The Angel Conspiracy (The Angel Cronicles Book 2)

by Jason Chapman

  ‘Go away Alan isn’t here.’

  Rayman stared at the door for a few moments before knocking again. ‘Mrs Parker I really need to speak with your son. Do you know where he’s gone?’

  ‘No, now please go away I’m very busy.’

  Rayman stood his ground. ‘Please Mrs Parker it’s very important.’

  A few seconds passed before the door opened. Jean Parker looked around before grabbing Rayman’s arm and pulling him through the door.

  ‘Mrs Parker is everything ok?’

  Jean started to cry shaking her head. ‘Alan came home last night and packed a suitcase.’

  ‘Did he say where he was going?’

  ‘No, he said that he had to go away for a while.’

  ‘And he didn’t say when he’d be back.’

  She shook his head.

  ‘Did he say why he was going away?’

  ‘No.’ Jean began to sob hysterically. ‘Some men turned up this morning looking for Alan.’

  ‘Do you know who they were?’

  ‘No, but they were American, dressed in black suits. They said Alan was in a lot of trouble and that they needed to speak with him. They weren’t very nice.’

  Alan put his hand on her shoulder. ‘Come on Mrs Parker let’s make a nice cup of tea to calm you down.’ Rayman led the woman into the kitchen.

  Chapter 39

  London Evening Examiner – Fleet Street – 2:09pm

  Mirren listened as Rayman talked about his visit to Mrs Parker’s house. ‘American accents?’

  Rayman nodded. ‘She said that they weren’t all that nice to her. They kept telling her that her son was in a lot of trouble.

  Mirren took a deep breath. ‘We can run with this story.’

  ‘Why not?’

  ‘Because there’s nothing to run with George. All we have is a missing radar operator and his mother who claims she was visited by a couple of Americans. There’s nothing here to write about. Unless your friend turns up we have to run with Laker’s story.’

  The door to the office opened. ‘Excuse me Mr Mirren but you have some visitors.’

  ‘Not now Jeannette I’m in the middle of something.’

  The door opened wider and two men stepped into the office almost shoving Mirren’s secretary to one side. One of them closed the door behind him.

  ‘Mr Mirren.’ One of them asked glaring at the editor.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘You can’t run that front page about the missing plane.’ The man’s American accent was prominent.

  ‘Excuse me!’ Mirren glared back at the man.

  ‘I think you heard me just fine Mr Mirren. You will not run that newspaper article.’

  ‘Look I don’t know who you are but if you think you can just barge in here and tell me how to run my newspaper then you’re very much mistaken.’

  ‘You don’t have a choice in the matter. If you run that article then your paper will be shut down.’

  Mirren burst into laughter. ‘If you think you can just waltz into my office and threaten to shut down my newspaper then your totally deluded.’

  The door to the office opened again and another man stepped through the door.

  ‘Sir Alfred thank god, could you tell these idiots that I have every intention of running the front page this afternoon.’

  Sir Alfred Bradshaw stared at Mirren shaking his head. ‘I’m afraid you cannot Bill you are to retract any article relating to the missing plane.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘Don’t ask stupid questions Bill just do it!’ Bradshaw shouted.

  Mirren stared at Bradshaw for a few moments before picking up the telephone. ‘Tom you need to change the front page.’

  The man on the end of the telephone could be heard shouting.

  ‘Yes I know, now bloody well do it, run that other article on the city transport scandal.’

  ‘Thank you for you cooperation.’ One of the Americans said before turning towards the door.

  ‘Mirren watched as the two men left before looking at Bradshaw. ‘What the hell was all that about, who were those thugs?’

  Bradshaw looked at Rayman. ‘Would you excuse us for a moment.’

  Rayman sat at his desk for half an hour watching the door to the editor’s office. Eventually it opened and Sir Bradshaw appeared. Rayman seized the opportunity and headed towards Mirren’s door.

  Mirren sat at his desk massaging his brow. He leant back in his chair and stared out of the window onto the street below.

