by June Tate
She had never seen him like this and it worried her.
After they had eaten she said, ‘Come to my office, I need to talk to you.’
Once inside the office, the door closed against prying eyes, he took her into his arms and kissed her. Holding her close, he nestled his face in her neck and breathed in. ‘My God, you smell good.’ His hand caressed her breast. ‘I want you so much,’ he whispered.
Victoria closed her eyes and, running her fingers through his hair, said, ‘I feel the same.’ Then, walking over to a board where all the room keys were kept, she took one down. ‘Come with me,’ she said and took him by the hand.
They walked upstairs where she unlocked the door of a vacant bedroom and led him inside. ‘Now what were you saying?’
Later, as they lay in each other’s arms, Victoria spoke. ‘How much longer is this going on for? I can see just how the waiting is affecting you and it worries me.’
Johnny heaved a deep sigh. ‘I’ve no idea but I wish it was soon. Then I can move on.’
She didn’t know what to say. She could understand how he felt but there was someone who was just waiting for the right moment to try and kill this man who had come to mean so much to her and she couldn’t bear the thought. She held him close. What if the killer succeeded? She felt helpless. There was nothing she could do to stop this deadly plan and she hated Pat Daniels with a passion.
Three more days passed without incident. It was surreal, life continued. Johnny went about his business and she continued with hers, being escorted to and from the club, each morning and night. But everyone concerned was living on a knife edge . . . waiting.
On Monday evening it was still early and the club was quiet. Several of the rooms were vacant after the weekend and Victoria was checking to see that the chambermaids had changed the linen, ready for the next customers, when she met Mr Summers leaving his room.
‘Good evening,’ she said. ‘I hope that you have everything you need?’
He smiled at her. ‘Thank you, Miss Teglia, everything is absolutely fine. You have a nice place here and I’ve been well looked after. I’m just going down to the bar, may I buy you a drink?’
‘That’s very nice of you, I’d be delighted.’
They sat at the bar. The quiet man told her that he travelled from one bank to another, relieving the managers for various reasons. It was his first visit to Southampton and he liked the town.
‘I had no idea that it had been so badly bombed,’ he told her.
They discussed the Blitz and the war and how the German prisoners had been used to clear the bomb sites whilst they were in the country. Then he excused himself and went to the dining room to eat.
George Coleman wandered over as he left. ‘How did you get on with Mr Summers?’ he asked.
‘He seems a pleasant, unassuming man,’ she said. ‘He’s satisfied with his stay, so that’s the main thing.’
‘Did he give any indication as to how long he would be staying?’
‘No, he didn’t say.’
In the dining room, Alec Summers ordered his meal, looked at his watch and thought, after dinner, he really ought to pack his clothes ready to leave. He didn’t envisage being here for much longer.
Twenty-Five
The following morning, Victoria was driven to Oakley and Watling, the wholesalers, to order the vegetables for the dining room. Armed with a list from the chef, she climbed out of the car. When the man who’d accompanied her made to join her she stopped him.
‘There’s no need to come inside with me,’ she told him, ‘I’ll be fine, you wait here. After all, there’s nobody following us is there?’
He reluctantly agreed. She breathed a sigh of relief. For once she wanted to be alone, to wander at will, without a shadow. She found it so claustrophobic having someone with her every time she moved out of the hotel or the club. She chose a trolley and began to select the vegetables, placing them on the wooden tray in front of her. One of the assistants helped her to move a sack of potatoes, then left her alone to help herself to the smaller items.
She made her way to the back of the warehouse where she’d been told a fresh supply of cauliflowers had just been unpacked. As she loaded the trolley she was unaware of a figure behind her until something hit her on the back of the head and she slumped to the floor, unconscious.
