by Dan Latus
The sigh at the other end suggested he was reluctantly tuning into what I was telling him.
‘Presumably my colleagues on the Northumbria Force know all this?’
‘Some of it. But at present they can’t get in here anymore than we can get out. They were given the number of the car Tom Steele was taken off in, but I doubt that will do any good.’
‘No, probably not. If Logan’s gang get through the snow, they’ll swap vehicles. They’ll have another one waiting somewhere. Either that or they’ll just take one.’
‘That’s what I think.’
There was a lull in the conversation. Then Bill said, ‘So why did you call me? What do you want?’
‘I just thought you might be interested, given that you’re working on the attack on the Steeles’ home in Marton.’
‘And?’
‘Well, I wondered if you might be able to find out how the hunt for Logan’s vehicle is going. Tap into your professional network, perhaps?’
‘And then tell you? Like it isn’t confidential police business?’
‘Well … I’m seriously worried about the lad, Bill. I don’t want him to end up dead.’
‘There is that, I suppose,’ he agreed reluctantly. ‘Right. I’ll look into it.’
That was that. Suddenly the phone was dead.
I grimaced and stared at the phone. I really wished he wouldn’t do that. What’s wrong with being polite, and offering a bit of courtesy? What does it cost to say ‘Goodbye!’ or ‘Have a nice day!’ Something normal like that – like he does when he wants something from me.
‘Who was that on the phone?’
‘A friend,’ I said, looking over my shoulder to see Senga approaching. I hadn’t heard her come into the room.
‘At a time like this?’
‘He’s a cop on the Cleveland Force. He might come in useful.’
‘Josh doesn’t want police involvement, Frank. He told you that.’
‘He’s already got it. They turned up at the house, remember? Besides, what about the local police up here? They’re involved now.’
‘They don’t count.’
I smiled wryly to myself in the dark, and wondered about that. I wondered why the Northumbria police didn’t count, and I wondered why the Steeles didn’t want police involvement anyway.
‘Has Josh had a bad experience with the cops?’ I murmured.
‘He doesn’t think they can do any good. He thinks they might make a bad situation worse.’
‘So he’d rather handle it on his own?’
She didn’t respond.
‘Well, he’s not doing great so far. Let’s hope he’s proved right in the long run.’
She was very close to me now. I could smell her scent and feel the heat from her body. She was fast becoming a serious distraction.
‘Has anything happened?’ she asked quietly.
‘Not yet. And I’m going wonky-eyed staring at the snow.’
‘Want me to take over for a bit?’
‘Later, maybe. Not just yet. I thought you were going to get some sleep?’
I felt her head shake. ‘I would have had to take a couple of sleeping tablets, and I’m not ready to do that. You don’t want two of us in a coma.’
‘Julie still out for the count?’
‘Yes. She will be for a good while yet.’
I wondered why Senga needed sleeping tablets. Perhaps she led a stressful life. Good training for what we’d got here.
We were both quiet for a little while, listening to the wind and watching the swirling snow. Then she asked me if I would like a coffee.
‘That’s an excellent idea.’
I was getting used to this different, friendlier version of Senga, and I was rather glad the first one was taking time out.
She returned a few minutes later with two mugs of coffee and we continued sitting there in a companionable silence, side by side, waiting.
‘How come you’re involved in all this?’ I asked after a while.
‘Why shouldn’t I be? I’m Tom’s aunt.’
‘Yes, but it’s you here, not his mother.’
‘Anne is very busy.’ She shrugged and added, ‘I came with Julie.’
‘Did she ask you?’
‘Sort of.’
She wasn’t going to volunteer much. I could see that. Even so, perhaps Julie found Senga more sympathetic than Anne, who had seemed scarcely able to stand her.
I tried to lighten the mood. ‘To be perfectly honest,’ I told her, ‘I’m not entirely sure how I came to be involved myself.’
‘It’s very simple. I recommended you.’
