Wild Dogs, page 26
Darren had a rough idea of the area where Gabe said his ute was. They had a good head start on their pursuers, though they did have a kid with them, and Gabe was no fast mover himself, what with that hip of his, but there was nothing much Darren could do. The three men after them were all armed, and he was not, so he decided his best course would be to find Gabe’s ute, wait for him and then meet up with Courtney and Parker back in Carnarvon. And if it all turned to shit, at least he might be able to use the drugs as a bargaining tool. He wasn’t sure how much he was carrying, but supposed it was no small amount. It wasn’t overly heavy, maybe five kilos at the most. A few people he knew dabbled in drugs, and apparently twenty bucks didn’t get you much of anything. So yeah, he was carrying a fair bit of coin and was pretty certain they’d want it back.
Darren reached his bike, the sound of vehicles approaching along the road growing louder behind him. More bad guys? This just keeps getting better. He mounted the bike, rested the bag on the fuel tank between his legs and fired up the engine. It sounded exceptionally loud to his nervous ears, and he set off once more, heading in the general direction of Gabe’s ute and away from whoever it was bearing down on the old station homestead.
‘Keep going,’ Gabe ordered, his breath ragged and raspy. Shit, I’m unfit.
Branches whipped past as they ran. His hip screamed in protest, but he ignored it as best he could. They weren’t far from his ute now, just a few hundred metres and then they could get the hell out of this nightmare. He looked back, saw Aamena, Jawad and Amin all following, their eyes on him. Christ, what a bloody joke, him leading them out of the desert like goddamn Moses. He knew the three of them could’ve easily overtaken his old body had they not needed his directions. But the ute was parked between low wattles and would be hard to spot unless they knew where to look. Bloody scrub through here was thick – both a blessing and a curse.
A cry came from behind him. Aamena had stumbled on a dead branch, but was quickly hauled to her feet by her husband and son. There were other noises too. Gabe raised a hand, motioning for them to stop, and held a finger to his lips. The sharp warble of a motorbike engine cut through the still air, mixed with the snap and crackle of breaking branches as something, or someone, pushed through the scrub.
Amin gave him a worried look. ‘Darren?’
‘Maybe. Or they got smart and are following us on bikes. Keep moving, not far now.’
They ran on, their speed hampered by the vegetation. Gabe kept expecting to hear a gunshot and feel the bullet, but he told himself that was unlikely for now, with the wattle, curara and mulga offering good cover. But the bike was drawing closer, and he didn’t like that. He fumbled fresh cartridges from his pocket and fed them into the rifle.
His khaki LandCruiser came into view. Gabe flung open the doors, allowing Aamena and Jawad to scramble inside onto the bench seat at the rear and Amin in the front, then raced around to the driver’s side. The bike was very near, the engine’s note rising and falling as the rider weaved their way through the foliage. Gabe leaned his rifle across the bonnet and took up aim. Amin retrieved his handgun and raised it through the open window, also waiting.
‘My other rifle would be handy about now,’ Gabe said through gritted teeth.
‘Would you like to go back and get it?’ Amin asked. He sounded as though he was smiling, but Gabe didn’t look. His focus was all down the gun’s sights.
A blue mudguard flashed through the leaves. Gabe tensed, his finger resting on the trigger, ready. The bike broke through, and Gabe almost fired from sheer nervousness. Darren skidded to a halt and gave him a huge grin.
‘Found ya,’ he said, clearly proud of himself. ‘But you gotta move, they’re right behind you and this thing is nothing but a bloody homing beacon for them.’
‘Right you are.’ Gabe leaped into the driver’s seat. ‘Follow us.’ He noticed the bag in Darren’s lap. ‘What the hell is that?’
‘Insurance. Can I chuck it in the back? Bit awkward and I don’t wanna drop it.’
‘No time, it’s all locked up,’ Gabe said, wondering what the hell the kid was on about. He fired the engine and the big V8 rumbled in anticipation. ‘Keep up if you can. We’ll stop once we’re clear.’
