Stone Rage

by J. D. Weston

  "Shhh," said Melody. She was listening for more fire.

  "You asked," said Reg.

  "Oh this is killing me," said Melody with her head in her hands. Her MP5 lay across her lap ready to go at a moment's notice. "Reg, can you get Frank on the loudspeaker?"

  Within a few seconds, the van filled with the sound of a ringing phone.

  "Tenant, what's the news?"

  "Sir, it's me. You're on loudspeaker," said Melody.

  "Go on."

  "It's just an update, sir. Harvey has been inside the yard for more than thirty minutes."

  "Any action?"

  "We just heard two gunshots."

  "You thought we heard gunshots," said Reg.

  "Did you or didn't you hear gunshots, Mills?"

  "Ninety-nine percent sure, sir."

  "Same gun?"

  "Definitely. But I couldn't hear it clear enough to make out if it was a Sig."

  "Spacing?"

  "Double tap, of that I'm sure."

  "Then it's Stone. Those Albanians will be using AKs, forty-sevens or seventy-fours."

  There was a silence while Frank made a decision.

  "Sit tight, wait for the chaos. If I know Stone like I think I do, the whole place will erupt any minute."

  "Copy that, sir."

  "Mills?"

  "Sir?"

  "Thanks for the update. Make sure our boy gets out in one piece." Frank disconnected the call.

  The door of the cabin was kicked open, and two men ran out brandishing AK-74s. They spat a few rounds in Harvey's direction then ducked behind some cars. Harvey didn't take the bait. Instead, he dipped back down to Adeo.

  "The surprise is up, but this isn't over until Luan Duri is face down in the mud," said Harvey.

  Adeo nodded and stood. He pulled his own weapon from a discreet holster beneath his arm. He slid the action back and let it slide forward, collecting a round on its way.

  Harvey ran between the cars to the far wall behind the cabin. Adeo ran in the opposite direction. Taking a quick glance back toward Adeo, Harvey saw him disappear around the corner near the gates. Harvey moved off towards the two men he'd dropped earlier.

  Voices rang out in the night, confused shouts in Albanian, along with the occasional bursts of automatic fire. These weren't trained men. If they were, they wouldn't be shouting. A man was framed in the window of a car; he was waiting in the shadows. Harvey took him down with the butt of his Sig then finished the job with a swipe of his knife through his throat. He knelt beside the dying man, looked around, then stood to make his way towards the rear of the cabin. He caught sight of something in the corner of his eye and turned to find the two dogs sat perfectly still, exactly where he had left them. Harvey gave a light whistle, and the dogs ran to his side. He chanced a glance up to the cabin window and peeked inside. The back of the old man's head was in clear view. He was sat at a desk giving orders to another guy with tattoos.

  Harvey checked around him; he was alone. He turned back and raised his weapon. Then the lights went out, and the sound of chairs scraping along the cabin's thin floor came through the walls.

  Adeo, Harvey thought. He must have tripped the switch. Harvey had had a clean shot, but couldn't risk missing now by firing into the darkness. He moved to the corner of the cabin. A roar of automatic fire came from less than ten metres away, but Harvey couldn't see its source. He stole a quick look around the side of the cabin and saw a man firing from the hip like he was in was a movie, walking backwards out of Adeo's range. Harvey fired once and took the man down. He considered taking the AK but thought better of it. They were too cumbersome, and he intended on being out of the junkyard in less than two minutes.

  From where Harvey stood, he saw the gates and Adeo's massive shadow moving closer to the open space. One Albanian had dragged his friend away and now manned one of the flamethrowers. Harvey took careful aim, released a single round and hit the five-foot-tall orange gas bottle directly. The bottle exploded with such force that before the flames had taken form, Harvey saw the man being blown like a leaf in the breeze towards the cabin.

  More shouts filled the silence between short bursts of the automatic weapons. Car lights lit the alleyway to the gates where Adeo was waiting, and the roar of a powerful engine overshadowed the chaotic shouts. A small part of Harvey hoped it was Melody with her MP5. But it wasn't the team. It was a BMW that tore through the gates and aimed directly at the massive bulk of Adeo. The big man had no time to react. He threw himself onto the bonnet of the car, lifting his legs clear of the bumper, and slammed into the windscreen. He bounced over the roof and landed heavily in the mud. The car slid to a halt as Adeo rolled on his back and clutched his chest.

