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“And she lives in Esholt?”
“Yes.”
“And you stayed there last night?”
“Most of it.”
“Most? Where were you when you were not at home?”
“I had a walk down to the boozer at the end of the street. Left my wife and her sister to have a chat.”
“Does the sister have a husband?”
“No, he died a few years ago.”
“What time did you leave them?”
“About nine. I don’t know, I never looked too closely at the clock. I was too fucking worried about what was happening to my family and my business.”
“Think,” said Gardener. “We need to know.”
“Maybe it was eight,” said Billy. “That bloody soap had just finished, Coronation Street. That’s a laugh. They want to try living real lives. Like mine, for instance.”
“So, you left at eight,” said Gardener. “The pub is at the end of the street. You got there when?”
“It took me ten minutes to walk.”
“How long did you stay?”
“About two hours.”
“See anyone you know?”
“Hardly, I’m not from that neck of the woods, am I?”
“Did you do anything while you were there?” asked Gardener. “Strike up a conversation with anyone?”
“A game of darts, maybe,” said Reilly. “Or pool?”
“This is important. We need s
omeone to vouch for you.”
“Go and see the bloody barman then. He served me my drinks.”
“So, you left around ten o’clock,” pressed Gardener.
“Yes. The news had just started on the TV. That good enough for you?”
“So you got home when, ten past ten? Can anyone vouch for that?”
“Yes, my wife and her sister.”
“And after that you stayed in all night?”
“Yes. They’d just opened a bottle of wine, so I got another beer out of the fridge.”
“What time did you go to bed?”
