by Jack Probyn
Bridger threw his hands in the air. ‘What makes you think I had anything to do with it?’
‘You’re still working with them. I know you are.’
‘You have no proof.’
‘It’s staring me right in the face,’ Jake said, pointing to Bridger’s car. ‘Brand new car. Jaguar XKR. Must have set you back quite a bit. Especially on a sergeant’s wage. What’d that cost? Fifty… sixty grand?’
Bridger gave a slight nod. ‘In today’s money.’
Jake was slowly knocking the barriers down – he could sense it. He was feeling confident and decided to go for a stab in the dark.
‘And for a man in as much debt as you, that’s quite a little treat for yourself. You pay all in cash?’
‘How did y—?’
Jake found it hard to suppress his smile. ‘I didn’t, but you just confirmed it for me. Have you declared that you’re in debt?’
Bridger didn’t reply.
‘Because, and I’m sure you’re aware of this – after all, you were the one badgering on at me about how excellent you are – it’s a police officer’s duty, under paragraph four, Schedule 1 of The Police Regulations Act 2003, that you shall not wilfully refuse or neglect to discharge any lawful debt. Not to mention, Article 9 of the Code of Ethics—’
‘You still believe in that ethics bullshit? Ha! You’re even more naïve than I thought, Jake. Nobody’s followed that for years – for as long as I’ve been a police officer.’
Jake chose to ignore him and continue. ‘Under Article 9 of the Code of Ethics, it is your duty as a police officer to report financial problems you may be having, as you are – and in your case it seems highly likely – at greater risk of becoming involved with organised crime. I’d say you already tick those boxes.’
Bridger switched. His expression dropped and he charged towards Jake. Within seconds, the domineering man towered over him, giving Jake little time to react. Bridger extended his hand and grabbed Jake’s shirt, his breath blowing into Jake’s face. They’d been locked in the same entanglement before, but this time felt different. They were no longer colleagues anymore, they were no longer working on a case together, so there was nothing stopping Bridger from punching him in the face and beating him up.
‘You don’t know what you’re fucking talking about, Tanner. Who told you? How’d you find out?’ Bridger hissed.
‘I didn’t. I just told you – you confirmed it for me.’
‘Who’s your source?’ Bridger stabbed him in the chest with his finger. ‘Who’s supplying you with this information?’
‘Nobody. But it sounds to me like you’re afraid,’ Jake said, and Bridger took a step back. ‘Who are you afraid of, Elliot?’
‘Nobody.’
‘Let me help you. Tell me everything and I can make this better. If you’re in trouble – or if you’re in deeper than you ever imagined with whoever you’re working for – then we can work together to fix it. You just need to tell me what’s going on.’
There was something different in Bridger’s face. His eyes. The colour had changed; his pupils had dilated. It was clear to see that he was afraid. That there was something deeper lurking beneath the surface.
‘You’re chatting out of your arse, Tanner,’ Bridger said, clenching his fist and hovering it a few inches from Jake’s chin. ‘You don’t know what you’re talking about. You don’t know what you’re getting involved with.’
He began to pace from side to side. ‘I had nothing to do with The Crimsons last year, and I have nothing to do with them now. And I certainly don’t have anything that you need to know about regarding my personal financial circumstances. Fuck you. I’m not bent.’
Jake took a moment to breathe and collect his thoughts.
‘You’ve told yourself that lie for so long you’re finally beginning to believe it, aren’t you?’
Bridger bit his top lip. ‘Fuck you! I’ve had enough of this. I’m out of here.’ He threw his hand in the air and stormed towards his car.
The door was open halfway when Jake yelled back at him, his voice echoing up and down the road.
‘You’re not going anywhere, Bridger,’ he said. ‘You don’t think I’ve got evidence, but I do. That’s called good old-fashioned police work – something you never gave me credit for at Surrey Police. So stop and pay attention.’
‘What can you possibly have? I’ve been immaculate.’
‘Evidently not.’ Jake removed his phone and pretended to scroll. ‘There’s a document.’
Bridger said nothing.
‘It contains everything implicating you,’ he lied. ‘The funds you received and decided to deposit into your account. Large sums of money. Phone calls between you and The Crimsons. Phone calls between you and some other unregistered pay-as-you-go mobile numbers. Text messages telling you what to do. Voice recordings.’
Bridger’s eyes widened. ‘If you’ve got all of this then why are you here? Why haven’t you gone to the IPCC or Professional Standards?’
‘Because you and I both know that takes time. Time we don’t have, not if I’m going to get them back on remand. It’s not too late for you to turn yourself in and make amends for what you’ve done.’
Bridger shook his head frantically.
‘I can’t do that. This thing’s bigger than you, Jake. It’s done. Leave it. Danny and Michael Cipriano are getting off. It’s too late. You win some, and you lose some.’
‘Tell me everything, Elliot. You can make it stop. Bring back the evidence against them. Make sure they get sent down for life.’
‘Do you know what they’d do to me if I did?’
‘Who, Elliot? Who?’
‘All of them. They’d find me. They’d make sure I don’t talk.’
