by Anne Lown
“I need your help. We’ve got to go back into the woods tonight, and someone’s got to get George to come out to find something he should’ve had a week ago.”
“What? I’m busy, I told you. Get someone else to do it.”
“You don’t understand. There is no one else. If you speak to George, he’s more likely to listen. Just this once, do it for me.”
He mulled over her words. He was about to speak when the kitchen door opened, and a partially dressed woman stood in the doorway. His attention moved straight to the woman, a smile gracing his lips. He nodded in Jenny’s direction. “Nadine, you know Jenny. From work, right?”
“Yes, a few years now.” Nadine leant against the doorframe. Smugness radiated from her, a gleeful glint in her eyes. She stood in front of them in one of Jason’s shirts. It seemed familiar, like the one Jenny had worn when she’d stayed over all those months ago. Jenny turned her face away; she couldn’t bear to look.
She glanced at Jason. “Forget it, I can see you’ve not got time.” She pivoted on the spot and touched a hand on Dan’s arm. “We’d better go.” The three of them left the house, Shane lagging along behind. The poor man probably didn’t have a clue about what had just happened.
Once they’d gained enough distance from the house, Dan grabbed her hand and forced her to stop striding back towards the pub. “Are you going to tell me who that was?”
Jenny’s head was lowered. She had her eyes closed at that moment, trying to fight the jealousy that was determined to engulf her.
Why do I care? It’s not like I want him.
When she opened them again, Dan stared at her in the illumination from a streetlight. “She’s Les’ girlfriend. I think she’s been following me.”
“How do you know that?”
“Someone took my picture outside a weed drop-off. I’ve had silent calls either side of Nick being at my house, and another picture of him leaving. She seems to pop up unexpected at work and she was in the pub the whole time I was talking to George. Now she’s at Jason’s house.”
“I thought you said it was Les bothering you.”
She shrugged. “I didn’t realise she was involved as well.”
Dan was quiet for a minute. He shoved his hands into his trouser pockets, rocking his feet back and forth on the spot. She waited, giving him time to think things through. The first words he said were not the enlightened moment she was hoping for.
“Let’s go back to your place. We can talk there in safety.”
It didn’t take them long to get home. Jenny insisted they search the house before they did anything else. If Les had broken in once, he could easily do it again. When no signs of intrusion were found, they huddled in the living room. It was time to thrash out what to do next.
Dan took charge of the conversation. “What’s the most important thing we need to get from this situation?”
She stared at him, not understanding the point he was making. “I don’t know, I… I think…” Her words trailed off. She glanced over her shoulder.
Even knowing they were alone in the house was not enough to relieve the stress she’d been feeling from finding out she was being watched. She noticed Shane was bouncing his foot, his knee jumping. The man seemed ready for his next spliff. Maybe she should have some, too.
“To get you away from Les,” Dan said, “so you don’t have to deliver the packages.”
Jenny nodded. “Yes, yes. But what about the knife? Don’t we need to give it to the police?” Her hands were in her lap. She was wringing them but hadn’t noticed until Dan grabbed them in one of his and forced her to stop.
“That, too, but if we can work it so Les gets caught, he’ll not be your problem anymore.”
She pulled her hands free and stood. The urge to start punching the air had returned. Could she do that in front of these two men? She balled her hands into fists and pressed her fingers together hard, digging her nails into her palms. The effect wasn’t the same as hitting herself in the sides of her head, but at least she could hide what she was doing.
Maybe tapping my leg would work better.
She sat again, hiding her right hand out of sight and preceded to knock her knuckles against the same spot on her thigh. The pain quickly escalated; she was feeling something other than the tension in her body.
Dan carried on talking. “What if we lure Les back into the woods with the chance of him getting his hands on the knife and have George ready to pounce when Les gets to the bundle in the trees?”
“How are you going to do that?” The both looked at Shane. Maybe his mind was with them after all. It was the same question Jenny had been about to ask.
Dan shrugged. He sat thinking, his fingers rubbing along his chin. “Have you still got that phone he gave you?”
“The burner? I put it in the kitchen.” She left the room and went to get it. Now on her own, a tear escaped. She wiped her face with the tea towel, dabbing at it to make sure she didn’t smudge her makeup. Not very hygienic, but returning to panda eyes was not on her agenda no matter the circumstances. She picked up the phone and switched it on. She had a missed text message.
Jenny pressed the button and opened the SMS app. The phone was older than her own, not surprising since it would get destroyed after it was no longer of use. She read the words in the text, and they did nothing to relieve her stress. She returned to the other two and held out the phone in her trembling hand for Dan.
“Les wants to meet me in the woods.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
“How the hell did that just happen?” Dan held the phone away from him. He’d read the message a few times, but he appeared just as confused.
“He can’t hear us, can he?” She was back to wringing her hands.
“I damn well hope not. It says to meet in half an hour.” He checked his watch.
“What are we going to do? We’ve not had a chance to speak to George. I think I’ve got his number on my mobile.” Jenny fumbled through her jacket pocket. She’d thrown the garment on the sofa next to her. At least that was fortuitous, and she didn’t have to get up again to find it. The display lit up at her touch. There was a missed call. It was from Jason. She pressed redial and waited for him to answer. “I’m sorry, I’d left it on silent.”
