INSOMNIAC: ALAN SMITH #2 (Alan Smith series)

by ARKOPAUL DAS

  ‘You asking me if I know him?’

  ‘Yes’

  ‘Yep’ Donovan said putting his hands back in the pocket. ‘Yep I know him.’

  ‘I see’ said Alan relieved that at least Donovan was able to identify this man. He kept the picture back in his pocket. ‘So I was investigating a case, a homicide case actually, but as it turns out your man Bob have abducted this kid. That’s how your name is involved in this’ Alan said then added. ‘Otherwise I have certainly no intention to disturb you’

  ‘Wow’ he said. ‘So an abduction it is. Nice. More nice because I don’t know anything about this’ he didn’t look surprised or anything. His face remained expressionless as always.

  ‘But it happened’ Alan insisted a little more.

  ‘One second, please’ said Donovan then yelled out. ‘Bob!’

  Another minute, the man who wore a jacket and denims appeared at the door.

  ‘What did you do?’ Donovan asked walking towards him.

  ‘What?’

  ‘Look’ He tossed the photo to him. Annoyed. ‘What about this? You kidnapped someone huh?’

  ‘Why didn’t you tell me about this?’ Donovan moved closer to him.

  ‘But I didn’t’ said the man and now he looked scared.

  ‘What do you mean you didn’t? You abducted this kid and now you’re just denying it?’ Donovan was growing furious. ‘You should have at least told me about this’

  He turned to Alan. ‘Mr. Smith, I’m sorry about this’

  Donovan returned his gaze to Bob but this time he suddenly took out a gun and poked the muzzle in Bob’s head. ‘I don’t like to keep them alive who don’t obey me’

  ‘What’re you doing’ the man looked terrified as Alan rushed in between them and pushed both of them away from each other.

  ‘That’s not the right thing to do Mr. Donovan’ Alan said.

  ‘Okay. But I’m gonna kill him anyway. Never mind’ Donovan muttered.

  ‘We need to get the child first’ said Alan quietly. Donovan again moved closer to Bob and suddenly sprang upon him. He held him by his collars and said ‘Where did you keep this kid?’

  ‘I ain’t abducted anyone’

  ‘You fucking liar’

  ‘I’m telling the truth’

  ‘You think Mr. Smith came here to lie to me, about all this?’

  ‘Not that’

  ‘That means you’re agreeing you did’ said Donovan and increased his pressure on his throat. ‘Tell me before I separate your head’

  Alan again came to the rescue. This time without pushing them, he said ‘Leave him Mr. Donovan, we can reason with him’

  ‘I know him, he’s not really a man you can reason with’ said Donovan with a signature cold voice. He left his collar and adjusted his own tie, disgusted even to touch this man.

  ‘But he’s not saying anything anyway’

  ‘He better do’

  Donovan moved away from him and another two men appeared on the doors. Now Donovan’s face was a little red but there was no sweat in it.

  He waved his hand and signalled something to his man. Then he said ‘Take him away from here’

  They didn’t need to take him. Bob himself walked away silently, but his face showed no shame, nothing. No fear also. The scared thing he had was gone.

  Donovan watched them leave and when the lawn was clear, again he said ‘Look whatever happened I want to know it first. I will surely check it out’

  ‘Okay?’ Alan waited for him to finish the whole sentence.

  ‘I will find out where he kept the child’ said Donovan. No anger left in him. His voice cold and normal and his face became chalk white again, was it an automatic reaction? Alan didn’t want to guess it. ‘And then I will inform you about that’

  ‘Well then thank you, should I say?’

  ‘Only if you wish to’

  ‘Oh, another thing’ said Alan. ‘You know someone named Jade Carter?’

  ‘Jade Carter. Right I do’

  ‘Oh?’

  ‘Cool guy, he is’ said Donovan and his smile broadened itself. ‘Works in NY Times right?’

  ‘Right’

  ‘He was friendly you know. Even better than some men here’

  ‘You knew him?’

  ‘Yes’

  ‘Did he use to work for you?’

  ‘Yeah’

  ‘What sort of work did he use to do?’

