A Deadly Diversion Read online

  Title Page

  A Deadly Diversion

  David Barry

  Publisher Information

  A Deadly Diversion - published in 2014 by

  Acorn Books

  www.acornbooks.co.uk

  Converted and distributed by Andrews UK Limited

  www.andrewsuk.com

  Copyright © 2014 David Barry

  The right of David Barry to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.

  All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  Dedication

  For Emma and Morgan with love

  Quote

  Roses have thorns, and silver fountains mud;

  Clouds and eclipses stain both moon and sun,

  And loathsome canker lives in sweetest bud.

  William Shakespeare Sonnet 35

  Prologue

  Friday 19 July 2002

  He had no illusions about the way he looked, knowing how he blended into the background - a featureless person no one would remember, and that was useful in this line of work. Which was why he felt safe staying in the same hotel as the target, secure in the knowledge that people barely gave him a second glance. And his real identity had disappeared somewhere in the dismal past, dropped like a stone into a lake, and it was highly unlikely his false identity could be compromised.

  He had followed them from just outside Guildford in Surrey. Not that he had to follow close behind them all the way from the south of England, as the electronic tracker on the target’s BMW gave a fairly precise location, allowing him to keep a safe distance.

  He knew they were heading for Inverness, and it was unlikely they would attempt the six-hundred mile journey in one day. And he’d been right. Hence the stopover at a location not far from Carlisle at a five star hotel. Years ago it would have been way beyond his budget. But not anymore. Now he could afford life’s luxuries, and in any case the hotel needn’t come out of his commission and would be classed as expenses.

  He sat in the dining room as far away from his target as possible. Even so, it was unnerving the way their son glanced in his direction every so often and studied him closely. Instinctively, his hand went to his neck. He had always had an inferiority complex about his protruding Adam’s apple, and now the boy kept staring at him as he ate his continental breakfast, watching the bobbing of his protrusion as he swallowed. The kid was only ten-years-old, and he should have known better than to stare like that. Not that it mattered. Because of the electronic tail, he could track them at a distance. Then, once he had them in a secluded spot...

  Twenty minutes later, after settling his hotel bill, he sat in his van in the car park waiting for the family to leave. He watched from a distance as they got back into their silver BMW. The boy sat in the front passenger seat and his mother sat at the back. He gave them a ten minute start before following. His motorcycle leathers lay on the seat next to him, the helmet on the floor by the passenger seat, and the revolver was in the glove compartment. Although it was late July, it felt too hot, because he had wrongly assumed that this far north, especially in Scotland, it was always at least four or five degrees cooler than the south of England. But not now - not now he needed to wear stifling hot motorcycle leathers. At least he’d had the sense to wear a light T-shirt, grey and nondescript, drawing little attention to himself.

  It was still many miles and hours until Inverness and he hoped they would stop off for some lunch or pull into a beauty spot to admire the scenery. That’s when he would do it. He couldn’t let them get as far as Inverness. It had to be somewhere fairly secluded; but there were many tourists around at this time of the year, and he couldn’t be sure there wouldn’t be any visitors who might witness the execution. Not that it mattered. All anyone would see was a motorcyclist in a black helmet, an unrecognisable figure who would vanish into nowhere. Even if there were no witnesses to the hit, he was well enough informed on police procedure, knowing forensics would soon identify the motorcycle tracks. But by then he would probably be back south of the border with the motorbike inside the van, with all the time in the world to get rid of it, along with the weapon.

  By late morning, their BMW drove along the A82 west of Loch Lomond. He was only about five minutes behind them, and when they reached the village of Crianlarich, he saw they had stopped. He carried on driving and noticed they had parked outside a store, presumably to buy provisions for lunch. He carried on driving through the village and parked in a lay-by to wait. Ten minutes later their BMW past his van, but he didn’t follow. He guessed they would very soon find somewhere to enjoy their picnic lunch. Hopefully, somewhere remote.

  They couldn’t have gone more than seven or eight miles when he picked up the tracker on his mobile, informing him they had turned west. He consulted his map and saw they had taken a B-road and were in the Glen Orchy area. About halfway to the area where they had turned off the main road, he saw there was a village called Tyndrum, so he used his BlackBerry to check it out on the internet, which seemed to take forever. But eventually he learnt there was an old lead mine outside the village, with a Forestry Commission warning that it could be a dangerous place to go walking. It seemed an ideal place to park the van.

  It took him less than ten minutes to find a secluded spot where he could unload the motorbike quickly down the ramp. By now he was sweating profusely, and the leather motorcycle jacket felt uncomfortably clammy, so he left it unzipped as far down as his stomach, knowing the breeze would cool him as he sped to his destination to carry out the contract. As he lowered the helmet onto his head, a feeling of power swept over him - power and anticipation, like a matador stepping into the bullring.

