropped him off at a lay-by and then driven back to
the hotel. Joe described in detail the journey and the
two policemen soon realised that Joe Smith had
actually placed himself at the scene where the body
had been found. What was unclear was whether this was
bravado or ignorance. Martin asked a few questions to
confirm the information already given,

"What time did you say you dropped this young man,
Billy, off?"

"He had to be home by 1130 so I guess it was shortly
before then."

"And you drove straight back to the hotel from there?"

"Yes."

"Did you see anything suspicious while you were
dropping Billy off or any other cars/"

"No."

"Will Billy confirm your story? Did he see you leave
the car park?"

"I'd rather you didn't involve Billy."

"Look, Mr Smith, this is a murder investigation, can
Billy confirm your story or not?"

"Yes, I believe he can."

"Do you know his full name or his address?"

"No I'm afraid I don't but he said he lived just round
the corner from where I dropped him off."

"Thank you, Mr Smith. You're free to go - for the time
being."

Joe Smith left the room looking very shaken. Martin
looked at Mark and shook his head slowly. Mark was not
sure whether this was at the thought that Joe Smith
was their man or at his foolishness in having sex with
an under age teenager. It was only later that the
Inspector realised it was neither of these but the
fact that he had allowed his personal feelings to
become so obvious in his treatment of the interviewee.
Martin did not mention this at the time but was
quickly calculating his schedule in his head.

"Look Mark. I really have to go to this blasted press
conference and get myself hung out to dry. Can I leave
you to follow up on this Billy lead? If he is from
where he said he was, he should turn up from the house
to house contacts the uniform boys have been doing in
the area. Oh and ask him to make a witness statement
and handle him gently. If possible wait to talk to him
until after I get back. Should be here again about 4."

Mark nodded and Martin left to keep his appointment at
the press conference. Martin looked slightly out of
place surrounded by the Deputy Commissioner of the
Metropolitan police and the Assistant Chief Constables
from various police areas where the murders had taken
place. Martin answered the questions as factually as
he could. After he had finished Martin heard his
superiors express full confidence in his investigation
a vote of confidence he was not sure was as full or as
unrestrained as it appeared. He knew that they wanted
results and they wanted them fast and if he did not
produce something soon he would be replaced. The press
conference ended inevitably with a prediction that an
early breakthrough and arrest was anticipated.
Inwardly Martin's heart sunk at this assertion,
knowing full well that such a promise was a hostage to
fortune and, in present circumstance unlikely to be
deliverable. He also was not certain that this was the
right message to be sending to a psychopathic serial
killer. It could spur the murderer on to more crimes
and hopefully a mistake before too long, but equally
it might send him into his shell until the trail and
investigation went cold. In private after the press
had gone Martin expressed this view to his superiors
who seemed to understand his point but take the view
that they had to say such things at these press
conferences.

Martin could not wait to get back to the investigation
and drove quickly back to Birmingham and the
investigation team. Mark was waiting for him and the
smile on his face suggested that they had found Billy.


"Uniform are bringing him in. He was at home on his
own and he lived where he said he did."

"Does he know what it's about?" Martin asked.

"Well a little bit. He knows about the murder and he's
willing to make a witness statement, so I am told. I
haven't seen him yet but he should be here in a few
moments."

"OK. Let's get a room organised and bring him straight
through when he gets here."

On the way to the interview room, Martin relayed some
of the flavour of the press conference. Mark smiled
grimly and said,

"So not too bad then!"

"Could have been worse I suppose - but not much."

Mark filled Martin in with the latest information -
mainly post mortem examination confirmation of the
cause of death and an approximate time. He also had a
piece of good news. They had located the whereabouts
of Peter Collins and he was being kept under
observation. There was a good chance that they would
be able to question him later that evening. Martin
smiled at this news although his heart sank at the
prospect of having to stay overnight in Birmingham.
Martin did not dislike hotels but he preferred the bed
at home much better and even more the prospect of
having his lover, Tom, cuddled close beside him. These
thoughts were interrupted by the news that Billy
Cranfield had arrived at the entrance to the police
station. Mark asked for the young man to be brought to
the interview suite.

