Chapter Sixty-Four
A lot has happened since the twins were found safe.
Sadly, the only witness, Daniel Zugravescu, has died in hospital but the police found his journal and several photographs of the kidnappers he had taken from the window of the old phone exchange that overlooked the hideout.
His journal listed the coming and goings of four men. Daniel managed to take photos of them all. Two of the suspects are confirmed as dead, having been killed by someone as yet unknown and their bodies burned in the inspection pit.
The two remaining kidnappers are still free. And none of the million-pound ransom money has been recovered.
DI Eden Gold and his partner DS Tracy Archer are on their way to see the Mitten family in the hope they can identify the two suspects who are still at large from the photographs taken by Daniel.
After arriving and being shown through to the lounge and Mrs Mitten bringing through a pot of tea, a plate of biscuits and some homemade cake, they all sit down.
“Thank you for seeing us today, Mr Mitten, Mrs Mitten. How are things with the girls?”
Francis Mitten nodded. “Yes, they’re fine. I think kids handle these situations better than us. They are back in London for the moment, following their dreams. The publicity seems to have helped their careers even more. But, of course, it brings problems. They now need security wherever they go. But it’s the life they have chosen. They seem to be alright with everything.”
“That’s good news. Now, the reason we are here is because the man stalking the girls kept a journal of the events and took photographs of the men we believe were involved and we would like to show you some photos to see if you recognise any of them.”
“Before you do that, detective,” Diane Mitten interrupted. “I have one question. My daughters tell me they were not harmed when they were being held. But as a mother I have to ask, is that true? Are they telling me the truth or are they trying to spare me the details of what really went on? Did anything, you know what I’m getting at, did anything happen to them in the company of those men?”
Tracy looked directly into Diane’s eyes. “I know what you’re asking, Mrs Mitten, and I can assure you nothing of that nature occurred. Thanks to the man who was watching them. It seems the man, their stalker in this instance, actually saved their lives. It’s true one of the men, later found dead, did try to take advantage of one of the girls but Daniel, the stalker, was watching and it seems the instant he realised what was going to happen, he rushed to the hideout and shall we say, made sure nothing happened to the girls. So, to answer your question, no in all honesty, I think your daughters were spared any physical contact with the kidnappers. And when Daniel took them to the basement flat he acted like a true gentleman at all times.”
“Thank you for putting my mind at rest on that.”
“You’re welcome, Mrs Mitten. Now as I say, we have some photos and would be grateful if you could take a look at them and see if there is anyone you recognise. Because of the nature of the kidnapping, we feel this was something personal, so it may be the two people are known to you.”
Tracy Archer stood up. “I wonder if we can move the tray and items on the coffee table and lay out the photos. The light in here seems good enough for you to see them clearly.”
Tracy took the tray through to the kitchen.
As she walked back with the folder tucked under her arm, she opened the file and spread the photos across the table facing Diane and Francis so they could both see the eight shots. There were two photos of each of the four suspects.
“No. I don’t think I recognise any of them,” Diane said.
“Good God,” Francis said, pointing to one of the images. “That’s Chris Linwood. But I don’t recognise any of the others.”
“The one you recognise, Mr Mitten. Can you tell us about him?”
“Er, yes. It’s a long story.”
Eden leaned forward. “We’ve got time. Please give us the full details. We’re not here to judge. This is a dangerous man. We need to find him.”
“Chris worked for my father. He was a highly talented mechanic. In fact to give him his dues, he was far more than that. He helped to build the business with my father. Then he got an offer from another company, a partnership in their business. So, to avoid losing him, my father offered him the same when my father retired. However, when the time came, we decided to keep the business solely in the family. It was a joint decision. So we told Chris we had changed our minds and instead offered him a substantial salary increase.
“At first he seemed alright with it but the following day he failed to turn up, which was unlike him. Dad waited a couple of days and when he didn’t show up for work, he went to Chris’s house to talk with him and found a ‘For Sale’ sign outside. After that we never heard from him. But that was over ten years ago. I never gave it a thought. Surely he wouldn’t wait all this time and get involved with something like this?”
“Thank you for being so candid about the matter. I have to ask one thing. If he had been a partner in the business, would he have expected to make the sort of money involved in the ransom?”
“I suppose so. Although we have a turnover of several million pounds a year, we also have high costs. Staff wages, running costs and so on. We live extremely well but the money is all tied up in the business. From the
