Free Dead Dream Girl by Richard Haley

lad, going straight now. The night Donna fell in the pond Dougie was taking delivery of a van-load of expensive antique guns. The big house Morton way, yes?’
    ‘Come again.’ It was Benson’s turn to look stunned.
    ‘Did none of you tie Dougie to it? It had his dabs on, according to Greenwood.’
    ‘We think Dougie Mahon’s involved in everything to do with posh gear. Like Greenwood says, it had his dabs on. The guns were the sort of clean, careful job he sets up. But we had no proof, we never do with that bugger, and theburglary didn’t come to light till a week later with the owner being away. By that time it was a back-burner job anyway, it was all Donna Jackson then.’
    ‘Well, Dougie made doubly sure he was fire proof. Told Bobby and his mates to say everyone was at the Mahons’ place that night. That’s why Bobby daren’t admit where he really was himself. Until now. There’s a good chance he was clubbing in Leeds with some French totty called Nicole. If you want to have another go with the guns you could try putting the arm on Marvin Jackson. He’s going to find it hard to prove he wasn’t disabling intruder alarms at a big moorland house that night.’
    ‘We’ll get him in, those guns were worth a fortune. If we can tie him to the house we can tie him to Dougie.’
    ‘If Marvin wasn’t out thieving he could be in another kind of serious shit, now Bobby looks to be off the hook. I’ll get back to you on that. It was certainly him who duffed me up. Him and Dougie’s wife.’
    Benson glanced at him. ‘You OK now? She’s given out the muscle before on Dougie’s behalf, him being nine stone wet through. Christ knows why blokes want to give her one, must be like humping a rhino.’
    Crane said, ‘What happens now, about Donna?’
    ‘Terry wants to re-assemble the team who worked on it the first time round. It’ll take time, but so what, we’ve lost months already with that dozy bastard. I’ve got to go, Frank. Keep in touch.’
    Crane watched him move off. No word of thanks for handing him valuable information that could see the guns recovered, brownie points to Benson. But then he’d not expected any thanks. Benson owed him for a lot more than information. He owed him for a debt he could never repayand debts of that size killed friendship. And Benson had once been his closest friend.
     
    As Crane walked across the marble tiling of the reception area, the dark-haired girl called Carol was collecting a package from the desk. ‘Frank, hi,’ she said. ‘I suppose you’ve come looking for Doctor Watson, though I suspect he sees himself more as Sherlock himself.’
    He grinned. ‘Is he about? If not I’ll catch him later.’
    ‘Yes he is, and I was hoping I might just talk him into taking me out tonight. So you’ve got to be seriously bad news, turning up like this.’
    ‘I take it you and Geoff are an item?’
    ‘I thought we were, but since he got his teeth into the DJ story it’s not been the same.’ She tossed her curly hair. ‘I suppose you’ve got to admire the big dope,’ she said, with rueful fondness, ‘the way he clings on with it. He’ll not forgive you, you know, if you sort it all out before he does. I know him. I’ll tell him you’re here.’
    She went off before he could tell her the case would soon be back with the police and her chance of a night out with Anderson looked good.
    ‘Frank!’ Anderson walked rapidly across reception. Everything he did was rapid. Crane was sorry about the case being over as far as he was concerned, but relieved not to have to go on uneasily cooperating with a bumptious reporter.
    ‘Geoff, it’s good news, bad news, depending which way you look at it. Mahon. He’s confessed to killing Donna, but the police aren’t buying it.’
    Anderson’s mobile face became totally still, and when Crane had given him the story he watched him in alengthy silence, and that was unusual too in a man who thought and talked so fast. The news had