by Ted Tayler
“I don’t suppose that this will come as a great shock. I told our friends in London that I wish to retire at the end of the year. My health is still reasonable for a man of seventy-two, but since Elizabeth passed, I find that this old house contains too many memories. As soon as the handover is finalised, I shall fly out to Ibiza. That is where Elizabeth and I honeymooned, as you are aware, so naturally, I will see out my days there. I have employed an ex-Royal Navy man, Gavin to sail my yacht out to a mooring in the marina at Santa Eulalia del Rio. I hope to revisit places Elizabeth and I fell in love with all those years ago and to sail around the islands. The affairs of the Olympus Project here at Larcombe Manor are left in your capable hands.”
Athena rose from her chair and gave the old gentleman a kiss on his cheek.
“Thank you, my dear; I shall miss the cut and thrust of the job we do, but the time has come for younger hands to hold the reins. Phoenix, I know that today was difficult. Losing team members is part of the job I’m afraid. Every time someone doesn’t make it back I wonder whether I should have sent them, or whether I could have done something to prevent their death. The responsibilities of command are often heavy; I hope you are ready to accept them?”
Phoenix nodded.
“Yes, I’m ready; we’re a team Athena and me; together we will make sure that Olympus maintains the high level of integrity you installed in it when you began this enterprise.”
“I’m sure you will, dear boy,” said the old gentleman, “we will tell the others at six this evening. Our first priority will be to debrief today’s direct action and then get the latest updates from Giles, but then it’s on to my piece of news. After they have left us, perhaps the two of you will join me for dinner in my apartments. As soon as our friends in London learn that you have accepted the challenge, then you both need to be at your first meeting. I want to go into the details of that when we dine tonight. It isn’t fair to just throw you in at the deep end.”
They discussed how the mission had gone and when they finished their drinks, Erebus returned upstairs.
Phoenix went back to his quarters and showered. He slept for an hour before being woken by his watch alarm at five-thirty. He changed into fresh clothes and when Rusty knocked on his door, he joined his friend to walk over to the main building.
Erebus had arranged for the layout of the meeting room to be altered. The traditional seating pattern, since Colin had arrived, was no more. Two new chairs had now been placed at the head of the table. Either side of the one Erebus had always occupied. The Three Amigos were to be seated on the window side of the room, while Rusty, Giles, and Henry Case sat opposite them. The remaining more minor attendees could sit where they chose further up the large table.
Before everyone had arrived, it was obvious what the announcement was going to be. Thanatos, Alastor, and Minos knew too that the layout suggested that their status in the organisation wasn’t being threatened. The old man had always favoured Athena as his successor. Phoenix was relatively new, but his reputation was without blemish. He got things done. As for the three men who sat opposite them, they were vital team members. The Three Amigos realised that together, their eight-strong team was a match for anyone.
Erebus came into the room at six o’clock on the dot. Athena and Phoenix took their places beside him.
“Today’s direct action in Bristol was a qualified success. The Royal party escaped unharmed. This terrorist cell was hell-bent on striking at the heart of our community. They planned hundreds of deaths of ordinary citizens celebrating the Diamond Jubilee of our monarch. They hoped to kill her and her husband too. The five terrorists wore suicide vests designed to wreak terrible havoc wherever they chose to detonate them. Phoenix and his crews prevented the worst-case scenario. Bristol suffered several deaths, many injuries, and significant damage to structures and properties. We lost a valued comrade. But this is what we do; we protect this country against its enemies.”
Erebus paused, and then he continued,
“The time has come for me to stand aside for younger blood. Athena will be my successor. Phoenix will be her right-hand man. The six men you see at the top of the table are now the senior management team. They will carry on the work Olympus has been undertaking. There will be a change of focus; we will become more proactive. We will increase our cyber-intelligence wing as this will undoubtedly be where our greatest threats will originate in the next five years. I leave you in capable hands; but mark my words, perilous times lie ahead, and you will need to be extra strong, extra vigilant. This nation doesn’t appreciate it yet, but Olympus is the only organisation capable of standing up to the forces of evil flooding onto our shores.”
With that final speech, Erebus stood aside and Athena became the head of Olympus at Larcombe Manor. The old man kept his promise. After the meeting broke up, he took them through to the lounge once more. He told them a few details of the upper echelons of the organisation.
“Remember when you first arrived here, Phoenix, literally wet behind the ears?”
The three smiled at the memory.
“I had placed an advert in The Times personal column in 2006 seeking help, looking for anyone eager to prevent Britain from going to hell in a handcart. I found a handful of like-minded people who had the intelligence, the will and the necessary access to extra funds to help bring my ideas to fruition. Our friends have chosen to stay as silent partners, indeed, although you will meet them soon when you go to your first meeting; you must take their true identities to your graves. Do you understand?”
Athena and Phoenix nodded in agreement. They glanced at one another from one side of the fireplace to the other. Just who were these people?
