‘I suppose I was going to ask if you knew anyone who knows him and could help get me to see him, but now
‘I’ll think about it. How long can you stick around?’
‘Not long. I’m supposed to see the guy I went to Bathurst to see pretty soon.’
‘You haven’t said much about him. Should I know more?’
‘Just this—the Tanner brothers are hoping to make some kind of big score with him when he gets out. Do you know of anything that might fit that picture—a drug shipment, a big robbery take unaccounted for, a scam that needs a finishing touch?’
‘I’ll think about that as well. Are you looking for a connection between the Tanners’ interest in the guy in prison and your client’s interest in him?’
‘I can’t see how there could be. Boil it all down and the events are separated by over a century. But I have to consider the possibility.’
We fixed on where and when we’d meet later and left the flat together. Marisha drove off in her Subaru without telling me where she was going or asking me what I was going to do. She kissed me goodbye, but a lot of the heat had gone out of things on her part. It couldn’t be helped; she was involved in something delicate and dangerous and I’d blundered into it. She had to decide whether helping me was worth the risk. That meant weighing a lot of work against something very new and maybe ephemeral. The odds were against me.
I located a swimming pool with a gym attached and spent the morning working out and struggling through twenty laps.
I was walking to my car, thinking about lunch, when my mobile rang. Wakefield. I realised I hadn’t contacted him after my meeting with Twizell.
‘Hardy.’
‘I thought I’d have heard from you before this.’
.I’m sorry, things got complicated.’
‘Complicated how? Did you put my questions to him?’
‘Yes, and I’m sure he knows something, but he’s bargaining with us. He wants you to use your influence to ... help him at his parole hearing.’
A pause, then an impatient grunt. ‘Well, tell him I will.’
‘I think he’ll want something more concrete.’
‘That’ll take time.’
‘That’s what he’s got.’
‘Are you trying to be funny?’
‘No, and my sources were right, the Tanners are keeping a close eye on him and they’re putting pressure on me.’
‘To do what, kill him?’
I laughed. ‘No, it’s not clear what they have in mind. I’m in Newcastle trying to find out.’
‘You’re where? You’re supposed to be in Bathurst.’
‘As I said, it’s complicated.’
‘Hardy, if you’re trying to string this out...’
‘Listen, Professor, some very nasty people have threatened me and my family. I take exception to that and I’m trying to deal with it, but it’s connected somehow to Twizell. I’m dealing with different parts of one thing here, I think.’
Something about my tone of voice must have made an impact. I could almost see him moving the phone away from his ear, backing off. When he spoke again his voice was placatory.
‘I’m sorry. I have faith in you. When do you see Twizell again and what exactly does he want?’
I told him and he said he’d try to pull some strings. I said I’d call him after tomorrow’s meeting with Twizell and that was it. He’d shown no interest in my statement about a threat. I opened the car door and froze when I saw another little foil package sitting on the seat. I took a tissue from my pocket, used it to pick up the foil, blew my nose on the tissue and went to the nearest rubbish bin to drop it in.
I got in the car and began to worry. No surprise that the Tanners had reach in Newcastle, but how did they know I was there? And if they’d picked me up yesterday, had they tracked me to Marisha’s place? If that wasn’t enough to worry about, I could always turn my attention to Wakefield. He seemed indifferent to the Tanners. Was that just single-mindedness, or did he know more about the Tanners and the state of things in Newcastle than he was letting on?
I didn’t feel like eating but I had to fill in the time somehow and I thought I’d go back to the place where I’d had dinner the night before. I was a few blocks away from it when a police car cruised up and waved me into the kerb. One of the uniforms got out while the other sat with his radio phone at the ready. I wound down the window and put my hands in clear view on the wheel.
‘Could I see some ID, please, sir.’