He kept a jealous grip on both bags. Munching away, and talking to himself, as he reread the posters in Brenda’s shop window. ‘What the hell is a “Charity Hen Night”?’
A voice cut through the warm air, almost directly behindhim:‘It’s kinda like bring-a-party-to-a-party, only with screaming drunken women, and male strippers.’
Logan swallowing his bite of pie before turning around.
It was the gangly young guy from the salon.
Mr Blue-Hair had swapped sweeping-up for fiddling with a bicycle-handlebar-sized vape. ‘And inflatable willies, of course. Lots and lots and lots of inflatable willies.’ Fiddling finished, he took a sook on the thing, puffing out a dragon cloud of fruity steam. ‘I worked behind the bar at one. Could’ve scraped oestrogen off the walls – thick ascream cheeseit was.’
Logan finished off his pie. ‘You been at Brenda’s for long?’
‘Man and boy.’
‘Suppose you know Andrew Shaw?’
‘Andy? Yeah. Got awickedtouch with the colouring. His cuts need work, but that man can take you from a Three-PB Deepest Espresso Brown to a Ten-B Extra-Light Beige Blonde without even breaking a sweat.’ Another gargantuan tutti-frutti cloud puffed into the sky. ‘Total respect, like. Dude’s game’s gotcrackle, you know?’
Nope.
Why did young people have to talk a load of shite these days? When did words stop meaning what they’re meant to mean? And howOLDhad Logan become since Elizabeth was born?
He creaked the lid off his coffee and took a sip. ‘Andrew have a lot of friends?’
‘Nah. Well, maybe down the gym. But think he kinda mostly keeps himself to himself. If we’re off for a cocky-T after work, he’s like half-a-lager and goneski.’
‘I see.’ Logan partially unwrapped Pie Number Two and had a bite.Mmmm: chicken curry. ‘Areyouhis friend?’
The young bloke chewed on the inside of his cheek for a bit. ‘Depends what he’s done. You being polis and everything.’
‘Ever hear him talk about his female clients?’
‘What, in apervyway? Naaaaaahhhhh. Andy isn’t like that.’ A huge sook on the vape produced a volcanic cloud. ‘Only time I ever seen him completely tinfoiled was at the Christmas party. We all pile into The Groove Machine, for drinks-and-dancing after dinner, and he snogs some subsea engineer called Duncan. Said he only did it for a joke, but they were jokinghard, you know? Tongues and,’ miming cupping someone’s crotch and giving it a squeeze or two. ‘Pretty sure he got noshed-off in the gents, after.’
Logan bit into the crisp pastry and savoury filling. ‘Just goes to show: you never know with people.’ Munch, munch, munch. ‘So, what about you?’
His mouth pinched, chin rising an inch with a sniff. ‘Just cos I work in ahairdresser’s, doesn’t make me gay.’
‘I meant, “are you Andrew’s friend?”’
‘And it doesn’t make Andy gay, either. He’s just...flexible. Besides, all our clients are middle-aged wifies; you’ve seen the bloke – he must be beating them off with astick.’
Logan scarfed down the last mouthful. ‘Oh, you havenoidea.’ He crumpled up his paper bags, scoofed his coffee. Frowned across the road at Brenda’s Hair & Beauty Palace. ‘What gym did he go to? Where he might have friends.’
‘Wellheads Fitness Studio, but you’re wasting your time. Wanna know who Andy’s best friend in the whole-wide-world is? His mum.’
With Steel keeping the salon’s owner occupied, and Tufty off mining Emma for information, Logan retreated to the pool car. Sitting in the passenger seat with the windows rolled down, notebook out in front of him and a worried Biohazard Bob in his ear:
‘Far as I cantell, they’ve all got alibis. And you know how youcan always tell when someone’s a murdering bastard, but trying to cover it up? Not getting that from any of them.’A sad little breath grunted down the phone.‘Mightbe wrong, but I’d put a crate of baked beans on whoever killed Andrew Shaw not being one of his victims. Or their family.’
‘Could’ve hired someone to do it.’
‘Yeah, if you’re anidiot. That’s perfect blackmail material for life, isn’t it. Someone goes out and kills for you: next thing you know, you’re putting their kids through private school and buying them a five-berth caravan. Sides: you’ve still got all that guilt by association.’Biohazard put on a tortured voice:‘“I’m responsible for this guy getting beaten to death...”’Then back to normal again.‘Hard for everyday folk to live with something like that.’
True.
Mixed-Recycling and Landfill must’ve declared some sort of truce, because the pair of them were sharing a half-eaten Mars Bar at the side of the road.
At least,hopeit was a Mars Bar...
