A Genuine Mistake by Ted Tayler (miss read books txt) 📗

Old Police Station by two o’clock. Gus hadn’t looked at the speedometer while they travelled on the motorway. He was too busy joining dots. They rode up in the lift to the first floor in silence.

“Right,” said Gus. “Tell me the story so far.”

“Divya found nothing on Kerry, the girl from South Africa, guv,” said Alex. “We can’t trace any online presence that fits.”

“It wasn’t much to go on, was it,” said Blessing. “A first name, and a massive country.”

“Molly, Ruth and Shirley, Mandy and Annette, have all got social media accounts,” said Lydia. “Molly never married. Ruth’s divorced, and Shirley’s a widow. Mandy and Annette have been married to the same husbands for over twenty-five years.”

“Have you contacted them?” Gus asked.

“Their posts and photos look ordinary, guv,” said Luke. “We can message them and ask whether they remember Gerry Hogan, but what’s the point?”

“Why did we want the information in the first place?” asked Gus. “We wanted to rule out the possibility that a partner of one girl had a deep-seated grievance against Gerry Hogan. Deep enough to kill him thirty years after the girls in question had met the bloke. So, phone the girls he slept with and discover whether either of them is protecting our killer. You won’t find the answer among their Facebook page posts.”

“Yes, guv,” said Luke.

“Did anyone chase up where Carl Wallace is?” asked Gus.

“Malaga, guv,” said Blessing. “He’s lived there for years. He works as a barman.”

“More than six years, or less than six?” asked Gus.

“It’s over six years since he’s been in court in this country, guv,” said Blessing. “I can’t confirm the date he left for Spain. I’ve got an address for him though, guv.”

“Good. Try to find a contact telephone number, Blessing. I can’t see the ACC letting us fly out to Malaga to interview him. Who’s left on that list, Alex?”

“We found Bronwen from Tenby, guv,” said Alex.

“One of Nick Barrett’s failures,” said Gus.

“Exactly, guv. Bronwen Griffiths is married to her third husband, Dewi. They live in Saundersfoot, a few miles along the coast from Tenby. Bronwen has a wide circle of friends, but none of them appears to be the girl that Gerry Hogan slept with in Cairns. We’ve messaged Bronwen to ask whether she can recall the name and hometown of her companion. We’ve had no response yet.”

“Wasn’t there another girl?” asked Gus.

“Julia, from Richmond-on-Thames, guv,” said Alex.

“They’re all at it, guv,” said Neil. “It was plain old Richmond when I was at school.”

“Is Julia still merchant banking, Alex?” asked Gus.

“She married a wealthy stockbroker and lives near Newbury racecourse, guv,” said Alex.

“I suggest we try the same approach with Julia as with the rest.”

“How hard to we push, guv?” asked Luke.

“I suppose you want to tread softly with the women that are still married. We’re looking for a killer, Luke. Rustle a few feathers. Only one of them can have something to hide. You’ll get a feeling when you speak to someone who’s trying to side-track you.”

Gus picked up the phone. It was almost two-thirty.

“Is Kenneth available, Vera?” he asked.

“He hasn’t left early just because it’s Friday afternoon, Gus,” said Vera. “I’ll tell him it’s urgent.”

“How did you know?” asked Gus.

“It’s always urgent when you call him.”

“Truelove speaking,” said the ACC. “What’s the problem, Freeman?”

“We believe we’ve found a lead in the Hogan case, sir. The man concerned is now living in Spain. DS Bennison flagged him as a possible suspect, but DI Kirkpatrick didn’t think it worth pursuing.”

“And you do?”

“I do, sir,” said Gus, crossing his fingers.

“Run it by DS Mercer,” said the ACC. “If he thinks it will result in a positive outcome, then do what you need to, Freeman.”

Did that include flying to Malaga, thought Gus? Should I check?

Too late, Kenneth Truelove had gone. Gus called Geoff Mercer.

He explained the sequence of events and asked Geoff whether he could fly out to Malaga with Alex Hardy.

“It sounds sketchy, Gus,” said Geoff. “You can’t place Wallace at the crime scene. He’s not got a record for violence. He was never known to carry a knife, let alone a gun. Why target Hogan? Okay, Carl Wallace’s father could know that Rachel Cummins was living with a wealthy man. Maybe, Lawrence Wallace was still in contact with his son. Is it likely that Carl travelled that far with a gun to demand money from Hogan? On what grounds? No, I can’t see it. The man outside the house that night could be someone else.”

“I’ll have to make do with a phone call then, Geoff,” said Gus.

“Sorry, Gus,” said Geoff. “I’d need more than that to sanction a trip abroad.”

Gus knew Geoff was right, but something told him they were onto something.

“I’ve traced a number for Carl Wallace, guv,” said Blessing.

“Good girl,” said Gus.

“I’ve found a Facebook account too, guv,” said Lydia.

“Any photos?” asked Gus.

“Dozens,” said Lydia.

Gus punched the air.

“Print them off, put them in a folder, and I’ll take them to show Rachel Cummins.”

Gus left the office at a few minutes past three. He’d called Rachel Cummins, and she’d told him she had a fitness session starting at six-thirty. She sounded pleased to hear from him.

Gus rang the bell on the house at Trowle Common twenty-five minutes later. Rachel answered the door at once.

“Come on in,” she said. “How can I help?”

She led him into the kitchen.

“This folder contains random photographs of a man from his early twenties to his early thirties,” said Gus. “I want you to take a look and tell me who you think it is.”

“Interesting,” said Rachel, holding out her hand.

Gus gave her the folder. Rachel placed it on the kitchen table and opened it.

She turned