Page 46 of The Attercop

“Yeah.”

Gary rubbed his face with his hands. “Why is this the first I’ve heard about this?”

“I didn’t tell you about the break-in because it seemed that nothing was missing.”

“You still should have called the cops.”

“Well, we didn’t because it only appeared to affect me,” Declan argued. “It seems that whoever broke in had been looking at my client files and had downloaded my session recordings from Michael’s computer.”

“What the fuck? Did you know about this?” Sawchuck asked Charlie.

He slowly nodded.

Declan continued. “That’s not all. When I talked to Angel yesterday at the hospital, he said something very specific that connected to a session I had with Michael.”

Gary scratched at his chin. “There are way too many coincidences all linked to you, Declan. This sounds personal.”

“I gotta agree with you on that,” Declan said. “And now with this break-in, it’s like the person was trying to get under my skin by showing how close they can get to me.”

Gary said, “Well, maybe the homeless guy is the key. Maybe he’ll return to the scene of the crime to see what trouble he’s caused. I’ll put a description of him out there in case he’s stupid enough to come back. We’ll also check local businesses to see if we can track him on their CCTV cameras. In the meantime, you should take care of yourself and upgrade your security system.”

“I’ve already got some ideas on that,” Charlie said.

Sawchuck stood. “I’m heading back downstairs. Do me a favour and write down the details of the break-in up here. And while you’re at it, you might want to make a list of anyone you think would have a grudge against you.”

“Why don’t I just give you the phone book.”

Gary glowered at him, opened the office door and quickly walked out.

Charlie got up and closed the door. “I can’t help wondering about that guy we saw on Saturday. The bum. I mean, he looked different, but he was about the same height as the guy from the bar. The guy who beat up Angel. You don’t think maybe it’s the same person in disguise, do you?”

Declan thought about it. “Why don’t you run with that. Can you take the image from the bar’s surveillance footage and try to clean it up? Then we can see if anything about him resembles the bum. And you might be right about the vagrant’s smell, or lack of it. It’s looking more and more like he was just wearing a disguise. Good work.”

“Thanks.”

Charlie paused. “About the break-in at Michael’s— She thought the person who broke in might have been someone who’d been in her office and knew her security system. What if it’s the same here? What if it’s a client or a contact? Someone like that.”

“Could be, I guess,” Declan replied. “I’m more concerned about the break-in at Gwen’s and that message—‘Come For Me’.”

“It seems like the person who’s doing this wants to be caught,” Charlie said. “But why?”

Declan sat in silence for a moment. “I’m not sure, but I have a terrible feeling we’re going to find out.”

* * * *

Charlie stared at his computer screen pondering the earlier part of the day. The police investigation connected to the break-ins had gone early into the evening. While they’d dusted for fingerprints—unsuccessfully—Charlie had attempted to create a composite sketch of the homeless man. He’d compared theresult to the surveillance footage captured outside Bar-None to see if there could possibly be a match. The heights were similar, but there wasn’t really a clear enough shot to analyse things like facial features. Eventually he’d given up. Mrs B and Duck had gone home over an hour ago. The last one to leave was Sawchuck, who had promised he would follow up on all the enquiries connected to the break-ins, both in the café and the office.

Declan poked his nose into Charlie’s office. “How about a field trip to Bar-None?”

“I thought you’d never ask.”

“And why don’t you print off the video capture of the guy we’re looking for and your composite sketch of the bum. We’ll ask around. Maybe somebody there actually knows who he is.”

“Will do,” Charlie said.

They jumped in Declan’s van and made the short drive to the bar.

When they arrived, Bar-None wasn’t very crowded, even for a Wednesday night. André was working, so Charlie figured Mickey must still be at the hospital.