Coming back to the present with a start, I looked up from the empty Latte cup and then down at my watch. After having spun out three coffees for nearly two hours I was receiving some sideways looks from the staff. I suppose I had been here a long time. The trouble was that I was comfortable and did not relish moving again. I gingerly rose to my feet, paid the bill, and walked out to the shopping mall. I needed a phone. I quickly bou ght one with a pay as you go SIM card and walked down the mall to the garden area where I was able find a bench and sit down. Time to call Alec. Alec was in the office and I was put through quickly.
“Alec, this is Martin, can you meet with me? I don't want to come to the office at the moment.”
“What is going on, Martin,” said an understandably perplexed Alec, “Are you alright? I understand you sneaked out of the hospital and stole a car!”
“I will explain when we get together, if you can get away how about the coffee stand near the SS Great Britain in half an hour?”
Alec sighed, “OK, see you then.”
The day had brightened up and sitting in the warm sun was very pleasant. I started to relax while I drank yet another coffee and waited for Alec. It was very pleasant here with the SS Great Britain’s masts towering to the left and the recently rejuvenated harbour developments in front of me. I could see a ferry making its way across the water and in the bow was the tall figure of Alec, he waved and I waved back. The ferry reached the wharf and Alec was quickly with me. Having ordered himself a coffee he slumped down in to a chair beside me.
“Sounds like you are having a rough time, ” I said.
“Not really, it’s just that a few minutes before you ca lled I had a somewhat unpleasant phone conversation with that git Plavsic.”
“So you don't like him either,” I said.
“He just won't take no for an answer. He had been told by Allied Grampian of our board decision not to take his proposals any further and he wanted to discuss it further. When I politely said no, that our decision was final he became unpleasant, almost threatening.”
“Now that is interesting”, I said. I then went on to tell him the story of my 'accident'.
“You don't think it was Plavsic who knocked you off the road, do you?”
“Well, not personally because that driver is dead, but maybe he is involved. Perhaps the accident was meant to be a warning that went wrong?”
“But why?” said Alec. “It sounds a bit far fetched that someone would try strong arm tactics like that just because we turned him down”.
“I agree, but maybe there is more to Plavsic than we know. I have felt that someone has been following me for the past week or so and then just before I set out for home the other night I had a threatening call. An obviously very heavily disguised voice threatened me that I would be 'dead meat' if I allowed the company to float. That's all he said, and hung up.”
“Well. There is something I didn't tell you. Three days ago I got an anonymous letter threatening something similar. Well not a letter really, it was a message made up of letters cut out of magazines.”
“Have you still got it?” I said.
“No, thought it was a crank and threw it away. Why did you run away from hospital? I couldn't believe it when I heard.”
“Frankly, I was scared. The accident seemed like an attempt to kill me and I was lucky to get out alive. On top of that there was this business of being followed, and lying there in hospital I felt like I was a sitting duck if someone wanted to try again. I have even stopped using my credit cards so they can't locate me.” I did not feel like telling Alec about Adrian's problem.
“You're being crazy Martin. We may have a problem here but tracing you through credit card use is something that only police and security services could do. Don't you think you are going over the top?”
“Maybe,” I said, “You're call from Plavsic puts a different light on it. However there is something else I need to tell you.” I then described the home visit and threat I had from the man in the trench coat.
“Why did you not tell me before, and why have you not told the police?” said Alec.
“I'm not really sure why I kept it to myself,” I said. “The more I thought about it; there was really very little to tell the police that they could act on or use to identify the bloke, and I suppose I was a bit shocked. Frankly I am not a great fan of the police, probably stemming from the days of getting beaten up during student demonstrations, so I decided to leave it. The only action I took was to change the locks on the front door, he obviously had a key.”
“I think we now need to involve the police, straight away. Tell them everything that has happened and see what they make of it. If you put the whole thing on a formal basis with the authorities that might restrain these people or at least make them think twice. ”
“I suppose you are right.” I said. “Technically I might be considered to be on the run. There was a uniformed police officer stationed at the reception desk in the hospital. I am not sure if the crash was someone trying to kill me or just warn me off.”
“Well I think that you need to talk to the police. If you are by any remote chance right that security services are involved in this then bringing in the civil police is probably a good idea. I met someone the other night that might be able to help us. She had just been promoted to head up the Bristol CID. I will have her card back at the office.”
“Ok, you could be right, let’s go” We jumped on the next ferry across the harbour and were soon back in Alec's office.
“Here it is,” said Alec “Chief Superintendent Alice Fleet. I will call her now.”
While I stood looking out of the window at the superb view Alec made the call.
“Can I speak to Chief Superintendent Fleet please? Yes, I met her a week or so ago and would like to talk to her.”
“Chief Superintendent Fleet, Alec Bell, I don't know if you remember me, we met at that Scouts fund raising night a week ago.”
“Yes it was a successful night. Look to get to the point, my colleague and I are being threatened and believe we should talk to the police, perhaps you can help us.”
“OK, you are at College Green, is that right? We could be over there in say 30 minutes would that be convenient? That's good of you, see you then.” He hung up and said, “let's go”.
