Page 33 of The Quarterlands (Dark Water #4)

“Charles, like all other athletes competing at the highest level, was subject to routine blood and urine tests.”

“Were these conducted at hospitals?”

Buzzard shook his head. “A trained phlebotomist, such as myself, attends the athlete at their own home or training facility with a medibot.”

“Are they given any warning?”

“No. They must submit a list of the places where they will be within certain dates. Doping can be quite sophisticated. The aim is to catch cheats, so the regime must be stringent. ”

“I see. What was the result of Charles’s blood test on that morning?”

“It was clear. We detected no evidence of any banned substances.”

“Did that surprise you?”

Buzzard gave him a hard stare.

“I only ask because you were vocal at that time in finding Charles’s improvement hard to credit without pharmaceutical aid.”

“I did wonder, yes, but I was proved wrong,” Buzzard said stiffly. “His sample was clear.”

At that moment, an elderly woman wandered in. She was a large lady with an ample bust, wearing a homely apron over a floral dress.

“Oh! Hello.” She stopped in surprise when she saw Josiah. “Adrian didn’t tell me he was entertaining. Has he offered you tea and biscuits? Adrian! You haven’t made your guest feel at home,” she chided.

“Please, Mother, this is official business. It’s not a social call,” Buzzard said hurriedly.

“It’s fine, Mrs Buzzard, I don’t need any tea, thank you.” Josiah smiled at her.

“Very well. I’ll be in the kitchen. Just call if you or your guest want anything,” she said, and then she left.

Josiah took a moment to glance at his notes before looking up and hitting Buzzard with the question he really wanted the answer to.

“Can you tell me, did you test Charles for a banned substance known colloquially as Flex?”

“Yes,” Buzzard replied, looking completely unsurprised by the question. “We found no trace of Flex in his blood sample.”

“Is it true that Flex doesn’t show up in a urine sample?”

“Yes, it is. Some banned substances don’t, which is why we take random blood samples.”

“Can you tell me what kind of advantage Flex would give an athlete?”

Buzzard relaxed a little, clearly keen to impart his professional knowledge of banned substances. “It gives sudden, explosive bursts of energy, but it can also cause lack of inhibition and reckless risk-taking.”

“Explosive bursts of energy of the kind Charles showed at the end of his gold medal–winning race? ”

“Charles’s test results were clear,” Buzzard repeated firmly. “There’s absolutely no suggestion that he was using Flex. It’s quite common for athletes to find extra reserves of energy towards the end of a race. Some are very strong finishers while others are not.”

“But he wasn’t known for being a particularly strong finisher, was he? He was more of a steady-as-you-go type of rower.”

“Agreed, but that’s not to say that under race conditions he couldn’t find extra reserves. That’s what happens to some athletes. They dig deep when they need to.”

“I’m sure. Why were you suspicious of Charles before the race, Mr Buzzard?”

Buzzard looked irritated by the question.

“I didn’t like Isobel Lytton,” he blurted.

“In my opinion, she flirted her way around the race circuit, and I was concerned in case any previous blood tests were unsafe. That was why I insisted on going myself that day. I wanted to be assured that the tests were done properly.”

“And were they?”

“Absolutely.”

“You’d have been very unpopular if that blood test had come back positive.” Josiah gave a disarming smile.

“I don’t care about being popular,” Buzzard said bullishly, and Josiah believed him.

“If Charles Lytton had won that medal under false pretences, I’d have been the first to denounce him.

The integrity of the race is more important than anything else.

The standards of the sport can’t be maintained if the athletes are using drugs to unfair advantage.

It’s also not fair if wealthy nations do better because their athletes can afford expensive drugs, whereas countries still struggling after the Rising can barely muster a decent team.

” He sounded quite passionate on the topic; it was clearly something he felt deeply.

“Is Flex expensive?”

“Yes, very. Few of our athletes would have been able to afford it.”

“Surely not a problem for the Lyttons, though, given their wealth at that time?”

“That was my concern. Some of my colleagues seemed to worship Isobel Lytton, but I was highly suspicious of her.”

“Not of Noah? ”

“No.” Buzzard shook his head vehemently. “I barely ever saw the man. He was always working. But Isobel ran Charles’s Olympic bid, everyone knew that. She was the brains behind it.”

“Well, it certainly wasn’t Charles.” Josiah gave a sly grin.

“Quite.” Buzzard relaxed enough to smile back.

“So, on the morning he was selected for the random blood test, you went to The Orchard to take the sample?”

“Yes.” Buzzard nodded.

“Was there anything unusual about that visit?”

“Such as what?” Buzzard demanded stiffly.

“I don’t know. I just wondered if anything struck you as strange that day.”

“Not really. Isobel seemed annoyed to see me, but then she and I didn’t get on.”

“You’d met?”

