Shot of Silence (Justice Again Book 3) by M Comley (best contemporary novels txt) 📗

right, if there’s nothing else you can help us with, you’re free to go.”

“Can I take a card? If I think of anything later, maybe I could call you?”

Katy slid a card across the table. “I was about to suggest the same. Thanks for speaking with us.”

“No problem. I hope Grace and her family get the justice they deserve and you find the evil shit who did this to her.”

“So do we. We have to keep the faith and believe we will.”

“Good luck. I wouldn’t want your job if it was the last career going.”

Katy smiled. “There are times we all feel the same about our chosen careers.”

He left the room.

Charlie turned to Katy. “Really? Or were you saying that for his benefit?”

“You’re new to the job, hon, there are bound to be days when you feel the same way. It’s natural.”

“Maybe. At the moment, my enthusiasm for the job is super high. I suppose there’s a chance that will dwindle over time.”

“It will, take my word for it.”

Their conversation ended when a young tearful woman entered the room.

Katy welcomed her with a warm smile and gestured for her to take a seat. “Hello there, and you are?”

“Andrea Gregory. I was Grace’s second-in-command if you like. You know, girls sticking together in a perceived man’s world.”

“Is it? Still? A tad old-fashioned scenario, isn’t it?”

“Some men refuse to accept change. Not around here, I hasten to add. But out there, there are some clients who refuse to deal with a woman where their money is concerned. Maybe they think a woman is more likely to drop them in it with their wives, who knows? Sorry to be all doom and gloom, that comes from having too much time on my hands. I’ve been trying to think if anyone Grace has dealt with lately would have it in them to make an attempt on her life…you know…kill her. You’re sure to ask me that, right?”

“You’re correct. Did you manage to come up with anything?”

“No, not really. Not in the last three months or so. Back in June, there was a shitty incident with an investor who lost thousands. He rang Grace shouting the odds at her. She took it all on board like we’re supposed to, the customer being right and all that, until she’d had enough and refused to take any more from him. He went on and on at her until she produced an email in which she advised him not to be too foolhardy with his money. That shut him up for a few minutes, then he demanded to be transferred to Colin and put in a complaint about her. Colin ignored the man to an extent, sort of. He listened to him, took down his details, revisited the account and correspondence Grace had with him over the previous months and saw nothing wrong. The man was smarting, livid because he’d lost so much money and was reaching out for someone to blame other than his own stupidity.” Her head dipped after she’d finished. “Why? I’m not saying it was him, but some madman did this to her. Who and why?”

“That’s what we’re doing our best to comprehend. Do you have a name for this person and his address?”

“I can get it for you.”

“If you would.”

Andrea tore out of the room and returned a few moments later with a name and address written on a piece of paper which she placed in Charlie’s outstretched hand.

Charlie wrote the details in her notebook and handed back the sheet of paper. “Thanks, I’ve got that now.”

“You’re welcome. I’m in no way apportioning blame here. All I was doing was trying to figure out if there was someone who had any cause for complaint and he was the only one who came to mind.”

Katy leaned over to read what Charlie had entered into the book. “Gordon Brightman. Hmm…he lives in a posh area. Can I ask how much he lost?”

“I’m not sure if I can divulge that information. Maybe I should check with Colin first, sorry.”

“Don’t be. I can get a warrant if necessary, this is a murder inquiry after all.”

Andrea peered over her shoulder and back to Katy. “It was over a million.”

Katy whistled. “But you told us it was a few thousand.”

“I know. I was stretching the truth a little.”

“Wow, no wonder he was livid.”

Andrea shrugged. “Toying with the stock market can be a risky business, take my word for it. What I didn’t tell you was he’d made a killing on the market the year before. That’s why he came back for more and used a larger sum. It doesn’t always work out that way, the markets can be volatile at the best of times.”

“Surely people know that. I steer clear of it for that very reason, not that I have much spare cash to splurge. Everyone knows their money is at risk, don’t they?”

“They should do. I suppose with some people if they have success their greed gene starts crying out for more. I didn’t like the man. He sounded a bolshy bugger over the phone, if you get my drift. I was in the office when he began yelling at Grace; it was awful. No one should be allowed to get away with speaking to someone like that in business, or everyday life come to that, either. Disgusting little man.”

“Can I ask what Colin did about the complaint?”

“He went back to the man and told him to take it higher, to the ombudsman, if necessary, because as far as he could see Grace had done nothing wrong.”

“And did Mr Brightman do that?”

“I don’t know, you’ll have to ask Colin. Although these types of complaints can take months to come through, so I’m led to believe, not that we’ve had to deal with that many, not during my time here. Some people need to get a life. If you had the money, would you take a punt with a million quid? I know I wouldn’t.”

Katy sighed. “If I had