He’d seen Jac McElroy head into the building at 6.18 p.m., but it was almost two hours before he saw McElroy leave again — with a girl.
That was strange. Nel-M hadn’t seen the girl go into the building and, from the information he’d so far gained, McElroy was meant to be single, wasn’t shacked-up with anyone.
Well, he’d soon know what the score was. They looked dressed for the night out, but still Nel-M left it ten minutes before going into the building, in case they forgot something they needed to go back for.
Straightforward bar and tumbler lock, Nel-M had it opened with a pick and credit card in just fifty seconds. He went round the whole apartment first to get his bearings before starting to go through drawers and wardrobes. He paused in thought as he finished, then gave all the side tables and shelves one last scan.
Not a single bra, panty or stocking in any of the drawers, and no make-up or women’s perfume to be found anywhere. So, for sure, she wasn’t living here with McElroy. Maybe she had sneaked in the building without him noticing. Nel-M shook his head. This one was a twenty-four carat babe. He’d have spotted her in a crowd at a hundred paces, even if he was half-comatose.
Strange, too, that there wasn’t a single photo of her anywhere. Either she was a very recent event, or McElroy wasn’t that serious about her.
Nel-M sat back in a nearby armchair and eased out a long breath. There was something else niggling at the back of his mind about the girl, but he just couldn’t put his finger on it.
He glanced at his watch, timing for when they’d probably be back.
Much of the conversation from Jac’s side was the same as two nights ago with Jennifer Bromwell, but practically everything else was different.
They’d gone to a more formal restaurant, Begue’s, and the waiter was over-attentive, kept asking if everything was to Monsieur and Madame’s liking or there was anything else that they desired. ‘Yes, Monsieur would like to be left alone without interruption for ten minutes so that at least he is given a chance of impressing the girl of his dreams.’
Dreams? That was half the problem right there. In the same way that Jennifer Bromwell complained of boyfriends being intimidated by her father’s money, he found himself intimidated by Alaysha Reyner’s beauty. His mouth felt constantly dry and he kept sipping repeatedly at his water, and he could tell from her facial expressions that he wasn’t hitting the right notes.
Maybe because it had been so long since Madeleine, and he was coming across as too anxious, over-eager. Or because part of his thoughts were still tied up with Durrant: Haveling had phoned to say that Marmont was off the critical list, one bit of positive news, at least; but he’d found himself dwelling more and more on his meeting with Francine Durrant. Something perhaps he’d missed, some way of convincing her to get Joshua to make contact again with his father? Or, if there was to be no more contact, any other way of shifting Larry’s stance?
The thoughts spun through Jac’s mind as he took his shower, the water running for so long that he shook off a shiver, along with his unresolved thoughts, as he finally got out. And the same thoughts were plaguing him again now as he focused back on Alaysha Reyner across the candle-lit table, and forced his best smile.
There’d even been, as with Jennifer Bromwell two nights back, a confession from Alaysha when she thought the moment was right.
‘I wanted to put this on the table straight away — because a lot of guys don’t handle it too well, including my ex.’ She grimaced wryly, glancing to the side to make sure their over-attentive waiter wasn’t within earshot. ‘And so I think it’s only fair that you should know straight-off: I work as a lap-dancer.’
‘Oh, I see.’
But even that part he’d got wrong. He’d kept his reaction bland so as not to give away that he already suspected: ‘I just don’t like other guys looking at you like that.’ But from her eyes searching his, he could tell that she’d expected something more, and it had probably come across that he was shocked or offended, and had opted for a bland reaction to mask it.
‘It’s mainly to keep my little girl, Molly. She’s only four now. Her father and I were never married and, besides, he headed for the hills within six months of her birth. And not a penny in maintenance since… so it’s just been down to me. I’ve been interested in interior decor for a while, just bits here and there for friends, but I decided in the end to take a course… and that meant extra money. So I thought — I’ve got maybe four or five good years left in me before…’
As she fought to explain, he felt he had to stop her. He reached a hand across the table. ‘Really, you don’t need to justify it to me. I’m not shocked or put out by it. All those years in France — most of the girls wore the same as the average lap dancer on the beaches every day. I’d have to be a real hypocrite to be shocked by that.’ He smiled coyly and shook his head. ‘But I didn’t want to smile and be too positive about it — otherwise you might think I’m a real lech.’
Her return smile rose uncertainly as she squeezed his hand back. ‘Thanks. I appreciate it.’
A couple of favour points gained. Perhaps, if lucky, he was scoring four out of ten now.
Maybe, the thought hit him, he could tell Larry he knew about the e-mails from Joshua, say that he was sure they’d start again later. Convince Larry to hang on. But then that would also mean giving away that he’d heard it from Rodriguez, when he’d promised Rodriguez that he wouldn’t betray that confidence.
‘Something bothering you?’
Jac brought his attention sharply back. ‘Sorry. Problems with a case I’m handling. One of those impossible Catch-22’s you get hit with every now and then.’
‘Oh?’
Jac hadn’t intended to say anything originally, but now it seemed odd holding back, and at least it removed the spectre that what was troubling him might have been due to her. He kept Durrant’s name out of it in deference to client confidentiality, it was all just this prisoner throughout. ‘As you can see, a pretty bitter history on both sides, him and his wife, and ironically much of it revolving around his son and those same broken promises that are weighing him down so.’
Alaysha’s face clouded briefly. She ran one fingertip halfway round the rim of her wine glass. ‘So if there was contact again from his son, you think that might change his stance? Solve the problem?
‘Yeah. High chances. But it doesn’t look like there’s any way of that happening.’
She gave a pained, understanding smile, but then as she fell silent and thoughtful, the noise of the restaurant around crashing in for a moment, Jac feared he’d said too much. Spoilt whatever remaining chances he had by burdening her with his work problems. Though as she started to open up with some of her own problems, he realized that she’d just been thinking about what or what not to share, or whether to say anything at all. And as for the first time the tension between them eased, he knew that it had been the right thing to do. For the first hour or so, they’d just been politely fencing with each other; now they were getting to the core of what shaped and drove them.
As Alaysha Reyner talked, the stark differences to Jennifer Bromwell’s life became apparent. Where Jennifer had been financially cosseted, Alaysha’s background had been one of dire poverty, the family arriving from Port of Spain when she was only seven and her father got a job with a local New Orleans trawling fleet. Things eased financially for a while, but when her mother felt she couldn’t take any more of her husband’s erratic behaviour and periodic beatings, they parted and Alaysha’s father quickly disappeared to avoid maintenance payments. They were on their own and in dire straits again, with a vengeance. And that had practically been the pattern since. Alaysha had gone out to work rather than go on to university, mainly so that she could earn to provide for her mother and younger brother.