Mason Black (The Complete Collection): 6 Gripping Crime Stories: The Complete Collection + BONUS Story

by Adam Nicholls

  When Amy saw her father, she ran to him and wrapped her arms around him. Her wet cheek buried into his stomach. ‘They’re gone,’ she said, snivelling.

  ‘What?’ Mason pulled her away gently and knelt down in front of her. She was growing so fast that he realised he might not have to kneel for much longer. ‘Who’s gone?’

  ‘Mom and Joshua.’

  Mason felt a chill shoot down his spine. On some level, he knew exactly what had happened to them. Of course, there was a possibility that something else entirely had made the couple go missing, but Mason thought otherwise. It was too coincidental.

  He showed Amy into an interview room, where he got her a cup of water and sat beside her. ‘I need you to breathe slowly, and then tell me what happened.’

  ‘I came home from the mall and the door was open.’ Her hands were shaking around the paper cup. Water rippled over the brim, spilling onto the floor as she shook. ‘At first, I was too scared to go inside, but when I did, the house was a mess. I-I didn’t know what to do, so I came here to speak to Bill. But Bill said that you were here and so I asked if I could see you and then…’ Her words trailed off as her face turned red and the tears came again.

  Mason gently rubbed her shoulder. ‘It’s going to be okay, honey.’ This is the second time this girl has been torn apart because of me. ‘I have an idea of where they are.’

  ‘You do?’ She looked up at him.

  ‘I think so, yeah. In fact, that’s why I’m here. And they’re going to be okay.’

  Amy leaned off her chair and hugged him tight, thanking him.

  ‘Now, I want you to stay here for a few hours while I run some errands. I’ll have an officer look after you. Will you be okay? Do you have a book with you?’ He realised after asking that it was a stupid question – Amy always had a book with her. Whether or not she was in the mood to read, was another matter altogether.

  Mason left her with Sergeant Brooke - who had never let Mason down in the past – and made his way back to the captain.

  Soon, he would have to make the exchange with Alison Wendell. It was unclear as to whether she had anything to do with Sandra and Joshua’s disappearance. But if she hadn’t, then another problem was on the horizon. And if she had, then the stakes had just gone up.

  75

  When Evie was escorted from her underground cell, she didn’t know if it was to be released or killed. Given the way she’d been treated so far, she suspected it would be the latter.

  Having still not recovered from watching her friend die, and still going hungry, she was shown through the underground complex by Lady, who walked behind her with the cattle prod. ‘Where are you taking me?’ she asked, but gained no response.

  Evie walked on further, and as she came into the main area, where the death table occupied the centre, her jaw dropped. ‘Sandra?’ It wasn’t just Sandra, either – her partner Joshua was there too. They were both chained to the table, like others had been before them.

  ‘Keep moving,’ Lady said.

  She was taken outside. The very second the trapdoor opened, sunlight burst through and assaulted Evie’s eyes. She covered her face in protest, adjusting poorly to her first sight of light in… what – three days? Five? It was hard to judge, but good to breathe real air again.

  Lady showed her into the backseat of a car, then climbed in beside the driver. It was the man who had been watching the previous night. Evie wondered what her relationship to him was and why he was yet to say anything.

  As they drove down towards the city, things began to look a little more optimistic. Not only was it a sunny day, but she was being taken into a populated area. If she wasn’t set free, then perhaps she could break free.

  Halfway through that thought, Lady turned in her seat and showed her the gun. ‘We’re going to pay a visit to Mason. Your life will be traded for my son’s.’

  Mason. The very sound of his name brought a confusion of emotions. It was an incredible feeling to know that he had come through for her, but it didn’t feel like it was really him anymore. After knowing what she knew, how could she ever look at him the same way? ‘And that’s that? You’ll leave us alone?’

  Lady Luck smiled and turned back around. ‘Just sit still.’

  For the rest of the journey, nobody uttered a peep. All the while, Evie couldn’t help but think that the worst was yet to come.

  76

  Highgate Bridge at 15:34. Wendell had said she would be here, but there was no sign of her.

