As they left the room they heard Gordon asking John Ellis. “Are you the gay sergeant then?”
Craig shot Liam a look that said ‘Equality refresher course’.
Chapter Eleven
4.20 p.m.
By four-twenty Craig had called the group to order. Andy was rubbing his hands together attempting to get warm, so Craig nodded him to stand by the fire that Davy had lit. Davy was the only one who wasn’t freezing, but then he’d been in the house all day.
“OK, first Annette with Bernadette Ross’ re-interview, then Andy and Davy and then Liam will report on our meeting with Brendan Gordon.” He glanced around the room then asked in an exasperated tone that no-one failed to spot. “Does anyone know where Gerry and Julia are this time?”
Davy nodded. “On their way. Harrison s…summoned them for an update.”
Craig gave a deep sigh; power games. He waved Annette on, wondering what to do about Terry Harrison.
“OK, Bernadette Ross. After a bit of digging it seems the Mercedes was registered to the estate as a staff car, but Jane was the only person insured to drive it. Diana Bwye arranged it that way to stop Mr Bwye finding out. She probably didn’t inform Ms Ross for the same reason. Jane is twenty-one next week and that’s when most of her friends inherit, but Oliver Bwye has everything tied up in a trust until she’s thirty years old, then she gets ten million. Until then he’s keeping her on a very short financial leash.”
Liam whistled the way Annette had wanted to earlier and just then Julia and Gerry rushed in, muttering apologies. Craig motioned them towards the fire and nodded Annette on.
“That whistle says exactly what I thought. Anyway, the delayed trust caused friction, as you might imagine, so Diana Bwye slipped her daughter cash as well as sorting out the car.”
Liam cut in. “How did Jane avoid the old man seeing it?”
“She only drove it near the house when he wasn’t around. Like that Wednesday when she knew he was at the golf-club, maybe. The rest of the time she parked it in an out-building.”
Davy interrupted. “My mum used to s…slip Emmie and me extra pocket money and my dad was always moaning at her. I bet it caused trouble at the Bwyes.”
Annette nodded. “Although I suspect that Oliver Bwye did more than moan. By the way, did you verify domestic violence?”
Davy nodded. “Yep. Both the w…wife and daughter attended the local emergency department frequently, with s…serious cuts and bruises, and in Diana Bwye’s case two different fractures of her arms. Oliver Bwye’s a real charmer -”
Craig interrupted. “We’ll hear more on that in a minute. Anything more, Annette?”
“Yes, sorry. Ross has given me a list of Jane’s and Diana’s known associates and Bwye’s business colleagues. Apparently when he held business meetings he did it in town, in one of those meeting rooms you can hire.”
“He never brought business colleagues to the house?”
Annette shook her head. “Never. But he did bring women. He used escorts regularly.”
Liam gawped. “In his own home? What about the wife?”
“If she knew I’d be very surprised, but Bwye doesn’t sound as if he’d have cared either way. He locked himself in his study and let them in the back door. Remember he was the only one with that key.”
Davy glanced around the study in disgust while Liam continued gawping, open-mouthed, until Annette tipped it shut.
“Bwye used an escort agency in town; I’ve got the name.” She reached into her bag for her notepad and flicked quickly till she found the page. “The Kasbah.”
Andy laughed. “Why are none of these places ever called something normal, like Joe’s Body Shop?”
Liam’s bellowed laughter told him what he’d just said. Craig continued before the discussion deteriorated.
“You know this area, Andy. Have you ever heard of the place?”
Andy nodded. “Aye. It costs a ton and it’s supposed to have some gorgeous women, hey. It’s wealthy business types like Bwye who go there.”
“They don’t want the riff-raff spoiling the goods.”
Julia and Annette yelled “Liam!” in unison and Annette continued, “Those are human beings you’re talking about.”
Liam tried to look contrite. “You know what I mean.”
Craig nodded. “Unfortunately we do. Keep going, Annette.”
