Stake Out... (Studs & Steel Book 5)

by Heather Mar-Gerrison

  *

  “Caucasian male, suffering a concussion from a blow to his head; his legs are trapped in the wreckage and he’s losing blood. The fire’s out and the vehicle has been made safe but we need to cut him free pretty quickly or we might not be able to save his legs.”

  Hendrix was drifting in an out of consciousness and became vaguely aware that he was being tended to. Holy shit. What had that guy just said? He was going to lose his legs? Hendrix tried to scream out but nothing was working. He was trapped inside his head. What the hell? He passed out again.

  Minutes passed – or it could have been hours. Hendrix had no idea. His surroundings were completely different though. He was in hospital, definitely, and he wasn’t in any pain. He turned his head slightly, that would be due to the drip he was attached to, then. Did that mean they’d been able to save him? He wondered about the occupants of the other car. He could remember smoke and flames. He shuddered. It was a woman and her child in there...

  Trying to stop himself from panicking that the police might want to try to blame him for what happened, he looked down at his legs. It looked like he still had legs. He tried to move but he couldn’t move anything. He wanted to scream again but he clamped his mouth shut. He wouldn’t show weakness, he wouldn’t.

  He wondered if they’d caught up with Lenny yet. Had they arrested him? Or had he slipped through the net again? Was he still biding his time to finish off Peyton? To finish off him... That had been his plan this evening after all. He certainly hadn’t meant for him to live to tell the tale – and drop him in it.

  Hendrix let out a long breath. He knew he was on borrowed time. Lenny would make damned sure he didn’t talk – and that meant certain death.

  Chapter 33 – Visiting Seth

  Denny

  Blaine had called Peyton as soon as we got to the hospital. We hurried inside and asked after Seth.

  To no one’s surprise, the rest of the guys from Studs were already there, along with a very white-faced Peyton and Kody.

  We made our way over to Harley and Alfie who were stood nearby, “What’s going on?” I asked.

  Harley sighed, “Seth’s in intensive care – he was really badly burned in the accident and he’s probably gonna need skin grafts. Siobhan didn’t make it – I think I already told you that...”

  Alfie wrapped his arms around his new husband as his voice cracked and he allowed himself to be comforted.

  “Were you there?” Blaine asked gently, “Did you have to attend?”

  He nodded, “And I had my kid brother with me – he’s fucking traumatised...”

  Oh God. It was ‘take your child to work’ day – and Harley loved his brother Joel and wanted to help him decide on his future – so he’d taken him. It was supposed to be a treat, not a lasting nightmare. “How much did he see?”

  Harley turned tortured eyes on us, “Everything.” He croaked, “He saw everything – he’s just standing outside Seth’s room waiting for him to come around. He’s terrified that he’s gonna die...”

  Alfie nodded, “He’s got a bit of a crush on him.” he added helpfully, “So he’s understandably a little upset.”

  I nodded, A little upset, though? Waiting outside the intensive care unit for news about someone he didn’t even know was beyond a little upset. It was as Harley had said – traumatised – and that wasn’t really very healthy... “Do you think we should go and find him?” I asked.

  Alfie nodded, “I guess we should.” He said, “At least Will’s okay.”

  Oh, thank God. I hadn’t liked to ask when I’d seen Peyton looking so sad. But he’d always been really fond of Siobhan. It would be like losing a best friend, I guessed. We set off towards the intensive care unit.

  Joel was stood exactly where Alfie had said he was. He was staring at the floor, a look of shock on his face.

  “Joel?” Harley approached him.

  He turned at the sound of his brother’s voice. “Oh, God, Harley.” He burst into tears, “What if he doesn’t pull through?”

  Fury shot through me, “We have to find that bastard.” I growled, “We find him and we charge him – with murder.”

  Blaine nodded, “Come on,” he said, “Let’s go and get some sleep. We can’t do anything right now, it’s four in the morning – but first thing tomorrow – we’ll organise the manhunt.”

  Chapter 34 – Questioning...

