A New Dawn Rising

by Michael Joseph

  'I waited and waited. Hours passed by. When the guys finally got back to the station, I could see from their faces it had all gone wrong. They told me they'd found the warehouse empty. Not a sniff of the gang or their goods. They had known the meeting was a set-up. I had been right to be suspicious.

  'We were sat in our office at the station. Nobody was saying anything. Everyone was too disappointed to talk. Then my phone rang. A voice on the other end told me to wait for my punishment and hung up. That's all he said. Wait for your punishment.'

  Sam swallowed hard. Lucy squeezed his hand gently.

  'I didn't know what to make of it. Neither did the other blokes. Then, a couple of minutes later, my phone rang again. It was my wife. She was screaming.'

  Lucy gasped sharply.

  'She was screaming for help. Crying and shouting, calling my name out over and over again. I asked her what was wrong. She tried to tell me, but I couldn't make out what she was saying. Her words weren't making any sense. She was too hysterical.'

  Sam had to stop talking for a moment. The emotion was choking him up. He took deep breaths to compose himself. Lucy's head was almost on his shoulder. She wasn't making a sound. She was holding her own breath.

  'Then I heard my daughter screaming as well in the background. The same panic was in her voice. “Daddy, help us!”, she was yelling. My wife and daughter were both begging me for help and there was absolutely nothing I could do. They sounded so scared. They were terrified. I was at my wits end. I kept asking where they were. What was wrong. I managed to catch a few clear words off them. They were in my wife's car. The brakes wouldn't work. They were going down a hill...heading for a junction...'

  Sam paused once more, but he knew he had to finish. He couldn't stop now. He had waited too long to let it out.

  'Then my phone went dead. I tried ringing back but there was nothing. The other guys had gathered around me during the call. I can remember looking at each one of them, not knowing what to do. Where to start searching for my wife and daughter. I saw Walters in the doorway. He had been standing there, listening. He didn't know what to say.

  'An emergency call came over the radio. A multiple pile-up at a busy junction a few miles away. We all went. I knew before we got there it was them. There were three burnt out vehicles at the scene. Some stretchers had been placed on the side of the road. Each one had a body on it with a white sheet over the top. One of the stretchers had a smaller body on it. I knew it was my little girl.'

  All of a sudden, Sam could hear gentle sobbing. He felt a dampness on his shoulder. It was Lucy. Tears were trickling down her face.

  'The others wouldn't let me near the stretchers. They held me back. My mate, Richie, went over to have a look. He knew my wife and daughter well. I watched him from a distance, talking to some of the paramedics. He went from one stretcher to another, pulling the sheet back on each one. After the third one, he walked back over to me. It took him an age, as though he were walking in slow motion. I couldn't wait any longer. I ran up to him and grabbed him by the jacket. There were tears in his eyes. He told me he was so sorry...'

  ***

  Sam sat silent for a long time. He never moved. He just stared down at the carpet, lost in his thoughts. No tears came. He felt no anguish or relief, just emptiness and exhaustion. Lucy shifted her position next to him. He turned his head and looked at her. She had fallen asleep with her head on his shoulder. Her cheeks were still wet.

  Chapter 48

  Sam put the tray down on the table and shook Lucy gently by the shoulder. With some effort, she opened her eyes and looked at him in confusion. Her make-up had smudged in places, and her hair had worked loose into a tangled mess, but looking at her right then, Sam felt a stirring once again in his heart.

  'I'm returning the favour,' he told her. 'Tea and toast. I wasn't sure your stomach would be up to anything more than that.'

  She yawned, rubbed her eyes and stretched out her arms. Sam watched her look of surprise as she realised a duvet was covering her legs and a pillow supporting her head.

  'You have looked after me, haven't you?' she said, giving him a warm smile. 'Where did you sleep?'

  Sam nodded towards the armchair.

  'This is becoming a bit of a habit,' he said. 'Falling asleep in the living-room.'

