by Douglas Hall
West gave him a summary of the interview and said that her brother Scott was next on the list.
“One will get you ten that you won’t get to him.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because after I talked to Amber, her father called and gave me royal hell for daring to talk to her without a lawyer. He ordered me to stay away from his family including his son Scott.”
“I’ll give it a try anyway. Did you know that the Madison and Ferguson family were friends until Cindy and Scott broke up? I gathered that his parents thought it was an insult for any girl not to be thrilled at being picked out by their son and then dumping him. The fathers had words.”
“That’s close to what I surmised as well. Harry Ferguson is a hothead, and best of luck getting to Scott. It will take a devious bugger like you do it,” King said and laughed.
West raised his half-empty coffee cup in acknowledgement. “Ever hear of Child Waiting?”
“What is that? It sounds like a community service geared to helping children in need.”
West handed the brochure to King, “Have a look at this. Be interesting to see if anything pops out when you run it through the system.”
West scanned the pages and nodded. “Where did you fund this?”
“On top of a stack under Cindy’s night table.”
King fanned the pages again and stared at the front cover.
Puzzled West asked, “What are you looking for?”
“It’s not what I am looking for, it is what I’m not seeing. How did Cindy receive these brochures?”
West shrugged, “By mail I would assume.”
“Where is the address label that is on everything that comes by mail?” King asked.
“It could have come in an envelope, and the sending address would be in the upper right-hand corner or someone might have given to her.”
“If that was the case, it would be interesting to know who that person was, and under what circumstance it came into her hand.”
West and King were engaging in deductive reasoning, the foundation of any investigation. No matter how wild a suggestion might be, it could pay off.
“The pages are devoted to a topic totally unrelated to the others with one exception. They all end with a tug at the heart strings. It would be interesting to see a workup on Child Waiting.”
“Let’s get one. I’ll make a call.” He asked for Child Waiting to be run through the system and given priority. It didn’t take long for the phone to ring and King had a brief conversation before hanging up. “Nothing popped out. Do you think there is a connection with Child Waiting and Cindy’s disappearance?”
“Anything’s possible I’ve got Mandy working on it. She is really good at coming up with the unexpected. Time, we did a full workup on Madison and his venture capital business while we are at it.”
“You don’t think Victor is, somehow, tied in with his daughter’s disappearance, do you?” King asked.
“You don’t get as successful like he has without making enemies. Someone he might have crossed could be behind this. I’m not finger pointing, just asking the question, and what about Harry Ferguson? From what you say he was really pissed off over Cindy having the gall to dump his son because she thought he wasn’t good enough for her. He might have wanted to hit back.”
“That’s a stretch.”
“Perhaps but you can’t dismiss any possibility. Are you in a hurry?”
“What have you got in mind? I have a full day ahead of me. If this keeps up, I’ll have to find someone to help. Mandy and I are swamped with this case and that’s not counting Madison’s incessant calls wanting updates.”
“Give me half-an-hour and go get yourself another coffee. I’ve got an idea.”
“What have you been up to?” West asked King when he returned and sat down with a curious look on his face.
“You said you needed another body to help out with the investigation, were you serious?”
“Yes. Mandy and I are going full out, and many times, we are working well after quitting time, and it is going to get worse. When I get back, I’m going to tell her to hire an assistant.”
“Any idea who you might bring in to help you out?”
“I have a couple of ideas. Any suggestions?”
King smiled broadly, “How about me? We were quite a team when we worked together.”
“Are you serious?”
“Never more, I went to see the chief, and told him Madison hired you and gave him a rundown on what you have accomplished so far but are snowed under. He was impressed. I reminded him that we were quite a team when you were on the force, and he was our staff sergeant. I suggested that with the two of us working together again, the chances of cracking this case could be promising. I am back on as lead investigator, and you have been cleared to work with me. It is no longer a cold case.”
West held out his hand, “Well, I’ll be damned. I never expected this. Well done, now let’s get down to work and find Cindy if she is still alive. Before we do, we should agree upon a couple of procedural issues. Such as, let’s work at my office from now on instead of here at headquarters. I think it best if I don’t be seen coming in and out.”
“I agree. What else?”
“I’m not going to tell Madison that you and I are working on the investigation. There is no sense getting him riled up.”
King smiled, “Good idea, let him think it is still a cold case, and he won’t be expecting to hear from me. You be the one to keep him informed.”
“Now that is settled, where do we start?” West asked.
“You said that Madison let Cindy grow up to be very independent. How independent?”
“Evidently, she had a generous allowance, a car and a life of her own which he didn’t know about or wanted to know about. All he wanted was for her to be happy.”
“Did she have a bank account?”
“Let’s find out. I’ll try to get through to Madison. He gave me his private phone number.”
King could only hear the one-sided conversation, but he liked the questions West was asking and was pleased it seemed to be going so well.
