I See You(39)

He looked around the room, his gaze resting on an older man who was leaning back in his chair, his hands interlocked behind his head. ‘Bob, can you fill everyone in on the fiancé?’

Bob unlaced his fingers and sat up. ‘Tania Beckett was engaged to a twenty-seven-year-old tyre-fitter called David Parker, who was obviously our first port of call. Mr Parker has a rock-solid alibi: he spent the evening in the Mason’s Arms on the corner of his road, as confirmed by the pub’s CCTV and at least a dozen regulars.’

‘His girlfriend goes missing, and he goes to the pub?’ someone said.

‘Parker claims he wasn’t worried until later that night, when he reported her missing. He assumed she’d gone to a friend’s house and had forgotten to tell him.’

‘We’re in the process of retracing the victim’s route home from work,’ DI Rampello said. ‘BTP have been surprisingly helpful with the CCTV footage’ – he glanced at Kelly and she felt herself blush. She thought he might have forgotten she was there – ‘so we have her taking the Northern line to Highgate. There’s a bit of a gap in the footage, then we have her again, waiting for the bus. Unfortunately the bus driver can’t confirm whether she got off at Cranley Gardens, or whether she was alone. We’re in the process of tracing other passengers on the bus.’

Nick Rampello’s eyes rested momentarily on Kelly again. ‘On Tuesday 17 November we received a call from a Mrs Zoe Walker, reporting a close similarity between Tania Beckett and a photograph that appeared in a classifieds advert in the London Gazette.’ He picked up an A3 sheet of paper that had been lying face down on the table in front of him, and held it up. Kelly saw the familiar advert; the image made fuzzy by the enlargement. ‘The boxed listing appears among several other adverts for a mixture of,’ the DI paused, ‘personal services,’ he allowed the ripple of laughter to subside before continuing, ‘including chatlines and escorting. This advert is ostensibly for similar services, although nothing is actually specified; the phone number listed is invalid, and the website apparently blank.’ He put the A3 sheet on the whiteboard behind him, plastic magnets at each corner to hold it up. ‘The enquiry team has begun looking into Tania Beckett’s past for any involvement in the sex industry, even though her parents and fiancé insist it would be wildly out of character for her. We’re also analysing her computer for any indication she was registered on dating sites or was communicating with men she’d met online. So far, they’ve drawn a blank. This afternoon we received a further development.’ He looked at Kelly again. ‘Perhaps you’d like to introduce yourself?’

Kelly nodded and hoped she looked more confident than she felt. ‘Hello, everyone. Thanks for letting me join your briefing. My name is Kelly Swift and I’m a BTP officer on the Central Line Neighbourhood Policing Team.’ Too late, she remembered she had given Nick Rampello the impression she was a detective on the Dip Squad. She caught the surprise on his face and looked away, focusing on the whiteboard on the other side of the room. ‘I spoke this morning to Zoe Walker, the witness DI Rampello has just mentioned, who first called me on Monday. She’d seen one of these adverts and recognised the woman; a victim from an ongoing BTP investigation.’

‘Another murder?’ The question came from a slightly built, grey-haired man sitting by the window. Kelly shook her head.

‘A theft. Cathy Tanning fell asleep on the Central line and had her house keys stolen from her handbag, which was on her lap.’

‘Just her keys?’

‘It was thought at the time the offender might have been going for something else – a phone, or a wallet. The victim had to get a locksmith to break in to her house, which meant she had to change the lock on the front door, but she didn’t change the back-door lock. Her address wasn’t on the keys and there was no reason to suppose the offender knew where she lived.’ Kelly paused, her heart racing. Even DI Rampello didn’t know this latest piece of intelligence. ‘I spoke to Cathy Tanning on Monday and she’s convinced someone has been in her house.’

There was a shift in atmosphere in the room.

‘A burglary?’ asked the grey-haired man.

‘Nothing of value has been taken, but Cathy’s adamant the keys have been used, and that her dirty laundry’s been disturbed. She’s changed the locks and I’ve passed the job to SOCO in case they can get some forensics. Zoe Walker also believes her own photo appeared in a similar advert, exactly a week ago today.’

‘And is Zoe Walker a victim of crime?’ Lucinda asked.

‘Not yet.’

‘Thank you.’ The DI showed no sign that Kelly’s additional news was of interest, and he moved swiftly on, taking back the focus of the room. Kelly felt suddenly flat. ‘We’ll meet again at eight tomorrow morning, but let’s go round the room. Anything to raise?’ He looked to his left, moving swiftly round the room collecting updates and questions. As Lucinda had suggested, not a single person was left out. When everyone had been given the opportunity to speak, he gave a curt nod and picked up his notes. The briefing was over.

‘I hope you haven’t got plans tonight, Lucinda,’ he said, as he strode past the analyst. She laughed and shot Kelly a conspiratorial look.

‘Good thing I’m married to the job, isn’t it?’ She followed the DI.