Broken Silence: A tense psychological thriller

by Fran McDonnell

  “And?” Patricia asked.

  “And under the pressure bandage he had a big plaster on his forearm.”

  Patricia grasped Isobel’s hand.

  “Obviously that was wet too and Brian pulled it off and there on his forearm was a big scrape.”

  “Oh my God!” Isobel gasped.

  “Obviously, as far as Gary was concerned that was nothing to do with them. I can tell you he was relieved. Thank God Mr. Solicitor is such a problem customer or we wouldn’t have all this info but it certainly gives more credence to your suspicions about Brian.” Malcolm paused. “I think, on Wednesday night, he saw you go into the hotel, Isobel.”

  Isobel nodded.

  “And so we need to find out if he owns another property near the hotel or on the route you took.”

  Isobel asked, “How can we do that?”

  Patricia pulled out her mobile and did some googling. “We need to do a check of the Register of Deeds.”

  “They’ll be closed tonight and probably all weekend.”

  “If we knew someone who had a business account with them we could do it online now.”

  “Like who?”

  “A solicitor who does conveyancing. Maybe Nicky would know someone.”

  Isobel made a face. “I don’t really want her to know who we suspect. I don’t know how she would react to telling her our suspicions when we have no proof of anything yet. But maybe one of the other solicitors in her practice could help us. What about Laura Clarke, Nicky’s friend?”

  “Wait until I see if they even do conveyancing.” Patricia googled the law firm. “It looks like they do. Laura is definitely a possibility.”

  Isobel jiggled in her seat. “We could get her home number from Nicky.”

  “Under what pretext?”

  Isobel frowned. “That we want to clarify something about the top with the DNA on it for the gardaí?”

  Patricia made a face. “Thin but give it a try.”

  Isobel got up and wandered out into the garden as she talked to Nicky. In a few minutes she was back with a triumphant look on her face.

  “She fell for it,” Patricia said.

  Isobel laughed. “Either that or she wanted to just get me off the phone.”

  Isobel keyed in the number Nicky had texted her and paced up and down. “Laura, hi, this is Isobel McKenzie.”

  “Hi, Isobel. Is everything alright? I heard about your attack. I hope you are feeling OK.”

  “Yes. I am recovering well.”

  “But very traumatic. Nicky told me that you came to warn her to be careful. Is it something about all of that?”

  “Yes, Laura, in a way it is. I’m here with Patricia and a retired detective friend of mine. I think we might have found a lead –”

  “What? Oh, that’s great. Nicky is going to be so pleased.”

  “That’s the thing, Laura. The lead we have needs to stay absolutely confidential for now and we need some help with a property search.”

  “And that’s why you rang me.”

  “Yes. I can’t let Nicky even suspect what we’re doing. I hate asking you when you are her friend but we need the search and we need it to stay under the radar. Please help us. I promise this is a credible lead but if we move too quickly it could all disappear – so discretion has to be the order of the day.”

  “What do you want me to do?”

  “I want you to do a property search for me.”

  “That package is on my computer in the office.”

  “We would need to do it when no one else is at work.”

  Malcolm waved his barely touched glass at Isobel. “It’s a good thing that I came late to this party and haven’t had time to drink.”

  Isobel nodded at him. “Laura, could you do it now, tonight?”

  Laura was silent on the other end of the phone.

  Then Isobel heard a heavy sigh.

  “OK, Isobel. I don’t really want to go back to work on a Friday evening but if you think it’s a credible lead, I’m going to trust you.”

  “Thank you. We’ll meet you at your office building. It’s going to take us at least forty minutes to get there.”

  “Me too. I’m in my pyjamas.”

  “Oh sorry, Laura, but believe me, this is important. Thank you.”

  Isobel hung up and grimaced. “She’s none too pleased. She’s in her pyjamas.”

  “Never mind.” Patricia stood up. “Let’s go.”

  “What about Bella?” Isobel asked.

