The Grey Man

CHAPTER TEN

It hadn't been a great start to the week for Kevin. By the end of the day, all he wanted was to get home and spend a relaxing evening with Linda. In the car he put on their favourite Billy Joel tape, the one with their song on it, hoping she wouldn't ask him if he had managed to get Friday off. He knew she'd ask, but he wanted a few minutes' peace before the storm.

When they were sitting on the sofa drinking tea and watching EastEnders, she still hadn't asked. Kevin realized he was going to have to tell her, and ruin the evening. He waited until the end of the programme.

'I'm sorry, Linda. I asked Symington for the day off, but he said no.'

Linda's face flushed. He could see she was trying to control her anger. 'But he can't do that. He's no right. You're entitled to a day off. It's just not fair.'

'He said we're just too busy.'

'Busy? When's that place ever busy?'

'I know, but I gave four days' notice and the rules say I have to give five.'

He could see that her annoyance had transferred from Symington to him.

'I told you you should have done it last week. I was really looking forward to this weekend. It's our anniversary.'

'I know. I'm so sorry. I was waiting for the right time to ask him.' He put a hand on her knee. 'I'm really sorry. At least we've still got the weekend.'

Linda could see he was upset too and knew it was pointless to go on at him. Kevin was almost too gentle, too nice. She'd tried to encourage him to stand up for himself a bit more, push himself forward a bit, but he never seemed able to do it. It meant people walked all over him. She needed to help him build his self-confidence. She knew he had it in him to be more forceful. Maybe one day the penny would finally drop.

'Something else happened today, though.' Kevin changed the subject. 'Guess who came into the bank.' He had saved the good news to tell her after the bad.

'Who?'

'Jessica Drake.'

'No! You're kidding me! Was she wearing it?'

'Yep — and a big fur coat.'

'What's it like? What's she like? What else was she wearing?' Now she was caught up in a real-life gossip mag. 'I can't believe you've met Jessica Drake! Wait till I tell the girls at work. How big was the sapphire?'

Kevin made a rock-sized circle with his thumb and index finger. 'She had the world's most stunning necklace, but she wasn't the world's most stunning woman. My wife is.'

Linda grinned and shuffled up next to him on the sofa. 'Of course,' she said, pleased. 'Come here.'

As they kissed, he realized it was true. Linda was more beautiful than Jessica. She was natural, and lovely, and kind. Far better than that fake, second-rate actress. He hugged her closer.

And then it happened. Today became the day that Kevin Dodds got angry. Really angry. He didn't know if it was because Symington wouldn't give him the day off, or because Jessica Drake had thrown her coat at him, or even because he'd seen his wife's disappointment in him. But while he was sitting on the sofa and Linda was waffling on about the Augusta, the dam burst. He felt pure anger twist and spread through his body until he was filled with rage. He clenched his fists, his breathing came fast and the blood rushed to his head. He didn't have to live like this. He didn't have to take it all lying down. He could fight back. It was time to stop being the grey man.

Slowly a plan began to hatch.

Linda glanced at him. 'What are you grinning at?'

'Just thinking about Saturday night, that's all. I'm going to make it the most wonderful night you've ever had. I'll make up for not getting Friday off, I promise.'

And for the first time Kevin's life got interesting.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Tuesday, 7 February, 11.28 a.m.

For Gary and Alice, today was like any other day at the bank. There was the usual lack of customers and Symington shouting at them every now and again. But for Kevin today wasn't an ordinary day. He was in his office, with his paperwork in front of him, and his mug of coffee in his hand, but today was the day that would change his life for ever.

He paused for a moment, his finger hovering over the mouse. Google's search engine was on screen and he had already typed in 'homemade explosives'. If he clicked, Kevin knew there would be no turning back. He was terrified, but he'd had enough of people walking all over him. He'd had enough of smiling. It was now or never. He was going to do something that Robert de Niro, and Clint Eastwood had done loads of times. He was going to rob a bank. He took a long, deep breath, and then the grey man struck back. He clicked the mouse.

The first page of home-made explosives was on the screen but before Kevin had a chance to start reading, Symington burst into his office. 'Dodds! Why aren't you out there making sure those two are doing their work?'

Kevin stood behind his desk hoping that Symington wouldn't walk round it and see what was on the screen. He peered out through his door and saw Alice at the counter doing paperwork. Gary was making a phone call.

'Well, er… Alice can handle the counter. And Gary's making business calls. It's not busy so I thought I'd start this month's report early.'

Symington wasn't too sure how to react to that one. 'Good.' He left Kevin's office and stormed back to his own. Kevin closed the door and got back to his PC.

He checked out a number of websites that showed him how to make explosives before it dawned on him. Why was he looking at all this stuff? He didn't know the first thing about blowing up safe-deposit boxes. He'd probably blow himself up instead. As Clint had said to him one Saturday night, 'A man's got to know his limitations.'

Kevin sat back in his chair and thought about his. He didn't have a clue about what he was doing. He had no experience in such matters. Except that he'd watched a hundred and one bank-robbery movies, the good ones at least twice. He wasn't fit, so the chance of him swinging above motion detectors by his fingernails, wasn't good. And he wasn't a genius, so he was unlikely to come up with a plan no one else had ever thought of. No, his plan would depend on two things. First, it should need no brains and no fitness, and second, it used the one advantage he did have. He was already in the bank and knew how the systems worked.

He closed down Google and rested his elbows on the desk, dropping his head into his hands. He knew the exact safe-deposit box he was going to break into, but how to do it without anyone knowing he had? That was the problem. After all, it wasn't as if he was going to run away with Linda to a tropical island. If a theft was obvious, the police would soon have him as a suspect. After all, Kevin had keys to the bank and dealt with the deposit boxes every day. He didn't know how he would stand up to their questions. Would he confess out of fear? Would guilt be written all over his face? He never had been a good liar. No, this had to be a crime that no one ever knew had been committed. So, no alarms, no noisy explosives, no bits of broken deposit-box strewn across the floor. It had to be a clean, silent crime that no one ever knew about.

Kevin had a sip of coffee to wake himself up. Even if he could get to the safe-deposit box with the guard key, he would still need the client key to open it. How was he going to get his hands on it?

Symington was outside his door again, moaning at Gary, who had offered to cover for Kevin on Friday. 'This is a place of work, not a charity.'

Kevin felt the anger twist in his belly. He was going to put his plan into action this Friday evening. He was looking forward to coming into work on Monday morning. Symington and everyone else would be none the wiser as