Time to Pay (41 page)

The Dorset Cottage stood in a prime position, just off the main road, in a village outside Chilminster. Eve was all for creating a splash by turning up on the Triumph, but Gideon managed to talk her out of it; for his purposes, it would have been far from ideal. He argued that her sleek, cream Aston Martin was just as much of a head-turner, and would probably do the reputation of her friends' new restaurant far more good, but, when they came to set off, it stubbornly refused to start. In the end they went, to her evident disgust, in Gideon's Land Rover.

‘It wouldn't be so bad if it was one of those shiny new ones,' she complained as she gathered her long skirts in before slamming the door. ‘But this one looks as though it's seen service in both world wars!'

‘Think of it as shabby chic,' Gideon advised.

Giles, Pippa and Lloyd were already there when Gideon and Eve arrived, although when they met up, glasses of Graylings Sparkler in hand, Giles was nowhere to be seen.

‘Networking,' Pippa explained. ‘It's probably a good thing Tilly
couldn't
make it. I think he's going to be talking business all day.'

Gideon also felt it was as well she wasn't there. Even had the scheme he'd evolved with Tilly not relied on her being at home, he wasn't at all sure she could have carried off meeting Lloyd without betraying her changed feelings towards him. He wasn't finding it easy himself, and he wasn't nearly so emotionally involved, to say nothing of never having liked the man in the first place.

The party was encouragingly well attended, with a significant media presence. Gideon thought he detected Eve's hand in the organisation, and mentioned it.

‘Well, what use are contacts, if you don't use 'em?' she replied.

Her artist friend, the effortlessly urbane Trevor Erskine, was present, and came up to speak to them, glancing quizzically at Gideon as they shook hands.

‘No unusual fashion accessories this time, then?'

Gideon grinned.

‘No. It didn't catch on, for some reason.'

He caught Pippa looking at him curiously, but she apparently couldn't bring herself to ask.

‘Private joke,' he said lightly, and wasn't fooled by her bright, brisk change of subject.

A little later, returning from the loo, Eve leaned close to Gideon and, pointing discreetly, asked, ‘Who's that, over there by the window? The blonde woman in the grey trouser suit?'

Gideon glanced across and saw a tall, slim,
attractive woman with long, ash-blonde hair and aquiline features. She looked smart, sophisticated and vaguely familiar. He searched his memory.

‘I'm not sure, but I think it might be Harriet Lloyd-Ellis. Why?'

‘Oh, Lloyd's ex?'

‘Yes, it is,' Pippa said, overhearing. Lloyd had deserted her some five or ten minutes earlier, ostensibly to go and talk to Giles, but Giles was now in plain view, and Lloyd had not as yet reappeared. ‘Why do you ask?'

Eve returned some vague answer, but when Pippa herself drifted away to talk with an acquaintance, she explained.

‘I didn't want to say anything with Pippa here, but when I went to find the loo I took a wrong turning and ended up out the back, and who should I see out there but Lloyd and the blonde.'

‘Yeah, I think they still see quite a lot of each other because of the kids.'

‘Hmm, well, I shouldn't think there was much of each other that they don't see, judging by the way they were carrying on when I spotted them,' Eve remarked dryly. ‘Luckily they didn't see me. I just stepped backwards and pulled the door to.'

‘You're kidding! Poor Pips!'

‘Yeah. He's a twenty-four-carat bastard, isn't he?' Eve agreed. ‘I hate to admit it, but you might have been right about him all along.'

Gideon's mind was racing. That was a development he hadn't expected. Why separate if they still felt that way about each other? Or had absence made the heart grow fonder, as the saying went? The thought that Lloyd might have been
cheating on Pippa, all along, made his blood boil, and made him all the more eager to reveal Lloyd for the criminal he believed he was.

But, silently, Gideon was beginning to fret.

His plan relied on Lloyd being within earshot when Tilly phoned, and so far he hadn't stayed close long enough for Gideon to set it up. Any moment now they'd be asked to take their places for the meal, and by the time that was over the general exodus would no doubt start.

Looking around, he saw that Lloyd had joined Pippa, in a small group that included Giles. Touching Eve on the arm to alert her to his departure, Gideon worked his way through the throng of happy, chattering faces until he was just a couple of feet away. Eve caught up and looked over his shoulder as he took his mobile phone from his pocket and scrolled through the menu.

