Thursday Murder Club, #2
The Man Who Died Twice
by Richard Osman
Contents
Chapter 25
Overview
Elizabeth and Joyce arrive at the MI5 safe house on St Albans Avenue using a coded handoff to gain entry. Inside, the fortified home is ominously silent. Signs show two people lived there, but the back door stands open. Douglas and Poppy are missing, escalating the crisis and confirming Elizabeth’s suspicions of deeper trouble.
Summary
Elizabeth and Joyce reach 38 St Albans Avenue, blending into a street of anonymous hotels and retirement homes. A staged exchange with a Virgin Media van driver provides an electronic key via a simple code phrase, signaling MI5 tradecraft and controlled access.
They enter the reinforced house at 5:25, deliberately late to keep Douglas slightly off balance. Elizabeth reflects on Douglas’s penchant for games, the lure of the £20 million in diamonds, and her curiosity about his true plan.
Inside, the silence is wrong for a two-person safe house. Despite all windows and doors being bolted, Elizabeth senses a breeze. She calls for Douglas and Poppy with no reply and moves methodically to the kitchen, noting two bowls and two mugs, and a dated wall calendar—evidence the house was occupied.
At the rear, Elizabeth finds the courtyard exit wide open beneath barbed wire, indicating a breach or hurried departure. The discovery confirms that Douglas and Poppy are gone, leaving Elizabeth and Joyce with an immediate mystery and heightened stakes.
Who Appears
- ElizabethLeads entry to the MI5 safe house using a coded key; discovers the back door open and occupants missing.
- JoyceAccompanies Elizabeth; provides observations and light commentary as they search the silent house.
- DouglasAbsent but expected at the safe house; his unexplained disappearance heightens suspicion and stakes.
- PoppyMI5 handler; also missing from the safe house, suggesting a breach or abrupt exit.
- Virgin Media driverMI5 operative who passes the electronic key to Elizabeth using a simple code exchange.
- RonOff-page; expected to have collected a package earlier, noted by Elizabeth as they enter.