  He covered the distance from where he had parked the van to their picnic site in less than five minutes. As he came over the brow of a hill, he saw them sitting by a river, enjoying the tranquillity of the valley as they ate their sandwiches. The boy sat on the bank with his bare feet cooling off in the water. As they heard the roar of his engine, all three turned and looked up at him. The father stood up, his food spilling onto the ground, his body stiffening with fear, aware there was a price on his head.

  The motorbike’s engine revved once before speeding down the incline towards them, their terrified images getting larger as he neared them in seconds, like the zoom on a telephoto lens. He saw the panicking father pushing his wife towards the car, and waving at his son to get away from the bank and into the passenger seat.

  But they were too late. He skidded to a stop only a yard away from the father, took the gun from inside his leather jacket and, without a moment’s hesitation, shot him in the middle of the forehead, the bullet going clean through the man’s skull. A stream of blood from the back of his head spurted across the roof of the car. His wife opened her mouth to scream but the second bullet caught her in the mouth. In case she survived by some miracle, he put a third bullet through her head as she slid down the car, leaving a bloody trail along the bodywork.

  He glanced towards the shocked boy. He had no intention of killing him. Not children. Never. It was a rule of his.

  But knowing he had no time to
waste, he kicked the stand of the bike, swung his leg over the seat, then hurriedly crouched beneath the back of the BMW. His hand felt for the tracker and tugged hard on the strong magnet attaching it to the car. He shoved the small black box into his pocket and got back on the bike. Then kicked the stand away, and was about to rev up and turn away from the scene but a glance at the boy stopped him accelerating right away. The kid was in a state of shock, frozen with fear, staring at him with uncomprehending eyes. Then he realised his jacket wasn’t zipped up, and his neck and chest were unshielded. Without thinking, he took his left hand off the handlebar accelerator and it flew to his throat, concealing this vulnerable area from the kid. He felt exposed, like he’d made a grave error.

  So there was only one way to rectify this mistake. His decision was instant, because he was a professional and couldn’t leave anything to chance.

  He put two bullets into the boy’s head. He regretted having to do it. But by staring at him during breakfast, the kid had signed his own death warrant.

  Not only that, the boy had witnessed him retrieving the tracker and it wasn’t something he wanted the police to know about.

  As he sped from the scene of carnage, he thought the boy’s death was unfortunate but necessary. Justifiable in the circumstances.

  ***

  The youngsters in the school party were baking hot and getting fractious. Some of the girls had started bickering and were hungry and thirsty, having spent the day walking round the ruins of Pompeii with no shade from the unrelenting sun. By the time they got back to their accommodation, they were tired and desperately in need of energy-giving nourishment.

  While one of the volunteers poured them ice cold drinks, Miss Mitchell, one of the teaching staff, had a call on her mobile. It was from the girls’ school and it was the head teacher calling. Puzzled, wondering what was so urgent for the head teacher to call halfway through the trip, she took the call.

  As she listened intently, her puzzled frown cut deeper scars into her forehead. She struggled, fighting back tears, until one huge tear rolled out of her left eye, which she wiped away quickly as she struggled to remain self-controlled.

  As she ended the almost one-sided conversation, promising she would explain to the pupil as gently as possible what had happened, the pupils who were present in the dining area, all focused their attention on her, knowing she was a messenger of bad news. There was an expectant pause, every eye on her, as she struggled and fought back tears.

  Eventually, she spoke in a voice choked with emotion, looking at one of the girls, who felt a stab of alarm as she was singled out, scared and knowing she was to be the recipient of brutal news.

  ‘Alice, do you think I could have a quiet word alone?’

  The girl felt herself crumble, everything suddenly becoming unreal, as if it was happening to someone else.

  ‘What is it, Miss?’

  ‘Please, Alice. If you could just come into my room for one minute. There’s something I have to tell you.’

  As the teacher led the way out of the dining room and along the hall to her room, followed by the pupil, how she hated her responsibility, her duty in having to explain to her pupil the worst news that anyone should ever hear. How her whole family had been wiped out, killed by a crazed gunman.

  Chapter 1

  Monday 23 September 2013

  Feeling nervous and apprehensive, I slept fitfully, and woke in the early hours. As I lay on my back, staring at the ceiling, I felt uneasy and questioned whether my partner Bill Turner and I had taken on something two geezers in their mid-fifties should have left to younger men. Starting a private investigation agency suddenly seemed foolhardy, a venture that smacked of Walter Mitty absurdity. On the other hand, I kept telling myself, as I lay there gnashing my teeth and feeling an uncomfortable tension in my neck, the two of us had come through countless escapades unscathed.

  I suppose my nervousness was due to it being our first day in our brand new office, and already we had two potential client appointments, one in the morning and one just after lunch.

  I picked up my mobile from the bedside cabinet and checked the time. It was just gone five and I was wide awake. So as not to disturb Michelle, I turned back the duvet carefully and gently swung my legs out of bed; but as I padded quietly across the room, I heard her stir.

