Pauline Rowson - Footsteps on the Shore

‘What time would this have been, sir?’ Cantelli pursued.

‘I don’t know, about four thirty, I guess,’ replied Bailey tetchily.

Cantelli took his time jotting this down. ‘No dog walkers there then, sir? It’s a popular spot for that, especially on a nice day.’

‘Well, I didn’t see any,’ Bailey snapped, his voice rising in irritation. ‘I just saw Luke Felton.’

‘And the little terns.’ Cantelli smiled. He got no response from Bailey. At a sign from Horton that only Cantelli would have seen and interpreted he made a great show of closing his notebook and putting it in his jacket pocket while saying, ‘Thank you for your help, Mr Bailey.’ He rose, and added apologetically, ‘Would you mind if I use your toilet? Too much coffee before I came out.’

Somewhat reluctantly Bailey said, ‘Upstairs, first door on your right.’

Cantelli smiled his thanks and slipped out.

Chattily, Horton said, ‘Where’s the best place for bird watching around here then?’

Bailey look surprised at the question. ‘Are you a keen bird watcher?’

‘When I’m out sailing, yes. Otherwise I don’t have the time for it.’

‘Of course. . with your job. . There are lots of places around the coast and each season brings its visitors. There were Slovenian grebes off the oyster beds in February, and a-’

‘What about around Portchester Castle?’ Horton cut him short.

Bailey started and his face lost some of its colour. ‘Why there?’ he stuttered.

Horton shrugged. ‘You mentioning Hester’s Shipbuilding made me think of it. You must have walked along the shore there many times and seen rare birds.’ Horton heard the toilet flush. Cantelli would have a good nose around upstairs, and not just in the bathroom.

With something akin to relief, Bailey said, ‘Oh, yes, of course. I used to during my lunch hour but I haven’t been over that way for years.’

Truth? Bailey could have been there last Tuesday evening, but why would he want to meet Luke Felton when clearly he was terrified of him?

Horton heard Cantelli’s tread upon the stairs. He entered the room with a slight shake of his head and a smile at Bailey.

Horton rose. ‘If you recall anything more about the day you saw Luke Felton, please let us know.’

Bailey quickly promised he would, clearly eager to get rid of them. Outside Cantelli heaved a sigh of relief. ‘He depressed me.’

Horton was inclined to agree. ‘That description of Luke might have fitted hundreds of youths.’

‘The investigating team must have matched the clothes Bailey described with those belonging to Felton.’

Yes, and found Natalie’s blood on them. ‘Did they contact the fishing boat and dredger crews? They might have witnessed something.’

‘I think that’s probably stretching it,’ Cantelli said, as Horton jotted down the vehicle registration number of a twelve-year-old maroon Ford parked in the narrow driveway of the 1950s semi-detached house. Cantelli was doubtless right and Horton didn’t like to return to ask Duncan Chawley, though if he dug deeper in the case file he might find records of it.

Pointing the car in the direction of the station, Cantelli said, ‘It doesn’t help us find Felton, unless it was Bailey who Felton went to meet at Portchester Castle on Tuesday night.’

‘He looked very uncomfortable when I mentioned the castle, and I think he lied about not going there, but I can’t see why he should agree to meet Felton. He seemed rather terrified that Felton was out and might approach him. But run a check on his car, Barney, you never know, he might have been picked up for speeding in Castle Lane on Tuesday night.’

‘I doubt we’d be that lucky, but I’ll also check with the sailing club in case he owns a boat.’

‘I think the only boat he’d own would be the kind he’d put in his bath.’

‘You never can tell,’ said Cantelli optimistically.

Maybe, but Horton was sure Cantelli was wrong on that score. As the sergeant swung into the station car park Horton noted Bliss’s car in its allocated space. That meant he’d have to brief her, but he had no sooner stepped inside his office than Bliss hove on to his horizon looking like Captain Sharkey about to execute one of his crew, and Horton guessed that the intended victim was him.

‘Do you know where I’ve been for the last fifteen minutes, Inspector?’ she blazed, slamming his door behind her. ‘With Chief Superintendent Reine, listening to how incompetent my team is and how you’ve compromised a high-level drug operation.’

Horton had been expecting it. He remained silent as Bliss continued.

‘Your paperwork is shoddy and overdue, you do not adhere to proper procedure, you spend too much time interfering in other cases when you can’t solve the ones that you have, and clearly you have an issue with authority. I have therefore requested that you be removed from CID and posted to a more suitable position. Results are what we need in CID, not meddling and messing up critical operations.’

Again Horton said nothing. There seemed no point in defending himself because clearly she wasn’t going to listen.

Bliss continued. ‘DC Walters will also not be a member of my team. He’s too slow and idle. I was in two minds whether to keep Cantelli but I need some continuity, and Sergeant Cantelli will do as he’s told if he values his chances of promotion.’

Promotion! Cantelli! The sergeant wanted that about as much as a dose of swine flu.

‘I’m putting in a request for some new officers. You’ll hear about your transfer shortly and tell DC Walters to expect his. From the beginning of April this team will be a very different one. Meanwhile you will attend to your paperwork. You will not get involved with Superintendent Uckfield’s murder investigation, and you will not make any attempt to locate Ronnie Rookley. You will find Luke Felton. Is that clear?’

Horton nodded curtly and let out a long sigh as she swept from his office. If she had just calmed down she would have learnt of the possible connection between Venetia Trotman’s murder and Luke Felton. But she hadn’t even asked him to update her on any developments. Well, that was her lookout.

He rose and walked briskly into the CID office. Without preamble he announced, ‘DCI Bliss has requested that I be removed from CID, along with you, Walters. But Cantelli gets to stay under the ice maiden while a whole new bunch of razor-sharp detectives are brought in to solve every crime in Portsmouth within two minutes flat, without moving from their desk and with immaculate paperwork to show for it. So, as this is my last case in CID, I want Luke Felton found and I don’t much care who we upset locating him. Which means, Barney, you might risk all future chances of being promoted, and the joy of working for DCI Bliss.’

Cantelli shrugged. ‘Guess I could do with the exercise on patrol with you, Walters.’

Walters almost swallowed the ginger nut biscuit he was eating. With his mouth full he said, ‘I’ve got Luke Felton’s prison medical file, guv.’

‘And?’

‘Felton started his sentence at Winchester but he was transferred to the Isle of Wight after three weeks on medical advice, where he had hypnotherapy as part of his drug treatment. The woman who was treating him lived there and still does.’

This sounded promising. ‘Nice of the authorities to accommodate him,’ Horton muttered, wondering why Luke had got such special treatment to be granted alternative medicine and a transfer. Could he possibly be on the Isle of Wight with his hypnotherapist? The island wasn’t accessible from Portchester Castle; or rather it was by private boat, but if heading to the Island then surely Luke would have wanted a lift to Portsmouth Harbour or Southsea where he could have caught the ferry or hovercraft.