Finders Keepers Edie Baylis (phonics readers .TXT) 📖

Just uttering Lena’s name made Jonah feel like he was choking. The lying bitch.

Throwing his concentration back to his screen, Jonah scrolled through the dates of the previously stored CCTV footage to locate the evening in question. ‘This isn’t priority, you understand? The O’Hara’s are, but you might as well take a look.’

‘This is the bloke you reckon is a relation of the Pointers?’ Robert frowned, glancing at the membership details of a print-out on Jonah’s desk:

Name: Heath Pointer

Membership No: 57862

Address:14 Panama Street, Shepherd’s Bush, London

‘One of your relations, yes,’ Nero said pointedly, eyeing Robert suspiciously. He didn’t like Jonah’s decision to bring a Pointer into the fold. In fact, he hated it. Although he could understand Jonah’s reasoning, he still didn’t like it. It seemed a recipe for disaster. A Pointer involved in the Powell firm? And an odd one at that.

Jonah shot Nero a warning look. Out of courtesy he’d already explained his logic behind his decision, but wasn’t having the equilibrium upset with snide comments. He needed all hands on deck. ‘Here it is - the recording from the evening of 5th July.’

Opening up the playback screen, he moved the timer along the playline. ‘From what I remember, the footage is at about 10 o’clock.’ Jonah glanced at Robert. ‘If I’m correct, this guy is the grandson of the Michael Pointer – your father. Making him your nephew.’

‘Half nephew,’ Robert muttered, not liking the reference. ‘And you want to confirm this man at this address?’ He tapped on the printout.

Jonah nodded. ‘At some point. With your computer skills I’m thinking you can find links to him – social media profiles etc. confirming an address – even if it’s not available to the public.’

Robert nodded. Getting around system security was what the corporates had paid him handsomely for nigh on twenty years.

‘Wouldn’t it be easier to just watch the address?’ Nero cried. ‘I could have had that done by now.’

‘We want to avoid any of us being around the address if we want this to work,’ Jonah explained. ‘We can’t afford being flagged up on any level after that debacle with Dulcie Adams.’

Nero stood back and silently watched Jonah play the footage of Heath Pointer and Lena in her office. ‘I still can’t believe the cheeky twat had the audacity to come in this club and...’

‘Wait a minute!’ Robert leant closer to the screen. ‘This is him?’ He snatched the mouse from Jonah’s hand and backed the footage up several seconds. Hitting a combination of keys on the keyboard, he zoomed in on Heath Pointer’s face, then paused the footage. He turned to face Jonah and Nero. ‘This guy - I know him. He goes by the name of Darren Harding...’

Jonah frowned. ‘What?’

‘Darren Harding - he took Teagan out a few times. He even viewed some of my sisters’ houses and came to her funeral. He made out he was an old school friend of Teagan’s, but when I checked him out, I found he never went to Teagan’s school. He’s an imposter.’

Jonah’s mouth flapped open. ‘You’re telling me that he’s not anything to do with the Pointers? He just picked an unfortunately connected name?’

Robert shook his head animatedly. ‘No, not at all. It makes perfect sense he’s a Pointer. I knew something wasn’t right about him and now it adds up.’

Nero raised an eyebrow. ‘Does it?’

Robert paced around the desk. ‘Don’t you see? Harding or Pointer, whatever you call him, was getting in with Teagan for the diamonds. He must have worked out – like you, that my mother was in possession of them.’ His face formed into a snarl. ‘My mother thinks the sun shines out of his arse.’

Nero blew threw his teeth. ‘Fuck me, so this guy who is now trying to muscle in here, was also previously trying to get his feet under the table with Dulcie and Teagan?’

Robert nodded. ‘Yep and when that didn’t work, he made here his next port of call.’

Jonah grinned. ‘So we know he’s definitely a Pointer and why he’s here. Just the address then, but like I said, I need the O’Hara’s first. And, Robert, it goes without saying there must be no contact with your mother.’

Robert nodded and took the laptop Nero handed to him. He had an idea, but he’d keep that to himself.

Fifty Two

‘HI, MR ADAMS, IT’S Darren Harding. I was hoping it would be Teagan who answered, rather than you,’ Heath said, determined to sound upbeat. He had to be careful how he did this, not wanting Robert Adams to get a whiff of any suspicion.

Robert thought rapidly. Darren Harding, or should he say, Heath Pointer calling him today couldn’t be better timed. ‘Yes, it’s me,’ he replied gruffly.

‘Sorry to call out of the blue, but I’ve been worried. I still haven’t heard from Teagan and now...’ Heath forced a worried tone into his voice. ‘Since you’ve answered her phone, am I correct in thinking she’s still missing and not with you?’

‘With me? Why would she be with me?’

‘Oh, I... erm... I presumed she’d have returned to your flat,’ Heath blustered. Christ, he was ballsing this up. He shouldn’t have bowed down to Dulcie’s nagging and should have thought how to handle Robert’s responses before calling.

Seeing Dulcie waving her arms and mouthing something he couldn’t decipher, he faced away. She was putting him off. ‘What did the police say?’

Heath waved at Dulcie to stop signalling. He couldn’t think with her flapping. Yes, he knew she wanted to know whether Robert had involved the police and to find out if he was with Teagan. That’s what he was asking, wasn’t it?

‘The police? I haven’t called them. Teagan called me a week ago. She’s made the decision not to return. Disappointing, but there you go.’

‘But I dialled her phone and you answered,’ Heath pressed, moving quickly to one side as Dulcie’s Grandfather clock boomed out its hourly chimes.

Robert’s hackles rose. He’d recognise