‘The name of the lender?’
‘Gary Frost. He’s got a penthouse down in Greenwich. Ask around, you’ll find him. Don’t blame me if you get yourself shot.’
‘I won’t.’
‘And for the record, the merchandise in here is not stolen, not by me. It all belongs to those who are desperate. I give them money for it. It’s then on sale, and either someone else buys it, or they repurchase it.’
‘I’ll trust you,’ Larry said, not that he believed Eckersley, but the man had helped.
Chapter 22
Homicide had the name of someone with a dubious history, although with no criminal record. Of the two men who were always close to Gary Frost, one had served time for grievous bodily harm, the other was known to the local police in Greenwich as a man with a foul temper and likely to drink more than he should on a Saturday night, and then to take to brawling. The last time, according to a police sergeant that Larry had spoken to, it had taken three police officers to subdue the man. The next day, sober and in the cells at the station, he had been contrite and exceedingly agreeable. The sergeant reckoned he was the more dangerous of the two.
Gary Frost remained an enigma. He kept a low profile and was rarely seen out in public, and if he was, it was invariably in the back seat of a top of the range Mercedes.
Everyone in Homicide was focussed on the man who gave out money and violence in equal measure. The man with the busted kneecap that Eckersley had mentioned had been found. He had been doing it tough since his release from the hospital, and he limped badly, a crutch under one arm, but he was alive. Attempts to find out if others had not fared so well were proving unsuccessful. The gambling club owner who had made it out to Dubai, found himself a couple of Russian women, as well as a surfeit of bullets as he and the women had been gunned down, appeared to be just one of the colourful tales on the street, although Isaac and Larry weren’t so sure it was just a story. It may not have been Dubai but somewhere less desirable, and the Russian women, attractive and readily available in the city in the desert built on money and oil and not much else, could instead have been a couple of local slappers of no great beauty and not that young either.
The limping man with the destroyed kneecap wasn’t talking, nor was Ralph Lawrence, who kept to his story that he was inspecting a property he was interested in purchasing and he had slipped. Isaac and Larry had pressured the man, could see that he was nervous, wanted to speak, but wouldn’t.
Outside of the building where Frost’s penthouse was located, Larry stood, unsure of what to do next. It wasn’t the best of days, and the wind was biting. He wasn’t sure what he was trying to achieve, knowing full well that knocking on the door would not get him far, may even get him into trouble: police intimidation, upstanding citizen, no criminal convictions. That was the problem, Larry knew. The most accomplished criminals, those with the mental acumen, always ensured that someone else did the dirty work, leaving them clean.
‘I need you back at the station,’ Isaac said on the phone to Larry. ‘Leave Frost for the moment, we’ve got something to deal with.’
Larry made the trip back over the Thames to Challis Street, parked his car, noticing that the weather was better there than it had been over in Greenwich where it was more exposed.
In the office, all the key people were there. ‘What is it?’ Larry said as he sat down.
‘Ralph Lawrence is out of the hospital and back at his flat. If Frost was responsible for having the man beaten, then he’s not going to give up because of us. And Helmsley’s in Michael’s ear. We’re expecting fireworks. In fact, we should consider creating them. We need Ralph to talk, then we can pressure Frost. He’s a definite suspect, not sure how and why, but he’s the sort of man that kills.’
‘Molly Dempster knew more than anyone,’ Wendy said. ‘Does Ralph know about her?’
‘Not yet. It may be time for him to find out his background. We can judge his reaction, see if it makes any difference.’
‘How do you want to do this?’
‘Caroline Dickson’s house, make sure all the key people are there. Make it for tonight, six in the evening. Bridget, make a few phone calls, make sure Caroline and her husband are there, also Ralph and the reluctant Molly.’
‘She’ll not like it,’ Wendy said.
‘You can go and see her, tell her it’s necessary if we’re to solve who killed Gilbert. And besides, she said that she wanted to hug her son once and for him to recognise her as his mother. Tonight might be the night, although the reactions may be hostile.’
