by Conrad Jones
The driver’s door opened and a tall man with grey hair jumped out. He looked nervous, almost frightened as he approached the Ford. Simon took out his warrant card and opened the window.
‘I’m DS Brady and this is DS Leach,’ he said, showing his identification. ‘Are you Glen Price?’
‘Yes. What do you want?’
‘We’re investigating the murder of your colleague Kelvin Adams and we’d like to have a word with you, Mr Price.’
‘I’m very busy at the moment,’ Mr Price said.
‘It won’t take long,’ Simon said.
‘We’re having a family crisis of our own,’ Mr Price said. He shook his head and frowned. Simon thought his abruptness was unusual to say the least. ‘You’ll have to come back another time, I’m afraid.’
‘We’ll come back in the morning about ten o’clock if that suits,’ Simon said. He used a tone that suggested it wasn’t a request. ‘I have your number; we’ll call ahead to make sure you’re here.’
‘I’m not sure how I can help,’ Mr Price said. His eyes darted left to right.
‘We just have a few questions, Mr Price, nothing to worry about,’ Simon said, finding reverse. ‘Enjoy your evening. We’ll see you in the morning at ten.’
Mr Price watched them leave, concern etched across his face. Simon watched him in the mirror.
‘That was very odd,’ Kerry said. ‘If anyone has got something to hide, it’s Mr Glen Price.’
‘There’s no doubt about it. He didn’t ask anything about the investigation or why we wanted to speak to him,’ Simon said. ‘Most people would want to help if a friend was murdered. They go out of their way to help, not Mr Price.’ Simon pulled onto the coast road and headed back towards the island. ‘Mr Price doesn’t have sickness and diarrhoea but he does look like a rabbit in the headlights. He’s frightened. I’ll put money on the fact he knows something about Kelvin Adams we don’t.’ Simon paused. ‘How much does an engineer at Jaguar earn a year?’
‘I was thinking the same thing when they pulled in,’ Kerry said. ‘That Porsche has got to be eighty grand at least, would you think?’
‘At least,’ Simon said. ‘And that house is impressive.’
‘I’m looking forward to chatting to Mr Price,’ Kerry said.
‘Me too.’
CHAPTER 16
Alan and Kim walked into Dafyd’s office. There were some familiar faces in the room although he wasn’t expecting to see them there. There were some unfamiliar faces too.
‘Come in, come in,’ Dafyd said. ‘This is DI Alan Williams and DS Kim Davies.’ The gathering said hello with little enthusiasm. The atmosphere in the room was tense. ‘This is DCI Kensington, head of our national Drug Squad and this is Chief Superintendent Hunt from the Matrix unit, Merseyside. Everyone else, you know already.’
‘No, hold on a minute,’ Alan said. Dafyd blushed. ‘I don’t know these gentlemen.’ He pointed to two men in suits, standing near the window.
‘Superintendent Wallace and Inspector Banks, National Crime Agency,’ Wallace said, stony-faced. ‘We’re here in an advisory role only.’
‘NCA in Caernarfon, I see why you needed us back so quickly,’ Alan said. ‘There must be something going on that we don’t know about. Would someone like to bring us up to speed?’
‘The undercover officers you pulled out of the sea are Mike Jarvis and Patrick McGowan,’ Chief Superintendent Hunt said, abruptly. ‘Unfortunately, they stumbled into Operation Thor, the biggest joint constabulary investigation ever carried out by our forces.’
‘Operation Thor,’ Alan said to Kim. He shrugged. ‘I’ve never heard of it.’
‘We’re in the third year of the investigation,’ Hunt said. ‘When we close in, we will unequivocally dismantle the supply chain across the North-West and North Wales.’
‘Wow, that’s a bold statement,’ Alan said. ‘I don’t think that’s realistic.’ Dafyd shook his head to silence him. Alan ignored his advice. ‘Certainly not in the long term.’
‘We think it is. We’re going to take out every layer of the operation so it will be impossible to build it back up to the level it’s at now,’ Hunt said.
‘You’re going to need to break that down for me.’
‘We can’t go into detail for obvious reasons.’
‘You’re here telling us there’s been an investigation running for three years in our area that we don’t know about and now you want us to do what?’
