CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The two policemen were getting a little bored with the one way conversation as they fired off several questions at the fragile figure that lay in the bed opposite.
“Miss Trevor, could you tell us what happened on the night you were attacked by Mr Rowlandson? Take your time, it’s ok, we’re here for a while longer.”
Becky’s mind was beginning to wake up. She could remember the night in all its horrific detail but her speech was slow and cumbersome. She had no energy to speak and to desperately tell them what had really happened.
What were they saying? She couldn’t concentrate; she had to muster the strength to tell them.
It started as a weak offering; it was all she could manage.
“It wasn’t …”
The policeman were making progress, they had waited so long for her to come round.
“What wasn’t Miss Trevor? Take your time.”
She fought desperately to tell them, it wasn’t Harry, it wasn’t him. Why were they asking her? Where was Harry?
“It wasn’t …”
The officer looked over at his colleague who gestured with his hand that it was time for another cigarette break.
“Miss Trevor, we’ll be back in ten minutes, just have to nip out but when we come back you can tell us all that you know, ok?”
Becky was relieved they weren’t leaving. She had to tell them, she closed and opened her eyes in agreement.
The two policemen smiled and got up to take a quick puff outside.
One of the officers noticed the rather large lump of a cleaner doing his rounds as he was about to leave. “Orderly, can you clean up this side of the bed; it’s becomin’ a right mess from our boots.”
Kelvin looked back at them with dull eyes and nodded as he worked his brush over to the girl.
Harry was lying in his bed wondering when the nurse would be arriving to give him another clean. His appetite was still off but he couldn’t face another liquid lunch. If you can survive the hospital meals you can survive the attack he thought to himself.
AJ had found the entrance to Ward 3. On the way he had been given some strange looks from patients and staff alike but they were used to people dropping in. His uniform was his disguise but he wanted desperately to get back to the club and carry on where he’d left off.
“What a crap job, Hobbs would have been better at this,” he grumbled to himself.
He counted down the room numbers, 11, 10, 9 … and came up to the door of Harry’s room. He thumbed in his pocket to grip the syringe before he entered in case Harry was awake.
The room was dark, it seemed he was asleep. It would be easier this way her thought as he pushed the door open and slowly peered inside.
To his surprise the room was empty except for some books, magazines and a neatly folded bed.
“Crap, where the hell are you Harry?”
Maybe Dr Hancox had given him the wrong room number? He pushed back the way he came and opened the doors to the other rooms. A series of oddballs greeted him with smiles, but no Harry!
“Idiot,” he cried and casually walked back towards the treatment room where he’d started from.
The cleaner had looked around to see if anyone was watching him as he stood by the end of the bed. He had maybe five minutes to see her off before the police came back. Becky saw him approach and smiled as best she could and he gave a huge smile in return as if the two were lifelong friends.
He walked round to the side of the bed and kept an eye on anyone that approached.
“It wasn’t …”
AJ was about to walk back into the room to slag Dr Hancox off for giving him wrong directions but through the crack of the door he could hear him having a conversation on the phone. He stood a little while to listen.
“Jack, the doctor’s gone. I’ve sent him off to dispatch with Harry and then we’ll make it look like a staged attack from a crazed lunatic.”
AJ could only hear half of the conversation. Was this the same man who he’d seen at the club?
He listened eagerly for more.
“Ridiculous Jack, how much did he want?
“Quite right, blackmail, what are you going to do about him?”
“Good plan, only thing to do when people get greedy Jack.”
AJ was fascinated by the conversation, blackmail? Who? What were they talking about?
“And what about his fool? The idiot you sent me to finish the job?”
“I don’t think I have enough in the syringe to finish them both off Jack? He has a syringe too.”
AJ’s face turned from curiosity to sheer dread in an instant. He couldn’t believe it. He and Vic had done so much for them! So what if Vic had asked for more, he was entitled to it; these nonces wouldn’t find anyone better to do it for the same money.
