Page 42 of The Impossible Fortune

‘What did you talk about?’ DCI Varma asks.

‘Goodness, this and –’ says Elizabeth.

‘That,’ says Joyce.

‘Nothing that could explain what just happened?’ DCI Varma asks.

Ron approves very strongly of not talking to police officers. Though he does wonder, given the unusual events of this evening, whether they might need to chat to Chris and Donna at some point? And this makes him think about Chris Hudson with a gun, and he lets out an involuntary laugh.

‘This is funny to you, sir?’ the ginger sidekick asks. ‘You fancy a laugh in the back of the police van?’

‘Oh, mate,’ says Ron, ‘I’ve been beaten up in police vans by better coppers than you.’

DCI Varma turns to the ginger boy wonder, then gestures towards the four of them. ‘It’s one in the morning: we’ve got to go straight back to the station and start the investigation. I’m tired, and a woman has just died, so I can’t do all this, I’m sorry. What was she doing here, and what do you all know about her that I don’t? In short sentences.’

‘DCI Varma,’ says Elizabeth, ‘I’m afraid we are clueless. It was a social visit.’

Ron really should take Kendrick to the swings or something tomorrow, but he knows now that there will be a Thursday Murder Club meeting. Because, wherever that storage facility might be, Elizabeth will want to find itbefore DCI Varma and Ed Sheeran here. Somewhere in there is three hundred and fifty million quid on a bit of paper, and almost certainly the answer to who killed Holly, and where Nick Silver might be right now.

‘I’m told you were very brave,’ says DCI Varma to Elizabeth. ‘You tried to pull Holly out of the car?’

‘Far too late,’ says Elizabeth. ‘Adrenaline. Forgotten I had any.’

‘I don’t suppose,’ says DCI Varma, ‘that you came across Holly’s phone? Probably the most useful thing we could find right now. Given how little we know.’

‘They melt,’ says Elizabeth. ‘I’m sure everything you’ll need will be on her home computers.’

That’ll take a while for this duo to wade through. Meanwhile, Elizabeth will be making merry with Holly’s SIM card.

Ron sees Joyce take her phone out of her bag and give the smallest of starts. The ginger sidekick spots it too.

‘Anything you want to share with us, madam?’

Joyce puts her phone back in her bag and shakes her head.

They have walked far enough away for the car to be out of sight, a few wisps of smoke above Ruskin Court, the low hum of a police generator and a metallic tang in the air the only remains of the night’s horror. Ron sees Pauline walking towards him, with a sleepy-looking Kendrick holding her hand. He hugs them both.

‘He couldn’t sleep,’ says Pauline.

‘After the noise,’ says Kendrick. ‘Hello, everyone, do you remember me?’

It is agreed that everyone remembers Kendrick, and that pleases him.

‘What was the noise?’ Kendrick asks. ‘Pauline didn’t know.’

‘A bomb from the war,’ says Ron. He looks at the police officers, and at least they have the good grace to nod.

‘Sometimes they go off years later,’ says DCI Varma.

‘So the police had to come?’

‘Just to make sure everyone’s okay,’ says Joyce.

‘And was everyone okay?’ says Kendrick.

‘Everyone was just fine,’ says Joyce. ‘But Alan didn’t like the noise.’

‘Dogs don’t like loud noises,’ Pauline tells Kendrick.