31 Days of Autumn (33 page)

‘What we’re doing here isn’t legal,’ Andy
warned.

‘Do I look like I give a crap?’ Dean shot back.
Andy shook his head and looked over at me.

‘Let him come, he needs closure. It’s even more
personal for the two of us than you guys,’ I confirmed.

‘Jesus Christ, if either of you fall behind,
we’ll leave you behind,’ snapped Andy, giving Dean a curt nod of approval.
‘Right, last chance. Most of you have your own families who rely on you, so
none of us will think any less of you if you want to walk away, but do it now
as we need to get this party started.’ He ran his eyes down the line and every
single one of them shook their head and stayed where they were.

 ‘I just want to …’ I took a deep breath and
cleared my throat. ‘I just want to say how sorry I am, for all of your losses,’
I announced to the soldiers watching us. ‘You have my undying gratitude for
putting your lives on the line to try and bring James, as well as my wife and
son, home safely.’

Dean and I stood back as they all gathered
around a collapsible table covered in a map of the area we were heading to and
discussed strategies. I had nothing but admiration for these guys. They put
their lives on the line every damn day and earned pennies. I sat in a plush
office, messing around with computer programmes, and earned millions. It didn’t
seem fair.

‘How are you doing, Dean?’ I asked, putting my
hand on his shoulder.

‘I think I’m still in denial, Sir. Knowing it’s
not over, that those bastards are still out there, that James, Ellie, and
Oliver might still be harmed … I don’t have time to think about what’s happened,
but when it’s all done and dusted … I think I’m going to fall to pieces,’ he
said quietly with a nod.

‘You know that there’s no time limit on you
returning, if you even want to. You’ve been at my beck and call for years now.
Maybe it’s time you thought about yourself, about having a life of your own.’

‘Jenny was my life, Sir. I’m not sure what I’ll
do without her.’

‘I can imagine that only too well, Dean, and I
can never apologise enough to you.’

‘I didn’t … I didn’t say that to make you feel
bad,’ he replied, throwing an apologetic look my way.

‘Trust me, it doesn’t take any effort by anyone
else for me to feel that way. Your annual salary is yours for life, whether you
stay with me or not, it’s the least I can do. I feel her loss already, as do
Eva and Jonas. It must be a hundred times worse for you.’

‘Try … try a thousand,’ he choked, nodding as
he looked at the floor. I remained silent. There was nothing more either of us
could say. No platitudes were going to ease his pain. I’d been there with
Rebecca. The saying “time was a healer” may sound clichéd, but it really was
true. One day, you suddenly woke up and the pain had lessened a fraction and
continued to, until thinking of her didn’t invade your mind every minute of
every day.

I checked my watch again. I was beyond
impatient to get going, but they knew what they were doing. I’d rather it take
a little longer and we do it right, than rush in and risk losing anyone else. I
took the time to get changed into the kit that had been laid out for me and
breathed a sigh of relief when Andy announced it was time.

Thursday 17
^th
September

James
Smith

I lay on my stomach in the undergrowth, watching the
one storey stone cottage a few hundred yards up ahead. Oliver was fast asleep
next to me, tucked under a bush. To keep him warm, I’d covered him in the
jumper I’d used for our food and water, which we’d run out of some time ago.
I’d topped up our water when I followed the river line for a while, trying to disguise
my tracks, but Oliver was dehydrated and I’d had to drink more due to the extra
weight I was carrying. He’d done Ellie proud. He’d stayed silent until I felt
we were out of range and told him that he could open his eyes and talk to me.

I checked my watch, sunrise was in around half
an hour. If I was going to get closer to check the place out, I needed to do it
under cover of darkness. Whoever lived there was already up. A light had gone
on about an hour ago and for a while I’d seen a shadow moving behind the
curtains. There was no car on the gravelled driveway, but there was a closed
single garage. I had no idea how close we were to civilisation. Neither of us
would fare well if we had another day’s trek ahead of us in these cool
temperatures. We needed food and water and access to their phone. I looked back
at Oliver. I couldn’t go and scope the place out while leaving him here. If he
woke up alone, he’d be terrified, and the poor kid had been through far more
than someone should at that tender age. I was going to have to wake him up and
take him with me, asking him to stay quiet again and hoping that he would. I
tucked one of the tranquiliser guns into the back of my suit trousers, as
they’d stripped me of my own gun and shoulder holster when they’d taken us. I flicked
the pocket knife open, then slipped it into the side of my boot and carefully
stood up, using one of the trees for cover as I brushed myself off.