‘Really? Do you know me?’
‘I have a friend who does.’
‘And who’s that?’
‘Jac Picknett.’
‘Jac, eh?’
She nodded. ‘I exhibit very occasionally in her gallery.’
‘You’re an artist?’
‘My! You’re quick.’
Not really. Not at all, in fact. I was still wondering which sister was telling the truth about contacting me. I was also still wondering who had left the footprints around my cottage.
‘What’s that?’ Senga said, pointing.
I strained to see what she had spotted. Then the veil of snow thinned for a moment and I saw them, too. Several figures were just entering the pub.
‘Is it them?’ she whispered. ‘It is, isn’t it? What are we going to do, Frank?’
‘Nothing,’ I said firmly.
‘But if it’s Tom…’
‘We’re going to wait and see,’ I said even more firmly. ‘No point rushing in.’
Chapter Twenty-Two
The snow was driving in so thick and hard that it was hard to see where they were, or where they were going. But Blue caught a glimpse of something and stopped suddenly.
‘What’s up?’ Eddie croaked, head down, bumping into him. ‘What have you stopped for?’
‘We’re there.’
‘Where? I can’t see a fucking thing.’
‘There’s lights in front of us. See them?’
They stood and peered through the swirling snow, shielding their eyes with their hands.
‘You’re right,’ Eddie said. ‘I can see them now.’
‘See what?’ Big Cyril panted, trudging through the snow to catch them up.
‘The village,’ Blue said. ‘We’ve reached it.’
‘Thank Christ for that!’ Manny gasped.
Manny and Cyril were dragging and pushing Tom Steele, who was in a state of near collapse. They all stood for a few moments, heads down, catching their breath and resting aching limbs.
‘Fucking snow!’ Manny said bitterly. ‘I’ve had enough of it.’
The others ignored the comment but after the last couple of hours they knew how Manny felt. They had all done their share of bitching along the way. But they were here now, Blue thought. All that pain would soon be behind them.
‘What now?’ Eddie asked, turning to Blue.
‘We’ll head for that pub where we picked the kid up.’
‘It won’t be open.’
‘If it isn’t, we’ll open it.’
‘Someone might recognize us.’
‘So what? What are they going to do? Call the cops?’ Blue chuckled. ‘How are they going to get here?’
Blue right again, Eddie thought with a reluctant smile.
Still chuckling, Blue led the way into the village.
The pub’s lights were still on, which was promising as well as surprising. Blue had no idea what time it was, but late seemed a pretty fair assumption.
‘What about him?’ Big Cyril said with a nod towards Tom as they neared the entrance to The Shepherd’s Rest. ‘Knock him off and dump him?’
‘If we were going to do that, we’d have done it a long time ago. We’ll take him inside with us. I’m not too sure what Logan wants us to do with him now.’
Another consideration for Blue was that they were probably stuck here f
or a while. It wouldn’t make sense to do anything to the kid until they were well out of it. No point courting trouble.
He turned and studied Tom in the light from the lamp over the entrance to the pub. He was about to warn him to keep his mouth shut but it seemed unnecessary. Not only could the kid not walk unsupported, but his eyes were shut as well as his mouth.
‘Young kids!’ Manny said with disgust. ‘They’ve got no stamina these days. They spend too much time playing them fucking computer games.’
‘I can’t have any stamina either,’ Eddie confided. ‘I’m knackered, as well – and I’m frozen and starving!’
‘You’re too little, Eddie,’ Big Cyril said cheerfully. ‘I keep telling you. You should eat more.’
‘I would be like you then, wouldn’t I? A big, bloated—’
‘Knock it off!’ Blue snapped. ‘We’ll go inside now, refugees from the snow. Keep the kid well away from anybody in there.’
The bar was the only room with lights on. It seemed to be deserted.
‘Anybody home?’ Blue shouted.
James appeared after a few moments. ‘Gentlemen! Can I help you?’
Blue walked over to him.
