Max & Olivia Box Set

by Mark A Biggs

  ‘About time,’ she heard Simon say. ‘You are getting slow, old fella.’

  ‘And your manners have not improved,’ answered Andras.

  When Jayde turned towards the voices, to her relief, standing next to Simon was her husband. They looked at each other, but neither moved, both unsure what was unfolding and too weary to ask.

  ‘Come in,’ continued Simon before turning and entering a room that was running off the corridor. They followed. Inside, the light was dim but they could see that Simon had seated himself at a table and beckoned the others to join him.

  ‘What happened?’ asked Andras.

  ‘It would seem, my friend, as expected we were not the only ones wanting the Professor, but the harbour was more crowded than even we expected. You are a popular man, Professor. If I was a betting man, I would say that has changed and they now want you dead.’

  ‘Who are they?’ asked Jayde hesitantly.

  ‘This adventure may still yet hold a few surprises, so it’s best we only tell you what you need to know…for the time being. Let’s say that we are the best friends you both have right now.’

  ‘Ok,’ replied Jayde, not willing to give up so easily. ‘Why the ridiculous charade? Pretending you didn’t know Andras…’

  ‘It’s only circumstances that have rendered the charade ridiculous, only circumstances. And now I’m afraid, I will answer no more of your questions. As I said, this adventure may still hold a few surprises.’

  Adventure…who is he trying to kid? If we are to survive, I need to work this out, Jayde thought. Mulling over the events of the evening in her mind, the only clue she had was Andras, who seemed to be working with Simon. It must have been Simon who sabotaged the Kingtough. As it was Simon who chose Astakos as the place to come ashore, he must have intended to meet up with Andras. If Simon is working for Monya, he would have followed the original plan. I can rule out Monya unless the Brotherhood is at war with itself. Then it’s anyone’s game. She let out an audible sigh, which caught everybody’s attention. ‘I’m sorry, just a little tired.’ She was back where she started. Nowhere.

  ‘You’re right,’ said Andras. We should all get some rest because there are only a couple of roads out of town, and we would attract too much attention if we try and make a run for it tonight. We must be patient and wait for the morning.’

  ‘Good idea,’ said Simon. ‘Professor, Miss Jayde, we will all bed down in here for the night. The toilet is down the corridor and on the right. Keep all the curtains drawn and don’t switch on any more lights – this one will stay on. If you are thinking about making a run for it, remember we won’t be able to help you and you will end up dead, your choice. Now if you will excuse me, I need sleep.’ Jayde knew sleep was a lie. Simon and Andras would be keeping a very close eye on them.

  It was two thirty in the morning when the Professor was gently shaken awake. Opening his eyes in the dim light, he could see Andras kneeling next to him with a finger placed over his lips, telling him to keep quiet. Jayde was already awake and standing next to Simon, who was looking at a handheld monitor. Simon whispered, ‘We have some unwelcome company.’ He turned the monitor so that Jayde and the Professor could see. ‘Two teams; one approaching the front door and the other, the rear. Follow me – quietly.’ Simon led them out into the corridor and then into the room on the far side. The dim light leaking from their sleeping quarters was just enough to see by. ‘Make your way to the window and crouch down out of sight,’ instructed Simon. ‘When I close the door, the room will become pitch black. Wait for me to join you, say nothing, total silence.’ Stealthily, they navigated their way across the room. A few seconds later, Simon joined them and they knew that he was checking the monitor to see where the intruders were, because the faintest flair of light from its screen broke the darkness.

  ‘They are going to come at us through the front and back door at the same time; they are secure, so they will have to smash their way in. When they do, I will use the noise as our cover and open the window. Then, very quietly, we slip out. With any luck, they will be drawn, like moths, to the light of the other room, giving us time to escape. Once outside, hold hands and I will lead us away in the dark.’