As soon as Billy Cranfield entered the room both Mark
and Martin realised why it was that Joe Smith had been
fooled into believing him to be older than he was. The
teenager was very tall and had a mature look that
would make him pass for nearer 21 than his true age of
17. Martin indicated that the teenager should sit down
and then introduced himself and his Inspector. Billy
had a serious expression on his face, no doubt aware
of the seriousness of the circumstances of his
interview. When asked to confirm his identity by Mark,
the teenager replied in a strong voice, which again
belied his youth. Martin tried to identify the accent
he could detect in the voice and concluded that it was
a kind of transatlantic twang. Looking at the
preparatory notes, Martin realised that Billy had
lived in Canada in his early years and this explained
his accent. Finally, before the formal statement was
discussed, Martin confirmed that Billy was present at
the interview voluntarily and only to make a witness
statement. He also added that Billy was not under
arrest although he had been formally cautioned as a
protection to himself and that the teenager was free
to leave at any time. Then Martin began the
questioning which enabled him to confirm Joe Smith's
account of the evening before. The details given by
Billy matched those of Joe almost exactly. Martin then
turned to the events after Billy had been dropped off
at the lay-by.

"Billy, did you go straight home?"

"Yes, I did not want to be late. My parents don't know
about me and I didn't want to have to answer too many
questions. If I was late they would be bound to ask."

"But you did see Joe Smith drive out of the car park
and there was no other vehicle or person there at the
time?"

"Yes .. Yes, I did."

At this point Mark who had been taking notes on what
had been said then produced a photograph of Paul
Laycock the latest victim and placed it on the table
in front of Billy who looked slightly shocked.

"Do you know this man? Have you ever met or seen him?"

Billy stared at the photo for a few moments and then
replied,

"Yes I know who he is .. I mean was. Why would anyone
kill him? He was harmless."

Billy then told the officers of his few encounters
with the late Paul Laycock. It appeared that Billy had
first encountered Paul a year or so before his death.
Billy and a friend from school had got an early bus
from school and had walked through the park near their
home and at Billy's suggestion had slipped into the
toilets for a quick wank. They had been wanking
themselves for a few minutes when the other boy
noticed someone watching them from inside one of the
cubicles. This boy had alerted Billy and had bolted
from the toilets, followed more slowly by Billy. The
second time Billy had been alone at the same toilet
and Paul had been there and had watched as Billy
wanked himself off. The final time had been a few
weeks prior to Paul's death when a third encounter had
taken place. Again Paul had watched as Billy wanked
off but this time had also wanked himself off as well.
At no time did Paul threaten or ask to touch Billy and
Billy had concluded that Paul just liked to watch and
sometimes be watched himself. Billy had not seen Paul
since that time and certainly not on the night of his
death and he could think of no reason why anyone would
want to kill someone as harmless and lonely as Paul.

Martin acknowledged Billy's account with a curt nod
and then Billy asked,

"Will Joe get into trouble over what I've told you? I
hope he won't and I hope I won't either. I want to
help solve the murder not get a kindly man into
trouble. I led him on you know."

"I think you've said enough, Billy. Strictly speaking
he has committed a crime", replied Martin, "but
whether anything is done about it will be down to the
local police. Now before you leave let's get this
statement written out and signed."

Billy nodded and started to write out his account of
the events of the night before. Once this had been
completed and signed, Martin gave Billy his card and
said that if the teenager thought of anything else,
however  trivial, he should contact him immediately.
Billy readily agreed that he would. Once the
formalities had been completed and Martin warned him
that they might need to speak to him again it was
arranged for a police car to take Billy home.
After the teenager had left, Mark looked at Martin and
they seemed to agree that the youngster had been as
honest as he could and genuinely wanted to help.
Neither of them discussed the possibility that both
Billy and Joe could be in trouble over their
activities of the night before. Instead Mark got up
and said to his superior officer,

"Well, sir, how about a cup of tea and then let's go
and talk to Peter Collins? What do you say?"

