A few people shook their heads.
‘Keep calling them,’ he said loudly.
‘Two minutes and fifteen seconds.’
Just at that moment Antonio returned with the items that Hedge had requested.
Hedge looked at the mother. She looked back at him but showed no expression. She said nothing. Her eyes looked far away.
Hedge turned and stared around the room at the faces of the people gathered there. When his eyes passed over them they each turned away from his gaze.
Hedge looked down at the boy on the table and his heart started thumping in his chest. He could feel beads of sweat building up on his forehead. What should he do? He felt very scared.
‘Two minutes and thirty seconds.’
He wiped the sweat off his hands and picked up the knife.
Chapter Three
Hedge asked a young man standing nearby to pull the child’s head back and hold it still. Using his right hand he felt the boy’s throat to see if he could locate the wind pipe. He could feel the hardness of the throat passage, but he had no idea where the main artery was in relation to that part of the neck. He knew, like most people, that the jugular vein was in the neck somewhere. He believed it was at the front near the main airway. He needed to cut a hole in the boy’s windpipe without damaging the jugular. He carried on feeling with his hand, not sure what he was looking for exactly.
‘Two minutes and forty five seconds.’
Hedge made up his mind. He had to act now. He glanced down at the knife in his hand and touched the blade lightly with his thumb. He could feel the surface of his skin break slightly. It seemed very sharp.
He placed the knife against the centre of the boy’s throat and pushed gently. The skin gave easily and Hedge made a cut of around one inch long. Blood started oozing out and several people in the watching crowd took a sharp intake of breath.
Hedge continued to cut and pushed the knife harder against the fibrous material of the neck. The knife went into the throat to a depth of about half an inch. He continued with the knife until there was a small slit clearly visible.
‘Three minutes,’ shouted out the man with the watch.
‘Damn,’ said Hedge. ‘We are running out of time. I need to make this hole wider.’
Hedge tried to force the knife sideways to enlarge the slit. The boy’s eyes, which had been closed, suddenly flicked open and stared straight at him. Was it a reaction, or was it pain? Hedge wasn’t sure. A middle-aged woman from the watching crowd stepped forward, and picking up a small towel, started to wipe away some of the blood.
Hedge looked over at her and tried to smile. His hands were shaking. He felt very nervous. He had a lot resting on his shoulders right now. He wanted to vomit, but pushed the thought out of his head and tried to regain his focus on the task in front of him.
He now had to get the blade out of the hole he had made in the throat. He moved the blade slowly and it was almost out when a jet of bright crimson liquid surged from the skin around the hole. The blood sprayed all over the boy’s neck and onto the table. The woman with the towel frantically tried to mop it up but there was too much of it. She threw down the sodden towel and picked up a fresh one.
The boy’s mother started sobbing again and then shouted, ‘Oh god, no. Please, no.’
Hedge wasn’t sure what had happened. Several people in the crowded room turned their heads away and two of the women screamed. The lady wiping the blood away had started using the clean towel, but this was now also becoming saturated.
Hedge turned the boys head to one side to try and stop the blood draining back into his throat. The blood flow started slowing. After a few more seconds it had almost stopped. Hedge felt a wave of relief, but it wasn’t over yet.
‘Three minutes and fifteen seconds,’ the time keeper shouted.
Hedge could clearly see the hole in throat now and he reached for the tube that Antonio had provided. He thought it looked ideal for the job. It was a clear piece of piping made of some kind of thin, flexible plastic. It was around six inches long as he had requested. He pushed the tube into the boy’s throat so that half of it was still visible. He told the middle-aged woman, who had been wiping the blood, to try to make a seal around the tube where it connected with the boy’s throat. She found another fresh towel and placed it around the base of the tube and pressed down gently.
Hedge knew the young boy’s time must be nearly up. He had heard of people drowning in just one or two minutes and being unable to be resuscitated. He put his mouth around the tube and blew into it. The boy’s chest rose slightly. Hedge repeated this several times. Although the boy’s chest moved up and down as the air went into his lungs, he remained motionless.
‘Three minutes and thirty seconds.’
Hedge blew air into the tube in a regular rhythm and carried on doing so for a full minute. He stopped and looked up at the boy when the man with the watch called out the latest time at four minutes and thirty seconds. The boy lay quite still. Hedge realised it was too late. The crowd of people in the room had gone quiet. The mother of the boy was just sitting staring into space, tears running down her face. The younger brother sat whimpering in his chair with his head in his hands.
Hedge was devastated. He stopped blowing into the tube and looked down at the boy. He was quite still and his face had gone very pale. He looked completely lifeless. There was nothing more that Hedge could think of to do.
The boy was dead.
The following are the opening three chapters of the 3rd book in the Hedge & Cole series.
The Transamerica Cell by Kevin Bradley
Chapter One
Seth Harper saw the three men walking towards him.
He knew they were coming for him, he had been expecting it. One of the men had the fingers of his right hand extended out in front of him. He was pulling on a set of brass knuckles. These were also often referred to as knuckleduster’s. This simple type of weapon is used in hand to hand combat, and is usually made of a heavy metal. The idea being that when used effectively, the victim would sustain maximum tissue damage, with the increased likelihood of bone fracture occurring.
