True Deceit (Blindsided Book 1)

by A. J. Carella

  Twenty-Eight

  The watch shop was not easy to find as it was hidden away down a small side street, a small plaque above the door the only indication of its existence.

  An old-fashioned bell rang above the door as they pushed it open, and Elliot felt as if time stood still as he entered. The shop was small and dark with none of the glass and chrome you usually got in modern shops. A single display case stood at the back of the shop, and walls on both sides were taken up with books. A glance told him that the books were all about the history of watches.

  “This place looks like it got trapped in time,” he whispered to Lexi whose wide eyes were taking it all in.

  “You’re telling me,” she whispered back.

  “Can I help you?”

  Elliot jumped as a man seemed to appear from nowhere. “Hello, yes. We’re looking for some information on a watch and we were told you were the best person to talk to.”

  The elderly man nodded. “I see.” He held out a liver spotted hand. “May I see the watch?”

  “I’m sorry, I wasn’t clear. It’s not a watch we have, it’s one we need to find.” He rummaged in his pocket for the piece of paper where he’d written the information Alexander had given them. “Here, this is what we’re looking for.” He said as he handed the paper over.

  The old man took a pair of glasses out of the top pocket of his cardigan and slid them onto his nose before peering at the paper.

  “Oh my,” he looked up at Elliot. “I hope you’re not looking to buy one of these?”

  “No, we’re police officers. We’re trying to find the person who owns that watch.”

  “I see. Wait.” he turned and disappeared through a door at the back of the shop that was hidden behind a curtain.

  “That guy’s creepy,” Lexi shivered for dramatic effect.

  “He’s certainly not much of a talker. I just hope he can tell us something,” he sighed. “I thought everything was on the Internet these days.”

  “Not everything, sir.”

  The man had silently reappeared making Elliot jump. Again. This guy could seriously be a ninja, the thought popped into Elliot’s head.

  He was carrying an old leather-bound book held together with an old piece of string. The book had seen better days and the leather was worn and cracked. Putting it on the counter he opened it, causing a cloud of dust to float up into the air.

  “Let’s see.” he murmured as he turned several pages before he got to the one he wanted. “Ah, here it is.” He looked up at Elliot. “Could I just see your badges please?”

  Elliot and Lexi both produced their ID’s.

  “Okay, thank you. You understand, these are very valuable items and I would hate to be responsible for sending a burglar to visit their owners.”

  “Of course.” Elliot put his badge away. “So are you able to tell us who owns this watch?”

  The old man nodded. “There are ten of these masterpieces in existence. Five are housed within museums around the world, and five are privately owned.”

  Great, that narrowed it down. “Any here in the US?”

  “Three of them in fact.” he looked down at the book again. “Ah, that’s interesting.”

  “What is?”

  “One of the watches is owned by a prominent politician,” he paused. “That’s not the interesting part,” he continued. “What’s interesting is that the other two are owned by the same person, a Mr Brady, from Buffalo.”

  “That’s wonderful. Do you have the addresses?”

  The old man nodded. “I do.” he took a notepad from under the counter and started writing. “I must caution you, though,” he said as he handed Elliot the addresses. “These are very old so may not be valid.”

  Elliot’s heart fell. “So the watches may well have been sold many times since then?”

  “Oh no,” the old man look surprised that he would ask. “When watches of this calibre are sold it causes waves in the watch world. No sir, if the watches had been sold, I would know about it.”

  “Okay, I understand. Thank you so much for your time.”

  “A pleasure. Goodbye.” He turned and left, leaving them standing alone in the shop.

  “Is that what Alex is going to end up like in a few years?” Lexi asked with a laugh.

  “Very possibly,” Elliot laughed with her.

  “So what now?” Lexi asked as they left the shop and headed back to their car which they’d parked just down the street.

  “I think we go back to the office and do a bit of research on both these guys and then start with the one that seems most likely.”

  “Can we grab lunch on the way back?”

  “You got it.”

  ***

  “Ready to compare notes?”

  Elliot looked up from his screen. “Yeah, I think I’ve found out all I can about this guy.”

  They had decided to split the task to save time. “Okay, well my prominent politician is a state senator,” she started as she wheeled her chair round to join him at his desk. “He’s a solid family man, old money, in his sixties.”

  “Sounds unlikely, but not impossible.”

  “He’s also infirm and has spent the last five years in a wheelchair,” she continued.

  “Ah. That makes it less likely.”

  “What about your guy?”

  Elliot looked down at his notes. “My guy is in his late fifties, CEO of a big pharmaceutical corporation. Divorced, no kids.”

  “Okay, sounds good so far. What else?”

  “As far as I can see he’s got no skeletons in his closet. The divorce was amicable. His ex-wife comes from old money and her family are quite prominent in Buffalo.”

  “Well of the two, I think yours is the best bet.”

  “I think so too.” He stood up. “I think it’s time we paid Mr Brady a visit, don’t you?”

  Twenty-Nine

  The huge house stood in the middle of acres of manicured lawns. They’d called ahead the afternoon before, but had been informed by Mr Brady’s assistant that he was out of town and would be back the following day. After some strong persuasion, she’d agreed to make an appointment for them to meet with the man himself that morning at ten a.m. at the house. It was just before that time as they drove up the driveway that led to the large turning circle at the front of the house.