“When you attend the meetings, they will be addressed by their given name. Here at Larcombe, you know me as Erebus. In London, you will meet Zeus, the king of the Gods. By that grand title, you will gather he is the true head of the Olympus Project. Hera, Poseidon, Demeter, Apollo, these and more will attend. You will recognise several of these people; they are well-known faces with massive funds available. We could not function without them. You must never refer to them by their real name.”
“A few of your late nights in London over the past months, were because these people are still somewhat unsure of me,” said Phoenix. “Is that correct?”
“Somewhat,” Erebus agreed, “but the facts speak for themselves. A rough diamond can be cut to expose a jewel of unparalleled beauty.”
Athena smiled, “Good luck with that.”
“You’re not seeing me from my best side,” said Phoenix.
“I convinced them that the two of you were the ‘real deal’ as I believe they say in modern parlance.”
They dined and then talked late into the night. Athena and Phoenix longed to steal away for a night together, but they both recognised that the time was short. The old gentleman was soon leaving; they needed to learn as much as they could from him before he sailed off into the sunset.
Colin Bailey slept in late the next morning; when he finally got up, showered and dressed he popped next door to see what Rusty was doing. He wasn’t there.
“Anyone seen Rusty?” he asked at any of the rooms along the corridor where agents were in residence. Nobody had seen him today. Colin decided it was time to hit the gym and then go for a long swim, to take the stresses and strains of the past week out of his system. He had lunch with Athena in the canteen and they spent the rest of Friday afternoon in bed. Later that evening, when Athena was deciding whether to go back to her apartments or stay the night, they heard someone next door.
“Rusty, is that you, mate?” called Colin.
Athena thumped him and shot off to the bathroom to get properly dressed.
“Sorry, never gave it a thought,” said Colin.
Rusty tapped on the door and poked his head into the room.
“Okay to come inside, Phoenix?”
“No worries; where did you disappear to today?”
“I went over to Portishea
d to see Zara.”
Athena flushed the loo and came back into the room. She nonchalantly sat on the end of the bed.
“Sorry, didn’t realise you had company,” said Rusty. “I’d better go.”
“Don’t worry,” said Athena, “we both need to hear this...”
“Look, mate,” Colin broke in. “You don’t know everything I did before I appeared here at Larcombe. You may have heard a few whispers, worked things out for yourself, but Zara Wheeler and I have a history.”
“Whatever happened between you two is none of my business,” said Rusty.
“Not that, you idiot,” said Colin. “A lot of what we do here could be considered unlawful, no matter how righteous it might be; well, before I arrived at Larcombe, I was doing things that were unlawful. A copper called Hounsell was the only one who sussed that I had been responsible for the deaths of several evil people. He chased me high and low; the last couple of months he was after me, he had Zara Wheeler in tow. She was the brains of the outfit. I would have been banged up for life if I hadn’t gone in the water in Bath. I was very lucky to live to tell the tale. Back in September while we were up in Cropredy dealing with our rogue clean-up crew, Zara came here asking awkward questions concerning Garry Burns.”
Rusty looked perplexed.
“She had the photo we gave her of the guy who was probably killed by Boko Haram. Because I pitched up here just after he went MIA, they used his picture as a guide when they carried out my facial reconstruction. We had vaguely similar facial features even if he was physically bigger than me. The ICO people who raised their concerns over this place thought it was the bloke that collapsed in a heap in front of them. But you can bet your last Rolo that Zara wasn’t convinced. Why were you so keen to see her?”
Rusty took a deep breath.
“I grabbed her when she was going to open the boot on the Renault. She looked up at me and… you’ll think I’ve lost it, mate. Things like that don’t happen.”
“What are you saying? Love at first sight. Crikey, Rusty, I knew you weren’t gay, but I can’t remember you ever mentioning a woman.”
“When did I ever have the time, mate? I joined up at sixteen, to get away from my old man. Soldiering is all I’ve ever known. Killing people for a living isn’t the most attractive occupation for a wife to mention at a coffee morning, is it? Looking for someone to settle down with was always there in the back of my mind. I never took the plunge because I didn’t reckon it was fair to a woman. Especially in our game where we could end up the same as Travis Knight one day.”
“So, what’s changed?”
“You and Athena have shown me it’s possible. What you two have been great. When I looked into those fiery eyes glaring up at me and the spirit she showed trying to get away from me, I knew she was the one. Zara is my Athena. I’m even surer after I met her today.”
“What did you do?” asked Athena, who could keep silent no longer. “Wander into the police station and ask for her at the front desk? Do you have any idea how risky that could be? Not just for you, but for us here at Larcombe and beyond these gates.”
“Give me credit Athena,” said Rusty. “I drove over early doors and hung around near the headquarters for a while, trying to decide what to do next. I walked up the road to get a coffee and a newspaper. I thought if I carried something I’d look less of a stalker. Stood in the queue at the counter, I looked out of the shop window and there she is, parked by the pavement. Evidently, she drops in there to get a granola bar and a can of fizzy lemon most mornings. It was fate. She had to get off to work, but we met up at lunchtime and chatted for an hour in a pub in town.”
