natter with Reggie.’
‘I’ll do that,’ said Kingston, thanking him.
Alex remained behind the safety of the gate, making sure the dog was well out of striking range before he deigned to enter.
Kingston waved at Alex to come in. ‘For God’s sake, Alex, it’s only a dog.’
‘A labrador’s a dog, Lawrence,’ said Alex, joining Kingston. ‘A spaniel, a retriever, a corgi, a chihuahua – they’re dogs. That bloody thing over there’s a killer if I ever saw one.’
As Reggie led him away, Tyson’s panting head was turned back, his bloodshot eyes locked on Alex and Kingston. Alex turned away from the sight with a shudder as he and Kingston headed across the gravel yard toward the office.
‘You’ve got some bloody nerve,’ said Alex. ‘I just hope to God they don’t find out right off the bat that we’re a couple of impostors.’
‘Stop worrying, Alex. I’ll tell them the truth when the time’s right.’
Emma was pert and petite. Seen close up, it was apparent that a good share of her spare time and spare change were spent on Estee Lauder, Clairol and the Body Shop.
She welcomed Alex and Kingston as though they’d just been washed up on her desert island, clearly overjoyed to have not just one but two men to flirt with. With a toothpaste smile, and a wiggle to straighten out her tight skirt, she stood up from her cluttered desk to greet them. She had kind eyes, Alex thought. For some reason, though, they looked older than the rest of her.
Kingston oozed charm and good breeding. Emma listened, wide-eyed, as he explained the reason for their unheralded visit. ‘Ooh! CC will definitely want to talk with you. He’s been on holiday in Florida for ten days. Supposed to get back tonight. We could do with the publicity. My goodness,
Kingston managed to wink at Alex while Emma was not looking. ‘Here,’ he said, handing her two cards. ‘I know it’s awfully short notice and all that but we’d like to interview him tomorrow, if possible.’ My God, Alex said to himself, in awe of Kingston’s thoroughness, he’s even printed up phony cards.
‘I would imagine he’ll be a bit tired after a long flight, but I’m sure he’ll want to see you – he’s a big fan of your magazine.’ Emma turned to face the wall. ‘See,’ she said, pointing with a cerise-tipped finger to a neat row of magazines on a nearby bookshelf. ‘Been getting it since it first came out. Really look forward to it, I do. Matter of fact, your editor sat next to CC at a Royal Horticultural Club do, only just recently. A very nice lady, he said she was.’
‘She is,’ Kingston replied.
‘You know her, then?’ She put her finger to her lips. ‘Can’t think of her name. Her picture’s always in the front of the magazine.’
Kingston looked casually about the room.
A hollow feeling suddenly materialized in the region of Alex’s midriff.
‘Know her quite well, actually, ‘Kingston said, with an ingratiating smile. ‘Rosie Atkins.’
‘That’s her,’ Emma said snapping her fingers.
Alex was dumbfounded. He looked at Kingston’s smug expression and shook his head. The nagging thoughts he’d had about their plan misfiring had now evaporated.
‘Look around all you want, boys. And if the workmen can’t answer your questions, you just come back and I’ll give it a go. Failing that, CC’ll be here tomorrow. I know he’d just love to meet you.’
Before they left, Emma sketched out a crude diagram of the grounds, handing it to Kingston. ‘You will come back before you leave, won’t you? I’ll make some tea,’ she said, with a tilt of her head, pursing her coral lips. Assuring her that they would, they thanked her and, with a renewed sense of purpose and confidence, walked out into the gravel yard. Alex was relieved to see that Tyson was nowhere in sight.
After studying Emma’s map, they followed the perimeter cyclone fence for nearly a quarter of a mile to the far corner of the growing grounds. Twenty raised beds planted with evenly spaced rose bushes stretched out in front of them, reaching all the way to the other side of the field. Kingston estimated that there were between two and three thousand of them. Some bore many blossoms, others none. Galvanized metal markers identified sections with numerals – no rose names. Taking separate rows, they strolled up and down the grassy paths searching for Sapphire.
