Winter Frost

'The lady in question insisted on payment in cash, and I didn't have any on me.'

Frost frowned. 'Are you telling us that you drew money out to go with a prostitute?'

Ashby hung his head. 'I'm not proud of myself, Inspector, but yes.'

After a session with your receptionist,' said Frost, 'I doubt if I would have had the strength to crawl back to my car, let alone go with another woman.' He pulled the cap from his pen. 'Details, please, so we can check.'

'I was out of luck, Inspector. When I got back, I couldn't find her, or anyone. I drove around looking for a while, then returned home.'

'Then we have nothing to corroborate your story, sir,' said Frost, trying not to sound relieved.

'On the contrary, Inspector,' smirked the solicitor. 'A timed receipt is provided with money withdrawn from the bank's cash machines. Fortunately, my client remembered he had retained his and it was in the pocket of his other suit. He phoned me this morning. I collected it, and here it is!' Like a magician asking 'Is this your card, sir?' he flourished the receipt at Frost. The date and time checked. The solicitor then produced his client's plastic credit card so Frost could see that the account number agreed.

'It does look fairly conclusive,' admitted Frost, grudgingly.

'It is proof positive,' smirked the solicitor. 'I take it my client will be released immediately? He does have a surgery to run.'

Frost thought hard for reasons to say no but couldn't come up with any. 'We'll need to make a few more inquiries, but at the moment he is free to go.'

Nodding with smug satisfaction, the solicitor zipped his briefcase and stood up. 'You will be hearing further about our claim for substantial damages for false arrest and unlawful imprisonment.'

'Fair enough, sir,' agreed Frost. 'We'll co-operate with you in every way. We'll even give the court full details as to why we suspected your client: his kerb-crawling, his late night excursions looking for nooky his extra-marital affair with his receptionist…"

Ashby and his solicitor exchanged concerned looks, with the dentist shaking his head firmly. 'I'm not vindictive,' he told Frost. 'A full apology will suffice.'

'Then, sorry,' grunted Frost. He opened the interview room door and yelled to the custody sergeant: 'We're releasing this gentleman… no further action.'

Frost grabbed another mug of tea from the canteen and plodded back with it to the murder incident room, giving Mullett's office a wide berth in case the superintendent bounced out, as he always seemed to do at the wrong moment, to demand to know if the dentist had signed a full confession yet. Morgan was hovering at the incident room door and seemed reluctant to enter. 'What's up, Taff?'

Morgan pointed to the towering figure of the mini-skirted prostitute who was savagely applying fresh lipstick to replace that adhering to the rim of her mug of canteen tea. 'What on earth is that, guv?'

'You haven't met Mrs Mullett then?' said Frost, jerking his head for Morgan to follow, then sitting in the vacant chair next to her. In the corner of the room he could see Burton and Liz Maud in deep conversation. He introduced himself to the tom. 'I'm Inspector Frost. What can you tell me?'

She rammed the tube of lipstick back in her handbag. 'About bloody time! Is it true? Is Sarah dead?' Frost nodded.

'The same bastard who did for the others?' Again Frost nodded.

'And all you do is sit on your arse-hole drinking tea?'

'What else can I sit on?' asked Frost. 'My ear-hole?' He swigged from the mug. 'If you can help us we flight catch the bastard, so tell us what you know.'

'Like I told the other copper, I saw Sarah last night going off with a punter.'

'What time was this?' Frost was giving her face a quick once-over: eyelashes heavily caked with mascara, make-up plastered on, but he was sure he could see dark stubble underneath.

'Late, ducky, getting on for two in the morning.'

'Are you sure about the time?'

'Bloody sure. If you're not one of Harry Grafton's girls you're not allowed out on that beat until all Harry's toms have packed it in for the night. He plays rough otherwise.'

Frost nodded. He knew this only too well.

'I gets there about half-past midnight and there was still a couple of his girls working, so I went to the pub for a drink, came back just after one and it was all clear. It's unfair, ducky, at that time of night all we get is the dregs of the trade.'

So do the punters, thought Frost. 'Right, then what?'

'Had a couple of customers and was standing there just before two when this car crawls up. I saw the bloke inside was giving me the eye, so I goes over to him. He looked the sort of bloke who only buys the reduced to clear stuff from the supermarket. "How much?" he asks. "Forty quid," I tells him. The bastard offered me a tenner. A tenner! I wouldn't even blow in his flaming ear for a tenner. I told him to get knotted.'

I'd have thought you would have grabbed any trade that was going at that time of the morning,' said Frost.

'You're got to have standards, ducky,' she said, dragging up her miniskirt so she could give her thigh a vigorous scratch. I'd have come down to fifteen quid at a pinch, but a tenner, no way!'

'Then what?'

'Further down the road, leaning on that lamp post by the phone box, there's Sarah, wearing that moth-eaten fur coat of hers. He goes over to her in his car, they chat, she climbs in his motor, and he drives off.'

'And you didn't see her again?'

'No. For ten quid I'd have expected her back in five minutes. — ten minutes if she was feeling generous — but she never came back.'

'Can you give us a description of this man?'

'Hardly took a look at him. Anyone offering ten quid wasn't worthy of my contemplation.'

'Come on, Fanny,' urged Frost. 'If we're to catch him, we want some sort of a description.'

'Medium age, medium height, black hair.'

'And distinguishing features?'

'No, apart from him being a stingy bastard.'

'Clothes?'

'Blackish coat, black jacket…'

'The man in flaming black,' snorted Frost. 'I suppose he had black fingernails as well?'

'Can't say, ducky — he had gloves on, black gloves I think.'

'Funny,' said Frost, 'I was going to say that. What about his car?'

She shrugged. 'An old banger, could have been black as well. I didn't pay that much attention.'

'Would you recognize him if you saw him again?'

'I doubt it.'

Frost sighed. They were getting nowhere. 'We're going to show you a few photographs, see if you can pick him out.' He went over to Burton. 'Show her some mug shots, slip in one of the dentist, you never know your luck.'

Morgan gawped as she strode out, towering over Burton. 'She's a big girl, guv!'

'Yes,' agreed Frost. 'She wouldn't waggle it under your nose, more like over your head.' He swallowed the last of the tea and thought he'd try his joke out on Morgan. 'Did I tell you about the midget that married this tall girl… Great big tart she was, just like Lily. _ ' Morgan didn't think it funny either and was about to tell Frost a joke of his own when Burton returned, Lily traipsing after him. 'Flicked through the lot, recognized no-one,' he reported.

'Did you slip the dentist's photo in?'

'Yes. She passed it over, the same as the others.'

'Knickers!' said Frost. But it was only what he expected. He turned to the woman. 'Thanks for your co-operation. If you think of anything else that might help us, please let us know.'

She stared angrily at him. 'And that's it? What about some protection? If I'm out tonight and the same flaming bloke turns up, I could be lying on the slab next to Sarah.'

'If you're worried, don't go out on your beat until we catch him,' said Frost.

'And if you never flaming well catch him, how do I pay the lousy rent? If I was the Queen Mother you'd fall over backwards to protect me, but just because I'm a flaming tom you don't give a toss.' She snapped open her handbag and took out a ten pence piece which she banged down on the desk. 'For the coffee… so you don't waste your money on flaming toms.'