‘Besides,’ she went on, ‘the killer had no reason to think we’d end up traipsing around every bloody branch of Walkers’ Wearhouse in Yorkshire asking after someone who bought two pairs of everything. He clearly thought his plan would work and everything would end with Edgeworth’s suicide. We’ll do Relton and Lyndgarth, then call it a day. OK?’
Doug glanced at his wristwatch. Gerry could see him calculating whether he’d make the second half or not. ‘Right,’ he said, opening the door and stepping out. ‘Let’s get on with it, then.’
They turned up nothing in Relton, but things started to get more interesting in Lyndgarth.
The doorbell of the Walkers’ Wearhouse branch jingled as they entered, and immediately Gerry was hit by the smells of leather, wet wool, warm rubber and that peculiar chemical odour that seemed to emanate from waterproofed garments. Doug slunk in behind her, having clearly written the place off before they even got out of the car. Gerry spotted a young woman towards the rear of the overstuffed room sorting out a table of lumberjack-style shirts. She glanced up when she heard the bell and moved forwards, smiling as if she were pleased at the interruption of a customer. ‘Yes? Can I help you?’
Gerry showed her warrant card. ‘I hope so.’
‘Police? Is it about the shoplifting we reported?’ The woman smoothed her hair, which was smooth enough to begin with, as it was tied back in a tight ponytail. She looked to be in her forties, short, mousy-haired, and pleasantly round. Her complexion was ruddy, but not weather-beaten like many keen ramblers. Gerry guessed this was just a job to her rather than a way to be close to her passion.
‘It’s not about shoplifting,’ Gerry said.
‘So you haven’t caught them?’
‘Shoplifters are notoriously difficult to track down, unless you catch them in the act.’
‘Yes, yes, I see that. That’s what the local bobby said, too. We’ve been vigilant — that’s Sue and me. She’s not in today. But you can’t have your eyes everywhere at once, can you?’
‘Unfortunately not, or it would make our job a lot easier.’
Doug Wilson grunted in what might have been a minor guffaw or an indication of impatience.
‘My name’s Paula Fletcher, by the way. What can I do for you, then?’
Doug lingered in the background pretending to examine a pair of thermal socks. ‘It may seem an odd question,’ Gerry began, ‘but we were wondering if you can remember a customer, say, last November or early December. Someone who bought two sets of exactly the same items.’ Gerry showed her the photocopied list of articles, colours and sizes.
The woman chewed on her lower lip as she read through before handing it back. ‘We have quite a few customers who like to buy a couple of sets of their favourite walking gear,’ she said. ‘After all, unless you put on a lot of weight you don’t grow much after you reach a certain age, do you?’
‘I suppose not,’ Gerry said, disappointed. She couldn’t fail to notice the ‘I told you so’ smirk of triumph on Doug’s face. ‘This might not be a regular customer,’ Gerry went on. ‘In fact, he’s far more likely to have been a one-off, a stranger.’
Paula’s face scrunched up in a frown of concentration. ‘That’s when we had our last two-for-one sale. When exactly would this have been, did you say?’
‘Towards the end of last year. November or early December, most likely.’ She realised it could have been long before then, but there was no sense in giving anyone such broad parameters, or they wouldn’t even bother trying to remember.
‘Can I have a peek at that list again, please?’
‘Of course.’ Gerry handed it to her. As she waited while Paula went laboriously through the items, she first heard the patters, and then saw the rain trickling down the plate-glass window. It had started again; the blue sky had only been a tease. Please let this be the last stop of the day, she begged silently. Now all she wanted was a long hot bath and a few chapters of the new Rose Tremain novel. She’d tidy up her flat later. After all, it wasn’t as if she was expecting company, or had a hot date this Saturday night. Or any night for that matter. Work took care of that. She didn’t know how DI Cabbot and Detective Superintendent Banks managed relationships, if they did. Banks certainly must have had, because he had a family, and Gerry had heard rumours that he’d had one or two youngish girlfriends of late. She had always got the impression that he would fall for someone more his own age, like the poet Linda Palmer, but what did she know about romance?
When she let herself think about it, which wasn’t often, she realised that she wouldn’t mind at all going out with someone like Banks, if he wasn’t her boss, that is, that age wouldn’t really be an issue. He seemed healthy and young enough in body and spirit, was handsome in that lean and intense sort of way, and she certainly got the impression that he was interested in a wide range of subjects, so conversation wouldn’t be a problem. He also had a sense of humour, which she had been told by her mother was essential to a happy marriage. Not that she was having fantasies about marrying Banks, or even going out with him. Just that the whole idea didn’t seem so outlandish. She knew that he and DI Cabbot had had a thing because DI Cabbot had told her once after a few drinks, and warned her that it was a bad idea to have relationships with people you worked closely with, especially your boss. Gerry thought she already knew that, but she thanked Annie for the advice.
Paula tapped the list with her forefinger. ‘You know, there is something here that rings a bell.’
‘Any idea what?’ Gerry asked.
‘It’s just... well, it wasn’t quite the way you said it was.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Someone buying two sets of the same clothes.’
Gerry frowned. ‘It wasn’t? Then what was it?’
‘It was this fellow who wanted to buy two sets — you know the black anorak, black waterproof trousers, the black woollen cap.’
‘When was this?’
‘Around the time you said. Well, it must have been during the last two weeks of November because that’s when we had our last big two-for-one sale. It helps at that time of year to get people in, a sale, you know, something special like that. Usually business is a bit slow in November.’
‘Yes, I understand,’ said Gerry, rushing on. ‘But what about this particular man? What stood out about him?’
‘Stood out? Oh, nothing. He was ordinary enough, I suppose, except for his eyes. They were deep set, like, and a bit scary, if you know what I mean. Like they’d seen things you wouldn’t want to see.’ She gave a slight shudder.
‘Go on,’ Gerry encouraged her.
‘Well, he came up to me with an armful of clothes, which turned out to be two sets of the same, except for one jacket. We’d had a run on the black anoraks and were completely out of them. I remember he asked me if we had any more in the storeroom and I told him I was sorry but that was it. I even went and had a look. I said we did have orange or yellow if he’d like, but he just shook his head impatiently, like, then I said if he’d care to leave his name and address and a contact number, we could perhaps order some in from the warehouse, or get some from another branch, and let him know, though it might take a day or two. I assured him he’d still get the same deal, even if took a few days.’