Legacy of Lies (20 page)

‘Do you know the mother's name?'

‘Sharon Fielding,' Patrick told him. ‘I said I'd ask you what he could do.'

‘Well, technically, the police officer he spoke to was right. She hasn't actually gone
missing
. She's an adult and her husband hasn't reported her absence.'

‘But …'

‘But I can have a word with Reg Fine. See if there's any circumstances Danny didn't know about. Did he say that she knew Rupert well?'

Patrick thought about it. ‘They were working on some stories she told him but I don't think she knew him before or anything.'

‘Right.' Alec was thoughtful. ‘Patrick, I think we should assume then that this is a separate issue. I hope her disappearance has nothing to do with Kinnear.'

He felt more alert now, rested after his sleep and his mind was working again.

‘What do we have, then? We have a set of dubious accounts. Some kind of code concealed in his journals. Money from two robberies that Kinnear wants back and evidence that Rupert was trying to settle with him. I'm forced to the conclusion that Kinnear didn't want Rupert dead, at least not until he had his money, and it looks as though he may have been willing to give Rupert time to get what he thought he was owed. To legitimize it in some way. The thing in Kinnear's favour is the number of years that have passed since the robberies. Handled carefully, Kinnear may well get away with the money, free and clear, if just a little late.'

‘Except that Rupert died before he could finish what he was doing.'

‘Well, yes, and that obviously pissed him off big time which is, no doubt, why he came here and started threatening, though quite what he expected Naomi to give him is still something of a moot point.'

‘The journals and the ledger,' Patrick said. ‘He must have known about them and what Rupert planned to do.'

Alec nodded. ‘You're probably right. And his partner, this Reid fellow, he would probably be able to take care of the rest. Financial double-dealing seems to have been his speciality by all accounts.'

‘So,' Naomi observed, ‘Rupert's usefulness to Kinnear lasted only so long as he was transferring the money. After that … who knows? I can't think that Kinnear would have had scruples about getting rid of him.'

‘How do you think he tracked Rupert down?' Harry asked.

Alec shrugged. ‘Probably pure chance. He may have seen the newspaper clipping. Rupert had got greyer, but he hadn't changed that much. Kinnear would have known him.'

‘Who do you think Elaine might be?' Patrick asked.

‘That, I don't know, but I think you and Harry are right and the E in the ledger is probably her.' He frowned. ‘So, we need to think about our next move, I guess.'

‘And that is?' Naomi wanted to know.

‘Tomorrow, we talk to Reg Fine, see if there's anything we should know about Sharon Fielding. I agree with him that we need to use the media. I was against it before; I thought Kinnear would run and we'd never get to the bottom of things, but now we know what he was after I think there's too much at stake for him to do that. And we need to flush him out, shock him into making a move.'

‘Not sure I like the sound of that,' Harry said.

‘No more than I, but I don't see as we have a choice. Then, we try and track down the flat in London. My dad gave me what he remembered as the address, but I'll make some calls. Don't worry, Naomi, I think I'm more use here than trekking off south again. I might rope in Billy Pierce seeing as how his retirement is chafing on him.'

‘Is that wise? He's not a young man, is he?'

Alec recalled the way Pierce had towered over him, the firm handshake and square shoulders. ‘I don't think he's ready for the scrap heap, either. He'll be careful.'

‘And what about this Elaine?'

Alec shrugged. ‘We keep trawling through Rupe's notes; see if she comes up anywhere else. And we see what else we can find on the laptop. He's got to have buried it for a reason.'

‘OK, so that's the morning taken care of?' Naomi joked. ‘And after that?'

‘Oh, we'll think of something for the afternoon,' Alec told her. ‘I might even take another nap.'

Patrick had said little during this later exchange and it was Naomi that noticed. ‘Patrick?' she asked. ‘Something up?'

‘I'm not exactly sure,' he said. ‘Dad and I agreed earlier that it was funny Kinnear hadn't done anything since he attacked Alec. It's almost like he thinks he's got another way of getting to what he wants. I mean, I know we've had new locks put on and everything, but he could easily have broken in again if he thought we'd found the books. He must think we're still searching.'

