Page 106 of The Guilty Girl

‘He’s your main client, isn’t he?’

‘Yes. He won amateur medals, then turned professional. He’s about to become major box-office material.’

‘When did you last speak with him?’

‘Yesterday afternoon. He rang to offer his condolences.’

‘He stays at your Malaga apartment?’

‘From time to time.’

‘Why is he out there?’

‘I don’t know.’

‘Were you expecting him to be there?’

‘He has a key.’

Not an answer. ‘But you weren’t expecting him?’

‘No.’

Kirby had checked and confirmed Terry had been on the first flight to Malaga yesterday morning. But when had it been booked? she wondered.

‘You trust him with your apartment?’

‘Yes.’

‘Like you trusted your daughter to be alone for three weeks?’

‘I don’t like what you are implying, Inspector.’

‘Why did you go to Malaga, Albert? Three weeks was a long time to leave Lucy home alone.’

‘We thought she was able to look after herself. We were wrong.’

‘This was coming up to and during her exams. Seems heartless to me.’

He picked at a notebook on the desk, turning over page corners. ‘It’s complicated.’

‘Tell me.’

‘I received a threat to do with my business. I believed it originated in Spain. I went over to sort it out.’

‘What threat?’

‘I can’t say.’

‘Your daughter and a fifteen-year-old boy have been murdered, and you don’t want to tell me about a threat you received? Come on, Albert.’

‘It’s not relevant to Lucy or Jake. It was to do with my work.’

‘Let me judge what’s relevant and what’s not.’

He seemed to be considering his options, because it was a few moments before he spoke again. ‘I received an email. I don’t know who from, but whoever it was, they were going to expose me for fixing fights and my clients for substance abuse. I was to pay them five hundred thousand euros or they were going to ruin my business. And for the record, I don’t fix matches.’

‘Did you talk to Terry about this allegation?’

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