The Fourth Friend (DI Jackman & DS Evans #3)(54)

Robbie stood up. ‘Want a coffee, Charlie-boy?’

‘White with two, please.’ He put a hand in his pocket.

‘Forget it, it’s my turn.’

Robbie strolled along to the coffee machine, wondering how his expat friend was doing. If Harvey had been local, Robbie would have visited him again. He had a distinct feeling that all was not well with HC. Not only that, he knew he had been holding something back. What was it? Could it be important?

Robbie carried the two coffees back to the CID room and set one down in front of Charlie.

‘Thanks.’ Charlie looked up from his monitor screen. ‘I’ve been thinking. What if Ponytail isn’t Ralph Doolan?’

Robbie blinked. Charlie had a knack of saying the blindingly obvious, in a way that made you think again. ‘I’ve been rather running with the hypothesis that there wouldn’t be two Ponytails and Glasses in Suzanne’s life.’

‘Why not?’ Charlie shrugged, ‘He was a dead ringer for Alan Pitt’s cousin, and the boss said he looked like an Arsenal footballer, so? She could have known two Ponytails. It’s not impossible.’

Robbie stared at him. ‘What the hell does the boss know about Arsenal?’

Charlie laughed. ‘Sod all, as far as I know. But if Doolan comes up with a cast-iron alibi, we need to start looking for Ponytail II, don’t we?’

‘I suppose.’ Robbie let out a sigh. ‘I can hardly wait.’

*

Sam Page had just finished a long stint on the riverbank, watching great crested grebes. As soon as he entered the house, he checked his answerphone. No messages.

He went into the kitchen and put the kettle on. He was worried about Laura. She had been so interested in hearing his opinion of her complex patient, and then nothing.

He made tea and took it through to the sun lounge. He had deliberately left his garden to grow wild, and it was now a haven for wildlife. Sam loved nothing better than watching his “lodgers,” as he called the field mice, hedgehogs, bats and other creatures that had made it their home.

He sipped his tea and thought about Laura Archer.

She had told him the story of this patient of hers called Carter, and Sam had realised that it was one of those rare cases where the client affects the therapist in a profound way. He hated to see Laura so anxious, but he didn’t know what to do about it.

Eventually he muttered to himself, ‘Come on, Sam. Just call her.’

Laura answered before the second ring. She must have been waiting for a call from someone else. ‘Shall I ring back at a better time?’ he asked.

‘Oh, Sam, no, of course not. Now is fine.’

‘I was wondering if you’d managed to tie your man down to an appointment where I can sit in. I’m quite free this week.’

Sam heard a muffled grunt.

‘He’s not returning my calls. I’ve rung and left messages, and I’ve texted him, but he’s not getting back. I’m sorry, Sam, but I guess we’ll have to forget it.’

‘You are very worried about him, aren’t you?’

Her silence spoke volumes.

‘Laura, you can’t heal them all. Just as some physical injuries are beyond the help of a surgeon, injuries to the mind can have the same outcome.’

‘I had a brief word with his friend, Marie. She told me that his fourth friend is with him all the time now. It has scared the life out of me. It’s not something I’ve ever dealt with before.’

‘Yet he still functions?’

‘He does outwardly, and he seems to keep this friend, Tom, well under wraps. No one other than Marie and her DI are aware that anything is wrong. To most people, he’s an amazing survivor — a superhero.’

Sam thought about it. ‘From what you told me, he chose an excellent coping mechanism. As he no longer “sees” the other three friends, it is clearly working for him, but the fourth task is much more difficult. How long is it since this woman disappeared?’

Laura murmured, ‘Eighteen months, Sam. A long time.’

‘And Carter believes that this friend wants him to find out what happened to his wife?’

‘That’s what he says.’

‘And all the time he is being haunted by the friend’s restless, unquiet soul. We have to consider that this case may linger on for a very long while.’ He took a breath. ‘And I’m not sure how Carter will handle that. The labours of Hercules seem a bit tame compared to the task that young man has set himself.’

‘That doesn’t bear thinking about, Sam.’

‘There is another worrying factor.’

‘And that is?’

‘That he has got under your skin. You are too close to this man. You must detach yourself. You cannot afford to let him breach your defences.’

Laura did not answer him.

Her silence told him all he needed to know. ‘Can I ask, have you finished your paper? The one on psychosocial transitions?’

‘I’ve ditched it.’

‘Why?’

‘Oh, you know why! He was my main case study, wasn’t he?’

‘Let me take over his case. I know that you are more than capable of dealing with his problem, but you are too involved with the man himself. It’s not healthy, my dear. You don’t need me to tell you about distancing yourself emotionally.’