Batteries Not Included Read online

  Batteries Not Included

  A Nick Harding Case

  Tony McFadden

  Copyright © 2021 Tony McFadden

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN:978-0-6485628-5-6

  Dedication

  Thanks to all of the frontline support workers, working their ever-loving arses off in absolutely frustrating circumstances

  .

  You know who you are.

  Disclaimer

  All characters in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to real people is entirely coincidental.

  This book is set in Australia, and written in Australia. It has Australian sayings and spellings.

  And swearing. A decent amount of swearing.

  You have been warned.

  Acknowledgments

  The journey I’ve followed over the past slightly more than a decade is on the back of the feedback I get from you, my readers.

  Thank you so much.

  Even the crap reviews help me.

  Prologue

  Andy Goh loved sunrise more than any other time of day. It was his quiet time, alone with his thoughts, and his coffee, the cool of the night slowly burning off with the rising sun. He stood at the kitchen sink window in his robe, looking down over his pool and beyond that to his small jetty poking into Sydney Harbour. Small, but large enough for his sailboat, a 15-metre catamaran he took out maybe four times a year, if he was lucky. The Manly Ferry cut through the water, right to left, heading for Circular Quay, leaving a wake behind it glittering in the early morning sun.

  He cupped the mug of black coffee and sighed. Life had been good to him. A lot of hard work, to be sure, but what was it they said? Find something you enjoy, and you’ll never have to work a day in your life. They should also have said to make sure you hire smart people to do the parts of your job you dislike or were poor at. It took him a year to figure that out. And almost a decade to be really comfortable moving accountability down the corporate ladder to the people who actually did the work.

  He checked the time. It was 6:35. He had a breakfast meeting. A meeting with a guy about a problem he needed solved, one he knew he couldn’t solve on his own. The references checked out. And if the results were satisfactory, maybe he’d bring them on permanently. He recognised his company was weak with data and financial governance. He needed a new set of eyes.

  He checked the time again. The morning newspaper should have been tossed over his fence by now.

  He put his cup on the counter and padded barefoot out the front door. Even though it was only weeks away from winter, Australia was going through a warm patch. The flagstone on his front step was already starting to warm in the early sun. He smiled. The paper, rolled and held by an elastic band, was in the middle of his driveway. The kid had a good arm. He stepped off the front stairs and walked over the terra cotta tile under the portico at the entrance. The paper was a good 15 metres this side of the gate.

  He stopped and frowned.

  The gate was partially open. It was a very sturdy gate, opening from the side, run on rails, large wheels on a track operated by a motor which only engaged if the proper code was entered from the outside or a concealed button pushed from the inside. No joins in the middle. No weaknesses.

  And he was supposed to have security manning the gate.

  He looked around for his head of security. “Hey, Mike.” He took a couple of steps toward the gate. “Mike, what the hell is the gate doing open?”

  He took another couple of steps around the corner of the house and noticed the smoke billowing up from the far side of the wall. A flame licked close to the gum tree on his side of the wall. “Shit.”

  He sensed the person behind him just before something hard smashed down at the base of his skull.

  Everything went black as his face hit the tiles.

  1

  Nick Harding pulled his car to the kerb just around the corner from his destination and checked his teeth and poorly tied tie in his visor mirror. His scalp was shiny, freshly shaved that morning and carefully lotioned. He adjusted his tie a tweak and flipped the visor up. The car was almost fifteen years old. It had over 300,000 km on the clock. The paint was dull from years of Australian sun and the windscreen pitted. His car stood out in this neighbourhood, and he hated it for that. He scowled. Around the corner was the front gate to Andy Goh’s house. Andy Goh’s three storey, with a pool, ocean front and 2400 square metres of land, house on Sydney Harbour. Why Andy wanted to hire him was a mystery.

  Goh’s wealth came from his introduction of a fully Australian-made electric vehicle to the market, grabbing a significant portion of the EV pie. The brand competed well internationally. The market was barely tapped. A self-made billionaire. Not one of these losers who inherited their wealth.

  And for some inexplicable reason he wanted to meet with a PI who had barely $1000 in the bank, significant periods of time between cases and a burgeoning drinking problem.

  Nick grunted and pulled from the kerb. The curiosity was killing him. He accelerated around the corner and slammed on the brakes, stopping in the middle of the road. The wrought-iron fence around Goh’s property stretched on his left forward along the street to the gate.

  Two marked police cars, lights still strobing, were pulled up by the open gate. An unmarked car with red and blue lights flashing in the grill and an ambulance were further in, by the front door of the palatial house. Beyond the gate, thin tendrils of smoke wafted off the burnt-out shell of a vintage Volkswagen Beetle.

  He pulled to the kerb and turned off the engine. Stared for a second at the uniform leaning on the wall by the open gate, then got out.

  He straightened his suit, sucked in his stomach and tried for a nonchalant, yet confident look. He took a deep breath and walked toward the young cop.

  He smiled and nodded. “Hey, mate. What’s going on here?”

  The constable righted himself and adjusted his belt. He held out a hand, palm forward, stopping him. “This is an active crime scene, sir. I’ll have to ask you to stand back.”

