Complete Detective Stephen Greco Box Set

by Helen H. Durrant

  They followed her down the hallway and into the sitting room. “When we saw you the other day, you were adamant that you had not had a break-in,” Greco began. “We have evidence that suggests that isn’t true, Ms Whitton.”

  “What evidence?” she snapped back. “Do you imagine I wouldn’t know if I’d been robbed? Do you think I’m stupid, Detective?”

  “No, I think you are hiding something. I think there are things about your life that you do not want us to find out about.”

  “Utter rubbish! I don’t like your tone. You have some nerve, coming to my home and spouting this fantasy.”

  Was she genuinely annoyed or trying to bluff her way out of it? Greco couldn’t tell.

  Grace held out the plastic bag containing the locket. “Does this belong to you?”

  She stared at the object, looking stunned. “Where did you get that?”

  “It was among the items stolen from this house,” Grace replied calmly.

  Ava Whitton looked at Greco with her dark eyes. Gone was the outraged bluster of before. Now she was genuinely afraid — and silently imploring him for help. She spoke in a barely audible whisper. “I cannot tell you anything. Because I do not know.”

  “But you were robbed?” Grace persisted.

  Ava flopped down onto a chair, suddenly deflated, as if she’d given up. “Yes. I came home from work a few days ago and found the lock on a back window had been forced. There wasn’t much mess, a broken vase that’s all. But some money I had been saving and most of my jewellery had gone.”

  “Why didn’t you report it?” Greco asked her kindly.

  “I don’t know. I should have done, but your colleagues came here that very day talking about there being drugs in my fridge. I was afraid. I thought I was being framed for a much more serious crime. Apart from which, there were only a few valuable pieces. My ring, the locket and a ruby pendant my grandmother gave me, and a valuable watch that belonged to my mother.”

  Grace thought of the pendant Dee had been wearing. The one Max had allegedly given her. “Do you have any photos of the jewellery?”

  “Yes, for insurance purposes. I’ll get them for you.”

  “You said they stole a ring. Do you recognise these?” Greco passed her their photograph. The rings themselves were still undergoing tests with Julian. “The maker’s mark is the same on both.”

  Ava stared at the image for several seconds, her eyes wide and fearful. She handed Grace her own photos. “As you see, one of the rings is mine,” she admitted, pointing to one of them. She looked at the detectives. “The other ring. Where did you get it?”

  Greco could tell from the tremor in her voice that she was dreading his answer. “Why? Do you know who it belongs to?”

  She was shaking. His reply was going to hurt.

  “It was found on the body of a man,” he said.

  Ava buried her face in her hands and wept. “Tomasz! I knew something was wrong. I felt it inside me.” She looked up at the detectives.

  “Who was Tomasz?” Greco asked.

  “My younger brother,” she replied. “The rings were given to us by our parents. They were identical. Where exactly was he found?”

  “Not too far from here. Roughly ten miles away.”

  “In that case, Tomasz was trying to get to me. He knew where I lived. He must have been in trouble. How long ago?”

  “We don’t know, not yet. It might help to know when you last saw or heard from him.”

  “We spoke on the phone ten months ago. Since then — nothing. He told me he was going away for a while.”

  “He was running from someone?” Grace asked.

  “I don’t know. Even if I’d asked he wouldn’t have told me. I worried about Tomasz. He didn’t always stay on the right side of the law. I was concerned that he was mixing with some dangerous people.”

  “Do you know who these people were?”

  She shook her head. “He would never discuss it. But once or twice he asked me for money. How did he die? You have to tell me. Was he murdered?”

  Greco decided not to tell her any details. Not yet. “Let us simply say that he didn’t die of natural causes. His body was found in a Cheshire field,” he said gently.

  “A field? What was he doing there?”

  “It was the site of a music festival last summer. Did your brother attend that sort of thing?” Grace asked.

  Ava shook her head.

  “The lads who broke into your house were also murdered,” Greco told her. “There is a link between their murder and that of your brother.”