He was angry now but he couldn’t show it. He had to think of something and he had better do it quick before he entered the room.
The cleaner carried smiling at Becky as he gestured to plump up the pillow to make her more comfortable. Becky got the gist and winked at him to do so as he slowly pulled it out from under her.
He gave one final look around as it slid free and then gripped both ends of the pillow in front of her with his oversized hands.
The police were just finishing up their cigarettes outside and were turning back to enter the hospital doors again. The smoking areas had been assigned to the far reaches of the building to their annoyance.
AJ quickly walked down the hall away from the office and veered off onto a larger ward containing a number of beds. He could see two patients lying in bed, one looked like he had been twelve rounds with Mike Tyson.
He rang Vic who answered quickly to see how it was all going.
“Hello AJ or is it Doctor Doom now, how’s it progressing?”
“Vic, I can’t talk for long, that Jack has set us up. I heard the conversation, they’re gonna do away with me now and then you later. I can’t bloody believe it!”
Vic was speechless, the double crossing ponces, he thought the man had been a little too slick in his money negotiation.
“Where are you now AJ?”
“Down the hall, he doesn’t know were onto him Vic, what should I do?”
“AJ, listen, sort him out. I’ll call off the dogs on that girl and you go get us the insurance policy, you know what to do.”
Vic never took chances; there was always a backup plan. He had very few real friends.
AJ ended the call and walked back into the treatment room.
The girl offered no resistance as she felt her life slowly ebbing away from her underneath the heavy pillow. The strength of the cleaner was just too much, even in a healthy state. Becky accepted her cruel fate and began to fade away.
A phone rang from behind it which made the weight lessen, it sounded muffled to her and she heard a distinct grunt. She waited for it to resume but to her amazement the pillow was lifted off and she stared at the man with utter horror. Behind him she could make out the two policemen returning from their break.
The cleaner was too crafty for them and simply plumped the pillow up, smiled at her and placed it under her head before smiling again at the officers as he slowly left the scene.
“Nurse shortages, whatever will they think of next?” joked one of the officers and they sat down to wait for the girl to speak once more.
An aggravated man walked back into the treatment room, “Dr Hancox, you gave me the wrong room number, where the hell is he?”
Nick looked at his soon to be deceased accomplice and walked over to the roster again. “You fool, it’s a simple task, find Harry and do him in!” He leafed through the pages again before catching sight of the doctor’s notes lying next to them.
“Bloody hell, he is in the sick ward, where the blazes is that?”
AJ watched him as he returned to the room map to pinpoint its location.
“I know where it is Doctor, I saw someone who looked like him but he was a bit messed up. Tell me what that device is on the X-ray before I go see him.”
What was wrong with this man thought Nick, he was so relaxed amidst it all.
“We don’t have time you moron, a Nurse could come in here any moment and then we’re done for.”
AJ walked over to the light box once more. “A second of your precious time, Dr Hancox, just humour me and I’ll be gone.”
Nick could see he wasn’t going to budge until he’d been given his answer. Contract killers; a different breed altogether!
He walked over to AJ and began to tell him a tale of the most fantastical piece of trickery imaginable.
“It’s a mobile phone surgically planted underneath his ear and connected to his eardrum, very clever. Jack would send him messages at key times to make him think he was going mad; quite a brilliant idea. Then of course you did all the rest!”
“Amazing,” remarked AJ in a matter of fact way. He stepped back slightly while the doctor was still marveling at his own handiwork. “Sadly, the battery is dead now so we couldn’t carry on the …”
A dull thud sounded as AJ had raised a large metal door stopper and felled the distracted doctor with a single blow to the back of his head. He slumped down next to Dr Clarke.
“Ah, bless, you look like a wonderful couple, you have so much in common” he joked.
AJ Moved over to the far side of the room and searched the cupboard for some restraining straps. It seemed it was his lucky day as he eyed a straight jacket hanging on a peg.
“Stone me, it gets better.”