‘What’s the point of upsetting an old woman?’ Bridget said.
‘I can understand your sentiments, but this is a murder enquiry. We have Ralph who won’t tell us who put him in the hospital, Molly who knows more than she’s telling us, and Caroline who’s playing a strategic game with Jill Dundas. Everyone’s hiding something. We don’t know what yet, but we need to move the investigation forward.’
‘I’ll look after Molly,’ Wendy said. ‘I don’t like this. She’s a nice woman who just wants a quiet life.’
‘No doubt you’re right, but she could have killed Gilbert for retribution. Even though she loved him, at least when he was younger, he had kept Dorothy, a person Molly loved as a sister, dead and in her bed for all those years. And can you imagine the kind of horrors that the man must have perpetrated on his dead wife, burying her in the cellar, stripping her flesh, feeding her to those beetles? If it were a movie, we’d all be out of our seats or out of the cinema. Larry, you and me, we’ve got a door to knock on.’
‘Gary Frost?’
‘Who else? We’ll need a police car outside just in case our visit is not welcome. Is the man at home?’
‘He is. I’ve got the local station updating me as to his movements. If we let on that we know he’s lent money to Ralph, it could get nasty.’
‘That’s what I’m hoping for. And the kneecapped man, where is he?’
‘Not far, but he’ll not talk,’ Larry said.
‘If he doesn’t, we’ll let him know that we’re talking to Frost, may let it slip that we’ve told his lender that he’s been very helpful.’
‘Not strictly by the book.’
‘I know it, but we’re only implying. We need the man to tell us the truth. Frost could be Gilbert’s killer. The man’s smart. He could have realised that he’d lent money to the wayward son of a real estate mogul. He may not have known it when the money was lent, but he finds out and takes a calculated risk that the death of one would lead to another gaining the wealth. We need to frighten everyone, raise the emotions, look for the reactions. Bridget, any more from Spain?’
‘Nothing. The police are too busy with their own problems down there to worry about us.’
‘There goes the trip to Spain to meet up with our Spanish colleagues, the chance to get a suntan,’ Isaac said.
‘No problems for you, sir,’ Wendy said.
‘I could still do with some warm weather.’
‘We all could, but it’s not likely to happen soon, is it?’
***
Isaac had to admit to being impressed with where Frost lived. He and Larry had called in at the local police station, met with Inspector Emily Matson.
‘Frost is loan sharking,’ Isaac said.
‘We’re aware of the man’s reputation, but we’ve had no reason to bring him in, and besides, there’s been no complaints, nothing criminal,’ Matson said. Isaac judged her to be mid-thirties, maybe closer to forty, attractive in an efficient way, with her hair pulled back tight, minimal make-up, blue eyes. She was dressed in a blue suit, not regulation, but civilian. ‘I’m giving evidence at 11 a.m. Fraud caught a man using false credit cards, not uncommon around here. I was the arresting officer, so I can’t come with you to Frost’s.’
‘That’s fine. We can deal with him on our own.’
‘Just watch out for his men. One of them spends time here occasionally. He goes by the name of Ainsley Caxton. Tough individual. H
e put one of our guys in the hospital for a night after three of ours tried to take him down outside a pub one night. Apparently, a couple of drunks inside had started making fun of his name, putting on funny walks, telling him it was a little girl’s name. Mind you, they weren’t smiling the next day. One of them ended up concussed after Caxton rammed his head into the pub wall. The other copped a boot right where it hurts, brought tears to his eyes. From what I heard, he sings soprano now. The other tough that Frost keeps nearby is Hector O’Grady. He's not been in trouble with us, but he’s a big man, bigger than Caxton.’
‘We’ll be careful. We were just letting you know that we’re following up on a homicide in our part of the world.’
‘Frost responsible?’
‘Nothing’s proven, not yet.’
Isaac and Larry left the police station and drove the short distance to where Frost lived. Outside, a police car, two patrol officers inside. ‘We’ll call if we need you,’ Isaac said. He had brought them two coffees, which was appreciated.
