by Jack Probyn
A voice behind distracted her.
‘Ma’am.’ It was the explosives expert, carrying his helmet under his arm. His short black hair was damp, and thin beads of sweat bubbled on the pores of his nose.
‘Yes?’ she said, forcing the debilitating thoughts of the future from her mind. She needed to be present at the crime scene; she needed to save Candice Strachan. ‘What’s the latest?’
‘I need to have a word. I don’t think she’s going to make it.’
CHAPTER 31
CALL
One thought occupied Danny’s mind as he stared out of the window. The woman waiting for him at the port in – he checked his watch – two hours’ time. She had agreed to travel abroad with him, to another country with him, to another way of life with him. She was happy to do all that with him, and he couldn’t wait. They had been dreaming of this day for months, ever since they’d first met. Louise. Even the thought of her name sent shivers running up and down his spine, round his pelvis and into his crotch. He was besotted with her, and she had a hold over him like no other woman had been able to maintain. He counted down the minutes until he would be with her.
In the front of the stolen Audi, Luke blasted the radio. He drummed along to the beat of the song, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel. Luke was driving conservatively. Perhaps a little too conservatively for Danny’s liking, but his brother was in control, and he was doing a good job of it, so he wasn’t going to interfere. There was still a long way to go unnoticed, and he was right – the less attention they drew to themselves, the better.
‘You feeling all right, Lukey?’ Danny asked. He placed his palm on the back of Luke’s headrest.
‘I got this.’
‘That’s not what I asked,’ Danny said.
‘Have we crashed yet?’
‘Don’t tempt fate, mate.’ Danny returned his attention to the outside word – outside the confines of these four walls of glass – and considered his future life. ‘Any news on the boat?’
‘Last I checked it was fine. Still scheduled to leave on time,’ Michael said, unlocking the brand-new iPhone that someone else’s hard-earned money had given him.
‘Assuming the police aren’t waiting for us down there.’ Luke glanced at Danny in the rearview mirror.
‘Why you always got to put a downer on everything?’ Danny said. ‘It’ll be fine. Trust me. Nobody saw our faces. Nobody left any DNA. Nobody knows who we are. Who said we needed Freddy anyway?’
‘You fucking shot someone, Dan. There’ll be gunshot residue all over that place.’
‘I thought I told you boys there’s nothing to worry about. I’m in charge. Besides, if you’re really that worried about it, we’ve got our help, remember?’
‘Yeah. And you know how successful the last little piggy was,’ Michael said, tutting.
‘That was an anomaly. That fucking prick Tanner got in the way last time. It won’t be happening again.’
‘And what about the rest of the stuff?’ Michael asked, rotating in his seat and peering back at Danny. ‘Has that all been picked up?’
‘Yes, Micky. It’s all under control.’ Danny checked his watch again. ‘My contact should be picking it up right about now, in fact. Relax.’
‘You gonna tell us who this contact of yours is?’
Danny flashed a smile. ‘Now where’s the fun in that?’
Michael twisted back in his seat, and for a while nobody talked. In the driver’s seat, Luke shuffled. His eyes flicked repeatedly to Danny in the rearview mirror.
Eventually, Luke cleared his throat. ‘You sure this is going to work, Dan?’ It was evident to see he was sceptical. In fact, it was clear he’d been sceptical since the beginning, and it was Danny’s job to change that.
‘When have I ever let you down before?’
‘You really want him to answer that?’ Michael glanced back at Danny, facing him but not looking directly at him.
Danny hesitated a moment before continuing. He swirled his phone in his fingers like a toy and then dangled it between the two front seats so they could see it.
‘I think it’s time to give them a call,’ he said.
‘Who?’ Luke asked.
‘Luke Skywalker and the Rebellion… who fucking else, dickhead?’
The A3 widened into four lanes as it gradually turned into a motorway. They were just on the outskirts of Portsmouth, and Danny estimated they had less than twenty minutes until they arrived at their next destination.
‘I don’t approve of this,’ Luke said.
‘I don’t know why you think this is a good idea,’ Michael added. ‘You’re just shooting us in the foot.’
I don’t care, he thought. This was his job. He was in charge. This was going to be his biggest achievement yet. One that everyone would remember him for. They – his inferiors, those who had doubted him and those chasing after him – would think about him every waking moment of the day. He would haunt them. The one that got away with one of the UK’s largest heists.
And now it was his time to speak with them directly.
He unlocked the phone and dialled.
‘999, what’s your emergency?’ came the operator’s voice moments later.
‘Yes. This is The Crimsons.’
Pemberton’s heart caught in her mouth, and for a moment, she wasn’t sure whether she’d vomited or not. She swallowed it down, and then, for a long while, stared blankly into the officer’s face.
‘What’s your name?’ she asked.
‘Armitage, ma’am.’
‘And you’re sure? There’s nothing we can do to save her?’
Armitage glanced behind his shoulder before turning his attention back to Pemberton. ‘The device is intricately manufactured. The locks are all connected to different wires. When we used the first two keys, it severed the cables. I followed where they led to… nowhere. We just cut open two pieces of copper wrapped in plastic. That was it. There also seems to be a tripwire on the edges of the device, so if we try to open the seal, whatever’s inside will detonate for sure. But I also found something else…’
‘What?’ Pemberton asked, her mouth dry.
