The Whole Truth

CHAPTER 52

ROYCE MET SHAW AT THE FRONT DOOR where police lines were still strung across. Inside the building the activity was intense, with police and forensic teams examining every square inch of the place. As Shaw stepped carefully around their work he saw the pools of dried blood and white tape outlines that distinctly marked where a body had dropped.

Royce eyed his injured arm. “What the bloody hell happened to you?”

“My dog bit me. What did you mean about killing two birds with one stone? And why are you here in the middle of a homicide investigation?”

“I’d like you to see this first.”

He led Shaw into a room on the first floor that had been set up as a crime scene investigation office. On one table was a computer terminal. Royce sat down in front of it and started hitting keys.

“We got a video feed from a surveillance camera on the street that was put there to record license plates for the congestion charge. Here’s what it captured on the day the killings happened.”

Shaw looked over Royce’s shoulder as the screen sprang to life. The positioning of the camera up on a pole afforded a complete exterior view of the building. A van with a satellite dish sprouting from the top pulled up in front of the building and two men got out.

Royce explained, “The uniform of the London road crews.”

The men pulled a number of traffic cones from the van and used them to cordon off one end of the street and the sidewalks in both directions. The instant this was done Shaw noted the satellite dish started moving.

“They’re jamming cell phone reception,” he deduced.

Royce nodded. “After having earlier cut the hard-line phone wires to the building.”

Shaw stiffened as the next frame on the screen showed a half dozen men erupt from the van and race into the building. It happened so fast it was almost impossible to clearly see their movements. Even someone looking out a window or passing down the street might not have thought anything was out of the ordinary.

“Slow it down,” Shaw instructed.

A minute later, the scene was replayed again at half speed and the picture was zoomed in. The men were all tall and fit-looking. Lifelike masks covered their faces, and any weapons they might have been carrying were concealed under the long coats each wore. Shaw scrutinized each figure, looking for anything of distinction, any exposed skin that might have a memorable marking on it, but he came away disappointed.

Royce, who’d been watching him, nodded in sympathy. “I know, we’ve been over it a dozen times and nothing hit us either. They were obviously pros. They knew the camera was there and acted accordingly.”

“I take it the camera feed isn’t reviewed in real time?”

“Unfortunately not, otherwise it would have elicited an energetic response from the Metropolitan Police, I can assure you. They also must have been aware of that.”

“I probably shouldn’t even bother asking this.”

“License plate and vehicle are dead ends. Van was stolen from a junkyard in Surrey about a week ago, the plates off a wreck at a repair garage here in London. The back door to this building was kicked in, so evidently an assault team came through there as well.”

“I think you hit it on the head, an assault team. Front, back, hit each floor grid by grid. They probably had a list of everyone who worked here and the physical layout of the place.” Shaw said this more to himself than to Royce. “Okay, run the rest of the feed.”

Shaw stiffened once more when the shattered window glass poured down on the street. He saw a head emerge and the person started screaming. He couldn’t hear her, because there was no audio. But he didn’t need to hear.

“That’s Anna!”

“I thought it might be,” Royce said.

Shaw stared hard at him. “How much did Frank tell you about her and me?”

“Not all that much, but enough. And I’ve been in Ms. Fischer’s office. I saw the photos of you and her. I’m sorry. Had you been together long?”

“Not long enough.”

“Again, I’m sorry. I can only imagine what you’re feeling.”

“Don’t even try to imagine it,” Shaw said back.

Royce cleared his throat and turned to the screen. “The windows were accidentally painted shut and she had to break the glass.”

“Accidentally? You’re sure?”

“We checked out the painting company. They’re legit, been doing buildings around here for decades. All hands accounted for and all. It’s not such an unusual thing apparently, shoddy work I mean. I had my flat done three years ago and I still can’t open the damn windows.”

Shaw wasn’t listening. He was watching the image of Anna as she called out the window, obviously for help, help that would never arrive. Then a moment later he saw her climb up onto the windowsill.

“Was she going to jump?” he said sharply.

“To that awning below, we’re guessing.”

“But she never made it,” Shaw said dully. “Why?”

“I have to warn you that the next few frames are… Well, they’re not easy to watch.” Royce turned to look at him. “Are you sure you want to keep going?”

“I need to see it.”

The next scenes were played out quickly. Anna was on the sill of the window, in her stocking feet, grasping both sides of the window with her hands.

Mentally, Shaw was telling her to jump, jump, before it was too late, even though he knew it already was. It was an agonizing moment for him; he couldn’t even imagine how terrifying it had been for her. The next frame, however, sent his agony to an entirely new level.

He saw the first bullet pass through her chest and a wash of blood and tissue was propelled from her body. A split second later another chunk of Anna was blown out into the fresh London air. As she toppled back inside her office, Shaw finally looked away.

“We can finish this later,” Royce suggested.

“Keep rolling, I’m okay.”

Several minutes later the men emerged from the front door. Seconds after that the van was gone.

“And no one heard or saw anything?” Shaw asked. “Even a woman screaming out the window? Shots fired, her blood hitting the street?”

“The buildings on either side of this one are scheduled to be renovated so they were empty. The buildings opposite are occupied but the tenants were notified that the city was doing some hazardous gas work in the area that day and they were to leave their premises before noon or risk a hefty fine.”

“And no one bothered to call and check whether that was true?”

“There was a phone number on the notice. Several tenants did call and received confirmation that it was true.”

“Only the number was phony.”

“Correct. And the cones blocked off the normal automobile flow and foot traffic. And it’s a dead-end street. There’re never many vehicles down here anyway.”

“Leaving The Phoenix Group all alone. It was well planned out,” Shaw grudgingly admitted. “I’d like to see Anna’s office now.”

“Well, first I’d like to introduce you to an owner of The Phoenix Group.”

“They’re here?” Shaw said sharply.

“One of them flew in as soon as he was notified.”

“Where from?”

“What do you know about the phoenix symbol?”

“Bird that never dies. Rises from the ashes. Egyptian origin.”

“Your description is accurate, as far as it goes. The phoenix is actually a symbol that has various origins. Egyptian as you said. It’s also Arabian, Japanese, and at least one other.”

“Which is?” Shaw said impatiently.

A small man appeared in the doorway. He was dressed in a black suit and his expression matched the color of his clothing. Royce rose to greet him.

“Shaw, let me introduce you to Mr. Feng Hai. Of China.”