‘Absolutely,’ replied Milner. ‘I got the immigration people to double-check. Not only that, but they provided me with a photograph, showing the date and time, of his arrival back at Heathrow on the Monday evening. It was definitely him.’
Tom examined the chart, in silence, for a short while longer. ‘Right. We are all agreed, then. Roger White is our main suspect. We need to speak with his wife in order to test his alibi. In the meantime we will try and get CCTV footage of him close to the quarry. Failing that, we will check to see if he used a taxi or public transport to get back to his car. So the next step is to get him in and see what he has to say this time.’
‘Sir?’ asked Milner. ‘What happens if we can’t see him until tomorrow? You won’t be around.’
‘I’m sure you can handle it yourself. That’s what a SIO does. The clue is in the name. Senior Investigation Officer.’
‘Just so I’m absolutely clear, sir, are you saying you don’t want to be kept informed of any developments whilst you are away?’
‘Only the important ones. I’ll leave it to you to decide which they are,’ he answered, not particularly helpfully.
Chapter 31
Just as Tom was about to leave the station, Superintendent Birch knocked on his door. ‘Have you got a minute, Tom?’ he asked.
After his update with Milner and DC Bennett, Tom had spent most of the rest of the day catching up on his emails. Whilst this wasn’t his main priority, it had allowed him to make good use of his time. It had also meant he could occasionally look up at the chart, hoping for some flash of inspiration. Unfortunately, nothing had struck, but somehow he suspected the answer was on that chart.
‘Come in,’ said Tom. ‘I’m just making sure that there’s nothing important I have to do before I leave.’
‘And is there?’
‘Not unless you include a couple of reports I have to complete,’ he answered.
‘I’m sure they can wait,’ replied Superintendent Birch.
‘That’s good,’ said Tom, with a slight laugh, ‘because one of them is for you.’
‘Unless it’s a matter of life or death, I’m still sure it can wait,’ he said, before sitting down opposite Tom. He then carried straight on. ‘I just wanted to wish you all the best over the next few days. I hope it works out well for you.’
Tom, genuinely touched by Superintendent Birch’s concern, said, ‘Thank you, sir. I really appreciate that.’
‘They are arriving tomorrow, aren’t they?’
‘Tonight, actually. Although, as it will be late, we are not meeting up until sometime tomorrow.’
‘And how are you feeling?’
Normally, Tom would be the last person to discuss his private life, particularly with a work colleague, but, for some reason he couldn’t quite pinpoint, he didn’t seem to have that problem with his new boss. ‘A bit apprehensive, if I’m being honest. Their arrival has suddenly crept up on me.’
‘I would have thought that’s perfectly normal,’ Superintendent Birch answered sympathetically. ‘Anyway, I’m not going to give you some speech about making the most of the opportunity or suchlike. All I wanted to do was to wish you luck.’ He paused briefly and then said, ‘If you need to take more time off, just do so.’
‘Thanks. I appreciate it,’ he replied.
Superintendent Birch stood up. ‘I almost forgot to ask. Have you made any progress with the murder investigation?’
Tom quickly updated him as to where they were with it. After he had finished, he added, ‘DS Milner will be SIO whilst I’m away. So, if you have any questions regarding the case, just ask him.’
‘Will he be able to handle it? I trust your judgement, but wouldn’t this be his first SIO role?’
‘It will be, but we all had to start at some time. He’s more than capable of running it. And, anyway, in DC Bennett, he has an experienced officer to assist him. I’ve told him that if things do start to warm up then he’s to contact me immediately.’
‘Do you remember your first time as SIO?’ asked Superintendent Birch. ‘I certainly remember mine as though it was yesterday. I was so excited it was me who was in charge. Of course, it was also quite scary, but, as you say, we all had to start at some time.’ He smiled a little. ‘I suppose in some ways it was a rite of passage in our career, which we all had to go through.’
After a brief, almost reflective pause, he added, ‘Do you think it’s likely the case will be resolved soon?’
‘I really don’t know. You know for yourself how these things work. It might be there’s a breakthrough tomorrow. Alternatively, it’s possible there are still a few wild goose chases ahead of us before we finally get to the truth.’
‘Well, if there are, just make sure you don’t get yourself involved in them over the next few days. Understood?’ Superintendent Birch asked, in a sudden assertive tone.
‘Understood,’ replied Tom.
Chapter 32
‘They should be landing in a few hours’ time,’ said Mary. They had both just finished dinner and were seated together in the lounge.
‘Are you going to keep looking at your watch and then giving a running commentary on where they are?’ asked Tom, the accompanying light laugh being his attempt to play down Mary’s increasing excitement. Although Tom was excited himself, it seemed that Mary was, if anything, even more excited than him.
‘I’m sorry, but I can’t help it,’ she replied, confirming Tom’s perception. ‘I’m sure I won’t be able to sleep tonight.’
‘Don’t you think you are taking all of this just a little bit personally? After all, it’s not even your family.’ He instantly regretted his comment. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it to come out like that. What I meant to say was that it should be me who is feeling that way. Not you.’
‘I know that,’ she said, taking hold of his hand. ‘It’s just that I want things to work out well for you. If, for whatever reason, they don’t, then please remember that I will always be here for you.’
