“Miss Cortez? I’m John and this is Matt.” He pointed at his colleague across the room.
“Mr Bacchus sent us to make sure that you remained safe. Falling backwards out of bed isn’t safe. Please don’t do it again.” He smiled pleased with his joke and stood waiting for her to respond. Jemima looked at the two men and saw huge muscular bodies that had the look of ex-military, but with the accents and manners of bankers. Officers. Looking at first one and then the other she smiled and said,
“Ok, Eric and Ernie, love the routine, but now I need to get out of here. So could one of you put me in that wheelchair and the other one push me out of here without stopping to answer questions?”
John said,
“Can I ask a question?” she nodded, “Is this a good idea?”
“Long answer or short answer?”
“Either” he replied, “As long as it’s the right answer”
Jemima considered this for a moment and then said,
“Short answer is yes, as I haven’t the time to explain. If you want the long answer, can we do it on the move?”
Matt positioned the chair by the side of the bed and John lifted her in. As they manoeuvred the chair out of the door Matt said,
“Leave all the talking to us. Keep your head down and this will all go to plan.”
The wheelchair sped past the nurses station, into the lift and then out into the car park before any of the nurses realised their patient had gone. The Range Rover was parked illegally in a disabled bay opposite the main entrance and within seconds she was lifted in, strapped down and they were heading towards Yeovil Police Station.
***
“Mr Khan-Lewis?” William said five minutes after he had finished talking to Tiny. Ernest had dictated his number and he had called straight away. If the countries top criminal barrister was surprised that a vicar from Sherborne was calling his private mobile phone he disguised it well.
“Yes”
“My father was Ernest Sanderson, who I believe you knew. He left me your contact details when he died, along with instructions to call you if we ever had need of your services. I have that need now.”
“Mr Er …” William realised he’d not introduced himself.
“Bacchus, William Bacchus.”
“Mr Bacchus, how can I help?” William paused for a moment to gather his thoughts and then quickly described Ben’s arrest and the events leading up to it.
“Ben couldn’t have been involved, he was in Cambridge yesterday visiting a chemistry professor and was with a friend of mine who is a vicar in Sherborne. Can you help?”
The silence that followed lasted for nearly half a minute before the barrister answered.
“Mr Bacchus, I am twenty minutes away from Yeovil. I will call the Yeovil police now to arrange interview facilities. The Chief Constable knows me. Mr Bacchus?” he stopped and the only sound William could hear was rhythmic breathing at the other end of the line. Sanjay Khan-Lewis continued.
“Mr Bacchus, is there anything I need to know that might embarrass us?”
“No, Mr Khan-Lewis nothing.”
“Thank you.”
***
Jemima called Ben’s iPhone and it went through to voice mail. Odd she thought. She tried again. Voicemail. She called William he answered on the first ring.
“Hello, how are you? Have you met John and Matt? How are you feeling?” The questions came in a continuous stream of words, not leaving the smallest gap for an answer.
“I’m fine, yes I’ve met Eric and Ernie and I feel like shit. We’re on our way over. What’s the latest on Annabel?” William hesitated and then said,
“We’re tracking her phone. Two of Tiny’s colleagues are following her. Jemima, Ben’s been arrested on terrorism charges…”
“What? What did you say? Ben has been arrested. When?”
“He was arrested at the hospital when he was visiting you after your operation."
“Why did they arrest him?" William hesitated and then said,
“He has been arrested on terrorism charges. They are accusing him of leaving a backpack in a cleaning cupboard filled with Semtex. It’s a diversion, in the same way that your accident and Annabel's kidnapping are being used to distract Ernest and Juanita."
“This is fucking Felicity and Charles. How can we get Ben released?"
"Sanjay Khan-Lewis Ernest’s barrister will be at the police station in a few minutes. We can prove he couldn’t have been at the Houses of Parliament, yesterday. I’ve called Penny Morton and she is calling Yeovil police station as we speak to confirm he was with her and Annabel and will be on the University CCTV.”
Chapter 38
Intrigued Charles asked,
“Can you do that? Arrange a meeting with Satan?”
Helena said,
“Yes, it can be done. I must have a very good reason, as must Felicity. He is an obnoxious pig and will take great delight in punishing both of us if he thinks his time is being wasted. I will go and see him in two minutes and then she is committed. You Charles are getting a little more freedom. I have increased your ability to move around undetected. You need to be very cautious, as Juanita is better than I thought. I have also given you communication rights and recording privileges. If you need to speak to me, say my name and I will speak to you. If you see something you think is interesting, record it by pointing your right index finger. Your eyes are your view finder.”
Charles stared at his hands and smiled,
“Ok I’ll go and find team Bacchus.”
***
Felicity listened for a moment the irritation showing on her face as the conversation continued. When her anger could no longer be contained she interrupted him, shouting
“Alexander, tell the Home Secretary, that pusillanimous little shit, that if he reneges on this arrangement, I will still ruin him and I won’t pay him a fucking penny. If he wants to stay safe and wealthy, he has to arrange those cordons from midnight tonight for three days. Does he think I was planning on giving him a million quid a month for sitting with his fingers up his secretary?” Pausing to regain a modicum of control, she said
“Alexander, family or not, if you let me down I will, so help me, do things to you and yours that will make your eyes not just water, but bleed. Meet with the Home Secretary this evening and then call me to tell me all is well.” She hung up without another word.
