THIRTY-TWO
RADIO SILENCE
Oliver
Dom fell in behind me as we picked up the pace, slipping easily into the old rhythm. A few steps between us, eyes constantly moving, neither of us needing to speak. We covered the ground efficiently and were soon at the empty stables and exercise paddock.
‘Wish we were armed with something more than a fucking torch,’ muttered Dom.
I couldn’t argue with that. I was sure by now that Henderson would have anticipated us searching for him. He was still ahead of us and that still fucked me off.
‘He’s not here,’ I said as we finished our sweep of the stables, the yard and the other outbuildings.
‘Can’t see any sign that he had been either.’ Dom swept the torch beam back over the opening to the stables.
I pressed the radio on the collar of my jacket. ‘Everyone. Sitrep.’
Paddy called in first. ‘Shooting range all clear.’
‘All clear at the wellness suite,’ came Matty over the airwaves.
‘Finish your sweeps. Meet back at the gatehouse in twenty,’ I instructed.
‘Copy that.’ Paddy, followed by Matty.
‘Grainger. Status?’ I said into the radio, as Dom and I headed across the main track towards Risk Lodge. I glanced at Dom. ‘No answer.’
Dom shrugged. ‘Taking a piss?’
‘Taking the piss, more like it.’ I pressed the radio again. ‘Grainger. Come in.’
Dom spoke into his radio. ‘Grainger. Come in.’ He paused. Silence. ‘Grainger. Respond.’
‘I swear to fucking God, if he’s fallen asleep, I’ll personally wring his neck.’
I could feel the panic, disguised as anger, surge up in me.
This was not like Grainger. I took my phone from my pocket and called Grainger direct.
It rang out to voicemail. Twice. ‘I don’t like this,’ I said. We were now at the main house.
‘Try Alex,’ said Dom.
The fact he didn’t try to reassure me was not reassuring. I hit the call button for Alex. Just like Grainger’s, it rang out. ‘This isn’t fucking right.’ I was already turning and moving in the direction of the gatehouse. Dom was right at my side as the initial jog turned into a run.
Dom was on the radio. ‘Everyone. Gatehouse. On the double.’
As we raced up the track towards the gatehouse, I looked over towards the lodges. They were all in darkness. No sign of anyone being there. No sign of Henderson having gone back to his place. Or Alex’s.
We got to the gatehouse before anyone else. Dom grabbed my arm. ‘Take a breath, mate,’ he said. ‘We go in, nice and easy.’
He was right, of course. ‘Round the back. Least obvious,’ I said.
Dom nodded and we rounded the side of the gatehouse, keeping low, using the stone wall to hide us. We reached the gate that gave access to the garden from the side, and which looked directly in at the kitchen.
I nodded at Dom and we both hopped over the wall. It was then I saw Grainger. In a chair on the porch decking. ‘Lazy fu––,’ The words faded on Dom’s lips.
We both realised it at the same time. ‘What the fuck,’ I muttered. Maybe he’d had a heart attack and Alex was busy upstairs with Noah and hadn’t realised. That’s what I wanted to believe as Dom and I covered the ground between us and the porch in seconds.
I saw the blood on the deck first. Dom crouched to examine Grainger. He stood up and shook his head. ‘Slit throat.’
‘Fuuuck.’ I looked at Grainger, hardly able to believe it. ‘What the actual fuck.’
‘Radio is missing,’ said Dom.
Suddenly, it hit me. Noah. Alex. I pushed passed Dom, yanking open the kitchen door.
I called out their names. But I knew the house was empty.
I just knew it. Even so, I raced up the stairs, taking them two at a time and rushed into Noah’s room.
Empty. My room. The spare room. Dom’s room. All the fucking rooms. All empty.
I don’t remember going down the stairs, but Dom was there waiting. ‘Ground floor clear,’ he said.
‘They’ve gone.’ It’s all I could say. ‘They’ve gone.’
‘Right, we need to work out what to do next,’ said Dom.
‘I tell you what I’m doing next,’ I said, pacing forwards, pacing back and almost in a circle.
‘I really am going to rip his head off and spit in the fucking hole this time. We need to find Noah and Alex. What if he’s got them?
Where would he take them? If he’s harmed a single hair on either of them––,’
‘Oliver. Shut the fuck up.’ Dom’s voice cut through my barely coherent thoughts. ‘We’re going to find both Noah and Alex and then you can do whatever the fuck you like to Henderson. But none of that is going to happen if you don’t keep your shit together.’
He was right. One hundred percent right. ‘I know. I know. It’s just––’
‘Enough. The best way you can help them, is to keep it together. If you can’t do that, then you might as well stay here and let me handle the situation.’
‘That’s not going to fucking happen.’
‘That’s what I thought.’ Dom gave my arm a brotherly slap. ‘Head in the game, mate.’
I nodded. Nodded some more. ‘It’s okay. I’m okay.’ I wasn’t but Dom was right. I needed to keep calm. Not be a liability.
My radio crackled into life. ‘We’re outside the gatehouse.’ It was Paddy. ‘All of us.’
Dom opened the door and called Paddy, Matty and Smithy in. Paddy looked at me and then Dom. I expect he knew the look on our faces. Knew bad news was coming.
‘Listen up,’ I said. ‘Grainger… he’s dead.’ The silence was hard. I’d broken news like this before during my time in the forces, and it never got any easier.
‘Fuck,’ uttered Paddy.
Smithy and Matty looked at one another. ‘What the hell?’ said Smithy.
