Although they were waiting for the first set of forensic tests to come back, someone had been on the ball enough to check the recent obituary listings in all of the local papers, where nothing had appeared about Kayleigh. They had not been able to figure out what the motive might have been for placing Oliver’s notice but, if it was simply for attention or to show off, the killer could have something more sinister in store for them with Kayleigh.

Jessica left the briefing with Izzy, whom she hadn’t seen in anything other than passing since the smaller meeting in Cole’s office the previous week.

‘You look like you’re the one who was up until two in the morning with a sick child,’ the constable said as Jessica held the door open for her. They walked side by side towards the stairs.

Reminded of how tired she felt, Jessica couldn’t stop herself from yawning. ‘You’re not the first to point that out.’

‘If you’re up in the early hours anyway, feel free to pop around and you can look after Amber while I get some kip.’

‘You’re very kind but I think I’ll be all right.’ They started to climb the stairs as Jessica added: ‘Did you find anything else about Nicholas Long?’

‘Not really. I’ve been so busy.’

As they reached the crossroads from where the corridor branched towards Jessica’s office one way and the area where the constable worked the other, they stopped and moved to the side. ‘Me neither.’

‘What are you going to do?’

‘If at first you don’t succeed, try, try and try again.’

‘I thought your motto was to give up if you didn’t get it first time?’

Jessica smiled weakly. ‘It is but when someone pisses me off, I take extra care to go back for seconds.’

15

Jessica had no idea how much time Nicholas Long spent at his club – or even which days he was there – but a quick phone call to his house while posing as the secretary of an industrial cleaning company had easily snared her the information. Whoever it was that told her Nicholas was already at the club ‘where he always is’ hadn’t seemed concerned about giving out private information to a stranger.

Jessica caught the bus into the city centre and walked to the club, which looked different in daylight. In the evening, the pink and black combination, along with the neon, had made it seem marginally more upmarket. In the fading sunlight, it just looked grubby, with grit and dirt on the bottom parts of the glass and smeared handprints along the top half. It didn’t appear as if it had been cleaned any time recently.

She tried the front door but it was locked, so she pressed the buzzer next to it. She could hear the whirring sound from inside but there was no answer, so she tried again before resorting to holding the button in until finally Nicholas’s voice crackled through.

He didn’t even bother trying to hide his annoyance. ‘Who is it?’ he growled.

‘Chinese takeaway.’

‘Wrong place.’ The device fizzled quiet, so Jessica held the button in again. ‘I told you, you’ve got the wrong place,’ the voice thundered.

Jessica read him the address above the door, adding: ‘Shall I put it through the letterbox?’

Perhaps fearing more cleaning up, Nicholas quickly interjected: ‘Just wait there, I’ll come down.’

Jessica leant on the glass in the smuggest way she could. She knew she was playing a dangerous game, both because she had been told to stay out of the Serious Crime Division’s business and also because of the type of person Nicholas clearly was. But she wanted to push him, to see if he would reveal something he’d prefer to have kept to himself. She sensed his connection to Kayleigh and Eleanor would be crucial somewhere, despite everything happening such a long time ago.

As the door opened, Nicholas poked his head out, peering in the opposite direction before noticing her.

‘You?’ His face was redder than it had been the previous time they had met, his skin wobbling in anger and confusion.

‘Did you miss me?’

He looked the other way, perhaps wondering if there was anyone else with her. ‘What are you doing here?’

‘I thought I’d drop in for a chat.’

Nicholas stepped outside the club, still holding the door open. ‘I told you to make an appointment. I’ve had enough of you lot harassing me.’

Jessica stood up straighter and smiled. ‘I’m not harassing, I’m haranguing, there’s a difference.’

‘I can complain, you know, I’ve got rights.’

Jessica walked towards him, sliding under his arm and through the door. She had moved with such confidence that Nicholas hadn’t reacted. By the time he let go of the door, she was already halfway along the corridor towards reception.

‘Where are you going, hey, stop . . .’

Jessica didn’t turn but she could hear Nicholas spluttering behind her as he closed the door and followed. Despite her bravado, she was relieved not to hear the clicking sound of the lock.

She continued through to the bar area and hopped onto a stool, spinning to face the out-of-breath and very red-faced man as he caught up, looking every inch like someone in a government health warning advert that involved dramatic music and words like ‘cholesterol’ and ‘chronic heart problems’.

By the time Nicholas had reached her, his eyes were wide with fury and he barely managed to gasp: ‘This is trespassing.’

‘You held the door open for me.’

‘I did not.’

Jessica raised her eyebrows in mock bewilderment. ‘That’s what it looked like. I thought you were inviting me in.’

Nicholas stared at her for a few seconds before finally recovering his composure. ‘I told you I like them feisty.’

He licked his lips and reached out to touch Jessica’s arm but she slapped him away. ‘Are you going to offer me a drink?’

Nicholas was still breathing heavily as she took a moment to fully observe how large he was. Some people held their weight well but the club’s owner certainly didn’t. She could see the dark material of his suit straining around his thighs and belly. His top shirt buttons were undone most likely because he couldn’t have fastened them even if he’d wanted to. The remaining hair he did have was greasily spread across his head, his teeth were yellow and crooked. He really was one of the most repulsive men Jessica had ever been close to and she struggled to hide her disgust.

As he regarded her, she could see the interest in his eyes that went beyond anything professional. If she was a man, she would have been kicked out by now. It was why she hadn’t brought Rowlands or anyone else with her. Sometimes being a woman was her biggest advantage.

Seemingly making his mind up to play the game she had started, Nicholas walked around the bar and picked up a small glass, flipping it over and reaching under the counter before pulling out a bottle of whisky. A golden ribbon was wrapped around the centre with a row of stars underneath proclaiming the number of years it had spent distilling. ‘I don’t leave this on display,’ he said, pouring himself a drink. ‘Same for you?’

Jessica knew she had to be careful but also wanted him to talk. With a smile, she raised herself up from the stool, leaning across to pick up the man’s glass and taking a large sip before putting it on the counter in front of her.

She tried not to grimace as it burned her throat on the way down. Christ, it was horrible, like drinking paraffin, she assumed – though she’d never tried it. Why did anyone drink this stuff?

She gasped a ‘Cheers.’

Nicholas stared on incredulously before reaching under the counter to take a second glass and fill it. ‘Feisty,’ he purred, making Jessica’s stomach churn in a way that wasn’t simply down to the alcohol.

‘Do you know how much this costs a bottle?’ he added. When it was clear that Jessica wasn’t going to respond, he answered his own question. ‘Four hundred quid. I get it brought down especially from Scotland. They have only made three dozen bottles each year for the past forty years. There’s a waiting list.’