Nemesis by Vincent Cobb

Author:Vincent Cobb
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
ISBN: 9781907759260

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

But there was no record of the demise of one Arnold Brownlaw. Nor was there any evidence he had changed his name. I checked back in the records up to the time he was released from Smethwick. Nothing. Then it occurred to me that this man must have chosen to disappear, in which case that made him not only very clever but also very wealthy. It also made him my number one suspect. It would be almost impossible to trace someone who simply didn’t exist. And no one without considerable resources could pull this off successfully. And, if he had taken the route Jim suggested, then the only way it was possible to trace him would be to go over the records of all males who had died who would today be the same age as Brownlaw, and somehow check if there was evidence that their name was currently still on the records. An almost impossible task. The question also had to be asked, though: “Why?”

Purely on a hunch I rang Smethwick Psychiatric Hospital and asked to be put through to the secure unit. I was first placed on hold, then transferred around a number of unconnected departments, and finally found myself speaking to a Dr Margaret Simpson, the senior psychiatric doctor in charge of the unit. Initially, when I informed her I was seeking information regarding one of the past patients, she was only just short of hostile and managed to avoid answering a single question. It wasn’t until I threatened to refer the matter to her seniors, and also involve the superintendent, that she softened a little and invited me to come over to the hospital.

I let Jim know that the results of my search on Arnold Brownlaw were negative, and that I was on my way to Smethwick, leaving Blake and WPC Fletcher to contact the remaining forces involved in the missing children cases. I’d had another idea on the Brownlaw problem, which I passed on to the two constables to look into when time permitted, and that was an enquiry into any bank accounts that might be held in his name.

As was normal, the weather was atrocious; it was pouring with rain and I found myself stuck in traffic on the M5. It took me the best part of an hour to reach Smethwick, frustrated and short on temper.

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