Dead Money (A Detective Inspector Paul Amos Lincolnshire Mystery) Read Online Free PDF

quite farcical if it hadn't been so bitter. Still, we started asking round and several other residents said bits and pieces had gone missing.
    “We put a note through all the other doors in the block inviting people who had lost things to a meeting in our flat. About half of the residents turned up. It was a bit of a crush getting them all in. We never expected so many to come.
    “By this stage we had been in over a year and everyone else at least six months. I'm afraid, though, we simply caused a lot of ill feeling. Accusations flew round the room, some residents stopped talking to each other and the whole meeting broke up in chaos. Nothing was decided.
    “Next day Mrs Brown and I counted out some money and left it in the top drawer: a five pound note, six pound coins and 65p in small change. We made a point of going out every day for about an hour.
    “Each time we came back we counted the cash and it was all there. We had just started to believe that we had imagined the whole thing when on the fifth day some of the money had gone. The note was still there but two pound coins, half the silver and half the copper had vanished. Whoever had taken it clearly hoped we wouldn't notice.
    “Next day I went out alone while Mrs Brown stayed on guard. I bought a lock and replaced the one on the front door. Nothing ever went missing again, though we have left a carefully counted amount of cash in the drawer ever since just in case.”
    Mr Brown nodded to his wife who got up, went over to the sideboard and pulled the drawer right out. She carried it over to Amos to show him.
    “Did you ever report this to the police?” asked Amos, although he knew what the answer would be.
    Mr Brown looked embarrassed.
    “No, we didn't,” Mrs Brown said firmly. “The amounts were quite small and we didn't think you would take it seriously. We were just a couple of old fogies who got flustered.”
    It was the turn of Amos to look embarrassed. The woman was quite right. Here were two pensioners who had to protect themselves against petty crime.
    “And did you have any idea who had gained access to your flat?” Amos inquired. “Presumably you are vulnerable through the laundry area as well?”
    “Oh no,” burst in Mrs Brown with a laugh.  “Old Mrs Atkinson could never get across there.”
    She hesitated.
    “My wife and I discussed this matter after talking to the constable,” said Brown. “We knew you were likely to ask at some point. We don't feel it is right to point the finger when we have not a shred of evidence against anyone.”
    “This is a murder inquiry,” Amos said quietly. “I think you had better tell me.”
    Mrs Brown, despite the twinges of her conscience, was patently quite eager to speak out now she had the officer's blessing.
    “Two people were here when these flats were council owned. One was Miss Norman in 5B. She moved out during the renovations then came back into her old flat overlooking the front drive.
    “The other was Nick, the caretaker. He occupied the little caretaker's flat on the mezzanine floor. He didn't have to move because they hardly did any work on his place. He kept his job as caretaker because no one got round to sacking him. I suppose they didn't have the heart to get rid of him. He was getting on and they didn't pay him much.
    “Anyway,” she continued quickly as she caught the exasperated look in Amos's eye, “we think one or the other of them somehow got hold of a set of keys for the entire block. We're not sure if the front doors were changed.”
    Her husband added: “Naturally we would never have suspected Miss Norman but she does sit at her window overlooking the front drive such a lot. She pretends to be knitting but it looks like the same piece of garment all the time. She can see everyone come and go and she would know which flats were empty.
    “In fact, one of the things that came out during our get-together with the rest of the block - as accusations started flying round - was