Underdogs

by Jack Fiske

  Walker leaned forward and switched the radio on. “The news will be on in a while. Maybe there’ll be something on the next bulletin?”

  Quinn frowned. ‘Bloody classical music again’ he thought to himself.

  The evening hadn’t gone well for Archie. He was glad he was just helping and that Armstrong was in charge. The two were sitting alone in Armstrong’s office going over things.

  Everything had started well. They had seven field agents assigned to the job. Three cars, with two guys in each and one man on a motorbike. All they knew was that a meeting was to take place that evening between Musa and Walker. They didn’t know where and they didn’t know when. They did however have a tracker on Musa’s Mercedes and had even managed to plant a bug inside it. Musa had been under observation all afternoon, but he hadn’t left his hotel room until after six. For a nasty moment they had thought he wasn’t going to take his car at all, as he’d left the hotel by the front entrance and walked quickly down the street on foot. Thankfully, it turned out that he was just going to pick up a pack of cigarettes at the newsagents and he returned a few moments later, walked straight down to the car park via the hotel lobby and drove out in the car they had tagged earlier.

  Following Musa across London was tricky, even though his car stood out like a beacon on their equipment. There were too many red lights and so much traffic nowadays, that even with three cars and a bike, there were times when they were not as close as they’d have liked to be.

  That was when they had their first major problem. One of their cars was crossing a junction, when it was hit side on by a white van that had jumped the lights. Thankfully the occupants were only shaken up, but the car couldn’t be driven. One of their men had to stay with it, whilst the other was picked up by the second team. It meant they were down to six people and only three vehicles.

  Their second problem was just a lack of foresight. When Musa was driving north it wasn’t clear where he was heading until he turned into the Eastgate Services. Even then, the guys in the field didn’t know if he had just stopped for petrol, was taking a break, or whether that was the meeting place. In any event, they had no choice but to follow him in and take up their stations, three on foot, whilst the others waited in the cars and on the bike.

  The footbridge that crossed the motorway was accessed from within the main building and it wasn’t until Musa was half way across, that they realised he was on his way to the other side. That created serious problems for them. If Musa had a second car waiting for him, they would be stranded with their own transport on the wrong side of the motorway. On top of that, they would lose the advantage of being able to track him. On the other hand, if they drove round it would take them fifteen minutes, but it could just as easily put them out of position if he were to double back. The decision was ultimately down to Armstrong and he decided they should call for police backup and divide their resources. As a result, four agents followed on foot, with two others taking one of the cars and the bike round by road. Armstrong reasoned that if a meeting was taking place, he would have four agents on the spot with backup on the way. Alternatively, if Musa was switching cars, they could at least i.d. the vehicle involved and hopefully pick it up again with some help from the police.

  Unfortunately, things didn’t go as planned. When they realised that a meeting was on, all four agents were instructed to take up positions to observe and to wait for help. That was when things went from bad to worse. One of their men, with a pair of high powered binoculars, was pushing through the shrubbery at the edge of the car park, when he suddenly realised it was already occupied by a man lying prone with a rifle. Unable to back out of the situation, he challenged the man, who rose to his knees and turned with the rifle in his hands. The agent, who had already drawn his weapon, had time for one warning shot. Then, with every indication that the gunman would shoot if given half a chance, their man had shot him once in the shoulder from close range. As the gunman fell, his rifle went off, putting a neat hole right through a nearby car and shattering the windscreen of the vehicle beyond. Everyone’s attention was immediately drawn to them, with those people who had seen what had happened running to get away, whilst others, who were further away, stopped to stare.

  In the confusion that followed, Walker and his men had managed to get clean away, whilst Musa had returned calmly to his car and driven back to London.

  Two of their men had stayed with the wounded gunman to give him first aid until an ambulance arrived and the others, with assistance from the police, scoured the motorway north of the service station and the surrounding roads. Of course, there was no sign of Walker’s car and they’d had to abandon their efforts after two hours, leaving the police to make their usual checks for the vehicle in case it should show up later on.

  From the reports that had been coming into the office, it was clear to Archie that they’d missed an opportunity to pick up not only Walker, Quinn and Musa, but also to recover at least part of the missing equipment. Armstrong was furious at the failure, but to be fair he’d held his temper in check. No one had actually messed up. Things had just gone against them. If there was to be any criticism, it might be that more resources could have been used. However, as Archie had pointed out when Armstrong raised it, who would assign more than seven agents, three cars and a bike to follow one man? Particularly when they could track him electronically as well.

  Armstrong had considered picking up Musa as he drove back to London, but decided against it. He knew that if they did, he would have the camera with him containing evidence of his involvement with Walker and the K2 detector. However, they already had enough evidence to arrest him. What they really needed was not to reveal their hand, but to wait for him to make contact again.

