Page 185 of Troubled Blood

“Strike.”

“It’s Shanker. Got your message.”

“I left that ten days ago,” said Strike.

“I’ve been busy, you ungrateful piece of shit.”

“Sorry,” said Strike.

He waved the other two on and paused again at the harbor wall, looking out at the green-gray sea and the hazy horizon.

“I’ve nosed around a bit,” said Shanker, “and you’re not gonna find out ’oo that bint was, Bunsen. The one on the film. Nobody knows. She’ll ’ave done somethin’ fucking serious to get that, though.”

“Deserved it, you reckon,” said Strike, as he surveyed the flat sea. It didn’t look capable, now, of the violence it had inflicted upon the town.

“I’m not saying she deserved—I’m sayin’ even Mucky Ricci didn’t make ’an ’abit of that,” said Shanker impatiently. “Are you in solitary?”

“What?”

“Where the fuck are you? There’s no noise.”

“In Cornwall.”

For a moment, Strike expected Shanker to ask where that was. Shanker was almost impressively ignorant of the country that lay beyond London.

“The fuck are you doin’ in Cornwall?”

“My aunt’s dying.”

“Oh shit,” said Shanker. “Sorry.”

“Where is he now?”

“’Oo?”

“Ricci.”

“’E’s in an ’ome. I told you.”

“All right. Thanks for trying, Shanker. Appreciate it.”

For perhaps the first time ever, it was Shanker who shouted at Strike to stop him hanging up.

“Oi—oi!”

“What?” said Strike, raising the mobile to his ear again.

“Why d’you wanna know where ’e is? You ain’t gonna go talkin’ to Ricci. You’re done.”

“I’m not done,” said Strike, eyes screwed up against the sea breeze. “I haven’t found out what happened to the doctor, yet.”

“Fuck’s sake. D’you wanna get shot through the fuckin’ ’ead?”

“See you, Shanker,” said Strike, and before his old friend could say anything else, he cut the call and muted his phone.

Polworth was already at a table with Jack when Strike reached the Victory, two pints and a Coke on the table.

“Just been telling Jack,” Polworth told Strike, as the detective sat down. “Haven’t I, eh?” he asked Jack, who nodded, beaming. “For when he’s older. This is his local.”

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