‘Just call me Doctor Stone on this CSI gig.’Wearing plastic gloves, Stone unzipped the soggy bag and removed a saturated security guard’s uniform and a lab coat with a swipe card in the pocket.‘That explains how they got around the hatchery.’He held up the swipe card.
‘How often do they give those cards out?’
‘Not often.I had to sign for the one I used and then give it back.’
‘Who gives them out?’
‘Doug.He is the head of security.’
‘Isn’t Doug the one who sent us down here to hassle The Vegan?’
‘But this shirt is three sizes smaller than Doug and his well-earned beer belly… At least we can tell what size these guys were.’
‘That’s true.’Craig used his phone to videotape the clothing.‘I bet the Duchess will find some DNA forensic stuff off this.’
‘You just saidDuchess.And it’s on video—that we both know the Duchess will listen to eventually.’Stone chuckled.
‘You’re a bad influence, Stone.Stop yakking and see what else is in that bag.’Craig then softly mumbled into the phone, ‘I’m sorry, Amara, for calling you Duchess.I meant no disrespect.’
Stone chuckled as he rummaged through the gym bag’s side pockets and pulled out some waterlogged paperwork.
‘What is it?’Still recording, Craig brought his phone closer.
‘It’s a map of the hatchery.’It had been rolled up tight enough to keep some areas on the page dry, displaying sections on the map circled in ink.‘It’s how they knew where to get the eggs from, and which juveniles to take.This theft wasn’t your typical snatch and grab, these thieves knew exactly what to go for.’
They frowned at the evidence, but their thoughts were loud.
‘You don’t think that this is…’
‘An inside job.’Stone didn’t want to say it either because the Rowntrees were good people, who employed 20 staff.
‘Here’s a thought…’ Craig stood, readjusting his hat.‘How come they didn’t notice the missing stock sooner?Lenora’s switched on enough to know the numbers in that hatchery either in person or just on camera.Or was she too worried about her father’s temper.’
Not that Stone could blame her, having witnessed Malcolm’s attitude towards Lenora earlier today.‘Remember, crocs are cannibals.So pen numbers rarely stay the same for long.And you saw how quickly they moved around in the hatchery, making it difficult to count them.’
Craig shuddered.‘Give me cattle any day over swamp puppies.I don’t know how you do it.’
‘It’s a calling, brother.’Stone patted down his shirt, while putting on his best salesman smile.
‘Still, it seemed odd them not wanting to report the theft?’
‘You should know that crocodile thefts are more common than people realise.The farmers often don’t report them, just like some cattlemen won’t report their stock thefts.’
‘That’s because a lot of farmers don’t realise their stock is gone until they do a muster.By then it’s too late to claim it on their insurance, and most don’t bother due to the risk of raising the premiums.’
‘No insurance company will cover crocodile farming or wrangling without sky-high premiums—and even then, there’s no guarantee of a payout thanks to the danger factor.Or they’ll just blatantly refuse to cover you, which is common for this industry.Race car drivers are better protected.’
‘So that rules out this being an insurance scam then.’
‘Look at you playing detective.’
‘Izzy is rubbing off on me.Hey, how common is crocodile theft from the farms?Considering their intense security layouts.Or is Saltscale special with their security?’
‘Most crocodile farms have tight security to keep out protestors, and to protect the public from their stock of man-eating swamp puppies.I know the crocodile parks, closer to the city, have had kids jumping their fences to try and steal one.’
‘Like a prank without a plan?’
Stone nodded.‘That stock ends up getting dropped off at some vets a few days later.’
