Devil at the Crossroads by Olive Etchells

Author:Olive Etchells
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Soho Press
Published: 2009-09-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Inspector Addie Savage surveyed the incident room with satisfaction. If there was such a thing as a hive of activity, then this was it. She tried not to be smug, but knew quite well that the smooth running of the enquiry was largely due to her own skills in organization and deployment.

In spite of that, she wasn’t sure if she would rather be here, seeing that the place ran like clockwork, or out and about doing the real detection, with Bill Channon and the sergeant. Giving the impatient twitch of the shoulders which was becoming her trademark gesture, she told herself she’d made her decision to stay on the uniformed side years ago, so it was a bit late to start questioning it now.

Her phone rang. ‘Ma’am,’ said one of the operators, ‘I know you said not to disturb him, but there’s a call from the City of London division for the DCI. They want to speak to him personally.’

‘Put them through to me,’ Addie ordered. When Bill had said he mustn’t be disturbed except for something vital, he’d had the look that said he meant it. A minute later she put down the phone. Well, well . . . She’d give Bill another quarter of an hour and then she would disturb him. What she’d just been told might not be vital, but it was far from trivial, and must be dealt with.

Fifteen minutes later she was outside Channon’s room at the same time as Bowles. The model of politeness, he held the door for her and followed her in. It was clear that the DCI was in deep thought, perhaps visualizing the events of Friday night in the light of the reports he’d been reading. He was gazing into space and only reluctantly brought his gaze round to Addie, aware that she wouldn’t have come unless it was necessary. She was no shrinking violet, but she knew when to keep her distance. ‘What is it, Addie?’

‘The City boys wanted you, but I took the call. You arranged with them to go into the Stradlings’ personal affairs as well as the business side, and they think you should know that Paul broke up Nigel Nollens’s engagement to be married. Apparently Paul went after the woman, she fell for him and finished with her fiancé, though it was less than a month before the wedding. She and Paul had a brief but very public affair, then he dumped her for the next one in line.’

‘When was this?’

‘About eight or nine weeks ago.’

Channon thought about the timing. The ‘next one in line’ must have been Lucy Pascoe. He recalled Nollens’s bright hazel eyes, guarded and giving no sign that he resented his employer, but then, it was the son and not the father who had stolen his fiancée. ‘When did Nollens arrive in Pengorra, Bowles?’

‘Yesterday, early afternoon.’

‘What, straight from London?’

‘That wasn’t spelled out, but I assumed so. Stradling had sent for him.’

Channon grunted. If Nollens was still madly in love,

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