Hell to Pay

by Rachel Amphlett

  Kay stayed in her seat as the overhead lights sprang back to life, and stared at the fading image of the house as the projector was switched off.

  Why hadn’t she been included in one of the search teams?

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Kay rubbed her eye and strained her ears to listen to the rapid fire orders being barked over the radio.

  Debbie set down a mug of tea in front of her, then hovered at the end of the desk.

  ‘Has it started yet?’

  ‘No. They’re waiting for the order to go in.’

  ‘Bet you wish you were there,’ said Debbie, before returning to her own side of the incident room.

  Kay’s thoughts turned to the cellar they’d discovered beneath Demiri’s nightclub, and shuddered. She said nothing, and instead leaned across the pile of paperwork in front of her and turned up the volume on the radio.

  The door to Sharp’s office was wrenched open, and Harrison appeared, his whole body exuding tension.

  ‘Are they ready?’

  ‘Yes, guv. Waiting for your order,’ said Kay, and handed him the radio. ‘HQ are ready, too. They’ve got patrol cars set up to block access in and out of the road on the industrial park where Demiri’s offices are, as well as the road outside his house.’

  ‘Good.’ Harrison glanced over his shoulder as Sharp strode towards them, his tie askew.

  Kay frowned, then turned away.

  His face appeared thunderous, and she’d never seen him with a tie that wasn’t knotted and perfectly straight.

  She wondered what Harrison had said to him behind closed doors that had him so riled, then pushed the thought away as Harrison raised the radio.

  ‘All teams, this is DCI Harrison. You have a “go” for Operation Exodus. Repeat, Operation Exodus is a “go”.’

  Kay groaned inwardly at the call sign that had been randomly designated to the search operation, and crossed her fingers in the hope it wasn’t an omen.

  Harrison replaced the radio on the desk in front of Kay and turned to Sharp.

  ‘Let’s hope your team perform well. Can’t have them slowing down SOCU, after all.’

  A muscle worked in Sharp’s jaw. ‘They’re all good officers, Simon, and more than capable of the job in hand. Same as they were when we raided the nightclub.’

  Harrison sniffed. ‘We’ll see. What do you think, Hunter? Reckon we’ll finally net Demiri after all this time?’

  ‘Hope so, guv.’

  ‘Shame we had to keep you here, really,’ he said. ‘I wouldn’t have minded seeing Demiri’s face when you turned up at his house.’

  Kay’s eyes travelled across to Sharp once more.

  The DI was standing with his hands in his pockets, contemplating the carpet.

  ‘Not a problem, guv,’ she said to Harrison, injecting more warmth into her words than she felt. ‘At least we’ll be able to filter all the information as it comes through and develop a strategic approach to questioning him as the searches continue.’

  Harrison beamed. ‘You’re quite right, Hunter. Commendable thinking.’

  He turned his attention to a uniformed police officer who approached them and ran his signature over a series of forms before dismissing the man, and then made his way across to the whiteboard and stood in front of it, hands on hips, apparently lost in thought.

  Sharp sank into the chair next to hers and leaned forward, elbows on knees as they listened to the chatter over the airwaves.

  Both searches were being coordinated through the communications team at HQ where, much to his obvious disgust, DS O’Reilly had been sent by Harrison to monitor progress and provide him with immediate access to the team coordinator if he needed to send an urgent message.

  ‘I should be out in the field,’ he’d grumbled to Kay on his way out the door.

  Kay had smiled sweetly, but had had the sense to keep quiet.

  ‘The vest cameras from Piper and Miles are live,’ Debbie called over from her desk. ‘I’ve emailed you a link to the feed.’

  Kay opened her emails and clicked on the link, and took a sip of tea while the screen loaded.

  ‘At last,’ Sharp muttered as the images flickered to life.

  The live video recording from Gavin’s camera had sound, but Kay turned it down in favour of listening to O’Reilly’s commentary over the radio.

  Team one were responsible for the raid on Demiri’s offices, while the second team had been tasked with his house.

