‘Which campsite did you say it was?’

‘The Green Lead Slate Camp, behind the pub on the corner. Not a bad place, cheap. I’ve stayed in worse,’ Neil said.

Kelly knew there was CCTV there, because she’d requested it before, in an old case that sent shivers down her spine. She tapped her pen on her pad.

‘Is that where you met him?’

‘Yeah, he was hanging about; he was banging on the door of the big white pub, shouting at them to let him in for a lock-in,’ Neil laughed at the fond memory. ‘He said they should open for him because he had a wad of cash as big as his pocket.’

Kelly spoke to the officers. ‘Clarify it’s the White Lion in Patterdale that he’s talking about,’ she said. It was.

The landlord would surely remember a pisshead banging on their door past closing, demanding more booze. They might have CCTV too. It was another lead at least.

She instructed the constables to get a description of the man and press Hardy further for information. He had nowhere else to be in a hurry.

Chapter 38

Kelly called the proprietor of the White Lion pub in Patterdale and spoke to a waitress preparing for evening service.

She said she’d go and find somebody in charge. Anybody who might give her some answers would do.

Finally a woman came on the phone and shouted at it, as if the receiver was hard of hearing. Kelly pulled the phone back from her ear.

‘This is Detective Inspector Kelly Porter,’ she repeated.

‘Oh. The police?’ The woman’s nature changed instantly. At least Kelly now had her attention. The woman confirmed she was on shift on Sunday night and she did indeed remember a man banging on the door gone midnight, demanding more booze.

‘It’s not unusual. Are we in trouble? I didn’t let him in.’

‘No, not at all, all I want to know is if you knew him.’

‘Oh yes, he’s done it before. It was Paul Edderbridge. Proper dickhead, excuse me. He’s a real pain sometimes. He just needs a firm hand, but some of the younger girls are afraid of him.’