Martin nodded his agreement and a little later the two
police officers were drinking large mugs of canteen
tea. As soon as they had finished, they walked back
towards their car and made good progress through the
heavy afternoon traffic towards the Exhibition Centre
and their confrontation with Peter Collins. At the
Centre the two senior officers made themselves known
to the plain-clothes officers that had been keeping
Peter Collins under observation.

"Hasn't really done anything suspicious, sir. Looks
quite at home and not a care in the world. Had a few
interested parties on his stand and talked with his
colleagues. In fact, nothing unusual to report at all
sir."

"Thank you, constable", said Mark, "you can go off
now. The Super and I will take over from here."

"Thanks sir."

Mark walked forward and spoke to Peter Collins and
Martin from the side of the stand saw the colour drain
from the sales executive's face. Mark walked Peter to
where Martin was waiting and the superintendent
indicated that he was happy to wait until the
exhibition formally closed before speaking to Peter
Collins.

"That's OK, Mr Collins, we'll wait until five o'clock
and then we'll speak to you. If your colleagues ask,
tell them we want to talk about you being a witness to
a road accident."

Mark and Martin sat down in a refreshment area near to
where Peter Collins' stand was. They each took time to
assess him. Peter Collins was about 40 years old,
strongly built, tall, dark and handsome. He was in
both their minds a far more likely suspect than Joe
Smith had been. Collins could easily have overpowered
a victim and carried them to their final resting
place, whereas Joe was rather more slightly built and
gave the impression of little physical strength. As
they sat together Mark raised an issue that he had
wanted to raise before but had only just decided he
could do so in safety.

"Sir, do you know what's bothering me about all this?"

"Let me guess, Mark', replied Martin. "if I were you I
would be wondering about three things. First where are
the victims' clothing? Second, where are the missing
genitals? And, finally, how easy is it to carry a body
to the locations in which they have been found?"

"Absolutely, sir. Plus what connects the victims and
what is the motive for the killings. The killer's
obviously angry but what about?"

"I guess my answer to these questions is that when we
know the answers we'll know who the killer is."

"Do you have any ideas yet sir?"

"Not really, Mark. But here are some thoughts. If as
we assume our killer travels around a lot I guess it
should be easy to dump the clothes somewhere on the
way. Little risk of being caught really, especially if
it is miles from the scene of the crime. Body parts
are harder but again plenty of canals, rivers, lakes,
even the sea to choose as a dumping ground. You'd need
strength to carry the body to its dumping ground but
he's been careful to choose places where he can park
in safety and have cover and access to open ground.
Probably wears some form of boiler suit or other
protective clothing and disposes of that after each
murder, just in case there are any clues. He's clever
and resilient, resourceful and above all ruthless. As
to motive, well anger at his victims for some reason,
anger with himself for being gay, something from his
past. Up until tonight I might have gone with the idea
that it was anger at the young: all the victims have
been under 30 but Paul Laycock wasn't. Also it doesn't
answer the question about the removal of the genitals.
What do you think?"

"Can't say I disagree with that analysis so do we have
a suspect that fits the bill? In my view Joe Smith is
not a serious contender, he's too small and weedy to
carry a body and did not give the impression of being
angry about very much. Graeme Adams and our friend
over there, Peter Collins I think they could do such a
thing. However Adams has always managed to have an
alibi of sorts and we've yet to hear from Collins. If
this is the choice I think I'll pass at this stage."

"Very wise, Mark. Don't let's jump to conclusions or
eliminate anybody just yet. Ah, good, the exhibition
seems to be closing let's go and talk to Peter
Collins."

As the two police officers approached the cheerful
expression on Peter Collins' face faded but he forced
a smile and told his colleague that he would see them
at the bar in a few minutes. Then Peter Collins looked
at the policemen and said,

"Where shall we go. I'd rather we were private."

"So would we, Mr Collins', responded Mark.

