There was one other personal involvement she could have had. Connor had almost certainly been responsible for the death of Murphy. Could she have been Murphy’s girlfriend maybe? He put a call into the office. He needed to know if Murphy had a girlfriend. At the same time he was informed Simpson had come through with the full background check on Ashdown and it was waiting for him in the office. Since the events in Richmond Park, he had pretty much lost interest in Ashdown so felt in no rush to see the contents of the report.
Miller had an idea. He approached the Chief Inspector responsible for the investigation and confirmed he was indeed not joking, once he had explained what he wanted. Connor was no longer dead. The idea was full of holes but there was just the chance he could use a not dead Connor to get to the informant if he did exist. Miller made it clear to the Chief Inspector that he could forget about his pension if news of Connor’s death leaked out.
It was a long shot because in all likelihood Jones or whoever the informant was, was working with the damn girl and already knew full well Connor was dead. Hell he might even have ordered it! But there was just a slim chance that the girl was working independently, for personal reasons and the informant may not be in the loop. Miller was still of the opinion that there were at least two teams playing in this game, so he had to play out the hand and see if his bluff would come good.
Sam knew full well what she was going to do. She just didn’t know whether she should tell Eduardo anything and invite the inevitable argument. She reasoned that nobody in their right mind would go after Ashdown, after what had happened in the park. They would expect her to have flown the country and Ashdown to be out of danger. She was sure she had the advantage of surprise for one final attempt on Ashdown. She knew where he worked and was confident she could get close enough for a shot. The cold weather would provide the perfect excuse for covering her face under a scarf and hat. She wasn’t going to just give up. She’d dealt with Connor and needed one last attempt at Ashdown.
Eduardo had gone out for a walk, saying he needed to stretch his legs and make a couple of phone calls. His business would not run itself. On his return he had suggested she accompany him while he ran one further errand, with the promise of dinner afterwards. She decided to hold off discussing what she wanted to do until dinner. Men always listened better over a meal with a drink in their hand.
Eduardo had driven the Mercedes he had hired to help Sam escape from Richmond Park for thirty minutes, when he pulled into the car park of a country park, which from the signs she’d been seeing was somewhere near Slough. He had driven straight to the park without needing his Sat Nav so it was obvious he had been there before.
She had also seen the signs for Heathrow airport, which was nearby and thought the close proximity was probably not a coincidence. There were just a handful of other cars parked. One man was holding open the boot of his car while a medium sized golden retriever jumped in the back. She was intrigued by who Eduardo was meeting but didn’t ask. It was his business and he would tell her if he wanted her to know.
“We are early,” Eduardo announced, glancing at his watch. “Let’s take a walk.”
Sam followed him down a well-trodden path. There seemed to be nobody around. Not really surprising given the weather. She zipped up the bright pink ski jacket she was wearing, removed the matching knitted gloves from her pockets, putting them on as she walked. The jacket, gloves and jeans she was wearing were all newly purchased that morning while Eduardo was out seeing to his business.
He moved slightly off the path into some bushes and trees. She was used to clandestine meetings in strange places and followed, intrigued to know where they were headed. She bumped into him as he stopped and suddenly turned towards her. He leaned into her and kissed her passionately on the lips. “We have some time to kill,” he smiled. “We might as well enjoy ourselves.”
Sam knew what he was suggesting and was very excited by the idea. She liked spontaneity. She glanced to either side but there was no one else visible in the vicinity. Anyway, she quite liked the idea there was the possibility of someone walking by and seeing what she was doing.
She was quickly on her knees tugging at the belt to his trousers. The floor felt cold and damp beneath her knees. She hoped he wouldn’t find it too cold and change his mind once she exposed him to the elements. He immediately encouraged her and when she enveloped his half erect form in her mouth she felt him quickly become fully hard. She was impressed the
