The Stealers (21 page)

Crane put his foot down hard and the Rover's twin-turbos cut in and thrust the car into a sprint that would have been appreciated at the Brands Hatch racing circuit. Crane eased his foot off when he clearly saw the BMW turn into an industrial estate. The estate was quiet at that time of the evening. It was deserted and sparsely lit. Crane flicked off the lights and turned into the estate. Keeping his distance, he followed the bright beams of Bradley's car. When it came to a halt, some hundred metres ahead, Crane swung the Rover into an unlit warehouse parking space and turned off the engine. He surmised that the kidnappers were armed. He had left his acquired weapons in France and without them he knew it would be foolhardy to confront them at this stage.

Bradley parked the BMW in front of a small, detached brick building. He quickly got out of the car and hurriedly unlocked the front door. Once inside, he threw back a heavily padded door to reveal a four metre square, windowless room. The two men carried Daniella inside and laid her down on a thick-piled carpet floor. Catching his breath, Ryan looked around the dimly lit room and remarked, ‘No windows.'

Bradley displayed one of his rare mean smiles and said, ‘This place was once used as a recording studio. It was advertised in the local paper, so I've rented it for a month. It's purpose built – completely soundproof. When she wakes up, she can make as much noise as she likes, no one's going to hear her through the walls or the two sets of doors.'

‘How long are you going to leave her here?'

‘Does it matter? I want Crane, that's all that matters.'

‘We'd better leave some water and… '

Bradley cut him short, ‘Oh just shut the fuck up!'

Ryan looked down and was silent. He was getting increasingly concerned over Bradley's oppressive attitude towards him. He felt this especially so when there was any mention of the money which he considered was due to him.

Bradley locked the building then the two of them got back into the BMW and drove off.

Ryan remained quiet for a while, but he was curious and tried to make pleasant conversation, ‘When are you going to contact Crane?'

‘After I've eaten; he can sweat for a while,' he snapped.

‘What will you do to him?'

He growled a response, ‘I'm not sure. I'll either maim him or kill him. Now don't ask me any more stupid questions!'

*

From his place in the shadows, Crane watched them drive off and, as soon as they were out of sight, he started up the Rover, drove up to the brick building and leapt out. It was now completely dark. He removed his pen-light and examined the door locks. They were substantial and he considered that his bunch of lock-picks may not be up to the job of opening them.

He walked around the building and dismissed the idea of a window entry; they were small and far too high, sited up near the roof line. He tried the lock-picks and, to his surprise, they did work and well-oiled mechanisms sprang back with ease and he stepped inside.

The door to the soundproof room was fastened with a pair of heavy bolts on the outside, which Bradley had fitted in an attempt to make the room more secure. Crane slid these back and pushed the door wide open. Stale air filled his nostrils and the sound of Daniella's heavy breathing could be heard within the empty room. Using his pencil beam, he located the light switch and flicked it on. In the dim light he saw Daniella lying prone on the floor. He crouched down beside her and whispered softly in her ear; she was in a deep sleep and did not rouse.

A raucous, ‘Gotcha!' startled Crane and the door slammed shut. Bradley could not hide his gleeful expression as he slid the bolts across and locked the outer door then strode back, cock-a-hoop, towards his car. Slumping into the driver's seat he said, ‘It was a good job I spotted that pile of junk he drives around in. He won't get out of there in a hurry; it was worth paying the two month's rent in advance.'

Ryan felt no sympathy towards Crane, but could not help remarking, ‘Pity about the woman though.'

Bradley seemed to ignore this and continued, ‘They won't last very long without water and when their bodies are found. I'll be long gone.'

Ryan wished Bradley had included him and had used the word ‘we', so he tagged on weakly, ‘Me too.'

*

Crane heaved his broad shoulders against the padded door; there was no movement at all. There was nothing in the room he could use; it was bare. The ceiling had two small vents, but they were closed. He looked down at Daniella and was thankful that she was still asleep. Eventually he sat down on the floor with his back leaning against the wall. The day for him had been a long one and he was beginning to wilt and succumb to the warm stuffy atmosphere of the room. Apart from the sound of Daniella and his own breathing, the silence was absolute. He squinted at his watch; he had been there for nearly two hours. Heavy eyelids flickered and began to droop, until finally, they closed.