  Malcolm said, “She can stay here, this time. At this time of the evening, she’ll enjoy a snooze.”

  They piled into Malcolm’s car and drove into Limerick City. There were people on the streets moving from pub to pub. Traffic was light so they were able to park on O’Connell Street outside the law firm’s office. Isobel opened her door and stepped out.

  A minute later a woman in the car across the road got out of her car. “Isobel?”

  “Laura.”

  Malcolm and Patricia joined them on the pavement. Isobel introduced Malcolm. Laura shook his hand and then led the way up the steps. She unlocked the premises, disabled the alarm and made sure everything was securely locked again before leading the way up to her office.

  As they made their way upstairs Isobel felt like a cat on a griddle. Despite the fact that Malcolm’s information from the hotel had confirmed the suspicions she had, she was shocked and upset and also very wary. Brian Fitzwilliam was a solicitor. He had already shown that his knowledge of forensics had made him impossible to trace. Isobel knew that to catch him they would have to be very careful and very clever. That was daunting, especially knowing that all of the women she had met would be depending on her. She took a deep breath.

  Once in her office Laura booted up the computer and sat down at her desk.

  “Right. Are you going to tell me whose properties I am searching for?”

  Isobel sat across from her. “I am but I have to warn you that you are going to be shocked and skeptical.”

  Laura made a face. “I gathered as much from the fact that you are keeping this from Nicky.”

  “I only want to tell her when we have caught him. It’s not helpful to get her hopes up.”

  “What about my hopes?”

  Isobel inclined her head.

  “Come on, Isobel. I already know I’m going to be shocked at who you want me to check so you might as well put me out of my misery.”

  “Brian Fitzwilliam.”

  Laura’s eyebrows rose to her hairline.

  “Shocked?”

  “Yes.” Laura joined her hands together in front of her on the table. “But the idea of sending him to prison is, I have to say, very appealing.”

  Malcolm said, “He’s just a suspect, we have no proof whatsoever, therefore not a word of this to anyone.”

  Laura nodded. “OK, let’s do it.” She started typing.

  Isobel, Patricia and Malcolm gathered around her chair so that they could see the screen over her shoulder.

  Laura said, “What do you need?”

  “We need you to check if he has more than one house,” Isobel said.

  Laura typed in his name and hit keys. A few seconds passed and then she said, “One house in Limerick city, that’s it.”

  Isobel looked at Patricia.

  Patricia said, “Look under his wife’s name, Janet Fitzwilliam.”

  Laura tapped the keys again. After a few moments she said, “Nothing.”

  “What else would it be under?” Isobel appealed to Malcolm.

  “His wife’s maiden name.”

  Patricia said, “Call Mary and ask her for the name.”

  Isobel made a quick call to Mary.

  “Janet Ryan.”

  Patricia said, “No relation to Inspector Eoin?”

  Laura grinned. “There are lots of Ryans.” She typed in the name. “Nothing under that name either.” She looked up at them. “What are you trying to find?”

  Patricia said, “We think he ha
s another property but obviously not under his own name and we need to find it.”

  Laura frowned. “OK. Well, what about his parents? They probably have a house. Are they still alive?”

  Isobel said, “His father, I think, is dead and his mother is in a nursing home.”

  Laura said, “She may still have a house. On his salary he could be paying for her in the home.”

  Patricia said, “Exactly, Isobel, the car was in her name too. What did Eoin say she was called?”

  “Agnes Fitzwilliam.”

  Laura worked the keys again. “Bingo!”

  Isobel and Patricia leaned over his shoulder.

  “Monaleen, where’s that?” Patricia asked.

  Laura said, “Near the Annacotty Arms Hotel.”

  Patricia shook her head.

  “On the road from the hotel out to Killaloe.”

  “Bingo, indeed!” said Malcolm.

  “That’s it, that’s it, just as we thought.” Patricia copied down the address and Eircode.

  Isobel said, “Thank you, Laura.”

  “You seem to be on to something. I hope that it helps you catch him.”