  Hendrix

  “So, Hendrix, how are you feeling today?” the police officer was far too jovial and Hendrix really wasn’t feeling it.

  He rolled his eyes. How the fuck did the stupid bastard think he felt? His legs were smashed to pieces, and he could still be faced with them being amputated if they didn’t improve in the next forty-eight hours. He had no idea if Lenny had been arrested or not. Maybe it was time to ask. “What do you want from me?”

  The officer grinned again, “A few answers to our questions.”

  Hendrix nodded, “Ask away, I’ve got no secrets and I’m loyal to no one.” No one except Mason, anyway...

  The officer nodded and lowered himself into the chair next to him, “Lenny Roblinski – he’s your uncle, right?”

  Hendrix shook his head, “No, he was my dad’s cousin – so he’s my second cousin.”

  “And you dad is...?”

  He rolled his eyes, like they didn’t already know all this...? “Henry McCarthy – Master Builder – he died a couple of years ago of a massive heart attack while he was working away in the US.”

  The officer, who had introduced himself as DC Harrison nodded, “Ah, yeah – I remember that.”

  “And Callum, my brother – was killed by one of your lot a couple of years back at Studs and Steel nightclub.”

  He nodded again, “That’s right.” He said, “So what’s your story, I wonder – why were you in a car that was involved in a fatal accident the other night?”

  Fatal? Oh, God. Who died? Not the child, please not the child? He looked up at DC Harrison, “Who died?” he asked.

  “Peyton McKenzie’s ex-girlfriend, Siobhan – but you’d have known about that, I assume?”

  Hendrix sighed, “Look, if you’re here to pin this on me as some sort of murder charge, you’ve got the wrong guy. I was in the passenger seat, Lenny Roblinski was trying to kill two birds with one stone – he meant to kill me at the same time as he was getting revenge on Peyton McKenzie.”

  DC Harrison frowned, “Why?”

  Hendrix took a deep breath. He’d almost lost his life for the second time in as many weeks. He’d had enough. He wanted out... “I have absolutely no idea what his beef was with Peyton McKenzie – other than the fact that he was friends with Brendan, maybe?” he shrugged helplessly. He really couldn’t see any sort of connection. “I was his rent-boy. He found out that I’d been saving my money to escape. He knew Brendan had given me money – so maybe that’s why he had him shot. I don’t know. He got his brother to steal all of my money... I tried to fake my own death – and I nearly fucking managed it too because I fucked it up. Daryl found me and saved my life – but only to deliver me back to Lenny...”

  DC Harrison nodded, writing something down in his notes, “And you’d be prepared to put all of this in a statement.”

  Hendrix nodded and sighed, “I will – but I want you to guarantee my safety for doing so. I was planning on leaving here with...” He bit his lip. “I was leaving.”

  DC Harrison nodded and smiled, “With Mason?” he offered.

  Hendrix sucked in a breath, “How did you know about Mason?”

  He smiled, “He reported you as a missing person.” He said, “It was pretty obvious that you hadn’t chosen to leave the safe house when your jacket was still hanging up and your mobile phone was left charging. With Daryl dead and Lenny also going off radar we didn’t know if we were investigating a missing person case or a murder. Mason was beside himself...”

  Hendrix nodded, his heart squeezing painfully in his chest at the pain he’d put Mason through. “So
what are you doing about Lenny? He’s a pimp – and he’s killed people. My mother, his own brother... and he was trying to kill me.”

  DC Harrison nodded, “It’s just a matter of time.” He said, “We’ll get him – and we’ll get you away from here and as safe as we can. We can’t promise that you’ll be one hundred per cent safe. You have to help us too, you know? Going out and wandering around where people can find you isn’t exactly the smartest move – but if you’ll help us put him away and anyone else in cahoots with him – we’ll do what we can for you.”

  He nodded, “I want out of all the shit. I want to leave with Mason – if he’ll still have me.”

  DC Harrison smiled, “I can’t see that being a problem.” He said with a wink.

  Chapter 35 – Result...

