My Heart Belongs To You: A Psycho Thriller (23 page)

Fuller complied with a mincing side step on the left hand side of him
,
but not before the photographer that had been
sha
d
owing
the hack began screaming for security and made a run at him.
Hanson timed his move as the
weighty
photographer came at him fro
m
his right, his right fist snapping out in a blur to catch the overweight man on the point of the nose.
T
he man stopped in his tracks, falling
back onto his backside on the floor.
It was too easy and didn’t even require Hanson to break step.
The three security g
u
a
rds who were now coming at him from the front were a different p
r
oposition.
 
The trio came to a halt,
blocking the way out for him and Fuller
.  ‘
Let
’
s see how tough you are now
,
’
winced the reporter
,
trying to stay on
tip
toe
.

Hanson was going to need both hands
,
but he couldn’t afford for Fuller to run either.  He pulled the telescopic baton from its pocket, flicked it open to its full length and hit Fuller with two vic
i
ous swipes, one to the side of each knee.  The reporter screamed and dropped like a pile of dirty
laundry
.  He wasn’t going anywhere for a few minutes.

The stunned look and slight backward step from the
three
security men
,
told Hanson what he had expected.  These men were
used to dealing with drunks,
mouthy yobs
,
but not a professional.  ‘Stand aside now and no one needs to get hurt
,
’ warned Hanson
,
pacing forward.

The nearest man, also the biggest, roared like a bull and
came storming forward at him
, clearly intending to be the one dishing out any hurt.  Hanson sidestepped neatly and delivered a snap punch to the man’s exposed temple
,
dropping him to the floor
, and
then continued to pace forward.  ‘Last chance
,
’
he warned
,
bearing down on the last two men.

‘Stand down
,
lads
,
’ came a voice
from behind them
.  The
doorman who had let Hanson through earlier
,
stepped between the two
backpedalling
guards and walked
casually
up to Hanson.  ‘Just been talking to a mutual friend
.
’ Hanson knew he was referring to Blue Eagle, ‘
He
suggested
that
I gave you a clear path out before you take out too many of my men.’

Hanson kept a wary eye on him, not certain which way this was going to go. ‘I just need to leave with him
,
’
he
answered
,
pointing
at the writhing journalist still on the floor, without taking his eyes from the guard.  He might be ex-regiment
,
but Hanson had just downed one of his men.

The
man nodded, ‘I heard about your friend Tom
.
Come
on
,
’ he offered
,
reaching down and dragging the complaining reporter to his feet, ‘I’ll help you get him outside
.
’

As the two men got Fuller out onto the
pavement,
he began to scream
that
he was
being kidnapped
,
but
he
was persuaded to
be
quiet when Hanson’s powerful fingers located a nerve point at the side of his neck.  ‘Appreciate your help
,
’ thanked Hanson
,
extending his hand.

‘Hope you get your friend back
,
’ responded the
doorman
taking it,
and
then
turned
without any further exchange
and
paced away.

Ten minutes later
,
Hanson had Fuller in the back of the people carrier
, with
his hands secured with nylon ties.  ‘Jane
,
I’m
about to head
back with Fuller
.
ETA around 20.05 hours.’

‘We’ll look out for you
,
John.’

‘When I get back we need to review everything we have and plan our next move.’

‘I’ll let everyone know.’

Hanson broke the connection and started the people carrier.

‘You care to tell me what the
bloody hell
this is all about?’
Came
an unhappy voice from the backseat.

Hanson turned and looked into the pasty features that had spent too long in smoke
-
filled rooms.  ‘You have information on Cupid.’

Fuller’s eyes grew wide.  Of all of the scenarios for his abduction, Cupid clearly wasn’t one of them, ‘
I
… I
’ve got no idea what you
’
r
e
talking about
.’

Hanson paused before
responding
.
He wanted the journalist to take a good look into his face, into his soul.
  ‘Y
ou lie to me once more and I will hurt you in ways you can’t even begin to perceive.
You with
hold any information
that
I need and Cupid will seem like a Sunday
S
chool
teacher in comparison
.’

The journalist
nervously
licked his lips as he
watched Hanson
’
s features change
.
It
was
a
subtle shift, he
heard the edge lacing his voice
,
shrank down in his seat under the intense stare
from eyes that burned into him from
beneath
lowered lids
.  Fuller was a
n
experienced
reader of men, a
n interpreter of expressions
,
and
an expert on
voices.
All three
skills led
him
to
an easy decision
.
Truth
would be his new best friend, his survival instinct warned him that the alternative
would reveal a further side to the man just two feet from him. 

Fuller
did not intend
to develop the
relationship. ‘What
do you need to
know?’

Chapter Twenty Two

13
February
-
20
:
10

(
L
ife
r
emaining 22 hrs 50 mins)

‘Jenny Cart
w
right and Bruce Schofield butchered in 2006
.
’

It had only been around nine hours since Hanson last entered his offices
,
but it seemed so much longer.
In that pe
riod
,
some solid information, some
critical clues had been uncovered
,
but now it was time to stand back and weave together what they had,
and
to formulate the way forward.
He had
reluctantly released his grip on each second of Tom and Karen
’
s life and would
continue
to
do so like a miser
un
til the end
,
wanting something in return for each relinquished moment
.
Something
, anything
,
that would point to their whereabouts.
Despite the incalculable odds
,
he would not give up on them
.
While
one second
remained,
he would
hunt an
d if the worst should happen, if time cheated him
,
he would continue
.
He
would p
u
rsue Cupid to the gates o
f hell and then kick
him
in
.

Hanson dragged the hapless reporter by the scruff of his jacket and launched him towards Richard
Turner
.
‘
Giles Fuller
,
Richard, you might want to get started on him
.’

‘What a
bout my rights
?’
sque
a
led the sweating man
,
struggling to remain on his feet.

‘
Rights
!’
snapped
Turner
,
dragging the still tied man to the whiteboard
.  ‘
What about their rights?
’
screamed the detective
,
stopping in front of the first set of graphic photos,
‘
Jenny Cartwright and Bruce Schofield butchered in 2006.
’

Fuller blanched as he took in the coloured shots
.
These
were photos not released to the general public
after they were
deemed far too
graphic
, too
horrifying.

Turner
yanked him roughly along to the next set,
‘
Alison Pierce and Will Stevens 2007.’
 
They moved on,
‘
Rose Collard and Stephen Stratton
,
both eighteen years old 2008.’

‘
Please enough
,
’
begged Fuller
,
looking as if he might collapse.

‘
You thi
nk they all didn’t
beg
,
Fuller
?’
yelled the clearly distraught detective,
‘
Y
ou
think Cupid took any notice of their calls, their pleadings?’

The command room had gone deadly quiet, each set of eyes taking in the scene of
the close to the edge d
etective and the panting
j
ournalist
.
His
eyes
were
flicking from photo to photo as the stark reali
s
ation of what the monster
that
he had been communicating with had inflicted on his vi
c
tims struck home.

Hanson eased up and put a strong
hand on the detectives shoulder,
‘
T
ake
a break
,
Richard
.
Donald can make a start with Fuller
.’

As if on c
ue
,
Donald took a grip on Fuller
’
s arm and led him to a side room.

‘
May
…
maybe
,
I will
,
’
he agreed
,
shaking his head as if coming out of a daze
.  ‘
I’ll um
…
I’ll just grab a coffee
,
’
h
e continued
,
looking embarrassed as he wiped a trembling palm across his lips.

Hanson squeezed his shoulder,
‘
W
e’re
gonna get him
,
Richard, just hang in the
re.’