“Sorry. Right, I was wondering how the gang could have possibly known about the vehicles and where to find them, so I rang my mate in forensics to ask him if he had an inkling.”
“And what did your mate have to say for himself?” Katy asked, crossing her arms and resisting the temptation to tap her foot.
“He said that most cars of value are usually fitted with a GPS system, in case the cars are stolen at any time.”
Katy cupped her chin with her right hand. “Crap, I thought about that, I even asked Ethan Johnson’s staff if he had one on board, and then it slipped my mind to chase it up. Okay, ignoring that for a moment, how can we tell if the other cars had a system when all the owners have been killed?”
“Exactly, that could be their motive for killing them right there and then. The gang probably disabled the system right away, preventing the information transmitting to the GPS firm tracking the cars.”
“I think you might be onto something. Roberts’ suggestion might play a part in this, too. Maybe the gang drove the cars on the back of a lorry and then dismantled the tracker. Contact all the relatives concerned, see if they’re aware of the tracker and if they can give you a name of the firm involved, if you would? I don’t have to caution you to tread carefully, do I? They’re grieving relatives.”
“I’ll be gentle with them, boss. Trust me.” He bared his glistening white teeth in a grin.
It turned out to be Ross Samuels’ girlfriend, Vicki White, who was the one to confirm the name of the business involved.
“Are you up for this, Charlie?” Katy asked en route to the firm’s business address.
“Of course. I have to say, if they’re guilty then I’m pretty shocked about it. Some security, eh? You put your trust in a firm like this and end up six feet under.”
“Yeah, seems more than a little harsh, doesn’t it?”
They continued the journey in silence, Katy wrapped up in her own thoughts as to why someone could be driven to do such a thing.
Golden Security’s office was situated on a trading estate. The office was the shop front to a huge warehouse.
“Looks interesting. Got your pepper spray handy? I don’t usually, but I think I’ll take my Taser for this visit.”
“I don’t blame you.”
They entered the office to find a young woman in her early twenties manning the front desk. Katy and Charlie flashed their warrant cards.
“We’d like to speak to the person in charge. Thanks,” Katy said.
“May I ask why?”
“It’s a personal matter.”
“I’ll see if Mr Harvey has time to see you. He’s an exceptionally busy man.”
“I’m sure. And we’re exceptionally busy women, so if you don’t mind hurrying things along a little.”
She flew out of her chair. “Sorry, yes. I won’t be long.”
The receptionist was actually gone around five minutes, which seemed a tad excessive to Katy. “I hope they’re not hiding evidence in there.”
“Possibly,” Charlie replied.
Katy inched towards the door the receptionist had entered, and Charlie followed. A man in a white shirt appeared at the end of the hallway. Katy smiled. The man frowned and disappeared back into the room he’d come out of.
“I’m getting a bad feeling about this,” Katy mumbled.
“I’m inclined to agree with you. Want to burst into the room? I think we’d be within our rights.”
“Let’s hold fire for a few moments longer.”
With that, the young receptionist appeared once more. “Oh, you’re there. Okay, sorry for the delay. Mr Harvey was on an important call, and I couldn’t interrupt him.”
“For a second there we thought you’d forgotten about us. Thanks, he’s free now, I take it?”
“Yes, come through. Can I get you a drink?”
“No thanks.”
They followed the woman up the hallway and into a large windowless office. No, that wasn’t quite true, there was a skylight at the far end, flooding the area with the sun’s rays.
The gentleman behind the desk stood as they entered. “Sorry to keep you. I was talking with a client who had a list of a hundred questions to go through.”
“No harm done.”
“I’m Brian Harvey, I own this firm. How can I help?” He motioned for Katy and Charlie to take a seat and nodded to the receptionist to leave them.
“I’m DI Katy Foster, and this is my partner, DC Charlie Simpkins. It’s very kind of you to see us at short notice, we appreciate how busy you are. We’re hoping you’ll be able to answer some questions regarding your products.”
He retook his seat, and Katy and Charlie sat opposite him.
“If I can help, I surely will. What do you need to know?”
“We’re a bit naïve as to how your system works. Would you care to enlighten us?”
“What’s there to tell? We offer our clients peace of mind when they have one of our systems fitted to their cars. Customers only tend to come to us if they’ve spent around fifty grand on a car.”
“I see. Do you advertise your services anywhere, or do most clients come to you via word of mouth?”
“We advertise in all the trade magazines. Plus, we offer the garages in the area a hefty bonus if they suggest adding one of our systems to the cars at the point of sale.”
“Ah, right.”
“Is there a specific reason why you want to know this?” Harvey asked, his head tilting.
“We’re investigating a few crimes in the area, and your firm’s name cropped up during the investigation.”
His brow knitted. “I’m not liking the sound of that. Our name was linked to a few crimes? May I ask what type of crimes and how they have led you to my door?”
Katy inhaled a large breath. “The thing is, Mr Harvey, this week alone, three valuable cars have been stolen. We know at least one of those cars had a tracking system on it which you supplied.”
“Goodness me. This is the first I’ve