‘You all look about done in,’ James said, running his eyes over the group. ‘What happened? Car get stuck?’
‘We’ve had to walk a few miles,’ Blue conceded, nodding and blowing on his hands. ‘We had to abandon the car. I’ve never seen snow like it.’
‘Oh, it can drift fast and deep up there on the moor,’ James said. ‘This is wild Northumberland.’
‘Good thing you’re still open.’
‘It is. At times like this I keep the door open – just in case.’
‘Good thing for you, I meant,’ Blue said, a grim expression on his face. ‘Saved us breaking the door down.’
‘So what can I do for you?’ James asked with an uneasy smile. ‘You’ll be wanting to stay the night, I assume?’
‘Yeah. We don’t have much choice. Have you got any spare rooms?’
‘Twenty-three, at the last count. You’re in luck.’
The expression on Blue’s face told James luck didn’t come into it. One way or another, he would have had to accommodate the new arrivals. Other guests would have been thrown out into the snow, if necessary.
‘We’ll take three rooms. Many other guests?’
‘None at all. Everyone else either got away in time or didn’t bother coming in the first place.’
‘There were a couple of women here when we looked in earlier. What about them?’
‘Oh, they left hours ago. They’ll have got well away before the road was blocked.’
Maybe, Blue thought. Maybe not.
James took three numbered keys from a board behind the bar.
‘The rooms are on the first floor. I’ll let you find your own way up there. There’s only me here tonight, and I’d better hang around in case anybody else comes in.’
Blue nodded and took the keys. ‘We’ll want something to eat.’
‘I can’t offer you much, I’m afraid. The kitchen’s closed till breakfast time. There’s no staff here. But I could make a few sandwiches, if that would do you?’
‘Coffee, as well.’
‘And coffee,’ James assured him. ‘There’s also coffee- and tea-making facilities in the rooms. The young lad there looks as if he needs something hot.’
Blue turned and looked at Tom, who was slumped on a bench seat, propped up by Manny and Big Cyril. ‘He’ll be all right. He’s just a bit tired and cold.’
‘I can see that.’
‘Whisky would do it!’ Big Cyril called.
James smiled dutifully. ‘If that’s what you’d like.’
‘Not now,’ Blue said quickly. ‘We’ll find the rooms first.’
‘They’re here,’ James said quietly into the phone. ‘Four of them, plus the young lad.’
Frank was relieved. Thank God for that! Although he’d seen the group arrive, he hadn’t been able to tell if Tom was with them.
‘How is the boy?’
‘Frozen and exhausted, from the looks of him.’
‘Have they knocked him about?’
‘Hard to tell. I didn’t see him earlier. I’ve given them three rooms on the first floor, by the way, and left them to get on with it.’
‘Well done.’
‘So what happens now?’
‘Just treat them like normal guests. And be careful what you say. No upsets.’
Blue had one room to himself. The others shared. On a rota basis, there would always be one of them in a room with Tom.
Blue phoned Logan.
‘No names!’ Logan snapped as soon as he answered the phone.
‘None at all,’ Blue agreed with a sigh and a shake of the head.
‘You’re calling me on your bloody mobile? What’s the matter with you?’
‘Where we are the landline’s down, knocked out by the snow.’
‘Where the hell’s that? No! Don’t tell me. I don’t want to know. What’s going on?’
‘We’ve got him. That’s why I’m phoning. Do we bring him back, or … It’s up to you.’
After a long pause, Logan said, ‘Bring him back. We can use him.’
‘Are you sure?’
‘Bring him back.’
‘It’ll take us a while. Nothing’s going to move around here until they get a snow plough through. God knows when that will be.’
Logan switched off.
Annoyed, Blue stared at the dead phone in his hand for a moment. The man had no fucking respect! But one day soon it would be different. One day soon Logan would be grovelling, and stammering apologies. That day couldn’t come soon enough.
