CHAPTER 79 - RED
CHAPTER
Red
“WE MADE THE front page then.” Liam hands me the newspaper.
Gang Attack in Putney Pub
In a shocking turn of events, a “gang-style” attack was carried out in a pub in Putney yesterday, (2 December).
Customers at the Blue Bell Public House on Station Street could only look on in horror when five masked men burst into the premises around 11 AM brandishing large guns.
“Five?” I laugh. “Who can’t count? Unless you two cloned yourselves!”
“I can’t remember wearing masks either,” Oscar chuckles.
Still smiling to myself, I continue reading.
The lead attacker singled out one customer and shot off his foot, which ruled out robbery as the motive. The other terrified customers watched in terror as the injured man was taken away with the assailants.
The victim was not a regular at the Blue Bell, and no one knows his identity or where his whereabouts are now.
“Glad to see the residents of Putney know whose side to back for. They all know who Lar Renton is, yet said nothing. That’s what I like to see.”
I’m still grinning until I read the next paragraph.
One witness believed she’d heard the name “Bateman” mentioned before stating that she was confused and had misheard. With nothing else to go on concerning the identity of the victim or the masked men, the police have little choice but to put this incident down to a gang-related incident.
The victim will need urgent medical assistance, therefore it is vital that anyone with information should call the station on...
“What I want to know is which stupid bitch mentioned our name,” Liam grumbles, taking the newspaper back from me.
“It’s irrelevant. We pay the police enough not to listen, anyway.
No one’s looking for Lar, and neither will they find him.
” I shrug. “Not unless they pick through crushed metal cubes at the car crushers. On other matters, Arianna has arranged meetings with Emiliano Galvatore’s allies today.
So far, their reaction to her has not been encouraging, so we’ll have to see how that turns out. ”
Cal leans forward. “Going back to Luca Bristoni - according to the scout I sent over last night, Carnforth House is still deserted, so he’s not there. We need to know where he is.”
I nod, wishing I’d pressed Dave for that information before I shot him. Now it’s too late, but now we’re fairly certain Luca is working alone it means we have breathing space and I’ll be glad to spend more time with Arianna. Things have become strained; she’s not herself, and I want to know why.
Nothing is more important to me than she is.
I get to my feet and grab my jacket. “Right, I’m off then. I promised to get a couple of hours in with Maria before me and Arianna go to this meeting later.”
“That’s going to be fun...” Liam sneers. “Perhaps a further two hours will be enough for the dozy bitch to finally click which end of the gun the fucking bullet comes out of.”
Cutting Liam a warning look, I leave my office. However, he’s right, and I’m not looking forward to this at all.
I reluctantly make my way to the cellar, practicing my deep breathing technique, hoping I can keep my temper before I’m faced with the woman.