by Conrad Jones
“One?” The farmer shook his head and laughed. “I thought you were bringing three. Are you getting slow in your old age?”
“Something like that,” Dava laughed.
“Who’s this?” The man looked at Griff and stopped laughing.
“He’s one of us,” Dava said seriously. “We did a few gigs in the desert together.”
“Okay, let’s dispose of the problem, shall we?” The farmer waved the vehicle into the barn and closed the doors behind it. The sound of the dogs barking faded as they clanged shut. “Drive it over there.”
“Will do,” Dava saluted and pulled the van further into the building.
“This looks like a slaughterhouse.” Griff looked around. There were stainless-steel chains hanging from an overhead track. Huge hooks dangled from the chains, waiting for the farmer to fix animal carcasses to them. “I like your style,” he repeated.
“There will do.” The farmer banged on the back of the van and Dava killed the engine. “Pop him on there.”
“Let’s get this done,” Dava turned to Griff and climbed into the back of the van. Griff jumped out of the passenger door and walked around to the back doors. “Fucking hell, he’s starting to stink already.” The back of the van smelled of urine and excrement. The thick cloying smell of the corpse was beginning to evade the carpet roll. The sphincter muscles in the dead body had relaxed, and the stinking contents of the intestinal tract were beginning to leak out.
“Grab that end,” the farmer grunted at Griff as the doors opened. Dava lifted the body from inside the van and they struggled to edge it to the tail of the vehicle.
“Yes, Sir,” Griff replied sarcastically. He didn’t like taking orders from anyone. “What do I call you anyway?”
“Sir is fine,” the farmer replied abruptly.
“Okay, after three. One, two, three,” Dava heaved the body toward the other two men and then jumped down onto the slaughterhouse floor. Deep gutters collecting the blood and waste ran through the concrete.
“Plonk him on here,” the farmer said. He moved toward a stainless-steel slab, with a drain hole at one end. They lifted the carpet roll onto the metal table and un-wrapped the hapless gangster.
“Nice work,” the farmer said, looking at the cable tie cutting deep into the victim’s neck. The face and head had swollen to a hideous size, and the eyeballs looked like they would pop out at any moment.
“You never lose it, do you?” Dava laughed. Griff didn’t laugh. He looked David Lorimar up and down. The farmer caught his expression and Griff looked away nervously.
“What’s up with you?” The farmer asked.
“There’s nothing wrong with me, mate,” Griff grunted. “Is that it?” He asked Dava.
“Yes, that’s it.”
“I’ll wait in the van.” Griff turned and walked away.
“Thanks for that.” Dava handed the farmer an envelope. There was no need to check the money inside. It would be an insult to count it. Trust was everything to men like them.
“How are things really, Dava?” The farmer shook his hand and looked him sternly in the eye. “Aren’t you getting a bit old for this shit?”
“Maybe, Luke.” Dava returned his look. They had shared some dangerous experiences in the Republic of Congo. “When we retired from the service, I thought I had enough money to keep me going.” He shrugged his shoulders and looked down at the floor.
“I thought you had done okay out of it all?” Luke asked. “I saved enough money to start a legitimate business and live comfortably without getting involved in this nonsense.”
“I fucked it all up,” David Lorimar answered. “I squandered a lot on women and beer, as you do. The rest I invested into a diamond deal.” He gave a wry smile.
“What? Don’t tell me you did a deal in the Congo?”
“Yes, it’s a bit embarrassing, really. I should have known better than to trust those evil bastards, but that’s the way it goes.”
“How could you fall for that old chestnut?”
“I know, I can’t believe I did it now, but hindsight is a great thing, Luke.” Dava stopped smiling. “Do you remember Squire?”
“Yes, he was a guide from the Congo regulars, wasn’t he?”
“That’s him.” Dava nodded. “He set it all up. He assured us that the diamonds were coming from a government shipment they were going to hit in transit. They fucked it up, and he ended up dangling from a crane jib with his bollocks stuffed in his mouth.”