‘Right, they’re on foot so we should be good.’ Darren had no sooner said this when shouts came from the direction they had just run from. ‘Better piss off quick, I reckon.’
Gabe dumped the clutch and the heavy ute lurched forward. As he swung the wheel hard, he saw figures emerge from the shrubbery, all raising rifles, ready to fire. He heard Darren’s bike surge, followed by the crack of rifle shots. Something clanged and whined from inside the canopy, and he figured a bullet had ricocheted off one of the steel toolboxes. Aamena ducked her head, holding Jawad close to her as Amin fired a couple of shots out of the window in reply, letting their pursuers know they could shoot back too. Gabe weaved his way through the scrub, ignoring the screeches of protest from the ute’s paintwork as they scraped past branches and crunched over dead wattles. He willed his tyres to hold.
The gunshots receded behind them and he began to breathe a little easier. He could see Darren off to his right, slotting through the scrub with practised ease, as though this were just a normal mustering run, flying bullets notwithstanding. Slowly, ever so slowly, the poisoned knot of dread that had sat heavy in his gut since this whole affair started began to loosen. He turned to Amin. The man had twisted in his seat and was facing Aamena, their foreheads touching, each with a hand on the back of the other’s neck. Gabe didn’t need to know the language to understand.
He reached over and squeezed Amin’s shoulder. ‘Another hour or so and we’ll be home free, I reckon.’
‘Alhamdulillah. Thank you, my friend,’ Amin said. ‘From all of us. I do not know how we can repay you.’
‘Come break me out of jail,’ Gabe laughed, but he was only half joking. Once the dust settled, he suspected he was in for some hefty charges, but looking at the family next to him now, he decided it was worth it after all. The little boy beamed at him, and Aamena’s tear-filled eyes shone with gratitude and relief.
‘I would,’ Amin said. ‘But I suspect I may be joining you – that is, if we are still allowed to stay here.’
Gabe considered this. ‘You think they’ll deport you?’
Amin shrugged. ‘I don’t know. It was mentioned many times by the smugglers.’ He said something to Aamena, who nodded and replied.
‘They threatened to drop the women to the police,’ Amin explained, ‘saying they would be sent home if they did not do as they were told, and that no one would believe their story.’
‘I barely believe the story, and I’ve seen it firsthand.’
It hardly seemed fair to Gabe, to go through all this and still be sent back to the country they’d fled. But what could they do? Before he could think about it any further, Darren rode over and motioned for him to wind down his window.
‘Back to my cousin’s troopy?’ he asked.
‘Guess so,’ Gabe said. ‘Then leg it into town. Lead the way; I don’t think they’re following us.’
Darren peeled away, and Gabe followed.
They reached the troop carrier soon enough. Gabe noted Darren had parked it much the same as he had parked his own vehicle, wedged between trees and covered as best he could. They stopped and all climbed out. Aamena said something to Amin, who translated.
‘She asks how you can find something in this bush, when it all looks the same.’
‘Practice,’ Gabe answered. ‘Right, Darren?’
‘Yep.’
‘Now, what have you got in that bag?’
‘My retirement plan,’ Darren joked. He dropped the bag on the ground, opened it and hefted up one of the packages.
‘What the hell is that?’
‘Drugs. Meth, I think. They were carving it up into smaller bags when we showed up and wrecked their day.’
‘Bloody hell, when did you grab that?’
‘Just after you guys bolted into the scrub.’ He put the packages back into the bag and threw it into the rear of the troop carrier. ‘Figured that’s what they were doing in there, and after they left to follow you I shot in and nabbed it. Guessed it might come in handy later, in case something went bad. And if not, a few kilos of crack should get someone’s attention in town.’
‘Reckon so,’ Gabe said. ‘Good thinking, though I don’t think—’
A sound that was becoming all too familiar cut him off. The satellite phone was ringing again.
FORTY-FOUR
‘What do you mean it’s gone?’ yelled Garrick Wheldon.
