The moors I live on the edge of have seen it all, heard it all. I love walking across them, the wind lashing my hair and the shadows of the clouds racing across the hillsides. They speak to me, too, in their way. There are ghosts up there. They tell of hardship andcruelty; vast wealth for a few, and indescribable poverty and degradation for the rest. They don’t come up with names, unfortunately.
For that I needed evidence. Van Rees’s new fangled DNA tests and Luke’s computer were more likely to produce the goods, than any half-baked voodoo. About four o’clock I swung the Cavalier into the drive of The Firs, Edgely Lane, and switched off the engine.
Dewhurst’s big Nissan Patrol was standing on a paved area alongside his garage. That could mean he was using the Toyota. He’d told me that he saved it for ‘best’, such as when he was likely to be entertaining clients, or needed to cover large distances as swiftly as possible. The Nissan was his workhorse, handy for carrying samples or delivering rush orders. I did a rough calculation of their value. It came to about twice my annual salary.
The house looked quiet. It’s hard to put a finger on the reason, but you can usually tell when a house is empty. I gave the doorbell a perfunctory stab with a finger and turned to survey the garden. It was about a hundred yards long, but only as wide as the house. A paved area, with rusting barbecue, gave way to lawns which stretched down to an orchard.
For late June the weather was bloody awful. Black clouds were piling up and the tops of the big fir trees gave a sudden shudder as the beginnings ofa cold front caught them. The leylandii reminded me of a Van Gogh painting, done when the black dog of depression was at its most rabid. I shivered and turned up my jacket collar.
His grass was short and neat. There were even parallel lines up and down the lawn, left by the mower. The ground was soft, so I walked flat-footed , trying not to leave too many prints behind. Dewhurst didn’t spend enough time at home to do it himself, so he must have a gardener. I couldn’t see any point in having it all dug up. Not yet.
At the front it was rose beds and an ornamental pool, with concrete cherub. Presumably, in more happy times, it peed into the pond. Then there was the Nissan. Dewhurst had used it on the Friday before Georgina disappeared, on the Sunday when they took Mrs Eaglin home, and also on the Monday morning.
I wandered round it, looking in through the windows. It didn’t look anything special. There was a road atlas on the front seat and a pair of Ray-Bans above the dashboard. Otherwise it was neat and tidy. It was neat and tidy underneath, too. In fact, the whole thing was gleaming like a politician’s smile. I ran my hand inside the wheel arches, like a mother-in-law feeling the tops of the doors, and inspected my fingers. Spotless. I’d put some plastic bags in my boot, in case I collected a few specimens, but it looked as if I wouldn’t need them.
The spare wheel on a Nissan Patrol is carried underneath, at the back, exposed to all the spray from the road. This one was wrapped in black plastic to keep it clean. It was a sensible precaution. I knelt down and reached through to feel the top of the wheel. My hand came back grimy. The front of the spare was probably caked in mud. I needed a sample of that mud, just for the records.
But first I needed the help of a mechanic. A single nut held the wheel in position, but I had nothing that would undo it. I went over to my car and telephoned the station garage. Nobody was available. It was late and they’d all gone home. I rang Jimmy Hoyle.
Jimmy owns a little garage in Heckley. He services cars for a few regular customers and is an expert with a spray gun. My father left me an old Jaguar when he died and Jimmy helped me restore it. We’ve been pals since we played in the same football team. I’d just joined the force and I helped him steer his way out of some
For that I needed evidence. Van Rees’s new fangled DNA tests and Luke’s computer were more likely to produce the goods, than any half-baked voodoo. About four o’clock I swung the Cavalier into the drive of The Firs, Edgely Lane, and switched off the engine.
Dewhurst’s big Nissan Patrol was standing on a paved area alongside his garage. That could mean he was using the Toyota. He’d told me that he saved it for ‘best’, such as when he was likely to be entertaining clients, or needed to cover large distances as swiftly as possible. The Nissan was his workhorse, handy for carrying samples or delivering rush orders. I did a rough calculation of their value. It came to about twice my annual salary.
The house looked quiet. It’s hard to put a finger on the reason, but you can usually tell when a house is empty. I gave the doorbell a perfunctory stab with a finger and turned to survey the garden. It was about a hundred yards long, but only as wide as the house. A paved area, with rusting barbecue, gave way to lawns which stretched down to an orchard.
For late June the weather was bloody awful. Black clouds were piling up and the tops of the big fir trees gave a sudden shudder as the beginnings ofa cold front caught them. The leylandii reminded me of a Van Gogh painting, done when the black dog of depression was at its most rabid. I shivered and turned up my jacket collar.
His grass was short and neat. There were even parallel lines up and down the lawn, left by the mower. The ground was soft, so I walked flat-footed , trying not to leave too many prints behind. Dewhurst didn’t spend enough time at home to do it himself, so he must have a gardener. I couldn’t see any point in having it all dug up. Not yet.
At the front it was rose beds and an ornamental pool, with concrete cherub. Presumably, in more happy times, it peed into the pond. Then there was the Nissan. Dewhurst had used it on the Friday before Georgina disappeared, on the Sunday when they took Mrs Eaglin home, and also on the Monday morning.
I wandered round it, looking in through the windows. It didn’t look anything special. There was a road atlas on the front seat and a pair of Ray-Bans above the dashboard. Otherwise it was neat and tidy. It was neat and tidy underneath, too. In fact, the whole thing was gleaming like a politician’s smile. I ran my hand inside the wheel arches, like a mother-in-law feeling the tops of the doors, and inspected my fingers. Spotless. I’d put some plastic bags in my boot, in case I collected a few specimens, but it looked as if I wouldn’t need them.
The spare wheel on a Nissan Patrol is carried underneath, at the back, exposed to all the spray from the road. This one was wrapped in black plastic to keep it clean. It was a sensible precaution. I knelt down and reached through to feel the top of the wheel. My hand came back grimy. The front of the spare was probably caked in mud. I needed a sample of that mud, just for the records.
But first I needed the help of a mechanic. A single nut held the wheel in position, but I had nothing that would undo it. I went over to my car and telephoned the station garage. Nobody was available. It was late and they’d all gone home. I rang Jimmy Hoyle.
Jimmy owns a little garage in Heckley. He services cars for a few regular customers and is an expert with a spray gun. My father left me an old Jaguar when he died and Jimmy helped me restore it. We’ve been pals since we played in the same football team. I’d just joined the force and I helped him steer his way out of some
Similar Books
