‘I’m going to contact him tomorrow and set something up’ Julia said.
‘Right.’ We needed him. If Julia could cope with the situation, I would have to.
‘How are things with Sarah and Don?’ she said to me.
‘Sarah’s doing her best, but she’s caught in the middle. She wants to help, but she doesn’t want to upset her dad. I haven’t seen Don. He’s staying away from the office.’ I knew a gulf had opened up between us all, but I didn’t know how to go about fixing it.
Julia changed the subject. ‘I’ve been speaking to some contacts in London about Kane. Let’s say he has some problems. Things haven’t been going so well for him of late.’
‘You do surprise me. They build you up and they knock you down.’
‘It’s not for those without a thick skin.’ Julia looked at her notes. ‘On the back of his initial success, he’d pumped a load of money into a new nightclub in London. At first, it was a big success, glitzy opening, the place to be seen, but these things change like the wind. One week you’re the big thing, the next you’re staring at an empty club wondering where everyone’s gone.’
‘It’s a tough life.’
‘It’s collapsed like a pack of cards and it’s taking its toll on him. He’s paranoid and thinks people hate him. The word is that he’s hitting the drink and drugs pretty hard.’
‘How hard?’
‘Hard enough for it to have been noticed. He’s stressed out. New Holland’s reunion was his get out of jail free card. He’d seen other bands do it, so why not New Holland? It would have gone a long way to digging him out of his financial problems.’
And he’d got Greg’s new demos, I thought. He’d said he was going to make Tasker a star again. It sounded more like it was a plan to dig himself out of a hole.
‘What if he hadn’t been able to persuade them to reform?’ I couldn’t imagine the demos would be much good to him if Tasker didn’t have the profile to launch them.
Julia shrugged. ‘Sounds like he’d be in serious trouble.’
There was a text message from Sarah to say she’d finished running the searches on the Bilton brothers. I needed to know what she’d found out. The hotel was next to the remodelled travel interchange. I jumped on a bus. I wasn’t sure how pleased to see me she would be, but it wouldn’t wait. I sent a message back so I wouldn’t wake Lauren.
We sat in her front room, the television down low.
‘Don’t tell Dad I’ve been doing this for you’ she said.
I said I wouldn’t. She was still prepared to help me and I didn’t want to throw that away.
‘I’m still working on some of the stuff you asked for, but this is what I have so far.’
She passed me a copy of her notes. ‘I had to speak to some of Dad’s old contacts about Trevor Bilton. He’s well known to them. He’s not a massive player, but he seems to keep a lid on things on the estate in his own way, so I think they just prefer to keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn’t get too far out of line.’
I nodded. That was the harsh reality of the situation. If it wasn’t him, it’d be someone else. Better the devil you know.
‘I can’t believe she wants to deal with him’ Sarah said. ‘He’s hardly a reliable source.’
‘It’s her job, I suppose.’
Major had told me that he thought Tasker was involved with some bad people. And I knew his girlfriend was involved with Trevor Bilton. It wasn’t a good situation.
‘What are you going to do?’ Sarah asked me.
It took me a moment to register what she was asking me. I pushed aside the thought of Siobhan. Sarah repeated the question. I answered this time. ‘Julia’s going to set up a meeting tomorrow’ I said. ‘It’s her call. What did you find out about his brother?’
She passed me another sheet of paper. ‘Gary Bilton is an interesting case.’
I read. He worked on the estate as a community worker. I smiled at the irony of the situation. ‘Do they still get on?’ I asked.
‘Like peas in a pod apparently. Work’s work and blood is thicker than water.’ She cleared the empty mugs away and sat back down. ‘What did Whittle have to say?’
I told her about our conversation. ‘He was testing me. He wanted to make sure I was asking the right people the right questions.’
‘I suppose you can understand that.’
Sarah brought me up to date with the news coverage. The investigation was going quiet, which meant they were either very close to a breakthrough or nowhere near to solving the case. Judging by how harassed DI Robinson looked when I’d spoken to him, I thought it was probably the latter. I suspected we’d be talking again soon.
‘I’ve got something else for you’ said Sarah. She passed me another printout. ‘Jason Harrison. I wanted to check him out.’