  Timed to precision, both teams converged on each of the properties within seconds of each other.

  Kay watched as Gavin’s camera picked up the tactical response team hovering at the fringes of the gathered response vehicles, before he approached the front doors of the industrial unit.

  She inhaled sharply as he placed his hand on the front door and it swung inwards.

  ‘Unlocked?’

  ‘Not a good sign,’ said Sharp.

  Harrison spun away from the whiteboard. ‘What’s wrong?’

  Sharp pointed at the video feed. ‘When we interviewed Demiri at his offices, the doors were locked and we had to wait to be admitted. There was a video camera above the door and an intercom system.’

  Harrison rubbed his chin. ‘He’s probably expecting us, and couldn’t be bothered with the security charade.’

  Kay caught the look that Sharp threw at Harrison and raised her eyebrow, but her DI gave a slight shake of his head and turned his attention back to the screen.

  The black and white image wobbled slightly as Gavin moved through the door and held it open for Carys. Kay caught a flash of Carys’s face, the woman’s expression determined, and then the angle swung back to the reception area she and Sharp had entered only days before.

  She frowned. ‘Guv? Where’s the reception desk?’

  Sharp shook his head, his eyes never leaving the images on the screen.

  On the radio, Gavin’s voice rang out, confirming her fears.

  ‘Looks like the place has been deserted.’

  Harrison snatched the radio from the desk. ‘Piper – check the conference room off to the left.’

  Kay held her breath as Gavin’s camera panned round and then began moving towards the large meeting room she and Sharp had been shown to by Demiri.

  The door swung open, revealing a large empty space where the conference table had once been, and a darker rectangle against the far wall where the large flat screen television had once hung.

  Harrison swore under his breath, then pulled his mobile phone from his pocket. ‘O’Reilly? Demiri’s offices are empty. What’s the status from the team at the house?’

  Kay watched as the DCI’s face reddened, his eyes blazing at the image on the screen in front of him, before he ended the call.

  ‘Barnes has confirmed Demiri’s house has also been abandoned,’ he said, his voice dangerously low. He picked up the radio once more. ‘Piper – clear the building. Lock it down for forensics immediately.’

  ‘Understood, guv.’

  ‘He’s shut down all his operations, hasn’t he?’ said Kay. ‘He’s on the run.’

  Next to her, Sharp slumped in his chair and ran a hand over his face.

  Harrison handed Kay the radio, stormed away from her desk, then stalked into Sharp’s office and slammed the door with enough force to shake the windows.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Jozef Demiri stood with his back to the room, his eyes travelling over the landscape before him.

  A smile twitched at the corner of his mouth, but he knew he couldn’t relax.

  Not yet.

  However, it was too easy to imagine the reaction of the police when they discovered he’d outwitted them, and he wished he could see their faces when they discovered both his offices and home empty and devoid of any evidence.

  He tugged at a loose thread on the woollen sweater he wore over a long-sleeved t-shirt and jeans, common clothing that he hadn’t worn in years in favour of his designer suits. His flight from his house had
been executed in a moment’s panic as he realised how fast the police investigation was gaining ground.

  He’d wanted to wait, wanted to taunt Detective Hunter and her colleagues a little longer, but Oliver Tavender had insisted.

  The safe receipt of the shipment was more important, after all.

  The man was right, of course. A lot of money had already been invested, and he had four extremely powerful shareholders to answer to if the goods didn’t arrive as scheduled.

  Men whose reach extended well beyond the southern county’s borders.

  Men who could end his life at any given moment.

  Oliver Tavender had worked tirelessly over the past three days to ensure all traces of his boss’s life had been erased, and Demiri reluctantly admitted to himself that the man wasn’t expendable.

  It troubled him, to have to depend on one person so much, but he didn’t have a choice. Not if he was to survive.

  He knew when the time came that he would sacrifice Tavender to ensure his own freedom, and it troubled him that the man probably realised it.

