Suppose Eileen was McCray’s wife and Finbar had loved her and left her. If she had killed herself out of desperation or remorse, McCray’s motive for revenge attacks could hardly be stronger. Whatever Finbar’s reasons for refusing to disclose the truth about Eileen, Harry wanted him to start talking. If he did not, more room might be needed in the mortuary.
As the seminar came to an end, people began to move away. At the door, a young woman with a severe hair style and a grave manner pressed a glossy brochure into his hand. ‘Do talk to us if you’d like to make a success of your business. May I ask what line you are in?’
Harry glanced at the logo on the cover of the brochure. It was a hand-out from Maher and Malcolm.
‘I’m making a career out of crime,’ he said.
She shot him a nervous glance and turned bright red.
Harry took pity on her. When he’d been an articled clerk, for a solicitor to advertise had been a monstrous breach of ethics. Nowadays P.R. was practically part of the finals course.
‘I’m a solicitor,’ he explained.
She stared in disbelief at his scuffed shoes before remembering her manners. Nervously, she cleared her throat. ‘I’m afraid we only handle white-collar misdemeanours.’
Of course. Corporate fraud and insider trading: Maher and Malcolm would never become involved in anything down-market. In their austere yet elegant offices, a legal aid form would seem as out of place as a copy of Playboy.
Outside, Harry caught up Stanley Rowe and handed him the brochure. ‘With my compliments. I’m sure you’ll find it tastefully designed. But if it tells you anything worth reading, I’ll buy you lunch at the Ensenada.’
The estate agent flicked through the pages. There were more photographs than lines of text, with acres of space on each page.
‘Your money’s safe,’ he said in his funereal tone. ‘I take it you are not a believer in practice development?’
‘Truth is, I’m hopeless at marketing. Today’s been a write-off. I left my business cards in the office and to make matters worse, over lunch I sat next to a banker who’d make the speaking clock seem like sparkling company. When I confessed I didn’t know a mezzanine agreement from a junk bond he wrote me off faster than a Third World debt.’
‘Honesty from a litigator? Even Jim would have bluffed a little. How is he, by the way?’
‘You’ve heard about his smash?’
‘Yes, sounds dreadful. Is he making progress? I must admit, I was particularly bothered because I’d just sent him a client. She was in a hurry to exchange and complete and it crossed my mind that Jim’s accident might cause problems.’
To say nothing of delay in paying commission, thought Harry.
‘Don’t worry — Jim’s on the road to recovery. And we’ve got his work under control.’ A thought occurred to him. ‘Who was the client?’
‘Rather a lovely lady, as a matter of fact.’ Rowe’s sombre expression lightened for a moment. ‘Name of Graham-Brown. Rosemary of that ilk.’
‘She’s been in to see me already,’ said Harry. ‘Know much about her?’
‘Why do you ask?’
‘Interested, that’s all.’
Rowe tapped the side of his nose with solemn significance. ‘Beware Mr Graham-Brown, Harry.’
‘Don’t worry, I’m not running off with her to Puerto Banus — though if the chance arose, I wouldn’t say no. But who is Graham-Brown? Do you know him?’
‘The name rang a bell when she came in to see me. I believe he’s in financial services. I’ve never met the man or acted for either of them before.’
‘How did they choose you to handle the sale of their place — personal recommendation?’
‘Yellow Pages, more likely. I recall she said she and her husband preferred dealing with a smaller firm: more personal treatment, more willing to fit in with clients’ special requirements than a bigger outfit. And when she asked for the name of a firm of solicitors, small yet competent at conveyancing, I mentioned Crusoe and Devlin. With emphasis on the Crusoe — no offence.’
‘None taken. High finance is far from being my only area of ignorance. You say “special requirements”. Did she have anything particular in mind?’
‘Time was of the essence, that’s the main thing that sticks in my mind. She didn’t want any hassle with signboards or adverts in the Press. She was keen to know if I could use personal contacts to find out if any of our competitors had a client looking for that type of property. Some executive from outside the city looking for a company move would be ideal, she said.’
‘And you soon found someone to fit the bill?’
‘Came up trumps straight away, as a matter of fact.’ Stanley Rowe could make even a boast sound like a prophecy of doom.
‘The purchasers being the Ambroses?’
‘Correct. As you know, Geoffrey acts for them. Ambrose is on the board of one of the subsidiaries of the Byzantium Line, who are clients of Maher and Malcolm. He’s being redeployed here from Hull and wanted to find somewhere fast. Even though he haggled, our Rosemary was willing to drop the asking price; I said I thought she could get full whack if she held out for it. But no, Graham-Brown is keen to wrap up his affairs in the UK as soon as he can, it seems. So keen that despite my strong advice to the contrary, they agreed to knock thirty thousand off.’ He shook his head, the gesture of a man who has given up trying to understand human folly.
Harry whistled. ‘A lot of money. I wasn’t aware of that.’
‘No reason why you should be. As soon as the offer was accepted, I told her to give Jim a ring.’
‘Thanks for that. Perhaps I will buy you lunch sometime, after all. I glanced at the particulars you’d drafted in the file. Is the house as impressive as it sounds?’
Stanley Rowe quirked his lips — his equivalent of a mischievous smile. ‘I hope you’re not suggesting I’m one of those estate agents who exaggerates the merits of a property?’
‘Is there any other kind?’
‘How cynical you are. As it happens, I can assure you that it’s a palace. The Ambroses are getting a bargain.’
‘Any idea why Graham-Brown should want to up and leave for the Costa del Crime in such a rush?’
‘I really don’t have the foggiest notion. Perhaps he’s a crook who has pulled off his last heist and wants to while away the rest of his days in the Spanish sunshine with the pulchritudinous Rosemary.’
Many a true word, thought Harry. His interest in the woman was beginning to be matched by his curiosity about her husband. Where did his money come from and what made the couple’s departure to Puerto Banus so urgent as to justify accepting far less for their home than it was worth?
‘You have a dreamer’s look in your eyes, Harry. Don’t keep thinking about the lady. Graham-Brown may be in his dotage and as ugly as sin, for all I know, but my impression is that she wouldn’t worry as long as he keeps her in the style to which she’s become accustomed. With that kind of competition, even a worthy chap like you doesn’t stand a chance.’
Harry grinned at Death Rowe. ‘Where women are concerned, I’ve learned to expect the unexpected.’
They shook hands and Harry made his way back through Chavasse Park to his office, trying to scrub Rosemary Graham-Brown from his mind. The noise from Fenwick Court did the trick. At a distance of a hundred yards, the scream of a single electric drill assaulted his ears and as he turned the corner into the courtyard the cacophony would have made the dancers at the Danger dive for cover.
Parked in front of the entrance to Crusoe and Devlin was the BMW he had seen before. A short distance away stood its owner, Dermot McCray, talking to a couple of his workmen; from the faces of all three Harry could tell that it was heated debate. The drilling stopped, but other members of the gang kept their eyes averted, as if afraid to get involved. He watched as McCray wagged a thick forefinger at the men and, with a parting angry word, stalked back to his car.