Nothing Ventured (Detective William Warwick 1)

‘Not a dicky bird,’ said Reg.

‘Of course not,’ said Lamont. ‘Leigh wouldn’t risk repeating the message twice, so the Hawk will have to decide if that is enough for us to mount a full operation.’

‘I would,’ said William.

‘You haven’t got his job yet, laddie.’

The first thing William did after they’d returned to Scotland Yard was to look up a number in the S-Z telephone directory.

‘This is Detective Constable Warwick,’ he told the girl who answered the phone. ‘Can you tell me if an Edward Leigh was ever a student at the Slade? It would probably have been around the early 1960s.’

‘Give me a moment, Mr Warwick, and I’ll look up the name.’ A few minutes later she came back on the line. ‘Yes, he graduated with honours in 1962. In fact, he won the founder’s prize that year, and his one-man show was a sell-out.’

‘Thank you, that’s most helpful.’ William put the phone down, and smiled after he checked another file that confirmed Faulkner had attended the Slade between 1960 and 1963. Fred Yates had taught him never to believe in coincidences.

William spent the next hour writing up his report on the visit to Pentonville. After putting it on Lamont’s desk, he checked his watch. Although it was only 5.30, he felt he could leave before the light under the Hawk’s door was switched off.

He grabbed his coat and was about to slink out when Jackie said, ‘Have a good weekend. You’ve earned it.’

‘Thanks,’ said William, who couldn’t wait to see Beth, and tell her there was just a possibility she might be reunited with the other man in her life.

Back at his room in Trenchard House, he showered and changed into more casual clothes. He was looking forward to a weekend of debauchery. Well, his idea of debauchery – a meal at Elena’s, a couple of glasses of red wine, a run around Hyde Park in the morning and the latest film in the evening – anything that didn’t have cops in it – and tucked up in bed with Beth by eleven.

He decided to walk to Beth’s so he could pick up some flowers on the way. By the time he reached her front door, he could feel his heartbeat quickening. He knocked twice and a moment later Jez appeared, looked at the flowers and said, ‘Are those for me?’

‘You wish.’

‘But Beth’s gone away for the weekend.’

‘What? I thought that—’

‘She asked me to apologize. Something came up at the last minute. She’ll call y

ou as soon as she gets back.’

‘Then they are for you,’ said William, thrusting the flowers into his hands.

Jez watched as the forlorn suitor turned around and walked slowly away, shoulders slumped. He closed the door and returned to the sitting room, where he handed the flowers to Beth and said, ‘Don’t you think it’s time you told him the truth?’

18

BETH PHONED WILLIAM at home on Sunday night to apologize, explaining that she’d had to visit a friend in hospital, and she’d been nervous about calling him at work.

‘Of course you can ring if it’s something important enough to deprive me of sleep,’ said William.

‘Can you come to supper tomorrow?’

‘As long as something else doesn’t come up,’ said William, regretting how harsh his words must have sounded the moment he put down the phone.

William was the first to arrive at the office on Monday morning. He sat down at his desk and was about to open one of his case files when the phone rang. He immediately recognized the voice on the other end of the line.

‘William, you asked me to let you know as soon as Carter had been granted a licence to search for the Patrice,’ said Lieutenant Monti. ‘It was rubber stamped this morning, and posted to his home address. So he should have it by the end of the week.’

‘Thank you, Toni. I’ll tell the boss immediately.’

‘Tell me what?’ said Lamont, who had just walked into the room.

‘Carter’s been granted his exploration licence, so he could be on the move within days.’