  He had no-one he could trust, and it was all Detective Hunter’s fault.

  He clenched his fist, resisting the urge to leave the safety of the building and hunt her down.

  She would come to him, he knew it.

  She wouldn’t be able to resist.

  He dropped his gaze to the road outside at movement to his right, but it was only the small silver hatchback that belonged to an old woman who lived half a mile away. He checked his watch, noted that her departure fitted the exact timing that had been observed every week for the past three months, and let his shoulders relax.

  He turned from the window and moved over to a moth-eaten armchair, sinking into the soft cushions before reaching out to a small side table and picking up the large mug of soup that had been delivered to him minutes before by his host.

  Tavender was away, running a final late afternoon errand that would erase a final piece of the puzzle for Detective Hunter and ensure Demiri could leave behind his legacy and start afresh.

  He ran his eyes over the new passport that lay on the table, its rich burgundy colour embossed with the symbols of the European Union. He consoled himself with the fact he could still escape with ease and travel anywhere on the Continent, and had spent the past three days contemplating where best to set up his new operations.

  It would take time, and money, but he had both.

  It was the effect that running would have on his closely guarded reputation that worried him.

  He had spent years growing the business, expanding it beyond the risky drugs empire he had first coveted and then discovering a whole new demand amongst his more elite customers.

  He didn’t count them as his equal, though. And they would be insulted if they thought he did.

  To them, he was a supplier, nothing more.

  He put down the mug of soup, steam rising from it on the cold air in the room, and picked up his notebook, tracing his thumb over the brown leather cover before slipping the band from around the pages and opening it to a page of neat handwriting.

  Despite the assurances he’d always given to his clients, he kept a tally of their names, visits, and the money that passed between them. Together with the film that was kept on a server buried within the darkest reaches of the worldwide web, Demiri hoped he had enough insurance to keep them from hunting him for a while.

  His thoughts returned to DS Hunter, and a pleasant shiver crossed his spine.

  He’d heard, of course, that she hadn’t been seen at either of his properties that morning, and for a moment he’d felt disappointment. It had soon been tempered with the realisation that perhaps her superiors thought her too valuable to be wasted on what turned out to be a fruitless search, and he settled back into the armchair, content in the knowledge that neither she nor his colleagues knew where he was, or of his plans for her.

  His instructions to Tavender had been clear.

  DS Hunter was his, and his alone.

  He let the hot soup scald his mouth and throat, savouring the pain it brought, and stared at the bleak landscape beyond the window.

  He would have his time with Detective Hunter, and soon.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  By the time the team returned to the incident room, a grey gloom had enveloped the town and a coolness had ended the afternoon, threatening rain.

  A downcast Barnes had sunk into his chair before putting his feet up on the desk and resting his chin in his hand.

  Kay placed a steaming mug of tea in front of him, and then frowned.

  ‘Debbie? Have you seen DCI Harrison? I thought he wanted us all here for a briefing at half four?’

  ‘Not for the past thirty minutes, no. Disappeared with his phone glued to his ear.’

  Kay swallowed.

  No doubt the DCI would be receiving the Chief Superintendent’s thoughts on Demiri’s disappearance, and in turn the team could expect short shrift when he returned.

  Barnes scrunched up a note that had been stuck to his computer screen by one of the administrative team members and lobbed it at the wastepaper basket, his top lip curling when it bounced off the side and fell to the floor instead.

  They both looked up as Gavin opened the door, holding it open for Carys before the pair of them trudged towards their desks, their expressions downcast.

  Sharp peered out from his office. ‘Piper, Miles – grab yourselves a hot drink and we’ll debrief.’

  ‘D’you want to wait for Harrison, guv?’ said Kay.

  ‘No, I do not want to wait for bloody Harrison. It was his idea to have this debrief, so he can bloody well turn up on time. We’ll start without him. Miles looks dead on her feet as it is.’

  Carys gave him a wan smile and made her way over to the kettle.

