by A L Fraine
Was that him? Was that Blake? He couldn’t be sure. It was a man, he felt confident about that, and he looked about the right size. But he’d ducked back so quickly he’d not really managed to get a good look at him.
Damn, he needed to know for sure, and he needed Kate in here.
Jon took another calming breath and set off up the hallway, looking for anything like a set of keys, just in case he needed to unlock the door, but he couldn’t see anything.
Partway up, Jon reached the door on the left and looked inside. The room was deserted, but he recognised it as the place he’d first seen the shadow. He could see the window he’d looked in through too, and realised how clearly you could see outside.
Had the man seen him?
A fresh wave of worry and fear blew through him as he wondered how on earth he’d managed to put himself in this situation. He shook his head and pressed on, passing a set of stairs leading up, and another door on his right. The man had gone that way, but there was no sign of him now.
Jon bit on the inside of his cheek in consternation, but continued up the hallway. Beyond it, an entrance hall opened up as Jon inched through the door. Ahead, he saw a couple of steps leading up to the main front door, complete with a deadbolt.
With a final glance back, Jon reached out, gripped the knob and twisted. But the door held fast.
“Crap,” he hissed and flicked the bolt open with his thumb against the catch.
Footsteps sounded behind him, approaching fast. Jon ducked. Something solid hit his back. “Aaagh.”
“Jon?” Kate called out.
Turning, he saw Blake lunge at him again. He swung a wooden bat. Jon raised his arm, and Blake caught his shoulder. It was a bloody cricket bat.
Crying out, Jon launched himself at the man, his arm burning with pain. “Kate, get in here,” he shouted.
“I’m coming.”
Going for the bat, Jon grabbed it and tried to yank it from him. He forced Blake back, who then tripped, and Jon fell on top. Behind him, there was a bang on the door as Kate kicked it. And then again.
With a tug, he tried to pull the bat from Blake’s grasp, but he held fast.
Kate kicked the door again.
“Blake, stop this,” Jon called out.
“No. I’m gonna cave your head in, pig.” He jerked the bat. The grip caught Jon the face, and he saw stars. The loss in concentration cost him as he let go of the bat. Blake pushed up, and Jon fell back. “And then, I’m gonna do that partner of yours.”
Bang, on the door again.
“Sounds like she’s desperate to see me,” Blake taunted.
Cursing, Jon knew he’d left himself open. Blake lashed out with a right hook and caught his cheek.
“Aaagh,” Jon yelped as pain bloomed up the left side of his face. On his knees, he shuffled back. Blake swung the bat low and buried it in his sternum.
His wind left him entirely as he fought to catch his breath. Blake moved around him as Jon leant forward, putting his hand on the floor, as he tried to suck in some air with ragged gasps.
The door shook, bending on his hinges as Kate kicked again.
Finally, Jon sucked in a long wheezing breath. Then, with a move he didn’t follow, Blake suddenly had the bat up under Jon’s neck. Standing behind him, he pulled, and Jon felt his airway close.
He couldn’t breathe.
Frantically, he grabbed the bat, clawing at it with his fingers as he fought for some air, any air.
Blake pulled on the bat, jamming it up under his jaw.
Oxygen, he needed oxygen. Desperately trying to pull the bat away, adrenaline forced him to fight for his life. He couldn’t go out like this.
But there wasn’t any air. He might as well have been at the bottom of the ocean because there was nothing. The muscles in his chest spasmed as he felt his vision start to tunnel, and the fight faded from him.
Darkness closed in, and he felt like he could hear someone calling to him, calling his name in the endless darkness.
Was it Charlotte? Would he see her again?
That wouldn’t be so bad…
Light blazed before him, blinding him, and a shadow moved. All he could hear was his blood pumping in his ears, making the world around him seem muffled by comparison. Something jerked. It sounded like he was underwater.
Suddenly he fell. Life-giving air rushed into his lungs as he took several laboured breaths.
