When Night Closes in (18 page)

Lowri thought of Lainey: he was no hardship. Given any other circumstances, they might have been lovers. The idea shocked her. Why on earth should she think that? Lainey was a man trying to solve a case, that was all.

‘You've gone all dreamy. Thinking of Lainey are you?' Sally laughed. ‘He must have something beside good looks, though I can't see it myself.'

‘Look, Sally, I'm off men for the time being, perhaps for ever. Jon has shown me that no man can be trusted.'

‘You'll change your mind, you just wait.' Sally took out a mirror and touched up her lipstick. ‘This place should be livening up, soon,' she said casually.

Lowri would much rather have had a quiet meal in a nice restaurant, but that was far too tame for Sally. The door of the pub swung open and two men came in talking and laughing, making as much noise as if there was a crowd of them. Lowri frowned as she saw one of the men waving in her direction.

‘Don't worry,' Sally said, ‘it's me he's interested in.'

‘What about Timmy?' Lowri asked and Sally shook her head.

‘I don't know and I don't care. He's getting on my nerves lately. Do you know, he's no damned good in bed?' She smirked at Lowri. ‘Yours looks nice.'

‘Oh, Sally!' Lowri said. ‘Are you trying to fix me up? I'm a big girl now, I can make my own friends.'

‘Aye, and see where that gets you!' Sally retorted, ‘with a pig like Jon Brandon!'

Lowri sighed. Sally was right, of course she was. ‘OK, don't go on about it.' She looked up as the two men began to cross the room towards them.

‘Sergeant Brown, hallo,' Lowri said. He nodded and sat close to Sally who fluttered her eyelashes at him. ‘Are you planning to take down my particulars, Sarge?'

Lowri winced. Sally was so obvious.

‘Talk to Matthew's friend,' Sally told Lowri.

‘Ken Major.' The officer sat on a stool facing Lowri. He seemed as embarrassed as she was. He smelled of aftershave, a clean, fresh smell. He smiled, looking handsome and sporty in an open-necked shirt. He was doubtless a very nice man but Lowri was not interested.

‘Lowri Richards.' She held out her hand and he took it.

Sally rushed into speech. ‘How's the police force doing then, Ken, been solving any crimes lately have you?'

‘Not a lot. I'm mainly a pen-pusher. Drink, anyone?'

‘Yes please!' Sally said enthusiastically. ‘Red wine for Lowri, white for me.'

Ken loped away to the bar, his step springy. Sally jabbed Lowri in the ribs.

‘His sap is rising!' she whispered.

‘Tough!' Lowri replied.

‘Aw, go on, you could do with a bit of sex, it will ease the tension, don't you know what I mean?'

‘Who says I'm tense?'

‘Well, just look at the way you're gripping your hands together, your knuckles are dead white!'

‘So suddenly you're a psychologist,' Lowri said sourly.

‘Well, ease up, enjoy life, you're only young once, mind.' Sally rose to her feet. ‘I'm going to the Ladies, coming?'

Lowri sighed. ‘No, you go on, I'm fine.'

Sally minced across the room on her high heels. She insisted on wearing stilettoes, whatever the fashion. To be fair, they suited her slim ankles and curving calf muscles. Sally was certainly a girl to make the most of her attributes.

Matthew Brown glanced at Lowri. ‘Some girl, your friend,' he said cryptically.

‘She sure is,' Lowri replied.

Ken returned and put a glass on the table in front of Lowri. ‘Hope that's all right,' he said.

‘It's fine, thank you.' She drank some of the wine. It was smooth and mellow – at least Ken was not a cheapskate. He took a mouthful of beer and the froth outlined his top lip. She was trying to think of something to say when he spoke again.

‘I'm sorry if your friend sprang this on you.' He smiled. ‘I didn't want to come here but now I'm glad I did.'

She returned his smile, liking him. ‘Yes, me too,' she said. ‘Still, perhaps I'd better tell you that I'm a police suspect. I wouldn't like you to get into trouble over meeting me.'

‘Take no notice of that,' Ken said, ‘half the population are police suspects.'

Sally came mincing back across the carpet. Her lipstick, reapplied, gleamed in the overhead lights, giving her a pronounced pout that was clearly appealing to her date. Matthew leapt to his feet, allowing her to slip into the seat beside him.