Victoria slowly opened her eyes. She felt dizzy as she tried to sit up and groaned as the back of her head hurt every time she moved. She put her hand there and winced. She could feel a large bump and as she took her hand away she saw a small amount of blood on it. She desperately tried to gather her thoughts. What the hell had happened? She’d been sorting out the cauliflowers and someone had hit her! She gazed around. She was on a camp bed in a small, cell-like room. The only daylight was from a small grill, high up on the wall. The door to the cell looked solid. She got to her feet and staggered over to it and tried the handle. It was locked. She banged on it with all her might, calling out to anyone who might be around. There was nothing but silence.
Outside Oakley and Watling, George’s man was getting restless. How long did it take to choose a few vegetables, for God’s sake? Miss Teglia had been over half an hour. He decided to investigate. When he asked one of the assistants whether they had they seen her, he was told she was at the back of the warehouse by the cauliflowers. He walked through, calling her name, but all he found was the loaded trolley and, lying beside it, the list from the chef. The back door to the warehouse was open and he rushed outside, but there was nothing to be seen. He ran back to the car, yelling at the driver to take him to the club. Once there, he immediately rushed in to find George and tell him what had happened at the wholesalers.
‘What do you mean, she’s missing?’ George Coleman thundered. ‘How could she be missing? Didn’t you stay with her?’
The man nervously told him the whole story and was severely berated for his stupidity. ‘I’m sorry, guv, but she insisted and I thought she’d be safe. No one was around.’
‘Well somebody was around! Jesus! Now what?’ He picked up the phone and dialled. ‘Johnny, Victoria has been taken.’ He proceeded to tell him what had happened. ‘You can expect a call very soon, my son. When you do, you get in touch with me right away before you do anything, but don’t leave your office until you hear from whoever has her.’
Johnny Daniels replaced his receiver. He felt sick to his stomach. So now it was happening – but if only Victoria hadn’t been involved. He prayed that they hadn’t harmed her in any way. Probably not, he thought, as they would use her as bait. He lit a cigarette and waited anxiously.
Victoria had spent the last half an hour trying to find a way out of her prison, without success. Even standing on the bed she couldn’t reach the grill. The door was impenetrable and the more she called out the more frustrated she became. Now she was in no doubt she had been taken by Pat Daniels’ men and cursed her own stupidity. Why hadn’t she been sensible? Had the bodyguard been with her she wouldn’t be in this terrifying situation! She sat and waited. Before long, someone had to come.
It seemed ages before she heard footsteps approach and she stood up ready to face whoever opened the door. When she saw her abductor, she could hardly believe her eyes.
‘Good afternoon, Miss Teglia.’ Alec Summers stood in the doorway, gun in hand.
‘You?’ For a moment she was speechless.
‘I’m afraid so.’ He gave a sly smile. ‘It pleases me to know that I had you completely fooled. But then, I am good at my job.’
‘Which job are you referring to?’ she asked sarcastically.
‘Yes, I know your Mr Coleman checked at the bank. There is an Alec Summers working as a replacement manager, but of course it isn’t me. But he was not to know that without going to the bank itself.’
‘And what now?’ asked Victoria calmly. ‘Am I, too, to be a victim of Pat Daniels? I know he doesn’t like me.’
‘Quite right. You are the cause of his son wanting to leave th
e organization and, because of you, Johnny shopped his own father.’
‘I don’t suppose that cold-hearted bastard would understand being in love,’ she retorted.
‘That’s not for me to say.’
‘How did you know where I’d be today?’
‘I overheard you talking to the chef last night. You said you’d take his order to Oakley and Watling in the morning.’ He put down on the floor a sandwich and a cup of water. ‘Here, I’m not completely heartless. This will keep you going for a while.’ He backed out of the door. ‘You may be here for some time.’
‘Wait!’ She cried. But the door was shut and locked.
She looked at the sandwich. Well, she would eat it to keep up her strength but next time Alec Summers called, she’d be ready for him. She had to do something to get out of here. But just how was she to do it? She had no idea.
The telephone on Johnny Daniels’ desk rang. He let it ring several times before picking up the receiver. ‘Daniels,’ he said – and waited.
‘Good afternoon, Johnny.’
