Blood Line Read Free Page B

late nights with Alan, how did he react?’
    She shrugged and said that he just told her she was beingstupid, as he was working on his Merc and if the phone wasn’t answered at the garage it was because he was outside.
    ‘So he didn’t get angry—you didn’t argue?’
    ‘Alan wasn’t that type. I don’t think we ever really had a cross word, to be honest, which is why I don’t understand how he could just leave me without saying something.’
    ‘But he hasn’t taken any money?’
    ‘Not that I know of, but when he sold the cars he did up it was often for cash deals.’
    ‘What about his clothes? Has he taken anything—a suitcase even?’
    ‘I can’t be certain. I mean, I don’t know every item of clothing he’s got—but I suppose he could have taken a few things.’
    ‘Have you checked?’
    ‘Yes, of course. I told the Missing Persons officer his washing bag and toiletries have gone, but I wouldn’t really know exactly what clothes were missing.’
    ‘Why didn’t you report him missing?’
    ‘I thought he might have gone off with another woman and I was waiting for him to contact me. When his dad said he’d reported him missing, I thought he’d done the right thing.’
    Anna stood up and asked to be shown around the flat. Tina looked at her watch, saying she wouldn’t have much more time as she had to shower and get to work. She led them down a narrow corridor and gestured at a small box room.
    ‘We use this to store a few things as it’s so small.’
    Anna looked into the room. A single bed and a desk stood beside a row of fitted wardrobes. There was the same beige carpet in there too, and matching curtains.
    ‘Did Alan have a computer?’
    ‘No. He was always going to get a laptop, but never got around to it.’
    Tina then led them to the master bedroom. This was as nondescript as the rest of the flat. It contained a king-sized bed with a duvet and a Moroccan throw across it. The double wardrobes were crammed with Tina’s clothes and shoes. Alan’s side had only a few things in it; a couple of suits and shirts, and in a row of drawers were socks, underpants, two pairs of jeans, and three T-shirts.
    Anna thought that a man of Alan’s age would have had more clothing, particularly informal wear.
    ‘What sort of casual clothes did Alan dress in?’
    ‘Mostly jeans, black or blue denim with a white or blue T-shirt. I don’t know how many pairs of jeans or T-shirts he had so that’s why I don’t know exactly what clothing he could have taken.’
    ‘What about work-clothes—mechanic’s overalls?’
    Tina nodded and said they were kept in the small utility room as he would take off his dirty clothes and put them straight into the washing machine when he returned from work. They trooped in there to look, and sure enough, there were some work-boots, a couple of denim jackets and jeans, and two oil-stained overalls.
    The kitchen was immaculate, with a juicer on the Formica top and a bowl of more fresh fruit. Nothing looked as if it was used very often, and the cream and black floor was highly polished, as was everything else. Anna sniffed; there was a distinct smell of bleach mixed with a heavy lavender room spray. They next went outside to look into Alan’s garage. This was almost as neat, with all his equipment hanging on hooks and Tina’s VW parked inside.
    Anna said little as they drove back to the station. When Paul brought a coffee into her office he said, ‘You’re very quiet,’ putting the drink down on her desk.
    ‘Yeah. Tell me what you got from the interview.’
    ‘Not very much. I think she’s a bit of a clean freak. Their flat might be rented, but it was as if they had just moved in—everything spotless and nothing out of place.’
    ‘Bit like her,’ Anna said, sipping her coffee.
    Paul sat opposite and flipped open his notebook.
    ‘Nice cash deposit. Joint account, so I suppose she can fix her overdraft in her beauty salon.’
    ‘That would only leave thirty-five