‘A phone.’
‘A phone?’ Pemberton asked.
‘A phone.’ Armitage nodded as he said it.
Pemberton’s skin went cold. ‘Why wasn’t this picked up when you inspected the device?’
‘It was hidden, ma’am, behind a solid piece of metal. I just thought it was a part of the design. But since we introduced the keys to the device, it opened – almost as if it were some sort of treasure that we unlocked.’
‘What does it mean for the device?’ Pemberton asked, even though she already knew the answer.
‘It means that potentially it can be remotely detonated?’
‘What are the keys for then? Why go to all that trouble if they’re going to remotely detonate it anyway?’
‘I don’t know. Maybe they’re a decoy. Something to keep us occupied. I wish I had better news for you.’
‘No,’ Pemberton said, stunned. She found herself struggling for the words that would have usually come so easy to her. ‘You’re doing a fantastic job. Keep up the good work.’
The telephones in the office bleated. Each device played together in a symphony of noise across the room. Danika lunged forward and grabbed the phone. It was an instinctive reaction, one that had been ingrained in her from her time as a receptionist back in Slovenia. But as she held the phone in her hands, she regretted the decision to pick it up. She was new, untrained and knew nothing about any of the procedures or protocols in place.
‘DC Oblak,’ she said carefully, making sure not to pronounce her name wrong.
‘Is this Surrey MCT? Have I come through to the right department?’
‘Yes. Who’s calling please?’
‘Forgive me, I’m calling from Surrey control. We’ve just received a suspicious call from someone claiming to be a member of the organised crime group called The Crimsons…
I understand you’re dealing with the robbery in Guildford?’
Danika’s attention narrowed in on the microphone pressed against her ear; she drowned out all the ambient noise and listened intently to the woman’s voice.
‘Our officers are dealing with the case right now.’
‘They said they needed to speak with the SIO. Someone’s going to die if they don’t.’
Sránje. Sránje sránje sránje. Her heart beat fast and her mind fogged. Miren. Inhalirati. Odviti. Calm. Breathe. Relax. She inhaled and exhaled slowly through her nose and mouth.
‘Thank you for letting us know,’ she said. ‘I’ll find the right person for you to speak with. One moment please.’
Danika looked at the phone console, searching for the mute button. She found it a second later then, holding the phone in her hand still, she leapt up and scanned the office for someone to help. Those nearest to her were either on the phone already or walking away from her.
She looked for Murphy.
As soon as she spun around, he appeared.
‘You look frightened,’ he said, bearing a big grin. ‘What’s up?’
Danika explained.
‘You’re joking?’ he asked, his brow creased.
She shook her head.
‘I’ll call Pemberton.’ He dialled her number and held it to his ears. Within seconds she answered.
‘Boss? Hello? It’s me. We’ve got an issue. One of the Cipriano brothers has just called 999 and is asking to speak with you directly… Yes?… I don’t know. You’re right. OK… That’ll take a moment to set up, but we can do it.’
Murphy hung up and disappeared towards the other end of the room. Danika watched him bark orders to other members of the team, and a clutch of them came rushing over to her desk.
‘What are you doing?’ she asked.
‘Tracing the number. If we can get that, we can trace the call and find them.’ He gestured for the phone in Danika’s hand. Reluctantly, she ceded control.
‘This is DI Murphy, deputy SIO,’ he said into the receiver once the wiretap was set up. ‘What’s the mobile number and the IMEI that the civilian is calling from?’ He made a note of the number and flagged it to everyone else around them. ‘Please hold a moment while I put you through to the right person.’
CHAPTER 32
AN EYE FOR AN EYE
‘This is DCI Pemberton.’
The words sounded like a song in Danny’s ear, laced with euphoria. It had taken five minutes of patiently waiting, but he was finally through to the person in charge, his number one opposition, the one whose job it was to ensure they were caught.
Unfortunately, Danny was going to disappoint them.
‘Good afternoon, DCI Pemberton,’ he said, keeping his voice monotonous and deep.
‘Who am I speaking with?’
‘Names aren’t important.’
‘I’ve given you mine.’
‘Quid pro quo? Is that how you want to play it? Like Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling?’ There was no response. ‘Do you need me to silence the lambs, DCI Pemberton?’
Still no response.
Danny was testing how far he could take Pemberton’s temperament. Dipping his toe in the waters of sarcasm and belligerence. And he was revelling in the excitement of it.
‘You still there, Officer?’
‘I don’t think the line’s very good. You must be in a bad signal area.’
‘Nope. Don’t think so.’
‘Where are you?’
‘Somewhere we won’t be for too long.’
‘You still haven’t told me your name. If we’re going to give a tit for tat, I need to know you’re fully on board.’
‘Danny.’
‘And what do you want, Danny?’
Danny smirked. ‘What do you think of the collar? Spectacular, isn’t it?’
‘Depraved is what it is.’
