Angels Bleed (Fallen Angels Book 1)

by Max Hardy

  ‘I don’t think that’s going to happen Sir. He has a plan and he is sticking to it. We’ve got until midnight to find the killer, or to find him: that’s not going to be negotiable, no matter how much we find out along the way.’

  Corporal Garry was striding towards them from the MIU, a look of thunder on his face. Strange took a stride in front of Saul and put a hand up to pause the verbal onslaught he could see rising in Garry’s expression.

  ‘I know Gaz, we shouldn’t have gone into the room until you had cleared it, but I am in overall command, and we just needed to quickly see if we could open a line of communication with our ‘Unknown Caller’. We are running out of time and we have to try and see if we can negotiate some kind of extension or at least some compromises. I take full accountability for that action and the consequences.’ he said firmly, Garry fuming a foot away.

  ‘With respect Sir…’ Garry started, but Strange interrupted him.

  ‘In my experience Gaz, sentences that start with that phrase always end up disrespectful. I know you don’t agree. That’s fine. Arguing about it is not going to change what has happened and will just lose us valuable time. Are you any further forward finding out about the bomb? Thoughts on the trigger mechanism?’ asked Strange, walking forward and putting a hand on Garry’s shoulder, gently directing him to walk beside him towards the MIU. Saul joined the line on the other side of Garry.

  ‘My last word on it Sir: You were bloody stupid.’ Garry said.

  ‘Noted, and agreed. News?’ Strange pressed.

  ‘You were bloody stupid because we have found out that there is an active trigger on that bomb. We have managed to break the security key on the Wi-Fi in the room and can see the traffic streams. There are three thousand two hundred and fifty encrypted channels going into that crate. Then there is one unencrypted. I think it has been left unencrypted so we can get an idea of what the rest are doing.’ started Garry.

  ‘Which is?’ asked Strange as they approached the MIU and started climbing the steps.

  ‘The IP packet information suggests that a heartbeat signal is being sent to the trigger device in the crate. The heartbeat is a time, 12:00 am tonight. The coding suggests that if the trigger doesn’t receive at least one heartbeat message in a millisecond period, it will explode. Anything that disrupts the signal to that crate, literally anything, will blow it up.’

  ‘Okay, so what does that mean for us? Can we hack into these encrypted channels and change the time, change the commands?’ asked Strange as they convened around the table.

  ‘Reynolds is looking at that. Have you seen anything?’ Garry enquired, walking up behind Reynolds.

  ‘Only that the majority of the c…connections are very small. Just a c…couple of Kilobits a second being sent. I think these are all the heartbeat c…connections. Then there are about a dozen which are large, a c…couple of Megabits at least. I think these are the video streams. The worrying thing is the source IP address of the unencrypted c…connection.’ said Reynolds.

  ‘Why is it worrying Steven?’ asked Strange.

  ‘It is c…coming from a government c…computer system. I’ve looked up the IP on Whois and it is registered to a Department Of Health Office in London. I would guess that the c…computer has been hacked and a Bot is running on it.’

  ‘A what?’ asked Saul.

  ‘A Bot is a small c…computer program. They are generally used illegally, to hack into c…computers, to carry out Denial Of Service attacks or to surreptitiously spy or steal information from organisations. Lots of them together, as we have, are called a Botnet. All the other heartbeat connections are probably c…connecting in from hacked locations too.’ informed Reynolds.

  ‘That doesn’t sound good at all. It is worrying, very worrying. Do we have any contact information for that Department Of Health office Steven?’ enquired Strange, a pensive expression on his face.

  ‘Yes we do.’ answered Reynolds.

  ‘Good. Could you get in touch with them and see if you can talk to someone technical and find out some more about that Bot. Please stress to them the importance of not switching it off at the minute. If that is going to be a problem for them, please pass them back to me. Is that clear.’ asked Strange.

  ‘Yes Sir, no problem. Just before I give them a call Sir, I have some information back on the CCTV search for Limousines. We have identified fifteen black limousines coming out of Edinburgh on the three roads identified on the night in question. We have carried out PNC checks and have names and addresses for them all. DI Munro is chasing up the contacts now.’ said Reynolds.

