Barbara knew the name Ian Holme very well. He was one of the most feared defence barristers around and nicknamed Andrex by police officers. Not because he was soft, but because by the time he’d finished with you in the evidence box, you felt like you’d been torn up and used as toilet paper.
Just over an hour later, Mike Lewis and Dewar met up with a somewhat deflated Barbara and DC Ross in the garage area at the rear of Esme’s flat. Dewar had the set of locks taken from the flat. There was an anxious look of anticipation on all their faces as Barbara removed the recovered keys from the plastic property bag, took the Yale lock from Dewar and held the most likely key against it.
‘Bit like the Prince testing the shoe on Cinderella,’ DC Ross remarked.
‘Well, if it fits, I’m not marrying you, Ross,’ Barbara replied as she eased the key forward and slid it gently into the cylinder. Everyone was leaning over her as she turned the key and the lock moved to and fro.
‘Bingo,’ Barbara said with a sigh of relief, and everyone smiled. She then tried the other key in the Chubb lock with the same success.
‘Two down, one to go,’ DC Ross said and pointed to the third key on the set in her hand.
Dewar bent down and examined the T-lock handle on one of the garages. ‘All these doors have the same type of lock and that third key looks the right shape and size.’
‘Shall I pick first?’ DC Ross said, gazing down the row of twenty garages.
Mike told Ross to shut up and for them to start at one end. Barbara got to the eighth one along when finally the key slid into the lock and opened it.
‘Here goes,’ Mike said as everyone stepped back so he could lift the heavy metal door open. As he did so the others in unison impulsively crouched down to try and get a better look as the lower rear of a car was exposed.
‘Low suspension, rear diffuser and two sets of dual exhausts. It’s a Ferrari 430 Spider,’ Dewar predicted, even before any identification badges or registration plate came into view. Mike lifted the door fully open to reveal the car, which was a 2009 Ferrari Convertible with its roof up. The length of the vehicle only just fitted into the small interior of the seemingly bare garage. Mike flicked the light switch on the wall and nothing happened, but with the door open the daylight filled the space and they could see a bike mounted on a wall bracket.
‘You were right,’ Barbara said, impressed with Dewar’s knowledge.
‘Unusual to see a blue one – that shade is known as Azzurro California,’ Dewar said in admiration.
‘How much is it worth?’ Mike asked
‘In English pounds, in the region of ninety-five to one hundred grand,’ Dewar told him.
DC Ross whistled as he looked at the dusty car.
‘Ninety-five fuckin’ thousand, bloody hell, I’d be scared shitless to drive it out of here, never mind around the West End.’
Dewar wafted her hand towards him to shut him up.
‘If Josh Reynolds’ business was in difficulty where on earth did he get the money to buy a Ferrari?’ Mike demanded.
DC Ross, eager to make an impression as usual, suggested that maybe Josh had got into debt with loan sharks and that was why he was murdered. Mike doubted that would be the case as they usually paid a visit first and beat the crap out of you or at the least would have taken the car off him.
Barbara pointed out that there was nothing in Josh’s, Donna’s or the Trojan’s bank statements that indicated a purchase or loan for such a vast sum of money.
‘Now we’ve got the car registration, we can interview the previous owner and see how they were paid for the sale,’ Mike said.
‘Donna Reynolds had easy access to large sums of money,’ Dewar remarked and the others looked at her, eager to hear her thoughts. ‘The Lynne Foundation charities – Donna looks after some of the accounts which have millions of pounds in them. A missing hundred grand here and there probably wouldn’t even be noticed.’
‘A drop in the ocean,’ DC Ross agreed, smiling, and yet again he was rewarded with a cold glance from an irritated Dewar.
She tapped the bonnet. ‘Let’s check out the charities, see if we come up with a nice round wedge going out.’
Mike phoned Joan in the office and told her to get someone over from Tech Support asap to examine Donna’s office computer and in particular the charity accounts she handled. They were to pay particular attention to the 2012 transactions for the six-month period before Josh died and to work backwards from 5 November. He also asked Joan to get a vehicle transporter sent down to the garage for the removal of the Ferrari to the lab. Joan in turn told him that Ian Holme QC had arrived, Barolli had served the disclosure and Holme was now in a private consultation with Donna.