Half an hour later, after waiting for a few minutes at the police desk, we were shown up to a meeting room on the second floor. A slim striking woman in her mid to late forties with greying hair met us as we came out of the lift. She introduced herself as Chief Superintendent Fleet and showed us in to a room just down the corridor where there was a man waiting whom she introduced as Inspector David Lloyd. We all sat down round the table.
“Now Mr Bell how can we help you?”
Alec went through the details of our story with me adding in bits as necessary.
“I think I saw something about you on our crime sheets this morning” said Lloyd looking at me. “You're the guy who stole a car from outside Frenchay hospital?” I nodded.
“We understand that the car was recovered undamaged, but it was still a serious offence,” he said. “You could be charged but no doubt the local police will be in touch with you. I assume the theft was all part of this story you have been telling us about?”
“Yes, I felt I had to get away from the hospital in any way I could. Since then I have calmed down a bit and Alec here has talked some sense in to me and persuaded me that we needed to talk to you.”
“We'll come to the car later,” said Fleet. “In the meantime we had better see if we can find out a bit more about your threats. With your permission we will h ave a look at the company's phone records to see if we can identify the caller who made the phone threat and also pay a visit to Mr Plavsic. We will follow up with the local police and see what they have on the ownership of the Volvo you describe as in your crash. In the meantime Mr Bell, can you see if that threatening letter can be found, perhaps the rubbish has not been thrown out. Over and above that there is not a lot we can do unless more evidence surfaces or something else happens. In the meantime I would suggest you are both careful and report anything to us that seems suspicious. Inspector Lloyd here will be in charge of this, so talk directly to him.”
We exchanged cards with Lloyd and after thanking Fleet for her time and seeing them so promptly we left.
Out in the street I said, “We didn't get much out of that, did we?”
“What did you expect? The whole story does sound a bit unreal.”
“What!”
“Don't over react.”
“It’s not you who they keep beating up!”
“We both know that there is a problem Martin, but we didn't really have much for them to act upon, lets see if they turn up anything new. In the meantime I have a mountain of stuff on my desk and I suspect you do as well, so lets get back to the office.”
I had a meeting of the technical department heads that afternoon which went on all afternoon. Afterwards I was sitting in my office making a few meeting notes when Alec popped his head around the door.
“Just been talking to Lisa, she asked if you would be free to come over to dinner this evening?”
“Would love too, although I won't stay late. I think a reasonably early night is called for.”
We left about half an hour later. I followed Alec's 7 series BMW in my little hire car that I had arranged to be delivered earlier in the afternoon. A small sporty hatch back that was probably a lot more sensible than a Range Rover in the dense evening traffic. Alec lived in a penthouse apartment in Clifton village, an affluent suburb of Bristol, and only a short walk to the gorge and downs. After guiding me in to a vacant visitors spot in the secure car park beneath the block we went up to the flat.
“Look, no need to tell Lisa the gory bits yet, no need to alarm her, OK?”
I nodded.
Lisa met us at the door and greeted me by grabbing me and giving me a big hug.
“Haven't seen you for ages Martin, how are you?” I winced and it was all I could do to contain a scream as the hug generated a shooting pain up my right side.
“Oh, sorry Martin, I forgot, is it bad?”
“No not really, I have always been a coward when it comes to pain.”
“Come and sit down,” she said. “Alec get him a Scotch, I think he needs one.”
“That sounds a great idea but only if you two are having something as well.”
Alec went across to his drinks cabinet to do the necessary and handed me a glass of his best malt, no water no ice, neat, just as he knew I take it. “Lisa what would you like, a white wine?”
“Yes please darling,” she said as she gave him a peck on the cheek, “there is a bottle open in the fridge” and went out to the kitchen followed by Alec.
He returned a few minutes later and we went and sat out on the balcony. It was a pleasant evening now, not exactly balmy but tolerable and with the fresh air and the view I started to relax for the first time in several days. The lights of the sprawling city spread out to the left and open country to the centre and right.
“You have a great flat,”
“Yes, we like it, although with the float coming up I haven't seen much of it in the last few weeks, it has been just a place to eat and sleep recently. On a clear day y ou can see as far as the Mendip Hills.”
“Do you remember hiking and camping down there?”
“Yes, they were great days, when it didn't pour with rain and water got in to absolutely everything! ”
“Don't seem to have time to do that kind of thing these days,” I sighed.
After a few moments silence we moved on to talk around some of the recent events, trying to make sense of them, until Lisa came out and joined us.
“Let's have no more business tonight, dinner will be about half an hour, so lets have another drink,” she said looking at Alec, who obediently got up and went off to refresh all of our glasses. “So Martin how is the social life at the moment? I know you have all been very busy, but you must have some time off. Whatever happened to that girl who came with you to dinner last time, she was very nice, Jackie wasn't it?”
“Jasmine,” I said. “ She’ s OK, I think. I had an email from Egypt a few weeks ago. You will remember she is an archaeologist, and is out there on a dig at the moment. No idea when she will be back. Apparently they have used US spy satellite technology to identify vast areas of hidden ruins that have been swallowed up by the desert. A combination of high-resolution satellite photography and infrared scanning can detect the ancient mud bricks under the sand. She could be out there for the duration as far as I know.”
