Dark of Mind

by Robin Roughley

  The smile on his thin angular face widened as he realised that it was Zero dead on time, heading to the bin to drop her head amongst the rubbish.

  'Wonderful,' he muttered as he continued to walk along the path, dark joy spurring him on.

  127

  'I won't do it,' Beth snapped as Stone drove onto the huge empty car park and pulled up close to the bushes on the left.

  Without uttering a word, he climbed out and then walked around the van to the passenger door.

  Beth glared at him as he yanked it open.

  'You heard what he said, and we need him to think that I am following his orders and the longer you sit here being obstructive then the more chance he will smell a rat and vanish.'

  'I don't care, I…'

  'Just do it!' he hissed as he lunged towards her, his eyes suddenly sparking in fury.

  Beth gasped before shuffling across the seat and getting behind the wheel.

  'When he turns up, I promise you'll have your say, now go,' he urged as he closed the door.

  He watched as the van pulled away and then he eased back into the shadow of the large bank of laurel bushes and waited, his eyes watching the tail lights vanish into the darkness.

  Silence descended and David Stone narrowed his eyes, letting the fury seethe inside.

  128

  'You're quiet.' Bannister commented as he slowed down and turned right onto the road that led to Rivington.

  'I'm just thinking about Jilly Stone and her father.'

  'Yes well, forget about that for now and concentrate, we need to make sure we catch Robbins before it all goes tits up,' Bannister warned.

  'You know I used to wonder how we ever managed before we had all this technology, phones, computers and tablets but the truth is they've made the job harder not easier.'

  'So, you'd sooner go back to the dark ages with coppers on push bikes carrying a truncheon, is that it?'

  Lasser flicked the cigarette out of the window, watching in the wing mirror as the sparks flared briefly before vanishing. 'It was my uncle who got me interested in the force, I used to sit and listen to him while he told me stories about the things he'd done, the cases he'd been involved in.'

  'He inspired you?' Bannister asked as he turned on the main beam.

  'Well, my old man was a worthless shit, but his brother was the complete opposite and, yeah, I guess he did inspire me.'

  'Like listening to an episode of Heartbeat, no doubt,' the DCI said with a rueful smile.

  'I suppose it was really,' Lasser replied. 'They had no stab vests, no computers but they still got the job done.'

  'The golden age.'

  'Are you taking the piss?' Lasser asked.

  Bannister gave a shrug as he grabbed another gear. 'Look, Lasser, the world has changed, and I agree back then people knew who their local copper was, but we don't have a community anymore.'

  'Now, we have young girls isolated in their bedrooms talking to sick bastards like Bradley Robbins and being persuaded to slit their wrists.'

  Bannister kept quiet, hearing the fury in Lasser's voice.

  'I mean, why aren't these things monitored?'

  'Too late, Sergeant, Pandora's box has been opened.'

  Lasser sighed as he found himself nodding at Bannister's grim assessment.

  'When you watch people on the street hardly any of them are looking where they're going, they all have their eyes fixed on their phones, no one seems to even talk to one another these days unless it's electronically,' Lasser lamented.

  'Normally, I'm the one acting like a Victorian dad,' Bannister said. 'It makes a change for it to be you sounding like some ancient wanker.'

  'Thanks for that.'

  'My pleasure,' Bannister said ironically as he drove through the darkness.

  129

  When Stone saw the figure emerge through the trees he felt his rage explode as he watched the man he hated hover in the darkness, he could sense the tension as Robbins craned his neck, looking left and right as if afraid to move out from the shadow of the trees.

  Time seemed to stand still and Stone resisted the urge to blast his way across the car park, he needed to make sure that it was Robbins, he needed him to head over to the bin on the left and then he would make his presence known and make Robbins pay for the things he had done.

  When the figure finally emerged from the darkness and moved left, Stone held his breath and then he was moving forward quickly, his hands closing into fists, tracking Robbins as he made his way over to the litter bin and switched on the torch, shining it into the receptacle.

