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But Gis has already thought this through. ‘A diversion. In case anyone came looking. To make peoplethinkshe’d gone back to Galway.’ He gives Quinn a meaningful look. ‘Just like we all did.’ He shrugs. ‘Maybe Daisy travelled here from Dublin this summer for exactly the same reason.’
Quinn nods slowly. ‘OK, I’ll buy it. Can you get on to the PSNI?’
Gis grins. ‘Already done, matey. Already done.’
***
Asante is in early too, and isn’t at all surprised to run into Bradley in the car park.
‘We must stop meeting like this,’ she calls, with the tiniest shadow of a wink.
‘Early bird and all that,’ he says as he locks his car.
She returns his smile. ‘I don’t know about you but I never did much fancy a diet of worms. And before you say anything, I do know that’s not what it means.’
‘So, ready for the first big meeting with the new boss?’
‘Well, I’m not as fan-girly about it as DC Bell appears to be – he actually offered to come in on his day off just to meet him.’
Asante grins. ‘I doubt he’s going to miss much – we don’t exactly have very much to talk about.’
She flashes him a glance. ‘Didn’t you see the email from the pathologist?’
He frowns and she knows immediately why.
‘Shit shit shit,’ she says, fumbling for her phone. ‘It went to the CID general address and you won’t be on that. Don’t worry, I’ll sort it out. But here – have a look before we go in.’
***
Importance: High
Date:Fri 26/07/2024, 21.23
From:[email protected]
To:[email protected]
CC:[email protected]
Subject: Case no LBS734/14G Dental implant
Some results for you. We were fortunate in that there was a serial number present, which is by no means universal, though thankfully becoming more common now, given how useful such identifying numbers can prove to be in cases like these.
With the assistance of a colleague at Cambridge who specialises in forensic odontology, I have managed to identify the implant in question as originating in the United States, and of fairly recent manufacture. On the face of it, that might suggest your victim is American, but the NHS does use foreign implantsin some types of surgery, so it’s not conclusive. That said, we should be able to narrow the field reasonably quickly, as I have contacted the company in question and asked them to check their database.
SP
Suk Pannu MD FRCPath
Consultant Pathologist, Gloucester Hospitals NHS Trust
***
It’s standing room only in the incident room, but Bradley sees no problem in pulling rank and getting up the front. Fawley clearly doesn’t subscribe to the Marcia Tate school of get-there-late-and-make-a-big-entrance, and is already perched on the edge of a table by the whiteboard talking quietly to one of the uniformed PCs.
Asante takes a position a few rows back, but Bradley sees him exchange a nod with Fawley, and then the DCI gets to his feet.
He doesn’t apologize for being there, doesn’t try the ‘I know this is bollocks but let’s get on with it’ approach, just pitches straight in as if he’d been there from the start.