  ‘I can’t sleep either,’ she mumbled. ‘So I think I might as well get up. If you can’t beat them, join them.’

  ‘I hope it wasn’t my fault you couldn’t sleep,’ I said from the bathroom door.

  Michelle blinked the sleep from her eyes and focused on mine. ‘I think I’m as worried as you are about your first day as a private eye.’

  It was said in a mocking tone.

  I sighed. ‘Oh, come on, sweetheart, it’s not like the movies. It’s about getting information; stuff like info about employees ripping off their employers with false expenses claims and suchlike.’

  ‘But knowing you, Freddie, and your propensity for getting into hot water...’

  ‘Propensity,’ I said. ‘Good word for this time of the morning. I’m just going to shower, then I’ll have an early breakfast.’

  ‘I might join you. And I’ve also got a busy day.’

  ‘What are you up to?’

  ‘I’m looking for a cheaper venue for my dance classes. The Catholic church hall knows how to charge.’

  ‘Well, the Pope didn’t get where he is today - ’ I said.

  As I showered, I thought about Michelle’s dancing school, which was taking off in a big way. The dancing school our daughter Olivia attended during the last school year closed down, and Michelle saw an opening and went for it. Word soon got around, and she went from one evening a week to three in less than a month. But Olivia, almost a star pupil at the previous school, seemed to have suddenly lost interest and often said she felt too tired or too ill to attend. At first, Michelle and I thought it was because she was reluctant to be taught by her mother, and when we asked her this, she became uncommunicative and shrugged it off, mumbling that it was nothing to do with ‘Mum’. We thought she might get over it, but there was no sign that her dancing, which had once meant so much to her, was about to light up her day as it had in the past.

  It was worrying, and I was determined to get to the bottom of it.

  ***

  Michelle and I had already eaten a substantial breakfast by the time Olivia came into the kitchen for her usual crunchy nut cereal, the same breakfast she has eaten every morning for the past year. She avoided eye contact with us and stared into her cereal bowl. Her inscrutable expression wouldn’t fool anyone and I was convinced it masked feelings of shame, though I had no inkling of any reason she should feel guilty. But her eyes said it all, downcast and withdrawn, and Michelle and I knew this was a volatile teenage situation and things would soon come to a head.

  There was no clock in our kitchen, but I fancied a ticking highlighted the silence.

  As our daughter reached automatically for the milk jug, still careful to avoid meeting our eyes, the silence stretched unbearably, and the imaginary ticking in my head got louder. I heard Michelle quietly clearing her throat, careful not to disturb the delicate balance of the unpredictable. And then Olivia, spoon poised immobile over the cereal, as if dreading the act of eating, made eye contact with Michelle.

  ‘Where’s Jackie?’ she asked.

  I was relieved. Asking after her sister was a good sign. Perhaps she could confide in big sister, tell her things she wouldn’t want to tell her parents.

  ‘Surely you haven’t forgotten,’ Michelle replied. ‘She spent last night at Claire’shouse, and they’re going straight from there to college this morning.’

  Olivia stared uncomprehendingly into the distance, desperately trying to work something out in her mind. I could see the confusion in her eyes, the strain in trying to u
nderstand something that lay just out of her grasp. And then she crumpled. From deep inside her came a gurgling sound as her shoulders trembled and shook, and she was racked with heaving sobs.

  Michelle had seen it coming, and within an instant she held our daughter in a firm embrace. ‘Olivia! Sweetheart! What is it? Tell Mummy what’s wrong? Please sweetheart. We can’t help you if you don’t tell us.’

  I rose, feeling helpless and awkward, and a little extraneous seeing as Michelle was already comforting Olivia, cuddling, caressing and nuzzling her. I walked over to them and stood the other side of Olivia, desperately hoping my presence wouldn’t stop her from unloading whatever was troubling her. I thought perhaps it was a daughter to mother scenario, an unburdening of womanly problems, and males were strictly off-limits in these female confidences. But I was wrong, because Olivia suddenly blurted out:

  ‘That man won’t leave me alone.’

  I felt a wave of coldness pass through my body.

  ‘Which man?’ Michelle asked.

  Sobbing and heaving, Olivia spluttered as she tried to speak. ‘He won’t leave me... leave me alone. He’s always there. At first he was friendly... but now... now he’s said nasty things about my friends. And I’m frightened of him.’

  ‘Who is this bastard?’ I said, trying to soften the harshness in my voice.

  Olivia looked up at me, her eyes veiled with tears. ‘I don’t know, Dad. I don’t know.’

  ‘But you must have some idea.’

  ‘That’s just it. I haven’t a clue.’

  Michelle straightened up, but kept her arm draped around Olivia’s shoulders. ‘I don’t understand, sweetheart. Is it someone round here? Someone we know? Or someone at school?’

  ‘He’s called Eclipse.’

  ‘What sort of name’s that?’ Michelle asked, looking across at me, frowning.

  Suddenly, I began to understand what this was about.