The Lottery Ticket (8 page)

“I doubt if we will ever find the culprits”, said Mandy as her eyes began to glisten as if ready to cry.

Julie decided that nothing would be achieved by continuing with this discussion and so she folded the map and returned it to her handbag. They and Rachel went off to play ball, leaving Sandra and her mum alone.

“I’m surprised Roger let you have the van for the day, I thought he would need it to go round to his mates”, Said Sandra’s mum in a sardonic way.

“I too was surprised; he doesn’t normally let me use it. Usually he needs it for something or other but he said he wasn’t going out today so I could have it if I put the petrol in it”, Sandra replied.

“I can’t believe the cheek of the man, to make you pay for the petrol he never helps with the household bills and yet he expects you to provide for his every need”, her mum answered disbelievingly.

      “Well mum what can I do? I’ve tried to help him find work. When I have he only sticks it for a day or so, if that. I think his time in prison was the change in him. He’s never been the same since he was sent down. Each time I visited him he became more bitter and vowed he would get even with the law. I tried to make him see it was his fault he was in there, but he wouldn’t have it. He always maintained he was stitched up”, Sandra replied.

“He’s never been any good to you or the children and I have watched you work yourself to a standstill for that lazy beggar. All he has ever done is ‘take, take, take’. When are you going to come to your senses and leave him”?

“You know I can’t, for the sake of the kids I can’t”.

“When are you going to learn that even the children don’t get on with him? He never does anything for them, or with them. As far as they are concerned he might as well be a lodger and that’s how I see it and that’s what they tell me. He spends more time with his mates than he does with his family. Now tell me that isn’t true”.

Sandra was now feeling browbeaten by her mother. She had to agree with all that her mother had said. Today was meant to be a day away from stress she thought.

“Let’s not talk about it now mum, let’s just enjoy the day out with the children”, Sandra pleaded.

They sat on the blanket and watched the children enjoying themselves.

“Did you know Julie’s friend Mandy’s house was the latest to be burgled in the town? It happened while they were on holiday. They came back on Friday to find the back door had had the glass panel removed and that’s how they got in.”? Sandra informed her mum.

“There seems no stopping them. The police don’t seem to be able to catch them do they”? Commented Sandra’s mum.

“For this to happen so many times in such a small area it has to be someone local don’t you think”? Sandra suggested.

“Julie said the policeman that came to their house was determined to catch the thieves and she also said he sounded confident that he would”, claimed Sandra.

“Let’s hope your right”, replied Sandra’s mum.

They decided too much serious talking had taken place and it was time to join in with the girls as they played catch with the Frisbee.

------ x ------

Roger sat at home watching the television most of the afternoon. His only break was to make himself a drink or to pour himself another whisky. As he sat watching the film he began to think about the warehouse job and whether he had done the right thing in not going. He could imagine his three mates getting ready for their nights work. He was beginning to get bored just sitting in front of the television. In his mind was the thought of having to wait until Tuesday to begin his big spending spree.

He was also planning his break with the family and had no intentions of leaving a trace that would lead them or anyone else to his whereabouts. He was seriously thinking of going somewhere abroad where he would not be pestered by the law. His only problem was the lack of a passport. This he would put right on Monday.

Because he would have to stay in the country until his passport was ready he would rent somewhere far away from the town. He realised there was nothing he couldn’t do with the kind of money he was about to receive.

Ironically when he returned to the front room to continue to watch the television it was beginning a film about a prison breakout. As he sat watching the film it reminded him of his stint in prison and how he had to survive the constant fighting and the power struggles that caused them. He was determined this was not going to happen to him again. He could live a life of luxury and not have to worry about the next payout from his nights of work.

He began to think about the family outing. Not for any other reason than because it was getting close to teatime and apart from the occasional nibbles he had had very little to eat. If they didn’t come home soon he would have to get his own. This was against his principals. He had a chauvinistic idea that if you had married it was the wife’s job to fulfil your needs. His ideals did not seem to stretch to him being the provider.

Just as he was having these thoughts and as if he had ordered it, the family returned from their outing. He could hear laughter coming from the street as he heard the van doors being opened. This told him that his needs would soon be met. His only hope was that the dragon he called his mother-in-law wouldn’t be with them.

As the females filed in with the remainder of their picnic and the toys they had taken he could not here the voice that he hated so much. His luck was in. He would not have to listen to the tirade of insults that were often aimed at him from the interfering old battle axe that was his Mother-in-Law.

He heard the girls making their way up the stairs and surmised they had been sent up to freshen up before tea. Soon his tray was bought in to him by his dutiful wife. He felt that this was her role in life and never thought to thank her. The rest of the family ate in the kitchen.

He was happy in the knowledge that when he had the lottery money safely in his grasp he would pay other people to do his bidding. He was intent on being a man of leisure for the rest of his life. Some of the ideas he had in his mind to do were becoming firmed up plans of action.

Although he was going to be absent from the hit tonight it was a hard job to clear it from his mind. He had planned the break-in to the smallest detail as he had done so many times before. Even though this was something the gang had never tackled before he was confident that if the detail was right it would be no different to entering an empty house.

These thoughts were still going through his mind as he heard the last of the family tread the stairs to bed. He would stay up tonight for two reasons. Firstly he wanted to be informed as to how things went at the warehouse and secondly because of the anticipated rendezvous at the hotel on Tuesday. He sat in his chair and watched the programs on the telly as they marched on through the night.