Courtney watched in silent fear as one of the lackeys reported to Jefferson and Garrick. The man was obviously as terrified as she was. He looked a mess, covered in dried wattle leaves, sweat and dust. She assumed he had gone after Gabe’s group on foot, and if he’d returned empty-handed, that must have meant they’d gotten away.
‘We were just starting when shit hit the fan,’ the man explained. ‘We bolted out to see what was going on, saw that blackfella on the bike and went after him, like you said.’
‘I didn’t say leave a couple of million dollars’ worth of gear lying around for anyone to just walk in and grab!’
‘I bet it was that kid,’ another lackey said, equally as nervous. ‘We lost him at first, came back here, nearly got them but then the bus took off.’
‘I know what happened,’ Wheldon snarled. ‘I was in the fucking thing, remember? How the fuck are we going to explain this?’
Chase stood in the corner of the room. He held Gabe’s rifle, the one Courtney saw Amin drop during the earlier confusion, and was turning it over in his hands. If his wrist bothered him, it didn’t show. Perhaps he’d taken something for it, something you couldn’t get in your local pharmacy, and he looked as though he was almost enjoying the show. Jefferson seemed less enthusiastic. He kept casting glances at Parker, who only returned his looks with a cold, hard stare.
She and Parker were seated at the kitchen table. Courtney didn’t know where the women and children were – probably sent back to their rooms, as, from what she could gather, whatever it was they had been working on in that shed was gone. Darren. It had to be; there was no way Gabe and the others had time to snatch something. She kept her face impassive, but inwardly she was smiling. If he had something of theirs, maybe she and Parker had a chance. But another part of her told her that was a little too optimistic. Parker was a cop, and an honest one. There was no way anyone would trust him to keep his mouth shut. They could threaten her and the others, but Parker was too experienced, too much of a risk. Easier just to get rid of him.
‘What do we do now?’ Wheldon asked Jefferson, but before the officer could answer Chase strode over.
‘Easy,’ he said, retrieving a card from Jefferson’s pocket. ‘We phone a friend.’
‘That can only be one person,’ Gabe said, looking at the number coming up on the screen. ‘Should I answer it?’
‘Perhaps you should,’ Amin said. ‘In case . . .’
‘In case what?’ He already knew what Amin was hinting at, but didn’t want it to be true.
‘In case the others didn’t make it.’
‘Shit.’ So Amin suspected the same thing. He pressed the button and waited.
‘Dogger.’
He knew that voice.
‘Chase. Wasn’t expecting to hear from you again.’
‘Lot of things we all weren’t expecting, dogger.’ The tone was calm, calculating. Gabe didn’t like it.
‘Bit like the Carnarvon cops will feel when we rock up with a bunch of refugees and a stack of that shit of yours we nabbed, whatever it is. I guess that’s why you’re ringing.’
‘Smart as ever. Except for one thing. You have something of ours, and we have something of yours. Two things, actually.’
There was a crackle, the sound of the phone being handed to someone else.
‘Gabe?’ Her voice was tense, fearful.
He punched the ute’s door. ‘Courtney. You okay?’
‘I’m sorry,’ she began. ‘We ran right into them, we had no choice.’
‘Parker there?’
‘Yes, we . . .’ And then the rustle again.
‘So, I’m sure you can work out what we expect,’ Chase said.
‘I can.’
‘Good. Head back here and we’ll do a trade.’
Gabe’s mind raced. Going back to Brigadier was a bad idea. ‘No.’
Momentary silence. ‘No? You do realise what that means, don’t you?’
‘It means we’re not coming to you.’ An idea floated at the back of his mind. He had the gear. He had the lure. All he needed was the perfect site. ‘You’re coming to us.’
‘Is that so?’
‘Damn right it’s so,’ Gabe said. ‘You reckon we’re going to believe you’ll just let us go once we hand over your drugs? You must think we’re fucking stupid. And what about Parker, you think you can convince him to keep quiet if you did let him go?’
‘He is a problem,’ Chase conceded. ‘But there is a lot at stake here, and I think his partner can convince him to keep this to himself.’
‘And how are you going to do that?’
‘I hear he has a niece and nephew.’