‘I doubt very much that she’s here,’ Kingston said. ‘These all look like hybrid tea roses. She would stick out like a sore thumb in the middle of this lot.’
‘That’s not a very well-chosen simile, Lawrence.’
‘Unintentional, old chap.’
Satisfied that Sapphire was not lurking among the HTs, as Kingston called them, they turned their attention to an area which Emma had marked on the map as Section Number 2. It was a smaller version of the main field but planted with roses in a much earlier stage of growth. A quick glance told them that Sapphire was not there, either.
‘Let’s look in the greenhouses,’ Kingston said. ‘I can’t think why they would want to put her under glass – but you never know.’ After ten minutes of searching, they emerged from the third and last greenhouse. Still no sign of Sapphire. They walked past three dilapidated old barns, peering curiously inside the first one through the partially open door. The only meagre light inside filtered through cracks between some of the old timbers. As Kingston pulled the creaking door wider, a shaft of sunlight slanted through the opening, illuminating a veil of hovering mosquitoes. As their eyes adjusted to the dimness, they saw that it had once been a stable for horses or livestock. Now it was evidently just used for storage. ‘She certainly won’t be in there,’ Kingston said, closing the rickety door. They wandered aimlessly around the office area and a corner of the yard used for composting. Kingston perused the map one more time, then shook his head. ‘If Emma’s sketch is accurate, we’ve covered every damned inch of the place.’
With nowhere left to search, they sat on a crude bench caked with dried bird droppings. A flatbed truck was parked behind it, against a tall hedge.
‘So much for my brilliant powers of deduction,’ Kingston shrugged, looking downcast.
Alex, fidgeting with the strap of the camera case, remained silent.
Kingston had rolled Emma’s map into a tight tube and was tapping it nervously on his knee. ‘I’d have bet the farm that that damned rose was here. I could feel it in my bones.’
‘Looks like your bones were wrong,’ Alex said. ‘This is an absolute disaster.’ All he could think of was what would happen tomorrow when Wolff ’s men arrived to find no rose. They were startled by a furious outburst of snarling and barking. The din came from behind the barns.
‘Tyson’s about to go in for the kill, by the sound of it,’ Alex muttered. They were both staring abjectly at the ground when Reggie appeared from behind one of the barns trundling a squeaky wheelbarrow filled with compost. He stopped in front of them, rubbing his beefy hands down the side of his jeans. ‘Old Tyson gets right pissed off when those cats bug him. One of these days one of ’em’s gonna get too close and kiss its ninth life tata!’
‘Where is he?’ Alex asked, subconsciously measuring the distance to the Alfa.
‘Up there behind them old sheds, mate. We keep him there when there’s blokes like you around. Most of the time – and at night – he gets the run of the place.’ He grasped the handles of the wheelbarrow and started to walk away. ‘Ain’t had a burglary yet,’ he added with a cocky laugh.
Kingston stood up from the bench, letting Emma’s map flutter to the ground. ‘Sheds,’ he said to Alex. ‘Emma didn’t put any sheds on the map.’ He pulled on his earlobe – a sure sign that he was on to something. ‘Come on,’ he said, picking up the piece of paper.
Alex followed Kingston at a jog across the yard, between the narrow gap separating the old blackened barns. Reaching the end, they came up against a high chain-link fence. On the other side was a paddock about thirty feet wide and running the full length of the sheds in the back. Weeds and tufts of grass covered most of the fenced-in area.
‘Well – I’ll – be – damned!’ Kingston said, articulating each word. ‘There she is. Incredible!’ He was pointing to a wooden planter box in the corner of the paddock next to the padlocked gates. It was large, close to three feet high and about the same measurement in width and depth.
‘There’s still quite a few blooms on her,’ said Alex.
‘Those will be new.’ Kingston shook his head. ‘Even more amazing. Not only blue but
