AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“What could she do?” asked Reilly.
“She could have reported it to the police,” said Longstaff.
“That probably wouldn’t have achieved anything, Emma,” said Gardener. “It would have been Carrie Fletcher’s word against Robbie Carter’s, and it’s very unlikely that a wife would have gone against her husband.”
“Why not?”
“Had she been so minded, she would have reported it herself,” said Reilly.
“Anyway,” said Gardener. “We were really pleased to find Carrie Fletcher, and she’s given us more to think about.” He added his notes to the board before turning to address his men again. “So, before I continue, does anyone have anything to report on the man himself?”
“I’m no further on, sir,” said Colin Sharp. “I’ve checked the electoral roll, which only goes to confirm when he moved into the area. He’s been here four years, but I can’t find anything previous to that. Well, not strictly true, I can find lots of Robbie Carters, but none of them are ours.”
“Is it possible he changed his identity before coming here?” asked Rawson.
“That’s a very good point, Dave,” said Gardener. “And one we have to consider. All of this is assuming that Robbie Carter is the killer,” said Gardener. “But he may not be. I thought you’d all like to know that Manny Walters is locked up in a cell as we speak.”
A collective “nice one” was voiced from the team.
“How did we get him?” Rawson asked.
Cragg laughed. “He were up to no good, as usual.” With Mike Atherton’s help, he explained the incident with the fire extinguishers.
The team erupted with laughter.
“Have you interviewed him yet, sir?” asked Patrick Edwards.
“No,” said Gardener. “We haven’t stopped today, but letting him stew won’t hurt. Maybe you want to tell them about your discovery, Patrick.”
“There’s more?” asked Anderson.
“Maybe things are looking up after all,” said Gates.
“I got a call from the man at the music shop this morning, about a red Strat a young lad had just bought. To cut a long story short he bought it from Baz Ronson, didn’t know it was stolen. We picked Ronson up this afternoon. He squealed the minute he realised it was part of a murder investigation. He bought it from Manny Walters, so that ties that bit up nicely.”
“Are we sure it’s Robbie Carter’s?”
“Yes,” said Edwards. “He’d been in the shop the day before, offering Terry Jones fifty quid if it turned up to tell him first, not us.”
“Which means he isn’t missing,” added Reilly.
“But he must be desperate for that guitar,” said Rawson.
“Why?” Benson asked. “Is it a decent bit of kit then, Patrick?”
“It looks old and well used, but according to Terry Jones, the neck is warped.”
“Has he any idea why?” asked Reilly.
“Not really. He can only think that it’s took a bit of a blow at some time.”
“How does a guitar take a blow?” asked Rawson. “It’s not the kind of thing you swing around or knock into walls, is it?”
“Depends who you are, son,” said Reilly. “I remember years ago when The Who used to finish concerts by destroying their gear, smashing it up on stage. But it wasn’t the real top stuff. They all used to come on for an encore with cheap instruments, and smash ’em up to get themselves noticed.”
“Can you have another word with Terry Jones, Patrick?” asked Gardener. “Get him to check the guitar more closely, see if he can offer any explanation on the damage?”
“Will do, sir.”
