Roskov, Book 16, page 5
‘If he had they would have tried again. This way … the boss will be worried, as to how the men’s innards got inside his heavily protected house – a house probably fitted with cameras and patrolled by guards.’
‘He’ll be scratching his head,’ Bonza said with a smile.
‘He’ll need a sedative,’ Gloria put in. ‘And suspect his own lieutenants, to penetrate his home like that.’
I nodded at her. ‘Either way, he won’t be coming for me for a while.’
‘Not till his wife gets back from holiday,’ Bonza noted.
Eurostar
In the morning, Gloria suggested the train, so we headed to the train station with our luggage, as well as our police escort, and we bought Eurostar tickets, First Class, as other passengers glanced at us.
Finding the right part of First Class eventually, we placed luggage in the racks and settled, soon setting off north at speed as it rained, a view of the shit parts of Paris to start with.
‘Comfy,’ Bonza noted. ‘And better than a plane.’
Gloria explained, ‘This is only two and a half hours. To fly, you spend forty minutes to get to the airport, an hour at least waiting around, a forty minute flight, forty minutes to get luggage and go through Passport Control.’
‘Same time, more comfort,’ Bonza approved. ‘Short flights are always a pain.’
I nodded at that, taking in the damp French countryside, but it looked just like damp British countryside. ‘Been ages since I had a long train journey. As a kid we went down to the coast on a train sometimes, and I always loved looking out the window.’
Before we hit the Channel Tunnel the conductor checked our ticket, the French police checking our passports. Being inside the dark tunnel was a bit freaky, I did not like being under the water down here, but it passed quickly enough, soon the reassuring sight of damp British countryside.
In London we were met by a grumpy Pat and Dingle, Gloria saying goodbye to us; she would head back to her smelly apartment and sort out her life. Ted volunteered to go with her and meet us later. And to check the state of the milk she had left in her fridge.
In the vans, Pat and Dingle had a million questions, but it passed the time, an hour and forty minutes to reach Leicester and to reach a house that felt odd.
The cameras were still in place and manned, and the local police popped by now and then. And now that we were back the local police would be camped outside.
At the front door I stopped, placed a hand on the wall and closed my eyes. There were no bombs, no deadly assassins, but a radiator was leaking.
Inside, we turned on the heating because it was freezing, but David Hutton had stocked the fridge. And there was a note: heating off, radiator leaking. Bonza fixed the radiator in minutes, and the place warmed up, the kettle knocked on.
Pat went out for a takeaway, cash from me, and by time he was back the place was warmer, a curry enjoyed before we put the TV news on.
The Vatican scandals were still the lead story, but then they surprised me, a Mafia boss arrested, the man whose bed would need a new mattress; they had identified his men, and the men’s intent.
Pat turned to me. ‘He sent seven men … in a van … and they were all armed … and they pulled over near your hotel and disembowelled each other, their organs never found, and there was no blood outside the van?’
‘You say that as if it don’t make sense,’ I told him, Bonza hiding his grin.
‘Oh well forgive me for being dull then, but how did they get in the van, and die, still warm but with no innards?’
‘Mafia,’ Bonza told him. ‘Innards cut out, horses head on your bed.’
‘What puzzles you?’ I asked Pat with a straight face.
‘How the driver drove the van with no innards, no beating heart, because I need a beating heart, and some coffee in the mornings.’
‘Show of force,’ Bill told him. ‘One Mafia group sending a message to another.’
The 10pm update listed the innards of the seven men found at a property of the Mafia boss, and blood found at his home – his wife committed and sedated for unknown reasons.
The boss was now being charged with the murder of his own seven men, after he had dispatched them to kill me, which made no sense at all as we stared at the TV.
Armani called as Ted arrived back. ‘These Mafia men…’
‘The good lord does indeed move in mysterious ways, and sometimes he gets mad at people.’
‘I … think I need a strong drink. Or several.’