  Harvey slipped back into the shadows. The dogs followed.

  The cabin spewed out men, more than Harvey had imagined had been in there. He couldn't understand the language of the shouting, but he got the gist. The gates were slammed and locked, and he watched as Adeo was dragged unconscious into the cabin and the door was closed.

  Men began to spread out, searching the grounds for Adeo's accomplices. The lights came on in the cabin, and the ground around him lit up. He pointed to the cage and gave a verbal command to the dogs. "Go." The dogs trotted off and lay down on the ground. By the time they had turned to watch him, he had slipped further into the depths of the ranks of cars.

  Harvey shivered; the adrenaline was wearing off. Footsteps came from his left. The Albanians were more confident in their search now and they walked in pairs. Harvey stepped out just as two men drew close. He slotted one in the neck and jammed his finger into the eye of the other. He whipped the knife from the first man and plunged it into the chest of the second. The man gasped. His eyes looked up at Harvey, big and white, pleading, understanding. Harvey twisted the blade and jerked it out, letting the man fall to the ground.

  Shouts began to come from the cabin, not Adeo's but foreign. An older man's voice. Luan.

  Harvey strode along the sidewall of the property. Two men crept around the corner in front of him. One looked behind as the other breached the corner, using tactical manoeuvres. These two were military trained, not like the others he had come across. Harvey raised his Sig and took them both down with two shots. The shots seemed to wake the dead. Shouts rang out from all directions across the yard, and scattered footsteps approached from all directions. Harvey turned one more corner, looking for a place to duck into and gather his thoughts. He turned and stepped into the muzzle of a waiting AK-74.

  Harvey stared down the barrel into the man's eyes. He was calm, not breathing heavily, and wasn't excited. It wasn't his first time; he was a pro and would probably be ready for an attack from Harvey. Harvey dropped his Sig to the ground and raised his empty hands.

  "Walk," said the man.

  Harvey didn't move.

  "I told you to walk, so walk."

  "Where am I walking?" Harvey was waiting for the footsteps of more men, joining the man to celebrate their capture, but none did. He was alone, which told Harvey that the only other men were in the cabin.

  "Just fucking walk or I'll drop you right here."

  A three round burst from Melody's barking dog turned the man's cold expression into shock, horror and pain. He twisted and dropped to his knees. Harvey picked up his Sig and put the gun to the man's head. He looked up at Melody and pulled the trigger.

  "What took you so long?"

  "Ah well, you know, traffic, the weather," said Melody. "I'm glad you're okay. Let's get out of here before-"

  She was cut off by the noise of two engines starting. They ducked into the line of cars and watched as the BMW and Range Rover sped out the gates and into the night.

  "Reg, come back," said Melody into her earpiece.

  "Go ahead."

  Two vehicles just left the yard. Can you track them? BMW and a black Range Rover."

  "Yeah, I see the Range Rover. I have his plate. Let me see what I can do."

  Melody turned back to Harvey. "
Are you coming with us?"

  "Wait in the van. I need to check the cabin."

  Melody looked through the cars to the cabin. It was shielded by piles of scrap. "You think he's still in there?"

  "Adeo? Probably not. But we might find something else in there."

  "I can't read you, Harvey."

  "Don't try then."

  "Are you going to save Adeo or kill him yourself?" She handed Harvey a fresh clip for his Sig, knowing that he would be running low.

  "To be honest, Melody," he said, sliding the new magazine into place, "I haven't decided yet."

  "It would be nice to get some arrests at the end of this, not just a pile of bodies." Melody gestured at the yard, which had men lying on cars, feet and legs sticking out from between piles of junk and one flamethrower with its docile flame tapering off into the air.

  "He knows too much. I can't risk him talking. Wait in the van. I'll be out in a sec."

  "No, Harvey. I'm coming with you. I've already missed most of the action. At least let me search the cabin with you."

  Harvey sighed. "Okay, let's move. In and out. One minute."