  ‘Just like I said Mr. Smith’ Donovan took a pause then continued. ‘I’m really shy at elaborating this sort things’

  Alan understood it was a gentle way to say ‘Why the hell do you wanna know all these things?’. That was why he let the matter drop without pushing him any further.

  ‘I see’ said Alan. ‘Well we tracked his phone and found that he called you Sunday night. Right?’

  ‘Yeah, he might have done that’ Donovan replied in matter of fact tone.

  ‘What did he say or talk about?’

  ‘Okay. Tell me something Mr. Smith, why do you want to know all this? What’s the reason?’

  ‘Because his stiff turned up Monday morning’ said Alan flatly this time. ‘And it was you to whom he talked before dying. So I was hoping that you could say something about it’

  ‘Look it was nothing important’ said Donovan. ‘I can assure you about that. All normal talks, just like we’re talking now except that we’re talking face to face and he talked to me on the phone’

  Alan understood that Donovan thought whatever they were talking about now, wasn’t important.

  ‘How normal?’

  ‘Quite normal’

  ‘And you’re going to describe it?’

  ‘I don’t think so really’

  ‘You’re increasing my suspicion, Mr. Donovan’ Alan narrowed his eyes.

  ‘You think I killed him’

  ‘Highly possible’

  ‘Correction. Hardly possible’

  ‘You’re not saying anything about it. You’re just avoiding it totally’

  ‘Yes, that’s because I don’t feel like saying it’

  ‘Mr. Donovan, you know what, things aren’t looking good for you. What about Paul Brown, you heard this name ?’

  ‘Nope’

  ‘You sure?’

  ‘Damn’

  ‘Seriously?’

  ‘Yes’

  ‘He’s also dead. And both Jade Carter and Paul Brown worked as partners in NY Times. Don’t you think there might be another link which might connect them to the killers?’

  ‘Oh sure. There is. But it’s your job to find out, I’m afraid’

  ‘So we’re not going to talk about Paul Brown too?’

  ‘What do you want me to say when I already said that I know nothing about this man?’

  Alan thought he would not say anything and it would be a foolish thing to argue with Donovan. Better, not test his patience now.

  ‘Then you must look for the kid’

  ‘For sure’

  ‘I will leave now’ said Alan. ‘Sorry for bothering you Mr. Donovan.’

  ‘What about the coffee?’

  ‘Next time maybe’

  THIRTY

  Both the doors slid away as Alan came out of the elevator. And he saw everyone in this floor was staring at him with blank and surprised faces. As if they knew he was going to come out now, or else maybe they were sitting like this, staring at the closed door of the lift all this time hoping to see him come out which he did, but after a long time. He felt awkward as if he was in a stage, a lead singer in a band performing in a concert and all the eyes of the crowds were on him. It made him feel uneasy.

  Alicia was keener to know the things as she edged towards him and asked ‘So how did it go?’

  Alan knew it went all well and normal, maybe a little more normal than he had expected. It might sound weird but that was what happened. And Donovan had a large spacious house, but he didn’t look like a criminal himself. He was a gentleman, or so he looked like. And even his voice
was quite soft compared to the hard stony figure and the voice of Alan.

  But the main problem still remained for the moment. They didn’t know where the kid was, or if he was in any danger or not. Donovan controls everything, so then why would Bob abduct that kid without any reason if Donovan hadn’t asked him to do so? Something was wrong for sure. And they also didn’t know if it was Donovan who threatened Paul Brown or was someone else also involved in this. Things were really convoluted.

  ‘What?’ Alicia asked, as Alan remained quiet without answering. His mind was full of facts about what he could have said what he could have done, in order to make Donovan say everything. But he thought he did the best, and there was really not much chance to do anything. He consolidated himself.

  ‘I think something serious occurred’ said Ryan looking at each other. They were all feeling uncomfortable and thinking what was the worst news they could possibly get.

  ‘No no no, it’s alright’ now Alan spoke as he entered inside. ‘It’s much more normal than any of you would have expected.’

  ‘More normal?’