Mark had already arranged for a small office to be
available for him and Martin and they walked the short
distance to it in silence. Once they had reached the
office and settled in the not very comfortable chairs,
Mark began by explaining why they wanted to speak to
Peter and how they had tracked him down to Birmingham
as a result of talking to his wife. Somewhat
reluctantly Peter Collins confirmed that he had
attended one of Graeme Adams' parties and that from
time to time on his travels he had gone to gay clubs
and pubs. Peter also confirmed that this secret life
was not something his wife was aware of. Mark asked
Peter about what he had done the previous night. Peter
explained that he had arrived at his hotel (which
proved to be the same one where Joe Smith was staying)
and had gone to his room. At this point Peter became
somewhat agitated as he obviously fought with himself
over whether to tell the police everything. He decided
on honesty. The room he had booked was a double room
and he had booked it in order to spend the night with
another rep in an entirely different line of business.
The other man, Ed Wilson, had arrived shortly after
Peter and they had planned to spend the evening
together: having dinner and then a night in bed
together. They had done this before on several
occasions but on this particular evening Ed had
arrived in a foul mood and they had argued and in the
course of the argument Peter had felt the need to
leave. Peter had left Ed in the room and gone out to
his car and had driven around for some time. He had
ended up at a pub and had a drink and then driven back
to the hotel. He did not know exactly what time it
was, probably after midnight when he had got back. He
had gone to his room where Ed was still there, very
contrite and they had made up and sealed their
reconciliation with lovemaking.

Martin leaned forward and asked quietly,

"What was the argument about, Mr Collins?"

Peter Collins looked slightly startled, hesitated for
a moment and then responded,

"Everything and nothing. Everything I said, he said
the opposite; everything I suggested we do, he wanted
something else. Finally he said that I was not really
interested in him as a person and all I wanted him for
was sex. I was so hurt and angry at that remark, I
wanted to hit him, but I didn't. I got up, slammed the
door and went out."

Mark's took over the questioning,

"Do you know the name of the pub that you went to? Did
anyone see you there to confirm when you were there?"

"Only the landlord but I don't remember the name of
the pub. I know I drove for quite a while and that I
drove to the south. I was very upset. I had calmed
down by the time I got to the pub. It took me a long
time to drive back to the hotel I do remember that."

"On your travels, did you see or meet this man?" Mark
showed Peter a photograph of Paul Laycock.

"No. I did not see him last night. I've never ever
seen him in my life."

"You say you got back to the hotel some time after
midnight and had sex with Ed Wilson on your return."
Mark tried hard to conceal his disapproval and almost
succeeded. "Will he be able to confirm that?"

"Of course."

"Good, will he still be at the hotel tonight?"

"No, he was due back in London tonight. He left after
breakfast. I suggest you call his office, they will
know where he will be."

Peter Collins wrote the number on a piece of paper and
handed it to Mark. Mark took it and fished in his
pocket for his card.

"Here's my card. If you remember anything else
especially the name of the pub give me a call."

Martin nodded at Mark and then rounded off the
interview,

"Well that's all for now, Mr Collins. Oh, except,
would you mind if we looked in the boot of your car?"

"It's full of junk and rubbish I 'm off to another
exhibition back in North London later this week and
then I'll be visiting clients, but if you want to, of
course you can."

Peter led the police officers to the car park and
pointed out his Volvo Estate car. He opened the back
and it looked like a tip in there. Mark tried to make
an examination of the contents but the boxes were
heavy and full. Peter looked on,

"Are you looking for anything specific?"

"No, that's fine, Mr Collins." Mark replied.

Martin smiled at his inspector and then turned to
Peter Collins,

"Thank you Mr Collins, you've been very helpful."

Mark and Martin turned away and walked back towards
their own car. Mark looked at Martin and said,

"Do you buy his story. I don't think he's in the clear
at all."

Martin nodded,

"Very thin alibi and nothing to support it. Yes I
agree we can't rule him out. He had time to kill Paul
Laycock and get back to the hotel even on his own
account of what happened. He's also got a temper and
he's a strong man."

"Yes", replied Mark "and someone with a secret that he
may feel guilt over. But why Paul Laycock and not Ed
Wilson?"

"Wilson would eventually lead back to him but I agree
we are a long way from finding a motive."

