by Rob Wyllie
Now they were running a murder enquiry. Although it was probably best not to mention that to Frank.
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After Maggie and Jimmy had left the coffee shop, Frank had sat quietly for a few minutes chewing over what Jimmy had discovered. Angry though he had been about the method, there was no arguing the importance of what his brother had uncovered. He had looked again at the photograph with its beautiful garden backdrop and air of innocence. And it might be innocent of course, as Jimmy had suggested, maybe Fox's nephew or a wee fan perhaps, or the offspring of friends. But after twenty years in the force, you learned to trust your gut, and his gut was saying something quite different. There was something odd going on here, and he meant to get to the bottom of it. The child wouldn't have a criminal record obviously, so Eleanor's jazzy wee app wouldn't be much use in identifying it. But he remembered they had used some other fancy facial-recognition software in the Alzahrani case a couple of years ago and wondered if it might be time to dust that down again. Time for another call to the wee forensic genius.
Chapter 14
Jimmy laughed to himself as he read the press release. Headed exclusive and rushed out by the actress's PR agency, it breathlessly announced that yes, the rumours were true. Melody Montague had been on a short break to a Caribbean island, was crazily madly in love, more than she had ever been before in her life, and she intended to marry her new amour Danny Black just as soon as a suitably lavish wedding could be arranged. The stress of her divorce had put her in grave danger of a breakdown, so the fairy-tale went, and for the duration of her island escape, she had taken a physical and digital detox, snubbing all social media and even going as far as not taking phone calls. Somehow however she had found time to fit in a couple of glossy photo-shoots and a tell-all interview with a tabloid journalist. In the blurb, headlined Melody - My Marriage Hell, she expressed hopes that she was going to be fourth time lucky in love.
Now she was home again and had decided it was time to properly celebrate her engagement with the hosting of a garden party. It was flung together at short notice, the guests given a mere five days to RSVP to the event which had been planned for the following Saturday, venue to be Melody's sumptuous Richmond home. The party would also celebrate the completion of the extravagant renovations to that home, the works rumoured to have cost over a million pounds. The showpiece was what she called the west wing, a huge oak-framed entertainment space with floor-to-ceiling panoramic glazing looking westwards across the beautiful garden. Beneath the house, a high-spec basement had been carved out, said to feature a swimming pool, gym, cinema room and servants’ quarters. For over a year, the building work had been highly disruptive to the day to day life of the neighbourhood, but no-one dared to complain. Not because of the celebrity of the owner but rather due to the notoriety of her brothers. Terry and Harry Kemp were not a pair to be messed with, so nobody did.
Jimmy guessed that Melody herself was not responsible for any of the planning or the flinging together, the organisation of the event being sub-contracted out to a professional party-planning outfit, the likes of which could only exist in London. It was scheduled to start at three in the afternoon and the good news for young Ollie Bainbridge was that children were most welcome. Welcome too were divorce lawyers and their private-investigator side-kicks, which accounted for the presence on the guest list of Maggie and himself, and Asvina too, who was accompanied by her husband Dav and their two sons.
It was a perfect late spring afternoon, the sun splitting the sky and just a hint of a breeze cooling the air. They had arrived unfashionably early, the boys burning with excitement at the prospect of meeting Danny Black. Not because of his day job in Bow Road, but because he had recently taken over as one of the hosts of Overdrive, the hugely popular Sunday night motoring show.
'Mummy, mummy, will I get to meet Danny, will I get to meet Danny?' The seven-year old tugged at his mother's sleeve with his free hand, the other holding on tightly to the large white chocolate lollipop that had been handed to him on arrival by one of the hired-in hostesses.
Maggie bent over to kiss her son on the forehead.
'I don't know darling. He will probably be very busy with his grown-up guests but we'll see.'
Ollie had heard 'we'll see' many times before and had worked out what it really meant was 'probably not.' He tried a change of tact.
'Uncle Jimmy, Uncle Jimmy, will you help me meet him please. Honestly I'll be good.'
Jimmy laughed. 'Ollie, you're always good, but of course I'll see what I can do. I love Overdrive too, you know, it's my favourite show.' He wasn't lying either.