  “What are you saying? What link?”

  Greco could hardly tell her it was the horrific way they’d met their end. “The rings. Possibly more. Because of that I want to send a forensic team in to search your house. They are looking for anything that will help find their killer. It will also help us find out who killed your brother. Because of the jewellery, we now know for sure that the lads were here in your home. They will have left forensic traces that could help us.”

  “Okay,” she said at once. “Do whatever you have to.”

  “Before we leave you in peace, what was your brother’s full name, Ms Whitton?” Greco asked.

  “Tomasz Bilinski.”

  “You’re Polish?” Grace asked.

  Ava nodded.

  “Was your brother allergic to anything?” Greco asked.

  “Yes, peanuts. The merest trace could make him terribly ill.”

  “You use a different surname. Are you married?” asked Greco.

  “No. I legally changed my name. I found having an English name more convenient for work. I have lived here for most of my life. I have very little accent left, so why not?” She shrugged.

  * * *

  Once the detectives had left, Ava broke down completely. Tomasz was dead. She didn’t want to believe it, but she doubted the police had made a mistake. Weeping was not going to solve her problems. Ava knew that she was taking a risk allowing the forensic people into her home. She had been extra careful when she’d moved the heroin, but was that enough? Then there were the thieves. How careless had they been? Ava had scrubbed everywhere, but as she looked around her home, she doubted that even she had gotten rid of every trace. If the smallest trace of heroin was found here, the police would arrest her. It would not take them long to piece things together. The fact that she worked for a transport firm that travelled mostly to Eastern Europe would put her firmly in the frame.

  It didn’t take Ava long to decide that she wanted two things. To disappear completely, so as not to have to suffer the flak once the police learned of her true part in this affair. And she had no doubt that they would. The second thing — to get even with her brother’s killer. To make Barton pay. Her problem now was to work out how to do it.

  Chapter 15

  Day 5

  The first task for the following day was to speak to Max Marsh and Dee. Greco sent uniformed officers to bring them in separately. He didn’t want to give the pair a last minute opportunity to work out a story. Max Marsh was first. He’d been fingerprinted and was sitting in an interview room facing Greco and Grace.

  “Do you know why you are here?” Greco asked the young man.

  Max responded with a shake of the head and a shrug.

  “You are aware that I was at the centre yesterday afternoon, and spoke to members of your computing group?” Grace asked.

  “So what?”

  Marsh appeared not to be in the least worried by his arrest. He was giving short answers. He kept tipping his chair back, holding himself steady by gripping the edge of the desk. It was extremely irritating. “Because we think the missing stuff from the centre has something to do with you,” Grace said.

  “Me? You’re wrong! Why would I? All it’d get me is a few bob. If I do a good job with that group, Graham will give me a reference so I can get into college. I’ve got plans. I’m not going to risk them.”

  “I disagree, Max.” Greco forced a smile. “From my poi
nt of view, it looks like it has a lot to do with you. You appear to have everything sewn up. The group you interact with trust you absolutely, so much so that they have taken your advice, allowed you into their homes to install equipment and software. They have accepted your friends as being trustworthy too.”

  “No one forced them. We were just being helpful. Nothing wrong in that.”

  “You’ve been to all the homes where things have been stolen,” Grace told him.

  “Craig and Vinny have been to folk’s homes too. Some of the group needed help with other stuff, decorating and the like. One old dear needed some furniture moving. They did that for her. We’re Clovelly’s angels, remember?” He smiled. “And think about it, copper. You got none of that stolen stuff from me. You can search my place till the cows come home, and you’ll still find nowt.”

  That was true. They didn’t have solid evidence that Marsh was involved, but Greco reckoned he had to be. At the very least, he’d been the eyes and ears of their operation, and he’d got them all inside the houses. “Did Craig and Vinny give you anything to keep for them?”

  “Like what? More cheap jewellery?” Marsh scoffed.

  “No, like drugs. Heroin for example.”

  “No! Absolutely not. I have nothing to do with that stuff.”

