Illegal Tender (Three Oaks Book 12) by Gerald Hammond

Author:Gerald Hammond [Hammond, Gerald]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Publisher: Endeavour Media
Published: 2019-06-26T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Six

That evening, the atmosphere at Hay Lodge had deteriorated. Elizabeth clearly felt both guilty and vulnerable. I was given to understand that she had been toying with the Internet messages, but from her listless and depressed attitude I could guess that any attempt to follow the electronic trail had been made in the shallow manner of one who knows that the task set is impossible. Duncan’s degree had been in electronics and computing but Elizabeth’s, I recalled, had been in mathematics, in which computers were merely tools of the trade, to be used rather than comprehended.

‘The police should be able to sort this out in minutes,’ she said angrily. ‘Every time I think I’m making a little progress I come up against some obstructive bastard at Telecom or the Internet. I cannot follow it up from the electronics alone and that’s an end to the matter. We’d be better spending our energies harassing the Serious Fraud Office.’

Every attempt at encouragement from me or at technical assistance from her husband was deemed to be patronizing or was taken as criticism and she made no secret of her resentment. We dined in almost total silence and the wine decanter remained untouched.

When Elizabeth was in one of her (happily rare) moods, there was little to be done but to stay clear. Duncan made a patently transparent excuse to go back to the shop for the evening, to finish off some urgent reprogramming which he had earlier admitted could have waited a week. I had no wish to spend the evening with Elizabeth who, hating herself, was taking her hatred out on anyone handy, but manners prevented me from taking too obviously to flight. For once, however, I was grateful for one of the phone calls which would normally have infuriated me. I answered the extension phone in the sitting room for no better reason than that Elizabeth, in the study and back at the computer, obviously had no intention of doing so. A not unattractive female voice assured me that she was not going to sell me anything — I could have assured her of that! — and then proceeded to extol the virtues of somebody’s double glazing and conservatories.

I made vaguely affirmative noises and then hung up in the middle of the lady’s peroration. I crossed the hall and put my head in at the study door. Elizabeth, with the main instrument at her elbow, was staring helplessly at a screen full of apparently unrelated letters and numerals. There was no indication that she had listened to my phone call.

‘That was an old friend on the phone,’ I said. ‘I haven’t seen him for years. You won’t mind if I go and meet him at the hotel?’

Elizabeth who, for all her faults, was both well mannered and hospitable, would normally have suggested that I invite my friend to the house, but she seemed pleased at the prospect of having the place to herself. ‘Go and have fun,’ she said and heaved a sigh expressive of lonely martyrdom.

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