‘You're implying someone could tell him otherwise,' Alec said.

Patrick nodded. ‘I think if he thought for one minute we'd found the ledger and the books he'd do whatever he had to get them. I think he's got a way of knowing. Or he thinks he does.'

‘Well, none of us would tell him,' Harry objected. ‘He could threaten us, of course,' he said anxiously. ‘Which is why, Patrick, I think you were so unwise last night.'

‘First he would have to be convinced we had what he wanted,' Alec soothed. ‘No point in trying to extract information from anyone if they don't have it to give. No, I think Patrick has a point. He's holding back, giving us time to unearth what he's looking for, relying on us being thorough and …'

‘Us telling Marcus Prescott when we've found it,' Patrick finished.

R
eg Fine welcomed them into the poky little office he shared with two other officers. ‘Good to see you both. Alec, how are you?'

‘Better, thanks. The bruises are now an interesting shade of green.'

Fine laughed. ‘So, what can I do you for? Sit yourselves down. Alec, grab a chair from behind that desk. Bristow's in court so he won't be needing it.'

Alec wheeled out a battered office chair from behind another desk, seated Naomi and found a wooden one that looked as if it had come out of an ancient school room for himself.

‘So, what do you have to tell me?'

‘First,' Alec said, ‘I think we should up the publicity here. See if we can flush Kinnear.'

‘Oh? And what changed your mind?'

‘We now know what he was looking for at Fallowfields. He won't run until he has it and, frankly, we'd rather have control of the situation than let Kinnear get impatient and do something we might not like.'

Fine nodded. ‘Seems to be making a habit out of that,' he said. ‘So what did you find? What was Kinnear so desperate to get?'

‘Money,' Alec told him. ‘Or rather, the means of recovering it.'

‘And what money would that be?'

‘The proceeds of two robberies,' Alec told him. ‘From back in the early eighties.'

Fine raised an eyebrow. ‘And the connection with your uncle would be?'

‘We suspect Rupert might have been driving the getaway vehicle,' Alec said.

Fine raised an eyebrow. ‘Well,' he said. ‘You've got
my
attention. Tell me more.'

Quickly, but as concisely as possible, Alec filled in the details of the crimes and the part he suspected his uncle might have played.

‘You're serious?' Fine said at last. ‘You really think this Billy Pierce may have it right and your uncle was involved?'

Alec nodded reluctantly. ‘It fits the known facts,' he said. ‘Believe me, I'd love to be proved wrong but in the absence of something disproving his involvement … Rupert was a clever man but he wasn't always a wise one and I suspect ex-DI Pierce was right.'

‘Sam Spade,' Fine laughed harshly. ‘I like that. But Alec, have you thought this through? Two men died. One an innocent bystander. Do you really think your uncle could have lived with that? Could he have just carried on as normal all these years? I didn't know him, but the impression I've gained from those that did was that he was a good man. An honest one.'

‘That's the one thing that causes us to doubt,' Naomi agreed, ‘but, as Alec says, we have to work with what we've found out.'

‘But you're only hypothesizing about the so-called code you've found in the journals. It might be completely unrelated.'

‘Of course it might,' Alec agreed. ‘It might even be something Rupert used to throw Kinnear off the trail, but it seems to me that Kinnear believed that Rupe still had the money and from the look of the ledger Harry's been working on, Rupert was drawing money back through the antiques business, effectively laundering it for Kinnear. There are purchases mentioned that he's paid one price for and declared another. Items sold for a different rate according to which records you examine. Money diverted. Though we don't yet know where. And when we compared this to the stuff his solicitor gave me, details to do with the house and his business and his ordinary accounts, you can't but help see the difference.'

‘You're pretty sure that the house and business are clean then. I mean, apart from his recent activities.'

‘Pretty sure, yes. It would need a forensic accountant to go back through the books.'

‘Well, I hope you've got deep pockets,' Fine said. ‘They don't come cheap.'

