One Night, page 8
Joel had seen other kids fight many times and he’d realised that a big part of victory was surprise. If your opponent didn’t expect you to do something they couldn’t guard against it. That was why the boy had been able to push him off his chair. Joel hadn’t expected it.
So when the boy walked up to him he knew he had to be the one who made the first move this time. He held the boy’s eyes as he got closer and closer, waiting for the right moment. The whole time Joel’s hand was gripping the corner of the grey plastic tray on the table in front of him. When the boy was close enough he swung the tray. His plate and cutlery flew off it and crashed to the floor. The tray rose, angling up at the end of Joel’s skinny arm. The edge of it struck the other boy on the temple and he fell to his knees his hands over his face. Joel saw blood oozing from between his fingers. The other kids all saw it too; he heard a few gasps and then the sound of one of the supervisors running over to find out what had happened. Everyone at the home left him alone after that. For a while at least.
Joel hadn’t wanted to fight that day but he was glad he had. Sometimes it was just necessary and standing in the alley he knew this was one of those times. As he waited he looked closely at the three men for the first time. Until now they'd been pretty much indistinguishable from each other aside from the bats. Up close it was a different story.
The unarmed one actually looked the most dangerous. He had the lean muscular look of someone whose muscle was earned not gym bought and he moved with a grace that suggested he was in complete control of his body. Joel worried that he’d underestimated his opponents when he’d glanced at them running earlier. He’d thought he could handle them but now he wasn’t so sure.
Batter one had the stocky look of a rugby player. He was clearly strong but he moved slowly and awkwardly. The last of the trio moved in the showy way of someone who had learned to fight by playing video games. He was young and fit looking but Joel could tell he was all front.
As he'd expected the narrow alley meant that they had to come at him one at a time. The video gamer stepped forward first. Joel saw now that the baseball bat he was carrying was completely clean of any marks. That either meant it was new or the owner only had it for show. Joel hoped it was the latter.
The man held the bat out in front of him, pointing at Joel with it, using it to keep a distance between them. Joel was tempted to make a grab for it, rip it out of the other guy's hands and even things up a little. He didn't though, it would have been a risky move and he knew he didn't have the luxury of making a single mistake. The guy was big and Joel didn’t fancy getting into a tug of war over it. As soon as his guard was down all three of them would be on him. If one got in a hit that floored him they’d find the room to crowd around him and it would all be over. He knew his best chance was to take it slowly and wait for them to make a mistake.
As it turned out he didn't have to wait long.
The guy tired of jabbing at him with the end of the bat after a minute or so and decided to take a swing. Joel knew that the problem with a weapon as big as a baseball bat was that it wasn’t instant. You had to swing it back so that you could swing it forward. As soon as his opponent started the backswing Joel threw himself forward. The guy reacted quickly, starting to bring the bat forward again before it was fully back. He was too slow, Joel was inside his swing. He went in low, arms at his sides and wrapped them around his attacker’s torso, gripping tight and pushing the man back. At the same time he brought his head up sharply, driving it hard into the masked face. He felt the nose crumple and released his hold; letting the guy stagger backwards dazed. Joel took one quick step forward and kicked the man between the legs with all his strength and then retreated again. The man went down hard and the other batter stepped forward. He'd learned from his friend and had his bat raised to his shoulder ready to take a swipe at his target. Joel took a couple of steps back as the thickset man advanced on him, buying himself some time. As soon as he stepped within range the guy was going to take a swing and if the bat connected with the weight of the guy behind it Joel knew he'd be done for.
His eyes searched the floor of the alley for anything he could use but there was nothing, just the usual crisp packets, fag butts and coke cans.
It was a standoff. The guy wasn't going to swing unless Joel got closer and Joel couldn't do anything until he swung. He started talking, because that was all he could do.
"You don't seem as much of a dickhead as your mate," he said and nodded at the moaning lump on the floor.
"He's not a dickhead."
"He fights like one," said Joel. He saw the guy tense up around his shoulders and arms. The fact that he’d got a reaction was interesting. He watched the man’s body language as he continued talking.
"Oh, he really is a mate of yours?"
The guy didn't say anything, just stood there tensed. The balaclava meant there were no facial expressions for Joel to read but he could tell he was getting to him.
"Not a mate then? Your brother!"
The guy was still silent but he tilted his head ever so slightly.
Joel carried on, working the man like a boxer wearing his opponent down with body shots.
"Younger by the look of him. Your little brother come out with you and look what happened to him. I bet it was his first time wasn't it? That explains why he fought like a twat."
The guy stood there looking big and saying nothing. He was pretty good at both.
Joel carried on. "Did he beg you to come out tonight? Did he beg you to have the first go at me? I think I broke his nose you know, felt like it..."
The guy stepped forward and swung.
