The police car had arrived too quickly for someone to have reported the thugs that had just beaten up Adam and scarpered into the night. They must have just been passing by at the right time. Or perhaps Kate had lost track of time in the blur of action that had just occurred. Two policeman got out of the car with a synchronised opening and shutting of doors that almost looked rehearsed. They approached Kate with what appeared to be more a look of faint amusement than one of concern.
- Is he alright?
The first policeman, a tall chap with roguish good looks that were somehow enhanced rather than spoilt by his ultra-pale complexion, gestured towards Adam who was still groaning on the pavement.
- He’s fine officer. He’s just….
Kate hesitated.
- ….He’s just feeling a bit poorly.
The policeman looked at his partner with a raised eyebrow that mocked the likely story. His partner, a shorter black man who didn’t give off the same air of confidence and cockiness as his colleague crouched down to where Adam was lay.
- Are you ok son?
- Fuck am I ok! Why aren’t you chasing the little shits that did this?
The policeman looked confused.
- Who did what , son?
- What do you mean who did what? The little baseball cap scum that beat me up.
- We’ve just been called to a disturbance at the restaurant here….
The policeman gestured towards McDonald’s, where there was now a flurry of activity on the car park, involving a further patrol cars and the restaurant manager, who was flailing his arms and legs about, imitating the destruction that the chavs had caused earlier. The youths were long gone. Kate afforded herself a moment of amusement at the thought of McDonald’s being referred to as a restaurant. Even though, technically that’s what it was.
- Were they the same chaps that were causing problems over at the restaurant that assaulted you?
- How the fuck should I know? They all look the same to me with their hats and their big ghetto attitudes.
The shorter, black policeman had clearly taken a disliking to Adam’s tone. He was only trying to help after all. He stood up and began walking away from Adam, abandoning the very same person he’d initially shown concern for. His taller, pale partner intervened.
- Watch your language son. If you’re well enough to talk to us like that, then you’re well enough to get your scrawny little arse up off the pavement and move along….Before someone sees you down there and really does give you a kicking.
Adam leapt to his feet, almost squaring up to the taller officer.
- So what, you’re going to do nothing?
- What do you want me to do exactly? Go running up and down the street, waving my truncheon at every person in a baseball cap?
Kate sensed that this conversation had gone far enough. Adam’s attitude was upsetting the officers and they had nothing to gain from talking to them, even if they could track down the idiot that beat up Adam. Besides, time was running out to get Adam back to the Institution before they pulled the plug on his life by killing Lionel. Whilst offering an apology to the policemen, she tugged at Adam’s arm, trying to lead him away from the officer’s personal space, which he’d clearly stepped too far into.
- Come on Adam, we should get going. I’m sorry Sir, my friend’s just a little shocked by the whole thing. We’ll be on our way now.
Adam had other ideas and yanked his arm back violently, causing Kate to stumble forward and almost lose her balance. He re-entered the taller officer’s personal space, this time adding a scowling look of disdain to his face that was unlikely to help matters.
- Why don’t you just do what you’re fucking paid to do and fight some crime, instead of picking on the victims to make yourself look like a big man?
The taller officer smirked to himself with an air of self-satisfaction that assured you that he’d seen it all before. A scraggy little down and out, claiming he’d been hard done by. Standard-issue. Boring! He glanced an assured look at his colleague in a way that said, “watch and learn from how I handle this”
- Look, you little shit! I’m going to give you one chance to turn around and piss off back to the hole you crawled out of, before I make you my first arrest of the night.
Kate pulled harder at Adam’s arm this time, succeeding in moving him back a few yards before he resisted and pulled free again, squaring up to the officer once more.
- Arrest me then! Go on! I know how your lot work. Take the easy pickings to get your arrest stats up. You don’t want to do any real work though! Real work….you know….like arresting people that have actually done something wrong. That would mean you getting off your arse and actually doing what you’re paid to do wouldn’t it.
The taller officer grabbed Adam by the arm, twisting it up and behind his back with the ease of a trained professional. Kate momentarily tried to intervene, but was stopped by the shorter officer, who stood in front of her with his arms spread wide, allowing his colleague to get on with his business of handcuffing Adam and shoving him in the back of the patrol car.
It was instinct that made Kate dive through the open door of the patrol car after Adam more than any true belief that it would achieve anything. Rather than try to remove her, the taller officer shrugged his shoulders. He was just as happy to take both of them down to the station. As they drove back, Kate tried once or twice to talk to Adam, but her friend stared ignorantly out of the window. The two policemen joked to one another about the rumoured sexual exploits of a female colleague back at the station. This was nothing more than another job to them.
So as Adam was escorted further away from where he needed to be, Ducie was preparing to execute his counterpart, Lionel Martinez.