Mike pointed out that without the keys to the Ferrari there was not a lot they could do until the car was taken to the lab and opened.
They could however check along the walls in case there were any loose bricks to hide the keys behind, but none were found. The garage was bare apart from the bike, old bits of newspaper and oily rags.
DC Ross looked up to the ceiling and it struck him as rather odd that there was no light or even wires for one.
‘A switch, but no lights,’ Ross mused, but everyone ignored him, thinking he was trying to be funny. He asked Barbara for the set of keys recovered from Donna’s car. Taking the small garage key, he inserted the tip into the top of the light switch box, then used the tip as a lever, at which point the front of the box came open revealing a hidden compartment with keys to the Ferrari.
‘Am I good or am I good?’ Ross said, taking a bow.
‘Irritating . . . but good,’ Mike conceded.
A cursory search of the car revealed no driving, insurance or registration documents or anything else of value to the investigation. Nobody was inclined to continue beyond that, so as not to destroy possible evidence from fingerprints and DNA.
Mike and Dewar departed to head back to the incident room, leaving Barbara and DC Ross waiting at the garage for the arrival of the tow truck.
‘Imagine it, nearly a hundred thousand quid, you could put that down on a mortgage for a house, or a flat,’ Ross said wistfully.
‘Yeah, but if you’ve got the money, it’s a different thought process – young rich City blokes have all got Bentley’s and Porsches. Me, I’d be happy with a convertible Mercedes but I would need a sugar daddy to get one.’
‘Maybe he had a rich girlfriend,’ Ross said, yawning.
‘He had a rich wife and his mother-in-law is loaded, she was left millions.’
Ross turned to look back at the Ferrari: even with a light film of dust it had a gleaming power, far out of his league, but given the choice he would have had a red one.
Chapter Twenty-One
Paul Barolli was still fast asleep on the sofa when Anna got back from the canteen, his mouth wide open and making a snoring noise that sounded like a log being slowly sawn in half. Anna went over and shook him gently but Barolli, clearly still disorientated, rolled off the sofa, hitting the floor with a thud. Anna couldn’t stop herself laughing as she helped him up, asking if he was okay. He rubbed his eyes and confessed he still felt really rough. Anna suggested that he go home and sleep it off but Paul said he’d be okay and slowly went to his office.
Anna decided it was time to pack up her files and paperwork into plastic boxes so Dewar could use her desk while she was away without disturbing everything. As she checked over her desk she noticed Dewar’s copy of Donna Reynolds’ bank statement. Anna was forced to admit to herself she still had mixed feelings about Donna’s involvement in Josh’s death but everyone else on the team seemed convinced that they’d ‘got their woman’. A gut feeling was no argument against the weight of evidence that had accumulated against Donna. Anna knew that if she were still on the case she would have gone over everything with a fine-tooth comb and certainly more than once. The problem was, she didn’t have the time, and if she was honest with herself she was ready to walk away.
The
desk phone rang, and when she picked it up it was Pete Jenkins.
‘Hi, Anna, I expected Dewar. I thought you’d be off on the big bird by now.’ He chuckled.
Anna told him that she was just tying up loose ends and her flight was in the morning.
Pete said he’d miss her and she was to send him a postcard of the FBI Academy so he could put it on his wall and say he’d been there. Anna laughed. Pete asked her if she had a pen and paper handy, as she might want to write some information down, but that he would also e-mail a report for the team later.
‘The money we recovered from Esme’s last night, I’ve got some results.’ He explained that Mike had taken Donna’s fingerprints after arresting her and they were now loaded onto the live scan computer system, while a courier had just delivered her DNA swabs. He had so far managed to look at the fingerprints on the top and bottom note in each £1000 bundle.
‘As expected, Josh Reynolds’ fingerprints are on lots of the notes. On one bundle I found both Josh and Donna’s prints and on others Josh and Marcus Williams’.’
‘Evidence-wise that doesn’t prove anything against Donna,’ Anna remarked.