‘We’ll be here. Be careful with Caxton. He put me in the hospital once,’ one of the uniforms said.
‘Inspector Matson told us. And the guy singing soprano?’
‘He always had a squeaky voice, but it’s a good story.’
Isaac rang the bell at the security door to the block of flats. A gruff voice answered. ‘What do you want?’
‘DCI Cook, DI Hill, Challis Street Police Station, Homicide.’
‘You’ve got a warrant?’
‘We can get one, haul your sorry arse down to the police station. Tell Mr Frost we want a few words with him, or we’ll come back later with a piece of paper, make it official.’
‘Very well. I’ll press the button. Enter the lift and enter 756 into the keypad.’
Outside Frost’s penthouse, the two men stood, Caxton and O’Grady. One was squat and menacing, the other taller, fitter, and altogether a better-looking man, although that was subjective, and neither would have been regarded as handsome. Caxton had a scar above his left eye, O’Grady had broken his nose on more than one occasion, and the bridge was skewed to one side.
‘Mr Frost doesn’t like uninvited guests,’ Caxton said.
‘Then maybe he shouldn’t go roughing up people, lending them money they can’t afford to pay back,’ Isaac said. Larry thought Isaac was playing a dangerous game, baiting the heavies even before they had met Frost. It wasn’t the first time Isaac had gone on the offensive, and most times it worked, produced the appropriate reaction, but they were on the seventh floor of the building. It was a long way down, and the security door at the front of the building would be strong enough to hold any help at bay for long enough.
‘Mr Frost isn’t going to like you coming in here accusing him.’
‘Tell him we’re here. We don’t have all day.’
‘Go easy,’ Larry said. ‘We’re in Frost’s territory here.’
‘We need a reaction. A black eye won’t do you any harm, and if they do hurt us, we’ll have the measure of them, know that Frost is our man.’
Inside, sitting on a brown leather chair, was the man himself. The penthouse was too warm for Larry, just right for Isaac. ‘What can I do for you?’ Frost said as he got up from the chair. Even though he was at home, he was dressed in a suit, white shirt, and a tie.
‘We understand that you lend money?’
‘Nothing wrong in that. I’m even registered, an office in the city. More of a broker really, put those who want the money in touch with the lending institutions, take the commission.’
‘You don’t work from there?’
‘What for? Employ people, that’s the secret. Ideal for me, ideal for them.’
‘Okay, that’s the legitimate side of the business,’ Isaac said. ‘What about the other side, the high-risk clients, those who can’t get money from the banks?’
‘I can’t do much for them. If they’ve got themselves in trouble, destroyed their credit rating, that’s their problem, not mine.’
‘Why the two men outside? If you’re legit, you’ve no need of protection.’
‘Not all those that get loans can pay them back. The bank forecloses, divorces occur, and then the man is on his own, looking to blame someone. He can’t take on the bank, but he can take on my company and me. Caxton and O’Grady can deal with anyone who comes near me, plus drive the car, run errands.’
‘Mangle kneecaps part of their job description?’ Isaac added.
‘Chief Inspector, you’ve been reading too many gangster books, watching too many films. That’s not how it works in real life.’
‘It does. We’ve seen it before, and you’re involved. What about the man you had kneecapped, walking with a permanent limp?’
Frost appeared agitated, started walking around the room. Larry could see Isaac getting under his skin.
‘I’ve let you in here in good faith. I thought I was helping with your enquiries, not aware that you intended to insult me, accuse me of being a criminal.’
‘Mr Frost, we know all about you, not that we can prove it, not yet. No one’s speaking. It appears that they’re more frightened of you than they are of the police. Why is that?’
‘I’ve done nothing wrong. If people want to borrow money, that’s up to them. If they can’t pay it back, I can be sympathetic, but I’m not a charity.’
‘Ralph Lawrence, you lent him money?’
‘I’ll not say I’ve never heard of the man, as I read the newspapers, surf the net, the same as everyone else. He’s the son of Gilbert Lawrence, the madman with all the money and his dead wife upstairs in her bed.’