  Leaving her to eat her breakfast, Sam got a clean set of clothes out of his holdall and went into the bathroom to get changed and freshened up. He gave some thought to the day ahead. It was Sunday, so Lucy wouldn't have work. He wondered what her plans were.

  He returned to the living-room to find her still on the sofa. She had her feet tucked beneath her legs once more and the mug of tea in her hands. Sam was pleased to see her plate was empty. However, she was looking at him pensively.

  'About last night, Sam.'

  'Yeah, that was a bit heavy,' he said with some understatement. 'I didn't mean to offload it-'

  'No, that's okay. I asked you to tell me. I hope talking about it will help.'

  Sam didn't reply. He wanted to change the subject, but he had the feeling she wasn't finished yet.

  'It's just that...'

  He could see she was struggling, afraid to push him too far.

  'There are things you want to ask?' said Sam.

  She gave him a wary look.

  'Only if you want to,' she replied tentatively.

  Sam sighed. It was only natural she would want the whole story.

  Chapter 49

  With some reluctance, Sam told Lucy about his wife, Elizabeth, and their daughter, Danielle. About their life together, and his time apart from them since.

  Elizabeth and himself had been childhood sweethearts. Madly in love, the pair married young and were overjoyed when Danielle arrived in the world. Elizabeth was beautiful, clever and funny. The only woman he had ever loved. Danielle was his little princess. She had inherited her mother's good looks and incredibly dry wit. Sam would listen contentedly for hours as the two women in his life bounced off each other with mischievous humour. But Danielle had also inherited her father's daredevil attitude to life. A trait that made him love her all the more. The three of them were as happy as any family could be.

  If there was one dark cloud on the horizon, then it was Sam's job. It sometimes took him away from home for weeks on end, leaving Elizabeth on tenderhooks, worried about her husband's safety, and causing confusion for their growing daughter. By the time Sam took on the big job down south, he had decided to request a transfer to another department in the force. A position putting less strain on his family. He was contracted for one more year in his undercover role. After that, he was out.

  Then fate cruelly stepped in. By chance, the syndicate he had embedded himself into had an insider within the force. A pen-pusher with a talent for hacking into computer systems. And, as chance would have it, only days before Sam was due to trap the gang, the mole hacked into top-secret police files detailing the undercover operation. Totally unaware he was now known to the gang, Sam continued with his plan. In the meantime, his adversaries drew up one of their own. A ruthless blueprint that would leave the police with egg on their faces and make Sam pay for his audacity.

  The inside man hacked into the system for a second time and sealed the Carlisle's family fate when he uncovered Sam's personal details. In a brutal move that sent lasting shockwaves throughout the police force, the gang cut the brake pipes on Elizabeth's car. The pitiful consolation for Sam was his wife and daughter had most likely been killed instantly on impact. Seven people had perished in total that day as Elizabeth's car helplessly travelled through a red light and piled headlong into busy traffic.

  Sam was immediately placed on compassionate leave to mourn for his wife and ten-year old daughter. As he sat at home, numb with shock, supported by his fellow officers, the police hunted down the men responsible with a vengeance. The gang's inside man was identified and arrested almost immediately, and following the most intense questioning, he soon gave the police the names they wa
nted. In no time at all, every member of the gang had been picked up. Lengthy sentences were handed out to reflect the severity of their crimes. The men responsible for the death of Elizabeth and Danielle would be spending the rest of their lives behind bars.

  None of this made any difference to Sam's world. He had lost everything. The shock gave way to denial, which in turn transformed into ferocious anger. An all-consuming rage that had no focal point. So, he drank and he dreamt. Every day he tried to smother the immense pain of his loss with alcohol. And every night he had nightmares about the two people he cherished the most, his subconscious cruelly envisaging their last terrifying moments. As the weeks passed, his drunken rages wore down even the most sympathetic of colleagues until only Richie was left prepared to put in the hard graft of sitting up all night with him. Putting him to bed. Making sure he ate. Then, in a well-intentioned move, it was suggested by Sam's superiors that he return to work. The idea was to give him back some focus. Occupy his mind. Reluctantly, Sam agreed.

