Innes stood back to allow both of them to pass. ‘Kitchen’s straight ahead,’ he said off-handedly.
O’Connor allowed Kate walk in through the narrow doorway ahead of him. Innes smiled at her as she passed. Once inside, she took in the various rooms – the whole place looked like someone had just done it over. In the kitchen, dishes were piled high in the sink, the bin stank to high heaven and there were bits of rubbish on every surface – empty drinks cans, cardboard takeaway packaging, newspapers, and the remains of, most likely, this morning’s breakfast, a plate with hardened egg yoke and the remains of a burned sausage.
‘The cleaning lady not working today?’ O’Connor asked sarcastically.
Innes shot him a dark look, then knocked some clothes off a kitchen chair, and newspapers off the next, indicating they should both sit down. Kate was fascinated to see that once they were in his house, his manner changed markedly, switching from open hostility to a tone that approached friendliness.
‘Cup of tea anyone?’ he offered.
‘Not for me,’ snapped O’Connor.
‘No thank you,’ Kate followed.
‘I see the lady has manners.’
‘Listen, you little shit, I don’t have time to play tea parties with you. Tell me why you were in Rathmines, and what you were doing three days ago, at four o’clock in the afternoon.’
‘Suit yourself,’ Innes replied, smirking at them. ‘For your information, Detective, I needed to pass that area for work, and as for three days ago? Hmm, well, let me see, that would be Wednesday. Oh yes, I remember now. I was visiting an old friend at the Welfare Office, Jimmy Deavy, lovely man, has a nice warm heart, does his best for people down on their luck.’
‘Down on your luck, are you?’ O’Connor didn’t even try to hide his disgust.
‘We can’t all have fat salaries, you know. Times are tough. You lot have no idea what it’s like for ordinary folk to try and make ends meet.’
‘My heart bleeds for you.’
Recognising that O’Connor’s tactics weren’t getting a whole lot of information out of Innes, Kate decided to weigh in.
‘Mr Innes, a young girl has been murdered. If you were in the area, you might have seen something?’
When he smiled at her again, it took a lot for her to return the compliment. She had a sick feeling about him, even without knowing his back story. Everything about him felt rotten, and she had to suppress the memories that were threatening to surface whenever he looked directly at her.
‘Miss, I really wish I could help you.’
‘Kate. My name’s Kate.’
‘Nice name. Kate.’ He smiled again. ‘I’ve seen a picture of the girl, very sweet, but not my sort I’m afraid.’ He gave Kate a leering smile, then added, ‘A little old for me.’
Kate held his stare, her face a mask. O’Connor had heard enough, though. He snapped, grabbing Innes by the front of his vest and slamming him back against the kitchen sink. Innes wasn’t rattled at all. O’Connor’s outburst brought another smirk to his face.
‘Quite the temper, Detective. Did I hit a sore spot?’
‘You are a piece of filth, Innes,’ O’Connor said in a quiet voice. ‘I’m going to check out your alibi and if there’s any holes in it, I’ll be back to pay another social call. In the meantime, I suggest you keep your fat arse at home. I’ll have guys watching you. One slip and I’ll nail you. Any questions shithead?’
‘You’re the one with the questions; me, I’m just your average law-abiding citizen.’
‘Really, well then you won’t mind if we borrow your PC?’
‘Do I have a choice?’
‘You’re quick, I’ll give you that.’ O’Connor took the warrant he wasn’t supposed to have from his jacket pocket and handed it to Innes. ‘A surprise for you, Mr Law-Abiding. I like to be a man of surprises, sort of adds a little extra spice. We’ll have this piece of junk back to you before you know it.’
They made their way out of the house, with O’Connor carrying the hard-drive of Innes’ PC. As he put it into the boot, Kate sat into the front seat, glad to be out of Innes’ house and company. O’Connor snapped open the driver’s door, hurling himself into the front seat before slamming the door shut. It was obvious he was in no mood for talking, but Kate risked it anyway.
‘He’s not our man, O’Connor.’
His hand stopped halfway to the ignition and he turned to look at her. ‘Maybe not, but I still need to check out his alibi. The bastard’s sick enough, that’s for sure.’
‘Creepy, yes, but the killer, no.’
‘You can’t rule him out just like that, Kate,’ O’Connor said, unable to hide the impatience in his voice.
‘I can,’ Kate replied evenly. ‘Everything about Innes, even his house, is wrong. The place is a pit, everything is way too messy. And he’s not exactly fit. If he was involved with Caroline’s death, he’d have to have been working with someone else, and somehow Charles Innes doesn’t strike me as the sharing type.’