“I’ll grab us two more coffees to go.” Wayne returned to the coffee shop, leaving Osian outside watching the Ortea brothers walk down the pavement.
Taking a seat on a nearby bench, Osian decided to check in with Abra. He figured her godmum might have more insights to share. A slim chance, given her earlier reluctance.
“Here.” Wayne sat next to him, stretching his legs out in front. “Will Dannel be okay?”
“What? Sure. He’ll be fine.” Osian trusted Dannel to decompress from the day in his own way. He often found their friends and family struggled to simply allow him the time. “What about you? Will you be okay?”
He didn’t get a chance to answer when his phone rang. Osian tried not to seem obvious while listening to the call. It was impossible to offer privacy when Wayne was sitting right beside him.
“I’ll be there as soon as I can.” Wayne ended the call, then gripped his phone tightly in his hand. “The police apparently have more questions for me. Bradley’s meeting me there.”
“Bugger. Want me to go with you?”
“No. Meet with Chris. Maybe the police will move on if they have an actual suspect?” Wayne stood up and strode away from him.
Haider and I are going to have a really long conversation. How the hell can he still think Wayne’s a suspect?
If Osian were being generous, he would admit to understanding the police suspicions. No matter his firm beliefs on Wayne’s innocence, the evidence didn’t really help matters. We’re going to solve this.
“Where’s Dankworth?” Chris jogged toward him, dropping onto the bench with a grunt. “You’re lucky I’ve a day off.”
“Since when do you take a day off?”
“Family stuff.” Chris shrugged.
“So, what’s the deal with Edgar Smith?” Osian refused to waste time beating around the bush. “Why are you so squirrely when his name comes up? Unrequited love?”
“Please stop talking. I do not need those visuals in my head.” Chris shuddered dramatically before glancing at his phone. “Edgar and I have history. I asked him to meet us.”
“Yes, I figured that out all on my own, given your reaction to him.”
Chris sighed, shifting on the bench and folding his arms across his chest. “Our families are—”
“I swear if you say connected, I will take my chances and take a swing at you,” Osian grumbled.
“Edgar and I have a half-sister in common. My father. His mother, technically my stepmother.”
Osian held up a hand to stop Chris. He mentally repeated what his friend had said five times and still didn’t think he’d fully understand. “I’m sorry. What?”
“My father and his current wife grew up together along with Edgar’s father. They had one of those rom-com-like love triangles, you know? It got complicated.” Chris ran his fingers through his hair, making a mess of it. “There was an ugly divorce. Then another marriage.”
“Is there something in the water at your schools?”
“Maybe.” Chris snorted with laughter. “Listen, Edgar’s father and mine went to school with Judge Allsop. Birds of a feather flock together.”
“They certainly do something together.” Osian decided not to delve too deeply into the subject. “Wait. You have a sister?”
“Tamsyn. Nine years younger than me. She lives in Florida.” Chris grabbed his phone, scrolling through his photos before showing Osian an image of a young woman on a fishing boat. “They sent her away to live with a family friend. Part of the divorce settlement when Tamsyn refused to pick between her mother or father.”
“Are you close?”
Chris nodded his head, grinning at Osian. “We are. She’s the only person in my family that I’d actually claim. Dannel reminds me of her sometimes.”
“Oh?”
“She’s autistic.” Chris pocketed his phone. “Edgar and I had a falling out about ten years ago. He wanted her to move to London and claimed we should keep a closer eye on her. I believed she was happy and a grown adult capable of making her own decisions. She still is.”
“And the falling out involved?”
“Edgar tried to bully her into moving here.” Chris was silent for several minutes before continuing. “I went above and beyond to ensure he left her alone.”
“You ‘had words’?”
“More than.”
Osian decided not to shove his nose further into Chris’s personal business for the moment. He redirected the conversation slightly. “Is Edgar capable of murdering someone and setting Wayne up?”
“Capable? Definitely.” Chris checked his phone once again. “What’s his motivation, though?”