  A report on the gunman came in from the hospital later in the evening. The gunshot wound wasn’t critical and it said that he would survive. He was in surgery and would be unconscious for some time, so they wouldn’t have an opportunity to question him. The man was between thirty and thirty-five and carried no identification at all. In fact the only things he did have, other than the clothes he stood up in, were the rifle, a pocketful of ammunition and a white handkerchief. There was no wallet, no money, no credit cards, nothing to say who he was. In fact he didn’t even have a set of car keys. They had taken a set of fingerprints from him and run them through the police computer, but they hadn’t found a match. They had also done a check of all the cars that were parked at the services and had satisfactorily accounted for all of them that were still there. That either meant the man had arrived on foot, which was extremely unlikely, or he wasn’t working alone and his accomplice had driven off when the trouble started.

  Armstrong leant back in his chair and frowned at Archie. “So if you were to make a guess, who do you think he is?”

  Archie didn’t beat about the bush. “I think he’s Irish. Most likely IRA.”

  “What makes you say that?”

  “Well. All we have to go on at the moment are his description, his clothes and the rifle. According to the labels, all of his clothes were bought in the U.K. His description places him as North European, possibly U.K. but it’s the rifle that makes me think IRA. The report says it’s a Czech AK-47, twenty years old or more. That type of weapon was supplied in some quantity to the IRA by Libya in the 1980s.”

  “True,” Armstrong agreed. “But it’s a pretty thin connection.”

  “Is it?” Archie asked. “Or are you just hoping that he isn’t IRA? It doesn’t make sense for anyone else to want them dead.”

  Armstrong sighed. “I know. You’re probably right.”

  “Why don’t you ask your man O’Hara about it?” Archie asked pointedly.

  Armstrong thought for a moment. “No. I don’t think we should do that. If the gunman is with the IRA, it would definitely be awkward. I think we’ll keep O’Hara in the dark about this for the time being.”

  Armstrong looked at the clock. “It’s late. Why don’t we go home and work on this tom
orrow. The others will be in then and we can debrief everyone together.”

  “Fine by me,” Archie agreed, getting to his feet. His brain had stopped making sense of all of it anyway. He needed to go home and get something to eat.

  “Get something to eat and a good night’s sleep,” Armstrong said, as if reading his mind.

  “Don’t worry. I will,” Archie agreed, as he left Armstrong packing up his things.

  He also had to phone Jim Turner. He couldn’t believe he’d only spoken to him that morning. The amount of information that had come his way over the course of the day was unbelievable. Jim would be extremely interested in the contents of the folder that he’d read that afternoon.

  It didn’t take him long to get home. It was late, but the lights were off and the house was empty when he arrived. Harriet was evidently still out. He’d managed to get a sandwich earlier in the evening, but he was still hungry. After raking about in the kitchen, he found half a quiche in the fridge and put it in the oven to warm up. He would have it with a bit of salad and a mug of tea.

  Walking through to the living room, he picked up the phone and dialled Jim’s number. The phone at the other end rang for some time and he thought it wasn’t going to be answered, but then he heard Jim’s voice at the other end.

  “God Archie, it’s good to hear a friendly voice. I could really do with a second opinion on what’s been going on today.”

  Archie dropped into the armchair that stood next to the telephone.

  “

  Me too,” he replied. “I’ve got some news at my end, but you go first . . . .”

  NINE

  Monday in captivity passed slowly for Susan and Millie. Susan had been woken at nine by Millie going to the bathroom, but she was still tired after the hours she had spent checking over their prison the night before. To her credit, Millie had been awake for some time, but had been creeping around the room so that she didn’t disturb her.

  Surprisingly, Millie was in good spirits and seemed confident that they wouldn’t be prisoners for long. Susan wasn’t so sure, but was careful not to say or do anything that would shake her daughter’s confidence.

  Although their room was far from comfortable and it had an all pervading smell of dampness, it seemed their captors didn’t want them to rough it too much. Breakfast arrived at ten, delivered by two masked men, but neither was recognisable from the night before. If they were two different men, that meant there were at least five people involved in holding them. Not an encouraging thought, as it indicated a large, well organised operation.

  Breakfast was simple but very welcome. The tray that was left held a plate of buttered toast, two packets of cereal, a jar of marmalade, a flask of tea and a jug of milk. Susan deliberately took her time, aware that there was little else to do and that she would need to find something to amuse Millie for the rest of the day. The radio was a bonus. They left it on in the background and it was somehow comforting – a link with normality and the outside world.

  After they’d eaten, the tray was collected again by the masked men. Susan was surprised by the timing of the knock on the door until she realised that, of course, they would know exactly when she had finished as they would be watching them on the CCTV system. Possibly made bolder by the fact that the masked men were quite civil and knocked before they entered, Susan tried to start a conversation, but without success. Neither would say a word in response to her demands for information and when she took a pace forward, as if to follow the man with the tray, his partner put out a hand and pushed her roughly away from the door.