“How much did you lose?”
“Two hundred big ones between the three of us,” Dava chuckled sourly.
“So what are you going to do?” Luke looked concerned. “Have you thought about doing another tour?”
“It has crossed my mind, but my passport is marked. I went out to Afghanistan and turned back at Kabul airport. That cost me two grand to get fucked off!”
“Sounds like you’re on your arse, mate.”
“Well, I make a few bob selling reactivated gear to wannabe gangsters, and then there’s always this line of work. Once this deal is done, I am out of it, Luke.”
“Well, if you want to make a few quid, I’m looking at a stud farm near Delamere.” Luke raised his eyebrows. “I’m looking for a partner to come in with me.”
“Horses?”
“Horses and cattle, good money in it, Dava.” Luke patted him on the back. “You could leave this shit behind you.” He pointed to the dead man on the table.
“I’m in.” Dava held out his hand again. There was genuine respect in their touch. “Thanks, Luke.”
“How well do you know that guy?” Luke nodded to the van. Griff was looking at them through the passenger window. When they looked at him, he looked away.
“Well enough to know he won’t blab if anything goes Pete Tong.”
“Be careful, Dava.” Luke lowered his voice. “I’m telling you now that he’s a wrong one. Just watch your back.”
“You worry too much. I can look after myself,” Dava walked toward the van. “I’ll be in touch.”
“Move fast and stay low, Dava.”
“Yes, you too, and watch your corners, Luke.”
Luke watched the van reversing out of the barn. He had a bad feeling about his friend’s associate. He picked up a large meat cleaver and got to work dismembering the body. It took less than fifteen minutes to remove the limbs and the head from the torso. The remains fitted into the funnel of an industrial grinder. He turned Jackson into mincemeat and fed him to his herd of pigs. The pigs were destined for the organically reared meat counter in a large supermarket, and there the DNA trail would end.
Chapter Fourty One
Jinx
Jinx made his mind up and decided to call off the hit on Dean Hines. His kids were critical in a high dependency ward, and that didn’t sit right with him. The Leon problem wasn’t going to go away, but he had to leave Dean out of it for now. He called David Lorimar again, but his telephone clicked straight to voicemail. Dean was at the hospital, and that was where David Lorimar would go. Jinx had to get there before it was too late. He picked up his car keys and grabbed his leather jacket. He was breaking all the rules calling his hit man at all, but he wanted Dean left alone. Jinx couldn’t text in case Dava was in custody. They could explain a call, but a specific text message would incriminate him. He had no choice but to go to the Royal and wait for David Lorimar to turn up.
Chapter Forty-Two
Kisha
Patrick Lloyd disappeared into his house. Kisha wasn’t convinced that he was linked to the murder in any way, but she needed to cross him off the key holder lists. The sooner she investigated the names on the list, the sooner she could join the bulk of the team in the real detective work. She needed to be away from that clown Stevie. He was a creep. The fact that he leered at her was bad enough, but worse still, he was a poor detective. It was procedure for detectives to work a six-month probationary period in plain clothes before they were offered a permanent position. If they were
n’t up to the job, then the force returned them back to the uniformed division. Kisha doubted Stevie would pass his probation, and she was convinced he would end up walking the beat. If she had to clear the key holder list on her own, then she would. She followed Patrick into the house without hesitation. Her instincts told her to press on and remove Patrick Lloyd from the list.
“Shut the door behind you, please. My central heating system is an antique.” Patrick called as he reached the kitchen and turned to see if Kisha was coming in. He was laughing as he spoke. “It’s like burning twenty pound notes, keeping this place warm.” He smiled as he went out of sight into the living room. Patrick did not have the demeanour of a worried man.
“I know the feeling,” Kisha said as she shut the front door. “My boiler is ancient and it burns fuel like a steam train. It sounds like one at times, too!”
