Nathan Crosby had eyes and ears all over London, and his network of homeless people provided him with intelligence that Ruby was keen to access. Her acquaintance with him held many advantages, but fraternising with a member of the criminal underworld would not meet with the approval of her superiors, particularly given the number of times she had ended up in his bed.
Ruby scanned the half empty café, the smell of cooked bacon and sausages making her stomach growl. She gave a nod of recognition to the unshaven man in the tattered coat. He sat hunched over his tea, his gloved hands drawing heat from the stained ceramic mug before he was forced to return to the chill of the streets. As always, he sat with his back against the wall. Ruby recognised the little mannerisms that went unnoticed to the untrained eye. He had served life in prison and old habits died hard. William Burke knew who Ruby was, and as always, she handed him a crisp ten-pound note before uttering a word.
A plump, middle-aged woman wearing a grease-stained apron brought Ruby a mug of tea. Two full English breakfasts were laid before them minutes later.
Hunched over his food, William wolfed it down, his elbows and arms wrapped around his plate in a stance to ward off imaginary inmates. Ruby tried to ignore the egg yolk dribbling down his chin. She had not eaten since yesterday, and it would take a lot more than bad table manners to turn her off breakfast.
‘How’s things?’ she said, loading her fork with chunks of sausage and bacon.
‘Rough,’ William said. ‘Me mate, Sam, died under the bridge last week. They say it’s gonna be a brutal winter. This frost will kill off a few more before it’s finished.’
Ruby nodded, knowing it was more than the frost that killed off his friend. Sam was a hopeless alcoholic, and it was more likely that his liver had packed up after years of abuse.
‘You ’aven’t brought me here to ask how I’m feeling, ’ave you?’ William said, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
‘No, I haven’t.’ Ruby waited until she had finished her meal before speaking again. ‘We found a body in the park last night. Do you know anything about that?’
William shrugged. ‘Lots of people walk through that park, I don’t know ’em all.’
‘So you’ve not heard anyone talking about it?’
William shook his head, mopping up his egg with a slice of fried bread.
Ruby delivered a hard stare, willing him to look her in the eye. The topic of conversation held more importance than his stomach and demanded their full attention. ‘William,’ she said as she leant forward, ‘she was just a girl, barely twenty-one years old. Isn’t there anything you can give me? Any new people on the radar? Anyone acting odd?’
‘Acting odd?’ William chuckled. ‘I’m not being funny here, love, but I don’t exactly mix with ’igh society. There’re lots of weird fuckers out there, the best you can do is keep out of their way.’
‘Her jewellery was stolen. They even took the earrings from her ears. I’m thinking maybe a smack head or someone new on the scene because behaviour like this doesn’t just spring up out of nowhere. Do you know anyone down on their luck that’s come back with a big score?’
‘You know I don’t touch that shit.’
‘But you know someone who does?’ Ruby said, detecting reluctance in his eyes. ‘C’mon, mate, give me a dig out. I’ll leave you out of it, I promise.’
‘You’re expecting an awful lot for a breakfast and a ten-pound note.’ William downed the last of his second mug of tea. Any minute now he would rise to use the toilets and leave Ruby with nothing to show for their meeting, except a dent in her wallet.
She grasped his arm as he pushed back his chair. ‘Please. I don’t want to find another girl dead on the streets. Surely some things are about more than money?’
William snorted. ‘That’s the sort of thing rich folks say.’
The smile left his lips as Ruby slipped a photo across the table.
‘This is her, pictured with her mother and sister. They’re in bits. It might bring a little comfort if we could find—’
‘Alright, alright,’ William raised his hands in mock surrender. ‘If I’d lifted some jewellery, and it was that hot, the first place I’d head to is Buster Turner on Bethnal Green Road.’
‘Cheers,’ Ruby said, grabbing her handbag from the seat beside her.
The café began to fill as an army of dust-clad builders piled in. Chairs and tables screeched as they took up the seats; the air filled with banter as they took the mickey out of the youngest member of the group.
Ruby handed William a battered card, along with some change for the telephone box. ‘If you hear anything else, give me a ring.’
‘Only for you,’ William breathed a weary sigh.
Ruby paused, feeling a pang of guilt as she turned to leave. She dug a newly purchased pack of cigarettes and lighter from her pocket and placed them on the table. ‘Here, it’s about time I gave these up.’
There was no point in telling him to go down to the shelter for a night. After a lifetime of incarceration, she knew he preferred to sleep under the stars. Had he not been arrested for a breach of the peace the night before, he may well have been a person of interest himself.
After paying for their food, she slid her phone from her pocket and called up DC Owen Ludgrove’s number. ‘You busy?’ It was a daft question. Every member of Shoreditch serious crime team was buried in work. But she knew the young detective constable would drop everything for her. ‘Meet me outside Buster Turner’s Jewellery Emporium on Bethnal Green Road. . . as soon as you can. Yeah, OK, see you in ten.’
She recognised the address, as it was one of the properties on Nathan Crosby’s books. Not only was her ex-lover head of a criminal organisation, he fronted it with legitimate businesses, such as real estate, pubs and clubs. William Burke had never let her down with information before. The fact that Buster was fencing jewellery had dictated her route – she would not be going in through the front door.