  ‘Yes’

  ‘What does that supposed to mean?’ Alicia also entered with him.

  ‘I don’t know really, but something is wrong. It all went good but something is wrong for sure’

  ‘What is wrong?’ asked Kevin. They were all waiting to hear something more solid than this.

  Alan then took some time to explain some details right from the start when he entered the nasty building, which changed into a spacious one. Then he described the talks, incidents, Donovan’s look, his men, the building, then the sudden accusation of Bob, then he denying everything, actually, until the end where he refused his favourite coffee. He didn’t let anything out.

  They listened carefully without interfering and when he was done, Ryan remarked. ‘That’s really weird for a crime lord to talk like that. I thought he would shoot you down right away’

  ‘That’s what anyone would have expected. I thought he would look more aggressive and so will be his behaviour, but I am bound to say I am really surprised at this’ said Alan.

  ‘But how is this possible?’ said Alicia with a thoughtful face.

  ‘Which one are you talking about?’

  ‘That his men abduct someone and he doesn’t know about that’

  ‘Yeah I thought so. Why would Bob abduct the kid? What does he wanna do with the kid?’ said Alan.

  ‘And you said’ continued Kevin. ‘He beat up Bob in order to make him say that he abducted the kid or not? That’s highly unusual thing to do’

  ‘Yeah’

  Alan thought about more theories that might possibly work.

  ‘Or there might be a conflict going on between Bob and Donovan’ said Ryan.

  ‘Donovan is gentle of course but he doesn’t care for anyone much. So he would have busted Bob out or even killed him. It was just nothing to him’ said Alan.

  ‘So there isn’t a conflict?’

  ‘I think not. It looked like a total staged act’

  ‘Gotcha!’ suddenly Kevin exclaimed. ‘It was a staged act. They were all acting while in real Donovan very well knows that Bob abducted this kid, and maybe it was he who has given the permission to do so. But he was acting for some reason. Maybe to kill some more time or something.’

  ‘But when he threatened Bob, Bob looked really scared; he just denied that he abducted anyone. If it was an act, then they should think about acting in some movies. I’m sure they’ll do bloody well at it’ said Alan.

  ‘That means he’s obeying orders’ said Alicia.

  ‘Then maybe he obeyed this order too’ Kevin said. ‘Donovan asked him to abduct this kid, and he obeyed. And Donovan asked him to keep his mouth shut about this, and that’s what he did’

  ‘There got to be a link which can connect all this’ Alicia looked like she was thinking more than anyone else here.

  ‘Two dead men and an abducted child. All three of them were present at the Central Park that day, now two of them are dead, and one is abducted. We don’t know in what condition is he now. You’re right there got be a link to all this. This can’t be just some random killings or some coincidence. Can it?’ said Ryan.

  They suddenly became quiet absorbed in their own thoughts except the noise of the faint traffic coming from the streets. Alicia walked towards the white board, scribbled some more words in it, and then stared at it while Kevin and Ryan talked silently among them. Alan also chose to remain silent.

  After 10 minutes, Alan said ‘And this man has a large collection of guns. He loves weapons and everything about them. He also, naturally, has a variety of sniper rifles at his disposal. So it won’t really be a problem to get a sniper rifle with .50 caliber bullets which can break through glass and still hit the target’

  ‘Exactly’ said Ryan. ‘That’s what I was thinking about. So it’s highly probable that he was the one who shot this man’

  ‘Or maybe one of his men, to whom he instructed to do so’

  ‘Touché ’

  ‘He knows about the bullets too, so he used the appropriate bullet which can break through glass’ said Alicia. ‘He knows all about this’

  ‘Yes’ agreed Kevin. ‘That’s a great chance to be our killer’

  ‘It might be so’

  Ryan stared outside.

  ‘But what I’m wondering is, if he abducted a child then what does he intend to do with him?’ Alan threw the question to others.

  ‘What if Donovan doesn’t know about this? What if Bob himself abducted him and now he can’t tell his boss because he knows that he will get his ass kicked out if anyone finds out?’

  Alicia shook her head. ‘Why will he abduct the child in the first place if he can’t do anything with the kid?’

