Harry nodded. Familiar story.
‘They discover powder, which unlike alcohol gives them a buzz and they’ve heard it also helps to keep them slim. Soon they have to take more to get the high they need to give of their best every evening. Soon they have to take it just to perform the shows. And soon the effects are visible, they notice they’re losing concentration and begin to hate the drunken, cheering audience. Then one night they march off the stage. Furious, and in tears. They argue with the manager, take a week’s holiday then come back. But they can’t feel the atmosphere any more, can’t feel the inner sense that helped them to time things right. Audiences vote with their feet and in the end it’s time to go on the street and move on.’
Yes, Teddy had his finger on the pulse. But all of that lay in the future. Now it was time to milk the cow, and right now it was standing on the stage with large eyes and udders full to bursting and was probably – all things considered – a very happy cow.
‘You wouldn’t believe who comes here to check out these new talents of ours,’ Teddy chuckled, brushing his lapel. ‘Some of them come from your very own profession, if I can put it like that. And they’re not exactly boys on the bottom rung, either.’
‘Bit of striptease doesn’t hurt anyone, does it.’
‘We-ell,’ Teddy drawled. ‘Don’t know about that. So long as they settle up for the damage afterwards, I suppose the odd graze doesn’t hurt.’
‘What do you mean by that?’
‘Not a lot. Enough of that. What brings you to these parts, Officer?’
‘Two things. The girl who was found in Centennial Park turned out to be a little less naive than first impressions indicated. The blood samples showed she was full of amphetamines and on closer investigation the trail led here. In fact, we discovered she had been on the stage here earlier the night she went missing.’
‘Barbara, yes. Tragic, wasn’t it.’ Teddy did his best to assume a grieving exterior. ‘Not much of a stripper, but an absolutely great girl. Have you found anything?’
‘We were hoping you might be able to help us, Mongabi.’
Teddy ran a hand nervously through his slicked-back hair.
‘Sorry, Officer. She wasn’t in my stable. Talk to Sammy. He’ll be in later.’
A pair of enormous satin-clad tits obscured the view between them for a moment, then they were gone and a colourful cocktail was standing on the table beside Harry.
‘You said you came here for two things, Officer. What was the second?’
‘Oh, right. A purely private matter, Mongabi. I was wondering if you had seen my friend over there before?’ Harry pointed to the bar. A tall black figure in a smoking jacket waved to them. Teddy shook his head.
‘Are you absolutely sure, Mongabi? He’s quite well known. Before too long he’s going to be an Australian boxing champion.’
There was a pause. Teddy Mongabi’s eyes went shifty.
‘What is it you would like to . . .?’
‘Heavyweight, goes without saying.’ Harry found the straw among the umbrellas and slices of lemon in the fruit juice and sucked.
Teddy forced a smile. ‘Listen, Officer, am I mistaken or were we just having a cosy conversation?’
‘Indeed we were. But not everything in life is cosy, is it. Cosy Time is over.’
‘Listen, Officer Holy, I don’t think what happened recently was any nicer than you do. I’m sorry about it. Even though you should bear your part of the guilt, you know. When you came in here and sat down tonight, I thought it was with a common understanding that all that was behind us. I believe we can agree on a number of things. You and I, we speak the same language, Officer.’
There was a second’s silence as the disco music suddenly stopped. Teddy hesitated. There was a loud gurgle as the last of the fruit juice disappeared up the straw.
Teddy swallowed. ‘For example, I know that Melissa has no special plans for the rest of the evening.’ He sent Harry an imploring look.
‘Thank you, Mongabi, I appreciate the thought. But I simply don’t have the time right now. I have to finish this business first, and then I’m off.’
He pulled a black police truncheon from his jacket.
‘We’re so damn busy I don’t even know if I have the time to kill you properly,’ Harry said.
‘What the hell . . .?’
Harry got up. ‘I hope Geoff and Ivan are on duty tonight. My friend was so looking forward to meeting them, you know.’
Teddy struggled to his feet.
‘Close your eyes,’ Harry said, and struck.
46
Bait
‘YUH?’
‘Hello, is that Evans?’