“Oh, tell me about it,” Patrick said from the other room. “The knocking pipes in here keep me awake some nights. It sounds like someone is banging them with a lump hammer.”
Kisha looked around the hallway and up the staircase. She had developed the habit since becoming a police detective. Her brain analysed information as she scanned the decor and furniture, the pictures and photographs, and made lightning fast assumptions about the house owner. It was by no means a science, but gut feeling counted in her job. On the face of things, the place was well kept and decorated with taste. The walls were smooth plaster painted in neutral beige, and the pictures were scenic black and white images of the ocean and seashore somewhere. There was a fragrance plug halfway down the hallway and the smell of fresh pine pervaded the house. Kisha listened and she could hear Patrick opening a drawer in the next room. He whistled a tuneless song as he rummaged.
“I know I have them here somewhere,” he chirped. “I’m terrible for keeping things. I can’t throw anything away.”
She walked down the hallway toward the living room door and peered into the kitchen. It was spotless. The stainless sink was shining and the kitchen worktops gleamed. Patrick kept a tidy house. She looked around the kitchen quickly, noting that he had locked and bolted the back door. Through the window, she could see that his backyard was walled, and that the previous owners had topped the walls with broken glass set into concrete. It had been standard practice in the sixties and seventies to protect your yard with shards of broken bottles and jars. The deserted street would have been full of children playing hopscotch back then, and every house would have housed a family. She could almost hear their ghostly voices echoing from the aging walls. Generations of families had been born and raised in this area. Now it was a crumbling mess.
When she turned toward the living room door, Patrick Lloyd smashed his fist into her nose. Blinding lights flashed in her brain. She tasted blood at the back of her throat, and then darkness closed in on her.
Chapter Forty-Three
Griff Collins
David Lorimar tried to sleep for a few hours, but his mind was racing with ideas of turning into a legitimate member of society. Luke could be his ticket out of this dangerous world he lived in and the chance to move into a safer life. He needed to put his thoughts aside and then move on with the job. The money Jinx would pay him would be enough to invest in the business with Luke and pay his rent for the next few years.
Today he was planning to kill Dean Hines, and he had finally traced him to the Royal Liverpool hospital. He would need to use a disguise today. Dava drove to a lockup a few miles away from his house, changed vehicles and clothes and picked up Griff on the way to the next hit.
“How come you’re late?” Griff moaned as he belted up.
“I encountered a few hurdles. Here, put this on,” Dava answered irritably as he passed him a freshly laundered green uniform. “Put your clothes in the bag.”
“Okay, I know shit happens, and now I have to dress up,” Griff grunted. “Who are we after?”
“His name is Dean Hines,” Dava answered. Griff had made his way further into the circle of trust on the Jackson job, so there was little point in being secretive. “He proved difficult to find.”
“How come?” Griff asked.
“He hasn’t been at home.” Dava tapped his nose. “Found him in the end though.”
They weaved through traffic on the way across the city. It was an uneventful thirty- minute drive to the huge hospital close to the city centre. As they circled the building, Dava said, “He’s parked his car outside the Royal, but there’s no sign of him yet.”
“He must be inside,” Griff commented.
“He must be either sick, or visiting someone,” Dava nodded. “It’s time to sit tight and wait.”
David Lorimar parked opposite the hospital away from the CCTV cameras watching the car parks. The hospital was busy, and there were several exits and entrances around the building.
“It will be difficult to monitor them all simultaneously,” Griff said as they parked. “There are more exits at the side there, where we can’t see. I don’t like hanging about.”
“I can see Dean’s vehicle from this position.” David Lorimar smiled. “We can see his car and three of the exits from here.” He was an experienced mercenary, and this was second nature to him. “Waiting for our target is all part of the job.”
“It’s a pain in the arse and a waste of time, in my opinion.”
“Shut up,” Dava said sourly. “You know the score. In Africa, I waited two weeks one time for a target to surface.”