  ‘What did he say?’ Rayman asked.

  ‘We cannot run the article, we are to stop running any articles on the missing plane.’

  ‘But why, who were those two men?’

  ‘I don’t know?’

  ‘Sir Alfred is the most powerful newspaper owner in the country how can those two idiots order him around?’

  ‘Sir Alfred is a closet homosexual.’ Mirren revealed.

  ‘What?’ Rayman gasped.

  ‘He just told me.’

  Rayman sat silent waiting for Mirren to speak.

  ‘Those two Americans knew everything about him. They have pictures of him with young men in a Soho brothel. They showed up at his London flat this morning and told him to stop any stories about what happened to the missing plane. They showed him a load of pictures of him engaged in acts of depravity. He had no choice but to come here and order us to stop running the front page. If he didn’t then the pictures they showed him would be circulated. Sir Bradshaw’s reputation would be destroyed. He would be convicted of being a homosexual and set to prison. He swore me to secrecy.’

  ‘But you’ve just told me.’

  ‘I want you to know the lengths these men will go to in order to keep people quiet.’ Mirren paused. ‘Men of power usually come with skeletons in their cupboards and Sir Alfred has plenty of them.’

  ‘Is there nothing we can do to change his mind?’ Rayman asked. ‘Surely he knows enough people to ensure those pictures never see the light of day.’

  Mirren shook his head. The man is about to be given a Lordship George, he couldn’t risk it.’

  ‘Then we’re dead in the water.’

  ‘Yes.’

  Rayman thought for a moment. ‘Where is Dorothy Kilgallen?’

  ‘On loan to the Guardian at the moment, why?’

  ‘She’s American, it stands to reason she may know who those two thugs are.’

  Mirren massaged his brow again. ‘George we can’t run the story, those two Americans will shut us down. I’ll never work in this town again. You’ll be lucky if you’ll end up writing penny dreadfuls.’

  ‘I’m not suggesting we do, but we can at least try and find out who is trying to cover up what happened to that plane. There must be someone who knows something. Dorothy has a lot of contacts. If anyone can find out who those men were it’s her.’

  Mirren eventually nodded.

  ‘What about Laker?’

  ‘What about him?’

  ‘I could go and see him, see if we wants to stick to his story.’

  ‘You could.’ Mirren replied. ‘And then there is a possibility those two Americans could be keeping tabs on us. If they can blackmail Sir Alfred then they wouldn’t have any trouble dealing with a newspaper journalist.’

  ‘I’ll take that risk.’ Rayman said. ‘If we can get hold of any kind of information then it will give us an edge.’

  ‘Ok, you go and speak to Laker, I’ll contact Dorothy.’

  Chapter 40

  British United Airlines – Central London – 4:13pm

  Rayman had been standing in the same spot for an hour. On arriving at British United Airlines he had been ushered out of the building when he asked to see Fred Laker. Rayman checked his watch and decided to head back to the Examiner. He was about to move when he spotted Laker exiting the building. Rayman jogged across the street. ‘Mr Laker!’

  Laker was about to get into a waiting car but Rayman blocked his path.

  ‘What are you doing, o
ut of my way!’ Laker demanded.

  ‘I need to speak to you about your visit to my newspaper this morning.’

  ‘I have nothing to say!’ Laker snapped.

  ‘You had plenty to say this morning.’

  Laker’s eyes darted about the street. ‘Look I’m very busy I don’t want to talk to you.’ Laker tried to side step Rayman.

  ‘They got to you didn’t they?’ Rayman said noting the look in Laker’s face.

  ‘What are you talking about man?’

  ‘The Americans, they showed up this morning after you visited the Examiner and threatened you.’

  Laker’s driver got out of the car and grabbed Rayman’s arm.

  ‘Mr Laker you must talk to me about what happened to BUA 632. What happened to that plane Mr Laker.’

  Rayman was pulled away from the car door.

  ‘You can’t just dismiss seventy six lives Mr Laker. The families of the victims deserve an explanation.’