‘Always helps to relax a man, yes. How are things?’
‘Quieter, and a new sense of cooperation is emerging, a wartime spirit, a fight to win. People cooperate with each other now.’
‘That document?’
‘Will be in our hands very soon, a copy for you.’
‘I need to be loud, to send a message that will be heard far and wide for the next few decades…’
‘I understand that, yes, just that we’ll be tarnished some.’
‘You already are in the minds of people in Europe, so we need to show that the problem is being fixed, is fixed, and that people can have faith in your priests again.
‘It will hurt in the short term, yes, that can’t be avoided, and then we’ll start to rebuild, and I’ll give speeches that back you up.’
‘As only you could, the people trust you.’
Call ended, Rita called, so I sat up in my room chatting for half an hour about modelling - and the new hydroelectric project in Corsica.
The day job
At 9.30am we arrived at the offices, but David Hutton was just leaving. He met us in the car park. ‘I’m off to look at a nursing home for sale, Blythe Road.’
‘I know it, big building, not that old though.’
‘In good condition apparently.’
‘We’ll come with you.’
Back in the van we set off, a short drive under a dull grey sky on damp roads, and to the nursing home – which kind of looked like smart modern offices from the outside. Inside, the staff welcomed us, and we had the tour, downstairs and upstairs.
The smell was of antiseptic and urine, and we heard many old women crying out as if in pain.
Bonza began, ‘Don’t ever let me end up in a place like this, fucking shoot me.’
I nodded at him, and I wanted to be someplace else myself. But I made a point of chatting to some of the elderly residents, few of which had a clue who I was, or even where they were. And there were not many residents.
I asked the manager, ‘Why so few residents?’
‘We have another building, bigger, up in Connington, so this place will close soon, the residents moved over.’
‘Tell the owners I’m interested, and fast-move interested. I want the building.’
‘For what?’ David asked.
‘The consortium, offices and a few nice apartments, and a place for me and the gang. The grounds are nice, as well as secure, so I could live here safely.’
‘Would kill a few birds with one stone, yes, and the existing offices are getting tight.’
I faced the manager. ‘Tell the owners to get a move on for a good price, I want to gut this place.’
‘I’ll chat to them today.’
Outside, I stopped and looked up at the modern-build two-storey building, modern beige bricks seen. ‘A suite upstairs for me, apartments for the gang, rooms for security, a kitchen and communal area, rooms for visitors.
‘Downstairs, offices for the consortium and all the Swedes, meeting rooms, café and lounge. And the windows are all new and double-glazed already.’
‘Would be better for our visitors to use, yes,’ David agreed. ‘Nice prestigious offices. You’d sell your parents’ house?’
‘Not sure, but here I would be secure, one main gate, a good fence.’
Back at the offices, I greeted many people, finding Doc Lepus in with Dick Klein. ‘How you settling in?’
Doc Lepus began, ‘I’ve started on the manual, we discuss it each day, and I’ve gone over the plans for the nursing homes, was planning a trip down to Corsica.’
‘Spend a few days in Corsica, yes, Frances house is open now and filling up quickly. Look at the structures, the therapies and the medical plan.
‘Here, you’ll be in charge of hands-on medicine for both large nursing homes, the AIDS hospice, but also involved in planning and reviewing the medical services we provide – such as dialysis machines.
‘You’ll visit all the sites and teach and train staff, make sure things are working as they should – medical things. And, after a year, a say in the new design of the next nursing homes, more therapy rooms or less.’
He nodded. ‘All exciting stuff, in at the start.’
‘Are you enjoying the weather here?’ I teased.
‘Kuala Lumpur now seems better, swimming most days, but I want to stay sharp and a new project was what I needed.’
I asked, ‘Do you two get along OK?’
Dick Klein replied, ‘Our wives do, so we’re worried what they might say about us.’
