As they lay in bed, Sally wondered at what point they would discover they were a couple. “It doesn’t feel like we are a couple,” Dave pulled her on top of him, “I think it’s time for some coupling.”
The Brigadier was gone in the morning, they were down at 07:30 as soon as the restaurant started serving. Both were dressed casually, Alan Rankin was called to meet them, only because they had no idea where they were going. In the office, they saw he had been busy, there was a kettle, mugs and a fridge. “You’ve got the priorities right.” “Is it true you were telling the Commander what to do?” “I said to him what needed to happen. Is he on the base this morning?” “No, his deputy will be,” “Can you locate him and ask if he could come and see us, then, while Sally makes coffee for us all, would you find her office supplies, pens, pencils, A4 envelopes, note pads, all the stuff you normally need. I have another job for you after that.” Ten minutes later a Lieutenant Commander was sitting at the table in their office, “I’ve been told to give you every assistance possible.” Dave thanked him for coming, “The CPO needs to have access to all areas of the base, he isn’t cleared for Logistics, I want to go there this morning.” Notes were being made, “Miss Fellowes wants to interview the flatmate of Morag Fossey, the missing girl, I understand she works in the kitchens, if she is in today, could she be sent over, if she isn’t at work, could someone contact her and send a car to bring her here. Lastly, I want to visit Logistics, can you organise whoever is in command to meet me.” The officer looked at Dave, “I’m not sure…” That was as far as he got, Dave interrupted, “There will be no ‘I’m not sures’, things need to be done, we are already days behind.” Half an hour later, Sally was fully stocked with everything she required, Dave asked Alan to check if there had been a delivery for him, he called the gatehouse, “it arrived at 04:30 this morning, someone will bring it across.” The flatmate was working and would be with her at 10:30, Alan had authority to go anywhere on the base and the senior officer in Logistics was waiting for them. “Bugger me, you make things happen.” “There’s no time to lose, we need to leave Sally so she can speak to the girl in a bit, call me if there is anything you think is important.” Dave and Alan walked across to Logistics, “what do you hope to find here?” “I don’t know, but since this was where the woman worked, it’s a pretty good place to start.” They waited at the door until Lieutenant Henderson was called, he led them through a series of doors and down a corridor, finally he swiped his ID card across a reader and they were in the warehouse. There were rows of racking with pallets, and a section with shelving, many crates were on the floor. “Explain how all this works, I want to know about goods coming in and going out. Imagine I’m a new starter, talk me through it.” “Goods come in, they are checked against the order we had placed, depending on what they are, sometimes they are unpacked and put on shelves, a large item may be stored on a pallet and put in the racking. Wooden crates are kept to return items, we have carpenters who will build framing for anything being sent out in a crate. Once the delivery has been checked, the location is noted, a bar code is fixed to the item for traceability, the paperwork is then sent to the office for processing. If we want to find out where an item is, the computer will tell us. For goods going out, they are boxed or crated, the dispatch note is put in a thick polythene pouch which is then fixed to the crate using an air powered staple gun. All outgoing goods are on one side, incoming on the other.” “Do you know how big the missing parts are, how big a box would they fit in.” “About the size of a medium suitcase.” “I want to see a list of everything sent out on Friday, have someone bring me the list.” “I’m not sure you are authorised to see…” “I want it now, every minute you delay, puts the goods further away, do it now.” A phone was picked up, several minutes later, Dave had a list of the outgoing shipments. “Do you know how many boxes you have in here currently?” “I can run an inventory list, we can count up to see how many.” “Do it, then have the boxes in here counted,” There was going to be a protest, but he decided against it. Turning to Alan, “go upstairs, find whoever worked with Morag, bring her down here, I want to talk to her.” He went