Seth reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He looked at the display .The first contact on his list read simply ‘Brother Joe.’ He touched his finger on the phone next to that name and held the phone to his ear.
The call was answered on the second ring.
‘Hi Seth, I can’t talk now, I’m out on patrol.’
‘Joe, I need help. They’re coming for me.’ There was panic in his voice.
‘Seth. Who is coming for you? Where are you?’
‘I’m down in the Pacific Beach area, just off Grand Avenue. I need help, quick ...’
The call went dead.
‘Seth. Seth. Hello. Hello. Shit, he’s gone.’
Joe Harper turned the steering wheel hard left. The patrol car lurched and spun round.
‘We need to head over to Pacific Beach. My brother is in some kind of trouble.’
Joe’s partner looked across at him. ‘Are you going to call it in?’
‘No. No need for that. Let’s see what he’s up to first. Knowing Seth, it will all be all about nothing,’ replied Joe.
His partner nodded. ‘Fine, let’s go.’
Joe stamped his foot on the accelerator pedal and the car jumped forward. At the same time, he flicked a button on the side of the steering wheel. The blue light on the top of the patrol car began flashing. That should be enough, he thought. No need for the siren just yet.
The first of the three men to reach Seth was a tall guy, with a crooked looking face. His left eye had a long-healed scar just underneath it, and his nose looked like it had been broken several times.
The man grabbed the cell phone off Seth, and threw it to the floor. He had heavy boots on his feet, and so when he stamped on the handset, the front screen shattered instantly.
The other two had now arrived, and all three of them grabbed hold
of Seth. Together they dragged him into a nearby alley. As he was being pulled along, Seth stumbled and fell to the ground. His three assailants gathered around him, and began kicking at his body. The man wearing the brass knuckles leaned down and directed a strong punch at the base of Seth’s ribcage, on his left side. There was a loud cracking noise as one of his ribs broke.
‘Did you hear that,’ the man shouted. ‘What a beautiful sound.’
Seth screamed. A sharp pain ran down his side. He was laying on his front, with his back exposed, desperately trying to protect his head with his hands.’
‘Enough. That’s enough for now,’ the tall man shouted.
His two accomplices stood back. Seth lay motionless on the ground.
‘So where is my money?’ the tall man said.
‘I don’t have it, but I’ll get it soon. I promise.’ Seth said softly. He wiped his hand across his face, and cleared some of the blood away. It was dribbling out of his nose, and running down his face.
‘Not good enough,’ said the tall man. ‘I need it today.’
‘I can’t get it today. Give me a week. I promise I’ll have it in a week.’
‘I need it today.’
‘Please. One week. Please.’
The tall man swore as he stood up. He looked quickly up and down the alley. There was no one else about. He reached inside his black, leather jacket and pulled something out. He held the weapon in his outstretched right hand, and turned it so that the sunlight glistened off the eight inch blade.
He nodded towards his two colleagues. One of them smiled as he dropped his knees onto the back of the man lying on the floor. Seth was now pinned down and couldn’t move. The other attacker walked over and kicked Seth’s ankles outwards, so that his legs ended up splayed apart.
‘This is your last chance. I need what you owe me now, today. Hopefully this will get your brain working out how you are going to achieve that.’
The tall man swung the knife at Seth’s backside. The blade of the weapon sank into his left buttock, penetrating to around five inches. The tall man felt his hand vibrate as the blade bounced off a piece of bone somewhere deep inside the soft flesh.
Seth screamed aloud. The pain inside his buttock was intense, even more so when he felt the steel of the blade scraping along one of his bones. He couldn’t stop crying out. The steel was still in his flesh, and it felt like a thousand sharp needles had been pushed into his body.
One of the men took off his woollen hat, and held it over Seth’s mouth to try and lessen the noise he was making.
The tall man stood up. He left the blade buried in Seth’s backside. He pushed his heavy boot against the handle of the knife, making it move back and forth.
Seth screamed even louder. Dark red blood was seeping out from the wound.
‘Do you have any fresh ideas yet on getting me my money?’
‘Please, give me some time. Just a few days, please.’ Seth spoke slowly, and quietly, with the words coming out in between deep, painful breaths.
The tall man shook his head in resignation.
He leaned down, and with one swift action he pulled the knife out of Seth’s buttock. There was a brief sucking noise as the blade came free. Seth’s body convulsed and a long, piercing howl came from his throat.
The tall man looked at the blood coated blade. He pulled his arm back slightly.
‘You leave me no choice then,’ he said.
Chapter Two
‘Hey, what are you up to? Leave him alone.’
Robin Taylor didn’t consider himself to be a particularly brave man, but when he saw the three guys standing over someone lying on the ground, he decided to try and intervene.
‘I’ve called the police,’ Robin lied.
He was hoping that the three attackers would turn and run, but they didn’t. Instead they just looked directly at him as he approached them. The man on the floor was moaning softly. Other than that, he lay still and inert.
The tallest man in the group was nearest to Robin. He turned to face the approaching stranger. As he did so, Robin caught sight of the menacing looking weapon he was holding in his hand. The blade looked long, and was covered in a sticky, red liquid.