  Luke, stood beside Mason and holding his hand tightly, seemed to be shaking.

  ‘Are you cold?’ Mason asked.

  ‘Scared.’

  He did feel sorry for the boy. Nobody of that age should have to endure wearing a recording device to rat out his own mother. And even after that, who knew what might happen to him? He would probably end up at an orphanage, and that was probably the best outcome.

  ‘It’s going to be okay,’ was all the comfort Mason could muster.

  ‘Will I have to live with her after this?’

  ‘I don’t know.’ Mason looked up and down the bridge, unsure of how long he could put up with standing here. Was she toying with him? Was she elsewhere, making his life even more difficult?

  As if to answer his question, a black, dirt-splashed car pulled up alongside them. The passenger side window whirred down and Alison Wendell was inside. Her hair had changed colour from the last time he’d seen her – blonde to black. Sunglasses covered most of her face. ‘Get in,’ she said.

  Mason leaned in to see who was driving. It was Benjamin Jones. The rat, he thought. He held firmly onto Luke’s hand, who was cowering behind him. ‘Where’s Evie?’

  Just after he’d finished saying her name, she leaned forward from the back seat. ‘Mason.’ She looked terrible. Her skin was red and blotchy, her face gaunt and hollow. Whatever had happened to her seemed a harsh bout of raw cruelty.

  ‘Now get in,’ said Wendell. ‘I won’t tell you again.’

  Mason climbed into the car, showing Luke in first, so he was sandwiched between the only two adults he could trust right now. He leaned over and put a hand on Evie’s shoulder after closing the door. ‘Hang in there. You’re going to be okay.’

  As the car pulled away, it became more and more obvious that this wouldn’t be a simple trade as Wendell had promised. It was a part of the plan – albeit, the more risky part. Mason only hoped that the police force could keep up, and that they would all make it out of here alive.

  Somehow, he didn’t think they would.

  77

  They pulled up outside the cabin, and Evie began to squirm.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ Mason whispered.

  ‘Not here. This is bad. This is…’

  Before they knew it, Ben was out of the car, waving them out one by one, a gun in his hand. He still had red soreness from where he had taken a beating the night before, and the bruises were purpling nicely. ‘Come on, tough guy.’

  They all climbed out. Wendell came around and hugged her son, mussing his hair and pinching his cheeks like he was some kind of cute animal. She stood, took her son by the hand, and led them into the woods.

  Passing the cabin, Mason became curious as to where exactly they were going. Having been here before and finding nothing, he was almost eager to discover what he had missed the first time. ‘Where are we going?’

  ‘Shut up,’ Ben said, safe behind the gun.

  Evie took Mason’s hand and walked with him. Her skin was terribly cold, and she couldn’t seem to stop trembling. Together, they stomped through wet leaves and over fallen branches, until Alison Wendell stopped.

  ‘Allow me.’ Ben overtook them and stooped to the ground. He kicked aside a bundle of foliage, revealing a wooden door. His gun still trained on them, he lifted the door and told them to get inside.

  Cautiously, Mason led the way down the wooden steps. It was totally black, with only a small amount of candlelight at the bottom to guide his path. He had to let go
of Evie’s hand because of the narrow wall. When he reached the bottom, his nerves finally tightened up.

  ‘Oh my God!’ It was Sandra. She was seated beside Joshua, who looked miserable and lifeless. They were sitting at a rotting wooden table, bound at the wrists by chains with little give.

  It was good to see that they were safe… if only temporarily.

  Evie stepped up beside Mason and let out a little whimper. ‘No. Oh, no no.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘She’s going to make us play. We need to–’

  ‘Shut up.’ Wendell came down the steps. Now she was holding the gun. She told Luke to go and play in the corner, while she escorted Mason and Evie to the table. ‘Chain them, Ben. Leave them just enough room to move their hands.’

  Ben got right on it, obedient as a dog. His eyes locked with Mason’s as he chained him.

  ‘Now,’ Wendell said, taking a seat at the table. ‘This should be fun.’