off with the Lieutenant, five minutes later he returned with a young girl, probably about twenty. “This is Lara, she assisted Morag.” Dave’s voice had changed, it was much softer, “Hi, I’m Dave, I’ve been sent to find Morag, can we talk?” she nodded, Dave led her over to a quieter place in the warehouse, he asked how Morag was on Friday, “she seemed a bit excited, I asked her if she was going out that night, she said she was having to stay behind for a late collection.” “Was this normal?” “It happens on a regular basis, either the carriers are running late or the goods going out are not ready.” “Does she have a boyfriend?” “She talks about one, but I’ve never seen her out in Helensburgh with anybody, I’ve seen her a few times with the girl she shares her flat with, but never with a man.” “One last thing, can you show me the list of the late collections. Check if you have to before bringing it to me.” Alan handed him a list of the dispatches on Friday, “this means nothing to me,” he called Lara back, “Look at this list, do you see anything odd, are they all the usual companies you deliver to?” She spent some time going through the list, “yes, there is nothing different.” “Are the late ones on here?” She looked to the bottom then shook her head. “I want the list of the late ones, bring it to me quickly.” The warehouse had now become a lot busier, people were being given orders to count the boxes. “There should be three hundred and forty seven boxes, it will take us some time to count them.” Dave asked Alan to call Sally, he passed over the phone when he heard her voice. “How did it go with the flatmate?” “Dave she’s not very bright, there doesn’t seem to be a lot going on upstairs. She raised the alarm at around 22:00 when Morag hadn’t returned, there isn’t anything else. There isn’t a boyfriend or any other close friend.” “OK, any emails?” “One authorising the use of weapons, another from Jane Goodley wanting to arrange a meeting.” “Call her back, explain the situation, say we might need her help with this one, print out the email for the weapons, has the package from home been delivered?” “Yes, I’m using one of the laptops.” “Bring me a loaded Glock and a shoulder holster, ask someone to bring you to Logistics, if you can’t find anyone, I’ll send Alan.” Lara had returned, there was a list of four packages all going with the same carrier. “Do these look like usual ones?” “Yes, we have stuff going to them all the time.” Dave thanked her. The count was progressing slowly, Dave was pacing up and down. Sally arrived, she handed him the backpack, he put on the shoulder holster, made sure it was tight, then took out the Glock, Alan looked at him but said nothing. He went off to find coffees, he returned with three. The Lieutenant came over to say they were recounting, “we counted an extra box, they are counting in teams of two to double check.” The second count returned the same number. “I want the extra box found, I don’t care what you have to do to find it.” He handed Sally the two lists, go upstairs with Alan, he will show you where to go, check out Friday’s dispatches, look for anything different, there’s a girl, Lara, she will help you.” Alan was back a few minutes later, he asked what he thought was in the extra crate, Dave had an idea, but said nothing.
It was two and a half hours later when it was located. There was a label on the top like all the others, but it didn’t correspond to any paperwork. The crate was brought over on a forklift to where Dave had stationed himself. “Would everyone please leave and wait in the offices, keep away from the windows overlooking the warehouse. CPO Rankin and Lieutenant Henderson, please remain here.”
Once everyone was gone, Dave took a crowbar to prise open the crate, Alan moved towards him to help, “please stay back until I say so.” He pushed off the lid, inside was what looked like a large thick black rubber bag, Dave new instantly what it was, he leaned into the crate to undo the zip on the body bag, he wondered who it would be. It was Morag Fossey, there was bruising round her neck, she had been strangled. He zipped the bag back up. Standing up, he told the Lieutenant to seal off the warehouse, “no one in or out from now on.” “Alan, get the military police here, phone the Lieutenant Commander, say to him I’ve found the missing woman. He sat on another crate looking at the one he had just opened. She was the first, he wondered how many more there might be.