‘Jack Mills I presume?’ he said coldly and heard the soft chuckle at the other end of the line.
‘I’m sure by now you will know we have your girl?’
‘Yes, you bastard and if you’ve harmed her in any way, I’ll make you pay.’
Mills burst out laughing. ‘You are in no position to issue threats to me, sonny boy! Now, you know what I want. We have to meet, Johnny, somewhere quiet. I don’t have to spell it out to you, do I? You know what goes down. We can do this the easy way or the other, the choice is yours.’
‘What happens to my girl?’
‘You play ball with me and we’ll let her go.’
‘How do I know you’ll do so?’
Mills spoke coldly. ‘You don’t. however, if you are foolish enough to try and double cross me, she’ll be the one to suffer.’
Johnny closed his eyes to give himself time to think. ‘Fine,’ he said eventually. ‘You need to give me a few hours to leave my house in order here at the office. Then it’ll be my time – my choice of place!’
‘It depends where, the time is immaterial.’
‘I want to speak to Victoria to make sure she’s still alive.’
‘You’re making a lot of demands for someone in your position.’
‘The condemned man is surely allowed some sort of request isn’t he?’
He could hear the amusement in Mills’ voice. ‘Well, if you put it like that. Fine, I’ll get your girl to a phone. Stay at your desk, I’ll call back in an hour. You can talk to your bird and at the same time give me the meeting place and the time. Don’t try and get smart or Victoria will end up floating in the dock.’
Johnny cursed the man but Mills put down the receiver on him. Johnny immediately rang George Coleman.
The ex-villain listened carefully to what had been said. ‘Right,’ he said. ‘I’ve been on the blower and gathered a few men. Now, Johnny, we have to plan this very carefully. Mills will be expecting you to take some sort of measure, so we have to fool him. There is an old building next to the Empress dock. It’s empty at the moment, apart from some old machinery being stored there. It would give my men a place to hide without being seen. It has a large board above it saying Gardner and Sons. Insist on this as its quiet. Make it around eight o’clock tonight.’
‘What if he refuses?’
‘Then be insistent!’
‘What about Victoria? I’m worried about her safety, I don’t trust these bastards. If anything happened to her . . .’
‘Now, son, you leave that to me, I’ve got eyes and ears all over the town and we have a bit of leeway time wise . . . We’ll find her, I promise!’
George sat at his desk, his mind working, trying to think of the best way to plan ahead. He knew that Mills and whoever was working for him were ruthless. He had to have an accomplice because he’s been under surveillance all the time by George’s men. Coleman came to a decision and picked up the phone.
‘This is George Coleman from the Club Valletta; I want to speak to Detective Inspector Bill Cole. It’s urgent tell him.’
Ten minutes after his conversation with Coleman, Cole marched into the club, followed by two associates and spoke to George who was waiting for him. They shut themselves away in the office.
‘Right! Tell me everything!’ the detective demanded. He sat and listened intently. ‘I don’t like this at all,’ he said finally. ‘You have no idea where Miss Teglia could be held, I suppose?’
Coleman shook his head. ‘We have to find her! I’ve men searching the dock area already, but I’ve no idea who else other than Mills is helping him.’
‘Why didn’t you come to me before?’
‘How could I? I had no proof of what was going down.’
‘You have to leave this with me now,’ said Cole.
‘Will I hell! We need every man jack on this. We need to work together if we are to stop Daniels from succeeding.’
Cole stared hard at the ex-villain. ‘I won’t have a blood bath on my patch, Coleman. Are your men armed? Because if they are, you’re breaking the law.’
‘Let’s just say they are not foolish, but we have to be ready for every eventuality. Mills is armed, we believe, and you know his reputation.’
Cole got to his feet. ‘Right, well, here’s what will happen. I’ll go back to the station to make arrangements. Let me know about the meeting place and the time. Then you leave it to me to place my men. Your men will stand back and let the police do their job . . . understand?’
Coleman nodded.