  'ROBBINS!' Stone screamed in an animalistic bellow as he broke into a run.

  The torchlight suddenly lanced towards him as Robbins spun around, his face instantly coated in fear when he saw the big man hurtling towards him.

  For a couple of seconds, Bradley Robbins couldn't move and then the fear took hold and he turned and ran, the torchlight jittering as he held the scream of fear at bay.

  He had recognised the voice in the single word that had blasted across the car park, it was Zero, the man he had sent to kill Beth, the one he had ordered to put her head in the rubbish bin and yet in that brief moment when the light had shone down into the bin there had been nothing there but the usual empty wrappers and bottles.

  As he ran, his fear-filled mind tried to fathom out what had happened, how Zero had known his name, but the terror wouldn't allow for any rational thought, all that remained was pure panic snapping at his running heels.

  Cutting left, he entered the trees, seconds later he heard the sound of heavy feet snapping the twigs that lay scattered across the grass, he fumbled the switch on the torch and the light died as he swerved around an old oak tree, the fear flying now as he tried to escape from the all-consuming nightmare.

  Branches tugged at his clothing, brambles tried to ensnare his flying feet yet still he ran, fully aware that Zero was right behind him. And full of rage.

  130

  As soon as she had heard the name ''Robbins'' shatter the still night air Odette had cut to the right and run through the thicket of trees, her fair hair trailing out behind her, the torchlight leading the way as she sprinted forward.

  The world suddenly consisted of light and shadow, trees appeared before her and she sped around them, leaping over the fallen trunk of a rotten oak as she tried to pinpoint the location of the voice.

  Coming to a sudden halt, she shone the beam of light into the darkness, just then she caught a flicker of movement over to her right and she was off again, her footfall light as she dashed through the woodland.

  'You murdered my daughter!' the voice rang out, each word filled with fury and heartache.

  Odette never broke her stride as she homed in on the voice, determined to get to Bradley Robbins before the furious Stone could make him pay for what he had done.

  'Kill you!' Stone screamed.

  Odette redoubled her effort as the phone in her pocket vibrated.

  131

  Lasser glanced into the small lay-by set back from the road, the phone droning in his right hand, the tension rising as Odette failed to answer the call.

  'Come on, Odette, pick up for God's sake,' he urged as Bannister slowed the Audi down to look into another darkened parking space.

  When the phone died, Lasser hit the screen and tried again.

  'They have to be parked up along here somewhere,' Bannister said, his voice edged with concern.

  The phone started to ring again, and they held their breath, desperate to hear Odette's voice, when Lasser saw the car parked back in the shadows on the left he slammed a hand on the dashboard.

  'There!' he shouted, and Bannister hit the brakes.

  The phone was still ringing as Lasser flung the door open and leapt out, running down the gravel path to the car.

  Peering in through the window he felt the savage twist of disappointment flare inside when he saw the interior was empty.

  When the phone died again, he spun aroun
d trying to peer into the darkness as Bannister ran towards him.

  'Anything?' the DCI asked, his eyes wide and full of fear.

  'Sod all,' Lasser said, jamming the phone into his pocket.

  'Where the fuck are they?' Bannister hissed.

  For once Lasser had no answer to give as the half-moon vanished behind a bank of cloud, plunging them both into a cloying, impenetrable darkness.

  Then sharp light lanced out as Bannister turned on the Maglite and shone it along the stone path.

  'Come on, we're going this way.'

  'But we might need the car,' Lasser complained as he scrubbed a frustrated hand across his short, dark hair.

  'Behave, Lasser, we know Odette was parked close by and we know she was heading here to Robbins car so they must be on foot.'

  Lasser thought for a couple of seconds and then he nodded in agreement and they set off running, both acutely aware that the clock was ticking, and that time could very well be running out.

