Snared Read online

  OTHER TITLES BY ED JAMES

  DC SCOTT CULLEN CRIME SERIES

  Ghost in the Machine

  Devil in the Detail

  Fire in the Blood

  Dyed in the Wool

  Bottleneck

  Windchill

  SUPERNATURE SERIES

  Shot Through the Heart

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  Text copyright © 2015 Ed James

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

  Published by Thomas & Mercer, Seattle

  www.apub.com

  Amazon, the Amazon logo, and Thomas & Mercer are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc., or its affiliates.

  ISBN-13: 978-1477828441

  ISBN-10: 1477828443

  Cover design by bürosüdo München, www.buerosued.de

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2014955026

  For Allan

  Contents

  Wednesday — 26th March 2014

  Chapter One

  Thursday — 27th March 2014

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Friday — 28th March 2014

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Saturday — 29th March 2014

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Sunday — 30th March 2014

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Chapter Fifty

  Chapter Fifty-One

  Chapter Fifty-Two

  Chapter Fifty-Three

  Chapter Fifty-Four

  Chapter Fifty-Five

  Chapter Fifty-Six

  Tuesday — 1st April 2014

  Chapter Fifty-Seven

  Chapter Fifty-Eight

  Chapter Fifty-Nine

  Chapter Sixty

  Chapter Sixty-One

  Chapter Sixty-Two

  Chapter Sixty-Three

  Chapter Sixty-Four

  Chapter Sixty-Five

  Chapter Sixty-Six

  Chapter Sixty-Seven

  Chapter Sixty-Eight

  Chapter Sixty-Nine

  Chapter Seventy

  Chapter Seventy-One

  Chapter Seventy-Two

  Chapter Seventy-Three

  Chapter Seventy-Four

  Chapter Seventy-Five

  Chapter Seventy-Six

  Chapter Seventy-Seven

  Chapter Seventy-Eight

  Chapter Seventy-Nine

  Chapter Eighty

  Chapter Eighty-One

  Chapter Eighty-Two

  Chapter Eighty-Three

  Chapter Eighty-Four

  Chapter Eighty-Five

  Chapter Eighty-Six

  Chapter Eighty-Seven

  Chapter Eighty-Eight

  Chapter Eighty-Nine

  Chapter Ninety

  Chapter Ninety-One

  Chapter Ninety-Two

  Chapter Ninety-Three

  Chapter Ninety-Four

  Chapter Ninety-Five

  Chapter Ninety-Six

  Chapter Ninety-Seven

  Chapter Ninety-Eight

  Chapter Ninety-Nine

  Chapter One Hundred

  Chapter One Hundred and One

  Chapter One Hundred and Two

  Chapter One Hundred and Three

  Chapter One Hundred and Four

  Chapter One Hundred and Five

  Chapter One Hundred and Six

  Chapter One Hundred and Seven

  Chapter One Hundred and Eight

  Chapter One Hundred and Nine

  Chapter One Hundred and Ten

  Chapter One Hundred and Eleven

  Chapter One Hundred and Twelve

  Chapter One Hundred and Thirteen

  Chapter One Hundred and Fourteen

  Chapter One Hundred and Fifteen

  Chapter One Hundred and Sixteen

  Chapter One Hundred and Seventeen

  Chapter One Hundred and Eighteen

  Chapter One Hundred and Nineteen

  Chapter One Hundred and Twenty

  Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-One

  Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-Two

  Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-Three

  Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-Four

  Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-Five

  Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-Six

  Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-Seven

  Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-Eight

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author

  Wednesday

  26th March 2014

  Chapter One

  There he goes. He’s just about ready.” The man tugged his balaclava tighter before patting his companion on her shoulder. “You’ll see why they call it doggy style.”

  The woman shrugged his arm off, twisting her body away from the cage, staring into the black of the rest of the large room. A tap dripped somewhere in the distance. “Right.”

  The man frowned at her. “What’s up?”

  “Nothing.”

  The man walked up to the cage and rattled it, the clank still echoing round the room once he stopped. “Go on, boy, get it up her.”

  The male in the cage moved away from the female, head bowed, avoiding eye contact with either of them, eyes locked on the dirty floor instead, on the mounds of their own excrement.

  The man pointed at the cage, eyes on her. “What’s he doing?”

  The woman glanced back at the cage, then shook her head. “This is a bit too cruel.”

  “They’re animals. There’s nothing cruel about this.” The man rattled the cage again, gloved hands gripping the steel.

  The male’s pupils contracted.