  “We’ll let you know but please say nothing. This is so precarious. If we make a mistake, if he knows we suspect him we could end up with no case.”

  Laura nodded. “I know that in court he’s a hard man to beat so I don’t doubt that you are up against it. I promise, I won’t tell anyone.”

  Patricia said, “Thank you.”

  Laura turned off the computer and the lights and locked the doors. They said goodnight and made their way to the cars.

  Patricia said, “Maybe we should go and check out the house now on the way home.”

  Isobel groaned. “I’m knackered.”

  “Absolutely not,” said Malcolm. “We only came from Dublin this morning and we travelled most of yesterday and Isobel has had two nights not in her own bed. We all need rest. Tomorrow is going to be a long day. We’ll probably end up watching the house so rest tonight, while you can.”

  Chapter 53

  Saturday 29thJune

  Isobel slept heavily and awoke to sunlight streaming through her Velux windows. She rolled over. It was great to feel so rested. She didn’t even remember having any dreams. Then she suddenly realised that she had guests. She pulled on her dressing gown and made her way downstairs. She found Patricia sitting at the kitchen table, sipping coffee.

  “Oh sorry, did I wake you?”

  Isobel laughed. “No. You didn’t actually. I had a great sleep.”

  “Me too.”

  Isobel poured some coffee for herself. “Is Malcolm still sleeping?”

  Patricia shook her head. “When I got up I found a note. He woke at seven and has gone to watch the house. He left Bella here with us to mind us.”

  “Oh.”

  “He said to ring him when we were ready to work.”

  Isobel sat down at the table. “What time is it anyway?”

  Patricia said, “It’s ten o’clock.”

  Isobel bit her lip.

  Patricia laughed. “Don’t worry. You obviously needed the rest after the attack and finally getting back to your own bed. You must have been exhausted.”

  Isobel nodded. “I was.”

  “Not to mention the results on Monday looming.”

  “To be honest I’ve been so busy that I haven’t dwelt on it.” The case had been a great distraction, helping time to pass without brooding on the results.

  Patricia squeezed her hand. “I’m sure the scan will be fine.”

  “I hope so.”

  “Will we get ready and take over surveillance duties?”

  They had showers and dressed, then put Bella into the car. Patricia programmed the address into her phone and Isobel drove to Monaleen. When they were close, Patricia texted Malcolm and he told them to come to the house. They passed his car and parked some distance further on then walked back to where he was parked.

  Bella was delighted to see her master again.

  Patricia said, “Well, what have you seen? Has Brian been here?”

  Malcolm rubbed his hand across his mouth. “I arrived this morning at seven o’clock. There was no car in the driveway. I thought it might have been in the garage. There were curtains pulled in all of the windows. I thought that looked a little promising. At seven thirty there was some movement in one of the bedrooms, the curtains were opened. The person came downstairs and opened the living-room curtains. It looked to be a six-foot male.”

  “Was it Brian, do you think?” Isobel asked.

  Malcolm ignored her. “At eight o’clock the curtains were opened in the second bedroom upstairs.”

  Patricia said, “And?”

  “And a young girl pressed her face to the window.”

  “What?”

  “Really?” Isobel said.

  “By eight o’clock it was clear that there was a family living in the house, a father, mother and two kids.”

  “Oh.”

  “Now that you’re here I think you should go and talk to the family.”

  Patricia said, “Why?”

  “Because on a case you always follow everything up and you always find out as much as you can from everyone.”

  Patricia looked at Isobel, “Just because we’re going into business together he’s always trying to tell me how we should be doing things.”

  Malcolm grinned. “I’m giving you the benefit of my experience.”

  Isobel said, “What if Brian finds out?”

  “Don’t worry.”

  Isobel put up her hands. “OK. OK. Come on, Patricia, let’s see what this couple can tell us.”

  “I’ll take Bella for a bit of a walk while you do that.”

  As they walked towards the house Patricia said, “What will we say?”

