Free Ten Guilty Men (A DCI Morton Crime Novel Book 3) by Sean Campbell, Daniel Campbell Page B

like they were soulmates and couldn’t survive without each other.’
    ‘Did you sister ever stop taking drugs?’
    ‘I hope so. I never saw her take them. She was always careful to hide that part of herself away from me. Whenever I was around, she was the perfect big sister. But the police say she still had some in her system on the night she died.’
    ‘What happened that night?’
    ‘I don’t know. It was her birthday. The big three oh. We had a party at her home in Richmond. The last time I saw her, she was arguing.’ Brianna shot a nasty glance at Kal.
    ‘With who?’ Meredith stared intently. Apparently, she had not been primed to expect this titbit of information.
    Brianna waited for hush before she turned the knife in. ‘Kallum Fielder,’ she whispered softly, just loudly enough for the microphone attached to her lapel to catch what she was saying.
    A gasp rose through the audience as they collectively contemplated that the murderer might be in their midst. A silence fell as everyone in the studio turned to Kal for a response.
    Kal exhaled deeply. He knew it would come out sooner or later, but he didn’t expect the accusatory glances he got when he replied. ‘It’s true. We did argue–’
    Before Kal could finish his sentence, the screens around the studio cut suddenly to black. Meredith placed her hand to her ear as she strained to hear a voice over her radio.
    ‘We’ve cut to previews,’ Meredith said. ‘You’ve got a two-minute reprieve, Kal.’
    A producer bolted forward from the back, and waved a warm-up artist into action. The man, who was paid to keep the audience in a ready state, leapt into action and began talking to the audience.
    Kal pulled his microphone off, and gesticulated rudely towards the producer. ‘What the hell, Si?’ he asked the man. The producer was Simon Keller, a legend among the crew of Wake Up Britain! Kal had known him for years.
    ‘You know what’s up. If you’re about to admit something, you need to talk to legal first. Don’t do something stupid here.’
    ‘I’m not. Eli and I argued. It wasn’t serious. Couples argue.’
    Simon looked doubtful. He glanced over at Brianna, who was watching Kal with an expression of curiosity.
    ‘Si, I didn’t kill Eli. Let me clear my name. I know you want the ratings,’ Kal implored.
    ‘Thirty seconds!’ a stagehand yelled out. Kal began to tuck his microphone wire back underneath his shirt.
    Simon nodded briskly, then stepped back off the stage just as the cameras began rolling again.
    The stagehand held up five fingers then began putting them down one by one. ‘Three...two...one!’
    Meredith smiled. ‘Our apologies for the interruption, we had some technical difficulties for a moment there. I’m here with Brianna DeLange and Kallum Fielder discussing the death of Ellis DeLange. Kal, you were just saying how much you regret your last interaction with Ellis.’
    ‘I do. The night she died we had an argument. It wasn’t a big argument. It was one of those small arguments that every couple has. We’d had a few to drink, and ended up arguing over nothing at all. One insult led to another and before I knew it, we’d dragged up every problem we’ve ever had. She gave me the rollicking of a lifetime, and went to her bedroom to sulk. I wish she hadn’t. I never saw her again.’
    ‘Do you think things might have turned out differently if you’d stayed?’
    ‘I don’t know. I guess I never will. Maybe whoever broke in would have left if they’d seen me first.’
    ‘I’m sure they would have!’ Meredith said. ‘You’re what, six foot three?’
    ‘Six four actually.’
    ‘You think it was a burglary gone wrong then?’ Meredith asked.
    ‘It wasn’t a burglary!’ Brianna cried out in a shrill voice. ‘Nobody broke in that night. When I left, she was alive – and he was still there!’ Brianna jabbed a finger towards Kal.
    ‘It wasn’t me. I left not long after you.’
    ‘Who was there