DCS Noel Flanagan leant forward in the seat and put his head in his hands, holding the position for several minutes, the pressure in his chest almost unbearable as the terror battered away at him. In all his days as a police officer, he had never felt as helpless as he did at that moment. Suddenly he had absolutely no control over events, events that could indelibly shape his future and that of his family.
His daughter, his beloved daughter, was in grievous danger, and all he could do was obey the instructions he’d been given and, by doing so, break the laws he was paid to uphold, thus putting his colleagues right in the firing line.
Was it that bastard Jenner? Was he behind it? The slippery little fuck had always hated him, ever since that time with Frank Rentners. But that hadn’t been his fault; there’d been nothing he could have done about it. Sometimes things just went wrong on an op, even with the best will in the world, and an undercover copper had to be prepared for that, not lash out at his superiors the minute he was put in danger. Jenner hadn’t played by the rules and had paid the price, but could he really hate Flanagan so much that he’d resort to kidnapping his daughter? If he had, Flanagan would kill him. Tear the bastard apart for putting him through this.
But what if it wasn’t Jenner? What if it was someone else who had Judy? What if they’d killed her? Surely they wouldn’t do that. There was no need. He was going to do everything they said. Anything to protect his child.
The terror kept battering away at him, and his heart felt like it was on fire, but he forced himself to calm down, deliberately slowing his breathing until it was normal again. Then he got to his feet, composed himself, and returned to the lounge where his wife was reading the latest Danielle Steel, oblivious to the predicament he was in.