by Ricky Black
‘Neither have you. I’ll settle up with Lennox another time. I’m here to talk business with you.’
Delroy gestured wordlessly for Lamont to continue.
‘I need your help taking down Akhan.’
Throwing his head back after a stunned second, Delroy bellowed with laughter, slapping his legs, loud guffaws resonating around the room. Lamont waited.
‘Fucking hell, L . . . I haven’t laughed like that in years. Go easy on me. I’m an old man.’
‘I didn’t make a joke.’
‘L, you’ve worked long enough with the guy to know how deep his reach is. You can’t touch him like that,’ said Delroy.
‘Have you ever known me to plan poorly, Del?’
Delroy shook his head. ‘I think this thing with Lennox is the first time I’ve seen you make the wrong call. That and not coming to work for me.’
Lamont assessed Delroy’s words, silence hanging heavily in the air.
‘Believe me when I say two things; Lennox will be eliminated, and I will take down Akhan.’
‘How, L? You’re not talking about a rival such as Lenny or even me. You’re talking about a warlord. A man with unlimited resources. Even if we combined, we couldn’t match up.’
‘There are powerful forces at play, Del. Together we can win, against Akhan, then against Lennox. We both have a stake in this. He had my ex-girlfriend killed, and he took out two of your children. Not only do we have the green light to engage, but I know exactly how to damage Akhan’s organisation beyond repair.’
It took Delroy only a few seconds to fully comprehend what Lamont had told him. He leaned forward.
‘Tell me more.’
‘Look at the size of that place . . .’
Akeem and Jamal were in a black Ford 4x4, watching Akhan’s base of operations with binoculars.
They had picked carefully for the mission. Only ten highly skilled men had been selected, including them. They would work in two groups of four and were already scattered around. A few of the men were Akeem’s, and the rest were from Delroy’s hit teams. They were all dressed in black, carrying powerful automatic weaponry. If everything went to plan though, they wouldn’t have to use it.
Stefanos had given them everything. He provided the layout of the base, along with blind-spots, camera locations, and the details of exactly who would be in and at what time. It was no coincidence they were here in the middle of the night. Only a skeleton crew would oversee at least one hundred kilo’s of product.
They had staked the place out as best they could, not wanting the same problems that had befallen their attempt at storming Lennox’s Cottingley base.
‘Is everyone in place?’ Asked Akeem. Jamal made a call on a disposable phone. He spoke for a few moments, then hung up.
‘Everyone’s in play.’
‘Okay, let’s move.’
The pair exited the ride, blending in with the night. The base was a warehouse on the outskirts of Bradford. It looked huge from the outside and had two cars parked in the small car park. The sign said something about textiles. They had learned Akhan’s imports were hidden in the form of textiles equipment, which was an effective cover.
Sneaking around to the side of the warehouse, Akeem typed the code they had been given into the side door. There was a camera above the door, but it only turned one way. The security neglected to mention this to Akhan after a bribe, and the team were using it to their advantage.
Jamal entered the building, Akeem covering him. From their studying of the blueprints, they knew there were two control rooms; one twenty yards down the hall from them, and the other at the far side.
They made their way along the corridors to the control room at the far side. There was a man staring at his phone, laughing. He was the nighttime overseer, the man who gave orders to everyone else in the base during the night. Before he could blink, Akeem and Jamal had their weapons trained on him. He glared, but didn’t move.
‘On the floor. Now,’ Jamal growled, the weapon pointing at the overseer’s chest. He didn’t look afraid, but slowly complied, lying face down on the floor. Akeem covered Jamal whilst he secured the man, tying up his arms and legs, then stuffing a rag in his mouth. They used his system to turn off the cameras. They saw four more people on the premises, bagging large quantities of cocaine in a room.
‘Right, you guys can come in now. Go straight to Room B.’ Akeem hurried from the room with Jamal at his tail. They heard yelling and movements, but no gunshots. They secured the other rooms, finding no resistance, then headed to Room B.