  “Do you know a woman called Ava Whitton?” Greco asked him.

  “No. Should I?”

  “Are you sure? You’ve never heard the name?”

  “No. Told you. Whatever she says, she’s lying. Who is she anyway? Some relative of one of the group?”

  “No, Max, she’s the woman your pals robbed the other day. Some of the jewellery we found belonged to her.” Greco paused, giving Marsh time to ponder this.

  “That means Craig and Vinny must have taken stuff off the seniors too. Stands to reason,” Marsh said at last.

  “Do you recognise this?” Grace placed a photo of Ava’s ruby pendant on the table.

  “No. Never seen it before.”

  “I saw this yesterday. Your friend Dee was wearing it.”

  Greco watched Max Marsh fidget on the chair. Now the nerves were showing. “She told my colleague here that you gave it to her.”

  “Well, I didn’t. Dee is lying as usual. Speak to her. Drag her in here. Make her tell you the truth.”

  “Don’t worry, Max, we’ll be doing just that very shortly,” Greco said. “But it will go better for you if you tell us the truth.”

  Max Marsh didn’t look happy with that at all. “She’ll lie,” he insisted. “You mustn’t be taken in. She’s very good at it. I’m not taking the blame for her or anyone else. I didn’t steal that stuff.”

  “Tell us about Joe Davies’ online banking account,” Grace said. “He had money stolen from it. How do you think that happened?”

  “I think the old gentleman made a mistake.”

  “I think you knew his details and helped yourself,” Greco said.

  “Prove it. It’s just your word against mine.”

  “It still remains that the jewellery was stolen. I think you were as involved as Craig and Vinny. Do you have any theories to offer, Max?” Greco looked hard at him.

  “Like I said before, nowt to do with me. Could have been anyone, there’s a lot of thieving about.”

  Greco was getting angry. Until forensics gave them something, Max Marsh was right. They had nothing on him. He would swear that Dee was lying and no doubt she would do the same, and blame him. Greco could see where this was going — stalemate. Marsh’s word against Dee’s. “Okay, you can go,” he told him reluctantly. “But we will speak to you again.”

  As soon as Marsh left, Grace said, “He has to be involved.”

  “Up to the teeth. But we need evidence before we can charge him,” Greco replied.

  Grace looked at him. “What now?”

  “We get that young woman Dee in here, and see what she has to say for herself.” He checked his watch. “We’ll give it a little longer. Let her sweat a bit.”

  Greco and Grace went back to the incident room. Finding who was behind the pilfering at the centre was one thing, but what they really needed was information on the heroin.

  Greco was staring at the board. “Drug smuggling is at the bottom of this, and that takes some organising. There have to be more people involved than just Ava Whitton. She is a cog in a much larger wheel.”

  “She was taking a risk too,” Speedy added. “Keeping all that stuff in her fridge. Why would she do that?”

  “I don’t know, but you’re right. Visit Greysons later. Speak to folk, see what you can find out. Ava Whitton plays a key role in bringing the stuff into the country. That firm she works for is the perfect cover.” Greco tapped the firm’s name. “Right industry, and she’s the transport manager.”

  “She doesn’t seem the type, sir. How would she manage an operation like that?” Speedy asked. “There’s customs for example. Lorries like Greysons’ are searched. Particularly these days, with people-trafficking so rife. There are dogs specially trained to sniff out drugs. Can’t be done on the scale you reckon she’s shipping them in.”

  “Obviously it can,” Greco said. “Don’t be duped by a pretty face. She’s a clever woman. If there is a way to get around the searches, she will have found it.”

  “And the reason she didn’t report the robbery at her house was because she was involved,” Grace offered.

  Grace had a point. “Let’s get the next interview over with and then we’ll talk about this some more. Meanwhile, I want to know a great deal more about Greyson Logistics.”

  "I'm on it, guv,” Speedy said.

  * * *

  “What is your full name?” Grace asked the young woman.

  “Deidre Sampson, but I prefer Dee. I mean, who calls their kid Deidre in this day and age?”