'And Danny's the fastest driver, he always wins all the challenges.'
That's because it's written into his contract, he thought with a hint of cynicism, but he wasn't going to burst little Ollie's bubble.
'Yeah, he is mate, isn't he? And some of the cars he gets to drive are just awesome. Did you see him doing doughnuts in that F40 last week?'
Ollie's eyes were sparkling with excitement. 'I'm going to drive a Ferrari too when I grow up.' Jimmy didn't have the heart to tell him that by the time he grew up Ferraris would almost certainly be driving themselves.
If the motoring hero Danny Black was the centre of attention for the kids, there was no doubt the topic that was way out in front with the adults.
'Asvina, have you any idea how much this place must have cost?' he heard Maggie whispering as she sipped on her champagne. 'I mean the garden must be about half an acre, in Richmond. And that house, Arts & Crafts, is that what they call it?'
'I don't know, but I remember Melody telling me what they were doing to it.'
'Worth a ton of money I'd guess,' Jimmy said.
'Five million, minimum.' He'd forgotten Dav Rani was in property. 'We sold one just up the road for that three months ago. And it didn't have the basement or the sun room, and it had a much smaller garden too.'
'So this one might be more than that Dav?' Asvina said, smiling at her husband. She stole a glance at Maggie and raised an eyebrow.
'Yeah, that's what I'm thinking too,' Maggie said. 'Where on earth does all this come from?'
They had been overheard by a pretty but stern-faced young woman who had been hovering nearby. She held out a hand and introduced herself as Lily.
'I'm a production assistant on the show,' she continued, unprompted. 'Bow Road. I look after Miss Montague mainly.' In what way the actress required looking after was not specified.
'We were just admiring Miss Montague's house,' Jimmy said, flashing her one of his smiles.
'Yes, it is beautiful, isn't it? I think it belonged originally to her third husband Mr Fox, but Miss Montague has been spending a fortune on it after they separated.'
Jimmy had forgotten that for nearly four years this had been Benjamin Fox's home too, so maybe it wasn't such a surprise that he was so exercised about the terms of his divorce settlement. No-one would want to give up a house like this without a fight.
Across the garden he noticed the actress Sharon Trent deep in conversation with two men. From a distance, it looked as if they were arguing.
'That's Jack Redmayne and our executive producer Robbie Wright,' Lily said, answering the question that was on their lips. 'Jack's a writer on the show. And Robbie's my boss. Well, he's everybody's boss I suppose.'
And then it came back to Jimmy. Redmayne was the guy they had seen arguing with Benjamin Fox at the awards do. And now it appeared that rather than being dismissed from the show as Fox had threatened, he had outlasted his adversary. Yet as far as he knew, the guy had never been identified as a suspect.
'Do you know what they're arguing about?' he asked Lily.
He found her reply both surprising and deliciously indiscrete. 'Sharon's a right diva, she's always bitching about something, complaining about the lines she's given and moaning if she doesn't have enough scenes. She's a total nightmare to work with.'
Jimmy smiled. 'So do you know what this one's about?'
/> Lily gave a conspiratorial look and dropped her voice to a whisper, evidently enjoying the actress's travails. 'Oh yes, I know all right.' Was she going to tell them more? It seemed like she was.
'You see, they're going to end the affair.' Jimmy assumed that 'they' were Bow Road's executive producers, who presumably dictated the direction of every storyline and the fate of every character on the show. 'You know, the affair between Tracy Short - that's her character - and Ronnie West.'
'He's played by Danny Black, isn't he?' Jimmy said, shooting Maggie a smug look. 'And his character is married to Patty, as played by Melody Montague.' He pumped his fist in triumph, causing Maggie to shake her head in mock disgust.
Lily gave a puzzled look. It evidently hadn't occurred to her that there was anyone in Britain who didn't know that most basic fact, so why was this amazingly good-looking guy celebrating it?
'Well yes, that's right,' she said. 'So they want to end the affair, which gives them a big-set piece scene to boost the autumn viewing figures, but that obviously means that going forward Sharon won't get anything like the screen time she used to get.'
