Three, Three, the Rivals by Anthea Fraser

Author:Anthea Fraser [Fraser, Anthea]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, British Detectives, Thrillers & Suspense, Crime, Traditional Detectives, Thrillers
ISBN: 9780002323802
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 1992-01-15T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 9

Force Headquarters was situated in the countryside some ten miles south of Shillingham. There was no village nearby, but an old stone bridge that crossed the river further down the road had given its name to the area.

After signing the requisite forms, Webb and Jackson were escorted down to the basement where the archives were stored and spent some time sifting through the shelves of old and dusty files before they found what they were looking for.

‘I’ll drive, Ken,’ Webb said as, the bulky files under his arm, they walked back to the car. ‘I’ll drop you off and then look in at the station for a while. Once I’ve got the dental records off to Stapleton, I want a quick look at these papers to familiarize myself with the case.’

In fact, he worked in his office for a couple of hours, making out his reports and going through the forty-year-old papers with their painstaking details. Not unnaturally, those who had been most systematically questioned after the disappearance were his father and Billy Makepeace, seemingly the only two people in the district with whom Dick Vernon had been on bad terms. Webb read his father’s testimony with grim admiration for its deception.

It was only as he found himself nodding off for the second time that he decided to call it a day and go home. He wondered what Hannah was doing.

It was seven o’clock when he reached his flat, and the atmosphere that met him was stale and airless. He poured himself a whisky, then walked from room to room pushing open windows, though the air that came in was still oppressively hot.

Resting his elbows on the windowsill, he stared broodingly down the hill to where the town lay partially hidden under the brownish-yellow haze, periodically sipping his drink as his mind tiredly but obsessively re-ran the past twenty-four hours.

The sound of voices finally roused him as a group of young people came cycling along Hillcrest, tennis racquets strapped to their bikes. He straightened and stretched, aware of the disoriented sensation that comes from lack of sleep. Yet he was still too keyed-up to settle.

Turning to the phone, he dialled Hannah’s number, releasing his breath when she lifted her receiver.

‘Any chance of a revival course for a spent copper?’

He heard her low laugh. ‘Certainly, sir. Day release or residential?’

‘Don’t tempt me! Seriously, I shan’t be very good company; I’ve been up half the night digging up bodies and I’m on my knees.’

‘Then I recommend a lazy supper with music in the background as we watch the sun go down.’

‘Since I saw it come up, that sounds most fitting. Bless you. I’ll bring a bottle. Half an hour?’

‘Fine.’

God, he looked a mess, he thought, catching a glimpse of his reflection in the bathroom mirror. Shadows under the eyes, badly in need of a shave. He bent over the bath and turned the taps on full. Time for a leisurely soak before he went down, but he must be careful not to fall asleep.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.