Doomed Dynasty Pt. 08

'Gangland Hitman Kills Drug-runner' screamed the Tribune's banner headline. There was a large photo of Reece in a business suit, captioned 'South Island drug courier to businessmen with expensive living habits'. There was a smaller photo of him winning a road race in France in 1983, a photo of Cilla, 'The abandoned wife and new mother' and the caption to Rhone's photo read 'Lovely mistress tells us all to deny absolutely any part in this slaying."

Apparently a Tribune reporter who had gone to university with Rhone had posed as a concerned friend on holiday. Although the police had ordered Rhone not to talk to anyone about her ordeal, she and the young woman reporter shared a bottle of wine with martini chasers at Rhone's home after Rhone's mother had been called to collect her husband Tony who had his vehicle stolen when visiting the city that day.

Rhone told her "friend" that she denied all knowledge of who skilled Reece and why and the majority of rumours about Reece were lies. She was absolutely certain that Reece had not been a drug user but a excessive drinker of alcohol in recent times yes, but not drugs. She had agreed that Reece travelled a lot but she had no idea where he went, although he would phone her each evening. She's suspected he gambled heavily but had refused to talk to her about it.

The Tribune trumpeted: "We have established that Reece Curtis was heavily into debt as a compulsive gambler and had been under surveillance by a special police squad as a suspected drug courier but apparently no incriminating evidence against him is held by the police. Police investigators are questioning various known drug suppliers and dealers and piece by piece they are assembling links between Reece and illegal gambling operations and to two drug on-sellers whom he'd supplied. We understand that several and as yet unannounced arrests were made late last night including three businessmen and one businesswoman who had been personally supplied with drugs by Reece Curtis. The murderer has not been located, apparently arriving at the second level apartment unseen and departing unseen and being able to shoot Curtis at very close range suggest he or she was known to Curtis and caught Curtis unaware. We understand that the police have made little progress in establishing the sources who engaged the late Reece Curtis to courier drugs from Wellington to Christchurch. Police have records of his twice a month return trip via the Picton Ferry and his phone calls to his girl friend and mother, but that's about all."

At the conference on Sunday morning the detective inspector in charge of the enquiry announced that details of several arrests would be made at midday. He also said the reporter who interviewed Rhone Tancred under dubious circumstances would be questioned at police headquarters in Wellington and action may be taken against the Tribune if it were shown that its speculative comments had adversely impinged on police investigations.

He also said there was reason to suspect that Mrs Tancred being called out of the house, leaving her daughter alone with a journalist, was not simply a coincidence. Police later found her husband's missing vehicle abandoned only three streets away from where it had reportedly been parked.

Tony Tancred came under further suspicion but although he could offer no alibi on the night of the shooting, saying he was alone on his boat the Cresta Dora listening to music and having a quiet read for relaxation on his night off from the restaurant, no connection could be made between him and the dead man who was living with his daughter. (Tony's threat to the life of Reece weeks earlier would have interested the police but unfortunately the only witness to that, Reece, was dead).

When the chief inspector found that Reece had been heavily in debt and was only just managing to hold on by selling assets it did appear that the only surviving male of the Miranda Curtis's had disgraced his family name, his mother was interviewed extensively and even asked if she had arranged for her son to be killed, it provided no information of apparent usefulness. Not reported was the interviewing inspector had been slapped by Courtney and ordered off her property, much to the astonishment of his support team.

But that was it. No murderer was located. The victim was found to have been involved in acting as a drug courier and making drops and picking up payment for those drugs, although no one had come forward to report having seen Curtis involved in those transactions and because the transactions had taken place at night Curtis's identity had not been known to any witness known to the police and questioned. The link between his involvement in drug deals and his murder for unpaid debts remained circumstantial.

In due course the Coroner's opinion was death by misadventure, the actual finding was left open.

This tragedy took its toll on Courtney but she endured and had Phil Crown and her husband Harry jointly liquidate of the assets except her home. It was sad disposing of the remains of Faraway Farm but with no grandson to farm the property Courtney accepted the Curtis dynasty was doomed.

Before marrying Reece, Cilla had signed a prenuptial agreement so she ended up with little from Reece's estate. However Courtney gave her $500,000 and invited her to stay on living with her and Harry for as long as she wished.

"Thank you, you have been more than generous to me and Isobel and in no way can you be blamed to what Reece did to me. I shall leave soon but will keep in touch."

Three days later when Courtney and Harry had gone to Nelson City, some eighty miles to the west, Cilla packed up and left with Isobel, leaving a note: 'Goodbye and thank you for everything. Cilla'

Courtney called Phil

"I'm sorry Courtney but mum (Alice) has gone with Cilla and Isobel to Wellington and they will leave from there for Australia. Cilla feels she no longer feels comfortable living in New Zealand. Mum called me two hours ago from Wellington to tell me this, expecting you'd call me."

EPILOGUE

Six weeks after Reece's murder, deeply disturbed by his daughter Rhone's continuing distress, Tony Tancred sat on the stern of his boat the Cresta Dora with a bottle of brandy. Next day a body was found floating in the harbour and identified as Tony Tancred. Police found an empty brandy bottle on the deck of his boat and the deceased's body was found to have a massive level of alcohol. A thorough search of the boat produced a .44 pistol in a hiding place in the engine room. Forensic tests showed the ammunition it, with one round missing, when fired matched exactly the bullet that had been removed from the head of Reece Curtis.

The coroner returned a verdict of death by misadventure on the death of Tony Tancred. The adjourned inquest into the death of Reece Curtis reopened to allow the hearing of new evidence. The coroner recorded the finding of death by shooting by a person or persons unknown with evidence pointing to the suspected murderer as Tony Tancred.

THE END