Date: 2019-06-13 04:00:00+00:00

SAM FINTZ

A MOTHER SCORNED

Copyright © Sam Fintz 2019.

Sam Fintz has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this Work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval system without the written permission of the author or publisher, and where permitted by law. Reviewers may quote brief passages.

This is a work of fiction. All names, places, characters and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or they are used fictitiously. If there are any resemblances to actual persons living or dead, or to any business establishments, events or locales, these are entirely coincidental.

www.samfintz.co.uk

Acknowledgements

My special thanks to these guys:

Robert and Sarah Cline

Adrian and Graham Lumley-Jones

You were especially generous and without your help and support this would not be possible.

There were of course others who were involved in bringing this to life. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

I have been overwhelmed by the support of so many people. It has truly been a great experience!

Last but not least, thank you to my partner Colin for his unfailing support and his faith in my ability, for all the hours of help with editing and rereads and for helping get the design and the book ready to go.

For my late mother Barbara, always in my heart.

Chapter 1

It was a particularly miserable day, even by Manchester standards. A bleary-eyed and clearly exhausted Rose Winters was huddled under the useless little black umbrella. She was struggling to hold it steady against the wind with her one good hand. She felt even more sad as she thought how cruel life was to bring her to this point. Her visible bruises had almost disappeared by now, but her heart was still very sore.

Her husband Jim’s coffin stood proudly above the grave. She chose the dark wood with the brass handles because he would have loved it. She had never felt so alone. Her son Stefan was still in ICU. He would still not speak to her. He was still in a critical condition, and hope and prayers were all she had.

Looking around at the people around the graveside, Rose was amazed that there were so many there on such a hideous day. She almost laughed as she thought that it was amazing what a buffet and a free drink can do!

As the coffin was lowered inch by inch, piece by piece Rose’s heart was breaking again. Into the grave all their joint dreams and plans went. As Rose threw a handful of wet soil on top, she couldn’t help but think about how much she still had to achieve and how empty her life would be from now on. She knew she had to focus on Stefan and his hopeful recovery. She also knew that Jim would have wanted it that way. Still, it was not going to be easy. Luckily, she had her neighbour Fat Pat to help. Fat Pat was standing just a few feet away from her looking skinny and bedraggled in her ill-fitting black dress and a raincoat that was a few sizes too big. She wasn’t known for her style, but she had a huge heart.

Once they had left the cemetery and gone back to the four-bedroomed detached house in Didsbury, Rose and Fat Pat busied themselves with putting out the food. Rose went into autopilot, unwrapping the vol-aux-vents and the sandwiches and putting the kettle on. As she was getting the cups ready and spooning out the coffee, she flashed back to the graveside and the soil she threw onto Jim’s coffin. With a sigh, she walked to the liquor tray and poured herself a stiff shot of Jura to stop herself from dissolving into tears. Any minute the hungry hoards would descend on her tidy home, dragging mud all over the place. She needed to be ready. Not only for them, but also for what lay ahead. This scared her the most. She didn’t know what lay ahead.

Fat Pat came into the room just then, bringing her back to reality and asked her if she needed anything. Gulping down the remainder of the single malt in her glass, she smiled and said: “No thanks. Let’s go face the crowds!”

Chapter 2

Three weeks earlier………………….

Jim had been looking forward to going to the Royal Exchange Theatre and dinner at The Rivals, the restaurant at the Royal Exchange that he had heard so much about. He had managed to get front row seats for the three of them. They were all going to make a night of it. He was dressed in his black suit with a pink shirt and decided against a tie, opting to flash a bit of his hairy chest that Rose loved so much. She looked gorgeous in her black and white two-piece with the pearls he had bought her when Stefan was born. Stefan decided on jeans and a simple linen jacket with a white t-shirt that accentuated his good build. He wore the loafers he had saved so hard for. The three of them looked so stylish as they stepped into Jim’s Classic Mercedes 500SE and headed off into the city. Jim was fastidious about his cars and had picked this one for its timeless sleek styling. The black sedan was so shiny after its weekly trip to the valet.

Jim was a careful driver even though he had 5 litres of power under the bonnet. As they cruised up Princess Road towards the city centre, the radio was playing Smooth Operator, his favourite tune. He was just thinking what a smooth operator he was indeed to catch all the green lights as he passed onto the junction with Wilbraham Road. Jim didn’t see the Ferrari until it was almost on top of him and the last thing he heard was Stefan shout “Look out!”

The Ferrari was doing at least 80 miles per hour as it ploughed into the side of the Mercedes sending it spinning across the junction. Jim had seen it coming just as it hit his Mercedes, but he wouldn’t have felt a thing as the impact snapped his neck in two. Stefan felt a jarring pain as he was knocked to the side by the sheer force and the only thing that stopped him from flying into the air was the seat belt, which he felt biting into his shoulder. As she was shoved hard against the door of the car, Rose felt the sheer force of the impact as well as her husband’s blood all over her before she slipped into unconsciousness. Stefan was not so lucky. He was very much awake and very much in pain.

Aiden Harrington scrambled out of what was left of his Ferrari. To the utter disbelief of the gathering crowd his first words were “What the fuck have you done to my car? I just got it!” The man could barely stand and the only things really propping him up were the vodka martinis and the cocaine that he had just devoured. He angrily grabbed the nearest person’s mobile phone and threw it to the ground shouting, “The next cunt to film me is going to get sued. Don’t you people have any idea who I am?”

Chapter 3

By the time Stefan got to the operating table Rose was conscious. She was so numb from the shock of the accident and the news that her beloved Jim was dead, and her son was on the operating table. The doctors had cleaned her up as best they could, and her arm was in plaster in a sling. She was just starting to realise how severe it all was and as the numbness started to recede, it was replaced with a pain she had never felt before. It felt like her arms and legs had been torn off and her heart had been wrenched out.

The doctors were fighting to repair the damage to Stefan’s spine. The impact had been so severe it had almost crushed part of his spine. At this stage it was uncertain if he would lead a normal life ever again. Time would tell.

Rose sat in the family waiting room. They had given her some scrubs to wear as her own clothing was soaked in Jim’s blood. She had asked one of the nurses to call Fat Pat who was now on her way to the Manchester Royal Infirmary to be with her. Rose felt so anxious and whilst she was in physical as well as mental pain, she couldn’t sit still. She kept thinking about Stefan and wondering how his life could ever be the same again. He had everything going for him and now that may all change. She thought about Jim lying in the mortuary. Her beautiful husband taken away and her beautiful son in surgery……how cruel life can be. Why me, why us? What did we do to deserve this?

The sound of Fat Pat’s voice brought Rose back to reality. A reality she did not know whether she would be able to face. She could hear Fat Pat talking to the nurse at the reception. She got up and went out to greet her and the two women hugged like their own lives depended on it. “What’s the latest, love?” Fat Pat asked Rose.

In between tears and hysterics, Rose did the best she could to give her a quick rundown of what little she knew.

“Stefan is still in surgery and nobody has an idea how long he would be there. Why isn’t anyone updating me?” Rose asked Fat Pat. Rose still didn’t know if he was going to make it or what he would be like after surgery. It was a lot to deal with and despite her current state, she really was pleased that her dear friend was there with her.

Fat Pat went to get them some coffee, or what resembled coffee. When she got back, they just sat in stunned silence waiting for what they both hoped would be good news. Every time someone walked past the family room they froze as they thought it would be news of Stefan. The time seemed to drag on endlessly. Suddenly the door opened, and the surgeon stood in front of the two women who had stood up instinctively.

“Mrs Winters? I am Mr Sharman your son’s surgeon, please sit down,” the surgeon told them, gesturing to the chairs they had just vacated.

Chapter 4

Once the ambulances had left with the Winters family, the Police turned their attention to Aiden, who was standing just next to fence of the school, a few feet away from the traffic lights.

The officer in charge, Sergeant Steve Jones, faced Aiden and told him “Aiden Harrington, I have to caution you at this stage. I will be arresting you on suspicion of driving whilst intoxicated and dangerous driving. You do not have to say anything, but anything you say can and will be used….” He didn’t have time to finish his statement when there was the sound of a chopper overhead.

To everyone’s amazement, the Harrington Aeronautical helicopter swooped down and landed on the playing field in front of the school. When you are the Harringtons you don’t need permission to land wherever you choose. As soon as it touched down Malcolm Harrington and his lawyer Mike Chalmers jumped out and ran across to where Aiden was standing.

“Aiden don’t say a single word!” Mike shouted. “I will deal with this! Officers my client is coming with me.”

At that moment the mobile of Sergeant Steve Jones rang. It was his boss. His face tightened as he listened. He had heard this so many times before.

When he had finished the call, he turned to Aiden and said “Once we have breathalysed you and swabbed for drugs, you will be free to go. For now.” With Mike Chalmers watching their every move they quickly and nervously carried out the tests, which Aiden naturally failed. Sergeant Jones completed his caution and let Aiden go.

Smiling like a kid with a new toy, Aiden and Mike walked through the ever-growing crowd to join Aiden’s father and with the same extravagance, they were swept away in the helicopter leaving the police and the towing crew to clean up the mess Aiden had just created. This was Aiden’s M.O. Make a mess, walk away and have it all cleaned up. This was an everyday occurrence for Aiden, often to the dismay of Mike, who was inevitably the “cleaner”.

Malcolm turned to his son and said: “Speak to no-one about this. The only people you discuss this with are me and Mike. No press, no friends, no family, nobody. Are we clear?”

Aiden was looking out of the window of the helicopter. He just nodded. “It’s so good to be rich,” he thought, smiling to himself as he looked down on the sprawling city.

Chapter 5

After four excruciatingly long hours, Stefan Chambers was finally finished in surgery and moved to the ICU. The doctors had decided to keep him in a medically induced coma as any sudden movement could mean permanent and complete paralysis, although this was not completely ruled out yet.

As the surgeon explained this to Rose, she sat there dead still trying to take it all in. Fat Pat was holding her hand trying to reassure her. Her son could be unable to walk. Or worse, move at all. There was a large degree of damage in the spine area and the next few days would be critical. Rose was warned that his life was still not out of danger, so all they could do was wait and hope and pray. After the surgeon had fully updated Rose, he left the room. None of this would sink in. Or did she not want to face reality?

Fat Pat left Rose at Stefan’s bedside whilst she went to make some calls. It wasn’t going to be easy telling people that Jim was dead, and that Stefan was critically ill in hospital. But she put on her bravest voice and started calling.

Rose in the meantime just sat next to her son’s bed holding his hand. He was so warm, and his hand felt soft in hers. Just like when he was a small boy, which seemed so long ago now. All she could hear was the sound of the machines and the rhythmic breathing of the ventilator. All keeping her son alive.

“Please Stefan, fight this. I can’t lose you as well,” Rose whispered as she fought back tears unsuccessfully.

As Rose sat there, she suddenly realised that someone was going to have to pay for what they have done to her beautiful family and they would have to pay dearly. Nobody does this to Rose Winters. Nobody!

Chapter 6

At the Harrington mansion in Cheshire, Aiden was being dropped off by the company chauffeur. He suddenly felt quite tired, but this was no surprise considering the partying he had just done. Not to mention totalling his Ferrari. He would have to use his Range Rover until he could get a replacement. A minor inconvenience, yet still a pain in the arse. The Range Rover wasn’t as nimble as the other car.

In his bedroom he undressed and as he headed to the shower, he couldn’t help but marvel at his physique. It took a lot of work and a lot of money to look this good. Aiden was quite tall and had thick dark hair. He had striking features and he was muscular, but not overly so. He kept his body hair trimmed and tidy and shaved his pubic hair. His late mother who was American, had had the good sense to circumcise him as a baby. He always felt it was much tidier and cleaner. The girls (and some of the boys) loved it.

Whilst he warmed the shower and got some steam going, he went to his safe in the dressing room and removed a small bag of white powder. He spooned out a little with his gold spoon and snorted it, immediately feeling the rush he was after. He stepped into the shower and had a long and luxurious time in there, washing away any concerns he might have had.

When he finished showering, he got on the phone to Jason Packham, his best friend in the world and serious party partner. Jason wasn’t as tall as Aiden, but he was equally well-built and just as fastidious about personal grooming.

After two rings Jason answered, and the two arranged to meet at the Manchester One and Only Hotel, for dinner and drinks. Aiden said that he had some news for him, so they decided to meet alone for a late dinner and hook up with the rest of their mates at the Apothecary Bar after that. Aiden said they could arrange that afterwards but urged Jason not to be late as the news was spectacular.

Aiden went to his dressing room and picked out a preppy outfit and his Gucci loafers. He wasn’t in the mood for casual wear so this would be ideal. He was glad the butler wasn’t there to pick out his outfit today as he couldn’t really read Aiden’s mood very well, even after all these years.

When he was ready, he jumped into the Range Rover and sped out of the grounds of the estate. He couldn’t wait to see Jason’s face when he told him. This was better than anything Packham could have pulled! Way better!

Chapter 7

Aiden was in his own world as he drove along the M56 motorway. The Range Rover was cruising along at around 85 mph. Faster than he had been travelling when he crashed the Ferrari.

Feeling distracted, his mind wondered back to that afternoon at the penthouse apartment in the city that he used as his bolthole. Lately he had been staying there a lot more. There weren’t many of them at the party but if you looked at the bar you would think he was expecting a bus load of lapsed alcoholics.  He had a special mirrored table in the middle of the lounge that was ideal for lining up the cocaine. He had got enough cocaine to make a good number of lines on the table. When people arrived, they had to “check in” by snorting a line or two. Aiden always thought that was the best way to get things rolling, and what Aiden wanted he ALWAYS got.

He was a bit miffed that his best mate Jason couldn’t be there, but he soon got over that when his favourite power couple arrived. Carl and Emma were super rich thanks to their trust funds. As well as being gorgeous they could also party the whole night away. Today Carl was wearing tailored Armani shorts and a t-shirt, both of which left little to the imagination and Emma was in her signature black Chanel with Manolo Blahnik pumps. He hugged them both and got them to “check in.” Carl was clearly in a good mood as he snorted two lines. Things were looking up.

There were 10 people there by the time the food started coming out. There was sushi and caviar and lots of it, with more than enough Bollinger to wash it down. As usual Aiden had the serving staff dressed as skimpily as possible without actually being naked, just. It was on the cusp, just as everything was with Aiden. There were two girls serving the sushi and one young and very muscular young man serving the caviar with little silver spoons. His usual barman Will, was keeping all the glasses filled. The music was pumping out Ibiza chilled sounds and everything was perfect. Once the food was served the lights were dimmed and the staff disappeared, all except for Will. Everyone was talking and laughing, and things were starting to get a little cosy. Aiden’s parties were always like this.

Suddenly the lift doors opened. 10 more people spilled into the apartment. They were all “checked in” and given a glass of bubbly. Aiden was really loving this. He had had a few lines and was now onto the vodka martinis that Will poured so well. He just kept them coming.

People were dancing, drinking, snorting and some were getting really close. It was only 3 in the afternoon, but it was looking to be a great afternoon.

At around 5 Aiden got a call and without telling anyone he left, leaving the party going. He knew that within the hour most of them would either leave or head to one of the five large bedrooms for a bit more fun.

Aiden retrieved his Ferrari from the underground garage and roared off to meet with his mysterious caller. He took the long way around and ended up on Wilbraham Road. He liked that way around as there were lots of lights to scream away from in the Ferrari.

The call Aiden had received earlier was from Anna and he was feeling excited at seeing her again. She was from the wrong side of the tracks and his father would never approve, but she understood him, she didn’t judge him, and she would do pretty much anything he asked of her without question. He was also feeling very relaxed thanks to the cocaine and the drinks Will had plied him with. Using the steering paddle shift, he shifted down as he approached the lights. As he put his foot on the accelerator, he looked down at his phone to check Instagram to see how many likes his latest pictures had received. He didn’t notice the light was red as he blasted through the intersection just as Jim Winters’s Mercedes was crossing the intersection. It was too late to brake and the Ferrari smashed into the side of the Mercedes. The look of surprise on Jim’s face was something to behold as the Ferrari sent the Mercedes spinning across the intersection. It was like a scene from a movie.

“Oh fuck. This is going to be expensive,” Aiden said to himself as what was left of the Ferrari came grinding to a halt. Besides the airbags and the quality of the Ferrari, the drink and drugs probably saved him from serious harm. He was so pleased he had chosen this car.

As he passed the crash site on Princess Road, his mind snapped out of the reverie.

Chapter 8

Aiden pulled into the Manchester One and Only Hotel and tossed his keys at the valet. The Harrington Aeronautical investment in the hotel meant that he didn’t have to worry about a minor detail like parking his own vehicle. With a spring in his step he bounded into the hotel and walked to The Etoile, the hotel’s award-winning restaurant. He was greeted with enthusiasm by Antonio the manager. He was quickly ushered to his table where Jason was already into his second scotch. Antonio brought him a vodka martini and scurried away leaving the two to talk.

“Wow buddy, you look good!” he told Jason. The two had that special relationship that boys have after knowing each other for years.

“I am dying to know what you have to tell me,” Jason said. “It had better be good!”

“Well, I had the most amazing lunch party, as I am sure you have heard!” Jason just rolled his eyes. He had heard. Nothing out of the ordinary. Just another Aiden do!

“Everybody was getting on so well. There were tons of people there and they snorted and drank me dry. It was so raucous the concierge rang to tell us to turn it down,” Aiden lied, trying to big up the whole thing and make Jason jealous that he had missed it. “That beast Carl was all over two girls and a guy as well as Emma. I tell you bud, it was wild. I was even considering going with the flow, if you know what I mean! But I wouldn’t betray you like that!” Aiden winked at him.

“Anna called, and I thought that since I was so horny, I would go see her rather. I drove the long way around to exercise the Ferrari. Man, that car could fly!”

“Could?” Jason asked.

“Yes bud, that’s the next bit! I was just powering through the intersection when some arsehole in a Mercedes crossed in front of me. It didn’t end well for him. Never seen a Merc fly like that. The thing spun right across the road. The guy was so surprised, his eyes nearly popped out of his head! Man, it awesome. Way better than anything I have ever done before. The rush was stupendous. Brought me right down from the coke!”

“Wow Aiden, were you hurt?”

“Nah, that Ferrari was super safe. I didn’t even get a bruise! But my fucking ride is destroyed! Nothing left of it. So pissed about that, I loved that car and it will take months to get another one, although I am sure that I could pull a string or two. So, I am slumming it in the Range Rover,” he laughed.

“Geez, that’s awesome, I really am jealous. I bet the rush was amazing. Why do I always miss the good stuff? Oh yeah, what happened to the other guy?”

Aiden looked at Jason and said, “I don’t know, don’t care. There were three ambulances that rushed them away. There were so many people there I couldn’t make out what was going on. I heard someone say the driver died, but who knows? Serves them right. He should have been watching where he was going!”

Jason looked clearly in awe of his friend. They ordered another round of drinks and a bottle of Bollinger to accompany their rare T-bone steaks. After their meal, they went up to the Harrington Suite to get ready for the rest of the evening and to round up the troops. Aiden and Jason were buzzing as they called their mates. Before they left Jason stole a quick kiss and rubbed Aiden’s crotch. All this excitement had made him incredibly horny, but that would have to wait. There were cocktails to be drunk. The Apothecary Bar was Aiden’s latest purchase. The lounge he had built there and named Aiden’s Folly was waiting for them to arrive! Life could not be better.

Chapter 9

Rose had fallen asleep when Fat Pat came back bearing cups of tea and sweet pastries. She woke with a start and after a moment of confusion she realised that she was at the hospital and the horrors of the day came flooding back.

“Here Rose have this,” Fat Pat told her. “The sugar will do you good. Sorry I couldn’t get anything stronger.”

“Thank you, Pat. You are a love. Still no news on Stefan. Time will tell. They will keep him under for a few days and then see what they want to do. Pat, I really need to see Jim. Can you ask them if that would be possible? I am sure they have to do an autopsy or something, but I have to see him!”

Fat Pat nodded and suddenly Rose wailed at her: “Oh Pat, what am I going to do without him? He was my rock!”

Fat Pat didn’t have words for her friend, she just hugged her tightly and told her that everything would be ok in the end. With that she left to go and arrange for Rose to visit Jim. She needed to leave the room anyway so that she didn’t cry in front of Rose. She knew that wouldn’t help matters.

Fat Pat arranged the visit to the mortuary for the next morning. She went to wash her face and went back to tell Rose.

When she got back, she found a scene of chaos. It turned out that while she was gone Stefan had had an episode. The doctors were all working hard to stabilise him. Finally, they got things under control. The doctors explained to Rose that this kind of thing happens when a major trauma has occurred.

Rose and Fat Pat just sat quietly in disbelief and watched Stefan, who was now resting calmly.

Chapter 10

After Stefan’s episode, the doctors told Rose she really needed to rest, and that Stefan was in good hands. They had stabilised him again and he seemed restful.

She really needed a long hot shower and a drink. They gave her two Valium tablets and told her to go home, take one of them and get some sleep. Fat Pat pleaded with her to listen to them. She would be no good to anyone if she made herself ill.

Fat Pat drove her home to Didsbury in her tiny car. The hospital had promised that they would call her the second anything developed. Fat Pat told her she would stay with her so that if they called, she could bring her straight back.

She purposely stayed off Princess Road as she was sure there would still be evidence of the crash and also the memories would be too fresh and raw.

When they got to Rose’s house, Fat Pat took her indoors and sent her straight upstairs to run a bath. Rose really wanted to shower, but with her arm in a sling that was near impossible.

“You go and bath but take care to keep that arm out of the water. I will make something to eat. You need to keep your strength up. I’ll bring you a drink in a bit, but you go on up!” Fat Pat told Rose.

Rose was too tired to argue as she dragged herself up to the en-suite. Until a few hours ago she had shared it with Jim. She dropped the scrubs into the bin and ran the bath. Rose caught a reflection of herself in the mirror. She had so much bruising. When the bath was ready, she stepped in carefully and sank down into the water, taking care to keep her arm dry. The hot water on her body soothed her straight away. She felt a little guilty that she was feeling any kind of pleasure after what had happened, but she just closed her eyes and lay back.

Rose heard a noise in the bedroom and her first thought was that Jim was home. She soon remembered that it couldn’t be!

“I’ve poured you a whisky with a bit of ice. Don’t gulp it down!” Fat Pat called to her.

“I won’t!” Rose replied. She knew she would.

When Rose got downstairs feeling a little bit more normal after the bath and the scotch, she found Fat Pat had made her a cheese omelette and some toast laden with butter. Fat Pat knew exactly how to make Rose feel better. She was a real gem.

After wolfing down the food and washing it down with a glass of wine, she took the Valium with the last gulp of wine and headed up to the bedroom. She lay down on the bed and before she knew it she was out like a light.

Fat Pat sat in the lounge with the television on and the phone next to her, hoping that it would not ring. She really hoped that Rose would be able to get some rest so that she would have the strength to face what was still to come. It troubled her that Rose was looking for revenge, but she figured it was just the grief talking and that Rose would think more clearly once she had rested.

Chapter 11

At the Apothecary Bar, Aiden and Jason were greeted with the usual arse kissing they were accustomed to. Aiden had made sure when he bought the bar that it was always filled with beautiful people. A lot of comps were given out to achieve this, but it was working. The bar was the talk of Manchester and was always packed. Just the way he wanted it.

The two headed up to Aiden’s Folly where their drinks were waiting for them. Aiden had messaged ahead his requirements and was pleased to see that they had complied, whilst not expecting anything less. As nobody was in there, he grabbed Jason and kissed him.

“If you play your cards right there will be more to come,” he told Jason with a wink.

Soon their “crew” started to arrive. Drinks were flowing, and nobody seemed to have a care in the world. Least of all Aiden, who was dancing with Jason and some pretty girl called Marnie who didn’t seem to have a lot going on upstairs. She had the strangest accent, which Jason told him was a Scouse accent. Aiden hoped that she wasn’t going to talk a lot. He could only just bear the Manchester accent, but Liverpool was intolerable. He decided rather quickly that he would pass on this. The thought of that accent in his bedroom didn’t fill him with joy.

Jason was looking at his friend in awe. He was thinking to himself that Aiden was so cool. He had probably killed a man earlier and he just brushed it off. He wished he could be so cool. He felt truly blessed to have Aiden as his friend, part-time lover and all-time role model. Quite honestly, life could not be better. Anything Aiden asked Jason to do he did without question. Some guys are so lucky he thought to himself, smiling like a cat that got the cheese.

At around 4 a.m. everybody had left, and the place looked like a bombsite. Aiden and Jason got into the Range Rover and drove around to the One and Only, despite being completely drunk. They went up to the Harrington Suite where Aiden more than kept his promise. The two fell asleep soon after they had exhausted their sexual energy that had been building up for hours. As Jason drifted off in Aiden’s arms his last thought was how happy he felt. The life of the rich was divine.

Chapter 12

At around 9 a.m. Rose woke with a start. She had been dreaming about a family holiday they had taken to Rhodes a few years back. They’d had such a good time. Jim and Stefan had become close again and things could not have been better. Had we done the right thing telling Stefan? she wondered.

At first, she looked at Jim’s side of the bed and wondered where he was. Suddenly the reality of the night before struck her, leaving a cold feeling inside her stomach and a taste of bile in her mouth. She also realised that she was facing the mortuary visit.

She got up and pulled on a gown. She went downstairs where Fat Pat was sitting at the kitchen counter.

“How did you sleep?” Fat Pat asked Rose.

“I slept really well, thanks. I dreamt about Jim and our holiday on Rhodes. At least I have good memories, if nothing else,” she sighed. She thought again whether they were right telling Stefan. Maybe they should have done what Jim wanted and kept it a secret.

Fat Pat went over and hugged her and told her that she was just popping over to her house to shower and change and would be right back.

When she had gone Rose poured some coffee that Fat Pat had made earlier and picked up the phone. She dialled the number from memory and asked to be put through to Ben Cohen.

“Hello Ben, it’s Rose Winters. I need to see you urgently,” Rose said when Ben answered the call.

“Rose, so good to hear from you. I was so sorry to hear about Jim. I can be there in half an hour.”

“Thank you, Ben, but I will need to come to you. What I have to ask you has got to be between the two of us,” Rose told him.

“Ok, that’s fine. Just come whenever you are ready. I am in all day working on a case.”

“Ok, see you later then,” Rose told him and hung up.

“If anyone can help it’s him,” Rose whispered to herself, taking a small amount of pleasure from that.

Chapter 13

When Rose and Fat Pat got to the hospital they parked and walked over to the Clinical Sciences building in silence. When they got to the mortuary the technician warned Rose that Jim didn’t look good, but Rose said it was fine and that she just needed to see him.

Rose and Fat Pat were shown to the waiting room where they sat on a small sofa and waited. The room was very subtly furnished and on the table was a box of tissues. Rose grabbed a couple of tissues and dabbed the tears that were streaming down her face. Fat Pat was crying too. The wait was painful. She knew what was coming and she was dreading it. She knew she would be seeing her husband’s lifeless body and that was going to be one of the hardest things she would ever have to do.

Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, the technician came quietly into the room and asked if they were ready. Rose nodded, and the technician opened the door and showed them in.

In the room Jim was laid out on a mortuary bed covered to his neck with a white sheet. His face looked battered, but he appeared peaceful. Rose wished he would just open his eyes and say it was all a mistake and he was fine, but that didn’t happen.

Rose just stood there and sobbed, tears falling freely down her cheeks and onto the polished floor. Fat Pat took her hand and squeezed it. She could see how devastated Rose was. It was awful.

After a few minutes Rose turned to Fat Pat and said, “Let’s go. I have seen him now.”

Rose then turned back to Jim and whispered “Goodbye my love. We will meet again.” She kissed his forehead and with a shuddering sigh they left the room.

When they were on their way out, Rose turned to Fat Pat and said to her: “As God is my witness, someone is going to pay for this!” Fat Pat looked at her and nodded. Now was not the time to try and talk sense to Rose. She was grieving, and Fat Pat hoped that she wasn’t having a breakdown. The time will come to talk about this. For now, all she could do was support poor Rose.

The two women went over to the main hospital building to go and see Stefan. The nurse told her there was no change to his condition. Rose felt a little relieved. Even though no change meant he was no better, it also meant he was no worse. Small mercies.

Chapter 14

At Harrington Aeronautical Headquarters in Cheshire, Malcolm Harrington was sitting behind his impressive oak desk in his tastefully decorated office. He was talking to Mike Chalmers, who was sitting opposite him on an antique leather chair. Malcolm had managed to strike a fine balance between modern chic and antique style, and it was a huge success.

“I have to be honest Malcolm, this is not going to be easy to hide,” Mike told Malcolm in a matter of fact way. “So far, we have managed to keep a lid on it and they have agreed not to arrest Aiden just yet, but that new piece of skirt at the CPS is pushing hard. She has a point to prove and she is looking for a big win. To be honest, there isn’t much bigger than this. There is also the matter of a possible lawsuit by the Winters family which could further fuck things up. I suggest Aiden lays low for a while and doesn’t make the usual spectacle of himself. If I were you, I would send him somewhere until we can sort this out. Knowing him though, he probably won’t go. Failing that, he will have to stay out of the spotlight until I can do something.”

“Mike, I have to say that you have dealt with worse than this. So, my advice to you would be to stop sitting there telling me what I should be doing with my son and go out there and fix this fuck up before the board gets wind of it and our shares start to fall. I am on the brink of a big deal with the Arabs and I don’t need this to get in the way. I think we are done here. Let me know when you have some good news and if that so-called piece of skirt at the CPS is a problem, take care of it!”

Mike Chalmers left Malcolm’s office feeling really uneasy. Christ, these Harringtons are some family, he thought. As for Aiden, how many more times would he be able to fuck up before Malcolm finally brings him into line.

As he crossed over into his office he called his contact at the CPS who updated him. He was told that there was no change and to prepare for a trial.

“How much would it cost to make it go away?” Mike asked the person on the other side of the line.

“Mike, this one is not for sale. She won’t let go. She is already badgering the forensics guys to get her some evidence, so she can charge. The police are on her side. Your Chief Constable at GMP is sweating. I will see what I can do but I can assure you it won’t be easy.”

“Thanks, I appreciate it. I will wait for your call” Mike told him and hung up without another word, knowing that he wasn’t going to get that call. He threw his phone on the desk in anger and poured a stiff measure of Ardbeg.

“The fucking Chief Constable is not the only one sweating” he said to himself as he took a swig of the amber liquid.

Chapter 15

Aiden and Jason showered and had breakfast in the Suite. They left the hotel and Aiden dropped Jason at his office in the swanky new tower block off Deansgate.

He drove straight to the Ferrari dealership and ordered a new car. He was told it would be eight weeks at least, but that they would try and speed things up. The director of the dealership knew better than to ask what had happened to the other one Aiden hadn’t had for very long. The story was spreading fast! He also knew better than to question people like Aiden. These people spoke and the only answer he gave them was “yes”. He knew his place in life.

From there he headed over to the company headquarters and went straight to Mike’s office.

He sat down opposite Mike and said to him: “So, have you fixed this yet?”

“No Aiden, I haven’t. It’s not that easy. I have made the calls and have prepared the paperwork in case of a lawsuit, but I need you to know this could end up with criminal proceedings. I will do all I can, and I want you not to worry. I will make sure you don’t go to jail. You might get left with a fine and a couple of million compensation, but that should be it. I told your father to send you away until it blows over but by the look on your face that’s not happening! So, you will need to stay under the radar until it is over. No parties, no scandal and especially no deaths.”

Aiden smirked at him and said that he would see what he could do.

“People love me, I can’t help it. But ok, I will try,” he told Mike, knowing full well he had no intention of complying. Some twat dying in a crash was not going to change his life! Little did he know that the CPS had other ideas.

He left the headquarters and headed back to the city. He parked in a disabled bay in the garage under Jason’s office. It was right by the lift, so he didn’t have to walk too far. He took the lift up to the top floor where Jason was just getting ready for a meeting.

“Hey Jase, let’s go out,” Aiden said to his friend.

“I can’t right now, I have a meeting,” Jason told him.

“Fuck the meeting, let’s get pissed!”

Jason looked at his friend and said “You know what? You’re right. After what you went through it’s the least I can do.”

With that he asked his PA to reschedule the meeting and the two headed off to the One and Only. That was the difference between Aiden and Jason. Aiden demanded, Jason asked. Jason couldn’t have been happier as they made their way to the hotel. This was way better than a stuffy meeting. Anyway, he would get his new hotshot recruiter to deal with them.

Aiden on the other hand was thinking how easily he could sway this boy. A wink and a promise were usually enough. Today was no exception!

Chapter 16

At the Greater Manchester Police Headquarters the Chief Constable was in a meeting with Sarah Blake from the CPS. The lead officer on the case, D.I. John Wilkes, was also there.

“So, what have we got so far?” Chief Constable Max Smythe asked.

Sarah was the first to reply.

“The evidence we have, and witness statements suggest that the Ferrari was being driven at high speed through a red light. The other car didn’t stand a chance. They were literally sitting ducks. We have one fatality and two injured, one of which could become a fatality. We were able to breathalyse and drug test the Harrington lad, and he was as high as a kite. I have it on good faith that this is not his first endeavour with police.”

Max Smythe tried to hide his discomfort as he asked Sarah: “How likely are you to charge him?”

Sarah looked at him in shock. She could not believe the stupid question she had just heard from the Chief Constable himself.

John Wilkes quickly jumped in and said: “Sarah, may I? I believe we have enough to charge him with dangerous driving and causing death by dangerous driving as well as drink- and drug-driving. We only have the breathalyser and the drug test and witness testimony. The only CCTV in the area was somehow out of service at the time. It might be a bit sketchy, but we feel we can make it stick long enough to get him in front of a jury. The only thing that worries me is that bloody Mike Chalmers. He is like a flipping Rottweiler. He is not going to take this lying down. Of course, the choice to prosecute is in your hands not mine.”

“I will deal with Mike Chalmers,” Max offered, thinking that he wasn’t quite sure how he would do that.

“Ok then sir, we will wait for you to make the next move. Let us know and we will proceed to arrest him.”

“I will John. I will.”

With that, the meeting was over. Max slumped back in his chair staring out over the cityscape.

“Oh fuck,” he whispered to himself.

He reviewed the file he had in front of him. He turned to the witnesses that had come forward. As he read them, he felt more than a little relieved to see that Chalmers was going to have a field day. There were only three people who were prepared to stand as witnesses (the others probably knew the Harringtons and their tactics!). Of those three he could see that one was a known drug dealer and the other two, one a failed drag queen, were equally suspect. He hoped that nothing else would come up to stir things up. If this didn’t go the Harrington’s way, who knows what the fallout would be!

“Oh well, it could be worse. At least with a bit of imagination, I am sure Chalmers will make these three look like dithering idiots,” he said to himself, laughing out loud when he realised he was the only person in the room.

He took a mobile out of his pocket and dialled Mike’s number. This phone was one Mike had given him and was a secure line that could never be traced to either of them.

“Mike, they are going to charge your boy with drink- and drug-driving, dangerous driving and causing death by dangerous driving. I am going to push for just one main charge. That will make it easier for you to work this one out and get it thrown out. I won’t act until tomorrow to give you time to break the news. Don’t worry he will be out on bail within an hour. If you bring him in here, I will personally oversee it. I couldn’t do anything else at the time but trust me we will make this as painless as possible. I promise.”

“For your sake it had better be. I will be in touch. The usual arrangement stands. Look out for it.”

Mike hung up leaving Max feeling both a little uneasy and a lot relieved. He always felt like that when Chalmers was about to pay money into his account in the Cayman Islands. He knew he had nothing to worry about. Nobody would ever suspect the Chief Constable, after all his father and his grandfather were pillars of the community. Why would he be any different? Today his relief was not so much that he was getting a pay-out again. It was more that Mike Chalmers didn’t threaten to expose his secrets as he usually did when he didn’t get his own way. He took it really well for a change. Hopefully this was a good sign.

Chapter 17

Aiden’s mobile rang. He reached over to the side of the bed where the phone lay next to half a bottle of Grey Goose and what was left of the cocaine. Jason was fast asleep next to him on the huge super king-size bed in the Harrington Suite.

He answered after a few rings. It was Mike Chalmers.

“Mike? Hi, what’s up?” Aiden asked.

“Aiden, I need you to come with me to the police in the morning. They are looking to charge you with a number of things relating to the accident. I don’t think they have a solid case and our friend Smythe is going to handle the whole thing. We will have you out on bail before your clothes will smell of police so don’t worry. You need to come to my office at 9 and we will go together. Don’t worry and once I have all the information they have on you, we will use our usual resources to make it go away. Please try and stay out of trouble tonight. Where are you?”

“I am at the One and Only, I will stay here and be a good boy for once,” he laughed.

“Good lad. I will see you at 9 and Aiden please, I mean it, stay out of trouble. It’s only a few hours so it shouldn’t be difficult, even for you!”

“Cheers Mike. See you tomorrow,” Aiden said and hung before he had to listen to anymore sound advice he might not like.

