The door opened into a shortish hallway with two doors on either side. It smelled strongly of antiseptic and fresh paint and it was clear that this kind of inner sanctum had been recently renovated and freshly prepared.
But for what, I wondered?
We were about to step in when Josh was distracted by his phone, "Hold on, it's GG," he said, tapping it on to loudspeaker – "Are you two ok sweetheart?" Her distinctive cockney sound echoed down the hallway.
"Yeah, we are, why'd you ask?" Answered Josh.
"I saw that mysterious fella pushing summat under the door. When I goes up to him, he sprints off like Usain Bolt down the road. I can't make out whether he's a goody or a baddy."
Josh's eyes met mine and he smirked, "We believe he's both goody and baddy. He's the good Mr Badoe, Benita's dad.
Granny Grace let out a little incredulous gasp, "Oh my lord, he ain't dead; well I never, what's the story there then?"
"We don't know; we're hoping to find some clues in here."
Granny Grace sounded perplexed, "He'd always stop to talk to me he would, sometimes I had trouble getting rid of him; there's gotta be some deep dark deed that he's running from, mark my words."
I felt myself bristle as the implication in her words irritated me, "My dad's all good, Granny Grace," I said.
"I ain't disputing that sweetheart, but all covered up the way he is, he's obviously hiding from summat and don't wanna give the game away by revealing himself," she said.
I snapped, "Leave it Granny Grace, we gotta go now, stuff to discover as you well know."
"Yeah you have, and when you find out why a fella with a young wife and kid would fake is own death, tell me all about it. Toodlepip, sweets," she said, all cheerful.
I was about to shout back, but Josh calmed me, "Leave it Benita, that's just GGs way, she wasn't winding you up, she genuinely thinks that." He looked at me earnestly and thumped his heart, "And be honest with yourself, you can't blame her, because you're thinking the same suspicious thoughts yourself, ain't ya?"
I thought for a while then nodded, "Yes. But I don't like to hear them from someone else. My dad's my hero, I don't want my image of him rubbished by the thought he's done something so wrong, that his only way out of it was to play dead," I explained.
Josh stared at me with a strange expression, "Why are you looking at me like that? I asked." His face closed in on me until his forehead rested on mine, "Benita, he might have made a mistake. Brace yourself for the fact that your dad might have done a dodgy deed." He pulled his head back and grabbed my shoulders as if to save himself from my temper – "BUT – whatever – he's doing good now, by helping us. So let's see what we find in here," he said, waiting patiently for my response.
Of course he was right, and I cooled down, "I know. But I don't want to think of dad and dodgy deeds right now," I said.
Josh placed his hand on the side of my face, then brushed it over my ear and head; he continued to repeat the procedure until I grabbed his hand, "What you doing?" I asked.
He gave me his mega watt smile, "I is pushing all thoughts of your dad and dodgy deeds to the back of your mind, Benita," he said, continuing the gesture. I laughed and stopped him, not admitting that the gesture felt physically pleasant and I would have liked him to continue, in more romantic surroundings than a dilapidated cop shop.
###
We stepped into the hallway and closed the door behind us. Josh put his hand on the doorknob, "Let's hope these rooms reveal something..."
