Page 104 of Traitors Gate

‘CCTV?’ asked the Hawk.

‘He would have known where every camera was, sir. Don’t forget, you trained him.’

‘And where are they now?’

‘They’re sadly still at home, having had to postpone their holiday,’ said Paul. ‘But we won’t be able to hold them up for much longer.’

‘Then let’s also forget Lamont for the moment,’ said the Hawk, ‘and hopefully move on to more promising ground. Collins.’

‘There’s every reason to believe Collins was the driver of the Land Rover,’ said Rebecca. ‘But if it was him, we’re going to find it equally difficult to prove. He was wearing dark glasses and a chauffeur’s hat, which someone with their wits about them should have queried at the time as he should also have been wearing a police uniform.’

‘And to make matters worse,’ said Paul, ‘because it was raining, when we checked the CCTV the driver hadn’t put on the windscreen wipers so all we have on record is a blurred figure.’

‘Any fingerprints?’

‘They all wore gloves,’ said Jackie.

‘What did Collins have to say for himself when you interviewed him?’

‘Had his story off-pat,’ said William, ‘and once he’d told me where I would find Faulkner, he slammed the door in my face.’

‘Someone else taking the piss,’ said the Hawk, ‘which all seems to be part of Faulkner’s master plan.’

‘You have to admire the man,’ said William. ‘Not only has he got nerves of steel but the gall to leave his Old Harrovian tie on the front seat of the Jaguar.’

‘Well aware that Harrow was also the Lord Chamberlain’s alma mater,’ added Paul.

‘And the Resident Governor confirmed that he recognized the tie and assumed—’

‘Time’s running out,’ said the Hawk, checking his watch. ‘So, forget the tie, which Faulkner clearly left to provoke us, and let’s start concentrating on the missing crown. Do we think he made a copy or switched it for one that already existed?’

‘I don’t think he would have had enough time to make something quite as magnificent and detailed as that,’ said Rebecca, staring at the replica on the table in front of her. ‘Not least because, if he had, the craftsman who made it would also have had to be in on the scam along with several gemologists, as well as their assistants.’

‘Agreed. But if we’re to have any hope of finding it in time,’ said William, ‘let’s begin by going back over the golden hour and taking it apart minute by minute, starting with the two figures who were caught on CCTV entering Tower Hill underground station carrying a Tower of London shopping bag.’

‘Unquestionably Collins and Lamont,’ said the Hawk after looking at the CCTV photo yet again. ‘However, only one of them – Collins – turns up at Westminster thirty-eight minutes later, still carrying the same bag which we now know contained the replica crown.’

‘Which he must have handed over to Faulkner before returning home,’ said William.

‘Agreed,’ said the Hawk. ‘But when and where did they switch the crowns?’

‘Let’s assume both Lamont and Collins remained on the underground for just under twenty minutes,’ said Paul, studying a map of the Circle line that he laid out in the centre of the table. ‘If they’d gone east, they could have reached Paddington, Baker Street or possibly Kensington. But if they travelled west, Westminster seems their obvious destination.’

‘Agreed,’ said the Hawk. ‘After all, that’s where we found the damn man standing around waiting for us to turn up. He’s probably placed the real crown on a statue of the Queen to make sure the public can’t miss it.’

‘I don’t agree,’ said Rebecca. ‘I think he’s put it somewhere where the public won’t give it a second thought.’

‘Buckingham Palace?’ offered Jackie. ‘The House of Lords?’

‘Please God don’t make it the House of Lords,’ said the Hawk sounding exasperated.

‘It’s times like this,’ said William, ‘I wish Inspector Hogan was with us, as he’s someone who thinks outside of the box.’

‘Angela’s been trying to track him down all morning,’ said the Hawk. ‘But all she got was—’

‘He’s taking the children on a school trip,’ interrupted William, looking at his watch, ‘to see the other man who stole the Crown Jewels.’

‘Colonel Blood,’ said Paul.

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