The two police officers had by now reached their car
and they drove back to the police station to see if
there had been any further developments. Mark also
telephoned Ed Wilson's office and was informed that he
was on the road and would not be back and available to
meet the police until later in the week. Mark and
Martin had tacitly agreed that they too would return
to London unless there was something pressing to keep
them in Birmingham or send them further north. As
there was not, they prepared to return south. Mark was
pleased to be going home. He wanted to see his wife
Ruth who was due to give birth at any time. Mark was
concerned that he would not be in time to get to the
hospital for the birth. Martin was aware that Mark
wanted to be present at the birth of what would be his
first child and had promised the inspector that if at
all possible he would ensure that he was. Mark
telephoned his home and spoke to his wife Ruth who
assured him that all was well and that there was no
sign of the baby yet.

Meanwhile Martin also wanted to get back to see Tom.
Like Mark, Martin telephoned home to tell Tom that he
was on his way. Tom was not in so Martin left a
message. The rest of the journey was spent in
comparative silence, each man digesting the events of
the day and the information that had been gathered.
Once back at Scotland Yard, Martin told Mark that he
could go home and look after his wife. Martin,
however, needed to talk to his superiors and discuss
the next move. He had things to report and still the
lead to Ed Wilson to follow up but he had to admit
that there was no real breakthrough. Martin had
several suspects but not an ounce of proof. The
superintendent was certain that the killer would make
a mistake, eventually. However, the problem was how
many more victims would there have to be before he
did. Martin was convinced that the killer was a man
even though there might be the possibility of a woman
such as a scorned wife in the case of Peter Collins.
Martin had a long debrief with the Commander and felt
reassured that his immediate superior still believed
he was the best man for the job and that nobody could
have do or would do more to catch the killer. Martin
was cheered by this news and as he made his way home
he was in a far better mood that he had been for some
time. Martin bought a bottle of quite expensive wine,
which he intended he and Tom should drink over dinner
before they retired to bed and the chance to have some
sexual release.

When Martin arrived home, Tom who had got his message
and was already cooking one of his special meals.
Martin and he embraced in the kitchen and then Martin
opened his bottle of wine and he sat watching his
lover cook as they both sipped their drinks. The meal
was superb and the wine complemented it extremely well
but both men were anxious to move on. Rather like
their early period together or like indulgent
teenagers the pair began to entwine themselves around
each other in the living room. Tom lay back on the
sofa and pulled Martin on top of him, roughly undoing
his older lover's belt and unzipping his trousers.
Martin opened his legs wider to give Tom full access
to his already rampant prick. Tom groaned with
pleasure and whispered to Martin how much he had
missed him as his hands delved deeper inside and
sought to free the throbbing meat from the material
that covered it. Martin was also attempting to strip
Tom at the same time and so there was a confusion of
arms and legs that only ended with both men falling
off the sofa onto the floor in fits of giggles.

Martin took advantage of this moment as he recovered
first and quickly removed Tom's clothes, exposing the
younger man's hard uncut cock. Martin engulfed the
head between his lips and used them to slowly roll
back Tom's foreskin. As he did so, Martin skilfully
licked out his lover's piss slit and began to smear
the exposing glans with a mixture of his saliva and
the pre-cum. By now Tom had managed to strip Martin
and he was responding to the treatment he was
receiving by mirroring the action on Martin's prick.
Tom loved the velvety feel of Martin's cut cock as it
entered his mouth between his thick lips. Martin had
worked his mouth down the length of Tom's cock and had
taken first one, then the other ball into his mouth
before moving on to lick along the ridge that led to
the entrance to Tom's love channel. Tom pushed Martin
down onto the floor and repositioned himself so that
he could kneel with his cock and hole within easy
access of Martin's mouth. Tom loved to be rimmed and
knew that the treatment he was about to receive would
be a prelude to a slow fucking. Tom leaned forward so
that he could resume his oral ministrations to
Martin's dick and prepare his lover's man tool for
entry into him. Both men were naked and moaning and
Tom, after years of practice, knew exactly the right
moment to change positions. Sensing that the moment
was imminent, Tom quickly reversed his position. The
younger man hovered for a moment over the stiff
missile that pointed up from Martin's groin and then
lowered himself onto it.