‘We have infiltrated over a dozen outfits and we have thousands of hours of audio and video surveillance on the top dealers involved in the supply chain. You can imagine how much time it’s taken to get officers established and trusted within the organisations; but it’s very fragile.’
‘And you’re involved in this operation, DCI Kensington?’ Alan asked. Despite being part of the Welsh force, he wasn’t very familiar with the DCI as Kensington was new to the role.
‘Yes. Of course.’
‘Okay, what has this got to do with our investigation?’
‘You could inadvertently tread on our operation,’ Kensington said.
‘We can’t have that, can we?’ Alan said. ‘What do you need from us, how can we help you?’
‘We need you to tread carefully around the known suppliers in Holyhead,’ Hunt said.
‘I’m assuming Mike Jarvis and Patrick McGowan were working on something else apart from Thor when they were murdered?’ Alan asked.
‘Yes.’
‘What were they working on?’
‘They were working on an Albanian outfit who have been establishing themselves in the North-West for some time now,’ Superintendent Wallace spoke.
‘Hence your involvement in this?’
‘Yes. They’re part of a bigger organisation based in London and Amsterdam but lately, their forays up here have been more frequent and violent.’
‘Since Operation Suzie?’
‘Yes. It caused a power vacuum and the Albanians are set to take over. Jarvis and McGowan were investigating their activities. We think they linked them with your area and followed a lead to the island.’
‘The Albanian outfits are heavy hitters,’ Alan said. ‘Violent in the extreme, I believe?’
‘Very,’ Wallace said.
‘Why would an organisation that big be interested in a small backwater like this?’ Alan asked. ‘Unless the supply chain is changing direction.’ He paused.
‘It could be,’ Wallace said.
‘They’re interested in the port, aren’t they?’
‘We think so,’ Wallace said, nodding. ‘Things in London are taut. Controlling Liverpool and Holyhead would give them access to two of the busiest ports in the UK.’
‘Liverpool is a jungle,’ Alan said. ‘And Holyhead is a soft target in comparison.’
‘Exactly. We think that’s what Jarvis and McGowan were following.’
‘But you have nothing concrete on them from your investigations here?’ Alan asked.
‘No. The Albanians haven’t come up in any conversations we’ve listened to,’ Hunt said.
‘You’re talking about your audio surveillance?’
‘Yes.’
‘You have audio and video surveillance on who exactly?’ Alan asked. The hairs on his neck were tingling. He could feel what was coming. The senior officers looked at each other but didn’t elaborate. ‘Oh, come on. You’re monitoring dealers in our area who could be involved in this murder investigation. Are you telling us to avoid certain people?’
‘Yes.’
‘Jamie Hollins?’ Alan asked.
‘Especially Jamie Hollins,’ Hunt said.
‘We need you to give Hollins a wide berth. He’s not to be interviewed or questioned, followed or rattled in any way.’ Kensington cleared his throat. ‘We have his pub, his vehicles, and his other businesses bugged. There are thousands of hours of evidence which could be compromised if you bumble into our investigation. When we arrest him, he will go down for thirty years and his
crew will do fifteen each, minimum. We’re making an example to every wannabe Welsh Pablo Escobar that drugs don’t pay in the long run and we won’t tolerate it.’
‘I didn’t know I bumbled,’ Alan said, looking at Dafyd. ‘Do I bumble?’
‘Sometimes,’ Dafyd said, nodding. He intervened before Alan could drop himself in it. ‘We can safely say we get the message and the last thing we would want to do is compromise your operation.’
‘We’re willing to work with you on this,’ the chief inspector said. ‘Obviously, we want the murders of Jarvis and McGowan investigated to the best of your abilities and the killers strung up by the bollocks, but we need you to leave Hollins alone.’
‘That’s all very well but what if our investigation leads straight to his front door?’ Alan asked.
‘We’ll have a conversation,’ the chief said. His eyes narrowed. ‘It’s a bridge we can cross when we get there. All we need for now is your assurance that you’ll keep our operation in mind. If we keep the lines of communication open, we’ll be fine. You can give me daily updates, Dafyd. That way we can avoid any friendly fire.’