  The assistant Elliot had spoken to the day before opened the door and ushered them into the biggest hall he’d ever seen at the centre of which was a circular staircase that lead to the upper floors.

  “Mr Brady will see you in the library, if you’d like to follow me.” The assistant turned and led the way, heels clacking on the tiled floor as she walked.

  She stopped when she arrived outside an impressive double door and knocked before opening it wide.

  “Sir, these are the police officers I was telling you about.”

  “Thank you, Tash.” A man stood and walked over to them, hand outstretched. “Welcome, I’m Patrick Brady. I understand this appointment is of some importance, how can I be of assistance?”

  He smiled as he walked over to a grouping of couches and waved at them to sit down. “Please, take a seat.”

  He leaned forward and rested his arms on his knees causing his shirt sleeves to rise. Elliot and Lexi exchanged a glance, both having spotted it at the same time.

  “That’s a nice watch you have there, Mr Brady.”

  Patrick seemed taken aback. “Oh. Thank you.”

  “Quite unusual. Is it a Rolex?” Elliot continued casually, not wanting to tip his hand too early.

  Patrick smiled. “You know your watches detective. Yes, it’s a Rolex. I’ve had it for a many years now, it holds a lot of sentimental value for me.”

  “Actually, Mr Brady, it’s the watch that we came to talk to you about.”

  “Really?” he looked at them quizzically. “My watch?”

  “Yes. You see, we’re investigating a crime and it appears that the person who may be responsible has the sa
me watch as you do, sir.”

  Elliot watched him very carefully for any reaction but he only looked surprised. “Really? The same one?” he frowned. “I’d be very surprised, it’s an incredibly rare watch.”

  “So we understand, sir.” Still nothing.

  “Well, I can assure you that I’m not involved in any crimes detectives.” he laughed. “Now, if there’s nothing else?” he stood, indicating the end of their time.

  Elliot remained seated. “Actually sir, we’re not quite finished.”

  Patrick sat back down. “Well, I fail to see how I can help you any further, and I really do have a lot to get through today.” He was no longer smiling.

  “We’ll try not to take up too much more of your time.” Elliot sat back on the couch, making himself comfortable and earning himself another frown. “We understand that you have two of these watches. Would that be correct?”

  There was a definite reaction that time, a slight but noticeable widening of his eyes. “Two? No, I’m sorry. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Is that so? In that case, we must have been misinformed.” Elliot stood. “We’ll have to do some more digging. Speak to the person who says they sold it to you, check their records ...” He bluffed as he turned to leave.

  “Just a minute, Detective.”

  Elliot stopped and turned to face him. “Yes?”

  “Sit down. Please.” Elliot did.

  “Look, this is very delicate,” Patrick started before quickly standing up. “Hang on.”

  Elliot watched as he stood and walked over to the library doors, closing them firmly. “Sorry about that,” he said as he returned. “I don’t want to be overheard.”

  “Please continue.”

  “I did have two watches, you’re information is correct. But I gave one of them away.”

  Convenient. “Okay sir, if you could just tell us who you gave the watch to we can follow it up with them.”

  “This couldn’t have come at a worse time, Detective.”

  “The name please?”

  “My son. I gave it to my son, Michael Trent.”

  The name sent a shockwave through him and he could see Lexi tense up next to him and shoot a look in his direction. He didn’t want to give anything away though, so he continued. “Your son. I’m sorry sir, our enquiries didn’t show that you had any children.”

  Patrick let out a sharp breath. “Well, I gave the watch to his mother, actually, to pass on to him when he turned 18. I had no contact with him, you see. I met him for the first time just a few days ago.” He shook his head. “We’re barely started getting to know each other and he’s going through a really tough time at the moment. He really doesn’t need to have you lot on his case.”

  “Thank you sir, if you could just give us his details, we’ll handle it as carefully as we can.” He didn’t give anything away.

  “I’m sure we’ll need to talk to you again.” Elliot told him as he took the note and stood. “We’ll be in touch.”

  “I’ll call Tash to see you out.”

  “No need,” Lexi assured him. “We’ll see ourselves out.”

  Neither of them spoke until they were out of the house and safely inside the car. “Jesus!” Lexi burst as soon as they’d shut the doors. “This case is getting weird.”

  “Tell me about it, this really changes things.”

  “What do you think, do you think one of them did it?”

  “I’m really not sure.” Elliot started the car. “But I’m not sitting here and discussing it while we have an audience. He nodded to one of the front windows where Patrick stood, watching them.

  “He did seem genuinely surprised, not at all like he’d been caught.”

  “I think so too. At first I thought he might just be a good liar but when he lied about the second watch he couldn’t hide it, so I think he was probably telling the truth.”

  “You know what that means, don’t you?”

  “Yeah, Michael’s been playing us all along.” He was angry—angry that he’d felt sympathy for the man. “He obviously has this secret life which turns out to be a convenient way for him to get rid of the wife who was leaving him.”