Tom found himself, uncharacteristically, swallowing hard. It was, as far as he could remember, probably the nicest thing Mary had ever said to him during their time together. It also gave him the reassurance he surprisingly realised he needed, that, come what may, he wasn’t alone any more. Nonetheless, he was slightly concerned Mary might be building herself up for a major disappointment. It was his natural tendency to assume something might go wrong, whilst he was aware that it was Mary’s to always assume things could only go right.
‘And the same applies to you as well,’ said Tom. ‘Neither of us really knows how things are likely to turn out. If they don’t work out, then I will always be grateful to you for giving me the opportunity to see Paul and his family. I’m certain that, without you, I would never have done this.’
They spent the rest of the evening watching television, or at least Tom did. Mary, though, kept regularly looking at her phone. Despite Tom’s earlier comment, keeping up a running commentary on his family’s location was exactly what she did as she monitored their progress on the airline’s flight tracker.
‘They’ve landed,’ she suddenly announced. By now it was approaching midnight and, although the flight had been delayed slightly, this had obviously failed to dampen her excitement.
‘I think we should go to bed now, then,’ suggested Tom. ‘Let’s try and get some sleep, as I imagine it will be a very busy day for us tomorrow.’
‘I can’t possibly sleep,’ she answered. ‘I’m wide awake. If I go to bed now, I’ll just lie there. And, anyway, Paul said he’d text me when they landed. You go up, if you want. I’ll stay down here for a bit longer.’
‘Okay, but don’t stay up all night, otherwise you’ll be exhausted when we meet them.’
Tom went to bed, leaving Mary watching television. In truth, he knew he would also find it difficult to sleep. Apart from the excitement of meeting his family, he also had the investigation on his mind.
He knew, though, through experience, that it se
emed to help him work through difficult cases if he actually went to bed. Perhaps it was the change in environment or simply because the quiet allowed him to think more clearly, without any of the daytime distractions. Whatever the reason, it had worked in the past. So, as he lay in bed, he played through, in his mind, all of the key events in the case since he had become involved.
His normal technique was to start at the very beginning and try to visualise everything which had happened since, in chronological order. This time, though, it must not have provided the inspiration he was looking for. In fact, he must have fallen asleep at some early point, as he suddenly woke up when Mary climbed into bed.
‘Are you awake?’ she whispered.
‘Well, I am now,’ he answered.
‘Sorry, but I thought you’d like to know that I’ve just received the text from Paul. Do you want me to read it to you?’
Before he could answer, she had started to read out loud from her phone. ‘Just landed and waiting to collect luggage. Everyone is really looking forward to seeing you both. See you later at the hotel. You see, they are as excited as we are.’
By now Tom was wide awake. ‘Well,’ he said, pulling her towards him, ‘why don’t we make use of all of that excitement?’
Chapter 33
‘Why have you asked me here?’ asked Mr White.
Milner, taking a leaf out of his boss’s book, decided not to answer that particular question. Instead, determined to take, and keep, the initiative, he adopted his own direct approach. ‘Mr White, each time we have met you, so far, you have either lied to us or deliberately withheld vital information. The last time, DCI Stone indicated that, if you continued to do this, then you would be charged.’ This had the desired effect, and Milner immediately noticed Roger White sitting lower in his chair. He carried on. ‘So, to answer your question, you are here because, once again, we have found out you have been lying to us.’
Clearly shocked, he simply said, ‘I’ve told you everything that happened. There’s nothing more I can tell you.’
‘But, yet again, Mr White, that is not true, is it?’
‘I don’t understand,’ he replied. ‘When was it I was supposed to have lied to you?’
‘You told DCI Stone, and myself, that you had first got angry with Mr Burton when you called him, just after he left the golf club.’
‘Yes,’ he answered, with hesitation.
‘Whereas, in fact, you were both overheard having a heated conversation before he left the golf club.’
‘Who told you that?’ he asked, aggressively.
‘It was Mr Wallington. You and Mr Burton were in the office and, although the door was closed, he could still clearly hear raised voices. Why was that, Mr White?’
This latest information, once again, clearly shook him, and it was a short while before he could answer. When he did, all of his initial aggression had disappeared. ‘I told you previously I had intended to speak with him about my shares during our round of golf, but the fog put paid to that. It was when he told me he wasn’t planning to hang around that I asked him into the office.’
‘So, why did you end up arguing?’ asked Milner. ‘I assume it was still about the shares?’
‘It was, yes,’ he answered.
‘But what was so different this time?’
He seemed to take a deep breath before he answered. ‘It was something about what he intended to do with my shares.’
‘Mr White,’ said Milner, irritation now in his voice, ‘we already know what that intention was, so there’s no point in you trying to be evasive. You either tell me or I charge you, here and now, with obstruction.’
Roger White didn’t, of course, know for sure exactly how much Milner knew but evidently decided he couldn’t take the chance. ‘He was planning to use his majority shareholding to force through the sale of some of the club’s land so that flats could be built on it.’ He carried straight on, with increased anger. ‘These were my shares he was intending to use to do something I would never, ever do.’
