by John Holt
* * *
“So as far as I can tell, there were fifty eight people at that function who came from out of town,” said Mollie tapping the list with a pencil. “All of them, except six, went home the following day. Twenty three of those names had already been eliminated from your list.”
“Meaning what?” asked Kendall.
“Meaning that we can now eliminate another twenty-nine names from the original list, so that leaves one hundred and twenty-nine possible.”
Kendall smiled “One hundred and twenty-nine,” he repeated, and heaved a sigh. “Wow, is that all, we are really making progress aren’t we? Really motoring along.”
“Well it’s still better than the two hundred and fifty-four that you started with,” replied Mollie.
Kendall had to agree that certainly it was better. It still wasn’t great, but yes it was better. He looked back at the papers lying in front of him. It was still a daunting task. Whatever way you looked at it there were still one hundred and twenty-nine possibles. He shook his head. Was he wasting his time? Suppose his theory was totally wrong. Suppose the murderer wasn’t on the list. Maybe whoever had killed Lowry was just an opportunist, someone who just happened along. Maybe it was, dare he say it, nothing more than a coincidence. The longer he spent on these scraps of paper – he looked at the list and shook his head – the greater the chance of the real killer getting away.
He shook his head again. Real killer did he say. Perhaps it was Martin Gardiner after all. Maybe if he checked the names against Lowry’s files, he might find a connection somewhere or even a motive and provide the positive proof. Besides if he could actually prove to Jennings Son and whatever that their client was in fact guilty of the murder then that would put an end to the whole affair once and for all.
“Incidentally I imagine you noticed that our friend’s name is on the list?” said Mollie.
“You mean Tony Fletcher?” replied Kendall.
Mollie nodded.
“Sure I saw it,” continued Kendall. “He did say that he attended.”
“You know who ever did this crime must have had a reason, a motive,” suggested Mollie
“I agree,” said Kendall. “But what makes you think so? Why couldn’t it have been just a random killing, or an opportunist?”
Mollie shook her head. “Because that makes no sense,” she replied. “Victor Lowry was a very important, powerful man, correct.”
Kendall smiled and nodded.
“People like that aren’t just murdered at random,” Mollie continued. “People like that make enemies, and that’s why they get murdered.”
Kendall reached across the desk for the list of names. “Someone Lowry knew,” he repeated.
“The telephone call that he got was someone he knew wasn’t it,” said Mollie.
“Someone here on this list then.” He rubbed his hand over the papers. “Okay, so we are agreed our murderer is here somewhere on this list.”
“I think so,” said Mollie. “What about the motive?”
“Well as you say Lowry would have made a lot of enemies. Jealous business associates or business rivals. Maybe people who had suffered as a result of something that Lowry, or the paper, had done.”
“Phone hacking,” suggested Mollie.
Kendall nodded slowly. “Phone hacking, perhaps,” he replied. “It might be interesting to check Lowry’s files, to see if they include any of the names on the list”
“It might be at that,” said Mollie. “But checking Lowry’s files was likely to be easier said than done.”
Kendall sighed and took a deep breath. “I think you’re absolutely right.”
Mollie thought for a few moments. “Why not have a word with that guy on the radio. Derek Webb,” she suggested. “After all he is the one who broke the news in the first place. By the way do you remember that address you mentioned?”
“Which address?” asked Kendall.
“Batsford Court?” Mollie explained. “Where that White Cabs driver took his passenger.”
“I remember it,” replied Kendall. “What about it?”
“Well it might mean nothing at all,” Mollie replied. “But at least one of the apartments in that block is owned by, you’ll never guess.”
Kendall didn’t really have time for guessing games. “Okay I’ll never guess, so who?”
“West-Com Enterprises,” Mollie replied.
“Fletcher’s company?” said Kendall.
“The very same,” replied Mollie. “Of course it could be a coincidence, but I don’t think so.”
Kendall shook his head. “And neither do I.”
“Worth checking out I would say,” said Mollie.
Kendall heaved a sigh. It seemed like the following day was going to be a busy one, with radio Station KK59 in the morning, and a visit to Batsford Court later. Whether or not it would be a productive day though remained to be seen, ever the pessimist, Kendall had his doubts.
Ch
apter Thirty
Radio Station KK59
Radio Station KK59 had started life in the late nineteen sixties as a country music station playing blue grass and the occasional country and western record. In the years that followed it had expanded and started to broadcast general entertainment programs and news reports. It was Station KK59 that had first broken the details of the alleged phone hacking, eventually calling for a public inquiry to be held.
Radio Station KK59
Their offices were located in a converted warehouse, just outside of town. Originally used for storage, the building had fallen into disuse about ten years previously. Several plans had been put forward, including total demolition and re-development, but were never progressed. Two years ago Radio KK59 had outgrown its present offices and was looking for somewhere to expand. The warehouse was just what was needed, providing more than enough space for office accommodation, together with studios, and so the building was taken over and refurbished.
