The sound of a key jangling in the lock made them both turn towards the door.
‘Looks like breakfast after all!’ Guy grinned.
The door opened and a police constable looked in. There was no sign of a tray, or any smell of food.
‘OK, you two,’ he said. ‘Your briefs are here. You can go. Pick up your things at reception.’
Jake’s brain was not quite taking this in. What had changed? Had Gareth swung into action?
‘Yess!’ exulted Guy. ‘Freedom, here we come!’
He headed for the door. Jake hurried after him, worried that the door might slam shut before he got out.
Jake and Guy followed the uniformed constable along the corridor, then up the stairs to the main police station. The first person he saw was Lauren, who rushed towards him and threw her arms around him.
‘How are you?’ she asked. ‘Did they treat you all right?’
‘Apart from keeping me locked up, and not knowing what was going on,’ grumbled Jake.
He looked towards where a man in a dark suit was in discussion with the desk sergeant and filling in forms.
‘So, Gareth came through,’ said Jake.
Lauren shook her head.
‘I couldn’t get hold of him,’ she said.
‘Then who’s the guy in the suit?’
‘He’s from Pierce Randall. He’s representing the other man they’re holding.’
‘Guy de Courcey,’ said Jake. ‘So, where’s my solicitor?’
‘Bex!’ called Lauren.
Jake was suddenly aware of a young woman in her early twenties, dressed in extreme goth fashion, who was engaged in a deep conversation with a uniformed constable. The young woman, Bex, turned, and came towards Jake and Lauren.
‘Bex was at uni with me,’ explained Lauren. ‘She was studying Law. She’s just graduated.’ Almost apologetically, she added to Jake in a whisper, ‘She was the only person I could get at short notice on a Saturday night.’
‘Hi!’ Bex beamed. ‘You must be Jake.’
‘Yes.’ Jake smiled. ‘Thanks for getting me out.’ Then, frowning, he asked Bex, ‘I assume I am being released?’
‘Absolutely.’ Bex nodded. ‘The Force is with us!’ Then she added, ‘Mind, it’s only on a temporary basis.’
‘How temporary?’
‘You know, bail conditions. And you’ve got to hand in your passport. I told them you’d bring it in later today. Which obviously means you can’t leave the country.’
‘Bail?’ asked Jake. ‘How much bail? And who puts it up?’
Bex shook her head.
‘This is police bail, under the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984,’ she said. ‘It relates back to Sections 3, 3A, 5 and 5A of the Bail Act 1976, where a suspect is released without being charged.’
Jake shot Lauren a quick glance to show he was impressed.
Bex continued, ‘Basically, it means you’re out, but they can call you back for further questioning.’
‘Being out is good,’ said Jake.
‘Anyway,’ said Bex, ‘I’ve filled in most of the forms. All you have to do is sign them.’
‘Thanks,’ said Jake, with more enthusiasm this time.
‘OK.’ Bex smiled. She turned to Lauren. ‘Thanks for this, Laur. It was great! I mean, this is a murder case! How cool is that!’ She smiled again, said, ‘Ciao!’, and then headed for the door.
Jake looked after Bex as she disappeared, still bewildered by what had happened.
‘You sure she’s really a goth?’ he asked.
Lauren shook her head.
‘This week,’ she said. ‘Last week she was a preppy. She tries different phases. I think she’s checking out which one works for her.’
‘All that stuff about section this and section that was impressive,’ said Jake admiringly.
‘You want my opinion, being a lawyer works for her.’
‘Jake!’
Jake turned and saw Guy standing beside them, still smiling, although Jake was sure there was more than a hint of relief in Guy’s smile this time, for all his bravado about being used to being locked up in various prisons.
‘Guy,’ said Jake, ‘this is Lauren, my girlfriend.’
‘A pleasure.’ Guy beamed. ‘I’m Guy de Courcey.’
He held out his hand and Lauren shook it.
‘Earl Guy de Courcey,’ said Jake. ‘He’s an aristocrat.’
‘But a very poor one.’ Guy grinned. Turning back to Jake, he said, ‘Actually, I was wondering if you felt like getting together later today, after I’ve got myself cleaned up. It appears I’m involved in the business of these books, whether I like it or not, and you seem to know all about them, so I’d like to pick your brains some more.’