Dr Hancox was bundled into the menacing looking outfit with its multitude of straps pulled tight; he dragged the semi conscious man out of the room to find a suitable place he could lock him in.
Luckily for him, this section was out of bounds for patients and he slowly pulled his victim to what looked like a highly secure area without attracting the attention of any staff. He heaved Dr Hancox into the padded room and locked the door.
“You’ll have a lot to answer for mister, when the filth get here,” he rasped under his breath as he turned and headed for the sick ward where his other victim lay.
Dr Hancox was now bleeding heavily from the huge gash on the back of his head. He was starting to come round, groaning and writhing on the floor to the amusement of his roommate who AJ simply hadn’t noticed sitting in the far corner.
The large demented figure rose up and slowly walked over to the tightly bound man. Dr Hancox suddenly gazed up to take in the sight of a large, bald, stupid looking man with an insane grin upon his face.
“Get me out of this jacket, I order you!” came his cry.
Unluckily for Dr Hancox, there was no one to hear the screams coming from inside the soundproof walls, at least not for an hour when the ward Nurse would eventually come round to inspect.
Harry was bored of waiting around for his wash so he decided to doze, there was nothing else for it but he caught the sight of a doctor coming towards him through his half closed eye.
“About bloody time Doctor, I’m a right mess.”
The doctor nodded back at him. “You’re not wrong pal.”
Harry didn’t recognize him. “Where’s Doctor Clarke?”
“Had to go off, emergency, I’m standing in her place for a few hours.”
Harry was trying to focus on the man, he had never seen him before but he looked awfully familiar.
“Don’t I know you somehow?”
“Maybe,” came back the reply with a shrug. “Anyway, it’s time for your operation, you’re wash will have to wait. I’ll help you up.”
The doctor lifted Harry from off the bed and he cried out at the sheer pain of the effort. He hurt all over, something had to be fractured he thought.
Placing Harry into a wheelchair, the doctor began to push him out of the ward.
“Don’t know what all the fuss is about, some bloody object Doctor.” He managed to say as he was getting used to the level of pain.
AJ parked him up outside the treatment room and went in to fetch the X-rays. He folded them up and placed them at the side of Harry.
“Mr Rowlandson, I hope you don’t mind but I fancy a cigarette outside, force of habit; let’s go out and get some fresh air.”
“Ironic,” was all Harry could say.
AJ pushed the feeble man down the hallway to the emergency exit. He quickly peeked through and saw it was a side path that led down to the staff car park.
Security guards were patrolling the area and noticed the two figures moving slowly to the car.
A shout came from about 200 yards away and AJ fumbled in his pocket for the keyless fob.
“Doctor, what’s going on?”
“Get in the car Harry!”
“What? Why?”
“Because if you don’t I’m gonna jam this lethal needle into your neck!”
AJ was feeling the net closing in now, he couldn’t just leave him there andrun for it; he could see the fat security guards were only a 100 yards away by now.
Harry’s frightened condition didn’t seem to alarm AJ as he placed the needle next to his throat. Harry complied and slowly eased his way onto the passenger seat.
“Oi, you, stop! What are you doing with that patient?”
AJ ran round to the driver’s side, threw himself in and started up the enormous engine. Its throaty roar kicked into life.
The security guard managed to make it over in time and started banging the window, yelling at them to stop but AJ reversed it in a slick action, racing off with intent towards the front gate.
The general alarm was raised and several guards were running in the direction of the security barrier to try and stop them, meanwhile the original jobsworth was standing in the road motioning for them to stop.
“What are you doing?” cried Harry.
“Shut up, you’ll find out soon enough.”
The car careered towards the gate, forcing the guard at the last minute to flip up his metal barrier for fear of smashing his beloved outpost and then they were gone in a trail of dust; the Aston could definitely shift.
AJ let out a huge war cry, he had forgotten how pumped up he used to get nicking cars.