  Isobel didn’t answer.

  She knocked on the door.

  A tall man in his thirties opened the door. From behind his legs a little girl peeped out.

  “Yes?” He smiled pleasantly.

  Isobel said, “I’m sorry to bother you but an old friend of ours, Mrs. Fitzwilliam, used to live here.”

  A brown-haired woman walked up behind the man. “That’s right. When we first moved in, we got some of her post.” She turned to the man, “You remember, dear, we rang the rental company and they said to send the post on to them and they would give it to her son.”

  Patricia said, “Oh yes. His name is Brian.”

  The woman continued, “Obviously, we’ve never met him.”

  Isobel could feel her shoulders sagging.

  The woman said, “Apparently he’s very well-to-do. He’s a solicitor or something. I think his mother’s not well. She’s in a nursing home.”

  Her husband said, “Yeah, we would like to buy the house in the future. The rental company has talked to Mr. Fitzwilliam on our behalf.”

  His wife said, “Not that he needs the money. With his job he’s very comfortably off. He even has a boat.”

  Patricia said, “A boat?”

  “Lucky him,” said Isobel. “Where is this boat?”

  “Oh, we’re not sure exactly – somewhere local.”

  “I’m glad that Mrs. Fitzwilliam’s house has a family in it again,” Isobel said. “She would be glad of that. Good luck with your purchase. Bye now.”

  Isobel and Patricia smiled pleasantly and beat a hasty retreat. They walked back towards the car.

  “A boat?” said Patricia.

  “It’s probably moored in Killaloe.”

  “Oh my God, this is it, I’m sure of it.”

  Malcolm and Bella were waiting in the car. Patricia and Isobel sat in.

  “No good?” Malcolm asked.

  Patricia said, “He has a boat.”

  Malcolm looked from one to the other. “What?”

  “He has a boat, probably in Killaloe,” said Isobel. “I probably drove past it that night.”

  “So that’s where Brian Fitzwilliam is hiding his trop
hies!”

  “Do you think?” said Isobel.

  “It’s as good a place as any.”

  Malcolm turned to Patricia. “Well?”

  “Well what?”

  “What did I tell you, follow every lead?”

  Patricia punched his arm. “OK, OK. I take it back. You know what you’re doing.”

  Malcolm grinned. “Learning from a master.”

  Chapter 54

  They drove in convoy to Ballina-Killaloe. The villages sat on opposite sides of Lough Derg, cradled by hills on each side. The River Shannon flowed out of the lough making the journey into Limerick City and then on out to sea and providing the boundary between County Clare on one side of the bridge and County Tipperary on the other. The bridge itself was granite stone with beautiful arches. It was also narrow. They queued up at the lights on the Tipperary side and before crossing the bridge they turned to the right and parked in the car park facing the lake.

  Once again they gathered in Malcolm’s car.

  Isobel said, “Let’s leave the cars here and walk. I think the boatyard is down here a little way.”

  On the other side of the water there was a row of terraced houses looking out on the lake and behind, the houses of Killaloe huddled together. To the right the hills rose a vibrant green. Despite the warm day, the lake water had small crests on it and was a dark-blue colour. Swans and ducks paddled near the car park. On the grass, parents sat enjoying the sun and children threw some of their lunch to the hungry birds. There was an air of fun and enjoyment, the kids having finished school for the summer holidays. The joy and innocence of the scene was in stark contrast to the mission that Isobel was on. Despite the warmth of the day, she shivered. The dark crimes that they were investigating were ghoulish but at last Isobel felt they were making progress and that possibility was anxiety-provoking. It was so important that every step they took was considered, one slip and they might never be able to prove anything. That definitely caused a shiver.

  With Bella, they made their way along the road, past this meeting place and some houses to a gated area. Inside quite a few cars were parked in the marked-out spaces parallel to the lough. Further back and facing the water was an office, brightly painted with a number of sheds that were closed and padlocked. A young man of around twenty was sitting in the office.