The Lieutenant returned, followed by four naval police, Dave said for them to allow no one into the building without first coming to check with him. Taking off his jacket, the Lieutenant looked at the shoulder holster and the Glock, but said nothing. “Tell me about her, what was she like, did she mix with everyone else?” The Lieutenant hesitated, he was thinking how to put his thoughts into words, “she was Morag, I don’t think I ever looked at her properly, she was always there when she was needed. She thought nothing of getting her hands dirty in the warehouse if the pressure was on.” Dave asked what she looked like, “plain,” “did she wear make up?” “No, I don’t think so, I never looked at her that closely.” The Morag in the bag, had bright red lipstick. A guard came in to say the Lieutenant Commander was outside. “Let him in,” he looked flustered and out of breath, Dave thought he must have run all the way here. “Where did you find her?” “In the box,” the Lieutenant Commander moved towards the crate and looked inside. “It’s alright, whoever did it was kind enough to put her in a bag.” The guard came back in, “CPO Rankin and a Miss Fellowes are waiting.” “Yes, they can come in.” Sally rushed over to Dave, she threw her arms round him, there were tears in her eyes. Those present were staring at the pair of them. He kissed her gently on the head. “Alan, is there a doctor on duty today?” “I don’t think so, there will be nurses and orderlies, but no doctor unless someone needs treatment.” Dave was frustrated, “find the doctor, tell him it is urgent, have a car sent for him if necessary.” “Sally since we know Morag swiped out when she left, when Alan returns, get him to take you to where the CCTV recorders are kept, I want to see who swiped out instead of her, have images printed out and brought back here. Don’t take any shit from anyone, call me if there is a problem.” “The guard appeared for the third time, “the Base Commander,” Dave nodded. There was now a small group standing near to the crate, the CPO came in with the Base Commander, “ten minutes for the doctor,” “would you take Sally over to the CCTV control room, smooth the way if there is any trouble, let the guards know the doctor is on his way and to be let through.” “Update please, tell me what you have found.” All eyes were now on Dave, “Morag Fossey, dead, strangled, nothing else.” “What are you doing to find out who did it?” “I think I know the answer to that, but we will discuss my suspicions later.” “How did you find her?” “There was one too many crates in here, it took three hours to find it, Morag was inside.” He walked up to the box and looked inside, “how do you know it is her?” “I opened the bag and looked.” They waited for the doctor to arrive, Dave asked if he was a Naval doctor, “Yes, although I help out locally when they are short.” The missing girl is in the crate in a body bag, there is bruising round her neck, can you take her over to the medical block, check there are no other injuries, I want to know if she had sex before she was killed, if so, make sure her underwear is kept, if it is missing, keep the skirt or trousers she had on. I want semen samples.” The doctor phoned for an ambulance and orderlies, “can you give me the results as soon as you have them, the doctor replied saying he wasn’t a pathologist, “You’re a doctor, examine the body, look for any other wounds, even I could do that.” Three orderlies arrived, with the help of the doctor, Morag Fossey was lifted out the crate then carried to the ambulance, the doctor left at the same time. “Lieutenant, do you have a meeting room here with conference facilities, I need a Zoom meeting setting up.” “Yes, upstairs, I will need IT to be here to make it work.” Dave took out his phone, he called the Brigadier, “Sir I need to call a Zoom meeting from here, can you contact the Admiral and Jane Goodley, have them liaise with each other for a suitable time, the sooner the better. Ask Jane to phone me, I think the
Home Office may have to be involved, call me back if there is an issue. Twenty minutes later, his phone rang, he walked away from the others to speak. “The girl is dead, I found her in a box, I think it was the captain. If he is a suspect it now becomes a murder hunt for him, you have to make a decision about informing the Home Office, for the moment, I can keep the body on the base, but she can’t be kept here indefinitely. This is a small community, word will soon get round, think about that before we talk later.” Sally had returned and was looking for him. She was holding an envelope, “it was Captain Grassington who swiped out using her pass, the photographs show him going through the turnstile, her name is recorded at the same time, there is no record of him leaving.” “Thank you, since he didn’t have his suitcase when he left, we must assume it is here. “Sally, can you go back to checking the paperwork.” Alan asked Sally if he was always like this, “his head is buzzing, he is working on different levels, thinking of different scenarios, he will be several steps ahead of where we are at the moment. I have no idea how he does it.” “Alan, a most important job for you, can you go to the NAAFI, bring back coffee, sandwiches and biscuits, put it on the Commander’s tab, we’ve had very little since breakfast. The Brigadier called him back, the meeting was arranged to take place in forty five minutes, the Lieutenant Commander was asked to arrange with IT to ensure they were ready at this end. Only the Base Commander and Dave were left in the warehouse. “You give out orders as if you were running this base,” “as far as this investigation goes, I am, I have been given a free hand to investigate wherever and whoever I need to.” He was asked if he took any pleasure giving orders to officers. “No, I have a job to do, this is what I am good at, someone needs to make things happen, in this case it’s me. It makes no difference what rank anyone is.”
