The Winter House
Page 33
‘It appears the safety was off,’ Fulton said, with an expression of mild surprise showing through a fine veil of smoke. ‘Awfully loud, those things. Louder than you’d expect from the television. You can hear them for miles. Do pipe down, inspector. You’re not going to die. Unless you go into shock. Try not to go into shock – it’ll ruin things if you die.’
‘What’s going on here?’ Seth said.
‘I think Leonard, here, is after the same thing I’ve been after. The thing that was promised to me by Dan Grainger, for safekeeping. The Grail haul. Heroin, isn’t it? Lots of heroin. At least eight figures’ worth. We were quite close, Dan Grainger and I. Had our disputes – what neighbours don’t? – but we trusted each other and got very friendly. He asked me a favour, and I was prepared to grant him it. He wanted to hide his drugs in a pile of dung. Might throw the dogs off the scent, you see. In return he guaranteed me a percentage. Now I won’t lie, I’m not poor, but farming is a fragile game. I’m sure you see my predicament. You have to diversify these days. So I did. I was prepared to help.
‘But then he had a better idea. Except he didn’t tell me what it was, which is a shame, because Inspector Leonard here, and the other lads we see strewn around this estate, in one state or another, got to Dan and his son and killed him. But they didn’t find out where the stuff was. I assumed it was off-site. He did mention a car – a classic car. Datsun Cherry. My brother-in-law had one, you know. Anyway, when that car was found, and Seth here became all evasive, I knew there was a chance to make good on what I was promised. Now, here we all are. Where’s the stuff? Crispin – you know where, don’t you?’
Crispin slowly nodded. In the light, his camouflage make-up was somewhat terrifying, stark under the lights. ‘Yes, I do.’
‘That’s good. Crispin is a good lad, you see. Amenable to reason. Bit strange, but who isn’t, these days? Crispin, you’re going to get it for us in a bit.’
Leonard had gone bone-white; he seemed faint; Susie McCracken ran to him and tore off her jacket, wrapping it around his foot. Her hand and the jacket were instantly sodden with blood.
‘He needs to go to hospital, now,’ Susie said.
‘Not yet. He’ll live, as I said. Just support his head, there. He looks a little faint. First, we’ll talk deals. Then we’ll get our stories straight about who fired what gun, and where. Who wants to start with the bidding?’
‘Me,’ Seth said, numbly. ‘I’ve got a little brother. That’s priority one.’
‘Now we’re showing sense,’ Fulton said, grinning.
Vonny began to sob.
EPILOGUE
RAFFLE HOUSE SOLD
By Susie McCracken
The fairy-tale story continues for Vonny and Seth.
Pictured here in the parlour of their completely refurbished house, Britain’s luckiest couple popped the bubbly as they celebrated selling the pile they won in a raffle – to their next door neighbours. Clive and Prill Fulton (pictured inset) stepped in to buy the plot of land from the lucky couple. And Clive said: ‘In a way it’s a shame – we’d formed a close bond in a short space of time. But the plot is one we’ve always admired and it was a delightful opportunity to expand the farm – with luxury accommodation for visitors thrown in.’
‘We’re gutted to be going,’ Vonny admitted, ‘but if anyone can make this plot work for them, it’s Clive and Prill, and we were delighted to give them the opportunity to buy the land.’
Although everyone is tight-lipped about the value of the private deal between the two parties, it is understood that Vonny and Seth are now millionaires.
The house at Brenwood Green is familiar from a series of tragedies and notorious incidents, including the murder-suicide of well-known businessman Dan Grainger and his two sons, and then the shootout that saw hero cop Noel Leonard disarm and kill an entire drugs gang single-handedly, a feat for which he is rumoured to be in line for the George Cross.
‘Some not so nice memories,’ Seth admitted, ‘but we’ll always be glad that we had our dream house, however long.’
This story also marks the last of this reporter’s career with this newspaper. I will now spend some time travelling, but I’d like to place on record my thanks to Detective Inspector Leonard for saving my life, and also my admiration for Vonny and Seth’s fortitude in the wake of a terrible event, as they head off for a new life in the sun.
‘I’m building a new dream house,’ Vonny said. ‘I’ll start from scratch. We’ll do it all over again.’
In other news, it has emerged that a quantity of drugs was what the two rival gangs who clashed in Brenwood Green were looking for. This was recovered by Noel Leonard shortly before he was shot and wounded in the face-off at the house. It is understood to have an estimated street value of around £25,000.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to old friends and new friends - Robbie and Justin, and Holly and Greg. A tip of the hat once more to Helena and the rest of the editorial team at HoZ for picking up on my errors and helping to turn out a smoother dram. And special thanks to the bloggers – too many to mention – who do it for the love of books.
About the Author
P.R. BLACK lives in Yorkshire with his wife and children. He is the author of five thrillers for Head of Zeus, including The Beach House, The Family, The Long Dark Road and The Runner. A sixth is on the way.
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