The Last Thing to Die (DI Fenchurch East London Crime Thrillers Book 9) by Ed James

Author:Ed James [James, Ed]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Grey Dog Books
Published: 2022-11-30T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Reed shot out of the car. ‘I’ll see you inside.’ She ran across the car park towards the station.

What the hell was up with her?

Fenchurch sat in the driver’s seat, struggling to bear his pain. His knee was throbbing almost as badly as his head. He needed to get inside, take one of those pills. Just one. That’d tide him over. Numb the pain.

Christ, the getting inside part felt like climbing Everest.

He managed to stand up on one leg, then rested the other foot down on the ground. Felt stable enough. Right. Now to walk. He set off, slower than his old man with a skinful inside him. Left, right, left, right.

There. Not too hard.

‘You okay there, chief?’ Tom Carling was standing in the smoking shelter, sucking on an untipped cigarette.

‘Tom.’ Fenchurch walked over and rested against the frame, trying to look subtle but completely failing. ‘I’m fine.’

‘Cool. Cool, cool, cool.’ Carling exhaled deeply. ‘Had Steve Clarke’s DS on the blower, like you asked. Went over what they have on BRO.’

‘And?’

‘Well, if someone’s pimping out NFTs to kids, BRO aren’t involved. Certainly not directly.’

‘Steve agree with that?’

‘Backs them up totally.’

Well, that would’ve been too neat. ‘Was there a sign that Curtis was involved?’

‘We know he was. Seventeen separate videos on YouTube. A hundred or so tweets. Similar on Instagram. Did a Schoolbook Movies thing too.’

‘Who’s been going over his social media?’

‘Susan. Over a million followers on Twitter and Instagram. Not all of them were bots.’

‘And he was using that to advertise these NFTs?’

‘Not technically advertising. But if you ask me, the kid probably thought his career’s going to be over so needs whatever he can get. If it involved pimping out dodgy investments to his fans, then damn right he’s going to, right?’

‘Does Steve’s guy have any idea who was directly involved?’

Carling took another long drag. ‘Jolly Roger’s World of Pirates. They reckon it’s run by a business in Seattle. Neoxis Industries, Inc.’

‘Why do they only reckon?’

‘This is what’s dodgy about crypto. The ledgers are open, but there’s so much grifting goes on around the sides.’

‘So they’re not legit?’

‘Oh no, they are. Or seem to be. American sports are much more innovative. And exploitative. But this Neoxis Industries are running a scheme, that’s for sure. They’ve recruited a lot of British footballers to sell pirate cartoons. A few ex-pros have been getting stuck in too. Images of each player drawn as a pirate. Curtis Archer was Redbeard, for instance. Only thirty images, each one unique. The players don’t understand the tech or the risk, but they all love the money.’ Carling scratched at his stubble. The guy needed another full shave at half past five. ‘And their fans definitely don’t.’ Another drag on his cigarette. ‘But Curtis’s old man is possibly involved.’

‘He told us he’s not.’

Carling rolled his eyes as he exhaled. ‘You believe him?’

‘Fair point.’ Fenchurch felt a deep ache in his knee. ‘Okay, can you dig into this whole thing with Clarke’s lot? See if you can connect Oliver Archer to this Jolly Roger thing?’

‘DS Bridge has been taking the lead on that.

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