'Does Tracy dump Ronnie, or does he dump her?' Maggie asked.
'So that's the other thing Sharon's not happy about. She has to dump Ronnie, which means he gets all the viewer sympathy and she's just the heartless bitch.'
'I can see why she wouldn't like that,' Jimmy said. 'Does that mean she's on the way out then?'
Lily shrugged. 'That's way above my pay grade, I'm afraid. But I think the direction of travel is towards Melody and Danny's characters over the next twelve months or so. It depends what the scriptwriters come up with I suppose, but I wouldn't be surprised if they write in some sort of a breakdown for Tracy and she's out of the show for a while.' Jimmy made a mental note to later ask Miss Montague what she made of these developments. For the moment, Lily had turned silent, perhaps worrying she had already said too much.
A marquee had been provided in the event of inclement conditions, and in their absence the sides had been rolled up, the shade providing welcome relief from the hot sun. Inside, a well-stocked bar in the charge of improbably good-looking staff of both sexes was doing brisk business, hardly surprising on account of it being free. Melody stood at the bar, in the process of ordering another glass of champagne. She was not alone. Her companion, a well-built man in his fifties stood alongside, puffing on a cigar, in defiance of the 'No Smoking' sign pinned to one of the supporting pillars. Anyone who thought for a moment of admonishing him would have soon thought again when they clocked his cropped hair, scarred cheek and general appearance of menace.
She saw them approach and smiled. 'I'll only be a second guys, just finishing up here.' On cue, her companion leaned over, kissed her lightly on the cheek, then moved as to leave. 'See you around doll.'
With the briefest nod of acknowledgment to Maggie and Jimmy he sauntered off, still smoking his cigar.
'That's Terry,' Melody said. 'He looks after some of my business interests.'
'Is he your agent then?' Jimmy asked.
She laughed. 'My agent? Good god, no, he's my big brother. I've got two but Harry couldn't be here today. Anyway, that's not why you're here is it?' she said, rising to greet them. They might have been long-lost friends such was the warmth of her embrace, Jimmy feeling his perhaps lasted rather longer than was strictly necessary.
'I'm still waiting for you to call me,' she said, lowering her voice to a sultry whisper. 'You haven't lost my number have you? Did I tell you it's my special burner phone? Nobody will know, so don't be scared.'
'Eh, no Melody, I haven't,' he mumbled. So much for her being crazily madly in love with Danny Black.
He saw Maggie giving him a sharp look which might have been of disapproval, or more like pity, but she made no direct comment. Instead she said, 'I hear congratulations are in order.'
Melody beamed. 'Thank you, yes as you can imagine, I'm completely over the moon about it. What is it they say, third time lucky? Well this is my fourth, so that must be even better still.' Maggie and Jimmy exchanged a wry glance. 'Danny is my absolute soul-mate, and I'm so lucky to have found him at this point in my life, don't you think?' Lucky if it lasted more than six months Jimmy thought, but he didn't say it.
'And good for the show too, I'd imagine,' Maggie said. 'Lots of publicity and intrigue with you being married to him in the show as well.'
'Yes, isn't it just fantastic?' she said, making no attempt to hide her self-satisfaction. 'They've got Ronnie being dumped by that little bitch Tracy and running back to me. Now it's all going to be about the two of us, it's really going to be sensational viewing. They're even talking about having us adopt a child, a Syrian refugee or something, I don't think they've worked that out yet. I mean, how amazing will that be? Me, a mum at fifty.' Fifty-five more like, thought Jimmy sourly. But if that was the direction of travel, as Lily had described it, he could see why Sharon Trent would be upset.
'Anyway darling, you must come for the grand tour. I assume you two would like to see round the house?'
He guessed Maggie and Asvina wouldn't need a second invitation, so keen were they to see the inside of this palace. Jimmy, however, had other plans. He had spotted Danny Black in a quiet corner of the garden, surrounded by a scrum of excited boys, including Maggie’s Ollie and Harjinder and Hammi Rani.
'I'll leave that to you Maggie, if you don't mind,' he said, grimacing.
'Got your autograph book with you?'
