Sammy was sitting in a large office chair which had big, rubber-rimmed wheels. There was a wide strip of plastic over the fitted carpet to make it easy to scoot along the length of desk.
Jack placed the tray down, taking a deep breath.
‘Two sugars for me, dear, then go and sit in my dressing room and wait.’
‘But...’
‘No buts, dear... the less you see and know, the better. I have to work fast to avoid any detection or connection... in out, in out, shake it all about.’
Jack left one mug of tea and the biscuit with Sammy, taking the tray and his own mug back into the kitchen. He finished his tea and washed his mug, placing it on the draining board, shaken from what he had just seen — because in the few seconds he’d been looking at one of the screens, he knew Sammy was using the Holmes database. Feeling the ground unsteady beneath his feet, he walked back to the dressing room, where Sammy had first greeted him.
Not knowing what else to do, he had a look through all the glamorous evening gowns, the numerous pairs of gold and silver strappy high heels and the dazzling array of different-styled wigs. He physically jumped when a cat slithered into the room. It was some kind of Persian, with huge blue-grey eyes, long silky fur and a bushy tail. The cat kept its distance as it weaved in and out of the sequinned gowns before jumping onto the big armchair. It had a tiny gold bell hanging from a black ribbon round its neck.
Jack hesitated before he tentatively approached the cat, sitting comfortably in the centre of the chair. He reached out to stroke it, pulling his hand away as it snarled and clawed at him. He stepped back quickly and knocked over one of the wig stands.
As he put the wig back on the stand, and the cat glowered at him, he muttered to himself, ‘What the hell am I doing here?’
Leon Elba was once more calling Mrs Thornton at the hostel. He had been put on hold yet again and looked over to Sara with a pained expression.
‘I get through and I’m told that someone will try and find her. How hard can it be? I’ve been on hold for five minutes.’
‘Probably teatime?’ Sara said, pulling out her chair and opening her laptop. ‘I’m not having much luck tracing any relatives of Karen Middleton, either. I’m hoping to get something from a rehab clinic.’
‘Who’s she?’
‘Rodney Middleton’s stepmother, deceased, but Jack wants to find anyone who knew the family.’
‘It’s Jack now, is it?’ he said with a grin.
‘Oh shut up!’
‘Well, I didn’t have any luck tracing Sandra Raynor...’
Sara frowned. ‘Who’s she? I’ve not heard her name before’
‘I have no idea, just that she’s connected to the enquiry. But it’s as though she doesn’t exist.’ Just then the phone was answered. ‘Mrs Thornton? This is DC Leon Elba. I called earlier to enquire about Amanda Dunn. You mentioned that she’d left the hostel... yes... yes...’
Sara turned back to her desk and dialled the rehab centre.
While Mrs Thornton went to find the contact details for Amanda’s parents, Sara was put through to two different departments. She remained calm and polite, saying she understood Karen Middleton’s stay at the clinic had been some years ago... and was transferred yet again.
‘I hope Jack is alright,’ she said to herself. ‘He’s been gone a long time. God, I hate dentists.’
Jack was just about to call it quits when Sammy walked in, using a walking frame.
‘Right, my dear, got a few things for you. I see we’ve been favoured with Edie’s presence. Very good pedigree but a very nasty temperament.’
‘I gathered that,’ Jack said.
Sammy swiped at the armchair with the walking frame and Edie leapt off and ran out. As he sat down in the big chair, Jack took the walking frame, placing it to one side.
‘Right, here we go, dear. Your dating agency. They’ve been operating for five years. It’s jointly owned by Selina Da Costa and Eva Shay. Mrs Da Costa is fifty-five years old, previously married to a wealthy estate agent who agreed to a substantial divorce settlement. She has one son, aged thirty-two, living in California. Eva Shay is sixty and is quite a different kind of woman... married and divorced three times but reverted to her maiden name when she started the dating agency.’
Sammy gave Jack a coy look, as he continued.
‘I have naughty access to the Police National Computer and found one criminal report, dating back twelve years. She was sentenced to four years in Holloway for fraud, under her first married name of Eva Barras. She was released after two years. Her husband was an Italian importer and as far as I can tell he returned to live in Brazil. Ms Shay qualified as an accountant after being released from Holloway, although I haven’t been able to trace any of the companies she said she’s worked for. I only went through all the legitimate avenues, you see.’
‘What exactly do you mean by the legitimate avenues?’ Jack asked.
‘Well, most things are easily accessible from the Holmes database, and RP have quite a presence on the internet. However, to gain more details about their company I would need to...’
Jack was already shocked that Sammy had been able to use the database never mind access the PNC, the Police National Computer. ‘Need to what?’
‘Well, go a slightly more irregular route.’
‘By irregular, do you mean illegal?’
Sammy smiled. ‘Yes, it would mean hacking their computers and gaining access to their clients’ details.’
‘Can you do that without it being traced back here to you?’
‘Oh, yes. You know, dear, lots of students go into one of those internet cafes and pay for a period of time, then disconnect. I used to do it at my local library — not for anything illegal, mind you — but now I’m all set up here. It’ll take a bit of time which I don’t have right now.’
Jack rubbed his temples nervously. ‘You do understand how crucial it is that this remains just between us? Anything you find, contact me directly or I can come back.’
Sammy frowned. ‘Who do you think I would impart any of this to, dear? You’re making me a tad pissed off. I don’t allow anyone into my inner sanctum. You’re very privileged. I’m not doing this for you, anyway. Sometimes one gets to repay a favour one owes big time.’
‘I’m sorry, but I don’t know anything about you, or how much risk you’re taking, if anything is traced back to you.’
‘Trust me, dear, it can’t. Like I said, I’m doing this to repay a favour, and the situation is not as simple as perhaps you have been led to believe. The outcome will eventually provide the answers. Now run along, I’m tired.’
Jack made an apologetic exit, still confused and still with no further insight into Sammy Taylor. Heading up the path to the gate, he looked back down to where the electric mobility scooter was parked. He glanced upwards and could see an array of satellite dishes, and the further he walked the more he counted, high up on the roof of the house.
‘Ridley, what have you got me into?’ he said, shaking his head.
It was coming up to six by the time Jack arrived back at the station. Sara greeted him with a sympathetic expression.
‘How are you? Was it agony?’
‘Erm, no... not as bad as I thought.’
‘Break a crown, did you?’
‘Yep, one at the back. All fixed now, though.’
She shook her head. ‘You look really awful. I broke a tooth once. It was excruciating.’
Leon walked up.
‘Did you have to have it replaced?’
Jack winced. ‘No, but they kept me waiting... it’s hard to get an appointment these days.’
‘But it was an emergency!’ Sara said.
‘For Christ’s sake, it’s all fixed!’ he burst out. He took a breath and spoke in a quieter tone. ‘What’s the update here?’