I sincerely hoped that I wasn’t about to freak
some old lady out with my appearance. I hadn’t had a wash or shave in days, and
a reflection of my face in the water yesterday had shown I had a black eye and
my nose was still swollen from where I’d been kicked in the face the day we
were taken. I silently cursed myself for allowing that to happen. I should have
been faster. I should have checked the route to the car before bringing Mrs.
Davenport and Oliver out. If I had, I’d have seen the van and called for
backup. If I had, Jenny would still be alive. I shook my head to rid myself of
unhelpful thoughts. What was done was done. I’d lost enough friends over the
years in the line of duty, I knew it was part of the territory, but a young
woman in the prime of her life weighed heavily on me, especially when I’d
offered my life to spare hers. I wasn’t sure I’d ever come to terms with that.
That’s why I had to honour Mrs. Davenport’s wishes and make sure if she didn’t
make it home, her son did, whatever the cost.

‘Oliver, it’s James. Don’t be scared, ok?’

‘James?’ he mumbled, rubbing his eyes with
grubby fingers.

‘Yes, did you have a good sleep?’

‘I dreamed about Mummy’ he yawned. ‘Where is
she?’

‘She’s safe,’ I lied. ‘I’ll be going back to
get her soon. Right now I have another game for us to play, what do you say?’

‘I’m thirsty and I’d really like some
sausages,’ he moaned, stretching his little legs. I chuckled.

‘Sausages, eh?’ I knew they were a favourite of
his. ‘What if I promise that if you play my game, the next meal we have will be
sausages?’

‘Deal,’ he nodded seriously, sounding just like
his dad. He sat up and yawned again.

‘Ok, well we’re going to creep up to the house
in silence, then play hide and seek. You’re going to hide in that log store on
the side of the house and count very quietly to ten, ten times, before I come
and look for you. How does that sound?’

‘That’s cheating, Uncle James,’ he giggled.
‘You know where I’m hiding.’

‘I do,’ I chuckled, ‘but it might give me
enough time to find some sausages for you.’

‘Ok, let’s play,’ he clapped, a grin all over
his dirty face.

‘Lift your arms up, I want to put this jumper
on you as it’s cold.’ He did as he was told and I slipped it on. It was more to
cover the dirty white of his jumper that would stand out if we were being
watched. I had to hope if they’d sent someone out after me, they’d have assumed
I’d crossed the river to lose them, or that if I’d followed the track, I’d be
much further on by now. Staying here all night had been a calculated risk. I
lifted Oliver up and put my fingers to my lips, and he nodded and put his arms
around my neck. I thought about my grandchildren as we made our way towards the
cottage under cover of the last of the darkness. I missed them like crazy and
hoped that they’d never have to go through what Oliver had. I also hoped that
he was young enough that one day, he’d forget the nightmare of the last week. I
approached the house from the side, treading carefully as I stepped onto the
gravel. ‘Remember to count quietly and if you finish and I haven’t found you,
it’s because I’m looking for sausages,’ I whispered in his ear. I kissed his
forehead before settling him inside an empty section of the open-fronted log
store. He looked up at me wide-eyed, so I saluted him and gave him my best
attempt at a reassuring smile. Leaving a young and vulnerable child in the
dark, alone and scared, didn’t exactly sit well with me, but what choice did I
have?

I checked the garage first, but it was locked,
so I circled the house, checking each window as I went, finding them all locked
too, with the curtains drawn tightly. There was no back or side door either. I
stepped up onto the decking at the front of the house and quickly looked at the
window. There was a chink in the curtain. I blinked at the bright light that
was coming through it and moved my head back, repeating a few times until I’d
adjusted to the light. I could see a guy in his late twenties sitting at a
dining table, drinking some coffee as he read a newspaper. He had dark,
slightly wavy hair and was wearing a white shirt, open at the neck. I could see
a grey suit jacket hanging on the back of his chair. To all intents and
purposes, he looked like any regular guy getting ready for work. Oliver was
probably going to have finished his countdown by now and I didn’t want to leave
him alone for any longer than was necessary. I took a deep breath, walked to
the front door, and knocked on it. I heard the scraping of a chair and the
sound of footsteps on wooden floorboards, then the door being unlocked.

‘Jesus, Gavin, you’re actually early for once,’
came a male voice, laughing as the door opened. He swung it back, and surprise
and shock registered on his face as he scanned me.

‘I’m so sorry to trouble you, but I had an
accident and my car left the track last night. I woke up an hour or so ago in
this state, only to find my mobile battery had died. I don’t suppose there’s
any chance of using your phone? My wife will be worried sick,’ I smiled,
holding up my hand to show him my ring finger.

‘Yeah, yeah of course. Are you hurt?’

‘Other than my face and my pride, no.’

‘Well, come on in. We’re in the middle of
nowhere here, it will take a while for anyone to come out. You can have a
shower and I’ll leave some fresh clothes out for you and make you a hot coffee,
you look like you need one.’ He stepped back and gestured me in. I looked down
as I entered and walked some distance inside.

‘That’s really kind of you, thanks.’ I heard
him closing the door and immediately spun around, grabbing the gun from the
back of my trousers and aiming it at him, only to find him pointing one at me
with a grin on his face.