Martin groaned with please as he felt Tom's hole open
to receive him and even more so as he felt his lover
slide down the pre-cum soaked shaft until he was
completely inside. Tom looked down at martin and
grinned and then slowly but surely he rose up the
shaft until only the head remained inside him before
slamming down again. Martin loved this position and
always enjoyed it when Tom rode him in this way.
Martin reached up and ran his hands over the chest and
teasing the Tom's erect nipples as his lover's body
rose and fell. Martin wondered if there was any way
that he could manage to get his body in position to
take Tom in his mouth, something he had been able to
do years before. Now his body seemed less supple than
in days gone by but somehow he managed to conjure up a
position from which he could take just the head of
Tom's cock in between his lips. Every time Tom's body
slid up and down his lover's prick, Martin's mouth was
getting a gentle fucking also. Their breathing was
getting more ragged, Tom was hitting Martin's prostate
with regularity and making the older man's dick throb
and both were beginning to feel the electric start of
impending orgasm. Martin began to wank Tom's shaft as
an indication that he was himself close to shooting.
Tom went faster up and down and squeezed Martin's
shaft feeling the telltale sign that he was about to
be filled with his lover's ball cream. Martin tried to
grip the head of Tom's throbbing cock tighter with his
lips and then he felt his piss slit widen, his balls
tighten and spunk began to shoot all over the inside
of Tom's love channel. Seconds later Martin tasted the
response from tom as the younger man fired ropes of
jizz into Martin's swallowing throat and over his
tongue. The intensity of the moment seemed to last for
several minutes but in reality for far less before
both men fell back exhausted but satisfied.

Later, as they lay contentedly in each other's arms,
Martin related to Tom the most recent details of his
investigation. He did not hold back anything certain
that anything he did tell Tom would be held in
strictest confidence. Tom listened intently to what
was being said and then offered some comments of his
own.

"So far, Marty, (Tom was the only person on earth that
Martin would allow to use this diminutive) you have
only considered three potential suspects -- four if you
include the guy you haven't spoken to yet -- what if
the killer is someone completely different?"
Martin smiled and replied,

"Yes I thought of that possibility, but I am convinced
that the gay clubs and pubs is where the killer goes
to find his victims. If that is so we need someone who
can travel and knows his way around the gay scene.
Yes, a straight gay basher or killer is a possibility
and I haven't completely discounted it, but again I
think it less probable."

"OK but you've also considered the possibility that
the killer is angry, possibly at himself for being gay
and that he takes his guilt out on his victims. What
if you reversed that and asked yourself what if it's
the victims' fault and that they may have made the
killer angry? What, for instance if they came on to
him and he reacted to their advances? I don't know got
a hard-on looking at him or something"

"I did consider that but I cannot find anything to
suggest that the victims did not met their killer
willingly."

"OK do the victims have anything in common that might
have cause him to get angry?"

"Not really. So far they have all been white and until
the last victim under thirty. I thought initially it
was an old/young thing but the last death changed
that."

"Could Paul Laycock's killing have been an accident,
an aberration, a mistake or a red herring?"

"On balance, I don't think so. The details were too
precise for a copycat killing or an attempt to
disguise it as something it wasn't. And I think that
goes for your other suggestions. I'm sure it was the
same guy and if I could crack why they are being
killed it might help me find the killer. I think there
must be something these victims have in common but
we'll just have to keep digging until we find it -- or
until our man makes a mistake."

"Well, let's both sleep on it and maybe it'll seem
more hopeful in the morning."

Tom leaned over and kissed Martin full on the lips and
Martin responded. Neither was in the mood to take this
any further and as they parted they both lay back and
slipped slowly into sleep. Tom as usual slept deeply
but Martin's rest was more fitful as he turned over in
his mind what possible connection there was between
the victims. He was sure there was one and that it was
not all that difficult to spot but as he finally fell
unconscious no simple solution had yet come to him.
His final thought was that maybe something would turn
up from the interview with Ed Wilson later in the
week.

TO BE CONTINUED...

If you liked this part of the story let me know
cutrose40@yahoo.co.uk


=====
Keep the juices flowing and the cream shooting high!!!