* * *
Kendall was shown into a large bright waiting area, and invited to take a seat. “Mr. Webb will be with you shortly,” a young lady advised, as she left the room. Kendall sat down disappointed. A coffee would have been good, but clearly the radio station needed to save money. He looked around the room, and then he saw it, a coffee dispenser, offering every combination you could think of, except of course a decent cup of Java, He decided to forego the undoubted pleasure. He picked up one of the magazines lying on one of the side tables and sat down.
He hadn’t been waiting very long before a heavy set man, with long curly hair swept into the waiting room. “Mr. Kendall?” he asked, sounding slightly short of breath. “Hi there, I’m Webb. What can I do for you?”
Kendall stood up, and returned the magazine to the side table. “Good of you to see me at such short notice,” he said walking forward his hand outstretched.
“I’m afraid I can’t actually spare you long,” Webb replied shaking Kendall’s hand. “We have a news-special to get out for the six o’clock, and a production meeting has been scheduled for …. “ He looked at his watch. “Forty-five minutes time, so if we could get started ….”
Kendall smiled. “I’ll be as quick as I can,” he replied.
“I would appreciate that,” said Webb. “Have a seat.” Webb pointed to the sofa. Kendall nodded and sat down. “Can I get you a coffee or something?”
Kendall glanced at the coffee machine, and decided that he could live quite well without the coffee. He was tempted to go for the something though, a double something preferably. However, time was probably against him, so he decided to forego the offer, reluctantly. He shook his head.
Webb nodded, and sat down next to Kendall. “Now you mentioned something about Victor Lowry on the phone,” he said.
“That’s right,” said Kendall. “I’ve been asked to investigate his death.”
Webb looked puzzled. “But I thought the police had already covered that? Murder wasn’t it, or am I mistaken? Don’t they have someone
in custody? A guy called Gardiner if I remember correctly?”
Well that’s right, but I don’t think he did it,” said Kendall. “Neither do a few others I might add.”
“Really,” said Webb, sounding surprised. “Why ever not?”
“I think whoever did it, was somehow connected with this phone hacking business,” Kendall replied, trying to sound knowledgeable.
“Interesting,” replied Webb, sounding anything but. “That certainly opens up a lot of possibilities.”
“So what can you tell me about this hacking,” asked Kendall. “You seem to be the acknowledged expert.”
“Well I wouldn’t quite go that far.” Webb replied. “Although, I have investigated it pretty extensively, so I guess I know more about it than most.”
“So what can you tell me?” asked Kendall, taking out his notepad.
“Well I can tell you that it’s been going on for quite some time now,” replied Webb. “We’re not exactly sure when it started, or where, but originally it was only involved with celebrities. Pop stars, movie stars, that kind of thing. Troy Donahue for example, and his girl friend Cindy Lawson. “You must have read about them.”
Kendall nodded his head. Thanks to Mollie he knew all about Troy thingy, and Cindy whatever.
“Then there were a whole string of sports personalities,” Webb continued. “Greg Norman and Peter Franklin of the New York Tigers were the first. Then came Sylvia Tredegar, the gymnast, oh and Colin Davies the runner, and then there were a couple of tennis players.”
“But why do it?” asked Kendall. “What’s the point?”
Webb smiled. “Why do it, for news, of course. What else? As simple as that,” he replied. “Well maybe not necessarily news, scandal would be nearer the truth. Scandal sells newspapers you know, not news. The newspapers would look for just about anything they could use, no matter how they got it.”
“Just to sell papers?” said Kendall.
Webb nodded. “About two years ago they started hacking politicians, like John Mackenzie, the Senator. Then it was business men, bankers, industrialists, people like Tony Fletcher, you know who I mean?”
Kendall nodded. He had to admit that he had a slight inkling.
“And now, as I think you already know, victims of crime are being targeted” Webb continued.
Kendall nodded. “You mean Peter Jobson?”
Webb nodded. “That’s right, amongst many others.”
Kendall took a deep breath. “So is it just the Lowry papers doing it?” he asked.
Webb shook his head. “Oh no, many of the other papers have done it, but certainly Lowry’s involvement has, without doubt, been the most extensive.”
Kendall heaved a sigh. “Do you have a list of all of his victims?” he asked, as he began to wonder if this line of enquiry would actually produce anything other than another long list of possible suspects.
“Well we certainly have details of a large number of people,” Webb replied. “Whether or not it shows all of his victims I couldn’t say.” He paused for a moment and shook his head. “I would guess not. I think we’ve only just uncovered the tip of the iceberg. Investigations are still very much on-going. The State hearings have only just begun as you know, but now with the death of Lowry we may never know the full details.”
”But there must have been others involved,” said Kendall. “Others, who must have known what was going on?”
“Oh, I’m sure that there were many others,” Webb replied. “Lowry employed a small team to carry out the hacking. That guy Gardiner, the one who shot Lowry, I understand that he was in charge. But no one in that team would have known the full implications, I’m sure of that. That would have been known by Lowry alone.”
That was just what Kendall had suspected, Lowry was the Mr. Big, and the rest merely followed his instructions, probably without question. “I see,” he replied. “So what can you tell me about Lowry?”