‘Perfect,’ Alan said. He stood up. ‘If that’s all we need to know, I’ve got a briefing to update. Obviously, we won’t repeat anything you’ve told us to my team. Do you think your undercover operation could be compromised too?’
‘Without sounding callous, Jarvis and McGowan weren’t aware of our operation, so they couldn’t have named any of our UCs.’ The other officers nodded, quietly. ‘But the truth is, we don’t know for sure.’
‘Thanks for the information. We’ll keep Dafyd informed all the way,’ Alan added on his way out. Kim followed him. They walked towards the operations room, each in their own thoughts. ‘What do you think about that?’
‘I think we’re heading for trouble with Matrix. What do you think?’
‘I’m hoping they’re wrong about the Albanian crews creeping onto the island. That lot make Jamie Hollins and Lloyd Jones look like boy scouts. They would chew them up and spit them out. I think they would be safer in jail than tackling them.’
CHAPTER 17
Lloyd was stiff and disoriented. His neck felt like it had a steel bar inserted into it. His memory was rebooting. The sequence of events began to slot into place. He remembered being zapped from behind and he began to panic. His limbs wouldn’t move. He struggled but his arms and legs were fastened to a metal frame. He opened his eyes and took in the scene through the fog that unconsciousness had left behind. Jamie Hollins was sitting on a workbench surrounded by tools and welding gear. Lloyd guessed where he was. The Hollins family had been welders and farriers for generations before Jamie ventured into narcotics. His brother was a legitimate businessman with a flourishing metal company. They had a yard and workshop on Holy Mountain. It was in an isolated spot and he knew shouting for help was pointless. His voice would be carried out to sea on the wind for no one to hear. The dull sound of the foghorn at North Stack echoed across the mountain. It was a forlorn noise, especially now, he thought, like a harbinger of doom.
‘What am I doing here, Hollins?’ Lloyd asked, his voice slurred.
‘I need to ask you some questions because you’re getting on my tits, Lloyd. Did you pay Ronny Green a visit?’ Jamie asked.
‘Ronny Green?’ Lloyd asked, confused. ‘I haven’t seen Ronny for weeks. He only drinks in your pubs. I heard he’s on your payroll now.’
‘Pubs?’ Jamie said. ‘I own the South Stack, that’s it.’
‘That’s what you want people to think but you’re not as clever as you think you are,’ Lloyd said, a wry smile on his face. ‘You own the Ddraigh Goch and the Welsh Fusilier but you think no one knows.’
‘Those pubs are dead. Why would I want to own them?’
‘It’s called money laundering.’
‘You listen to some fairy tales, Lloyd. I’ve heard those rumours too but that’s all they are. Back to the original question, Ronny Green was found dead in his house. He’s an old friend of mine. Did you call round his house and beat him up?’
‘Not guilty,’ Lloyd said. ‘Ronny Green never did anything to me. My problem is with you, no one else and I don’t have a problem saying it to your face either.’
‘You don’t say it to my face, Lloyd, you paste it all over the Internet like a teenage girl with her knickers in a twist. You’re a keyboard warrior, hard as nails when you’re sitting in your bedroom but you’re nothing. You pissed yourself tonight, tough guy.’ Lloyd looked down. He had pissed himself. That was embarrassing to say the least. ‘I’m only going to say this once, Lloyd so, listen well.’ Jamie stood up and walked over to him. He was holding Lloyd’s flick knife. The blade clicked out and Lloyd flinched. Jamie used the blade to free his left hand. ‘I’m sick to the back teeth of your threats and ranting about your cousin.’ He freed his right hand. Lloyd looked shocked and rubbed his wrists. Jamie cut his ankles free. ‘Your cousin, Paul Critchley isn’t dead and if he is, I didn’t kill him.’
‘You threatened to throw him off the mountain and the next day, he disappeared and none of the family have heard from him.’ Lloyd moved away from the frame. ‘What am I supposed to think?’
‘What else happened around that time?’ Jamie asked. ‘Have a good think about it.’ Lloyd frowned. He was clearly shaken and confused at being released. ‘Think about who got sent down soon after he went missing.’