‘Good idea.’ I read the notes on Lorraine’s husband. He’d had been arrested in the city centre ten years previously for fighting and received a fine and conditional discharge. It was clear that Harrison had been the aggressor. Exactly the kind of man who might lose his temper if he was involved in a confrontation with someone he didn’t like. And it tallied with what his mother-in-law had told Sarah. I rubbed my face and tried to think through what it meant. I thanked her for her work.
‘You should go home and get some sleep’ Sarah said.
I said I would. I had one more visit to make before I called it a night.
I couldn’t leave it. There was still an hour left before closing time. I walked back to my flat and collected my car. Heading across the city, I parked up on the road opposite the pub I’d met Trevor Bilton in earlier. The main entrance was open this time, but I headed for the same side entrance. That way, I knew the layout. A gang of teenagers rode quad bikes around the car park and shared a bottle of cider. If they were shouting at me, I wasn’t interested. The place was busy, a duo on stage singing a Beatles track. Nobody was listening, rather they were huddled in small groups, talking and laughing. I nudged my way through the drinkers and made it to the bar. No sign of Trevor Bilton, but this was the place to start. I could feel people staring at me. I was willing to bet everyone knew everyone else in this place. I was an outsider. The barmaid made sure she’d served everyone else before making her way over to where I stood.
‘What can I get you, love?’ she asked.
‘I want to speak to Trevor Bilton’ I said.
She was in her fifties, but she looked like she knew how to handle herself. She carried on chewing her gum. She looked me up and down, shook her head and walked away to pour a pint of lager for someone else.
I waited for her to finish before repeating myself.
I felt someone barge into the back of me. ‘Are you deaf, cunt?’ he said to me.
I turned to look at him. It was one of the sidekicks I’d met earlier. ‘Talking to me?’ I said.
‘Who else?’ He smiled and leaned in. ‘Cunt.’
I smiled back. ‘Where is he?’
‘I suggest you fuck off while you still can.’
‘I’m going nowhere’ I said.
The other guy from earlier appeared and told me to follow him.
I ignored the stares as we headed to the corner of the room. We went around the back of the stage, one of them in front of me, one behind. I was told to go up. I tensed as we climbed the stairs, ready for their attack. It didn’t come. I was directed into a room which was a make-shift office. Trevor Bilton closed his laptop and stared at me. I smiled. ‘Does the landlord know you’re up here?’ I said, attempting to lighten the mood.
He walked out from behind the desk and headed across to the window. ‘You’re beginning to get on my fucking nerves.’
It was dark outside. I had no idea what he thought he could see. He wasn’t in the mood for banter, but I still thought I might get more out of him if Julia wasn’t with me. ‘Am I supposed to be scared of you?’ I said.
He turned to face me and smiled. ‘That’s up to you. I didn’t want to be rude in front of Julia, but you were always a right cunt as a kid. Do you remember me now?’
I shook my head. ‘No.’
‘You always thought you were God’s fucking gift. To be honest, I wish I’d broken your legs back then.’ He grinned. ‘But there’s always time for that.’
We eyeballed each other. He eventually let it go.
‘You’re here because of Julia?’ he said.
‘I don’t want you taking her for a ride’ I said.
He smiled. ‘That was always Gary’s job’ he said. He winked at me. ‘I’m sure you know what I mean.’
I’d heard enough. I stepped forward and threw a punch. It connected perfectly with his jaw. He fell backwards against the wall. I told him to watch his mouth.
He slowly pulled himself back up. Blood trickled out of his mouth. He sat down at his desk. ‘That wasn’t a very wise thing to do, but I’ll let it go, seeing as we’re business partners.’ He grinned through the damage I’d done to his teeth. ‘You tell Julia to give me a call’ he said, before spitting blood onto the floor.
I walked back down the stairs and into the pub. Punching him had been a mistake. I’d let my emotions get the better of me. It was momentarily satisfying, but I’d probably pay for it when he sent his men after me. I pushed my way through the groups of drinkers and out into the car park. I saw the same men I’d seen earlier sat in their car, watching me. I was still angry, my first thought was to walk over to them and ask who they worked for. If DI Robinson and Whittle were telling me the truth, were these men connected to Trevor Bilton? But why would they stay outside as I’d attacked their boss? It didn’t make sense. It wasn’t the right time to be confronting them, though. If I was going to approach them, it was going to be on my terms.