His hands tensed a fraction of a second before he made the move, telegraphing it. Joel jumped back and the bat sliced through the air an inch in front of his nose. The man had put all his power behind the blow and now he was started he couldn’t stop. The bat continued past Joel and smashed into the wall of the alley. The vibrations of the blow travelled all the way up the bat to the batter’s hands and he swore, dropping it. Joel jumped forward and kicked him in the left knee, driving the toe of his shoe into the kneecap. He followed it up with a punch to the guy’s rounded belly and then another to his jaw. The man stepped back, raising his hands defensively in front of him, trying to buy time to clear his head. Joel stooped and grabbed the fallen bat, he swung it up from the ground, between the other man’s clenched fists, and into his chin. It connected solidly and the man’s head snapped back.
Before he could fall to the ground the last of the trio had pushed past him; the first guy’s bat was held in his hands. Joel was still bent over, struggling to get himself fully upright again when the man swung at his head.
Chapter Nineteen
Joel stared in shock at the pistol. It wasn’t the first time that he’d had a gun pointed at him but the person on the other side of it had never been a friend before. He had liked Danny, admired him, looked up to him. The Danny he was looking at now was a different man from the one he’d respected. He had a wild look in his eyes. Desperate.
“For fuck’s sake,” shouted Paterson. “Put that away while I’m driving,”
“I’m just trying to make Joel see sense,” said Danny. “The job needs to go ahead.”
“Fine with me,” said Reynolds. “How about you put it away though, Danny.”
Danny laughed and slipped the gun into the pocket of his jacket.
“You’re right, I’m sorry.” He said it like he’d made some kind of social blunder. Told an off colour joke or something. “Let’s just get things straight though. Agree what we’re doing,” He sounded under control again now the gun was away; his old charming self. “What happened back there was unfortunate but it doesn’t mean we have to give up our chance to make some easy money. Reynolds are you in?”
“Course I am, mate.”
“Paterson?”
“Aye, as long as you keep that damn thing away from my face,”
“Joel?”
Joel was silent. What would Danny do if he just ran when the car stopped? Would he shoot him? They couldn’t do the job without him, he knew that much. Did the years of friendship he’d had with Danny count for nothing now that he was up against the wall? Had they been real at all?
He ran his finger down the scar on his cheek. It should have taught him; taught him not to trust. His whole adult life it had been a reminder to him that he was better off on his own. It was there every morning when he looked in the mirror, showing him the price he’d paid in the past.
He realised he didn't care about the fucking job. What mattered was that Danny had turned on him. But it wasn't even that was it? What really cut him was the fact that he'd been weak enough to trust the other man in the first place.
"Joel?" Danny said again, he was staring at right at him. His face smiling but his eyes intense.
Fuck it. He didn't care anymore. £50,000 would buy a lot of distractions. Besides, if he stopped now he might end up with all three of them after him.
"I'm in," he said.
"Fantastic," said Danny. "I knew you'd come round. Let’s not tell Fuller, though. He’ll only worry."
They drove to the house in silence. Joel stared out of the window and thought about the other men in the car. Paterson was alright, a tough guy for sure but not a psycho. He'd always act in his own interests but he wouldn't go out of his way to screw anyone else over.
Reynolds and Danny were a different story. Joel knew that the main thing he had in his favour was their greed. He knew that the other three men all realised that there was no way the job could go ahead without him. Fuller had told them that the safe in the house had an added security feature; if the wrong combination was entered twice it locked itself down completely for twelve hours and triggered an alarm with the security company. Joel had tackled that kind of safe before and beaten it but it was way beyond the skills of most people. There was no way Danny would rely on the intimidation of the owner to get it open either; that was way too risky.
The question was what Danny and Reynolds would do to him once he'd cracked it and they had the money. Joel had been in the game long enough to know there really wasn't any honour amongst thieves. What there was instead was common sense and a lightning fast communication network. Danny would know that if he did something to Joel and it got out no-one would ever work with him again. Reynolds might not be quite bright enough to put those pieces together but Joel thought that Danny would keep him in line. On balance Joel reckoned he would be okay. If Reynolds didn’t flip out and he could control his own rage at Danny.
They arrived at the house just before 8pm in line with Fuller's plan. Five minutes earlier and a mile away another man in a white van with the British Telecom logo on the side had pulled up next to the local exchange box through which the phone lines that served the dealer’s house ran. He opened the box, located the relevant cables and quickly and efficiently severed them.
The property was walled with a large steel gate at the entrance. Paterson parked the car a little way along the road and asked them if they were all good to go. Each man nodded and was handed a latex mask and gloves.
Fuller had given them a mobile phone jammer and Joel had it in his hand now. It was about the size of the second hand GameBoy he’d saved up for as a kid but with four thick stubby aerials poking out of the top. Fuller had boasted that it was a top of the line model, not like the thirty quid ones you could get from China on eBay. This was the real deal, effective up to a hundred metres and guaranteed to block any mobile phone as surely as dropping it in a bucket of molten lead. Joel triggered it as Paterson drove them up to the gates and then placed it in the pocket of the car door.
Access to the property was controlled via an intercom or a remote control. Fuller's contact at the security firm had provided a clone of the remote. Paterson clicked the button on it as he pulled up at the gates and they parted to let the car through.
