‘And by that she means me?’
Sid nodded. ‘That was the gist, yes. I’m sorry . . .’
Charlie began crying, and Sid went to see to him.
Matt looked at Anna, who squeezed his arm.
‘You can handle her,’ she said reassuringly.
Matt was about to reply when Diane tapped him on the shoulder and waggled a mobile phone in his face.
‘I’ve got Jeremy Benson from Blandings and Co. on the line.’
‘Who?’ mouthed Matt as she handed him the phone. Diane’s expression told him that it was serious.
‘Is that Donovan?’ barked an upper-class voice.
‘Yes,’ he replied.
‘Jeremy Benson,’ said the man, as if Matt would know exactly who he was talking to. ‘It’s been six months since the case concluded, and Mr Taht would like the laptop returned. As I am assuming that no appeals are to be made on either side, we would appreciate getting it back immediately.’
‘I don’t believe we’ve spoken before, Mr Benson.’
‘Don’t be an idiot, Donovan,’ the other man snapped. ‘I’ve not got time.’
The penny dropped.
‘Sorry, Mr Benson. This isn’t Larry, I’m Matthew Donovan, his son.’
There was a disapproving tsk.
‘Well where the hell is he?’
‘He’s on sick leave, I’m afraid.’
Benson didn’t waste any time enquiring about Larry’s health.
‘So who’s dealing with his caseload?’
‘Helen Pierce is your first port of call, but she’s on holiday.’
‘Doesn’t anyone work at your firm? Listen, Donovan, or whoever you are, we have made numerous requests about retrieving Mr Taht’s laptop, yet we are still waiting. This is a very poor show and I want to know what you’re going to do about it.’
Matt tried to keep his cool.
‘Leave it with me, Mr Benson. I will track down Mr Taht’s property personally.’
‘See that you do,’ said Benson. ‘We don’t want any unpleasantness.’
The line went dead, and Matt was left standing there wondering what had just happened.
Sighing, he walked away from the crowd to the bar’s entrance, where it was quieter, dialling up Larry’s number.
‘Matty! Wonderful to hear from you,’ came the cheerful reply. ‘Is that a party I can hear in the background?’
‘Listen, Dad. Does a Mr Taht’s laptop mean anything to you?’
There was an ominous pause.