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Liz was crouched beside one of the men, and Gabriella glanced into the post office, but no one had come out in response to the gun shot.

“I’ll call the police,” she called and ran inside.

A woman stood at a counter, her gaze fixed on the van through the post office door, looking frozen in shock.

“We need the police,” Gabriella said. “Can you pass me the phone?”

The woman looked over at her, saw the uniform, and shoved the phone across the counter at her.

“Get some blankets, if you have them,” Gabriella told her, and she gave a nod, like she was coming out of a dream, and rushed to the back.

Gabriella made a quick call to the main police line, then put down the receiver as the woman came out with two massive blankets that looked like they were used to pack furniture.

They laid them down on the floor and went out to get the two men, so by the time the police arrived, they were inside, lying down, and the lady from the counter had gone into the back to make them tea.

Gabriella recognized PS Yates right away.

He noticed her, too, and gave her a friendly nod.

She was standing with Liz, sipping the coffee from her thermos, just inside the post office. They were leaning against a wall to one side, out of the way, but they assumed they’d better stay to speak to the police before they carried on with their rounds.

“This is situation normal for you, isn’t it?” Liz had asked after the initial excitement had died down. “In the middle of the drama.”

“You see how much fun it is?” Gabriella asked, and Liz sent her a quick, laughing look just before the police came flying in, sirens wailing.

“Miss Farnsworth.” PS Yates came over after talking to the bobbies who had arrived first. “How are you involved in this?”

“As a witness,” Gabriella said. “We were having our sandwiches out of the rain, and it happened in front of us.”

PS Yates got out a notepad and began to make notes. “Anything urgent you’d like to tell me, before I get someone to take your statements?”

“Just that I looked to see which direction they ran in, and it was down to the corner and to the right.”

PS Yates gave a nod of approval. “That is useful, thank you.”

“You’re a pro,” Liz said, and Gabriella honestly couldn’t tell if she was taking the mickey or not.

“Enough of a pro to know we need to tell someone we’re leaving or they’ll take our statement when they feel like it.” Gabriella put her thermos away. She had a feeling this might be the kind of crime DI Layman investigated, and she didn’t want to be here if he arrived. She was pretty sure he would not be happy about her being on the scene of a gun robbery two days in a row.

chapter

thirteen

James stood under the post office awning, the wind flapping his coat, as the scene of crime officers fished out the bullet in the van’s tire.

“If it’s a .38 caliber, things are ramping up,” Hartridge said.

PS Yates was talking to Layman to one side, and James went over to join them.

Yates looked pleased to see him, perhaps because he was a familiar face amongst all the men in the Squad.

“Archer. Good to see you again.” They shook hands.

“You obviously know each other?” Layman asked.

“PS Yates and I had an overlapping case back in the summer,” James said.

“Do you remember Miss Farnsworth?” Yates asked. “The traffic warden from that stabbing case? She was one of the witnesses to this.”