He looked over at Jason fast asleep and totally naked. He took a swig of vodka and slid over to him. It didn’t take a lot to get Jason aroused. Aiden thought to himself that there were worse ways to spend the day than being adored by a beautiful man. Especially one that would do anything he asked. Aiden’s mind was focussed on what his friend was doing to him and the shit he faced in the morning was soon out of his mind. Jason knew what Aiden liked and it looked like he was going to make sure he didn’t disappoint.

Chapter 18

Rose was sitting in Ben Cohen’s modest office. She knew he did well, but he had always been a little frugal. Ben was a tall man with a once-slender build. He now had a slight belly thanks in part to his love of the cake shop near his office. He had dark hair that he wore in a side parting and he kept it short. It was clear he didn’t spend a great deal of money on haircuts, but he still looked good. He had a kind face which made his mother often wonder why her son didn’t have a wife yet and boy could she go on about it.

After chatting and reminiscing for about an hour they finally got around to what she was doing there. Rose told him the events of the past day or two. He sat there with a grave look on his face.

When she had finished, he handed her a glass of water and asked her: “How can I help with any of this?”

Rose replied, “Ben, I need you to do some digging. I need you to find out the name and the whereabouts of the guy driving the other car and I want you to dig up as much dirt as you can. I heard somewhere that it was something to do with those Harringtons. Someone once told me they are made of Teflon; nothing sticks to them. I need you to make it stick, please!”

“Wow, Rose. If it is one of them it is going to be tough. You know I would do anything for you so please leave it to me. I will see what I can find out. I am sure you want to get back to Stefan, so I will call you as soon as I know something.”

“Thank you, Ben, I knew I could rely on you.” Rose thought to herself that she knew that was the reason she was there. Guilt aside, she needed him.

When she had left Ben to go and pick up Fat Pat and get to the hospital, Ben called his friend at the MEN newspaper, who had an ear to the ground in these matters, to get some information. He learned that it was Aiden Harrington who smashed his Ferrari into the Winters’s Mercedes after jumping a light. He also found out that Aiden was breathalysed and drug tested and had failed, but wasn’t arrested on the spot. He was also told that the reporter had it on good faith that an arrest was imminent, but the only evidence was witness statements and the testing. No CCTV. Ben thanked the reporter and hung up the phone.

He said out loud to himself: “Wow, those Harringtons are a piece of work. There has to be more evidence than that! I will have to find it.”

He thought really hard how he would do that when he suddenly realised that there must have been someone who had a dashcam that would have some kind of video recorded. He knew someone called Amir, who worked at the Manchester Taxi Association, which was a new initiative that the new mayor had spearheaded after the last mayor had failed to achieve much during his short tenure. He gave Amir a call and said that he was looking for dashcam footage from the accident and that he would pay £1000 to the first person to come along with it. He told Amir that he needed to keep it as quiet as he could especially since the police hadn’t managed to get anything yet and possibly hadn’t even thought of doing that. Amir promised him he would be discreet.

When he was done on the phone, he started to do a search of Aiden Harrington. This was going to be a long process. There was a lot of stuff to go through. Aiden Harrington was a busy boy and he was no angel.

Chapter 19

Rose and Fat Pat sat at Stefan’s bedside. Rose was a lot calmer than the last time she was here. They were waiting for the consultant to come and see them. They were both hoping for some news.

Rose looked at Stefan and marvelled at how helpless he looked. He was not the strong, handsome, dark-haired lad he had been just a short while ago. She wondered what his life was going to be like. Right now, she feared the worst. He was in for a rough ride.

The consultant Dr Shaheen Bhakari was a small woman. She introduced herself to Rose and Fat Pat.

“Mrs Winters, I am afraid that we have not got any real news, your son’s condition remains unchanged. We have him stable now and in a few days, we will look at bringing him around, so we can assess any damage. His blood tests came back normal and he seems healthy, so we are on a good footing to start with. We are concerned about the heart irregularities, but we are hopeful that it was the trauma that caused that and that the rest and medication he is getting will help to keep that stable.”

“Thank you, Doctor,” Rose said to Doctor Bhakari. “I hope so. I am not looking forward to telling him about his Dad.” In her mind, Rose was thinking that hopeful was probably all she could be.

“No, of course not. But for now, let’s focus on resting him and yourself and hope that the next few days will bring better news. If you need me ask the nurses to page me. See you soon, Mrs Winters.”

“See you soon, Doctor and thank you again,” Rose said.

Doctor Bhakari left the room and Rose turned to Fat Pat and said to her: “Let’s stay a little bit and then we can go out for a bite to eat. I am quite hungry, which can only be a good thing.”

“Yes, Rose love, let’s do that,” Fat Pat told her friend. She felt pleased that Rose was feeling a little better.

“For tonight Pat, let’s forget all our troubles. We can drop the car off and cab into Didsbury. We can go to that Turkish place and we can have a few wines,” Rose told her. What she was really thinking though was how could she forget? But she needed to put on a brave face for everyone.

“Ok good,” Fat Pat said. They sat with Stefan a while and then left him on his own.

Chapter 20

When Aiden’s alarm sounded in the morning he woke with a start. It was 7.30 a.m. and he realised that he had a bit of a bothersome task ahead. Jason stirred next to him, but he just kissed him and told him to go back to sleep. He jumped in the shower and when he got out, he called down to the concierge to order breakfast. Eggs Benedict and some Bollinger with a pot of strong coffee should get him going.

After he dressed and ate breakfast, he called down again and ordered his car. He went to Jason and told him he would be back soon and to just order what he wanted. The two hugged and Jason told Aiden: “I wish you didn’t have to go!”

“I will be back soon and then we will have some fun today. Don’t worry this is just a little hiccup. See you later,” Aiden said confidently.

He left the Suite and went downstairs where the Range Rover was waiting for him. He gunned it out of the parking bay and headed off to meet Mike Chalmers. He was listening to Adele for a change. Soothing stuff, he thought.

When Aiden got to Mike’s office, Mike was pacing. He was only a few minutes late but that was enough to get Mike riled. After moaning at him for a bit, Mike explained that he would deal with everything and advised Aiden to say nothing.

“No comment is your new mantra, am I clear?” he asked Aiden to which he nodded.

“Let’s go face these arseholes then shall we?” Mike asked Aiden.

“No comment,” Aiden said and laughed. “I can think of a million places I would rather be, but I guess the sooner we go there the sooner we get done with it. You are sure that it will be ok, right?”

“Aiden, of course! Nobody gets past me. I promise you! Especially not a bunch of civil servants.”

They left the office and were whisked away in the company Bentley. Once they got to the Police Headquarters, the Chief Constable was waiting for them. Aiden was formally arrested, and they were all taken to an interview suite where they were met by John Wilkes.

Wilkes started firing questions at Aiden and all he got back was “No Comment.” Realising that he was getting nowhere, he suggested that Aiden was held in custody pending further questioning and investigation. Max asked Wilkes to pause the interview and the two stepped outside.

“John, we are not going to hold him. He is not going to go anywhere, and I have the personal guarantee of his father and his lawyer that they will not let him out of their sight. You know who his father is I am sure, so I don’t need to tell you the fallout if we keep his son here without a really solid, valid reason.”

“Ok sir, you’re the boss. If this backfires it’s your head! But be sure, his father and lawyer are not the only two who will be watching his every move.”

“That’s ok John, but please be careful. You remember what happened to Sergeant Watkins when he was doing unauthorised surveillance on these people. Don’t worry it will all be fine,” he told him, knowing that it probably wouldn’t.

When they went back into the room, they concluded the interview and released Aiden on bail. All this within an hour, just as Mike had promised. Aiden was impressed and made a mental note that he would need to make sure to thank Mike when they got out. Of course, that would never happen. Aiden was used to people fixing things for him without any thanks from him.

Mike and Aiden left the Police Headquarters and headed back to Harrington Aeronautical. When they got back Aiden popped in to see his father who was beaming from ear to ear. Mike had called him from the car to tell him the news. He hugged Aiden and poured two whiskies for them.

“Aiden, please try and stay out of trouble for now. Mike is going to sort this out. We aren’t going to let some riff raff from Didsbury spoil our good name. Now, you go and have a relaxing day. Take that friend of yours, Jason something, and go and get yourself a couple of chicks and have a good time. Mike will call you if he needs anything. I am going to Dubai in a bit for a meeting or two, so I will see you when I am back in a few days.”

“It’s Jason Packham, Dad. But thanks, we will do just that! Have a good trip and make lots more money. My trust fund is depending on you!”

The two men hugged, and Aiden left to go back to the hotel. He called Jason who was relieved to hear from him. When he hung up, he called Anna, and after grovelling for letting her down he asked her if she felt like a small intimate party. Anna had been to a few of these and she didn’t need to be asked twice. Aiden told her he would send a car for her at 3 to go to Harvey Nichols to get an outfit and then to get her hair and makeup done. They would meet at the apartment at 7. He then called his housekeeper and got her to arrange it all.

Aiden smiled to himself as he realised that his life was not even as much as scratched by this inconvenience. He was in such a good mood as he stepped into the suite only to be greeted by Jason fresh out of the shower and in nothing more than a little towel wrapped around his waist. He asked Aiden how it went, and he replied that it was a doddle and a waste of time. He told Jason to get dressed as they were having an intimate dinner with Anna and they needed to go and get haircuts and manicures. After all, they needed to look their best, right?

“Cool. I will be ready in 15 minutes. You really need to lose those clothes. You look like you work in a call centre!” Jason said as he left the room.

Chapter 21

At his office in Cheadle, Ben Cohen was sitting in front of his computer about to type an email to Rose Winters.

He had been hard at work and he had come up with a few good facts about this case. He also had some not so good ones, but he would break them gently. After he had decided which pieces of information to omit.

He suddenly thought that it may be better to call her as she had wanted this handled as discreetly as possible from what he could tell. He picked up his mobile and dialled her number.

Rose answered quickly and said to him: “Have you got news, Ben? I hope you do.”

“Yes Rose, I have. I have spoken to a couple of people and it turns out it was the Harrington boy. I heard too that he was drunk and high. They will have charged him by now, but I am not sure if he got bail or not. My guess is that he would have been given bail. I found out too that the evidence is not the strongest and I am sorry to report that at this stage there is no CCTV. But Rose, please don’t worry about that. I have a contact at the Manchester Taxi Association, and he is going to try and get dashcam footage from any taxis in the area. I know it’s a long shot, but it is worth trying. I put up a grand as a reward for anyone with good footage. I will cover that if it’s difficult for you so don’t fret.”

“Oh Ben, thank you. You have done more than I could have expected. I won’t worry, because I know that if it’s out there you will find it. I trust you.”

“Thank you, Rose. That means a lot to me. I will keep digging and I will keep you posted. Rose, I have told my contact at the MTA to be discreet and I will use utmost discretion myself. The Harrington’s legal team are ruthless. I don’t want them to get wind of anything, so I will do my best to stay undetected.”

“Thank you, Ben, I appreciate it. I am sure you will be the model of discretion. Goodbye Ben,” Rose said and hung up.

Ben breathed a sigh of relief. She was really calm, he thought. He went back to his computer and continued with his research. Aiden Harrington and his family had racked up a lot of Google ‘miles’. It was going to be a long night. He just hoped that Rose was going to be able to deal with it all

Chapter 22

Rose was alone at home finally. She poured herself a glass of Malbec and sat down at the table. She pulled out a notebook and pen from her handbag on the chair next to her. She needed to start planning her husband’s funeral even though the coroner wasn’t ready to release the body. She was told earlier that it would probably be a couple of weeks. Still, it needed to be done and she hoped Stefan would be well enough to attend.

She decided it would be a smallish affair. He was a popular man, but she didn’t have the strength for a big affair. She knew he had already paid for the funeral. That was typical of Jim. She would just need to speak to the undertaker first.

Rose suddenly realised she was too tired for this. She decided she would call the undertaker in the morning as well as their solicitor to make sure that the estate was being taken care of properly. She didn’t need any more problems.

She took her wine and went to the lounge where she curled up on Jim’s big reclining chair that still smelled of him. She took some comfort from that. She was watching the television but not really concentrating on it. She felt peaceful knowing Ben was working hard to help her and Stefan was in the good hands of Doctor Bhakari. But in the back of her mind she dreaded that there was worse yet to come.

Chapter 23

Earlier that evening Anna had been dropped off at Aiden’s apartment where she met with Aiden and Jason, who were both dressed in jeans and snug fitting shirts that showed off their build. Anna had been made over and looked stunning in her new outfit. The boys were still barefoot as they rushed over to greet her. They had left the hotel and decided it would be better to meet Anna at the apartment.

“Come Anna, have a drink. We have booked a table at that Argentinian Grill Room on Deansgate. They have private booths, so I asked for one of those. If they impress me, I might consider buying that too!” Aiden said laughing.

“Thanks Aiden. My but you two look scrummy tonight. Your hair looks great! Oh, and Aiden, I have almost forgiven you for standing me up, but I am sure you will have a good reason as usual. You grovelled but you never said why.” Jason just rolled his eyes thinking to himself that Aiden wouldn’t know how to grovel if his life depended on it.

Aiden took Anna’s hand and led her to the seating area by the vast windows. Jason followed with their drinks and sat next to Anna. Aiden told her the story. She was a little shocked, but she soon realised it was just another of Aiden’s “adventures” and she just giggled nervously and kissed him on the lips.

When they had had a few drinks, Jason called down for the car and the three went downstairs where the Bentley was waiting to take them to Gaucho in the city centre. They ate, drank and laughed. They were having such a great evening. After they were finished, as they were leaving the restaurant a reporter was waiting outside. He was photographing them and started throwing questions at them about the accident. Aiden immediately recognised him as Steve Hallam from the MEN newspaper. Aiden told his driver to get the camera card and to deal with him. In the meantime, the three of them got into the back of the Bentley. The driver went over and grabbed Steve and took the camera off him, removing the SD card and pocketing it. He gave him the camera back and sent him on his way.

“That’s how you deal with reporter scum!” Aiden said to Jason and Anna. When the driver returned, he handed Aiden the SD card, fired up the engine and gunned the Bentley onto Deansgate.

“Sorry about that sir, I will have you home in no time,” the driver told them.

Once they were back in the apartment, Aiden wasted no time setting the mood. He dimmed the lights and put on some jazz. He had sent the staff home earlier, so he went behind the bar and grabbed a bottle of Bollinger from the champagne fridge.

Jason and Anna were already comfortable on the large sofa when Aiden brought the champagne and glasses over. He produced a small bag of cocaine and the three had a line each. Anna then jumped onto Aiden’s lap and leaned over and started kissing Jason. In no time at all Jason had removed Anna’s clothes and his own and the two went to work on getting Aiden out of his. Aiden just lay back and let them do all the work. He was enjoying this too much to move. Eventually the three of them headed off to the large bedroom where for the next few hours they pleasured each other with abandon, until finally exhausted they fell asleep in each other’s arms without a care in the world.

Chapter 24

The following morning Ben Cohen got a call from Amir at the MTA.

“I have good news, boss!” he told Ben.

“Great, what is it?” Ben asked apprehensively

“There was a taxi guy who was sitting at the lights when this happened. Basically, it turns out he has the dashcam footage you need. He wanted two grand, cheeky bugger, but I got it for one like you asked. Obviously, I managed to copy it for you and I will email it to you now,” Amir told Ben.

“Thank you, Amir. You really came through. I will bring you the cash later. Please Amir, no-one must know about this until I can get it to the police.”

“Of course, boss. You have my word. Goodbye.”

A few minutes later the email came through to Ben’s inbox. He opened it and pressed play. What he saw was shocking and sickening. They were such vivid images. Ben could see the whole thing as it unfolded. This had to be enough to get a conviction, surely!

He saved the footage to his desktop and also loaded it onto a USB stick. He called Rose to tell her the latest. She didn’t answer so he left a message. He decided for now that he would wait for her to call back. He couldn’t believe his luck. He told his assistant that he was popping out for a while and he headed to the bank to get Amir’s money and then went over to the MTA and gave the cash to Amir.

Feeling positive, Ben thought he would spoil himself. He fancied a coffee and some cake, so he popped in at the cake shop near his office and splurged on a large cappuccino and a huge slice of carrot cake. He loved this cake, but his real preference was the Double Chocolate Ganache, but the owner wasn’t making one until tomorrow. Everything is always tomorrow, he thought to himself. Never today!

While he was enjoying his cake, Rose called him back on his mobile. He told her what he had, and she said she would come straight down. Ben warned her that it didn’t make for good viewing, but Rose was determined she wanted to see it.

He finished up at the cake shop and went back to the office. After a few minutes, Rose arrived, and he showed her into his office.

“Ok, let’s see this video,” Rose told Ben.

Hesitantly Ben got the video up. He reluctantly showed it to her. Ben could see from her face that it was painful to watch and within a few seconds of the video finishing Rose was in floods of tears. In the video you could see clearly that Jim wouldn’t have stood a chance. Not to mention that Stefan was lucky he wasn’t a few inches further forward. Ben came over to Rose and they hugged until Rose was a bit more composed.

“Rose, we have to get this to the police. It’s vital they see this. In my experience this should help get a conviction. I can take it over for you, but I think you should do that. The less people that know I am involved the better.”

“Thank you, Ben. I will take it over. I need to speak to them anyway. The lead officer called me earlier and asked to see me. I have been dreading it but now at least there is some light at the end of the tunnel. Did you have to pay for this? I think you said £1000. I can give you that later.”

“Yes, I did Rose, but please don’t worry about that.”

“Ok thank you. I will go and see that Detective. He called me to say he was dealing with the case. We will speak soon.”

“Yes Rose. We will. In the meantime, I will continue digging. Something tells me the more we have the better it will be!

Chapter 25

At Police Headquarters, Rose was waiting to see John Wilkes. He came to get her at reception and showed her up to one of the offices they used for victim interviews.

“Mrs Winters, may I firstly say again how sorry we are for your loss. We will do everything we can to help with this. I know this is difficult for you, but we need to get your side of the story as much as we can. Is it ok that we record this so that we have everything clearly?” he asked.

“Yes of course. That’s fine,” she told him. “But first, I have managed to get some vital evidence. It is here on this stick. I have seen it and you will be amazed what is on there. There is actual footage of the whole crash.”

“Really?” John asked, looking surprised at what he heard and feeling a little embarrassed that the police weren’t the first ones to offer this evidence.

“I will take a look at it now, if that’s ok,” he said, plugging the stick into his laptop. Rose just nodded. When he got the video playing, he just watched intently, not saying a word.

“Wow, Mrs Winters, you are so brave. Thank you for this. We will need to keep this as it is now evidence.”

“Yes, that’s fine. I have no need for it now. I have the memories permanently engrained in my mind.  That’s enough for me.”

Before she left Wilkes asked her where the footage came from. Rose told him the chain of events. He made a note of the names of the people involved for the chain of custody.

The two spent the next hour getting Rose’s statement down. She didn’t remember much at all, but she remembered enough to upset her. Once she had finished, she left and went to the hospital where she spent the next few hours sitting with Stefan holding his hand and talking to him, although he couldn’t respond. The nurses were in and out and they spoke briefly to Rose just to tell her that nothing had changed, which was a good thing. They brought Rose cups of sweet tea but mostly left her alone with Stefan.

Rose was feeling a lot calmer and a lot clearer after she left the hospital. She was sure that everything would be fine in the end. Especially now that the police had the evidence. Maybe things were actually turning around now.

“I wish Stefan was awake, so I could talk to him,” she said to herself. Although she wasn’t sure how he would take this news after the last news she had broken to him, again seriously regretting sharing her secret. She got her car out of the parking garage and headed home. At home she found Fat Pat in her kitchen making dinner for them both. She felt hungry, so this was just the thing.

Over a glass of wine, she relayed all the details to Fat Pat, who sat there with a look of amazement on her face.

“I am sorry you had to see that video, but this is good news,” Fat Pat told Rose. “I am so pleased. Now all we need is to get Stefan back to health.”

“We will, Pat. I know it,” Rose told her friend with a smile.

Chapter 26

The next morning at Greater Manchester Police HQ, Max Smythe was arriving at his spacious office situated on the top floor of the building. He had been allowed a bit of a free hand to furnish it, so it was all leather and chrome and bordering on ostentatious. He had a large table on one side near the internal windows. When he had sat down at his desk, his assistant knocked and came in with coffee and his document box.

He immediately set to work going through the box and prioritising all the documents. He knew it was going to be busy and he was dreading it. He had received a call from John Wilkes telling him about the dashcam footage. He had called Mike Chalmers straight away from his secure mobile and told him of the latest development. Mike had told him he would need to “take care of it” and this had in itself given him a sleepless night. Sleepless nights seemed to be the new norm for him, especially when it came to the Harringtons.

Once he had finished with the paperwork and made a few calls he sat back and thought about how he would handle Mike’s demand. He would need to be careful, but he was sure he would find a way. Wilkes had sometimes been a little careless with evidence so if he kept an eye on him he may be able to get it right without too much fuss.

Wilkes’s office was on the floor below, so he rang him and said: “I will need you and your team to bring me all the evidence we have so far on the Winters case. We need to start preparing because the Harrington legal team are breathing down my neck. Is the autopsy report back yet?”

“No sir, not yet. I will chase it up. It won’t have much more than we already know, but I will get it asap. We were up half the night with the other stuff and we are going to interview the three witnesses we have lined up. They have agreed to come in at various times from 10 a.m. so I should have everything tied up for you by tomorrow morning the latest. We will work through until we have it ready. I know this is a big case for you sir, so I will put in my best work, I promise,” he assured him.

“I know you will John, thank you,” he said and hung up.

Max got up and closed the blinds so he had privacy and called Mike on the secure mobile.

Mike answered after a few rings and he filled him in.

“Ok thank you, Max” Mike said to him. “Where did this dashcam footage come from?”

“Apparently the wife of the deceased got it from a private investigator,” Max told Mike.

“How many copies are there?” Mike asked.

“As far as I know there is the copy we have on a stick and there is the copy the investigator has. I will check for you and let you know. I am not sure if the original footage exists at its source, but I am sure Wilkes will know,” he told Mike.

“Find out for me who the sources are. I will take the necessary steps there. All you will have to do is take care of your evidence. You may have to play it out until trial or just before, so you don’t make anyone suspicious. I will tell you when that will be. I don’t need to remind you how important it is that you keep your eye on the ball. Any slipups will be catastrophic for all,” Mike said to Max.

“I am well aware Mike, no need to remind me.” Luckily Mike couldn’t see the look on Max’s face. It wasn’t pleasant.

Mike said to him: “Ok good, now don’t forget to log a call to me to ‘inform’ me of the progress so that there is an audit trail.”

“Sure thing Mike, speak later then.”

Without saying another word Mike hung up on Max, who went and opened the blinds. He could see this was going to be his most challenging task so far. He longed for a bit of normality.

After a while he called Mike back from his desk phone and had a brief non-committal chat with him for the record.

Feeling frustrated, Max looked at the pile of papers on his desk and with an angry swipe of his arm he swept the papers off his desk and onto the floor.

Chapter 27

At the Harrington Mansion in Cheshire, Aiden and Jason were sitting in Aiden’s bedroom talking about what they should do for the rest of the day. Jason knew he should probably be at his office, but his brilliant assistant had assured him that everything was under control. Unlike Aiden, Jason had to do some, but not a lot of work to earn enough to have this lavish lifestyle. His father Ashley Packham felt that hard work is what got him to where he was today, so he was only too happy that his son had a business of his own and wasn’t sponging off him like Aiden was off Malcolm Harrington. Jason was quite adept at his recruitment consultancy and he had a really good well-paid team that pretty much had the Manchester market cornered. He had the Harrington account, so this meant that Jason didn’t have to spend a lot of time at the office. His father didn’t know this much detail and that suited Jason just fine. Whenever his father called, Jason was “in a meeting” and would call him back. It was easier for everyone this way.

Malcolm Harrington didn’t share Ashley Packham’s view on bringing up his son and made sure that his son had everything his heart desired with the minimum of effort. Aiden’s mother’s untimely death added to Malcolm’s need to indulge his only son. One day when he was gone, Aiden would need to put in a day’s work or two. Until then it was fine. He had more than enough money to support that so why not?

As was fashionable amongst the Cheshire set, lunch was always a lavish affair and needed planning. There was a new eatery called Chez Mouton near Hale that was opened in a renovated pub. It was meant to be the new place to be seen, so Aiden and Jason decided that would be the best place to go and eat. Aiden called a few friends including Carl and Emma Dawson, the power couple, who were delighted to go with them. There were going to be six of them, so Aiden got the housekeeper to call the eatery and book them a private room there and to make sure there was a case of Bollinger on ice.

The boys had a couple of hours to kill so they put on speedos and went down to the indoor pool to do a few laps. The pool was huge, and the room was very ornate. Lots of pillars and marble. There was a sauna and steam room as well as a twelve-man Jacuzzi. When they had finished swimming, they grabbed a bottle of Bollinger from the fridge in the bar and headed for the Jacuzzi. Aiden got the bubbles going and they stripped off their speedos and jumped in. They spent the next hour exploring each other’s bodies. As usual Aiden let Jason take the lead. It worked better for him that way.

When they had finished Jason smiled at Aiden and said: “Come, let’s go and get ready. We don’t want to be late! Don’t forget the check in box!” The check in box was a small antique silver box that was lined with velvet and held six glass vials and some silver spoons. The box had once belonged to some drug addicted French aristocrat. Aiden had bought it on a trip to Chamonix a few years back. Each tiny vial was filled with cocaine.

“I won’t, but you need to remind me,” Aiden told him.

Chapter 28

Detective Inspector John Wilkes was sitting in the witness interview room with the first witness, who according to the sheet in front of him was called David Holmes. He was a tall skinny man with nicotine stained fingers, dirty hair tucked into a stained cap and a patchy beard. The man had clearly never heard of dental hygiene let alone even visited a dentist. He was dressed in a tracksuit and Nike trainers that were undoubtedly knock-offs. Sergeant Mandy Hodge was also present. He pressed the record button on the machine in front of them on the table and said:

“For the recording I am Detective Inspector John Wilkes of the Great Manchester Police accompanied by Sergeant Mandy Hodge and the witness in the case of the death of James Winters. Please state your name,” he said to the witness.

“I am David Holmes,” the witness said in an unmistakeable Manchester accent.

“Mr Holmes please can you tell me what you witnessed on the day of the accident? For the recording I am asking Mr Holmes what he witnessed pertaining to the accident on Princess Road at the intersection of Wilbraham Road on the 31st of August of this year, in which Mr James Winters was killed.”

David Holmes spoke next: “I were on me way ‘ome for me tea when I hears this almighty noise, sounds like a jet, man. So, I looks up and there’s this bloke in a red car going dead fast. As he was going through the lights like, this other car, one of them black Mercedes I think, were going across. Well as you can imagine, he never stood a chance. The bloke in the red car just smashes into him and he spins off in the other direction. It were crazy! Like a dream, man.”

“What happened next?” John Wilkes asked.

“Well, I didn’t see no-one moving in the black car. I thought to meself, that’s got to be bad. I seen this before but not like this. The bloke in the red car, which were all smashed up like, just gets out and he is shouting like a madman that the guy were speeding and jumped the lights.”

“Mr Holmes, did you see if he jumped the lights or not?” Wilkes asked.

“You see I can’t be 100% but I think the red car were the one that were speeding. I think he jumped the lights. When the police arrived, they started asking for witnesses and being a law-abiding citizen as I am, I said sure, I will be a witness. So here I am. I don’t want nobody thinking I don’t do my bit.”

Wilkes pulled out a picture and showed it to David Holmes. It was a previous mugshot of Aiden from one of his earlier misadventures.

“For the purpose of the tape, I am showing Mr Holmes Photo ID JW3108. Do you recognise this man, Mr Holmes?” he asked.

“Yeah, yeah I do. That’s the bloke were driving the other car. The red one,” Holmes said, looking pleased with himself.

“Thank you, Mr Holmes. That was very helpful. We will be in touch if we need more information,” Wilkes told him. Sergeant Hodges showed him out and when she returned, Wilkes said to her: “I really hope that the quality of witness improves. The Harrington legal team will crucify him on the witness stand! I need you to run a check on these witnesses, so there are no surprises. Something tells me this is not the first police interview David Holmes has had!”

Hodges left the room to go and get the next witness. When she re-appeared, John Wilkes had to try really hard to suppress his dismay. He was faced with a six-foot two man dressed in a frock that reminded him of Hyacinth from Keeping Up Appearances. “Good God, we are doomed,” he thought to himself.

Chapter 29

After introducing himself and Sergeant Hodges for the purpose of the recording, it was the turn of the witness.

“I am Keith Barras also known as Candy O’Toole,” the second witness said in a less than feminine voice. “But for now, just call me Keith.”

“Mr Barras, sorry, Keith, please tell us what you witnessed on the 31st of August this year,” John Wilkes said to the drag queen sitting in front of him.

Keith told him a brief account of what he saw. When he was asked if anyone had jumped the lights or was speeding, Keith said to him in his clipped tone, clearly put-on to hide the fact he was from Bolton originally: “Well, I cannot say for certain, but from the noise I think it was the red sports car that fit young man was driving, but as I said I am not certain.”

He finalised a few more details and showed Keith the photo of Aiden which he confirmed as being him. When he concluded the interview, with a flurry of his silk scarf, Keith Barras left the room.

John looked at Hodges and the two just laughed and laughed.

“What the hell was that?” he asked Hodges.

“Not sure sir. But I will find out,” with which the two laughed even more.

Once they had pulled themselves together, Hodges showed in the next witness who was as unremarkable as the last two were remarkable. She was a nervous woman called Anne Parfitt who was in her late forties and was dressed in corduroy trousers and a cardigan. She had a knitted beanie on which she took off to reveal wild hair that was something of a mess. She could remember most of the details but couldn’t really recall the colour of the sports car or if it was indeed a sports car. She also couldn’t give a definitive identification of Aiden from the picture, but she thought it might be him.

After she left, Wilkes said to Hodges: “We are going to need help with that lot. Make sure you run that check on them and get back to me as soon as it is done. I need to know every detail especially if there is any criminal record that could kibosh the whole thing. Make sure you check with DVLA as well to confirm identity and if need be the Home Office. I want them squeaky clean or we can’t use them.”

“Got it, sir. I will get back as soon as I can. Don’t worry, if there is anything I will find it.”

“Damn those Harringtons. If it wasn’t for them, we would have gotten better witnesses! Everyone knows what happens to their witnesses. Fuck, fuck, fuck and fuck again!” Wilkes said to himself when Hodges had left the room.

Chapter 30

When Wilkes got back to his desk there was a folder waiting for him. It was the final results of the James Winters post-mortem.

He knew mostly what it would say but he opened it anyway. There was a diagram depicting the body with the injury points marked in red. He could see the impact point as well as various other marks. The one that chilled Wilkes the most was the neck injury. Jim Winters had died from a broken neck. According to the report he was killed instantly due to the massive trauma to the neck. The impact was severe, and the car was a classic, so it didn’t have modern safety features like side airbags to protect the occupants. He had seen in the video footage that Rose Winters had brought in just how severe the impact was. This report just brought home the reality of it all. The thought of it sent shivers down his spine.

He called Sergeant Hodges over and said: “Get the team assembled and let’s get started.”

“I haven’t finished the background checks on the witnesses yet,” she told him.

His response was short: “Fine you get on with that, but I want the rest of the team in the briefing room in 10 minutes and you in there as soon as!”

“Yes sir, will do.” She turned and went to summon the rest of the team and then returned to her desk to carry on her checks on the three witnesses. Her thoughts were that it was not going to be an easy task and she didn’t believe for a minute that Wilkes was going to like what she found.

“Keep an open mind Hodges,” she whispered under her breath as she logged into the DVLA search portal to check the photo ID (if it even existed!)

In the meantime, Wilkes gathered together his folders and his notepad and headed over to the briefing room to start. The other three members of the team were waiting for him.

“Right, let’s get started,” Wilkes told them in a brusque voice. “Firstly, the rules are that you listen at all times, you ask questions if you don’t get it and you make sure you note everything down. Is that clear?”

Three “Yes sir” answers came back simultaneously. Wilkes placed the folders on the table in front of him and grabbed a marker pen and noted on the board James Winters’s name. He also noted the names of Aiden Harrington and Rose and Stefan Winters. He grouped the names of Rose, Jim and Stefan Winters together on the left and put Aiden Harrington’s name on the right of the large whiteboard.

“Just to clarify, it is alleged that Harrington drove his Ferrari in this picture at high speed through a red light and crashed into the Mercedes causing the death of James Winters and the severe injury to his son Stefan. Rose Winters, James’s wife only had minor injuries due to her proximity in the motor. Harrington was unhurt thanks most likely to his intoxication and the drugs in his system. What we need to prove is that he was culpable, and we are looking for a charge of causing death by dangerous driving. The other charges are not going to get a conviction with prison time, so we are going after the big one. We have a number of stumbling blocks, one being that the Harringtons are almost untouchable, another that the only witnesses we could find that would come forward are not of the highest calibre and another is that his legal team make the Nazis look like powder puffs. We have dashcam footage of the accident and he was over the drink drive limit and tested positive for drugs at the scene. One more thing, the Chief Constable is personally overseeing this case so do not expect any special favours and expect to be here more than you will be at home. Is that clear enough?”

“Yes sir,” the three said to him in unison.

“Good, now let’s start with Harrington and what we know,” Wilkes said to them.

Chapter 31

Over at Chez Mouton, Aiden and Jason were being driven into the car park in the Bentley just as Carl, Emma, Danny and Kacie were arriving in an Executive Uber.

“Hey guys,” Aiden said to them as he hugged each one in turn. Carl and Emma Dawson were looking great as usual. It had to be said that Emma looked good no matter what she wore. Danny and Kacie Leaver were dressed casually but still looked smart in a way that only rich people do. Danny had taken the day off for this from his job as head of the Cosmic Advertising Agency, which was located in the same building on Deansgate as Jason’s recruitment firm. The two were good friends and like Aiden and Jason, Danny had studied at Cambridge. Danny, who was quite tall and had a naturally muscular physique and short dark hair, had met and soon after married, Kacie. She was a petite woman with an impressive arse and long blonde hair. After graduating he landed his prestigious position as head of the biggest advertising agency in the North West of England. They were in a monogamous marriage which made them even more desirable to Aiden who was used to getting everything he went after. He was sure he would crack them eventually! Just as he had cracked Carl and Emma.

The group were seated in a private dining room that the owners had cleverly created on a glassed-off mezzanine floor. It had one-way glass so that the VIP diners could look down on the other diners, but the VIPs couldn’t be seen. When the champagne was served Jason went and asked that they be left alone for 10 minutes. When the coast was clear, Jason presented the silver “check in” box. Each person was given a vial and a tiny silver spoon. They then performed the usual “check in” ritual followed by a generous gulp of champagne. Once that was done Jason called the staff back in. The chef also appeared from the kitchen to personally welcome them.

Francois was a Belgian chef who had worked under and with the best chefs in the world. This was a major coup for this restaurant. He introduced himself and proceeded to tell the group what he had planned for them. They would start with an array of taster dishes followed by the signature dish which was flamed lamb fillet, very rare, with his special butter that only he knew how to make, and he made in secret. Desert would be a glazed pumpkin ice cream served with brandy chocolate profiteroles and an Amaretto cream. He bowed slightly and with a flurry he left the room.

“How exciting,” Emma said. “I had heard this place was great! Well done Aiden for choosing this.”

Once lunch was over Emma left to use the bathroom. Before she could return Aiden also excused himself. He met her on the way back to the table.

“Hey, babe. Did you enjoy lunch?” he asked Emma.

“Yes thanks. It was superb as usual,” she replied.

“You know it doesn’t have to end here. If you want, we can ditch those boring Leavers and head to the apartment for sundowners.”

“I think that sounds divine. I will tell Carl and we will meet you there once we drop off the other two. It’s a shame they don’t like to play like the rest of us. But I am sure you won’t disappoint,” Emma told him, planting a big wet kiss on his lips.

When Aiden returned to the table, he started to wind things up. Jason already knew what that meant, and he was eager to help move things along.

They all left the restaurant after complimenting the chef and leaving a hefty tip for the staff. Aiden and Jason went off in the Bentley and the other four in their Uber.

“That went well,” Jason said to Aiden. “I am guessing we will be seeing Carl and Emma in a bit.”

“Yes, we will. They are ditching the Leavers and meeting us at the apartment for sundowners,” Aiden told him.

Aiden told the driver to take them to the apartment and he then closed the window between the driver and the back of the car. He lay down and rested his head on Jason’s lap and put his feet on the leather seat for the rest of the journey. All Jason could do was smile as he looked at the countryside passing by.

“You know I would do anything for you Aiden, don’t you?” Jason told Aiden.

“One day I am going to hold you to it,” Aiden said and they just laughed as they headed towards the apartment.

Chapter 32

Chief Constable Smythe walked into the briefing room and everybody jumped to their feet.

“As you were,” he said, and they all sat down.

“Right, D.I. Wilkes, what have we got so far?” Max asked.

Wilkes briefed him and also told him about the witnesses. He feigned surprise and told Wilkes that he will need to be sure they are ready. He asked for their details to be passed to him for review.

“I will, once Sergeant Hodges has done the background checks,” Wilkes told him.

“Now, tell me where did this dashcam footage come from? I am talking about the original source or sources,” Max said to Wilkes.

