by David Costa
‘In the meantime, stay in your room until I call you or you get a reply from Ireland.’
‘I need to switch off for a while, anyway. I find when I do that and relax my memory chip it reboots the computer in my head it will check in and bring up who this guy is.’
He left her and returned to his room. Using his mobile phone, he dialled the number of a trusted contact in South Armagh. The familiar voice on the other end asked the caller to leave a message.
‘Hi, mate, it’s me call me back as soon as you can.’
Costello lay on the bed and closed his eyes.
Chapter Thirty-three
Reece dropped Mary back at her hotel.
‘I’ll catch-up with you later. Do you fancy going out for a meal tonight?’
‘That would be lovely. Do I need to dress up or are we slumming it?’
‘Somewhere in between would be nice. Pick you up around eight.’
‘See you then.’ She kissed him on the cheek as they parted.
Once again, he felt the butterflies in his stomach take flight.
‘Alpha One to Alpha Team, where are you now?’
It was Cousins who answered.
‘We’re still around Deansgate, over.’
‘Roger that. Can we all meet in the café in the Town Hall in twenty, over?’
‘Roger,’ the team replied one by one.
Reece found another parking space near the Town Hall. Keeping the change for these parking meters was costing him a small fortune. He made a point to include the cost in his expenses sheet. Unlike James Bond, real secret agents had to account for every penny they spent, that meant receipts and forms in triplicate.
The inside of the Manchester Town Hall brought an old-world atmosphere with the building, housing an excellent café and the council offices together. Reece had visited the café in the past and always enjoyed its relaxing atmosphere; the open space inside made it cool and welcoming.
The team were already there at a corner table. He briefed them again on the man he’d seen.
‘What I didn’t say in front of Mike was that I’m sure it was Costello. Mike didn’t see him and I can’t put my finger on it but it’s my gut telling me it was him. The comms people have got back to me with the CCTV coverage which they uploaded to my mobile. Mike has seen it but the quality’s not great so she couldn’t be sure.’
Reece showed the grainy coverage of Deansgate and they could see Reece and Mary walking towards the station and a tall man wearing a baseball cap who appeared to be keeping pace with them from the footpath on the opposite side of the street. Although they could estimate the man’s height there was no clear shot of his face even when he turned and walked back towards the camera before disappearing out of shot.
‘Many times, during surveillance, you get that gut feeling as you call it, that sixth sense. It paid not to ignore it and nine times out of ten I was right to listen to it. So, what now?’ said Harrison.
‘Well, I think we can assume that it was Costello and he spotted me and Mike. We hadn’t been walking long so he must have been somewhere in this area.’
Reece placed his map on the table.
‘This is the route we walked after we left you in Weatherspoon’s. I don’t think he was following us too long or I would have spotted him earlier. So, if he wasn’t dropped off by a car, we need to start paying attention to the main Deansgate area. The cafés, restaurants, bars, and hotels. If he has been travelling in and out of the city, if not by car then public transport the trains and buses, then we need to get Lockwood’s people to step up their CCTV coverage in the area. They might even have him following me today although they should already be doing that, anyway. I’ll give him my timeline for walking down Deansgate earlier see what they come up with. We might get lucky and see where he went after bugging out from following me.’
‘The Hilton Hotel is smack bang in the middle of where you were walking, we should certainly check it out,’ said Cousins.
Reece had been studying the map.
‘Good idea, we need to take a look, but we should always work in the belief they’re here. We need to be careful at all times, keep your eyes open, and everyone keep in touch.’
‘David, if you’re right, and I think you are, why did he stop following you when you went into the station?’ asked April Grey.
‘You’ve got to remember that essentially, Costello is a coward. All his kills are with the built-in caveat that he can catch his target by surprise, and he can get away afterwards. For him to follow me into the station would be to follow me into an area he was unsure of with a confrontation scenario he didn’t know. He would have assumed I was armed, maybe Mike too. He would also have been worried that we might be meeting other armed colleagues in the station. Too many unnecessary risks. He will now be more aware of our presence, so he’ll be taking more precautions, even more alert, we must be the same.’
‘Do you think he knows who you are?’ asked April.
‘He just might remember me from our days of bumping into each other between shoot-outs and question sessions. He would know Mike, she worked with the top tier of the Provisional movement and lived in Newry during the Troubles, so he would know her for sure. I’ll be meeting up with her later. Let’s do a little more digging in the Deansgate area and see what we come up with.’
‘As he has spotted you, he must be spooked. I think you should operate in the area using the Range Rover, the tinted windows will give you the advantage should you need it. I can check the Hilton,’ April said.
‘Good idea let’s do that, but everyone keep in touch. Anything at all let me know. I’ll bring London up to date and get the boss to speak to Lockwood and I’ll have a look at the CCTV myself. Let’s not forget people if you do spot this guy, we have to put him down no second chances no calling on him to surrender because he won’t.’
Chapter Thirty-four
When the phone blinked into life, Costello’s first thought was that it was Ireland calling back, but instead it was a text from Lyndsey.
I will pay the bill. Booking out now. M picking us up in twenty.