There were cameras too of course, and as soon the gates had opened the guard would be alert to their presence. They needed to get to him and overpower him as quickly as possible. The guard operated out of a small office about fifty yards up the long drive from the gate. The house was another twenty or so yards beyond that. As soon as the gates were open Paterson accelerated up the drive and brought the car to a stop outside the low modern building that housed the guard station.
It could go two ways. The regular phone line to the house was disabled and any cell phones on the property would be jammed but the guard also had a direct connection to the security firm he worked for. It ran through an underground cable and there was no simple way to disrupt it. One of the advantages of hitting a crook was their target wouldn't want to involve the police, but if the guard managed to raise the alarm before Joel and the others subdued him a signal would go to his company who would send an armed response team. If the gang got to him before he raised the alarm then they'd have as long as they wanted to restrain the dealer and his wife and crack the safe. If they didn't then they’d have twenty minutes before the backup guards arrived at the house.
Before the car had stopped Reynolds had his door open and was climbing out of it. Danny and Joel were on the opposite side, away from the security office. They jumped out, running around the car as Reynolds reached the door of the building. Joel saw that Danny had the pistol in his hand again, was holding it down against his leg as he ran.
Reynolds shouldered the door open. From inside the building there came a shout.
Joel got to the doorway just after Danny and his view of the room was blocked for a moment. He could hear Reynolds shouting and the guard telling him to keep back. The man sounded scared but determined. Joel watched as Danny raised his gun and walked forward into the room. He followed him in, moving to the side as soon as he was through the door.
The room was as Fuller had told them to expect. The main feature was a bank of video monitors showing various views of the property, there was a kitchen area in one corner and another door that led to a shower and locker room. The guard was backed up against the far wall, in his hand was a nightstick which he was swinging back and forth in front of him, keeping Reynolds at bay. He was a pretty big guy and, if what Fuller had told them was correct, he had military experience. The swipes he was making with the nightstick certainly looked like they had power to them and he handled the weapon like it was an extension of his body. Joel didn't know if he was a match for Reynolds or not but it might be an interesting fight.
"Did he trip the alarm?" said Danny, gun pointed straight at the guard.
"I don't know," said Reynolds. "I don't think so."
Danny walked closer to the man, slowly advancing on him, the gun aimed at his head the whole time.
Joel wondered how the system worked. The guard was here, the first line of defence but with the ability to call for backup. Why the hell wouldn’t he have done that as soon as he saw their car? Would he assume it was someone the owners of the house knew, someone who they’d give the gate remote to? Would he hold off triggering the alarm for fear of being considered a panicker by his mates?
“Why wouldn’t he have done it?” he said out loud. “As soon as he saw us drive in.”
Paterson was in the room now. “Can we tell?” he said.
Danny shook his head. “Not till the cavalry get here. Or don’t.” He was almost on top of the guard now. As close as he could be without moving in range of the baton.
“Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you right now,” he said to the man in front of him.
Joel glanced over at Paterson who looked as nervous as he felt. Danny was on the edge.
The Scot spoke up, “Let’s just restrain him and get on with it. That was the plan. We have the time.”
“He’s pissed me off now,” said Reynolds. He let the statement hang in the air like a bad smell.
The guard’s eyes were darting all over the place, looking at each of them in turn. Is he looking for a way to escape or just deciding which of us is the greatest threat, wondered Joel. He was just a guy doing his job until we came along. Hoping for an easy shift and then home to his family.
The guard stepped to the side suddenly, away from Reynolds and towards Danny. The gun moved to track the guard’s sideways jump but too slowly. Joel saw Danny’s finger tighten on the trigger but then the nightstick was crashing down on his wrist. From across the room Joel heard the sharp snap of a bone cracking.
Danny swore and dropped the gun, he stepped back, clutching his wrist with his left hand. Reynolds stepped in and took a swing at the guard. His big fist connected with the side of the man’s head and he fell to the floor. The boxer stepped forward and bent over the fallen man, his left hand went to the guard’s throat and he pulled his right arm back to deliver a punch.
Joel was about to run forward and stop Reynolds from killing the poor guy when the gun went off.
Chapter Twenty
Eve turned and ran back down the alleyway. It grew darker as she moved away from the light of the street; the darkness was broken in places by light but where it wasn’t it was deep and rich and frightening. The kind of blackness that childhood monsters lurked in. Eve couldn’t see any light coming from the other end of the alley and realised that there was a slight curve ahead of her, blocking her view. She hadn’t even noticed it when she’d run in the other direction, she’d been so wrapped up in her memories.
From around the bend she could hear the sound of fighting. She rounded it just in time to see Joel down on one knee about thirty feet from her. Two of the three masked men were laid out on the floor next to him. The third was standing over him, about to swing a baseball bat at his head.
Eve could do nothing, just stand there and watch as the heavy bat swung towards the man she loved. The bat was inches from his temple when Joel managed to raise his own. The move looked awkward but it worked. The powerful blow was deflected away and the bat struck his shoulder not his head. It hit with a force that rocked Joel’s whole body.
