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Chapters (42)
  1. Chapter One
  2. Chapter Two
  3. Chapter Three
  4. Chapter Four
  5. Chapter Five
  6. Chapter Six
  7. Chapter Seven
  8. Chapter Eight
  9. Chapter Nine
  10. Chapter Ten
  11. Chapter Eleven
  12. Chapter Twelve
  13. Chapter Thirteen
  14. Chapter Fourteen
  15. Chapter Fifteen
  16. Chapter Sixteen
  17. Chapter Seventeen
  18. Chapter Eighteen
  19. Chapter Nineteen
  20. Chapter Twenty
  21. Chapter Twenty-One
  22. Chapter Twenty-Two
  23. Chapter Twenty-Three
  24. Chapter Twenty-Four
  25. Chapter Twenty-Five
  26. Chapter Twenty-Six
  27. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  28. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  29. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  30. Chapter Thirty
  31. Chapter Thirty-One
  32. Chapter Thirty-Two
  33. Chapter Thirty-Three
  34. Chapter Thirty-Four
  35. Chapter Thirty-Five
  36. Chapter Thirty-Six
  37. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  38. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  39. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  40. Chapter Forty
  41. Chapter Forty-One
  42. Chapter Forty-Two

Vera stamped out of the room, leaving Ashworth to follow.

Chapter Twenty

Ashworth thought Vera had seriously messed up the interview with Morgan. Sometimes that happened to her: she let a witness get under her skin, play with her head. Then she completely lost focus. They should have taken time to prepare for this meeting, and now they were leaving with important questions left unanswered. After Vera had clattered down the wooden stairs to the street, Ashworth spent a few moments talking to Morgan, thanking him for his time. On the next occasion he’d come back here on his own. He thought the man still had information to give. Morgan was clearly a pervy bastard, but unlike Vera, Ashworth thought he was sufficiently professional not to let his personal opinion get in the way.

By the time he reached the pavement the two women were walking away from him towards the main street. The spring sun was very low now and he saw them as silhouettes, Vera’s bulk and the girl’s figure slender, willowy, reminding him suddenly of the iconic outlines of Laurel and Hardy at the end of their movies. Turning back towards the sea, he saw a dense, grey bank of fog on the horizon, and a huge tanker emerging from the mouth of the Tyne.

In the street, he kept his distance. The women were already in conversation and he didn’t want to interrupt. They turned into a new cafe bar, and there Ashworth joined them. It was the sort of place his wife might have enjoyed. Unpretentious, solid furniture: scrubbed kitchen tables and wooden chairs, on the wall blackboards showing the menus, mostly local food, fish and lamb. Maybe he’d bring Sarah here next time they were down the coast. There were a couple of highchairs in the corner so they obviously welcomed bairns.

‘This is Joe,’ Vera said. ‘My right-hand man.’

‘I should go back.’ The girl still seemed unsure, ill at ease. She hadn’t yet fallen under Vera’s spell. ‘Michael will be wondering where I am.’

‘No rush.’ Vera took a seat, set her enormous hands flat on the table. ‘He’ll be meditating. You said he wouldn’t want to be interrupted while he was in the middle of meditation.’ And of course Freya had no answer to that. ‘I’ll have a pint, Joe. They stock that ale they make in Allendale. And something to nibble on, because I’m feeling a bit peckish. What about you, love? I suppose you’re off the alcohol, with the baby on the way.’

‘Michael and I don’t drink anyway.’ Freya sat primly, her hands in her lap.

‘Good for you. Orange juice then. Or would you rather have an ice cream?’

The girl regarded Vera suspiciously. Joe thought his boss should cut out the flip remarks, but Freya answered anyway. ‘Orange juice would be fine.’