  ‘Great work Steven.’ Strange started, patting Reynolds on the shoulder, before walking towards the whiteboards and noting the information about the Wi-Fi connections under the crate. ‘Steven, did we get any information from the Telco’s about where our ‘Unknown Caller’ was calling from?’

  ‘No Sir, they couldn’t pin down a specific cell unfortunately.’ answered Reynolds.

  ‘Sir, given that we now know it is an active trigger on that crate, I think we need to keep everyone out of that room. It is quite literally a time bomb. Any one of those connections dropping could set it off.’ stressed Garry.

  ‘Point taken Gaz. I promise, if we need to go back in there again, I will run it past you first. Just bear in mind we may have to, so if you have anything you think can protect us, or if there are any other things you can check to see if you can disarm it, please, please be my guest.’ said Strange.

  ‘It’s going to be difficult to find anything, but we will keep trying.’ Garry answered. ‘I’ll get back to it now.’ he finished before leaving the MIU.

  Saul joined Strange at the whiteboard and the two of them looked intently at the information in front of them.

  ‘Who are we still waiting updates from?’ asked Saul.

  ‘Well, we know who all the local missing persons are now and have made contact with all of the relevant parties. Nothing obvious there at present. To be honest, that is going to be a dead end unless we can see any more from that crate. Hopefully Steven can get somewhere with those video feeds once he has talked to the DoH. Companies? We haven’t had an update on companies yet.’ Strange said poking a pen at the note ‘Who owns this house?’

  ‘Phyllis, have we managed to find out who the owner of this house is yet? Have companies house come back about Axiom.’ asked Strange, turning back to the bank of computers where she was sitting.

  She was on the phone but put her call on hold and quickly said. ‘Just confirming that now Sir, give me another minute and we will have the information.’

  ‘Excellent.’ smiled Strange reassuringly, before turning back to the board.

  ‘We still need Darrie to let us know if he has seen anything untoward on Michael’s skull. Then there is confirmation on how the other Dr Hanlon managed to intercept Dr Ennis’s phone calls and e-mails. I’m still not sure about Dr Ennis. My gut tells me he is involved in some way.’ Strange said, turning to Saul, whose eyes were darting around the wealth of information on the board in front of him, deep in thought. ‘What are you thinking John?’

  ‘Just about pictures.’ he replied, after a few seconds in silence. ‘There’s a Cezanne in that room over there. And there’s a Cezanne in Ennis’s office. Could be a huge coincidence and I have no idea at all how that could be of any significance, but it just makes me very wary of him.’

  ‘Sir?’ said Phyllis, interrupting firmly. ‘I have the company and contact information for the owner of the property now.’

  Strange and Saul turned and approached Phyllis, Strange speaking. ‘Great news Phyllis, who do we have then?’

  ‘It’s a very convoluted chain of companies, with offshore title and holding companies all under the umbrella of a group company called Pison Properties. Its registered office is on Grey Street in Newcastle.’

  ‘Sorry.’ interrupted Reynolds, putting his call on hold. ‘Did you say Pison?’

  Phyllis looked at him sternly. ‘Yes Mr Reyn
olds, I said Pison.’

  ‘It’s Okay Steven.’ interjected Strange, placing a hand on his shoulder, ‘Do you have anything to add before Phyllis continues?’

  ‘Really sorry for interrupting Sir, Phyllis. It’s just that one of the PNC checks we did earlier came back with a company of the same name, registered office Grey Street, Newcastle.’

  ‘Which means,’ started Saul. ‘That the company who own this property also own a black limousine seen leaving Edinburgh on the night Michael died.’ he finished, looking at Strange.

  Strange nodded his head, looking around the room as he did. ‘Great work everyone, we might just have found a link to prove the existence of Madame Evangeline.’

  10:00 am

  ‘I could end up anywhere. On the night I took the bus trip, the final destination was near to the Scottish Parliament Buildings at Holyrood. There are flats next to the main parliament buildings which the politicians stay in when in session. I had to wait for her on a park bench down from the flats, in Holyrood Park, with King Arthur’s Seat, the large hill right in the centre of Edinburgh, just in front of me. I had no idea what she had planned for us that evening. It was about eleven, so very gloomy, but there was a gibbous moon that evening, high in a cloudless, crisp sky, its stark glow defining the hills in front of me. That glow also invaded the shadows, making the darkness at the base of the hill penetrable if you sat and watched long enough.’