‘I don’t know what your game is, Hollins, bringing me up here with your monkeys glaring at me,’ Lloyd said. Four of Jamie’s crew looked on. ‘There’s not one of them would face me one to one.’ The men laughed at him and shook their heads.
‘You just can’t help it, can you?’ Jamie said, shaking his head. ‘Every single man in this room would destroy you, Lloyd. Your problem is, you think you’re Johnny Concrete but the truth is, you’re far from it. You get Ron Took to do all your dirty work.’ Jamie stared into his eyes so hard Lloyd looked away. He knew he was out of his league. Jamie was a unit, steroid built. He could break people. ‘Do yourself a favour and think very carefully about what I’m saying.’
‘I’m listening but you’re not saying much.’
‘Does the surname Hall ring any bells?’
‘Hall?’
‘They’re from Valley.’
‘The Hall brothers,’ Lloyd said. ‘Tom, Matt, and Andy. They’re all inside for murder.’
‘That’s them,’ Jamie said. ‘How do you think the police knew they were going to Reg Hanney’s house that night?’ Lloyd looked blank and shrugged. ‘I’ll tell you how. They were given a tipoff that Hanney was going to be robbed. If the police hadn’t been outside, no one would ever have known who’d done it. They would have been in and out. You see, it was an accident Hanney died. They didn’t go there to kill him. They were going to take his money and his drugs but he fought back and got knocked down. He banged his head on a table.’ He allowed the tale to sink in. ‘Did you think the police got lucky and caught them leaving the scene by accident?’
‘I’ve never given it much thought,’ Lloyd said.
‘Your cousin went missing a week after they were arrested,’ Jamie said. ‘Do you know why?’
‘Because you threw him in the sea with a concrete block tied to him.’
‘No, Lloyd. Because people were starting to put two and two together. The police turned up just as they were leaving with the drugs and the money on them and a dead body inside. No one gets that lucky. The only other person who knew about the robbery was Paul because he’d heard them talking when they were planning it. The Halls trusted your cousin. He isn’t dead, Lloyd, he’s in witness protection. That’s why he hasn’t contacted your family, he can’t. It’s part of the deal. They’ll give him anonymity as long as he doesn’t try to make contact. If he does, the deal is off.’
‘You’re a liar,’ Lloyd said, shaking his head. ‘Paul wasn’t a grass.’
‘Paul was a greedy conniving gobshite,’ Jamie said. Lloyd glared angrily but there was dou
bt in his eyes now. ‘He thought if the Halls got nicked, he could step into their boots and run things for a few months while they did their time, make a bit of money, skimming off the top but he hadn’t planned on them killing Hanney. It was a big deal at the time. It was the murder of a popular man and people wanted to know how the police happened to be parked around the corner at the right time. It was obvious someone had grassed and once the Halls worked out who it was, Critchley vanished.’
‘I don’t believe it,’ Lloyd said, shaking his head. ‘Paul a grass. My uncle Pete would be spinning in his grave.’ He looked stunned. ‘Why are you telling me this now?’ Lloyd said. ‘What’s this really about?’
‘Have you heard about the two men dragged out of the sea in the Bay?’
‘Yes, of course,’ Lloyd said. ‘What has that got to do with anything?’
‘A little birdy tells me they’re coppers,’ Jamie said. ‘I know it wasn’t us that burned them and I doubt it was your lot.’
‘We had nothing to do with that.’
‘Things aren’t right, Lloyd. Ronny was turned over, he’s dead and the town is swamped with shit cocaine. There’s a lot of instability at the moment and I’m calling a truce. I don’t care what you’ve said in the past, it’s over. I’m not expecting us to be best friends but I’m getting very nervous. My spider-senses are tingling. There’s something going on behind the scenes and what I don’t need right now is you pecking my head about your scumbag cousin. You see, when you threaten me online, people expect a response. A violent response. When that doesn’t happen, people think I’m turning soft. They perceive it as weakness and it’s every man for himself at the moment, so I can’t be seen to be weak. You know that.’
‘So, what are you saying?’
‘I’m telling you to you shut your mouth and keep your eyes open,’ Jamie said. ‘I need to concentrate on business. I’m not wasting any more time on you, do you understand?’
‘Fair enough,’ Lloyd said, nodding. ‘Are you sure they were coppers?’