  132

  Robbins felt the fingertips claw at the collar of his jacket and screamed, ducking low as he staggered out from beneath the trees and onto the tarmacked lane, but then his trembling wail of terror was abruptly curtailed as he felt the heavy hand make a grab at his shoulder.

  'No…'

  Then he screeched again as he fell forward, his hands stretched out to break the fall, the skin shredding as he hit the tarmac hard.

  Half a second later, powerful hands grabbed him and yanked him to his feet before spinning him around.

  Bradley Robbins felt the fear go off the scale as he looked at the man who towered over him, his eyes brimming with fury, his mouth twisted into a snarl.

  'My name is Stone and you're responsible for my daughter slashing her wrists!' he bellowed, spittle flying from his mouth and peppering Robbins's terrified face.

  'Please, please listen to me, I don't know what you're talking about, I…'

  '''It's quicker to go down the road rather than across the street''!' Stone hissed.

  Bradley Robbins closed his mouth with a snap as the words speared his brain, but he could find no response.

  Stone yanked him forward until their faces were only inches apart. 'You offered to help her and then you filled her mind with filth until she couldn't take it any longer.'

  Suddenly, light blasted out from the trees and Stone snapped a look over his shoulder as a woman emerged, her eyes widening when she saw the two men locked together in the middle of the road.

  'Help me, he's a madman!' Robbins screeched as he tried to pull away.

  Odette ignored him as she moved slowly forward, her hands held out in front of her, the beam of light aimed at the ground. 'I know what he did, David,' she paused, 'my name is Odette and I'm a police officer and believe me we know all about Bradley Robbins.'

  'He slaughtered my daughter, he made her feel as if her life was worthless, she was sixteen and he didn't give a shit,' Stone's voice came out as a gasp of despair, his face crumpling with desolation.

  'You're a police officer and he's assaulting me… arrest him!' Robbins ordered as he continued trying to pull away, but Stone's vice-like grip was relentless.

  'He used Benny Foster to attack the man with the acid and he ordered him to kill Mitchell Banks in the park,' Stone barked.

  'Liar!' Robbins wailed.

  Unexpectedly, headlights appeared in the distance and Odette felt the relief sweep through her as she realised that Bannister and Lasser must have found the cars and backtracked.

  Suddenly, David Stone pushed Robbins back as if he couldn't bear to touch the man any longer, Robbins licked his lips in dread as he stood rooted to the spot.

  'He thought he was manipulating me as well, he wanted me to kill his ex-wife, he wanted me to slaughter her and leave her head in the bin – that's what we're doing here – he came to gloat, but I turned the tables,' Stone snarled as he jabbed a finger at Robbins. 'He thinks he's an intelligent man but he's nothing but a pathetic WORM!'

  'NO!' Robbins cried as the truth of what Stone was saying scythed through the core of him.

  'Believe me, David, he'll pay for the things he's done,' Odette said as Stone's shoulders slumped.

  The glare from the headlight increased and Odette waited for the screech of tyres but then she frowned slightly as she heard the roar of the engine. Raising her right hand to shield her eyes against the glare she felt the phone vibrate in her pocket and dipped a hand in to retrieve it.

  When she saw Lasser's name flash on the screen she hit the green icon and held the phone to her ear. 'It's OK, Lasser, you can slow down, everything's under control.'

  'What are you talking about, Odette, we're on foot heading through the trees?'

  'But…'

  Suddenly, the sound of the engine increased and Odette felt the thrum of fear flood through her body as the main beams shone out with blinding intensity.

  'Odette, where are you?'

  She heard Lasser shout from the phone and then she was dashing forward as the vehicle hurtled towards the two men in the middle of the road.

  'MOVE!' she screamed.

  Robbins leapt back, more through terror than common sense and Stone lunged towards him, then the van came into view to Odette's right, she felt the draft, heard the squeal of tyres as the driver yanked the wheel to the right, half a second later she heard a dull thud as the transit hit something then hurtled by heading straight for the looming trees.