“Well sir, originally a taxi driver gave the footage to someone at the Manchester Taxi Association who passed it to a private investigator in Cheadle that Mrs Winters appears to be acquainted with. He put it on a USB stick, and she brought it to me. I have to say, we should have really been more on the ball and found that evidence ourselves, but anyway we have it now.”

“Yes, we should have. Who is this investigator and what do we know about him? How the hell did he get hold of this evidence before we did?” Max asked him with disdain. Whilst he was secretly relieved that the sometimes-slack Wilkes was handling the case, the Commissioner didn’t like surprises or anything that could make him look stupid. Still, he knew Wilkes would make his job a lot easier!

A clearly flustered Wilkes told him what he knew about the sources of the footage. Whilst Max didn’t like surprises, Wilkes equally didn’t like being told off.

He had written down the details of the private investigator and the guy at the MTA to pass onto Mike. He would call him when he got home to give him the names. The less he used the secure mobile while he was at the office the better. You never knew who was listening.

“Ok, D.I. Wilkes, keep me posted on developments. We will need to have Chalmers and the Harrington lad in soon for a briefing and to see if we can drill him a little more, although I don’t think that is likely to reap any benefits!” he said. He got up and left the room.

“Right team, back to work. You heard the man, we have work to do,” Wilkes told the team.

Chapter 33

As soon as Aiden and Jason arrived back at the apartment in the city centre, they slipped into matching silk robes with nothing on underneath and told the housekeeper that she wouldn’t be required for the rest of the day.

Aiden went to stretch out on the large chaise by the window showing more than just leg, whilst Jason poured Aiden and himself some Bollinger in two of the Lalique flutes.

“Luckily we are in the highest building in the city,” he told Aiden as he handed him his glass.

After a short while the concierge rang to say Carl and Emma were on their way up. When they entered Jason told them to slip into the robes that he had placed out for them. They disappeared into Aiden’s dressing room and got changed. When they came back in Aiden and Jason were sitting on the large sofa waiting for them. They were given a drink by Jason and they sat for a while chatting about lunch and how the Leavers really needed to chill out a bit more.

After a while Aiden suggested they move to the bedroom to get a little more comfortable. Aiden’s custom-made bed was huge so there was plenty of space for the four of them. Aiden lowered the blinds with the remote, put on some soft jazz and dimmed the lights.

Emma giggled a little and said: “This is so cosy. Who wants to play with me first?”

Aiden jumped at the chance and Emma moved over to his side of the bed while Jason moved closer to Carl, who was freeing himself from his robe. Jason wasted no time taking advantage of the naked Carl in front of him on the bed.

Emma and Aiden kissed passionately as Aiden laid her back on the bed and slowly started to move his tongue down towards her breasts. He circled his tongue around her nipples one at a time, which made Emma moan with pleasure. He moved his hand down to between her legs and he could feel she was ready for him. He continued his journey with his tongue until his mouth found her smooth well-groomed pussy. He expertly tongued her perfectly formed clitoris. He loved how it looked. He could taste her delicious juices as he swirled his tongue over her sweet spot. Emma was responding to every movement of Aiden’s tongue. She grabbed his thick hair gently and pulled him up to her. She whispered in his ear that he should fuck her. He didn’t need to be told twice and he pushed her legs open wider and slowly slid his large hard cock into her, marvelling at how wet and warm she was. He had clearly done a good job down there. Aiden wasn’t as large as Carl by a couple of inches, but what he lacked in length and girth he made up for in technique. Because of its size, Carl’s cock was never quite as hard as Aiden’s. He slowly guided himself in and out of her in long smooth gentle strokes, hitting the spot every time. She lifted her hips to meet each thrust of his cock. Emma always loved how Aiden felt inside her.

Next to them on the bed Jason and Carl were really getting into it with each other. Emma’s moans of pleasure as Aiden fucked her only served to turn them both on more. Jason kept looking over at Aiden and they smiled at each other.

Aiden was starting to thrust harder now. Emma could tell that Aiden was close. This pushed her to the point of no return. She arched her back and pushed harder against Aiden as he picked up the pace. Her orgasm was really intense as Aiden pulled out of her and with a cry deposited his load on her belly. The sight and sounds of Aiden and Emma’s orgasms were all Jason and Carl needed to push them over the edge as well.

Completely spent, Aiden lay down next to Emma and Jason lay next to him, with Carl on his other side. The four of them lay there for a while in silence until Aiden jumped up and said: “I am off to shower!”

Jason said: “I’ll join you,” and they disappeared into the bathroom.

Carl and Emma didn’t bother to clean up first. Carl took Emma in his arms and kissed her really hard and in seconds he was erect again. He entered her quickly and he pounded away at her with urgency until they both cried out as they climaxed together. Carl collapsed on the bed next to her. He turned to her and said: “Have I ever mentioned that you really are the best?”

“Yes, many times. But you can tell me again if you want,” she said, and they laughed. They lay there for a short while before also going to the bathroom for a shower.

Chapter 34

In the briefing room at GMP Headquarters, Sergeant Hodges had just brought in her reports on the three witnesses. From the look on her face it was clear the news wasn’t the best.

“What have you got for us then?” Wilkes asked her.

“Well, sir, the first one is David Holmes. He has a chequered past. He has been in and out of prison over the years and was a drug user until he recently went to rehab for the fourth time. He is not currently wanted for anything, but he is known for being economical with the truth. He has also been a witness for cash in a couple of cases involving minor drug dealers. Apparently, it doesn’t take a lot to pay him off. He lives near the crash site so that was probably why he was around. Hopefully he will stay clean long enough to be some use at trial. His credibility I feel is the biggest concern.”

“Ok. Not great but there you go. Who’s next? Barras?” Wilkes asked.

“Yes, he is next, or shall I say she. Barras is apparently well-known in the Gay Village. I spoke to the owner of one of the bars there who I know, and he told me that some years back Barras, under the name Candy O’Toole, ran a regular slot on a Sunday at one of the other bars. Sadly for him he lost his partner and started drinking heavily and got in with a bad crowd. He lost everything and now lives in a bedsit in Moss Side. He is on benefits and gets help for alcoholism, but what I was told is it is a losing battle. More off the wagon than on it. No criminal record to speak of except disturbing the peace whilst intoxicated.”

“Christ! Please tell me the Parfitt woman is reliable,” Wilkes said to Hodges.

“Out of the three she came out squeaky clean. She is a supply teacher and she lives just off Wilbraham Road. No record and no licence. Only record I could find was a passport which she has never used. She is on the voters roll as single with no dependants or anyone linked at the address,” Hodges reported.

“Well the lack of licence explains why she didn’t have an idea of the car. The rest of it explains her drabness. Ok, let’s write this up on the board. We will have to work with what we have. Good work, Hodges. Right gang, lets recap,” Wilkes said, trying to sound positive.

One of the other members of the team, Sergeant Simon Hughes, a tall gangly man with a slightly odd sense of dress and longish tousled hair, started.

“We have the dashcam footage that clearly shows the light was red. I will write that in the evidence column. We also have the photographs of the damage to both vehicles as well as the resting position of the wrecks and that indicates the force of the accident, so let’s stick those up here as well. We also have the autopsy pictures and diagrams and the coroner’s report which we can put up here. We already have the names of those involved and the witnesses. The transcripts of the interviews with Mrs Winters, Aiden Harrington and the witnesses are here on these discs which have been marked accordingly and copies will be made for the Harrington legal team. I suggest we start at the beginning and work through to the present time. We will need to document everything we discuss. D.I. Wilkes, who would you like to do that?” Hughes asked.

“Thank you, Simon, that is very organised. I would like you to do the notes please,” Wilkes told him.

“Right sir will do,” Simon Hughes said to Wilkes. “Can we get a take-away first before we begin?” he asked cheekily.

“Yes, that’s a good idea. Here’s some cash, go and get us something. No alcohol though, you are all on duty and besides I need you all to be sharp!”

Hughes smiled at him and went off in search of food. The rest of them sat and chatted while he was out. Once he returned and they had all eaten, they started in earnest. It was going to be a long night.

Chapter 35

In Cheshire, at Harrington Aeronautical, Mike was in his office when Max called him.

“Max, what’s the latest?” Mike asked.

“Mike, I have the information you needed about the source of the video.”

Mike grabbed a pen and said: “Ok shoot, I am listening.”

He told Mike the details and when he was done Mike said to him: “I will let you know when I need you to make your piece of evidence disappear. Sit on it for now. I need to do my groundwork first. I haven’t heard of this investigator guy, but it won’t take me long to find out about him. I will get the witness names from you when we come in for the disclosure meeting. What were they like? Am I going to have any difficulties?” Mike was thinking that it didn’t help that Max knew so little, or even where this investigator came from.

“One of them is a little iffy but with a bit of work I am sure you will turn her. The other two will fall under your spell, I am sure of that!” Max told him.

“I think none of them will be too much of a challenge from what you have said. I have dealt with worse as you well know. Listen, thanks for that. Malcolm is away on business, but I will fill him in when we speak later. I am keeping the boy out of the limelight as much as I can. Keep me posted,” Mike said and hung up.

He was relieved with what he had just heard. He did a quick search of the investigator and got a few hits. “Small fry, easy game. No match for the Chalmers charm,” he said to himself.

He called Aiden to tell him and from the sound of the shower in the background he knew that he was up to his usual tricks. Aiden thanked him and hung up, leaving Mike feeling amused. He poured himself a drink and called in his assistant, Charlotte Perkins. She was a pretty woman and ambitious as well.  She knew that if she played her cards right she could sleep her way to the top. After all a girl can’t rely on her looks alone. She was dressed in a short dark skirt and a white silk blouse that attracted a lot of attention. Her choice of perfume was Clinique Aromatics which somehow drove men wild. She closed and locked the door behind her and lowered the blinds. She knew too well what he was after. Perks of the job is what he called it. Easy money is what she called it.

Chapter 36

Rose Winters and Fat Pat were at the hospital. They had been there the whole day. Rose had been at her solicitor earlier to discuss the estate and also to ascertain their legal options. She knew that she could probably benefit from the fact that the Harringtons were so wealthy, but she didn’t want to think about that just yet. Because Stefan’s future was uncertain, her solicitor advised that they should wait and see. He also advised that he should be present the next time she speaks to the police, so he could guide her. Her solicitor, Richard Caine, was one of the best in town. He had been Jim’s solicitor all his working life and he was like family. Rose trusted him. The will was pretty straightforward. She would get everything. Jim had left a life insurance policy for £500 000 for Stefan which would set him up for life. She shuddered at the thought of Stefan not making it through this.

The consultant, Doctor Bhakari came in to speak to her. She explained that they had done further tests and scans and things were looking slightly better for Stefan. She was hopeful that if he carried on improving they would be able to wake him up in a few days. She also told Rose she could be a little more hopeful and that it wasn’t as dire as the last couple of days. It was going to be a long and difficult recovery, but he was in good hands.

When the consultant had left the room, Rose said to Fat Pat: “I hope she is right.”

Fat Pat just nodded, smiled and patted Rose’s hand. They sat for a while more and then left to go home and have something to eat. On the way Rose suddenly felt like a curry so they pulled in at Mr Ali’s Balti House in Didsbury. They picked up a couple of Chicken Kormas with rice and a naan bread to share and headed home. They ate and chatted and drank some wine.

After dinner they sat in the lounge and watched the latest episode of Coronation Street. Rose, with a pang of guilt, felt the most normal she had in a while.

Fat Pat asked her if she wanted her to stay.

“Yes, that would be nice. You can bunk with me, but you have to promise not to snore!” Rose told her.

“Me snore! It’s you who snores, thank you very much,” Fat Pat joked.

Rose felt really grateful that Fat Pat was there. Since her husband had left her for a younger model Fat Pat had been around a lot more and Rose liked that. She was a little annoying sometimes, but her heart was in the right place! When Fat Pat had been with her ex-husband, she had been quite a size. She had lost the weight, but not the nickname!

Chapter 37

The following few days at GMP Headquarters the team working on the Harrington case were busy making sure that they had everything tied up. They had printed off sheets of paper with witness statements, diagrams and pictures. From the USB that Rose had provided they made a copy for the defence. Wilkes was confident this was going to be the break he needed to get a promotion.

He knocked on the Chief Constable’s office door and went in.

“Good morning sir, I have the file we are going to present to the Harrington’s defence team. Let’s have a quick run through in case I have missed something. I would appreciate the feedback!” Wilkes said to him.

“I have also spoken to Steve Jones who was the officer on the scene. He wasn’t very complimentary. He didn’t sound too pleased that you let the Harrington boy go free,” Wilkes added.

“Fuck Jones. I make the decisions around here, not him. If he doesn’t like it, he can go and write parking tickets in Skegness!” Max said angrily. “These fucking cops have no respect anymore!”

For the next hour they sat and ran through the evidence folder. Max was more or less happy with it. He saw one glaring problem that Wilkes might have and that was that besides the copy for the defence team, the only other copy they had of the dashcam footage was the one with the case folder. He said nothing about it as it was going to make it really easy for him to destroy that vital piece of evidence. John Wilkes could always be relied on to be sloppy.

“Thank you, Wilkes, I think that will be fine for now. I am sure we will need to add to it once we have seen Chalmers and Harrington, but we will cross that bridge when we get to it. I will get in touch with Chalmers and arrange for them to come in for the interview. In the meantime, you and your team go home and get some rest. I will arrange for them to come in tomorrow. Good work!” he said, knowing full well it was anything but.

“Thank you, sir. My missus is starting to forget what I look like!” Wilkes joked and left the office.

Wilkes felt buoyant as he locked the files away and dismissed the team.

Max called Mike from his desk phone to officially arrange the meeting after which he went outside onto the balcony off his office and called Mike back from the secure mobile.

“Mike, my guys have done one of the worst jobs I have seen in a while so please don’t give it away. It means we will have no problems later. That idiot Wilkes has also only got one copy of that dashcam footage so that will be a no-brainer. I think you will be pleased,” Max told Mike, who just listened intently on the other side of the line.

“Thanks Max. I have to say you have done well. Let’s not fuck that up now. I will bring the boy in tomorrow afternoon at 3 and we can take it from there. I expect you will want to ask a few more questions,” Mike said to Max.

“Yes, but they will be arbitrary questions and won’t cause too much trouble. Mere window dressing.”

“Ok, that’s fine. Just don’t expect anything more than “No Comment”. You know the Harringtons are economical with their words! See you tomorrow,” Mike said and hung up.

Max called John Wilkes and told him the time for the meeting. By the sounds of the background noise he was home already so he kept it short.

Once he was done with all that he went inside, poured himself a whisky and headed back out for a rare cigarette. He wasn’t meant to smoke anymore, but then he wasn’t meant to take bribes either, so who cares? Besides which, he was the Chief Constable of Greater Manchester, so he could do what he wanted!

Chapter 38

Mike Chalmers called Aiden and arranged for them to meet at Harrington Aeronautical for lunch and a pre-briefing. After that he called Andries Smit. Andries was his go-to guy that did his dirty work for him. Andries hailed from near Bloemfontein in South Africa and he was the stock of staunch Afrikaners with a strong affiliation to the AWB, a far-right South African political organisation whose emblem is one leg short of a swastika. As they were perpetually ready to take up arms against the current government in South Africa, they had brought Andries up to be tough and to fight to win, always. Mike had met him on a trip to Cape Town when he needed someone to convince an engineering company to sell to Harrington Aeronautical.  He had managed to get Andries a British passport through marriage to some cheap whore that he knew. To keep him sweet he was kept on retainer as a “general handyman”. Andries also got paid extra for each job. All this gave him a much cushier lifestyle than he had in South Africa, so he was always willing to go the extra mile. Andries was incredibly handsome in an Aryan kind of way. That worked to his advantage and helped him catch people off-guard. He liked to dress in khaki trousers and a shirt that was almost the same shade. All that was short was a Nazi armband. He was also incredibly strong for his skinny 5-foot 8 frame and he was accustomed to getting what he wanted. Or rather what his clients wanted. Compliance was his favourite outcome and he had a 100% success rate.

“Andries, Mike here. How are you, you crooked bastard?” Mike asked.

“Mike! How are you buddy?” Andries replied in a broad South African accent. “You are a fine one to talk about crooked. You’re the king of crooked!” he joked. “What you got for me, man? All I am doing is listening to my bloody woman nagging so this will be a good excuse for me to get away from it.”

“Just the usual admin and tying up loose ends. I don’t ask much of you really even though you ask a lot of me!” Mike said to him.

“You always know what to say! Send me the details when you have them, and I will be happy to help. Oh, and the good news, my fee is still the same!” Andries said to Mike.

“You cheeky cunt!” Mike laughed. “I will be in touch soon. Cheers mate!” Mike said and hung up before Andries could say another word.

“Cheers Mike,” Andries said to the dead line.

Mike liked that he had Andries in his pocket. He was quick, efficient and could be really frightening. Everything that you could ask of such a reprobate! He had given Andries a lot of work over the years cleaning up the various Harrington messes. He was sure this one was going to be a doddle. He just needed to get the information together and then let Andries do the rest. He opened his laptop and transferred the £25k to Andries’s untraceable offshore bank account. The other half of the money plus any incidental expenses, would go in as soon as the job was done. Mike used the secret offshore account that Malcolm Harrington gave him for just such occasions. He had carte blanche on the account and there was a lot of money in there. Mike also transferred his “fixer fee” to his own off-shore account. He always did this even though he was on a real wedge at Harrington Aeronautical. Just his way of ensuring he could retire in the luxury that he was accustomed to.

Mike called Eva, his wife to see if she felt like going out. Since such invitations were rare, she jumped at the chance. He rang down for a car to take him to collect her and headed out of his office. He had thought it was a good idea to treat Eva. She never complained, and he was going to be busy over the next few weeks or so with Aiden’s latest fuck up. He would buy her a nice shiny something tomorrow and that would keep her happy for a while. He might even put out tonight as well since she was still sexy after all, thanks to many pounds spent on beauty treatments and clothes. She also hadn’t ruined her figure with kids! He knew she also had a little bit on the side, but he was just a young garden landscaper that looked after their garden. He had no money and was not a match for Mike. He was just a little bit of amusement to keep the boredom away when Mike was ‘working late’. It would never go anywhere. Eva liked her lifestyle too much to make that mistake.

When he got to his large house on a small country estate in Cheshire, Eva was ready for him. She looked amazing considering she hadn’t had long to get ready. Eva was a petite woman, just Mike’s type and she wore a sleek red dress that accentuated her thighs and her breasts. She wore the pearl and diamond necklace he had bought her on a trip to the Far East recently and her feet were adorned in simple black Prada shoes. She hopped in the back of the Jaguar with him and they were soon on their way to Chez Mouton. He had heard that it was the latest place to go and Aiden had been seen there recently so it had to be pretty good. He had got his assistant Charlotte to call them before he left the office. When they got there the place was packed but when Michel Petrie, the manager and old friend of Mike’s saw Mike and Eva, he took them straight through to a private booth, leaving the other diners waiting for tables standing with their mouths hanging open. The owners of Chez Mouton knew that these tactics just made the place more desirable.

They sat down, and Michel told them that he would personally be looking after them and that he would ensure it would be memorable as usual. Mike and Eva sat back and prepared to be indulged as Michel opened the champagne and started pouring Eva a glass. He snapped his fingers and Scott the waiter that was assigned to them came over to him.

“Bring Mr Chalmers a double Johnnie Walker Gold, straight up in the crystal glass. Tres rapide,” he said, even though Scott didn’t speak a word of French. But he understood the tone meant he needed to be quick.

Chapter 39

The next day at around noon, Aiden arrived at Harrington Aeronautical after a particularly hard work out with his personal trainer. He was dressed in dark blue chinos and a white Armani shirt. Mike was glad that Aiden had chosen an understated outfit for this occasion. It was rare that he did understated. As his father was still showing off his newest plane to the Arab market, he headed straight over to Mike’s office.

“Hey Aiden, so glad you are on time. Let’s go and eat,” said Mike and the two went to the executive dining room where the staff had laid on lunch. They were having grilled salmon and vegetables and as they sat they were poured a glass of Chardonnay from the Harrington vineyard in Italy.

“So, Aiden, this is how it’s going to work,” Mike started straight in. “When we get there, you will be reminded you are under caution. They are going to give us what they have so far. It’s not a lot I have to say and don’t worry about the evidence. I have already got people on it. Also, I will need your help with getting rid of one of the copies of the dashcam footage. Do you still see that council estate girl your father hates?”

“She isn’t council estate exactly, thanks to me, but yes I do still see her from time to time. Why do you ask?” Aiden asked him suspiciously.

“I may need you to get her to set up this investigator guy, so we can get into his office. First, I will need to find out what his office security is like. Judging by what I have seen of him online, it will be easy to crack. I will let you know. You will need someone to help get her in and out. I am just pre-empting. I will set it up with you when I know more. He is the only other person that has the footage besides the cops and the copy we will be getting. The original source had his dashcam ‘nicked’ along with the SD card and the guy at the MTA who arranged it all suffered a little hard drive failure. It’s amazing what you can buy these days. So, let’s see, yeah?” Mike said to Aiden, who was listening intently for once. It had been easy for Mike to arrange the ‘disappearance’ of the dashcam and the hard drive ‘failure’. It cost him a fair bit, but he had managed to get it done really quickly.

“I have just the guy to help. You know Jason Packham?” Aiden asked.

“Yes, I know him. Nice lad. There are rumours he is a bit bent. Hope he’s not influencing you!” Mike laughed. “Ok we can use him too. Don’t worry they won’t need to do any heavy work. I have a guy that does that.”

“Yeah that little racist you normally use. Oh, and no, Jason isn’t influencing me. Quite the opposite. He is a good friend and he isn’t bent. Just a normal lad.” Aiden hoped his face didn’t give him away. It wasn’t exactly the truth, but it was none of Mike’s fucking business.

“Ok then. Now let’s eat. Oh, and one more thing. I will answer the questions. The only words that need to come out of your gob are “No Comment”. Do you understand? It’s imperative you give them nothing more than they have. You know how those bastards twist stuff.” Aiden was about to say ‘No comment’, but he thought better of it.

Mike and Aiden ate and chatted about random stuff. They discussed Chez Mouton, and both agreed it was a great place. They had coffee with a liqueur and a cigar on the balcony and went downstairs to the waiting Bentley that Mike had arranged earlier.

When they arrived at the Police Headquarters, they were shown up to the briefing room that was next to Chief Constable Smythe’s office. Smythe and D.I. Wilkes were in there waiting for them.

After the recorder was started, the usual pleasantries were exchanged, and Aiden was cautioned as expected. The interview got underway in earnest. Mike knew it wasn’t going to be a long one, but he was already anxious to get the details of the witnesses and the recording so that Andries Smit could get to work.

Chapter 40

D.I. Wilkes started the interview reading a summary of the case and the allegation that Aiden had caused death by dangerous driving. He had given each of them a file containing copies of what he was presenting as well as a compact disc which contained the dashcam footage. He moved onto the next few pages which contained photos of the scene as well as the Ferrari and the Mercedes.

Aiden and Mike sat stony faced as they looked at the photos in front of them. Aiden had to suppress the urge to offer his views on the damage to his beloved car but thought that Mike would have had a coronary if he did.

Next Wilkes presented the witness testimony. He knew that Mike would form his own opinion of these three creatures, so he didn’t offer up much information. Besides, he didn’t want to dwell on what they all knew was not really very much at all.

Finally, he plugged in the USB stick and ran the dashcam footage. He slowed it down at the actual point of impact and also on Aiden emerging from the wreckage. When this didn’t elicit a reaction from Aiden and Mike he moved on to asking a few questions. Aiden was trying not to look too casual, but all he wanted to do was laugh. He was yawning a lot and he kept checking his watch. This was obviously riling Wilkes.

“Mr Harrington, I notice you keep checking your watch. Is there somewhere you need to be?” Wilkes asked, trying to sound calm.

“No comment,” Aiden answered, yawning again and checking his watch. He was going to laugh but decided against it. He knew it would annoy Mike and he needed him on his side. Wilkes just glared at him and carried on.

“Mr Harrington, do you see from that footage that you were to blame?” Wilkes asked him.

“No comment,” was the answer.

“Mr Harrington, do you admit you were well in excess of the 30 mile an hour speed limit and that you went through a red light?”

“No comment,” was the answer again.

“Mr Harrington are you aware, and do you feel anything that a man has died, and two people were injured, one critically, due to your own irresponsible attitude to life?”

Mike cut in and warned Wilkes that he was going too far. Nothing was proved yet and the charge wasn’t for the injuries. Wilkes took a deep breath. He looked at Max who hadn’t said a word so far and continued.

“Mr Harrington, according to the breathalyser and the drug test performed at the roadside by Sergeant Steve Jones, you were under the influence of alcohol and drugs. Do you admit to this allegation and do you have anything to add?” Wilkes asked Aiden.

“No comment,” once again. This was really getting to Wilkes. He could see he wasn’t going to get anything out of Aiden.

Max butted in finally and said to them: “I think we can see we are not going to get anything further from Mr Harrington, so I will call an end to this interview. The time is 4.10pm and I am stopping the recording.”

Mike put the folders and the disc in his briefcase. After shaking hands with Wilkes and Max, he and Aiden left the building. It was only when they were in the car that they spoke.

“I told you it was going to go that way. You did well Aiden. All this shit they gave us today, forget it. I will take care of it. When I have the details of the investigator and what you need to do I will let you know. Under no circumstances are you to go near this investigator. He knows who you are, and it could jeopardise your case.”

“Sure thing Mike, just let me know,” Aiden told Mike.

Once they got back to the office, Aiden thanked him and headed off to his apartment in the city centre. After being amongst the unwashed he needed a shower and a bit of recreational downtime. It was hard being him, he thought to himself as he sped along the M56 back into Manchester.

As he was getting near the site where he had the crash, he called Jason who answered in two rings.

“Hey Jase. What’s up?” he asked Jason.

“Not much. I just had that meeting I ditched the other day. All went well. We have another big client in the bag now thanks to that weasel Matt Hines. If it wasn’t for him I would be lost around here. Where are you now Aiden?” Jason asked.

“On my way to the apartment. You nearly finished? I can swing by and get you,” Aiden told Jason.

“Almost done. Why don’t I come to the apartment when I am finished, and you can tell me all the gory details of your interview?” Jason asked.

“Ok fine. I was going to shower but since you will be coming by I can run a bath and we can have a soak and a chat.”

“Hmm…sounds good to me! See you soon. Don’t start anything without me!” Jason said jovially.

“I won’t. See you soon. Don’t be long!” Aiden said and hung up.

By the time Aiden got to the apartment, stripped off his clothes, grabbed a bottle of Bollinger and two glasses and started running a bath, Jason was standing butt naked in front of him.

“Wow, that didn’t take you long!” Aiden and Jason laughed. Aiden poured two flutes of champagne and the two of them got into the large bath that was full of bubbles by now. Aiden sat back, and Jason lay opposite him in the bath.

“Someone called you bent today Jason,” Aiden said laughing. “But don’t worry, I defended your honour!”

The two laughed and Aiden told him the story of the day. He didn’t tell him yet about the job he may need to do. He would save that for later. By the time Aiden was done, Jason was lying with his back to Aiden’s chest. Just the kind of recreation Aiden had been hoping for after the day he had just endured. A perfect way to end a boring and tedious day.

Chapter 41

Mike Chalmers had been taking care of company business since Aiden left. It was going to be a late night, so he ordered a steak to be sent to his office along with a bottle of Malbec. Once he had finished eating he turned his attention to the folder he had been given by the police.

The information about the witnesses was his first task. He opened up his MacBook and called up the voters roll information he had illegally got access to. He would use this information as well as what the Police had provided. It wasn’t long until he found the first one. He got the details of the other two just as easily.

He printed off all the details and then got the details of Ben Cohen from his browser. He printed those as well and then compiled an email to Andries Smit. All the emails he sent to Andries were encrypted and sent from an email address and server that couldn’t be traced directly to him or Harrington Aeronautical. Because Malcolm Harrington dealt with a lot of high-powered individuals, some in countries that the UK didn’t openly do business with, this high level of secrecy was essential. It also suited Mike as he didn’t really fancy doing time for anyone.

He emphasised to Andries not to do anything to Ben Cohen other than to check out what his security was like at his office. Andries sometimes liked to interpret instructions to suit his mood. He told him that the witnesses were just to be observed for now to get an idea of their habits. He would tell him if or when they needed to be silenced. He didn’t want to act straight away, he needed the trial date first, so he could plan. Andries wanted a distraction, so this would do for now. He wasn’t planning on hurting anyone unless they were difficult or didn’t comply. He knew that Andries would be fine with both.

With the email sent to Andries he then called Malcolm Harrington who was somewhere in the Middle East. He told Malcolm the details of what had happened so far and told him that he was working on the defence. Malcolm knew this meant that he was taking care of any obstacles that might be in their way. Malcolm told him that he would be back in a few days. He was making great progress selling his new plane ahead of its official launch in the new year. Malcolm had pretty much cornered the market with his latest jet. It was positioned to take on both Airbus and Boeing. It was also shaking up the whole airline industry, not to mention the kudos he was getting from the UK government for his completely British-manufactured plane.

When he got off the phone with Malcolm he finished up. He called down for a car and headed home. His assistant had left earlier so he was alone. He contemplated calling Charlotte and making a pit stop on the way home, but he was tired after all the bullshit he had just dealt with. He headed home and opted for a Jacuzzi and a shower before bed.

When he got home, Eva was still up. It seemed to him she was in a good mood. Must have been the great sex they had when they got home from Chez Mouton. She might have her toy boy, but he knew he was every bit the man she desired. Or so he liked to think!

Chapter 42

Over the next few days Andries Smit busied himself with watching the witnesses. It was often tedious, most especially when he was following Ann Parfitt. He couldn’t get over how boring her life was. If she was a little better looking he would show her a good time, he thought as he watched her leaving the Asda with her shopping. Andries knew he would probably have to bed the woman anyway if he wanted to get her to comply without fuss! The thought left him a little cold.

Keith Barras offered a little bit more fun. Although Andries had never more than dabbled with homosexuality when he was a curious teenager and he thought that gay people were deviant, his job meant that sometimes he had to pretend. Something which still didn’t sit well with him. He had followed Keith to Canal Street one of the days. A lot of people stared at Keith, but it was clearly his dress that amused them. He followed him into one of the bars and ordered a drink. He sat across the bar from Keith as he chatted to some young thing. He guessed the young man was some male prostitute. Keith had caught Andries looking at him, so he walked over and started chatting to him. Andries had him where he wanted him. He would befriend the queer arsehole and when the time was right he would strike. Even though he was going to be dealing with a deviant, it was going to be fun.

David Holmes on the other hand was just an ageing smack head. He had asked around and was told that he was a recovering drug addict and dealer who still dealt drugs but didn’t really use them, which was code for it would not take a lot of persuasion to start using them again. He also found out that his drug of choice was heroin. He could have told that himself judging by Holmes’s teeth. Some were missing, and others would be soon. He knew that the easiest way to silence this one would be to re-introduce Holmes to his friend heroin. He hoped he didn’t have to, but it was an option. Andries despised drugs, but sometimes it was a necessary evil.

Andries had walked past Ben Cohen’s office a few times and had watched him from his car across the street from the office. He saw that when Ben locked up he had a keypad by the door. He needed to put a code in to activate the alarm. All he needed was the code. That way he could access the office without calling any attention to his endeavour. He called Mike Chalmers and told him that he needed to get that code. Mike told him he would get it to him in a few days.

He told Mike his progress so far. Mike told him to keep a low profile but to keep watching them.

Andries went back to watching Ben Cohen’s office. Ben was in and out during the day. He had one assistant, so this was going to be easy. The less people involved the better. Ben also went into the coffee shop near his office every day at 11 like clockwork. He wondered what he was supposed to get from Ben’s office. He knew that information would follow when the time was right. In the past he had retrieved all sorts of information, but he hoped that it would involve cracking a computer code. Besides being a thug, computer hacking was his next favourite thing.

When Ben had left the office and set the alarm, Andries took a slow stroll past the office. He noted too that there was no CCTV. He would have expected an investigator to have that at least. Amateur!

“Stingy bastard. Probably one of those Jews who don’t like to spend money. He will be sorry,” he muttered to himself as he went back to his car. He dropped his car at home and rather than go in and be nagged about his whereabouts he went straight over to the pub. It was conveniently situated over the road from his modest house. He ordered a brandy and Coke and sat talking to Sharon behind the bar. She didn’t nag. He liked that about her. She was as ugly as sin, but a good listener.

Chapter 43

When Mike got back to the office in the morning, he called Aiden who was his usual chirpy morning self. Geez, this kid is spoilt, he thought to himself.

“Aiden, Mike here, can you talk?” Mike asked Aiden.

“Yes, I am alone,” he told Mike even though he wasn’t.

“I need you to come and see me today so that I can tell you the plan I have for that bird of yours. What time can you be here?” Mike asked.

“Erm, around lunchtime if you like. I was going to go out for lunch, but I can come to you rather,” Aiden told Mike.

“Yeah that’s really good of you,” Mike said sarcastically. “See you later then. I will order lunch for us again,” he said and hung up. He had learned to curb his tongue with Aiden. He would just run to Malcolm and moan that he was being offhand with him. Aiden could do no wrong in Malcolm’s eyes.

Mike then made a list for Aiden of what needed to be done. Aiden wouldn’t be able to take it with him, but he usually was able to memorise instructions. Especially if it was something to do with him.

When Aiden arrived at Mike’s office, he took him through the plan.

The plan was that Anna would go to the coffee shop where Ben Cohen went, and she would start chatting to him. She would need to pretend her boyfriend was an arsehole, which Mike secretly thought was the case anyway, so she should be convincing! She would arrange to meet him there later again and then get him to take her to his office once his assistant had left. His assistant usually left at around four, so it would be easy. She would need to watch him put the code in the keypad and then feign a sudden pang of conscience and leave him there. She would then need to pass the code to Aiden who would pass it back to Mike. That was it. If she got the code that day, she wouldn’t need to see Ben again.

“Ok, that’s easy enough. Like a spy movie! I will get Jason to take her so that he can get her out of there quickly if it goes wrong. She will be more relaxed if he is nearby. I am sure they will be able to pull that off. Should we eat?” Aiden asked Mike.

“Yes, let’s do that. You sure you got all that? Here’s the address and his name and his picture that I got from Facebook. Make sure you destroy this when you are done. I will get rid of the rest of the information. If you can get this to me in a few days that will be fine,” Mike told Aiden.

“Sure thing, Mike. I got it all. They won’t let me down, I can promise you that much,” Aiden told him.

“Good,” Mike said, and they left his office to go and get lunch.

Over lunch Aiden asked Mike if he had heard from Malcolm. Mike told him he had. His trip was a success so far.

“Great! I did tell him my trust fund depended on it. Glad he listened,” Aiden said and the two of them laughed as they tucked into their food.

Chapter 44

When Aiden got back to his apartment in the city centre, he was glad to find Jason sitting at his desk in the small office next to his bedroom. Aiden sometimes worked in that office, even if that was only on very rare occasions.

“Hey Jase. Did you finish early? Fancy a drink?” Aiden asked Jason.

“Hi, yes, kind of. I am almost done. Just finishing the contract for that new account. I would love a drink,” Jason told Aiden.

When Jason came through to the lounge Aiden had the drinks ready for them. He sat down next to Aiden and asked how his day had been.

“It was good thanks, I had another meeting with Mike Chalmers. You know when you said you would do anything for me?” Aiden asked Jason.

“Yeah and I meant it,” Jason said.

“Good lad. I have a small job I need you to take care of for me. Nothing dangerous, I just can’t be involved for obvious reasons,” Aiden told him.

“Sounds serious, tell me more!” Jason said eagerly.

Aiden ran through the plan with him. He listened intently and then said: “Is that all. It’s the least I can do for you. Have you spoken to Anna yet?” Jason asked.

“No not yet” Aiden told him.

“Why don’t we invite her around for supper tomorrow night and we can spring it on her then. She won’t say no to you. The woman adores you,” Jason told him.

“Great idea. I will call her. Why don’t you go and run us a nice hot bubble bath again and I will join you in a bit?” Aiden said to Jason.

Jason gulped down the rest of his whisky and ran off to the bathroom grabbing a bottle of Bollinger and two flutes on the way. He was so excited that he was doing something like this for Jason. He knew Anna would be willing to help, especially since she was going to be rewarded the following night by her two favourite men.

When Aiden came into the bathroom Jason was already in the tub. Aiden got out of his clothes and joined him. He said to Jason: “Thanks for doing this for me. I can always depend on you.”

Aiden and Jason spent the next hour in the bath topping up the water and the champagne regularly. When they were done, they ordered a takeaway from the upmarket sushi bar on Deansgate and when it came, they ate heartily and washed the sushi down with lots of champagne. The two then settled down on the sofa and Jason lay with his head on Aiden’s lap. Aiden made sure Jason was happy. He needed him on his side 100%. It wasn’t long before Aiden had Jason’s gown open and he proceeded to give him a preview of what he could expect when Anna was there.

“Hey, how about we take a break for a few days? We can go to our villa in Torremolinos. It’s been a few weeks since we got away. We can get in touch with those birds that we met last time. We had fun, right?” Aiden asked Jason when he had finished.

