by Jay Gill
A knock at the door prevented any further discussion. A head peered round the door.
“It’s time. We’re ready to go. It’s now or never.”
Osborne looked at me almost sympathetically. “Hardy, this is bad business all around. Put on a vest, check your weapon, and let’s get this done.”
We drove the mile or so to Vlad’s beachfront house. My primary goal now was to ensure Anya was kept out of harm’s way. And if Vlad got taken down in the process, that would be a bonus.
Chapter Sixty
There was an eerie sense of calm as we waited for word. Everyone was in position outside Vlad’s house.
“Remember, quickly and quietly. We want surprise and zero casualties,” said Osborne. He looked at me and continued. “All units, quickly and quietly. Go, go, go.” A team of two moved in and worked on opening the huge ornate gates.
Everyone moved quickly once the gates were open. Suddenly it felt like there was movement everywhere. At the same time as we approached from the driveway, a boat landed on the beach to the rear of the house. Halfway up the long driveway we split into three groups. One team continued straight on. One team split off and went right. I was part of a team that went left.
We met little resistance. It seemed none of Vlad’s men fancied their chances against such a show of force. Weapon drawn, I ascended a staircase on the outside of the building. It led up to a decked area at the rear of the building. As I got higher, I saw Foster and Anya. They were at a table talking. At first, they were oblivious to our presence. I saw no sign of Vlad.
From inside the house and to my right, Osborne and two officers approached through open patio doors. As they moved onto the decked area, I completed the stairs and moved onto the decked patio to join Osborne. Foster had no way out.
Seeing us, Foster jumped to his feet and in one fluid movement was behind Anya. He smashed the stem of a glass and held it to her throat. I looked into Anya’s wide eyes and tried to reassure her through my own. Foster knew he had nowhere to go and was buying time to think. He dragged Anya to her feet and together they moved to the edge of balcony. He looked over the side and down to the garden and beach below. Moored below was Vlad’s boat, Wave Goodbye. I followed his line of sight and could see what Foster was thinking. I also realised if he got to that boat with Anya, she was dead for sure.
“You’re a smart man, Foster,” I said. “You can see there is no way out on this occasion. The house is surrounded. There are men on the boat down there.” I nodded towards Wave Goodbye. Foster looked back down at the boat. “Plus, the Coast Guard are waiting further out to sea.”
Despite his hopeless situation, Foster remained calm. It was as if he believed he was in control.
My weapon raised, I took several steps closer. “Where’s Vlad?” I asked. “Where is he now?”
Whatever went through Foster’s mind at that moment I’ll never know. Maybe he thought Vlad had set him up. Maybe he thought Vlad was an undercover informant. Maybe he just thought Vlad had saved his own skin. Whatever it was, it ended the standoff. From behind her, Foster whispered into Anya’s ear. Her eyes widened and she looked left, towards Foster, as he spoke to her.
Foster then turned Anya to face him. I stepped forward and raised my weapon.
“Let her go, now!’ I shouted. But Foster ignored me. Instead, he raised the hand holding the broken glass above his head and with his other hand he pulled Anya close. Then, to everyone’s surprise, he kissed her.
“Thank you. I’ve wanted to do that all day,” he said to Anya. “I now have something to cherish during the long years ahead.” Using her as a shield, Foster calmly got down on the floor behind her, first to his knees and then to his stomach. He spread his arms and legs on the hot wooden decking, then smiled and watched Anya as officers ran over and cuffed him.
Osborne had his man. I, on the other hand, did not. Vlad was gone. At that moment, though, my only care was that Anya was safe. I holstered my weapon, ran to her, then walked her to safety.
Chapter Sixty-One
There had been no sightings of Vlad since just before we entered the house. Foster wasn’t talking. Anya told us Vlad had received a call and excused himself sometime before we arrived. Osborne assumed Vlad had been tipped off. Osborne’s priority had always been to get Foster, so he was happy with the result; in fact, he was almost giddy. He was shaking hands with everyone and patting them on the back. “Great job” and “Job well done,” he kept saying.