“What the hell is it she thinks that you were doing in Bristol?” asked Colin.
“She thought I was Special Forces or RPS and I didn’t tell her otherwise. I know that she’s pissed off with her job. She’s had a massive falling-out with this Hounsell bloke, and her bosses are gently shunting her into a siding. Her career was flying, but she rescued a child in the floods in Somerset in July. She ignored health and safety protocol, put herself and two other officers at risk, so now she says she’s stuffed. That’s why she was on crowd control yesterday.”
“We never heard that in the summer, I suppose we were tied up with other things,” said Athena.
“How are you planning to play this, Rusty?” asked Colin. “Will you keep seeing her in Portishead? Does she live there?”
“She lives in Bath,” said Rusty sheepishly, “she’s got her own house now.”
“It gets better and better, doesn’t it!” said Colin sarcastically.
“I want us to be together. Today just sealed it; she feels the same way mate, I’m positive.”
Colin lay back on his bed, with his hands behind his head. He thought for a minute or two.
“This might be the most stupid thing I’ve said since I got here Rusty, but keep working the angle she’s pissed off with her job; and that there’s no future in staying with the police service. We’ll give it six months; if you’re still together and you can persuade her to quit, then we’ll bring her to Larcombe and introduce her to the real Olympus Project.”
“Leave it to me Phoenix; I’ll get her here somehow. I don’t want to leave this place.”
EPILOGUE
New Year’s Eve, 2012
Erebus held a grand dinner for the senior Olympus members at Larcombe Manor. Christmas had been a boisterous time, with lots of parties; and food and drink were consumed in large quantities.
Tonight, it was a much more sombre affair. It was time for goodbyes. In the early afternoon of the first day of 2013, Erebus was leaving his family home for the last time. Gavin had left two weeks ago to sail the old gentleman’s yacht, Elizabeth to the Mediterranean.
William Horatio Hunt OBE was flying out to the island of Ibiza to begin his retirement.
Athena and Phoenix remained with their former leader after the rest of the guests had left.
“I have no regrets,” said William. “I have served my country for over half a century. I wish you both every success in the future.”
He embraced Athena, whose tears dampened the shoulder of his dinner jacket. He shook Phoenix warmly by the hand.
“Bringing you into the fold was the best day’s work I ever did, dear boy.”
He asked them to leave him. He wanted to have one last walk around the place before he retired to his apartments.
Erebus never told them he had arranged to slip away after midnight. He was spending the night in a hotel in London before being driven to the airport. William didn’t want a fuss.
Zara Wheeler had spent the festive season at home with her parents near Durham. A few days before New Year, she’d made a phone call and then returned to her house in Bath. Rusty had been waiting outside with a large bunch of red roses and a bottle of wine. So far they hadn’t left the house.
Rusty hadn’t spoiled the mood by mentioning ‘work’ yet; that could wait for a while longer. The past nights had given him every incentive to persuade his new love to throw her lot in with Olympus; to persuade her to join a winning team.
On the other side of the city, the Hounsell family had enjoyed a typical family Christmas. Mary Trueman had to be visited of course, in the care home. They had made a trip up to the Midlands to call in on Phil’s parents. Where Phil and Erica fell asleep on the sofa while Shaun and Tracey were spoiled rotten.
On New Year’s Eve, Erica curled up in her comfy chair with a glass of mulled wine, watching a film she’d seen several times. Phil was working. He sat in a car, waiting for it to kick-off outside one of the city bars. As 2013 was being celebrated; he ticked off the days to retirement.
* * *
You have just finished reading ‘Nothing Is Ever Forever’
This was the third book in the series featuring ‘The Phoenix’.
In the fourth book, ‘In The Lap of the Gods,’ the action continues.
What lies in store for Athena and Phoenix?
• The
y meet the higher echelons of the organisation; realising its full scope
• Can William Hunt spend his retirement quietly; or are there enemies on his trail?
• Should Zara become a member of the new Olympus cyber-intelligence unit?
• What of Phil Hounsell? Might he threaten Rusty and Zara’s happiness?
These are just a few of the unanswered questions, many dangers must be faced by the Olympus agents yet; there are many criminals to be brought to justice, several wrongs to be righted, and closure to be sought for victims… there are more tales to tell.
How many you will find in the fourth book in the series will be ‘In the Lap of the Gods’.
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The Final Straw
An only child, unloved and unwanted by his parents, Colin Bailey is a bitter, emotionally damaged young man. He’s hell-bent on exacting revenge on anyone who has stopped him becoming the person he believes he was destined to be. What sets Colin apart is his intellect and meticulous planning. Detective Phil Hounsell pursues his man relentlessly while trying to avoid the small town in which he works sliding further and further into the grip of two rival gangs.
A devastating event in Colin’s life provides the final straw that herald’s a bloodbath. Can Phil prevent it happening or will he too be a victim? This tale of revenge spans two decades, yet the police are chasing shadows; it builds in pace and tension to a thrilling climax against the backdrop of a quiet West Country town.