What, she thought, would her grandfather have done in this trickiest of times? His ruthlessness was part of his makeup. She had seen him deal with his rivals with a level of cruelty and venom she had been unaware he was capable of. The excitement had left her breathless and aroused.
When he had fucked Jemima, ‘to show her what she was missing’ her anger and jealousy had overwhelmed her and she had deserted her grandfather and the company. It had taken a month of fucking her way around the Caribbean before she had calmed down enough to catch a flight home. Neither herself or her grandfather ever mentioned the incident. Business as usual, except she became the ruthless fixer he turned to.
Now she wondered, how ruthless do I need to be? Team Bacchus, as they had been dubbed, knew their secrets, of that she was sure. Jemima showing her true colours and deserting her when she could be useful for once was a problem she would deal with. Charles thought that Jemima’s accident had been botched, but she had wanted her out of action, not dead. Not yet.
If they knew how she got the cocaine into the UK undetected, that was a problem. Time would have to be wasted; devising new methods took time. It was of course possible but time consuming and expensive. Jonas’s diaries could only indicate an outline of the process they used. When he had been killed the process was still being refined and had undergone a number of metamorphoses since then, but it could give them a starting point. Her biggest concerns were Jemima and the cripple. Her knowledge of CHC and his ability could prove formidable. C’est la vie.
The voice was oleaginous, smooth, and unctuous. A voice that excited and disgusted her i
n equal measure.
“You don’t have a choice do you, or you didn’t. You listened to my hapless assistant and your pitiable relative. Now even killing them won’t stop the inevitable. You, of course, ought to kill them, for fun, but what you need to do is plan for the future. I understand from Helena that you have a proposition for me. A proposition I might very well be interested in.” He moved around her until he was facing her, looking into her eyes.
“What did you have in mind?” Felicity looked at the person standing in front of her. She wanted to laugh out loud. All of the picture book images of him, his portrayal in films, the descriptions used in classic and modern novels, none of these came even close to capturing his essence. As she had always believed, the cloven hooves and horns were wrong as was the cape, tail and scaly skin. He didn’t need any of those cheap tricks to exude evil. It was the eyes, every glance left you feeling violated, your soul bared and flayed. Felicity looked into the eyes, waiting while he read her thoughts, assessed her proposition before she voiced it.
Keeping calm and appearing offhand, indifferent; she said
“Your cheap tricks, possession of souls, the odd plague; it’s lost its edginess. As the world has become more sophisticated, people have lost their superstition, their belief in evil, they aren’t wracked with fear at the thought of the devil. You’ve lost your potency. Do you know why?”
He looked at her bored, irritated.
“I expect you’re going to tell me. Please make it quick, I have a very low boredom threshold and you’re about to breach it.”
“Your assistant, Helena told me. You can’t do anything down here on any scale. Scaring the shit out of a body here and there.” She shrugged with disdain,
“Who care’s? But, if you were down here amongst the people, the possibilities would be endless.”
He appeared intrigued and gestured for her to continue.
Felicity considered what would say next. How he reacted would determine her and her family’s future, good or not.
“I’ve often wondered why you have never attempted to place an offspring on earth. Why is that?”
He smiled,
“Oh, I have had a few successes. Hitler was one of mine. Control is the issue. He was doing so well, but he didn’t take a long term view. So, he ended up dead. If he had had the guidance, he might still be causing problems today. I also need procreators. A good size family of offspring’s can in a few generations be a significant force. Careers in governments, industry, financial institutions. I could wrest control from that woman upstairs.”
Felicity’s pulse quickened and she had to take a couple of controlled breaths to regain her composure.
“You can have your dynasty if you want it. With me. I can provide the child with the guidance and the money is there for education and training. The top jobs are ours for the taking. You can offer,” she paused unsure how best to phrase it.
“Spiritual guidance. I assume this child would have access to the powers they would need? In next to no time, you could have your children, lining up to rule the world.”
“And the quid pro quo?”
Gotcha! Felicity kept her face neutral, shrugging.
“If this is to work, this mess needs to be dealt with. I appreciate time cannot be reversed, but you need to ensure that I am wealthy, free and successful so that our future rulers can be guided.”
“I’ll talk to Helena and arrange whatever needs to be arranged. Be aware that we are not talking about a pain free extraction. Your solicitor: your father, maybe your Uncle? Would they matter?”
Felicity paused, seeming to consider his question. Then she said,
“No, not at all. Now lets discuss consummation.”
