Casanova (31 page)

Jemima opened up and I drove the taxi inside. He closed up behind me and then switched on the lights. The floor was concrete with a workbench against the sidewall and a partitioned office at the far end. A deep wall shelf ran along two sides and held the odd box and old pot of paint. There was enough space for several vehicles. In one corner, the floor had a mechanic’s pit for working below the cars. An old Honda covered the front half and looked like it needed the work.

We all went into the office and I closed the door. An old carpet roughly covered the bare floor. On one side was a desk and office chairs, and on the other a low table with two armchairs. The room smelt of engine oil and soy sauce.

‘Two of the ducklings are trained mechanics. They look after the taxis here and also run a small service and repair shop.’

‘Did the second taxi follow us back okay?’ I asked.

‘Yes, he’s parked outside, waiting for instructions,’ Jemima said.

It was time to talk to Penny and Xing. They had sat down in the armchairs.

‘Shall I make us a cup of tea?’ Jemima asked.

‘Yes, good idea,’ I said.

I perched on the arm of the chair beside Xing.

‘Look,’ I said, ‘I want to get this finished quickly. All we need is the money back. Penny, are you happy to stay with us for a few hours until your father makes the transfer?’

She nodded. ‘Yes, okay,’ she said.

‘Good. I’m going to give him another call. Can you put his number into my phone for me?’ I handed her my K106. While she concentrated on the phone, I took the opportunity to talk to Xing alone. We moved away from the chairs.

‘I think Missouri will exchange the money for Penny,’ I said quietly. ‘He asked for one condition, though. He wants a truce.’

‘...a truce,’ Xing repeated.

‘Yeah, what’s the problem—you’re going to have ten million pounds.’

‘No, no truce,’ she said.

‘...why not?’

‘It can only end when one of us is dead. He knows that. He also knows that unless he returns the money I will kill his daughter.’

I didn’t reply. I didn’t have a reply. I held Xing’s eyes.

‘This time I will talk to him,’ she said.

Before I could respond, Penny brought across my K106.

‘I’ve put the number in,’ she said. ‘It’s ready to call. I like your phone.’

‘Thanks,’ I said, and took the K106 from her hand. ‘I’d let you have it except it’s a work phone and my boss wouldn’t be happy if I gave it away.’ She was missing her own phone already. ‘Here’s some money to replace yours.’ I pulled the notes from my pocket and gave her more than she would need to buy the best phone available. She took the money and smiled.

‘Thank you,’ she said.

Xing held out her hand. ‘Give it to me,’ she said.

Xing wanted my K106. She was going to call Missouri. I delayed while I thought.

Still with her hand out she said, ‘Do you have the bank account details?’

I didn’t reply.

‘The account details where we want the money transferred.’

If Xing spoke to Missouri directly, it could only reinforce our position. Her confirmation of the deal—the money for Penny—with the stated consequences of non-compliance could only help to persuade the triad boss.

‘I don’t have the bank numbers,’ I said. ‘I’ll have to call Bazzer.’

‘Use mine,’ she said, and held out her K106. ‘Give me that one with the number.’

We exchanged phones, and I called Meriwether.

‘Dear boy...’ He sounded as if his tailor was taking his inside leg measurement. ‘...are you making progress?’

‘Yes, things have moved on.’

‘Oh, good,’ he said, ‘events, dear boy, events.’

‘We’re in a position to ask Missouri to return the money. Do you have the bank account numbers for the transfer?’

‘Oh, yes, the bank account,’ he said and then paused. ‘I’ll have to call you back on that. I won’t be long.’ He ended the call.

Xing questioned me with her eyes.

‘He’s going to call me back,’ I said.

Just then, Jemima came over carrying a round, metal tray with four mugs of steaming tea.

‘Do we have a plan?’ he asked.

I lifted one of the mugs from the tray. ‘No, not yet,’ I said.

‘Yes, we do,’ Xing said.

Jemima didn’t respond. He went and sat at the desk and sipped his tea. I wondered what he was thinking.

With my tea, I swallowed three painkillers. The action against the police officer had worsened the ache in my abdomen.

Xing sat quietly while we waited. Penny seemed to have fully recovered from her shock. She was now talkative.

‘So, who are you?’ she asked. ‘Do you live in London? How did you meet each other?’

I was pleased when Meriwether called back. He read out the bank numbers and I scribbled them down on a grease-stained notepad.

‘I have given instructions for V.C. to advise you the minute any money is received into that account. They have your new K106 details.’ Meriwether didn’t sound optimistic. I realised he would only believe we could pull it off when he was told by V.C. that they had actually received the money. I wondered, as I had done before, whether he knew something I didn’t. Questioning him was pointless. I knew that if he wanted me to know he would tell me. Anyway, at that time I was feeling confident. Finding Penny was a lucky break and it meant I was almost there. At least that was what I thought it meant.

I finished the call with Meriwether. Xing had stood up and was standing in front of me. I passed her the grease-stained notepad and she read the numbers.

‘Does it make sense?’ I asked.