  Laker’s car Sped away.

  London Evening Examiner – Fleet Street – 5:46pm

  Rayman closed the door behind him. ‘That was a waste of time.’

  ‘They’ve obviously got to Laker.’ Mirren speculated. ‘I’ve just finished updating Dorothy on the morning’s event.’

  ‘Sounds like you fellas have had quite the adventure.’

  ‘Any clue who they were?’

  ‘They’re cheerily call the men in black.’

  ‘They did remind me of a couple of undertakers.’ Rayman commented with a half smile.

  Dorothy looked at him. ‘It’s no laughing matter George.’ She replied sternly. ‘From what I have experienced any encounter with these guys doesn’t end well.’

  ‘So who exactly are they, these men in black?’ Mirren asked.

  ‘They work for a private security company called Stovocore Global Security.’

  Mirren shook his head musing over what she had just told him. ‘Never heard of them.’

  ‘That’s because they operate below the radar. These guys are nasty. They are more of an intelligence gathering network than security. Their role is usually to harass people who have had encounters with UFOs or any other strange phenomena. Stovocore has been around for decades they’re a rival company to the Pinkertons. It was set up by Joseph Barnes in 1892. His son Jacob Barnes now runs the company.’

  ‘Jacob Barnes.’ Mirren said. ‘You’ve mentioned him briefly on a number of occasions.’

  Dorothy nodded. ‘Believe me when I say this, these guys are experts on digging up dirt on people. They have listening posts everywhere. There is nothing that these guys don’t know, if you have a past these guys will find it out. They have destroyed the careers of politicians and other men of power. Jacob Barnes uses them as his own private army.’

  Mirren glanced at Rayman. ‘That would explain Sir Alfred.’

  ‘If you say they harass people who have had encounters with flying saucers. Then why have they turned up here at the Examiner?’

  ‘The missing plane.’ Dorothy mentioned. ‘The Examiner isn’t the only one to have been gagged over the missing airliner.’

  ‘Explain.’ Mirren said.

  ‘Before you called me I was having a meeting with the editor of the Guardian. He had just received a phone call off the air accident governing body. They had ordered him not to publish any news stories regarding BUA 632 until further investigation into the crash had been carried out. It turns out that every newspaper has been ordered to hold off printing any news articles regarding the missing airliner. My Guess is that what ever happened to that aircraft had something to do with UFOs.’

  ‘Do you think it was involved in a collision?’ Rayman asked.

  Dorothy shook her head. ‘If there had been a collision then it would have been easier to cover up. The newspapers would have been allowed to photograph wreckage. As long as it didn’t contain anything exotic like the remains of a flying saucer. This is something else something much more serious.’

  Rayman took a deep breath. ‘So basically we’re back to square on we have nothing. Laker doesn’t want to talk anymore and the one man we really want to speak to has done a vanishing act.’

  ‘If the guy you are friends with has done a vanishing act then he needs to stay vanished.’

  ‘Why?’

  ‘If the men in black find him then he’ll vanish permanently.’

  ‘They’ll kill him?’

  Dorothy nodded. ‘There are three main types of men in black. Those who’s job it is to persuade witnesses of UFO sightings to keep quiet. Those who dig up dirt on people and use it to blackmail them into keep quiet about what they know. And then there are the kill squads, men who’s key role is to eliminate anyone who is considered as a threat to national security. People who have had direct contact with UFOs or someone who has obtained damning evidence that could prove without doubt the government are covering up the truth.’

  ‘And you know this how?’ Mirren asked with growing skepticism.

  ‘Have you guys ever heard of Roswell?’

  Rayman shook his head.

  ‘I believe it’s a town in the New Mexico desert.’ Mirren said. ‘I remember a fiasco about a flying disc recovered several miles outside the town. But the military said it was some sort of experimental weather balloon. Any rumors of flying saucers quickly dissolved.’

