Take Two

CHAPTER 78

Richards was pouring himself a coffee when the door entry phone buzzed. It caught him by surprise and the mug slipped from his fingers, spun through the air and shattered into a dozen pieces on the kitchen floor. Scalding hot coffee splattered across his bare feet and he jumped back, cursing, before hurrying over to the entry phone. It was Halpin. ‘What are you doing here at this time of the morning?’ asked Richards.

‘It’s nearly ten, boss.’

‘Yeah, well that’s sparrow’s fart for me, mate. What do you want?’

‘A quick word, boss. Didn’t want to do it over the phone.’

Richards buzzed him in and went over to the lift doors in his hallway. The lift only stopped on two floors — the flat and the ground floor. The lift door rattled open and Halpin walked out. ‘Do you want a coffee?’ asked Richards.

‘Cheers, boss.’

Halpin followed Richards back to the kitchen. Richards jerked a thumb at the broken mug and spilled coffee. ‘Do me a favour and clean that up, will you?’ he said. He went over to his Bosch coffeemaker and began making two cappuccinos while Halpin used pieces of kitchen roll to mop up the coffee.

‘So what’s so bloody important you’ve got to disturb my morning?’ growled Richards.

‘Two things, boss,’ said Halpin, gingerly picking up the bits of broken mug and putting them on the wet kitchen roll. ‘First, there’s no record of a Jenny Castle. Or a Carolyn Castle.’

‘You sure?’

‘Sure, I’m sure. The guy I’m using is a pro. At first he thought it was because Castle was one of her married names but he checked all her husbands and none of them were Castle.’

‘It could be an acting name,’ said Richards. ‘Lots of people change their name when they start acting. Michael Caine was Maurice Micklewhite. And Marilyn Monroe was Norma Jean something or other.’

‘I thought that, but we checked on the internet and she’s always been known as Carolyn Castle. There’s never been a suggestion of another name.’

‘That’s a bugger,’ said Richards.

‘Be handy if we could get a look at her passport,’ said Halpin, dropping the broken mug and wet kitchen towel into the rubbish bin.

‘Seeing as how she’s at the bottom of the North Sea, I don’t see that’s going to happen,’ said Richards.

‘I meant the sister. Jenny. If you can get her passport we’ll have her name and her date of birth. Even if the sister has changed her name we’ll have the date they were born and I can look for twin girls born on that day.’

‘Let me see what I can do,’ said Richards. He finished making the coffees and handed one to Halpin.

‘And the other thing was the truck driver. He’s up in Scotland tomorrow. I’ll go up and do it myself.’

‘You’re not planning to use me as an alibi, are you?’

Halpin shook his head. ‘Sorted on that front. I’ll be playing poker with four other guys.’

‘Be lucky,’ said Richards.

‘I always am. Just make sure you’re in the club all tomorrow night, early until late.’

Richards raised an eyebrow. ‘You wouldn’t be trying to teach your grandmother to suck eggs, would you?’

‘Wouldn’t dream of it, boss.’