A great commotion had erupted around one of London Bridge’s huge archway rooms just off Tooley Street. Delivery men were busy wheeling in boxes of catering supplies while managers were barking orders to frantic staff to be meticulous over tonight’s benefit.
Jack and Suzy were strolling around amidst the confusion making sure everything was in place and nothing was left out. It was an important night for Jack; it was closure, pure and simple. They would toast the recovery of Becky and in the same note, offer a gift to the schizophrenic society as compensation for Harry’s evil deeds.
Suzy shouted at an already stressed out supervisor to make sure the tables were spaced correctly.
“They are so bloody incompetent,” she complained, “It has to be right, I don’t know how they’re going manage it all in time for the opening.”
Jack pulled her close to him and gave her a comforting hug. “It will be don’t worry, were paying them enough.”
“Oh Jack, I hope so, it’s our night … look out you idiot, that’s expensive crystal,”
She pulled herself away to scream at a waiter who had knocked a number of glasses onto the floor in a shattering crescendo.
Jack watched the show unfold as the engineers were connecting the large television monitors to various electrical components. A screen flickered into life and broadcast the BBC; a welcome distraction he thought but to his absolute horror they had flashed a breaking news item across the current show.
'breaking news … mentally ill patient escapes from London clinic, one doctor pronounced dead at the scene, another in critical condition … breaking news’.
In the corner of the screen, he could see a familiar face, a face he had hoped he would never see again.
Jack shouted to Suzy who was still remonstrating with the hapless waiter. “Suzy, come quick, look at the screen, oh my God!”
Suzy clasped her face in horror as she watched the item zoom across the bottom of the screen.
“Jack, oh no, oh God, how did he … how did it happen? Who’s dead?”
Jack ignored her shrieks like the rest of the crowd and dialed out to get some answers.
The middle aged gentleman was chuckling to himself; he was expecting the call.
“Vic, oh thank God you picked up, have you seen the news?”
A confident Mr Dart loved to see ponces squirm, “Of course Jack, what are you so worried about?”
Jack pulled his phone away and stared at it in an expression of disbelief.
“Are you mad Vic? Harry is out, a doctor is dead, it could be Nick? What am I going to do?”
“My, my Mr Mayes, you do worry a bit, it’s staged! don’t you see?”
Jack was puzzled at this last statement, staged? It made no sense.
“What do you mean, staged? It’s bloody real, it’s happening right now!”
“Look you big ponce, I have Harry, we had to make it look like an escape otherwise they would’ve become suspicious seeing him dead in the loony bin with not one but two doctors he’d supposedly attacked in his condition, don’t you see?”
A huge feeling of relief came over Jack. He sure was glad to hear the words. “Oh thank God Vic, you’re bloody marvelous, you know that? What are you going to do with him?”
A calm sounding Vic let him know just what. “Not me Jack, you. I think you should pay him a visit tomorrow and finish it yourself … after the benefit of course.”
Jack smiled thinly. He couldn’t believe his luck; it was the perfect way to end it. “You’re truly amazing Vic, worth every penny. I'd be glad to. One other thing, about the girl?”
“Gone Jack, away with the fairies, snuffed out.”
Suzy couldn’t understand how his appearance could have changed so quickly from fear to a distinct feeling of elation.
“Jack?”
He looked over at her and smiled with relief. “It was a stunt by Vic, they have him and the girl is no more. We can enjoy our special evening just as we had planned it!”
A tear welled up in the corner of her eye as she grabbed Jack and began to squeeze the life out of him.
The shiny blue Aston pulled up in front of the row of warehouses tucked underneath the Deptford railway track; the horrific scene of Hobbs’ demise but this time AJ felt no fear. He saw Dave motion him to drive through the double doors with his fugitive. They could hear the sirens of police cars in the distance as it raced around looking for the vehicle it had spotted earlier on the inner city cameras.
Vic was standing there with a huge grin across his face. AJ had not only arrived with his coveted insurance policy but a beautiful motor he could reregister once the Vin plates had been changed over and engine block ground down.