“What’s going on? Nadine made an excuse and walked out a few minutes after you did.” Impatience etched Jason’s voice.
Jenny would’ve snorted at his missed opportunity for a one-night stand, but she didn’t feel in the joking mood. “Why was she with you at your place? She’s still with that Les.”
“Is she?” Now she could hear doubt in his voice. Jason carried on talking. “I saw you in the pub sat with George. I was about to come over, but Nadine caught my arm and suggested going back to my place. It seemed rude to turn her down.”
Jenny rolled her eyes. It appeared everyone could see how gagging for it he was. She was surprised he didn’t think to go dogging like Dave had been accused of doing by his wife last spring. “She obviously didn’t want you talking to me, and it worked. Are you coming over? I still need you.”
He said he’d be right there. She ended the call. They certainly could do with more help. She had no idea what Les had in store for her.
She glanced at the other two. “It appears the game’s afoot.”
Shane nodded. “Sherlock Holmes, I like that programme. The one with Cumberbatch, not the old ones from decades ago.”
What on earth is he on about?
Dan ignored his friend. “We’ve not got long, so it looks like we’ll be playing it by ear.”
There was a knock at the window. Jenny rose and went to open the front door. Jason had a sheepish smile. He gazed up at her from under his long eyelashes, not that she could see them well in the hallway light, but having stared into his eyes on more than one occasion, she knew full well why he was doing it.
“Cut the crap and just come in.”
He followed her through to the living room and nodded a g
reeting to the other two. “So what am I here for?”
“We’re meeting Les in the woods. You know them well, so you should be able to stay out of sight until we need you.” Dan was still in control. It seemed he was a natural. “We’ve only got fifteen minutes, so we’d better get a move on.”
All four stepped out into the night. Shane had been carrying a backpack with him. He appeared reluctant to let it go, having sat in her house with it tucked down the side of the sofa between the armrest and his leg. Now he had it slung over his shoulder. Jenny had an ‘aha’ moment. Shane had the knife with him, it was in his bag. No wonder they hadn’t gone to get it, it’d been with them all along.
They strode along the path. Jenny flitted her gaze from cars to gardens and back again. She was determined to miss nothing, the thought of being ambushed constantly at the forefront of her mind. People were still wandering about on the streets, the drama of the weekend not over yet for the general public. Jenny scanned their faces, not wanting to miss a thing.
Jason nudged her arm. “Isn’t that someone you know?” He nodded towards a small crowd of people.
She glanced over, panic settling in her chest, her heart beating faster. Her gaze darted from one person to another until she saw who he was talking about. She blew out a breath into the cold evening air. “Yeah, my work colleague. Tell me about Nadine. Would she really have gone all the way with you if we hadn’t arrived at your door?”
Jason bristled. It wasn’t fair of her to bring up his missed opportunity with that woman, but it was the quickest way to divert his attention. She wouldn’t want him questioning what Adam was doing in the village, even if it did have an innocent explanation. She snuck a peek back at the crowd. The man was gone.
“I dunno,” he said. “I thought she liked me.”
Jenny laughed. He was the same as her when it came to understanding the ulterior motives of the opposite sex. She slipped her arm through his and hugged it. “Sorry, that was cruel of me.”
He shrugged. “Forget about it, we’ve more important things to attend to.”
It didn’t take long at the pace they were going to get to the edge of the village. There was still a small police presence at the opening to the woods where both bodies had been found.
Dan glanced over his shoulder. “You know this will only work if they’ve finished around the clearing. We’ll have to walk right by it to get to the spot where we found you know what.”
“Can’t we come in from the other side?” Jenny was unsure about the woods. She’d not had enough time in there to know it properly.
“It’s better we follow the route laid out in the map,” Dan said. “At least then they won’t know we’re on to them.”
The thought of play-acting filled her with dread. Right at that moment, all she wanted to do was run home and hide, but that wouldn’t save her, she’d learnt that from bitter experience. She crossed the lane with the others and climbed over the stile. It was darker on the other side of the hedge, the fields not lit by anything other than moonlight, but there was none of that this evening. They would have to use their memory for a guide and inch their way through the difficult bits.
Among the trees, the last of the leaves rustled overhead. Jenny held her arms close to her chest and clasped a hand onto her collar, keeping it closed to stop her from shivering. It was fear more than anything eating away at her psyche. Her gaze flitted from one place to another, not seeing anything in the dark but following sounds she would’ve ignored in the daylight. Everything seemed sinister, especially with a killer on the loose. They’d agreed not to talk once they’d entered the woods. All she could do was cling to Jason’s hand after she’d found it and hope for the best.
“We’re here,” Dan whispered, breaking the silence between them and keeping them on target.
They stood on the track a few feet away from the edge of the clearing. There didn’t appear to be anyone there. The police had finished their work and left the site, no doubt cordoned off, but in the blackness the tape couldn’t be seen.
“Walk in single file and follow me,” Dan said.