‘Yes, this part is the international code. I understand,’ she said. ‘I’ll make the call now. I’ll do it in the garage. It’ll be better there.’

I watched her pass through the glass office door and it was then that the lights went out.

In the roof was a small skylight. It caught some of the glow from the city and threw it down in a flat opaque band. Unfortunately, it was barely strong enough to lift the grainy blackness to the level of gloom.

‘Penny, Jemima, neither of you move,’ I called out in a loud whisper. I knew where they were and I wanted it to stay that way.

‘What’s happened?’ Penny asked.

‘It’s just the lights,’ I said. ‘Stay in your seat while I get them back on, Jemima, you too.’

‘I’m scared,’ Penny said.

My combat sense was telling me I was in trouble. If it had an actual alarm bell, it would be ringing loudly.

If I was going to attempt a difficult hostage rescue on this garage then in darkness, wearing night vision goggles would be my preferred method.

At that moment, I didn’t consider how anyone had found us because I was too busy thinking about what I was going to do. There were only two ways in. These were through the garage doors at the front, or the small skylight in the roof.

While carefully covering the two or three steps to the office door, I glanced at the skylight. I saw the night and nothing else. Keeping low, I eased my way into the garage and called out to Xing in a whisper. She didn’t reply. Before I had time to say anything more, the garage doors opened. I dropped beside the taxi and watched. Three dark figures silently entered. I saw them silhouetted for a moment in the doorway and then the light was gone and they stood ghost like. They were listening. It was exactly what I would have done. The silence was total. All three wore balaclavas and carried assault rifles. Something about them reminded me of the ancient shinobi.

My first thought was to shoot them but I knew that the moment I showed myself and fired they would fire back. I’d get the first one, maybe the second if I was lucky but not the third, and either way I wouldn’t avoid the automatic fire from the assault rifle that was certain to come my way. I thought again. Where was Xing?

My nighttime vision had always been good. I was now working it hard. The shinobi were scanning ahead and the leader began a slow advance. It was decision time. I lightly sidestepped behind the taxi and then moved silently backwards to the wall beside the mechanics pit while maintaining the taxi as cover. The shinobi had fanned out. Two were moving forward into the open space and the third was approaching on my side. He stepped carefully across and I realised in a few more steps he would see me. I dropped into the pit behind the Honda and then pressed myself against the nearside wall. I kept low and listened. He came alongside the taxi, beside the pit and then stopped. If he leaned over and looked down beyond the Honda, he would see me for sure. At least it would force the decision of what I was going to do. I knew he was going to look, I would have done.

As he angled his head and body over and across, I leapt up, grabbed his arm and assault rifle and yanked hard. Off balance and with gravity against him the man fell heavily. He smacked against the Honda’s bumper as he dropped the few feet into the pit and then landed on his head. Unfortunately, his trigger finger had squeezed and the rifle barked into life, spitting automatic bullets into the concrete floor. The sharp clatter of fire inside the dark silence of the garage was thunderous and was certain to bring investigation. At least one of the other two shinobi would be over me in seconds. The urgency of my position was instant and I dispatched my fallen adversary with a heel kick to his abdomen and two rapid forearm smashes to his jaw. I had pulled my Glock even before I had completed the second smash. Turning, I raised my weapon with critical speed just as the balaclava-covered head appeared around the taxi and approached the pit. He held the rifle tight against his shoulder and his cheek cradled the stock in a loving embrace. He was certain to fire. I had allowed the Glock to settle on his chest. I shot once. The bullet took him down. I heard his body slap the hard floor. I jumped from the pit, facing the fallen man in case he remained a danger. He was groaning and his body writhed in a semi-conscious state. It was then that I realised he wore a vest. I hadn’t killed him.

 I heard the third man before I saw him. He had come around behind me. I spun as fast as I could but I wasn’t going to be quick enough. As my eyes fell on his dark form cradling his rifle in the same loving way I realised I was too late. He would fire before I had time to target the Glock. It was then, in that exact second that a foot flew out from beneath the taxi and struck the back of his leg. The result was instantaneous. He couldn’t avoid the reflex action, and his leg buckled. It gave me the extra second I needed. The Glock kicked in my hand and the bullet thumped his chest. He dropped and I heard his head smack the concrete. I breathed in deeply. It had been close.

The rest of the body swiftly followed the foot and Xing appeared from under the taxi. Even in the coalmine gloom, I could see the look on her face. As always, it was hard to read.

‘You did want my help?’ she asked.

I didn’t reply.

‘Shall I finish them?’ she said.

‘No,’ I said, ‘we don’t have time for bodies, not now. Let’s collect their rifles and ammo belts, get in the taxi and get out of here.’

‘How did they find us?’ she asked. ‘It was so fast.’

‘…the duckling in the second taxi?’ I suggested.

‘…perhaps,’ she said.

‘Who else knew we were here?’

‘Nobody,’ she said.

‘I’ll get Penny and Jemima,’ I said. ‘Check outside, we don’t want any surprises.’