Whisper For The Reaper by Jack Gatland (best motivational books for students txt) 📗

photo and staring hard at it. ‘Yeah, it’s him.’

‘What do you mean?’ Billy, now interested, turned to face Dave who placed the photo down.

‘That lad was in the pub a few days back,’ he replied.

‘You remember everyone who comes into your pub?’ Billy was impressed, but Dave shook his head.

‘Not like that,’ he said. ‘I mean, I remember watching him as he didn’t look eighteen, but he didn’t order anything. It was more who he met with.’

Billy felt like he already knew the answer to the next question, but he asked it anyway. ’You’re telling me that a day or so before his death, Nathanial Wing met with someone in your bar?’

‘Yup.’

‘Who?’

Dave had grabbed the plates again and was already walking to the door as he spoke.

‘The German police officer, Müller,’ he finished. ‘They met for a couple of minutes, and then the kid left after some heated words. I didn’t hear what they were, but the German shouted out something as he left. Something like tag send gezalt.’ He smiled. ‘I don’t know what it meant, but I remember thinking he’d sneezed on the last word.’

As Dave left with the dirty plates, Billy started checking the words through a German to English filter on his laptop. After a few tries, he found what he was looking for.

Tage Sind Gezählt

Billy stared in shock at the translation next to the three German words.

Days Are Numbered

His hand trembling, Billy picked up his phone and called Declan.

‘Guv?’ He said when it was answered. ‘I think you need to come back to the Library. I think we have a lead.

14

Wheeler Stealer

By the time Declan, Monroe and Jess had arrived back at the Library, Billy was already deep in conversation with Doctor Marcos.

‘What do we have?’ Declan asked. Billy showed his screen, and so Declan and the others joined Doctor Marcos at the table. On the screen was CCTV footage of the bar.

‘Our landlord friend was kind enough to give me this footage,’ Billy said as he returned the footage to the start. ‘Taken the night before Nathanial Wing died, so we’re looking at around twenty-four hours before his murder.’

On the screen was the bar, and several tables were in view. At the bottom right however was Rolfe Müller, sitting on his own, and reading a book.

‘He’s like that for about fifteen minutes,’ Billy explained. ‘Doesn’t order a drink, just sits and reads. And then around seven twenty…’ he slid the viewing slider along, and the scene jumped slightly as Nathanial Wing now walked into the bar in the top left-hand corner.

‘Watch,’ Billy said as, on the screen, Wing walked directly over to Rolfe’s table.

‘He knew exactly where to go,’ Monroe mused. ‘Didn’t even look around.’

On the screen Wing and Müller exchanged words, Wing still standing. Then, after about twenty seconds, Wing sat down opposite the German detective.

‘We don’t have sound, but we have body language,’ Doctor Marcos added here. ‘Nathanial Wing is nervous, agitated. Even through this camera we can see that he’s fidgeting, filled with nervous energy. Müller on the other hand is calm, relaxed. He’s not surprised to see Nathanial.’

‘They know each other,’ Declan rubbed at his chin. ‘Why do they know each other?’

‘Maybe Müller is the German that the other kids heard talking to him?’ Jess suggested. Absently, Declan nodded as, on the screen, the two men leaned in, deep in discussion. And then, as quickly as it started, it was over as Nathanial Wing rose from the chair, still talking to Müller, slamming something down onto the table.

‘What’s that?’ Declan asked. ‘Can we zoom in?’

‘We’ve had this talk before,’ Billy admonished. ‘We’re not the movies. All I can make out is that it’s a chit, or a coin of some kind.’

‘Maybe we should get one of the movie guys then,’ Monroe muttered.

‘Go wild,’ Billy replied as on the screen Nathanial Wing walked off as Rolfe Müller shouted after him. ‘They cost way more than me. Oh, here’s where he shouts out in German that Wing’s time is numbered.’

On the screen Ilse Müller appeared in the bottom right corner, walking to the table as Rolfe quickly pocketed whatever Nathanial Wing had left. She sat facing her brother as Declan paused the footage.

‘Go back,’ he ordered. ‘To where Wing rises.’

Billy did so, and on screen Nathanial Wing did the same as he had before, but this time Declan noted something else.

‘There,’ he paused the recording. ‘He’s looking off to the bottom right before he rises and leaves. I think he sees Ilse entering and leaves before she can speak to him.’

Playing the recording again, the team watched as Nathanial Wing rose, placed the whatever onto the table and left, as Ilse returned.

‘They sit together for five minutes and then she too leaves,’ Billy said, speeding through the footage until on the screen Ilse rose, walking away from the table.

‘She’s angry with him,’ Doctor Marcos commented. ‘Body language is tight, tense. She’s expecting a fight.’

There was a moment as Rolfe watched her, and then he picked up his book and read—

‘Stop,’ Declan snapped, tapping the space bar to do just that as he spoke. ‘Look.’

In the top right corner, another figure could be seen walking after Ilse as she left.

‘That’s Karl Schnitter,’ Declan hissed. ‘I’d recognise him anywhere. And I know he drinks in there most nights.’

‘Could be coincidence,’ Monroe pursed his lips as he considered this. ‘Or, there’s something more going on.’

‘We need to speak to Karl,’ Declan looked to the door. ‘I could get Anjli to—‘

‘She’s already interviewing,’ Doctor Marcos said. ‘And we need to speak to Müller too.’

‘I’ll do that,’ Monroe inserted. ‘From what we’ve already seen, Müller’s arrogant and a stickler for rules.’

‘How do we know that?’ Billy asked.

‘He believed we should share everything with him, but wouldn’t force the issue when you said you couldn’t,’ Declan replied. Monroe nodded at this.

‘He sees himself as an equal to Declan, as he’s the equivalent in rank. So let’s see what he does when a Detective Chief