‘I would, though, point out that, in fact, they were not your shares. You sold them to Mr Burton because you needed to urgently raise some money. In fact to pay off your latest gambling debt,’ Milner said. ‘Surely, therefore, he could do what he wanted?’
‘I do know that, Detective Sergeant Milner,’ he replied, with just a hint of sarcasm which was not lost on Milner. ‘But he had agreed I could buy them back. That was still my understanding until I raised the issue of the sale of the land with him.’
‘How did you find out about that?’ asked Milner. He was tempted to ask if Tony Cook had told him, but resisted. That was a fortunate decision because, when Mr White answered, it became clear that he had no idea about Mr Cook’s involvement.
‘I have a friend who works in the planning section at the council. I bumped into him at a restaurant on Saturday night. He mentioned the discussions which had been going on between the building company and the council and that preliminary permission had just been granted. He assumed, of course, that I knew, so I just had to pretend I did.’
‘And you had no idea, before then, that Mr Burton had been in discussions with a development company?’
‘None at all. If I had I would have raised it with him much sooner. In the event, the earliest I could speak to him was the following day, when we were due to play golf. But, as I keep saying, the fog prevented me from doing that.’
‘Did you tell anyone else about what Mr Burton was planning to do?’
‘No. No one. I was still hoping I could persuade him to change his mind.’
‘Change his mind about what?’ asked Milner. ‘Selling the shares back to you or selling the land?’
‘Well, both, really. It would have caused absolute uproar amongst the members if they had found out about the land sale.’
‘I’m sure it would, although, as majority shareholder, he was perfectly entitled to do it.’
‘How do you know that?’ Mr White asked, in a puzzled tone.
‘Mr Cook told us. Once we had found out what Mr Burton was proposing, we asked him if he could legally do that.’ Although what Milner said was true, it was, nonetheless, sufficiently ambiguous not to reveal Tony Cook’s true role in all of this. Milner couldn’t see any benefit, at this stage anyway, of revealing his involvement.
‘So, how did you find out about the plans?’ Mr White asked.
‘I’m afraid that I can’t tell you. We are in the middle of a murder investigation and cannot reveal any information relating to that investigation.’
He seemed to readily accept Milner’s explanation. ‘So, am I now allowed to leave?’
‘Not quite,’ Milner quickly replied. ‘You still haven’t told me exactly what you said to Mr Burton. Did you threaten him?’
‘How dare you?’ he answered, angrily. ‘You have no right to make that sort of accusation.’
‘I have every right, Mr White. It seems to me you still do not fully comprehend the seriousness of this investigation.’ He carried straight on. ‘Let’s examine the facts. Firstly, Mr Burton, from your own words, was reluctant to even discuss the sale of your shares back to you. Secondly, you found out he was now not willing to let you have them back, as he needed them to finalise the land sale. Third, you were heard arguing with him on the day he disappeared. Fourth, you argued with him again when you called him just after he’d left the club. Next, you even tried to arrange a meeting with him later that evening, not, incidentally, in a public place but, again by your own admission, in a place where you would not be noticed. Finally, we only have your word that Mr Burton didn’t attend that meeting.’
If Milner’s summary was intended to ensure that Mr White had finally grasped the seriousness of the situation, it appeared to have been successful. ‘You are making it sound as though I was involved in his death,’ he replied, with real anxiety.
‘Were you?’ asked Milner. ‘Because, if you were, then I suggest now might be a good time to admit it. If you don�
��t, then it can only make things more difficult for you if it’s subsequently proven that you were.’
‘I can’t believe we are having this discussion,’ Mr White said, as much to himself as to Milner. ‘I have told you already Glyn did not turn up for our meeting. I waited for about half an hour and, when he didn’t show up, went straight home.’
‘The problem we have, though, Mr White, is we only have your word that’s what you did. Tell me why I should now believe what you say when, on our previous encounters, you have not been entirely truthful or open with us.’
‘This is ridiculous,’ he answered. ‘You have given me no choice but to refuse to answer any more of your questions until I have a lawyer present. This is clearly harassment.’
Milner was tempted to mention that he had still not refuted his point about Mr White’s previous lack of honesty, but felt, if he were to now do so, it would only inflame the situation further. ‘This is not a formal interview, Mr White. It’s an informal discussion and you did agree to come here voluntarily. It could be, however, that we will be asking you back for a more formal interview. In that instance, you have every right to have a legal representative present.’
‘Is that it, then?’ he asked.
‘Almost,’ replied Milner. ‘I need to make you aware that my colleague, DC Bennett, is currently speaking with your wife.’
‘What?’ he almost shouted. ‘What possible reason do you have to involve her?’
‘We need to check with her what time she arrived home from her sister’s on the Sunday evening. You will remember you have already told us how you were already back at home when she did return.’
‘I’ve told you again and again that I was. How many more times are you going to ask me the same question?’
‘As many times as it takes until we can finally believe you and therefore exclude you from our enquiries. That’s the way a murder investigation tends to work.’
Mr White shook his head, his earlier anger having now seemingly subsided. ‘I can’t believe this is happening to me. It could ruin my life.’
Fatal Love Page 16