  ‘Other than killing him’

  ‘That’s a way for sure. But you just pick up a random kid just to kill him? That doesn’t really sounds satisfying, does it? He’s not even a vampire or anything’

  ‘Even if he kills the boy, there got to be a solid reason behind it’ said Ryan.

  ‘Old revenge?’ suggested Kevin.

  ‘Revenge? What’re you talking about? The boy is barely 15 years old. What could he possibly have done in that age?’ said Alicia and she was right for sure.

  ‘That’s true’ said Ryan. ‘There at least got to be a personal relationship to this. To which he got none, if our information is correct’

  ‘There is something else going on here’ said Alicia.

  ‘Look, we can’t just sit and have a discussion like this’ said Ryan. ‘The main thing remains the same. There is a boy suffering and we have to find him’

  ‘And how are you going to start?’

  Ryan paused and said ‘Somehow’

  ‘Huh, somehow’ Kevin laughed.

  ‘Donovan says he will inform us when he gets to know about the boy’ replied Alan.

  ‘Come on, the boy is with him himself’ Kevin laughed a little more. ‘If he really thought about informing us, then he would have done that all these days. And the kidnapper doesn’t kidnap a child just to inform the police and give the child back, does he?’

  ‘Well according to Donovan the kid is with Bob and he doesn’t know anything about this abduction’

  ‘Pure fabulist’

  ‘How do you know that?’ said Ryan. ‘It might be true. We still know nothing for sure’

  ‘Yeah yeah, you guys keep dreaming that Donovan will return the boy himself’

  ‘Look I don’t know anything, I just know that we will have to start searching for the boy’ Ryan repeated again.

  ‘Where do we find him?’

  ‘You asking me?’

  ‘Yeah sure, you look confident about this’

  ‘I don’t know’

  ‘We will have to think differently’ said Alan. ‘Think like this, if you were the kidnapper where would you have kept the boy?’ . He looked at everyone hoping someone will answer.

  Ryan became though
tful so was Kevin.

  Ryan then answered after a few minutes. ‘Somewhere maybe in some dark place, with...harsh conditions’

  ‘Don’t think like a movie plot. Think for real where would you have kept him?’

  ‘A warehouse?’

  ‘Probably, I was thinking about that too’ said Alan and understood that he needs to be a bit more specific about this.

  ‘But there are a hundreds of warehouse in New York’ said Alicia. ‘Finding the right one won’t be that easy’

  ‘Yes, and we can’t track all of them’ added Kevin.

  ‘And that will be time consuming’

  ‘And worthless’

  ‘Hmm...desperate time, desperate measures’ said Kevin. ‘I know what options we have left’

  ‘Yeah, a killer’s out there and so is a kidnapper. And we’re just puzzling ourselves sitting here. Okay so what’s your desperate idea?’ asked Ryan.

  ‘Huh’ Kevin stood up.

  ‘What?’

  ‘I’m going’

  ‘Where?’

  ‘I don’t know’ said Kevin. ‘I will go and meet Donovan and put a gun in his head and make him say everything he knows’

  ‘Sit down Kevin. That’s one of the worst thing you could do at this moment.’

  Kevin also knew that it wasn’t worth it so he sat down miserably.

  McRae suddenly came inside and saw them that they were discussing something with grave faces. He came near the white board.

  ‘Mr. Smith you came’ he said.

  ‘Yes’ Alan stood up thinking how would McRae react if he said that there was nothing to do now, no way to save Jake.

  ‘Did you find anything?’

  ‘Not really, but I found who abducted Jake’

  ‘Oh, great. Where is he now?’

  ‘That we don’t know’

  ‘You don’t know?’

  ‘No, the kidnappers will inform us’

  ‘What?’

  Alan knew that it didn’t sound convincing, it sounded rather silly. Really silly.

  ‘You’re kidding right?’ McRae said smiling now.

  ‘Yeah I know it sounds crazy...yeah it’s complicated actually’

  McRae didn’t know what to say. He just turned back and walked away. He was disappointed, his legs were unsteady.