They made their way up to the meeting room in Logistics, the links were being checked, the coffee, sandwiches and biscuits had been delivered by Alan, Dave sat eating, he offered a coffee to the Base Commander, he declined. It wasn’t long before the meeting started, Dave took control, doing the introductions first and then giving an update. “The missing woman is dead, I suspect she was strangled, the base doctor is checking to see if she had sex before being killed. If she did, then we can use the semen to trace the murderer, the main suspect is the sub’s captain. Thomas Grassington, disembarked with a kitbag and a suitcase, when he left the base using the woman’s ID, he only had his kitbag. Either the suitcase is on the base, or it has been sent offsite using the dead woman to dispatch it somewhere.” Sally knocked and came into the room, she pushed a paper in front of Dave, “excuse me, Sally has more information,” there was an inaudible conversation, before Sally left. “We have an update, there were four packages picked up after the others, the carriers have been in contact, one of the parcels is going to a different address from the one on the paperwork. It’s going to Thomas Grassington, c/o News and Booze, Kirkwall, to be collected. I think we can assume the missing parts are on the way there, Jane, I think this is where you come in, liaise with the Admiral, decide whether you want to intercept the package and replace the stolen items, see what happens afterwards, or arrest Grassington when he goes to collect the parcel. Where is he now and how will he get to Kirkwall, it’s in the Orkney’s isn’t it?” The Base Commander now spoke, “he has a yacht, moored further down the loch in a marina.” “Big one or small one, could he sail to Kirkwall in it?” “It’s sea going, capable of sailing round the UK or over to Ireland, you couldn’t cross the Atlantic in it. He can sail it single handed.” “Phone the marina, find out if it is still there, if not when did it sail.” The base Commander left to make a call. “David, what do you suggest?” it was the Admiral asking, “The issue is, replacing the stolen items with something else could let him know we are on his trail, not replacing them leaves you wide open. He has taken them to sell on, he has planned this carefully, he must also have planned his exit, put twenty four hour surveillance on his wife, do it as soon as we finish. Sally has her bank statements and mobile phone records, tap the house phone if there is one.” The Base Commander returned, “he left at 09:00 on Saturday morning saying he was sailing down to Portsmouth to see his wife.” “How long will it take him to reach Kirkwall?” “Three to four days, it depends on the weather.” “That means he could be there today or tomorrow, decisions need to be made quickly. Admiral, do you have anything suitable to replace the stolen items with, they need to be available to be sent to Kirkwall now, can I leave that with you. I want to know who he is passing the goods to, who are his contacts and where is he going. Don’t let the parcel be handed over until you have done the swap, have the carriers delay the parcel on their tracking system. Jane you will need to do that, Sally will give you the consignment number. I think that is enough for just now, I will decide what Sally and I do, depending on your updates, any questions?” There were none, Dave asked for an update in one hour. The conference call was ended, Sally was summoned into the room, “good work on the parcel, can you email the consignment number and carrier to Jane and then call her to confirm she has the details, the wife is being watched from now on, I was going to use Trevor, but I have a different job for him.” Sally left, there was only Dave and the Base Commander in the room, this time he accepted the offer of a coffee. Dave ate what was left of the sandwiches and opened a packet of biscuits. “You do give out orders, I can see why they use you, your brain is sharp.” “Is there a way to track the yacht, does it have a tracker like planes do?” “Yes, I have the software in my office.” As they left, he spoke to Sally, “thank the girl, tell the lieutenant he can have his warehouse back but to put a cordon round the case where she was found, then go back to the office, I don’t think we will be here too much longer.”
The tracking software was fired up, running the cursor over one of the ships on the screen brought up the name, “do you know the name of his boat?” “It’s in his file,” Dave waited for the name to be put in the search box, there were no results, “Could it have been switched off?” “Yes, but you aren’t meant to do that.” “You aren’t meant to steal top secret pieces of equipment. How can we find him?” “The normal way is to put out an alert for other shipping to look out and report a sighting, but I don’t think you will want to do that.” “Do you have a direct phone number for the Admiral?” “No,” “OK,” Dave phoned the Brigadier, “sir, I have to talk to the Admiral, I don’t have his number, he is due to call me back in an hour, but I need to speak to him urgently, could you have him call me now please.” Five minutes later his phone was ringing. “Thank you for calling me back, the yacht Grassington is on, has switched off its beacon, if that is the correct word, we cannot trace it, do you have a submarine off the west coast you could use to find it, we cannot use surface vessels or anything airborne, he would soon be aware we were looking for him.” The reply was non-committal, “I’ll see what I can do, it will have to go to the Defence Secretary and possibly the PM for a decision.” “Thank you sir, I know you will sort it out, the Base Commander has all the details of the yacht.”
He went back to the office, Sally and Alan were there, drinking coffee, he was asked if he wanted one, Sally said he didn’t. “Dave stop, sit down and rest, you need to stop and take a break.
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