Careless Love
Page 33
‘Getting there.’
‘How’s Ray?’
‘Haven’t seen him for a while.’
‘Nothing wrong, is there?’
‘No. I just haven’t seen him.’
Winsome wandered over and started talking to Annie. Banks drifted back to his thoughts. The conversations drowned out most of the music, but he could pick out ‘The Maigret Theme’ among the general hubbub. Cyril’s little joke. Though not, apparently. It had disappointed him slightly to find out from one of the temporary barmaids that it was an Internet radio channel and not hand-crafted sixties playlists that Cyril broadcast in the pub. Even so, the music was as good, wherever it came from. One of the Leeds DCs knocked over a pint and everyone cheered. Except Cyril.
‘Keep it down, lads, keep it down,’ he said. And most of those present took note.
Annie turned back to Banks. ‘What do you think about Zelda’s picture, then? Keane?’ she asked.
‘It’s him, without a doubt.’
‘Yes. But what do we do about it?’
‘Haven’t had time to think yet,’ said Banks. ‘Let’s have lunch next week and talk about it.’
‘Fine with me. The sooner we get the bastard, the better. By the way, have you heard from Zelda?’
‘Not since she sent the picture.’
‘Maybe you should introduce her to Mia?’
‘Now that would be an interesting conversation.’
‘Or not.’
Annie went over to join one of the Leeds detectives she’d had her eye on for a while.
Banks turned to Winsome. ‘Is it true?’ he asked.
‘Is what true, guv?’
‘That you’re going to have a baby.’
‘Who told you that?’
Banks put his finger to the side of his nose. ‘I’m a detective, you know.’
Winsome laughed. ‘Between you and me, yes. I’m so excited. But I don’t want the whole station to know yet. It’s early days.’
‘My lips are sealed. Congratulations.’ Banks raised his glass. ‘Cheers.’
Winsome clinked with her diet tonic. ‘I’ll confess I’m a bit scared, too.’
‘That’s not unreasonable. I was just thinking I’ll be down another officer soon. There’ll only be me, Annie and Gerry left. Some Homicide and Major Crimes Unit.’
‘I’ll be around for a while yet, guv, don’t you worry, and I’m sure HR will do something about finding a replacement for Doug.’
Banks got up and circulated among the crowd, offering congratulations here and there. At the bar, he bought another couple of pints and took one over to Annie, deep in conversation with her Leeds detective, then leaned back against the bar to survey the scene. They had already scared off most of the locals and tourists, so they practically had the place to themselves. Cyril was used to it, so he wasn’t going to complain unless someone broke another glass. Banks looked out of one of the clear panes in the window across from the bar. The Christmas lights twinkled outside in the market square, and there were a few people standing outside around the pubs and restaurants enjoying the festive spirit, despite the drizzle and the winter chill.
He thought of Mia Carney and how foolish she had been. Had she really learned her lesson? Does anyone, ever? Wouldn’t she be back at the same game again as soon as she recovered her health? He had to admit that he didn’t know the answers, only that he didn’t believe jail would do her a great deal of good. She had almost died, after all, and Randall’s assault had left her with permanent, if not fatal, cardiac damage. And he wished her good luck with Leila.
Then he thought of Adrienne Munro, whom he had never known, who was so desperate for money to get through her studies and save the world from famine that she had prostituted herself. He assumed that he would never really know whether she had deliberately taken that overdose of Mandrax or simply tried to sedate herself enough to be able to handle what lay ahead that night, and drastically miscalculated. It was easy to do, according to Dr Glendenning, even if you knew something about drugs, which Adrienne didn’t. There were still so many unknowns in the case, and they were likely to remain unknown. The one certainty was that Sarah Chen had been murdered, and Anthony Randall was going down for it. The skin under Sarah’s fingernails had nailed him, along with the minute traces of her blood the CSIs had found in his drains.
Gene Pitney had just started singing ‘Town Without Pity’ when Banks saw the door swing open. Zelda stood there for a moment, framed in the doorway with a serious expression on her face, wearing her long winter coat and fur hat. She scanned the room, and when her eyes lit on Banks, she started walking towards him.
Follow Peter Robinson here
Acknowledgements
As usual, I have plenty of people to thank for helping me get this book ready for the road, starting with my wife Sheila Halladay, who read the first draft and sent me back to the word-processor with many valuable suggestions. At Hodder & Stoughton, I would like to thank my editor Carolyn Mays and her assistant Madeleine Woodfield, along with the rest of the gang: Jamie Hodder-Williams, Lucy Hale, Kerry Hood and Justine Taylor. At McClelland and Stewart, my thanks go to Kelly Joseph, Erin Kelly, Martha Leonard and Jared Bland, and at William Morrow, to Emily Krump and Julia Elliot. Also thanks to agents Dominick Abel, David Grossman and Rosie and Jessica Buckman. I would also like to thank the overseas editors and translators who have stuck with me over the years. Needless to say, there are many others who contribute, including proof-readers, sales reps, booksellers and librarians, and I would like to thank all those people, too. Last, but far from least, thanks also to you, dear reader.
Read more from DCI Banks
A Terrible Crime. No Obvious Motive. Banks is on the Case.
Buy Sleeping in the Ground now
Uncover the very best in crime and thriller writing.
Sign up for the Crime Files newsletter
@CrimeFilesBooks
/crimefiles
/crime-files-podcast