‘I’m disappointed you don’t appreciate it. A lot of time and effort went into making that. Aren’t you lot supposed to take an objective look at things?’
The car slowed to a gradual halt and the number of vehicles either side of them increased. Danny leant into the centre of the car and peered through the windscreen. Traffic stretched in front of him for as far as he could see, and more cars were beginning to pile up behind them as well.
A car horn sounded beside them.
‘What’s that noise?’ Pemberton asked. ‘Are you in a spot of traffic. Let’s hope we don’t catch up with you.’
‘You won’t.’
‘You sure of that?’
‘You like wasting questions, don’t you? Would you have wasted them if I’d told you that you only had three to begin with?’
‘What are you—’
‘Are you sure you want to use that as your final one, Detective?’
There was a long pause. Danny waited, but he soon became bored. ‘How far behind us are you? With the keys, I mean. Find any?’
‘We’ve only found the one.’
Danny pulled the phone away from his ear, placed DCI Pemberton on loudspeaker and opened his text messages. He opened the chat at the top of the screen and scrolled through the latest text.
‘Danny? You still with me?’
Danny snapped to. ‘You say you’ve found one key?’
‘Yes,’ she replied.
Liar. Evidence suggests otherwise, love.
‘Which one did you find? The one inside the house?’ Before Pemberton had a chance to respond, he continued. ‘We wanted to make it nice and easy for you.’
‘We’ve got a lot to thank you for.’
‘You’re sounding unappreciative again.’
‘That’s a habit of mine. My husband tells me it’s something I need to work on.’
‘You been together long?’ Danny probed.
‘I’ll tell you that when you answer my question: what’s going to happen to Candice? We know about the mobile… the remote detonation.’
Well, shit. Danny hadn’t expected them to discover the mobile so soon. He’d tried his hardest to bury it deep within the complex inner workings of the bomb. His hand moved to his overall pocket. Inside was a small key. It was metallic and cold to the touch. His thoughts turned to Candice, crying on the floor, squirming, begging for her life in front of Michael and Luke and the Good Samaritan. He squeezed the key in his hand until it dug into his skin, drawing the pain away from the rest of his body.
Danny exhaled deeply. The traffic hadn’t moved while they’d been talking, and the idle sound of the engine purring underneath reminded him they were still a long way away.
‘If you didn’t appreciate the collar at first, then hopefully by the end of it all you will,’ he said softly.
‘What do you mean?’
‘There are three layers to it. The keys. The timer. The phone. If you get all the keys, you disarm the charge. If you do it before the deadline, you disarm the charge. And if you find the phone that detonates it remotely, you’ll disarm the charge.’
‘How do we find the phone?’
‘I have it. I’m calling you now on it. The only way you’ll get that is by arresting me.’
‘Nothing would give me greater satisfaction,’ Pemberton said. ‘But how do I know you won’t just detonate it now?’
‘I like to play fairly. I’ll give you some time. My recommendation would be to find the keys instead. You’ve got three more to go and not long left on the countdown.’ He rubbed the key in his fingers. ‘Although, I have a sneaky suspicion you’ll struggle with the final one. I made it extra difficult to find.’ He whispered so that his voice was inaudible to Luke and Michael over the softened sound of the radio. ‘Especially if I’ve got it in my pocket,’ he said. Returning his voice back to normal, he continued, ‘If you’re not quick enough, Detective, Candice is going to die today. Soon she’ll be nothing more than a lifeless body without a head. And her blood will be on your hands. Goodbye.’
Danny hung up the phone, removed the SIM card and
snapped it in half. He rolled down the window and threw it onto the motorway. There was no way the police would be able to track them now.
CHAPTER 33
THE CONSPIRACY
‘Luke, Danny and Michael Cipriano – they’re who you’re looking for,’ Freddy said, a cup of water dwarfed in his sinewy hands. ‘Danny’s the eldest, Luke the youngest. Five years separates them. With Michael in the middle. And there’s not a hint of Italian in any of them, other than their surname and a strong family bond.’
‘What about their parents?’ Jake asked. He sat with his elbows resting against the edge of the table and his hands knitted together. He had a pen and paper in front of him, but he was making little use of it. The most important information would be stored in his brain.
‘Both English.’
‘That’s not what I meant… What did they do?’
Freddy eased deeper into his chair and rolled his left sleeve back, revealing a wrist so skinny Jake saw the tendons and river of veins disappearing into the material. ‘The dad was in the military. And the mum ditched them and did a runner on them when they were really young, when Luke was about three. She had a string of problems – drugs, attention, drink – but then she finally ran off with some other fella who had money and, I can only assume, a smaller cock. It had to compensate for something, I guess.’
‘What happened when the dad was in the military?’
‘He looked after them for a bit, but between touring and suffering the consequences of being shot at in the middle of a desert, he gave them up to a foster home. Danny will tell you that it was because he was too focused on serving the Queen’s horses and all her men – which is something he strangely seems to be proud of – but if you asked Michael, he’d tell you that their dad put them in there because he struggled with managing the PTSD. I don’t know which one’s right. That’s up to you to decide. Luke was just caught in the middle of it, too young to know anything.’