  Kay and Barnes wandered over to the whiteboard, quickly joined by the others.

  Ten hours had already passed since the early morning briefing, and Kay was grateful Sharp had sent the junior members of the team home some time ago.

  They would need their wits about them when they returned early the next day to begin sifting through the meagre information being processed by the forensic teams at Demiri’s house and office in the hope of a breakthrough.

  ‘Okay, Barnes. Give us a quick update on the search at Demiri’s house,’ said Sharp.

  ‘There were no vehicles on the driveway when we arrived, guv. There’s a separate building to the right of the house – an old stable block that had been converted into garages, with room for two vehicles – but that was empty.’

  Barnes pointed with his mug of tea at the aerial image Sharp had set up on the whiteboard once more.

  ‘The woodland around the property doesn’t actually belong to Demiri – it’s leased to him by the neighbouring farmer. Needless to say, there’s an additional forensic team on site now, using GPS to check for any disturbed earth or other recent anomalies.’

  ‘Was the house unlocked like the offices were?’ said Gavin.

  ‘No – we had to break down the front door. All the furniture was still there, but all of Demiri’s personal effects are gone – clothing and the like – and there’s no sign of any electronic equipment. Even the television’s gone.’

  ‘Cleared out in a hurry,’ said Carys.

  ‘No, and that’s the thing,’ said Barnes. ‘I didn’t get the sense that this was done in a panic. It felt too coordinated.’

  ‘As if he was expecting us?’ said Kay.

  ‘Exactly.’

  ‘When we interviewed him, he mentioned a new business venture in Romford,’ said Sharp. ‘Anything turn up about that?’

  ‘No,’ said Kay. ‘I heard back from my contact at the Joint Intelligence Unit earlier, and they’ve come up empty-handed. I don’t think Demiri has any business interests there. He was lying to us.’

  ‘Well, at the moment he’s done a disappearing act as famous as one of Pluckley’s bloody ghosts,’ said Barnes, then turned as Simon Harrison
burst through the door and hurried towards them.

  ‘Good, you’re still here,’ he said, tucking his mobile phone into his jacket pocket.

  ‘What’s going on?’ said Sharp.

  ‘The Chief Superintendent’s agreed to holding a press conference at headquarters to talk about the Demiri case. If we hurry, we can get it on the six o’clock local news. National coverage will go out at nine o’clock tonight.’

  ‘What?’ Kay felt her jaw drop open, a moment too late. ‘Sorry, guv. It’s just that – do we want to tip him off about the investigation?’

  Harrison’s eyes darkened. ‘Given the disaster of today’s searches, I wouldn’t say we’ve got a lot of choice, would you, Hunter? I mean, for goodness’ sake – didn’t either of you suspect anything when you interviewed him at his offices?’

  ‘We didn’t request the guided tour when we were there,’ said Sharp through clenched teeth.

  Harrison straightened his tie, and then glanced over his shoulder before beckoning them back towards the door.

  ‘Well, it’s too late now,’ he said. ‘Come on. We need to go. Demiri knows we’re closing in on him. Right now, we’ve got him on the run. His business has closed, his offices are shut, and there’s no sign of him at his house. He’s hiding somewhere, and you know as well as I do that if we do a televised appeal for information, someone close to him may come forward.’

  Kay caught Sharp’s glance in her direction, and shrugged before grabbing her jacket off the back of her chair and following him.

  Based on her own involvement with Jozef Demiri, she doubted very much whether anyone who knew him would be brave – or stupid – enough to volunteer his whereabouts, despite Harrison’s assertions.

  From the expression Sharp wore, it was evident he thought the same, although he remained silent.

  ‘Shall we take your car?’ Harrison pushed through the door and strolled across the car park ahead of them.

  ‘What’s going on?’ said Kay under her breath.

  ‘No idea,’ said Sharp. ‘Keep your eyes open and your mouth shut. We’ll reconvene after the press conference. Somewhere out of earshot from Mr Harrison and his sidekick, O’Reilly.’