  Denny

  “Tate said they’d arrested Roblinski. They’ve got loads on him – thanks to the account of Hendrix McCarthy – and once the rest of his acquaintances knew that Hendrix had talked, they all squealed – dropping pretty much the entire gang in the shit – and a load of their clients too.”

  Colby grinned and nodded, “Yeah.” He agreed, “You guys did a brilliant job of bugging their house – with all the recordings we’ve got everything they said and we’ve got confessions off most of them – looks like Lenny was the ringleader of the whole operation – all the rest were terrified of him. He definitely attempted to kill his cousin in the crash – and was clearly out to do as much damage as possible to Siobhan’s car too – how Hendrix, Seth and William survived that crash was nothing short of a miracle.”

  “Poor Seth.” I murmured, “And poor William.”

  Colby looked at Harrison and they both nodded grimly, “It’ll be difficult for them.” He said.

  Difficult? Seth would never be the same again. His skin grafts had gone really well and they were hopeful that a lot of his burns weren’t quite as serious as they’d first thought. The damage to his leg was actually more of a concern for them than the burns now. He’d likely be left with a limp – still, he was still here. He might not actually appreciate that for a while since the love of his life wasn’t. He’d worshipped the ground she walked on...

  “So what was Lenny’s beef with Peyton?”

  Colby shrugged, “I think it was because he was friendly with Brendan – Lenny fucking hated Brendan – and hated that Brendan had also got out of the gang and was leading a better life because of it.” He scratched his chin. “From what Harrison and I could make out from those who would talk – and we’ll be able to ask Brendan soon – he’s awake now and by all accounts, he’s pretty lucid.”

  “Oh, my God.” I shook my head, “So he really wasn’t avenging the death of his cousin or anything – he was working alone and just hated Peyton because of Brendan?” There was surely more to it than that? So many unnecessary deaths... Siobhan...

  Colby shrugged, “Sure looks that way. Total and utter lunatic.”

  “How long do you reckon we’ll get him sent down for?”

  He shrugged, “Hopefully six to ten years – maybe. It’s not as if he isn’t a repeat offender – and we have Hendrix’s statement that he confessed to killing his mother – if he tells us the same thing – and let’s face it – he seems pretty proud of everything he’s done so far...”

  Blaine frowned, “Some do-gooder will want to put it down to diminished responsibility.”

  I nodded, “Well, we’ll have to hope that once he’s tested, they’ll still have him locked up in a secure hospital instead.”

  He nodded, “As long as he’s off the streets, it doesn’t much matter. Hendrix needs to be able to rebuild his life.”

  Wasn’t that the truth? The poor kid had been to hell and back these last few years. His whole family destroyed.

  “Just got a call from Fletch. Brendan’s out of the woods.” Harrison piped up, “He’s talking and he remembers who shot him too.”

  We all raised our eyebrows, “Who?”

  “Daryl.”

  “Daryl?” Fuck me – what the hell was wrong with them all?

  He nodded, “Yeah, apparently he’d been sent by Lenny to kill him so that Hendrix had no one. He wanted him isolated so he could just own him – and then he was going to sell him to the highest bidder.”

  Oh, my God. Thank God we’d got him behind bars. The twisted bastard was punishing a kid for the sins of the rest of the family. Anyone could see that Hendrix was a bright kid with a bright future if only he could get away from his family. Maybe now he’d have the chance. “So, who’s hotfooting it over to St Nicholas’s hospital to interview him?”

  Colby grinned, “I think we should leave it to you and Blaine.”

  *

  Blaine

  Brendan looked quite bright eyed for someone who’d only just come out of a coma – but to be fair to the guy, I’d never seen anyone else who had, so...

  “Good afternoon, Brendan.” I said, “My name’s DC Blaine and this is DC Denison, we’re from the Hanleigh and District Police department and we’ve just got some questions we’d like answering in connection with the recent arrest of Mr Lenny Roblinski.”

  He nodded, “Sure.” He said, “I’ve already been talking to your colleague, DC Fletcher.”