Robin stopped walking. He stood motionless, his eyes unblinking, as he stared at the knife.
‘And who exactly are you?’ said the tall man. His voice was quiet, but his throat sounded hoarse, almost like he had a bad cold, or the flu. He was still gripping the weapon in his right hand.
‘I’ve called the police. They told me that they are on their way.’ Robin felt very vulnerable now, so close to the three men. He couldn’t stop staring at the knife.
‘I’m sure you have,’ said the tall man. He was sneering, but the look that he gave Robin was chilling.
It was a hot day, almost ninety degrees Robin estimated. As it was lunch time, the streets in this part of San Diego were quiet. Most people had headed off to get something to eat, or to find somewhere cooler to pass the next couple of hours.
Robin didn’t know what he should do next. With hindsight, he was now wishing that he hadn’t got involved in this situation. He should have just walked on by. His wife and two young daughters would be waiting for him in the department store just around the next block. That was where they had planned to meet up for something to eat.
His thoughts were suddenly interrupted as the tall man let out a loud cry. Robin was startled, and automatically took a step back. The man had raised his right hand, the one holding the knife, high up in the air. He bought it down rapidly, catching those watching by surprise. As the weapon came down, the man turned slightly, leaned down lower, and plunged the eight inch blade into the back of the head of the man lying on the ground.
The knife was sharp, and it was forced right through the victim’s head. The handle of the weapon was pushed up against the soft, fleshy part at the back of the skull, just above the man’s neck. The point of the blade ended up coming out of the front of the head, so that it was just visible between the top of the man’s nose and his left eyeball.
The body on the floor wriggled and shook for a few moments, and then it was still.
The tall man threw his head back and laughed. ‘Has anyone got any headache tablets? This guy has a terrible need for some.’
The other two men also started to laugh. One of them kicked out and aimed his foot straight at the face of the body on the ground. His boot caught the man in the mouth, snapping off several of his front teeth. There was no reaction. The body on the ground was beyond any kind of response now.
Robin couldn’t believe what he had just witnessed. He was horrified, and in a state of shock. He took a few paces backwards, trying to get himself away from the murder scene. The three men moved towards him, the tall man at the front, smiling.
Suddenly, the smile had gone. It was replaced with a look of panic. The alley they were in was reasonably well lit, certainly not dark. Even so, the blue light bouncing off the alley walls was clearly visible, just for a split second, as the patrol car slowly drove past.
The three men turned and ran. They headed off down the alley, away from where Robin was standing. After some thirty yards, they turned right into an adjoining passage, and completely disappeared from sight.
Robin was still terrified, but his first thought was to try and help the man lying on the ground. He ran over and knelt next to the body. There was no movement. Blood was pouring from the man’s head. Robin tried to pull the knife out, but it was stuck fast. He tried to wipe the sticky, red liquid off his fingers, but all he succeeded in doing was staining his clothes.
It was hopeless. The man lay completely still. He must be dead, Robin thought.
He turned around, just in time to see the police car backing up the street. It had obviously driven past the alley, but something had attracted the suspicion of the officers in the car. The vehicle stopped and Officer Joe Harper opened the driver’s door and jumped out.
‘What’s going on here?’ Joe co
uld see the man lying on the ground.
As he entered the alley, he pulled his Glock 22 handgun from its holster. He must have been about ten yards from the body, when he suddenly recognised who it was.
‘Seth,’ he shouted, as he ran forward.
Joe stopped when he reached his brother. He raised his pistol towards Robin as he shouted his orders.
‘Turn around slowly, so that you are facing away from me. Move towards the wall and place your arms above your head.’
Robin tried to speak, but no words came from his mouth. He was still in a state of shock.
‘Do it now,’ shouted Joe.
Robin turned, and did as he was told. His hands were covered in blood still, something Joe noticed as he turned to focus his attention on the body in front of him.
‘Oh my god,’ Joe said quietly as he tried to find a pulse in Seth’s neck.
Joe was a seasoned police officer. He had seen many dead bodies in his time. Some of them had been shot, a few occasionally drowned, and many of them had stab wounds. But this was different. This was his brother, his own flesh and blood.
He tried to focus, but it wasn’t easy. There were tears running down his face. He pressed a button on his radio, and called for an ambulance. He knew it was too late for that, but that’s what you did in a situation like this.
Joe stood up. He looked down at the body of his brother. His heart was pounding in his ears, and his eyes were stinging. His mind was racing. But most of all, his rage was building to an impossible level.
‘Who the hell has done this to my kid brother?’ he asked himself.
He looked across the alley at the man holding his hands above his head.
His red hands.
Chapter Three
Mary Taylor was just paying for the two pairs of black, cashmere gloves that she’d selected for her daughters.
‘Mummy, can we put them on now please,’ said Charlotte. The little girl was excited. She was enjoying the holiday in San Diego with her family. The only irritating thing was that her younger sister always wanted the same things as she did.
The Terminate Code: A gripping, page-turning, action adventure revenge thriller, with a fast pace, and a terrifying twist in its tail ! (Hedge & Cole Book 2) Page 19