  Nick took his identification, a laminated Commercial and Private Inquiry Agent card, out of his inside suit pocket. He flipped open the wallet and showed it to the cop. “Nick Harding. Private Investigator.” He handed him a business card and folded the ID back in his pocket and pointed generally into the drive. “I’ve got an appointment. In here. What’s the crime? Was Andy Goh robbed?”

  “An appointment?”

  Nick nodded. “An 8:30 breakfast meeting.”

  “With?”

  “The big guy. Goh.”

  The constable pulled a small notepad from his breast pocket and clicked a pen to life. “When was this appointment arranged?”

  “Last night.”

  “What time did you talk to him?”

  Nick shook his head. “It was by email. He said he wanted to engage me for something, but wasn’t specific.” He took a step toward the gate. “The guy’s a billionaire. I don’t want to keep him waiting. Okay if I go in?”

  “What time was the email sent?”

  “A little after 7:30. Like I said, last night. Look, I’m a stickler for promptness. And I’m sure he is, too.”

  “No hurry, mate. You’re not keeping him waiting.” The constable flipped his notebook closed. “Someone beat him to death when he stepped out to pick up his newspaper this morning. Around 6:40, 6:45.”

  Nick took a step back. “Really? Seriously?”

  “Yeah.”

  “He seriously got a newspaper, a paper newspaper, delivered? A tech guy like him?” He shook his head, surprised. “Really?”

  The constable shrugged. “He’s dead. Meeting’s cancelled.”

  “Shit.” Nick scratched his jaw. �
��Okay if I check it out? I’m, ah, sort of involved in this.”

  The constable leaned back and looked through the gate at the crime scene and shrugged. “We’re pretty much finished up. Stay outside of any tape.”

  Nick watched a couple of people in bunny suits slide a body bag into the back of the coroner’s wagon. “Not a problem. Thanks.”

  The constable smiled and leaned back against his car. “Watch where you step. Good luck.”

  He walked through the gate and over the very well-maintained drive that arced a long sweeping curve to the left toward a portico at the front of the three-storey home. Halfway to the front door a small, wiry man intercepted him and poked him in the chest with his index finger.

  “Stop.”

  Nick looked down at the index finger, considering it. “I was invited.” He continued looking at the finger. “You want to stop doing that?” He returned his gaze to his assailant. “Who are you?”

  “Mike Murphy. Mr Murphy to you. I run security for Mr Goh.” He had the remnants of a Belfast accent. He pushed gently on Nick’s sternum. “Leave.”

  “Not going to fight you. But I really was invited. Nick Harding. PI.” He slowly reached inside his suit and extracted his ID. “Would you know why Andy wanted to meet?”

  “It’s Mr Goh to you.” Mike inspected the ID, then handed it back. “And I’ve never heard of you. He would have informed me if he was looking for a PI.” He crossed his arms. “I and my team do all of his investigations. No need to go outside the family.”

  “You don’t look like family.” He rubbed his sternum. “I think you left a bruise.”

  “Suck it up. We’re all one big happy family here.”

  “Can’t be that happy if he went outside the,” Nick held up quote fingers, “’family’ to hire me.” He looked over Murphy’s head at the front door. A tall woman watched them with a cup of coffee in one hand and her mobile phone in the other. “Is that the Mrs Goh?”

  Mike looked over his shoulder. She waved him over. “Wait here.”

  Nick watched the little man jog to the front door. A row of low hedges curving with the drive obscured their feet, but he could tell from her posture she wasn’t in heels. The differences between the two was sharp. He was short, hard-edged and pasty white. She was a head-and-a-half taller, elegant and chocolate. She wore faded denim trousers and a peach golf shirt, her hair in a ponytail. The two had an animated discussion for a couple of minutes and it was very apparent who the boss was. She glared and Mike shook his head in resignation, then waved Nick to join them.

  He took a deferential step back as Nick approached.

  “I’m Nick Harding.” He held out his hand for the woman. “I’m very sorry to hear about your husband.”

  She slipped her mobile in her back pocket and shook his hand. “Kirra. Thank you. Why are you here? Murphy says Andy hired you?”

  Nick shrugged. “Not yet. That’s what the meeting this morning was to discuss. I guess that’s not going to happen now. Sorry to take your time.” Nicked looked at the doorbell camera and the camera at the top of the portico. “I think you’ve got it all covered, though.” He turned to leave.

  Kirra touched Nick’s arm. “Hang on a second. Come in for coffee, at least.” She nodded at Mike. “I’m good. Go back to whatever it was you were supposed to be doing.”

  Mike glared at Nick. They both watched him walk around the back of the house, then Kirra stood aside and let Nick enter.

  The foyer was two stories high, with a white marble floor. Stairs at the far end curled to an upper floor. Three steps down on the left led to a large living area, a fireplace on the far wall. Black leather furniture accented the white marble floor and walls. Aboriginal art hung on the walls. The house was an example of understated elegance.

  “Nice place, Mrs Goh.”

  “Kirra. And I go by my family name. Kirra Roach. Can I get you something to drink? Coffee? Tea? Whiskey?”

