Slick Deals by Helen Carey

Author:Helen Carey
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: thriller, crime, adventure, wales, london, oil, environmental, eco, female heroine, monaco, helen carey
Publisher: Helen Carey

Ella had imagined having to ask around for hours before finding any trace of the men in the photo, but to her astonishment, the first person they asked, the friendly Welsh lady who manned the café on the quay at Newland, nodded immediately.

‘Yes, yes, I know him all right,’ she said, pointing to the second man. ‘He’s got a boat here. Jimmy’s his name.’ She peered at the photo of the blond man again. ‘I’ve not seen this one, mind. I don’t think he’s been in here.’

‘And do you know where this Jimmy might be now?’ Nick asked.

‘On his boat I dare say,’ the woman peered vaguely out of the window towards the lines of moored boats on the pontoons. ‘I don’t know the name of it, but you could ask up in the harbourmaster office.’

The man in the harbourmasters office couldn’t have been more helpful either. He didn’t know the blond man either but he recognised Jimmy Bennett. His boat was Seagull Two, berthed on K Pontoon in the upper basin. He was a live-aboard. He had been there on and off a month or so. He checked in his register and sure enough Jimmy Bennett had arrived in early August. Ella noticed that there was no address, just c/o Newland Marina.’

‘On and off?’ Ella said. ‘You mean he has gone away and come back?’

The man gave her a long look. ‘That’s what people with boats do, go out cruising or sailing. Some go over to Ireland or down to Cornwall. Some just go out for the day.’

‘Do you keep a note of how long they are away?’

‘No,’ he said. ‘They can do what they want, so long as they’ve paid for their berth.’

Ella leaned on the counter to rest her leg. ‘So you mean a boat could come in from France and no-one would know?’

He glanced out of the window at the lines and lines of boats. ‘We have to let the water police at Milford know when we get foreign boats in,’ he said. ‘Sometimes they bother to come over to check. And customs. But not always. A UK boat, though, they’re meant to tell us if they’ve come from a foreign port, but ...’ he shrugged. ‘Who’s to know?’

‘So it’s pretty casual?’ Ella said. ‘Anyone can come and go.’

‘We’ve got CCTV, the man said, rather stiffly. ‘And the pontoon gate is security coded. And we do night patrols.’

‘It looks like a real nice place to come to,’ Nick said placatingly. ‘I’m not surprised you’ve got so many boats here.’

The man looked mollified. ‘Well, it’s not as sophisticated as Milford Haven, but our customers seem to like it.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘I’ve got to make a call, but do you want someone to go and tell Jimmy he’s got visitors?’

‘No, no, it’s fine,’ Nick said. ‘We’re waiting for friends.’

‘Are we?’ Ella asked as they went back down the steps into the sunlight.

‘No,’ he glanced about casually as they strolled along the quay. ‘We’re waiting until we can get through the pontoon gate without anyone seeing us.

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