Sally smiles again, but then she crinkles her nose. ‘The only thing is, I don’t have a clue how to retrieve the footage. Let me get my partner in crime.’ She pauses and two pink spots sprout on her cheeks. ‘Sorry, I didn’t mean … Anyway, Kat’s much better at the technical stuff than me. Hold on.’ She disappears behind an orange-and-charcoal-striped curtain at the back of the shop. She’s gone much longer than Joe would have expected for such a small shop, but eventually returns with her colleague in tow. With dyed red hair, broad physique and fierce expression, the partner in crime is definitely more wildcat than friendly tabby. Jason gives Joe a look that says your turn, and he picks up the mantle.

‘Thanks for helping out with the CCTV.’

Kat nods. She looks nervous, which Joe is used to, but also slightly hostile. Joe wonders what her background is, and whether a run-in with the police has featured in it at some point. ‘It’s only got a ninety-degree view angle,’ she says, her voice carrying a defensive undertone too. ‘Did Sally tell you that? It won’t pick up anything outside the squat.’

‘Don’t worry,’ he says, using his good-natured voice. ‘We’re looking for anything in the general vicinity that might help us. Could we start from about 10 p.m.?’

‘Ten?’ Kat repeats, unnecessarily, as though buying time. Joe doesn’t respond, and eventually she clambers behind the desk. As she types something into the keyboard, Joe can see that her fingers are trembling. Then she swivels the screen so that Joe can see it across the desk and loads a security company website. Finally, some footage emerges on the screen. Joe leans in.

About half an hour, and thirty-seven fragments of footage later, he leans back.

‘Nothing of interest,’ he sighs. ‘Just the usual Friday night foot traffic.’

‘Sorry,’ Kat says, although she doesn’t sound like she means it.

‘I guess there was only ever a fifty-fifty chance that the assailant would come from this direction,’ Jason surmises. He doesn’t look particularly bothered either. Like Joe, he knows that detective work is at least ninety per cent wasted time.

‘Sorry we couldn’t help,’ Sally says ruefully. ‘Is there anything else we can do?’

Joe feels his phone rumble in his pocket and pulls it out. It’s the hospital. ‘No, it’s fine, I should probably take this.’ He points at his phone, but doesn’t wait for their response before backing out of the shop, the jangle of the bell more irritating now. ‘Hello?’

‘DC Stone? This is Samantha at St George’s ICU. I thought you’d like to know that Mark Sullivan has just woken up.’

Chapter 47

Chapter 47

Beth