“Many times. The world of elite athletes is really quite small. We’d rubbed shoulders at various functions and events.”

“Did she try to flirt with you?”

“Isobel Lytton flirted with everyone, but it didn’t work with me.” Buzzard seemed pleased with himself.

“Because you’re gay?” Josiah raised an eyebrow.

He’d clocked that from the minute Buzzard had opened the door.

Josiah was an imposing, muscular man, and gay men always reacted to meeting him.

There were just little tells that couldn’t be faked – the dilating of pupils, the quick look up and down lingering a fraction too long in places.

It would have been imperceptible to most men, but not to him.

“Absolutely not.” Buzzard bristled. “Plenty of gay men were charmed by Isobel. She had a way about her. You know the kind of woman that certain kinds of gay men adore. Isobel was certainly that.”

“I see. So, you knew the Lyttons. Had you ever taken blood from Charles before?”

“Not until that day, no.”

“And what happened when you arrived? You said that Isobel was annoyed? Any idea why?”

“Yes. She said they were getting ready to go out for lunch and a little victory tour around their local neighbourhood as it was such a beautiful day, and that my visit was inconvenient. I reminded her of Charles’s obligations as an athlete and she let me in. She had little choice.”

“Did you see anyone else apart from Isobel and Charles during your visit to The Orchard? Noah Lytton, maybe?”

“Not Noah, but the younger son was there… Alexander.” Buzzard threw out the name casually but his jaw was tight. “The one who caused all that trouble later.”

“Did you meet him?”

“Only briefly. Isobel left me with Charles in the living room. I oversaw the medibot taking the sample, and then it was stored in a specially refrigerated section of the medibot, as required by WADO. After we were done, Alexander wandered in to see what was happening. I asked to use the toilet and he showed me where it was. I relieved myself, then said goodbye to the Lyttons and left.”

“Did you take the medibot with you when you went to the toilet?”

“Of course,” Buzzard exclaimed. “Charles’s sample never left my sight. Those are the regulations.”

“I see.” Josiah sat back in his chair, gazing at Buzzard thoughtfully. “Could the results have been tampered with when the sample was returned to the lab?”

“Absolutely not.”

“Could an official have been bribed to turn in an incorrect result?”

“No. Look, I’m not saying it’s impossible, but we have very strict procedures.

Everyone is vetted and the samples are anonymised – nobody in the lab would have known it was his.

Also, as I had concerns about Charles’s win, I was extra vigilant during the whole process.

I’d have known if a false result was generated, I’m sure of that. ”

“So, you are absolutely, one hundred per cent sure that Charles was not on Flex when he won that gold medal?”

“Absolutely. Flex stays in the blood for around six weeks after ingestion. I visited The Orchard four weeks after his gold medal race. If Charles had been on Flex, it would have showed up in his blood, and it simply didn’t. I can assure you that Charles Lytton wasn’t taking Flex.”

“I see.” Josiah got to his feet. “Well, thank you for your time.”

“What’s this all about? Why are you asking these questions?” Buzzard asked, looking relieved that the interview was over. “Is it anything to do with the upcoming Tyler trial? I heard Alexander is involved in that in some way.”

“No, it has nothing to do with that. It’s a quite separate matter,” Josiah said smoothly. He paused to glance out at the view of a small, tidy garden. “This is a lovely place. Your mother lives here, too?”

“Yes. She’s elderly now and enjoys the company.”

“Just you and her? You don’t have a partner, then?” Josiah raised an eyebrow, aiming to be intrusive and clearly hitting a nerve.

“Not right now,” Buzzard said sharply. “I’m not exactly catnip to gay men, but I doubt you know what that’s like.” He had every justification for being annoyed by his impertinence, so Josiah let that pass.

“Nah, I do alright.” He gave a big grin. “See, I’ve got Alex living with me now, and he’s quite the sexy young thing.” He gave a lascivious wink and saw Buzzard’s eyes widen, the pupils dilating, and watched as his neck turned a peculiar shade of purple above the collar of his polo shirt.

“Well, yes, obviously, he’s very attractive,” he spluttered.

“Is he your type?”

“I’d imagine he’s most people’s type.”

“Yeah.” Josiah gave a little chuckle. “He’s hot. I bet you’d like to get down and dirty with him.”

Buzzard flushed bright red. “I doubt he’d look twice at someone like me.”

“True. A stunning young man like him… why would he?” Josiah pressed remorselessly.

Buzzard’s eyes widened as if he’d suddenly realised something, and he looked completely stunned. Josiah knew that he’d seen all he needed.

“Well, thanks for your time.” Josiah shook his hand and then returned to his duck.

He sat there for a long time, his hands resting on the steering wheel, staring at nothing. He was pretty sure he’d figured out Alex’s secret, and now he wished he hadn’t. Finally, he put the duck into gear and began the long drive home.