“Sounds good to me. Once we have sorted this thing out for you we can go. Is the jet available or are we going to slum it on your airline?” Jason asked.

“Slumming it again, I’m afraid. Like the last few times. I don’t mind, we always get the best seats and those sluts that work for my Dad can’t do enough. Like they would stand a chance. Too common for my taste,” Aiden said, and they laughed.

“I know, right. Especially those lads. They think if they get to sleep with you, they will make it to chief purser,” said Jason and this made them laugh more.

“Fat chance! They will be lucky to make it to chief coffee maker,” Aiden said.

They headed off to bed and Jason slept well. He was excited about this undercover job he was going to do. Even though Aiden was using Jason mostly to boost his own ego, he did secretly have stronger feelings for him than he made out. But he would never admit that, not even to himself. He was in this for the good times, fuck the rest.

Chapter 45

The next evening Aiden sent a car to collect Anna and bring her to the apartment. She had made a real effort and looked ravishing. She always wore something he had bought her. She was so happy to see him and Jason again. She kissed them both and got a glass of champagne from the bar.

“So, what’s the big secret you couldn’t tell me about?” she asked.

“I need you to do a small favour for me,” Aiden said and told her briefly what she needed to do. Jason sat quietly and nodded reassuringly where he should have.

In her Polish accent she said to him: “Of course I will do this. I have done this before when my uncle was trying to catch a government minister who was a paedophile. It’s easy, Aiden, especially when you look like me!” Anna said, and they all laughed.

“Thank you, Anna. I won’t forget this,” Aiden told her.

“Nonsense, you will forget it, I know you. But in the meantime, why don’t you show me how grateful you are by buying me dinner at the Malmaison. We haven’t been there for so long, I am sure they must miss us a lot!” Anna said.

“Ha-ha Anna! Of course! Jason please can you call them and tell them we are coming, and we want meat. I am going to change my clothes and I think Anna can come and help me. If you like you can give her a hand when you are done,” Aiden told Jason.

“Sure, you go ahead. I need to change too but I don’t take as long as you,” Jason said with a wink. Jason kept a fair-sized wardrobe at the apartment in one of the spare rooms. He didn’t want to draw attention to their arrangement. He was sure the staff knew though, and they knew better than to think anything of it.

When Jason got off the phone he went into Aiden’s room where he was already deep inside Anna. She waved him over and he got undressed and lay on the bed. He put his hand on Anna’s breast and softly massaged it while Aiden worked his cock in and out of her. Anna pushed Aiden back and told him it was Jason’s turn. Jason obliged immediately. Aiden just lay back and watched his friend expertly bring himself and Anna to a shuddering climax. Anna lay back when Jason flopped on the bed next to her. She looked over at Aiden and he took the cue. He got on top of her and entered her again. He gently eased himself in and out of Anna until she climaxed for a second time. He pulled his cock out and ejaculated on her belly. They made a good threesome. Each one knew what the other liked.

Aiden, Jason and Anna lay on the bed side by side, just touching each other. After a short while they went and showered and dressed, and then left for the restaurant.

In the car Anna said to Aiden: “I think that after that performance you have earned my help with your situation. You can let me know when and where. For now, let’s just enjoy ourselves like we usually do. After all, why else would I be here?” Anna asked jokingly.

Aiden just smiled. “Yes, let’s do that,” he said.

Chapter 46

At Manchester Royal Infirmary Rose and Fat Pat were waiting for the consultant to come in. It was time to bring Stefan out of his coma. This was the moment Rose was waiting for and dreading.

The doctors had been running various tests and Stefan’s stimuli were very poor. There was virtually nothing in the lower limbs. They detected some response in his upper limbs but would only know for sure when he was awake.

The consultant came in with the nurse practitioner and they prepared to wake him up. At first, he didn’t respond. Then slowly he started to come around. He looked confused and when he saw Rose in front of him with her arm in a sling, tears started to roll down his cheeks. Rose could see he was aware of what had happened. Doctor Shaheen Bhakari was the first to speak.

“Stefan, I am Doctor Bhakari, your consultant. Do you know where you are?” she asked.

Stefan tried to talk but there were no words. He just nodded.

“That’s ok Stefan, take your time. You were in a bad accident and you have been in a coma. Your Mum is here. I need you to not try and move. You have a back injury and until we can assess you it would be better if you didn’t try and move at all. Is that ok?” Doctor Bhakari asked.

Stefan nodded again, and Rose came forward and took his hand. She was smiling at him through her own tears. He just stared at her and shook his head, tears streaming down his cheeks.

Rose spoke softly to him and said: “Darling, do you remember what happened?” She wondered to herself if he would remember what her and Jim had told him.

He nodded his head, and this made Rose cry even more. “Your Dad didn’t make it, Stefan. I am so sorry,” she said to him, suddenly realising that maybe it was too soon.

Stefan tried to pull his hand away, but Rose held him. Doctor Bhakari reminded him not to move. Rose and Stefan just looked at each other and cried.

“Oh Stefan, I wish I could change places with you. You are in the best hands here and we will get you well,” Rose said to him. He just closed his eyes and let the tears flow.

Doctor Bhakari said to Rose: “I need the nurse to just run a few tests. Please come with me and we can talk outside.”

Rose and Fat Pat followed her into the corridor away from Stefan’s room. Doctor Bhakari said to the two women: “I am a little worried that he cannot speak. The movement issues are understandable given the severity of his injuries, but the speech may indicate other problems we didn’t anticipate. I am worried there may be brain stem injury as well, but we will only know more once we do some more conscious testing. It’s good he is awake now, so we can read his stimuli better. Mrs Winters, your son is still very poorly. He has progressed better than we had hoped but it is a long road ahead and it will not be an easy one. I wish I had better news but at this stage you and your friend here should give him as much support as you can. I will go in now and see him again but if you have any questions or concerns ask them to call me.”

“Thank you, Doctor. Thank you,” Rose said. She and Fat Pat left Doctor Bhakari to go back to Stefan. Rose turned to Fat Pat and said: “I am telling you again Pat, if it’s the last thing I do, I will make sure that someone pays for this.”

“Oh Rose, I know. But please for now let’s support Stefan. He needs us,” Fat Pat said to her.

Chapter 47

Afew days later Ben Cohen was working on a new case that had come to him the day before. It wasn’t a huge case but in the end they all added up. He looked at the clock on his office wall and saw that it was 11a.m. Time for a coffee and a little cake he thought, and he closed down his computer.

As he walked past his assistant, he asked her if she wanted anything from the cake shop. She declined as she was watching her weight.

“Suit yourself,” he said to her. “I won’t be long. Call me on the mobile if anything comes up.”

When he got to the cake shop, he ordered a flat white and a Welsh cake with some jam. They made really good Welsh cakes, which was no surprise since the owner was from Anglesey. Also, he thought that he had been eating a bit too much cake of late, so he opted for something smaller, albeit only slightly smaller.

He went to sit at a small table in the window. There were only a handful of tables and the place was unusually quiet. It was a nice day out, so he guessed that most people would be at the Costa up the road where they have outside seating. At first, he didn’t notice the pretty brunette at the table in front of him. She was sitting staring at her phone and she didn’t look happy. He wondered why such a pretty young thing would be so unhappy. He took out his own mobile and woke it up. When his coffee and Welsh cake arrived, he looked up and saw that the pretty girl was staring at him. She smiled sweetly, and he smiled back. Feeling bold from the attention he asked her if she would like to join him. She nodded, and he got up to help her bring her latte over.

“Hi. I’m Ben,” he said.

“Hi Ben. I am Julianna,” Anna lied.

“Pleased to meet you, Julianna. I couldn’t help but notice you didn’t look very happy. Such a beautiful woman as you shouldn’t be unhappy,” he said to her.

“Oh, you flatter me,” she said. “A handsome man like you shouldn’t be on his own.”

“Thank you, Julianna. You are too kind,” he said.

“Boyfriend problems. This is why I am sad. Sometimes he can be such an arse,” Anna said to him.

“Then he is an idiot. What is your accent?” he asked her.

“Polish. I am from Krakow originally, but I live here now for 6 years. I met my boyfriend here, but as you can tell that isn’t going so well,” she said to him.

“Poland? Really? My family are from there, but a long time ago. Anyway, as I said he is a fool,” Ben said to her.

They sat for a good hour talking and eventually he told her he needed to get back to work.

“That’s a shame. I have enjoyed this,” she said to him.

“Well, I tell you what then, here is my card. Call me if you want to meet again. I am just over there in those offices,” Ben told her.

“What time do you finish today?” Anna asked Ben.

“I think around 4. Why?” he asked.

“Meet me here at 4. We can talk more. I like you Ben. You are sweet, and you have made my day better,” Anna told him convincingly.

“Ok, see you at 4. Can I get your number? Just in case,” he said.

“I will be here. Don’t worry I won’t disappoint you,” she said.

“What about your boyfriend?” he asked her.

“What boyfriend?” she asked coyly, and she got up and left the cake shop, leaving Ben with a childish grin on his face. This mysterious woman with a horrible boyfriend had intrigued him. He hoped she would show up later.

When Anna got around the corner from the cake shop out of view of Ben, Jason was waiting for her in his BMW Z4. She jumped in and he sped off in the opposite direction to the cake shop.

“How did it go?” he asked her.

“Fine Jason, fine. I feel sorry for him. He is a lonely fool who thinks with his dick. He won’t be a problem,” Anna told him.

“Good. Let’s update Aiden,” he said as they sped towards Anna’s flat, using the voice command on his little sports car to call Aiden’s number.

When they got to Anna’s flat, Jason told her he would collect her again at 3 and he left to go and have lunch at his office and get an update on his business. Not that he was worried. This year was going to make him even wealthier than the last. He also couldn’t wait to go to Torremolinos again with Aiden. The two of them generally went out there every three weeks or so, except recently because of this little inconvenience Aiden had got into. Even though there would be others there, he would still mostly have Aiden to himself and that could only be a good thing.

Chapter 48

When Jason got to Anna’s flat at 3, she was waiting for him outside. She had tried to make herself look a little stressed to be more convincing. She was good at this he thought as she stepped into the BMW.

“Ready?” he asked her.

“Ready,” she replied, and Jason sped off to Cheadle.

When he dropped Anna off, she walked around to the cake shop and went in and ordered a latte. Ben wasn’t there yet, but she was a few minutes early. At 4 on the dot, he appeared at the door and came in.

“Hi, you came!” he said to Anna.

“Of course, I told you I would,” she said.

He ordered a flat white but no cake this time and went to sit with Anna at the small table in the window. At this time of the day the cake shop was empty as it closed at 5. They sat and chatted about this and that until Ben finally got the courage up to ask about her boyfriend.

“He is still an arsehole. He has been calling me, but I won’t answer. Let him worry. In the meantime, I am looking at my options and you are one of them,” she said.

“One of them?” he asked with surprise.

“Ha-ha Ben, I am kidding,” she said jokingly. She took his hand and held it for a while. Ben was surprised by this bold move, but he liked that about her. British girls, especially the ones he met, were much more frigid.

Her hand looked small in his. He leant over as if to kiss her and she pulled back and said, “No, not here. In case he comes by and sees me. He has a bad temper.”

“My office is just there. Come there with me. We will have privacy. My assistant is gone so we can just talk there. Anyway, this place is about to close, and I want to be with you as long as I can,” he told her.

“Oh, Ben I don’t know,” she said to him. “Actually, what the hell. Why not?” she said suddenly.

Ben paid the bill and they left the cake shop. They hurried over to Ben’s office and he unlocked the door and opened the cover on the alarm panel and keyed in the four-digit code. To Anna’s relief he didn’t try and hide the code. She managed to see it all. It was easy to remember, and she thought to herself how typical it was of a lazy man to have an easy passcode.

They went inside, and he closed the door. He closed the blinds and put on a desk lamp. The outer office was furnished with a large leather sofa and he led her over to the sofa where they both sat down. He pulled her close and tried again to kiss her. Aiden had told Anna that if it got to that stage, she should go along with it so that he didn’t get suspicious. He wouldn’t want to admit to anyone later his embarrassment at being misled by a beautiful woman, if he ever cottoned on to the whole sting.

She kissed him willingly and he put his hand on her leg and tried to move it up further. This was more than Anna was prepared to do even for Aiden, so she pulled away and said to Ben: “Sorry, Ben I can’t, not yet. You understand, right?” she asked.

“Yes, sorry Julianna, I understand. I couldn’t help it. You are just so beautiful. Your boyfriend is one lucky man,” he told her.

“Yes, he is. I should go, Ben. I have your card. I will call you soon, I promise,” she said. She knew full well that would never happen. She kissed him on the lips and let herself out.

Anna hurried around the corner where Jason was waiting patiently. She hopped into his car and told him to drive. She had Ben’s card in her hand and she tore it into pieces. She opened the window and threw it out. She wouldn’t be needing that anymore.

“Did you get it?” he asked. Aiden had called him five times to ask so he was anxious to know.

“Yes, typical man. Too lazy to remember a hard number. 4321, can you believe?” she asked.

“Yes, I can believe it,” Jason said to her. He rang Aiden and told him. He thought to himself that he had better change his safe combination.

Aiden thanked him and then said to Anna: “Thank you Anna. You are a star, but you knew that already. I am busy tonight with some business for my Dad, but I will call you soon and we can party a little,” Aiden lied. He didn’t have business to attend to, he had a holiday to plan.

“Ok Aiden speak soon,” she said, and Jason ended the call.

Jason dropped her off at her flat and he went over to his own apartment where his maid had packed his holiday suitcase. He grabbed it and headed over to Aiden’s apartment where Aiden was waiting for him.

“Did it go ok?” he asked Jason.

“Yeah, like clockwork. She’s good,” Jason said to Aiden.

“Yes, she is good. I will buy her something stupidly expensive when we get back. That will keep her faithful. Can you believe that arsehole had such a simple code? I gave it to Mike Chalmers already and he was also amazed. Now, besides me, what do you want for dinner? Besides being famished, I am also as horny as a toad, but I think dinner first,” Aiden said to Jason, who was thinking again that he really needed to change that code!

“Just what I was thinking. Let’s have meat again. I can never get enough,” he joked.

Chapter 49

When Ben got home to his modest house in Cheadle, not too far from his office, he felt a little let down by the whole experience. He poured himself a glass of red wine from the box he kept in the kitchen cupboard and turned on the small TV. He opened his fridge and rummaged around a bit for something to eat. He settled on some chopped liver his mother had made and some crackers. He put the oven on and popped a readymade lasagne in. As the wine started to filter through his system, he felt a little better about everything.

“You win some, you lose some,” he said to himself.

While the lasagne was cooking he called Rose, but he got her answering machine. He thought that she must be at the hospital, so he left a message. Now that she was a widow, maybe he could rekindle that fire. Suddenly he felt guilty as it was really too soon, even for someone desperate. Must be the wine making me think this way, he thought.

On the TV the news was on. They were talking about the current state of the roads in the region. Ben thought that it couldn’t actually be more boring, and he flipped through the channels until he found one he liked. A soap opera was far more interesting than hearing about something that never got any better. He snacked on the liver and crackers while his lasagne cooked and when it was ready he plated it up, poured some more wine and sat down to eat. He really needed to find himself a girlfriend, he thought.

Unbeknown to Ben, his house was being watched. Andries Smit sat in his big Ford Ranger pick-up with the tinted glass. He sat low in the front of the car and had a black baseball cap on.  A few people with their dogs wandered past, but nobody saw him. He was sure this man wasn’t going to go anywhere tonight. He could see straight into Ben’s house through the open curtains. He looked sad sitting in there on his own. But not as sad as he would be soon, he thought as he started the Ranger and drove away slowly. Andries had also been watching Ben’s office and he knew that he was a creature of habit, so when he got the go-ahead from Mike, the rest would be easy. He headed off home. He needed an early night. He had been out and about all day for days now.

When Ben had finished eating, he packed the dishes in the dishwasher, turned off the TV and the lights and went up to bed. His bedroom was comfortable, and he liked watching TV in bed. No wonder he was single, he thought. He got naked, like he had done since he was a teenager. Much to his mother’s horror. Once she came into his room and he had thrown the covers off when he got hot in the night. He looked down at his body and thought that he was sure Julianna would like it, if he ever got to show it to her. After all he wasn’t bad looking for a Jewish boy. By those same standards he was well-endowed, or so he thought! Smiling, he hopped into bed reaching for the remote. He turned on the TV, found Netflix and carried on watching the movie that he had fallen asleep watching the night before.

“Life’s not that bad,” he said to himself as he settled down to watch.

Chapter 50

The following morning Aiden and Jason woke at 10. Aiden threw on a robe and went in search of the housekeeper. When he found her, he told her: “Gemma, can we have breakfast for two. Eggs benedict with ham not salmon and some bubbly and coffee. We need to be at the airport by 3, so can you get a car to collect me and Mr Jason in good time. Also, please pack me a bag for Torremolinos, nothing fancy, we are going to rest and party. I am going to shower so please have the breakfast ready for just after that. I want to wear that Boss outfit on the plane so have that ready as well.”

“Yes sir, Mr Aiden,” Gemma said. “I will make it so.”

“Good girl,” Aiden said and returned to the bedroom. He pulled Jason out of bed and they jumped in the shower. When they came out of the shower and went into the bedroom, Aiden’s outfit was ready on the bed. They got dressed and went to have breakfast which was served as soon as they got to the table. Impeccable timing as always, Aiden thought. He paid his apartment staff well, so that was the least he expected. They also got to live in the apartment below his. Whilst it was nowhere near as grand as his penthouse, it was pretty substantial anyway. They were also sworn to secrecy about what went on here. As Mike had said, it’s amazing what you can buy these days!

At 2 p.m. the car was ready, and Aiden and Jason grabbed their passports and went downstairs. Aiden had got one of his father’s assistants to arrange his travel plans and to alert the villa staff of his arrival.

When they got to the airport they were rushed through security and taken straight to the private lounge Harrington Air had at Manchester Airport. It was one of many, but it was Aiden’s favourite. It had a good view of the section of Terminal One that Harrington Air as good as owned.

Aiden and Jason settled down on two of the chaises near the window and a pretty young hostess brought over a bottle of Bollinger in a silver ice bucket with two crystal flutes. She poured out the bubbly liquid and offered them something to eat. Today, since they were off to Spain, there was a selection of tapas on offer and Aiden just told her to surprise them. The hostess, Emily, looking quite smart in the Harrington Air uniform, rushed off to get them the tapas and the two lads stretched out and enjoyed the champagne. The flight wasn’t due to leave for a while yet so there was time to relax.

Jason’s phone rang. Aiden thought to himself that he is going to have to get him to change that ringtone. The Bond theme was so annoying.

Jason answered, and it was Matt from his office. He told Jason that he had just secured another new client. It was a cleaning company that was literally cleaning up the North West.

“Great stuff Matt. I will see you in a few days. When I get back we need to talk about your future. Cheers again, see you soon,” Jason told him and hung up.

“That sounded good. One day you will be as rich as me,” Aiden joked.

“Yeah, right. Do you even know how rich you are?” Jason asked.

“Yes, filthy rich!” Aiden said.

After they had eaten and drunk their way through two bottles of Bollinger, one of the ground crew came to collect Aiden and Jason. They made their way to the boarding gate and were shown onto the plane ahead of the other passengers. This model of Harrington jet was short haul, but it had a small First-Class section, which put it ahead of the competition. Because of its economical operation, the airlines could afford to give up the economy seats that the First-Class section took up. Aiden and Jason settled down. The rest of the passengers were allowed to board once the curtain had been drawn, closing off First-Class from the ‘cattle class’ and Business-Class. There was only one other person in the section with them and he was a business associate of Malcolm’s, so Aiden knew him as well.

“Here we go mate, get ready to party!” Aiden told Jason as the plane taxied out onto the runway and took off for Malaga.

Aiden wasn’t meant to leave the country while on bail, but he wasn’t one to be bothered by that and the passport controls at Manchester Airport were under so much strain that things weren’t as tight as at other main airports.

Once the plane had climbed to a safe height, the crew started to serve the drinks and snacks for the short flight. Of course, First-Class was served as soon as the captain gave the go ahead, followed by the two Business-Class rows and finally Economy to the rear. Today they were serving smoked salmon on bagels with hand-prepared crisps, a small selection of Spanish olives and tiny chorizo bites. There was Bollinger (Aiden’s choice) and Johnny Walker Gold (Jason’s choice). Once they were served Aiden and Jason feasted for a while on the excellent food and drink and when they were done, they pushed back their seats and listened to music. After a couple of hours, they started their descent into Malaga. There they would be met by the chauffeur in the Rolls Royce who would take them to the villa in Torremolinos. Everything was going so well.

Once they landed, they were taken straight through to where the car was waiting. They knew the boys at the airport so there was no need for all the usual security measures. They hopped in the back of the air-conditioned car and once Xavier the driver had loaded the bags, they were off.

From the car Aiden got on the mobile and started calling around to see who was available. He spoke to most of the people they partied with every time they were there. They were all keen for a party tomorrow night at the villa. Of course they were, Aiden was paying! They would get some others to come as well. Aiden told them not more than 20 people. Any more than that it could get messy. They then settled in the back for the drive to the villa. Tonight, they wouldn’t party Aiden had decided while they were in the air. Tonight, he would give Jason some time alone with him to thank him for his help with the Ben Cohen thing. He felt he had to since he might need his help again and he needed to know that Jason was 100% on side. In his experience these tedious little inconveniences like the one he was dealing with now had a habit of going a little awry.

Chapter 51

Afew days later in Manchester Andries Smit’s phone rang.

“Ya, Mike. How’s things?” he asked as he answered, his voice thick from cigarettes, brandy and talking to Sharon at the pub until 2 a.m.

“All good thanks mate. I need you to move on that investigator tonight. You know this already, but don’t leave any clues that you were there. That way he won’t notice until it’s too late,” Mike told Andries.

“Ok, got it,” Andries told him. He felt a little insulted at being told what was obvious to someone with his skills.

“I need you to copy his hard drive first and then delete that file I told you about in the email. We don’t know what it will be called on there but that will be easy for you to work out,” Mike said.

“Absolutely. Why do you need the whole hard drive?” Andries asked.

“None of your business,” Mike said and then laughed. “We may need something on him, so call it insurance. I think he got the file sent by email so check his emails thoroughly and delete any that relate to this too. Sorry I am not more helpful, but I know you can sort it out.”

Andries was proficient in gaining access to computers and could break any password. A skill he learnt during the time between jobs and which was paid for by the Harringtons. This skill had been invaluable in the past and he hoped it would be now too. He was currently learning to hack remotely, but that would take a while longer as it wasn’t as easy as cracking a password.

“Consider it done. I will send the info to you via the courier as usual. Will Mr Jones be there to receive it?” Andries asked. Mr Jones was the fictitious person that courier packages were addressed to at Harrington Aeronautical. That way it couldn’t be traced to anyone there as there was no initial before the surname. Also, there were around 200 people there with that surname due to the business’s proximity to Wales. The mail room supervisor knew to take any such mail straight to Charlotte.

“Yes, he will. Thanks, we will talk after the job is done,” Mike said and hung up.

“That is so annoying,” Andries said to the dead line. He hated that Mike never said goodbye, he just hung up.

Andries spent the rest of the day doing nothing much except get his gear ready for later. He had a small shoulder bag with a pouch with his tools for the lock. He packed an external 5TB hard drive and the necessary cables for the download as well as a code breaker for the password. He had managed to get the code breaker from a Mossad agent friend of his who was at the AWB training camp where Andries was sent after he finished high school. He would be able to pick the lock in seconds and he reckoned he would be into the guy’s computer in around 3 minutes. He would need about 10 minutes for the download and then about the same to remove any trace he had been there. He would put everything back to how it was minus the video. He hated the last bit. Leaving the place. There was always the risk of someone suddenly appearing out of nowhere.

At 11 that night Andries got into his pick-up. He drove very carefully to Ben Cohen’s office in Cheadle. He parked the car a couple of streets away and put on his hoodie. He pulled the hood on to avoid the CCTV even though he knew there wasn’t any around Ben’s office. He slipped on the thin leather gloves and he walked around to Ben’s office and staked it out for a while, even though it was in darkness. He was about to go over to the door when Ben suddenly drove up to his office. He parked his car and went into the office, putting in the code as he went in.

Andries was a little annoyed. This man was meant to be a creature of habit. He was a little suspicious as to why he suddenly appeared there. He hoped he wasn’t meeting someone there, or he would have to abandon the plan and go back another night. He decided to hang back and wait a little while.

Just as Andries was about to give up, Ben’s office door opened, and he came out. He put in the code and locked the door. Ben looked around and then got into his car and drove off. Andries breathed a sigh of relief and when he was sure the coast was clear he walked over to the front of Ben’s office.

He got the little pouch out with his lock-picking tools. When he was happy there was nobody around, he walked up to the door. He was in within seconds, smiling at how good he was.

He tilted the blinds just enough so that you wouldn’t be able to see in and went through to Ben’s office. He had his tiny Maglite out but once he got the computer working, he relied on the light from the screen. He didn’t take long to break the password with his code breaker. 2 minutes 10 seconds. “Thank you, Moshe,” he said out loud.

When he opened Ben’s emails, he found the email with the footage and he removed it. He then opened the sent emails and found nothing there related to it. This was really easy. He looked into the files on the computer and he found the file he was looking for. He deleted the file from the computer and the recycle bin and replaced it with a file of the same name, but which had no data. That way if Ben were to check it was still there, he would see the file and hopefully that would be enough until it was too late. He then plugged in the hard drive and downloaded the entire contents of the computer. He then went back in and made sure he removed any trace of his having been there. Luckily for him Ben didn’t spend a lot of money on computers so there was no backup server to worry about. Just his assistant’s PC that he went into as it was linked to Ben’s. She hadn’t turned it off as usual. All he found there was an array of letters she had typed for him. He had a peak at her browsing history and all he saw was one catalogue company’s website after the other. Boring.

Satisfied that he had everything he needed he shut down Ben’s computer but left the other one on, so it would go to sleep on its own. Just as it had been left. In the darkness with just his tiny Maglite, he tilted the blinds back to how they were when he got there. He checked the coast was clear, and he left the way he came. Andries quickly made his way back to his pick-up. He left quickly and driving carefully again, he went home. He dropped the bag off in his house. He would send the hard drive over to Mike in the morning, so he put it in his safe. The safe was hidden behind a door in an enclave he had dug out in his basement. He then quietly left the house and went over to the pub where he had arranged to meet Sharon when he got back. She had finished serving and had sent everyone home. She was eagerly waiting for him to arrive when he knocked on the door.

“Hi Andries!” she said when she opened the door. “I was worried you weren’t coming,” she said.

“No man, of course I was coming. Just had a little car trouble,” he told her.

“Come in. Let me get you a brandy,” she told him. He went into the pub and she locked the doors. She had closed the curtains already and he was pleased she was alone.

Sharon came over with his brandy and a bottle of Coke and some ice as well as a glass of Lambrini for herself. The two of them lit up a cigarette and sat down next to each other. They spent the next 3 hours drinking, smoking, talking and laughing until Andries looked at his watch.

“I should really go,” he said. “That’s two nights in a row I have been here so late.”

“Don’t worry I love your company. Since my boyfriend ran off with that tart from the Fox and Hounds, I have been a bit lonely,” she told him.

He thought to himself that that particular tart was probably better looking than Sharon. People were so shallow. He told her that it was her ex’s loss and she leaned forward as if to kiss him. He just thought, “What the hell, I have earned this,” and leaned forward to return the gesture.

It wasn’t long before the two of them were upstairs in the small flat above the pub going at it hammer and tongs. She might not look like anything, but fucking hell she was a good shag, Andries thought to himself. All that adrenalin from earlier had sharpened Andries’s senses making it all the more pleasurable.

They lay there for a while afterwards until Sharon said to him: “That was great. I have been after a bit of you for a while now. Finally got what I wanted. You are a mysterious man, Andries.”

“Nah, just an ordinary bloke. Ya, it was great. Thanks,” he said to Sharon and kissed her on the forehead. He jumped up and told her he had better get back to his missus before she creates shit for him. He dressed quickly while Sharon lay there watching him, smoking a cigarette she had just lit.

“I will see you soon, Sharon. Thanks again. I needed that.”

“Ok. See you soon,” she said, hoping that she would and that it wasn’t another one-night stand. She knew she was no oil painting. Also, working in a pub with drunken fools who just wanted a drunk fumble and a quick release, she was used to that kind of treatment. Maybe he would be different.

Andries left and when he got outside he lit a cigarette and smoked it before he went home. He hoped it would mask any smell of another woman. His missus was something of a blood hound and could sniff out another woman at 100 paces. Not that he cared, she wasn’t going anywhere. She liked the money he gave her. Nobody would give that woman that kind of lifestyle and not ask where she spent the generous housekeeping allowance. He knew she liked to while away the hours at the Bingo hall that was nearby. She was just a cheap whore when Mike Chalmers had introduced them and although at first it was a marriage of convenience for his visa and passport, they eventually developed feelings for each other and stayed together long after the period needed to avoid suspicion by the Home Office. What he didn’t want was the grief she gave him. Even though this really was the only time he had actually slept with someone else since they were together. Sure, he’d had some quick blowjobs from eager drunk women at the pub, but he had never gone further than that.

He finished the cigarette and carefully opened the front door. He checked that his stuff from the earlier job was still in the safe and went up to the bathroom where he showered away his lovemaking from earlier. When he was done he dried himself, set an alarm on his phone and crept into bed. Luckily tonight his missus, Tracey, was sound asleep. She didn’t stir when he got into bed and soon he was fast asleep, exhausted from the job as well as from Sharon. As he was drifting off, he realised he would probably have more like that with her. She wasn’t great to look at, but she knew how to please a man.

Chapter 52

Afew days later, Mike Chalmers was sitting in his office going over a sales contract with one of the Arab airlines that Malcolm Harrington had emailed him. He was making sure that there was little that they would be able to do to back out once they had signed. This had happened to one of his rivals recently and he wanted to be sure they didn’t suffer the same fate. Their shares had taken a hit as a result, so he needed to be thorough. Of course, you could never be certain it wasn’t going to happen, but he would do his best to ensure it didn’t.

His mobile rang, and he could see it was Max Smythe calling from his office phone. This could only mean official business. He answered quickly.

“Max, to what do I owe the pleasure?” he asked.

“Mike, hi, I have just had word from the CPS and the courts. The trial date is set for the 8th of November. I don’t know yet who the judge will be, but I will confirm once we know,” Max told him.

“Ok thanks, we will be ready. We will speak soon,” he said and hung up. Within minutes his mobile rang again and this time it was the secure mobile he had given to Max.

“Ok, so I have heard that it will be Shauna Donnelly who will preside,” Max told Mike. He obviously couldn’t say anything on the previous call. “What have you done with the evidence and the witnesses, or do I not want to know?” he asked Mike.

“I have just received the evidence from my guy and he has the witnesses under observation. They will be easy to fix. Don’t pull your footage yet. I think we need to wait until the last minute and drop the bombshells in one swoop. It will give you time to practice your surprise and your anger at your people for being the usual slackers” Mike told Max. He was playing his cards close to his chest. The less Max knew the better. Mike didn’t want anything to slip out accidentally.

“Ok thanks, that sounds fine to me. Don’t worry, I will cover my side and it seems you have covered yours. Let’s speak in a few days. Maybe I will come and have lunch with you there. I am taking a week off next week, so I will come in civvies.”

“Yeah, let’s do that. When this is over we can meet in Antigua for some golf. I have heard there is a new course opening there and I am keen to try it. It will be my treat!” Mike told Max.

“Count me in. I will need another break once this is done. It’s always a stressful time doing this,” Max said.

“You worry too much mate. Nobody can trace any of this to you. Just do your bit there and the rest will take care of itself,” Mike told him and hung up, again without so much as a goodbye.

Mike then called Aiden who eventually answered. He told him about the trial and then asked him where he was.

“Torremolinos,” he told Mike.

“You shouldn’t be out of the country. Anyway, no big deal. Those monkeys at Manchester Airport wouldn’t notice even if their lives depended on it. Call me when you are back, and we will meet to plan the strategy. Just so you know, everything is being taken care of here so don’t worry. Have yourselves a fun time there and stay out of the papers for fuck’s sake,” Mike told him.

“Thanks Mike, I will do my best, see you soon,” Aiden said and hung up, playing Mike at his own game for once. He was also having too much fun to be distracted by the case.

Amused by Aiden’s cheek Mike laughed out loud. He called Charlotte in and asked for a coffee and told her to come and take notes. She went and got his Nespresso and a couple of Cantucci he liked so much. She went into his office and placed it on the desk. She then went and got her iPad and went back in and sat opposite him. He dictated a few letters and when they were done, he told her to order lunch for them. Steaks and fries and some of that expensive Chardonnay from the vineyard in Italy where they had been on a ‘business trip’ in July. He was in an upbeat mood because he knew that in a few months this little bit of shit Aiden had created again would be over with and he could do what he did best. Look after Malcolm Harrington’s business.

Chapter 53

There was a meeting going on at Greater Manchester Police Headquarters. Sarah Blake from the CPS was there with D.I. Wilkes and Chief Constable Smythe.

“So, I have run through your evidence folder and I have to say we don’t have an airtight case,” Sarah told the two men. “However, I am hoping that what we have will stand up. Now, are you sure there is nothing we have missed?” she asked. Like Max, Sarah didn’t like surprises.

“No, I am sure we have it all” Max told her, trying to sound confident.

“Ok, so we will be ready on the 8th of November. The judge is a stickler for details and if she isn’t happy with the whole presentation, she will throw us to the wolves. Not somewhere anyone wants to be. I hope we get a good jury this time. I have spoken to prosecution counsel already and of course they have said they are confident. I am not sure what defence counsel will be like, but my experience tells me they will try their usual tactics. Our counsel knows this, so they had better be ready. I am expecting the defence to have a few surprises for us, which means they will have to work hard to limit damage,” Blake told them.

“I am sure they will do fine,” Max told her, knowing full well that this time they wouldn’t. “I will need to meet with them as well to run over things. I will leave that for you to arrange, Sarah.”

“Yes of course. We can do that the week before trial, I think. No point before that as they will be preparing the case and I don’t want any distractions,” she told him.

“Ok no problem. Thanks. If there is nothing else, I have a pile of work to do. The new mayor thinks we are his personal bodyguards, so we are under pressure. Sometimes I miss the last guy, even though he didn’t manage to achieve a damned thing in his short tenure,” Max said.

“No, nothing else. Thanks for your time gentlemen. I will leave you to get on with it,” she said and left the meeting room.

“I am off to check on that robbery in Cheetham Hill. Its looking more like an inside job for insurance. I think that since they lost their hygiene licence they haven’t been doing too well and are looking for a claim to get some cash in,” Wilkes told Max.

“Yeah I thought the same when I saw the file. Off you go,” he told him.

Max left the meeting room and went to his office. He stepped onto the balcony and called Mike.

“Mike, that bitch from CPS was here. She is so confident of a conviction. I had to almost swallow my tongue to stop laughing. You still up for lunch next week?” he asked.

“Yeah, sure. Come here Tuesday at 1 and we can grab a bite. I will get them to do you a T-bone and I have some really good wine from Malcolm’s vineyard. Also got some really good cigars from my guy in Cuba. See you then,” Mike said and hung up before Max could utter another word.

Chapter 54

Rose and Fat Pat were at the hospital waiting to see Doctor Bhakari. She was running late, which wasn’t unusual. Jim’s funeral was in a few days and Rose was waiting to see if Stefan was going to be able to go. He hadn’t made very good progress over the past few weeks and he wasn’t speaking.

Doctor Bhakari came into Stefan’s room and asked the ladies to join her outside. They went into the family room just a few doors away and sat down.

The doctor was the first to speak: “Mrs Winters sorry for my tardiness. I am afraid I don’t have the best news for you. Obviously, we have continued to run tests on Stefan and while he has been trying to break through he still has no feeling below the waist at all. The speech also worries me still as by now he should have shown some sign of improvement. Basically, we are also concerned that his heart has been damaged just after the accident when he had those heart events, so we have started him on a course of IV drugs to try and stabilise that. They seem to be keeping his heart stable currently, but I have to warn you that this could change at any time. We are monitoring him 24/7 and any change will be carefully considered. The head of department has been to see him as well as our top neurologist from Salford Royal. They are going to continue having input until we can find a solution.”

“Oh no, I had hoped he was getting a lot better. He had more colour in his face today,” Rose said, sounding defeated.

“Yes, he has more colour, which is a good sign. Basically, he has only been able to manage liquids so far, but he has had more than previously the past couple of days, so obviously that is one good thing. We will continue to try and move him to solids, but it’s still early doors,” Doctor Bhakari explained.

Fat Pat spoke for the first time and asked Doctor Bhakari: “Will he be able to come to his father’s funeral, Doctor?”

“I am afraid not. He is still too weak to move, and I am worried if he is transported anywhere it could mean total paralysis or worse,” she said.

Rose looked at Fat Pat and the two of them just started to cry.

“That is awful. I can’t change the date,” Rose sobbed. “It’s been nearly three weeks as it is, and I need to bury my husband. I guess we will have to go ahead without him. It will break his heart…. oh, what am I saying! His heart is already broken. This could kill him too!” Rose said through her tears.