  78

  ‘Over there.’ Bill sat next to the van’s driver, pointing the way to Wendell’s car. They had been following closely, and this time they didn’t lose their way.

  They stopped outside a small cabin, in total isolation from the rest of San Francisco. Were it not for the fact that he’d seen where Mason had gone, he would probably be wasting time by checking the place out.

  Grouping together in the back of the van, they tapped into the wires and listened closely. There was Martin (Chief of Tech), Craig (Junior Tech Support), and Terry, a sergeant who had been assigned under Bill’s wing since the appearance of the first victim. Even Captain Cox took a seat in the corner, supervising the operation.

  ‘Ground team are on their way. Should be here any minute,’ Bill told her.

  Cox nodded her approval, her arms still crossed.

  ‘Okay,’ said one of the tech guys. ‘We’ve established the connection. I’ve got the kid. Craig will stay tuned in to Mason. Initiating recording now.’

  Bill sat next to them, listening in and flicking between the two sources of sound. From Luke Wendell’s microphone, there was only mumbling. Something was clacking together, like two pieces of plastic at war with one another. It could be toys, he thought, and then switched over to Mason’s channel.

  ‘What’s happening in there?’ Cox was only reluctantly getting involved. It seemed as if she was nervous to be proven wrong, as if Mason’s innocence would make her feel like she had failed at her job. Little did she know, the proof would be false.

  ‘A woman’s talking.’

  ‘Alison Wendell?’

  ‘No. It sounds like… Sandra.’

  ‘Mason’s wife?’ Captain Cox finally sat forward, intrigued.

  ‘Ex.’

  The connection suffered interference, the line wavering from the distance. Bill wanted to get closer, but doing so might jeopardise whatever small chance they had. And as the ground team arrived, parking their van next to his, things only went from bad to worse.

  Cox left the van and went outside to talk with the team.

  Bill stayed, listening. The sound was dropping and picking back up every few seconds. He could hear quarrelling but couldn’t make out exactly what was being said. ‘Can we fix this line? I can’t hear shit.’

  ‘I can fix it,’ Martin said, a hand to his ear, ‘but we would need to sever it until it’s re-established.’

  ‘How long?’

  Martin shrugged. ‘A minute. Maybe two.’

  ‘Do it.’ Bill removed the headset and went outside to keep an eye on the team. Captain Cox was giving them the drill – direct instructions from his own superior. They all seemed ready and raring to go, until they were dismissed. With over-the-top grunting, they all ran into the trees and took position around the trapdoor.

  ‘They’ll go on my command,’ Cox said.

  ‘Just give them time.’

  ‘They’ll have time, but not much of it.’

  What? ‘But it’s Mason. You agreed–’

  ‘I know what I agreed,’ Cox snapped. ‘He’s getting his chance. But if it looks like anybody is about to die in there, it’s my duty as a cop – no, as a human being – to keep them safe.’

  As she stormed off, Bill stood, mortified. If Cox moved in prematurely, it was possible that Mason would never get his confession. Or worse, she would confess and bring Mason down with her.

  79

  Joshua’s eyes lit up, as if struck by a sudden realisation.

  Alison Wendell looked over at him. ‘What?’

  ‘Mason is a cop. You can’t kill a cop. You’ll never get away with that.’ It was the first time Mason had ever seen him show even a touch of confidence. Even then, he was only hiding behind other people.

  ‘I’m a PI, Joshua.’ Mason shook his head. ‘Just be quiet.’

  ‘As I was saying,’ Wendell smirked as if there were an inside joke, ‘quite clearly, you can see there are six of you in this game of luck. You’ll know all about luck, Mr Black. It’s what’s kept you alive this long.’

  Mason shifted in his seat. There were, in fact, only five of them, unless she was planning to get involved in this sick game as well.

  ‘For those who don’t know,’ she put a gun on the table, ‘this is a revolver. It has six chambers in the cylinder – one for each person. Who here has ever heard of Russian Roulette?’

  ‘Oh, Jesus,’ Joshua moaned, and Sandra took his hand to calm him.

