NEARLY DEAD: the prequel to The Child Taker (Detective Alec Ramsay Series Book 0)

by Conrad Jones

  ‘I don’t see any joke here. Nothing about this is funny from where I am sitting.’

  ‘You don’t know what we do for a living?’

  ‘Not really no but whatever it is, it cannot warrant this.’

  ‘It does, believe me.’

  ‘He told me that you were importing and exporting.’ She looked at Chris but he wouldn’t make eye contact with her. ‘Is that not true?’

  ‘You’ve been a little bit flexible with the truth there, haven’t you, Chris?’ Justin chuckled.

  ‘Whatever he has done, it cannot be that bad. Nothing can justify this,’ Rachel challenged him. ‘You burnt down our home for god’s sake!’

  ‘No matter, you won’t be needing it anymore,’ Justin said, an evil grin on his face. He gestured towards the meat grinder. Chris began to struggle against his bonds like a madman possessed. A high-pitched mewing came from behind his gag. ‘You can thank your husband for this. You see in our business, if you become a police informer then you lose everything. Houses, cars, pets, family are all fair game. That is how it stacks up. The rewards are rich but the penalties for betrayal are high. You had a nice house, nice car, nice clothes, didn’t you?’

  ‘Yes but …’

  ‘Where did you think all the money came from?’

  ‘I still don’t understand,’ Rachel sighed. She couldn’t comprehend what was happening. Had he really just gestured to that mincing machine? ‘What has he done that could be so bad?’

  ‘He made a deal with the devil to save himself. Chris decided that your safety, your lives were not as valuable as his liberty. He valued his own freedom as worth more than your life and the life of his own daughter. He’s a fucking lowlife snake.’

  ‘What exactly did he do?’ she whined. She turned on Chris. ‘What the fucking hell did you do?’

  ‘Mummy, stop shouting at Daddy!’

  ‘I’m sorry, darling,’ Rachel said in a soothing voice. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. ‘Please tell me what he has done and how we can fix this.’

  ‘He stabbed us all in the back. He betrayed all of us,’ Justin said, shrugging.

  ‘That means nothing to me. Tell me why we are here? I want to know exactly what has led to us being here like this.’

  ‘He tried to branch out on his own behind our backs but the sneaky bastard got caught, didn’t he?’ Justin said, turning on Chris. ‘Didn’t you?’ Chris nodded that it was true. ‘He was busted by the police with a kilo of cocaine and a gun.’ Rachel turned and scowled at her husband. He couldn’t look her in the eyes anymore. ‘They told him that he would get ten years but he decided that he couldn’t do the time. He turned informer instead.’

  ‘A kilo of cocaine and a gun, Chris?’ Rachel said, incredulous. ‘You had a kilo of cocaine and a gun? I told you that I would never have anything to do with drugs. We have a daughter, you fucking idiot!’

  ‘He has been recording us and filming us and passing on the information to the police, risking your lives every day for fourteen months. He was happy to gamble your wellbeing for his own. What a total selfish bastard, eh?’

  ‘What are you going to do with us?’

  ‘I think the guys behind me have a crush on you.’

  ‘Don’t be so vile!’

  ‘It’s the way we do things.’ He paused to let the intent sink in. He pointed to the machine. ‘Once they’re done with you, we’ll kill Claire, then you, and then eventually him. Watching his family suffer and die is the price he pays, the price you pay too unfortunately.’

  ‘My god, no!’ Rachel whispered.

  ‘Mummy, why is he saying bad things?’

  ‘We’re just talking, honey,’ Rachel said, turning to her daughter. She took a deep breath to calm her. Her voice was faltering. ‘We haven’t done anything. I didn’t even know that he was involved in drugs or I would have left him long ago. You can do what you want to him.’ Rachel turned and spat at Chris. ‘I don’t even know who that man is. He is not the man that I married. Let us go and I’ll never speak a word about it to anyone.’

  ‘Hey, Chris!’ Justin taunted him. ‘How does that feel, bro? Your missus couldn’t give a toss what happens to you.’ He laughed and looked at Claire, thinking about what she had said. ‘Sorry, Rachel. You’re a nice lady, wasted on that scumbag over there but it can’t be done. We have a job to do.’

  ‘Please! We’re innocent in this.’

  ‘Can’t be done, I’m afraid.’