  However, there were two stumbling blocks. His drinking and Walters.

  Allowances were made for his alcohol intake. Mindful of his outstanding previous record, senior officers and colleagues alike agreed Sam just needed time. The booze was his way of getting through the recovery period. It was an approach they were to regret with hindsight. Another decision they came to rue was placing Sam back with his old team. Back with Walters.

  Nobody was to know it, but the only thing holding Sam's interest anymore was Walters and his hatred for the man. In short, Sam blamed him for what happened. He told Walters that if the raid had been called off and the operation scrapped as he had requested, his wife and child may still be alive. It had come to light the gang leaders had furtively watched the police swoop on their premises and only then cut the brakes on Elizabeth's car. Would they have still done so if the operation had been aborted? The guilty men never gave up that information, but the findings were enough to enrage Sam even further.

  Walters, for his part, took it badly. He was humble and apologetic, but it was no good. He had lost the trust and respect of those around him. It was an oversight he was never farmed out far away from those he was perceived to have let down. To put Sam back with him was an even bigger mistake. It didn't take Sam long to mete out his own brand of justice. One day, Walters made a casual remark to him about his timekeeping and that was it. Sam snapped. The physical assault he unleashed on Walters was frenzied and ferocious. It would have been more serious had others not stepped in to drag Sam away.

  That was it for Sam and the police force. Soon after, he found he couldn't stand living in his home anymore. It held too many memories. With time, everything in his life became a stark reminder of happier times. The streets he walked down. The friends he talked to. It all became too suffocating for Sam. He realised he had to cut his ties and break free. Try to start afresh elsewhere.

  Chapter 50

  'How have the nightmares been lately?' asked Lucy. She had listened patiently to Sam's tale, nodding sympathetically whenever she saw him getting particularly frustrated or melancholy.

  Sam considered her question. Had the nightmares changed recently? He thought so but was reluctant to make presumptions.

  'Well, since I met Carl the dreams have been pretty random,' he replied thoughtfully. 'I've seen a lot of different faces, all the people I've come across in the last few days. I still dream about Elizabeth and Danielle, but their images haven't been quite so vivid or horrible. In fact, the last couple of nights, they've been more about Carl's two daughters.'

  Lucy raised her eyebrows.

  'His daughters?' she said. 'What have those dreams been about?'

  'It's as though the girls have replaced my wife and daughter in the dreams,' answered Sam. 'They're scared and asking for help in the same way. It's as though something bad is about to happen to them.'

  Sam watched Lucy trying to make head or tail of it.

  'Perhaps they're in some danger,' she suggested.

  'That crossed my mind,' said Sam, sincerely hoping they were both wrong. 'But that would mean I'm having some sort of premonition, wouldn't it?'

  Lucy shrugged.

  'I really don't know,' she said, giving him a mystified look. 'But if there's one consolation, it seems all this with Carl is taking your mind off the past right now.'

  That made sense to Sam. He also had a theory of his own. One he was reluctant to share with Lucy. He had spent the last two years dreaming about the people he hadn't been able to save. Was it possible the two little girls had appeared in his dreams to give him the opportunity to make amends? Was Elizabeth telling him it was now okay to let go of herself and Danielle. To put all his energy into protecting Katie and Jenny? But if so, if his dreams were telling him to do for them what he couldn't for his family, then what had last night's dream been about?

  Why the nightmare about Lucy?

  Sam had dreamt solely of Lucy last night. Only it hadn't been the nice, pleasant dream he might have hoped for, but a traumatic re-run of the nightmare involving his wife and daughter. As Sam squirmed in his sleep, Lucy screamed endlessly for assistance in his dream. Petrified, she called out his name over and over again, pleading for help. If anything, the image was more realistic than any he had endured over the last two years. So much so that Sam was forced to strangle a scream of his own when the nightmare woke him out of his slumber.

