the Force news-sheet he’d been reading onto the counter. His eyes were hard, more black than brown, and the lines on his face, deeply etched, spoke of a sense of almost permanent irritation. Here was a man unused to being kept waiting.
‘And you are … ?’
‘D/I Faraday. You’ll have talked to my colleague, D/C Suttle.’
Benskin’s handshake was firm. He looked Faraday in the eye a second or two longer than was necessary, watched him punch the numbers into the door lock, then followed him upstairs.
Tracy Barber was already unloading the coffees onto Faraday’s desk. Benskin caught her eye before Faraday had a chance to do the introductions.
‘You do tea as well?’
‘Whatever.’
‘If you don’t mind, love. Earl Grey if you’ve got it.’
The word ‘love’ brought Barber to a halt beside the door. She might have been a year or two younger than this man but she always stood her ground.
‘The name’s D/C Barber,’ she said, ‘next time you want to ask a favour.’
Benskin watched her leave, his thin mouth curled in what might have been a smile.
‘Stroppy,’ he said softly. ‘We like that.’
Faraday ignored the comment. By the time Barber returned with the tea, he’d established that Benskin had been in his apartment in Limehouse on Monday night. He’d spent the evening working on his laptop in preparation for yesterday’s meeting in Barcelona. This morning he’d driven across to Wimbledon to pick up Sally and bring her down to Portsmouth. To be frank, he said, he thought she was still in shock.
‘She’s a strong woman, Sally.’ Benskin was watching Barber. ‘But no one can really handle something like this.’
‘I’m sure you’re right. How well did you know them? As a couple?’
‘As well as I know anyone. Better probably. People say there’s no sentiment in my game. That’s a lie.’ He threw the phrase out like a challenge.
‘You’ve been together how long? You and Mr Mallinder?’
‘Eight years. Give or take.’
‘You knew him before?’
‘Before when?’
‘Before you went into business together.’
‘Yeah, by reputation I did. He was with another firm, much bigger. He put together some bits of land in Slough. I liked the way he did it. Land assembly in a place like that can easily turn into a nightmare. He did it brilliantly. No drama. Everyone still mates at the end.’
‘The name of this firm?’ The question came from Barber. Benskin was looking at the notebook open on her lap.
‘What’s the form here?’ He addressed the question to Faraday.
‘It’s an interview, Mr Benskin. We ask the questions; you tell us about your partner. You’ll appreciate our need to know. At this stage in the inquiry, to be frank, we’re pretty much in the dark about what your firm’s been up to. Pretend we know nothing. Just make that assumption.’
‘I never make assumptions. Is this on the record?’
‘D/C Barber keeps notes but you’re not under caution so none of this is admissible.’
‘In court, you mean?’
‘Of course.’ Faraday offered him a cold smile. He wanted to know more about Benskin, Mallinder. Had Benskin been operating on his own before Mallinder’s arrival?
‘No. I was with another company. Not Mallinder’s outfit.’
‘So the business started with the pair of you?’
‘That’s right.’
‘Equal shares?’
‘Down the middle. Jonno bought one kind of expertise to the table, me another. We were a perfect fit. That’s the way I saw it from the off and that’s the way it played out.’
‘What was Mallinder’s …’ Faraday frowned ‘… special talent?’
‘Negotiation. Face to face, he was awesome. He could strip the flesh from your bones and you’d still be smiling when they carted you off. To be frank, I never quite worked out how he did it. Maybe it’s a Jewish thing. Maybe it’s in the blood. When he needed to be, he was ruthless as hell. But you still loved the guy, regardless.’
‘And your special
‘And you are … ?’
‘D/I Faraday. You’ll have talked to my colleague, D/C Suttle.’
Benskin’s handshake was firm. He looked Faraday in the eye a second or two longer than was necessary, watched him punch the numbers into the door lock, then followed him upstairs.
Tracy Barber was already unloading the coffees onto Faraday’s desk. Benskin caught her eye before Faraday had a chance to do the introductions.
‘You do tea as well?’
‘Whatever.’
‘If you don’t mind, love. Earl Grey if you’ve got it.’
The word ‘love’ brought Barber to a halt beside the door. She might have been a year or two younger than this man but she always stood her ground.
‘The name’s D/C Barber,’ she said, ‘next time you want to ask a favour.’
Benskin watched her leave, his thin mouth curled in what might have been a smile.
‘Stroppy,’ he said softly. ‘We like that.’
Faraday ignored the comment. By the time Barber returned with the tea, he’d established that Benskin had been in his apartment in Limehouse on Monday night. He’d spent the evening working on his laptop in preparation for yesterday’s meeting in Barcelona. This morning he’d driven across to Wimbledon to pick up Sally and bring her down to Portsmouth. To be frank, he said, he thought she was still in shock.
‘She’s a strong woman, Sally.’ Benskin was watching Barber. ‘But no one can really handle something like this.’
‘I’m sure you’re right. How well did you know them? As a couple?’
‘As well as I know anyone. Better probably. People say there’s no sentiment in my game. That’s a lie.’ He threw the phrase out like a challenge.
‘You’ve been together how long? You and Mr Mallinder?’
‘Eight years. Give or take.’
‘You knew him before?’
‘Before when?’
‘Before you went into business together.’
‘Yeah, by reputation I did. He was with another firm, much bigger. He put together some bits of land in Slough. I liked the way he did it. Land assembly in a place like that can easily turn into a nightmare. He did it brilliantly. No drama. Everyone still mates at the end.’
‘The name of this firm?’ The question came from Barber. Benskin was looking at the notebook open on her lap.
‘What’s the form here?’ He addressed the question to Faraday.
‘It’s an interview, Mr Benskin. We ask the questions; you tell us about your partner. You’ll appreciate our need to know. At this stage in the inquiry, to be frank, we’re pretty much in the dark about what your firm’s been up to. Pretend we know nothing. Just make that assumption.’
‘I never make assumptions. Is this on the record?’
‘D/C Barber keeps notes but you’re not under caution so none of this is admissible.’
‘In court, you mean?’
‘Of course.’ Faraday offered him a cold smile. He wanted to know more about Benskin, Mallinder. Had Benskin been operating on his own before Mallinder’s arrival?
‘No. I was with another company. Not Mallinder’s outfit.’
‘So the business started with the pair of you?’
‘That’s right.’
‘Equal shares?’
‘Down the middle. Jonno bought one kind of expertise to the table, me another. We were a perfect fit. That’s the way I saw it from the off and that’s the way it played out.’
‘What was Mallinder’s …’ Faraday frowned ‘… special talent?’
‘Negotiation. Face to face, he was awesome. He could strip the flesh from your bones and you’d still be smiling when they carted you off. To be frank, I never quite worked out how he did it. Maybe it’s a Jewish thing. Maybe it’s in the blood. When he needed to be, he was ruthless as hell. But you still loved the guy, regardless.’
‘And your special
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