Money Can Kill

by Wonny Lea

‘I can go away if I’m interrupting anything important but I thought you would want an update.’

  Matt grinned. ‘That famous nose of yours is as always on the right scent as I was about to tell DCI Phelps what you told me earlier. Over to you.’

  ‘It’s been a long night and I was just going to sign off and get my head down for a few hours but there have been some further developments that you will need to know about. Has Matt told you about the follow-up on the cars?’ Sgt Evans asked Martin.

  ‘Start at the beginning, John,’ suggested Martin.

  ‘OK, well when we eventually got the right tapes it was a relief to find that not many cars left the museum in the time span we were checking. I thought the kidnapper would have driven off immediately but just to be sure we looked at cars over a thirty-minute slot. There were only four cars in the whole of that time – lots coming in, but only four leaving.

  ‘Not surprising really as most people would be arriving with the intention of staying a few hours at least.’ John was about to give examples of how his family often spent the whole day at the museum but a raised eyebrow from Martin kept him on track.

  ‘It wasn’t difficult to get names and addresses based on the registration numbers, and we had officers knocking on doors at some ungodly hours. Two of the owners were easily eliminated. One was a woman in her early sixties who works as an early morning cleaner at the museum. She gave a lift to two other cleaners and they could all vouch for her.

  ‘Anyway, she obviously doesn’t fit the description of the man we are looking for, and neither does the owner of the black Audi that was the second car to be knocked off our list. That owner is a man and he was at the museum to deliver some plans for moving an historic pub to St Fagans. All he did was hand over the plans at the main entrance and leave. We checked the CCTV and his car is seen coming in and gong out in the space of a couple of minutes. He wasn’t carrying a bag and he certainly wouldn’t have had the time to carry out a kidnapping.

  ‘The other two cars weren’t that simple to track down and we were told a Mr Ashton, who owned the dark blue Ford Fiesta, had obviously not registered a change of address with the DVLA. What used to be his home is now occupied by a woman who seemed to be entertaining more than her fair share of gentleman guests and was not best pleased to get a visit from the law.’

  ‘Did you get a new address for Mr Ashton?’ asked Martin.

  ‘Not as yet but we’ve got your people working on it. Also the fourth car, a silver Ford Focus, is with Alex and his lot and I understand he is getting excited about some possibly significant findings. It belongs to a Diane Evans and she swears that her car has been nowhere near St Fagans so obviously that immediately raised our suspicions because we know beyond any shadow of doubt that it was there.

  ‘According to her she drove her car home on Wednesday morning after a night shift at Asda’s and left it outside her house when she went to bed. She was back in work when officers knocked at her door, and they caught up with her when she got back home this morning.

  ‘She thinks we’ve all lost our marbles, although according to the team that took the vehicle in they would have lost more than their marbles if she had carried out what she planned to do to them if they took her car.’

  ‘What does Alex think he’s found?’ asked Martin. ‘Does he think this is the car that was used to take Jason?’

  ‘Don’t know, but you can bet he’ll let you know as soon as he has anything solid to tell. I’m off home for a few hours now, but all my lot know what is expected of them and I’ll see you later.’ Sgt Evans walked off in the direction of the bed he was eagerly waiting to occupy and Martin and Matt discussed what had been said.

  Martin gathered his thoughts. ‘I don’t think it was a woman who took Jason, but Diane Evans could be an accomplice. Perhaps she handed over the keys of her car to the kidnapper and he used it whilst she slept yesterday. We need to check that she actually did her Tuesday and Wednesday night shifts at the supermarket and if any of her neighbours noticed any movement of her car yesterday. I want to speak to her and I’d like to do that at her home rather than here, so let’s go. I need to pick up a couple of things from my office so will you get her address and meet me in the car park in five? Get the keys for one of the squad cars.’ suggested Martin. ‘I want this to look seriously official and that could rattle the woman if she has played any part in this.’

  ‘OK,’ called back Matt as he crashed through the door and disappeared down the stairs.

  ‘Diane Evans lives in Gower Road, Ely,’ said Matt as he punched the postcode into the sat-nav of the marked police car. ‘If my memory is correct it’s just off Cowbridge Road West and shouldn’t take us more than fifteen minutes tops.’

  Martin nodded. ‘I spoke to Alex before I left and he’s been busy. He says that the boot of the Fiesta is a bit of a mess but there is no doubt that a space has recently been created in the middle to accommodate a large object. If the boy was taken in a bag it’s unlikely they’ll find any of his DNA but it depends on the circumstances of the kidnapping and whether or not the bag was open or closed.

  ‘Anyway he had obtained a sample of Jason’s hair from his bed at home and is testing every item in the boot for evidence of the boy having been there.’

  Matt turned the car onto the A48 and then negotiated a few side roads before pulling up at Diane Evans’ address.

  There were a few people hanging around and a number of parked cars. The towing away of Diane’s car earlier would have caused a bit of a stir but the excitement was visibly mounting as neighbours clocked the appearance of the police car.

  The houses had small front gardens and Martin and Matt could feel half a dozen eyes focused on their every move as they knocked Diane’s door.

