17 - Dangerous Games by Spencer Sally

Author:Spencer, Sally [Spencer, Sally]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: blt, Mystery & Detective, Police Procedural, _rt_yes, tpl, Traditional British, Fiction, __Fixed
ISBN: 9780727878472
Google: jqbnQgAACAAJ
Amazon: B00GNBQHZM
Barnesnoble: B00GNBQHZM
Goodreads: 2922083
Publisher: Severn House Pub Ltd
Published: 2007-01-01T05:00:00+00:00

Sixteen

Sitting across the pub table from her boss, Monika Paniatowski found herself studying Woodend closely. He had been late for the meeting in the Drum and Monkey – which was unusual for him. And he had offered no explanation for his tardiness, which was quite out of character. So just what was his game?

The chief inspector drained his pint, looked around to make sure that the rest of the team had almost finished their own drinks, and signalled to the waiter to bring a fresh round.

He had a surprise up his sleeve, Paniatowski decided, and he was holding it back until just the right moment, when he would produce it with great flourish, in much the same way as music hall magicians used to produce rabbits from their hats. It wasn’t a game Woodend played very often – he normally liked to keep his team completely up to date with developments – but on the few occasions when he was tempted, he played it for the maximum effect, and Paniatowski couldn’t help wondering just what this particular rabbit would be.

The drinks arrived, and Woodend took a healthy slurp of his pint of bitter. ‘The uniformed branch have been able to establish no link between Pugh an’ the bookies, but given what we’ve learned since we started playin’ around with that theory, it doesn’t come as much of a shock,’ he began.

Rutter nodded. ‘Pugh might possibly have been a secret gambler, but Lewis didn’t have the money for betting, and Bygraves didn’t have the inclination,’ he agreed.

‘Exactly,’ Woodend said. ‘So now that we’ve got that particular red herrin’ out of the way, let’s review what we actually do know so far,’ he suggested. ‘We know that our killer’s got a list of names, an’ though we don’t know how long that list is, we can be pretty sure that he’s workin’ his way through it. Terry Pugh was the first on the list, Reg Lewis was the second, and Tom Bygraves at least believes he’s the third, which is why he’s done a runner.’

‘Do you think that by running away he’s managed to escape the killer, sir?’ Bob Rutter asked.

‘He may have,’ Woodend replied. ‘On the other hand, it’s equally possible that that’s just what the killer wanted him to do.’

‘I don’t quite follow that,’ Beresford admitted.

‘Then I’ll explain it to you. Our killer’s more than clever enough to have worked out that we’re probably onto him by now, an’ that we may have identified Tom Bygraves as his possible third victim. Now that could make killin’ Bygraves in Whitebridge very difficult. An’ why is that, DC Beresford?’

‘Because we might have assigned men to watch Bygraves, in the hope that the killer would make an attempt?’ Beresford guessed.

‘Just so. Once Bygraves has left Whitebridge, however, he’s exposed, like a frightened deer caught in the crosshairs of a rifle sight. Not that the killer is likely to shoot him. If Bygraves dies, it’ll be by hangin’. Anyway, we’ve taken all the precautions we can take, haven’t we, Monika?’

‘That’s right, sir,’ Paniatowski agreed.

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