  Behind the wheel Beth Robbins snarled in fury, and then the van hit the grass verge, the wheels sliding at speed over the dew-covered surface, the brakes locked solid. She tried to scream but suddenly the huge oak filled the windscreen and then the van ploughed into the trunk with sickening force and she was flung forward, wearing no seat belt her face slammed into the steering wheel, shattering her front teeth and breaking her nose, blood splattered against the dashboard, running red as it dripped over the dials before dripping into the footwell.

  For a couple of seconds, Odette stood transfixed and then she dragged her eyes from the van and looked across the road, Stone lay in a heap on the grass verge, his right leg twisted back at an impossible angle, dashing across the lane she knelt by his side, his face screwed up in agony, the veins in his neck taut as he gritted his teeth.

  Whipping her head around, Odette looked left and right, the torch lancing out but there was no sign of Bradley Robbins.

  'Try and lay still, help will be here soon, you're going to be OK,' she said as she leaned down closer to the injured Stone.

  'Where's Robbins?' he groaned.

  'Don't worry, he can't get away and…'

  The screech of pain ripped through the silence, the driver's door of the van opened, and Beth Robbins staggered out, her face running with blood, her arms waving in distress as she collapsed to the ground.

  'Odette what the fuck is happening?'

  She heard Lasser's voice full of fear and concern as she lifted the phone to her ear.

  133

  Robbins staggered through the trees, his face stark with horror, his body lathered with sweat as his mind crumpled under the pressure.

  The familiar sense of superiority was gone as he realised he had been outsmarted by the man named Stone, by the man called Zero who he had thought was his puppet, his worm. All the time Stone had been hunting him… him, his master, down and he'd been completely unaware that he was slowly being reined in.

  A low-hanging branch stabbed at his cheek and he screamed in pain as the wood gouged the flesh open, drawing hot blood that ran down his face. Still he ploughed on, he needed to get to the car, he needed to get away from this place, yet even as he ran the voice inside told him that it was all over.

  There was no escape, the bitch copper would see to that, he snarled in venomous fury and then an image seared across his brain as he thought of the van hurtling towards him. The shock at seeing his hated ex-wife behind the wheel.

  She was the one who had led Stone to him and then she had tried to mow him d
own with the van, the thought stripped away his sanity leaving nothing but manic fear running rampant through his brain as he realised that Stone had lied to him about slaughtering the bitch.

  Bursting through the trees, he hit the narrow road and angled left, running on legs that were now leaden with failure, his breathing coming in short panicked bursts, his heart slamming in his pigeon chest.

  Tears streamed from his eyes mingling with the blood, staining the lower half of his face bright red as he ran for what remained of his pitiful life.

  134

  Odette looked across the road as Bannister emerged through the trees, the torchlight sweeping back and forward, taking in the crumpled van with steam hissing from the radiator before coming to rest on her as she knelt by Beth Robbins's side.

  'Where's Lasser?' she asked as he approached.

  'Robbins is on foot, it would make sense for him to try and get to his car, so Lasser backtracked to stop the bastard,' Bannister explained before wiping the sweat from his brow. 'Now, have you called for an ambulance?'

  'Yeah, they're on their way, ETA ten minutes.'

  Bannister grunted and looked down at Beth Robbins, her face smeared with blood, her eyes screwed shut against the pain.

  'What the hell happened, Odette?' the DCI demanded.

  'Stone and Robbins were in the middle of the road, when I saw the headlights, I thought it was you and Lasser but by the time I realised it wasn't it was too late. She tried to run Robbins down but hit Stone instead before losing control and slamming into the tree.'

  'Stone must have told her all about Robbins and…'

  'My bastard ex-husband tried to use Stone to kill me, he came all the way out here thinking he was going to find my head in the litter bin,' Beth Robbins managed to mumble through the mess of blood, broken teeth and ripped skin as her pain-filled eyes sprang open.

  Bannister felt the shock of her words and Odette sighed heavily.