“Don't be so blase,” said Lisa, “don't you get lonely?”
“Too busy,” I replied, anxious to change the subject. Fortunately Alec returned to say that there seemed to be things going on in the kitchen and with an exclamation she was gone.
It was a pleasant evening, but feeling very tired and still sore I made my excuses and left early. Alec came down with me to the parking garage to let me out of the secure gate. “Thanks for dinner, see you in the morning,” I said out of the window before driving the car up the ramp.
Turning right as I came out of the garage I saw a set of headlights come on to my left. The streets were quiet and driving along I thought back over the evening. ‘ I wo nder what Jasmine is doing now? P robably sitting round a camp fire exchanging n otes on the days dig I expect,’ then, remembering the t ime difference revised that to ‘ sleeping out in a tent under the desert sky.’
A set of traffic lights brought me to a halt, and a car pulled up behind me. I pulled away and the car followed. I turned on to the motorway and looking behind could see no further sign of the car. I scolded myself; my imagination was running away with me. In a few miles I turned off and was quickly in to the West Country lanes that lead to my house, an old converted barn that I had spent some time lovingly converting to my specifications. It would be good to get home.
As I turned in to the narrow lane a mile from the house there was suddenly a set of car headlights behind me. “Stop being paranoid,” I said to my self, bu t my heartbeat was faster never the less; it was unusual to get traffic on this road this late. I turned a bend in the road and another set of headlights was coming towards me. It was a single-track road and I slowed, but the nearest passing place behind me was a good half-mile back so it would have to be the car in front that would have to reverse. But he did not stop, he came right up to the front with his headlights on full, so I could see nothing. I opened the door and got partially out of the car so I could gesture to the driver to back up. As I did so a car door slammed behind me. A chill went up my spine and I jumped back in to the car and locked the door. There was a few seconds of silence and then a smash as the rear window behind me was broken. The doors were u nlocked and a big burly gorilla- like figure opened the driver’s door, grabbed my coat, and dragged me out of the car on to the grass verge. I stumbled to my feet and by this time I was indignantly yelling in protest but the sheer size of this guy made me pause. I am not a small guy but I knew I had no chance against him. Suddenly there was movement behind me, and blinding pain as my feet were swept away with a blow to my right calf. The big gorilla picked me up and literally threw me down the verge in to the hedge running along side the road. Another, standing there with a baseball bat stared down at me menacingly.
“Is a broken rib and a car smash not enough warning to?” he said. “This is the last warning. Next time it will be serious, a lost hand or foot, we are not messing around. No float or else, and our friends want to talk to that brother of yours, tell him, and tell him what the penalty will be for not doing what we say. Tell him to ring Groucho soon or you will all regret it. You can tell that partner of yours, Bell, that we will come for him next time, and he has a family. Remember, no float!” With that he turned and smashed the rear window of the car with the bat.
Lying sprawled and dazed in the midst of the hedge I slowly realised that the two cars had gone. My leg was screaming at me as I tried to get out of the hedge and crawl up the slope to the grass verge; my leg would not take any weight.
I heard a car pull up and a voice shouted, “Are you alright?” The voice turned out to belong to Jerry, the proprietor of the delicatessen in the village.
“Give me a hand please, it is difficult to walk.”
“Shall I call the police, or an ambulance,” said Jerry.
I looked in both directions along the road and thought, no point. “No, don't let's bother them Jerry, if you can help me clear the glass off the drivers seat I will move the car out of the way so you can get through, I only live just up the road.”
“Well if you are sure,” he said somewhat doubtfully, as I stood there on one leg gingerly feeling my right calf. Nothing felt broken I thought but I wondered if I could drive.
Jerry got some gloves and a heavy rag out of his car and brushed the glass off the driver seat on to the road. I then sat down on the seat and carefully, using both hands, lifted my damaged leg in to the car. The car engine was still running and I gently tried to see if I could control the throttle with the foot of my injured leg. The car revved a bit jerkily but good enough to get me home.
“Thanks Jerry, you've been very helpful. I will move on and get out of your way.”
Jerry was still looking doubtful, “Are you sure you are OK?”
“Yes, I will be fine, thanks Jerry, see you later,” I said with a confidence that I did not feel, “I will get on home now.” With that I pressed the clutch, put the car in gear, and jerked off up the road.
Luckily, I met no more traffic and found myself entering the drive to my house. The drive is on a downward slope, my right leg simply refused to cope with the foot break, so using a combination of left foot and handbrake I came to a stalled halt before I reached the Rhododendrons!
Getting slowly out of the car, I limped to the door. Feeling was definitely coming back in to my leg but with it came the pain. Inside I dragged myself t o the bathroom, swallowed some P aracetamol, and then limped in to the bedroom where I fell on to the bed. This was getting to be a habit!
As his cell phone rang, he closed the door and answered it. A voice said, “ We found him and the next round of warnings administered,” and hung up. Dawson smiled to himself, perhaps that would get the result they were looking for.