  It opened instantly as she too had seen the patrol car pull up. ‘This is turning out to be one hell of a day. Who are you and what do you want now? An apology for taking my car without my permission would be too much to ask for I bet – so what now?’

  With the required ceremony the detectives showed their warrant cards and made the necessary introductions.

  ‘Bloody hell, I’ve moved up in the world. Christ knows what I’m supposed to have done to get the CID camping out on my doorstep, but you had better come in before that lot out there risk their necks trying to see what’s going on.’

  ‘Do you live here on your own?’ asked Martin as they moved from the short passage into a much larger room than he had expected. It would have originally been two smallish rooms but the dividing wall had been knocked down to create a decent-sized lounge/diner with a door at the far end probably leading to the kitchen.

  ‘What’s that got to do with you?’ questioned Diane as she turned and stood with her arms folded portraying a decidedly unwelcoming attitude. She did not sit down or offer the men a seat and Martin could see that getting information from this woman would be tantamount to getting blood from a stone.

  He ignored her off-putting manner and came directly to the point. ‘Our only real interest at the moment is in your car, and you, as the owner, obviously have access to the vehicle. If there are other people living here then they too may be able to use your keys and that’s what we are trying to establish.

  ‘You know from the officers who called previously that your car was seen at St Fagans museum yesterday morning and you seemed to think that was unlikely.’

  ‘Not unlikely, bloody impossible,’ began Diane but Martin stopped her.

  ‘There is no point in you telling us that it was impossible because we have clear and indisputable evidence that your car was seen leaving the museum, and if you are saying that you weren’t driving it we need to find out who was. It’s unlikely that it was stolen as in my experience car thieves rarely take a car back to where they found it so maybe someone you know used your car. That’s why I repeat the question – do you live here on your own?’

  ‘I still say it’s bloody impossible so maybe your cameras got it wrong. I work six nights a
week and when I get home I’m knackered. I usually park outside and just chuck my keys on the table and go straight to bed, and then I’m out of it until the middle of the afternoon.’ Diane pointed to where her keys were on the corner of the glass-topped dining table. ‘That’s where I would have left my bloody keys yesterday when I went to bed and that’s where they were when I woke up.’

  Martin briefly wondered how many of Diane’s ‘bloody’ adjectives would normally be of the effing variety, as she was, by her standards, on her best behaviour, but this was soon to change.

  Martin wasn’t sure if she had really only just thought of the possibility or had just then decided to share her thoughts. ‘My fucking sister has taken my keys before, and if she’s done it again I’ll strangle the cow.’

  Another thought she had was obviously more amusing and she shared it. ‘The very idea of my sister paying a visit to a museum or anywhere like that is just too bloody funny. She only needs two things to improve her body and mind, namely sex and bingo. Add to that the very thought of her being in the land of the living before lunchtime and you’re in fantasy land. I still say you lot have cocked it up and you’ve got the wrong car.’

  Martin ignored Diane’s assassination of sister’s character and went back to what the woman had said about her sister having previously borrowed the car, presumably without permission.

  ‘Too bloody true it was without my permission,’ shouted Diane. ‘She’s taken her test a couple of times but never passed, and once when she took the car I ended up with three points on my licence. The stupid cow was doing over the odds in a thirty-limit area where everyone knows the speed cameras are always working. I was tempted to just drop her in the shit, but she had just had a decent win on the bingo and £500 for three points didn’t seem like a bad deal so I went along with it.’

  Matt shook his head, but they had other things to think about than her messing with the traffic laws and he pushed her on the possibility of her sister taking the car again yesterday.

  Diane could see that the detectives were hell-bent on getting to the bottom of the car mystery and she sat at the kitchen table and indicated with her eyes two chairs for their use. ‘When I went to bed I left the keys where you see them now, and as far as I know they hadn’t moved but, Christ, I didn’t look that closely. I gave the blokes who came for the car the spare keys because that set there has my house keys and the keys to the shed and I need those.’

  Diane had still not answered Martin’s question about who, if anyone, lived in the house with her so he tried another approach. ‘Where is your sister now? Does she normally live here with you?’

  ‘We’ve both lived here since we were kids. This was our parents’ house but Mam died when I was seventeen and Susan just fifteen. Our father used to bring a lot of different women back here but as she got older Susan became more of a handful and used to cause some violent rows. Dad couldn’t stand it any more so he buggered off with one of the women and we haven’t seen him from that day to this.

  ‘Susan’s got a room upstairs but she hasn’t been around much for a couple of weeks. That usually means she’s shacked up with someone and she tends to stay with whoever is flavour of the month until the fun or the money runs out and then she’s back here to sponge off me.’ Diane shrugged her shoulders and stood up. ‘Look, I’m working tonight and want to get some sleep so if you’ve finished I’m off to bed.’

  Martin stood up and asked one final question. ‘I don’t suppose you know who your sister is with at the moment, do you?’

  ‘Haven’t got a bloody clue, she’ll turn up sometime as per usual but even then she won’t tell me where she’s been.’ Diane walked into the kitchen and switched on the kettle and the two men made their way to the door and said nothing until they were back in the squad car.