  ‘Then let my daughter go. She’s a child!’

  ‘It’s just the way it is. It can’t be stopped now.’

  ‘It can,’ a voice said from the shadows. Matt stepped out of the dark corridor to their left. ‘Hi, Rachel, hey, Claire.’

  ‘Matt!’ Rachel cried out. ‘Oh my god, I’m so glad to see you! Help us, please!’

  ‘Uncle Matt!’ Claire cried. ‘He’s saying bad things!’

  ‘Don’t you worry, Claire,’ Matt said, kneeling to touch her face. ‘I’m going to talk to him and everything will be okay.’

  ‘Help us, Matt, please!’ Rachel begged.

  ‘Enough is enough. Untie them,’ Matt said, turning to the other two men. They looked at Justin. ‘Don’t look at him for permission! Untie them now.’

  They moved towards the captives, doing as he ordered.

  ‘Don’t touch them!’ Justin snarled. They hesitated. ‘If you don’t have the stomach for this, then fuck off, Matt and let me get on with the job,’ Justin straightened up to his full height. ‘You can fuck her first if you want.’

  ‘There’s a frightened little girl there. Watch your mouth,’ Matt said, ice in his tone.

  ‘Or what?’

  ‘Don’t push me, Justin. This is over.’

  ‘Nothing is over. Charlie gave me an order and I intend to do it. If you don’t like it, leave. I’ll fuck her twice, one for you, eh?’ Justin laughed dryly. The other men grinned. ‘What’s up, you losing your edge?’

  ‘How stupid are you, Justin?’

  ‘Not stupid enough to defy Charlie.’

  ‘Listen to yourself,’ Matt said, fronting him up. They stood toe to toe, eye to eye, neither man showed any fear. ‘Charlie McGee is fucked. He’s finished.’

  ‘I’d like to see you telling him that to his face.’

  ‘If he was here, he would tell you himself.’

  ‘What are you talking about?’

  ‘The law is all over him. They have been trying to nail him for years and thanks to Stuart and him,’ he said, gesturing to Chris, ‘they can lift him whenever they want to now. He’s finished and when they take him in, you had better believe that we’re next on their list.’

  ‘He seemed okay earlier when I spoke to him. He just said that he might have to disappear for a while but he sounded okay.’

  ‘He’s not okay. He’s finished.’

  ‘Are you sure?’

  ‘I’ve never been surer. It has all come on top. He’s finished and you and me will be top of their list.’ Matt could see doubt in Justin’s eyes.

  ‘Are you sure about this?’

  ‘I’ve just heard from a little birdy at police headquarters that they have got fat Brian in the cells and guess what?’

  ‘I’m listening,’ Justin said, without flinching an inch.

  ‘The police have found a body in the woods near Risley and Brian Selby has told them that it is Stuart.’

  ‘What?’ Justin stepped back, slightly. ‘So, Stuart is dead?’

  ‘Yes, he is dead and Brian has also fingered Charlie as the killer. He told the police that he watched Charlie shoot Stuart!’

  ‘What?’ Justin took a step back, not quite believing the news. ‘Brian told the police that, you’re fucking joking?’

  ‘No. I’m not joking. He reckons that he was there when Charlie shot him,’ Matt turned to look at the others. ‘Charlie is going down for good and the only way that he might ever see the light of day again is to cooperate with the police and that means stitching us up.’
The men and Justin exchanged concerned glances. ‘Now then, we are in this up to our necks already but if you want to add a triple murder to your list of things to give a shit about, then carry on and kill them but put twenty years on your sentence.’ Justin stepped back again. He looked at the floor. ‘Or you can untie them and we’ll drop the women off at the hospital and then we’ll go our separate ways. It’s every man for themselves.’

  ‘What about him?’

  ‘We leave him somewhere they’ll find him.’

  ‘Hold on a minute, we’re not letting that rat go!’ Justin snapped.

  ‘Okay,’ Matt shrugged. ‘Do it your way. Kill him but do it when I’ve gone because I’m having nothing to do with it. I’m not doing more time for him.’

  ‘What do you mean, more time?’

  ‘If you want to do life for killing a police informer then go ahead but I’m out of here with Rachel and Claire.’

  ‘This is so fucked up!’ Justin said, sighing.