  The pair ran to the door of the cabin. The lights were on, but there was no movement inside. Melody stood to one side of the door, her MP5 held ready to fire. Harvey kicked the door in, sending it across the floor inside. Melody was in and aiming her weapon at all the blind corners. Harvey stepped in behind her. There were two rooms, both of equal size, approximately four metres wide by six metres. The first was a mess room with a long central table and chairs, presumably where the men would sit and drink coffee and smoke. Two large filing cabinets stood to one side containing scrap records and logbooks of some of the cars that passed through, probably the bare minimum to keep the taxman and law at bay. There were calendars of topless women on the walls, and overflowing ashtrays on the tables, plus empty Vodka bottles dotted around like ornaments.

  The second room was Luan's office. A large, glossy desk stood in front of a cushioned, leather reclining chair. There were two less comfortable chairs on the guest side and a potted plant in the corner.

  There was no paperwork in the desk drawers, no photos on top, and no sign of anybody being in there, only the smell of cigarette smoke and the musky scent of old sweat.

  "Jackson, be ready to go in two," said Melody into her comms.

  "Copy," came the reply.

  "Dead end," said Melody. "Let's hope Reg managed to get a track on the Range Rover."

  "This isn't his main office. This is just a convenient spot for him to work when he's in the area. He's got a main office somewhere else, somewhere slightly more welcoming," said Harvey.

  "I'd also say he's got somewhere less welcoming for Adeo, and that's where they're heading."

  "I'd agree with that," said Harvey. "Let's move."

  "Wait," said Melody, then she lost her momentum and added weakly, "are you going to tell me about it?"

  "About what, Melody?"

  "You saw your foster father, after all this time. I thought, well-"

  "There's nothing to think about. He's a villain, I'm not. I've paid my dues."

  "You think he'll blow your cover?"

  "If I go back without Adeo, maybe. Otherwise, I'm doing him a favour. I just need to make sure I corner him, have a chat, get a lay of the land. I'm sure he'll realise that I'd be slaughtered if he lets on that my name is not Gerry and I've been lying to the firm. I can't imagine he'd want that to happen. But he didn't get where he is by being nice, did he?"

  "Let's move," said Melody, and turned to the door. She stepped down the three small steps as Harvey followed then heard the familiar sound of an AK being cocked.

  "Drop your weapons," said the man.

  Harvey gave a long slow whistle. "You're good," he said.

  "No games. Drop them."

  Harvey heard the sound he was waiting for, the scatter of mud and light rhythm of dogs’ feet bounding across the yard. Movement caught the man's eye, and he turned to see two airborne fifty-pound German Shepherds with bared teeth.

  The dogs took him down with no effort and tore through his throat with the savage, carnal ferocity of wolves.

  Harvey nudged Melody as she stood and looked on in horror.

  "Let's move."

  12

  Ball and Chain

  "Talk to me, Ginger," said John Cartwright. He was sat alone at a table for two in an Italian restaurant on the Isle of Dogs. The waiter had just delivered his lobster linguine. He sipped at an expensive glass of Chianti and waited for his new number two to deliver the update.

  "It's Adeo, boss. Gerry just walked out with some bird. No sign of Adeo."

  "Talk me through it."

  "Well, they were in there about half an hour when the place erupted. Sounded like a bloody movie. Two cars came tearing out and the bird walked in carrying a machine gun. I haven't got a clue where she came from. Then there was a few more shots, and the pair of them walked out like they just had dinner."

  "Did anybody follow the cars?"

  "No, boss, we're on our own here. We expected to see Adeo and that Gerry bloke come running out any minute."

  "You think Adeo is down?"

  "I just poked my head in the gates and saw two massive dogs. Nothing else moving. He's either dead or in the car."

  "Well, if we lose Adeo, I want Bobby and his firm taken care of and dumped in the river, Ginger."

  "Sorry, boss."

  "Don't apologise to me, Ging. But make plans. Make sure we're ready to jump the lot of them as soon as I give the word."

  "Will do, boss."

  "What about the bird? Who is she?"

  "Dunno, boss. She looks serious. She's got filth written all over her."

  "A cop?"

