by Ian Brett
Bacon came over to me. “You OK Max?”
I nodded.
“I didn’t expect Vince to make a move yet but I thank God we have that bit of unpleasantness out of the way now. My guys will ….”
Before he could finish his sentence a young woman ran out from the house. “Dad?” She ran into his arms. “I thought they’d got you this time.”
She held him for a moment, then composed herself and turned her to face me. “So who is this now?”
I said nothing. For a moment the wind had been knocked out of me. She was tall and slim with light brown hair. Her eyes glistened with tears but she was in full control - something to wonder at.
“This is Max a new colleague, he works with the government.”
She looked me up and down with concentration. “The Government - well that is an improvement. But since you both seem a little battered, I think we need to go back to the house so I can check you over.”
Bacon shrugged his shoulders. “Max, this is Louise, my daughter. She’s a doctor and very bossy. We’d better do as she says or there will be real trouble. Then perhaps a drink?”
Louise and I smiled at each other “That gets my vote.” I said. It wasn’t anything at first sight - that’s just ridiculous, but my world had certainly moved a little on its axis.
Bacon was issuing orders and pointing. “All that firing may have caused interest. Get the bird scarers out and set them to fire round the field over there.” He turned to me. “We’re just protecting the crops, if anyone asks. They’re set to go off randomly so it’s a good cover.”
“I’d better get sorted on cleaning this lot up.” John said. He had a point, blood was splattered over the two barns. Vince and the heavyweight he had shot were both dead. The guy I had struck in the temple was unconscious but breathing and the other heavyweight was still kneeling on the ground with blood spurting between his fingers.”
“On second thoughts, I better stay with these two.” Louise said.
“No, John will organise that, you come inside with us.” Bacon was brusque. “Look, he was a medical technician in the Paras. That’s a damn sight more use than a paediatrician for what needs doing here. You can check my head out.”
Louise took her Father’s arm. “My, we are tetchy this morning aren’t we, but I suppose your right - I’ve thought your head needed looking at for years.” The three of us trooped back into the house and Louise set about cleaning the wound on her father’s head.
***
Bacon and I were sitting in his study nursing a whisky when his buzzer sounded and he walked out into the hall and shut the door. I could just hear the rumble of his voice. He was talking animatedly with another man but I couldn’t hear what they were saying. He came back in and sat down.
“I’ve been doing a little checking. It looks like Vince and Patterson were working together for some time. Vince provided the financial rescue and muscle. The guys you bumped into at the lab were probably supplied by him and he masterminded the rent boy setup for that photo of your mate too.”
“How did you get all this so quickly?”
Bacon gave me a sideways glance that said I should have known better than ask damn silly questions. “Ray, the guy whose head you rearranged with that pipe, decided to be sensible. I think he may be quite pliable from now on.”
“Can he be trusted after all this?”
“No not trusted, but used. He’s not the sharpest tool in the box and I need to find out more about Vince’s other plans - if he had any. Ray started with Vince and was always a bit under his influence. It has been explained what the consequences will be if he cocks up again.”
I must have looked surprised.
“This isn’t 1920’s Chicago - we do give people a second chance - sometimes. Less messy and I think your friends in Whitehall will be pleased if we keep the body count down. Better for business and I think enough people have died today. Anyway if he does bugger off perhaps we’ll find out where Patterson is.”
I shrugged. He was right and I was glad he saw it that way. Since he had accepted Octavian’s proposal it seemed that we would be working together for some time. Louise came back into the room and I smiled.
Chapter 9 Smoking Cloud.
Success felt like this. Charles was clear, with Bacon’s help we had seized the computer with the faked images and destroyed it - I’d melted the hard disc and crushed the rest. Zanic had been refinanced and Miller’s successors were carrying on with his research. As far as I was concerned, all was well with the world as we sat in Howard’s office drinking coffee and reviewing progress.
He was being a bore, banging on about the threat Patterson still formed. “He needs to be found quickly. You realise that whatever the truth of it he blames you for all his troubles. His finance company’s run out of cash, his shares in Zanic are gone and he probably realises that you are on to what happened to Miller. He wants you dead and we both know what he is capable of”
“Sure but unless he’s a fool he’s long gone by now. It makes sense for him to just fade away for a bit.” I didn’t want to start getting paranoid at this stage of life. I’ve been told that people were ‘out to get me’ for years but it always comes to nothing. Usually the idea that I will suffer, at some time in the future, is a delusional coping mechanism. Its whole purpose is to hide from the criminal what a loser he really is
“Don’t fool yourself Max.” Howard shook his head. “Bacon’s come through with some Intel, that guy of his, Ray, has been singing like a bird. You, Bacon and the daughter you seem so keen on, were to die at the barn - all part of the big plan. Vince was preparing to launder the gang’s money through Patterson’s companies. With Miller silenced they had decided to float Zanic shares on the market. Not a bad strategy and without you they’d probably have got away with it. He’d probably have cleaned up and done a runner before he was found out and the financial shit hit the fan”
“So Patterson’s not happy - what can he do to me?” I’d always thought of the man as a coward.