I laughed. ‘Yes, an issue.’ Leading Doc Lepus out, I made him a tea in the kitchen, and when it was just us I asked if he had spoken to anyone about me.
‘Be terrified that they think I’m nuts, so no. But I follow the news, and when you found The Ark I almost fainted. You knew where it was?’
I nodded at him.
Up in the boardroom I assembled the senior people from each group, the room soon quite full - with the Swedish men sat in a line along the back wall, a window opened.
Next to me was David Hutton and Bill, and further down the table was Lucas, Martin from Traffic Jam, Richard from Evergreen, Greg plus our new warehouse manager, our new computer contracts manager, our new wine bar manager, Doc Lupus and Dick Klein, and our Swedish consortium guy, Erik. Bonza sat behind me.
I had a pad and pen, so I looked half-professional at least. ‘OK, first things first, and I had a look at our Paris offices and met the team there, and they’re flat-out busy already.
‘I had a look at the site of the Paris social nursing home complex, just rubble at the moment, and I gave a TV interview there, so everyone in France now knows about the new building project.
‘We had a loan of six hundred million Euro, and we’ve now paid the rent upfront for ten years, and we’ve paid the builders and hired the cranes, so money has been allocated and work has started.’
I pointed at our consortium guy, Erik. ‘Are you happy with the French team?’
‘They know what they are doing, yes, and Ross Daniels is heavily involved. We get daily reports, all very professional. All is on track and moving quickly.’
‘Good. Local nursing homes?’
He replied, ‘On track as well, good progress, and they start on the expansion, ground cleared for the rich people site, and the council makes a new road and roundabout, road signs, contract is signed with Barratt Homes.’
He walked around with sketches then sat back down. ‘We were waiting for you but David said to get a move on.’
I nodded as I studied the drawings, a circle of nice apartment blocks that were three storeys high, park in the middle of them, a fence around them, plenty of parking. ‘Looks nice, yes. How many apartments?’
‘Seventy-five, double occupancy on each.’
‘And the Phase One?’
‘Double apartments for four hundred couples is the plan, can be single use of course, communal areas and cafes, but not so much the medical staff.’
‘And security?’
‘There is to be a fence, and a water ditch around most sides, gate at the entrance with key card, and cameras linked to the nursing home security men.’
‘Good, all nice and safe.’ I faced Dick Klein. ‘And the GPs in the nursing home can service the needs of the people living there…’
‘Yes, there’ll be enough GPs,’ he replied.
‘The rooftop of the big Phase One?’
‘Will have gardens, a glass wall, a café with a conservatory, a dog area, a nice view basically, similar to the nursing home.’
‘No outdoor pool?’ I teased, and they laughed.
‘Not in this weather, no,’ Dick replied.
‘Any issues you want to raise?’
‘When the warehouse comes online it will service the nursing homes?’
‘Yes, that’s the plan.’
‘Then plan for a shit load of supplies.’
‘I hope they are planning for that, but each nursing home will have its own small stores area as well, and pharmacy stores.’
The warehouse manager piped up with, ‘We have building plans at the moment, no stock plans.’
‘Sit with the doctors here, figure out what the patients will eat, and make those plans. We need food for the cafes, food for the Phase Two and Three, stock for the shop, as well as industrial cleaning products, then the usual disposable medical products.’
Dick Klein put in, ‘We have a provisional list, we worked on it for Corsica.’
I told him, ‘The warehouse must be fully stocked before the nursing homes open. And what I want is a price from the food retailers, then to go beat them up on price if we pay six months up front at least, same for cleaning products and disposable medical products.’
I pointed at the warehouse manager. ‘Start to draw up a list of suppliers, and keep in mind that Lucas can import a few items, mostly large items and furniture.
‘Get a relationship with a food importer started, and explain that when we have a hundred nursing homes operating they’ll be very busy – and to treat us well.’
Lucas cut in, ‘When we have a hundred nursing homes we can save money with some imports, tins and dry products, packets.’