‘No, but from firearms residue on the cash bag that match the Enfield revolver and fibres that match felt matting in the safe, it’s reasonable to conclude that the bag was in Josh Reynolds’ safe at some point.’
Anna recalled that Marcus Williams had said Josh put the fifty thousand in a cash bag.
‘It just doesn’t make sense that Josh would take the money from his safe and hide it under floorboards at his mother’s,’ Anna reasoned.
‘I agree, but however you look at it, to open the safe you need to know the code. Josh obviously knew it, but do you really believe that Donna, his own wife, wouldn’t know?’ Pete asked, and Anna knew there was sense in what he was saying. Still, something niggled her as she sought to make sense of Donna’s actions.
‘But if she went to Esme’s last Thursday, why not take the money then? We’d been to see her that afternoon and Dewar as good as accused her of murdering Josh.’
‘Unless she had a torch she wouldn’t have seen a thing. The power had been cut off for some time,’ Pete said with a touch of sympathy.
‘She could have gone back in daylight,’ Anna said.
‘Anna, I’m a forensic scientist not a detective, so I can only present you with my results. I’ve got a lot to do, so I need to crack on.’
‘Thanks, Pete, I’ll pass the results on to Mike Lewis.’ Anna sighed, frustrated that she couldn’t put her finger on what was wrong.
There was a knock and Joan came into the office with the news that she had the results of the cell-site analysis for Josh Reynolds’ phone for 5 November, which were very interesting. The constable held out the paperwork but Anna said to leave it on the desk for Dewar and Mike Lewis to look at, as they might want to use it in the interview with Donna.
‘They found a Ferrari in a garage at Esme’s flat, apparently just like the one Dewar thought it would be,’ Joan continued. ‘She wants Donna’s work computer examined as she suspects Donna was stealing money for Josh from the Lynne Foundation charities.’
‘I know you mean well but I really don’t want to hear any more about Dewar and the bloody Reynolds case. As far as I’m concerned, my part in the investigation is over,’ Anna snapped, exasperated with Joan’s continual need to drip-feed her information.
Joan’s lower lip began to tremble as she apologized for being a nuisance. She picked up one of the plastic boxes, saying she would put it in the storeroom and come back for the other.
Anna could have kicked herself – as scatty as Joan could be, she was one of the last people Anna would ever want to offend. She called Joan back and said she was very sorry and she hadn’t meant to be rude.
‘I know you didn’t, ma’am, you’ve a lot on your plate, what with your FBI trip and everything.’
‘When it’s just the two of us, please call me Anna. You are one of the lifelines of this team, Joan: every statement, every enquiry result goes through you to be uploaded. More than anyone your finger is always on the pulse and I respect you for all the hard work you do and especially the little details you so often spot that the rest of us miss,’ Anna said with genuine honesty.
‘Thank you, Anna. Do you mind if I say something else about the Reynolds investigation?’ Joan asked, and Anna told her to speak her mind.
‘I think you’re right about Donna. I have gone over everything and as far as I can see the evidence against her is all circumstantial. Agent Dewar seems to have convinced everyone she’s right and I’m frightened to say anything to the contrary in case they laugh at me.’
‘Never be afraid to speak your mind, Joan; your opinion should be valued as much as anyone else’s,’ Anna insisted.
Joan said that she would miss her while she was away. Anna gave her a friendly hug and told her that if ever she needed someone to speak to then just call, but to check the time difference first. Just as the constable was about to leave, Mike Lewis and Dewar came in. Mike handed Joan the registration number of the Ferrari and asked her to check on the national computer for the current and previous owner. As she hurried off, Joan said it would be a pleasure.
‘She looks like the cat that just got the cream,’ Mike observed.
‘And so she should,’ Anna stressed. ‘She’s one of the hardest workers out there and sometimes it’s good to let her know how much she’s appreciated.’ She paused and straightened up. ‘If it’s okay with you, I’ll head off home now I’ve sorted my desk out, and get everything ready for tomorrow.’
Mike said he would be in touch, they shook hands and he gave her a kiss on the cheek then left the room as Dewar stepped closer to Anna.