“Don’t be daft, I accept that he won’t come at you face on, but a bullet in the back one dark night, or a bomb in your car. That’s his style.”
“So as you say, I’ll just have to find him, with Bacon’s contacts that can’t be too hard.” I really didn’t see Patterson as much of a problem but I could see that Howard was taking the threat seriously and I’d known him long enough not to dismiss his views out of hand.
“I didn’t mean you. We’ll sort it. For God’s sake you’re not much use here for the moment.” Howard looked me up and down. “Cuts and bruises everywhere, even with make-up you excite a bit too much interest. Take a break; why not fly up to Scotland and spend some time on that boat of yours, what’s it called?”
“Smoking Cloud.”
He looked confused. “Strange name, you can explain it one day. But anyway if you sail off into the sunset for a bit the rest of us can find out where Patterson is and get him sorted - one way or another. We’ve got a team looking for him and so has Bacon. For Patterson’s sake I hope we find him first now Bacon’s realised that his daughter was in line too.”
I raised my eyebrows - this was news to me.
“When your man found that his daughter was to be capped he got ‘a bit upset’, he’s put a bounty of half a million on Patterson’s head but he wants him alive. Octavian is fine with that as long as it’s done quietly. Anyway to get back to the point - take a holiday. You need a break and I have a feeling we may have more government work on the way soon, so we’ll need you on top form.”
I was about to say no, but then I thought about it for a moment. I was never keen on what I see as the grind of routine investigation and now I had a better idea. “OK, I want to have a quick chat with Charles first but then I’ll go. Smoking Cloud’s moored off Benbecula and I haven’t sailed for months.” It was late June and weather reports I’d seen promised a spectacular month in the Hebrides.
Besides I had an ulterior motive.
<
br /> I liked Louise. She was different - she had guts and commitment. She loved her father but clearly disapproved of his chosen profession. She had driven her own life and now was one of the youngest Consultants in the NHS. Since we’d met at her Father’s we’d been out a few times and we’d hit it off. I’d decided to ask her to spend a few days on the boat. Her schedule at the hospital was hectic but she had mentioned a number of times that she was owed time and needed a break
She’d never been to the Hebrides and fell for my description on the boat. I knew we’d have a great time. I didn’t know that this time I’d have to kill.
***
I woke luxuriously. Sharp morning light streamed through the porthole and warmed my face. I turned my head to check and yes, she was still there. Louise’s hair streamed over the pillow beside me and I sat up to look at her.
For the first time in years I was happy. I’d never asked anyone to the boat before. I’d always revelled in the solitude of my boat and stark beauty of the islands. My life in the army and subsequent career with Howard has given me little privacy. It’s been so filled with noise and people and violence that I treasure any time on my own and hate interruptions. But now I was content that another was sharing my hideaway.
Why? Because I realised that she loved it as much as I did. And because….
The previous evening we had taken our food to the stern of the boat and sat in the glowing night absorbing the atmosphere. It was late June, and in the Hebrides that means 18 hours of sunlight and no real darkness for weeks. Looking out to sea we were mesmerised by the orange glow of the sky. We’d sailed from Benbecula to Ceann Ear one of the small group of Monarch islands off North Uist. This far down there are no habitations and we were blissfully alone. To our landward side lay a beach dominated by shell sand and hemmed with dunes covered in wild flowers. Apart from the cries from a small colony of Artic Turns there was silence. It was pure joy but eventually we’d gone back to the galley to warm up and sat chatting over a bottle of Malt. I was more relaxed than I have been for years. We talked for hours then, when we eventually slid into bed, made unhurried but passionate love before drifting off to a companionable sleep
I leapt out of bed, dressed and went up on deck. It was a cold but brilliant morning so I put on a jacket sleepily remembering last night and content that we were in my favourite place in the world. The Outer Hebrides is a chain of islands 30 miles off the North West coast of Scotland boasting empty beaches pounded by the Atlantic. I’ve loved the islands since I was a child - they’re food for the soul.
I ambled to the prow of the boat to watch a basking shark glide by, his huge mouth gaping wide as he fed. He was over 30 foot in length, the rounded tip of his snout just showed above the water. I need to get Louise to see this.
The world erupted. A maelstrom of gunfire and splinters engulfed me.
Over the prow I glimpsed Patterson and another man, standing in a small dingy. They were firing Kalashnikovs. The sea was calm but their aim was hindered by the swell. I saw the cockpit disintegrate as a hail of bullets raked it, I turned to run and a bullet caught me on the shoulder. It hurled me forward into the water.
It all went quiet, their clips were empty. 700 rounds per minute sounds great till you find there are only 30 rounds in a clip. A careless burst and you’re waving an empty stick at your target. Today I was lucky; they were sloppy.
My occupation can, on occasion, be dangerous. I enjoy life so I order clothes from the famous Miguel Caballero in Bogota. Their shirts and jackets simulate high end designer fashion wear but are bullet and knife proof. Expensive, but as I’d found out several times before, they work.
It was summer so the water was cold but liveable. At this temperature I could last for over an hour before cramp or hypothermia killed me. So no real problem there as in the next few minutes either Patterson or I would be dead.