“Good question.”
They sat for another twenty minutes before Chris received another text. He motioned for Osian to follow him. They made their way a few blocks down from the Old Bailey.
“A secret meeting in a secluded section of a parking garage?” Osian couldn’t help grinning at Chris. “Very James Bond of you.”
“One of these days, you’re going to get tired of the jokes and let go of this bizarre notion about my life.” Chris yanked open the door leading to the staircase. “I’m betting he’s already waiting for us.”
They jogged up the four flights of stairs. Edgar Smith, dressed in a perfectly fitted suit, stood waiting for them by his Range Rover. Osian definitely felt like an extra in a spy film.
As an unbiased observer, Osian thought Chris and Edgar greeted each other cautiously, like two people playing hot potato with a live grenade. He wondered if one wrong move would lead to an explosion. I’m not sure I want to be in the range of the blast if they go at it.
“Kirwin.”
“Smith.” Chris bit out the word through clenched teeth.
“Garey,” Osian added cheerfully. They both glared at him. “What? Is this some bizarre boarding school greeting ritual a lowly little pleb like myself wouldn’t understand?”
“We keep the secret handshake to ourselves.” Chris shoved his hands in his pockets, returning his attention to Edgar. “How’ve you been?”
“You don’t care.”
“I don’t, actually.”
Osian watched the stoically bizarre verbal tennis match for a few minutes. He was getting bored with the posturing. “If this were a musical, you’d have broken into song by now.”
“How about getting to the point?” Edgar had the stance and bearing of someone used to utilising their size to intimidate. He loomed over Osian, who merely smiled lazily up at him. “Well?”
Edgar and Chris were about the same size. Tall, broad-shouldered men. They held themselves the way most soldiers did. Strong, capable, dangerous.
The difference between the two was Chris had never used either his size or training to intimidate others. On the other hand, Edgar struck Osian as someone who would relish the opportunity to do so. A bully. He didn’t know if the man had killed Barnaby Sharrow, but he had no doubts Edgar was capable of it.
But what was his motivation? Helping his boss? Was it enough to commit murder?
“Seen Willa Abraham recently?” Osian had a feeling a direct question might end the conversation before they even started.
“Who?” Edgar lied so easily and confidently that Osian was tempted to believe him despite having seen photos to the contrary. “No idea who you’re talking about.”
“The woman you came home with the night of Sharrow’s murder.” Chris leaned against the side of the Range Rover.
“Ah. Her.” Edgar sniffed dismissively. “Never knew her name.”
“And yet you were in Wayne’s car with her?”
“And?” Edgar shrugged. “Thought it was hers. Do you ask your dates who owns their vehicle? Odd kink to have, isn’t it?”
“Did you?” Osian didn’t buy his story.
“I did.” Edgar moved his cold, unbothered gaze from Osian to Chris. “How’s Tamsyn? Enjoying life in Florida? Maybe I should visit. It’s been a long time since I saw our little sister.”
Osian watched his friend’s eyes go dark. He started forward toward Edgar, who laughed in his face. “Chris.”
“You have a good day.” Edgar didn’t seem worried about Chris in the slightest.
Before they could respond, Edgar got into his Range Rover and swiftly drove away. Osian placed a hand on Chris’s shoulder. The conversation had definitely not gone to plan.
“Oz?”
“Yeah?”
“You’re my alibi if he goes missing.” Chris strode toward the stairs, forcing Osian to jog to catch up to him. “I’ve genuinely no idea if he murdered Sharrow and framed Dankworth.”
“But?”
“We’re going to find out for certain one way or the other.” Chris yanked the door open, and it clanged against the cement wall. “I’ll make a few calls and see if any of my mates have heard anything. If Dannel’s up for it, I can bring over pizza and beer while we try to sift through what information we have.”
“He’s Kirwin. Chris Kirwin.” Osian snickered at the glare sent his way.
And if looks could kill, I’d be worried.