I, on the other hand, wondered what had gone wrong. This wasn’t how I had expected the day to go. However, it was a good day in the sense that Anya was safe. She was now under the protection of the Drug Squad; I had talked to her briefly before she left and introduced myself and reassured her Monica was fine. I told her Monica and I would check in on her in a few days, once I was back in London.
By late evening, I was alone in Vlad’s house except for a couple of local police officers posted out front to keep the house secure. For some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to leave. I had come here to face Vlad, to stop him and to bring him in for what he’d done. Where along the way had everything gotten so mixed up?
I walked through the house, and as I went through the kitchen I picked up a packet of cigarettes from the worktop. I hadn’t smoked in almost ten years and I knew I’d regret the decision tomorrow, but right now I didn’t care.
I walked down to the beach and as I walked, I smoked. It was getting late and the sun had pretty much gone down. It had been a hot day, and although it was a clear evening there was a chill in the air, so I buttoned up my jacket and lifted my collar. I could hear birds along the shoreline arguing and preparing to roost; the tweeting, piping and cawing was an easy distraction. I tried to block out the noise so I could think, but my mind was refusing to focus. I considered phoning Alice and Faith and Monica but decided to do it later. I was missing them, but I knew I was feeling low and didn’t want to pass on that vibe.
I needed time to clear my head and put together a strategy for what to do next. There was so much going on. The day shouldn’t have ended this way; Vlad should have been in custody. Was he tipped off, or did he really just get lucky? Who would have tipped him off? Had it been one of our own? Was he gone for good, or would he come for Anya? If it was one of our own, what did this person know of Anya’s involvement?
I ground out the cigarette and lit another. I stood staring at Vlad’s boat then looked back at the house. So much money, I thought. It always seemed to me that the wealth these people accumulated must be directly proportional to the misery they caused others.
It was getting dark and I was getting cold. I realised I was hungry and remembered I hadn’t yet made arrangements for sleeping. I’d need to find a hotel. I turned and began the walk back up the narrow path to the house.
Partway along the path I stopped and took out my phone to send Mum and Monica a text message, letting them know I was safe and I’d see them tomorrow. I asked that they let Alice and Faith know I loved them and missed them. I finished my message and pressed send. As I looked up, I felt the full force of a fist in my face. I went down hard. Blood poured from my broken nose and my eyes filled with tears. A kick to the stomach and a stamp to the ribs quickly followed. Through the low light and tears, I recognised the figure of Vlad. The Wolf had left his den and was on the hunt.
“Hardy, the only reason you are not dead is because I need information. Once I have it, I will kill you. If you lie to me, I will also kill your family,” he said.
I struggled to my feet and leaned against the fence lining the path. “You left?” I said. “Why would you come back?”
“I didn’t leave. But you knew that, didn’t you? That’s why you’re here. When I built this house, I had some private rooms fitted. Those rooms are not on any plans. I don’t know why, but from time to time I have to be alone with someone special, and during those moments I cannot be interrupted. I understand you knew Delina. Just like the others, she cried and begged when I took
her to my private room and showed her the blade – they all cry and beg. But, in that moment, right before I slip the blade between their ribs, I can’t hear them. I’m lost in a moment of pure ecstasy. I only see their mouths opening and shutting, like little fishes.” Vlad was in my face now, opening and shutting his mouth like a fish.
“The need comes and goes, Mr Policeman Hardy. It comes and goes. They come and go. Life comes and goes.”
“What do you want?”
“Good question. You know what? Before we get down to that, let’s go somewhere more comfortable. Let’s go back to the house, where you and I can be all alone. We’ll be cosy. Maybe I can have a drink. You can have a bleed. What do you say? Does that sound like fun?”
Vlad pressed a gun to my head and motioned me forward. I thought about the gun under my buttoned jacket. I had an advantage in that British police don’t routinely carry a firearm, so why would he look? I prayed he wouldn’t.
