Death Trap by Patricia Hall Page A

themselves into the coffee bar that Barnard had taken Kate to the day before.
    â€˜This is very convenient for you and me getting to the West End,’ Marie said doubtfully.
    â€˜And it couldn’t be handier for my school,’ Tess put in firmly. ‘I don’t want to be travelling miles every day if I can possibly avoid it. Some people down here in London travel for hours to get to work.’
    â€˜So on with the search then? Agreed?’ Marie said, and the other two nodded, if slightly doubtfully. She glanced at her watch. ‘I need to go,’ she said. ‘The Lagoon’s opening at twelve. I’ll be late if I’m not careful.’ And she was away in a flurry of red hair and flying coat, every inch the actress she had not yet managed to become.
    Kate and Tess finished their coffee more slowly and then began the walk back to 95 Argyll Gardens. As they approached the tall, drab house with its cracked steps and chipped portico, they saw a black youth watching them intently from the other side of the road.
    â€˜That’s Benjamin Mackintosh,’ Tess said quietly, a hint of anxiety in her voice, as the boy crossed the road in their direction. ‘I wonder what he wants.’
    â€˜Looks as if he’s going to tell you,’ Kate said.
    â€˜Miss,’ the boy said to Tess. ‘Can I talk to you for a minute?’
    â€˜How did you know where I live, Ben?’ Tess asked, and Kate heard the tension in her voice and realised that maybe Tess was living too close to her school for comfort.
    â€˜My dad told me. My dad’s in trouble with the police and I thought you might be able to help.’
    â€˜I’m really sorry to hear about that, Ben,’ Tess said. ‘But I’m sure that what you need is a solicitor, not a teacher.’
    â€˜The police are fitting him up,’ the boy said more vehemently. ‘They do it all the time. They hate us all and they ’specially hate my dad because he stands up to them.’
    Tess sighed. ‘Ben, I’m really sorry your family is having this trouble but I can’t get involved in this sort of thing. I’m a teacher not a lawyer, and anyway it’s something your mother should be dealing with. It’s not something you can handle. I’m sure she can get some legal help for your father. I’m sure it’s all a terrible mistake and he’ll be home soon.’
    â€˜If you really want to know, miss, they came and searched the house and the cafe, said they found ganja but I know my dad would never have that in the place,’ the boy persisted with a mutinous look.
    â€˜I’m sorry, but there’s really nothing I can do,’ Tess said firmly, and turned away to go into the house.
    Kate flashed the boy a sympathetic look and followed her. ‘Poor kid,’ she said after they had closed the front door.
    â€˜Yes, of course,’ Tess said. ‘But it’s not my job to help his family. I don’t think the school would want me interfering. I wouldn’t know where to start.’
    No, but I might, Kate thought as they set off up the stairs.
    â€˜I thought he was really concerned about the boy when he came to school, the father,’ Tess muttered, almost to herself. ‘But what do I know about him really? Or Ben for that matter. I know we liked Nelson Mackintosh when we bumped into him and went to the cafe, but we have no idea what he’s really like, or what he’s involved in. You said yourself your copper warned you it’s a dodgy area and we should move away. Perhaps he’s right.’
    â€˜He may be,’ Kate said. ‘But you’re right to be worried about that boy. I saw him when I was out with Harry last night, right down where all the nightclubs are. It must have been well after his bedtime, and he didn’t show the slightest intention of going home. Far from it. He looked as if he had every intention of staying out for the