The Conspiracy 6

by Jack Probyn

  ‘Fine by me,’ Bridger said, brandishing his phone.

  ‘What about you guys?’ Jake asked, turning to face the AFOs with him. ‘And the rest of the plainclothes officers we’ve got on board?’

  ‘I can communicate with them on my radio,’ Bridger replied.

  Jake nodded. ‘If you hear anything, let me know.’

  ‘Aye aye, captain.’

  Jake pointed to his left. ‘Split up. You go that way. I’ll go this. Don’t get scared on me now, Elliot.’

  Bridger’s lips rose. ‘That’s what makes it so much more exciting.’

  Then they disappeared in opposite directions.

  Jake headed down a brightly lit corridor. Fluorescent lightbulbs hung overhead, blinding him. He hated boats. He was never good on them, though he’d only been on three before in his life. He always felt claustrophobic. Like the walls were closing in around him, an inch at a time. He hated the swaying from side to side, the constant motion. It sent his mind into a whirlpool of nausea and dizziness and made him want to vomit over the deck.

  He steadied himself with his hands on the wall. He was sure the boat was moving, but deep down he knew it wasn’t. His mind playing tricks on him again.

  Jake ventured down the corridor and, at the end, arrived at an even larger foyer than the one he’d seen when he entered. This one had a large, delicate chandelier dangling from the ceiling. It was almost as large as Jake’s bedroom, and trumped Candice’s chandelier tenfold.

  At the reception desk a member of staff was attending to other clientele. Jake rushed over and barged in front of the next in line, flashing his ID.

  ‘Excuse me,’ he said. ‘Sorry, but have you seen anyone that looks like this?’

  Jake showed the man behind the computer the image of Danny. The man leant forward, squinted and then eased back to his natural position, shaking his head.

  ‘OK,’ Jake replied. ‘If you see anything, call me on this number.’ Jake grabbed a pen and paper from atop the desk and scribbled his contact information on it. Sliding the paper back, Jake thanked the man.

  As he stepped away from the reception desk, his phone rang. It was Danika.

  ‘Jake,’ she said abruptly. ‘I’ve done some digging and found out the name of Danny Cipriano’s potential girlfriend. Louise Etherington. I’ve sent you an image of her. It’s a mugshot taken from a previous arrest.’

  ‘What for?’

  ‘GBH. She almost beat another woman to death in a night club. And she’s had a string of related incidences after that but never been convicted of anything. A previous boyfriend accused her of domestic violence, but he later rescinded his statement,’ Danika explained.

  Jake absorbed the information. ‘You’re a hero. I appreciate it.’

  ‘Be careful,’ Danika replied before she hung up.

  Jake pieced together the information. Now some of it was beginning to make sense. Perhaps Danny wasn’t the mastermind behind this. Perhaps it was Louise. Perhaps she was the manipulator who’d forced him into betraying his family and running away with her, ready to begin their new life with the money he’d stolen.

  As Jake lowered his phone from his ear, he opened the email attachment Danika had sent him and showed the phone to the receptionist again. This time he didn’t apologise as he barged in.

  ‘This woman. What about her? You seen her?’ Jake asked.

  The man’s pupils dilated. ‘Yeah.’

  ‘Where?’

  ‘At least I think it’s her.’

  ‘When?’

  The man’s gaze flicked to the digital clock on his computer screen. He contemplated for what felt like an eternity before replying. ‘About five minutes ago. Maybe more. She came to complain.’

  ‘About what?’

  ‘The delay. We’ve had a lot of frustrated clients. They’ve not been allowed in their rooms since they boarded.’

  I don’t care, Jake thought, careful not to voice his impatience.

  ‘Which way did she go?’

  The receptionist pointed to Jake’s left, in the direction of a spiral staircase just to the side of the chandelier.

  Jake strode towards the steps, forgetting to thank the staff member, and climbed the stairs. He came to a stop at the top. In front of him was another corridor; it looked almost identical to the first one. Fire Exit signs hung overhead beside directions to different parts of the boat. It was then that an overwhelming sense of claustrophobia engulfed him. He realised how enormous and complex the maze of underground corridors was, and how tiny he was in comparison.

