Nick jogged back to me. “Austin’s Mercedes is there but that’s it. Fifty bucks says rather than storing her car, the fucker sold it and pocketed the money.”
“Not a chance I’m taking that bet.” I wiped the rain from his face. “I vote we go back and ask the man some hard questions.”
Before he could answer, Nick’s phone rang. He took one look and frowned. “Unknown number. What are the odds it’s our favourite jerk? And how in the hell did he get my number?”
“It was on Chloe’s phone, right?” I reached out a hand. “How about you let me.” He looked about to argue, then nodded, and I plucked the phone from his hand, putting it on speaker.
“What the fuck are you two doing at my house?” Austin shouted.
Nick and I shared a grin. “Thought we’d swing by and check that Chloe hadn’t turned up,” I lied.
“Well, you can get the fuck off my property right now. You’re trespassing.”
“No. We’re looking for Chloe,” I corrected. “Double-checking places she might’ve turned up, something I thought you’d be happy about, worried as you are about her safety and all.”
Austin hesitated.
In a carefully measured tone, I added, “We took a look at those renovations you talked about. You know, the ones Chloe is helping finance. The ones you used that cash withdrawal for—paying tradesmen and such. There’s a long way to go from what we can see. I’d fire my builder if I was you. If you even have a builder. It’s a bit like that car of Chloe’s you’ve been storing in your garage. Can’t seem to find it.”
More silence, then, “Get the fuck off my property. Now.”
The phone went dead and I caught Nick’s eye. “He seems a bit upset.”
Nick laughed and pulled me into a hug. “That was awesome. We’ll make an arsehole out of you yet.”
“High praise coming from you.” I was handing his phone back when it rang again. This time it was Jacko.
Nick put the phone to his ear. “I’ll call you back in ten.” He waited for a reply, glanced meaningfully at the camera, and said, “Let’s get out of here.”
With our hoods pulled low against the bucketing rain, we made our way back to the rental car where we stripped out of ourcoats before tumbling gratefully into the front seats and blasting the heater to warm our shivering bodies.
Before he returned Jacko’s call, Nick checked in with Glen, but there was still no sign of Chloe. Nick’s head fell forward, his body seeming to collapse in on itself. “Goddammit. Where is she, Mads?”
I reached for his hand and kissed the knuckles before holding it in my lap. “One step at a time. Come on. Let’s see what Jacko has to say.”
Nick sat a moment longer, then gave a weak nod.
“Seems you were right to be concerned,” Jacko’s warm honey tone bled through the speakerphone. “Your man appears to be drowning in debt, at least based on credit cards and bank accounts. He also missed a few mortgage payments earlier in the year and was sent warnings from the bank.”
Nick perked up, his whole demeanour coming alive. “So, we were right then.” He squeezed my hand.
“On the button. But there’s more.” Jacko sounded pleased with himself. “When I tapped some of myunofficial sources, the scale of your man’s problem became clearer. The man apparently has a fondness for the horses and shoving white powder up his nose. Rumour has it he’s started selling a bit of it as well. There’s no police record of it, as Samuel probably told you, so he’s obviously low-key and careful with his clients. But whatever his sins, Austin Pattinson has been bleeding money for about two years.”
Nick grunted. “Might explain why he started selling.”
“True,” Jacko agreed. “Although I have another theory about that. But first—” The sound of shuffling papers came through the phone before he continued. “Tax returns show no legit income other than his teaching salary and no investments. Salary goes in and gets withdrawn soon after, mostly in cash. Credit cards are maxedand—wait for it—rumour has it he’s into the Crowbrothers for as much as two hundred thousand dollars, possibly more, although there’s no way to prove that.”
Nick drew a sharp breath. “The Crows? Holy shit.”
“Who are the Crow brothers?” I interjected.
Nick turned in his seat to face me. “They’re the New Zealand equivalent of the British Kray twins back in the day, only with a bit more class and a fuckton less drama. Anywhere big money changes hands in New Zealand, the Crow boys are likely to have some skin in the game. Trouble is, they fly under the radar better than most of their peers. If you met them at a party, you could be charmed into thinking they were nothing more than a couple of good old boys done well. Nothing to see here, folks.”
“But don’t let that fool you,” Jacko cut in. “They run a nasty-as-shit operation and couldn’t care less who they threatened in order to settle the debts they’re owed. Husbands, wives, kids, doesn’t matter to them. If your man owes the Crow brothers serious cash, then he’s either in big trouble right now or it’s about to come knocking on his front door.”
“So those cash withdrawals likely went toward keeping the brothers off his back,” I commented sourly.
Nick smirked.
