‘No, I’m just the manager. The owner’s abroad.’
‘That’s Mr Sulikov?’ Richard said. ‘His first name?’
‘Konrad.’
‘What can you tell us about Rosa?’ Janine asked him.
‘Nice girl. Reliable, turned up for her shifts on time. Never any problem. That’s why it’s so hard to understand.’
‘How do you mean?’ Janine asked.
‘Some of them – they get in a mess: drink, drugs, boyfriends. Or they’re breaking the rules, putting themselves at risk. Topcat’s for dancing.’
‘Strictly ballroom,’ Richard said.
‘We keep it clean. No touching, no tango. Some girls push it, or they make private arrangements with the punter outside these walls. We can’t protect them then.’
‘Anything make you think a punter’s involved?’ Richard asked him.
‘I don’t know what to think. All I’m saying is Rosa did her job, no fuss, no bother.’
‘Did you know she was pregnant?’ Janine wondered if Rosa had known herself. It had been early days. And if she had known had it been welcome news or not?
‘No,’ Harper looked surprised, ‘she never said anything.’
Janine didn’t like her cases colliding like this. It sparked her sense of mistrust. ‘Your car was stolen last night?’ She let the words hang in the air.
‘That’s right.’
‘It was involved in a hit and run accident this morning. The little girl’s died.’ She felt Richard’s eyes on her. ‘Now Rosa.’
Harper looked puzzled. Janine waited it out, watching him. Wondering if he would volunteer any more information, try and explain the sequence of events, the glaring coincidence. Harper said nothing.
‘Mr Harper,’ she said, ‘I’m going to have a look around, talk to people. Please give DI Mayne all the details you have about Rosa. Last time you saw her, the names of any regulars she danced for, friends she had.’ Janine paused in the doorway. ‘Death seems to be following you around. I’d try to think of anything that might help us.’ No harm in shaking his cage a little, letting him know that she didn’t buy the little-white-hen-who-never-laid-an-egg routine.
Andrea, the girl who had rung in, agreed to talk to Janine but in spite of her cooperation there was a distrustful edge to her manner. A lot of people acted like that with the police. Sometimes they had reason to.
Andrea had creamy brown skin, short curly hair. Young again, and wary. She toyed with the ashtray, played with cigarettes and the bangles on her wrist, avoiding eye contact for much of their conversation.
‘Did Rosa have any distinguishing features?’ Janine began.
