Ana’s expression remained blank.
‘Miss Nowakowski? I really am sorry for your loss,’ Kate persevered.
Ana pulled her hands away and stood, but couldn’t move away from the chair. ‘There must be some mistake. Petr is away with work… how… he can’t…’
Kate rose to join her. ‘I appreciate this isn’t easy for you to hear.’
Ana’s eyes registered her confusion. ‘It’s not possible. You must have the wrong person. Petr Nowakowski? My brother? He isn’t dead.’
‘I’m sorry, Miss Nowakowski, but we’ve confirmed it through a DNA match. There’s no doubt.’
A single tear escaped down Ana’s cheek, halting at the edge of her top lip, before continuing down her chin. ‘I don’t understand. How…?’
Kate took Ana’s arm and lowered her back into the chair. ‘We’re still investigating exactly what happened, but we have reason to believe that his death occurred under mysterious circumstances. You’ve said several times that you believed he was away somewhere. Can you explain where?’
Ana continued to blink, her vision focused on the wall beyond Kate. ‘He was a sous chef on board a cruise ship… they set sail on Thursday for two weeks. Did he die on the ship?’
‘We really don’t have any more information we can share at this point.’
‘Can I see him?’
It was the question Kate had been dreading. Having discussed Ben’s findings with the supe before leaving the station, they’d decided it was best not to mention the circumstances under which they had arrived at the news themselves. ‘We don’t require you to formally identify your brother, Miss Nowakowski, as the DNA test has already confirmed it.’
‘But for me, I’d like to be able to say goodbye.’
‘I will see if that’s possible at some point in the future, but right now I want to concentrate on finding out exactly what happened to your brother and how he came to die.’
Ana frowned. ‘I don’t understand… are you saying he was… murdered?’
‘We don’t know for sure, but it’s an avenue of enquiry we’re following. I appreciate this isn’t easy for you, but I’d like to ask you some questions about your brother if you’re happy for me to do so?’
‘If you think it will help.’
‘Thank you,’ Kate said. ‘If there is anything you don’t feel comfortable answering at the moment, just say, and I’ll move on. Okay?’
As Ana nodded, a second tear ran down her cheek.
‘When you last saw your brother, how did he seem within himself?’
‘He was… fine. He was telling me how this next cruise would pay well, and that when he was back we would look to see if we had enough deposit to get a place of our own to rent.’
‘He didn’t live with you, then?’
‘After his release from prison he stayed in a halfway house, but then he got the job with the cruise company and spent a lot of time on the sea. But I think he was growing bored with the job. He was really keen to lay some roots, I think.’
‘You were close, then?’
‘He’s my only family. After our parents died, he looked after me.’
‘How long ago did they pass away?’
‘Twenty years ago this year.’
‘So, you would have been—’
‘I was five and Petr was eight. We went from one foster family to another, but he was always there, watching out for me, making sure nobody took advantage, and ensuring I always ate. I owe him my life.’
‘He sounds like a great brother to have.’
‘He was, and apart from that stupid robbery, we never fell out.’
‘Do you know if he had any contact with the gang after his release from prison?’
‘Are you kidding? He wanted nothing to do with them. He knew he never should have agreed to help that day, but he was desperate for money and it seemed so easy. He regretted that decision every day. So, when he was released from prison he swore he would never allow himself to get into that situation again.’
‘Did your brother have any enemies that you know of, or had he received any threats he told you about?’
‘No. None. That gang he helped put away swore they would get revenge, but he… oh God, is that what happened? Did they get to him?’
‘We’re investigating all possibilities at this time. So far there is nothing to directly implicate any of his old crew in what happened. But we will look into the possibility.’ Kate paused, keen to avoid saying too much. ‘Can I ask you to write down your brother’s address, and the name of the cruise liner he worked for?’
Ana nodded, and took the pad of paper and pen that Laura offered.
‘Is there anyone else you’d like us to inform?’ Kate asked when Ana had finished.
‘No, it was just the two of us. Will you let me know when I can sort out funeral arrangements, and anything else I need to do?’
It was never easy breaking this sort of news, but Kate felt for this young woman. In losing her brother, her whole world had been turned upside down. ‘I’ll be in touch,’ Kate assured her, handing her a business card. ‘This has my mobile number on it. You can call at any time if you remember anything else, you have any questions, or if you just need someone to talk to. Would you like me to tell your boss that you should go home for the rest of the day?’
‘No, please don’t. I’d rather finish my shift; I don’t want to be alone.’
Kate watched her leave the office, captivated by Ana’s resolve against such adversity. And in that moment, Kate made a silent promise that she would bring Petr’s killer to justice.
29
Kate stuck Petr Nowakowski’s mugshot on a clean board, writing his name in thick black letters beneath it. ‘Here’s what we know so far: he told his sister he was about to come into a small windfall, enough to put down a deposit on a flat for them to rent. But where was the money coming from? He had form for armed robbery – his sister swears blind he’d turned his back on crime – but I want one of you to follow up on it. Check his room for any sign of planned activity; has he been scoping any areas out for a smash and grab job?’
Freeborn raised his bony arm into the air. ‘I’ll take that, ma’am. I’ll ask my contacts on the streets too, see who’s planning what.’
‘Thanks, Ewan. Next, Ana said he was working for a cruise company as a sous chef. I can’t see that a company dealing with such a wealthy clientele would hire a former thief as a chef, but we need to make contact with them to be sure. Ana’s provided the address. If he was employed, find out why he wasn’t on board the ship like he’d told his sister. That brings us on to the box the heart was in: who sent it? And why?’
‘No usable security footage of our suspect at the depot,’ Freeborn said glumly. ‘And no sign of him at Bitterne train station either, or on any buses that stopped there or nearby in the time around when the box was left on Saturday. It’s like he appeared out of nowhere, left the item, and then vanished like a ghost.’
‘We can’t give up on this, Ewan. That depot is our only confirmed sighting. Go back to the depot, check every business and residence nearby for additional security cameras. Someone, somewhere must have picked him up. We need to know what he looks like so we can narrow our search.’
Freeborn knew she was right, and nodded to hide his embarrassment for not already having made those calls.
‘Where are we with the air fresheners? Any prints?’