Klempner purses his lips, glances between Richard and Beth…
Choosing his words?
Considering whether to speak at all?
“Is there any possibility it’s a mix-up?” he says. “They’ve taken Jenny, but perhaps they intended to take the billionaire’s wife? The other pregnant redhead? Can that be discounted?”
“That’s always a possibility, of course,” says Richard, “And it’s a line the police are pursuing, but without any contact from the kidnappers, how can we know?”
Klempner rocks his head, his gaze distant then, abruptly, turns to Beth, holding up his empty mug. “Mrs Haswell, could I impose on you for another coffee? The pot’s empty.”
Beth blinks a couple of times then mutters, “Of course.”
Klempner follows Beth with his eyes. As the door closes behind her, he turns to Richard. “There’s something I would like to ask while your wife is out of the room.”
Richard’s eyes narrow. “Oh? And what’s that?”
“Have you checked that the party who abducted her the first time is out of the picture?”
Richard stiffens. “What do you know about that? And how?”
“I… well… my organisation… was offered your wife, by Kane and that woman of yours, Adele was it?”
Richard stands, eyes blazing. “You bastard…”
“Whoa…” Klempner raises warding palms. “Those events were nothing to do with me. I only knew about it at all, and much later, because Bech told me about it. Even he only joined the dots when your wife turned up in connection with Jenny. I gave him a specific instruction to find out who she is, how she and Jenny are related. At the time of that first abduction, Bech had no idea who the woman was that was being offered.”
Richard subsides, growling, “Right… So, what exactly do you know about that business?”
“I know that a man who died as a result of those events, and a woman who didn’t, took your wife hostage with the intention of extorting money from you. She was offered to me essentially as sale goods. As I say, at the time, I knew nothing about it. Bech was handling the ground-level organisation. But the point is, is your Adele still behind bars?”
“Yes, Adele is still locked safely away. And in her case, the motivation was not money, but a grudge.”
Klempner Ahhhs, inclines his head. “Would I be out of order if I asked the nature of that grudge?”
Richard glares from under his brows, then, “I’d previously had a relationship with Adele. She saw Elizabeth as competition.”
“The current Mrs Haswell displaced her?”
“Adele displaced herself. But she was too egocentric to admit that. And also, she wasn’t the sharpest knife in the drawer.”
“Not entirely bright?”
“Quite.”
Kempner sits back, plucking at his lower lip, then drawing in breath, sits forward again. “Alright, let me see these security videos.”
I flip open my laptop. “This will take a while.”
“I’m not going anywhere.” He shudders, pulling his jacket tight around himself.
“You’re shivering, Larry,” says Mitch. “You’re cold.”
“I’ve spent the last few months in a hot climate. Thirty-five degrees and sixty per cent humidity. I’ve not had the chance yet to acclimatise to being here. Yes, I’m fantastically cold.”
She moves a little closer. “Where were you?”
“Thailand.”
“Thailand? What were you doing…”
Then she stalls as Klempner raises a hand… “Don’t ask, Mitch. It’s not important.”
Richard, Michael and I exchange glances…
Thailand?
Michael rises. “I’ll get you that change of clothes.” He sniffs, looking Klempner up and down, measuring him by eye. “A shower wouldn’t do you any harm either. Klempner, why do you smell of fish?”
“Had to make an emergency exit. I spent more time than I want to think about in the bilges of a fishing boat. It’s not a great option at the best of times, but in the tropics…”
Michael opens his mouth, then close it again. “Ahhh… I see…Thirty-two leg or thirty-four?”
“Thirty-four.”
“Back in five.”
*****
Charlotte
I’ve got to pee…
The camera…
But nature can’t be resisted…
Squatting awkwardly, one hand against the wall to prop myself, I relieve myself towards the drain and hope for the best.
On the camera above me, beside the flashing red indicator light, a second green indicator light flickers on.
****
Michael
Wearing clean fresh jogging pants and top, Klempner, smelling somewhat sweeter, sits by James, ignoring me as I circle the room spraying air-freshener and lighting scented candles.
“So, tell me what I’m looking at.”
“Better if I show you.” James clicks through to the security video footage.
Klempner waves across the screen at the bland view of a corridor. “Give me some context. Where is this? And when?”
“It’s the hospital where Charlotte has been getting her prenatal care for the last several months. And it’s from five days ago when I took her there for a check-up.”
Klempner nods, tugging at his lower lip as he watches the scene unfold. As the needle goes into Charlotte’s arm, he hisses, leaning in closer. “What the fuck did they shoot her up with?” He turns to Mitch. “When’s she due?”
“Basically, now.”
He meets eyes with her, holds her gaze for long seconds, then turns back to the screen, watches the rest of the clip, then sets it to replay. Still watching the video, “This is after she’d been checked over by the medics? What did they say?”
