Lost Cause (A Daisy Dunlop Mystery ~ Book 1)

Chapter Thirty-Seven

They walked to the cafe in silence and chose to sit at a table by the window. The waitress took their order without protest. Elvis must be a regular customer.

The waitress came back with two mugs of tea and an iced bun for Daisy.

"Sandwich won't be long, Elvis."

He smiled up at the skinny woman. "Thanks, Flora. Don't suppose you've seen Harry today, have you?"

"No." The waitress glanced at the wall clock. "Bit early yet. Give him ten minutes and he should be along. Regular as clockwork is our Harry."

Daisy added milk to her tea and stirred it. "Who's Harry? Does he have my phone?"

Elvis slurped and gulped a mouthful of tea before looking at her. "No. Harry's not one for the lost and found. Harry Belafonte's too good to be dealing with other people's rubbish."

"I don't begrudge you a free feed, Elvis, but if you can't help with the phone I should get going."

"Trouble with you youngsters, always in a rush to get to the next thing on your list. You need to learn to relax. Harry doesn't deal with phones, but he'll know someone who does."

Elvis smiled and rubbed his hands with glee when his sandwich arrived. Daisy munched on her bun and sipped her tea as Elvis made short work of his breakfast. Her mug was empty by the time the door to the café opened again. A short, bald, white man carrying a cane stepped inside. His diminutive body was swamped by a pinstriped suit designed for a much taller man. A woman of Amazonian stature followed along. Daisy frowned as she looked at the odd couple.

The waitress smiled at her new customers. "Your usual?"

"Yes, please."

Elvis pushed to his feet and waved at the short man. "Harry, over here."

The man crossed to their table and accepted Elvis's invitation to take a seat. The woman he was with followed. Harry slipped into the booth next to Elvis, and Daisy shuffled closer to the window to give his companion room. She sat and smiled at Daisy.

Daisy smiled back. Now they were eyeball to eyeball she realized why the woman was so tall. She was a he. A beautifully dressed and made up he, but a he nonetheless.

"Harry, this is Daisy."

Harry held out a hand, and she shook it. He nodded at her seat companion. "Daisy, this is Shirley, Shirley Temple."

Elvis, a white Harry Belafonte, and a six-foot-plus man called Shirley Temple. Why not? "Nice to meet you."

"Daisy's lost her phone in the car park. I thought you might be able to help."

Harry flicked a piece of lint off the sleeve of his pinstripe suit. "Cliff said he found a phone. Top of the line. As far as I know he hasn't been able to find a buyer for it."

Daisy's heart raced. "Where can I find this Cliff?"

Elvis smiled. "Cliff sleeps in the Pleasure Gardens. Says he loves to commune with nature. I bet he's down there now."

"Can you show me where?"

Elvis nodded. "I know where to find him."

Harry and Shirley moved to let Elvis and Daisy out. She said goodbye and left enough money with the waitress to pay for Harry and Shirley's breakfasts.

Elvis held her hand as he guided her through the throng of people intent on getting on with their lives, apparently blind to the homeless man currently dragging her along behind him. For an old guy he set a cracking pace. They stopped at the edge of the road. A gap in the traffic appeared and he took off again, Daisy jogging to keep up. He dived into the gardens and strode with a sense of purpose.

"There's Cliff."

A dark-skinned man lay on his back on a park bench with a squirrel sitting in the middle of his chest. Daisy was starting to feel like Alice in Wonderland. As they approached the squirrel dropped the nut it was eating, leapt to the ground, and took off across the grass.

The man sat up and turned. "What the fuck, Elvis? You scared him."

"Sorry, Cliff. Got a customer for you."

The young man got to his feet, brushed his hands down the front of his ragged blue hoodie, and smiled. "Why didn't you say so? Now what can I get for you?"

Daisy took a step toward him. "I lost a phone in the car park near the Triangle a couple of days ago. Harry says you might be able to help me."

The man frowned. "So you're not in the market to buy somet'ing?"

"There is a reward for its safe return."

"In that case." He vaulted the park bench he'd been lying on and disappeared into a clump of trees. When he reappeared he was holding a phone. He offered it to Daisy, and she took it. Her hands were shaking. The phone was the right model. There were thousands, maybe tens of thousands of this model in the world. It might not be Solomon's, and even if it was it was probably flat. She hit the On switch, and it came to life. The battery was low, but it had some charge left. The background picture was of Molly.

She switched it off to save power and shoved it in her bag. "How much?"

Cliff shrugged. "Whatever you t'ink."

She opened her purse and took out a twenty-pound note. "It's all I've got. I can go and get some more from the bank."

The young man took the money and shoved it in his jeans pocket. "No need. Twenty's all good."

Daisy smiled at him. "Thank you. Thank you."

He smiled back, his teeth gleamed white in his dark face. "My pleasure." He winked at her. "Just remember, you ever need anyt'ing you come and see me. Cliff, Cliff Richards. I'm your lost-and-found man."

Daisy laughed. The day was getting weirder by the minute. Cherry had been right. Homeless people really were the secret eyes and ears of the world.