“Jon?”
Who was that? Charlotte? Kate? His vision swam. Blinking, he cleared the tears from his eyes and saw Kate leaning over him. He was alive, and Blake wasn’t trying to kill them.
Relief flooded through him.
“Jon?”
“It’s Gravy-Man to you,” he said between coughs.
“Oh, do piss off,” she groaned and pulled him up.
Sitting upright, he looked over to see Blake on the floor, moaning, his head several teeth lighter than it had been, and blood leaking from his mouth.
“Wow…” Jon muttered as Kate moved over to the supine man. She turned him over, then proceeded to cuff him and read him a police caution, arresting him for suspected kidnapping. “You did that?”
With Blake secure, she smiled back at him. “I was the star batter in my rounders team at school. Comes in handy from time to time.”
“No shit.”
Jon heard sirens outside, as he noted the bloody baton on the floor and the kicked-in door. She must have come charging through and swung at him as if she was going for a home run. He wished he’d seen that, he was willing to bet it looked magnificent.
Moments later, Jon was getting to his feet, and two uniformed officers came running into the house.
“Deal with him, please,” Kate said, and looked over at Jon, holding a small key in her hand. “Look what I found in Blake’s back pocket.”
“Looks like a handcuff key,” Jon muttered, still not feeling quite with it.
“Let’s go find Olivia, shall we?”
“Oh, yeah,” Jon replied, suddenly desperate to find her.
He nodded, feeling like he was getting some of his strength back, and followed Kate. They checked the last of the rooms downstairs, but found little of interest, and headed upstairs. All the rooms upstairs were empty too, but eventually, they found a second staircase leading up to a converted attic room. The door at the top was locked, and the key she’d recovered from Blake was too small to fit.
“Screw this,” Kate muttered and kicked it.
The old wooden door shook, then buckled on the second kick as wood splintered.
“I’m getting the hang of this,” she said as she delivered her third kick, and the door flew open to reveal a squalid room beyond, and a terrified Olivia on a single dirty bed. It was the only piece of furniture apart from a bucket on the floor.
Jon watched as Kate ran over and used the key to free Olivia’s cuffed wrists, and then pull her in for a hug. With his neck, shoulder, and ribs still aching, Jon sank to the floor and rested his head against the door frame, thankful it was over.
“It’s okay. You’re safe now,” Kate reassured Olivia, who hugged her tight and started to cry.
Despite the pain, Jon felt a keen sense of relief that they’d found Olivia. She was hurting and would live with this for the rest of her life, but she was alive, and that was everything.
32
Leaning back in the soft seat, Jon winced as his ribs touched the cushion. The pain was greatly reduced, but still there.
The restaurant buzzed around him as people talked and laughed, enjoying their meals and having a good time. Rachel had done well, the Ivy was a lovely restaurant. The prices were a little eye-watering, but the food was to die for.
He’d happily eat here for the rest of his life if he could afford it.
Kate had just nipped to the bathroom, leaving Jon alone for a moment. As he waited, he pulled out his phone and checked the news reports. Scrolling down, he suddenly spotted one of interest and opened it up. It was a typically sal
acious report, talking about Russell Hodges, who was, it said, apparently arrested today in connection to the recent case of the missing girl.
The story went on to detail how it turned out that one of Mr Hodges’ staff, a security guard, had been arrested for her kidnapping and assault. According to their sources, Russell himself noted his employee’s strange behaviour and reported him.
Russell was being hailed as some kind of hero for this, but there was some bad news too. The report went on to detail how Russell had suddenly lost millions on an unspecified bad business deal earlier in the day, causing shares in RH Enterprises to plummet, only for them to recover somewhat following the news of him helping the police.
The report went on to say how this particular news organisation hoped the local philanthropist would bounce back soon.
But Jon was more interested in the bad business deal. Reading between the lines, he felt sure that there was a lot more to it than was being reported, and in fact, was not a bad business deal at all.