  I nodded, “Yeah,” I said, “I know that but we were involved in the case a little more deeply and we’re trying to keep Hendrix McCarthy out of any further trouble.”

  He went white, “Hendrix?” he asked, leaning forward, “Is he okay?”

  I nodded, “He’s going to be in and out of hospital for treatment to his legs and he’s going to need extensive physiotherapy according to his consultant but yes, long term, he should be able to lead a perfectly normal life.”

  He flopped his head back against his pillows, “Oh, thank God...”

  “So, what’s your account of the whole thing, then?”

  “Fuck. Where do I start?” he murmured, “Right, I think this all started when I was around fifteen...”

  He talked for about half an hour. Denny was the better note taker between the two of us, so I questioned and probed him for more information when he seemed to want to be evasive and we got him to agree to come down to the station to make a full statement when he was feeling up to it.

  He nodded, “How’s my boy doing?” he asked.

  “Hendrix?” I asked.

  He nodded, looking worried. I smiled, “He’s doing okay. He’s been through a lot – and he’ll probably need a shitload of therapy as well as his physiotherapy.”

  He nodded, “I’ll pay for anything he needs.” He said, “I’d really like to get to know him better – and to actually be family.”

  I smiled, “I think he’d like that too – since you’re actually all he has left.”

  He nodded. “Thanks for finding him – and for saving his life.”

  Chapter 36 – New beginnings...

  Denny

  The case was almost over and I felt like I was doing the right thing – and at the right time. We were walking back to the car and I really needed to tell Blaine what I was planning. “I’m leaving the force, Blaine.”

  Blaine sighed and nodded, “I had a feeling you were gonna say that. I knew you weren’t happy.” He mumbled, “And I don’t blame you.”

  I sighed, “It won’t change anything between us.” I said, “My heart’s just not into fighting crime anymore – I’ve lost belief in goodness always winning. It doesn’t. Look at Seth...”

  Blaine wiped his hands down his face, “I understand.” He said, “I’ve been thinking about the future too...”

  I waited but he shook his head and sighed, “I’m not sure what to do – when are you leaving?”

  “I have to work my notice of a month.”

  He nodded, “Okay.” He said, “Let’s make the most of it.”

  I grinned, “Sure.” I agreed.

  Three months later

  Blaine

  “Where are we going?”

  Denny giggled, “Can’t you g
uess?” he asked.

  I shook my head, “You’ve blindfolded me, dude.” I reminded him a little sarcastically.

  His voice went a little husky, “Yeah, I have.” He murmured, “And I’ve got my handcuffs in my bag too.”

  “Stop it.” I groaned, “I was never into kinky stuff before I got myself involved with you.”

  He chuckled softly, “And you never knew you liked it, either.” He retorted, “But you love every kinky second of sex with me.”

  I nodded. It was true. I did love every second of every minute of every day with him and I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him too.

  Denny pulled up. The tyres crunched on the ground. Ah, that sound reminded me of being at the cabin with him earlier in the year. Did he have some sort of dirty weekend planned for us?

  I got out with him guiding me and then he pulled me forward. “Ready?” he asked.

  I shrugged and nodded, “I guess.” I agreed.

  He took off my blindfold with a bit of a flourish, “Ta-dah!” he exclaimed.

  I blinked in the brightness of the day and then turned to him with a puzzled frown, “We’re at the cabin,” I deadpanned, “Where you got shot and made me shit myself and think my life was over.”

  He nodded looking like a kid at Christmas. The excitement in him had him almost vibrating with it, “What?” I asked. Seriously? This place really didn’t have any magic about it for me anymore... Although it was where we totally found each other again. Maybe I could see the benefits of being here again after all...

  He nodded to the sold sign.

  My heart sank. “Oh, man.” I whined. “Someone bought it?”

  He turned to me and grinned, nodding his head; his eyes were bright and he was just about bouncing on the spot. “Yeah, they did,” he crowed, “ I bought it – for us.”