‘Oh come on,’ protested Baxter, ‘is this strictly necessary?’
‘Yes,’ I told him, ‘it is. I don’t want you trying to do a runner.’
Kinane was scowling at Baxter from a corner, but I had given him strict instructions not to intervene. There are a whole bunch of unwritten rules in the criminal world but the biggest by far is that you do not rape or murder children. I knew Kinane wanted very badly to kill Baxter and take a long time doing it.
‘Shall we get on with it then?’ asked Baxter waspishly. ‘I have a plane to catch in the morning.’
Robbie wrote down every word, as Baxter outlined how we could access the funds he had buried in that Cayman Islands bank. When Robbie was finished recording everything Baxter told him, he left the room so he could get word to Vince, our man out in the Caymans to handle the transaction. Then we waited. And waited. Baxter should have had the sense to shut up, but he couldn’t help himself.
‘First thing I’m going to do when I get out of here is take a long, hot bath.’
Kinane looked like a dog being held back by an invisible leash; a leash that I was holding.
‘You’re not going anywhere until I’m convinced we can access that money,’ I reminded him.
‘That’s just a formality,’ he reminded me. ‘I have no intention of cheating you out of your millions,’ and he smiled slightly, ‘don’t think I’d sleep too well if that were to happen. Would I, Joe?’
This was too much for Kinane and he climbed to his feet and stepped towards Baxter. He bent low so he could look right into Baxter’s face.
‘Let me do him anyway,’ he implored me, without taking his eyes away from Baxter’s, ‘even if he gives up the money. We’ll give him the same chance he gave that little girl. That would be fair, don’t you think?’
Beads of sweat were forming on Baxter’s face and I took my time before replying. I was enjoying watching him shit himself like this. In the end though, I was forced to say, ‘No Joe. I gave him my word on Emma’s life, you know that.’
‘That was your word,’ Kinane protested, ‘not mine.’
‘And I’m the boss,’ I reminded him, ‘I swore that no one who worked for me would harm him.’
‘Jesus Christ!’ shouted Kinane and he slammed his fist down hard on the table in front of Baxter. Then he added, ‘Maybe not today, but one day. One day, Baxter. It will be you, me and a dark alley somewhere and then you’ll be sorry for everything.’
‘I wouldn’t say another word if I were you Baxter,’ I warned him and he finally saw sense, staying silent for more than an hour while we waited.
Eventually, and not before time, we got the call from Robbie confirming that we could access the money and would be able to transfer it whenever we wished. I tried not to show how relieved I was, but we were so close to running out of operating cash I doubt we’d have gone another month without a serious intervention from someone.
‘It’s done,’ I told Baxter.
‘Then you can let me go,’ he told me acerbically, ‘I fulfilled my side of the bargain, now you can keep yours.’ Then he added, ‘Oh, and don’t forget the money.’
‘It’s in the car,’ I told him. ‘Keep an eye on him you two,’ I told Kinane and Palmer, ‘but make sure he doesn’t trip and hurt himself while I’m away.’ Palmer accepted this but Kinane shot me an evil look.
I walked out of the room and back to the car. I took out the holdall that contained the generous sum of money Baxter had extorted from me, in return for the repatriation of my five million, then I nodded at the guys standing outside the warehouse so they knew we were done. One of them followed me to the warehouse door and stepped inside with me. He walked quietly behind me all the way to the inner office, but waited outside. I stepped in and placed the holdall on the table next to his airline tickets and Baxter’s piggy little eyes lit up.
‘My end of the bargain,’ I told him, ‘it’s all in there. I promised you that and I promised that neither I nor anyone who worked for me would ever lay a hand on you, as long as you delivered our money.’
Baxter nodded, ‘I’m grateful, I really am,’ he said, then he glanced at the handcuffs, ‘now if you could just let me go?’
‘Not yet,’ I told him. ‘The deal was I have to let you go on the same day,’ I looked at my watch, ‘there’s still five hours to go before I have to uncuff you.’
‘Oh come on, you are joking aren’t you?’ asked Baxter. ‘I can’t believe you are going to be so petty. Are you really going to leave me here for five hours until you take these cuffs off me? Seriously?’
‘Yes,’ I said, ‘seriously, but don’t worry, one of the boys will come back and uncuff you before the day is over.’
‘Christ,’ he said in extreme irritation, then he seemed to compose himself, ‘very well, play your little games if you must. Just make sure you take these two out of my sight and make sure someone you trust comes back to let me go. Remember your oath.’
‘I remember it alright,’ I said, ‘every word. Come on boys,’ and I walked away from Baxter. Palmer and Kinane followed reluctantly.
When we reached the door, I looked back at Baxter who seemed little more than irritated by this inconvenience. ‘There’s one last thing Baxter,’ I told him.
‘What?’ he asked sourly.
‘There’s someone outside I’d like you to meet.’
He looked confused then, so I opened the door and gestured for the man who had been waiting outside to come in. I relished the moment when Baxter realised who he was and his eyes went wide with terror.
‘This is Matt Bell,’ I told Baxter, ‘the father of the little girl you raped and murdered, but then I think you know that. He was in the courtroom.’
‘What’s he doing here?’ Baxter croaked and he instinctively tugged at the handcuffs on both wrists but they held firm.
‘He’d like a word with you,’ I said, ‘in private.’
Matt Bell took a step further into the room and stared fixedly at Baxter. Baxter’s gaze moved lower until he noticed what Bell was carrying; a large, heavy, metal tool box. Bell set the box down on the table and started to remove items from it one at a time; a hacksaw, a claw hammer, a cordless drill, some nails, a small sledge hammer. Baxter’s eyes widened in terror as Bell carefully placed each item on the table next to him. Finally he took out a roll of gaffer tape.
‘You swore to me!’ Baxter pleaded, ‘You swore an oath on the life of your child! You can’t let him touch me!’
‘I swore I wouldn’t harm or kill you Baxter,’ I reminded him, ‘I swore none of my men or anyone hired by me would harm or kill you. Mr Bell doesn’t work for me and I haven’t hired him to do anything. I merely agreed to his request to give him a little alone-time with you, one on one, just the two of you.’ All the while I was speaking Matt Bell was removing items from the tool box and setting them down. Baxter was struggling hard against the cuffs, but he couldn’t free himself. ‘I think a man deserves that, don’t you? He deserves the chance to look his daughter’s killer in the eye and make him suffer. That’s what I call justice.’
Bell turned to me and I told him, ‘You have five hours. Whatever is left after that my boys will dispose of but don’t take a minute more.’
‘Nooo!’ Baxter was shouting. ‘Pleeease no!’
Bell ignored him. ‘I won’t, and thank you.’
‘Nobody will ever find him,’ I told Leanne’s father, ‘they won’t even look, but we’ll make sure there’s nothing left to find.’ I meant that we would take Baxter’s body off to the pig farm. Baxter knew that too and his eyes widened even further. Sweat was plastered all over his forehead.
‘Don’t do this!’ squealed Baxter. I could tell by the smell in that warm room that he’d already soiled himself, but Bell didn’t care. He was past caring about anything now except the time he was about to spend alone with the man who’d killed his daughter.
I walked over to the table and picked up the airline ticket. ‘You won’t be needing this,’ I told Baxter, then I turned to Matt Bell.