‘Did you know before you knocked on the door?’
Charlie asked.

‘I wasn’t sure,’ I replied, being honest. The
possibility of one of them waiting at the first house on my route out of here
had crossed my mind, but seeing him through the window, dressed in a suit, without
the usual short military haircut had made me question my judgement.  ‘I take it
the real owner of the house is dead?’

‘Of course, needs must. I’m curious, I thought
I was nothing but polite and welcoming, what gave me away?’

‘I
never
forget a voice, Charlie, and
you might have tried to fool me with that suit and shirt, but you forgot to
change your army boots, which still have your friends’ blood on them, dipshit.’

‘Dipshit,’ he scoffed. ‘
I’m
the dipshit?
You probably spent ages covering your tracks, doubling back, pretending to
cross the river. But I knew all along you’d follow the track here. I didn’t
even bother trying to catch up to you. I took the car, drove past the house,
and parked up on the main road, then ran back. I’ve been waiting here forever.
Warm, comfortable, and well fed, while you were out there in the cold. I spotted
you in the tree line last night, courtesy of infrared binoculars, and I’ve been
waiting for you to make your move. Not as skilled or covert as you thought, old
man,’ he chuckled.

‘Why don’t you ask Bravo or Delta how old and
out of touch I am?’ I asked, moving to my right as he moved to his left, our
eyes never leaving each other’s, guns still aimed.

‘They deserved better than that,’ he hissed,
his eyes narrowing in anger. ‘They were Royal fucking Marines.’

‘They were a disgrace to the uniform, all of
you are. You think an innocent child, mother, and young woman deserved what you
did to them? Death is too easy a punishment for scum like you.’

‘I served my fucking country, put my life on
the line time after time,’ he yelled, his face changing from the friendly one
that had answered the door, to one full of anger. ‘I made one small mistake and
was kicked out on a dishonourable discharge. Don’t make out like you’re better
than me.’

‘I
am
better than you and I’m happy to
prove it, which I think is exactly what you want, or you’d have shot me last
night, or the minute you opened the door just now. So, am I right? Are you man
enough to put down that gun and show me what you’re made of hand-to-hand, or
are you too scared to take on an “old man?” I bet the only reason you didn’t
shoot me earlier was that you don’t have the balls to face me like a man as you
kill me, you’d rather do it from behind, like you did to my friend.’

‘You’re going to wish I’d shot you and killed
you instantly by the time I’m done with you. If you think Bravo and Delta were
easy kills, you should know that as well as being the best fucking sniper in
the country, I was the one taken onto the team for my skills in close-quarter
combat.’

‘I’m confused, it must be my age. Are we
fighting, or is your plan to talk me to death?’ I asked, steeling myself for
him to try and trick me. If I died now, Oliver could be out there alone for
days. No one would find him.

‘Weapons on the floor, release on three and
slide them to the right out of reach, no sudden movements,’ Charlie replied, a
smug smile on his face. Either he was really confident he’d put me down hand-to-hand,
or he was bluffing. He could easily have shot me at any time before I even made
it to the cottage, or in the back as I’d walked in. No, he didn’t see Jenny as
an equal, probably because she was a woman, he looked down on her. That’s why
he’d had no qualms shooting her from behind. With me, he wanted the validation
that he was superior to stroke his ego. He’d want to prove he was better than
me. We kept our eyes on each other as we bent over and lowered our guns to the
ground. My fingers flexed as I took long, slow breaths, trying to prepare
myself for a fight to the death. ‘One … two … three,’ he counted slowly. We
both pushed our weapons away and my hand flew to my ankle. I pulled out the
knife and threw it at him, aiming for his throat, just like I’d done to Delta, but
Charlie was fast. He ducked into a roll back towards his gun, but not fast
enough to avoid the knife altogether and it lodged in his shoulder. ‘You
fucking cheat,’ he yelled, as he sprawled on the floor and yanked it out.

‘You’re more stupid than I gave you credit for.
You really thought I’d play fair? I’m virtually a pensioner, pitted against a fitter
twenty-something, what the hell did you expect?’ I wasn’t expecting him to
recover so fast as I charged at him. He’d made it up onto his knees by the time
I kicked the side of his head, and he caught my foot before it hit the floor.
He yanked it, throwing me off balance. I crashed down onto the floor, feeling
the impact in all of my bones and muscles. He wasn’t wrong, I
was
getting too old for this shit. If I made it out of this alive, I seriously
needed to think about retirement, taking up a nice, calm hobby, like golf. He’d
scrambled up in the time I’d caught my breath and cricked his neck as he
stepped towards me. I pulled both of my feet back and slammed them forward,
straight onto his knees caps. He wobbled, cursed, and staggered backwards,
giving me the chance to do a back flip off the floor, landing on my feet. Thank
God I still had some moves. We both put our fists up as we squared off against
each other, both of us breathing fast, adrenaline pumping through our systems.