  “But why come to us to investigate then?”

  She had a point. Why would he? “Let’s ask him, shall we?”

  Thirty

  He looked surprised to see them when he opened the door a few hours later. “Detectives, I wasn’t expecting you.” Michael stood back and let them in.

  “Mr Trent, I’m sorry we didn’t call first.” Elliot kept his tone friendly.

  “It’s fine.” He closed the door and led them into the living room. “Do you have news?” He remained standing as he faced them.

  “Would you mind if we sat down?” Elliot didn’t wait for a reply and took a seat on the couch.

  “Of course not. Can I get you anything? A drink?” Michael asked.

  “No, thank you, I’m fine.”

  “Thanks, I’m good.” Lexi answered as she sat next to Elliot.

  “Okay, great,” Michael sat down in a chair facing them. “So do you have any news?” He repeated his earlier question.

  “Actually, we just have a couple of questions we need to clarify with you, if that’s okay.”

  “Of course.” Michael smiled.

  “I understand your mother recently passed away. I’m sorry for your loss.”

  Michael’s smile fell away and he looked puzzled. “Yes, she did. Thank you.”

  “Can I ask, did she leave you anything of considerable value? In particular a watch?”

  “I’m sorry, but I’m not sure what these questions have to do with my wife’s disappearance.”

  Elliot noted that there was no defensiveness in the question, just a genuine curiosity. “We’ll get to that. If you could just answer the question?”

  Michael shrugged. “Well, she left me the house which I guess is of value but apart from that, no. Certainly no watch.”

  “She didn’t leave you a Rolex?” Lexi pushed.

  “No,” Michael shook his head. “I’ve told you. My mother didn’t have a Rolex to leave me in any case.”

  “Have you seen your father recently?” Elliot changed tack, aiming to throw him off balance.

  “What?” Michael frowned, the growing irritation clear on his face. “What is this?”

  “We understand that you’ve recently established contact with your father, is that right?”

  “Look, I’m sorry, you know I will do anything I can to help you find my wife, but this is ridiculous.” He was clearly annoyed now. “How do you know about my father? And what does it have to do with my wife, anyway?”

  Elliot stood up. “Mr Trent, I’m arresting you on suspicion of murder and kidnapping.”

  “What?” shock was etched on Michael’s face.

  “Stand up, please.” Lexi told him.

  Michael stood up slowly, looking at each of them in turn. “What the hell’s going on? Are you nuts? I had nothing to do with this!”

  “Mr Trent, Det. Constantinou is going to read you your rights. I suggest you don’t say anything more until we get to the precinct.”

  Elliot could feel him shaking as he took him by the arm and led him out of the house.

  Thirty-One

  Sarah tried to walk up to the front door but was stopped in her tracks by a uniformed police officer. “I’m sorry ma’am. You can’t go any further.”

  “What’s going on?” She had already been alarmed by couple of police cruisers and what looked like a crime scene van parked outside Michael’s house.

  “Ma’am, just move along, please.”

  “Fine,” she huffed and returned to her car. Picking up her phone, she dialed Michael’s number but it went straight to voicemail. She didn’t bother leaving a message. What now? She had to find out what was going on and the best way to do that was to go straight to the precinct. They’ll know what’s going on.

  ***

  “So what do you t
hink?”

  Elliot was perched on Lexi’s desk as Jenkins’ addressed them both.

  “It’s hard to say. He’s denying that he got a watch from his mother and there’s no will so we can’t check there.”

  “But the father says he gave it to her. And we believe him?”

  “I do,” Lexi spoke up. “He looked genuinely surprised. He’s only just come back into his life too, what motive could he have?”

  “Coincidence?” Jenkins pursed his lips.

  “One hell of a coincidence, then.” Elliot shook his head. “No. Michael has the motive. His wife had walked out on him. Maybe he wanted revenge.”

  “But we don’t have the watch?”

  Elliot frowned. “No. CSU are turning over his house as we speak. If it’s there, they’ll find it.”

  “What about his mother’s house? We got that covered too?”

  Lexi nodded. “Yeah. I’ve got the locals handling that. They’ll let us know if they find anything.”

  “Okay, looks like you’ve got it all in hand. Has he asked for a lawyer?”

  “No, he says he doesn’t need one.”

  “Well, get in there and start talking to him then before he decides that he does. Keep me informed.”

  “Yes, Boss,” they both said in unison.

  “So, do you want to lead the interview?” Lexi asked after he’d left.

  “Yeah.” He paused. “But it may have to wait.” He jerked his head in the direction of the door. “We have a visitor.”

  ***

  It didn’t take her long to get across town and she was quickly shown up to the detectives’ room. She spotted Elliot and Lexi straight away stood talking near one of the desks.

  “Hi,” she approached.

  “Hi, Sarah.”

  Sarah caught the glance that passed between them and her sense of unease grew. “Look, what’s going on? Where is Michael?”

  Lexi gave her a small smile. “Sarah, Michael’s here. We’ve got him in custody.”

  The words were like a punch to the gut. “What? For what?”

  “We think he’s responsible for your sister’s disappearance and that of all those other women.”