‘You look lovely enough to eat,' he said and Sally winked up at him.

‘We could talk about that later. Right now I don't want to shock my friend. Lowri is a stickler for modesty.'

The conversation became general and Lowri found that Ken had a quirky sense of humour. It was good to laugh again, to be carefree if only for a few hours. She liked Ken but she did not fancy him, and somehow that made laughing at his jokes much easier for her.

Sally was cuddling up to Matthew and Lowri hoped that Ken would not get the wrong im pression.

‘Married, engaged, going out with anyone?' she asked pleasantly and Ken shook his head.

‘No, my last girlfriend dumped me. I kept letting her down all the time. Work, you know?'

‘We're in the same boat then,' Lowri said. ‘I was dumped too, in a way, and speaking for myself, I don't want to get involved in a serious relationship for a long time yet.'

‘We're on the same wavelength then,' Ken said. ‘Friends, right?'

Lowri felt relieved. ‘I'll drink to that.'

‘I'd like to take you home though,' Ken said. ‘And it might lead to you learning something to your advantage, as they say.'

Lowri met his steady gaze. She wondered if he was bargaining with her, sex for information? Well, if he was, two could play at that game.

‘OK,' she said and picked up her glass.

If Ken was surprised at her ready agreement, he concealed it very well. He probably thought she was a pushover. Many girls were these days, of course. In fact, some men expected a girl to be experienced, otherwise they thought there was something wrong with them.

‘We could leave now,' Ken said. ‘It's full of smoke in here, noisy as well. You can't hear yourself think.'

‘Don't you want another drink?' Lowri asked.

He shook his head and a fall of dark hair covered his forehead. She noticed quite suddenly that Ken was a similar type to Jon Brandon: dark, well built, confident. Ken was younger, he was probably little more than mid-twenties, but he wore the same self-assured smile that Jon had worn.

She realized she was thinking of her lover, the man she had thought she would one day marry, in the past tense. And something else, she realized, she was no longer in love with him. Her spirits lifted at once; she was free, really free of her past.

‘Hey you two, you love-birds there, there'll be plenty of time for drooling over each other later. Come on now, help me out here a little.' Sally was pouting, her newly lipsticked mouth full and inviting as she nestled closer to Matthew. He dropped a kiss on her cheek.

‘Oh come on, Matthew! Such a peck is an insult to a red-blooded girl.'

‘No offence intended, love,' Matthew said calmly. Sally flung back her hair, exposing the flesh of her white neck, and smiled.

‘None taken then.'

Lowri looked at her watch – the evening seemed to be dragging. She wanted nothing so much as to get back home, have a quick shower and climb into bed to sleep the night away.

‘Do you know, Ken, I think I'll take you up on your offer, let's get out of here.' She turned to Sally. ‘I'm going home now.' Lowri smiled. ‘Ken is going to take me. See you tomorrow.'

She was silent in the car, wondering what Ken had meant by saying she might ‘learn something to her advantage'. He drove competently and Lowri felt relaxed by the wine she had drunk. ‘It's been a very pleasant evening,' she said. ‘Can you stop, just over there look, that's my house.'

He drew the car to a halt right outside her door. She turned to him and touched his arm. ‘Thanks for bringing me home, Ken, I've enjoyed your company.'

‘Can't I come in for coffee, I've got something to tell you, have you forgotten?'

She stepped out of the car and Ken pulled on the handbrake and climbed out after her. ‘I promise I won't bite!' he said. He bent to kiss her and Lowri twisted away.

‘I told you, Ken, I don't want any involvement just now.'

‘No but a little kiss wouldn't hurt anything, would it?' He pressed his mouth to hers and his kiss was childlike, he was clearly unpractised in the art of seduction.

‘Come on, Lowri,' he put his arms one on either side of her, pinning her to the wall, ‘let me come inside.'

‘Thank you but no thank you!' Lowri pushed him away.

‘What's wrong, don't you like me?' His tone was wistful and, immediately, Lowri felt sorry for him. Before she could think of a tactful reply, a voice rang out clearly in the night air. ‘Miss Richards? Could I have a word?'

Lowri blinked in surprise. ‘Detective Inspector Lainey!'