He watched the clock as the hours ticked by. He was aware that the hit would begin at eleven thirty and that the whole heist would be finished by one in the morning. When he watched the small hand reach two o’clock he began to wonder what could have happened. Bert should have rung him by this time and the hand over to the
‘fence’
should have been completed.

Now Roger began to worry. What if they had been caught? Because he had handed over the job to Bert, had he been usurped as leader and left out of the loop? His concern now was if they had been caught would they shop him and if so would he be picked up by the police before he had recieved his winning cheque in less than two days time?

He was on edge now, not knowing if a knock on the door was imminent. He had kept his night time activities from the rest of the family all these years. If the law came for him it would be out in the open and his plans would not be realised. This must not happen, if they come for him he would have to do a runner and lay low for a day or two he thought to himself.

If it was as a result of a power struggle between him and Bert he would have nothing to worry about. As far as he cared Bert could lead the gang into eternity. He had much grander plans to occupy his mind.

As the clock continued to turn and the hours passed by he assumed the latter of the two questions was the most likely. He began to relax a little and nodded off for a while. When he awoke daylight was peeking through the sides of the curtain.

Activities were taking place around the rest of the house. Sandra was hurrying the girls up as this was the start of the new term at school. She would see them off and then pop to her mums before starting work.

Roger had nothing planned for the day other than to get his unexpected winnings from the bookies and get himself rigged up with some smart clothes. Once the house was empty he would make his way into town and with his winnings and the remainder of his payout for the ‘Tuesday job’ he would buy himself a suit, a shirt and a tie. His thoughts as he prepared himself for town were of the last time he had worn this sort of clothing. It was for his wedding day and he had not had the inclination to wear a suit and tie since.

Once in town he visited the tailors and purchased all the things he would need to put on a good show on Tuesday. He was about to return to the car park when he spotted a flat for rent in the city. It looked half decent, he thought and so he went in to the agents and checked the rental terms. It would need a down payment of one month at £400 and nothing more. It was furnished to a reasonable standard.

Roger wondered if he should rent the flat now or wait until he had the money from the lottery in his hands first. He had enough from his horse racing win even after paying for his clothes. It took only a few minutes for him to decide. Handing over the money he was asked if he would like to view the flat before he moved in.

In his haste to complete the deal he declined the viewing.

         “I’m sure it will be just fine”, he assured the agent as he signed his name, Peter Antalis.

He had spotted the name on the box of copying paper on the desk next to the printing machine. He would use this name for the time being in case he was being looked for by either the family or the police. Once he had the money he would move further away and resume his real identity.

Once he had returned home he packed an overnight bag of essentials and took it down stairs and placed it in the van ready for the following day. He would need very little as he would buy new as soon as he had the money placed in his newly opened bank account.

He left the new outfit in the van and was preparing to leave before the rest of the family rose the following morning. He would book into a hotel close to the hotel that the presentation was to take place. He would stay overnight and then move into the flat on Wednesday morning. With everything made ready he retired to his favoured room.

He had still not heard nor seen anything of any of the gang members or had a visit from the police. This was the only thing that was bugging him. Just as these thoughts were milling about in his head there came a knock on the door. He went to the window and moved the curtain just a fraction to see who was standing at the door.

The man who was now banging on the door again was not going to go away without seeing someone. Roger was beginning to get nervous. He went into the hall and gingerly opened the door. The man was not familiar to Roger. He asked who Roger was and when the reply came back as to who was asking the man produced a wallet that was all too familiar to Roger. The card inside the wallet told Roger this was a detective constable from the local police.

      “Can you tell me what you were doing last evening”? The detective asked in a formal way.

       “Why are you asking”? The reply came from Roger.

       “I ask the questions”, the detective announced sternly. “But as you ask, an attempted break-in at a warehouse in the city took place late on Sunday night and you were singled out as a possible suspect”, he went on.

      “Let me put your mind at rest officer, I was at home all night and if you call back later when my wife returns she will vouch for me. I did not leave the house from Saturday afternoon to this morning”, Roger replied and for once he was telling the truth.

      “I will be back later to confirm this”, the detective assured Roger.

Roger was convinced that the officer believed him and knew that a return visit would not happen. What did concern him was the possibility that this warehouse could be the one that the gang had done and if so this meant that either they were foiled in the attempt or that they had got caught in the act.

If it was the former he would have heard from one of the gang, at least he would have expected Mick to let him know. As for Pete, he would suspect his loyalty was to Bert as they lived together so he was not surprised that he hadn’t heard from that quarter.

His suspicion was that they had been caught in the attempt and arrested. If this was so, he would have to be very careful not to draw attention to himself for at least the remainder of today. He could not be sure that the other members of the gang would squeal on him if the other robberies were revealed. These speculations were doing nothing to calm his nerves. He picked out the lottery ticket from his wallet and this made him feel better. His thoughts turned to tomorrow. This would be the start of a new life.

Chapter 8
 

The Arrest
 

At precisely 11 o’clock on Sunday night Mick was picked up by Bert and Pete. Bert explained the new arrangement to the plan. Mick was a little concerned as he hated changes. He was convinced that it bought only bad luck. Like the others he was in need of a cash boost to restore his drinks cabinet. Drink was his only real friend as it never let him down like some of his other acquaintances.

Bert explained that the job would be done in the same way as was previously planned with one difference. With only three in the gang the split would be that much greater.

Bert explained all this to Mick as they drove to the warehouse. The prospect of getting a bigger share was enough to put Mick’s fears to the back of his mind.

The fact that they had one of the gang missing meant that the look-out job would have to be scrapped. To fill the van with as much as they could they would need all hands to the loading.