IMPERFECTION by Ray Clark (e novels to read online TXT) 📗

“No. White shoved a ten pound note in his hand and then walked into the station without waiting for change.”

“Don’t suppose he’s still got the note, has he?”

“He didn’t say.”

“Well, check it out, for God’s sake! People keep souvenirs for all sorts of reasons.”

Gardener interrupted. “What good would it do us? We wouldn’t be able to lift any prints worth having.”

“We don’t know that,” said Briggs, turning to address Colin Sharp again. “Did White say anything while he was in the taxi?”

“Apparently not. He got in, told him to go to the station, and then got out after paying. The driver tried to engage him in conversation because he recognised him, but White wasn’t having any of it. He simply ignored him.”

“Brilliant. Did you question anyone at the station? Ticket booth operators, railway porters, cleaners, tramps?”

“I did, but no one saw anything unusual.”

“They must have done, for Christ’s sakes, he wasn’t exactly dressed for travelling on trains. Didn’t White buy a ticket to anywhere?” demanded Briggs.

“I did talk to the person who was selling tickets all night. I showed him a photo because he didn’t know who Leonard White was, but no one of that description bought a ticket.”

“Well, he can’t have just disappeared in the middle of a fucking station! He was a well-known actor.”

“He may not have left the station as Leonard White,” said Gardener.

Briggs hadn’t thought of that and quickly moved on. “Anything on CCTV?”

“We’re still checking,” said Sharp.

“Keep at it. And while we’re on the subject of transport, what about white vans?”

Anderson spoke up. “We’ve drawn a blank so far. Not many companies hire out seven and a half ton trucks, those that have can account for them, and the customers.”

“How does he do it?” shouted Briggs. “Not only does he walk around Leeds, but he drives around in big white vans that no one remembers seeing, both of which finally disappear into thin air. Thank Christ somebody has their eyes open. Eyewitness reports indicate a very strange person seen in Leeds on the night Janine was murdered. We’ve interviewed a couple of them and managed to sort out an artist impression.”

Briggs passed around the sketches from his folder.

“You’d have to be blind not to notice him walking round. He looks like Dracula,” said Anderson.

“This is precisely why we can’t catch him,” said Gardener. “The first murder saw him impersonating Leonard White. His second sees him as someone totally different. He can commit as many as he likes if we can’t figure out what he looks like.”

“I agree, but there might be a link between the people he’s impersonating. It might be something to do with films, maybe they’re all from the same film, or a series of films made by the same director. Or maybe portrayed by the same actor. Have we got a list of the films White made? Did he star in anything with a vampire that looks like the impression?”

“I’ve made a start on that one,” said Dave Rawson. “I called his agents and they’ve agreed to draw up a list.”

“Get his wife back on the phone,” said Briggs, “she’ll have a list as well.”

Gardener quickly took over, glancing at Colin Sharp. “Colin, the quote on the wall next to Janine Harper, anything?”

“Same film, sir, Phantom of the Opera.”

Gardener stared at Briggs, “that might answer one of your questions, films with the same actor or director. Phantom of the Opera is favoured here.” He addressed the rest of them. “Two quotes from the same film, Phantom, so what’s happening here? Is he obsessed with The Phantom? Was it a case of unrequited love: he stalked Janine Harper but got nothing in return? It’s definitely a lead worth following.”

“You wouldn’t say it was the same film judging by the disguise he used in Leeds on the night she was killed,” said Briggs, nodding toward Reilly.

“The CCTV from the arcade is interesting enough, but it doesn’t show us anything more than we already know.” Reilly switched on the recording and they all watched as the vampire character matching the witness statements entered the shop at nine forty-two, and left well after midnight. “No one else was in the arcade, so he was allowed to come and go unchallenged,” he said.

“Correct me if I’m wrong,’ said Anderson, ‘but the character he used there was not from The Phantom.”

“You’re not wrong,” said Colin Sharp, “I’ve watched it all the way through now and there is no character like that in the film.”

“Something else to go on,” said Gardener, “it’s not the same film so are we back to films all starring the same actor, or made by the same director?”

“How did you get on with Cuthbertson?” Briggs asked Gardener, changing the subject.

“It’s not him,” said Gardener. “He’s very strange, but he has a cast-iron alibi.”

Gardener briefed them about the interview and the things he’d uncovered.

“We still have no idea if there’s a link between Cuthbertson and White?” said Briggs. “Was Janine killed, when it should have been Cuthbertson?”

“It’s a possibility,” said Gardener. “Which could rule out the watch committee connection. But I think there’s a real urgency now to find Harry Fletcher.”

“Two murders carried out with relative ease,” said Briggs. “We’re struggling because we don’t know what he looks like. Look around the room. You’re all out there doing your job, but not one of you has come up with anything concrete. I’m not knocking any of you, I know how hard it is, but if he murders someone else, and the chances are he will, we’re all going to be back out there, looking for another job. It’s not funny. We need a positive lead.” Briggs rubbed his forehead. “What about Scenes