The Mysterious Mr Leadbetter
The call came in the day after Steve McGarrett left for Los Angeles for a conference on new policing methods and the chance for Steve to visit his sister and her family at the same time. The plan was for Steve to stay a whole week, but Danny Williams doubted if that miracle would happen.
"Danny." Jenny, their ultra-efficient secretary, put her hand over the receiver as Danny popped his head out of his cubicle. "Duke and it sounds important."
"Thanks, Jenny, I'll take it in here." Danny reached for the phone, wondering what had happened that would disrupt his plans for the day. "Hi, Duke. What can I do for you?"
"Danny, I've just had a Mrs Brian Leadbetter on the phone. Her husband disappeared yesterday afternoon."
Standard procedure said 24 hours should go past before an adult could be considered a missing person. However, there was obviously something else going on here and the name seemed familiar to Danny although he couldn't think why. "Who is Brian Leadbetter and why are you calling me about a missing person?"
"He's chief financier and accountant at Dobson, Crane and Leadbetter," Duke replied. "He's involved with auditing the finances of the State of Hawaii and both Steve and the Governor know him socially," Duke replied.
"I guess that would give this case a head start," Danny agreed, jotting down the few details Duke had just given him. "How much does he know about the state finances?"
"Pretty much everything, I'm told," Duke replied grimly.
"Enough that he might have been kidnapped?" Danny enquired, already knowing the answer to that.
"Yeah," Duke agreed. "He was last seen by his secretary yesterday afternoon at the office. I've sent men down there to seal it off, but told them not to touch anything until you get there."
"Give me the address of his home and office," Danny requested. "Get someone down to stay with the wife in case a call comes in. I'll send Chin down there as soon as I can." He scribbled down the addresses, thanked Duke and grabbed his jacket.
"Jenny, I need Che and a team to this address as soon as possible," he said, shrugging into his jacket as Jenny copied it down. "Chin, I want you to go down to join Mrs Leadbetter, but first I want you to find out everything you can about Brain Leadbetter."
"Sure, Danny," Chin nodded.
"Kono, you're with me. Jenny, if Steve or the Governor calls about this, I'll get back to them as soon as I can."
"Got it," Jenny snapped crisply and lifted the phone as Danny and Kono hurried out of the office.
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The secretary, a middle-aged woman called Miss Brodie, did not seem flustered by her employer's disappearance. "It's none of my business where he is," she informed Danny tartly, peering at him disapprovingly over her half-moon glasses. She wore her greying hair in a bun and the tweed skirt she wore must have been uncomfortably hot outside the environs of the air conditioned office. "I would never have called his home if I hadn't needed instructions about a letter that came this morning."
"What time did you leave last night?" Danny asked.
"I already told this other policeman," Miss Brodie replied. "Do you people not talk to each other?" She glared at Danny who said nothing. He merely waited and she signed in annoyance. "I left precisely at 5pm," she told him. "Not one minute before and not one minute after. Mr Leadbetter was still here when I left."
"How did you know that Mr Leadbetter wasn't already in the office this morning?" Danny asked.
"I arrived promptly at 7.30 am," she reported primly. "Mr Leadbetter always arrives at 8am. When I still had not seen him after dealing with the post, I used the intercom to the office and he didn't reply, so I called his home."
"And what time was it that you called Mrs Leadbetter?" Danny wanted to know.
"It was 9.30am," the lady replied. "Of course, I didn't call to speak to Mrs Leadbetter. It was Mr Leadbetter I wanted to speak with."
"Did you notice anything out of place in the office?" Danny asked. "Any signs of a struggle?"
Drawing back and putting a hand on her bosom, Miss Brodie reacted as though Danny had made an improper suggestion. "I didn't open the office door!" she objected. "It isn't my place!"
"So you haven't been into the office?" Danny demanded, exchanging a horrified glance with Kono. As the lady shook her head, Danny said, "Stay here please." He beckoned an officer to stay with the secretary and he and Kono hurried over to the office door. Leadbetter could be lying in there dead! He took a deep breath and eased the door open and stepped cautiously into the room.
To his intense relief, there wasn't a body in sight. The office was very tidy, with no signs of a struggle. Papers were stacked neatly on the desk, the pens lined up tidily and the chair tucked in. There was no visible blood and nothing to suggest that Leadbetter had been taken from the office by force.
"Let Che and his men in here as soon as they arrive," Danny told Kono. "See if they can find anything that might be useful. I'll go and interview the wife."
Returning to the outer office, Danny had one more question for the less than helpful secretary. "What kind of car does Mr Leadbetter drive?" he asked.
"Oh a very nice one," Miss Brodie replied helpfully. "It's dark green. Or is it black?"
Not in the mood to try and get more information that she clearly didn't know, Danny simply thanked her and headed out of the office. He rode the elevator down to the garage and there found the security guard. "Do you know Mr Leadbetter?" he asked.
"Yes, sir," the man replied.
"Is his car here?"
"Right over here," the guard replied. He led Danny over to a dark blue Lincoln Continental. It had a vanity plate that read 'BRI 1'.