A sudden rush of cool air brushed against Crane's face and he opened his eyes. A man with a torch stood at the door waving it around the room, ‘What's going on?' he groused.

Crane straightened up, ‘We were accidently locked in,' he began.

‘Good job I came along then, I keep an eye on the place for Mr Adams, the owner. I didn't know he had rented it out.'

‘Well I'm certainly glad you didn't know,' Crane replied. ‘Do you have Mr Adams's phone number?'

‘Certainly, sir,' and the watchman produced a notepad and writing the number down handed it to Crane.

Crane looked at the number and noting it was a local one, thanked him and gently lifted Daniella up to carry her outside. The fresh air caused her to stir from her repose. Her eyes flickered responsively, as Crane set her down in the front passenger seat.

Crane thought for a moment and had to admit to himself that he had underestimated Bradley's resolve. Putting himself in Bradley's shoes, Crane guessed that his adversary would check up some time later by driving past the building and so he thought it best to leave his old car parked there as a decoy. Making use of his fully-charged mobile, he called a cab. Crane's surmise proved to be right, when later Bradley cruised past the building he felt smug and reassured when he saw Crane's old Rover still parked there.

By the time the taxi arrived Daniella was awake and reliving the moment when she tried to hang out the washing.

Although tired, Crane had more than enough adrenalin flowing through his veins and, with plenty of fresh evening air, Daniella seemed to have fully recovered from her induced sleep. It was approaching midnight when Crane and Daniella flopped into bed. After a shower, they lay naked for a while, content to remain quiet, nestling against each other's arms under the cool covers which moulded around them. Their bodies gradually warmed from under the quilt, it was then, Daniella propped herself up on one elbow and ran her soft lips down the side of Crane's face. ‘You haven't shaved properly,' she chided gently, ‘but I don't care.'

Crane sat up and rubbed his whiskers. ‘I did earlier on', he offered. Then, as their eyes met briefly, he left it at that and gave her a gentle peck on the cheek. She reacted by throwing her arms about his waist, nearly tilting him off balance, before they embraced and kissed, gently at first and more passionately as they explored each other's nakedness. He was aroused by the feel of her warm breasts heaving sensually against his chest. Daniella responded passionately, moving slowly but purposefully into the act of love as they rolled over from edge to edge of the bed, until exhausted the pair drifted off into an uneasy sleep.

The morning came too soon; they were both awake at first light. After coffee, Daniella insisted on accompanying Crane wherever he went and, in the light of her recent experiences since arriving in Canford, Crane readily agreed. He was anxious to nab Bradley, however he was unsure where to start. For openers, he would try to find out his address and he dialled the telephone number, of the building's owner, that had been given to him by the nightwatchman. Unfortunately the response was on answerphone and Crane was reluctant to leave a message in case the owner contacted Bradley to sanction it.

The notion of keeping watch on the building, where he and Daniella had been incarcerated, was perhaps the only other alternative; in the hope that the villainous pair would check up to see if their prisoners were still in situ. Crane decided to use his Transit van and found an ideal parking place, partially concealed in a nearby cul-de-sac, as an observation post.

After several hours Crane was reluctant to quit, but having consumed two flasks of coffee, Daniella began fidgeting and was keen to visit the toilet. ‘There's a bucket in the back of the van,' Crane remarked casually. Daniella gave him a look that only women can accomplish in such a situation and crossing her legs, remained firmly in her seat.

A few minutes went by and they saw Ryan drive past and pause outside the building; one glance at the Rover satisfied him enough to drive off. Crane's hand darted towards the starter and he pulled the Transit into the road; keeping a steady distance behind Ryan's Ford Mondeo. They followed him through Southend until he pulled up outside a boarding house in Westcliff with a “Vacancies” bedsit sign outside. Crane drove past and, checking his rear-view mirror, watched Ryan enter the building. Daniella seemed to have forgotten her needs momentarily and looked anxiously at Crane as he left the parked van and strode up to the bedsit.