  ‘I sat there for about twenty minutes waiting for her. The first few minutes were spent watching night time revellers walking by on their way home, or onwards to parties. In the gaps between watching passers-by, my eyes became accustomed to the gloom and started to see into the shadows at the base of the hill. Behind the bushes I saw the odd movement, the odd flash of flesh. I concentrated on one particular area for a while and eventually made out what was happening. There was a couple to the side of one particular bush, and from what I could make out, they were having sex, with her on top, her breasts bouncing up and down as she rode him. There was man in a suit on the other side of the bush. I could tell he was masturbating while watching them. There were at least another half a dozen such encounters taking place in amongst the bushes, under the mesmerising glow of moonlight. I surreptitiously snaked a hand inside my coat and started to stroke my tingling skin as I watched, waiting for Madame Evangeline to arrive.’

  ‘I was so engrossed in what was happening in front of me, it took me a few seconds to realise the warm breath on my neck wasn’t as a result of my voyeuristic fantasising. I turned and she was there, kneeling down behind me and gently blowing on my neck. ‘Mmm.’ I said, ‘Don’t stop that.’ She didn’t, her lips moving closer to my neck, tenderly kissing my tingling skin.’

  ‘‘Have you recognised anyone in the bushes?’ she asked, pulling the collar of my coat down, little kisses coursing down my neck and onto my shoulders. She slid a hand inside the front of my coat and cupped one of my breasts, caressing the curve, stroking the swell. People passed us by, some smiling in acknowledgement, some looking away. I was oblivious to them. She just stared them out. ‘They are too far away to make out any faces.’ I said. ‘I wouldn’t expect to know any of them anyway.’ I continued, raptured by her touch.

  ‘’Oh, you do. Let’s take a walk.’ she said, standing up and coming around to the front of the bench. She stood in front of me, wearing a knee length leather coat, exactly the same as the one I was wearing. She put her hands in its pockets and tantalisingly opened it, exposing her naked body underneath. I could see the luscious shadow of her cleavage, part of her breasts visible, just stopping short of exposing her nipples. Her toned, flat stomach rippled as she fervidly breathed in and out. My breathing echoed hers, simmering with excitement. My eyes strayed down from her stomach. She was standing with her legs slightly parted, and from where I was sitting, her gorgeously shaved vagina was right in my eye line.’

  Rebecca looked up at Dr Hanlon. One of her hands was gently stroking her breast as she relived the memory. She pulled it away quickly. ‘Sorry. I get so engrossed in the memories of her, they are so vibrant and vivacious.’

  ‘It’s alright Rebecca, you don’t need to apologise. The more you can relive the intensity of the memories, the more you will remember.’ Dr Hanlon replied reassuringly.

  ‘It’s working. I’m remembering things. Madame Evangeline had the most beautifully dark and delectable tattoo. It was right at the top of her vulva, coming out on either side of the skin covering her clitoris. It was a forked tongue, quite literally snaking up around three centimetres from her clitoris towards her belly button. It was coloured a deep cherry red. She called it ‘Her Temptation.’ I put a hand forward as she stood in front of me, tracing one of my fingers down from the fork of the tattooed tongue, all the way down to the skin covering her pulsing button. She laughed and took a step back. ‘Patience, my darling.’ she teased, turning to her left just as two men coming from the field passed on her right, one staring straight at me with a lewd, penetrating glare. It was Dr Ennis, his gaze staying on me as he and the other gentleman passed by. I didn’t think anything of it at the time, but now I wonder if he also saw Evangeline?’

  ‘‘Let’s go and see who’s in the bushes.’ she said. We linked arms, looking like twins, dressed in the same coat and boots, hair done the same. She kept leaning over and kissing me deeply, her tongue exploring my mouth as we approached the line of bushes.’