"What time did it come in this morning?" Danny asked, not touching the vehicle. It would need to be examined by the lab team.
Stepping over to his booth, the guard consulted his clipboard, and after a moment flipped over to another page. "According to the log, it's been here since yesterday morning," he reported.
"Is that unusual?" Danny asked.
"It isn't common, but I have known it to happen," the guard replied. "Usually after the Christmas party, when Mr Leadbetter has had a drink and doesn't want to drive." He looked at Danny. "Is something wrong?"
"It seems Mr Leadbetter has disappeared," Danny replied. "Please don't let anyone come near this car until the lab team have finished with it." Frowning, Danny left the garage on foot and returned to his own car. Using the mic, he called his orders back to Jenny and asked her to contact Kono with them. Starting the car, he headed towards the Leadbetters' home.
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Chin met Danny at the door of the large house in Aina Haina. "How's the wife taking the news?" Danny asked, mentally gearing himself up for a sobbing woman.
"Really well," Chin replied dryly. "She's so spaced out on tranquilisers that I'm surprised that she was able to call him in as missing."
"Oh great," Danny sighed. That was the last thing he needed. He would have preferred the tears. "Has she had a ransom demand?"
"No, she says not."
"Okay." Danny went into the house, Chin following behind.
The inside of the house was bright and airy. There was an open plan sitting/dining area and a door at the back led, Danny assumed, to the kitchen. The furnishings were nice and looked comfortable and welcoming, not stiff like Danny had seen in other wealthy homes. They looked as though they were used regularly and were not just for show.
Curled up in an armchair, wearing some floaty, airy outfit that made her look incredibly frail and vulnerable was Mrs Leadbetter. Her hands were wrapped around a steaming, fragrant mug of coffee, but her eyes were fixed on a distant point. She was a slender, pretty woman in early middle age.
"I got the housekeeper to make her some coffee to see if that would sober her up," Chin explained in an undertone. "It don't seem to have worked."
"Good idea," Danny replied and walked across to the woman. "Mrs Leadbetter?" There was no response, so Danny said her name more forcefully and she blinked and focused on him. He showed her his badge. "Mrs Leadbetter, I'm Detective Dan Williams of Hawaii Five-O," he told her. "I wonder if you could answer some questions for me?"
"If you like," Mrs Leadbetter agreed politely.
Hoping that this moment of clarity would remain, Danny sat down nearby. Chin stood behind him. "Can you tell me when you last saw your husband?"
"I think it was yesterday morning," she replied vaguely. "He came to my room to say goodbye." An expression of faint surprise crossed her face. "He was quite affectionate," she added. "Yes, quite affectionate." A delicate blush coloured her face.
"Is he not usually affectionate?" Danny asked, hating that he had to pry, but knowing it was essential.
"No," she admitted slowly. "Not since… not since… our baby died." The sad statement and the acceptance of her husband's emotional distance touched a protective chord in Danny.
"Did you notice anything else unusual?" Danny asked after a moment.
For a moment, he thought the window of clarity had closed, but it seemed that Mrs Leadbetter was just remembering. "He put something in the care before he came back to say goodbye," she ventured after a moment. "It might have been a suitcase. I was standing at the window of my room, you see," she explained, sounding anxious. "I do that every morning if I am awake. That way, I get to see him at least once."
The picture of the marriage was becoming clear to both Danny and Chin. The couple had clearly drifted apart for whatever reasons. Danny felt very sorry for Mrs Leadbetter. However, he had a job to do and that was to find this poor woman's husband.
"May we have a look around the house and in Mr Leadbetter's room?" he asked.
"Whatever you want," she agreed.
"Thank you," Danny replied gently. He rose to his feet. Mrs Leadbetter looked up at him, tears streaming down her face suddenly.
"He's left me, hasn't he?" she croaked.
It looked as though he had, but Danny could neither confirm nor deny it until he found the missing man. He had no idea what to say to her. Grief counselling was not his forte. Mrs Leadbetter might be well stoned on tranquilisers, but she knew what she had seen.
"Danny!" Chin reached out and yanked the younger detective back as Mrs Leadbetter dropped her mug of coffee as she lurched ungracefully to her feet. The scalding hot mug of coffee spilled everywhere, but fortunately Danny escaped, thanks to Chin's quick reactions. Mrs Leadbetter was also unscathed and ran upstairs. A door banged shut and they distinctly heard a lock click.
"Thanks, Chin," Danny breathed, looking at the pool of coffee at his feet. There were a few dark stains on the legs of his cream-coloured suit, but he wasn't burned. "See if you can find out who her doctor is and get him out here. I think she needs to see him.
"Will do, Danny," Chin agreed. "You okay, bruddah?"
"Just fine," Danny assured him. "I'm going to search Leadbetter's bedroom. Could you also check the airlines and all ships and find out if he's already left the island and if so where he went? If not, then make sure we have all exits covered."
"On it," Chin nodded.
Leaving the older man to it, Danny mounted the stairs.