“Two weeks?”
“Two weeks dug into a hole in the jungle with one canteen of water and a bag of beef jerky to live on,” Dava recalled. “I was close to giving up when the target arrived.”
“Fuck that for a game of soldiers,” Griff scoffed. “You should have gone back to base and then gone back after dinner. The bloke would have turned up eventually.”
“It was a woman.” Dava turned to see his colleague’s reaction. Griff looked at him and sneered.
“I like your style,” he nodded and looked out of the window, thinking. “How come she was a target?”
“She was a western journalist causing problems with the whale huggers,” Dava smiled. “The government wanted her silenced.”
“Did it pay well?”
“Yes, it paid.”
“Did you ask for a bonus for sitting in a hole for two weeks?”
“It was all part of the job, tracking, waiting and then moving in for the kill,” Dava bragged. He was proud of his experiences abroad. “Did you ever work any cleaning jobs?”
“No, never did any hits abroad. It was all close protection work mostly.”
“Mostly?” Dava laughed.
“You know the score,” Griff smiled. “There were a few people who needed removing from circulation, but it was never a sanctioned hit. It just made life easier.”
“Nothing wrong with taking out the bad guys,” Dava said as he watched the hospital.
“They were not always bad guys,” Griff grunted. “Sometimes our employers didn’t want to pay some of the foreign mercenaries. It was cheaper to take them out than to pay them.”
“Doesn’t sound like cricket to me?” Dava looked at him. Maybe Luke was right about Griff.
“It happens. You know it does.”
“I couldn’t take out someone I had worked with.”
“Everyone has a price.”
“I suppose they do,” Dava agreed grudgingly, although it didn’t feel right. It was a complicated world when fighting for money rather than a belief. He decided to change the subject. “Did you ever work in Africa?”
“No, never did,” Griff yawned as he looked around. They were in a quiet spot. “Africa must have been difficult. Murder over there is part of everyday life though. Big difference here is masking the murder.”
“Yes, it’s different alright.”
“Easier over there, I think,” Griff scoffed. “In the jungle you could leave your kill dead where they lay, no one would go hunting for you, right?”
; “It’s never easy.” The comment irritated Dava.
“Depends.”
“Depends on what?”
“This is not a war zone.” Griff pointed out of the window as he spoke. “You can’t assassinate in public without recrimination. Murderers are sent to prison for life. It’s much harder here. No one gives a shit over there.”
“I’m aware of that.”
“You have to be careful here.”
“I am careful.”
“You have to be good here.”
“I’m good, too.”
“Here you have to kill without being seen,” Griff waffled on. “Killing Dean Hines will be simple enough, but the skill is in making him disappear.”
“Thanks for the input, but you’re getting on my tits now,” Dava grumbled. He knew what he was doing. No one would see them take Dean, and no one would find his body. Vanishing people was an art form he had perfected over time. Today he and Griff were dressed in paramedic’s uniforms. His estate car was an ambulance fast response unit with a green and yellow-checked pattern.
“Where did you get the car?” Griff asked looking into the rear of the estate car. “I like your style,” he added sarcastically.
“I picked it up from an insurance right-off company. Ambulances always come in handy.”
“It’s a coincidence that the target is at the hospital, but a convenient one,” Griff smirked.
“It’s not a coincidence. I found out where he was and planned the pickup. Planning works, believe me.” Dava didn’t look at his associate as he spoke. He was getting on his nerves. “When we’re ready to take Dean Hines, we render him unconscious, and it will be simple to put him in the back of an ambulance vehicle unnoticed.”
“No one will see him because it’s normal, too normal to remember,” Griff chuckled. “I like your style.”
“Something like that,” Dava muttered. He thought Dean would be minced and fed to the prize pigs before the night was out. Dava checked his phone. He had three missed calls from Jinx. Something must have gone wrong. There was no way Jinx should contact him while a job was running. “Shit.”