  Nick smiled. “Coffee, black, is fine. A little early for whiskey, I think.”

  “Figured you were one of those hard-boiled Private Eyes I’m always hearing about. Heavy drinking, hard living.” She eased into a chair and sat sideways; her legs dangled over the arm of the chair. “Coffee will be out here shortly. Why did my husband hire you?”

  Nick sat in the sofa across from her. A glass and chrome coffee table sat between them. “Like I said, he hasn’t. Didn’t. That’s what this meeting was supposed to be for. You don’t know?”

  “He mentioned something about money missing from the company. Quite a lot, if I understood. But other than that, nothing. Can I hire you to find out who killed him?”

  “You don’t seem too distraught.”

  “I’m serious. I’d like to hire you. What are your rates?”

  A young man came in with two cups of coffee and placed the tray on the coffee table and backed out.

  “I’m sure the police will have the perps picked up before I finish this coffee. Saw the cameras out front. Plus that security guy, what’s is name, Mike, seems pretty competent.”

  “Yeah, no. Murphy checked the footage. Nothing’s been recorded since midnight. He thinks there was a power bump or something.” She shook her head. “And I slept late. I flew back from America and didn’t get home until after midnight.” She let out a deep breath. “I’m sure the police will work this case hard. The media is going to be all over it.”

  Nick sat back. “Hey, yeah. No press outside. How in the hell did you manage that?”

  “Pink is touring. They’re all following her. Lucky us.” She leaned forward and picked up her coffee. “Work for me?”

  Nick sipped his coffee and looked around the room. There was more money tied up in furniture than he figured he made in his life. He took the coffee and walked to one of the paintings. Waves of white dots through a sea of multicoloured blue dots. He pointed at it. “Nice. How much did this one cost?”

  “Impolite question. A shade over thirty-seven dollars and six weeks.”

  Nick smiled. “You painted this? Very nice. I thought canvas cost more than that.”

  “I buy in bulk. You haven’t answered me.”

  Nick handed his coffee cup to Kirra. “I won’t deny that I could use the money, but I make a point of not getting in the way of professional law enforcement. Our dislike is mutual. Thanks for the coffee. It’s better than anything I make. I’m sorry for your loss. I’ll show myself out.”

  A cleaning crew was finishing up outside a few metres from the portico. Nick looked at the angle from the cameras to the crime scene. Clear shot. There should have been footage. It could have been wrapped up before noon. “Shit luck.”

  He stood at the gate and looked back toward the crime scene. The hedges blocked the view. “Perfect.”

  The young constable stood by his shoulder. “What is?”

  Nick turned. “You’re still here? It’s pretty much wrapped up here, mate.” He held up a forefinger. “Hang on. You worked the graveyard, didn’t you? Grabbing as much overtime as you can. Got it.” He clapped him on the shoulder. “My tax dollars barely at work. Well done. Catch you later.”

  * * *

  Mike walked through the house looking for Kirra, finding her in the lower pool room. Snooker, not chlorinated water. She was rolling a snooker ball across the green felt surface, watching it bank gently off the cushions, missing a pocket every time.

  She looked up as he walked in. “What in the hell happened, Mike?”

  He shook his head. “Still trying to figure it out. We should head into the station to give them statements. Get it out of the way.”

  She rolled a ball with extra force, hitting the cushion and bouncing off the slate and onto the tiled floor. “Statement? What statement? I was asleep. What in the hell were you doing?”

  Mike opened his mouth to answer, and she interrupted him. “You go talk to the police. Explain why you and your team weren’t on duty. I’m going to try to convince that Harding fella to investigate this.”

>   “That’s my job.”

  She scoffed and turned her back on him, grabbing another snooker ball. “Right. You’re apparently shit at your job. Tell the Detective Constable if he wants to talk to me, he can come by.”

  Mike clenched his fists, then shook out his hands. “Hey, I was running security for Andy years before you showed up. You want to fire me, fine. I’ll go.” He held up a forefinger. “But don’t you for a second think I take this job lightly. He was my best man. I would die for him. You need to get all the way off my back. And you should be running to the police station to give your statement.”

  Kirra took a couple of deep breaths. She shook her head. “I’m not going to fire you. But I don’t want you looking into Andy’s death. You stay far away from that.”

  “You think I’ll screw it up on purpose.” It wasn’t a question.

  She shrugged. “I didn’t say that. But I don’t want to be in a position where I can think that.” She took another couple of deep, steadying breaths. “I just lost my husband. Leave me be.”

  2

  Nick reconsidered and re-reconsidered taking Kirra up on the case at least five times on his twenty-minute drive back to his apartment. Ten minutes, if he took the cross-city tunnel, but the tolls weren’t worth the time savings. And his toll tag was bereft of funds.

  He rolled to a stop at the kerb, took the local parking pass out of the glove box and tossed it on the dash. His across-the-hall neighbour was sitting on the apartment building front step.

  Davie Sangster was what a casting director would choose as a stereotypical hacker. A little overweight, neck beard, brownish-orange hair in a short ponytail. He stood as Nick got out of his car. “Nick. Where ya been? Need a hand.”