Akeem and Delroy’s teams had secured the workers. Jamal’s legs shook at the sight in front of him. He was no stranger to drugs spots in his time. This was on another scale though. There were bricks and bricks of product, all sealed and lined up. Some of it was already boxed up, the boxes hosting the same Textile insignia on the outside of the building.
‘Are the trucks ready?’ Akeem asked one of his men. The soldier nodded.
‘Get all of this loaded up. You and you stay here and make sure this lot try nothing. No one will get hurt if they don’t resist.’
Lamont was in his office drinking a cup of coffee when he got the call he had been waiting for. He paused a few beats, before answering the PGP phone.
‘Hello?’
‘Where is it?’
Lamont took another sip.
‘I’m sorry, who is this?’
‘Teflon, I beg of you not to play games with me. My compound was attacked. Well-trained men made off with a tremendous amount of product. I want this back immediately. If I get it, there will be no further conflict. This is my assurance to you as a businessman.’
Lamont again waited. Akhan was on the back foot for once, and he relished it. The move on the warehouse had been a success. As per the arrangement, the drugs were being guarded by Lamont’s people, with Delroy’s men in reserve. They didn’t have a final count, but there were well over one hundred kilo’s, and that was just the cocaine.
Lamont grinned, realising this was the first time Akhan had made his own phone call.
‘You’re presuming that I know what you’re talking about.’
‘Teflon, I politely asked you not to play games. I want the product back. If I have to, I will tear apart Chapeltown and the surrounding areas to find it.’
‘No you won’t.’
‘Excuse me?’
‘Let’s cut the shit and act like two men who know all about this business. Now, you want the consignment. I understand that. I’m willing to deal with you.’
‘There will be no deals. I have told you what I want.’
‘Are you sure? If I hang up on you now, I won’t pick up the phone again. This I assure you as a businessman.’
There was an ugly silence on the other end. Lamont wanted to smile, but stayed in the moment.
‘What do you want?’
‘The same thing I always wanted. To walk away, free of all retribution. I also want the name of the person who betrayed me, along with all material relating to that situation. If I get all of this, then you will get your product back.’
‘Done. We will meet in twenty-four hours and exchange the information. My men will have the videos and paperwork pertaining to your personal situation. You will verify that these are original, un-doctored copies. You will bring the product to the location, and we will both send our respective teams on their way. Is this a deal?’
‘Yes. Now, who was it who told you what transpired with me last summer?’
There was a long silence, and then Akhan uttered one name.
‘It was Chink.’
Lamont clenched his fists as Akhan continued.
‘He approached me in an official capacity, wanting me to work with him. He proposed a great deal of money up front and as a sweetener, he gave me information about you, and what you had done.’
It all made sense to Lamont now. Chink was excellent at staying under the radar. It was his kind of move, and it might have worked, h
ad he not been murdered.
‘Are you still there, Teflon?’
‘Yes.’
‘Twenty-four hours, and we will end this for good. One last thing, in turn for the information that I have provided you with . . .’
Lamont finished his coffee. ‘Name it.’
‘Who told you where my drugs were kept? Very few people knew this information.’
‘Lennox Thompson.’
‘Nonsense. He is a bandit. There is no way he could have found out that information.’
‘He’s resourceful. He can find things when he needs to. He gave me the information before we became enemies. I held off until I needed to.’
‘I see.’ Lamont heard the anger in Akhan’s tone, maintaining an indifference that he knew added credibility to his story.
‘I would never try to tell you your business, but I would be careful going after Lennox Thompson. He’s a dangerous man.’
‘Don’t worry about what I do, Teflon. We will speak again in twenty-four hours.’ With a click, Akhan was gone.
Lamont placed his phone on the desk, a wide smile encompassing his face. He was almost finished. He was so close to the finish line and this time, there would be no stumbles. He hoped that Jenny was looking down, and that she saw the lengths he was going to in order to be free. He stared into space a while longer, then he rose to his feet.