Annette glared at Liam as she carried on. “Bwye spent quite a bit on escorts. He regularly withdrew between five hundred and two thousand pounds cash from the bank; I’m getting more details on that. Two other things of note were that Ross just assumed that it was Jane driving the car that Wednesday; she didn’t actually see her face. And even Oliver Bwye can’t remove large sums of money from his companies unless the other directors agree. There are five directors in one company and six in the other and a vote has to be taken to release cash, so paying the ransom could be a problem.”
Craig thought for a moment. “Who inherits?”
“Mrs Bwye, and when she dies, Jane. They get forty per cent of the total legacy in cash as a lump sum, but they would still have to get the other directors say-so to liquidate their full assets.”
“Does Bwye have any insurance policies?”
Davy answered. “As w…well as the usual house and car insurance he has life insurance for twenty million on himself and Mrs Bwye.”
“Not Jane?”
“No. he probably didn’t think s…she would die first. He also has serious K&R insurance, like I guessed.”
“Any exclusions?”
Davy smiled. Craig missed nothing.
“Not on the K&R but on his life insurance. He’s excluded from any claims for death from heart disease and s…skin cancer.”
Craig was surprised. How many middle-aged men would agree to that?
Davy explained. “He had a heart attack w…when he was forty, followed by a coronary by-pass op, and a malignant s…skin cancer removed when he was fifty-two. No-one would insure him for either after that.”
It made sense; insurers weren’t known for their charity.
“OK. Anything else?”
“Just the normal; acts of God, s…self-inflicted injury.”
Craig nodded. The usual wriggle room.
“In case he decided to top himself to leave his family a fortune.”
Annette snorted. “Oliver Bwye sounds far too selfish for that. Sorry, I meant to say one more thing; Bernadette Ross was adamant that no-one drank whisky except Bwye and he was practically OCD about putting the decanter back. They have a cleaner three days a week but she would have known better than to leave it sitting on a lamp table.”
Craig shook his head. Had one of the first responders moved it on the Thursday morning? They’d said not, but only the prints would tell. He sighed heavily. The case seemed one step forward and two back at the moment and all they’d found so far was more people to interview.
“Thanks, Annette. Make sure you speak to the cleaner. Andy?”
Andy was staring down at his brogues, wondering if it had really been worth commandeering the waders to keep them clean. The searchers were probably planning a fate worse than death for him now. He shook himself from his gloomy thoughts to answer.
“I’ve set the searchers to work at the lake, but I’m not sure what we’re looking for, hey. They’re scouring the shore for tyre tracks, foot prints and debris, but it’s a half-mile around; it’ll take forever. It gets dark at four so I’ve told them to leave and restart tomorrow morning.”
Craig gave a thin smile. “I’m not sure what they’re looking for either; just keep going. Focus on the arc closest to the house and tell them to keep their eyes peeled for anything in the water.”
Andy looked surprised. “You think the Bwyes are in there?”
“I was thinking more of the dog. No-one’s seen it.”
“Oh, OK.”
Craig thanked goodness that Nicky wasn’t there. One mention of a dead puppy and she’d have burst into tears. Ju
st as he was about to ask Julia to report, Davy cut in.
“On the s…subject of the dog…”
“Davy, if you don’t mind I’d like to hear from Julia and Gerry before we come to you.”
Davy didn’t mind at all. He’d been playing a game on his smart-pad and he was more than happy to carry on.
“What did Harrison want with you, Julia?”
Julia rolled her eyes and Gerry shook his head before answering.
“To prove that he’s still in charge.”
“Except that he isn’t.”
“Nope.”
He bit into his biscuit and Julia started to report.
“Gerry and I interviewed the Bwye’s cook and head gardener. Much of what they said matches what we’ve just heard. They both said that Bwye was violent to his wife and daughter and mentioned that he saw other women.”
Liam snorted. “You make it sound like he met them at a tea-dance.”
Julia squinted angrily; their old animosity wasn’t buried very deep. “It’s preferable to being vulgar like you.”
Liam went to retort but Craig silenced him with a look.
“Carry on.”
“He saw other women and overly controlled his family, so as a consequence Jane hated him.”
Craig cut in. “Enough to kill him?”