'Naw, I'm hoping for a selfie,' he responded. And he wasn't lying. He made his way over to them, where Black seemed to be in the process of organising some kids for a group photograph.
'Right, you, Ollie isn't it, could you stand up straight, I can't see your head. And Hammi, stand a bit closer to your brother, will you? And can we get this little girl over too please? What's your name darling?'
He looked like a harassed wedding photographer trying to round up the more inebriated guests for the final shot. He shouted across the garden.
'Eddie, where's Eddie?'
A man in his mid-forties appeared from behind a verdant azalea, adjusting his flies, holding a pint glass, a cigarette dangling from his mouth.
'Whoa, that's better,' he said to no-one in particular. 'Got it all sorted then boss?' His accent was more authentically East End than anyone in Bow Road could muster. 'Come on, hand over the phones and let's get on with it. Haven't got all day, have we?'
'Cheers mate,' Black replied. 'Where's Melody? Melody doll, get your arse over here pronto.'
Hearing her name being called, she broke off her conversation with Maggie and Asvina and skipped over.
'This is nice,' she said smiling, then addressing the photographer, 'Get me and Danny on either end then boy-girl-boy-girl. Here, can we have this nice little boy next to me.' She put her arm round Ollie and kissed him on the forehead. Jimmy could see his disappointment as his friend Hammi got to stand beside Danny Black.
'Right everybody say a big cheese,' she said. 'Cheeeeeeese!'
This caused the children to collapse into a fit of giggles, requiring the scene to be re-composed and the shots to be re-taken. Next, Melody decided she wanted the same shot but with Jimmy in place of Danny, and so there was another five minutes of chaotic rearrangement until she was happy.
'Here, give us your phone mate,' Eddie the photographer said. 'Get you one for the family album.' Jimmy passed him his phone, setting off a third bout of messing about until finally Eddie deemed himself satisfied.
Now there was only one picture to be taken to complete the shoot. Jimmy took Danny to one side.
'Any chance of a picture with the boy?' he asked, nodding towards Ollie. 'He's a huge fan.'
'Yeah sure mate, no problem. Make sure you get my good side Eddie my son.' He placed his arm around Ollie's shoulders and gave him a wink. 'And make sure you get a good one of this lad too. What's your favourite car mate?'
Ollie smiled an adoring smile, and replied with painstaking precision
, 'A Ferrari S-F-ninety Stradale Hybrid. A red one. I saw you driving one last week.'
'The old Stradale? That's right mate. That was a nice motor, and very good for the environment too. Hybrid you see, runs on its battery some of the time.' Yeah, for about two minutes Jimmy thought, wondering what the world's polar bears would think about it, but he said nothing. Danny Black noticed him looking at him and a quizzical expression crossed his face.
'By the way, I don't think I know you mate. You one of the dads?'
Jimmy extended a hand. 'Not exactly. I'm Jimmy Stewart. I'm a sort of private investigator, helping Miss Montague with her divorce. Working for Asvina Rani.'
He shook Jimmy's hand, nodding. 'Ah yeah, Melody told me about you guys. You're making sure that that bastard Fox doesn't get his hands on our money. Not wanting to speak ill of the dead of course.' Our money. That was an interesting way of putting it.
Black continued. 'That Asvina, she's one fit bird isn't she? You given her one yet mate?' Jimmy couldn't tell if he was joking or not, but it made him feel uncomfortable.
'Eh no,' he said, smiling. 'I don't think that would be very professional.' Changing the subject he said, 'I must say, it is very nice to meet you. Overdrive must be great to work on.'
'Yeah, it's harder than it looks though, with all that first-class travel to exotic locations and having to swan around in all those fast motors. No, I'm taking the piss mate. You're right, it's a dream job. Better than all the shite I have to do on the Road, that's for sure.'
Jimmy shrugged. 'I don't watch the show all that often I must confess, not like my partner Maggie. She's a huge fan. But what I've seen, I think you're really good, and I'm not just saying that.'
Danny gave a brief smile in response. 'Yeah, well cheers for that mate. And I suppose it pays the bills. Anyway, if you don't mind, I'll leave you to look after these lovely lads. I'd better circulate as I'm supposed to be the host. Catch you later.'