  "Who else has automatic weapons like that? Besides, it's the way she held it, like she'd trained, you know what I mean?"

  "Are you following them?"

  "Yeah, they just walked up the road. I'll find out where they're going and get back to you."

  "Make sure you do, Ginger."

  "This is more like it," said Reg as the van pulled away. "The whole team back in the van, just like the old days."

  Melody didn't reply. The statement reminded her that Denver wasn't there.

  "How are you getting on with finding that Range Rover, Reg?" asked Harvey.

  "Done. Easy. LUCY is tracking it now. I just traced the plates back to the dealer, hacked the dealer's firewall and-"

  "Another time, eh Reg? Sorry mate, it's been a rough night."

  "Reg, where am I heading?" asked Jackson.

  "A12, Jackson, all the way," replied Reg. "Looks like they've stopped in some kind of recycling plant off Pudding Mill Lane."

  "Mark the exits for me, Reg. I'll take a look in a minute. Jackson, can you call out the ETAs? Melody, how many spare clips you got for the Sigs?"

  "Two each."

  "So, four for me then. You're staying in the van."

  "No, I'm not. I just sat outside and listened to world war three going off in that yard."

  "You'll blow my cover. I need to go in and get Adeo and get out. If I have help, he'll know I'm still old bill. At least if I work alone, I may be able to convince him otherwise."

  "For god's sake, Harvey."

  "Sorry to interrupt, people, but we have a tail," said Jackson. "They've been on us since we left the yard."

  Harvey was sat on the floor of the van behind Melody in the passenger seat. "Melody, how close?"

  "Two hundred metres give or take."

  "Reckon you can make the shot?"

  "What? Harvey, we're not on a random killing rampage."

  "No, we're running an operation to stop organised crime. Can you make the shot or not?"

  "No, Harvey, I won't do it."

  Harvey pulled his Sig from his waistband. "Jackson, take us somewhere quiet."

  "What are you doing, Harvey?" said Melody.

  "Stopping organised crime, Melody. What does it look like I'm doing?"
>
  "I know a place around the corner. We'll be there in one minute," said Jackson.

  "Reg, on my three."

  "No," said Melody. "Stop, everyone. Just stop."

  "No time, Melody. We're in this now," said Harvey.

  "Thirty seconds," said Jackson.

  "Reg, be ready with the door."

  "Harvey, what are you doing?"

  "Melody, do you trust me?"

  "With my life. But this is stupid."

  "Ten seconds."

  "Get that barking dog of yours, and be ready to jump out on my one." He'd turned and spoken the words carefully at her, looking her directly in the eye.

  Melody made the MP5 ready and sat with her hand on the door handle. "Frank isn't going to like this."

  Harvey felt the van turn right. Trees hung across the road, and only old warehouses stood either side.

  "Three."

  Jackson eased off the accelerator pedal, and the van began to slow. The car behind drew close.

  "Two." Reg pulled the handle on the rear door and shoved it open as hard as he could.

  Harvey fired twice at the car's radiator, and angry steam hissed from the grill.

  "One."

  Melody dived out of the passenger seat and covered the car with the MP5.

  Harvey began to slide out the van. "Tyres."

  Melody gave two three-round bursts and took out the front and back right tires.

  Harvey strode to the driver's door and ripped it open with his weapon on the driver. He reached in and dragged the man to the tarmac. Harvey stood on the back of his neck and aimed at the passenger. "It's Ginger, right? The man with the head in the bag?"

  The man nodded.

  "You've got three seconds to get out the car before I finish you right here. Try anything dumb, and she'll open you up. One."

  The man opened the door.

  "Two."

  He slowly stepped out with his hands raised.

  "Three. Good. When I give you an order with a time limit, do it faster. Next time, I won't be so lenient." Harvey's eyes never left the man who stood close to Melody. "Reg, ties."

  Reg grabbed a bundle of zip ties and climbed out the van. He passed them to Harvey.

  "I don't want them, zip this up," said Harvey. He had full control of the situation. "Put two or three on, they're going in the back with you." Once Reg had pulled the man's hands behind his back and had the first tie pulled tight, Harvey released pressure off his neck and walked round to Ginger.