Honeytrap: Part 3 Read Online Free Page B

she muttered as they set off. She couldn’t bear the thought of having sat around all afternoon and achieved absolutely nothing. Well, nothing apart from a few snatched photographs. Surely, if he was holding Sylvie, he would have to go and see her at some point. ‘Let it be now. Come on, Joshua, show me where she is.’
    It was a relief when he ignored the turning that led back to his house and instead began heading for Swiss Cottage. The traffic was rush-hour slow, bumper to bumper, and she let another car get between the two of them. It was a further fifteen minutes before he indicated left and turned on to the forecourt of a small square two-storey block of flats. Jess carried on past, pulling up as soon as she could find a space.
    Quickly, she got out of the Mini, locked it and jogged back. She was just in time to see Keynes going in through the glass door, into the foyer and up the staircase. He wasn’t carrying any papers and there was no ‘For Sale’ sign outside the building. It was possible, however, that he was there to do a valuation. The last job of the day? Or maybe this had nothing to do with business.
    Jess slowed as she approached the door, wary of bumping into him if he suddenly doubled back. But she couldn’t retreat now. There was an intercom system and she checked the buzzers but all they had on them were the numbers of the flats, one to four. Well, she knew she could rule out the two on the ground floor – he’d definitely gone upstairs – so that only left three and four.
    She tried the door but it was locked. What next? She couldn’t loiter there indefinitely, at least not without looking suspicious, and so decided to go and get the car instead. If she parked across the road, she’d be able to see him when he came out.
    Jess spent the next fifty minutes staring at the block of flats. She studied all the upstairs windows but there was no sign of life and it was too early for the lights to be on. She listened to music – Emmylou Harris’s
Wrecking Ball
– and twiddled her thumbs. With every minute that passed she became more convinced that this wasn’t anything to do with business.
    It was well over an hour before Keynes finally appeared again. He walked out of the building in his familiar strutting style and climbed back into his car. While he talked on the phone, Jess tried to figure out what to do next. She was tempted to wait until he’d driven off and then try to gain entry to the flats, but decided that this was probably too risky. What if he had an accomplice? Keynes had taken a cab on Saturday night so how had he got her here? Maybe he had help.
    She turned on the engine, wanting to be prepared as she juggled with the options. Stay or go? All she was certain of was that she shouldn’t do anything reckless. If she started banging on doors, no one was likely to answer – but they might take off as soon as she was gone and hide Sylvie somewhere else. Or do something worse. No, she should leave well alone until she had reinforcements. If the girl was inside, her priority was to keep her safe. Nothing was more important than that.
    With this thought in mind, Jess pulled out as the Porsche exited the forecourt, and began following behind. She felt guilty about leaving, sick at the thought of what Sylvie might be going through, but knew it was for the best. She had the address now. She could come back later with Harry or the police.
    When it became clear that Keynes was heading back to Hampstead she gave up on the tail and set off in the direction of Kellston instead. She didn’t want him to spot her. And anyway, there was someone else she wanted to see before the day was over.

18
    It wasn’t overly busy in Wilder’s but there were enough customers for the place to have a steady hum of conversation and a pleasant relaxed atmosphere. Bearing in mind that it was early evening on a Monday, the business seemed to be holding its own in the somewhat shaky economic climate. Jess quickly