  Up ahead, a cleaner, pushing a trolley, descended on the other side of the corridor. Jake snapped himself out of his thoughts and passed her. As he reached the end, he dialled Bridger’s number.

  ‘Louise Etherington. Danny’s girlfriend. Possible sighting of her from the reception desk,’ he said as soon as Bridger connected the call. ‘Heading to seating area one on level two.’

  A few seconds later, Jake was there. Although he had no idea where there was in relation to anyone – or anything – else. He just hoped Bridger was nearby. Large sofas and chairs were spread across the seating area, with tables and vending machines dotted around. Stands containing magazines and newspapers were situated at the four corners of the room. It reminded him of the time he’d been in the BA lounge once when he and his brother and sister had been upgraded for free. High-end. Lavish. Expensive.

  Then, as Jake crossed the threshold into the area, he caught sight of Louise. She was wearing a thin blue jumper and a pair of jeans. By her side were several large duffel bags.

  And, best of all, she was alone.

  | EPISODE 6 |

  CHAPTER THREE

  BATHROOM BREAK

  ‘Hey…’ Danny spoke quietly. ‘Can I go to the toilet?’

  He hated that he sounded like a child, but he didn’t want to embarrass himself any further by voicing the question loudly.

  ‘Go,’ Louise snapped at him, waving him away with her hand. ‘Just don’t be too long.’

  ‘I won’t, my love.’ Danny stroked her arm; she flinched slightly, pulling away from him. ‘Are you going to be all right?’

  She glared at him, her gaze more piercing than knives. ‘Do I look like a fucking child?’ She reached her hand around his body, parked it under his armpit and pinched. Hard. Danny wanted to cry out, but he knew that was a bad idea. For his own sake, it was better to remain quiet and suck it up.

  ‘I’ll ask again: do I look like a fucking child? No. I didn’t think so. So why do you insist on treating me like one?’

  Danny opened his mouth to apologise but was interrupted by another harder pinch, this time a little higher, grabbing a clutch of hairs. He clenched his jaw, swallowing the pain. There was that fire in her eyes again. The one that always told him she was angry and that she needed to vent her frustrations on him. Sometimes it was a pinch. Sometimes it was a friction burn. Sometimes it was a whipping with his belt. Sometimes it was a punch. But it was always in the places nobody could see. The marks and bruises were his little secret, just like the way she treated him.

  ‘Go to the toilet,’ she said. ‘You’re a big boy.’ And then she applied more pressure and twisted for good measure. His skin throbbed and he felt the onset of a bruise underneath.

  She released her finger and a flood of pain narrowed in under his arm. It felt uncomfortable to move, and as he lifted his hand to soothe it, swapping the bag he held to his other hand, she grabbed him.

  ‘No. You can leave that one there,’ she snarled.

  Danny did as he was told and hurried towards the bathroom, giving one last look at the bags of money and jewellery beside Louise as he entered. Inside, he rushed to the cubicle, slammed the door and locked it shut before leaning back against the door and letting out a heavy sigh. He was safe. Out of reach. She wouldn’t dare venture into the men’s toilets, that was for sure. But he knew that, if she had, she’d mean well. That she was looking out for his best interests, just like she alway
s did. He had, in a way, deserved his punishment. He’d just insulted her dominance. He shouldn’t have likened her to a child. It was wrong, and he’d paid the price for it.

  Danny untied his belt buckle, loosened the buttons in his jeans and let his penis dangle in front of him. The cold air chilled him. The rash had been causing him issues all afternoon, but he hadn’t been able to do anything about it. He wasn’t allowed to touch it – Louise’s orders. The rash that she’d given him was his fault. It was his fault he’d forced her to cheat on him and contract the virus. It was always his fault, and he agreed. He was a bad boyfriend. He did wrong things. He hurt her emotionally. He sometimes wounded her physically by accident. But he never meant any of it. None. And now he was on the final few days of treatment, and as soon as it was over, he could have sex with her again. It had been so long since he’d last touched her, held her, felt her.