  After breakfast, Susan decided they could both do with a shower, even if only to make them feel a little fresher. The only problem was the camera in the bathroom. Could she face a shower, knowing that two masked men were sitting somewhere nearby watching her every move? On the other hand, how long would she want to go without a proper wash? If she were to strip off in the bathroom, would the masked men do anything more than just watch? Would they come in with her naked and vulnerable, with no way to protect herself or to get away? No, she decided that in her case it wasn’t worth the risk, particularly with Millie there. If she was to have a shower, it had better be late at night when their captors were asleep and she had the benefit of darkness to conceal her. The same considerations didn’t apply to Millie though and she couldn’t see any reason why she shouldn’t shower if she wanted to.

  When she suggested it, Millie nodded enthusiastically. Her hair still smelt of chemicals and whatever she’d been laid on in the back of the car. The prospect of washing it cheered her up, particularly when they found that there was plenty of hot water. Millie didn’t seem at all bothered by the camera and handed her clothes to Susan without giving it a second thought. On impulse, Susan hung Millie’s shirt over the camera, folded the rest neatly on the floor and then stood between her daughter and the camera whilst she washed. Either their captors were not keeping a close watch on them, or the person monitoring the camera needed to check with someone higher up, because Millie had finished her shower and was towelling herself dry before there was a loud banging on the outer door and a voice shouted muffled threats. Susan pulled Millie’s shirt down – she needed to put it back on anyway and shouted back that the camera was uncovered.

  Lunch, when it arrived, was another flask of tea and some cheese and tomato sandwiches. As before, the two masked men who delivered it said nothing, but there was a short typewritten note with the food:-

  “Do not cover the cameras. We will overlook one incident, but if it happens again, you will be separated and held in different rooms.”

  The note was clear and to the point and Susan decided not to do anything else which might prompt them to carry out that threat – at least not until the evening. By now she had decided they must escape. Even though it would be hard with Millie to look after, she wasn’t prepared to just sit around in their two room prison and wait to see what fate had in store for them. She screwed up the note when Millie wasn’t looking and put it in her pocket.

  The rest of the day crawled by. Both of them had amused themselves for a while reading some of the magazines that stood on the small table by the window. These were a mixture of women’s magazines and Gardeners World and it reminded Susan of being in a doctor’s waiting room. After that, they’d chatted for a while about nothing in particular, trying to keep their spirits up. There was something very depressing about being locked in a small tatty room with nothing to do but read magazines and listen to the radio. They couldn’t even see out, which added to the sense of confinement.

  Late in the afternoon, they were lying side by side on the bed discussing what might be happening in the world outside when Susan raised the subject of escape. The radio stood on the bedside cabinet next to Susan and was tuned to a local music station. Susan leaned over and turned it up slightly, just in case they could be overheard as well as observed on camera. Millie was immediately in favour of the idea and sat up excitedly.

  “How can we?” she demanded.

  “Keep your voice down,” Susan said. “Lie down again and I’ll tell you. Remember someone will be watching us through that camera and they might be able to hear us as well. Pretend that we’re talking about something else, like we were before.”

  Millie lay back on the bed and Susan explained her plan in a low voice which she was sure couldn’t be heard above the music.

  “If I can make a hole in the ceiling of the bathroom, do you think you could climb through it if I help you?”

  “Easily,” Millie replied confidently.

  Susan was sure that she could. Millie was a bit of a tomboy and Susan had more than once had her heart in her mouth, as she watched her climbing the Ash trees at the end of their garden. In truth, she was more worried about her own ability to get up there. She would be able to stand on the edge of the bath, but would she have the strength to pull herself up through the ceiling? Millie also had size on her side. If the rafters were close together it would be much easier for M
illie to get through than it would for Susan.

  “Will you be able to do it quietly though?” Susan asked.

  “Of course,” Millie replied. “I bet I’ll be far quieter than you. You’ll be like an elephant!”

  Susan smiled. Millie wasn’t going to be a problem at all. She was more excited about the thought of escape, than worried about what might happen if they were caught.

  “Right then. If you’re sure you can do it and that you won’t make any noise, then here’s the plan. You’ll have to go to bed early, or at least try to get some sleep, because we’ll be getting up at one in the morning. It’ll be very dark then and everyone will be asleep.”

  “How will we know to wake up?” Millie interrupted. “We haven’t got an alarm clock.”

  “I’ll stay awake,” Susan replied, “But I want you to get some sleep because you’re not used to staying up until that time.”

  “O.k.” Millie agreed brightly.

  “Shhh!” Susan reminded her. “You’re supposed to be keeping your voice down.”

  Millie squeezed her hand. “Sorry.”

  Susan continued, “I’ll get up first and go to the bathroom. I’ll wake you up as I go. I want you to sleep on the settee like last night, but the other way round, with your head at the end nearest the door. That way, you’ll be able to listen for anyone moving around and warn me if you hear anything. While you’re doing that, I’ll make a hole in the ceiling and come and get you when I’m ready.”

  “What about the cameras?” Millie asked.

  “We’ll just have to keep our fingers crossed. I don’t think they would stay awake all night just to watch us while we’re asleep, but there will be someone close by, so we’ll need to be really quiet.”

  “Making a hole in the ceiling will make a noise,” Millie pointed out.