He risked a glance over his shoulder.
The cars had reached the village, had passed the pub at the far end, and were speeding towards the start of the quay.
Dan gritted his teeth, swung the boat past the last vessel in the harbour, and opened the throttle.
The craft bounced over the swell of the waves, the engine humming as it powered through the current and out past the harbour wall, the tiny village receding quickly.
Dan finally allowed himself to breathe, switched on the running lights, and rubbed at his eyes.
He had enough fuel to reach the Spanish coastline. After that, he’d need to refuel and move on, in case the British authorities decided to alert Interpol to his exploits.
Somehow, he suspected they wouldn’t, that they’d deal with their issues out of the prying gaze of their European counterparts, especially given the Prime Minister’s agenda, but he’d have to be careful until he knew for sure.
He pulled out the mobile phone from his jeans pocket that Mel had given him, the one she’d assured him couldn’t be traced as it had no GPS capabilities, and hit speed dial.
‘It’s me.’
He closed his eyes as Sarah’s voice washed over him, her initial anger turning to concern and fear as he quickly told her what had happened.
‘I have to go away for a while,’ he explained, coughing to try and conceal the break in his voice. ‘I don’t know how long.’
He wiped angrily at his eyes and then sniffed. ‘I’ll call you, okay? It might take me a while to sort things out, but I’ll call you. I promise.’
He ended the call and then punched in another number.
David answered before the phone could ring twice.
‘Is it done?’
‘It wasn’t me.’
‘What happened?’
‘There was someone else there. He took the kill shot.’
‘Who?’
‘I don’t know. He got away by motorbike. Did you know Evans was going to be there?’
‘He announced he was going to accompany Malikov back here, yes.’
‘Who else knew about Malikov’s involvement?’
David was silent for a moment. ‘I couldn’t tell you at the time. We suspected the Kremlin might have a team in place.’
‘But you still let me go, knowing they were there?’
‘Would you have reconsidered if I’d told you?’
Dan clenched his jaw before he exhaled. ‘Probably not. Are the others still with you?’
David paused. ‘No. No, they’re in the next room.’
‘But you can’t be sure they’re not listening, right?’
David sighed. ‘We were told you’ve been shot. Is that true?’
Dan peered down at the blood that was beginning to congeal on his shoulder. ‘Yeah. I got shot. One of Evans’s team got me when they went after the sniper.’
‘How bad is it?’
‘Bad enough.’
‘We need to get you to a medic,’ urged David. ‘How soon can you be here?’
Dan held the phone away from his ear and glanced over his shoulder at the receding coastline.
‘I’m done, David,’ he said eventually.
A silence stretched for what seemed an age before his superior spoke again.
‘What do you mean “done”?’
‘Innocent people lost their lives today.’
‘Porchester wasn’t an innocent,’ said David. ‘He got greedy.’
‘It doesn’t change anything.’ Dan made a slight correction of the wheel, his knuckles gripping the metalwork harder than was needed. ‘I can live with trying to kill Malikov, even if someone else beat me to it. What I can’t live with is what we’ve become. We were put together to protect the UK’s energy industry,’ he added. ‘Now it feels like we’re back in the bloody army, taking orders from politicians with their own agendas.’
He swallowed. ‘I used to save lives, David. And I was good at it.’ He sighed. ‘Besides, having me around at the moment probably wouldn’t do the Prime Minister any favours, right?’
‘I’m not sure he’d agree, but you’ve got a point. What are you going to do?’
‘Keep my head down for a bit.’
‘Is that a good idea?’
Dan heard the concern in the other man’s voice. ‘It’s the only idea I’ve got at the moment.’
‘Where are you?’
Dan couldn’t help smiling as he imagined David sitting forward in his chair at his old desk, brow furrowed.
‘Best you don’t know.’
‘Deniable, you mean.’
‘Something like that. You still want a career, right?’
‘Is there a way I can reach you?’
Dan closed his eyes. ‘This number should work for a while.’
‘It doesn’t look good, running like this,’ David persisted.
Dan shivered. ‘I’m not going to a military prison while they argue over whether I’m right or wrong regarding Porchester’s death or for going after Malikov,’ said Dan. ‘The man deserved it. That’s good enough for me. I’ll let you and Evans decide if you want to pursue the Kremlin over that one.’
‘I can cover for you this time, but if you run, I can’t protect you. You’ll no longer be part of the EPG, understand?’
David’s voice was gruff and Dan could tell the man was trying to keep his emotions in check.
‘Understood.’
‘Where’s Mitch by the way?’
Dan’s mouth twitched. ‘Where did you locate the Prime Minister’s car?’