I drove home through the busiest roads I could think of, before weaving my way around the side streets of the Avenues to make sure they weren’t following me. Once I was sure I couldn’t see another car in my rear-view mirror, I quickly pulled over and switched my lights off. I sat and waited for a few minutes until I was sure I wasn’t being followed. Satisfied I was alone, I headed to my flat.
Splashing cold water on my face in the bathroom, I walked into the front room. I pulled the curtains together, leaving a small gap to peer out of. I couldn’t see the car that had been following me. It had been too dark to get its registration number. I couldn’t even guess the make or model of it with any accuracy. I moved into the kitchen and seeing no beer in the fridge, poured myself a glass of water. I wanted something stronger. The adrenalin was starting to fade away, replaced with feelings of stupidity and fear. I’d have to watch my back. I’d also have to tell Julia what I’d done and I doubted she’d be very impressed. I stretched out on the sofa and put my headphones on. I flicked through the CD interchanger until Dylan’s ‘Blood on the Tracks’ came on. I was asleep by the time the third track started.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
I woke
early after not sleeping well. Pulling on a tracksuit for warmth, I brewed a pot of coffee and rummaged around in my cupboards for something to eat. Settling for a cereal bar, I switched the television on. They weren’t talking about Tasker, so I booted my laptop up and checked my emails. I quickly forwarded on a couple of general enquiries to Sarah, checked the latest sports news and shut it back down.
The coffee was ready, so I took a mug back into the front room. I’d made an enemy of Trevor Bilton last night, possibly for little reason. I unwrapped the cereal bar and started to eat. I thought about cleaning my flat and getting some food in before I knuckled down to some work. Maybe Julia would want to visit again, if she would still be talking to me once I’d brought her up to date.
DI Robinson appeared on the television, prompting me to search for the remote control. Finding it, I switched the volume up. He was repeating himself, as he explained police inquiries were ongoing. He finished by appealing directly to Tasker’s killer to contact the police. I smiled and nodded. Nicely done, but it was going to need more substance and less style. I could tell he was struggling in front of the cameras. The report cut to a pre-recorded article, detailing the now familiar story of Tasker’s rise to fame and subsequent fall. There was nothing new. I started to channel hop and finished my drink. Shopping and cleaning would have to wait. I had plenty of work to do.
I headed to the Old Town. My walk took me down Spring Bank, towards the city centre. I walked past the job centre, noting the ever increasing crowd of people stood outside. I crossed Ferensway and headed down Jameson Street and the side of the City Hall. The wind whipped my face as I passed Princes Quay. Five minutes later and I was at the office. I walked up the stairs and opened the door. The place had been turned upside down. All the desks and cupboards were empty, their contents on the floor. My eyes finally settled on Sarah, sat on the floor in the middle of the mess.
‘What’s happened?’ I said.
‘What do you think’s happened?’
She was calm, but I could read her. She was controlling her anger. I closed the door behind me and went over to her. I tried to put my arms around her, but she resisted.
‘Just look at the place’ she said.
‘It’s a mess.’ I stood up, embarrassed she didn’t want me touching her. I made a token effort to start tidying up the paperwork.
‘What’s going on, Joe?’
‘Places get burgled all the time’ I said. ‘It could be anything.’ I didn’t say it with much conviction. I thought about my attack on Trevor Bilton last night. And the people following me.
‘If places get burgled, things like laptops tend to go, too’ she said, pointing at her desk.
I hadn’t looked properly. Sarah was right. Poking out from under the mess was a laptop. It wasn’t a normal burglary. But I already knew that.
She stood up and walked across to her desk. ‘Why have they done it?’
‘I don’t know’ I said.
‘It’s gone too far, Joe. I’ve tried to help you, I really have, even when Dad was telling me not to.’
‘We don’t know it’s connected.’
‘Don’t treat me like an idiot, Joe. Just don’t.’
I looked around. I had to tell her. ‘There’s more’ I said. ‘I’m being followed.’
‘Followed?’
‘That’s right.’
‘Why would anyone do that?’