‘In the meantime, someone will be with Johnny Daniels when the call comes through and I’ll put out a bulletin about Miss Teglia. Christ! What a mess!’ He hurried from the club followed by his men.
Victoria stiffened as she heard voices. She rose to her feet. Obviously, Alec Summers, as she still thought of him, was not alone. There was little she could do but wait. Eventually she heard footsteps coming nearer, then a key was turned in the door and it opened. Summers stepped inside with another man. Victoria felt her blood run cold as she stared into the cruel eyes of the stranger.
‘Your boyfriend wants to talk to you,’ he said and grabbed her roughly by the arm. ‘Now listen to me, girl. Don’t try and be stupid or young Johnny will never hear your voice again.’
She remained silent, knowing from his tone that this was no idle threat. But as he dragged her from her cell, she looked around, taking in every detail of her surroundings. This was a small warehouse, now almost empty, she had no idea where, but she could hear the shunting of what sounded like goods trains in the distance. Was she somewhere in the docks, she wondered?
Mills pushed her into an office, which to her surprise looked as if it was in use from the papers littered on the desk. She was pushed into a chair whilst Mills picked up the phone and dialled.
As she waited, through a dirt-stained window she could see a crane, although it did not appear to be in operation. She was in the docks, but where?
Mills’ voice interrupted her observations. ‘Johnny! Here’s your girl.’ He glared at her. ‘Be very careful what you say or it’ll be the last time you’ll talk to anyone . . . understand?’
With her heart thumping, she nodded. He held the phone to her ear.
‘Johnny?’ she said, her voice trembling as she did so.
‘Victoria? Darling, are you all right?’
She could have cried as she heard his voice. ‘Yes, I’m fine, really.’
‘Try not to . . .
The phone was taken from her by Mills. ‘There you are, Daniels, your bird is still breathing, so what time and where?’
Johnny could scarcely contain his anger. ‘You bastard! All right. There’s an empty building beside the Empress dock. It’s Gardner and Sons. Inside there at eight o’clock.’
Mills thought quickly. ‘Right, but outside the building and of course I expect you to come alone, that’s if you want to spare your girl. She will be in safe
hands until I return. If I don’t show up, then I don’t need to tell you what will happen to her, do I?’
‘No you don’t. I’ll be there.’
Mills replaced the receiver. Looking at Victoria he said, ‘I’m pleased you didn’t do anything foolish, at least you have some sense.’
‘I didn’t have much choice, did I!’ she snapped.
He laughed. ‘Well, you’ve got some spirit, I’ll say that for you.’ The smile faded as he dragged her from the chair and both men marched her back to her prison.
‘What are you going to do to Johnny?’ she cried as she was shoved into the room.
He looked at her coldly. ‘Don’t be bloody stupid. You know what I’m going to do!’ And he slammed the door and locked it.
In Johnny’s office, the detective standing with him had been listening in to the conversation. He was deep in thought and frowning.
‘Did you hear that goods train in the background?’ he asked.
‘Sorry,’ Johnny answered, ‘I was only thinking about Victoria.’
The detective picked up the phone. He gave his boss the details of the meet later that night, then added, ‘I’m sure she’s in the docks somewhere, guv. I’m positive I heard a goods train in the background.’ He listened for a moment and then, turning to Johnny, said, ‘I’ve got to take you to the club. Detective Inspector Cole wants you there until this evening . . . and you’re to stay put, he said.’
In the ops room at the police station, men were poring over maps of the dock area, looking at the railway system, marking out squares of territory for a team to search for Victoria. DI Cole had also put in a request for his trained officers to be armed. On the notice board was a mug shot of Mills for the force to be able to identify him during the ensuing raid.
‘This man is dangerous and maybe with an accomplice,’ the detective warned, ‘so be vigilant. I don’t want to lose anyone.’
They then planned how to stake out the building designated for the meet.
‘Mills is a canny bugger,’ he told his men. ‘We need to try and think like him. I think he’ll get there early. If I was in his situation, that’s what I would do, so we’ll be there first.’
