‘Where are you getting all this information from?’
‘A lot of it’s common knowledge, Joe. You know that. The Holtzes might try to be secretive but everyone knows about them. I think that if we play this right, then we’re going to be able to get his old man to come. And, obviously, if we can do that, then the chances of anyone trying to fuck us over are minimal. They won’t dare do anything that’ll risk hurting the big boss. Then we take the money, give Krys a nice kicking so he knows what it’s like to be on the wrong end of a beating for once, and we’re out of there.’
‘And that’s it?’
‘That’s it. If we make a straight ransom demand of half a million in cash, that’ll be enough to make up for the risks we’re going to have to take, and give everyone involved the opportunity to take off elsewhere until things either calm down or they don’t. Either way there’ll be a nice little nest egg, and it’s not a sum that people like the Holtzes are going to have any trouble raising. Not with their money. The whole thing’ll take a few days and then, bingo, you’ll be a whole lot richer than you are today.’
‘If we get away with it.’
‘It’s a risky venture, I know that. I’m asking for your involvement because you’re my mate, and you know I’ve got to do something to sort out this situation. Plus, I think the money outweighs the risks. Think about it. We spent months at a time fighting people who make the Holtzes look like pussycats, and all for five hundred quid a week tax free. This might be dangerous, but it’s no more dangerous than anything else we’ve ever done, and this time we can all take a nice long holiday at the end of it.’
Joe took another slug of the beer. ‘Have you spoken to anyone else about this?’
‘Apart from Elaine, no.’
‘And what does she think, this woman you’ve known for all of one weekend?’
‘I think she’d prefer it if we just got out of London and forgot the whole thing, but now that she knows I’m committed to doing it, she’s right behind me.’
‘How do you know she’s not going to go and blurt the whole thing out to one of her mates?’
‘Because she’s no fool, Joe. Plus, she owes Krys Holtz after what he did to her last night. She won’t let us down.’
Joe sat back in his seat and lit a cigarette, still not back in the habit of offering me one, so I pulled out one of my own. ‘The police came to see me again this morning,’ he said eventually.
‘Oh yeah? How come?’
‘Eric’s missus. She’s reported him missing. This detective came round asking questions. Had we seen him? How long’s he worked with us? That sort of thing.’
‘Did he mention anything about me?’
‘No, it was a different bloke to the ones who came round Saturday. I got the impression that this one didn’t know anything about you. God knows why. You’d have thought they’d have co-ordinated things a bit better.’
‘That’s the Old Bill for you. Do you think he suspects anything?’
He shook his head. ‘I don’t think so. He sounded like the whole thing was routine, but we really don’t need the attention, not with everything else. And you’ve got to think, they’re going to be able to put two and two together eventually, aren’t they?’
‘That’s another reason to go ahead with this. If we’ve got money in our pockets, big money, we’re not going to have to worry about it.’
He sighed. ‘I don’t think they can prove much anyway, not without a body, but it’s a worry. You know, it’s amazing how everything can change just like that. This time last week everything was hunky dory. Now look at it.’ He sat in silence for a few moments and I watched him closely, knowing that if he didn’t bite I might as well forget the whole thing now. ‘This sort of operation’s going to need at least four people involved, maybe even five,’ he said after a while.
‘Yeah, I know. I thought we’d use Johnny Hexham as the driver. He’s always available for work, and we don’t have to tell him what we’re doing. Not until it’s too late for him to do anything about it anyway. I can even get him to nick the vehicles we’ll use for the snatch. Any ideas who else? Anyone we’ve worked with in the past? I was thinking of ex-squaddies who are looking for a bit of extra cash.’
‘Not many are going to want to get involved in something like this. Too many things could go wrong.’
‘With half a million to play with, we could make it worth their while.’
‘What split are you suggesting?’
‘Equal shares for everyone who has to carry a gun, fifty grand for the driver, and thirty to Elaine for her part in setting it up. Does that sound fair?’
Joe nodded. ‘Yeah, but we’ve got to be very careful who else we bring in on this. We don’t want to talk to anyone who then turns round and says they’re not interested, because that’ll compromise everything and probably land me on the same target list you’re on.’
‘I agree, but I can’t think of anyone offhand. A week ago I’d have said Tony. He was the sort of bloke who’d have gone for this.’
‘When are you hoping to make the snatch?’
‘As soon as we’ve got everything organized. The place where we’re going to hold him, the cars, and obviously the people. It’ll be a few days yet, but that’s all.’
‘And who’s doing the organizing?’
‘I’ll do all that, if you can get the other people. I think you’re right, perhaps we should have four gunmen. So, are you going to come in on it?’
Joe finished his beer and sighed. ‘All my instincts tell me I’m an idiot for it, and if it was anyone else I’d run a hundred miles in the other direction, but I guess I could do with the money. Yeah, count me in, and give me a couple of days to come up with other possible men. In the meantime, you get things moving. Are you going to use the cash I gave you to cover the costs?’
I nodded. ‘Yeah, that should be plenty.’ I offered him another beer, thinking I could probably do with the company, but he said he had to go.
After he’d left, I poured myself one anyway and relaxed in my seat. In the end, I’d always known that Joe would be up for it because, like all people who’d worked the mercenary game, he longed for excitement and had been shot at enough times not to worry too much about the danger involved in what even I had to admit was not exactly a fool-proof plan. The rewards, though, were not to be sniffed at.
All I had to do now was make sure the basics were in place, and then we’d be ready to go.
Wednesday, eleven days ago
Gallan
When I arrived at the restaurant, Malik — I assumed it was him — was already there, sat at a table at the far end. I could see why he’d picked this place: he was the only customer in it, which didn’t bode too well. I don’t usually get an opportunity to sample restaurant fare while I’m on duty, so I hoped Malik knew something the rest of the West End’s lunchtime trade didn’t.
He stood up as I approached and we introduced ourselves and shook hands. He was a young guy, thirty tops, with a friendly smile and the air of someone with a lot of self-confidence. He was dressed in a dark grey suit that looked more expensive than a copper’s wage would allow, and a natty-looking red tie. A bit formal for an eighty-degree day with high humidity, but he carried it well. I thought he looked more like an up-and-coming executive than a copper, but there was something genuine about him. A sense that you could trust what he had to say. If he’d been selling, I’d have definitely been in the marketplace, and it’s not often I say that.
A waiter appeared almost as soon as I’d sat down and asked if I’d like a drink. I saw that Malik was on orange juice, but since the Met were paying and I had a pack of peppermints in my pocket, I opted for a beer. I’m not a man who has any problem drinking alone.
‘So, this case you’re working on,’ said Malik as my drink arrived. ‘What’s it all about?’
I gave him a brief rundown of the Matthews inquiry. ‘It’s going nowhere fast. There’s still been no sign of Jean Tanner — it’s like she’s vanished into thin air — and the preliminary autopsy on Craig McBride showed he died of a heroin overdose, of all things. Again, no signs of a struggle. Other than that, we’ve got nothing. No new leads, and no joy with any of the old ones. My hunch is that someone from the Holtz organization is definitely involved, because of the way everyone either ends up dead or disappears, but I’m not in a position to do anything about it.’