‘Who?’ It was Paddy. His jaw was tight and hands balled into fists. He was hurting but he was also a trained soldier and that training was keeping his emotions in check.
‘We have to assume it was Fletcher. Noah and Alex…’ I took a breath. ‘Noah and Alex are missing. We don’t know if they’ve escaped or Fletcher has them.’
Paddy’s eye narrowed. ‘What exactly are we dealing with?’
Dom spoke. ‘We’ll fill you in later but basically Fletcher isn’t who he said he is. He knows Alex and has an interest in her. We’ll leave it that for now.’
‘Our priority is Noah and Alex,’ I said. ‘We can deal with Fletcher afterwards.’
‘Understood,’ said Paddy. ‘Never liked that fucker.’
Before I could issue any edicts, the sound of a voice, wafer thin, calling out, sobbing, distressed––a voice I’d recognise anywhere. I pushed through the lads and raced out the door. ‘Noah!’
There he was running, stumbling over the ground, emerging from the blackness of the night. My son. My boy.
‘Noah!’ I called out again as I ran down the path and caught him in my arms. ‘Thank, God. Thank, God.’ I held him tight to me and battled to stop myself from sobbing. His body was quaking and his arms wrapped around my neck so tightly, I could barely breathe. But he was there. He was with me.
Dom and Paddy were at my side, their torches lighting up the space.
I put Noah down and held him away from me.
I needed to look at him. Make sure he wasn’t hurt.
It wasn’t until I put him down, that I realised what I had smelt when I’d picked him up.
My brain was too relieved with seeing him, to register it before.
But now I knew exactly what that smell was––petrol.
I looked beyond him, half expecting to see Alex. But she wasn’t there. I looked back at Noah. ‘Are you all right? Are you hurt?’
He shook his head. He was still crying. ‘He’s got Alex.’
I thought for a moment the world had tipped sideways. ‘Who has, Noah? Who’s got Alex?’ I asked.
‘The man who works here. The one Alex doesn’t like.’ His words came out on sob.
‘Fletcher?’ I said. Noah nodded. ‘And where has he got her?’
‘Her lodge. She told me to run.’ He collapsed into my arms again. I held him tightly. Alex had saved my son once again. Offered up herself in exchange. ‘What did Fletcher do in the lodge?’ I asked. ‘Was there petrol there?’
‘I knocked it over. It was an accident.’
‘It’s all right. You’re not in trouble. I just need to know exactly what happened.’
‘She said we were going to bake a cake, but he was there. He poured petrol on the floor. Alex stopped him. She said I didn’t need to be there.
She told him that she would stay with him.
She made him put the petrol down. I walked into it by accident.
That’s when he opened the door and she told me to run.’
He was sobbing again now. I wanted to do the same.
‘We can deal with this,’ said Dom as Matty and Smithy joined us.
I stood up. ‘I know you can. But you’re not.’
The anger was simmering in me now. It was better than the fear.
‘Smithy, Matty, take Noah inside. Keep him in the study. Not the kitchen. Call the local police. The number’s on the desk.’
I crouched down to Noah’s level. ‘You go inside now. I won’t be long. I’m going to get Alex. Okay?’
Noah nodded and although I could see he was reluctant to leave me, he didn’t argue as Matty shepherded him back to the house.
‘Lock all the doors,’ said Dom as they went.
‘Right,’ I said. ‘Let’s deal with this mother fucker once and for all.’ No sooner had I spoken when my radio crackled into life and the voice of Henderson came over the airways, loud and clear.
‘Hello, Oliver. How are you?’
The emergency channel was still wide open, which meant Noah would hear everything that was being said. I spun around, pointing my finger towards Matty, Smithy and Noah. Smithy was already turning to look in my direction.
Dom understood. ‘Smithy!’ he called and made a gesture with his hand. ‘Cut comms.’ Smithy gave the thumbs up.
Only then did I reply to Henderson. ‘I’ll be better once I’ve ripped your fucking head off.’
A chuckle sounded out. ‘You’re not going to do that. Alex wouldn’t like it. Would you, Alex?’
The blood throbbed in my ears so hard at her name in his mouth, that for a second I couldn’t hear anything else. It was only the sound of Alex’s voice that cut through the throbbing noise.
‘Is Noah with you?’ she asked, her voice cracking a fraction.
Fuck. Despite her situation, Alex was still thinking about Noah first. ‘He is. He’s safe.’
‘You should thank me for that,’ said Henderson.
‘Fuck you,’ I practically growled the words.
‘Oh, dear. Have you no manners?’ Henderson was enjoying himself. ‘Right, back to business. Alex, tell Oliver you don’t want him. You know, like we discussed.’
There was a pause, then came Alex’s voice, surprisingly strong.
‘I don’t want you.’ I could hear how hard she was trying to keep it together.
‘Don’t come to––’ There was a distorted sound.
Some sort of scuffle. I could hear Henderson, telling Alex to be quiet and her trying to respond.
Her response muffled. Him telling her to hold still. Then there was silence.
‘Alex? Alex!’ I shouted her name into the radio.
‘Don’t worry, Alex is otherwise indisposed,’ came Henderson’s voice.
I heard her trying to respond through whatever was over her mouth, a gag, his hand, I didn’t know.
‘Alex, sweetheart,’ I said as calmly as I could. ‘I’m coming for you.’
Henderson laughed again. ‘Don’t even think about it.’
‘Oh, rest assured, I’m doing more than just thinking about it, you piece of shit,’ I said. ‘Trust me because I’m coming for you too.’