‘What's up?'

‘Oh, nothing. Just a message. Nothing important.'

Finding Tilly's number, Gideon pressed a couple more buttons and sent a blank text message winging its way to her, then – praying that this wouldn't be one of the times when the phone company inexplicably kept the message for half an hour or more before delivering it – he sidled, with apologies, into Giles' group, making room for Eve at his side.

The conversation seemed to be about drag hunting, and Lloyd was holding forth with some amusing tale of his past exploits when Gideon's phone began to ring.

‘Oh, sorry!' he exclaimed, digging it out of his
pocket. ‘Should've switched it off. Oh, it's Tilly! Excuse me . . .' Half turning away, he put the phone to his ear.

‘Hi Tilly. Is everything all right?'

‘How's it going?' she asked. ‘I thought you were never going to text me. Is he listening?'

‘Yes.'

‘OK. Well, I've dropped it off.'

‘
Reuben
did?' Gideon said loudly, launching into his half of their prearranged conversation. Behind him, he sensed a pause in the chatter as the group heard his exclamation. ‘For me? What kind of package?'

‘Just a package, done up in paper. He was adamant that you should have it.'

‘Well, did he say what was in it?'

‘No, not a word. Is Lloyd listening?' she added, in a lower voice.

‘Yeah. OK. Yeah, we're all at the restaurant . . . No, it'll be OK there. Yeah, sure . . . OK. Well, thanks, Tilly . . . You too. Bye.'

He switched the phone off and rejoined the group. Just before he'd cut the connection he'd heard her say, with a catch in her voice, ‘Get the bastard for me, Gideon!'

‘Tilly all right?' Giles asked, concerned.

Silently Gideon blessed him for providing the opening he needed.

‘Yeah. Odd though . . .'

‘What is?' Eve asked. Gideon hadn't let her in on the scheme, for the simple reason that he knew she'd do everything in her power to stop him going through with it, and, given her resourcefulness, he thought it more than likely that she'd succeed.

‘Well, you remember I told you about Reuben, the old charcoal burner that lives on Tilly's farm?' he said now.

‘The one that was attacked the day we went to London?'

‘Yes, that's right. Well, he discharged himself from hospital the other day, and now Tilly says he's gone; moved on. They don't know where.'

‘You can't blame him,' Pippa said. ‘I don't suppose he'd ever feel safe again, poor man.'

Gideon had told her about the attack on Reuben, feeling that Lloyd would think it strange if he didn't.

‘Well, what's odd is that he apparently left a package behind with Tilly, with instructions to give it to me.'

‘A token of his gratitude, perhaps,' Eve said.

‘What's in it?' Lloyd asked, watching Gideon intently.

‘I've no idea. Tilly hasn't opened it. She rang to say that she had to come over this way, so she's dropped it in at the Priory. She would have left it at the Gatehouse but, of course, I haven't got a letter box and she didn't like to leave it in the porch, not knowing how valuable it might be. She said Reuben was pretty insistent that I get it. Apparently it's something in a padded envelope.'

‘Shouldn't think it'd be very valuable if that old tramp had it,' Lloyd remarked dismissively.

‘You don't know. He might be a nobleman who's denounced modern ways and gone back to nature,' Giles suggested, tongue in cheek. ‘He's probably had the family diamonds squirreled away in a hollow tree somewhere for decades.'

Gideon smiled and saw Lloyd glance thoughtfully at Giles. None of them knew how close his jokey remark had landed.

‘Tilly said there didn't seem to be anyone about. I suppose Mrs Morecambe has gone to visit her sister.' It had been her custom on a Friday for as long as he could remember. She left about noon and cycled down to her sister in the village for the afternoon, getting back around five.

Conversation moved on. Gideon had begun to wonder if all his planning had been for nothing, when Lloyd suddenly exclaimed, put his hand in his pocket and drew out his own mobile phone.

‘It's on silent,' he explained, thumbing a key and putting it to his ear.

The small circle of friends fell quiet once more, each striving not to appear to be listening.

Lloyd's conversation was short and to the point.

