Page 142 of Making a Killing

The same holdall, the same baseball cap, the same hair. The woman who stole Robin Tierney’s cash stole her jewellery too.

‘What name did she give?’

She gives him a meaningful look. ‘Would you believe,Teresa Neele? So I’m pretty sure that, like the Mounties always say, we have “got our man”. Or woman, in this case, obvs.’

She’s smiling now but he has absolutely no idea why.

‘I’m sorry, you’ve completely lost me.’

The smile widens. ‘You obviously didn’t prepare yourself for a life of crime by reading your way through your grandmother’s entire collection of Agatha Christies in the long vac.’

‘Er, no, can’t say that I did.’

‘But you know she went missing, right?’

‘It rings a vague bell.’

‘It was quite the scandal – half the country were out looking for her. Anyway, she was found about ten days later in Harrogate, checked in at the Swan Hotel under the name Teresa Neele.’

And now he gets it.

‘And given we already know how much Daisy enjoys playing games, especially when it comes to choosing her aliases –’

Asante nods. ‘You think it’s her.’

‘If I were a betting woman I’d be down at Ladbrokes.’

‘This “Teresa Neele”, was she travelling alone?’

She smiles. ‘You’re not bad at this detecting lark, are you? Even if your knowledge of its classic fiction is truly lamentable. The answer is yes. She checked in alone and the clerk couldn’t remember seeing her with anyone else.’

‘One more question: have you called Fawley yet?’

She gives him a knowing look. ‘I rather thought you might like to do that. I mean, Thames Valley brownie points aren’t much use to me, are they?’

***

Adam Fawley

3 August 2024

10.25

When I come back from my ‘callover’ with Harrison and Renshaw, Quinn is in my office. And not just in the room, in the chair. Trying it out for size, as Alex will no doubt remark later when I tell her.

‘Any news?’

‘Yup,’ he says, getting up quickly and coming back round to the other side of the desk. ‘Siobhan Reynolds is pretty sure the woman at the cash outlets is Daisy, though she can’t swear to it.’

‘So one vote for Kate, one for Daisy. That’s not exactly helpful.’

‘No, but there is something else. It was Morris who came up with it.’

‘I thought he was on leave.’

‘He was, but he’s back.’ He makes a wry face. ‘And clearly trying to make up for lost time. He made me swear on my mother’s life to tell you this is his idea.’

My turn to smile. ‘OK, well, that figures. What’s he got?’

---