  ‘Yes but a few months after that so-called flying disc fiasco occurred military forces throughout the continental United States were put on high alert. I was in New Mexico looking into a story about Nazi scientists working at a missile range. The alert only lasted a few hours but in that time hundreds of aircraft had been scrambled to intercept multiple UFOs.’

  ‘How an earth do you know all this.’ Mirren asked.

  ‘I have my contacts Bill.’ Dorothy replied. ‘Anyway I managed to acquire a reel of film containing what was possibly the best evidence that the US government are covering up the truth about flying saucers. A huge craft of unknown origin suddenly appeared at White Sands missile range and hovered over the area for an hour. Two local boys sneaked on to the base and filmed the whole thing.’

  ‘I take it you still have the film.’ Mirren said.

  ‘No, I managed to get hold of the film reel and handed in to my editor at the New York Times. We were going to go national with the story, but Stovocore pulled the plug and the film reel vanished. A few days after I had a visit from the men in black who threatened me to keep quiet.’

  ‘Another dead end.’ Rayman said.

  Mirren took a deep breath. ‘So we have nothing.’

  ‘These guys are experts in hiding the truth Bill. If something has happened to that airliner and it has something to do with UFOs then the story will never see the light of day.’

  Mirren yawned. ‘Well that’s it I’m pulling the plug on this.’

  ‘There must be something we can do.’ Rayman said.

  ‘George it’s been a long day.’ Mirren yawned again. ‘I’m tired, we have nothing to go on, lets just call it quits. If the national press has been gagged then there is very little we can do about it.’

  ‘Stovocore has its fingers in every political and business pie, they no everything. Any information regarding that missing airliner will be filtered and altered so that no one knows anything.’

  Mirren grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair. ‘That’s it then, I’m off home.’ He looked at Rayman. ‘I would do the same George, from what we have experienced today it’s better to just leave it.’

  Chapter 41

  Tanner Street – Southwark – London – 7:04pm

  Rayman turned the key in the lock and pushed the door open. He walked into the small kitchen and poured himself a glass of water.

  ‘George.’ A voice called out from the kitchen door.

  Rayman spun around and stared at the man standing in front of him. ‘Alan thank god, where the hell have you been I have been looking all over for you.’

  ‘I climbed in through the back windo
w, I had nowhere to go.’

  ‘Were you on duty as Stanstead last night?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘What happened?’

  ‘The plane just vanished from the radar screen.’

  ‘It just vanished.’

  Parker nodded.

  ‘Did you see anything else?’

  ‘No, there was nothing else on the scope. The pilot just kept saying that there was another aircraft tailing them.’

  ‘What kind of aircraft?’

  ‘He described it as a long cylindrical shaped craft. It was approximately two thousand feet above his plane. I told him to reduce his height.’

  ‘What happened next?’

  ‘The pilot said that the other aircraft had also reduced its height. The last thing I heard was the pilot making a mayday call. I called it in to my supervisor.’

  ‘Why did you run?’

  ‘When I came in to work this morning there were men in black suits all over the place. Interviewing tower staff. I panicked. From the look of them they weren’t part of the airline company. So I ran, I came here.’

  Rayman nodded contemplating his next move. ‘Ok we’ll go into the living room, you need to tell me everything. I’ll write it all down.’

  8:57pm

  Dorothy Kilgallen sat listening intensely as Parker relayed his story. ‘And you’re sure the pilot said that there was another aircraft up there with him?’

  ‘Parker nodded.’

  ‘What do you think?’ Rayman asked.

  ‘I think we need to get you to a different location.’ Dorothy replied looking at Parker. ‘Stovocore will be gunning for you.’

  ‘I’m open to suggestions.’

  ‘I have an apartment I keep across town for such occasions.’ Dorothy replied. ‘You can stay there until the heat dies down.’

  ‘But we need to get this story out into the open Dorothy, the world needs to know that flight 632 didn’t crash, it vanished.’

  ‘The world will know, but Stovocore will be out looking for Mr Parker. We need to get him to a safe location then rally the troops.’

  Chapter 42