  If it had not been for Simon pushing up the window, Jayde may not have even recognised the sound of shattering glass as the assailants broke in. Warily, they stepped out into the night, Jayde holding onto her husband with one hand and Simon with the other. Carefully, they were led into the shrubbery that surrounded the house and behind a low wall. ‘Now we hide,’ whispered Simon calmly, ‘because they will have night vision goggles. If we run, we will be seen. It’s a matter of heads down and wait.’

  Raising her eyes, even though she had been told not to, Jayde looked back towards the wall. In the total darkness she couldn’t see anything. Straining her ears, she heard the creatures of the night, and then the unmistakable noise of footsteps walking on the gravel driveway. Her heart was already racing, but now it was pounding so loudly that she feared the whole world could hear it. Like a frightened child, she closed her eyes tightly and buried her head in her arms, hoping and praying that everyone would go away, leave her alone. It was twenty minutes later before Simon finally spoke. ‘OK, let’s go.’

  ‘Where to?’ asked the Professor.

  ‘The Church. Andras will lead you. Andras, in one hour, that’s 4.00am, be at the North-West corner and watch for a Police car. So you know it’s us, I will flash the headlights twice.’

  ‘Stealing a Police car… Is that wise?’ inquired Andras.

  ‘Can you think of a better way to drive past our pursuers? With all the excitement that has happened at the harbour, a Police car leaving town in the early hours of the morning won’t look suspicious.’

  ‘I’ll come with you,’ volunteered Jayde, hardly believing what she had just said.

  ‘My love, you should leave it to the professionals,’ said the Professor worriedly.

  ‘Like you!’ she replied pointedly.

  ‘Stop it, both of you. I’m going alone.’

  ‘Won’t it be safer if you had a look out?’ asked Jayde.

  ‘Ordinarily, Simon, I would agree with you,’ counselled Andras. ‘But with the explosion and shootings, the police station may not be deserted. A man and woman together will attract less interest than you alone. Your decision, of course.’

  Like many things, thought Simon, the judgement of a right or wrong decision would depend upon the outcome. If he ran into trouble with the police or their pursuers, Jayde would be a burden, limiting his options. However, Jayde’s presence could prevent trouble from brewing. They were already compromised and a further confrontation could prove catastrophic. What is the right decision? ‘Ok, Jayde, you’re with me. One hour.’

  It was as Andras had predicted. Agriniou Street, which would ordinarily have been deserted at this time of night, was playing host to an assortment of police vehicles. The opposite side of the road from the police station was heavily vegetated, providing excellent cover from where to watch the comings and goings. From their hideout, they waited, watching two plain-clothed officers leaving the station, taking one of the parked police cars. In the parking compound, next to the station, they spotted two Citroen Police vehicles. Simon surmised that these likely belonged to the local station and were not additional vehicles brought in following the incident at the harbour. With luck, if he stole one of these, it wouldn’t be missed until it was needed as part of their morning duties. Cars and people had been coming and going from the station all night. Another vehicle driving off, with two more unfamiliar people in civilian clothes, would probably go unnoticed.

  ‘That one over there,’ he pointed to Jayde.

  ‘It’s in the middle of the parking lot!’

  ‘It’s ok. We will keep out of sight and cross the road a little further up, approaching the car park from the side furthest away from the building. It was always my intention to steal a car, so I can promise you, Jayde, I’m well prepared. It’s a si
mple matter of executing the theft with confidence, that’s the trick. Once we start the approach, don’t look about. Walk directly to the passenger’s side, as if you’re meant to be there. Are we clear?’ Before Jayde could answer, he was already moving.

  They crossed the deserted road and nobody saw them enter the police station car park. Approaching the car, from his pocket, Simon removed an encrypted keyless entry device. Pushing it, the hazards light gave a single flash, interior light came on and the doors unlocked. Jayde, as instructed, seamlessly opened her door and got in. Before Simon did the same, he removed from his other pocket a black box, a coding device the size of a small lighter. Once inside, he plugged the box into the OBS port. Pressing the keyless entry once more, the car came to life. Selecting first gear, he drove out, turning away from the station, switching on the headlights on when they were 50 meters up the road. Checking the mirrors, nobody was on the footpath in front of the station. They had left unseen.