  ‘Listen to me.’ Matt lowered his voice and stepped closer to the men. ‘Charlie McGee will be banged up for shooting Stuart. He is fucked. We are fucked. All you need to think about now is how fucked do you want to be? Kill any of them and you’ll be locked up for good.’

  Justin walked away and turned his back. He put his hands on his hips and then on his head.

  ‘He’s right. Untie them,’ Justin said, quietly.

  ‘Do it now.’ Matt encouraged them. The men moved towards Rachel and Claire.

  ‘Thank you, Matt,’ Rachel wept. ‘Thank you, thank you, thank you.’

  ‘I’ll get someone to drop you at the hospital and then you need to go somewhere safe. Somewhere no one can get to you, understand?’

  ‘Not really,’ she answered confused. ‘Isn’t this over? I thought everything would be alright now.’

  ‘Nothing will ever be alright again, Rachel,’ Matt said, holding her face in both hands. ‘Your husband has turned informer against some very dangerous people. We could try and get him out of the country but the police will be all over us soon. If they catch us, we’ll do time. As for him, they’ll give him a new identity and hope that he can blend in somewhere new. The people he helps to put away will chase him until he’s dead. If they can’t get to him then they will come for you, just like tonight. You and Claire are in danger as long as he’s breathing.’

  Rachel turned and glared at her husband. ‘I don’t believe that you have done this to me and our daughter. How could you?’ Claire was freed and she ran to her mother. The men reluctantly untied Chris. His injuries were so bad that he couldn’t move well or stand. He reached out his arms towards his family, tears still streamed down his face.

  ‘I’m so sorry, Rachel,’ Chris gasped, as the gag was removed.

  ‘Don’t you even think about coming near us!’ Rachel shouted. ‘I will make sure that you never set eyes on us again.’ She turned to Matt. ‘Whichever hospital I am going to, make sure he doesn’t know where I am, please. I don’t want him anywhere near us.’

  ‘Rachel, please!’

  ‘Fuck you, Chris! We’re finished.’

  ‘Rachel, I can explain!’

  ‘Explain it to someone who gives a fuck because I don’t!’ she said, turning to Matt. ‘Get me out of this hell hole.’

  ‘Take them to the Royal and drop them on the doorstep,’ Matt ordered. ‘There’s always loads of coppers at the Royal. They’ll snap you up straightaway and look after you.’ Rachel hugged him briefly. He ruffled Claire’s hair. ‘I won’t say that I’ll see you soon because I won’t. Take care of yourselves.’

  ‘Thanks again, Matt.’ She looked at her husband. Something inside her broke. ‘Please tell me that you won’t kill him, will you, Matt?’

  ‘Not tonight. You have my word.’

  ‘Thank you.’

  ‘Go, go, go,’ he said with a smile. ‘When you’ve dropped them off, take off. Best if we split up and go our separate ways.’ He said to the driver. He nodded and took them away. ‘You don’t know how fucking lucky you are,’ Matt turned to Chris. Chris didn’t speak. He had his head in his hands, a broken man.

  ‘We should kill him anyway and make sure the bastard can’t testify,’ Justin said. ‘We can make sure that they don’t find the body.’

  ‘They don’t need a body anymore, Justin.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Think it through. They had two informants in our outfit, one is dead. If the other one vanishes, they’ll assume he’s dead. Body or no body, we’re guilty by association. They will charge us all with conspiracy to murder at least and give us life anyway. Unfortunately, the cunt needs to live for us to do less time.’

  ‘This is fucked up.’

  ‘It’s over, all over. It’s damage limitation time. We need to cut and run.’

  ‘What do we do about the debt list for Charlie?’

  ‘Forget it,’ Matt sighed. ‘Where he’s going, he won’t need it. None of us will. The debts will still be debts whether they are collected tomorrow or not. We all need to run and stay free for as long as is physically possible.’

  ‘What do we do with the rat?’

  ‘I’ll dump him in town somewhere quiet,’ Matt said, looking at the injured man. ‘Someone will call an ambulance. He’s no longer our problem. He’ll get what’s coming to him eventually.’

  ‘Put him into Matt’s car,’ Justin ordered. ‘Good luck.’ He held out his hand and Matt shook it. ‘Where will you go?’