No, he thought, this sounded like Sydney. She’d somehow swindled millions from Russell, blackmailed him, and then left him in the lurch. With a slow shake of his head, he turned off the screen on his phone as he spotted Kate threading her way through the tables, back to him. She looked like another woman entirely in a green dress with her hair down.
“You alright?” she asked, retaking her seat.
“Yeah. I was just looking at a news report. It made out that it was Russell that did all the work in hunting Blake down.”
“Of course they did,” Kate remarked and shrugged. “They’re just building a narrative that suits them. Maybe he’s an investor of theirs.”
Jon nodded. “Yeah, maybe…”
“Thank you for bringing me here. I’ve always wanted to try it out.”
“You’ve heard good things?”
“Yeah!”
“Then I’m pleased to be able to indulge you.”
“Thank you.”
“You know, after the Alan thing, and you said you wanted to slow down, I thought you didn’t want to… I thought you regretted having spent that night with me.”
She smiled. “No. I don’t regret it. But I just wasn’t myself that week, what with the court case and everything. You know?”
“I understand.”
“I think I just needed some… affection, maybe?”
“I’m just pleased you didn’t write me off.”
“No. But, I want to take it slow. I barely know you, Jon. But, this is nice.”
He nodded, feeling a small spark of hope deep inside start to glow a little brighter.
“Don’t be sad,” she said.
“I’m not. Quite the opposite. I’m pleased.”
“Good. We closed a case today, we got our man. You should be happy.”
“I am. I mean, as happy as I can be, given he nearly killed me.”
“I’m surprised nothing was broken,” Kate said. “He really did a number on you. We didn’t have to do this tonight you know. I could have waited.”
“No, I wanted to. Besides, it’s just sitting and talking. How hard can that be?”
“Well, as long as you’re sure.”
“So, did I miss anything while I was at the hospital?” he asked. He’d been there a while as they checked him out and made sure nothing was seriously wrong. While he was there, the chief had called and told him to go back to the hotel and rest for the remainder of the day. He hadn't felt like arguing, but after a few hours, he’d been restless and called Kate to make sure the date was still going ahead.
He was keen to see her and find out how the rest of the day had gone.
“You didn’t miss much, no. Olivia’s parents came by the station and took her home. I think she was actually pleased to go back with them in the end. From what she told us, she’s been through a complete nightmare. We’ve referred her for some professional help, and I hope she takes it. I think she’ll need it. Some of the things she was telling me were just horrific.”
“Poor kid,” Jon replied, feeling sorry for her. “I wish we could have found her sooner.”
“I know. Me too. But it wouldn’t have made much difference to her mental state. She’d been suffering through months of abuse, way before Blake ever got his hands on her.”
“Some people just seem to go from one problem to the next in life.”
Kate nodded. “Blake was just the icing on the cake. From what Olivia said, we think he would have killed her eventually. We’ve had a team going over the grounds of his house, and we’ve already found what we think are human remains.”
“He abuses them, kills them, and buries them?”
“Basically.”
“What an upstanding member of society.”
“Tell me about it. He’s not really talking much, and he’s denying everything, but the evidence is already overwhelming. I can’t see him wiggling out of this one.”
“Not as long as Olivia gives evidence, no.”
“Yeah. I think she will, but I guess you never really know.”
“So, where did he kidnap her from?”
“A car park in Epsom. Olivia thought she’d been talking to Russell, when in fact it had been Blake the whole time. He’d directed her to a spot that wasn’t covered by CCTV, snuck up and attacked her.”
“Attacked her? But she knew who he was, surely she’d have gone willingly?”
“What can I say, sicko’s gonna sicko, Jon. Maybe he got a thrill out of it? Wouldn’t be the first time.”
“Yeah, I guess. What about Jacob, Vassili, and the others?”
“They’ve been charged, so they’ll have their time in court.”
“So how did Jacob find Russell?”