Chapter Sixty-Two
Vlad pushed, shoved and prodded me up to the house. He insisted on telling me about his day and how, having been holed up in a single room for almost seven hours, there were certain oversights that he could now see would need to be rectified in future room designs.
We reached the top of the garden, turned right and climbed the same staircase I’d climbed earlier that day – under very different circumstances.
“I watched everything on CCTV, of course,” said Vlad. “I’ve got cameras all over the house and garden.” I pictured Vlad behind me with a Cheshire cat grin on his face.
We climbed the last few steps and reached the terrace, where I stopped and wiped my bloody nose with my sleeve. I took the chance to look down for the two officers on duty below.
“They can’t help you, Hardy. They’re off duty, permanently,” said Vlad. A shadow below caught my eye and caused Vlad to turn his head and look. That was the chance I needed. I twisted around and brought my fist down on his face at the same time I raised my leg. I launched him down the staircase with my foot. Vlad fell backwards, and as he toppled his head and body collided with the handrail. In an effort to break his fall he dropped his gun and made a grab for the railings. He rolled and smashed his way down the steps.
I took a few steps back and, pulling open my jacket, took out my Glock for the second time that day. I hesitated for a moment to take stock. Should I run? Should I fire? Should I arrest? I stepped forward and pointed my weapon. Vlad was already back on his feet at the top of the stairs. I stepped back and allowed him onto the terrace.
“You’re under arrest,” I said. “Get face down on the floor.”
“Really? I don’t think so, Hardy. I’ve tried prison. I didn’t like it. It’s the poor food, mainly; it doesn’t agree with me.” Vlad took a step forward.
“Get face down,” I demanded. Again, Vlad moved forward, his hands out and to his sides. He was unarmed. He just kept walking towards me.
“If you were going to shoot me you would have done it already. How about instead we make a deal? We’ll call it even, and I’ll just jump into my boat down there and we can pretend like none of this ever happened.”
Out of the corner of my eye I again caught sight of a moving shadow. Was it real or a symptom of the blow to the head? Was my mind playing tricks on me?
In the darkness, a voice came from the shadows to my left.
“Never hesitate.”
I stepped back and glanced from side to side, trying to locate the voice.
“Never, ever hesitate,” came the voice again, but this time from behind me. In the darkness, I could see nothing. I kept the gun trained on Vlad.
Vlad recognised the voice and saw him first. “Orel, my friend,” he said. “I’m happy to see you. What are doing here? Now, Hardy, you have a very serious problem.”
“I came here to find you, Vlad,” said Orel, who was passing through a patch of light.
“I have this under control, though perhaps while you’re here you could cover poor Detective Hardy while I take his gun,” said Vlad. He stepped forward to grab the Glock, and I stepped back to prevent that happening.
Out of the darkness Orel came up close behind me. He pressed his gun against my head. “Put the gun on the table,” he whispered.
Slowly I placed the gun on the table and Orel picked it up. Vlad rushed up and for a second time punched me in the face. As I fell, he punched me once more, this time to the side of the head, causing everything to go dark.
When I came to, I was in a chair in the kitchen. My hands were fastened to the back of the chair with zip ties. I looked around. My right eye was swollen shut, forcing me to look as best I could through my one good eye. The house was quiet, strangely peaceful. The double doors to the terrace were closed. My mouth tasted of blood. My nose and ears throbbed. I could see Orel leaning against the breakfast bar, watching me. Vlad was close by, pouring himself a whisky. He was behaving oddly; he seemed almost manic. I wondered if he’d taken something and was high.
“Why did you hesitate?” said Orel, snapping his fingers to get my attention. He was talking to me. I looked at him blankly. “When Vlad fell down the stairs earlier. You hesitated. You stopped to think instead of just shooting him. Why?”
“I didn’t hesitate. I need to arrest him, not kill him,” I said.