He loomed up out of the darkness, his shoulders hunched, his hands thrust into his pockets. ‘How good of you to escort the young lady safely home, officer.' He turned his back on Ken and smiled down at Lowri. ‘Can we talk? Inside?'

‘Oh right. Thank you again, Ken.' He looked crestfallen and Lowri hid a smile. ‘It was a lovely evening,' she added.

Lainey followed her into the sitting-room and she was surprised to see he was laughing. He was leaning against the door, his arms folded across his chest, watching her with obvious amusement.

‘You saw, didn't you?' she said indignantly. ‘And you didn't think to help me out of an embarrassing situation?'

‘I did think of it but then I saw you were doing very nicely alone.' He perched on the edge of the table.

‘Well, what have you come for, just to laugh at my antics?'

He sobered. ‘No, I haven't. I've just come back from Heathrow. Sit down, Lowri, there's something I have to tell you.'

‘What's going on between you and that policeman?' Timmy's voice held a familiar note of complaint and Sally pushed him away, moving to the other side of the bed with an impatient shake of her head.

‘Nothing, you idiot!'

‘I'm not an idiot! You're always talking about those cops, especially Matthew Brown, and then I catch you with the guy in Green's Wine Bar. What am I supposed to think?'

‘You didn't catch me, I was having a lunch-break and happened to see Matthew. What's wrong with that?'

‘It didn't appear to be an accidental meeting, not the way you were sitting up close to him.'

‘For heaven's sake don't be so childish. Come on, get out of bed and get us a drink, will you?' She turned to punch the pillow, wishing it were Timmy's face.

‘No, I won't get us a drink!' He grasped her arm. ‘Tell me what's going on, Sally, you're driving me mad. Are you in love with the chap?'

She sat up, feeling a chill across her naked breasts. ‘No I am not!' she said emphatically. ‘If you want to know the truth I can't stand the guy.'

‘Well, then, why were you talking to him like that, heads together as if you'd got secrets to share? I don't like to be made a fool of, Sally, especially by a yob of a copper.'

Sally fell back and stretched her arms above her head, knowing her breasts were pointing provocatively upwards. ‘Don't be such a bore!' she said. ‘I was just trying to pump him about Lowri and that man who disappeared. Don't tell me you're not curious about it all.' She ran her hand over his chest and down to his groin. ‘Why should I want that big lumbering idiot of a cop when I've got you?'

Mollified, Timmy leaned over her and pinched her nipple between his thumb and forefinger. The pain excited her and she wondered if it would be worth giving it another shot with him? If he could prolong the session a little she might even get a thrill out of it.

He must have read her mind because he slipped out from under the sheets and made for the bathroom. Obviously he was not up to giving it another go.

Alone, she thought about Matt. They had met earlier and he had been so sweet and contrite. He told her some man had turned up at Heathrow carrying a passport in the name of Jon Brandon. That was a surprise. She shivered. Could he have come back into the country, if indeed he had ever left it? Or was someone using his passport?

Her mouth curved into a smile: now
he
was what she called a lover. Jon was an expert, a real stayer. She could do with an hour or two with Jon right now.

She had asked Matthew what this man who called himself Jon Brandon looked like, but by the time the police got to the airport he had gone. The only description was one given by an air steward, and it was sketchy to say the least. The sharp-eyed security man who had spotted the name on the passport had gone off duty, and no-one else had taken any particular notice of Jon Brandon.

She heard the rush of the shower and the sound of the water made her realize she had a raging thirst. That was the way wine affected her – why, she wondered, did she drink it? She slipped out of bed, wishing Timmy would hurry up so that she could shower away the stink of him.

She crossed the room to the window and pulled aside the curtain. She could see students from the university next door standing in groups talking and smoking. They were all dressed the same, in jeans and old sweaters. They even carried books in the same way. And all of them with grey faces and bowed shoulders. They had so much time off from their studies, surely they should be happy? How she despised students!

Timmy returned to the bedroom, scented and clean. She had fancied him, once. Still, Timmy had money, privilege, and he could be very useful.

She brushed past him on her way to the shower. ‘Won't be long, darling.' In the bathroom, she peered at the mirror. It was steamed up and she rubbed her arm across it. Her hair was a mess and the roots needed touching up. She thought of Lowri with her glossy, natural auburn hair and her fine skin. She might be older than Sally but she could still pull the men in spades.