There was still work to be done.
Darren frowned at his phone, sipping the bottle of Lucozade clutched in his hand. He was with Maka and Terry. They had been told that business was back to normal. There had been whisperings of things going on in the background, Delroy’s men being seen with theirs, which Darren didn’t understand.
‘Guys, am I missing something?’
Terry glanced at Maka, then to Darren.
‘About what?’
‘Everything. We’re smacking around Lenny’s men, then we’re not. Then we’re back to business, now Delroy’s people are around. I don’t get it.’
Maka sniggered.
‘Lennox made the biggest mistake of his life when he went at Tef’s girl. Tef will murder him. That’s a given.’
‘It’s mad though. We’re warring because Tef’s ex got killed?’ Darren held up a hand before Maka could reply. ‘I know, fam. He’s the boss, and he calls the shots. He’s done a lot for all of us. We’re talking about war though. We could die or get locked up tomorrow. I guess I just wanna make sure I’m doing it for the right reasons.’
Sharma’s words to Darren had made him delve deeper into the situation, looking past the money and responsibility. There was a price to be paid for his new success, and Darren was terrified about paying it.
‘Don’t worry, just be careful, because we’ve all got targets on our backs. I trust Tef though, and whatever he’s doing, I know it’s gonna be good for us,’ said Maka. Before Darren could respond, one of Akeem’s men entered.
‘You two are needed outside,’ he said, pointing to Maka and Darren.
‘What about me?’ Terry asked. A look from Akeem’s man had him glancing at the floor. Darren and Maka followed the man, who signalled to a black 4x4 vehicle. They climbed in the back.
Akeem waited, dressed for combat, openly wearing a bullet-proof vest over a dark sweater. Darren felt his hands tremble as the reality of the situation started to sink in.
‘Everything good?’ He asked.
‘Yeah, the lines are smooth. Pure dodgy things going on though. What the hell’s up with Delroy’s people?’
‘That will be explained soon enough. For now though, Teflon needs you to front an important meeting. A deal of sorts.’
‘What’s the deal for?’ Maka asked. Darren remained quiet, his heart pounding.
‘You’ll see. Meet me out here this evening at seven. You won’t need anything. I’ll speak to you then.’
‘What was that all about?’ Darren asked. Maka didn’t reply, his jaw clenched as they watched Akeem drive away, wondering what would transpire next.
Lamont looked around Stefanos’s garden. It was practically a field, seeming to stretch on as far as his eye could see. He kept his hands jammed in his pockets, his fleece coat and boots doing an excellent job of keeping out the cold. He wished he’d opted for a scarf though.
Lamont had always hated the cold with a passion. Jenny had liked winter, he remembered. It struck Lamont that they hadn’t spent much of one together. Their first winter together had been fraught with Lamont’s recovery from his shooting. He didn’t even remember what he had done last Christmas, but he was sure it was done under the haze of painkillers.
‘L.’
Lamont whirled around, shocked that Stefanos had managed to sneak up on him. Stefanos wore a jumper, fleece trousers, and shoes, a wide smile on his bushy face.
‘I called out to you several times, but you were in your own world.’
‘Sorry about that. I was just thinking.’
‘About what, if you don’t mind me prying?’
‘Jen. I was remembering that she used to love winter, and I always hated it. The cold reminded me.’
Stefanos met Lamont’s eyes, smiling sadly.
‘She used to write long letters to Santa when she was younger, detailing exactly how good she had been, and why she deserved presents. Halloween, Bonfire Night and Christmas. She loved them all.’
‘I never got to spend much of a winter with her . . . My recovery was long.’
‘I heard. We will talk about my daughter in greater detail soon enough, but I have more information to relay to you. It relates to Akhan.’
Lamont straightened.
‘What is it?’
‘He will come for you. Regardless of how the exchange goes down later.’
