Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil(88)

“Why?” He knew how much Duke of Ed meant to her. It had a lot to do with the other father, Etienne.

“Because I’m coming there to be with you.”





42



Bish arrived at Holloway Saturday afternoon with no visiting order and no clearance from Grazier. But his find last night was burning a hole in his head. Added to that was the news that Khateb had lived in North London at the time of the bombing. As far as Bish was concerned, he had reason enough to talk his way in.

Gray was nowhere to be seen at his hole in the wall. Bish identified himself to the guard and explained that he was here on his ongoing Home Office business. He was surprised by the startled look in the man’s eyes.

“That was quick,” the guard muttered.

Bish was even more confused when he was taken straight to the acting governor’s office. Sitting there with Eleanor Cook were Gray; his younger sidekick, Farrington; a female guard whose name tag identified her as Vasquez; and Allison from the visitors’ center. They seemed surprised to see him there. Nevertheless, he was invited to sit down.

“Everyone’s off sick these days,” the acting governor said once he was seated. He tried not to concentrate on the misapplied lipstick around her mouth. “We were shorthanded.”

He looked from one to the other of them. “And I’m being told this because…?”

Eleanor Cook cleared her throat. “A woman visiting an inmate this morning claimed to recognize Violette LeBrac and a younger boy in the visiting hall.”

He stared at her. “Violette and Eddie were here? Visiting Noor LeBrac?”

“We haven’t confirmed that, but the visiting hall was understaffed this morning.”

“Old Lorna here had to help out,” Farrington chimed in. “She’s usually got a cushy job in the mail room and probably didn’t know what she was doing.”

“Who are you calling old, you little tosser?” Vasquez muttered.

“Just the two of them, on their own?” Bish asked Farrington, who seemed the one to break. “So they just walked up to the visiting hall and popped in to see Violette’s mum?”

Farrington didn’t seem to know how to answer this without looking at Gray.

“A Mr. Bilal Lelouche came visiting,” Allison answered for him, handing Bish a printout of the visitors’ log.

“Who’s he?” Bish asked.

“A family friend,” Allison said.

“We spoke to LeBrac after the report was made,” Cook said. “She told us that Mr. Lelouche visits every year, after Ramadan. We checked previous years’ records and confirmed it.”

“Ramadan ended almost a month ago,” Bish said.

Cook was irritated. “Yes, we know that, Chief Inspector Ortley. Apparently, out of respect for what’s happening with LeBrac’s daughter, he held off this year. According to the records, he did the same thing today he always has. He brought along two of his kids—”

“Names and ages?” Bish asked.

Now Farrington had found his voice again. “We asked for his ID, as we do with all adult visitors.”

“But you didn’t check the IDs of the children?” Bish asked.

Cook indicated the printout of the visitors’ log. “It says here they were Fatima and Anwar, seventeen and fourteen years old.”

Bish took a deep breath.

“I’d say it’s unlikely that Violette LeBrac and the boy were actually here,” the acting governor said, looking at the others. They, of course, seemed to agree.

“Probably some racist who made the claim because she thinks they all look the same,” Gray said.

Bish wondered how long they’d spent getting their story right. “Let me see the security cameras,” he said. “I’m sure it’s all there in black and white.”

“We’ve already looked,” Cook said. “The images aren’t clear enough to make confirmation.”

“Let me be the judge of that.”

Cook already had the footage downloaded to her computer. He stared at the screen where Bilal Lelouche and the children were visible. The girl was wearing a hijab and the boy an Arsenal beanie. They were quite obviously avoiding the security camera.

“It’s them,” Bish said.

“How can you be sure?” Cook asked.

“Because I’ve met them,” Bish said. “My question is, how did this happen? Two kids of Middle Eastern appearance wander into the visitors’ center, and no one takes the time to check them out?”

“So now we’re going to intimidate every single teenager of Middle Eastern appearance who walks through those gates?” Cook demanded.

“No,” Bish said with forced patience. “You’re going to interview every single teenager of Middle Eastern appearance who visits Noor LeBrac.”

“The girl offered to take off her hijab for security,” said Farrington, who was clearly keen to avoid taking any blame. “But Lorna said we wouldn’t want any trouble from the bleeding hearts who think they have a right to be covered.”

Vasquez shot Farrington a dark look, but Bish was unimpressed with all of them. “Can I see you in private?” he asked the acting governor.

Cook dismissed the others and Bish waited until the door had closed behind them. “Gray’s lying. He let this happen and you’re protecting him. You’ve done Noor LeBrac a favor and that’s not going to look good for you.”