  ‘So, that’s your plan? You want us to play Russian Roulette? To make us kill ourselves rather than do it yourself? How very brave of you.’ Mason was steering the conversation towards her capabilities. With any luck, she would take the opportunity to brag.

  ‘Not exactly.’ Wendell grinned. ‘In this game, you have a choice. As I will only be loading one bullet, each of you is expected to either pull the trigger on yourself, or at the person to your left. That way, you all get to see the real side of each other before you die.’

  Mason looked to his left, where Evie sat shaking. It was a no-brainer for him.

  ‘What about the gun?’ Sandra said, acting like a stronger person than she ever had. ‘What’s to stop us from turning it on you?’

  Wendell chuckled. ‘I plan to die, but not today. I won’t be participating. If anybody needs me, I’ll be supervising from over there. And if anybody wants to act out, please be aware that I have another gun.’ She pulled a small weapon from under her dress – a Colt 25. A lady’s weapon.

  ‘So there are only five of us?’ Mason finally asked.

  ‘Not quite. Wendell looked at her son, who sat in the corner playing with some Transformers toys. ‘Luke, be a darling and come to the table, will you?’

  His eyes seemed to widen as he slowly understood what was happening. Luke got up and slowly shuffled over to the table. He took a seat where his mother had shown him.

  Mason shot up, pulled back down immediately by his chains. ‘Why would you do that? He’s your son, you sick bitch!’

  ‘Because,’ Wendell stepped around the table, ‘I know he’s betraying his own mother. What – you think I didn’t feel the wire when I hugged him? The police must be right outside, listening in.’ She leaned towards her son’s wire. ‘And if anybody tries to come in, I will kill every last person in here.’

  Luke was crying. Mason felt awful, but also relieved that she didn’t know about his own wire. With a bit of luck, it would stay that way.

  Alison put the revolver in front of Mason and stepped back against the wall with the other gun aimed at his back. ‘I think, as our guest of honour, perhaps Mr Black would like to take the first shot.’

  ‘You’re crazy,’ Mason said.

  ‘Duh,’ Alison teased. ‘Now, let the games begin.’

  80

  Mason picked up the gun, feeling the weight of the revolver. It wasn’t dissimilar to his own gun, which he had regretfully left inside his Mustang when locking it up. ‘Evie, I need you to promise that you’ll always be there for Amy.’

  Evie shook her head, tears streami
ng down her cheeks. ‘Please, don’t–’

  ‘Just do it. She needs you in her life.’ Mason put the gun to his temple, counted backwards from three… and squeezed the trigger.

  Click.

  Nothing.

  Mason dropped it, seeing his own shaking hand. ‘I’m sorry.’

  ‘What a disappointment.’ Wendell laughed from behind him. ‘Evelyn, you’re up.’

  Evie was next to pick it up. She looked to her left, where Joshua sat with his head down. It was obvious that she considered letting him take the bullet. But if Mason knew her at all – and he liked to think that he did – she would put anybody before herself.

  Without any tear-filled words of goodbye, Evie put the gun to her own head and tried to fire it. The room filled with tension in the seconds (which felt like minutes) it took for the bullet to come exploding from the revolver.

  But it didn’t. In its place was only the single, gut-wrenching click.

  Joshua rushed for the gun, prising it from Evie’s hand. He looked down at it for a long time. Mason thought that he was preparing himself to take the bullet. It was unlikely that he had ever seen a gun before, save for Mason’s on the odd occasion which he used it as a threat (this had been to humour himself, and nothing more).

  But then, screams of protest came from all around the table… as he aimed it at Sandra.

  ‘What are you… Why?’ Sandra said. There was confusion in her eyes, which were wet from tears of both fear and heartbreak.

  ‘Sorry,’ Joshua said as he squeezed the trigger with a click and dropped the gun.

  ‘You son of a bitch!’ Mason yelled at him. ‘You absolute fucking coward!’

  Joshua said nothing, only sat with his head sinking again.

  ‘Now we know a little something about Joshua,’ Wendell said, still laughing. ‘I wonder if that might make you think twice during round two.

  Round two? Mason shuddered at the idea. How many rounds are there?