been singled out for that honour.
‘This isn’t the bloody seventies,’ Kane scolded him half-heartedly as he watched the whisky go into the glasses. ‘Can’t have detectives getting arseholed in their own offices in the afternoons anymore.’
‘One drink isn’t going to hurt you and no one can see,’ countered Jarvis and he was right. The view into Kane’s office was obscured by an ancient set of grubby venetian blinds, permanently blocking the windows.
When the whisky was poured they both raised their glasses to each other and drank silently for a moment while Kane waited for Jarvis to say his piece.
‘My wife is struggling,’ he told the policeman, ‘I mean she’s always struggled …’ and he looked away for a moment because that struggle was an embarrassment to him, ‘but this … this is …’ and Jarvis turned slightly so that he was facing towards the window ‘… something else entirely.’
‘No joy from our friends up north?’ asked Kane. They both knew he was referring to Northumbria Police, the force that had led the investigation into the disappearance of the councillor’s daughter, Sandra Jarvis, since her whole family was from Newcastle. It was their patch, but Durham Constabulary, DCI Kane’s force, had assisted in the hunt for the missing girl from the beginning. She was studying at Durham University when she disappeared so there were lines of enquiry pursued by both forces without any positive outcome.
The rivalry between them was friendly enough for the most part, though officers based in Newcastle tended to view their County Durham counterparts as slightly bumbling, country bumpkins who spent most of their time investigating gentle crimes like vandalism or burglary, whereas their opposite numbers in Durham saw Geordie officers as out-of-control city dwellers, who were only mildly better behaved than the gangsters and drug dealers they were paid to lock up. When it came down to it though, there was a good deal of ‘cross-border’ cooperation between them, particularly if murder was involved or, as in this case, a disappearance that could have involved foul play.
‘There’s nothing,’ answered Jarvis. ‘That new bloke.’ And he shook his head dismissively. Kane knew he meant the recently installed Chief Constable, who must have been foolish enough to be less than fully cooperative when Councillor Jarvis came knocking. He was surprised someone could actually become a Chief Constable without understanding the influence a man like Jarvis held in the region. He might be the former head of Newcastle City Council but one word in the right ear could still mean a favour granted, a problem solved. A whisper in another could cause a major problem for a senior police officer with ambition. Simple passive resistance from key politicians round here was enough to derail a promising career on its own. Kane was certain the new guy would soon learn who the real power brokers were in his own back yard.
‘I don’t know what to say to you, Frank, I really don’t. We have tried everything. We’ve spoken to everyone who had even the vaguest dealings with your daughter.’
‘And come up with nothing,’ the councillor reminded him sharply, ‘which smacks of incompetence.’
Kane’s silence was his answer. Jarvis was a man suffering the worst possible grief combined with uncertainty. His daughter had been missing for six months without a word from her or a single confirmed sighting. DCI Kane knew by now that her chances were not good.
Eventually Jarvis sighed, ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that.’
‘I know.’
‘It’s just …’
‘I won’t say I understand, Frank, because I don’t. No one can begin to comprehend how you are feeling but we know you are in a very dark place right now. We are doing all we can, I assure you.’
‘So you’re leaving no stone unturned? You can look me in the eye and promise me that.’
‘We’re doing everything in our power to find your daughter.’
‘What about things that aren’t within your power?’
‘How do you mean?’ asked Kane.
‘I’m just saying there are limits to what you can achieve, given that you are bound by a code of conduct.’
‘We’re bound by the limits of the law, Frank,’ Kane observed, ‘that’s all. I hope you’re not thinking of doing anything foolish.’
‘I’m just saying there are lines of enquiry that can’t easily be pursued by the police. I’m not suggesting anything dodgy.’
‘Not another private eye?’ Jarvis shook his head at this. ‘I mean, seriously, did he actually give you anything you didn’t already have?’
‘Apart from his bill?’ Jarvis admitted, ‘No.’
‘Well, then.’
Jarvis didn’t seem to want to argue the