“sir”.’
Relieved that the glint of suspicion had left the inspector’s eyes, Larry was about to make a witty comeback when a loud crashing sound came from the stage area, followed by a string of expletives.
Frowning, Terri said,‘Sorry, guys, think I’d best go see what’s happened. Will you be all right by yourselves for a minute?’
Assuring her that they would be just fine, Keeton waited until she’d gone. Then he turned back to Larry and said, ‘Doing a grand job, isn’t she? I don’t think we’ll have much trouble convincing the jumpers they’ve hit the jackpot when they cop for this lot. Given you the low-down, has she?’
‘Er, yeah,’ Larry replied uncertainly. ‘Sorry, did you say jumpers?’
‘Bail jumpers,’ Keeton explained, folding his arms across his chest. ‘That’s the bulk of what we’re after with this, and I’ve a feeling we’ll net a fair few once the ad’s airing and the flyers are doing the rounds. Good to have you on board, by the way,’ he said now, giving Larry a sympathetic smile as he added, ‘Any luck, it might help to put all the troubles you had last year behind you, eh? Can’t have been easy holding your head up with all that nonsense going on.’
Touched that yet another person – and a police inspector at that – had expressed support for him after the living nightmare of being shunned and vilified for the best part of a year, Larry thanked him. Then, feeling awkward as they lapsed into silence, he stuck his hands deep into his trouser pockets and looked around as if he was suddenly really, really interested in the activity of the workmen. He’d never been good at small talk. Not with men, anyway – and definitely not when he was sober.
Rushing back just then, Terri said, ‘Sorry about that. Just a little hitch with some guy ropes, or something, but it’s fine now. Anyway, this is for you.’ She passed a two-sheet script to Larry.
‘And these are for you.’ She handed Keeton a thick wad of gold tickets. ‘Just back from the printers, so be careful they’re not still damp.’
‘Oh, they’re good,’ Keeton murmured approvingly, looking them over and handing one to Larry. ‘What do you think, son?’
‘They look great,’ Larry agreed. ‘I reckon I ’d be fooled if one landed on my doormat.’
Chuckling softly, Keeton nudged him. ‘Me, too. Good job I’m in on it, or I’d have probably sent in for an application form.’
‘You’re not that stupid,’Terri purred, giving him a fond smile. Then, taking a sheet of paper from the stack she was holding, she said,‘Oh, and before I forget, look what just got faxed through.’
Taking it, Keeton gazed at the printed picture and whistled softly between his teeth. ‘Bloody hell, that’s nice.’
‘What is it?’ Larry peered over his shoulder.
‘Range Rover Sports, with full body-kit,’ Terri told him. ‘One of the guys who works at our head office in LA ordered it for his British wife, and he gave us permission to use it for the shoot before he ships it over. Trouble was, he ordered so many extras to be added to it that I was starting to think it was never going to be ready. But it’s done now, so that’s one less thing to worry about.’
‘Until it gets here,’ Keeton said, his tone serious now. ‘You’ll need armed guards to keep the ringers away when they hear you’ve got this on the premises. There’s firms in Manchester who specialise in stealing and exporting luxury vehicles, and they wouldn’t think twice about hitting an out-of-the-way location like this to get their hands on it.’
‘Good thing you and your men will be on hand to stop them, then.’ Terri smiled, seeming not to grasp the seriousness of what Keeton was saying. Then, letting him know that she was actually fully aware of the risks, she said, ‘Don’t panic, Bill, it’s not actually going to be here. I had a chat with our guys back home, and we figured we’d need so much extra insurance and
Relieved that the glint of suspicion had left the inspector’s eyes, Larry was about to make a witty comeback when a loud crashing sound came from the stage area, followed by a string of expletives.
Frowning, Terri said,‘Sorry, guys, think I’d best go see what’s happened. Will you be all right by yourselves for a minute?’
Assuring her that they would be just fine, Keeton waited until she’d gone. Then he turned back to Larry and said, ‘Doing a grand job, isn’t she? I don’t think we’ll have much trouble convincing the jumpers they’ve hit the jackpot when they cop for this lot. Given you the low-down, has she?’
‘Er, yeah,’ Larry replied uncertainly. ‘Sorry, did you say jumpers?’
‘Bail jumpers,’ Keeton explained, folding his arms across his chest. ‘That’s the bulk of what we’re after with this, and I’ve a feeling we’ll net a fair few once the ad’s airing and the flyers are doing the rounds. Good to have you on board, by the way,’ he said now, giving Larry a sympathetic smile as he added, ‘Any luck, it might help to put all the troubles you had last year behind you, eh? Can’t have been easy holding your head up with all that nonsense going on.’
Touched that yet another person – and a police inspector at that – had expressed support for him after the living nightmare of being shunned and vilified for the best part of a year, Larry thanked him. Then, feeling awkward as they lapsed into silence, he stuck his hands deep into his trouser pockets and looked around as if he was suddenly really, really interested in the activity of the workmen. He’d never been good at small talk. Not with men, anyway – and definitely not when he was sober.
Rushing back just then, Terri said, ‘Sorry about that. Just a little hitch with some guy ropes, or something, but it’s fine now. Anyway, this is for you.’ She passed a two-sheet script to Larry.
‘And these are for you.’ She handed Keeton a thick wad of gold tickets. ‘Just back from the printers, so be careful they’re not still damp.’
‘Oh, they’re good,’ Keeton murmured approvingly, looking them over and handing one to Larry. ‘What do you think, son?’
‘They look great,’ Larry agreed. ‘I reckon I ’d be fooled if one landed on my doormat.’
Chuckling softly, Keeton nudged him. ‘Me, too. Good job I’m in on it, or I’d have probably sent in for an application form.’
‘You’re not that stupid,’Terri purred, giving him a fond smile. Then, taking a sheet of paper from the stack she was holding, she said,‘Oh, and before I forget, look what just got faxed through.’
Taking it, Keeton gazed at the printed picture and whistled softly between his teeth. ‘Bloody hell, that’s nice.’
‘What is it?’ Larry peered over his shoulder.
‘Range Rover Sports, with full body-kit,’ Terri told him. ‘One of the guys who works at our head office in LA ordered it for his British wife, and he gave us permission to use it for the shoot before he ships it over. Trouble was, he ordered so many extras to be added to it that I was starting to think it was never going to be ready. But it’s done now, so that’s one less thing to worry about.’
‘Until it gets here,’ Keeton said, his tone serious now. ‘You’ll need armed guards to keep the ringers away when they hear you’ve got this on the premises. There’s firms in Manchester who specialise in stealing and exporting luxury vehicles, and they wouldn’t think twice about hitting an out-of-the-way location like this to get their hands on it.’
‘Good thing you and your men will be on hand to stop them, then.’ Terri smiled, seeming not to grasp the seriousness of what Keeton was saying. Then, letting him know that she was actually fully aware of the risks, she said, ‘Don’t panic, Bill, it’s not actually going to be here. I had a chat with our guys back home, and we figured we’d need so much extra insurance and
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