Viper - Michael Morley [12]
‘You Googled this restaurant too?’
‘Yes. I didn’t want to waste time looking at a menu. You said you would give me one more hour of your time, and now…’ Creed glanced at his watch, ‘we have only fifty-seven minutes left and I want to make every second count.’
Jack motioned to Creed’s document file. ‘Then let’s get going.’
‘Sì.’ The young Italian quickly produced papers and passed them across the table. ‘I made copies in the hotel. You have a map of the area in Naples marked with all the places the girls lived. And you can see also the times when they were seen.’
Jack looked at the papers and saw dates for the first time. It made his blood boil. Creed had been holding back on him. ‘Luciano, I now understand why your cops in Naples aren’t giving you house room. These disappearances are all cold cases. In fact, they’re so damn cold they’re deep-frozen. They go back, what, five, maybe six years?’
Creed was unflustered. ‘Yes, some more than six. From memory, the first disappearance was a little over eight years ago. But why is this important? A murder is still a murder, no matter when it happened.’
Jack was exasperated. ‘Can you prove that even one of these women has been killed? Were any homicide investigations launched at the time of any of the disappearances?’
Creed remained unfazed. He shook his head, then dug in his file and produced more paperwork. ‘Victimology,’ he announced. ‘Please listen to me and then tell me this is only coincidence.’ He handed over another sheet of paper and counted off his points on outstretched fingers: ‘All of the women had long hair, lived within twenty kilometres of each other, probably went to the same clubs and bars in Naples.’ Creed stopped to make sure Jack was following him. ‘As I said to you yesterday, Mr King, none of them packed clothes, none withdrew money, none told any friends they were running away and none seemed to have anything to run away from.’
Jack softened. ‘And the police haven’t investigated this? I don’t believe that.’
‘Separately, yes,’ said Creed, ‘but not as one single case. Not with the thought that one person might have abducted and killed them.’
There were lots of details still missing. ‘I imagine many young women run away from Naples. No doubt the prettier ones run furthest and have more chance of staying away. No disrespect, but I’m told Naples is not exactly the nicest place in Italy.’
Creed shrugged. ‘In Naples there are no jobs. Many people live in what you call slums. Their homes are likely to be broken into, their cars stolen. And the Camorra kills many people every month. What sane young woman would not want to grow wings and fly from this city?’
‘Indeed. That’s exactly my point.’
‘But, Mr King, this pattern that I have shown you, this does not happen all the time. These kind of women don’t just vanish in this way.’
As food came and went Jack gave him room to build his case. ‘You mentioned the Camorra – you think the mob is involved in this?’
Creed huffed out a laugh. ‘They are involved in everything. They run Naples. They control everything from the milk you drink to the rubbish you toss away. Do you know anything about them?’
Jack didn’t show his offence. ‘It’s some time since general crime intel reports fell on my desk but I know about them.’
‘Without the Camorra, Naples and Campania would fall apart. They’re not just a crime organization, they’re a social welfare network. They’re the brains and wallet of most businesses. That’s why we don’t talk about the Camorra, we talk about the System. Where I was brought up, you had more chance of getting a job from the System than from the state. For every member of the Cosa Nostra in Italy there are now half a dozen Camorristi. They are everywhere. Everyone is somehow connected. And they want to be connected. If you’re part of the System you don’t worry about jobs, paying the rent, feeding your family. You’re made for life. The man who killed these women may be in the System, he may not. The point is, he’s a killer and he’s still free.’
Thoughts