‘I know we haven’t always seen eye to eye, but I just wanted to say that it’s been an honour working with you, even though it was for such a short time,’ Dewar said.
Anna was unsure whether the agent was being genuine, but politely she returned the compliment and put her hand out. Dewar took a firm hold as they shook on it.
‘No hard feelings?’ Dewar asked, and Anna replied with the same words, even though she couldn’t help but wonder if Dewar was actually glad to see the back of her.
‘If you need any help or advice on the course, just ring me. It’s not cheating, just mutual assistance between two damn good investigators,’ Dewar said, surprising Anna, who told her she would, but had no intention of doing so.
‘I’ve told Don Blane, your course instructor, all about you. He’s the guy I spoke about, remember?’ Anna recalled her making an inappropriate remark that Don could get a virgin to open up in interview. ‘He’ll look after you, so anything you need just ask him. I might be back at Quantico while you’re still on your course so it would be great to go out and have a few beers together. I’ll take you for a spin in my 67 Mustang and you can stay a weekend at my lakeside condo.’
‘That would be nice,’ Anna said, trying to sound sincere.
As Dewar left the room to join Mike Lewis for Donna’s interview, she couldn’t resist a parting shot: ‘If I’m right about Donna, I’ll let Mike Lewis tell you.’
Anna wondered how Dewar would feel if she was wrong.
Anna put the last of her personal belongings in her briefcase and closed it, but as she lifted it from her desk, she caught sight of the cell-site analysis report for Josh’s phone. All the calls made by Josh on the 5 November were listed, and the positions of the phone masts that the calls were linked to. Curiosity got the better of her and she sat down to check through the calls from the time he was believed to have left the Trojan. At 4.15 p.m., he rang the Savoy Hotel reception and the mobile mast was in Wells Street. The next call, again to the Savoy reception desk, was at 4.30 p.m., and Anna suspected Josh must have been collecting the Ferrari from the NCP or driving it when she saw the mast was on the Marylebone Road. The call lasted for nearly two minutes and passed cell masts on the Harrow Road flyover, Westway on the A40 and finished at Ac
ton. This meant Josh had to be travelling in a vehicle and at a considerable speed. The next call was not made until 6.45 p.m. and originated from a mast in Malden Way on the A3, then thirty seconds later the mast changed to Beverley Way for the remainder of the call. Joan had noted that the £125 petrol purchase shown on Josh’s bank statement was made at Tesco Beverley Way at 6.50 p.m. The last call Josh ever made was to Marcus Williams at 7.10 p.m. and the mast was near Esme’s flat. As Josh’s bike was recovered with the Ferrari he would most probably have walked back to his flat, which Anna estimated would have taken him at least half an hour from the garage. She thought it strange that he had left the bike and wondered if it was because he had been drinking. The cell-site information was helpful in narrowing down the time of death but Anna had no idea why Josh should travel out of London via the A40 and then return on the A3. There was a two-hour period during which his location could not be accounted for. He could have been to see a secret lover, but why when he clearly used Esme’s as a love nest? Who was this mystery woman? More importantly, Anna wondered why she had never revealed herself since Josh’s death.
Anna turned to Donna’s bank statement, concentrating on the month before Josh’s death. None of the withdrawals and payments seemed untoward until on Friday, 2 November, Donna withdrew £1000. Anna suspected this was a cash-over-the-counter transaction and recalled Pete Jenkins saying he had found Josh and Donna’s fingerprints on one of the bundles of money. Knowing that Dewar and Mike had gone downstairs to interview Donna, Anna highlighted the transaction then wrote a note for Dewar: DID DONNA GIVE JOSH 1K – WHY – AND WHAT FOR?
Once more, Anna picked up her briefcase and grabbed her handbag and coat and was about to leave her office when Joan came in to say goodbye. She was almost in tears as she shook Anna’s hand.
‘I know you’ve finished with the Reynolds case but would you like me to keep you updated?’ Joan asked.
‘As it happens, yes, I would, but keep it just between you and me, okay?’
‘Mum’s the word,’ Joan said, and touched her nose.
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