Death Beyond the Limit: Fiji Islands Mysteries 3 by B.M. Allsopp

Author:B.M. Allsopp [Allsopp, B.M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub, azw3
Publisher: Coconut Press
Published: 2020-09-29T16:00:00+00:00

30

Horseman and Singh stood on the deck below the bridge, literally thinking on their feet.

Horseman simmered. ‘What if he’d been a truck driver and left someone for dead on the road and failed to report it? His action was criminal.’

‘I agree, but perhaps the maritime law is different.’

‘Not really. It’s still a criminal act. Not to mention perverting the course of justice by lying to us yesterday. That’s a crime that was within our jurisdiction for sure. We can persuade him to come to the station for another interview or we can arrest him. Once he’s off the ship, the crew will talk more freely. I bet they’re intimidated, the way he barks all the time.’

‘We’re not quite ready to conduct the most effective interviews yet. I could go through the crew list with Shaddock and ask his advice about which interpreters the crew will need.’

‘How about we work it out ourselves from the Immigration information? I prefer not to work too closely with Shaddock. I’m not sure he knows which side he’s on.’

‘Okay, let’s try that,’ Singh agreed.

‘Or we could do it the other way around. Leave the captain here and take the crew to the station for interview. They’d be protected from his threats there.’

Singh thought about this. ‘They could feel even more frightened, sir. Some of them come from countries where citizens avoid police stations at all costs.’

Considering the options, he moved to the gangway and looked down at the wharf. Musudroka and Kau were there, trying not to look like police, and four uniforms provided a visual presence, two near the bottom of the gangway, the others at either end of the vessel.

‘Excuse me, please.’

The voice was smooth, educated, with a strong Chinese accent. He turned. This was no fisherman. His bulky build and pudgy face wouldn’t survive the onslaught of long hours of physical labour and exposure to the elements. His body would have morphed to lean muscle and tough skin.

‘Bula, sir. I’m Detective Inspector Horseman and this is Detective Sergeant Singh. Are you a crew member on this vessel?’ Singh stepped forward with the crew list.

The man stared at them, unblinking. ‘No, I’m visiting the vessel on business. Please excuse me.’ He started to move past Horseman, leading with a shoulder as if to squeeze through the gap, but Horseman planted his feet apart so the man couldn’t get off the ship without knocking him down.

Singh spoke up. ‘We need to see your passport, sir. Unless your name is on this crew list, of course.’ She brandished her clipboard, smiling.

‘Why would it be on the crew list? I’ve said I’m visiting on business. I don’t carry my passport on me. Too dangerous. You should do more about stolen passports, you know.’ He flicked his head up, dismissing them.

Horseman enjoyed playing the plod at times. He smiled politely. ‘Do you work for TTF, sir?’

‘TTF? No, I don’t.’ He sounded a little irritated but his face was unperturbed. Expressionless, even.

‘It’s just that I understood TTF handles all the business in port for Joy-13.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.