Dangerous Deception - Sandy Curtis

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time, and when he awoke, his need to be actively involved in finding Liam became too great to resist. An hour later he walked through the doors of an elegant office in Moorabbin and asked the receptionist to see either of the lawyers he knew were friends of Liam's. Before he could give his name, she pressed the intercom and told Keith Reynolds that Liam McKay was here to see him.

      Rather than correct her, Rogan decided to wait for Keith's reaction. As he went to sit in one of the plush armchairs in the reception area, a door in the adjoining corridor opened, and Keith Reynolds walked out, brown tie loosened at the neck of the lemon shirt straining against his massive arms and chest. Rogan still couldn't get used to the idea of a lawyer who did weightlifting, and Keith's cherubic face and overgrown brown moustache added to the incongruity.

      'Liam. Come in, mate.' Keith stepped aside and waited for Rogan to walk into his office, a symphony in varying shades of pale green with aubergine highlights. 'Take a seat. Catch me up on the Montgomery case.'

      Puzzled by Keith's seeming lack of interest in Liam's welfare, and wondering if Bruin had contacted the lawyer, Rogan asked, 'Keith, have the police been around to see you today?'

      'No. Has there been another development? Have they found Breeanna? I thought the family wanted the police kept out of it?'

      'Keith, I'm not Liam. I'm Rogan.'

      'Rogan!' Keith's head flicked to the side like a parrot's. 'I always thought I could tell you two apart. Well, I'll be stuffed.' His eyes narrowed. 'Why are you here? Has something happened to Liam? Is that why the police are coming?'

      Briefly, Rogan filled him in on what he had discovered at Liam's townhouse. He didn't like the way Keith's frown deepened, particularly when he mentioned the bloodstain.

      'Do you have Bruin's phone number?' Keith asked when Rogan had finished.

      Rogan handed him the card. Keith punched the numbers into his phone and handed the card back. The conversation that ensued was cryptic, and Rogan felt the tension in the room rising.

      'Well, something strange is going on there,' Keith said as he replaced the receiver. 'Bruin was evasive and couldn't give a plausible reason why he hadn't contacted me.'

      The fact that Keith was clearly worried didn't ease Rogan's gut feeling at all. 'When did you last see or talk to Liam?' he asked.

      'I actually asked him to take on a missing person case …' Keith looked through his diary, 'just under two weeks ago.'

      'The Montgomery case you mentioned?'

      'Yes, but look, Rogan, it's confidential.'

      'My brother's life could be at stake, Keith. I don't give a shit about confidential!'

      Keith held up a large, placating hand. 'I'm going to tell you, but I just need you to appreciate what we're dealing with. The missing woman is Breeanna Montgomery. Her father, George Montgomery, is a very prominent doctor here in Melbourne and runs a well-respected medical research institute. He's currently overseas attending several medical conventions and visiting some of the large medical centres like the Mayo Clinic. When Breeanna's sister, Paige, contacted me, she stipulated that her father wasn't to be alerted as they were hoping to get Breeanna back and into treatment before he returned.'

      'Who are they? And what does this Breeanna need treatment for?'

      'George's younger brother, James, also works at the research institute. Apparently, he advised Paige not to worry her father while he's away but to ask us to recommend a private investigator who could find Breeanna. According to Paige, they found evidence that Breeanna is a drug addict. They think she was stealing drugs from the institute. The professor in charge there had an accident and won't be returning, so James went through his records to allocate his work to the other researchers. The professor is a secretive old bugger and Breeanna was the only one he would work closely with. James and Paige think Breeanna got spooked when she thought her theft might be discovered and that's why she disappeared.'

      Rogan leaned back in the chair. 'How did you get involved?'

      'My father had handled all the legal work for George Montgomery and the Montgomery Medical Research Institute, and I took over his clients after he died. James and Paige said they trusted me to find them an investigator of high calibre.'

      'So you thought of Liam.'

      'Naturally. Apart from being a friend, Liam is one of the most ethical people I know.' Keith gave a short laugh. 'Which is probably why he got out of law. It's damned hard to defend a client you're sure is guilty, and he wasn't keen on boring work like conveyancing. Liam also has a talent for going undercover and finding out information people would rather keep hidden.'

      Patience. That virtue that Rogan found so elusive. Liam had it in spades, all right. Bided his time, waited for the chink in someone's armour to show. Asked the right question at the right time. Rogan could think of numerous times that Liam's patience had secured him the information he needed. But this time it looked as though he'd run out of the luck that PIs need as much as patience.

      'Rogan, you should consider that Liam's disappearance may have nothing to do with the Montgomery case,' Keith continued. 'He would have made a few enemies in the years he's been a private investigator.'

      'I've thought about that. Can you tell me where I can find this Montgomery Institute? I want to find out what they know about Liam. He would have reported back to them, so they're probably the last people to see him. If Bruin isn't going to do anything …'

      Keith nodded and reached for pen and paper. 'I'll phone and let them know you're coming. I don't normally give my clients' information out, but I'm sure they'll understand in these circumstances. Besides, you won't get in through the security gates unless they're expecting you.' He wrote quickly, handed the paper to Rogan, then said, 'Don't forget, Rogan, Liam's disappearance might not be related to the Montgomery case. He's worked on other cases that would have made him some enemies.' He picked up his pen again. 'Better give me your mobile number if you have one, just in case anything crops up.'

      The first thing Rogan did was buy a new street directory. If he was going to follow Liam's trail he'd probably need a more current version than the old one Liam had handed on.

      Although he and Liam had driven through Brighton before, they'd always been on their way to somewhere else and Rogan had never really paid a lot of attention to the buildings, only gaining an impression of size and quality that spoke of wealth in a well-modulated voice rather than a scream. Big, imposing concrete fences, electronically controlled gates, tennis courts, huge trees, huge buildings - white cement, sandstone, different shades of cream and autumn tones, gardens carefully tended to exude an air of casual grace.

      Varied shades of green foliage against the blue sky were in pleasant contrast with the bare limbs and bleak grey that had been Rogan's memory of Melbourne when he'd visited last winter. Buds of pink and white proclaimed that the city was ready to impress with another display of delicate spring blossoms. So different from the brief week or two of Queensland's spring, with its plants slashing vibrant colours into a hot and often humid summer.

      The streets were narrow, traffic slowed by small roundabouts, and it took Rogan longer than he thought to reach the research institute. Security gates blocked the entrance through the high concrete fence. Rogan drove around the institute first, getting the feel of the place. A series of interconnected buildings, they took up the entire block, and he noted that the rear entrance, like the main one, had security card controls and an intercom facility.

      He stopped in front of the main gate intercom, pressed the button, and waited. A soft, feminine voice asked him to please state his name and business. Careful not to give away Liam's real identity, he stated he was Liam Kennedy's brother and Keith Reynolds had sent him. At his reply, the gates swung open. This cream sandstone building appeared to be a wing of the original, which, from what Rogan guessed, might still be used as a residence. The other buildings were modern, streamlined and functional.

      The carved wooden door was locked, but Rogan spoke into the adjoining intercom and heard a soft click. He walked in.

      The smiling face of the

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