  H
e pointed the Taser at the cage before sparking it. “Don’t make me use this again.”

  The male focused on the weapon. It knew. It looked back at the female before groaning as it settled on its haunches near the edge of the cage between the female and them, protecting her. Its chest heaved as its breathing increased.

  “Christ’s sake. We’ll never get these two to breed at this rate.” He sparked the Taser again and jammed it through the bars, catching the male between the shoulder blades.

  It jerked up then sprawled over the floor of the cage, its whole body shaking.

  The female crawled into the far corner, pushing up against the bars, tucking herself into a foetal position.

  The male’s brown eyes pleaded with them as it lay prone in a pool of its own urine.

  The man held out the Taser again, not quite reaching the male. “Want to be a good boy for me?”

  The male growled at them, some motor control returning.

  The man let out a sigh and looked around. He tapped her on the shoulder. “Do you want to help me here?”

  The woman turned to look at the cage, at the pathetic animals inside, staring at them for a few seconds. “You using that thing isn’t going to help, you know.”

  He inspected the Taser before nodding. “You’re probably right.”

  “Come on, let’s leave them to it. That might encourage them more than your battering-ram approach.”

  “You could be right.”

  The male sat up and started clawing at the bars at the front.

  The man put his face up to the bars, eyeballing the male, before pointing the Taser at the cage, inches from its face, and sparking it again. “Don’t worry, you’ll be here for a while, Paul.”

  Thursday

  27th March 2014

  Chapter Two

  Vicky Dodds pulled off the roundabout onto the North Marketgait, the dual carriageway giving her a clear run for once. The trees lining the road obscured a block of new flats in brown and blue climbing over the car park to the right, already half full.

  Her phone started ringing as she shot through the green lights, past the pink brick of the Wellgate Shopping Centre, the towering multi-storey flats ahead of her surrounding a turreted building in the brown stone of old Dundee. She slipped into the half darkness of the tunnel just as her mobile stopped ringing.

  “Shit, shit, shit.” She hit the brakes. The road ahead was jammed solid, what passed for morning rush hour traffic in Dundee. Fumes leaked into the car. She flipped the air conditioning to recycle mode and picked up the phone from its cradle.

  David Forrester. No voicemail. The clock on the dashboard showed 8.22. She wasn’t late, yet. What did he want?

  The cars ahead started trundling forward, their brake lights more on than off. She set off and dialled Forrester, phone on speakerphone, ringing and ringing.

  She pulled left, more traffic queuing outside the long row of ancient jute mills, now all redundant and repurposed, opposite the brown and mustard ridges of the three-storey police station.

  “. . . please leave a message after the tone.” The phone beeped.

  Vicky held up the phone. “Sir, it’s DS Dodds just returning your call. I’ll be in soon.” Eyes on the road, she fumbled for the red button before tossing the phone onto the passenger seat.

  Setting off again, she passed the police station before hanging a left onto West Bell Street, the grand Sheriff Court with its flat doric columns almost outmuscled by the surrounding concrete buildings. She took another left, navigating the twisting back road into the car park at the front.

  A blue BMW 1-Series sat in her parking bay, gleaming in the sunshine.

  “Not again . . .” She parked in the nearest free space, teeth clamped together. She grabbed her bag and phone as she got out, zapping the lock on her black Fiesta as she stomped across the small car park. She entered the double doors, the Tayside Police lettering above still outlined by the weathering.

  The desk sergeant glanced up at her approach, his thick beard patchy in places but covering most of his pink face.

  “Morning, Tommy.”

  “I prefer Sergeant Davies but you know that, don’t you?” He ran a hand over his bald head, shaved to the pockmarked skin. “But what a beautiful morning it is.”

  “Don’t try to sweeten me up.” Vicky held his gaze as she rummaged in her handbag. “Someone’s taken my space again.”

  Tommy looked away, fingers combing his beard. “Aye, sorry about that. New lad started in your area. DI Forrester said it was okay today.”

  “Check with me first, Tommy, all right?”

  “He said he’d called you. Didn’t think you’d mind, what with you being so even-tempered and everything.”

  Vicky tugged her ID badge over her head before zipping her bag and slipping it over her shoulder. “I’ll let it pass today, but tomorrow will be a different matter.”

  “No bother.”

  “Cheers, Tommy.” Vicky stepped over to the door, using her security card to gain access to the guts of the station. She hurried down the corridor, already bustling with uniformed officers, before slowing to a halt halfway.