“Nice motor AJ, I was looking for an upgrade. Don’t get me wrong, I love the Jag but it’s temperamental considering its age.”
Vic focused on the moving figure sitting in the passenger seat. He looked frightened as he stared out the window at his captors.
“Get the elephant man out of there would you. I need to speak to him.”
Harry was pulled from the car, looking quite bedraggled in his gown, scraggly beard and distorted features from the immense beating.
Vic introduced himself and offered his hand. “Vic Dart, pleased to meet you at last. You don’t look much like the geezer they paraded on the telly earlier today?”
Harry painfully took Vic’s hand but he wasn’t sure of the friendly gesture. Who was this man? AJ had told him nothing the whole journey back, he just kept telling him to shut up and keep quiet.
“Who are you Mr Dart? What are you going to do with me?”
Vic rubbed his cutthroat smooth chin as if he was pondering the question.
“Well now, that depends. Here we have an escaped lunatic, banged to rights criminal psychopath and, as of today, the killer of an eminent doctor. The police have you flashed all over the news.”
“I didn’t do it Mr Dart … well, I didn’t kill the Doctor.”
Harry looked so pitiful in front of the dapper crook. He was very weak and wished they would get it over with if that was their intention. He had no more energy to carry on fighting.
“You didn’t attempt to murder your assistant either Harry.” Came back the astonishing reply Vic liked the man instantly, for one he called him Mr Dart even though he had offered Vic. He knew respect it seemed.
“What do you mean?” Harry was licking his dry lips as he forced out the words. He didn’t understand the last remark.
“Get Harry some water Dave. Follow me into the office; we have something to tell you. You won’t like it one bit but its best you know the truth.”
They sat him down on the leather chair while AJ and Dave stood around waiting for his reaction. A CD player in the corner was softly playing the Beatles classic “Hey Jude’, Vic was sitting opposite. This was probably the most excitement he’d had for a long time.
“Harry, I’ll just spell it out, we were paid to attack you, make it look like an accident. It’s unpleasant business but that’s the business we’re in see. Dr Hancox planted a mobile phone device in your head. The mobile was called quite regularly to make you think you were a nutter. “
Vic got up quickly to inspect the area where they had planted the device.
“Marvellous what they do with technology these days. I could use a one way intercom myself to keep a track of my boys!”
Harry sat there speechless, he couldn’t take it all in, his eyes were busy moving about in wild realisation of the facts he was suddenly presented.
Vic continued, “Well anyway, I sent my boys up to drug and beat up your assistant then have her placed next to you while you slept like a baby. Only one of them went a little crazy and stabbed her but he’s been dealt with now and won’t be coming back.”
Harry had begun to cry, tears were rolling down his disfigured face into his beard. “Becky, is she dead now?”
Vic talked as if he was detailing a tricky sounding transaction, “Unfortunate business Harry.”
He repeated himself in a slur of anger through his half closed mouth, “Is she dead, I need to know Mr Dart!”
“No, she could have been though if I hadn’t called off my boy. She’s as right as rain, well as right as she can be.”
“Thank God,” Harry slumped back and felt an overwhelming feeling of relief course through him, at least there was some good news.
Harry was puzzled by the doctor’s involvement. He felt betrayed by his act, how could he have done such a thing? They were long time friends.
“Mr Dart, why did Dr Hancox do such a thing?”
Vic poured himself a glass of bourbon on ice; he always seemed to have a bottle on hand.
“Oh no Harry, not Dr Hancox, he was a mere pawn in the game, although he must have got quite a payout. Flew all the way in from the Caribbean, nice car too!”
“Well then who, for God’s sake!” Harry shouted. It made quite a comical scene, his speech was so slurred.
Vic laughed alongside his heavies.
“Who do you think Harry? Who would benefit most from seeing you locked away for life. Come on Harry, you look like you’ve got half a brain?”
Harry craned his body to look at the people around him as he desperately tried to think who it could be; he had a lot of enemies.
