A Killing Coast

Cantelli disagreed.

On the ferry, Horton told Cantelli about his visit to Adrian Stanley’s apartment and his subsequent visit to the hospital, drawing a worried frown from the sergeant. He hoped it might take Cantelli’s mind off the fact he was at sea. And he knew he could trust Cantelli.

‘I can’t think what Stanley was trying to tell you,’ Cantelli said, puzzled, ‘but it sounds as though you’re right and he knows more about your mother’s disappearance than he let on.’

Horton then mentioned that he had an appointment to see his social services case files tomorrow morning.

Cantelli said, ‘I won’t ask you if you’re doing the right thing, because you’ve obviously asked yourself the same question a thousand times. What do you think the records will tell you?’

‘How difficult and disruptive I was.’

‘Which wouldn’t be surprising given the circumstances. Will you be able to handle raking up the past, Andy? It’s going to be painful.’

It already was but that was no reason to abandon it. He shrugged an answer, adding, ‘You know that it’s only recently I’ve even been able to think about it, and the more I do the more questions I have about Jennifer’s disappearance. What happened to her belongings — her jewellery and clothes? What became of the furniture in the flat, and my toys? Some came with me, but there must have been more than a handful of cars and a football.’

A jag of painful memory fighting to cling on to what little he did have stabbed at him. Eventually everything had been stolen or destroyed. He’d quickly learnt that possessions didn’t mean much in life. And perhaps that was why he had travelled light for years, before he’d found a family and a home of his own, which in turn had been snatched away. Now he was back to travelling, or rather living, light and that was how he vowed it would stay; the yacht and what he could get on it was enough for him.

He added, ‘Then there are all the photographs of her and of us together, those of me as a baby, surely she must have taken some pictures.’

‘Perhaps the furniture was sold to pay bills and the photographs destroyed.’

‘They shouldn’t have been though, Barney. They belonged to me.’

‘You think the photographs might be in the files?’

Horton shrugged. ‘I doubt it, but there might be a record of what happened to them.’

Concerned, Cantelli said, ‘Don’t build your hopes up too high, Andy. There wasn’t as much information recorded in those days as there is now.’

Cantelli was right. Horton knew that, and he also knew that when he did get to speak to Adrian Stanley again, he might not be able to say any more than he had last night.

Horton then told Cantelli about Sawyer’s visit, leaving out the bit to do with Sawyer knowing about Horton’s visit to Stanley and without mentioning Zeus. The less Cantelli knew about that the better, he reckoned. ‘I think the Intelligence Directorate is interested in Russell Glenn.’

‘They’re not the only ones.’ Cantelli eyed him curiously.

‘What do you mean?’ Horton asked, surprised.

‘Apart from getting Walters to dig up what he can on Glenn I hear you’re on the guest list for this posh do tomorrow night.’

Danby must have told Cantelli, but when and why? wondered Horton, before Cantelli added, ‘PC Johns told me. He’s moonlighting for Danby.’ Horton groaned. That meant it would be all over the station. Bliss hadn’t picked up on it yet and neither had Uckfield and Dennings, but it would only be a matter of time before they did.

‘I told Johns to keep his mouth shut,’ Cantelli said, reading Horton’s thoughts. ‘Otherwise I warned him that he might find his lucrative little sideline suddenly drying up.’

Horton breathed a silent sigh of relief, but he knew that it wouldn’t be long before the information leaked out. Johns wouldn’t be the only moonlighting police officer. He owed Cantelli an explanation. ‘I knew Avril Glenn years ago, before I met Catherine.’

‘Ah. Walters said she’s something of a looker and much younger than her husband.’

‘It’s OK, I’m not getting involved. She asked to meet me and then invited me to this charity reception and auction. I’m still not sure why, though I suspect it’s to show me how well she’s done for herself, but I am curious about Russell Glenn. I saw him on the deck and although it was at a distance he seemed to recognize me. I’m not imagining it, Barney,’ Horton quickly added to counter Cantelli’s dubious look. ‘And Sawyer’s visit makes me think I was right.’

Cantelli frowned. ‘If Glenn is under surveillance by the Intelligence Directorate it might be wise to leave him alone.’

‘I can’t.’

‘I know,’ Cantelli sighed. ‘But for heaven’s sake be careful.’

Horton gazed out of the ferry window at a calm, pale-blue sea, then back at his closest friend. ‘I will.’

Cantelli nodded solemnly before his dark-featured face broke into a grin. ‘Good. I don’t want to end up being left with Bliss bellowing in my ear every five seconds.’

‘Perish the thought,’ Horton said lightly, picking up on Cantelli’s mood. ‘Now let’s see if we can find out why two men are dead and one is missing, and, despite what Uckfield believes, I think there might be something in my theory about smuggling, especially after what Sawyer said, or rather didn’t say. Did Elkins get back to you with any news from the Customs and the Border Agency?’

‘He said there’s nothing major on, just the usual checks at sea: randomly stopping yachts and motor boats and boarding the occasional container and cargo ship. There’s no organized smuggling operation and certainly nothing to link with Victor Hazleton’s claims of smuggling.’

Horton considered this for a moment. ‘Have they been on board Glenn’s superyacht?’

‘I doubt it.’

‘Why not? Just because he’s rich doesn’t mean he’s not crooked; on the contrary, he probably is.’

‘You’re just prejudiced,’ Cantelli said, smiling.

‘You bet I am, and bloody suspicious.’

‘I’ll ask Elkins to find out.’

‘But tell him not to make a big deal of it,’ Horton quickly cautioned. ‘I don’t want them charging in like he’s a Cuban drug baron.’

Cantelli frowned. ‘Do you really believe Glenn could be involved in bringing in drugs?’

‘It would be risky, but perhaps that’s what turns him on. The charity reception and auction could just be an excuse for putting in to port.’ He thought of the photographs in his pocket; perhaps Glenn’s mild manner had fooled Customs and many others down the years. ‘When’s PC Johns on duty?’

‘Now. He’s working on Glenn’s yacht tonight.’

‘Call him and ask him to do a bit of undercover work tonight; see if he can find out if the RIB’s been launched, and, if so, when and who went on it, but he’s to do it surreptitiously. Do you think he can handle that?’

Cantelli nodded.

‘And ask him to get a guest list for tomorrow night; that should be easy enough if he’s going to be working. Walters can check them out.’ Horton was very curious to see who the guests were.

Cantelli nodded and reached for his mobile phone. Horton was pleased to see that the activity and concern over his safety was helping to keep Cantelli’s seasickness at bay.

He stared out to sea, watching the Isle of Wight coastline draw closer. He now knew why Danby had met Lee; something was going down on Glenn’s yacht tomorrow night. It could be an armed robbery, but that would simply be a cover for what was really happening, and Horton guessed it was drugs. Perhaps Glenn had been involved in smuggling drugs while in the Merchant Navy and while working on the cruise liners. By 1985, when he emerged as the buyer of a chain of hotels, he’d made enough money to start his legitimate business empire, which could have been used, and still might be used, for money laundering. And if Glenn was dealing in drugs and if Glenn had known Jennifer, then had she too been involved? Horton didn’t want to think so, and he had no recollection of his mother being an addict, but if she had been mixed up in Glenn’s operation then she was most certainly dead. Could Glenn have killed her because she had threatened to expose him or posed a risk?

Again he considered whether Glenn was Zeus. But he was jumping ahead. The question was, did Avril know about her husband’s illegal activity? He wanted to think not, otherwise why invite him? But his cynical copper’s brain