Читать книгу Legacy - Jeff Edwards - Страница 12

Sam and Bree spent the next two days trawling through the records.

At the end of that time they knew a lot about Jade Green and her friends but were no closer to locating the videos. They took a break and wandered down the street to a pizza restaurant where they ordered.

‘Have you got any bright ideas?’ asked Sam, as they waited for their meals.

‘Not a one. It’s very frustrating.’

‘What do we know and what do we think we know?’

‘We know Jade Green lives in Walton Village. That she lives quietly, has several close friends and has only left the village to go to court with Toby Brown and on one other occasion, prior to the court hearing. We don’t know where she went on that occasion, or who she may have contacted.’

Their pizza arrived and they filled their mouths while continuing to consider the enigma of Jade Green.

‘She never went out of her way to visit the city before. Why should she suddenly do it then? What was happening in her life at that time?’ asked Bree.

‘Nothing. Her life was the same as it always was up till then. It was her friend Toby Brown that was having the dramas. His mother was murdered, and the court case.’

‘I believe that’s the answer. It has to be something connected to Brown’s court case.’

‘The timing is right, and it couldn’t have been about his mother’s murder as that had already been solved by then. I think Green would do anything for him. Could she have brought out the videos to turn the case for him?’

‘He did win the case, didn’t he,’ said Bree.

‘I’d like to go over the court records to see if there’s anything there.’

‘When we get back I’ll ring through to headquarters and have Thorpe get the papers sent over. It’s time I gave him an update anyway.’

Back at the shop Sam started to go through the available documents, searching for references to the Toby Brown court case.

‘There’s not much here. I’ve got a bank statement for Toby Brown. Look how much was deposited after the case.’

Bree looked over his shoulder.

‘Shit!’

‘He certainly did win the case, didn’t he? I wonder why they settled so quickly, and especially for such an enormous amount. Usually a large corporation like Briscoe will try to delay settlement for as long as they can. They could have lodged appeal after appeal. The final settlement could have been delayed for years if they’d wanted to. It looks as though their legal counsel must have been truly inept.’

‘Could their lawyers have been blackmailed?’

‘It certainly looks bad for them. Especially when you consider the sum that Tony Brown received. It’s an obscene amount.’

‘So we start with the legal counsel. Who were they?’

‘The prestigious firm of Collins & Tailforthe. I’ll ring and make an appointment to see them tomorrow. We’ll see how they react to a visit from Inland Security.’

The following afternoon they were conducted to the office of the chief counsel who had handled the case for the Briscoe Corporation in its dispute with Toby Brown.

Bree and Sam produced their identification before shaking hands with John Collins and his assistant, Catherine White.

‘How can we assist our friends at Inland Security?’ asked Collins.

‘We’re making some inquiries concerning the case of Briscoe Corporation v Toby Brown, where your company represented Briscoe Corporation.’

Collins made a sound at the back of his throat like he was clearing a blockage: ‘That case! Well you have to realise that there is privilege involved here. We can’t discuss specifics.’

‘Well let’s just try general terms and if you don’t want to answer something, let us know,’ offered Sam.

‘I’m prepared to listen to your questions,’ nodded Collins.

Bree led off: ‘Were Briscoe Corporation satisfied with the result of the case?’

‘Of course not. They lost,’ responded Collins immediately.

‘But they settled so quickly afterward,’ said Bree, ‘Did your company advise them to do that?’

‘We wanted to appeal. I told Brown’s counsel that immediately after the court’s findings had been handed down. I was even looking forward to it.’

‘So the court’s decision was wrong.’

‘Not wrong so much as too narrow in its interpretation. It didn’t take into account the full ramifications of the matter. I’m sure we could have argued successfully and eventually won.’

‘Why didn’t you?’ asked Sam. ‘After all, it would have been in Briscoe’s interests to do so.’

‘The board at Briscoe Corporation, in its wisdom, decided to settle. In my opinion, if Walter Groom had been left in charge at Briscoe’s they would have appealed. He hated to lose.’

‘Was that the same Walter Groom that was killed by Toby Brown’s friend Jade Green?’

Sam looked closely at Collins to gauge his reactions to the question.

‘The same. We had no idea about his shady past at the time but he led Briscoe Corporation very successfully, right up until they voted him out.’

‘So the board found out about Groom and threw him out?’ said Bree.

‘Not that I’m aware of. As far as I was told, Walter Groom’s secret life didn’t come out until after his death.’

Bree was puzzled: ‘So why did the board throw Groom out? He hadn’t done anything wrong. He ran the company successfully. They were making steady profits. Why upset the balance?’

‘You’d have to ask them that. I asked the new managing director, Clive Potter, but he just said it was time for Groom to go. I approached him about lodging an appeal but he said it would cost too much money for no result. I tried to explain to him how we could win, but he just cut me off. He wouldn’t even consider lodging an appeal.’

‘How’s the company going with Groom gone?’ asked Sam.

‘Check the newspapers. Their share price is down. Possibly due to the Groom scandal, possibly due to a board that isn’t being led too well at the present. It’ll pick back up in time. They have too many assets to fail completely. I won’t be selling my shares in the near future.’

Sam was at a loss as to what he could now ask. There didn’t seem to be any sign here of the case being deliberately mishandled.

Bree was also running out of questions. One occurred to her but she was reluctant to ask. Finally, with the silence dragging on, she blurted out: ‘Mr Collins, did you or any of your partners ever visit the Garden of Eros?’

‘What?’ Collins exclaimed. ‘That question is quite impertinent, young lady.’

‘Is that a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’, Mr Collins?’ asked Sam, coming to Bree’s assistance.

Collins spluttered: ‘No! Certainly not!’

Smiling to herself, Bree said: ‘Thank you Mr Collins. We’ll accept that answer, for now.’

Bree and Sam stood up: ‘Thank you for your time Mr Collins. If we have any further questions, we’ll be back.’

While his associate ushered the agents out, Collins stood and went to the window.

The associate returned and asked: ‘Are you all right sir?’

Without turning around, Collins waved his associate away. She left the room and closed the door. Hearing the door close, Collins turned, his eyes filled with tears.