Fat Pat came over to her and put her arm around her. “It will be ok darling,” she said to Rose and held her close.

Doctor Bhakari told them that she would leave them. “I will go and see Stefan now. I think you need to consider not telling him about the funeral. It may be too much for him, even though he is fairly sedated,” she said.

“I will, Doctor. Thank you,” Rose said, feeling dread over the situation. Poor Stefan, she thought and wished it was her lying there in the bed and not him.

Doctor Bhakari had left the room and before Rose could say anything else her mobile rang. It was her solicitor.

“Rose, its Richard Caine, is this a good time?” the caller asked.

“When is it ever a good time these days?” Rose asked with a sigh.

“I am sorry things haven’t improved Rose. By the sounds of it you are still struggling,” Richard said.

“Yes, Stefan is still really poorly, and Jim’s funeral is coming up in a couple of days. He won’t be able to go,” she told him.

“That is bad news. I am so sorry, I wish there was something I could do,” Richard said.

“I know and thank you, Richard. What is it you called for?” she asked.

“I just wanted to let you know I have tied up Jim’s estate as I had the autopsy report. I have also received Stefan’s money from the policy. Jim had instructed it to be paid to me in the first instance. I will hold it in a trust account for him. The estate was pretty straightforward as you can imagine. Jim, God bless him, had made sure it was easy for you with no stress. You obviously get the lot and I have filed all the necessary papers for you, so you don’t need to do a thing. I have notified everybody that needed to be notified. I have also taken care of all the accounts that were in his name alone and had them transferred to you. Luckily there was a clause in his will that gave me the power of attorney to do all that. That’s why I haven’t bothered you with anything,” Richard said.

“Oh, Richard thank you,” Rose said.

“I will go through it all with you once Stefan is well. For the meantime you don’t need to worry. You have money in the bank and we can look at it all soon. When is the funeral?” Richard asked.

“Thanks Richard that’s fine, I trust you. The funeral is the day after tomorrow at Mill Lane at 3pm. Please come,” she told him.

“Of course I will, Rose. Jim was my friend as well as my client. I wouldn’t miss it.”

“Ok good. He was very fond of you. I will see you there. Goodbye Richard,” Rose said.

“Goodbye Rose and if you need me, I am here,” Richard said and hung up.

Rose turned to Fat Pat and said: “Let’s go and sit with Stefan a while.”

“Yes let’s,” Fat Pat told her, and they went to Stefan’s room. One of his nurses was still in there with him. She told them that they had given him some diazepam and he was quite calm. She smiled sweetly at them and left the room.

Rose went over to Stefan who was looking sleepy and she took his hand. She had decided that she shouldn’t tell him about not attending the funeral. She wasn’t sure if he was sedated enough not to get stressed by the news.

Rose and Fat Pat stayed awhile and then left him to sleep.

“Let’s go and get drunk, Pat,” she told her friend.

“Sounds good to me,” Fat Pat told her, and the two women left feeling a little bit better than they had the whole day.

Chapter 55

After the guests had left Rose’s house having drunk and eaten their fill, her and Fat Pat cleared away all the dishes, cups and glasses and filled the dishwasher. They were both relieved that everyone had left quite quickly.

Rose was sad though that Stefan hadn’t been there, but she was more or less resigned to the fact that nothing would ever go right for her again. Fat Pat tried to be as cheerful as possible, but it was hard for her too. Jim had been a dear friend and she missed him too.

When the house was tidy and clean again, the two ladies went to sit at the kitchen table. Rose got out a bottle of wine and two glasses. She poured them both a full glass and they sat in silence and drank a little.

Rose eventually said to her: “Pat, thank you for everything you have done.”

“No need to thank me love. I will always be there for you. I am going for a fag outside,” she told Rose.

“Since when do you smoke again?” Rose asked her with surprise.

“About two weeks now. I fell off that wagon from the stress. I managed not to smoke when my idiot husband left but this, this was too much,” she told Rose.

Rose got up and went to the cupboard under the sink and produced an old ashtray, a packet of Marlboro Lights and a lighter.

“Jim used to sneak the odd one and he didn’t think I knew. I found this at the back of the shed the other day. I had one and since then I have also been off that wagon, so go ahead, light one up! I am going to as well. Do you want one of these?” Rose asked.

“Go on then, beats these Superkings any day!” Fat Pat said, and the two women laughed and lit up, sitting back and blowing out a steady stream of smoke.

Fat Pat looked at Rose and although she was trying to be brave and hiding behind making light of the cigarettes, Fat Pat could see in her eyes she was troubled.

“Rose is everything ok with you, besides the obvious?” Fat Pat asked.

“Yes Pat. I guess it is. Now that Jim is buried and there isn’t much I can do about Stefan except pray, it is time for me to prepare for the trial of that bastard that killed my Jim,” Rose said, suddenly sounding more serious than she had in a while.

“Ok, that’s fine. I am sure they will lock him up for this one. Surely it’s an open and shut case,” Fat Pat said.

“They had better, I can tell you or there will be hell,” Rose said. “Whichever way it goes I am not going to let it rest at that. They will need to pay for Stefan’s suffering too, mark my words.”

“Yes of course, they must. His family has so much money, I am sure Stefan will want for nothing. What’s Richard Caine said about it?” Fat Pat asked, sucking hard on her Marlboro, clearly enjoying it.

“He told me not to worry about it now and he has it all ready to go later when the trial is over. He has been so good. He has sorted all Jim’s affairs already and got Stefan’s inheritance money from the insurance policy. I am not worried at the moment as he is taking care of it, but those Harringtons need to worry and keep their cheque books handy. It’s going to be a big one and I will make sure of that,” Rose said, pointing at Fat Pat with her cigarette.

“Well that’s good to know. I am sure Jim left you all well provided for,” Fat Pat said.

“Oh yes, the house is paid for and there is money in the bank. So, whatever I get off those people will go to making Stefan’s life a bit more bearable,” Rose told her.

“Good for you Rose. He is lucky to have you as his Mum and Jim as his Dad. I know I have said it many times, but I am here for you, whatever you need. I mean that. I have nobody else, so you are my life. You need anything Rose, just ask. Just not money, that pig left me with very little!” she said, and the two women laughed. Rose couldn’t help but wonder how lucky Stefan had felt having her and Jim as parents. The guilt of what Rose and Jim had told Stefan would not go away.

After about an hour Fat Pat left Rose to go home. Rose immediately went to get her laptop and brought it to the kitchen. She had an idea and she needed to start her research. It involved making the Harringtons pay more than cash, so she needed to be careful.

Chapter 56

The date of the trial was fast approaching. Mike Chalmers had prepared his legal team for the day. They were meeting to go over the fine details. The defence barrister had just arrived at the reception and was being shown up to Mike’s office. Mike left his team to go and meet with barrister Tim Harding.

“Tim, good to see you,” Mike said and shook his hand vigorously. “Come in, can I get you a drink?” he asked Tim.

“Yes please. Just a coffee will be fine,” he replied.

Mike gestured to Charlotte to come in and told her to bring them coffee and some Cantucci. She nodded and left the office.

“Right, let’s get down to it,” Mike told him. “You have the file I sent you?” he asked.

“Yes, here it is,” he said. He brought it out of his battered leather briefcase he had clearly had since his university days. Mike was baffled how a man that earned more than most people in the UK still carried that old thing around. Different strokes, eh.

Tim started first. “The way I see it, we will have to be really sharp to get off this one. They have that footage which is pretty damning and while the witnesses are a bit weak, they are still witnesses. Juries tend to believe them if they are convincing enough. Do you have anything that we can use? I know you Mike, you always have an ace tucked up those expensive sleeves.” They both grinned widely.

“Tim, you make me blush” Mike joked. “Let’s wait for the coffee and I’ll fill you in. In the meantime, how’s the wife doing after that last debacle?”

“You know how it is. She likes to spend it faster than I make it. So, I am lucky you look after me so well,” Tim said and winked at him.

“Yeah tell me about it,” Mike said. “You would pass out if you saw Eva’s Amex bill! Still they are worth it.”

“True,” Tim agreed as Charlotte brought in the coffee and biscuits.

“Charlotte here is going to sit in and take a few notes if need be,” Mike told Tim.

“That’s fine,” he said. Charlotte shut the door and sat down opposite Mike.

“Now Tim, what I have done so far is remove the source of the video evidence. All that is left is for Smythe to get rid of their copy or copies of the footage. He is adept at not leaving a trail. Something that doesn’t come cheap and luckily Malcolm Harrington has deep pockets. Our copy will also disappear mysteriously, so it can’t be subpoenaed. I will “fire” someone here to make it legit looking,” Mike told Tim.

“Ok, so far so good,” Tim told him. Tim shouldn’t really be party to this, but he was deep in Mike’s debt after he was bailed out recently when his expenses far outstripped his income. Something which could have cost him his licence to practice law.

“Next thing I have done is with the witnesses. Well we haven’t done anything to them. Not yet. You remember that South African we have used a few times?” Mike asked him.

“Yeah, sure. Nice lad but I wouldn’t like to piss him off,” Tim replied.

“No, you don’t want to do that I assure you. I have seen what happens there. Anyhow, he has been tracking the witnesses. He has told me that he is ready to strike anytime. The one is a drug addict in remission, and another is some queer freak who he has in his sights. The last one is some drab bitch who he is going to “send” somewhere. With his looks he will be able to pull that off easily. He can be very charming when he wants to. A bit like a viper,” Mike said. They all laughed.

“Ok, so if you pull those out of the equation the case falls on its face. What about the wife and son? Will they testify?” Tim asked.

“She doesn’t remember anything apparently, so she is no use. The son is too ill. He is bed-bound, and the strain of the trial would be too much for him. My guy at the MRI told me this just yesterday,” Mike told Tim.

“Ok, looks like we have it in the bag. Easiest money I have earned in a long time!” Tim said.

“You bet. You can buy that wife of yours something nice,” Mike told him.

“No chance, Mike. That’s going straight into my private account. I am a lot of things, but I am not daft!” Tim told him.

Charlotte had been sitting quietly not taking any notes. There was nothing said that should be recorded. She asked the two men: “Is there anything you need from me?”

“No darlin’, just tell the dining room we will be down there in half an hour. I have got Tim here some rare Japanese beef for his lunch and a bottle of Chateau Lafitte ’90 to wash it down. I picked it up for a mere £480 from an auction house in New York. He needs looking after. Clearly his missus can’t cook!” Mike said.

“Sure Mike will do,” she said and left the office once again.

“So, Tim what’s your honest opinion?” he asked once the door closed.

“Really this should be a slam dunk Mike. No evidence, no case. Simple as,” Tim told him. “My only concern is the wife. What will she do when its dismissed?”

“Don’t worry about that. Malcolm has already told me that there is £1million available for any problems. That should silence anyone. The son isn’t going to be going anywhere fast, so if it comes to it, we will pay for his rehab as well and any other little niggles that come up,” Mike assured him.

“Good. What about the Chief Constable? Is he still sweet?” Tim asked.

“Yes, he is fine. He is due to retire in the next couple of years, sadly. He is looking to pad his retirement as much as he can. He is going to “inherit” a large sum of money from a foreign relative and that will explain his nest egg if anyone starts asking how he could retire to the Bahamas on a police salary. Already setting up that paper trail for him. He has been invaluable. I will miss him, but I will find another like him. The kind of money I throw at people on Malcom’s behalf makes everyone buyable,” Mike told him.

“You always cover your bases, I have to say. Just as well. You have a lot of them to cover and not all of them are above board,” Tim told him.

“Oi, careful who you say that to!” Mike joked.

“Just between us,” Tim said and tapped his nose knowingly.

Mike got up and went to check with Charlotte if the dining room was ready for them. She told him it was, and he went back to get Tim.

“Malcolm is going to join us. He has recently got back from the Middle East, so he can tell you about his latest escapades. He did well. He even managed to get the Israelis to bite this time. That’s hush hush as the Arabs probably wouldn’t do business with him if they knew. They’ll find out anyway eventually, but the contracts are pretty tight. But he can tell you. You know how the Harringtons are if you steal their thunder,” Mike said as they headed to the executive dining room. They found Malcolm sitting in an armchair by the window holding a glass of single malt Scotch. To both their surprise, Aiden was there too.

“Malcolm, you remember your outrageously expensive barrister Tim? Tim you remember the man who makes your dreams come true?” Mike joked as Tim and Malcolm shook hands.

“Aiden, to what do we owe this rare pleasure?” Mike asked Aiden.

“Hi Mike, Dad has been away, and I haven’t seen him. I thought I should drop in and he can tell us all about his latest coup,” Aiden told him. “Also, I had heard via the grapevine that you have some of that Japanese beef that is so hard to find these days.”

“I will have to tighten up my security around here,” Mike told him and laughing the men went to the huge dining table.

Wine was served, and Malcolm proceeded to tell them all about how things went in the Middle East. He was happy that his son was here to enjoy this with him, and Aiden was happy to have a rare occasion with his father. The two of them were really close since Aiden’s mother Barbara had passed away two years previously. They had both loved her a lot and the support they gave each other helped them through it all.

During lunch Mike told Aiden and Malcolm about the status of the case and both of them were very pleased.

After the delicious lunch and a lot of wine and after dinner liqueurs, Mike and Tim returned to Mike’s office. Aiden and Malcolm left together to go home where they were hosting a dinner for the Manchester homeless charity that Malcolm was a patron of.

Mike took Tim via his legal team’s office. There they chatted about the case a while and they were both agreed that it was going to be a quick turnaround. Mike had some of the best legal minds working for him. He paid them handsomely and his expectations were high. Secrecy being one of them. Malcolm and Tim then went into Mike’s office to finish up their business after which Tim left and Mike called Charlotte in.

“Close the blinds, won’t you love and lock the door. All that meat and business has left me in need of a bit of TLC!” he told her.

“Yeah, not to mention the booze,” she said and went about doing what he asked. After all he was her boss.

Chapter 57

At the Harrington mansion the charity dinner was ending. The event was well-attended as usual. Malcolm had invited a lot of high-powered people, amongst them the Prime Minister and a number of influential MP’s. The security had been tight, and the house had been fully checked and cleared by the security services in the run up to the dinner. Before any car was allowed onto the estate it was checked over thoroughly and when the occupants were in the house, the cars were parked well away in the large open field behind a row of trees and out of sight. Anyone that had driven past the estate wouldn’t have known anything was going on there. Malcolm had also provided additional security of his own. He didn’t want anything to go wrong on his watch. Malcolm often had this calibre of guest at his home, so he was used to it.

Malcolm had just given his usual gripping speech and had pledged another £100 000 of his own money to the charity, which was met with raucous applause. That money was going to come in handy to tackle Manchester’s worsening crisis. He had also pledged that Harrington Construction would give a large piece of land near Strangeways for the construction of low-cost homes to help house homeless families. His company would build these houses and the charity would lease them to the council in return for other favours yet to be discussed. Everyone there, including the PM, knew Malcolm had already thought those favours through and would collect on them in due course.

When the dinner was over the guests went into the large drawing room. Malcolm was in one corner having a private talk with the PM. The others were enjoying expensive cognac and cigars. This evening was a huge success. Besides what Malcolm had pledged, there was a lot more coming from the government as well.

Once the evening was over and the guests had left, Malcolm and Aiden retired to the small sitting room off Malcolm’s home office while the staff cleared up.

“Are you staying tonight?” Malcolm asked Aiden.

“No Dad. Sorry. I am meeting some mates later,” he told his father.

“Isn’t it a bit late? Or is it none of my business?” he asked.

“No Dad its ok. We are meeting at The Apothecary Bar and it only really gets going late. You know the one? I bought it recently,” Aiden asked him.

“Yeah, I know it. Still don’t know why you bought it,” Malcolm said.

“Because I can,” Aiden told him.

Laughing, Malcolm said: “Why else would you buy anything, right?”

“Right! Anyway, I better go. Don’t worry I am not driving. Jason is coming to get me. We will drop the car at the apartment and grab a cab over,” Aiden told him.

“When are you two getting married then?” Malcolm asked him jokingly.

“Dad! Honestly, not you too!” Aiden said feigning shock.

“Just kidding son. You two are close I know and that’s fine. I am glad you have such a good mate especially since I am away so much.”

“Thanks Dad see you soon,” Aiden said and kissing him on the cheek he left. When he got outside Jason had just pulled into the long driveway.

He hopped into the small sports car and they drove off.

“How was your day?” Jason asked.

“Good thanks. The dinner was spectacular as usual, and I also had lunch with Mike Chalmers and the barrister. Apparently, I have nothing to worry about. I can’t go into details for obvious reasons but suffice to say it will all be over really quickly,” Aiden told Jason as they sped along the M56 on their way into the city.

“I am relieved. I knew it would be fine. I just wanted to hear it for sure. I will be there as well to support you,” Jason told him.

“Thanks mate, I know I can depend on you,” Aiden told him. “Listen, when we drop your car off let’s go upstairs first. I need you to take care of something for me,” Aiden said. He didn’t need to elaborate. Jason knew what he meant.

Chapter 58

Andries Smit had received a call from Mike on his secure mobile. He had been given the go-ahead with the witnesses. Mike had also thanked him for being so thorough with the computer matter and the hard drive had arrived and was now safely stored away.

Andries woke up early that day and showered and shaved. He would deal with Holmes first. He went down to his cellar and opened the safe where he got his small Ruger. He had managed to smuggle the gun in with some other personal effects he had brought over from South Africa. He had been given this by his father because it was easy to conceal but still did the job. He also pulled out a large bag of powder that looked like heroin. Because he despised drugs, the powder wasn’t real heroin. It was talc coloured to look like heroin. He also got out a little case that contained drug paraphernalia as well as a small bag of the fake powder and put it all in his bag along with the Ruger. He also got a wad of cash that Mike had given him to use for his jobs. He would need some for today and some for Anne. He had already befriended her after pretending to bump into her at Asda one afternoon. He had led her to believe there was something between them even though he hadn’t even as much as kissed her. She was gullible because she was so lonely. So when he would suggest they go away somewhere but they would have to travel separately, he knew she would try and resist but in the end he would get her to comply. Women never said no to him. Something about his looks and that accent everyone loved made him irresistible. He also used sex to his advantage. The deviant queer cross dresser will need to disappear for a while as well. He was too unstable to have anywhere near the trial. Andries knew a guy in Spain who had a nightclub in Benidorm and he owed Andries a favour. He had spoken to him and he would give Keith Barras a fake job. Barras hadn’t had a gig in years because of his drinking. His poor choice of costume also didn’t help matters. He knew Keith would jump at it. Everything was falling into place so far.

He left his house and walked around to David Holmes’s block of flats. It was a grotty place above a shop and there was an entrance buzzer for access. He knew that Holmes lived in Flat 4 on the first floor. He didn’t want to alert him, so he buzzed the other flats. A couple of people answered but one person, who clearly wasn’t very security conscious, buzzed him in without asking who was there.

He quietly made his way up to Flat 4 and knocked on the door. When David answered the door, Andries told him he was from the housing association and asked if he could come in. Without waiting for an answer, he stepped into the dingy flat and closed the door. David was forced to step back.

“What you think you doin’?” David asked him.

“It’s ok just relax, I need to ask you a few questions,” he told him. “Let’s sit down and chat.” From the state of the place Andries didn’t really want to sit down. “Can I get a glass of water first, please?” he asked.

“Yeah sure mate, but what’s this about?” David asked. He was clearly a bit shaken.

“Water first Mr Holmes. Then we talk, ok,” Andries told him.

David left the room and as soon as he was alone Andries went over to the filthy red sofa. He lifted a cushion and placed the bag of fake heroin and the little paraphernalia case into the crack at the back of the sofa. He quickly put the cushion back and stood back up. When David got back, Andries was standing by the window. He handed Andries the glass of water. His hand was trembling. Andries put it down on the windowsill. He had no intention of drinking anything in this shithole. He turned to David and said: “I understand you saw something you have been telling the cops about.”

“All I been saying was about some rich lad who crashed his fancy car into some poor sod and killed him. What’s wrong with that?” David asked.

“Nothing, except the rich lad is a mate of mine. How about you get amnesia, Mr Holmes?” Andries asked producing a small bundle of cash.

David’s eyes lit up at the sight of so much money, but he said defiantly: “I am not for sale.”

“You see I think you are, Mr Holmes. Everybody is. Now think hard about this. I also have friends in the police and from what I have heard you don’t want them sniffing around here, do you?” Andries told him.

“No, I don’t, you’re right there. What would I have to do?” David asked worriedly.

“In exchange for this £1000 you will need to disappear for a few days at the time of the trial. You will also need to not remember anything from that night. You will say you were high. If you do that you will also get another £1000 when it is all done,” Andries told him.

“And if I don’t?” he asked trying to sound brave but failing miserably.

“There is no “if you don’t”. That scenario involves police and prison and fuck all money. I am sure you know what happens to informants in jail,” Andries told him.

“Ok, fine I will do it. Where do I disappear to?” he asked, his defiance gone.

“I am sure you can find some hole to crawl into for a few days,” Andries told him. “In the meantime, stay low, don’t make anyone suspicious and don’t splash the cash. People talk. You will have lots of time to spend it later. I will be in touch.”

Andries left David and quickly left the building. He had planted the fake heroin and he knew it would never be found by David. He really wasn’t one to clean his house, so he wasn’t likely to be looking down the back of the sofa. When he was far enough away from David’s flat, he called his friend at the police to tip him off about the heroin in the flat. He gave him the details and his friend thanked him and hung up. The plan was that the police would pick David up and pretend they were going to charge him for drug dealing. They would take him to Andries who would tell him that for his complete silence, he would make sure the drug charge against him went away. He already knew that if he ended up in prison again, he wouldn’t make it out of there. Especially since Andries had already told him that he would be seen as a snitch.

Chapter 59

The next morning a police car pulled up outside David Holmes’s block of flats. From where Andries was standing across the road, he could see his friend and another “friendly” policeman enter the building. They went straight up to Flat 4.

The two policemen knocked loudly on David’s door. He took a while to come to the door. He opened it and it was clear he had just woken up.

“Yes, what do you want?” he asked the two policemen standing in front of him. They didn’t bother answering and just pushed their way in causing him to stumble backwards. The one policeman closed the door and they walked over to where David was just getting up off the floor.

“What you playing at?” he shouted at them.

“Mr Holmes, we have information that you are dealing heroin from these premises,” the bigger of the two policemen told him.

“You what? I don’t do that anymore!” he pleaded.

“Let’s have a quick look around then shall we?” the bigger cop asked the other one. In no time at all they had found the stash. It wasn’t that difficult. Andries had told them where he had put it.

“What do you say about this, Mr Holmes?” the big cop asked.

“I don’t know how that got there! I swear it!” David cried.

“It doesn’t look that way to us,” he told him. “This much heroin, you will be looking at a long stretch.”

“Please, I can’t go back there. What can I do? I know things. I can tell you stuff. There was this bloke came here. He threatened me. I can tell you about him. He’s got something to do with that accident where that fella was killed. He’s the one put that there. Please you have to believe me!” David told them desperately.

“Why would we believe a junkie like you?” the big cop asked.

“Please. I’m not lying. Honest! But if I help you I will need protection. He scares me!” David told him.

“Ok Mr Holmes. Here’s how it will go. In return for this information, we can protect you. But you will have to come with us. We will go to a safe place and you can tell us what you know. It’s too dangerous for you here. All right?” the big cop asked.

“Yes, yes, of course. Anything. Thank you,” David told them, his voice all shaky.

“We will need to cuff you to make it real, in case he is watching,” the big cop told him. David held out his wrists and the other cop cuffed him.

“Right let’s go,” the big cop said. He placed all the stuff he had ‘found’ into an evidence bag and the three men left the flat. The cops put him in the back of the unmarked BMW and drove off. They drove him in a roundabout way to a lock-up garage. They got him out and took him inside.

The large garage was almost empty. There was a door to the back where the toilet and a small office were. Next to the door was a metal table and the big cop put the evidence bag on the table.  He told David to sit on the metal chair in the middle of the room and he uncuffed him. He had his back to the office.

“Right, Mr Holmes. What’s this information you have for us?” the big cop asked.

David told him that this guy with a funny accent had come to his flat and told him he would need to disappear and forget about the accident that had killed someone. As he was finishing his sentence, he heard a noise from behind him. He turned his head and right behind him Andries was standing. He had retrieved the pouch with the syringe and he was standing with it in his hand. He also had the small bag of powder which he was waving at David.

“What’s he doing here?” David asked. His brow was suddenly wet with sweat. The plan was working.

“Mr Holmes, we meet again,” Andries said. “What was it I told you about talking to anyone?” he asked menacingly.

“I’m sorry. Please, don’t make me go to jail. I will die there,” he pleaded.

“Would you like me to give you a shot of this?” Andries asked, holding the bag close to David’s face.

“No, no. I wouldn’t. I promise I won’t say anything. I promise!” he wailed.

“Remember Mr Holmes, I see everything, and I know everything. One more time and it will not end well for you. That I promise, believe me,” Andries told David.

“Yes, I can see that,” David said.

The two cops were just standing looking at Andries at work. The big cop was impressed at how he got his way. He was so calm it almost scared him.

“You can go now Mr Holmes,” Andries told him. “But remember what I said and remember, I don’t make idle threats.”

“I understand. I promise you I won’t say anything. Really I won’t,” David told him. He had been sweating profusely and his shirt was soaked. There was a smell of sweat and fear that was filling the large space. Andries couldn’t wait for him to go.

“I will be in touch about the balance of the money. But only if you behave,” Andries told him.

David just nodded repeatedly, and the big cop opened the garage door and let him out.

With David gone, Andries gave the cops their cut.

“That guy was scared,” Andries told them.

“Yeah, he was, could smell it on him and all,” the one cop said. “We had better go before the governor starts looking for us. Call us if you need us to speak to him again,” he said to Andries and they left.

Andries tidied himself up a bit and put the evidence bag and the case with the paraphernalia in a lockable metal cabinet in the office and left. He was off to the Gay Village where he had arranged to meet Keith Barras. He had told Keith that he had some amazing news for him and he should be ready to have his life changed. He could tell from the excitement in Keith’s voice that he wasn’t going to be nearly as hard to convince as David Holmes was.

On his way over he called Anne Parfitt and asked if they could meet for a drink later. He told her he had something important to ask her. She was also so excited and said that he should come to her flat off Wilbraham Road. He told her he would be there by 7. She said she would cook something for them. The thought turned his stomach, she was one of those vegetarians and she didn’t really drink.

Chapter 60

When Andries got to Via on Canal Street, Keith Barras was waiting for him at one of the tables at the back. It was obvious he had been there a while. He was dressed in some chintzy frock that would have looked better on a 70’s sofa. He wore sensible shoes that he had stuffed his big feet into. He had chosen a red wig for some reason best known to himself. There was a young lad talking to him who was covered in tattoos. He got up and left them alone as soon as Andries sat down. He offered Keith another drink and went to get them at the bar, making sure he kept his bag close to his side. He didn’t trust these deviants as far as he could see them. They all had an agenda and he wasn’t going to let them get near him or his bag.

When he sat down with a gin and tonic for Keith and a bottle of beer for himself (he didn’t trust their glasses either), he looked at Keith who was clearly full of excitement.

“So, what’s this life-changing news Martin?” he asked. Andries had told him his name was Martin Steyn, a name he used as an alias in such situations and that was completely fake.

“I have a gig for you!” Andries told him.

“You have? What is it, where is it, is it here in the Village or better is it in Londres?” Keith asked excitedly.

“I have a friend in Benidorm who is crying out for someone like you. He is desperate and needs you straight away. I told him all about you and how funny you are. He is even prepared to pay your travel and accommodation,” Andries told him, noticing immediately that his expression had changed from hope to disappointment in a heartbeat. He knew that it was because the penny had just dropped. He had agreed to be a witness.

“What’s wrong man? I thought you would be excited,” Andries said.

“Oh Martin, darling I am. But I have this thing. I promised to be a witness for the police and it means I can’t go,” Keith said, clearly almost moved to tears.

“Really? Come on man, forget that. They will have lots of people lined up. Go and chase your dreams. This guy has even told me to give you an advance to seal the deal. I have it here, look,” he said and produced a wad of 50’s.

“Oh, I don’t know what to do. Should I call them and ask?” Keith asked.

“No don’t. They will just talk shit to you and threaten you. You know how those cunts are. Just go. I will get your ticket for you and he will reimburse me later. Come on man, this is your last opportunity to make a comeback and what better place than there, hey?” Andries asked, smiling at him. “And anyway, that guy is dead, you are still alive, so live your life!” he added.

“Ok, ok, you’ve convinced me you sweet man. I will go home and prepare. When will I get the details?” he asked Andries.

“I will ring you tomorrow to confirm when you are going, I have your number. I will bring your ticket when I see you. Keith, make sure you don’t tell anyone. We don’t want to jinx it, hey,” Andries said.

“No, I won’t tell anyone. I am going to go and buy a bottle of vodka and go home. What about my flat? Oh, what do I care? I will sort it out later,” he told Andries.

The two of them left the bar with people nodding and clearly gossiping. As if I would, Andries thought to himself. He was however pleased that Keith had taken the bait.

When they had parted company Andries called his mate in Benidorm to tell him the news. He would be giving him more money than he made in six months, so he didn’t care that Candy O’Toole wasn’t going to bring in the punters. The plan was that she would headline there until the trial was over and then would be sent packing due to falling numbers. They would blame it on unseasonably bad weather. He would be put up at a B&B run by the owner of the club. Keith would be too embarrassed to tell anyone he was a flop again and would go back to his miserable life in Manchester without telling the real reason he was back. At least he would have some money in his pocket. He had arranged that Keith would get a couple of thousand Euros after his first show. Andries secretly hoped he would finally drink himself to death and that would be that. He then booked the ticket with Charlotte at Mike’s office. Charlotte booked tickets under a guise, so they couldn’t be traced back to them, for obvious reasons. Keith would be able to pick up his ticket at check in. Andries knew that Keith had cost a little more to get rid of, but these deviants didn’t come cheap.

All Andries needed to do was go and see Anne. Andries had worked quickly with this lot as usual. He would have them all out of the picture soon. He had had a long, tiring day, but he thought to himself that he would go and see Sharon after seeing Anne, as he had earned that at least.

Chapter 61

Andries arrived outside Anne Parfitt’s flat a little early. He decided to hang around outside for a while and smoke a cigarette. He also wanted to see if there was any CCTV around there. He was glad to see that there wasn’t. The nearest camera was nearer to Princess Road and that was probably still not working. Andries was obsessed with CCTV, it was his Achilles heel.

When it was 7, he buzzed Anne’s flat. She let him in and he went straight up. It wasn’t the nicest place he had seen but it was modest, just like Anne. She was waiting for him when he got to her door. He could smell she had been cooking and the predominant aroma was cabbage. He kissed her on the cheek and went in.

“I am so glad you made it,” Anne told him.

“Ya, me too. You look nice tonight,” he lied.

“Thank you,” she said and giggled nervously. “Why don’t we sit down and eat, and you can tell me what this mysterious news is. I found a bottle of South African wine at the Asda and I thought I should get it. I hope you like it,” she said.

Geez, what’s with Brits sitting down to eat the moment you come through the door? he thought as he sat.

“Oh, you shouldn’t have,” he told her, and he meant it. He knew the wine wasn’t going to be any good. Andries was of the opinion that you had to go to a wine merchant to get a good South African wine. Not some cheap supermarket.

“Nonsense, you have been so kind to me. People usually aren’t, they think I am boring and plain,” she said. They would be right, he thought.

They sat down at the small table just off the tiny kitchen. Andries wondered to himself why all the kitchens were so small in this country. Anne brought a big pot of something that looked like stew and a small dish of rice to the table. She opened the wine and poured herself a thimble full and an almost full glass for Andries. She dished up for them and said: “Please, enjoy.”

Andries asked to say grace before they ate. He always did this before a meal and this meal looked like it needed more than just a prayer. It needed some kind of divine intervention or a miracle of some sort.

With grace out of the way, they ate in silence until Andries finally said: “This is very nice, thank you. Let’s eat up and then after that we can go and sit on the couch and talk.”

“Ok, I am so excited to hear what you have to tell me,” she said and then for the rest of the tasteless meal they mostly ate in silence.

Once they were done, Anne took away the dishes while Andries poured some more of the tart wine. He went to sit on the sofa. She came through after a few minutes and sat next to him.

Andries looked at her and said: “Anne, I have become really fond of you. You are very sweet. I don’t know why you are still alone.” He took her hand and looked into her eyes, trying to be as convincing as he could.

“I really want to be more than just friends with you. I want us to be close,” he said and leaned forward to kiss her. She was a little surprised, but much to Andries’s relief, she responded. He leaned in a bit more and kissed her more passionately. He could tell she hadn’t done this often, so he took the upper hand and pulled her closer. She smelled of lavender and something else he couldn’t quite identify.

Andries was very skilled at fooling people and this was no exception. He put his hand up the back of her sweater and started to move it up. Suddenly Anne stopped him.

“Anne, what’s wrong?” Andries asked.

“Sorry Martin, but can we take it slowly. Was that what you wanted to tell me?” she asked.

With his plan blown a little off course he said: “Yes, sorry, it was. I am sorry if I took you by surprise. I just thought you felt the same.”

“I do, but you see I am on my period,” she told him, blushing bright red.

“Oh, I see,” he said, feeling genuinely uncomfortable and a little nauseous at the thought of it.

“Sorry Martin, please don’t be cross,” she said.

“It’s ok. Listen, I am sure you must be feeling tired. I know the time of the month makes women tired. Why don’t I let you rest, and we can meet up in a day or two again,” he told her.

“Ok. Promise me you will come back,” she said.

“I will, I promise. What about night after tomorrow, same time?” he asked her.

“Yes, that will be fine, this thing of mine will be over by then,” she said. They got up off the sofa and Anne showed him out.

When Andries got downstairs he was fuming. He was so sure she would fall for it. Damned women’s problems!

He walked home briskly, cursing under his breath as he walked.

“Sies, the smell was bad. I don’t know which was worse, her food or her doos. Now I know what that other smell was,” he muttered under his breath.

Footnote: Sies is an Afrikaans word that is used when expressing disgust at something or someone. Doos is an Afrikaans slang term for a vagina.

Chapter 62

When Andries got to Sharon’s pub, he was relieved to find the place not busy at all. Sharon told Mark, the barman that worked with her, to close the place at 11. She took Andries by the hand and they went upstairs.

Andries went to shower, telling her he had been sweating a lot that day. The truth was he wanted to wash away the smell of Anne and her food. Sharon went to get a bottle of wine and two glasses. When he came out of the shower dressed in just a towel, she was laying naked on the bed. He let the towel drop to the floor and he got on the bed next to her. The sex was passionate and pleasurable. Andries was pleased he hadn’t had to perform for both women that night. Sharon was a really good lover and he was glad he had all his energy for her.

When they had finished they just lay in her bed in the dark, the only light coming from outside. They lit a cigarette and Andries then decided he would be staying the night. He would worry about the fallout tomorrow. When they finished smoking, she turned her back to him and he drew her in holding her close, their naked bodies right up against each other. This was how they slept until the morning when his alarm went off at 7 a.m.

Chapter 63

The next couple of days Andries took things easy. He had called Keith Barras that morning to give him details of his flight in two days’ time. Keith was beside himself with excitement. Andries had arranged to meet him at Via on Canal Street on the morning of his flight.

That evening he left his house and made his way over to Anne’s flat. He hoped that she was going to be over her period, but he was worried she was going to be frigid or worse that she would not fall for his plan. He would be really and truly fucked if this didn’t work out. He didn’t want to resort to force with a woman unless he had to.

When he got to Anne’s flat, she buzzed him up and when the door opened he could see she had made an effort. She didn’t have a lot to work with and the end result was only marginally better than the last time he had seen her. Still, any improvement was better than none.

He went inside and went over to sit on the sofa. She fetched him a drink and he was surprised that she didn’t make them sit and eat straight away. She sat next to him and he was thinking that it was looking a lot better. With her sitting so close he could smell the lavender, but the other smell seemed to be gone.

Anne leaned forward and kissed him. He was a little thrown by how forward she was suddenly. It was nothing like the last time.

“Should we go to the bedroom?” she asked him, taking him by complete surprise. Wow, this woman didn’t waste any time, he thought.

“Yes, let’s do that,” he told her. They got up and went to her bedroom next to the lounge. It was very feminine and had lots of fluffy things. Tasteless was the word that sprung to Andries’s mind.

Andries undressed her then himself. He lay her back on the bed and kissed her again. He didn’t waste a lot of time on foreplay. He could tell she was ready for him, so he parted and lifted her legs gently and entered her slowly. He was relieved she wasn’t a virgin. She was inexperienced, he could tell that much, but she was very responsive as he guided himself in and out of her. He was able to pretend to be turned on but because he wasn’t really turned on, he was going to take a while to climax. This was fine because Anne was really enjoying this and kept telling him how good he was and how much she had longed for this.

The sex wasn’t exactly remarkable for him, but she seemed to have enjoyed it. When they were finished they were lying side by side holding hands, and she asked him how it was for him.