‘Let him,’ said Lamont. He and Delroy’s partnership would need to contend with Akhan’s shooters.
‘Akhan has a tremendous amount of resource.’ Stefanos had a shrewd expression on his face.
‘I know. I won’t be subjugated, and I won’t back down. I faced death once before, and I’m still here. Let him come.’
Stefanos was silent, looking out at the darkening sky.
‘Come inside with me, please.’
Lamont followed Stefanos. Akeem knew where he was, but if this was an ambush, he wouldn’t be able to reach Lamont in time. His heart hammered, but he controlled his emotions, looking for potential escape points.
‘Take off your shoes in the hallway, please.’
Lamont unlaced his boots, expecting to feel a gun being pressed to the back of his head. No such action came though.
‘Would you like to take your jacket off?’
Lamont shrugged out of his jacket, and Stefanos hung it up for him.
‘Follow me.’
Lamont followed Stefanos down the hallway. They entered a room. It contained a small sofa, an office desk and computer. In the corner was a roaring fire, and on the sofa, a man sat. He was brown-skinned, with cropped hair and a tailored beard. He wore a black shirt, trousers, and had his shoes on. He stared at Lamont with fathomless dark eyes, a small smile on his ratty face. Lamont remembered seeing him at the warehouse with Stefanos.
‘Lamont, this is Jakkar. He is a friend of our friend Akhan.’
Lamont shook Jakkar’s hand. His grip wasn’t as firm as Stefanos’s, but Lamont still felt the strength of him.
‘Nice to meet you, Lamont.’
‘Tell me about Akhan.’
Jakkar’s smile widened.
‘You work with him, correct?’
Lamont nodded.
‘How do you find him?’
Lamont considered this for a moment.
‘Resourceful.’
It was Jakkar who nodded now.
‘Akhan was bred for this life. I knew him growing up. He was skinny, frail, a magnet for the bullies. Like many smart people, he learned to use his weaknesses to his advantage. He was hungry and willing to do what needed to be done. These traits brought him to the attention of The Council.’
&
nbsp; ‘Tell me about this council.’ Lamont had never heard of them.
‘One thing at a time. Akhan began working for the council. He was in place as a lackey but he waited, and he listened. He rose through the ranks until he was given control of the drugs at a local scale. He took this to England and worked to make it stick. Others were in play in different areas doing the same, but Akhan started showing the council a lot of return for their investment. They gave him more drugs. He was loyal, or so it seemed.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘In 1989, Akhan asked for permission to leave. He promised to pay a five percent tax for life, but wanted to work for himself. The council vetoed his request and Akhan attempted to go rogue. Fourteen of his men both here and in the Middle East were slaughtered. He returned to the fold, but he wasn’t beaten.’
Lamont’s heart hammered as he processed everything he was being told.
‘When Akhan returned, he was seemingly loyal. But, he was moving money around and making his own connections. He invested in local housing in areas such as Chapeltown, where drugs and crime were rife. He sat on these properties and in the early 2000s, sold them and made a ton of money. His own money.’
Lamont saw where this was going. ‘He was trying to establish his independence.’
‘Akhan saw his way out as a purely financial one. He wanted to amass his own wealth so he could gain his freedom from the council. He began working many money schemes, ensuring the council was paid, but lining his own pockets at the same time. When funds were low, he blamed it on recession and promised to get things working.’
‘He was skimming.’
‘Millions of pounds, over a near twenty-year-period. He bribed many of the council’s emissaries. Finally, they sent me.’
‘Why finally?’
‘I wanted to be the one to end this little reign. Akhan has run unchecked. I warned the council of his ambition and advised them to restrain him. Finally, they are listening to me.’
Lamont watched Jakkar. His eyes were hard as he talked of Akhan. He thought of Chink. Chink too had ambition. Even when they were dirt poor, he always planned to be rich. Lamont wondered what Chink would have become if he hadn’t befriended him.