Gabe heard a sudden curse erupt from Parker in the background, followed by the sound of a chair being pushed back, a dull thud, a cry from Courtney, then silence.
Chase spoke again, panting a little. ‘So, are we going to trade or do I need to find something else to do with these two?’
‘We’ll trade,’ Gabe said. ‘But not at Brigadier.’
‘Where then?’
‘You know where. The ridge. Back where it all started. But if anything happens to those two, the next time you see your drugs or us will be on the six o’clock news.’ And with that, he ended the call.
‘What is it?’ Amin asked.
Gabe relayed the conversation. ‘Seems you’ve done good, Darren.’
‘You know it’s a trap,’ Darren said.
‘Of course it is, just like last time.’
‘So, what do we do?’
Gabe didn’t answer at first. He rolled a smoke, gave it to Amin. Rolled another for himself, thinking hard. He looked at the troopy and the drugs in the rear, at Darren’s motorbike and back to his own ute.
‘Easy,’ he said. ‘We set our own.’
Courtney sat in the back seat of the police troop carrier, hands cuffed behind her. She rocked and swayed each time the vehicle jolted over a pothole, and twice her head smacked into the side window. She would’ve cursed at them, but her mouth was gagged. Seated across from her, Parker was in much the same predicament, worse, even. Blood trickled from a cut on his forehead, courtesy of the blow received when the officer reacted to Chase’s threats about his niece and nephew. She caught his eye, tried to give him a weak smile. He responded in kind. There wasn’t much else they could do.
‘I don’t like it one bit.’ Garrick Wheldon was staring out of the police carrier’s passenger window. ‘Why would he want to go back there? And why are we humouring him?’ He turned to Jefferson. ‘All we have to do is get rid of these two, find the others and get rid of them too.’
‘Do you have any idea how much heat a dead cop would bring? We’re going to have to be smart about this.’
‘Smart thing would have been to never become involved,’ Wheldon muttered. ‘Fuckin’ Troy and his scheming. Should’ve told those suits to piss off from day one. Stuck to growing dope.’
‘Perhaps,’ Jefferson said. ‘Too late now though.’
They drove on. Courtney caught glimpses of Chase’s ute ahead of them through the dust. How he was doing anything with that wrist amazed her, but then she had seen the look in his eyes. The man was running on blind fury, and she doubted any suggestion to let them go would sit well with him.
They drove along for what seemed an age. Courtney noticed they didn’t take any main roads. Darren couldn’t have known about these back tracks when they drove to Brigadier yesterday. She wondered if Gabe knew of them, or if he’d come up the highway. Doubtful, not with that windscreen of his, but then he had Parker with him too, so she supposed that would be like a free pass.
Parker. What were they going to do with him? Probably the same as her, despite what Jefferson said about the risks. It would be riskier to leave him alive. She could only hope at least one of her companions could get back to Carnarvon and raise the alarm, but could they do that in time?
When the granite ridge near the dumping hole came into view, Courtney realised where they had been heading and shivered. Oh God, not here again. She would never forget this place, coming so close to death only yesterday, and here they were facing the same fate once more. Her stomach churned. How in the hell were they going to get out of this? They were going to end up in that hole with a bullet in their heads, regardless of whether Gabe handed over the package or not. There was no way they’d be trusted to keep quiet.
‘There they are.’
‘Son of a bitch,’ breathed Wheldon. ‘What’s he playing at?’
‘Don’t know, but keep those two close,’ Jefferson said, bringing the police vehicle to a halt. Courtney strained to see what was happening, but all she could make out was Gabe’s ute parked in the middle of the clearing near the base of the ridge. She caught Parker’s eyes again, and he shrugged, just as clueless as her.
Wheldon opened the troopy’s rear doors and dragged her out, beckoning for Parker to follow. She looked around. Chase was climbing out of his ute, along with another man. Behind them was a second vehicle, with two more men. All were armed in some fashion, and it appeared Chase was still carrying the rifle Amin had dropped back at the station. Gabe’s rifle.