‘What do you mean? You know where the bloody car was,’ snapped David. ‘Still at the farm. We’ve ordered a tow truck to transport it to Hendon for forensic analysis. Why?’
‘You might want to check the trunk first.’
‘Wh –’
‘Yeah. Tell him I’m sorry, but it was the only thing I could think of to keep him out of harm’s way.’
‘He’s not going to be happy,’ said David, vainly trying to keep laughter from his voice. ‘I may send someone else to go get him.’
‘That’s probably wise,’ agreed Dan. ‘Will he be okay?’
‘Yes,’ David assured him. ‘You overpowered him, right? Resisted arrest, as it were?’
‘Yeah. Yes, I did.’
‘Then he’ll be okay.’ David’s voice had turned serious once more. ‘Stay in touch, all right? You’ll contact me if you need help, right?’
‘Right,’ said Dan. ‘I’ll be seeing you.’
He ended the call before David could answer or try again to coerce him back to London. He checked the boat’s heading and then slid open the cabin door and stepped out onto the deck.
Spray from the swell beside the hull splashed his jeans, puddles of water forming at his feet as he stood still, his arms at his side.
Dan swallowed, the reality of his situation hitting him hard.
‘I’m a bloody fugitive,’ he murmured. ‘Shit.’
As the moon crested the horizon to his left, he swung his arm in a wide arc, releasing the mobile phone from his grip. He watched as it spun in the air before dropping into the deep water, and then he stripped out of his clothing and threw his boots into the water, just in case Mel had fitted a tracking beacon on those as well.
He wouldn’t put it past her.
‘You’re not going to find me, David,’ he muttered and hurried back to the cabin, slamming the door behind him.
He knelt, reached under a bench seat, and pulled out a canvas bag. He unzipped it and unfolded clean clothes. A fresh pair of boots was the last item he extracted before he kicked the bag out of the way and returned his attention to the helm.
After he pulled on his jeans, he checked the boat was still on course and then pulled out a drawer set under the wheel and picked up the first aid kit that he’d always kept on board for emergencies.
He cleaned and dressed his shoulder as best he could, pushed the first aid kit back into the drawer, and then leaned on the wheel and po
inted the boat south.
Dan peered over his shoulder, unable to take his eyes off the coastline as England slowly slipped over a darkening horizon.
‘I’ll come back,’ he said, as the last glimpse of land dipped out of sight. He clenched his fists.
‘One day, I’ll come back. I promise.’
THE END
From the Author
Thanks for purchasing and reading Three Lives Down - I hope you enjoyed it. A lot of people don't realise that the best way to help an author is to write a review - if you did enjoy this story, please return to the site you downloaded it from and leave a few words.
I love hearing from readers and other authors alike, so if you'd like to stay in touch, hear about great competitions to win free books, and be the first to find out about forthcoming novels, why not drop by my website and sign up for my spam-free mailing list at www.rachelamphlett.com
Thank you - and I look forward to hearing from you.
Also by the Author in this Series
WHITE GOLD
A conspiracy to destroy alternative energy research... a global organisation killing to protect its interests... and a bomb that will change the face of terrorism forever...
Would you know who to trust?
When Sarah Edgewater’s ex-husband is murdered by a radical organisation hell-bent on protecting their assets, she turns to Dan Taylor – geologist, ex-soldier, and lost cause. Together, they must unravel the research notes Sarah’s ex-husband left behind to locate an explosive device which is circumnavigating the globe towards London – and time is running out.
In a fast-paced ecological thriller which spans the globe, from London to Brisbane and back via the Arctic Circle, Dan and Sarah aren’t just chasing the truth – they’re chasing a bomb which, if detonated, will change the future of alternative energy research and the centre of England’s capital forever.
ISBN: 978-0-646-57340-3
UNDER FIRE
An explosion rocks a Qatari natural gas facility… a luxury cruise liner capsizes in the Mediterranean… and someone has stolen a submarine…
Are the events connected?
Dan Taylor doesn’t believe in coincidences – all he has to do is convince his superiors they are next in the terrorists’ line of fire.
As Britain enters its worst winter on record, Dan must elude capture to ensure the country’s energy resources are protected. At all costs.
In an action-packed adventure, from the Middle East through the Mediterranean to London, Dan and his team are on a quest which will test every choice he makes. Assisted by the exotic Antonia Almasi, Dan realises he faces an adversary far greater than he ever imagined.
And not everyone is going to survive.
ISBN: 978-0-9922685-1-0
Three Lives Down (A Dan Taylor thriller) Page 27