‘Start to make a plan then,’ I encouraged. I turned to David. ‘Have our warehouse team go visit a nursing home we’re buying, and to chat to the chef, because they don’t serve tough meat or certain tough foods. Or wine or beer.’
‘It’s soft food, yeah,’ he agreed. ‘No beer.’
I faced Dick Klein. ‘I want a national plan as to what the best diet is for Phase Two and Three patients, talk to existing nursing homes, let’s have that drawn up, a list of foods and a list of what to avoid, allergies and the like.’
He nodded.
I pointed at the warehouse manager. ‘Timescale to be ready, the building?’
‘Not long, a few weeks, metal cladding is done, heaters are in, shelves are on their way, staff are hired, buildings outside have been converted to offices. It has a good fence already, and good access to the main roads and the motorway.’
‘I want cameras and security staff, no thefts.’
He nodded.
I faced David. ‘Time to complete our first nursing home here?’
‘Two months, or less.’
I faced our warehouse manager. ‘That’s your timescale. OK, nursing homes in Corsica are coming along quickly, Frances House is open and full and the residents are … happy as fuck, to say the least.
‘The second home could be ready in two months, and they’ve cut ground on homes Three and Four.
‘Scorfo Valley looked like a giant messy building site, but the water diversion and the canals have gone well, the promenade is almost done, the first few buildings and shops in progress, and they cut ground on the first two nursing homes there.
‘But Scorfo is not a priority, the priorities are the places that can be opened quickly or are visible to tourists. So the builders have been spread around to finish my holiday village, plus Mandoch Valley, and places that people will see – because no one will see Scorfo yet.
‘We’ve just entered into a deal to build a hydroelectric dam, a large one, perhaps thirty million Euro to build, and that dam will create a lake six miles long snaking back.
‘On that lake we’ll build a hotel, chalets, a nursing home or ten, a village of nice villas, a shop and pharmacy, a water sports park, nature walks, the works. And … we basically get free electricity for my hotel, the holiday village, the nursing homes, Mandoch Valley.’
I checked my notes. ‘OK, Derby Mill?’
David cut in, ‘Bought and paid for, a bargain, work started, those old offices demolished to make the Phase One.’
‘Good, all it needs now is some nice weather.’ I faced Doc Lepus. ‘You’ll be responsible as medical director, but not to drive up there very often.’
He nodded.
‘The AIDS hospice?’ I asked.
David cut in, ‘We’ve advertised for staff, could have the main building ready in a month, there was little to do. But Doc Klein had some ideas about sections and they’ve cut rooms in half, a contagion ward in there now, isolation rooms.
‘Staff accommodation is done, the lake apartments could take many months. And we’ll separate gay men from straight men and ladies – if they wish to be segregated.’
‘Doc Lepus, have a look, make a medical plan with the new manager, and there’ll be a head quack up there as well.’
‘Quack?’ he repeated, everyone laughing.
‘It’s a technical term. OK, warehouse manager, you’ll supply the AIDS hospice as well, and Derby nursing home, so plan for that. And you’ll probably supply some of the soft prisons if we have capacity to do that.’
‘Might need a second shed then.’
‘Plan for a second shed and cost it up,’ I told him. ‘Money is no issue, my patience is an issue.’ I turned my head to David. ‘Airfield soft prison?’
‘A huge building site full of cranes, the building outlines seen now.’
‘Could the stores there do more, take pressure off stores here?’
‘Well … boxes and pallets get delivered to the warehouse here, broken up, sent on. Straight forwards enough, don’t need to store them here.’
The warehouse manager put in, ‘Out the same day, no extra space needed.’
‘Plan for that then, a good stores operation at the soft prison. OK, the Coventry Holiday Camp?’
David replied, ‘Will soon be ready, it was just fences and building conversions. The huts have all been tested by the Health and Safety teams, electrics were OK, water and sewage were OK to start.