‘Then tell me everything now. I can help you. Tell me what happened!’
There was a long pause. It was broken by a car passing them on the other side of the road, giving them both a wide berth. Jake’s gaze followed it as it eventually disappeared down the mile-long road. He thought the number plate looked familiar. But before he could think about it any further, Bridger distracted him. The man stood with one hand on his car door, his breathing growing heavy, his other fist clenched – then he turned his back on Jake and paced up and down the road, clutching at his hair.
Nerves wracked Jake’s body and his fingers trembled. He’d come this far. Wasted all this time. He hoped it wouldn’t be for nothing.
‘Fine,’ Bridger said, coming to an abrupt stop a few metres away from Jake. The bonnet of Jake’s car separated them. ‘Everything. I’ll give you everything. But first I want some assurances.’ He held out his hand. ‘Give me your phone.’
Fuck. He was about to give up the only thing he was relying on to use as evidence, even if Jake had lied to him and coerced him into confirming things without realising it.
‘No,’ Jake said. ‘Elizabeth’s pregnant. I need to keep it with me in case she calls.’
Bridger shook his head. ‘Should have thought about that before you came down here. Now give me the phone. We’re going for a walk.’
Jake glanced at his screen. In the top corner, the red banner that indicated he was recording had disappeared. Then the screen lit up with Liam’s name glaring at him.
Shit!
Before he had time to process that Liam was calling him, he panicked, repeatedly tapped the red button and rejected the call. After the phone returned to the lock screen, he passed the device to Bridger. Bridger then threw it onto the seat in Jake’s car.
‘Follow me,’ Bridger ordered, already wandering down the road.
They came to a stop a hundred metres away from their vehicles, well out of range of any audio recording devices. As they turned to face one another, Jake felt afraid. Vulnerable. Isolated. As though he was about to be ambushed and placed inside the back of a van, only to end up halfway across the country tied to a chair in the middle of a desolate warehouse.
‘I did it, all right?’ Bridger began. ‘I did
it. Danny, Michael, Luke – I helped them. I had been drafted in a few days before the robbery and was told there would be three brothers looking to rob a jewellery store, and that the woman who had been kidnapped would be in on it too. It was my job – with Murphy’s help – to make sure they got out of the country. In exchange they’d give me a cut of their takings. Fifty grand, all in all.’
‘Candice died,’ Jake said, his voice soft. ‘You helped kill her.’
‘No,’ Bridger said, shaking his head. ‘I knew nothing about that. I had no idea the spikes and the live charge would be in there. I was told they would be dummies. They said nobody would die. Nobody would get hurt.’
‘You still agreed to do it even though you knew who they were?’
Bridger hung his head low. ‘I didn’t… I didn’t know anything about them. I wasn’t in a position to say no, anyway. They had leverage. They knew who I was. They knew I was struggling financially, and they threatened to expose me.’
‘And you couldn’t let that happen?’
‘I still can’t.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I’ve still got to deal with this. It’s not finished. I made a promise to make sure they’d never serve time in prison. But that was under the provision that they keep up their end of the bargain and keep their mouths shut. But they couldn’t even do that. When they were inside, they started talking to people – especially Danny. He loved the attention. He started talking about the people they were dealing with, about the people who put us in contact with one another. And I knew what was going to happen to them if they said too much.’
‘How?’
‘I’d seen it before.’
‘Who?’
‘Murphy.’
Jake’s eyes widened. He scratched the scar on the side of his face. ‘Murphy’s dead?’
‘Why do you think no one’s seem him for a while?’ Bridger asked, his expression emotionless.
‘Danika told me he left after what happened with Pemberton.’
Bridger shook his head. ‘Mark got cocky, started opening his mouth wider than he should to people he shouldn’t have been talking to in the first place, and then he just disappeared. Nobody saw him. Nobody heard from him. I couldn’t let the same happen to the brothers, and I knew it would if they continued mentioning names, so I fucked up their trial and entered them into the witness protection scheme instead. At least that way they’ll be able to give some dirt on other gangs and organised crime groups that they usually saw as competition. But once they set foot in those houses, I’m done. I’m out of this all.’
‘And you think they’re safe in the WPS?’
‘So long as they keep their mouths shut, they’ll be fine. But that saga’s nothing to do with me anymore.’
Jake hesitated, licked his lips.
‘So where are you going now?’ he eventually asked.
‘Away.’
‘Why?’
‘I need to get away.’
‘Will you be coming back?’
Bridger shrugged.
‘Why are you telling me all of this, Elliot? Why now, after so many months of keeping this to yourself?’
Bridger looked to the ground and sighed. ‘Because… because you’re a good police officer, Jake. I knew from the moment I met you. But consider that a warning. That nothing you do now will be able to stop it – it’s too late. The brothers are getting out, and you need to move on and forget that part of your life.’
‘It’s not that easy,’ Jake said, defiant.
‘You’re going to have to, because, during the rest of your career, you’re going to learn something else. And it’s better you learn it now, here. This is bigger than you. The MPS and every other force in the country is not the golden pipe dream you thought it was. Everyday people lose their livelihoods because of dodgy dealings and dark meetings. You need to open your eyes to everything, Jake. It’ll be better for you if you do. And it’ll be even better if you turn a blind eye to it.’
