“I’ll give you the account details, and we’ll get the money transferred back to Mr Thatcham’s account. That’ll make things right with his estate then.”
“I’m sorry this happened. Thanks for believing me. I would have been devastated if you’d blamed me and dragged me into it.”
“We can tell you’re innocent. See, the police aren’t always ogres.”
“Yeah, thanks, I appreciate it. Have you got the details for me? I want this money out of my account ASAP. I hate the thought of it being blood money.”
Once the transfer had been made, Katy arranged for the woman to be escorted home. From there she’d pack a bag and travel up north to her relatives. She had assured Katy, when she’d seen her off at the main entrance, that Stitch didn’t know where her family lived. Hearing that piece of news put Katy at ease. She’d feel guilty as all hell if Stitch found out Alison had been brought into the station and went after her with the intent to punish her for opening her damn mouth.
Katy didn’t waste any time getting to grips with the next interviewee. Miss Warren was already seated at the table, along with Katrina Banks and Charlie. “Sorry to keep you. Would you start the recording, DC Simpkins?”
Her partner said the usual verbiage, and then Katy looked at the young brunette woman with overlapping front teeth and plump lips and said, “Here’s the rub, Katrina, I need you to be honest with me.”
“About what? I’m confused about why you’ve picked me up and brought me here.”
“You were brought in for questioning regarding this.” She flipped open the manila folder Charlie had transferred from the other room. “Would you mind explaining why one hundred thousand pounds was put in your account a few days ago?”
The woman’s ruddy complexion evaporated to be replaced by one resembling her likelihood of seeing a ghost. “I…umm…I…”
“Yes, Miss Banks? We’re all listening and intrigued to know. Spit it out. Oh, wait, before you try thinking up a plausible excuse, I have to tell you that Alison told us the truth.”
Her eyes widened. “She did?”
“Yes. We know about Stitch and his mate.”
Banks gasped. “Caves? Does she know where he is?”
“Sorry? I’m not with you. Care to explain what you mean by that statement?”
“Caves went missing…the day the money ended up in my account.”
“Missing? How? When?”
“I don’t know. I was at work when the money arrived. He’d warned me there was going to be a deposit made but didn’t bother telling me how much. I was shocked, no, horrified to see that much in my account. I haven’t seen him since.”
“He hasn’t tried to contact you?”
“No. His mobile is just ringing out and then going into voicemail. I’m really worried about him.”
“May I ask why? Apart from the obvious, him not being in touch. What I meant was, do you have a reason to be concerned about his whereabouts?”
“Yes and no.”
Katy raised an eyebrow. “Are you going to tell me or are you expecting me to guess?”
“He’s always in danger. That’s why he told me he was going to try and get a large sum in the next few days, if the opportunity arose.”
“Danger? In what way? With his job?”
“Yes.” She sighed and wrung her hands. “We’ve been together around six months now. He only broke the news to me about what job he does a few months back. I’ve been living on the edge ever since.”
“May I ask why?”
“Because of the danger.”
“What job did he tell you he was doing?”
“He’s in a gang. The boss is super demanding. I begged him to leave, to find a better job. He went ballistic, told me to mind my own business and that he would leave when the time was right. That was a few weeks ago. He saw me last week and said he and Stitch had come up with a scheme and if things panned out the way they’d planned they could both be rolling in it within a few days.”
“And that’s all he told you, nothing more?”
“No. I swear. I got a call after the money had landed in my account and haven’t heard a bloody peep out of him since.”
“How did he describe his job to you?”
“He told me his boss was in the import and export business, high-value items, elite customers, that type of thing.”
“I see. Did he tell you where he worked?”
“No. One day he let it slip that a meeting took place in a warehouse. He said the boss was livid about someone screwing up his plans and he was about to punish the tosser. His words not mine, sorry.”
Katy waved a hand. “It doesn’t matter. Do you think that has anything to do with the money being deposited into your account?”
“I don’t know. Can’t you help me to find him?”
“We’ll do our best. When did he go missing?”
“On Tuesday, I think. Yes, it was definitely Tuesday. I’m worried something really bad has happened to him. He hasn’t been happy in his job for a while. Kept saying he had a sense of imminent danger. Please, you have to help me.”
“Imminent danger to himself?”
“Yes, at least, I think that’s what he meant. He clammed up after I showed how concerned I was for his safety. He assured me that he had everything in hand and that I wasn’t to worry about anything, and then…he went missing. Why wouldn’t I be bloody worried about him?”
“Is it possible that he might be hiding somewhere?”
She shrugged. “Anything is possible, but I’m sure he would have told me what his intentions were… He loves me and I love him. He’s trying to make a better life for himself and for me, hence the money.”
“Ill-gotten-gained money, you mean.”
She heaved out a sigh. “Whatever. If you play with the sharks, sometimes you have to sink your teeth into the huge chunk of bait.”
“Okay, I suppose. Have you got a photo of Caves?”
She removed her phone from
