Money Talks
Andre and Aziel rush to court early the next morning to find out in which detention center Danner is held. When they received that information, they go straight to Brooklyn, where they are received by the prison warden. He is a polite short man, close to retirement with a potbelly. “Gentlemen, my name is Hen Wansgrid. What can I do for you? I understand you are looking for a distinguished guest who has stayed here for many years?”. With a wave of his hand, he invites the men to take a seat on the chairs in front of his desk. He himself presses his body laboriously on the comfortable leather office chair.
“Yes, Danner Winfield. We want to know if he's still staying here. We're linking him to the disappearance of my wife, Loraine Windrug. He was also engaged to her for some time," says Aziel. The prison director looks up at this. “Have you informed the judiciary of your suspicions? The man was very quiet here, but he was supplied with a lot of expensive things. When he was asked about the sender, he kept staring at the guards coldly," Wansgrid said. “But a brief investigation led us to believe that Miss Windrug was caring for him. No one else in his circle could afford the stuff he was given.”
Andre and Aziel nod, it is to be expected that Loraine would never abandon her ex in a time of need. In addition, she runs his company so that Danner himself is not without means. Despite his long detention, he comes out of this whole unsavory business a rich man. “Is he still here? According to the verdict, he would have to remain in detention for another three years. But we suspect that he was released early," says Andre.
The man turns, grabs a file behind him in a storage cupboard and goes through the many tabs. Finally, he finds what he is looking for and pulls out a folder which he places flat on his desk. “Yeah, here it is,” he says absently. And then he starts reading. “The Court of Justice has ordered that, in view of his good conduct and dues to the New York Community, he should be pardoned. It’s approved by the mayor and ratified by the Court.” He browses further. “Aahh, here it is. He was released two months ago. A taxi fetched him and transported him to a nearby hotel. We don't know how he moved further."
“Do you have the name of the hotel? Then we can continue our investigation from there”, Andre asks. Some more browsing and it’s handed to him on a note by Wansgrid. Satisfied, the men get up, shake the director's hand and leave. When they arrive at the indicated hotel, they go straight to the receptionist. No one is at the counter and the man is processing some information on the computer. When he sees the men standing in front of him, a professional smile comes to his face. “Gentlemen, how can I help you?”
“Two months ago, Mr. Winfield was here. Can you tell me how long he stayed before he left? And if he gave any info where he was going?” asks Aziel. The receptionist looks at him apologetically. “Sir, that's information we're not allowed to provide. It is the privacy that we guarantee to every guest”. The men had expected this answer. Andre clears his throat and rolls ten hundred-dollar bills into a napkin. He walks away from Aziel and when he turns his back to the front of the counter, he casually drops the napkin on the desk of the receptionist.
With eyes wide, he goes straight to the computer. “Ahem, well, he left two months ago. Immediately after he checked in, he left by bus and came back three hours later. He stayed for three days and left the hotel by taxi. According to him, he had to catch a flight and was in a hurry.” Aziel nods in satisfaction. “Did he mention which flight? And have you seen a woman near him?”
“No”, the receptionist says. “He went out every day and came back a few hours later. One of the employees had seen him around a hospital when she was there with a relative. But we don't know anything about him." Aziel's attention is aroused. “Near a hospital? Do you want to ask her which hospital that was and how long he has been there?” he asks urgently. This time, Andre rolls a napkin with five hundred dollars and casually drops it again on the desk. Everyone knows there are cameras on the counter where the receptionist is standing, so Andre hides in the corner of the round counter.
The receptionist picks up the phone and after a few minutes, he turns to Aziel. And indeed, it is the same hospital where Loraine was. And the colleague saw him leaving the hospital and standing with the head nurse. She had recognized the latter by the special emblem on her shoulder that sets her apart from the rest. Andre and Aziel thank the man and drop another hundred dollars in the general tip box.
The men sit in the car for a while to think everything over again. “Of course, we can speak to and blackmail the head nurse. But that won't help us, she can alert Danner. If he moves again with Loraine, it will be harder to find them," Andre thinks. “Why don't we talk to people in her neighborhood? If Danner didn't meet her at the hotel, he must have visited her house. Someone must have seen him and know more.”
Aziel is skeptical about this but still wants to try it. They drive to the hospital where it is just shift change. They sit in the waiting room and see the administrative staff reporting to her colleague. Then she grabs her bag and leaves the hospital. Aziel and Andre beckon each other and start following her unnoticed. For their luck, the woman isn’t on private transport but walks to the bus stop. They saunter after her and stand next to her in the bus cabin.
“Hi, I don't know if you remember me? I am Miss Windrug's fiancée who was in the hospital a few months ago," Aziel approaches her. She is startled first, looks at him from head to toe and then relaxes. “Yeah, I remember that scene. It was my shift when Miss Windrug left. What a difficult case," she sighs. “Shall we talk elsewhere? We'll put you home afterward. You don't have to fear anything from us," offers Aziel. The woman laughs at his comment. "I trust you. You’ll lose too much to rob an innocent woman of some bills,” she laughs. She walks with the men and Andre helps her in the passenger seat, while he takes place in the back seat.
The woman gives her address and Aziel sets the car in motion.
“We want to ask you some questions,” he begins. “The day Loraine came to the counter, was there a man around? And was the head nurse there too?”. The woman thinks, it was quite some time ago and a lot has happened in the hospital since then. “When I got to work, I saw a strange doctor come in through the staff entrance along with the head nurse. Doctors don't usually come in that way. And when Miss Windrug left, the head nurse stood behind me with the resignation note," explains the lady.
“Do you think you can find the CCTV footage? We're giving you five hundred dollars for your info right now. If you can get us the footage, you'll have another five thousand dollars from us." The woman's eyes widen. “Five thousand? Are you sure?” she asks breathlessly. “My fiancé works in the security department and we can use that money for our wedding!”
Andre smiles at her innocent response. “If you take the footage of the lobby the day she checked out and where the doctor and nurse enter through the wrong entrance, you've got ten thousand dollars,” he offers her...
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