Codename: Lucifer

Part One

The police station was a Victorian building, that stood in the shadow of large modern flats. A steady drizzle of rain fell, and a cold wind was blowing from the north.

Inspector Glenair knocked on an office door. After a moment, a voice called out, "Come in."

Glenair entered and approached the desk of his boss, Chief Superintendent Camsted, who was intently scanning an email. Without looking away from his monitor, Camsted waved a hand to indicate that Glenair should take a seat.

A few seconds later Camsted looked up. "What can I do for you?" he asked.

"I thought you would want to see this."

Inspector Glenair passed a note book to his superior. 

"Where was this found?" asked the Chief Superintendent.

"On the Edward Heath housing estate sir. A patrol officer found it last night."

Camsted flicked though the pages of the battered pad, and put it down on his desk. Across the front page, in scrawled handwriting, were the words, 'The Diary of Mark Dotwood.'

"Still missing is he?" asked Superintendent Camsted.

"Yes sir," said Inspector Glenair. 

"You really shouldn't have sent him in to the estate on his own," said Camsted. "Your intentions were excellent. But Dotwood was only just out of training school. He was too inexperienced for undercover work."

Glenair, who clearly remembered Camsted giving his approval to the operation, remained silent.

Camsted picked up the notebook and turned to the first page. Taking care not to tear the paper, which was damp to the touch, he began to read.

                                                                    ***

1 September 2013

I have moved into a flat on the Edward Heath estate. I am using the false identity of a call centre worker, who has recently been made unemployed. This is the first under-cover job I've done since I joined the police, so I'm pretty excited. But the estate is rough - it's the centre of  crime in the region, particularly the drug trade. I suppose that's why I'm here. My assignment is to blend in with the locals, and pick up whatever information I can. I've been advised by my boss, Inspector Glenair, that there is one key dealer who controls the whole estate. The identity of this man is unknown, but he is referred to by the locals as 'Lucifer'.

5 September 2013

Today a man named Marlowe struck up a conversation with me at the employment office. I estimate him to be in his early thirties, roughly ten years my senior. He invited me back to his flat on the estate, where we talked and smoked a joint. He seemed convinced by my cover story, and told me that he has been unemployed for years. During our conversation, I asked him where drugs can be bought. He was reluctant to give me any information about this matter. 

10 September 2013

I have remained in contact with Marlowe. He told me that he studied philosophy at university, and he likes to discuss ideas with me. Last night I went with him to a party in an abandoned flat in Sir Keith Joseph house. The lifts were trashed, so we had to make our way up twenty flights of stairs. At the party Marlowe introduced me to his sister Jenny, who I would estimate to be about twenty. We smoked some hash. When I asked her where it came from, she made a vague reference to Lucifer and laughed. I don't remember going back to her flat, but somehow I found myself there. Her bed was damp and smelt as if the sheets hadn't been changed for months. In the morning I felt like I'd died and gone to hell. The rain was battering the windows, and the wind was so strong the whole tower block was shaking. Jenny didn't wake up until the afternoon, by which time she was ready to start drinking again.

15 September 2013

Today I just sat in the flat, looking out from the window at the estate. The rain was lashing down so hard that I could hardly see the other towers. The water began to come in through the window, and I traced patterns with my finger in the puddle on the window ledge.

1 October 2013

Yesterday, while walking in the estate, I saw a mob carrying a screaming man. They disappeared with him down an alleyway. Later, Marlowe told me their victim was a police informer. The crowd beat him within an inch of his life, Marlowe said. He was looking at me in a strange way while he told me this. I am concerned about the way this investigation is progressing.