“He was most obliging and what he told me could be very helpful down the road,” West said as he laid his smart phone on the table. “He must have gotten up on the right side of the bed.”
“What did he give you?”
“Cindy has been on the payroll of Madison’s company from the day she graduated high school. She earned her salary writing a monthly newsletter for the company’s clients and prospective clients. He said she is an accomplished writer. Second, she has had a bank account since she began high school. It’s at the main branch of The Saint Lawrence Bank of Canada.”
“How much does she earn?”
“Two thousand a month. Payroll deposits it electronically into her account at the end of each month. I asked if he knew how much she had in her account. He said he thought it could be substantial by now because she is very careful how she spends her money…here is the kicker. He approved a thousand-dollar monthly increase to take effect the month after she went missing.”
“Why would he do that if he doesn’t even know if she is alive or dead?” King asked in amazement.
“He treated her like all new employees and drew up a standard contract which she signed. It included an annual performance increase, and he couldn’t bring himself to cancel it. To do so would mean he and his wife had accepted what could be the inevitable. He asked if the increase might have an impact upon my investigation, and I told him that could be a possibility down the road. He asked if a larger increase would help. I suggested bumping the monthly deposit to $5,000 and he agreed immediately. He even said if I wanted more, all I had to do was ask. He also said that when she was a young girl, he set up a generous trust fund which she would get on her twenty-first birthday.”
“How much will she get?” King asked.
“I asked him that, but he really could say with interest and everything. He
opened the trust fund with $20,000.”
King whistled, “She is one wealthy girl.”
West nodded, “He’s going to check and let me know. We might be able to use it as bait sometime. I’ll get going and see if I can corner Scott Ferguson. What about you?”
“I’m going to see a judge and get a warrant. It will be interesting to see Cindy’s bank records back to when she went missing.”
“You will have to present reasonable cause to get a warrant.”
“I don’t think I’ll have any problem with that,” King replied with confidence.
Four
THE NEXT TWO DAYS quickly morphed into fifteen-hour days for West and King as they poured over the contents in the Cindy Madison cold case evidence box once more. West found King’s case notes from the day he was assigned lead investigator to be extensive and detailed which was nothing more than he would have expected. Next came West’s equally extensive and detailed notes from the day he accepted the case.
“Whatever possessed you to take this one on? If you had asked me, I would have told you all about my experiences trying to deal with Victor Madison.”
“At the time Madison approached me, I had just come off a mind-boring, uninteresting case that was just one level above peering through a motel keyhole to nail an errant husband. I was looking for something more challenging that I could get my teeth into.”
King snorted, “Well, you sure got your wish. Hope by the time we are finished, you won’t come to regret your decision.”
“Did you get the warrant and have a look at Cindy’s bank records?” West asked.
King opened his briefcase and took out a file, “Have a look at this.”
West’s expression changed as he ran a finger down the pages, “This sure tells us something. The month-end balance before Cindy went missing was $16,485.22. The week before her father reported her missing there was a withdrawal of $16,385.22 leaving a $100 balance. From that date forward for the next 12 months, there are just two entries per month, an electronic deposit and an electronic withdrawal, of three thousand leaving a $100 balance. The next 12 deposits increased by $1,000, and the withdrawals match them and so on. Her father authorises the deposits. It begs the question who makes the withdrawals? They are made to a numbered account which Cindy evidently set up before she went missing,” King observed. “I asked the bank for more information, and I am waiting to hear from them. Did you have any luck getting to Scott Ferguson?”
“Oh, I got to him alright,” West replied. “He said he would talk to me and to come to his house. When I did, his father and lawyer were waiting for me in the living room. I told them who I was and who I was working for. On the lawyer’s advice, Ferguson said I could ask my questions. Believe me it was pretty tense. I began by asking Scott why he and Cindy broke up. He said that he couldn’t understand why and it came as a total shock the day she said it was over. When he asked her why, all she said was, ‘Things had changed, and she no longer fitted into his life style.’ At that point, the lawyer said the interview was over, and if I ever contacted Scott, or his sister, in the future, he would get a restraining order.”
“Welcome to the club…I got the same threat.”
VICTOR MADISON led a life of orchestrated order which began with breakfast that the cook laid out and reading the morning paper in silence. Prior to their daughter’s disappearance, breakfast was a lively start to the day with animated conversation as parents and daughter talked over their plans for the rest of the day until dinner. That was in the past. Ever since Cindy went missing, Madison silently immersed himself in his morning paper with no conversation while his wife buried herself in the latest book she was reading. The lead item on the third page immediately caught Madison’s eye: UNIDENTIFIED BODY OF YOUNG GIRL FOUND ON FARM. He, suddenly, lost his appetite and said he had to get to the office early. The newspaper left with him.
WEST WAS MAKING the most of what he thought would be a free morning cleaning up outstanding work on his computer when an incoming e-mail alert appeared on the lower corner of the monitor screen. It was from Victor Madison:
Page three of the morning paper. See story about a body being found. Follow up and confirm or deny if it is my daughter. Make it top priority.