“He did his research,” Kate replied. “Trawled through the net looking for anything that could help him find the man. He said he narrowed it down to Kingswood easily enough from interviews, and then with photos and Google Maps and such, he got a fairly good idea of where he was, and so parked outside to confirm it. Then he just barged in.”
“Was he the one who assaulted Geoff Cook?”
“He admitted to that too, yeah. They’ve all suddenly become much more talkative actually.”
“Oh, why?” Jon asked, curious.
“I think Vassili lost his support from his Russian friends. The Mob lawyer stopped coming, and they had to use duty solicitors. Everything changed then.”
“Bad day for them. And Russell?
“Russell’s been released, we didn’t really have much on him, and we’ve had pressure come down from the ACC to release him. He was not happy about Russell being accused.”
“Why am I not surprised? Shit, that’s messed up.” He thought back to the discussion he’d had with Nathan in the records room, about Russell’s name not being on the system. Maybe he was onto something there.
“That’s not all, he’s apparently appointed a new detective superintendent.”
“I’ve got a new boss?”
She smiled. “I’ve not met them yet, but if they’re loyal to Ward, I think we both know what kind of person we’ll be dealing with.”
“Yep, wonderful. Just what I wanted to hear. I suppose it’ll be someone else we can all complain about though. So there’s that.”
“Every cloud,” she replied and took a sip of her wine. Jon joined her, enjoying its fruity taste.
“So, here’s a question I’ve been wondering about,” Kate said. “Why do you think Russell suddenly handed Blake over? Do you really think it was for the optics?”
“I think it was Sydney,” Jon replied, leaning forward on the table.
“Sydney?”
“Yeah, I didn’t find a moment to talk to you before, but she paid me a visit last night. She just turned up at the hotel.”
“What?”
“I know! I couldn’t quite believe it. Anyway, she hinted that she was about to become a very rich woman. She also said she might be able to help with the case, but that she just had a lead to follow
up first.”
Kate looked away and frowned, before looking back a second later. “The prison visit. That was her lead.”
Jon nodded. “I think Alan saw a way to get back at Russell and really screw him over. He clearly told Sydney something, something she could use to blackmail Russell and get her payday. And not only that, I think she suspected Blake, but knew that Russell knew, and told him to tell us.”
“Wow,” Kate replied. “I’m not sure I know what to think of her. I mean, it’s great that she helped us, but I’m not sure I agree with her methods.”
“Like you said, she’s trouble. And just to add more weight to our theory, I just saw a news report saying that Russell lost millions in a bad business deal…”
“It was Sydney, wasn’t it?”
“That would be my guess, yes.”
“Holy crap.”
“She’s really got some balls,” Jon agreed.
“Ovaries, Jon. She’d got some ovaries. Balls are fragile things, and she’s clearly not that.”
“No. No, she’s not.”
“So, why did she come to see you at the hotel? I mean, why tell you beforehand?”
“What can I say? It must be my magnetic personality.” Jon shrugged and put some swagger into his voice. “Once you get a taste of this, nothing else is good enough.”
“Oh, get over yourself, Gravy-Boy,” Kate replied. “That’s one hell of a story, though. So, she was out to swindle Russell all this time.”
“Aye, and you know how she cornered me in that basement corridor at the station?” Jon asked.
“Yeah?”
“Well, I’d been talking to Nathan in the records room about his trip to see Alan, and how he thought Alan knew something about Russell, but wouldn’t tell him. I think Sydney overheard that, realised that Alan could give her the leverage she needed, and went to see him.”
“Oh, and he trusted her more than Nathan and told her what she needed to know…” Kate replied, tailing off.
“…In order to screw Russell over for getting him sent to prison,” Jon added. “Because Sydney could do what we couldn’t.”
“Clever. Russell loses millions to her, and Alan gets one over on a rival.” Kate frowned. “So, do you think she knew about Jacob going to attack Russell?”