I dived deep into the water as they reloaded. My jacket was slowing me down so I struggled out of it. I watched it float slowly to the surface above me protecting my head as they started firing again. My shoulder was on fire with pain but the bullet hadn’t penetrated. I swam under Smoking Cloud’s hull to the stern.as bullets streaked through the water where I had fallen. I surfaced in shadow and looked round. Patterson’s mate had picked up the oars and was rowing the dingy round the prow Patterson was clipping a new magazine into his Kalashnikov. They were on the landward side where I had fallen into the water and were rowing slowly back along the length of the boat. Suddenly Patterson held his arm up and pointed at my floating jacket. They both fired another full burst into the water and reloaded.
“Did we get him?” The other man shouted. He seemed deafened by rounds they had blasted off.
“Don’t know. That’s just his coat…definitely got him before… not sure if it was a chest or shoulder shot… Can’t see him now.”
“He may have sunk.”
“How many clips you got left?” Patterson shrieked as he checked his pockets.
“Just one.”
“Me too. We’d better save them. Turn round and go back to the prow, where he fell in. We’ll have a look there.” The boat turned. Patterson still the front loading his final clip and peering down into the water. When we’re sure he’s dead you can go and finish the woman.”
If I hadn’t been mad before I was now. I could feel the hot adrenaline coursing through my body. I could just about accept Patterson’s feelings about me but now he’d decided to include Louise in his murderous intentions he had to go - quickly and permanently.
Still in the shadow of the prow I swan forward to the anchor cable and gripped it with one hand. The other reached for my waistband. I suppose it’s become a habit now, but when I get up, I always clip the small holster to nestle into the curve of my back. Nowadays it holds a titanium Double Tap. I love it; just over 5 inches long and ½ inch wide, its smooth sides and hammerless design mean it won’t snag as I draw it. I use the big bore option - each of the over and under barrels holds a .45 expanding bullet. There are two spares housed in a quick loader in the butt.
It’s lethal.
Patterson and his mate had sprayed over 300 bullets into the sea and hit nothing. I had four but I would make them count. I swam under the hull again. Patterson’s dingy had stopped about 6 foot back from the prow. Patterson was looking down searching the water and facing forwards. His mate had placed his gun by his side and was at the oars, he put one down and leaned out. As Patterson plucked my jacket out of the water I swam under the hull and surfaced behind them.
He was standing at the front. I grabbed the side of the dingy furthest away from the yacht and pulled hard with my left hand thrusting myself out of the water and tipping the boat. Patterson spun towards me and lost his balance. One hand stabbed forwards to steady himself.
I shot him twice in the chest.
Blood spouted as my bullets ripped his body apart. He fell backwards out of the boat.
I could see the other man his face now. It was distorted with fear. It was Ray; Bacon had been wrong.
He dropped the oars and grabbed for the Kalashnikov.
I’d forced the dingy down hard now, as it started to right itself I let go and it shot back up. An oar splashed into the sea.
I had to reload. Quickly.
Treading water I snapped the gun open and pointed it skywards ejecting the spent cartridges.
There was a clunk behind me. Louise was standing on deck pointing my fishing harpoon at Ray. Her voice shook but her hands were rock steady. “Keep your head down Max.”
He raised the Kalashnikov and she fired.
She’d aimed high to avoid me and the harpoon caught him under the chin. Blood erupted from his neck. His hands flew to the haft of the harpoon as he wrestled to dislodge it.
I snapped the gun closed and dispatched him. The single shot exploded his skull into fragments and he collapsed back against the small mast.
Total silence…..
It was a shock after the frenzy
of noise and violence. The wind blew, the sun shone and the sea lapped against the side of the boat. I looked up and smiled at Louise. “Are you OK?”
She pushed a strand of hair back from her eyes. “I’m fine, what about you? I thought you were dead when you fell off the boat.” A tear streaked down her face.
“I’m good, thanks to you.”
I looked back to Patterson’s dingy and pulled myself aboard. Ray was sprawled on his back, what was left of his head was too mangled to be able to make any further identification, so I turned my attention to the rest of the dingy. It was covered in gore, a positive treasure trove for any forensic lab. It would have to disappear with Patterson.
Lengths of chain and rope lay at the far end together with four large concrete blocks and two body bags. I swam round to the front of the skiff. Patterson was floating face down and I dragged him to the side of Smoking Cloud
I looked back to Louise. “We need to remove these bodies, tidy up and move off. I don’t think there is anyone around but the sound of automatic fire is distinctive.”
She wiped her face. “OK what do you want me to do?”
“We need to get Patterson’s body into the skiff He’s too heavy for me to push over the side so we’ll have to winch him up and then down. I’ll pull his body round to the other side, there’s an electronic winch there. Get a rope and I’ll tie it under his arms. If you winch him up and I’ll try to get the boat underneath him”
“What then?”
“Have a look in the boat, they brought everything with them.”
She looked down and shivered. She tried to ignore the body- the man she had just killed - but failed. “I know it was us or them but he looks so pathetic.”
“Waste no tears on them. It’s obvious what they intended - shoot us then either sink the boat with us on-board or just dump us at sea and hide the boat elsewhere, I guess they would have started on your father next.”