James’ voice is tight, his knuckles whitening. “Everything was normal. But she was beginning to dilate. And that was several days ago now.”
Klempner blinks a couple of times, then turns to Mitch. “Cater to my ignorance. How long after dilation starts does a woman go into labour?”
She shrugs. “It’s not reliable. Some women go from starting to dilate to birth within hours. Others, it can be days or even weeks, especially for the first.”
Klempner scratches at an ear “The timing smacks of intent,” he mutters. “So close to the birth, upping the stakes for a ransom perhaps?”
“Seems plausible…” says Richard “…but in that case, why no ransom demand?”
Klempner’s brows rise, his gaze swinging between James and Richard. “There’s nothing at all?”
“No. We’ve been checking,” says James. “Post, couriers, parcels…”
I cut in. “Emails… Messaging… There’s nothing.”
Klempner drums finger on the tabletop. “Kidnappers intent on ransom don’t generally make their demands hard to find. Tracing the demands, yes. Finding them, no.”
“I suppose… His eyes slide to Beth. “… you have also been looking at any Haswell post or messages? Personal? Company stuff? Just in case they did take the wrong woman. You are, after all, the one with the deepest pockets.”
“Of course I have,” snaps Richard. “Elizabeth is an obvious ransom target. Much more so than Charlotte. But there’s still no demand.”
Mitch rises from her seat. “Larry, you look done in. And you’re still cold. Would you like something to eat while you’re doing this? And some more coffee?”
“Yes, I would.” He shivers again. “And you’re right. I’m dead on my feet. I could do with some fuel while I get my head around all this. Can you make the coffee strong please, Mitch.”
“I’ll make a pot for you and James. Michael?”
“Please, yes.” I follow Mitch out as she heads for the kitchen, looking more hopeful than she has for days, then go upstairs. When I return a couple of minutes later, Mitch is there with a fresh pot of coffee and a bowl of James’ re-heated stew.
I toss a fleece top to Klempner, warm and thick. “Here, put this on.”
He feels at the fleece. “That’s great. Thanks.” Then tugs it over his head. It hangs loosely around him as he plucks at the fabric. “It’s kinda roomy.”
“It’s one of mine. I use it when I’m working outdoors in winter.”
Mitch chuckles, her swollen eyes crinkling around the unfamiliar expression. “They’d get two of you inside there, Larry.”
James glances askance. “I’ll fetch you something of mine instead. I’m nearer your size.”
Klempner pulls it around him. “I’m not complaining. It’s warm.” He turns back to the video, replaying it yet again, knocking back first a mug of coffee, then spooning up broth, chunks of meat and vegetables.
He pauses looking down at his spoon. “This is good. Your making Mitch? I never did get to try your cooking.”
“No, James is the cook here.”
Klempner clucks and flashes brows at James, then spoons up more. “Five days of nothing but eating on the hoof.”
“Five days? I only sent the message three days ago.”
Klempner replies with his eyes still fixed in the screen. “I was already on the move. As I said, your message caught me at an awkward moment. I came as quickly as I could get here.”
He pauses, his chewing halting, then restarting, as he pauses the video then zooms in. “What time of day was this?”
“About two pm. We were going for lunch afterwards.”
Klempner Hmmms. “So, the clinic would be busy? Patients, delivery men, couriers. No one would notice an odd unknown face.”
“That’s right.”
He zooms in on the heads of the two assailants. “No clear shots of their faces from elsewhere I take it?”
“No, they knew their way around. Kept their faces turned away from the cameras wherever they were ”
“So, they’d been there before then, to spot out the cameras.”
James slaps the table, rattling cups. “Fuck! You’re right.”
The joys of twenty-twenty hindsight…
Richard is already standing. “I’ll get onto Will. Get the footage for…” He hovers… “How far back would you say?”
“The last month at least. If they keep the files that far back,” says Klempner. Then he swivels in his chair. “Will? Will Stanton? Are we talking about the police here?”
Richard hovers, phone in hand. “Yes, Will Stanton, the Police Commissioner. He’s a personal friend.”
“And is my name likely to enter the conversation?”
Richard’s eyes narrow. He sucks in his cheeks, glances at Beth.
“I’m fine, Master. He’s here to help.”
Richard pauses a few more seconds then, “I see no reason right now to do more than request access to the footage we want.” He holds up his mobile. “I’ll step outside the room if you don’t mind.”
Klempner watches him leave, then, “James, do you have access to face-recognition software?”
James looks up from his laptop, tapping at his keyboard. “I’m on it now. It’s installing as we speak.”
“You can’t watch a month’s worth of video overnight,” I say.
“So, we all take different runs of video, watch at high-speed for coverage…” says Beth, “… and slow down to normal again for anything that looks out of kilter.”
*****