Costello packed, making sure to wipe down as many surfaces as possible, so no fingerprints were left. Then he went down to meet her in the lobby, Mohammad was waiting in the car outside.
The drive to Irlam took another thirty minutes but in total silence as they all looked for the suspected security presence, but there was none. Inside the Irlam house, and after Mohammad had done another sweep, they sat around the table. Imtaz and Waheed were still in Manchester.
‘Why did you follow them, Sean, why did you expose yourself?’ asked Lyndsey.
‘I’m sure they didn’t see me. I recognised Mary McAuley and I’m sure the man she was with worked for the security forces in Northern Ireland, I can’t remember in what capacity, but it will come to me. I’m still waiting on my contact in Ireland getting back to me then hopefully, I’ll know more.’
‘Well, we always knew there were risks, but by your actions you could have put us all at risk. I just hope you’re right and they didn’t see you, but we can’t take chances. The fact that they were in Deansgate could be expected. McAuley can be taken care of later. If we’re successful, you can have the pleasure of that, Sean. Still, it’s good that you did spot them before they spotted us. If they’re that close, then it could only be a matter of time before they check the hotel and even with our cover, we’re at risk. I’ll book us into a hotel further out from the city for the next few days. Mohammad, where are we with the apartment?’
‘I have good news. I called with the estate agents like you said. The forms were fairly straight forward and after I showed young Jake the three-grand cash for the deposit, I can pick the keys up on Tuesday afternoon.’
‘Were my passport and credit ID OK?’
‘Yes, everything went smoothly. I have all your documents in the car.’
‘That’s great. We know the area. We have the apartment to work from. We keep to our schedule
. A final meeting here tomorrow night then you pick up the keys on Tuesday, and we make our final moves into position on Tuesday night. Mohammad, I have one more job for you. Can you have a look around for a van similar to Sean’s?’
‘Yes, do you want me to steal it if I find one?’
‘No. Make a note of the plates then get copies made. Bring them here and change them onto Sean’s van in the garage. We’ll be using the van to move to the apartment, so we need to be as secure there as possible.’
‘Sure, no problem, I’ll do that right away.’
‘Good, let’s have a coffee then you can drop me off at one of the hotels near the airport.’
Fifteen minutes after Lyndsey and Costello had left the Hilton, April Grey had approached the reception desk.
Chapter Thirty-five
Grey spoke to the receptionist, then to the day manager, and last to the concierge. It always amazed her the reaction of people when she presented her MI5 Identity Card. People seemed to be relaxed and expectant when presented with a Police Identity Card.
Probably because of the glut of police TV programmes, she thought. But when shown a card from the security services, first there was a look of surprise, then a double take to be sure what they were seeing. Then a look of fear. To the everyday citizen this was a whole new world, completely outside their comfort zone, stepping into the unknown, this was serious. This meant they were only too pleased to help. A man fitting the description of the one in the photo she showed them had just booked out. It was the concierge who had been the most observant and gave Grey the information she needed to call Reece.
‘April. What is it?’
‘Can you talk?’
‘Yes, I’m on my own.’
‘I’ve just been speaking to the staff at the Hilton. It looks like our friend was staying here but left in a hurry about twenty minutes ago.’
‘How can they be sure it was him?’
‘I showed them the photo we have, and they weren’t sure, but when I mentioned the baseball cap, they all agreed that the man fitting our guy’s description never seemed to take his off and had just booked out. And here’s the clincher, David, he may have been with a woman also staying here. They had different rooms on different floors, but they met in the Sky Cocktail Bar. It was the woman who booked and paid for both rooms using a credit card in the name of Karen Webb. If it is Costello, and I think it is, he was booked in under the name Paul Jordan? I’ve asked for the CCTV for the last few days. The day manager was a bit reluctant to let us have that but when I explained the arrest powers for terrorism under the Official Secrets Act, he phoned his boss and was more forthcoming.’
‘Did you get any more about them when they left, a taxi, and if it was a taxi did the doorman hear where they were going? A forwarding address maybe?’
Grey laughed. ‘We should be so lucky. The concierge is ex-army and the most observant of them all. He saw the man and woman leave together. Both were picked up by an Asian man in a black BMW which could be private hire as he opened the doors for them and put the bags in the boot before driving off in the direction of the station.’
‘Can you get descriptions of all three, as well as the CCTV?’
‘Sorted, I’ll bring them back to the hanger for our briefing.’
‘Good, call everyone and we can go over it later. I’ll let Lockwood know after our debrief.’
‘David, by the look of things they left in a hurry and not long after you spotted your tail. From what I’ve found out I think they’re aware of you and most likely Mike, so you need to be twice as careful and so should she.’
‘Agreed. I’ll call with her and bring her to the hanger. I’m fucking angry that we were made, angry that he spotted us and angrier that I didn’t spot him earlier, and now we are going to have to keep her much closer to the action. See you back at the hanger.’
Chapter Thirty-six
‘Hello.’ At last, John Jo Murphy had called back.
‘John Jo, it’s Sean here I need you to do something for me, it’s important.’
‘Ah sure, Sean, no problem seeing it’s yourself. What do you need?’
‘Do you remember Mary McAuley?’