  He started pissing in the toilet, the lower half of his body tingling as the pressure on his bladder eased. Droplets of urine splashed on the seat and ricocheted onto the floor and his legs. After finishing, he pulled his pants over himself and buttoned his jeans, ignoring the wet patch that pressed against his leg, then unlocked the cubicle door and washed his hands, splashing soapy water across his face.

  He peered up at himself and resented what he saw. Placing his hands in the sink, he hung his head low and exhaled deeply. He was exhausted – physically and mentally. Drained. But that was all about to change now. Everything. The Canary Islands with Louise. Where they could begin their new lives together. Where everything would stop. Where she’d promised the tormenting and the pain would continue no more.

  A loud bang sounded in the end cubicle. Danny froze, his skin crawling. His pulse rose and his chest heaved. What the fuck was that? It had sounded exactly like the noise he’d heard a few minutes ago – the noise that had come from outside the ferry.

  Dismissing it as an example of his overactive imagination, he returned his attention to the mirror and then looked at his watch. He’d been in there for a few minutes. Shit. Far too long for a piss. She would be timing him, he knew, and the beating would be even worse if he delayed any longer. Panicked, he wiped his hands on his shirt and trousers and rushed out of the bathroom.

  The door flew open, and as he exited, he bashed into another man trying to enter. The man was twice his size and twice as wide. Danny apologised and pressed his back against the wall to allow the man to pass. He didn’t want to admit it, but the blow had winded him slightly, and he gasped for breath.

  But nothing could have prepared him for what he saw in the waiting room.

  Louise – the love of his life, despite everything she had put him through – was gone. And so were his bags of money and jewels.

  | EPISODE 6 |

  CHAPTER FOUR

  LIGHTHOUSE

  ‘Bridger…’ Jake said quietly into his handset, holding the bottom of the phone millimetres from his lips.

  ‘Go on,’ Bridger replied as softly.

  ‘Confirmed sighting of Louise. Seating area one, floor two. Heading down a corridor towards playroom two now. I’ll approach. Danny must be somewhere nearby. She’s got the bags of money with her.’

  ‘Understood. I’m on my way now. ETA one minute.’

  Jake lowered his arm and kept his phone pressed against his thigh. He continued deeper into the corridor, keeping twenty feet between him and Louise. At the end of the corridor, Louise arrived at a junction, stopped, looked overhead and then made her decision: left.

  Jake followed, gliding along the carpet, making sure he made as little noise as possible. As he arrived at the junction, he crept up to the corner of the wall and peered round. In the short time it had taken Jake to catch up, she had almost doubled the distance between them.

  She was suspicious.

  Shit.

  He pocketed his mobile – making sure to keep the call connected – and then formed an idea. Immediately opposite him, on the other side of the junction, carrying a handful of suitcases, was a steward and couple. They looked like newlyweds. Happy. Bubbly. Possibly on their honeymoon. Possibly on an escape from the mundanity of adult life. Jake didn’t know, and right now he didn’t care.

  He hurried over to them, flashed his warrant card and grabbed the husband’s backpack. Any protestations were stifled by the ID in his hand and Jake’s finger pressed against his own lips.

  ‘Stay here,’ he whispered. ‘I only need it for a second.’

  He placed the backpack over his front, shielding the police body vest – and the police insignia on the front of it – from view. He didn’t want to give Louise any chance to escape nor suspect him. Removing his phone from his pocket, he chased after Louise. By now she was at the end of the corridor and nearing another expanse of open space. Jake had to move quickly if he was going to catch her.

  ‘Excuse me,’ he called.

  No response.

  ‘Excuse me!’ His voice carried up and down the brilliantly lit walls. He tried to place as much distress in his voice as possible.

  The second cry for help worked. Louise came to an abrupt stop, turned and scowled at him. Jake closed the distance between them. Ten feet. Five. One. He stopped right in front of her, then paused, feigning exasperation.

  ‘Do you work here?’ he asked, pressing the backpack against his stomach, spreading the width of it across his body.

  ‘No.’

