Chapter 36: Dom Holt's Dead Body Discovered
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
Chris and Patrice stake out the warehouse from a parking bollard. Chris waits for an old woman in a red coat to leave, then approaches the building. He finds that the window has already been forced open, allowing him entry without further effort. Inside, he passes through a storage room filled with cleaning products and emerges into a large hangar. The hangar contains three raggedy sofas arranged around a very old television, and boxes stacked along one wall. There is no one present. Chris hears only the wind against the loading-bay doors.
He decides to head up a metal staircase to a mezzanine-level Portakabin office. On the way, he notices cigarette butts and what looks like dried blood on the office door. The padlock on the door is already unlocked, which he finds suspicious. He carefully opens the door to find filing cabinets and a desk. Behind the desk, in a high-backed office chair, sits Dom Holt, dead with a single bullet hole in his forehead.
Key Events
- Chris and Patrice set up surveillance outside the Sussex Logistics warehouse.
- Chris enters through a window that is already forced open.
- He explores the hangar, noting the empty sofas and old television.
- He climbs the metal stairs to the mezzanine office.
- He sees signs of disturbance: cigarette butts and dried blood on the door.
- He finds the padlock unlocked and enters.
- Chris discovers Dom Holt dead in the office chair, shot in the forehead.
Character Development
- Chris Hudson: Acts without a warrant, motivated by professional pride to outmanoeuvre Elizabeth. His careful, cautious movements show experience, but his decision to break the law highlights his desperation. He reflects on the absurdity of competing with a pensioner.
- Patrice: Serves as a lookout, demonstrating loyalty to Chris’s plan.
- Dom Holt: Now a murder victim. His death signals that the search for the missing heroin has turned lethal.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Law versus Morality: Chris chooses to break into the warehouse without a warrant, prioritising the investigation over legal procedure. This decision underscores the moral compromises the characters face.
- Violence and Sudden Death: The discovery of Dom Holt’s body raises the stakes. The bullet hole in his forehead suggests a cold, deliberate killing, not a crime of passion.
- Isolation and Decay: The cold, empty hangar with its outdated furniture and forced window conveys a sense of neglect and danger. The building itself feels like a forgotten place where violence can occur unnoticed.
Why This Chapter Matters
This chapter marks a critical turning point in the investigation. Until now, the team has been searching for the missing package of heroin; with Dom Holt’s murder, the case becomes a homicide. Chris’s illegal entry also puts him and his team in a precarious position, both legally and personally. The discovery forces everyone to confront that they are dealing with people willing to kill.
Study Questions and Answers
-
Why does Chris break into the warehouse without a warrant?
Chris is driven by professional pride. He wants to find information that Elizabeth does not yet have, and he believes that waiting for a warrant would slow him down and allow Elizabeth to get ahead. -
What does Chris find inside the office?
He finds Dom Holt dead in an office chair with a single bullet hole in his forehead. The office contains filing cabinets and a desk, but there are no obvious signs of a struggle. -
What does the dried blood on the office door suggest?
The dried blood indicates that violence has already occurred in or near the office. Combined with the unlocked padlock, it suggests someone else has been there recently, likely before Chris arrived.