  Forrester was heading straight for her, his long arms and legs eating up the distance. He stopped in front of her, arms crossed and fingers drumming on his white shirt. He ran a hand through his hair, the colour almost all gone. “Morning, Vicky.”

  “Morning, sir.” Vicky moved aside to let the foot traffic past. “Tommy Davies let someone park in my space again.”

  Forrester leaned against the wall and nodded. “Aye, sorry about that. I did try calling. I’ve got that new DS starting this morning. Got to take him through his induction. Pain in the arse how he’s starting on a Thursday, but there you go. Bloody holidays and moving up from Glasgow.”

  “So what’s that got to do with me, sir?”

  “Means we won’t be having the briefing this morning. Got a couple of disappearances passed over from Local Policing. There’s one out in Forfar as well but that looks like a waste of time. I need you to look at the one in Invergowrie, though — looks suspicious.”

  “Some Major Investigation Team we are. A disappearance isn’t exactly a major incident.”

  Forrester laughed as he handed her an incident report. “Can’t have murders every day. We can only do what’s put in front of us.”

  “Right, fine.” Vicky got out her notebook, folding the sheet and tucking it in. “So, who do I get? Tell me it’s Karen Woods.”

  Forrester tilted his head to the side. “Well, actually, I was thinking young DC Considine needs a bit of coaching.”

  Vicky bit the inside of her cheek. “I’ll eat him alive, sir.”

  “That’s what I’m counting on.” Forrester grinned, a row of perfect white teeth interrupted by a sliver of gold at the edge of a molar. “Cocky wee bugger needs brought down a peg or two. Thinks he’s God’s gift to policing after arresting that taxi driver last month.”

  “Fine, I’ll see what I can do.”

  Forrester put a hand to her shoulder. “It’s what being a sergeant’s all about. You’re my only leader on the pitch, Vicky, at least until I work out if this new boy’s up to scratch.”

  Chapter Three

  DC Stephen Considine turned left off Riverside Avenue, his dark grey Subaru passing through the leafy barrier separating town from motorway. He took a hand off the steering wheel to smooth his red hair over before scratching at his sideburns. He was solid but not particularly tall, maybe five ten. “Is Invergowrie actually in Dundee?”

  Vicky looked up from her notebook. “No, it was Perth and Kinross before everything changed last year.”

  “So why are we getting this?”

  “It’s our patch now. It’s inefficient to have Perth officers come all the way over, isn’t it? Besides, Dundee’s got an MIT. Perth hasn’t.”


  Considine drove them through Invergowrie, low stone walls and beech hedges lining the dark brown stone cottages and modern council houses of the main road, a couple of church spires rising up in the distance.

  “You’ve still not mentioned how late you were this morning, Stephen. You’re just lucky the briefing was cancelled.”

  “Whatever.”

  “Don’t whatever me.”

  Considine exhaled as he took a left past one of the churches, a sprawling school opposite. “Sorry. I was working late last night. Thought it’d be okay.”

  “Did Forrester see it?”

  “No.”

  “Then you weren’t in late.”

  “But I’ve got the OT form signed by that old desk sergeant guy.”

  “Doesn’t matter. You still need to be in on time. I had to wait almost half an hour for you. I was close to taking DC Kirk with me instead.”

  “Be my guest.”

  “DI Forrester requested I take you, Stephen. I’d like to see you explain it to him.”

  Considine continued down the long road dotted with mismatched houses — low cottages hidden by tall trees opposite two-storey semis. Halfway down, he bumped up onto the pavement and pulled in behind a squad car before killing the engine. “So why did Forrester cancel the briefing, then?”

  “He’s got a new DS starting today.” Vicky looked over at the houses — little squares with tiled pyramids resting on top — trying to spot a number. “He needs to get him up to speed.”

  Considine tugged at the collar of his dark grey suit. “Don’t see why we need another DS. After Ennis went on long-term sick, I thought I’d get at least an Acting gig.”

  A uniform came out of one of the houses and waved at them.

  Vicky arched an eyebrow at Considine. “You really think you’re ready for a DS role?”

  “You saying I’m not?”

  “I’m saying you need to have a serious think about whether you are. An honest one.” Vicky got out, leading them to the panda car, the uniformed officer now leaning against it, arms folded. She held up her warrant card. “DS Vicky Dodds. This is DC Stephen Considine.”

  “PC Stuart Melville.” Tall, goateed, hair receding at the temples. His stick-thin arms made him look like he ran a lot, maybe competitively.