He rested his head on one arm and looked at her. “It was great. Thanks. You really know how to please a man,” he lied. “Hey, let’s go away together. Let’s go to France or to Spain.”

“Really? What? When?” she asked really surprised. He had pulled a blinder.

“Day after tomorrow. Come on I know you want to,” he told her.

“Yes, I do. I do! But I have something coming up that I can’t get away from. Also, I have work,” she said.

“What’s coming up that’s more important than running away with me?” he asked, knowing full well what her answer would be.

“I have to be a witness in court. There was an accident where someone was killed. I said I would be a witness,” she explained.

“They always have loads of witnesses. You won’t be missed. As for work, be daring, phone in sick,” he told her.

“But that wouldn’t be right. Neither of those things,” she protested.

“Anne, when last did you have sex like that? When last did you have a man treat you like you should be treated?” he asked her.

“Never Martin, never. I mean, there have been others. But nothing like you,” she said with a sigh.

“Exactly. You deserve it. Someone as sweet as you,” he told her.

“Really, you’d do that for me?” she asked.

“Anne, I will do anything for you. I think I am starting to fall in love with you,” he said and smiled, hoping he was finally getting through.

“Where would we go?” she asked.

“I know a great hotel in Benidorm called the Marisa Hotel. Do you know it?” he asked.

“No, I don’t. Sounds fancy,” she said.

“It’s not the Ritz but it’s nice. We would be able to make love all day,” he told her.

“You know what, let’s do it. I will call in sick tomorrow. What about booking? I haven’t ever done that! I haven’t been out of the UK before,” she said.

“I will take care of that. It will be my treat. I only have one problem. I can’t get there until the day after, but I will make sure my friend Jesus is there to meet you. He will look after you until I can get there,” he said.

“I don’t know. I am not sure if I can go alone,” she said.

“Anne, my love, you are the most amazing woman. I wouldn’t have suggested it if I didn’t think you could do it. Let this be the start of our life together. If we like it there, maybe we stay there,” he said. She liked that. She smiled and finally agreed.

Andries pulled her closer. He kissed her and once again laid her back on the bed. This time he put a bit more effort into it. She orgasmed twice before he did. He knew this would seal the deal. He would get her on that plane and get her out of the country. After a few days of broken promises, excuses why he couldn’t get there yet and after the case was thrown out of court, she would never hear from him again. He would give her a bit of cash to take with and she would have an open return ticket, so that would be her ‘payoff’. That would be the end of that. She only had the number of one of his throw-away mobiles that he would discard as soon as it was over. Like Keith Barras, she didn’t know his real name or where he lived. He had also given her his false name of Martin Steyn and told her he lived in Crumpsall, so there was no way he could be traced.

They were lying back on the bed again and Anne was clearly more relaxed than she had ever been. His plan seemed to be working until she turned to him and said: “I am worried about the court case.”

“Don’t worry about it, Anne. Don’t call them or they will try and convince you to stay. We need this, you need this, and you deserve it,” he said and kissed her again. He was a little worried there, but he seemed to have turned her around.

“I’m sorry Anne but I have to go, I promised a friend I would help with a small job. I will call you in the morning. I wish I could stay so we can make love all night, but soon we will be doing that in the sunshine,” he told her.

“Yes, my lover, we will,” she said.

Andries kissed her passionately again and got dressed. He left her in bed with a promise that this was the first day of the rest of her life.

Anne lay there after he left feeling so completely at peace. It didn’t occur to her that Andries was being anything but genuine. She could hardly wait. Her dull life was about to change at last.

Chapter 64

Andries spent the following night with Sharon again and when he woke to his alarm, he found himself alone in bed. He could smell cigarette smoke, coffee and even better, bacon. He got up and not bothering to get dressed walked naked into the kitchen where Sharon was busy at the stove.

“Good morning!” she said as soon as she saw him. “Did you sleep ok?” she asked.

“Ya, I did, thanks to you. Something smells good,” he said and went over to kiss her. “I am starving,” he told her.

“Good. Sit down and let me bring you a bacon buttie and some coffee,” Sharon told Andries.

He sat and lit a cigarette while she made his food. This was what he missed. He used to have this with his wife but lately she wasn’t getting up for anyone. He was on his own when it came to breakfast.

Sharon brought the food over just as he put out his cigarette. He was still naked, but it was warm in there and she didn’t seem to mind. He still had a good body and thanks to his Germanic roots he was well-endowed.

They ate breakfast and chatted about this and that, mainly the weather, which had improved only slightly of late. After they were done Andries went to shower and get dressed. Sharon had got him some toiletries since he seemed to be spending a few nights there. While he was showering, she busied herself with pub business. He liked that she wasn’t easily distracted from business. It showed character and discipline.

When he re-emerged fully clothed it was nearly 8 a.m. He kissed her goodbye promising to see her later. He had a busy day ahead dispatching that deviant and Anne to Spain. They would be on the same flight, but he wasn’t worried. He knew she wouldn’t talk to anyone, so the likelihood of them making contact was as close to zero as if they were on different planes. As for Keith Barras, he knew he would be half cut by the time the flight took off. He probably wouldn’t know his own names, either of them.

When he got home, he let himself in to a silent house. He was as quiet as he could be as he went down to the basement. It appeared his wife was still asleep and that was fine. With any luck he would be able to fool her into thinking he had actually slept at home. He had a small bed in the basement, so he roughed up the sheets, so it would look like that was where he had slept. The perfect cover!

He took out one of the mobiles in a drawer and called Charlotte at the office. He knew she started early, and she answered quickly. He arranged the ticket for Anne, and she sent him the email confirmation in seconds. He printed the ticket off and put it in an envelope to give her later.

Andries then called Anne who was still besides herself with excitement. She told him she hadn’t been able to sleep. She had been up most of the night planning and researching the area and she had found a lot of things that they could do. They could hire a car and drive up the coast.

“Wow, you have it all planned. Good for you Anne,” he told her.

“Thank you, Martin. Have you got our tickets?” she asked.

“Yes, I have your ticket here. I am flying to Berlin for my business thing on the late flight but your flight leaves at 6. I wish I could take you to the airport, but I will come to your place and give you the tickets at 11. I will arrange a taxi for you. Did you call your work?” he asked.

“Yes, I did. I felt like a naughty child, but it’s done now. I said I would be off a few days. I can call them from Spain when we are settled to tell them I will be off a while. Or forever!” she said excitedly.

“Ya, you never know. We are going to have a great time for sure,” he lied. He sounded genuine though and this worked for Anne.

“I will see you at 11. I am almost packed. I am so excited. I have never been on a plane before! I don’t have a lot of summer clothes. I saw online it is hot there,” she said. Andries thought to himself that these Brits are obsessed with the bloody weather and anyway she should be pleased as the weather is always shit in Manchester!

“Yes, it is. Don’t stress. We can buy what we need. You won’t need many clothes anyway!” he told her, and she giggled. “See you at 11,” he said and hung up. Everything was going to plan now. He liked that. He called a taxi firm that he had a special arrangement with, and he arranged a car to pick Anne up. He splurged a little as he felt slightly sorry for her. He ordered her an executive car and then ordered a car for Keith. He would just get what they sent. He didn’t feel sorry for that deviant failed drag queen.

Next, he prepared a little envelope with 1500 Euros which he would give to Anne with her ticket and then he called his friend at the Marisa Hotel. He booked a room for her for a week and arranged a car to pick her up at the airport. The cash he had for her would more than cover that and leave her a few Euros to spend while she waited for him to arrive. With that sorted he didn’t feel so bad. At worst she would have her first holiday abroad, even though it wouldn’t end as she had hoped.

That was all he needed to do for now. It was only 9 a.m. and he was ahead of schedule. He went upstairs and found his wife in her gown at the dining table, smoking a cigarette.

“Good morning sleepy head,” he said to her.

“Where were you last night?” she asked in a croaky voice. “I didn’t hear you come in.”

“I was late. I had to help out a friend with something and I didn’t want to wake you. I slept in the basement,” he told her.

“Oh ok. You want something to eat?” she asked.

“No thanks. I went out earlier to get cigarettes and I got a bacon buttie from the corner shop. What you up to today?” he asked.

“Nothing, just some shopping. Can I have some money?” she asked him.

“Ya, of course,” he said. He took out his wallet and gave her six 50’s. Just enough to keep her happy. “You can also use the card if you run out, but that should be enough.”

“Thanks, you are too sweet,” she said and got up to go and get ready. That alone would take a good two hours. He was relieved that she was so easy to please today. He had stuff to do. He sat a while and then went back downstairs to retrieve the money and ticket.

It was nearly time to go and see Anne, so he left. His house was about a mile and a half from Anne’s flat, so he would get there at 11 on the dot. He called out to his wife that he was going as he left his house.

The walk to Anne’s was brisk so when he got to her flat he was slightly out of breath. He waited until he got his breath back and that made it 11 exactly. He buzzed her number, and she let him in. He went up to her flat and when he got there, he found her packed and ready to go and somewhat excited.

“I have a surprise for you,” he told her. “I feel so bad not going with you and I know I will see you there very soon, but I ordered a posh car for you to go to the airport. I have also arranged a car to take you from the airport to the hotel. Also, here is your ticket and this is to pay for the hotel and to buy you a nice dinner.”

“Wow. This is too much. I couldn’t take that,” she said, clearly not used to being spoilt.

“Nonsense, I want to pay for our hotel. It’s booked for a week and we can always extend. Also, I wouldn’t feel right if you had to have a horrible meal on top of all that. It will be quite late when you get there, but the guy at the hotel told me he will point you in the right direction. Anyway, I am sure you haven’t had a chance to go and change money so this means you don’t need to! We are all set. Are you excited?” he asked her.

“I haven’t actually had a chance, you are right. I was going to get some cash at the airport. Am I excited? Yes, yes, I am. I have never felt like this,” she replied and threw her arms around him. There was that lavender again, but luckily not the other smell.

“I have to go now. I need to prepare for my meeting in Berlin. The car will be here at 2, plenty of time to get you there. Have a great flight Anne, I can’t wait to see you in Spain,” he said and kissed her hard.

“Phew, that was hot. I can’t wait either. See you soon,” she said as he left her flat, relieved that he would never have to see this woman again. A man can only take so much of the smell of lavender!

Now to take care of that other one, Andries thought as he got downstairs. He walked around to the bus stop and got the next bus into the city.

Chapter 65

When Andries arrived at Via in the Gay Village, Keith Barras was ready and waiting for him. Andries had told him to dress like a man and Keith had at least tried. Andries could still see some makeup left on his face though.

“Glad to see you are ready. Have you told anyone about this?” Andries asked.

“No Martin, darling. I just said I was off to Skegness for a short break. Don’t want to jinx it, as you said.”

“Good. The car will be here for you at 2. You have the money I gave you and your ticket will be at check-in,” he said.

“Thanks darling,” Keith said. Being called darling by this deviant sent cold shivers down Andries’s spine. He really wasn’t comfortable with it.

“I have to go. It’s all arranged. You will be met at the airport and taken to the club. They have got your accommodation sorted as well,” he told him.

“I wouldn’t have expected any less. You are very efficient, my dear,” he told Andries.

“Ya, you don’t know how efficient,” Andries said, smiling.

“I am all ready for them. Got all my best frocks in here and my wigs in here,” he said pointing at the two large bags next to him.

“And I wouldn’t have expected any less either,” Andries said. “Bye Keith, good luck,” he said and left without another word. The less he had to see this deviant the better for him.

With some of the money Andries had given him the other day, Keith decided to have a goodbye drink and ordered a bottle of cheap wine and some chips. He would really spoil himself as a last hurrah at the airport he decided. The plan was to get pissed. He had been waiting years to be discovered again. It was time for the world to get reacquainted with Candy O’Toole.

When a relieved Andries got out of the Gay Village he decided that he needed to disappear for a few hours. The only way to do that was to go and see his old mate Shabs in Cheetham Hill. Shabs owned a shop on Cheetham Hill Road that from the outside looked like an innocent phone shop, but at the back and upstairs it was anything but. He called Shabs and told him he was on his way.

When Andries got there, he was shown through where he was met by a petite young Asian girl. She took him upstairs where there were around a dozen men smoking, drinking and playing poker. This was the perfect place to disappear and wait for the call to say the two had left the country.

He sat down and ordered £1000 of chips which Shabs himself brought to him.

“How are you my man?” Shabs asked.

“No, cool man. Cool,” he replied. “Let’s do this!”

At around 6, he got the call. The bird had flown the coop was what he was told. He smiled. Job done. £50k earned. He was already £8k up thanks to his unreadable poker face, so he cashed in and left the place the same way he came in. Cheetham Hill Road was busy, so he ordered an Uber. He had had a good few brandies and wasn’t in the mood for a smelly, sweaty bus ride with the great unwashed. The destination he put into the Uber app was Sharon’s pub. Hopefully they could sneak away for a bit of fun. With everything he had achieved today, he had more than earned it.

Chapter 66

At around 9 p.m. flight HAR209 landed at Alicante Airport. Excited beyond belief and somewhat relieved to be back on terra firma, Anne got up from her seat to disembark. She was so happy. She really hoped that her Martin would get there soon. A few rows behind her a drunk Keith Barras was retrieving his large shoulder bag from the overhead locker. He didn’t realise how drunk he was until he stood up. He only just managed to get the bag down without knocking himself out.

The passengers started to disembark. Anne was in the terminal building already when Keith finally showed up. Ironically, they stood right next to each other but had no idea of their connection. When they had retrieved their luggage, Anne and Keith went out to the meeting hall where they were looking for their names on the boards held by the taxi drivers. Anne saw hers and rushed over to the man standing there.

“Hola, Miss Anne? Come I will take you to your hotel,” he said in a heavy Spanish accent. He took her modest bag and they went to find his car.

In the meantime, Keith Barras took a little longer to see the sign with his name on it. In his drunken stupor he had half expected to see the name Candy O’Toole. Finally, he saw it. ‘Keith Barras’ in large letters. He went over to the small man holding the sign and introduced himself. The man took the trolley from him and they walked out to the car.

Again, Anne and Keith had been within feet of one another, but were none the wiser.

When she was in the back of the large SUV, she took out her mobile and called Andries.

He answered quickly, and she told him that she had arrived. He told her that he was pleased and apologised for the noise. He told her he was at a bar at the airport waiting for his flight. He was at a bar, but it was nowhere near the airport.

“That’s ok. I am so happy to be here Martin and I can’t wait for you to get here,” she said.

“Ya, me too. I think for now don’t answer your phone unless I call. You don’t want work to find out where you are! Ooh I have to go. My flight is boarding soon,” he said.

“Ok, good idea. This is our time, Martin. You go and get your flight,” she told him.

“Good girl. Speak soon!” he said and hung up. He was actually getting used to hanging up like that and he quite liked it now.

Anne put her phone away and sat back as the car sped towards Benidorm and her new life. She couldn’t be happier and thoughts of school and being a witness in a few days quickly faded from her mind.

In the other car, Keith Barras lasted until the car had left the airport before he was fast asleep. He didn’t have anyone to call. He had his money and his gig to look forward to. “What else could a person need?” he muttered as he drifted off. The driver watched him in the mirror and laughed to himself. He had done some jobs for the man with the strange accent from England, but this one was the weirdest looking by far. He wasn’t sure why. Maybe the makeup residue. Maybe the saggy eyes. Shrugging, he decided to concentrate on the road as he too sped towards Benidorm.

Back in Manchester, Andries was sitting at the bar nursing his umpteenth brandy. He wasn’t drunk as he had a huge capacity for brandy. He had messaged Mike to say that all was good. Now it was his time, his work was done. Sharon had been busy tonight, but the bar was quietening down. He hoped they would be upstairs by 11 at the latest. Life was good.

Chapter 67

It was the day before the trial and Mike Chalmers was a little on edge. He had all his ducks in a row and had spoken to Tim Harding, the barrister. He had assured him that he was ready to have the case thrown out. The judge was confirmed as the one who he knew wouldn’t tolerate delays or an unprepared case. He told Mike not to worry. It would all be fine as usual.

Mike then called Andries. He was especially relieved to hear that the two witnesses were still safely out the country and the other one was also out of the picture. Andries had checked up on him and he was gone. He assured Mike that he knew David Holmes wouldn’t be back anytime soon after their last encounter. That would really fuck the prosecution over. That new piece of skirt at the CPS would regret the day she took on the case. He laughed to himself about this new trend of women with ambition. He wondered if they would ever remember their place.

Mike then called Aiden to make sure he was ready and to reassure him that it would all be fine.

He then called Max on his secure mobile. He didn’t answer straight away, and this annoyed Mike.  He called him back after five minutes.

“Mike, hi, sorry I wasn’t alone. Everything is on target. The evidence will vanish tonight after they have all left. What’s the latest with the witnesses?” he asked.

“Hi. Ok good. They are gone. The less you know about that the better. But the witnesses won’t be a problem. Do they know yet?” he asked.

“Don’t be daft. They haven’t thought to call them to make sure the day before. They spoke to them a few days ago and they said everything was fine and they would be there. Glad to hear you have fixed that,” Max said.

“You know me, Max. The Lone Ranger. Listen, I will see you in court tomorrow,” Mike said and hung up leaving Max shaking his head. That Chalmers was a cheeky git, he thought. But he liked him.

Mike sat at his desk and took a deep breath. He didn’t think he would be able to do anymore work today so he decided he should go and play some golf. The weather was pretty good, so he locked away his laptop and made sure he had the secure mobile in case Max called. He quickly called Malcolm Harrington to see if he wanted to play a few rounds and Malcolm told him to pick him up on his way out. He said he was bored with all this aeroplane talk for today. With the trial tomorrow he needed a distraction.

When the two men got to the golf course, they had a couple of whiskies at the bar and taking a bottle of Johnnie Walker Gold and two glasses, they headed out onto the course.

Now that they were alone Mike said to Malcolm: “I have taken care of everything. Tomorrow is just going to be a quick visit to the courts and then we will be done. They now have no evidence, no witnesses and nothing but speculation to go on.”

“Mike, without you my friend, I would have gone down long ago, especially with my son and his antics,” Malcolm said to him.

“I know. Tell me, that other kid Jason, is he any good? I worry he is an influence that could lead to trouble,” Mike said.

“Nah, he is just Aiden’s best mate. His mother, God rest her soul, suspected they had a bit of a thing going, but I didn’t think so. They had that gap year away. They didn’t do anything remotely gay. He is a good kid. If anything, Aiden is a bad influence on him,” Malcolm told him.

“Ok, if you say so,” he said and poured them two drinks from the little bar at the back of the golf cart. “Let’s play golf,” he said handing Malcolm a glass.

After 9 holes the men returned to the clubhouse where they met with a few friends and business associates. Tomorrow was a big day even though it was a slam dunk. The two of them needed a distraction and what better way than a willy waving contest with business buddies?

Chapter 68

It was the morning of the trial. At GMP Headquarters, D.I. Wilkes and his team were waiting for the prosecution counsel to arrive to collect the evidence. It was decided they should hold it there for security reasons. Wilkes took all the evidence out of the bag and his stomach dropped. Where was the USB stick? He looked in the bag again and then went back to the locker where it was stored, hoping it would be there. It wasn’t. Shit, what now?

He went back to the meeting room and asked if anyone had seen it. Nobody had. The last anyone had seen it was the evening before when it went into the evidence bag along with the rest of the papers. This was not good and Chief Constable Smythe was due any minute.

“Find it! Now!” Wilkes barked at his team and they all scattered to search. He realised he had been over-confident and had overlooked the fact that besides making a copy for the defence he should have made a backup for himself. For security reasons since the last IT breach, these things weren’t automatically stored on the system and could only be saved by making a hard copy.

When Max arrived dressed in his full uniform for once, since he was going to be in court, he could see that Wilkes was in a state.

“What the fuck’s wrong with you?” he asked Wilkes.

“Bad news sir, the USB stick is gone.”

“What? Tell me you are joking. You made copies, right?” Max asked. Whilst knowing the answer, he prayed Wilkes hadn’t gotten clever and actually made a copy.

“No sir, we overlooked that. I have an idea though. That private detective that got it for Mrs Winters will have a copy or the taxi association guy,” he told Max.

“Have you looked everywhere for it? You know how clumsy you are,” Max said, trying to sound as convincing as he could. He’d had to stay at the office until past 9 the previous night before everyone had left so he could retrieve the stick from evidence. He had taken it home and thrown it on the fire burning in his fireplace. The heat had incinerated the stick to nothing in seconds.

“I have the team searching but I will go and see if I can get a copy. At least we have the witnesses still,” he said. Max had to struggle to suppress a laugh when Wilkes said that. No, you don’t, he thought.

“Ok, go and do that now, will you? Be calm, you will look like an idiot as it is,” Max told him.

“Will do sir,” he said and went to an empty office to call.

John Wilkes got out his notebook and found Ben Cohen’s number. He punched it into his phone and waited. Ben answered quickly.

“Mr Cohen, D.I. Wilkes here, GMP. I have a favour to ask but it needs to be hush hush,” he said.

“Yes sure, what is it?” Ben asked.

“We need a copy of that dashcam footage as soon as. Can you send me a copy please if I give you my email?” he asked.

“Yes of course. I thought you had a copy already though,” he said.

“We did but it’s a long story for another time. Thank you for this,” Wilkes said and gave Ben his email address.

“Thanks. I will send it now,” Ben said. Wilkes hung up quickly.

Wilkes rushed over to his office and waited for the email which popped up a few seconds later. He opened the email and tried to open the file attached. It was blank. He was staring at the file name and 0kb next to it.

“He’s having a laugh,” he said.

Wilkes grabbed his phone and called Ben back.

“What are you playing at Cohen?” he barked.

“I’m sorry, what do you mean?” Ben asked, shocked at this policeman’s attitude.

“The fucking file is empty. Empty for fucks sake!” Wilkes growled. He was feeling embarrassed that he was losing his normally cool and calm demeanour.

“No! It can’t be,” Ben said, trying to open it on his own computer. Sure enough, completely empty. He searched for the email and found nothing. Gone! “It seems something went wrong here, D.I. Wilkes. I can’t even find the email I received with the attachment. I don’t know what happened, I am sorry,” he said.

“Not as sorry as I am, I assure you. Who was the guy at the taxi association? I can call him, can’t I?” Wilkes asked.

“Yes, yes of course. He will have it no doubt,” Ben said and gave Wilkes the name and number. Wilkes hung up without another word and called the taxi association. He had to wait a while until the man came on the line. He introduced himself and said what he was looking for.

“I am sorry sir, but we had a major computer failure here last week. I lost everything. I have lost emails and files. I can tell you, we are in chaos here. Sorry I can’t help,” he told Wilkes.

“Fucking hell, what is going on?” Wilkes said. Ah of course, the Harringtons is what is going on, he thought.

“What about the taxi driver?” he asked knowing already that it would be a dead end.

“Funny you should ask. He was here yesterday. Turns out somebody smashed his window and nicked the camera. Look, I have to go. Is there anything else I can help with?” he asked Wilkes.

“Help? Are you serious? If I find out you were paid off, I will send you to Strangeways on a one-way ticket,” he shouted and threw his phone down on the desk. He looked up and everyone was staring at him. He thought about calling Mike Chalmers and begging but he knew that Chalmers would laugh the idea right out the window.

He got up and stormed off to Max’s office.

“Nothing! Nothing at all. Someone got to the evidence there as well so it’s all lost,” he said to Max.

“For fucks sake, Wilkes. I swear to God man, you are useless. How you got to D.I. I don’t know,” Max said. “You had better hope that the witnesses are there today. You have checked with them, right?”

“Yes, we spoke to them day a couple of days back and they were all set. Look out, here’s counsel,” Wilkes said.

Charles Shepherd, prosecution counsel, knocked on Max’s door and entered the office. He could see that it wasn’t going well by the look on Wilkes’ face.

“Bad news,” Wilkes said. “The video evidence has vanished. Tried to get copies but that was a dead end.”

“You are kidding. What now? Do we even have a case?” Shepherd asked.

“We have three witnesses so that will have to do,” Max told him.

“You think that’s enough, Max?” he asked. His tone was one of irritation.

“It’s all we have for Christ’s sake,” he replied.

“Ok, well let’s hope the jury is sympathetic to us and not that poor rich boy,” Shepherd said. “We need to get over there for jury selection.” They got up, Max grabbing the evidence bag, and the three of them left in silence.

At the courtroom the court clerk selected the 12 jurors and they hoped he had chosen well. Now all that was left was to prepare to face the judge, who they knew would be incandescent with rage when she found out about the evidence.

Max was sitting marvelling at how this had all gone his way. He had put Wilkes forward to be D.I. and he did that because he knew he would need a scapegoat from time to time. He let Wilkes win mostly, but every so often he carefully guided the man into a real shitstorm. A bit like today.

Wilkes on the other hand was marvelling at how he had let this happen. He knew that Max would cover for him, he always did. But still, it was embarrassing. He was nervously looking out for the witnesses. So far nobody had shown up and it was getting close to starting time. He was starting to wish he had brought a change of underwear.

Chapter 69

Aiden had woken up early that morning. He had told Jason he wanted to stay alone that night feigning nerves for the trial.

Jason would meet him at the court before the trial. Good old Jason. Always dependable.

Aiden wasn’t alone though. He had lied. In the bathroom the shower had just started running.

“Aiden! The shower is ready!” Anna called from the bathroom. Aiden had asked her to stay over. If he did by some stroke of bad luck get locked up, he wanted his last night of freedom to be with her. They had made love three times before finally falling into a deep sleep.

“On my way!” he shouted back and made his way through to the shower.

When he was done showering and got dressed in a dark grey Hugo Boss suit with a crisp white shirt and a sombre tie a shade or two lighter than the suit, he put on his brogues and went to have breakfast with Anna at the dining table.

“I hope it goes well today Aiden,” she said. “But don’t worry I will visit you every week,” she joked.

“It will be fine. Thanks to you and Jason for your help with that investigator,” he said and smiled.

They finished breakfast and he left when the car arrived to take him to court.

When Aiden arrived at court Mike was there with Tim Harding. Jason had also just arrived and when he saw Aiden he came straight over. The two men hugged. Jason asked how he was. He replied he was fine. He turned to Mike who said: “Don’t worry, everything is in hand. Did you see the cameras outside?” Aiden was thinking to himself that he would be glad when this minor inconvenience was over.

“Yeah, I saw them. What about you Jase, did you get through ok?” he asked Jason.

“I had a few questions thrown at me, but I ignored them. This is about you, not me,” Jason said.

Suddenly there was a commotion behind them. They all turned just as Rose Winters and Fat Pat walked into the court. Rose was dressed in a plain black dress and black shoes and had her coat over her arm. Fat Pat was dressed in her usual oversized coat and red shoes. The two of them went to sit.

“Don’t worry, they aren’t witnesses. She doesn’t remember a thing,” Mike said to Aiden, who just nodded.

Max and Wilkes arrived next with Charles Shepherd and Sarah Blake from the CPS, who just nodded at Tim and Mike. They simply returned the gesture. There was no love lost between them, that was obvious.

The gallery was quite full by now, so Jason patted Aiden on the shoulder and went to get a seat.

Wilkes went outside to see if the witnesses were there. They wouldn’t be allowed in for the proceedings, but he wanted to be sure they were ready. He was in a panic when he saw they hadn’t arrived. He got out his mobile and dialled their numbers. The only one that rang was Anne Parfitt’s, but it eventually went to voicemail. She had listened to what Andries had told her. He left a heated and desperate message for her. Shit, what next? he thought as he headed back inside.

He went to Max and Shepherd and told them about the witnesses. Sarah Blake just stood there with her mouth wide open, not believing what she was hearing. This was the final straw for Shepherd. He called the two men outside, leaving Sarah standing there and told them: “When that judge comes in I am going to look like a right arse. You know the defence will move to dismiss. This judge is not going to hesitate when she knows that we are up the creek without a paddle. If they don’t materialise then I will recommend to Sarah Blake that to save face, we drop the charges and get out while the going is good. Those witnesses are probably never going to show up. You should have brought them here yourself Wilkes! Sometimes I despair. One minute you are a hotshot, the next a dodo. You need to get your act together!” Shepherd ranted at him. “Now get patrol cars out to their homes to see where the fuck they are! That’s our only hope!”

Max added that they could use the police chopper if need be, but he knew full well that wasn’t going to be necessary.

Wilkes went into the corridor outside the courtroom and called it in. He was told by the dispatcher that it would be treated as urgent. All that was left to do was wait. He hoped they would be in time. The trial was starting soon. He decided not to go inside again just yet. Instead he hung around the corridor, wishing he still smoked.

After twenty minutes Wilkes’s phone buzzed. It was the dispatcher. They weren’t home. They had asked neighbours and two of them hadn’t been seen for a couple of days. Anne’s neighbours didn’t really know when they had last seen her. Typical, Wilkes thought. He thanked the dispatcher and went back to face the music.

A dumbfounded Charles Shepherd just looked at him when he told him. Max also looked dumbfounded, but that was just an act. He was about as relieved as he could have been.

“What about the drink driving and the drugs?” Wilkes asked. “Can’t we nail him on that?”

“What’s the point. The charge we brought was causing death by dangerous driving. There is no mention of the rest in the charge. It wouldn’t benefit anyone to try that angle now. It will look like we are grabbing at straws and the defence will have it thrown out anyway. Had I known you were going to fuck up like this I would have offered it in the beginning. I suggest you leave while you can still walk,” Shepherd told him.

“I agree with Charles,” Max said. “I will deal with you later Wilkes. I think for everyone’s sake you should disappear. I will see you at the HQ. Dismissed.”

Wilkes left quietly and the other two returned to the courtroom. “Sorry about that, I will deal with it,” Max told Shepherd.

“You had better. He really makes you look bad.”

“Don’t I know it,” he said, not really bothered. He had earned his money on this one. He was just biding his time until his retirement and he was good at covering his tracks.

When they got back to where Sarah Blake was, she had overheard it all and she told them: “No witnesses, I am guessing. It’s over gents. We are fucked. I am going with the recommendation. We are going to drop the charges and save face. It happens. You two can tell Donnelly, I am going back to the office. I can’t take any more of this shit!”

Max and Shepherd looked at each other and shrugged.

“Right, let’s get this over with. No point prolonging the inevitable,” Shepherd told Max.

The two men left the courtroom and went to the judge’s chambers where they asked to see Judge Shauna Donnelly. They were shown through and were soon seated in front of a very stern-faced judge.

“What is it gentlemen? We are due in court any minute, so this had better be important,” Judge Donnelly told them.

“My lady, we have bad news. Due to the disappearance of key evidence as well as no-shows from all three witnesses, the CPS has decided to drop the charges. We haven’t a hope in hell of getting a conviction based on what we have,” Shepherd told her.

“This is why our justice system is in shambles. Fine, you can submit the paperwork. I will instruct the clerk to dismiss the jury. Before you go though, don’t ever come to my courtroom again with this kind of diabolical mess. If you do, you will end up in the cell with the accused. Am I clear?” she asked, clearly angry.

“Yes, my lady, and please accept our sincerest apologies for wasting your time. This news has only just come to light,” Shepherd explained.

“I don’t care. Consider yourselves warned. You may go,” she said swiftly. The two men wasted no time leaving. Judge Connelly wasn’t one to be taken lightly. They took their time getting back to the courtroom.

By the time they did get back to the courtroom, the news had already broken. The clerk had just dismissed the jury, and everyone was leaving quickly.

In the gallery Rose just sat in stony silence. She couldn’t believe what she had just heard. Dismissed! Just like that! That man is going free! How is that possible?

Fat Pat looked at her and said: “Come on Rose, let’s get out of here. We’ll talk outside.” The two women got up and left the courtroom quickly, pushing through the crowd of reporters outside. This wasn’t the time to speak to them.

When they were finally clear of the reporters, Rose stopped suddenly and leant against the building they were standing next to. She was clearly upset and breathing heavily. The next thing she bent over double and threw up on the pavement. All Fat Pat could do was put her arm around her and shield her from the glare of passers-by. She carefully guided her back to her tiny car and took her home. Rose didn’t speak a word the whole way home.

Chapter 70

Mike, Tim, Aiden and Jason were still in the courtroom.

“Mike, thank you,” Aiden said.

“It’s nothing lad. It’s what I do,” he said feigning modesty.

“Can I buy you lunch?” Aiden asked.

“No thanks. I need to get back to work and I need to tell your Dad. He knew what the outcome would be all along, but I need to fill him in all the same,” Mike said.

“Ok. Thanks again. See you guys,” Aiden said. “Come Jason. We have celebrating to do,” and with that the two of them ran off.

Outside the court the news crews were still there. They were all shouting at Aiden who just smiled and waved as he and Jason ran over to the waiting Bentley. The large car sped off with a screech as soon as they were in the back.

“I hate the press!” Aiden said.

“They are the fucking worst,” Jason agreed.

The driver asked where they were headed. Aiden told him they were going to his apartment.

“We have some celebrating to do!” he said again as the car headed to his apartment.

When Mike and Tim came out of the court building the reporters were still there. They were yelling at Mike for a statement and with a smile he agreed.

“My client, Aiden Harrington was wrongly accused again. They had no evidence and should never have brought charges in the first place. This just highlights the incompetence of the police, The Crown Prosecution Service and the courts. This has been an enormous waste of public funds. My innocent client can now get on with his life after this harrowing experience. On behalf of the Harringtons, we offer our condolences to the family of the deceased and hope that they can now also get on with their lives. Thank you, that’s all I have to say,” he concluded, and the two men pushed through the reporters to Mike’s waiting car.

When they got in the car, Mike turned to Tim and said: “I am glad that’s over. I can get back to work now. Fancy a drink?”

“I am sure you are. You pulled a blinder there! Of course I fancy a drink. I am on the clock after all!” he said and they both laughed.

Chapter 71

At Rose’s house in Didsbury, Rose and Fat Pat had just got home and Rose was fuming. She was no longer silent.

“Pat how is this possible?” she asked. She was frothing at the mouth like a rabid dog.

Fat Pat had called Rose’s solicitor and he had just rehashed what they had heard in court. Nothing they could do, he said.

“Rose, please don’t dwell on it. You will make yourself ill,” Fat Pat pleaded with her.

“I know. It’s just so unfair. I need to go and see Stefan. Will you take me. I don’t think I should drive. But first I need a drink,” Rose said. “I will find a way to make them pay, I swear!”

Fat Pat went to get Rose a whisky and when she got back, they lit a cigarette and sat in silence. When Rose was done, they left and headed to the hospital in Fat Pat’s little car.

When the women got to Stefan’s room, he was asleep. He looked so peaceful. Rose didn’t know how she was going to tell him. Fat Pat had said she should probably not say anything. Rose didn’t really want him to find out from someone else. She had to be the one to tell him.

She pulled a chair closer and sat down and took Stefan’s hand. Fat Pat sat in the large chair on the other side of the room and just watched.

Eventually Stefan woke slowly looking a little confused at first. He still had an IV bag feeding him and he had lost a considerable amount of weight. The machine administering the drugs to keep his heart stable had been switched off for now. He couldn’t have too much as it could give him stomach problems on top of everything else.

Rose looked at him and said: “Darling, you know the court case was today, don’t you?”

He looked at her and nodded slowly. He still couldn’t speak. Rose wondered if he was still angry with her regarding the secret or if he was just ill. She also wondered if he would even remember and if not, should she tell him again or have the secret go to the grave with Jim?

“It didn’t go so well. He got off. He walked free,” she said, choking on a sob.

Stefan’s face was blank. He just looked at Rose and tears started to stream down his face. His skin started to go pale and he started to shake. His eyes went back in his head and the shaking got worse.

Fat Pat jumped up and ran to get help. Two nurses came running in. The monitors were beeping wildly. The nurses told Rose to step back as they worked on Stefan to try and stabilise him. Rose couldn’t see what they were doing. One of the doctors came running in with another nurse and quickly they were also working on Stefan desperately trying to get him under control. It was critical that they were quick as all this movement could cause further damage to his spine. Finally, he stabilised but he was unconscious. The machine alarm had stopped. His heart rate seemed to be under control. The doctor was checking his breathing and his pulse. He looked at Rose and said: “We don’t know what happened there. He is calm now. I am going to stay and observe him for a while.”

“Ok thank you,” Rose said.

The doctor said to Stefan: “Can you hear me Stefan? Open your eyes.” But he didn’t respond. The doctor was flashing a torch in his eyes to check his neuro obs. He was breathing on his own, but he was unconscious. The doctor told one of the nurses to page Doctor Bhakari urgently.

When Doctor Bhakari arrived, she went straight over to Stefan and began checking him over. She asked the nurse to order an urgent EEG and an ECG.

“Mrs Winters, what happened?” Doctor Bhakari asked.

“It’s my fault. I gave him bad news about the court case of the man that killed his father. He just started to shake. His eyes went back and now he is unconscious. What’s wrong with him?” Rose asked.

“We don’t know yet. I will order blood tests and as you heard an EEG and ECG. After that we may know more. Luckily you acted so quickly, or it could have been worse,” Doctor Bhakari told her.

“Ok thank you,” Rose said.

“I will be here until we know what’s wrong. I will ask one of my colleagues to take a look as well. Don’t worry we will find out,” she told Rose.

