New Tricks: Driving Down The Wrong Lane

Chapter 7

"Jack you do realize we need to get to the bottom of this as soon as possible, bring James in for questioning. Ask him why he seemingly disliked Arthur and also ask where the hell he was on the night of the murder, ask him someone would vouch for him as his alibi perhaps." Sandra stressed. She was eager and willing to find all the missed evidence from the original investigation.

"Yes we do, I'll get my coat." Jack completely agreed with her on this.

Brian suddenly glanced up at them after having been eyeballing the latest worthy of note information he'd uncovered about James Lewis. "Hang on a minute, you need to find out his current address and where he's working at the moment, which I just so happen to have on my computer. Five years he moved out from a small council flat that he'd been living in Camden since the mid 1990's. Registered at agency for employment in Brighton and within 3 months, he found himself working for the Brighton Evening Express Newspaper."

"How did you manage to work this out suddenly?" Gerry asked him. He was wondering what website Brian had been searching on.

"It's not too difficult to figure it out Gerry, it's from The Brighton Argus, tells you everything you need to know this website does Gerry. According to this..." Gerry soon went to join him at his desk and proceeded in having a look at the newspaper's multicoloured homepage. "In July 2007 two Brighton Police detectives arrested him for GBH on a nightclub bouncer who denied him entrance into a local nightclub, but when it came to the choice of charging him, for some reason he was never actually charged for it. So they had no choice but to release him on bail."

"So who's to say maybe the nightclub bouncer probably chose to dropp the charges. You see what I don't get is, why this respected owner or the manager at the Evening Express didn't seem at all bothered to sack him, surely at the time and even nowadays he must still be unreliable and the employees must think he's a walking cannonball. Either he's got enough friends in high places to keep him out of trouble or perhaps he's just too much of a conniving spineless person who enjoys wiggling himself out of trouble." Gerry highlighted a thought provoking point for the UCOS team to bear in mind. For him he believed his orthodox instincts taking effect in his mind.

"That's a good point you've made, Brian so what's his address?" Sandra looked pretty much impressed with Gerry's suggestion.

"15 Kinglake Street, it's mentioned in this newspaper article." Brian replied quickly.

"Right me and Jack will travel to Brighton and in the meantime Brian you and Gerry mind the office and the phones you know just as a precaution if Strickland comes by to check on how we're getting on with this re-investigation." Sandra explained to them. Soon enough she made a quick departure out of office along with Jack.

"Is it me or does Sandra tend to get in a flap whenever anyone of us mention Strickers." Gerry started to mull over this theory.

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In Brighton, it had merely taken Jack and Sandra approximately under an hour for them to finally arrive at this specified address of James Lewis'. "I'll knock" Jack suggested seeing as he was walking ahead of his colleague. He didn't think too much of 15 Kinglake Street as soon as he recognized where precisely the house was located within the merry go round looking street. He stepped closer towards the front arch gate and successfully managed to open it from it's catch within a matter of seconds. He looked around gingerly before making the first knock at the golden letterbox.

"Classy house Jack to have admit." Sandra said while admiring it's Edwardian features.

"Yes it is but unfortunately as Gerry told us it's likely been sold to him with dodgy money, threats and bribes." Jack commented as he started to jump this assumption.

"Seems so." Sandra supported his suspicions. They both heard noises coming from inside the front living room. A man aged around his mid-forties came into view and was soon unlocking the front door before eventually open it.

"Yes can I help you?" This person looked whiskery and exhausted.

"James Lewis?" Sandra asked.

"Yes that's me" He was able to confirm his name.

"I'm Superintendent Pullman this is my colleague Jack Halford, we're from the Unsolved Crime and Open Cases Squad. We're wondering whether you could answer some our questions over the unsolved murder of Arthur Baxter" Sandra asked him.

"I've got nothing to tell you about that man except I'm grateful that he isn't here anymore." James rudely responded, both of his eyes coldly glaring between Jack and Sandra while they were still standing on the front doorstep together. He looked like he might be a person who had a few skeletons hidden within his closet. "Now can you leave please." Once again he acted impolitely towards them.

"No, if you continue to at this way then, we have no choice but to arrest you. So I'd suggest to save yourself from further embarrassment, you'd better start by telling us the whole truth James about your onetime bad working relationship with Karen and also with Arthur. Well we've already been informed about the arguments you had with your boss." There was an unmistakable look of determination in Sandra's eyes while she spoke. She wasn't giving up on the chance of arresting the former Baxter's employee who showed her the worst bad manners she'd ever encountered.

"I'm not leaving my house, so please just bugger off the both of you." James still wasn't complying with them.

"No wonder you're an arrogant sod, your father was just the same, he was fist fighting at a West Ham United match when I and another colleague arrested him in the early 1980's." Jack said, while remaining tight lipped and watching Sandra sighing in despair, he'd remembered the surname Lewis. "Never once approved nor complied with difficult police questioning after he was brought into the station. If I'm right in thinking I'd say you're about 30 minutes or so from turning into a carbon copy of your own father, so from stopping this from happening I'd suggest you should give yourself up." Jack recommended.

His words decisively struck a chord with James. "Okay I'll answer anything you want me to answer."

Sandra had changed her mind and decided on something differently. "We'll be bringing you in for questioning in London instead and you're coming with us right now." She didn't care what stupid enough excuses he was about to make. James nodded surprisingly, ultimately allowing himself to be driven into a London Police Station. As they took him from the house, Jack and Sandra remained blissfully unaware that they'd been getting watched by an unmarked black car from the left hand side of the road. The unidentified person in the car was lighting up a cigarette and vigilantly watching every movement they made. As soon as James was placed inside Sandra's car, this person made an important call.

"They're taking him for questioning, sit tight this might be a long night. No I'm sure he won't be revealing what he knows about Baxter's family history" This person suggested, it wasn't long before he finished the call.

End of Chapter

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