‘Williams?’
‘Yes…you know, I don’t wish to speak ill of the dead ‘Don’t then. Speak accurately of them.’
Ffoulkes smiled. ‘Yes…once I saw a side to him I didn’t like. Didn’t like at all. Accepted an invitation to his house…not what I expected…the bumbling, jovial, dapper Williams was a sour individual at home…everything in its place…a tyrant, I thought…and the tension between him and his wife, you could cut it with a knife. Their son was there, on leave from the navy. There was a lot of tension between them, cold, simmering tension…him and his son, him and his wife…son and mother…just an impression. But it was a strong enough impression that I didn’t accept any further invitations to socialize with the family. All that vintage claret gone to waste.’
Yellich walked out of the ancient stone doorway of the Yorkshire and Lancashire Bank and into Davygate. A hot, dry day in the ancient city; the tourists in one’s and two’s, family groups and school parties and the noise and the colour and the spectacle of the street entertainers; the buskers, the puppeteers, the fire-eater, the man on stilts. And the beggars in the doorways.
Vibrancy.
‘You know, Shored-up, I’ll never fathom you. Truly I never will.’
‘All part of the intrigue, Mr Hennessey, all part of the intrigue. How did you get here, car?’
‘Yes.’
‘I came by train. Pleasant ride from York. Especially this time of the year. Lovely countryside.’
Shored-up was, Hennessey found, to be in his usual confident manner. A tweed jacket, despite the heat, a Panama hat, a white shirt, tie with crest upon it, dark flannels, brogues, all cutting a dash, an English gentleman of military bearing, by manner and appearance.
‘Can’t get lost, just a short walk from the railway station to the abbey.’
‘And here we are.’
Hennessey and Shored-up strolled around the imposing building that was Selby Abbey, a mass of light grey stone against a blue sky, planted, it had always seemed to Hennessey, on the flat green landscape.
‘It’s your games, Shored-up. If it’s not a pub which only the devil would know existed in Doncaster, it’s the junction of two minor roads in the middle of nowhere…or it’s telephoning a public call box which turned out to be in Thirsk. Why Thirsk?’
‘Same as the pub in Doncaster, which I have heard referred to as “Donny”, same as the road junction, same reason as Selby Abbey…prying eyes, Mr Hennessey, prying eyes. If the criminal fraternity know that I give information to the boys in blue, I will be black-balled.’
‘The entire criminal fraternity gives information to the boys in blue, they do it all the time.’
‘Ah, but with what quality, what consistency? I am what is known as a grass. I want not my throat cut nor my body to be flung in the Ouse. The criminals in the Vale like me, Mr Hennessey, they know that with my background I offer them a touch of class.’
‘Which regiment did you serve in as the adjutant?’
‘The Green Howards.’
‘You’d better get your act straightened, Shored-up, the last time I asked you that question the answer was the Royal Welsh Fusiliers.’
‘Yes…’ Shored-up forced a smile.
‘You may impress your apprentice criminals who look to you as a father figure, but don’t try it on with me. You know and I know that the only army you’ve been near is the Salvation Army. Your mannerisms come from hanging around hotels and the like being a keen observer of the pukka, pukka English at play and your clothes show what can be had from the charity shops for less than a good night in the pub. So don’t put it on.’
‘Mr Hennessey, you do me a disservice.’
‘I’m coming up to retirement, Shored-up, long earned, long looked forward to and, I feel, much deserved, and you and I are going to meet on my second last day of employment.’
‘We are?’
‘We are. And just for my edification, for my ears and no other ears, you will tell me what you did that we don’t know about: how many scams have you been involved in, how many times have you sold partnerships in the Humber Bridge Company to unsuspecting widows? Or shares in Colombian tin mines?’
‘You know, I have a respect for you, Mr Hennessey, you are the only police officer to have secured a conviction against me.’
‘I remember. You got five years for fraud.’
‘It was, in effect, a three-year holiday in Ford open prison. On the first day they said, “If you go out, please don’t cut a hole in the fence, just walk out through the gate, we won’t stop you.” Then I knew I was home. Got fit in the gym, read a lot…missed the ladies though, did miss the ladies. And the occasional glass of chilled Frascati.’
‘So you have information for me?’
‘Good heavens, no.’ Shored-up looked and sounded shocked.
‘Shored-up…’ Hennessey stopped walking and menaced Shored-up with eye contact.
‘Nothing for you, old man. What’s that quaint Yorkshire expression, “nowt for nowt and damn little for sixpence”. No, I’ve got something to sell.’
‘How much?’
‘At least two hundred pounds.’
‘Two hundred…my super will not run to that.’
‘He’ll have to.’ Shored-up continued to walk. Reluctantly, Hennessey fell in with him. ‘It’s worth it. I know the value of my information, my track record in these matters is good.’
‘I’ll give you that,’ Hennessey growled.
‘How much police time can be bought for two hundred pounds?’
‘Not a lot.’
‘About a man day when all travelling expenses and clerical and admin support are taken into account?’
‘About.’
‘With this information you can crack the case.’
‘Which case?’
‘The Williams murder case.’
‘What do you know about that?’
‘Two hundred pounds worth. It’s worth more, but seeing as it’s you, and seeing that Max Williams and I knew each other…’
‘You did?’
‘Business partners…Max, good man, he put up some money to fund a venture I had devised, quite a lot of money…would have made us both rich…unfortunately, while the idea was brilliant, the timing was faulty and the public just were not ready for the product and poor Max lost his money and I had to go back to taking what work I could.’
‘I bet. How many Social Security numbers have you got, Shored-up?’
‘Oh, more than one, a fella can’t live on what the Social Security pay, oh no…you see, if the government would enable honest folk to live on Social Security, then honest folk wouldn’t have to be dishonest in order to make ends meet. So increase benefit levels. It would be less expensive in the long run, less thieving, less police needed, less court time.’
‘Never figured you for a liberal, Shored-up. You live and you learn.’
‘Two hundred pounds. Times are hard. And that’s cheap.’
‘All right, but if it turns out to be duff, not only will it be the last bit of grass I buy from you, but I’ll pull your ever expanding file and I’ll nail you for something, and your feet won’t touch.’
‘I do enjoy a challenge, Mr Hennessey.’
‘So?’
‘Well, about ten years ago.’
‘Ten years?’
‘That’s what I said.’
‘Well, you know, the other day, I was talking to a fella and he told me that he was talking to a fella…and the upshot of this is that ten years ago poor Max Williams’s brother died.’ ‘I didn’t know Max Williams had a brother.’
‘Well now, I’m earning my crust already, am I not?’