The Perfect Crime by Vaseem Khan

Author:Vaseem Khan [Vaseem Khan, Maxim Jakubowski]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Published: 2022-01-10T12:00:00+00:00

QUIET NIGHT IN

AMER ANWAR

Southall, London, 2018

With his wife away, Tej was enjoying a rare weekend on his own. So far, his Saturday had consisted of a long lie-in, afternoon at the pub watching football – with a tandoori mixed-grill and a few pints thrown in for good measure – then back home and a nap on the sofa. Now it was evening and he was up again, pouring himself a beer, the local news on the TV, as he contemplated a quiet night in, with some dinner and maybe a movie.

The news was the usual stuff, apart from two items that caught his attention. One was about the proposed third runway at Heathrow Airport, where he worked, and the other concerned some human remains that had been found on a building site in Uxbridge, not far from Southall, where he lived.

His mind had already drifted from the news back to the lamb curry and pilau rice Sonia had left in the fridge for him when the doorbell rang.

Tej frowned. Who the hell was that? He wasn’t expecting anyone and people didn’t usually turn up unannounced, not these days when everyone had a mobile phone. Maybe it was someone trying to flog something or a grifter collecting for a fake charity. If he ignored it, they were bound to go away.

The bell sounded again, followed by an insistent knocking on the door.

What if it was someone he knew? Or perhaps a delivery? Had Sonia ordered something else? More than bloody likely. Clothes, make-up, books, gadgets – there was no end to it. He took a sip of the beer he’d finished pouring, put the glass and can down on the coffee table, and went to answer the door.

The man on the doorstep said, ‘All right, Tej?’

It took Tej a moment to work out who he was. ‘Bloody hell,’ he said, as recognition dawned. ‘Billy. Long time, no see. What’re you doing here?’

‘I was just in the old neighbourhood, visiting family, thought I’d pop by, see if you were home. Not disturbing you, am I?’

‘Nah, not at all. Come in, it’s bloody freezing out there.’

Baljeet ‘Billy’ Attwal stepped inside. He was dressed all in black: black jeans, and a black top, under a long black coat and with a black beanie on his head. It gave him a sombre appearance and, with his thick growth of stubble, even made him a little scruffy looking, which was a bit of a surprise, seeing as Billy was a very wealthy man.

‘How long’s it been?’ Tej said, closing the door.

‘I think last time we saw each other was when you guys came to Vijay’s twenty-first.’

‘Blimey, yeah, it must’ve been. How old is he now?’

‘Twenty-four.’

‘Three years …’ Tej shook his head. ‘Where’s the time go?’ Neither of them had an answer to that. ‘Come on, man, come and sit down. You want a drink? I just poured a beer.’

‘A drink would be great. You got anything a bit stronger though?’

‘Sure. What d’you fancy?’

‘Whisky or a brandy, if you’ve got it.

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