Mandy brought in the morning paper as West requested, and he was reading the article when King arrived for their daily meeting.
“What is of interest the paper today?” King asked.
“Madison e-mailed me with the order of the day instructing me to see this article about a farmer and his dog who were looking for a calf that had wandered away from the herd. They came across the remains of what looks like a female in the bush at the back of the pasture. Have a look,” West handed the paper to King.
“Interesting,” King mused. “No telling who it is until forensic has a sweep of the crime scene and an autopsy takes place. If it is two years or more, there won’t be much left to go on.”
“If forensic could get some of Cindy’s DNA profile to compare with the remains, it wouldn’t take long to confirm one way or the other if it is her.”
“You are right,” King replied, “new forensic tests have come a long way since you were a copper including genetic phenotyping that can reveal physical features such as eye and hair colour. Get me something with Cindy’s DNA on it like a hairbrush or a toothbrush, and I’ll get forensic to run their magical tests right after the autopsy. It’s been over two years, but I’ll bet there will be one or both still in her bedroom. You said Madison was definite that nothing had been touched since the day she left. Did you see a hairbrush when you were in the bedroom?”
“She had what looked like a makeup table, but I didn’t have time to see what was on it before Madison told me time was up. I’ll ask him if there is one in her room.”
“Think he’d give it to you?”
“He’ll have no choice if he wants to know what the dog found.”
King returned to the article and looked up, “Ever hear of Campbell’s Station?”
“Not until I read this,” West replied. “Give me a moment and I’ll look it up on the web. Here it is. It’s about seventy miles north of the city. What say we wait to give the lead investigator time to make his report and ask for a copy? It could be helpful. You said you would cut by the bank after we wrapped up yesterday. Any luck running down something on the numbered account?”
"I saw the bank manager and told him what I wanted. He is one piece of work, believe me. I sure wouldn’t want to ask him for a loan. I told him I needed the information about the transfers from Cindy’s account like yesterday, and he told me point blank that banks don’t work that way as it takes time to get such information and he would get back to me. I made it clear that if I didn’t hear from him by today, I’d be back. He mumbled something about making a call to head office and getting back to me. He hasn’t yet, so I’ll go back and see him when we are finished. I’m not expecting much more than a bureaucratic stall but it’s worth a try.
"I checked the search engine for a description of a numbered bank account after I got back to my desk yesterday and came up with something interesting. A numbered bank account is what an account holder uses when they want to keep their deposits and withdrawals secret usually from the government to avoid taxes. They are identified by the bank with a code word known only to the account holder and restricted bank employees.
“Here is the kicker, numbered accounts are available in the Caribbean and two European countries: Liechtenstein and Switzerland. The minimum deposit to open a numbered account is $75,000 to $100,000.”
West whistled, “We are not dealing with some local scam artist. Whoever it is knows how to play the game. It would be nice to know which country holds the account, how the system operates and what happens to the deposits. Are they left or are they withdrawn from the numbered account immediately the deposits are made or later? It would also be helpful to know where the withdrawals go and who gets them?”
“I’ve never had any e
xperience with offshore accounts, and if I keep getting doors slammed in my face, I’ll find someone at headquarters who does and I’ll have a word with him,” King said.
“While you are following that up, I’ll call Madison and bring him up-to-date. I’ll ask for whatever he can give me with Cindy’s DNA on it and if he knows about the withdrawals from her bank account. Right now, he appears to be in a mood to do whatever I ask, and I’m going to play that card for all it’s worth.”
**“MR MADISON** IS IN A MEETING, and I don’t put calls through unless it is an emergency or something that can’t wait.”
“This is something that can’t wait, and I’d be grateful if you would ask Mr Madison to take my call.”
It would be the first time that West called Madison when he was in a business meeting. To his surprise, he came on the line and, in a firm but not irritated tone, and asked, “What can I do for you?”
West apologised for interrupting and when he told him he had read the newspaper report and what he wanted, Madison replied with, “Well done. You certainly are head and shoulders over King. At least, you appear to be making headway which is more than I could say about that man. You say you need something with Cindy’s DNA on it. Whatever for?”
“For forensics to test to see if there is a match between Cindy’s DNA and the remains which were found. I think it has to be taken, so your mind can be set at ease. Without it, you and your wife will always be wondering, and the only way to set your mind at ease is to pursue it.”
“Now just what makes you think I can find something like that after two years?”
“You said nothing has been touched since the day Cindy left. Would there be a hairbrush or toothbrush still in her bedroom?”
“How on earth would I know that?”
“Could you have a look for me?”
Madison gave a long sigh, “You are asking a lot. I have to be so careful with her mother. If she ever spots something missing, there will be hell to pay, and I’ll have a time trying to calm her down.”
“It could be my best lead if it confirms that the remains are not Cindy’s.”