  Grace smiled. “You’re still wearing that nice pendant. You told me that Max gave it to you. When was that?”

  “A few days ago. Why? What’s your interest in an old bit of jewellery?”

  Grace didn’t reply, just watched her reaction. Dee looked wary. Her black-rimmed eyes darted nervously from one detective to the other.

  Grace smiled again. “Are you sure it was Max who gave it to you? It was stolen, along with several other pieces. So, come on, where did you really get it from?”

  “I’m not lying. Marshy really did give it to me,” Dee insisted.

  “Why would he do that? Was it a present or payment for something?”

  “He just wanted me to have it.” She shrugged. “It’s no big deal.”

  Grace wasn’t smiling now. “I’m afraid it is, Dee. You see it’s part of the haul that Craig and Vinny took before they ended up dead. Hence our interest.”

  Now the girl looked shocked. “I had nothing to do with that. You’ll have to speak to Marshy, ask him about it.” Her hands went to her neck and she undid the clasp. “Here, take it. I swear the bloody thing is cursed! I’ve had nothing but aggro since he gave it to me!”

  “Our problem is that he denies knowing anything about the pendant. So that leaves you in the frame, Dee.”

  The girl’s eyes widened. “He knows very well. He gave it to me and I gave him forty quid to pay a bill. Ask him. Tell him what I’ve just told you. Don’t let him wriggle out of it. He came to me because he’s known by all the local pawnshops. He regularly tries to sell stolen gear. He’s been done for it in the past. I’ve done nothing. How could I? I don’t know anything about what that lot get up to. Angels.” She rolled her eyes. “Who are they kidding? A group of lowlife scum who’d rob their own mothers if the opportunity presented itself. I’m telling you, the thieving, it will be down to those lads with Marshy’s help.”

  “Everything you’ve told us will go in your statement, Dee, and you will sign it,” Greco told her.

  Dee nodded. “No probs. I haven’t done anything. You’ve got it wrong. Go and arrest Marshy. Like I said, he’s dodgy at the best of times.”

  “Did he offer you any d
rugs?”

  “No, just the pendant.”

  “Have you heard any talk about heroin at the centre?” Greco asked her. “Perhaps someone new with stuff to sell?”

  “I’m not interested. Never take drugs. But as far as I know there is nothing new on that front.”

  Chapter 16

  “You look tired,” Greco said.

  “Thanks for that. You really know how to boost a girl’s ego!” Grace replied.

  Greco hadn’t meant the comment to be taken as an insult. He was genuinely concerned about Grace. She was pale and didn’t have her usual energy. “Why not call it a day? Take yourself off home.”

  “It’s only lunchtime. What will the others say?”

  “I’ll sort it. Don’t worry. Actually, I was thinking of telling them, after I’ve told McCabe of course.”

  “He won’t like it. Have you thought about the repercussions?”

  “He will have to know at some time.”

  Grace looked at him. “Don’t you want to leave the team to me?”

  “Not this time. I’m quite capable, you know. Go and put your feet up while Holly is still at school.”

  They were walking back to the incident room, along the corridor. “What d’you think?” she asked. “Max Marsh or Dee? Which one is telling the truth?”

  “I think they are both lying to save their own skins. Perhaps Dee not so much. They are frightened of something, and it’s more than just going down for theft or receiving,” Greco said.

  Grace frowned. “You think they know something about the drugs?”

  “Yes, I do. This afternoon I’ll arrange for forensics to go over Ava Whitton’s house. We know Vinny had traces of heroin under his fingernail. If they opened one of those packets in that house there will be traces left behind,” Greco said.

  “Do you believe Dee on the drugs front?” she asked.

  “We need more evidence first. But we are moving forward. We now know some of that jewellery was stolen from Ava Whitton, so Craig and Vinny were at her house. And thanks to Ava, we now have a name for ‘Festival Fred.’ I’m sure Julian will call that a result.” He smiled faintly.

  Grace winced and caught her breath.