***
William sat on his sofa, catatonic with worry and fear. He wasn't afraid for himself, but his friends and family. His brother Ben, locked in a cell in Yeovil police station. Annabel, kidnapped, alone and scared and Jemima seriously injured and held together with titanium rods because of him. How would he be able to protect his friends in the future if he was unable to prove that CHC Industries imported the cocaine or to even find their cocaine? Deep in thought, he didn't register that his iPhone was ringing. He blankly stared at the phones screen for a few seconds before he registered that it was Sanjay Khan-Lewis calling. He grabbed at the vibrating phone and answered it before it stopped ringing.
"Sanjay, what's happening?" Before Sanjay could answer William continued,
“Is Ben okay? How long until they will release him? Has Penny called? Have you seen Jemima?" Sanjay laughed at Williams stream of questions and said,
“Ben’s fine. The police are completing the paperwork so that he can be released immediately. Penny called and confirmed he had been in Cambridge yesterday and so it was impossible for him to have planted the Semtex at the Houses of Parliament. The police have reviewed the CCTV and it was apparent that the person on the video looked completely different to Ben. Matt and John, Jemima's security people have let the police know that they are waiting for Ben in the car park." Sanjay heard William sob with relief into the telephone.
Eric and Ernie pushed Jemima through Williams’s front door and into the small hallway. As she was pushed into the front room, Ben followed her a couple of steps behind. Jemima said,
“Welcome home.” She gestured around the room at William, Ernest, Jonas and Juanita and said,
“We’ve all missed you.” Ben smiled and said to her bodyguards that they needed some time in private. Once they had gone, he said to all of them,
“It’s good to be back. That was one of the most terrifying experiences of my life. Oddly, it was also fascinating. It seemed that as soon as the police saw me they realised they had the wrong person. They showed me the CCTV footage from the Houses of Parliament and the person who left the backpack in the cleaning cupboard looked completely different to me. If Felicity had been a little more careful in matching my double to how I look I would still be in custody." Ben sank into armchair and asked,
“Where is Annabel?" William answered,
"Annabel was kidnapped and is on her way to the docks near Southampton. We’re tracking her progress using the find friends app you installed on our iPhones. We think she is going to the CHC industries warehouse in Fawley. Let me tell you what is happening and that will bring you up to speed with the rest of us. I’ve employed Tiny and six of his ex-SAS friends as bodyguards. Two with Jemima, two have gone to find Annabel and two for you. I’ll have Tiny to look after me when he arrives. Juanita, Ernest what’s happening in limbo?” Juanita answered,
“Before I answer, Ben, I'd like you to meet your uncle Jonas." A third figure materialised next to Ernest and Juanita. Ben could immediately see why Penny had been stunned by his similarity to Jonas.
“Hi uncle Jonas it's good to meet you. Your diaries have caused me a lot of problems. Later I need to pick your brain, if that’s okay?” Jonas nodded.
Ernest looked at Juanita with a look that said, ‘do you want to tell him or shall I?’
Ernest said to everyone without softening what he had to say.
“Felicity has committed herself to the devil.” Juanita interrupted continuing from where he had left off.
“I can’t be sure, but I think Helena met with Satan and arranged for Felicity to meet with him. I tried to listen to their conversation, but he had blocked everything within five hundred meters. That could cause significant problems depending on what she has offered him and if he were interested.”
William had looked amused while Juanita was speaking and as soon as she had paused, interrupted.
“What could Felicity, a nobody, offer the dark lord that would bring him up to the surface for a meeting, very dangerous? His only interest is control. He has only managed to exploit human’s piecemeal, very ineffective. The only way he could have any real impact would be if he had …” William’s colour had gone from his usual ruddy, healthy complexion to ashen, grey. Jemima looked frightened at seeing William’s
reaction to his own thoughts and being aware of how dangerous a proposition a cornered Felicity might be. Ben pushed a chair under William as his legs gave way and he sat down heavily. Juanita looked at him and said,
“Now you understand don’t you?”
William nodded still too shocked to speak. Juanita continued talking to William.
“Shall I explain or would you like to?” William sat still silent for a long moment and then indicated that he would and said to Jemima,
“Jemima you know Felicity better than the rest of us here. What is she capable of? To what lengths would she go to come out on top?”
Jemima was unsure how to answer as she didn’t know what William was alluding to. So instead she asked her own question.
“I’m not sure what you want me to say. Are you asking if Felicity has any limits, any boundaries?” William nodded.
“Then no, none at all. She is her grandfathers, granddaughter. If someone needs killing she’ll kill them. If someone needs threatening and terrifying she’ll threaten and terrify them. The end always justifies the means.”
William took a deep breath and with a worried expression said,
“I think Felicity has agreed to give the devil, Satan, the one thing he hasn’t got and has never managed to get. She has agreed to be the mother to his children. You see as a spirit, even a powerful and warped one; his ability to affect what happens on earth is very limited. God puts a lot of effort into keeping life safe on this little rock we call home. If he could have a direct connection, control of humans, his humans then the sky’s the limit. Felicity has enough money and influence to educate them and give them all the advantages they would need, he would handle their spiritual and emotional development. In thirty or forty years we could have world leaders, church leaders, influential scientists and business giants all controlled by the devil.”
Bacchus and Sanderson (Deceased) Page 31