  ‘Not much sisterly love to note there,’ remarked Matt. ‘Doesn’t take us any further forward either, does it?’

  ‘Not really,’ agreed Martin. ‘We need to get officers knocking on doors in this street to see if anyone noticed the car being moved yesterday, and more importantly if they saw who moved it.’

  Before he re-started the car Matt made a phone call to get the house-to-house enquiries moving and Martin looked around at the number of people who were either openly or covertly watching the police car. If just a few of those who were now taking an interest had been just as nosey yesterday then they might get something but he knew from past experience that neighbours had selective memories when it came to giving information to the police.

  ‘We might as well go straight to the Barnes’ house and check that everything is in place for this afternoon. Unless Alex comes up with a miracle I can’t see us discovering the whereabouts of Jason prior to the handover of the money, and after that we’re at the mercy of the kidnapper regarding the boy’s release.’

  As Matt pulled away his phone rang and Martin picked it up.

  The call was to report some progress regarding the route taken by Diane Evans’ car when it had left St Fagans and as suspected it could be followed by a series of cameras back to the area of her home. A more significant piece of news was the fact that at some point the car had actually been the subject of attention from the traffic police. The car had been parked in a layby and the driver had pulled out virtually in the path of a police patrol vehicle. The two officers were just about to chastise the driver for driving without due care and attention when they decided that some young idiots driving recklessly were more deserving of their intervention.

  Martin took a deep breath as he listened to the caller. If, as they now believed, Jason was being transported in that car those officers had come within a hair’s breadth of discovering him. He always cursed the lunatics that drove like maniacs but now he wished them all in hell for having caused the diversion that had undoubtedly helped the kidnapper.

  What was the car doing parked in a layby anyway? Martin listened intently to the rest of the call and then relayed the information to Matt.

  ‘At least the officers who saw the car are able to tell us that there was only one person in the vehicle and that person was a man. They are currently in Goleudy attempting to provide an image of the man but the fact that he has greying auburn hair fits in with it being Jason’s father. My money is now definitely there.

  ‘Let’s change our plans and head back to Goleudy. I want to speak to those officers and chase up an address for Dan Painter.’

  Diane had not gone straight to bed as she had said but waited impatiently for the two detectives to drive away before putting on her coat and picking up her keys. She had not been completely honest with her CID visitors and although there was little love lost between her and her sister she was after all family. Diane knew exactly who her sister was seeing and it would take her less than ten minutes to walk to his house. She would warn her sister that the police were looking for her but that would be it – after that she could go to hell. She could hardly know that her sister was possibly already there.

  Chapter Eleven

  Susan’s scent

  Diane was wide awake and dismissed any thoughts of returning home and getting any sleep today. Her blood was still boiling as she headed off from Dan’s home. All she had asked for was a coffee and a lift back home but he had assumed she wanted him. She thought back to the strange look he had given her before he literally slammed the door in her face, and recalled a mixture of fear and hatred in his eyes. He had looked a bit like an animal caught in a trap and his reactions had been way out of proportion to anything she had said.

  Her instinctive reaction was to hurl abuse back at him and now she began to wonder if Dan and her sister had parted company following some sort of row. Susan was prone to fits of temper if she didn’t get her own way, and if Dan had been the victim of one of those episodes perhaps he was getting some of his own back by being offensive to her sister.

  No, it was more than that, and now she couldn’t get the look on his face and the haunted expression in his eyes out of
her mind. She slowed down her walking pace and her imagination went into overdrive. It was possibly the effects of lack of sleep, a visit from the police and the taking away of her car, a visit from real-life detectives, and a slanging match with Dan. Whatever it was she suddenly got the idea that all was not well with her sister and decided to risk some more abuse and go back and ask him if he knew where Susan had gone.

  She walked more slowly on the way back and tossed over in her mind the questions she wanted answered. When was the last time he was with Susan, and did she have any plans when he had last seen her? Diane had no way of knowing the extreme reaction that such questions could produce in Dan.

  Her thoughts came to an abrupt end as she turned the corner into Dan’s street and saw him leaving his home. For some reason she couldn’t explain to herself, instead of rushing towards him she moved into the side of some garden hedges and watched him without his seeing her.

  She giggled at her own actions and was feeling light-headed from the lack of sleep, but couldn’t shake off a strange feeling of unease as she saw Dan several times check that his front door was locked and look around anxiously before getting into his car. His behaviour didn’t seem quite right to her and her stomach was churning over as she watched him drive off slowly. She headed towards the door he had just locked.

  As far as she knew this was where her sister had been living and she could still be inside. It had suddenly occurred to Diane that if Susan had taken her car yesterday then she would not want to be questioned about it. Not by her sister and certainly not by the police.

  Diane had set out from home with the intention of warning Susan that the police were asking questions, but Dan’s behaviour had put some new thoughts in her mind.

  The pair of them could have used her car, but what for?

  The police had said her car had been at St Fagans and that was the place where that little boy had disappeared from. Nothing in her brain could sort out any connections between Susan, Dan, and a kidnapped boy but now she was determined to make her sister answer some questions.