EPISODE EIGHTY-ONE
Rice inhaled deeply on his cigarette as the
detectives returned to the Interview Room.
He studied their expressions. He
knew those looks; he’d seen them many times before. The half-smile and the glint in the eye that
told him they were confident they’d got a result.
The detective sergeant gave Rice’s solicitor a cursory nod, switched the tape
recorder on and announced the continuation of the interview. Then the DI took over, going straight to the
point.
‘Mr. Coleman has made a statement naming you as his accomplice
in the robbery in the working men’s club. In fact…’
Rice shrugged and interrupted him. ‘I
couldn’t give a toss what Coleman
says. I told you: I left the club before the bingo started and
went to Harvey Boyle’s club in Hastings.’
‘We’ve spoken to Mr. Boyle and he is unable to corroborate your alibi. He says he hardly knows you and that he
wasn’t with you on the night in question.’
Rice burned with anger, his head feeling as if it might ignite. He stared at the sergeant, who was wearing a
provokingly smug grin, and he flipped, using every obscenity in his otherwise
limited vocabulary to describe Harvey Boyle.
His solicitor stared at the table.
‘I don’t think,’ said the DI, ‘that an alibi will do you much good, in any
case. There’s enough forensic evidence
that proves you were up in that loft.’
Rice’s eyes clouded over as he struggled to control himself. He still had one card left to play. ‘I’m a
professional. That’s what I get for
working with amateurs. If Coleman hadn’t
panicked, old Alec might still be alive.’
‘Are you saying it was Coleman who killed the barman?’
Rice stared at the tape recorder and spoke clearly. ‘I am.
Coleman killed him. The bloke’s
an amateur and he panicked.’
*
After ringing the doorbell Donald pressed himself close to the front door, just
in case Marjorie decided to look out of the window. If she saw who it was, he decided, it was
unlikely that she would answer. He
hummed quietly “March to the Scaffold” to keep his sense of humour alive. After an interminable wait, and thinking she
must be out, he was about to abandon his foolhardy quest on behalf of his
friend when the front door opened cautiously.
And before Marjorie could slam it shut, Donald produced a dozen red
roses from behind his back and handed them to her. This had never happened to her before and she
was temporarily lost in wonder. A man
giving her flowers!
Donald beamed at her.
‘Congratulations! You must be
overjoyed. And please give my best
wishes to the father-to-be.’
Recovering slightly, Marjorie sniffed and said, ‘He’s not here. He’s gone.’
‘Do you mean “gone” as in moved out?’
Marjorie nodded.
‘Oh dear! I hope I wasn’t the cause of
this…upset. If you could spare me just a
few minutes of your time to explain, I’m sure we could sort things out.’
Marjorie turned, leaving the door open for him to follow. ‘Thank you,’ she murmured. ‘I’ll just go and put these in water.’
*
Craig scowled at each portion of fish as he dropped them into the sizzling
oil. Mandy watched him closely. As soon as his plastic bucket was empty, she
took it from him. ‘What’s wrong? It’s your last week here. I’d have thought you’d be pleased, going on
to bigger and better things.’
Craig gave her a half smile and a shrug. ‘Yeah, well…’
‘I thought you might be worried about me losing my job. But seeing as he new owners are keeping me
on…’
‘They’d have been stupid not to keep you on, Mandy. You’re worth your weight...’ Craig broke off.
‘Are you trying to say I’m fat?’
‘Of course not.’
Mandy smiled, teasing him. ‘Just a bit
on the large side, eh?’
Craig shook his head quickly. ‘Well, you
ain’t exactly skinny. So what? You’re great as you are.’ Craig smiled awkwardly. ‘Very tasty, in fact.’
Mandy giggled. ‘Like fish and chips?’
‘If you like.’
‘So what’s the problem?’
‘Problem?’
‘Yeah. I’ve often caught you looking at
me in a certain way. I know because you
was my employer, you wouldn’t...but...well, now you’re leaving...’
‘Hold on a minute, Mandy. I know women are
entitled to take the initiative these days, but...’
‘But what?’
‘This has nothing to do with you, Mandy.
It’s just I’ve got a lot on my mind.’
‘Something to do with that bloke?’
Craig frowned, but guessed what she was going to say. ‘He come round one
morning...a few weeks ago. Wanted you to
go to the pub. He seemed to have some
sort of hold on you.’
Craig let his breath out slowly. ‘How
did you guess?’
‘He was bad news. I could tell. You in trouble, Craig?’
‘Sort of.’
‘Anything I can do?’
Craig shook his head hurriedly and disappeared into the back room to fetch his
jacket. When he returned, he left a
bunch of keys on the counter.
‘Will you lock up for me?’
Mandy looked concerned. ‘How long will
you be?’
‘Haven’t a clue.’
Mandy looked on the verge of tears, so Craig stroked her cheek affectionately with the back of his hand. ‘Don’t worry, love: I ain’t done nothing wrong. I’m only helping them with their enquiries.’
IN EPISODE EIGHTY-TWO
Jason gets a nasty surprise.