When Stefan was gone for his two tests, Rose turned to Fat Pat and said to her: “I can’t take much more. I am about to explode. I really need to get out of here!”

Fat Pat took her hand and led her out of the room. “Let’s get a coffee. He will be a while.”

They went to the coffee shop and when they sat down with their coffees Rose said to Fat Pat: “Pat, I am going to do something to make these people pay. I need your help. I can’t do it alone. Please say you will help me. I know Stefan isn’t going to survive this. I know it in my heart really. I have nothing left. So please, you have to help me,” Rose pleaded.

“Rose, yes of course. Anything and I mean anything. You are my family and if they hurt you, they hurt me,” Fat Pat told her.

Rose was a little surprised at the response. She didn’t think Fat Pat had it in her. She had expected her to resist and come up with a million reasons why she shouldn’t do anything. You just never know how things will turn out.

“What were you thinking of?” Fat Pat asked Rose.

“You know Ben Cohen?” Rose asked.

“Yes, you were sweet on him once. What about him?” Fat Pat asked.

“Well, I need to go after these people. I want to destroy their name. They destroyed my family and I have to get them back,” Rose explained. “I am going to ask Ben to help me do that. If I remember he has a friend at the MEN newspaper who he has known for years. I will do an interview and I will get Ben to give me more dirt on them. I will tell it all. I also want to sue them for what they did. If I can’t get justice, then I guess money will have to do instead.”

“How do I fit in?” Fat Pat asked.

“I need you to sit with me and support me, that’s all. Tell the reporter how happy we were, that kind of thing,” Rose said.

“Oh, and here I was thinking you wanted me to murder someone,” Fat Pat laughed.

“No silly. Well, not yet anyway,” and Rose laughed too.

“When Stefan is back and we know what is going on, I will need to go and see Ben. You can come with if you want, but it might be better if I go alone,” Rose said.

“Ok, love. Whichever is easier for you,” Fat Pat said.

The two women finished their coffee and walked back to Stefan’s room. After a short while he was wheeled back in. He was still unconscious. He really looked awful. As soon as his bed was back in place the nurses that were there before asked Rose and Fat Pat to wait outside. They needed intubate Stefan and put him on the breathing apparatus. While he was getting his scans, his breathing became erratic, so this was a necessary step.

Doctor Bhakari arrived as soon as the nurses were done. She explained that there was abnormal brain activity and it seems that the episode Stefan had earlier dislodged a small blood clot which had caused a bit of damage. This could be why he was having difficulty breathing. They had started blood thinners again and would have to wait and see what the outcome was. She assured Rose they were doing everything they could. She also told Rose it was too early to speculate. They would need to do further scans to ascertain the extent of the damage. The ECG had shown nothing else new, so that was hopeful at least.

Rose thanked her and went to sit on a chair next to her son. She took his hand and squeezed it and said to him softly: “I would trade places with you in a heartbeat. I am sorry you are here. I will make them pay. I promise. Get better, darling, please. I love you.”

Rose got up and kissed Stefan’s forehead and she told Fat Pat they should go and leave him to rest. They left the room and headed over to the car park to get Fat Pat’s little car.

“You can drop me at Ben’s office in Cheadle. I will get him to give me a lift back later,” Rose said.

“Sure Rose. I will be at home later if you need me,” Fat Pat told her.

“I will call you when I am back Pat, thank you,” Rose said as they drove to Cheadle.

Chapter 72

In Cheadle, Ben Cohen’s assistant had just left. Ben was feeling awful about the lost file and even worse that it had contributed to the throwing out of the whole case. He blamed himself for not being tech savvy and he was thinking that perhaps he hadn’t even saved it properly and that’s why it went missing. He felt so foolish. He sat there staring blankly at his computer screen for ages. His mind wandered to the Polish girl Julianna that he had met the other day. He hoped she was ok as he hadn’t heard from her. It did seem a little odd, but he dismissed it as he did so many things that didn’t really make sense.

The next thing there was a knock on the front door of his office. He kept the door locked now when he was alone. He didn’t have any proof, but he thought that another reason the file and email went missing was that someone had been in his office. He didn’t think he had been hacked. That would just be too convenient.

When he came out of his office, he saw Rose standing there. He quickly opened the door and let her in.

“Rose, come in. I am so sorry that I let you down,” he said.

“Thanks Ben. Its ok, I know it’s not your doing,” she said as she went in.

“Come into my office,” he told her. They went through and Rose sat on the small sofa in the corner. Ben sat down next to her and took her hand.

“What brings you here?” he asked. “I didn’t think I would ever see you again.”

“Nonsense. Let’s forget it. I need your help again. You had a friend at the MEN newspaper. Is he still there?” she asked.

“Yes, yes he is. Why?” he asked.

“I am suing the Harringtons for this, but I also want to trash their name,” she told him.

“Do you think that’s wise?” Ben asked her.

“Maybe, maybe not. Being wise is not my top priority right now. I can’t just sit here and take it. Stefan is still in hospital and it doesn’t look good. Can you set up a meeting for me?” she asked.

“Yes of course. I will call him for you and set it up. It’s just his thing, this. He told me he got into a scuffle with the Harrington boy’s bodyguard for taking pictures. He was just doing his job. He is no fan of theirs and will welcome the opportunity to get back at them,” Ben said. “I may not be able to get him until tomorrow so can I please buy you dinner or something?” Ben asked.

“Thank you, you are very sweet. Yes, why not? Let’s go and get something to eat,” Rose said.

Ben closed up the office, making sure everything was securely locked. He double-checked that the office was properly locked, and the alarm was on. Even though he felt he was possibly to blame for the footage file going missing, he had still become a little paranoid about security. So much so that he had even changed the alarm code to something a little more complex. They left and headed over to the Turkish restaurant nearby. It was early evening, so Ben would be able to take advantage of the early-bird offer. Look after the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves was one of his penny-pinching mottos.

Chapter 73

The following morning Rose was feeling a little more upbeat. She had enjoyed her evening with Ben. The meal had been good. He had stopped in for coffee afterwards. They had sat up until quite late talking. When he left they had hugged. He had kissed her cheek tenderly. After she had closed the door, Rose had thought about how she had imagined it was Jim kissing her and hugging her and how much she missed him and longed for some intimacy. She had been suddenly overcome with emotion and tears had just rolled down her cheeks as she had turned out the lights and headed to bed.

The next morning, Rose picked up the phone and called her solicitor, Richard Caine. He was also sympathetic. She thanked him and cut to the chase.

“I need you to sue the Harringtons. I want as much as you can get. I have someone digging up dirt on them and I am going to the press with it. I am going to make his life a living hell,” she told Richard.

“Rose of course. We can’t go after him for the killing as the case was dismissed. But we can go after them for pain and suffering. We can also go for compensation for Stefan, so he has money for his treatment and his life if he is disabled. I know he is still having treatment, but we need to look at all eventualities,” Richard Caine told her.

“Good. Can you start proceedings straight away?” she asked.

“Yes, I had already drawn up papers for this eventuality, so I will get to work on it immediately. When you talk to the press, stick to the facts. The Harringtons are ruthless. Be careful. I will also have to make sure I am thorough as well. Any slight error and the whole thing will collapse,” Caine said. He thought to himself that he couldn’t see another case crumble before his eyes.

“I will. It’s not only facts. There is emotion too. I will play on that. Thank you, Richard. Please keep me posted,” Rose said. They said goodbye and hung up.

Shortly after that Ben called to say he had set up a meeting with Steve Hallam at the MEN. He was wrapped up in another big scandal, but he would meet her anyway to do the groundwork.

“Ben, thank you for last night. I feel so much better,” Rose said.

“Pleasure, Rose. Anytime,” he said.

“Come here tonight if you want. I will cook something. We can chat. Unless you are busy,” she said.

“No, things are a little quiet at the moment. I will be there at 7, if that’s ok. I have to see my mum later. So, I will see you after that,” he said.

“Ok good. Tell her hello from me,” she laughed. “See you later. Goodbye, Ben.”

“Goodbye,” he replied, laughing as well at what Rose had said, and hung up.

Rose called Fat Pat and arranged to go to the hospital with her a bit later. She updated her on Ben and said she would tell her more about the solicitor later when she saw her. She didn’t tell her about the time she had spent with Ben or that he was coming around later. She would tell her another time.

Fat Pat picked Rose up at 11 and they headed over to the hospital. When they got there, they found Stefan still unconscious. There was no change either way. They sat with him for a while, but Rose was feeling too agitated to stay too long. She also didn’t want her negative energy to impact on Stefan, even though he wasn’t awake.

Fat Pat took Rose home and left to go to her own house. Rose told her she was going to go and do some food shopping and even though Fat Pat offered to take her she said she would rather go alone. She didn’t want Fat Pat to see what she was buying. It would be a dead giveaway. She would guess that Ben was coming around and she didn’t need to have to explain that just yet. It wasn’t that Rose was expecting anything. She’d had this feeling all day that something might develop, but she knew Fat Pat would think it was too soon after Jim.

Rose went to Sainsbury’s and picked out some steaks, salads and some potatoes. She got two bottles of wine and a few other bits and went home. She put everything away and went to run a bath. It was already late afternoon, so she poured a whisky and went for a long soak, topping up the water as it got cold. She needed this relaxation as she knew that the business with the reporter and the lawsuit were going to be tough. She needed to be ready.

Ben arrived at just before 7. He kissed Rose on the cheek and went through to the lounge. Rose was wearing pink lounge pants and a t-shirt and had put on some casual shoes. Her hair was down. She looked great. Her arm was out of plaster and mostly healed, but it still hurt sometimes. Tonight, she was feeling positive. Rose poured Ben a glass of wine and one for herself.

“I had better not drink too much, I have to drive home,” Ben said.

“Don’t worry about that now. Let’s just enjoy tonight,” she said.

“Ok then,” Ben said. They drank and chatted awhile and then Rose said he should come to the kitchen with her. She cooked the potatoes and made the salad and then grilled the steaks. Ben just watched in awe. He was a rubbish cook so this impressed him.

After they had eaten and put the dishes in the dishwasher, they went to sit in the lounge. Rose had topped up their glasses again and Ben was feeling a little drunk. Rose snuggled up next to him and he put his arm around her.

“Stay with me tonight Ben,” Rose said softly.

“Are you sure?” he asked.

“Never been surer,” she told him.

He took his arm from around her and she looked up at him as he leaned forward and kissed her. She responded to his kiss and moved closer to him.

“Let’s go upstairs,” she said. She got up and took his hand, leading him up the stairs to her bedroom.

Chapter 74

Afew days later Rose was sitting in Ben’s office. Steve Hallam was there too. He was asking Rose a series of questions. He needed an idea of what he was going to report and so far, he was happy with her answers. He was thinking to himself that this could be his biggest story and could land him a job with a national newspaper.

When he was done, he told her that he had to finish with the scandal he was working on. He said that he should have something for her to look over in a few days. He left the office and Rose turned to Ben.

“What do you think?” she asked him.

“I think you will have a great story there. You have been through so much, you deserve to tell your side of things,” Ben told her.

“I think so.”

“How is Stefan? I heard you telling Steve, but how is he really?” Ben asked.

“Exactly as I told him. Its hopeless. They have done scans and tests and no improvement. The last incident did more damage. I really don’t see how he could possibly survive,” she said, a tear falling from her eye.

Ben went over and hugged her. He suggested they leave and go home. Rose was keen. She wanted to spend more time with him. She knew it was really soon after Jim, but she needed that contact.

When they got to Rose’s house, there was a message from Fat Pat. She called her back and feigned a headache. Fat Pat told her to rest and to call her later. When she hung up Richard Caine called. He was going to serve the papers in the morning. He enquired about the newspaper and Rose updated him. She would tell him more when she knew more. The rest of the day was spent chatting about the past years. In the evening Rose ordered pizza and her and Ben spent a quiet evening in front of the television.

When her and Ben went to bed the lovemaking was less urgent than the night before. Tonight, they took their time. Ben explored Rose’s body with tenderness. Rose couldn’t help but imagine that Ben was Jim and at one point in the lovemaking she called out Jim’s name. Ben didn’t seem to notice, and Rose hoped that he hadn’t heard it. When they were finished, they lay in each other’s arms in the dark. Jim had been a good lover and so was Ben, but in a different way. Ben was very attentive.  Rose had needed this intimacy so badly.

Chapter 75

Mike Chalmers was in his office when Charlotte Perkins came in and handed him the envelope that had been delivered by someone from Richard Caine’s office.

He tore open the envelope and read the contents. The Harringtons were being sued by Rose Winters for two million pounds. He just laughed when he saw the figure. He tossed the papers to one side and called Malcolm Harrington.

“Malcolm, you are being sued for two million by the Winters woman. What do you want me to do?” he asked, suppressing the urge to laugh.

“Sit on it for a bit and let me think. Now that Aiden’s charges have been dropped, I don’t see that she even has a case,” he told Mike.

“Ok, you’re the boss,” Mike said and hung up. He even did that to Malcolm, but Malcolm wasn’t bothered by such things.

Mike put the notice in his drawer and opened his laptop. He logged into the secure server and transferred Max Smythe’s fee. He then transferred the remaining £25k to Andries Smit. He felt that Andries had excelled again this time.

Mike was a little annoyed with this latest development. He had wanted to book himself and Eva on a trip to the Bahamas, but that would have to wait until he had dealt with this latest annoyance.

Chapter 76

When Rose woke up Ben had already been down to get coffee for them. He lay down on the bed next to her and sighed. He was really happy. Life was great. He had Rose back. It wasn’t until they had slept together that he realised how much he had missed her, even after all these years apart.

“I will need to go in a bit. I will shower at home. I need to change my clothes,” he said.

“Ok, will I see you later?” she asked.

“Yes, of course,” Ben said.

As he got up his phone buzzed. It was an email from Steve Hallam and the newspaper story was attached. Steve must have worked through the night to do this so quickly. They had expected it to take a few days. He opened the attachment and he and Rose read the article in complete silence. When they were finished Ben asked her: “What do you think?”

“It’s great, tell him to print it,” she said. Steve hadn’t needed to speak to Fat Pat after all. He had got enough of a story from Rose and his own extensive research. The truth was Steve had always kept a file on the Harringtons for just such an occasion.

Ben called Steve and told him to print it. The story covered the accident and the drink driving. It covered Jim’s death and Rose was quoted as blaming Aiden directly for Jim’s death and Stefan’s injuries. She also blamed him for ruining her life and those of her friends and she had said that he was a characterless drug addict who would kill again if he wasn’t stopped. Rose hadn’t held back. Richard Caine had told her to stick to the facts and she felt that she had. Rose had had to bite her tongue a lot and she was actually surprised at how nice she had been. There was a lot more she had wanted to add and if she ever found herself face-to-face with Aiden she wouldn’t hold back.

Steve told him it would be in the morning print and that it would be on the MEN app by the evening.

Rose was so excited. Finally, she was getting back at those people. Maybe her life was turning around. She laid her head on Ben’s chest and they just lay there for a while. Jim’s chest had been quite hairy, and Ben’s chest was smoother. But it was still nice.

“I had better go,” he said. “See you later. Call me if you need me.” He got dressed, kissed her and left.

Rose called Fat Pat.

“Let’s have lunch. My treat. We can take a cab and we will have some wine. I have news,” Rose said excitedly. She would tell Fat Pat about Ben too. The time was right. Or was it? She started to doubt herself again now.

Rose called the hospital next. Stefan was still unchanged. She said she would stop by later, knowing that she wouldn’t. Today she needed to enjoy this small victory.

Chapter 77

That evening Mike Chalmers had decided he was ‘working late’. Charlotte was there too and just as he was going to call her into his office his phone buzzed. It was a message from a friend of his at the newspaper. It simply said, ‘Check the MEN’.

He opened the MEN app and there it was. Rose’s article was live. He read the article and when he was done, he was steaming. How dare that bitch. He had also been named as a crooked lawyer who bribed his way out of everything. That bit he laughed at. Nobody could prove that, ever. Aiden was described as a poncey gay brat that had no regard for anyone but himself. The article also mentioned Aiden being fully responsible for the death of Jim Winters, even though it had been thrown out of court. Malcolm was reported to be a high-powered tyrant used to buying everything he wanted. That bit was true and to be fair the bits about Aiden were pretty close to the truth. Still, it annoyed him. This was just another damned inconvenience he would need to fix. He had thought it was all over. Malcolm would have paid her if Aiden had been found guilty, but his acquittal meant that deal was off the table.

He called Malcolm Harrington who had himself just seen the article. One of his golf buddies had shown it to him. He told Mike that he would need to go for the jugular, and that this bitch needed to be taught a lesson once and for all. He also told Mike that he was to ensure that he destroyed her life for good. Nobody was going to do that to the Harringtons without paying the price. When it came to Aiden, Malcolm took no prisoners. His precious son’s name would not be smeared. Nor would his or his friends’ names be.

Malcolm told Mike that he must dispute their lawsuit and put in a counter claim as well as sue her for defamation of character. He would look for two million as well. There was no way she would have that kind of money. That would ruin her for sure.

“Losing her husband and having her son in hospital will be nothing in comparison to what you must do now. Take no prisoners, Mike. Nothing is off the table!” Malcolm told Mike.

He called Charlotte in and told her to forget about going home and get ready for a busy and long night preparing this case. He told her to get dinner brought to the office and they would work through. She left to do that. He called Eva and told her that he wouldn’t be home. She didn’t sound bothered as she was out with some girlfriends.

“Mike, everyone has left already. Do you want me to call anyone back?” she asked when she came back into his office. She could tell from the look on his face this was a big one.

“No, it’s just you and me. I need to be focussed and I really don’t need those jackasses slowing me down,” he told her.

“Ok good. Dinner is ordered, let’s get on with it. Where do we start?” she asked.

“Where do we start indeed?” Mike asked.

Chapter 78

The following couple of weeks were a blur for Rose. She was feeling a lot of different emotions. She felt grief for her husband, sadness for Stefan who was still in hospital and she was also starting to fall in love again with Ben. Well it felt that way, her emotions were all over the place. She also had Fat Pat advising her on what to do, which was fine if she was inclined to listen. Fat Pat had been a big help and she meant well, but Rose really just wanted to spend time alone with her son and her nights with Ben. Fat Pat had taken to the news of Rose’s affair with Ben quite well. She was cautious at first. Eventually when she realised that Ben made Rose happy again, she let it be, although with reservations.

Rose was at home and getting ready to go to the hospital to spend the day with Stefan. He was getting thinner by the day and this was worrying her more than she had thought. They had done some operations to put some metal rods in, but he was still comatose. They also couldn’t detect any stimuli in his lower limbs. The doctors had told Rose that it was a waiting game. He was still on the ventilator and would have to stay on that for the foreseeable future. Barring a miracle of course. Miracles do happen, she kept telling herself.

Rose’s mobile phone rang. She could see the caller ID was Richard Caine. She answered quickly, feeling a knot develop in her stomach.

“Rose, Richard Caine here,” he said.

“Richard, hello, what’s happening? Have you got a date for the case yet?” she asked.

“Rose, I am afraid I have some bad news. I have heard from Mike Chalmers, Harrington’s lawyer. It turns out they are basically countersuing you for defamation of character for your comments in the papers. They are alleging you smeared the Harrington name and as good as accused Aiden Harrington of manslaughter. I have spoken to this Chalmers guy and I am sorry, but he won’t budge. He is suing you for two million, the same sum as you were suing them for. I have to be honest, having looked at the papers and what they are alleging, they have a chance of winning. I am happy to represent you, but I will understand if you want to employ a barrister. In fact, I would recommend you do,” Richard Caine advised her. He didn’t tell her, but he felt she had gone too far, and the reporter had used that to his advantage. She had been naïve.

Rose went cold. How was this possible? After everything that she went through.

“How can they do that?” she asked.

“Aiden Harrington’s charges were dropped. Your newspaper interview mostly refuted that. The reporter has also been named in the lawsuit. He has a history with them so that may have fuelled the fire a little. They are also saying that it makes Aiden Harrington look bad and that the details of his sex life are slanderous and untrue. There have been rumours, but they were all squashed. They are also claiming that Malcolm Harrington is an honourable businessman and your interview painted him as the opposite,” he explained.

“I don’t know what to do,” she said, her voice sounding really shaky.

“I will get a barrister to contact you. I will brief him fully and we will see how we can get out of it. I did ask about an out of court settlement and Chalmers said that was fine if you could come up with two million. If they get awarded you have assets of around £750,000, which is a life policy of £500,000 and around £250,000 for the house, so you will be short quite a bit. Leave it with me. We have 14 days to respond. We will speak soon,” he said and hung up.

Rose sat at her table and couldn’t move. She was ruined for sure. She knew that it had all been too good to be true. Her happiness was short-lived.

Rose called Ben to tell him and the moment he answered she broke down.

“Rose, what happened? Is it Stefan?” he asked.

Sobbing, she told him about the lawsuit. She begged him to come home to her. She didn’t want to be alone. She didn’t know if she could go on anymore.

“I am on my way. Stay where you are. I won’t be long,” he told her and hung up. He grabbed his coat and rushed to his car without telling his assistant where he was going. Rose needed him, that was all he worried about.

Chapter 79

Rose couldn’t believe her ears when the judge said: “I find for the plaintiff in this case and award the sum of one and a half million pounds.”

Mike Chalmers punched the air. The judge had also handed down a restraining order preventing Rose from ever doing that again. Mike had really got his facts together and he painted a picture of a desperate woman trying to fleece the Harringtons. He was convincing. The judge bought it. Finally, she would be gone. He didn’t quite get the two million he was after, but it wasn’t about the money, it was about shutting this woman up for good.

Rose had dropped her own lawsuit against the Harringtons soon after she was notified of this lawsuit against her. She had been advised that she probably wouldn’t get anything, and it would be a total waste of time and money that she now didn’t have.

Rose sat there shaking. Ben was there with her and he tried to comfort her, but she was inconsolable. She had lost everything now. How was she going to come back from that? Everything that Jim had provided for her was gone. The Harringtons would take the lot. First they took Jim, now they would take every little thing that she had.

Ben told Rose he would look after her, but by the look on her face he could see that his words were hollow. Fat Pat hadn’t come to the court today. She had been unwell from nerves ever since this had all come about. She was also still coming to terms with Rose and Ben’s affair.

Mike Chalmers walked over to where Rose was sitting with Ben. He looked at Rose and said: “You should have left it where it was, Mrs Winters. I will be in touch about payment.”

Ben lunged forward and tried to take a swing at Mike, who ducked out of the way.

“Easy, hotshot, unless you want to lose everything as well,” Mike said to him as he straightened his jacket. He turned around and left the two of them sitting there in stunned silence.

“Is there anything we can do?” Ben asked Richard Caine who had come running over when he saw the commotion.

“No. If we do, they will keep us tied up in litigation until there is less than nothing left. The best thing is to accept the inevitable and walk away. I know you have lost everything Rose but be strong. You have faced worse.”

Rose just nodded. She had no strength to speak. Ben put his arm around her and gently helped her up. She pushed his arm away.  She didn’t want others to know about her and Ben at the moment as she still felt guilty and didn’t want to be judged. He took her home to his house as he didn’t think she should go to her house right now. It was going to be a trying time and he would need to support her.

When they got to his house, he showed Rose to his bedroom, took off her shoes and lay her down on the bed. She turned on her side, facing away from him. He sat with her a while and then told her he was going to leave her for a bit, but he was right there if she needed him.

Ben went downstairs and called Fat Pat who wailed when he told her the story. This was too much, she told him. He said he would call her later and hung up leaving a sobbing Fat Pat on the other side of the line.

Ben sat for a while on his sofa. What was he going to do? This was horrific. The poor woman. He knew their lives would never be the same again. What he didn’t know was to what extent.

Chapter 80

It was a year later. Aiden and Jason had just returned from yet another headline-grabbing trip to Torremolinos. They were going there every couple of weeks. Europe was having the most amazing weather, unlike Manchester. They were constantly in search of sunshine. Anna accompanied them on many of their trips. Her and Aiden were kind of an official couple and Jason had also met someone hot and rich. Aiden and Jason still got up to their usual tricks and were mostly inseparable. Some things never changed!

Rose on the other hand had hit rock bottom. She had lost her home and everything she owned. Mike Chalmers had taken everything from her. It didn’t make the £1.5 million. After a long and drawn out negotiation and after selling everything including her house, she managed to raise £800,000. They had agreed to settle on what they got provided she left them alone for good. She was left with the clothes on her back and a few bits of jewellery that she had hidden with Fat Pat. The strain of her ordeal had meant that her and Ben were having to take a break.

To rub salt into Rose’s wounds, the Harringtons donated the £800,000 to the hospital in Jim’s name and they made sure that the world knew about it. Rose tried to stop it, but there really was nothing she could do. Once again that awful family came out smelling sweet.

Stefan’s condition had worsened. His heart finally gave in and he died shortly after Rose lost the house and all her money. Luckily Rose still had his money and because she inherited it after her case was settled, they couldn’t touch it. She got to keep it all. It was half a million pounds plus interest. She spent a few thousand on Stefan’s funeral and put up a beautiful headstone. She managed to get herself a small flat in Hulme and a car. With the rest she was going to hatch her plan. Despite her having this money she was still a broken woman. For Rose, money clearly couldn’t buy happiness.

Rose was sitting in her small flat on the ground floor in the small block of flats on Stretford Road. She had picked it up for a song when the woman who owned it got divorced and had to get rid of it quickly.

Rose heard a noise at her door. She was always startled by that. Nobody visited her much these days and Ben always called ahead if he was coming by. She heard the thump on the laminated floor and realised it was her nosy neighbour in Flat B who was dropping off a Metro newspaper that she got from the bus. Rose went to get the paper and on the front page was a very suntanned Aiden Harrington, another good-looking young lad called Jason Packham and two smiling girls that looked like tarts with their skimpy designer dresses. They had just arrived back from yet another Spanish vacation in Torremolinos and were making headlines again as the latest power couples of Manchester. Disgusted, Rose threw the paper on the table. It seemed that murder could buy you fame these days. She knew the time was right.

She opened her laptop and logged on to Google. In the search bar she entered “acid” and hit enter. There were a number of options and she started working through them. Some of the sites were about drugs. Others gave her the necessary information. From there she searched for suitable containers to carry the acid and found the perfect one. It was cylindrical and plastic and would just fit and she made a note of it. She then had a look for wheelchairs and found a place that delivered at a reasonable rate. She had money but didn’t want to waste any. She laughed to herself, thinking that Ben must be rubbing off on her. Rose ordered a wheelchair that she could see was easy for her to use. She needed to be convincing. She found a supplier for a wig she would need as part of her disguise. She ordered a blonde wig as she had always fancied being blonde. She knew she would need to travel out of Manchester. She would drive to Birmingham and get the acid and the container there. This would be harder to trace immediately if someone was suspicious. By the time anyone would find out, her plan would be fulfilled, so it wouldn’t matter. She would leave early the next morning and she would get the acid from one of the hardware shops. The container she needed was available at any supermarket, so she would just go into the first one she saw. The wheelchair would be delivered in 48 hours and she knew she would need to be home for that so that the nosey neighbour wouldn’t ask questions.

When she was done, Rose went and poured herself a stiff drink. Her work was done for the day. She felt like for the first time in ages things were going her way. She called Ben who was happy to hear from her. She invited him for dinner, possibly for the last time. If her plan went well, she would never be back to this miserable life. For tonight she would relax and enjoy herself. Tomorrow the real work would start.

Ben arrived at 7 carrying a bunch of flowers and a bottle of wine. Rose welcomed him in and he went into the little lounge and sat down. He looked a little drawn. It had been a trying year, so it was understandable. They sat and drank wine and chatted until the timer in the tiny kitchen went off and Rose got up.

“Come and eat, Ben,” she said taking his hand. He got up and followed her to the table. He sat while she dished up, marvelling how the walls of the kitchen had turned a light shade of blue. He was sure they were white before.

“Did you paint the kitchen?” he asked.

“No. Whenever I boil anything the walls change colour. Been like that since I moved in. I think the last owner used cheap paint. I keep meaning to have it redone. Never get around to it,” she said, thinking that now she really would never get around to it.

“Let’s eat,” she said pouring more wine. The paint thing was forgotten for now.

After dinner they cleared up and went to sit on the sofa. Rose wasted no time kissing Ben and soon they were in the bedroom making love. Tonight, the lovemaking was more intense. This could be the last time she was with Ben, so this time she made sure he would always remember it.

Lying in the afterglow of some of the best sex Ben had ever had, they just held each other. Ben wasn’t sure what it was, but something was different. For Rose this was ironically the first time she didn’t imagine that Ben was Jim, and she didn’t know how that made her feel. Eventually they drifted off into a deep sleep. Ben slept well, Rose had lots of dreams of violence and pain. She woke up a few times in the night but fell asleep again when she felt Ben next to her. She knew she wasn’t going to feel this content in a long time. If ever.

Chapter 81

In the morning Rose woke early. She went and made coffee and brought it back to bed. She had quit smoking again but today she really felt like a cigarette. She would wait for Ben to leave before lighting up. He didn’t like the smell of smoke.

When she climbed back into bed Ben stirred.

“Good morning,” he said, smiling sleepily.

“Good morning,” she answered and kissed him on the lips. He pulled her into him and he kissed her neck. He made love to her passionately and again Rose didn’t imagine it was Jim. She felt a little sad that this had happened now.

“Thank you, Rose,” he said as he lay next to her, still panting from the exertion. “I had better get going. Can I see you later?” he asked her as he got up.

“I’ll call you. I have a few things to take care of and I am not sure when I will finish. I may see Pat later,” Rose lied. She had no intention of seeing anyone later. She had plans to make and needed to ensure nothing went wrong this time. Making love to Ben was her farewell gift to him.

Ben showered, dressed and left. Rose got up as soon as she heard his car leave the parking area behind her flat. She went into the lounge and in the drawer under the TV she found her pack of Marlboro Lights. She lit one and took a long drag on it. The smoke burned her lungs, but it was delicious heaven. Once she finished smoking, she showered and dressed in a tracksuit and trainers. She wore a baseball cap that used to be Stefan’s and grabbing her bag and keys and the pack of cigarettes, she left the flat.  She wasn’t hungry. She was excited and nervous. Her mind was racing. She started the engine of her little Peugeot 108 and quickly left the parking area. It wasn’t that far to Birmingham, but she knew there would be traffic that time of day. She decided she would stop on the way for refreshments if she needed them. For now, she just lit another cigarette as she headed towards the M6 and the next part of her plan.

Chapter 82

Rose got home at around 7. The traffic going and coming back was horrific thanks to a series of accidents on the motorway. Birmingham was also as busy as hell and took ages to get around, in spite of her satnav. Rose had never really liked driving and Jim was always the one who did the driving if they went out together.

She took the bags from the boot of her car and brought them inside. There was a parcel for her that had been left with the nosey neighbour in flat B, so she went to get it. It was the wig that she had ordered. She was pleased it had arrived so soon. She put the bag with the acid and the small pump spray bottle in the tiny spare room. The spare room was empty apart from a small desk and a coat stand. She would prepare some of her things for her plan in there. Nobody could see in there as she kept the curtains closed.

Rose went into the lounge and opened up the package with the wig. She tried the wig on and was amazed at how convincing it was. Once clothed and with her wig and a scarf, nobody would recognise her. Perfect!

She put the wig in the spare room and closed the door. She was exhausted from her journey. She poured a whisky and lit a cigarette. She took her laptop and went to sit on the sofa. She clicked on the TV and turned the volume low. Eastenders was on and she didn’t need to hear it. Just then the buzzer went and when she answered it was Fat Pat paying her a surprise visit. She let her in and when she came inside, she had to be quick when Fat Pat almost went into the spare room to put her coat on the coat stand. Rose nearly blew it but luckily Fat Pat hadn’t noticed. She put the coat on her bed.

They sat in the lounge for a bit and Rose just wished she would go. Eventually she feigned tiredness and another headache and Fat Pat left her to have an early night.

Once she had left, Rose opened the laptop and logged on. She found a website and ordered the shoes. Next, she put ‘Aiden Harrington’ into the search bar. A long list of hits came up. She started working through them one by one. He had been a busy boy since the charges were dropped. There was a short article that dealt with the case where she lost everything. It wasn’t that newsworthy, it seemed.

There was a theme running through the articles she was reading as she sipped her drink and lit another cigarette. Just as well she had picked up a couple more packs on the way home, she thought. Aiden took regular holidays every three weeks, mainly to the Harrington villa in Torremolinos. There were pictures of him and that friend of his that Rose was still convinced was his boyfriend. They always flew on his father’s airline and the Daily Mail reported in the showbiz column that he flew First-Class. Rose went and got a pen and a pad of paper and started to note his movements. He was a creature of habit it seemed. Every third weekend he went to Spain. Sometimes Jason travelled with him, but mostly he went with that Polish girl. Once, Ben had seen her pictured with Aiden and said that he was sure it was the same girl he had met at the cake shop a while back. She had a different name, so maybe it wasn’t the same person. Poor gullible Ben.

Rose decided that she wouldn’t wait until his next trip to take a trial run. She wanted to get a feel for security, which she knew was lax at Manchester. She also wanted to check out the plane. She went onto the Harrington Air website and booked herself a flight to Spain on the next flight in two days. She booked a Business-Class seat as First-Class was double that price. She didn’t want to waste money. She ordered assistance for herself as she would be in the wheelchair. She would stay there two nights and then fly back. That would be enough for her to finalise her plan. Her wheelchair would arrive in the morning.

Rose put the laptop away and went to the small kitchen. She pulled out a ready meal from the fridge and popped it into the microwave. She poured a glass of wine and when the food was ready, she sat down to eat.

After her dinner Rose cleared away and went to sit on the sofa where she sat drinking and smoking and watching TV until 12 when she decided to go to bed. Tomorrow was another day and another step closer to her end plan.

In the morning the wheelchair arrived. It was a large parcel and she was glad she had decided to stay in to receive it. Her nosey neighbour would definitely have asked a lot of questions.

Chapter 83

At Manchester Airport Rose cleared security without a hitch. It was chaotic, but they helped her through security quickly. They certainly didn’t go through the full body scan and when they tried to get close to her, she flinched and told them she hurt in that area, so they stayed away from her lower region. This pleased her no end. It meant that she would be able to get through without a worry. She had been nervous, but she soon calmed down when she realised that the Aviation Security Officers were just as nervous as she was when she had told them about the pain.

They arranged a porter to wheel her through and she went straight to the Business-Class bar and ordered a glass of wine as she waited for her flight. She realised that she had worried for nothing, but it was scary how lax they were around disabled people. It was clearly a major security flaw.

When she was on board the Harrington Air jet, Rose kept her sunglasses on. She wanted to be able to observe the goings on without anyone noticing. The flight wasn’t particularly full and luckily there was nobody next to her. She noticed that the crew weren’t particularly aware of their surroundings. When the plane was in the air and drinks were served Rose sat back and watched the crew intently from behind her glasses. About an hour into the flight one of the crew took coffee and something to eat to the flight deck. The door was open for a few minutes. That would need to be enough time. The First-Class seat on the aisle was really close to the flight deck door and the galley was at the rear of the plane. There was a small bar area where the First-Class passengers’ drinks were prepared. Rose would need to book a First-Class ticket and make sure she sat on the aisle on the right. Luckily the doors to the plane were just behind Business-Class, so there were none of the usual able-bodied requirements that some other airlines had.

By the time they landed in Spain, Rose had seen all she needed to. She decided she would change her return ticket and get the next flight back with another airline. She didn’t need to stay there for any reason. Her flight was reconnaissance, nothing else. She just wanted to go home.

When Rose was back home the next day she began planning in earnest. She booked her flight and got the seat she wanted. She knew there was no way she would be recognised by Aiden even if someone said her name. There were a lot of people with that surname in the world. She wouldn’t look anything like her normal self, and it was a year since that foolish boy had seen her.

Since Aiden’s trial was dismissed, to Rose’s utter disgust he had become something of a celebrity. Like so many other famous people, he had employed an agent to handle his PR. When Rose got to her small flat she went online and found out that his agent was Mara Jefferies. Mara was a very experienced and talented agent who looked after a number of celebrities. She found her number and called her.

Mara was a really rude and offhand person. She hardly gave Rose a chance to speak and kept interrupting her. Finally, she got her point across. Rose told Mara that she was a reporter. She said she was going to be in Spain soon and wanted to interview the great Aiden Harrington at his villa. Rose had done her intel and like clockwork Aiden flew to Torremolinos every three weeks and she was hoping that he would be on the same flight. Mara asked her when she was going to be there, so she could check dates as Aiden was flying out on the 12th. Bingo! It was the same date.

Rose thanked the dreadful whiny woman and said she would call her back when her editor had firmed up dates. Mara asked her which publication she worked for and without answering Rose hung up. Rose was using Stefan’s old mobile. She had put another SIM card in. She pulled the SIM card out and broke it in two, feeling really pleased at her ingenuity. She inserted another SIM card into the phone.

Rose sat there for a bit and she marvelled at how easy it was to get information out of people and how slack security was these days. Had people forgotten the terrorist atrocities that had happened before? Anyway, it made her mission a lot easier, that was for sure.

