Taylor explained shortly. ‘And frankly it would make my job a lot easier if she was.’
‘Does she have any criminal record?’
‘She’s been pulled in for vagrancy and petty theft a couple of times and cautioned, but that’s it.’
‘What are you going to do to find her?’
‘Not much.’
Carter looked quizzically at him again. ‘What do you mean? She’s a suspect in a murder case.’
‘Oh give me a break, Sean. The bloke she topped was a pimp and a dealer, and we think it was self-defence anyway. I can’t imagine the CPS showering me with gratitude for bringing her in. I’ll do all the usual, and if we nail her, fine; but if it’s not going to end in a conviction I’m not going to throw everything I’ve got at it. Knowing who she hangs out with, I wouldn’t be surprised if she was drugged up to her eyeballs, and she probably still is. She’s a waster, Sean. She’ll be dead in a year.’
Carter hated to admit it, but Taylor was probably right. ‘Just do me a favour,’ he replied, ‘and let me know if you get any leads.’
‘Yeah, OK, Sean, whatever you say. But you know as well as I do how hard it is to find these people if they don’t want to be found.’
‘Something always comes up,’ Carter said optimistically. ‘You’ve got a photo of her already; I might haveanother on the way. Surely she’ll have been caught on CCTV somewhere else.’
‘Come off it, Sean.’ Taylor didn’t even bother to hide his derision. ‘God knows how many thousands of cameras there are in London – where do you suggest we start? We don’t have the resources to trawl through every camera in London.’
Carter’s mobile rang. ‘Excuse me,’ he muttered automatically to Taylor before accepting the call. ‘Sean Carter.’
‘Sean, it’s Yvonne. We’ve located the phone.’
‘Where?’
‘Surrey.’
Carter looked sharply at Taylor, who returned the look blankly. ‘How close can you get it?’
‘I can give you an address. The only house in the area is on its own down a private road. Have you got a pen?’
He jotted down the address Yvonne gave him. ‘I’m going to need some back-up,’ he told her. ‘What are my chances of getting Jameson onside?’ He glanced over at Taylor, who was making no pretence that his ears were not glued to the conversation.
‘Very slim, Sean. You’ve got a real knack of upsetting him, did you know that?’
But Carter’s mind was elsewhere. If he found Rosemary’s phone, the chances were the locket wouldn’t be far away, but he had to move quickly. He could make some calls, go in above Jameson, but it was all going to take time, and that was the one thing he couldn’t risk. ‘OK, Yvonne. Thanks. I’ll call you back soon.’
He turned to Taylor, realizing he was going to have to talk fast. ‘Mark, this may sound unlikely to you, but I’vegot good reason to believe that this girl is in a house in Surrey. I’ve got the address. Can you arrange for some officers to get round there and pick her up?’
Taylor eyed him sceptically. ‘How the hell could you possibly know where she is? You didn’t even know her name until two minutes ago.’
‘Mark, I’m right about this. Think how good it will look for you if you bring her in less than twenty-four hours after the killing.’ He’d known him long enough to understand which buttons to press.
But Taylor seemed to dither. ‘I’m not sure, Sean. Sounds to me like you’re clutching at straws.’
‘Come on, Mark, you know we have to check out this lead. We’ve had our differences, but I’m not in the business of wasting your time. Please?’
The question seemed to hang in the air. Finally Taylor spoke as he glanced at the photographs on his desk. ‘You’re going to have to give me more than that – you know I can’t just raise a team to go onto someone else’s patch like I’m ordering a pizza. It’s going to be my arse on the line, so you’d better tell me where you’re getting your miraculous
‘Does she have any criminal record?’
‘She’s been pulled in for vagrancy and petty theft a couple of times and cautioned, but that’s it.’
‘What are you going to do to find her?’
‘Not much.’
Carter looked quizzically at him again. ‘What do you mean? She’s a suspect in a murder case.’
‘Oh give me a break, Sean. The bloke she topped was a pimp and a dealer, and we think it was self-defence anyway. I can’t imagine the CPS showering me with gratitude for bringing her in. I’ll do all the usual, and if we nail her, fine; but if it’s not going to end in a conviction I’m not going to throw everything I’ve got at it. Knowing who she hangs out with, I wouldn’t be surprised if she was drugged up to her eyeballs, and she probably still is. She’s a waster, Sean. She’ll be dead in a year.’
Carter hated to admit it, but Taylor was probably right. ‘Just do me a favour,’ he replied, ‘and let me know if you get any leads.’
‘Yeah, OK, Sean, whatever you say. But you know as well as I do how hard it is to find these people if they don’t want to be found.’
‘Something always comes up,’ Carter said optimistically. ‘You’ve got a photo of her already; I might haveanother on the way. Surely she’ll have been caught on CCTV somewhere else.’
‘Come off it, Sean.’ Taylor didn’t even bother to hide his derision. ‘God knows how many thousands of cameras there are in London – where do you suggest we start? We don’t have the resources to trawl through every camera in London.’
Carter’s mobile rang. ‘Excuse me,’ he muttered automatically to Taylor before accepting the call. ‘Sean Carter.’
‘Sean, it’s Yvonne. We’ve located the phone.’
‘Where?’
‘Surrey.’
Carter looked sharply at Taylor, who returned the look blankly. ‘How close can you get it?’
‘I can give you an address. The only house in the area is on its own down a private road. Have you got a pen?’
He jotted down the address Yvonne gave him. ‘I’m going to need some back-up,’ he told her. ‘What are my chances of getting Jameson onside?’ He glanced over at Taylor, who was making no pretence that his ears were not glued to the conversation.
‘Very slim, Sean. You’ve got a real knack of upsetting him, did you know that?’
But Carter’s mind was elsewhere. If he found Rosemary’s phone, the chances were the locket wouldn’t be far away, but he had to move quickly. He could make some calls, go in above Jameson, but it was all going to take time, and that was the one thing he couldn’t risk. ‘OK, Yvonne. Thanks. I’ll call you back soon.’
He turned to Taylor, realizing he was going to have to talk fast. ‘Mark, this may sound unlikely to you, but I’vegot good reason to believe that this girl is in a house in Surrey. I’ve got the address. Can you arrange for some officers to get round there and pick her up?’
Taylor eyed him sceptically. ‘How the hell could you possibly know where she is? You didn’t even know her name until two minutes ago.’
‘Mark, I’m right about this. Think how good it will look for you if you bring her in less than twenty-four hours after the killing.’ He’d known him long enough to understand which buttons to press.
But Taylor seemed to dither. ‘I’m not sure, Sean. Sounds to me like you’re clutching at straws.’
‘Come on, Mark, you know we have to check out this lead. We’ve had our differences, but I’m not in the business of wasting your time. Please?’
The question seemed to hang in the air. Finally Taylor spoke as he glanced at the photographs on his desk. ‘You’re going to have to give me more than that – you know I can’t just raise a team to go onto someone else’s patch like I’m ordering a pizza. It’s going to be my arse on the line, so you’d better tell me where you’re getting your miraculous
Similar Books
