Page 11 of Hang on St. Christopher

“Well, can you call her, please?”

I went into the hall, took a discreet hit on my asthma inhaler, and called her.

“Hello?”

“Hi, it’s me.”

“Hi, Sean, where are you?”

“Coronation Road.”

“Ooh, have we got an offer for it?”

“No offer. Beth, look, there’s been a murder and Lawson’s on holiday, so they want me to run it.”

“A case. Well, well, well, this is your dream come true. A case. A murder case at that.”

“I told them I’m getting the midnight ferry, but they’re desperate. The chief inspector is standing here right next to me.”

“Oh, tell Peter hi from me.”

I turned to McArthur. “Beth says hi.”

“Tell Elizabeth hello from me.”

“He says hi back. They’ll pay me time and a half while I’m working on the case if I take it.”

“How long would you be over there?”

“I don’t know. With a murder case, you never know. But Lawson will be back on Sunday, so I can hand it over to him if it goes on that long.”

“I’llmiss you and Emma will miss you, but I can’t say no, can I? Looking at you moping around the house. You’ve been itching for a case for the last year at least.”

“No, I haven’t. I don’t miss detective work at all.”

“Ha! Are you a terrible liar! Go on, do your case. Come over for the day if you can.”

“It’s a simple one. I might even have wrapped it up by tomorrow.”

“Okay, Sean, if you say so.”

“Kiss Emma for me.”

“I will. Love you.”

“Love you too. Bye.”

I hung up the phone and looked at McArthur.

“The little lady’s given her permission?”

“Oh, that’s rich coming from someone who has to get forms signed in triplicate from Tina to go on the piss with the lads.”

“That is a willful slander.”

“One more call,” I said, and rang Crabbie’s house and told Helen that I would need the big man’s help in a murder investigation.

“He’s done with all that now, Sean,” Helen said.