Then the penny dropped in his mind. He couldn’t believe it at first, the years he’d spent with her, the trust, the happiness, the closeness; or so he thought. How could she, was it her?
“Suzy? No, no, it can’t be!”
Vic was swishing bourbon around his mouth and nodded back at him. After swallowing it he said, “Jack, Jack Mayes too. Of course it was Suzy, but Jack planned it all. The accident, the operation, the attempted murder, your sentence and your eventual death; it was all his doing.”
Harry was sobbing uncontrollably now. He couldn’t take it all in, it was just too much. It seemed the cruelty of people knew no bounds, especially where money and power was concerned. It tore up his insides to even imagine the scheming, the mayhem and his eventual fate. He would have been hopelessly incarcerated at the centre for the rest of his days … or until he had decided it was just too much.
Dave offered Harry a handkerchief and he began to wipe his tears away. He had to know whether this kidnapping was just another cruel twist in the sorry tale.
“Are you going to kill me? Is this Jack’s last twisted plan?”
Vic looked back at him with all seriousness. “Well, Mr Rowlandson, that all rather depends on you doesn’t it?”
He stammered for words, he couldn’t quite get them out.
“What do … do you mean Mr Dart?”
“I’m not going to beat around the bush anymore Harry, as far as I know Jack thinks I’ll be disposing of you very soon. A swim down the Thames and out to sea where the fishes can have a nice spot of lunch at your expense. Now, I’m a businessman, it was never personal Harry, I don’t know you but you look like a decent man to me. That Jack’s a ponce!, I don’t like the man.”
Harry didn’t understand his options. “What do you want from me?”
“Well Harry, we could continue our original deal with Jack. Get rid of the girl … my man is still up there, he says she is trying to talk now. Then we can get rid of you and Jack and his woman have their day and live in perfect harmony … ah, what a lovely story, makes my heart weep.”
“Or?” asked Harry.
“Or, Mr Rowlandson, we can let you go. It’s the benefit night tonight, in your bloody honour too. Everyone will be there, you can sort this mess out yourself but it’s going to cost you.”
Harry felt sick to the stomach to have to deal with these people. He didn’t forget that they were the same people who had caused all of this destruction in the first place.
“I have no money to give you Mr Dart. By now they will have taken it all, how on earth can I pay you?”
Vic smiled back at him. “Call it credit, Harry, but it will cost you … £10 million quid. A sizeable sum to any man but I suspect you value your life as much as you value your sanity.”
Harry knew he had no options. He could see Mr Dart was a man who thought nothing of his crimes, it was simply business. He knew that if he refused, Jack and Suzy would be toasting his death at the banquet tonight and inside of him there was a rage that this could never be; at least not for Becky’s sake.
“Mr Dart, I don’t agree with your methods. Taken as a whole they have caused so much misery.”
Vic pondered his last statement. “So, you’re not in agreement then Harry?”
Harry painfully stretched out his hand. “I bloody well am. Then say you’re gone and I won’t have to see you and your men anymore?”
“Of course you won’t, it’s more than enough. I think I can trust you Harry. That other ponce couldn’t settle his debts like an honourable man. Now!, back to business … we need to get you over to the banquet, we’ll get you inside but then it’s up to you.”
Vic paused for breath, it was turning out to be a fruitful day. “I’ll help you along but you have that thing in your head as evidence in case they arrest you again, is that clear?”
“Perfectly Mr Dart, and I’ll transfer the money as soon as I get it back.”
Vic shook his hand in agreement. “For some strange reason Mr Rowlandson, I think I can trust you. Good luck!”
Harry was left with a great feeling of hope but he knew Jack for what he was, a smart, cold blooded predator and as for Suzy … he couldn’t bring himself to imagine her deceit.
In the back of his mind he still had doubts. Was this just another elaborate plan to humiliate him at the banquet one final time, in full view of everyone he knew before he was carted off again? He wasn’t sure but he would soon find out.