Episode 20 - Colin

Gary drove Cleo to her office early on Friday morning. They had slept very little. They had talked about themselves between phases of intense love-making. They were happiest together and felt committed to one another. Cleo made coffee and they embraced wordlessly for a long time while the noisy espresso machine spluttered and spat.

“That hell-bent coffee-maker has taken lessons from May Temple,” said Cleo.

“Have I said thank you for staying with me, Miss Hartley?” said Gary.

 “You needed me, Mr Hurley, and I wanted to be with you. I was, and that’s how it’s going to be in future if you want it that way.”

“I do want it that way,” Gary said and left for HQ, restored in spirit and moved by Cleo’s deClaretion.

***

The guy did not even drink his coffee.

***

Colin arrived early at Cleo's office. He had brought breakfast with him.

"Can we do a deal, Cleo?"

"That depends what it is."

"A croissant for a coffee."  

"You're in business."

Ten minutes later they were drinking milk coffee out of müsli bowls and dunking their croissants, French style.

"My mother was French," Colin said. "This dunking ritual reminds me of her."

"Was?"

"Car accident."

"I'm sorry."

"So am I. Another deal?"

"You're on."

"Are you sure Gary should hear all I know about Mrs Temple?" Colin mused. "He might ask how I got the information."

“He won’t.”

“Are you sure?”

“Put differently, he’ll ask me first and I’ll say it’s not usual for sources to be revealed. How did you get it, anyhow?"

"Partly because I flirted with the secretary at that agency. Middle-aged, plain, glasses, tight perm, hungry for love. Named Musgrave. First name Clare. I dropped a few names in, including Temple’s. That rang a bell and there was no stopping her after that."

“I understood that Mrs Temple also worked for a secretarial  agency and she grabbed Mr Temple immediately after she found out about Hatherton’s bigamy. So she usurped Miss Musgrove to get at Temple,” said Cleo.

“That’s exactly what happened.”

“I assume she did what Gary calls ‘cuckolding’”

“Yes, that’s the brief description. The pregnant woman makes sure she lands in bed with her target husband and then claims he was responsible for the pregnancy and must therefore marry her so that his child is legitimate.”

“Neat.”

“That’s what must have happened,” said Colin. “I doubt if Clare Musgrave invented her story. You should have seen the glint in her eyes when she told me.”

"Did you take her to lunch?"

"We’re meeting later today for a coffee. I'll take Julie along."

"Don't do that, Colin. She might tell you more if you are alone."

"OK. I'll tell her I'm gay and that Julie's my sister."

"She won't believe you. You flirted with her, remember?"

"Gays flirt, too, Cleo. Anyway, Miss Musgrave flirted with me.”

“Isn’t she too old for that sort of game with a young guy?”

“She might be a middle-aged plain Jane, but some of them are man-eaters,” said Colin, wondering about Cleo. “A phone call from you would get me out of her web."

“As wife or friend?”

“You choose.”

"Time?"

"Say four thirty. If it's too early I'll call you George or something and ring off. Then you phone again after fifteen minutes or so."

"All in a good cause, I hope, Colin."

"There's always a chance she's forgotten to tell me something I would like to hear."

"Sure. More coffee?"

"I'll make some," Colin offered and went into the utility room.

"Changing the subject, Colin," Cleo called after him. "Gary told me there's definitely drug-trafficking at that teenager's school."

"You mean the blazer girl?"

"Yes. She might not know what she's doing, but others may not be so naïve. Can you try to get near enough to ask a few questions?"

"Won't the kids accuse me of molesting them?"

"I'll take care of that by warning the school director ahead of you going there. You won't be anything out of the ordinary for the kids. They may even think you have business for them. At least one of them is probably getting good pocket money for distributing drugs at the school. Kids don't like to split on adults because that would expose their misdemeanours. The honour thing - don’t tell on me and I won’t tell on you - is highly prized by some kids. Can you manage next Tuesday?"

"That should be OK."

"I'll put the girl's mother in the picture by them. The director, a Mrs Frazer, probably knows what's going on, but is unable or even afraid to upset the applecart. As long as you behave like a dealer, convincing enough to make at least one kid talk, you’ll get on fine."

"I'll try."

"I'll mail you a photo of the girl I'm really concerned about."

Colin rinsed the coffee mugs and refilled them with steaming hot coffee, during which time Cleo phoned the girl's mother to ask for a photo of the girl. The woman would bring it at lunchtime when she came to hear the result of the forensic tests on the blazer.

A phone call to Gary secured a copy of the forensic report on the jacket. Cleo thought it better to have something official to show the woman.

"What was the name again?" he wanted to know.

"Badger, like the animal. The girl's first name is Barbara."

"Well, I hope your Mrs Badger has good nerves, Cleo. She'll need them if her daughter has to give evidence in court. Whole families in that situation have had to be relocated and given new identities."

"That would be a good chance to get rid of their ridiculous surname," said Cleo.

"Oh it's not that bad. A woman calling herself Mrs Cupboard rang me the other day because she needed a bodyguard, so she said."

"Did you refuse?."

"Do I look like a bodyguard? I passed the case on to Roger. Let him deal with the woman.”

Colin drained his coffee and put his jacket on.

“Before I get on my way, can I ask you something personal?" he said.

"Sure. Fire away."

"Are you involved with Gary Hurley, Cleo?

"Involved?"

"Has he ever - how should I put this?"

"Straight, Colin."

"Has he ever made a pass at you?"

“Why do you want to know?”

"Do you think he might have developed an interest in Julie?"

"What makes you think that?"

"She acts a bit strange when he's around,” said Colin. “And he never takes his eyes off her."

"Gary Hurley can be quite overpowering when he decides to. Julie’s an attractive, independent woman, but maybe she’s shy or doesn’t even like the way he looks at her."

"Is he a Casanova?"

"Gary is going through a bad patch emotionally,” said Cleo, trying to decide if she should be truthful with Colin. “Why don't you just ask Julie about him?"

"I'm a bit scared of what she'll say, Cleo."

"So you want me to ask her."

"Could you?”

"No, for heaven’s sake. I can't do that. Either you talk with her, or you just wait and see."

"OK. Maybe I'm imagining things."

"You probably are."

“And you are not…?”

“Can you keep things to yourself, Colin?”

“Of course.”

“Gary plays around with women now and again, but I spent the whole night with him and I can assure you that the flirts are a cover.”

“What about Robert?”

“I think he knows, Colin.”

“Why don’t you ditch him then?”

“I owe him a lot and I do care about him.”

“That sounds like the Red Cross.”

“It’s how I feel.”

“But he is not the love of your life, as I understand it.”

“No.”

“And that cop is?”

“Yes.”

“I won’t tell anyone, Cleo, but I think you should give careful thought to what you are doing to yourself.”

Colin hugged Cleo on impulse and left.