‘And you’ve never met him?’
‘What for?’
‘The man’s borrowed money, a lot of it. We know he came to the lender of last hope, he came to you.’
‘I suggest you leave. I would call the police, but you’re here already. I’ll be making a complaint.’
‘Do what you want, Mr Frost. We’ll be watching you, and the next time you put someone in the hospital, we’ll be there. And remember, neither Ralph Lawrence nor the kneecapped man has spoken to us. They keep telling us it was an accident, although how you can shoot yourself in the knee is a mystery to us.’
Isaac and Larry got up to leave. Larry turned around and looked at Frost, already on his phone making a call. ‘Where was it? We were told it was Dubai where you had Steve Samuels killed.’
‘Samuels?’ Frost said.
‘The gambling club owner who borrowed a lot of money from you, skipped the country, a couple of Russian whores in the car. You had him killed.’
‘Inspector, I’m not a man without influence, my name counts for something, at least it does in this city.’
‘Any action against Lawrence and the other man and we’ll be back. And if we see Caxton and O’Grady anywhere near them or us, we’ll take them in for questioning. No doubt we’ll find something to charge them with,’ Isaac said.
‘A fertile imagination, Inspector Cook. I hope the Met treats you well when you’re back in uniform.’
Chapter 23
Jill Dundas, now without the guiding hand of her father, realised the responsibility and burden on her shoulders. Not only was there Gilbert Lawrence’s substantial real estate holdings to concern herself with, but there was also Caroline, Gilbert’s daughter, close by, attempting to find out more, and now Ralph. As far as she was concerned, he was a man of little worth, a man who had justifiably been derided by his own father. What worried her was that there were people out there who used violence as a weapon, and she was the most likely target. Even a modicum of information from her, a password, an account number, could be worth millions. And some people knew how to hack computers, even though her father had been fastidious about ensuring that no one other than the two of them knew the full extent of Gilbert’s wealth, and the office computers, the internet connection, had the best protection that money could buy.
Jill knew of the account squirrelled away in the Cayman Islands,
one of the places in the world that didn’t enquire too closely into where the funds came from. That was her father’s special account, unknown to anyone in the office, and even she didn’t know the passwords, but she knew where to find them. There was also a house there, set back from the beach, no more than two miles from the centre of Georgetown, the capital. Idyllic when the tourists weren’t there, annoying when they were. All in all she believed that with her father’s tutorage she was well placed to deal with all financial matters, but violence frightened her. Even as a child, a fight in the school playground would upset her for days, but that was other people, and if whoever had confronted Ralph hauled her off to some dingy room and threatened her, even hit her, she knew she would weaken.
And now Caroline was adamant that Ralph would come along to the meetings at the office as her special adviser. It was a weakening of her position, Jill knew. Ralph may be many things, most of them negative, but he wasn’t naïve about how to conceal money in foreign bank accounts, how to set up companies and trusts to hide assets. Jill was aware that he would be asking pertinent questions, questions that she couldn’t divert with legalese and financial jargon. The man was a threat, and if she knew who it was that had beaten him, she would have asked them why they hadn’t finished the job.
Jill Dundas made a phone call. ‘Caroline, we need to meet.’ She hadn’t wanted to make it, she knew she had to.
The two women did not meet at the office of Dundas and daughter, nor did they meet at Caroline’s house. The conversation was important, and they met at the Savoy hotel in the centre of London, in Westminster, on the Strand.
‘Caroline, we have a problem,’ Jill said. There had been a brief embrace when first meeting, more a courtesy than a show of affection. Caroline was under no illusion, and she had not brought Ralph with her, at Jill’s request, ‘to each other’s mutual benefit’ had been the words that the solicitor had used. Ralph was still convalescing, drinking too much, and complaining at not being fully mobile, and Michael bringing his girlfriend over every other night, their bed banging on the shared bedroom wall, was making him crankier by the day. Caroline knew that with his current temperament he wasn’t much use to her anyway.
Murder of a Silent Man Page 16