Crane walked up to the front door and, trying the handle, found the door to be unlocked, so stepped inside. He was surprised at the neat and tidy hallway. A name plate was typed and fixed to each of the four doors. Not knowing which name Ryan was using, Crane paused at each one, listening for sounds of movement. He did not have to wait long, Ryan's voice could be heard and Crane, listening intently, guessed he was reporting back to Bradley on the phone.

When the phone conversation finished, Crane tapped lightly on the door. A few seconds passed before the heavy thud of Ryan's bulk resounded across the wooden floorboards. The sound of the latch snapping back echoed through the hall and, as the door inched open, Crane propelled all his weight against it, sending Ryan hurtling backwards across the room. At the same time, Crane leapt into the room, pushing the staggering Ryan forward until he ended up flat on his back on top of a bed. A strong forearm leant against Ryan's throat as he stared up into Crane's face.

‘How's the foot, Ryan?' Crane hissed.

Ryan's eyes bulged fearfully as he stared at Crane in disbelief. ‘It wasn't my idea to… ' he quietened as Crane increased the pressure.

‘Tell me, where does Bradley live?'

‘I don't know, nobody does,' Ryan rasped hoarsely, ‘he always contacts me by mobile phone.'

Crane eased up the pressure on Ryan's neck and said, ‘What's his number?'

The fear remained in Ryan's eyes as he said throatily, ‘It's in my mobile; the number's in my mobile.' He raised his hand and pointed towards a hook behind the door, ‘Jacket pocket.'

Crane straightened up and said, ‘Don't move.'

Ryan remained stock still, hardly daring to breathe as he watched Crane walk towards the door to collect the jacket. He returned and upending the coat to shake the contents out over the bed. He picked up the phone and thrust it towards Ryan, ‘Call him and arrange a meeting,' Crane said.

At that point Ryan did not know who he was more afraid of, Bradley or Crane, but then all things considered – Crane was there.

‘What… shall… I say?' he stammered.

‘Just tell him you want to see him.'

Ryan went quiet and looked down. He was pensive for a moment, until suddenly he blurted out, ‘You were right about Bradley knifing Davy Porter; I found that out the other day. He died in hospital. If I call Bradley he'll want to know why; if he suspects you're involved he'll kill me. He's mad you know – round the bend. He was in Broadmoor.'

Crane's face hardened as he said, ‘That's your problem, I'm not going to wait all day.'

Ryan was quiet again. He closed his eyes for a moment and he opened them to face Crane's steady gaze. Without a word, Ryan dialled Bradley's number and Crane said, ‘Turn the speaker on.'

The ringtone seemed to fill the room until a voice said, ‘Yeah?'

‘It's me, Ryan.'

Bradley sounded irritable ‘I know that, what do you want?'

‘You said that you would have my share of the money today.'

‘Did I?'

Ryan's voice was a little shaky as he said, ‘Yeah, where can we meet up?'

‘You sound a bit edgy, what's troubling you?'

Ryan cleared his throat and replied, ‘Got a bit of a cold. I need the wedge, I've got bills to pay.'

It was silent for a few seconds before Bradley said, ‘Thought you were going to do a runner, you know – get out of the country.'

It was Ryan's turn to be quiet for an instant. Bradley waited patiently, listening to Ryan's heavy breathing, before he came up with, ‘Erm… not just yet, I was relying on getting some dough in.'

‘Are you alone?' Bradley enquired suspiciously.

‘Alone?' Ryan echoed with a forced laugh, ‘Yeah, course I am, I'm in my bedsit.'

There was a slight pause before Bradley came back with, ‘Okay, I'll call you back shortly and tell you when and where we can meet.'

Ryan glanced at Crane and shrugged nervously. Crane looked at his watch; he suddenly realised that he had left Daniella in the van and hoped she had not wandered off in search of a toilet. However, it would be foolhardy to leave Ryan on his own in case he contacted Bradley or vice versa and so he said, ‘You're coming with me and please, don't do anything foolish. You won't get off so light next time and bring your mobile.'

Without taking his eyes off Crane, Ryan eased himself up off the bed, put on his jacket and they both left. As they approached Crane's van, Daniella appeared from the opposite direction with an expression of relief and satisfaction.