So far as he was concerned, Logan’s assets were not worth all the hassle. It would have been better to do it all himself. But he didn’t make these decisions. He just followed orders.
Chapter Twenty-Three
At least Tom was alive still. That had been my main worry. It would have been easy for them to have put a bullet in his head. Or just abandon him – the snow would soon have done the job for them. So perhaps they didn’t really want him dead, after all? Not yet, at least.
I switched the phone off and turned to Senga.
‘It is them, and they’ve got Tom.’
‘So I gathered. How is he?’
I shrugged. ‘James says he’s cold and tired, but nothing more.’
She pulled a chair up and sat down close to me. ‘What now?’ she asked.
‘I’m puzzled. They could have got rid of Tom by now. Why haven’t they?’
‘Killed him, you mean?’
‘You prefer a spade to be called a spade, do you?’
I don’t think she smiled. Neither did I. It wasn’t funny really.
‘Killing Tom in revenge was what I understood Logan wanted,’ I continued. ‘So why haven’t they done it? They wouldn’t even have had to waste a bullet. They could have just abandoned him, and let the weather do the rest. It wouldn’t have taken long in these temperatures.’
I felt, rather than saw, Senga shake her head. ‘You still don’t understand, do you? You just don’t get it.’
‘Understand what?’
‘It’s true Logan did threaten to take Tom’s life, but that’s not what he really wants.’
‘Oh? That’s news to me. It’s not what Josh and your sister said when I took the job.’ I stared hard at her. ‘So what is he after?’
‘Josh’s business, or a large part of it.’
‘The motor dealership?’
She shook her head again. ‘The main business.’
‘And what’s that?’
She didn’t say anything for a moment, probably mulling over what she could safely tell me.
‘Come on!’ I urged. ‘It’s a bit late to be keeping things from me now. And I don’t mind telling you I’m getting pretty sick of being kept in the dark.’
‘Did you go to the compound where they keep the cars?’ she as
ked eventually.
‘I did, yes.’
‘What else did you see there, besides cars?’
I shrugged. ‘Offices, mechanics, big sheds, high-security fencing – Gerald …’
‘What else?’ she said impatiently.
I was in no mood for games. I was getting pretty pissed off with the whole Steele family. They’d got me here under false pretences, it seemed. I was about ready to walk out on the whole damned lot of them, Tom and Senga included. Well, I would have been if it hadn’t been for all that bloody snow.
‘You tell me,’ I suggested with remarkable restraint.
‘Was there just cars there?’
‘There was a lot of industrial equipment, as well, if that’s what you mean. Diggers and wagons, and that sort of thing.’
‘What else?’
I sighed wearily. ‘Hell, I don’t know! Big sheds, a jetty, the river—’
‘And?’ she interrupted.
Then I got it at last.
‘The ship?’
‘The ship,’ she confirmed with satisfaction. ‘And what do ships do?’
Now we were getting somewhere.
‘Carry things across the sea. Import-export?’
‘Export only, in this case.’
‘Export?’ I repeated thoughtfully, my brain beginning to fill in the gaps in my knowledge.
My phone went off just then, putting a stop to the exercise.
‘Yes, James?’
‘My sandwiches weren’t good enough for them. They wanted bacon and eggs. I told them I have no kitchen staff overnight, but that wasn’t good enough for them either. So I told them just to get on with it themselves, which is what they’re doing right now.’
‘Do you get a discount if you do your own cooking?’
‘Very funny! Now, what do you need to know?’
‘What have they done with Tom?’
‘He’s in one of the rooms, with somebody with him all the time.’
Making sure he didn’t slip away, presumably, although James’s description of Tom’s condition made that seem very unlikely. At least he was alive, though.
I thought fast, wondering what I could do to keep him that way. There was only one solution that I could see. I had to get him away from the gang.
‘The rest of them are having a cook-up in the kitchen?’
‘That’s it.’
‘How can I reach Tom’s room without them seeing me?’