Chapter 84

Afew days before her flight Rose went and got everything ready that she would need. The wheelchair was in the spare room along with the wig. She would wear something comfortable and loose.  She went into her bedroom and from under the bed she pulled out a small box. She opened the box and in there wrapped in a soft white cloth was Jim’s small handgun. He had bought it from a classic gun dealer when they had been burgled some years back and she had decided to keep it after he died. It was a Baby Browning that Jim had told her was a good gun for a woman to handle. She had kept it cleaned, oiled and loaded like he had shown her, especially when she had started her plan. The gun held six rounds and she had kept the magazine full. It was the perfect size for the job and would be concealed easily taped to her skin at the bottom of her belly. She had seen on her last trip that the customs officers didn’t go near there if you made a bit of a fuss.

Rose laid out a plastic bag on the small table in the spare room. She took the small spray bottle and got a tiny funnel from the kitchen cupboard. She filled the small bottle with the acid and closed it. She pumped it a little to prime it, careful not to get any on her skin. She put the plastic lid on the bottle and made sure that it was secure. She wrapped it in cling film and put it to one side. She checked the gun again and made sure again that it was fully loaded. Jim had shown her how to use it, so she was confident she knew what to do. She got her outfit ready and the pair of comfortable shoes she had ordered for this. She would pack a small rucksack with a few clothes that could easily go on the back of the wheelchair. She had asked for assistance again at the airport. She got her passport and her ticket and put them in the front pouch of the rucksack. This was really happening, she thought. She was going to get justice for Jim and Stefan!

The next thing Rose needed to make sure of was that the spray bottle of acid was going to fit where she was going to hide it. She went to the bathroom and got a tube of K-Y jelly. She picked up the spray bottle and covered it in gel. She took her pants down, sat down and spread her legs. She then inserted the bottle into her vagina, wincing at how cold it felt. She pushed it in until it wouldn’t go any further. She closed her legs, got up and tried to walk. So far so good. She then went and opened the wheelchair and sat down on the seat. She sat there for a while and moved the chair around the lounge a bit. When she was happy that the bottle would stay where it was, she got up and removed it. She wiped it down and set it back down on the table. That was the easy bit.

When she was happy that everything was ready, Rose lit a cigarette and called Fat Pat. Guilt had got the better of Rose.

“Hiya Rose. How are you? I haven’t heard from you in a while,” Fat Pat said when she answered.

“I am ok thanks. Haven’t been up to much. Sorry I haven’t called. I am working through a few things and I haven’t been the best company. You don’t deserve that, so I stayed away,” Rose told her.

“That’s ok love. I am glad you called. We should get together soon. Have you heard from Ben of late?” Fat Pat asked.

“No. I saw him a little while back. We aren’t the same as we were,” Rose told her.

“No, none of us are,” Fat Pat said.

The two women chatted for a while and agreed to meet up soon. When Rose hung up, she went to sit at the table and wrote two letters. One of the letters was to Fat Pat. She didn’t mention it, but she would leave everything to Fat Pat and had arranged that in her will. The other letter was for Ben and in it she apologised for not telling him what she was doing. She told him her secret that only her, Jim and Stefan had known. She begged him to forgive her and told him that one day he would understand. She also told him that she loved him and that he must find himself the kind of woman he deserved. With that done, she poured another drink and sat on the sofa and lit up a cigarette. She knew she was smoking and drinking too much, but she didn’t care. She wouldn’t ever come back to this godforsaken flat and life, so she may as well enjoy her last days.

Chapter 85

On the morning of her flight, Rose woke up at 8 a.m. She had a lot to do before the flight at 6 that evening. The day was finally here, and she strangely did not know how she felt.

She showered and made coffee and sat at the small table by the tiny kitchen. She lit a cigarette. She had made a list and she stared at it now trying to decide what to do first. She must have stared at the list for 15 minutes. She felt strange. She didn’t know if this was nerves, guilt or fear. She soon snapped out of it.

She stubbed out yet another cigarette and went back to get her razor. She should have shaved her pubic area in the shower, but she hadn’t. She sat on the edge of the bath and hauled her legs over into the tub. She shaved herself carefully and put some talc on the area, so it wouldn’t itch. Whilst she was shaving, she thought about how Jim had preferred her not to shave. Personally, Rose did not know how women could wax down there. There was no way she was putting hot wax on that area. She thought it wasn’t natural.

She went back into the lounge and lit another cigarette. She didn’t feel she had to worry about cancer. She fetched all her gear from the spare bedroom and laid it on the sofa. It was only 9 a.m. now so she had loads of time. Next, she called a taxi to collect her at 2 p.m. and she told them she would be in a wheelchair, so they needed to send an appropriate vehicle. The man on the phone told her that it was no problem, and he confirmed back the time and the address.

Rose spent the rest of her time getting ready and at 1.30 she was done. She looked in the mirror in her bedroom and she was happy with what she saw. It had been easy getting into this disguise. The only thing she had struggled with a little was the spray bottle of acid. She hadn’t put enough gel on it so she had to try a couple of times. Eventually she got it in and when she tried to slide it out it came out with a little tug. She was happy that it would stay inside her until she needed it. She was glad she would be sitting in the wheelchair, because walking around with a spray bottle inserted in your vagina would be unpleasant, not to mention if the movement made the bottle leak! The gun was easy. She had taped it to her skin with some surgical tape. Nobody would pick up on it down there. Before taping the gun to her skin, she had kissed it and said, “Thanks Jim.” Having his gun with her made her feel like he was with her.

If anyone had seen Rose on her way out or that nosey neighbour encountered her outside, she would pretend to be Rose’s cousin who was visiting from down South. She went to the small box under the bed once more and retrieved some cash that she kept there for emergencies. It wasn’t a huge amount, but she wouldn’t need that much. She wasn’t staying anywhere, and she had no intention of coming back.

When Rose was loaded into the taxi with her wheelchair and rucksack, the driver pulled away and she was on her way. She looked out of the back window of the taxi and wondered if she would miss the place. She realised she would not. As much as it was her flat, without Jim and Stefan it was not a home.

As the taxi drove up Princess Road, Rose felt sad when they passed the site of the accident. The place where her life went wrong. There wasn’t a sign of what had happened. Everyone was just going about their business. The jobsworths at the council had removed the flowers and candles she had put there for Health and Safety reasons. Or so they said.

Chapter 86

Rose sat at a table in the Harrington Air First-Class Lounge in Terminal One. Everyone had been so helpful to the lady in the wheelchair and dark glasses. They really could not have done more for her. Security had been busy and again as nervous as Rose was about getting caught, the Aviation Security Officers were once again just as nervous. When they asked Rose if there were any areas that hurt, she indicated her stomach and crotch area. Strangely, they just waved their hands over the area, not touching her at all. She laughed to herself, wondering if their hands had in-built scanners. As ridiculous as the security check was, she was equally grateful. If she had been caught with her concealed gun and bottle, it would all have been in vein. They had swabbed the chair for drugs, but that naturally came back clear. They got a porter to wheel her through to the Lounge. He was a small man with dark hair and he also had hair sprouting from the back of his collar. Rose could hardly understand a word he said. He swallowed his words when he spoke. She just managed to understand that he would collect her when the flight was ready to board.

Nothing left to do but have a drink. She wished she could have a last cigarette but that was prohibited. She sat with her glass of wine and ran over her plan in her head again and again.

Rose heard a small commotion and she looked up and saw Aiden Harrington walking into the First-Class Lounge. She felt a pang of sickness in the pit of her stomach. This was the man who took her life away. Just a few feet from her. She wished she could go over to him and shoot him right there. But that wouldn’t be good enough. She wanted Malcolm Harrington to know pain and suffering like she had known. She knew he had lost his wife. Losing his son as well as being responsible for the deaths of 150 or so people would surely bring him down. Rose was worried that he would see her and recognise her, but with the disguise she didn’t really look anything like she normally did, and he was so self-absorbed that he was only interested in the people paying him attention. She looked at him and was disgusted by his behaviour. Surely deep down even the devil had feelings, she thought.

Eventually the flight was on the board. The sign told waiting passengers to go to the gate. The little man showed up and took her to the lift at the boarding gate. She was glad she wasn’t in the lift for long. For some reason being in a wheelchair seemed to make you fair game for people to ask what was wrong with you. The porter had asked, and she was taken aback. She said it was MS, hoping that she would not get asked anymore about it. He was about to ask her more when the doors of the lift opened. She was on the ground floor where she would be taken to the ambi-lift and lifted on to the plane. Once she was on-board, she was shown to her seat and given a glass of champagne. She joked with the cabin attendant asking if First-Class passengers were allowed to smoke. Of course, she was told no. She didn’t know why she had made that joke. She must have been more nervous than she thought.

Aiden Harrington boarded shortly after she did. He took his seat and was brought champagne and a small snack within seconds. He had his own personal attendant. Typical!

The rest of the passengers to the back of the plane boarded and soon it was time for take-off. Rose knew that she had about an hour before her plan would be implemented. As soon as they were in the air she asked for more champagne. She needed it to calm her nerves. Only an hour left. Then she would be able to take her revenge on Aiden Harrington and avenge her beloved Jim and Stefan.

Chapter 87

Aiden settled back once the flight was in the air. He had had such a busy year and he was pleased to have some time alone. He hadn’t anticipated the fame he would achieve from the trial. It was good, but it was tiring always smiling for the cameras that followed his every move. He loved it though, about as much as he loved himself. Even more, he loved people adoring him.

In the past few weeks he and Jason had been arguing a lot. Jason had split with his girlfriend and had looked to Aiden to fill the gap. Aiden was very much still with Anna and a few other bits on the side, although she didn’t seem to mind. He wasn’t comfortable with Jason’s clinginess and although they had a sexual history, Anna’s demands as well as those of the other girls meant he didn’t really need to have anything else other than the odd threesome. Anna had also started to suggest that her and Aiden should just sleep with each other and that Jason didn’t need to be brought in. This didn’t go down well with Jason. Aiden tried to explain to him that their escapades were fine when they were single but now it wasn’t fine anymore. Jason had stormed out and when they spoke next, they’d had a really heated discussion. Aiden had decided that he should take this trip alone to clear his head. Jason was so angry he refused to take Aiden’s call when he called to say goodbye and try and smooth things out. Aiden thought that he should just go anyway. Jason would come around. Anna had agreed that would be the best thing. He didn’t tell her, but he would call Jason from Spain and tell him to fly over and meet him there. He didn’t really have any intention of picking up the pace sexually with him, but he knew how to play Jason and that would do it. They had been friends for years and it seemed a shame to lose that. He also knew he may need him to cover for him again in the future.

Unbeknown to Aiden, Jason had gone to Aiden’s apartment to speak to him. He had missed him by minutes. He was distraught that his friend had dumped him. Finding Aiden gone he was driven to tears. He had lain down on Aiden’s bed where he had fallen asleep. He had never felt like that before. He was heartbroken.

Aiden noticed the woman in sunglasses, who was the only other person in First-Class. He thought she looked a little odd with sunglasses on a plane. He just shrugged and thought it was probably some medical issue. He ordered another drink from his attendant and some sushi they always had on-board when he was flying. As this was a short-haul flight there was no entertainment, so he put on his Bose headphones and played some chilled Ibiza music that always put him in the mood for Spain. He loved it there and it was always so much warmer than England. Also, the babes were hotter and more willing to please a rich playboy like himself.

Chapter 88

Rose was pleased that the air conditioner on the plane was so efficient. The wig made her head itch and she knew it would have been worse if it was warm. It was about 40 minutes into the flight and Rose got up and made her way to the toilet. She locked the door and quickly pulled her trousers down. She detached the tape that held the small handgun in place and put the gun on the side of the basin. Next, she retrieved the small spray bottle. It came out easily and it was something of a relief that it was all intact and not leaking. She pulled off the cling film and discarded it in the bin. She put the retrieved items in her pockets, flushed the toilet and returned to her seat. She noticed the cabin crew were still serving drinks towards the back of the plane and was glad to see they hadn’t been to the flight deck yet. Everything was going to plan. Whilst she didn’t want to jinx it, she was still secretly relieved.

When the senior cabin attendant Amelia came back to the small First-Class bar area, she prepared the tray for the Flight Deck. Rose put her hand in her pocket and got the small spray bottle ready. She looked around and saw that everyone including Aiden was busy with their food or drinks. Everyone was blissfully unaware of the chaos that was about to unfold.

As Amelia picked up the tray Rose stood up. Amelia had just knocked on the Flight Deck door and as it opened Rose rushed forward. She pushed Amelia into the cabin, knocking the tray flying and went in behind her. Rose quickly pulled the door closed and held the spray bottle to Amelia’s face. It had all happened so fast. Outside nobody had really noticed. Aiden’s attendant was meant to be providing backup in the event of just this kind of thing. She was too busy gawking at Aiden, who hadn’t noticed the gawking or what Rose had just done. The attendant had noticed just too late.

On the flight deck there was enough space for the four of them thanks to the clever design of the instruments and controls.

“Do as I tell you or I will hurt all of you,” Rose said.

“What do you want?” the Captain asked. He looked nervously and suspiciously at the spray bottle in Rose’s hand. Rose saw him looking at the bottle and she said casually and calmly, “It’s acid.”

“Do you expect me to believe that you got a bottle of acid on board my plane?” he asked.

“I don’t give a flying fuck what you believe,” Rose said, laughing to herself at the aviation reference. She sprayed Amelia on the arm and Amelia screamed in pain as the acid hit her arm. It wasn’t a huge amount, just enough to make her point. She pulled the gun out as well and pointed it at the co-pilot, smiling menacingly.

“Easy now,” the Captain told her, clearly convinced that this was very real. “Let’s talk about this.”

Chapter 89

Aiden’s attendant grabbed the phone and called the flight deck. She didn’t get an answer. She tried another five times. Each time there was no answer it made her feel sick to her stomach. She thought she was going to be physically sick.

Aiden noticed something was wrong and asked her what was going on. She told him that she didn’t know. The woman that had been in the other seat was inside with Amelia and the Captain and co-pilot. She explained that there was no way she could get in there either. She called the other two attendants who were at the back of the plane and told them what was going on and not to alert anyone.

Aiden wasn’t having any of it. He got up and banged on the door.

“Please, Mr Harrington, sit down. You will make the situation worse. The passengers will panic!” she pleaded with him, grabbing his arm and trying to pull him back to his seat.

Reluctantly he sat down. He got out his mobile and made a WhatsApp call to his father. When Malcolm answered he told him that something bad was happening on his plane. Malcolm thought that Aiden was either joking or drunk but when he said, “I love you Dad,” before he hung up, Malcolm knew something was wrong. He didn’t know precisely what was going on, but he assumed it was a hijack. No-one, absolutely no-one, will take one of my babies! he thought to himself angrily. He looked upon his planes as his babies.

Chapter 90

Aiden was in a bit of a state as he sat in his seat. “Get me a fucking drink!” he screamed at the attendant, who did as he said. She thought it wasn’t the time to challenge him as she brought him a handful of little bottles of vodka. This calmed him slightly as he got busy opening the bottles and pouring them into the glass.

Aiden picked his phone up again and called Jason. He didn’t get an answer and he kept calling back, but Jason wasn’t answering.

Jason woke up with a start when his phone buzzed. He could see from the caller I.D. that it was Aiden calling. As much as he wanted to answer, he thought it would be better not to speak to him. He knew that Aiden would say something and quickly all would be forgiven, but this time he was not quite ready to forgive him.

Aiden was getting really irritated. Jason wasn’t answering and there was a baby on the plane crying incessantly. He was swigging away at the vodka in an attempt to calm his nerves. On the 30th attempt to call Jason and having left his 30th message, the crying was really getting to Aiden.

“Can you silence that fucking child, or I will throw it out of this fucking plane? Shut up, shut up, shut up!” Aiden screamed, and he threw the glass onto the floor and jumped up. He started kicking the bulkhead and the seats and throwing one of his tantrums, while the attendant just looked on in amazement. She had heard that he was like this, but now she had seen it for herself. Luckily, she had drawn the curtain separating the different classes on the plane or the passengers would certainly know something was going on. All they would have heard now was Aiden having a tantrum. Most of them knew who he was and what he was like, so it wouldn’t be a surprise.

Jason looked at his phone. It amused him that he had thirty missed calls. He knew Aiden was pissed off, but it served him right. He shouldn’t have treated him like that. He listened to the first twenty-nine messages which went from ‘call me’, to ‘call me now’, to ‘for fuck’s sake call me’. The last message stood out though. All he could hear was Aiden freaking out. What was going on, he wondered, feeling more than a little worried. He tried to call Aiden back, but all he got was Aiden’s voicemail.

Chapter 91

On the Flight Deck Rose told the Captain that he should do as she says.

“No sudden moves Captain. I will use this gun. I have nothing to lose” Rose told him. She pushed Amelia down onto the jump seat. Amelia resisted. Rose whacked her flat on the side of the head with the gun, knocking her out cold.

“Anyone else want to feel what that’s like?” she asked.

“No, just relax. What’s your name?” he asked.

“My name? Rose Winters,” she said.

“Ok Rose. Is it ok if I call you Rose? Please can I get Amelia there some help?” he asked.

“Yes and no, you can’t. She will be fine, it’s just a concussion.”

“What do you want, Rose?” he asked. “I can radio ahead and get it for you.”

“What I want is for you to shut up. I will tell you when I am ready,” she said. He just nodded.

Just then the voice of the air traffic controller came over the radio, addressing the Captain.

“We have reports that you may be in a hijack situation, please respond,” the controller said.

The Captain looked at Rose. He appeared surprised that they knew already, and he wondered how that had happened.

“Just confirm that you are not in charge of the plane and we will get back to them. Say anything else and that concussion she has will be nothing compared to what I will do to you. Am I clear?” she asked.

The Captain relayed the message. The controller asked if there were any demands. The Captain didn’t reply, instead he left the communication with the air traffic controller open, so he could hear every word. Luckily for him Rose wasn’t aware of this bold move.

Suddenly the co-pilot reached up and tried to grab the gun. Rose was quicker than him and sprayed him in the face with acid making him howl and pull back. She had narrowly missed his eyes, but his skin was badly burned.

“Please Rose, there is no need for that,” the Captain said, clearly at a disadvantage since two of the three of them were now out of action.

“There is a need. Now, here’s what you will do,” she said.

Chapter 92

At Harrington Aeronautical it was a hive of activity. Malcolm had called the police and Max was also on his way. Mike Chalmers was in the boardroom with Malcolm along with Malcolm’s PA and Mike’s PA, Charlotte. They still didn’t know who had hijacked the flight nor why. This was really starting to get to Malcolm.

“How can we know so little. I want to know what’s going on. My son and heir are on that plane!” Malcolm told Mike.

Just then Charlotte told them that it was a woman that had hijacked the plane.

“How the hell do you know that?” Mike asked.

“It seems someone on board has tweeted it,” she replied.

Max had just walked into the boardroom. Malcolm was incandescent with rage as he turned to him.

“How the fuck does Twitter and the rest of the world know before we do?” he barked at Max.

“It seems someone on board overheard something and tweeted the news. Fucking Wi-Fi. Can be a curse. They are running it now,” Mike said as he switched on the huge TV on the office wall.

Sky News were running the story and had already dispatched a lead anchor to Manchester Airport.

“Fucking hell they are fast. This is only 10 minutes old!” Malcolm said.

Mike and Malcolm were both glaring at Max, who looked somewhat uncomfortable.

Mike’s phone rang. He answered and listened intently. He thanked the caller and hung up without saying another word.

“That was my contact at MI6. The RAF are waiting for clearance to send a jet,” he said.

When Malcolm heard Mike say that a jet was being dispatched, he had had enough.

“Give me the room. Everybody out! Out, now!” he screamed, banging his fist on the boardroom table. “Not you!” he yelled at his PA.

Chapter 93

At Aiden’s apartment Jason was still lying on Aiden’s bed. He got up and went to the lounge. He put on the TV and immediately saw the news report. All the channels were carrying it. He just stood there, a cold feeling in the pit of his stomach. That was Aiden’s flight! He suddenly realised that the last message made sense now. He froze on the spot, staring at the TV and not taking any of it in.

He called Anna to ask if she knew anything. She had just seen the news as well and she was besides herself. She told Jason to call her as soon as he knew anything. He said he would and hung up.

Jason went and sat on the large sofa and watched in silence as the reporter was reporting on the situation. He was numb. How was this possible? What if Aiden died before they could make up? Their last words were harsh words. He kept calling Aiden’s phone, but it did not even ring. It went straight to voicemail.

Jason didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know who to call. All he could do was sit there and stare at the screen and pray that his best friend in the whole world was going to be ok. Jason had never prayed, but he felt now was as good a time to start as any.

Chapter 94

In the cockpit Amelia was still unconscious and the co-pilot was whimpering pathetically with his head in his hands. Rose was just staring at the Captain and pointing the gun and acid at him.

“Is this thing flying itself at the moment?” she asked.

“Yes, autopilot is on Rose,” he replied. “Is it ok if I call you Rose, or do you prefer Ms Winters?” The communication was still open with the air traffic controller and this was the Captain’s way of letting them know her name.

“You can call me your majesty for all I care,” Rose replied, thinking it was a really stupid question, since he had already asked her.

“Switch the autopilot off,” she said.

“I can’t. If I did it would mean I would have to fly the plane myself,” he told her.

“Do it!” she demanded.

He switched the autopilot off and the plane adjusted a little as he grabbed the controls. She told him to leave the controls. He told her that would be impossible.

“Do it, Captain. Either way we are all going to die,” she said in a flat voice.

“Rose, please, it doesn’t have to be this way,” he said. “Can’t we talk about it? Rose, I have a family. A wife and two kids. Please don’t do this,” he pleaded, remembering from his training that if he made her think he was a person he would have more chance of talking her around.

Rose briefly told the Captain what had happened to her and that she had nothing left to live for.

“You can’t bring my husband back, or my son,” she said.

“I know, Rose. I know. But please, we are all innocent, we had nothing to do with that,” he pleaded.

“Aiden Harrington had everything to do with it and so did his father. It’s just your bad luck that you are here,” she said.

The Captain was aware that Aiden was on the flight.

“Rose, Aiden is on this flight. I will go and get him. You can talk to him. Tell him why you did this,” he said.

“They won’t do a thing. Now leave the controls!” she shouted at him.

The Captain had no choice, he let go of the controls. The plane lurched and with nobody controlling it started to descend. The Captain had a terrified look on his face and the co-pilot was sobbing now.

Meanwhile at Harrington Aeronautical Max received a call and when he was done, he turned to Mike and said: “It’s Rose Winters, the hijacker is Rose Winters.” He was visibly shocked by this news.

Mike ran to the boardroom to tell Malcolm.

“Who the fuck is Rose Winters and why has she hijacked my plane?” Malcolm asked.

Chapter 95

In the main cabin of the plane the passengers screamed as the plane lurched forward. The engines were whining in protest. The oxygen masks fell from overhead and this just added to the panic. The cabin crew were employing emergency protocol and getting everyone ready for a crash landing. They were screaming at the passengers to wear their masks and assume the brace position. Equally, the passengers were screaming in fear.

Aiden was back in his seat and he was terrified. He had strapped himself in and with one hand he was gripping the armrest. He put the oxygen mask over his nose and mouth. He didn’t bother with the brace position. He was too busy with the mask and with getting his mobile out. He got Jason’s number up again on WhatsApp. He pressed the call icon.

Jason answered straight away.

“Aiden, what’s going on? Are you ok?” he shouted down the line, which was really poor, probably due to the turbulence the plane was encountering.

“Jason!” Aiden shouted, lifting the oxygen mask. “We were hijacked, I am scared! I don’t want to die!” he shouted. Aiden started to cry. He never cried, in fact the last time he had cried was his mother’s funeral. He secretly felt this was about to be his time to go. Anna was a distant thought now. All he could think about was Jason and how he would give anything to be held by him one more time.

“Aiden, you will be ok, you have to be. I am sorry we rowed, forgive me,” Jason said.

“Jason, Jason?” Aiden shouted as the line went dead. The turbulence had knocked out the Wi-Fi completely so there was no signal. They had been cut off.

Aiden slumped back, put the mask back in place and started to pray. He hadn’t prayed since he was a child. He figured it wouldn’t hurt to start again. There was so much screaming and crying going on behind him, he just wished they would all shut up!

Chapter 96

At Harrington Aeronautical Malcolm’s PA whispered to him discreetly: “It’s the PM on the line, sir.”

Malcolm left the room and went into the small conference room off the boardroom to take the call.

“What’s going on?” he asked the PM. “The news is saying there is an RAF jet flying next to my plane. My plane! I hope I don’t have to remind you what will happen if my plane is shot down. My boy is on that flight.”

He hung up after being reassured that the plane wouldn’t be shot down. Deep down he didn’t know if the PM was bluffing or not. With a deep breath he returned to the boardroom where everyone was gathered again. He didn’t say anything about that. He was glad they were there.

“Malcolm, Rose Winters is the woman whose husband was killed in that car crash with Aiden,” Mike reminded him.

“Ok, so what does she want?” he asked. “I will pay anything.”

“We don’t know yet, Malcolm,” Mike told him.

“Get me my car,” Malcolm told his PA. “I want to go to the airport. To air traffic control. Then I can talk to this woman. Talk her down.”

“Malcolm that really isn’t a good idea,” Mike told him.

“I don’t care, Mike. I am going,” he said.

“Fine, but I am coming with you,” Mike told him. Sometimes it wasn’t worth arguing with Malcolm.

“No, I am going on my own. You stay here where I need you,” Malcolm told him and left the room.

Chapter 97

In the main cabin of the aeroplane it was very noisy. People were screaming and crying. Some were just sitting in shock. The crew were still trying to get people to assume the brace position but hardly anyone was listening. They were terrified. The plane was lurching about and one of the overhead lockers burst open and the cases fell out. One case landed on a mother whose screaming child was sitting right next to her. The case knocked the mother out cold, just missing the child and this made the child scream more.

At the front of the cabin Aiden could be heard screaming. The attendant had opened the curtain now, so people could see him.

“Shut up, shut up!” he was yelling hysterically through the oxygen mask.

Suddenly the locker above Aiden also burst open and a bag fell out of there, hitting Aiden on the head and silencing him briefly. Ironically, it was Rose’s bag. If only she knew, she would probably have laughed at that.

Chapter 98

Fat Pat was at home watching the news about the hijack. When she heard it was a Harrington plane, she called Rose to tell her the good news. She didn’t get a reply, and this was not like Rose. She kept calling and when she didn’t get an answer after fifteen minutes, she decided to drive over to Rose’s flat.

She was listening to the news on the radio in the car and she was thinking to herself that Rose was probably sleeping but would be happy to hear about the Harrington’s problems.

When Fat Pat got to Rose’s flat and she got no answer after she had buzzed the intercom, she let herself in. When she was inside, she called Rose’s name and there was nothing but an eerie silence in the flat. She went into the lounge and on the table she saw the two letters addressed to her and Ben. She suddenly realised what was going on. She rushed to the bathroom and threw up. She went to the kitchen and got some water and when she was a little more composed, she called Ben and told him he needed to come to the flat urgently. The tone of her voice alone told Ben that he should hurry, she didn’t need to say any more.

Fat Pat hung up and just collapsed on the floor in a heap, sobbing. She hadn’t opened the letter yet, but deep down she felt like she knew what it would say. Opening and reading it would only make all this real.

Chapter 99

In the cockpit the Captain was pleading with Rose. She still had the gun pointed at him. She wasn’t interested in anything he had to say. The plane was going to crash. Her heartache and living hell would soon finally be over.

Unbeknown to Rose, an RAF fighter jet was flying parallel to the plane. The pilot of the jet had just been given the go-ahead to shoot down the plane.

Amelia had come around and all she could hear was the screaming and noise coming from the cabin.

Suddenly the plane lunged just as Amelia was again trying to get up from the jump seat. She fell back against the door forcing it open. Instinctively she had reached out to grab something to break her fall. Her hand grabbed Rose pulling her back with her.

Chapter 100

Malcolm Harrington had just arrived at Manchester airport. He was finally let into the air traffic control tower after he had screamed all sorts of threats at the staff. Max had called ahead, but the message to let him in had only got through after Malcolm had started his yelling and threats.

Malcolm had no idea the fighter jet had been given the order to shoot his plane down. Unusually the control room was noisy, and not the normal calm it usually was.

“I want to talk to the mad cunt who’s hijacked my plane,” Malcolm told one of the controllers.

“Language like that won’t help,” he told Malcolm, who just punched him in the face, sending him straight to the floor.

“Put me through to that plane now!” he yelled at one of the other controllers.

Chapter 101

Rose hadn’t anticipated the sudden lurching of the plane or that Amelia would grab at her. She lost her balance and felt herself falling backwards. The spray bottle went flying across the cockpit and landed on the floor where the co-pilot was sitting.

Suddenly aware of what was going on and after he had stopped being hysterical, the co-pilot finally did something. Little did he know that if he didn’t act now, the plane would be shot down.

The fighter jet pilot had just confirmed the order and that he was getting into position.

Rose was clinging onto the door frame. She only had one hand to hold on to the frame. She was using her other hand to desperately hang onto the small gun. Amelia was still pulling at her and had a firm grip on the back of Rose’s jacket. The co-pilot grabbed a fire extinguisher and bashed Rose’s fingers. She let go of the door frame, and her and Amelia fell back into the main cabin. She landed on top of Amelia, knocking her out again.

Without even thinking, the co-pilot got himself up and tried to close the cockpit door.

He shouted to the Captain: “Pull up, pull up! Come on!”

The Captain didn’t hesitate. He pulled back on the controls and the plane started to correct and began its ascent with the engines screaming again at the sudden change in direction.

Whilst the Captain was struggling with the plane, he heard Malcolm’s voice in his ear demanding to speak to Rose.

The co-pilot was still struggling to close the door. Something was stopping it from closing completely. He stopped for a second to pull the pin on the extinguisher. If this woman was coming back at him, he would spray her with foam. If he couldn’t lock the door, he could at least try and stop her with that.

Rose had managed to get up, but she was unsteady on her feet. It was just sinking in what had happened. She headed back to the cockpit minus her wig that had been knocked off when she fell back. The door was closed, but not completely. She saw that her wig was keeping the door open! She kept pulling at the door, trying to get it open fully. Suddenly, as the co-pilot was about to lose his battle to close the door, she lost her grip on the handle. He quickly kicked the wig out the way, pulled the door closed and locked it.

The cockpit was finally secure!

Chapter 102

Ben had arrived at Rose’s flat and the two of them were sitting together silently staring at the TV.

Like Fat Pat, Ben did not want to open the letter from Rose. Curiosity finally got the better of him and he ripped open the envelope. He read the letter three times and quietly stood up and went to the bathroom.

Not believing what he had read, he broke down in tears and started chanting the Jewish mourner’s prayer, the Kaddish.

When he came out of the bathroom Fat Pat was standing there, her letter still unopened in her hand.

She looked at him standing there shaking. He passed her the letter to read.

“Did you know?” he asked.

“No, of course not,” she replied, thinking he was asking about the hijack. She read the letter Ben had just passed her.

“Oh my God, Ben. I am so sorry. I had no idea,” Fat Pat told him. The shock on her face was obvious. She’d had no idea of anything.

Fat Pat decided to open and read her letter, dreading the contents. What other secrets did Rose have?

Chapter 103

As the Captain announced to air traffic control that he had control of the plane again, the fighter jet pilot was about to hit the button to bring down the plane. At the last possible second, he got the command to abort and pulled his jet away from the plane. It was close. There was literally a second to spare.

The Captain had ignored Malcolm’s demand to speak to Rose. He had bigger things to attend to. He switched to an alternate frequency and explained in full that he had control back and that the cockpit was now secure. He requested permission to return to Manchester. After all that he just wanted to go home.

Bang

Bang

Bang

Bang

Click, click, click, the gun had jammed and wasn’t firing. Rose threw the gun to the floor in frustration.

Four shots had been fired at the cockpit door. Thankfully the armour-plated door was impenetrable to the bullets in Rose’s small gun.

The Captain relayed that shots were fired but he was still in control and there didn’t seem to be any damage to the plane. He requested Armed Police for landing. He was given the go-ahead to return to Manchester to land. He was told a full police response would meet the plane and in addition the Fire Brigade would be present just in case. In safety at the side would be ambulances. No-one knew the status or condition of the passengers.

Rose locked herself in the toilet. She knew it was over. She was cross with herself that she had wasted the chance to shoot that murdering bastard. She had used the bullets before the gun had jammed to try and penetrate the cockpit. She could kick herself. It was an old gun so that was probably why. Also, Rose wasn’t sure if she had been to blame. Perhaps she had done something wrong when she was cleaning it. Either way, she had failed again!

The pilot performed a textbook landing in Manchester. As soon as the plane was stationary, the crew opened the cabin doors and evacuated the passengers, much to the annoyance of the police. They would have preferred this to be a controlled evacuation. They didn’t want Rose getting away. They were told she was still on board by one of the cabin crew.

The police entered the plane from the rear doors. They swept the plane quickly, checking the rear toilets first and then moving forward row by row. In the distance they saw a door opening and a hand came out. It was Rose. She was surrendering. She listened to the commands of the heavily armed police and she complied. She was led away from the plane in cuffs.

The last people to disembark from the plane were the Captain and the co-pilot, still dumbfounded by what had happened. They had stayed in the cockpit with the door closed, waiting for the police to clear the plane.

They had survived!

Chapter 104

As soon as the chaos was over and Malcolm had got Aiden out of the airport, he bundled him into the back of the Bentley, and they sped off in the direction of the Harrington mansion.

Meanwhile a less glamorous ride was ahead of Rose in the back of the police van.

In the Bentley, Aiden turned to his father and asked: “Can we do a quick detour? You can drop me off, you don’t need to wait. I will come and see you later. There is something I really need to do!

Chapter 105

At Aiden’s apartment Jason had turned off the news. They were saying that there were reports that the plane was out of control and looked like it was going to crash. He couldn’t watch anymore. He just stood for ages at the large window looking down on Manchester. His stomach was in a knot.

Jason didn’t know how long he had been standing there when he heard the lift doors open. He turned around and couldn’t believe his eyes.

“Aiden!” he shouted and ran towards him grabbing him and hugging him. “You’re alive! You’re alive! I thought you were dead for sure,” he said holding him tight.

“It will take more than some mad cow to kill me!” he said. He pulled away from Jason and just looked at him.

“I am sorry, mate. I have been a real bastard to you lately and you don’t deserve it. Let’s not row. We’re mates, we should behave like mates. How does that sound?” Aiden asked.

“Sounds good to me! Anything you want. I am just so happy to have you back,” Jason said as they went to the large sofa. Aiden collapsed on the sofa and Jason went to get them both a drink.

“What do you fancy doing tonight then? I promised to go and see my Dad for a bit, but after that I’m all yours. You can come with me,” Aiden said when Jason returned with the two drinks.

“Same old Aiden. Nothing keeps you down,” Jason said and plopped down next to Aiden. He couldn’t stop touching Aiden. He was still in shock.

Chapter 106

At Styal Prison in Cheshire, a gaunt looking Rose was sitting at the booth behind glass. This was a new precaution since a recent security incident. Rose had received a mere ten-year sentence. The sympathetic judge had considered that she had lost everything and cited diminished responsibility when handing down that sentence.

Rose had been told that she had a visitor. She had sent out a visitor’s request to Ben and to Fat Pat but had no idea which one would show up.

She had spoken to them both since the plane incident and they had forgiven her. She could tell things were strained though. She was just grateful they were still speaking to her.

The door opened. Rose’s face lit up. Standing in the doorway was Ben and he was smiling.

He sat down in front of her and picked up the phone. She did the same.

“Rose, I came to tell you something,” he said.

“Ben, thank you for coming. What is it?” she asked in anticipation.

“Rose, I forgive you. I am still struggling to understand, but after all you have been through let’s leave it at that. I will understand eventually. I have something else to tell you. Oh, before I forget, Pat has let your flat to a nice gay couple with a cat,” he started to say.

“Tell me Ben!” she said.

“Sorry, I am babbling. I’m a bit nervous. It turns out I have found the woman I deserve,” he said.

She looked deflated. She thought she was about to lose him too.

He put his hand up to the glass.

“That woman is you, Rose. I love you. I am going to wait for you!”

Chapter 107

The letter Rose had written to Ben explained how when they were together, she had fallen pregnant. Knowing Ben’s mother and the fact that Rose would not abort the baby, she decided not to tell Ben and she ended the relationship. Not long after that she had met Jim and he knew about the baby from the beginning. Jim had agreed to raise the child as his own and that was what he had done.

This was the secret they had told Stefan and had regretted doing so, although he had deserved to know. As did Ben, that’s why she had made it what she had thought was her dying confession.

The letter to Fat Pat had simply said: ‘Sorry’

Chapter 108

Ben was standing at Stefan’s graveside placing a small stone on his headstone. It was a Jewish custom to recite Kaddish, the mourner’s prayer. With tears streaming down his cheeks, Ben started to recite the prayer for his dead son. When he had finished saying Kaddish, Ben stood there for a little while in silence.

He finally spoke. “I promise you Stefan, my son, I will avenge your death.”

Near where Ben was standing someone was digging a fresh grave with a large spade….

On the other side of town, the ‘check in’ box was being readied for the next party along with the small silver spoons…….