Private Princess

Chapter 44

Jack Morgan paced outside the school with the phone held to his ear. The line had been silent for almost five minutes while Knight carried out his plan. Morgan thought it was a long shot at best and was readying himself for the news that Knight had come up empty-handed from his inglorious task — Knight had emptied the contents of Patel’s trash on the pavement and was rummaging through it for clues. Knight’s reasoning was that Sophie’s death had occurred within days and that the bins were full. They probably hadn’t been emptied since it happened. Knight didn’t expect he’d find evidence of a murder in such a place, but there might be a suggestion as to the destination Patel could be looking to escape to.

“I’ve got it!” Knight shouted victoriously down the line. “I’ve got something, Jack!”

“What is it?”

“It’s a torn-up letter. I found all three pieces. It’s thanking Patel for opening a safety deposit box at a bank in Staines.”

“Staines?” the American asked.

“It’s close to Heathrow!”

Morgan understood the implications at once — a safety deposit box opened within days of the murder of Sophie Edwards, a few minutes from one of the world’s busiest airports.

“How long to get there from where you are?” Morgan asked, feeling his pulse quicken.

“No more than ninety minutes,” Knight replied. “He’s got at least an hour’s head start on us, Jack.”

“OK, send me the address and I’ll head there too... And Peter, contact your sister-in-law at the Met. Beg her, lie to her, do whatever, but we need surveillance at every train station within a three-mile radius of that bank, and the bank itself.”

“I’ll do my best,” Knight promised. “Why three miles?”

“Patel hasn’t planned any of this well, but he may be smart enough to not get off at the nearest station.”

“But what if he gets a cab, or a bus?” Knight asked.

“There’s nothing we can do about that. I’m sending Cook to your location. She’s too far out to make it to the bank ahead of us, but she can secure Patel’s place ready for the police investigation.”

“OK, Jack. I’m running to the nearest station now. I’ll lose signal on the Tube, so I guess I’ll see you there.”

Morgan hung up and walked back inside the school. He found De Villiers waiting for him by the entrance.

“Trouble?” the Colonel guessed.

“Not for long,” Morgan replied. “I need to use the Princess’s helicopter.”

“That’s impossible.”

Morgan shook his head. “It’s totally possible, Colonel. And it’s going to happen.”

“It is?” De Villiers snorted.

“It is.” Morgan smiled. “Or you can explain to the Princess why Sophie’s killer escaped.”