  He then lay awake for the remainder of the night, brooding over his latest nightmare while watching Lucy sleep peacefully on the sofa. Why were the faces changing constantly? Once, they had been as predictable as they were terrifying. If the girls had entered his sub-conscious because they were in danger, then why had their images been replaced? Were they safe now? Most worryingly of all for Sam, did that mean Lucy was going to be in danger?

  Sam Carlisle spent the early morning hours seriously contemplating whether he was losing his mind. Did the dreams mean anything at all, or were they a sign he was verging on some sort of breakdown? Was the combination of stress and alcohol finally taking its toll on his mind?

  Whatever, he said nothing of last night's dream to Lucy.

  Chapter 51

  Sam waited in the living-room while Lucy showered and changed. He had agreed to go into town with her to buy a new charger for her laptop. They were taking her car. The blue Clio seemed the safer option given current circumstances.

  Listening to the shower running in the bathroom, Sam turned his thoughts back to the previous evening. He tried to decipher why the occupants of the Freelander would want to intervene the way they had. The feeling he had was it was more to do with himself than Martyn Taylor and his cronies. A rival gang to Taylor's wouldn't have been interested in saving Sam's skin. And the police, if they had been attracted by the fracas in the car park, definitely wouldn't have waved a gun around like that. Sam had been right about one thing.

  He had definitely been followed yesterday.

  And he was certain the Freelander had been the vehicle tracking him.

  'Well, do I look okay?'

  Sam turned in response to Lucy's voice. She was standing in the doorway, smiling demurely at him, holding a leather jacket. Her hair was down on her shoulders, and she had applied a touch of make-up. She wore a long blouse over skinny jeans.

  Sam thought she looked stunning.

  'It will be my privilege to be seen out with you,' he laughed.

  Lucy curtsied in mock appreciation.

  'Thank you, kind sir,' she said, grinning widely. 'Shall we go?'

  It didn't take Lucy long to find the charger she needed. After making her purchase, they walked through the shopping precinct. Despite the cold weather, the town centre was swarming with people. Lucy took hold of Sam's arm, happily allowing him to lead them through the crowds. It made Sam smile. Was something happening between them? Once again, the thought scared and thrilled him in equal measures.

  Suddenly, she stopped to stare at the building in front of them.

  'Do yo
u realise where we are?' she asked.

  Sam followed her gaze. In front of them was the department store he had come out of the day she was mugged.

  'Yes, I remember,' he replied. 'This is where we first saw each other.'

  He was surprised she wanted to recall that day given what happened to her.

  'We never got the chance to speak to each other, did we?' she said, turning to gaze into his eyes. He felt her fingers interlock lightly with his own.

  'Well, there was a lot-'

  Sam looked back at the store, feeling slightly awkward at the sudden intimacy. His attention was taken by a figure he vaguely recognised.

  'What's the matter?' asked Lucy, noticing his distracted look.

  Sam peered over at a woman leaving the store. It was her. The woman in the photo.

  'That woman over there,' he said, nodding towards the store. 'I've seen her before.'

  He let go of Lucy's hand.

  'Can you wait here a minute?' he asked her.

  Lucy gave him a baffled look and shrugged.

  Sam left her and broke into a jog. He wanted to catch the woman before she disappeared from sight.

  'Excuse me!' he called out. A number of people looked around at him. 'Excuse me!'

  The woman turned his way with a quizzical look on her face. Sam was satisfied it was her. Mid-forties. Dark, curly hair. He wanted to find out more about her.

  'Are you calling me?' she asked, looking about her warily.

  'Er, yes,' he replied hesitantly. 'Sorry to stop you, but I know you from somewhere.'

  She gave him a hard look.

  'Well, I don't mean to be rude, but I don't know you.'

  Sam knew he only had a moment or two before she decided he was some kind of nutcase.

  'Carl Renshaw?' he offered hopefully. 'I worked for Carl.'

  Sam could see in her face the name had triggered something. She was struggling to make the connection.

  'DR Garments?' prompted Sam. 'Carl Renshaw's factory?'