Page 271 of The Hallmarked Man
‘Will I, fuck?’ asked Richard, and then, rounding on Robin again, who he seemed to feel was most likely to give him a rational response, ‘All right, you know he’s alive – why’re you still here?’
‘Because we’d like to ask him some questions about Oliver Branfoot,’ said Robin.
Richard looked from Robin to Danny and back to Robin again.
‘It’s real?’ he said, now looking more shocked than angry. ‘This Branfoot thing? It’s for real?’
‘Itoldyou it fucking was!’ said Danny.
‘Yeah, but you talk a lot of shit, don’t you?’
‘Why don’t you just f—?’
‘It’s real,’ said Robin.
‘How do we know you’re not working for him?’ said Richard.
‘Is it likely we’d mention his name, if we were?’ snarled Strike. He could tell he was going to have a hugely swollen face when they arrived at the B&B.
‘Danny,’ said Robin, ‘how d’you know Lord Branfoot thinks you were the man in the safe?’
‘I was told,’ said Danny.
‘Who by?’
‘I’m not telling you that, no chance. They’ll be in for it next.’
‘You tell us, fuckwit,’ said Richard, who now dragged a third chair out from the table and sat down.
‘What’s it matter who tipped me off?’
‘Was it another actor in Branfoot’s private films?’ asked Robin.
‘I just told you, I’m not –how d’you even know about any of this?’
‘Your friend Fiona put an anonymous note through our office door,’ said Robin. ‘Her boyfriend told her you were the body in the vault, and she believed him. She’s very worried about you.’
‘I know, she kept calling me,’ said Danny, ‘but I couldn’t tell her I was all right, could I, because fucking Craig woulda told Branfoot, if he’d known where I was!’
‘She says Lord Branfoot threatened you, after he paid for you to get your teeth fixed.’
‘He paid for your fuckingteeth?’ cried Richard.
‘Yeah,’ said Danny, ‘so what?’
‘Why couldn’t you pay for your own fucking teeth?’
‘He offered, OK?’
‘This is the fucking problem!’ said Richard, jabbing a thick forefinger at Danny. ‘You always want something for fucking nothing!’
‘Branfoot got plenty out of me back, don’t you fucking worry!’
‘What made you come back to Sark, Danny?’ asked Robin.
‘I was – never mind,’ muttered Danny.
‘You tell the fucking truth!’ roared Richard.