‘I was wondering, ‘Alec said. ‘If this became an official investigation …'

Fine threw up his hands in a gesture somewhere between horror and denial. ‘Alec, you've got to be joshing with me. There's not enough evidence to warrant those kinds of resources. Bring me Kinnear, bring me a direct link to your uncle and something might be done, but as it is, no hope.'

Alec nodded. He hadn't been expecting anything else but he thought he ought to ask. ‘But, the publicity,' he said, ‘you can handle that?'

‘
That
I can do,' Fine agreed. ‘We'll get the local media involved and Kinnear's picture out there with a statement to the effect that he's wanted for the attack on you and an attempted break-in at the house of a recently deceased minor celebrity.'

‘Minor celebrity?' Alec laughed. ‘Rupe would have enjoyed that.'

‘Well, he almost was,' Fine said. ‘We'll just give it a little spin. It shouldn't be difficult, not with the local writer angle and the circumstances in which he was found. It might take a day or so to build, but I reckon we can get his picture and a brief statement in tomorrow's papers. That would be a start.'

‘Good,' Alec told him. ‘Then the next move will be up to Kinnear.'

‘There's something else,' Naomi said. ‘Probably unrelated, but Patrick's befriended a young lad by the name of Danny Fielding.'

‘At the farm back of Fallowfields,' Alec elucidated.

‘His mother went missing about the time of Rupert's death. Danny is convinced it wasn't as simple as her just leaving home. She's not been in touch and no one seems to have seen her.'

‘And you want me to see if there's any previous?'

‘Please,' Naomi said. ‘It occurred to me there might be a history. I wondered if you could check out the local women's refuges.'

‘I could get that done,' Fine said, though he sounded a little wary. ‘You realize, though, that I couldn't tell you anything. If she's there it's because she's in need of protection. It'd be up to her if she wanted to make contact with her son.'

Naomi nodded. ‘I think it would be something for Danny to know that she was still alive,' she said. ‘He's convinced she would have been in touch if she'd been able.'

‘So, won't knowing that she hasn't been be harder still on the lad?'

‘I don't know,' Naomi told him. ‘But we promised to try and find out.'

Fine considered for a moment then pushed his chair out from behind the desk. ‘Give me a minute,' he said.

It was in fact almost ten before he came back. He dropped a folder on the table. ‘Look,' he said. ‘You know I can't go into detail, but you were right. There is history. A half dozen calls in the past three years. Nothing before,' he sighed. ‘It's become more common round here of late to be called to domestics. Pressures on farmers have never been greater and tempers boil over. From my reading of the reports though, this was a case of six of one and half a dozen of the other. Sharon Fielding has a temper and so does her old man. She walloped him with a cast iron pan last year. Lucky not to crack his skull. Neither of them have ever pressed charges.'

‘I see,' Naomi said. ‘So it could be that there was violence this time.'

‘You're afraid Danny Fielding could be right?'

She nodded.

‘OK, look, I'll do a ring round. I'm assuming they've called the hospitals and the usual stuff?'

‘You know, I'm not sure they have,' she said thoughtfully. ‘Patrick said that Danny had phoned family and friends, but he's just a kid.'

‘Well, we can get on to that,' Alec said.

‘They might not let on she's there, you know. Depends if she's told them not to,' Fine reminded him. ‘And if she was unconscious and had identification then the family would have been informed. You can give a description, of course, see if they have any bodies they don't have a name for. I'll do the mortuary,' he added. ‘Be easier for me.'

‘Thanks,' Naomi said though she suddenly felt terribly depressed. What if Sharon Fielding did turn up dead or badly injured?

She sighed. Well, she supposed, at least then Danny would know he hadn't been abandoned. It was, she thought, a toss-up which outcome would be worse for the boy.

Danny Fielding had agreed to come to Fallowfields that morning. Patrick had thought it might be easier if only he and his dad were there, and Napoleon, of course, Naomi having left him behind. Napoleon was a great ice-breaker and Patrick was relying on him to ease the way.

Patrick met Danny in the meadow.