  ‘Oh.’ Jake opened his phone and started to flick through the screens. ‘I was wondering if you could help me? I’m a little bit lost. Would you…’ Jake paused to open his camera roll. ‘Would you be able to help me find someone please?’

  ‘I told you I don’t work here,’ Louise said, her voice laden with disdain.

  Jake continued regardless. ‘Someone I’m looking for. I think you know him.’

  He found the mugshot of Danny and then flipped the screen over. It didn’t take long for the shock to register on Louise’s face. Her eyes bulged and blood rushed to her cheeks.

  In a flash, she bolted. But she was too slow for Jake. He grabbed her arm and pulled her back.

  ‘Louise, don’t do anything stupid.’ She tried to shove him off, but his grip was too strong. ‘Where is he? Where’s Danny?’

  Louise remained silent. She was stronger than he anticipated. She grabbed his arm and dug her nails deep into his skin, but Jake ignored the sharp, focused pain. There was menace in her face, a blazing fire hiding behind the eyes waiting to break free.

  ‘Where is he?’ Jake repeated.

  ‘Fuck you.’ She spat in his face. The phlegm landed in his eyes and disorientated him. He threw his free hand to his face and wiped away the spittle.

  Jake fought every urge in his body to flip her to the ground and restrain her.

  ‘I don’t appreciate that,’ he said, trying to keep a cool head. ‘It will be easier for everyone involved if you tell me where he is. There’s no way out of this. For either of you. Nowhere left to run.’

  Louise’s expression remained placid.

  ‘Don’t make me ask again.’ Jake was losing his temper. ‘Have you let him escape? Are you the decoy so he can run and hide?’ As he said it, Louise’s face changed. Her reaction was only the smallest of movements, but Jake was sure he’d seen it. A flicker of the eyebrow that confirmed his earlier suspicions.

  ‘No,’ he continued, ‘of course you aren’t. He doesn’t even know you’re gone, does he? You’ve just left him.’ Jake looked down at the bags in front of him and grabbed one. ‘And you’ve taken the money. His hard-earned money. But you couldn’t have done this without him knowing, could you? You had to wait until he was out of sight and unaware before you took it, didn’t you? So where is he, Louise?’

  As Jake finished talking, Bridger arrived, out of breath and flustered.

  ‘She’s taken the money,’ Jake said to him.

  ‘Where is he?’

  ‘Alone. He doesn’t know it’s gone missing. But I’ve got an idea where he might be. Wa
it here,’ he said to Bridger.

  Jake shoved Louise into his colleague’s hands and started back the way he’d come. He’d seen a men’s bathroom by the seating area. And there were only a couple of places where Danny Cipriano could have disappeared to. The shower. Or the bathroom. And if passengers weren’t allowed in their rooms yet, that narrowed it down to the final possibility.

  He rounded the corner, slowed to a walk and entered the seating area. There, standing in front of the door to the men’s bathroom was Danny Cipriano. He was smaller than Jake remembered and for a moment, Jake just stood there, watching him. How he surveyed the room, his head moving from left to right like a lighthouse. How he wrapped his body tightly with his arms as if he was cold. How he tapped his feet on the floor, waiting impatiently for someone.

  And then their eyes locked on one another. It was only a short moment, but it seemed as if everything else stood still – time, movement, his breathing, his reactions…

  Before Jake could do anything, Danny Cipriano bolted.

  | EPISODE 6 |

  CHAPTER FIVE

  OVERBOARD

  Jake sprinted after Danny. He followed him through another set of corridors, barging past holidaymakers and weaving his way in and out of laden suitcases. Danny was a few years older than Jake, and more physically able. His muscles appeared tauter, stronger and his legs were thicker, more powerful. It didn’t take long for him to start pulling away and stretching the gap between them.

  As they tore through clusters of people, Danny grabbed one of the passengers and pushed them to the ground. Forced to dodge the unsuspecting man, Jake hopped over him and stumbled as he landed awkwardly on the balls of his feet. His momentum carried him forward and he stumbled to the floor, barrel rolling. Landing on his shoulder, Jake clambered to his feet and continued the pursuit.