書蟲1級《雪莉·霍姆斯和立陶宛青年案》5. 成功第一步

5. A foot in the door

Saheed and I have a beer together, and I tell him all about the Lithuanian case.

A father–daughter problem, eh?' says Saheed. 'Well, I know all about difficult fathers.'

Saheed is from an Indian family. He and his sister Leila have their problems with a difficult father too. But Saheed never talks about his problems. He just does his job. He's a good detective.

So. You did a good job there. A happy ending,' says Saheed.

Yes, and no,' I say. 'One more thing to do.'

We finish our beer and leave.

Say hi to Leila for me,' I say. Leila is my best friend. She's a lawyer. Leila, Saheed, and I have a lot of arguments about the law, and the police, and private investigators. We have a good time. I'm always right, of course.

The next day is Saturday. I do some work on my laptop in the office, and think about the Lithuanian case. How many young men are there like Tomas Varnas?

I think about it some more, then I leave, and walk to the Williams' house. It's not far from my office.

Mrs Williams opens the door, sees me, and tries to shut the door again. But my foot is in the door...

But my foot is in the door...

Can I come in, Mrs Williams?' I say. 'Just for a minute.'

It's Saturday. My husband's at home,' Edith Williams says. 'Please speak quietly! Look, I've got your money ready– here it is. And thank you, thank you. Carrie is texting me every day now, so I know she's all right. Please go now, please don't—'

Who's that at the door, Edith?' It's a man's voice, a big strong voice.

Oh, nobody,' Mrs Williams says quickly, but I'm inside the door now, and looking at Mr Williams.

Oh, hello,' he says. 'Who are you?'

Shirley Homes, private investigator. How do you do? Your wife wanted me to find Carrie. And to talk to her boyfriend.'

What!' Mr Williams turns to his wife. 'What did I say to you, Edith?' he shouts. 'We're finished with that girl! We don't speak to her, we don't talk about her, we—'

And it's good news, Mr Williams!' I use my head teacher voice again. He's still shouting at his wife, so I shout too. And smile and smile.

Yes, it's very good news, Mr Williams. Your daughter Carrie is alive and well and living in London. And she has a wonderful boyfriend!'

Mr Williams stops shouting and stares at me. Behind him I can just see Darren's head. He's looking round a door, with big eyes.

Carrie's boyfriend is a very nice young man. His name is Tomas Varnas, he's nineteen years old, he's a hard worker, he's kind...'

He's a foreigner,' Mr Williams says angrily.

You have a problem with foreigners?' I say.

Mrs Williams closes her eyes. She's waiting for something... What? A lot of bad language about foreigners from her husband?

I look at Mr Williams again, but he isn't saying anything. He's just staring at me angrily. And suddenly, I understand. His problem isn't with foreigners, it's with his daughter. He wants to know that Carrie is all right, he wants to hear about her boyfriend, he wants to see her, to have her back home. But he can't find the words. He just can't say it.

I speak quickly. 'Tomas is a very nice young man.' I say it again, it's an important message. 'He works hard, he's doing two jobs, and he's going to make a good life for him and Carrie. He speaks very good English, and he's kind, and he's funny, but he's strong too. He thinks family is important, and he wants Carrie to come back home, to be friends with her mother, her father, her brother...'

All three of them are listening to me now. Darren has a big smile on his face.

Oh, and Carrie is living with Tomas's sister, not with Tomas, you know. Carrie wants to get married when she's sixteen next year, but Tomas wants to wait. He wants to meet the family, and he wants Carrie to meet his family. So you see – Tomas Varnas is a good man, a really good man. He's a boyfriend to please any father in Britain, Mr Williams.'

Mr Williams is just staring at me angrily.

Carrie's father opens his mouth, and closes it again. He still can't find the words.

So now you know all about him, Mr Williams. Meet him. Talk to him. Ask him to Sunday lunch.'

I turn to Mrs Williams. 'Do you usually have Sunday lunch, you know, that wonderful British meal? All foreigners love it.'

Er, yes,' she says. 'I... er... yes, I always do a nice Sunday lunch.'

Well, there you are then,' I say. I smile around at everybody. 'Sunday lunch. That's a good way to meet your daughter's boyfriend.'

I take my money from Mrs Williams, give Darren a big smile and a wave, and walk to the front door. Nobody's shouting, nobody's crying. So far, so good.

Have a nice day, everyone!' I say, and close the door behind me.