  ‘That gentleman there, wanking,’ she whispered into my ear, nibbling the lobe as she did, ‘Is the one of the Under Secretaries for Transport. He is the SMP for Renfrewshire.’ I was swooning as she was sucking my lobe, but managed to take a look at the gentleman in question and did recognise him. ‘Jesus!’ I cried under a whisper. ‘It’s a bit open here isn’t it, a bit close to home.’ I said, motioning back to the parliament buildings behind us. ‘That’s part of the thrill, isn’t it?’ she said, a wicked glint in her eye. ‘The possibility of getting caught just heightens the already euphoric state of voyeurism.’ she finished, stopping and turning to me face on.’

  ‘We were standing out in the open, albeit in the shadows, and she asked me, ‘What did you imagine the women on the bus wanted to do to your naked body?’ her eyes simmering with an urgent desire. ‘I think they wanted to play with my hot wet cunt!’ I replied, my voice deep and sensual. She grabbed one of my hands and pushed it between her thighs. ‘Show me!’ she instructed, her smouldering gaze overflowing with passion as she leant forward and started to forcefully kiss me. She put one of her hands between my thighs and started to vigorously stimulate my clitoris, her other hand behind my head, forcing it onto her wanton lips. I did the same, and for the next few minutes we kissed rapaciously, hands below gratifying each other. We both moaned and groaned as we kissed, the growing crescendo of orgasm causing us to bite lips, to scratch necks, to slide fingers inside and to hug tightly as we erupted. She looked at me with an iniquitous smile, beads of sweat evident on her forehead and surreptitiously whispered. ‘They are watching us, take a peek and give them a wicked grin.’ I did, noting the incorrigible stares, the frantic wanking hands. ‘Now.’ she said. ‘That is control, that is real control.’’

  ‘Is that how you felt, in control?’ asked Dr Hanlon.

  ‘I certainly felt emancipated. I did feel a certain kind of power. It was more influence than control. It was liberating the think that I could do that, and people would be even remotely interested, would stop what they were doing and watch me: watch us.’ she reflected, a yawn escaping as she finished the sentence.

  ‘It might be time to take a break now. We have been going since midnight.’ he said, standing up and plugging the drip tubes back into her cannula and switching the drip on again. ‘Don’t worry, this is just a light sedative to help you sleep.’

  ‘It’s alright Doc, I trust you. Mind you, a nice soft bed with clean sheets and a big fluffy duvet would be the ticket right now. Do you think if I let you watch me, I could control you into getting that for me?’ she said, s
miling, her eyes getting heavier.

  ‘Rebecca, I can honestly tell you, trying your feminine wiles on me will definitely not work. I’ll see what I can do on the bedding.’ he finished as her eyes closed in front of him, her body gently slumping into the chair.

  ‘Sleep tight Rebecca, we will talk again later.’

  He rearranged Rebecca into a more comfortable position in the chair. He then took off his cardigan and placed it over her torso. He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and then limped out of the cell, locking the door behind him as he left.

  As he walked down the empty corridor, his footsteps echoing off the parquet flooring in the silence of the building, the limp seemed to ease, and by the time he had reached the end of the corridor, it was gone completely. He passed a number of cell doors and then came to a normal office door, opened it and entered the room.

  There was a bank of monitors on one wall as he entered the room, different images playing on them, some moving, some static. A single desk sat in front of the monitors with a keyboard and mouse and two mobile phones on its surface. He sat down at the only chair in the room, which was in front of the desk.

  ‘Now, Rebecca, what did you get up to in that toilet?’ he asked rhetorically as he altered some video controls via the keyboard, and one of the screens in front of him started to rewind. He stopped the video when he saw her in the cubicle, then set it to play, watching as she undid the screw from the toilet roll holder. He smiled and said ‘That’s my girl.’

  One of the screens had a red light flashing on its bezel. The image on the screen was a room. The angle of the camera took in a piano in the forefront behind which were some sofas. On a wall at the rear of the image, above a fireplace, could be seen a plasma TV showing the same video feed that was on this screen. He rewound the image, watching in reverse as a man entered backward and started to move around the room. He stopped it just as the man was about to leave the room backwards and let it play. He listened as DI Saul talked into the camera. He watched him intently as he sat at the piano, nodding his head gently and smiling as Saul moved to the crate and started to talk again.