  Feeling the tension from the theft draining from her, Jayde said, ‘We had to use a coat hanger in my day.’ Simon glanced at her inquisitively. ‘To steal a car,’ she continued, ‘you had to push it in between the window rubbers and then try and hook the lock up.’

  ‘And you did this?’

  ‘No, I locked my keys in the car a couple of times and watched my dad do it.’

  Simon could have stolen a car anytime he wished, Jayde thought. Andras, or whatever was his real name, and the van had all been part of his plan all along.

  Looking at the clock on the dashboard before he spoke, Simon said, ‘We have 10 minutes. I’ll park at the school opposite the church until 4.00am, then we make the pick-up. It’s then a fast drive to Fyteies where Andras has another vehicle waiting.’ He paused. ‘Hang on, we have lights coming up behind! It may be nothing, but I will make a couple of turns, just in case.’

  Jayde swivelled her head to look behind but could see nothing but two headlights. The relief she’d felt since stealing the car was vanishing, replaced by knotting in her stomach.

  Having studied Astakos before they arrived, Simon knew that he had to take care; some roads near where they were becoming dead ends, he didn’t want to be trapped. His knowledge was inadequate to identify the cul-de-sacs, so he would have to stay on the main roads to execute his evasive turns. The car behind could be innocently following, it would normally take a few moves to prove one way or the other, but delay would allow a pursuer to bring more resources into play. No, he decided. One turn and if they followed, he’d make a break for it.

  He turned right, heading towards the harbour, gently accelerating, intent on putting a little distance between them and the car behind. Headlights filled his mirrors again; it had followed. ‘Hold on.’ Simon pressed the accelerator to the floor and the car roared to life as they raced on towards the harbour road. He’d hoped the lights from behind would grow distant, but they didn’t.

  Approaching the harbour road intersection, Simon flung the car left in the knowledge that the coast road leading out of Astakos was only a short distance away. The car behind stayed with them. Nearing the outskirts of town, where they would make a right turn on to the coast road, headlights suddenly appeared in front. The coast road, their first escape route, was blocked. Instead, Simon was forced to turn left onto the main road, running around the outskirts of town. Although this would take them past the Fyteies intersection, he knew that this would already be sealed off. They were closing in for the kill, the hound chasing the fox into the waiting trap. He could stop and fight, but Jayde would certainly be killed. The only alternative was to chance a dirt road leading out of town and up into the mountains.

  My number one priority, thought Simon, is to lure the pursuers away from the Professor. The car tyres squealed loudly as they swept at speed round a left-hand bend in the road. Entering a straight, he accelerated towards the Fyteies turnoff. It was too early to be certain, but then seconds later, the intersection in front was lit up. As he suspected, it too was blockaded. Once more, he was being forced to go where they wanted, this time straight on. After the intersection, the road veered left again. Remembering the map of the town, which he had studied, he knew that there were only a couple more options before hitting a section of road where, if blocked, they would be trapped. It was madness to take a dirt road up into the mountains, but he had no other choice.

  Waiting till the last second to catch their pursuers off guard, he braked heavily, trying to wash off speed before making the right-hand turn onto the gravel. The wheels squealed across the bitumen before digging into the dirt, sending rocks smashing up into the wheel wells, as the car understeered towards a drain. Taking his foot off the brake, he turned the steering wheel in the direction he wanted to go and pushed the accelerator to the floor. The car clawed itself away from the drain by spitting out chunks of mud and rocks from its front wheels. Finding its traction, the car raced towards the mountains. Fighting the steering wheel as it pulled left and right in his hands, because of the acceleration on the rough road, Simon glanced into the mirror. The headlights that had been following were now pointing off in another direction. He breathed a sigh of relief. They must have spun. Before he had a chance to share his joy with Jayde, another set of lights joined the chase. Their lead was short-lived.

