has darker hair, cropped short. Wears glasses.’
It was possible it could be Helen. It didn’t seem to match how she’d looked recently, but that didn’t mean much. She only wore glasses occasionally, but it was entirely possible she’d wear them all the time now. And as for the hair, it would only have taken her an hour to get a new hairdo. That was perfectly feasible, particularly if she was looking to start a new life. The girl, on the other hand, sounded just like Emily.
‘I need to tell you, Jack, it is very early days. Leandro has been trying to keep his distance, but has also been keeping an eye on them. That’s not as easy as you might think, particularly not in this place where they’re staying. But he has been doing his best. He sent me a photo. I’ll email it to you now,’ he said.
A few seconds later, Culverhouse’s mobile pinged and vibrated in his ear.
‘One sec,’ he said, taking the phone from his ear and navigating through to his email inbox. After what seemed like an age, the email and the photo loaded. It had been taken from quite some distance, and the people in the image could have been anyone, but that was no bad thing as far as Jack was concerned. It meant it could also be Helen and Emily. The older woman’s face was obscured, but it was feasible it was Helen. As for the younger girl, Emily had been so young when he last saw her that he wondered if he would even recognise her walking down the street.
‘What do you think?’ García’s voice said, tinny and distant as it came through the phone’s earpiece.
Culverhouse put the phone back to his ear. ‘I dunno. It’s possible,’ he said. ‘I’ll need a better picture before I can say for sure.’
‘He’s working on it,’ García said. ‘But it’s not easy. Redován is a small place. You can’t get up close and take a picture very easily. He can’t even park too close to the house as everybody in the area will know if there is a strange car. He has to park on the adjacent street and use a long lens. It’s difficult to get closer. We don’t want to spook her.’
Culverhouse agreed. The last thing he wanted was for Helen and Emily to figure out what was going on and disappear into the ether again. ‘Listen, send me the address,’ he said.
‘Jack, are you sure? It’s—’
‘Just send me the address. If it’s them, it’s best that I get out there and see them for myself. If I turn up, she’s hardly likely to just run. She’s come back twice already, so she’s obviously open to speaking to me. But if she reckons your guys are government officials or police, we’ve lost them, particularly if she’s been living off-radar all this time.’
‘And if it’s not them?’
‘Then it won’t make a blind bit of difference, will it? A strange Englishman turning up on their doorstep and saying “Sorry, wrong house”? What’s the worst that can happen?’
García sighed. ‘You tell me, Jack. You tell me.’
24
‘ N ow , this is interesting...’ Ryan said, when only Wendy was in earshot.
Wendy had only just returned from the hospital after speaking with Julian Mills, and had been hoping for a few minutes alone with a mug of coffee. ‘What’s that?’ she replied, trying to sound as friendly and accommodating as possible.
‘I’ve been reading up more on the past articles Tanya Henderson wrote, all these scandals and things she’d been investigating. The footballer, Callum Woods, the one she exposed for his addiction to prostitutes? Get this. There’s a quote from him in a news article here: “When asked for his response, Woods had no comment to make on the allegations, only saying, ‘This has ruined my family and affected my career. People never think of these things. How would this so-called journalist appreciate her whole life being ruined?’ The footballer, who scored two goals in the...” And it goes on. You get the picture. But what about that, eh?’
‘Interesting,’ Wendy said. ‘What,
It was possible it could be Helen. It didn’t seem to match how she’d looked recently, but that didn’t mean much. She only wore glasses occasionally, but it was entirely possible she’d wear them all the time now. And as for the hair, it would only have taken her an hour to get a new hairdo. That was perfectly feasible, particularly if she was looking to start a new life. The girl, on the other hand, sounded just like Emily.
‘I need to tell you, Jack, it is very early days. Leandro has been trying to keep his distance, but has also been keeping an eye on them. That’s not as easy as you might think, particularly not in this place where they’re staying. But he has been doing his best. He sent me a photo. I’ll email it to you now,’ he said.
A few seconds later, Culverhouse’s mobile pinged and vibrated in his ear.
‘One sec,’ he said, taking the phone from his ear and navigating through to his email inbox. After what seemed like an age, the email and the photo loaded. It had been taken from quite some distance, and the people in the image could have been anyone, but that was no bad thing as far as Jack was concerned. It meant it could also be Helen and Emily. The older woman’s face was obscured, but it was feasible it was Helen. As for the younger girl, Emily had been so young when he last saw her that he wondered if he would even recognise her walking down the street.
‘What do you think?’ García’s voice said, tinny and distant as it came through the phone’s earpiece.
Culverhouse put the phone back to his ear. ‘I dunno. It’s possible,’ he said. ‘I’ll need a better picture before I can say for sure.’
‘He’s working on it,’ García said. ‘But it’s not easy. Redován is a small place. You can’t get up close and take a picture very easily. He can’t even park too close to the house as everybody in the area will know if there is a strange car. He has to park on the adjacent street and use a long lens. It’s difficult to get closer. We don’t want to spook her.’
Culverhouse agreed. The last thing he wanted was for Helen and Emily to figure out what was going on and disappear into the ether again. ‘Listen, send me the address,’ he said.
‘Jack, are you sure? It’s—’
‘Just send me the address. If it’s them, it’s best that I get out there and see them for myself. If I turn up, she’s hardly likely to just run. She’s come back twice already, so she’s obviously open to speaking to me. But if she reckons your guys are government officials or police, we’ve lost them, particularly if she’s been living off-radar all this time.’
‘And if it’s not them?’
‘Then it won’t make a blind bit of difference, will it? A strange Englishman turning up on their doorstep and saying “Sorry, wrong house”? What’s the worst that can happen?’
García sighed. ‘You tell me, Jack. You tell me.’
24
‘ N ow , this is interesting...’ Ryan said, when only Wendy was in earshot.
Wendy had only just returned from the hospital after speaking with Julian Mills, and had been hoping for a few minutes alone with a mug of coffee. ‘What’s that?’ she replied, trying to sound as friendly and accommodating as possible.
‘I’ve been reading up more on the past articles Tanya Henderson wrote, all these scandals and things she’d been investigating. The footballer, Callum Woods, the one she exposed for his addiction to prostitutes? Get this. There’s a quote from him in a news article here: “When asked for his response, Woods had no comment to make on the allegations, only saying, ‘This has ruined my family and affected my career. People never think of these things. How would this so-called journalist appreciate her whole life being ruined?’ The footballer, who scored two goals in the...” And it goes on. You get the picture. But what about that, eh?’
‘Interesting,’ Wendy said. ‘What,
Similar Books