Julia was surprised. She spluttered. “I s…suppose so. You really think…”
“I think Jane Bwye’s was the only blood not found at the scene.”
“But would she really harm her mother and her dog? Everyone says she loved her mum.”
Craig conceded the point. “You’re probably right; we don’t even know if she was there when they were kidnapped. But…” He stared into space for a moment and everyone saw an idea forming. “…what if she found out about the kidnap afterwards and decided to capitalise on it?”
Liam gawped at him. “You mean she made the ransom demand, or got a male friend to do it?” He warmed to his theme. “Maybe the unsuitable boyfriend? God, that’s brilliant, boss.”
Annette shuddered. “And cold. To use your parents’ disappearance for money.”
Craig shook his head. “She may not have known her mother was there that night; how often was anyone but Oliver Bwye in that study? Anyway, it’s just speculation and a risky strategy if she did. If she falsified a ransom demand we could end up with two, so which would be the real one? And, as Annette said, is she really callous enough to use her parents’ kidnap as a way to make money?”
To his surprise Julia nodded. “Her father, I’d say yes, definitely. She hated him. Her mum…maybe she didn’t know she was there, or, I suppose if her mum had already been taken then she might have thought, why not? She didn’t take them but she might as well benefit. It makes sense if she was desperate to escape her father’s control.”
Craig wondered who’d controlled Julia enough to make her identify with such hatred. He let the group carry on speculating; free thinking often produced good ideas. After a few minutes he brought them back to earth with a bump.
“OK, we’ll know our suspicions are wrong if we find Jane’s body. Anything else, Julia?”
She glanced at Gerry and he shook his head. “Everything else just confirms what the rest of you have said. Bwye was a real piece of work who everyone hated, but he paid their wages on time.”
Craig nodded. The rich were different.
“OK, Davy. What have you got for us?”
Davy smiled and tapped his smart-pad back to work. “Plenty. OK, the relevant negatives. Bwye never had perimeter cameras, no idea why. Maybe he had the rifle instead. The s…staff are all clean on criminal record checks, except for one of his grounds men, Brendan Gordon. No history of anything naughty anywhere else. Mrs Bwye was involved with two local charities and treasurer of one of them. I’ll dig deeper but s…so far everything looks above board. Jane was a very s…spoilt girl. She may not have had her own money but she ran up her credit cards and bills at all the local s…shops, leaving her parents with no choice but to pay them off. She was s…studying fashion design but it took her three years to pass year one, so her dedication w…was definitely in question. The course mostly seemed like something to keep her dad off her back.”
Craig interrupted. “Any sign of the unsuitable boyfriend? He might have gone to college with her.”
Davy smiled. “There’s been a s…string of unsuitable boyfriends apparently; the latest seems to be a guy called Justin O’Hare. He’s twenty-three and his family are very w…wealthy so I’m not s…sure why he was unsuitable.”
Gerry cut in. “The cook gave us his name as well. She said the family fell on hard times when his father made some bad deals. Said he was only after Jane for her money.”
“That sounds plenty unsuitable to me, boss.”
Craig squinted at Liam. He hadn’t forgotten his earlier clumsy remarks. “Carry on, Davy.”
“OK, O’Hare’s a possibility but I’m running them all for the past two years. I’ll let you know if anything pings.”
“What about the list of enemies from Cameron Lawton?”
“I’m s…starting on those now, and Bwye’s bank accounts -”
Annette interrupted. “You mentioned the negatives. Anything positive?”
Davy smiled at her and nodded. His hair didn’t fall over his face as it usually did and Craig suddenly realised that it was in a ponytail. Another fashion trend; maybe short back and sides would become one soon.
“Two things. The dog had a GPS tag and it’s moving, so that means it’s probably not dead. I’ve got a trace on it.”
Annette and Craig smiled; they were both dog lovers, although Craig’s Labrador, Murphy, lived at his parents’ house in Holywood. It was good exercise for his dad to walk him, even though he moaned about it, a lot.