Orel stood up from the breakfast bar and walked towards me, waving my gun from side to side as he spoke. “You hesitated. You know as well as I do that Vlad here is a rapist, a coward who tortures and murders innocent women. Unlike you and me, Vlad here has given up trying to understand and nurture his humanity. He is not interested in what it is that makes him human. He has no concept of order. He does not see the beauty of life but instead is controlled by his own selfish desires. He is an untrustworthy dog. Yet you hesitated to put him down when you had the chance, and now look at you. So I ask again, why did you hesitate?”
Vlad downed his whisky and poured another. “If it’s all the same to you, Orel,” he said, “and because I am in the room, can we perhaps not have this conversation right now?” He pulled a knife from a block and flashed it at me. “How about instead we find out from your new friend who gave up my location today and who gave up the fact I was meeting Mr Foster. Then let’s get the hell out of here.”
I pushed back in my seat, shifting my gaze from Orel to Vlad.
“Vlad, you enjoy your drink. I wish to have a conversation,” said Orel. He began admiring my gun and then continued. “I have decided to retire after tonight. I’m going to vanish. So I think it’s important, then, that my last kill should make a difference. I’d like it to mean something and to be significant.”
Orel raised the Glock and pointed it at me, first at my chest then at my head. He looked me in the eye and then turned and pointed the gun at Vlad. Vlad never saw it coming, and I watched in amazement as Orel put a bullet in his head. Vlad sank to his knees, disappearing out of sight behind the bar. Orel walked around it and fired twice more, then looked over at me.
“Today is your lucky day, Hardy.” Orel removed the magazine from the gun and racked it empty. Checked the chamber. Then placed it on the breakfast bar in front of me. “Never hesitate again.” Orel cut the ties and released my hands. “Papa told you he would take care of the situation, and he has. This ends tonight. You’re free to go.” Orel handed me a handkerchief for my nose. “Leave through the front. There are things I need to do here.”
I picked up my Glock and walked slowly out of the house.
From the roadside, I watched as flames and smoke began to engulf the building. I felt a sense of closure as I watched them rise up against the night sky. I sat and rested on a low wall across the street from the beach house. I winced as I touched my nose and felt my eye. I ached all over and felt exhausted. I took out my phone and called Monica and the girls. I needed to hear the familiar voices of those I loved.
As soon as I heard the excited squeals of my little girls, a wave of comfort and reassurance hit me, and I was unable to prevent tears fro
m rolling down my face.
Chapter Sixty-Three
Monica and I visited Anya several times over the next few weeks. Monica went with her to counselling; it was good for both of them. She also helped Anya find a shared flat with some college students. I was relieved to see that Anya was quickly putting the recent events behind her and getting her life back into some sort of order. It was reassuring to see her coping so well. As the weeks passed, I visited less frequently, and although I didn’t lose touch exactly, when I did call by Anya was usually either out or busy. It all seemed natural enough, and I was pleased she was moving on.
It was around four months after the events at the beach house that I was called by Detective Kerry Barnes.
“Remember me?” she said. “I was with you and Osborne at Vlad’s beach house.”
“Of course I remember you, Detective Barnes. How are things in Drug Squad?”
“Busy, busy. You know how it is. We congratulate ourselves on making one huge seizure when we know another five got through,” said Barnes. “How’s your nose? I hear it got busted pretty badly.”
“Good as new. You’d never know it happened.”
“Great news; that’s great news,” she said.
“Anyway, you didn’t call me to talk about my devilishly good looks. How can I help?” I was a little apprehensive asking, as the investigation into the shooting of Vlad was finally being wrapped up.
“You’re right. I do have something on my mind. The thing is, I might be able to help you. Meet me out front as quickly as you can. I’m across the street in a silver BMW.”
I grabbed my coat and headed out. When I had seen her last, Barnes had been kitted out in Kevlar, ready for action. Today her hair was down and she was wearing a hint of makeup and looking relaxed in casual clothes; she looked very different.