‘The lovely Mary from Newry; the one that was married to Brendan?’
‘Yes, that’s her. Now, she’s moved back to Belfast to be closer to her mother I believe, I think the mother still lives in the Beechmount area off the Falls Road, but she lives somewhere else in the city, I don’t know where. I need you to call with the mother and find out where she is now. Can you do that for me?’
‘Sure, Sean, I’ll try to find out how soon do you need to know?’
‘As soon as you can. Tell the mother you’re an old friend up from Newry for the day and you want to catch-up with her daughter.’
‘Leave it with me and I’ll get back to you when I know anything,’
‘Good man.’
Lyndsey had been listening to Costello’s side of the conversation. Since they’d left the hotel and returned to Irlam, she’d been reassessing the plan. Imtaz and Waheed had taken the train to the city to look around the centre, now they joined her, Costello, and Mohammad around the table. After Costello had finished his call, Mohammad made another technical sweep of the room.
‘Our plans have had to change. We always knew security around the Conference was going to be tight but the fact that we’ve seen some people from Sean’s past seems to indicate they know about the Irish connection to our operation,’ Lyndsey said.
‘I knew we were wrong to trust this infidel,’ said Waheed.
‘You and I are going to have a serious falling out, my friend,’ replied Costello looking Waheed in the eye.
‘That’s enough,’ Lyndsey cut in. ‘Sean is not your enemy, Waheed. He is here, like everyone else, to strike a blow at the real enemy, the real infidel. On Tuesday night we move to the apartment and complete our attack on Wednesday morning. Mohammad, did you manage to get new plates for the van?’
‘Yes, they’re in the boot of my car. I can change them now.’
‘Good, I’ve been thinking. Sean and I’ll stay in the Radisson Hotel at the airport. Sean, you can park the van in one of the carparks near Terminal Three, then meet up with me at the Radisson. I’ll book a twin room in the name of Mary Scott as they might be looking for Karen Webb already. Small hotels outside the city are unlikely to ask for identification so I should be all right as we will stay there until Tuesday. Waheed and Imtaz will stay here until Wednesday and move to the target area early that morning. Mohammad, you can drop me off at the hotel and meet up with me and Sean at the apartment block at 6pm on Tuesday. Sean and I will stay in the apartment until the operation is over. Mohammad, you’ll be in the Midland Hotel to give us the signal that the target is on the move, this will give Sean the few seconds he’ll need. Sean, your van will be swallowed up in the airport carpark; it couldn’t be in a safer spot. On Tuesday, we can move from the hotel to the NCP near the apartment and leave it there for the duration of the operation. Do you have some sort of carry case for the rifle that won’t stand out?’
‘Of course. The rifle has been broken down to fit into a small sports bag. I can assemble it quickly and it’s already zeroed to my own specifications.’
‘Good,’ she replied. ‘Now you can bring in the Semtex for Waheed and Imtaz to get to work on their side of the operation.’
Chapter Thirty-seven
Before picking up Mary, Reece had called Broad and brought him up to speed. Reece let Broad know of his concerns of interference by Lockwood. Because the operation was on British soil Reece felt the dangers posed by what he knew was normally a very proficient Police and Security service.
‘I think I’ll have to come up there if just to keep the likes of this Lockwood in check. He’s been complaining to his Chief Constable, who’s beginning to feel the pressure from him.’
‘What’s he doing?’
‘He’s asking for his ass to be covered in writing from the Prime Mini
ster’s office. How we want this to end is supposed to be Top Secret and I can see this idiot mouthing off to the press.’
‘Idiot is the right word for him. He doesn’t have a clue who we are or who he’s dealing with here. He’s a desk jockey jobsworth and to tell you the truth, I don’t need his interference now that we’re getting closer to Costello and his crew. We’ll need police boots on the ground eventually, but until then, I want Lockwood to help without question when I ask them.’
‘I’ll be up there tonight. The Chief Constable and Mr Lockwood will be told where they stand. In the meantime, let him know in no uncertain terms that you’re in charge and he will do as he’s told. They can be replaced if needs be. See you later.’
‘Let me know when you get here.’
Reece felt a little better knowing Broad had his back.
He waited in reception for Mary. When she came out of the lift her smile cheered up his day as always.
‘What’s up?’ she asked.
Reece filled her in as they walked to the Range Rover.
‘Hilton Hotel eh, a bit more upmarket from Newry.’
‘Yes, but where is he now? We’re going to check over the CCTV at our base location. That’s why I want you there to have a look yourself. I also think it would be safer, being close to the team instead of out there on your own.’
‘Where you lead, Joseph, I’ll follow.’
There it was again, he thought, that smile that reached her eyes. Those dark brown eyes that seemed to see into his soul…his thoughts.
‘Don’t worry about booking out just yet, you might be here a little longer than I expected.’
‘Again, I’m at your disposal. I’m not expected anywhere else, so let’s go.’
As Reece drove to Barton, he watched her as she looked out at the passing shops, restaurants, streets, and cars.
‘What are you thinking?’ he asked.
‘Thinking, now that’s a question I don’t hear every day. Not many people, especially the men in my life are interested in what I’m thinking.’