“And the van. Des identified the treads as belonging to a Ford Transit.” He tapped his screen and turned the pad round for them to see. The image of a large windowless van appeared. “It’s big enough to hold three or four people in the back.”
Craig thought for a moment. “OK, ask Des to check how the treads would look on mud for the likely weight it might have been carrying; factor in the weather last Wednesday night/Thursday morning. Also, check how many of those vans there are in Northern Ireland.”
“Already w…working on the first and there are twenty-three of them.”
“Damn! I don’t suppose there’s any way to narrow it down?”
“I’m cross checking the owners with names linked to the case, residents within fifty miles, employees in any of Bwye’s companies and a few other things. Des did say that the treads showed a s…small slash on the left tyre.”
“Meaning?”
Davy shrugged. “It probably ran over glass at some stage. It will help confirm it’s the right van w…when we find it.”
If they were in luck it might do more than that.
“Run the MOTs for all the vans. I want to know if any examiner noted the slash in their MOT report and advised that the tyre be changed.”
Liam’s eyes widened. “They’re manual reports. It’ll take the lad ages.”
Craig fixed his gaze. “Not with you helping.” He moved on before Liam could moan. “Any vans too new for MOT see if they visited any garages to have their tyres checked in the past year. It’s a long shot but who knows. Anything else, Davy?”
Davy shared a look of martyrdom with Liam. He maintained the expression when he turned back to Craig.
“No s…sightings of the Bwyes at airports or ports and no activity on any of their cards. I’ve frozen their accounts just in case, but we’ll still s…see if someone tries to use a card. Oh, and I’ve hacked into Jane’s emails but the only people she emailed were female friends from college. That’s it so far. I’ve a lot of checks still to run, including getting more detail on the Bwyes’ GP and hospital records; it was the insurance company that told me about Oliver Bwye’s heart and cancer problems. We may need w…warrants for the other records.”
Craig nodded. “Let me know.” He turned to Liam. “Right, mighty mouth; tell everyone about Brendan Gordon.”
Liam gave Craig a faux hurt look and summarised Gordon’s interview in three minutes, ending with “Oh aye, and he’s studying landscape gardening.”
Annette asked first. “Where? Is it the same place Jane Bwye is doing fashion?”
Liam glanced at Craig. Neither of them had made the connection. Liam flicked open his notebook.
“He told Ellis it was Stonebridge College. Is that the same place?”
Annette rolled her eyes and was tempted to say “DOH!”, like her kids did when something was so obvious she should have spotted it immediately. Instead she said patiently “Yes it is, Liam. Oh, what a surprise.”
He sniffed. “So what if they knew each other from college? They’d have met each other around here anyway.”
“But college is a more social, equal place. If a romance was going to start it would have started there.”
Liam wasn’t going to be defeated. He gestured at Davy. “He’s just said she was seeing that Justin O’Hare.”
The bickering was giving Craig a headache so he raised a hand. “Be quiet, both of you!” His tone ensured they did as they were told. “Check out Gordon and O’Hare. Gordon blushed when we asked about Jane; let’s see if O’Hare does the same. Annette, I want you and Andy to interview him.”
Andy perked up at the sound of his name and asked the question that he’d been waiting to ask for five minutes.
“What was Gordon’s accent like? Can we hear it?”
Craig startled; he’d forgotten to get it on tape. He shook his head. “Neutral. I don’t know where he grew up but whatever his natural accent is it’s been trained out of him.”
Julia nodded like a sage. “I bet he was in the prison drama club. They could have ironed his accent out.”
“Good point. I hadn’t thought of that.” He turned back to Davy. “Anything more on the ransom call?”
Davy nodded excitedly. “Sorry, I forgot. The language boys s…sent me a report. I’ll read it out.”
Craig smiled. Davy’s stutter had always made him prefer to demonstrate things in writing and diagrams, and he avoided public speaking like the plague. So for him to volunteer to read aloud was a major step forward and a sharp glance from Craig warned Liam not to draw attention to the event. Annette nodded encouragingly while Davy found the right page.
The Sixth Estate (The Craig Crime Series) Page 14