‘How can you say that? Somebody’s got to put a stop to them.’
‘And that’s you, is it?
Jake shrugged.
‘So you’re happy to get yourself killed in the process? It’s not worth it. Trust me, I’ve tried. And if you need more reminding, look what happened to Murphy.’
At that, Bridger nudged past Jake and headed back to his car.
‘What about you? How do you know the same won’t happen to you?’ Jake called back.
Bridger clasped his hand around his door handle, turned to face Jake and said, ‘The only way that’s going to happen is if you tell anyone.’
Jake froze in the middle of the road as he watched Bridger step inside his car, start the engine and drive past him, keeping his eyes on the road ahead as though Jake didn’t exist. He watched Bridger’s car dissolve into a small dot.
After it disappeared at the end of the road, Jake stood there for a moment longer, still stunned, still reeling at the events of the past ten minutes. At what Bridger had told him. At what the implications of it were. At how Bridger had blackmailed Jake with his own life into keeping his mouth shut.
You clever son of a bitch, Jake thought, too much in disbelief to think of anything else. His mind tried to process and comprehend everything Bridger had just told him, but it wasn’t working. Instead, the information lay on the surface like oil on water.
Jake blinked himself back to reality and returned to his car. He grabbed for his phone and looked at the lock screen.
Four missed calls. All from Liam.
‘Shit!’ Jake slammed his palm on the steering wheel.
Before he could do anything else, Liam called again. For a moment, Jake stared at the device, frozen. He was too far past the point of no return now, but he knew that it would only get worse for him if he didn’t pick up.
Jake pressed the green button.
‘Tanner’ – he sounded pissed – ‘where are you?’
‘Guildford,’ Jake said without thinking.
‘What are you doing down there?’
‘Archie wasn’t at his address. I spoke to a neighbour and they said he’s got family down in Guildford and that he was visiting.’
Liam sighed through the phone. ‘Get yourself back to the office. The wolves should be arriving in just over an hour, and so should you.’
CHAPTER 29
TRIP
Bridger’s adrenaline was at an all-time high. He’d never felt both so afraid and so elated at the same time. He was glad he’d told Jake everything; it had weighed him down for too long and it felt right to finally get it off his chest. But that truth had come at a cost. He’d compromised his position, and his entire credibility. How could The Cabal trust him now to carry on? How could they believe he was still on their side? The only thing he could do was trust Jake to keep his mouth shut. His life now depended on it.
Bridger pulled onto the A3, sticking his foot to the floor. He was heading for Southampton Airport where he would be able to get an internal flight to Manchester, and then a long-haul flight to Mexico for the foreseeable future. Everything was ready. Travel. Accommodation. Everything.
But his progress came to a halt when his phone began to ring. It wasn’t his smartphone. It was the burner phone he kept in the back of his pocket. And that could only mean one thing – it was only ever used by one person.
Bridger answered. Waited. Held his breath.
‘What just happened?’ the person on the other line asked him.
‘Nothing. I—’
‘Don’t bullshit me, Elliot.’
‘I’m not, I—’
‘What did Tanner want?’
Bridger squinted, avoiding the harsh sunlight above.
‘I don’t know. I—’
‘What did Tanner want?’ the voice repeated.
Bridger slowed the car along the A3 and pulled into the hard shoulder so he could concentrate on the call.
‘He wanted to know everything.’
‘Everythi
ng?’ the person on the other end asked.
‘Everything.’
‘What did you tell him? Your next few words must be considered very carefully. They may be your last.’
Bridger knew the threat wasn’t idle.
‘I told him nothing.’
‘Are you sure?’
‘Yes. But you could have given me a heads-up about the article in the BBC. I saw it at the office, and everyone started asking me questions. I had fuck-all time to prepare anything,’ Bridger explained. The car jostled gently each time a car whipped past.
‘That was a test.’
‘For me?’
‘For Tanner.’
‘And… did he pass?’
There was no response. That was the only answer Bridger needed.
‘I promise you I didn’t tell him anything,’ Bridger began, feeling as though he needed to keep on talking in order to defend himself. ‘He has no evidence to support anything.’
‘I hope for your sake that you’re telling the truth. It will be a shame to see you suffer a similar end to Murphy. Remember him? I liked him. I like you more, but don’t think that makes me any more likely to be lenient if you double-cross us.’
‘Yes…’ Bridger said, lost for words.
‘Are you looking forward to your trip?’ the voice asked.
Bridger gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white. They knew what he’d done. Of course they knew. It was impossible to hide it. They knew everything. And now there was no escape.
He needed to do something about it. But what? He couldn’t run. He couldn’t hide. The only other option was to stand up and fight. Alone. With no one readily available to support him.
‘I don’t know where you got the impression you could leave so soon. The brothers aren’t out until Friday. There’s still a lot for you to do.’ The voice hesitated on the other end. ‘But you already know what I have to do as well now, don’t you?’