They all complied with what they were told. The line moved forward with Jenny on the end. It wasn’t the position she wanted to be in, but the others had already got going by the time she’d stopped looking around. She couldn’t swear to it, but she was sure there was someone else there. They advanced into the clearing, their feet inching along the dirt and onto the grass. Dan kept them skirting the edge until they arrived at another opening where he disappeared into the trees.
Jenny still clung to Jason’s hand. Her fingers ached from gripping so hard, but she was determined not to let go. With her other, she grabbed hold of his sleeve, tugging the fabric in her bid to keep up. The action of walking in such small steps tensed her muscles. Her thighs burned, making them stiffer. What she wouldn’t do to stop for a moment to rub them and release the lactic acid back into her system. It was no use, she just had to do it. She unengaged from his grip and let go.
“What are you doing?” Jason spat the words.
“Give me a sec, I’ve got to stop.”
The others kept going; he’d not had the chance to tell them. “Stay there, I’ll let them know.”
In a moment, Jason was gone from her side. She stood rooted to the spot. She pressed her knuckles into her legs to massage them. The pain eased with the returning circulation. She shook out her limbs and waited for Jason to return. He didn’t. Her scalp prickled. Jenny jerked her head and glanced over her shoulder.
Is someone there?
She wheeled her body in the direction she thought she’d noticed something, but nothing moved. The breath she’d been holding escaped through gritted teeth. Her jaw clenched so tight she had a job to move her chin.
Then it happened.
Someone placed a hand over her mouth and pulled her backwards. An arm crossed her chest. She was pinned to a person behind her, their lips mingling with her hair and brushing against her ear.
“Keep quiet.”
Through her terror she recognised the voice. She relaxed her wide-eyed stare. Her body followed suit. A few moments later, the hand that pressed into her cheeks and blocked her ability to breathe through her nose released her face. She sucked in air, filling her lungs and replacing the burn with oxygen.
“What are you doing here?”
A finger touched her lips.
“Shush.”
Jenny waited, her senses aware of every tiny sound. She heard nothing of consequence. Jason hadn’t returned.
“This way.”
She allowed herself to be led on a different path through the trees. Adam had appeared out of nowhere. When she’d seen him on the street she’d presumed he’d been there to do the drops that Les was wanting her to take on. No doubt Adam would be relieved to have his evenings back, unless Les had other things for him to do.
Now she was a distance from the others she could hear their progress—they weren’t being all that careful in their bid to get to the place marked on the map. Adam seemed to know where he was going, that fact hadn’t escaped her, but there was nothing else she could do other than tag along.
Jenny caught her foot on a tree root, stumbling forwards and crashing onto her knees. A stone rammed into her knee cap, smacking it hard and exploding pain. She clasped her hand over her mouth to stem the shout trying to burst out from her throat. Tears welled. She blinked rapidly, flicking them onto her cheeks with her lashes. Jenny sobbed. She’d have to wait until she got home to see the damage she’d done.
Adam gripped her biceps and heaved her to her feet. “You okay?”
She couldn’t speak, sucking in air and blowing out quickly in rapid succession. Jenny willed the pain to dissipate. She bent down and rubbed her fingers over the sore area to help it on its way. After a few moments she straightened. “I’ll be all right.”
The rest of the journey was a challenge. She hobbled, relying on her left leg to make up for the weakness in her right.
Her foot scuffed the dirt, stubbing against bumps and other tree roots, slowing her ability to walk.
“How far is it?” she whispered.
Adam’s hand knocked into her arm, bringing her to a halt. “Be very quiet.”
Now he had hold of her, he guided her movements around a large tree and past other vegetation. His grip tugged in a downward motion, indicating for her to crouch. She did, not sure what was going to happen but going along with what he wanted. Another hand touched her shoulder. Her body stiffened, her leg muscles ready to spring to life and sprint her away, regardless of the damage to her knee. The hand pressed down on her rising shoulder, keeping her in place.
“I thought you’d never get here.”
“Harvey? Is that you?” Jenny was confused. He was the last person she’d expected to be in the woods.
“Shush,” he said. “I think they’re nearly there.”
“Does he have the knife?” Adam spoke, and it was directed at her.
“I…I dunno. I think so. Maybe the friend has it in his bag.” She felt bewildered. Why was Adam asking about the knife? He must have meant the one that was used to murder the dealer, but how did he know Dan and Shane would have it? “You don’t think it was them who broke in and stole it, do you?”
Neither man answered. Adam let go of her arm, pushing himself into a more standing position and crept farther on. Jenny couldn’t follow; Harvey still had her gripped by the shoulder. They were obviously working together to get Harvey’s knife back. She knew he had no intention of letting the police become aware of his trophy wall. If they didn’t find his knife then they wouldn’t want to know who’d had it and where it’d come from.
“I didn’t know you knew Adam,” she said.
It was a stupid thing to say, they both worked for the same company, and Adam delivered the bulk of his post. Harvey ignored her, so she shut her mouth. A breeze rustled through the tops of the trees. Other nighttime noises followed in its wake. Jenny shivered. Her legs hurt from staying in the one position. She listened to Harvey’s breathing. It was a comfort to be with someone she knew.