‘Oh. Hi, Simon . . . What . . .? When . . .? Have you called the vet? Well, it's a bit awkward but yes, of course I'll come. Yes, I'll be there right away. Make sure you keep him on his feet. Yes, yes . . . OK. In about twenty minutes. Yes. Bye.' He snapped the lid of his phone shut and looked round the circle apologetically. ‘I'm going to have to scoot. That was Simon, the kennelman. Badger's got colic. The vet's on his way, but I'd rather be there. Sorry, folks.'

‘I'll come with you,' Pippa said instantly.

Lloyd shook his head.

‘No need. You stop here and enjoy the lunch. There's nothing you can do – especially dressed like that. I expect the vet'll get there before I do.'

‘Oh, OK.' Pippa looked a little disappointed. ‘I hope old Badger's all right.'

‘Me too.' Lloyd gave her a kiss on the cheek, waved to the rest of them and left, edging his way through the crowd towards the door.

‘Looks like I'll be cadging a lift with you guys,' Pippa said, forcing a smile.

Somewhere at the top of the room, somebody announced that the meal would be served shortly, if guests would like to take their places, and – thanking providence for the timing – Gideon declared his intention of nipping to the toilet before he sat down to eat.

Going out to the foyer, he waylaid a member of staff and asked him if he could wait five minutes, and then tell the diners at table eight that he'd had to nip out for twenty minutes but would be back. Then he went through to the back of the building, where he found the door that Eve had inadvertently opened earlier, and slipped down the corridor beyond towards the open air.

Once outside, Gideon ran across the yard, knowing from a previous fact-finding mission that on this side there were no overlooking windows from the restaurant, and vaulted over a stone wall onto the road. The Land Rover was parked on the verge, a little way back up the road, and, as he climbed in and slotted the key into the ignition, he sent a silent apology to Giles and the girls, who would now probably have to call themselves a taxi.

Lloyd was nowhere to be seen, his sage green Range Rover absent from the space he'd collared close to the door of the restaurant. If Gideon
hadn't known where he was going the cause would have been lost at the outset, but Gideon knew exactly where Lloyd was going.

He drove as fast as he dared, knowing that Lloyd's vehicle was significantly faster than his own. Either the bike or Eve's Aston Martin would have been much more suited to this pursuit, but if he'd accidentally got too close behind Lloyd in either of those distinctive vehicles, the game would have been up. This reminded him that he must replace the Aston's distributor cap when he got back.

Turning off the main road towards Tarrant Grayling, Gideon hoped against hope that Tilly had remembered to alert Logan as they'd arranged.

Out of necessity, he'd spoken to the policeman on the Monday, telling him enough to get his interest, and seeking his advice. Logan was no fool, and had initially refused to co-operate until he'd had the full story. When Gideon had called his bluff and threatened to go it alone, he'd finally agreed.

Almost of its own volition, Gideon's hand came off the steering wheel and checked the presence of the matchbox-sized transmitter that was hidden in the breast pocket of his shirt. Logan had bought it from an Internet website, explaining that red tape rendered obtaining one from police stores virtually impossible. Rostered off duty from six on the Friday morning, he'd promised to be in the vicinity of Tarrant Grayling from noon onwards with the receiver, waiting for Tilly to confirm that the plan was in motion.

As the Land Rover swayed round a tight bend, barely holding the road, Gideon's phone began to ring.

Tilly again.

‘Hello, yeah?' This was no time for pleasantries.

‘I can't get hold of Logan!' Tilly sounded agitated. ‘I've been trying ever since I spoke to you, but all I get is his answering service.'

‘Shit! Well, keep trying! But if you can't reach him in the next minute or two, you'd better ring Rockley – though God knows how far away
he'll
be! And God only knows how you'll explain it all to him, come to that!'

‘But you can't do it without Logan, he's got the receiver!' Tilly protested.

‘I know,' Gideon said grimly. ‘So keep trying!'

The thought of going after Lloyd without Logan on hand as back-up didn't appeal to Gideon at all, even though on this occasion Lloyd wouldn't have had the time or seen the necessity to mobilise the heavy mob, but the idea of drawing back and trying again another day wasn't one Gideon was prepared to entertain. They'd never again be able to set up such a brilliant opportunity to catch the man red-handed. Also, crucially, they'd made the decision to use the real diary as bait because Gideon was pretty sure that if Lloyd tore open the package, then and there, and discovered he'd been duped, there would be no hope of getting him to talk.