  ‘I don’t know yet. I don’t suppose it matters really. They’ll catch up with us sooner or later. The airports and ports will be on alert to look out for us. Have you got a bent passport?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Me neither,’ Matt smiled, thinly. ‘See you on the other side.’ They nodded to one another and walked in different directions. The noise of the pigs squealing reached a crescendo. Matt hoped that he would never have to hear that noise again.

  CHAPTER 15

  Matt drove the vehicle in silence. Chris was slumped in the passenger seat, staring out of the window. He pulled a packet of cigarettes out of his pocket with a blood-stained hand and put one into his mouth. His fingers were shaking as he lit it. He offered Matt one as an afterthought. Matt shook his head and snorted. Chris shrugged and put them away. His swollen face looked monster-like in the half light.

  ‘Suit yourself,’ he mumbled. He opened the window a few inches and exhaled the smoke. It was sucked out of the window into the night. Yellow light strobed inside the car, making their skin look sallow. The roads were quiet. ‘Where are you taking me anyway? I could use a drink.’

  Matt glanced at him and shook his head again.

  ‘What do you think, we’re mates again because I stopped Justin tossing you and your family into the machine?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Good because I’m not your friend.’

  ‘We go back a long way, Matt,’ Chris said, quietly. ‘I appreciate what you did for Rachel and Claire.’

  ‘I did it for them, not you.’

  ‘I know that.’

  ‘You’re a fucking idiot,’ Matt snapped. ‘What the fuck did you throw it all away for?’

  ‘I’m not hard like you, Matt,’ Chris said, glancing at him He sucked deeply on the menthol, allowing the smoke to escape from his nostrils. ‘I wouldn’t have lasted a week in the clink. You know I wouldn’t. I just couldn’t face it. Rachel used to watch Jeremy Kyle and she always told me that if her man went to jail, she wouldn’t wait for him and he would never see their child again. If I had gone down, she would have run a mile and I would never have seen Claire again.’

  ‘Oh, I see,’ Matt scoffed. ‘And what the fuck do you think just happened? How did your alternative plan work out for you, Chris?’

  ‘I took a gamble. Put me in the same position again and I would do the same thing.’ Matt glared at him. ‘What? I’m a fucking coward. I know it. They would have eaten me alive in there. If Stuart had been more careful, no one would have been any the w
iser.’

  ‘Until we all got lifted.’

  ‘Charlie would have been lifted with or without my help. He’s a fucking psycho. I couldn’t do time. It is what it is.’

  ‘You would have been protected.’

  ‘Oh really?’ Chris scoffed. ‘By who?’

  ‘Charlie has contacts inside. They would have looked after you.’

  ‘No one does anything for nothing in the clink. I wasn’t becoming someone’s bitch. That was never going to happen. I took the gamble and lost. I can’t change it now so fuck it.’

  ‘Don’t try and justify what you have done. You’re a grass. How many nights have we spent drinking, talking with our families and all the time you were stabbing me in the back. You’re a selfish cunt and you’ve fucked everything up.’ He indicated onto the slip road that joined the M62, heading towards the city centre, accelerating into light traffic. An articulated lorry moved over to let him in and then fell behind.

  Chris inhaled the last of the cigarette and flicked it through the window. Matt watched it hit the road in the rear-view mirror, a shower of orange sparks glowed for a second, then faded to nothing. He thought it was ironic. A split second in time and everything can change. One-minute things were are okay, the next everything has turned to shit.

  ‘You were right, you know,’ Chris said, staring out of the window.

  ‘About what?’

  ‘Killing me and my girls. They would have crucified you for that. All of you.’

  ‘That’s the only reason they’re alive,’ Matt said, looking at him for a second. ‘They won’t be if the Karpovs get hold of them.’

  ‘You were right about that too.’ Matt glanced at him again. ‘They will never be safe as long as I’m breathing. Charlie, Jaz, and the Karpovs will hunt them down. I can’t let that happen.’ Chris opened the door and unclicked the seatbelt simultaneously and then tossed himself into the night. Matt watched his body bouncing along the asphalt, rolling over and over until the articulated lorry hit him and launched him into the middle lane. His body somersaulted in the air and landed beneath the wheels of a National Express bus. The wind whistled around the car. Matt leaned over and pulled the door closed and then accelerated into the fast lane. Another example of a split second where everything changed in the blink of an eye.