“Lowry? What can I tell you?” replied Webb. “A nastier man you couldn’t hope to meet.”
“What about his enemies?” asked Kendall.
Webb smiled. “How long have you got? Lowry had dozens of enemies, maybe hundreds. There were many who would have been delighted to see him dead. He wasn’t the most popular guy on the planet you know. I’m guessing that not even his own mother loved him, not that it worried Lowry at all. In fact if anything he seemed to thrive on it.”
“What being hated you mean?” asked Kendall.
“In a way, yes, that’s exactly what I mean,” replied Webb. “Being able to command such emotion in others, such fear, such hatred, Lowry considered that to be a kind of power. What do they say, call me what you like, as long as you call me. Lowry considered that such hate was fuelled by fear, and that’s what he liked. He wanted people to be afraid of him. By being afraid of him he had control you see.”
Kendall wasn’t entirely sure, but let it pass. “What about the surveillance that I’ve heard about? I understand that Lowry had a number of people watched.”
“That’s absolutely right,” said Webb. “It was all part of the power and control thing. The more he knew about someone the more power he had, and the more control he could exert. Not exactly illegal I understand, but not very nice.”
“Not very nice at all,” agreed Kendall. “But blackmail is, illegal I mean. And I’m guessing that’s what it was all about.”
Webb smiled. “Without a doubt,” he replied. “It would have been so easy for Lowry. All he needed was to discover some piece of information, some dirt, or a dark secret, and that was that. Then there came the threats to expose the story unless.”
Kendall shook his head. “I still don’t get it though. He hardly needed the money did he?”
Webb shook his head. “Money, it wasn’t about money,” he replied. “Once again it was all part of this fear aspect. People would be afraid that their little secret would be made public, and they didn’t want that.”
“Yes I can see that,” replied Kendall. “But I still don’t understand what Lowry gained.”
Once again Webb shook his head. “With people like Lowry it was all to do with power, any kind of power,” he started to explain. “When he walked into a room a hush fell. People stopped talking for fear of saying something that Lowry wouldn’t like. They moved out of the way in case they were standing where Lowry wanted to be. Anything Lowry wanted done, big or small, they would step forward to do it. They were constantly afraid that at any moment, whenever it suited Lowry, he would divulge their little secret.”
“That makes sense,” replied Kendall, as he casually glanced around the studio. “It’s strange though don’t you think?”
“Strange,” repeated Webb. “What’s strange?”
Kendall smiled. “This whole thing is strange,” he replied. “It’s all big news now. Its front page stuff week after week, day after day.”
“Has been for months now,” agreed Webb.
“And yet when it was just the celebrities nobody seemed bothered,” Kendall continued. “No one said a word.”
Webb nodded. “That’s right,” he replied. “The celebrities could look after themselves. Besides when it suited them they wanted the publicity didn’t they, couldn’t get enough of it.” He paused for a moment. “Then it was the turn of the politicians. It was time for their dirty laundry to be aired in public. Once again the public weren’t bothered, and just lapped up the gossip. Who cared anyway? It was only politicians, and they weren’t to be trusted anyway? Besides, everyone knew about their bad behavior.”
“You’re right, nobody cared,” agreed Kendall. “Even though it was against the law, no one took any action.”
Webb nodded. “Right, but then when members of the public started to become involved, especially victims of crime, everything changed. The bounds of decency had been exceeded. People started to protest, to complain, they started to demand that some action be taken.”
“And yet phone hacking has always been illegal whether the
victim is a celebrity, or Joe Public,” said Kendall, shaking his head.
“That’s correct,” agreed Webb. “The problem is that in general the celebrities, and the politicians, are considered to be fair game, not deserving of a private life. The public quite like to read about scandals involving movie stars, and politicians. It’s not a nice way to be but that is how it is, but that all changes when members of the public are involved. Then all hell breaks loose.”
Kendall nodded. “I guess so,” he said, and heaved a sigh. “It’s still not very nice though.” He reached into his pocket and took out an envelope. He looked at Webb, opened the envelope and took out some sheets of paper.
“This is a list of names of those who were invited to the Man of the year function the other week,” Kendall explained. “I have a theory that Lowry’s murderer was actually one of these people.”
Webb took hold of the papers. “Why are there a lot of names crossed out?” he asked.
Kendall nodded. “They have been eliminated from my enquiries,” he explained.
Webb looked at the list once again. “So how many names are there?”
“One hundred and twenty-nine,” Kendall replied quickly, hoping that it wouldn’t sound too bad. “I wonder if you could tell me if any of them are amongst Lowry’s hacking victims.”
“One hundred and twenty-nine,” Webb repeated, taking a deep breath. “And you want me to check all of them.”
Kendall tried a smile, but failed. “If it’s not too much trouble,” he replied. “I’d be much obliged.”
Webb took another deep breath. “But one hundred and ….”
“I know it sounds a lot, but you could be helping to find a murderer,” said Kendall appealing to Webb’s better nature. “Just think of the news item for your station, an exclusive.”