  Jayde was petrified by their speed, as the car smashed, bumped and leapt from one pothole to another. The mountain track with its sheer drop to the abyss below, terrified her. An abyss only visible when the headlights occasionally brought forward a truth, a truth hidden by the night. She wanted to cry, scream, yell out, but she was trapped.

  The bumpy surface smoothed out and Jayde was no longer being thrown violently from side to side. The reprieve was short-lived and her terror worsened when Simon accelerated to take advantage of the better surface. She could see they were only meters away from the cliff edge and certain death.

  ‘Can you shoot?’ Simon asked coolly.

  ‘What?’ she replied tearfully.

  ‘Here, take the gun. Climb into the back seat and point it at the car behind – through the rear window and pull the trigger. Hold it with both hands and close your eyes – glass will go everywhere.’

  ‘I can’t.’ The road fell away. For a second, she had the sense of falling as the car dropped before finding the earth again with a jolt.

  ‘Yes, you can, Miss Jayde. We have to keep them at bay until we are on better terrain. It’s too exposed for me to take them on here. If you can do this, we’ll be fine. Hold the gun tight, like you’re gripping a lifeline. Point and shoot. One shot, that’s all. Point and shoot.’

  Jayde unfastened her seat belt and immediately she found it difficult to hold herself in one place. Simon was still gripping the pistol. She took it and began climbing into the back, crashing into Simon’s shoulders as she made her way between the seats. The lights from the car behind were only meters away. She squinted, blinded by the penetrating beams as she looked out of the rear window.

  ‘Close your eyes when you pull the trigger,’ she heard Simon repeating over the sound of the car ripping across the gravel surface. Lifting the gun, pointing and closing her eyes, she pulled the trigger. The sound was deafening. First the bang, then the sound of shattering glass. When she opened her eyes again, to her delight, the pursuing car was dropping back. For a moment, the fear was forgotten and she smiled before screaming aloud. ‘Got you, you bastards.’ Then an eerie quiet descended. Even the sound of the wheels racing across the gravel surface stopped. The car pitched forward. Turning, she saw the headlights shining out into the nothingness. The car rolled nose first and she was flung violently between the two front seats before smashing into the windscreen. In the next second, she landed on the roof lining, which is where she stayed, sobbing in the darkness, as the car fell into the void below. Closing her eyes, she waited to die.

  * * *

  ‘It’s done,’ said the voice at the other end of Monya’s phone.

  ‘All of them. What about the Professor’s gua
rds?’

  ‘Yes, three at the harbour. The one they called Simon was killed along with the Professor and his wife when the car went over the cliff.’

  ‘Have you seen the Professor’s body?’

  ‘No, the car is in a deep ravine?’

  ‘I don’t care,’ snapped Monya angrily. ‘Get me a DNA sample. I want to be sure.’

  ‘I will take care of it.’

  ‘Are you still watching the roads and harbour?’

  ‘No, boss.’

  Rage erupted inside of Monya. How could they be so stupid. He bit his lip before speaking and said coldly, ‘Get me those samples.’

  CHAPTER NINE

  Deadly Slumber

  The first six months at sea for Max and Olivia were novel. Like excited children, they looked forward to visiting the various cities where the ship docked, returning to a turned-down bed, neatly folded washing, a glass of wine and a beautiful meal. Mostly, they ate in their suite, occasionally in the private dining room, as a ‘date night’, but rarely in one of the public areas. Then things began to change, slowly at first. When the Queen docked in New York for the third time, neither Max nor Olivia felt the need to leave the ship. With no work to do, cooking, cleaning, not even bed making, they began to become sedentary and sometimes they didn’t leave the room for a couple of days at a time. What were afternoon naps became morning and afternoon sleeps. It was after one of these nano-naps that had stretched into an hour that Olivia woke in fright.