I guess this is also part of my problem. As a detective, I should have been able to protect everyone, no matter what. Perhaps deep down inside, I feel it’s my fault I wasn’t there to save my family from the hit and run driver and therefore I deserve to be living on the streets.
Chapter Nine
DAVE
Dave buys his main supply of cocaine from a man he suspects is part of the Russian Mafia. He’s not sure of the connection because in the eight years they’ve been doing business, he’s been wise enough not to ask.
Dave had been selling cannabis for four years from his London contact, Mohammad Awan, when he decided to expand into harder drugs. He was constantly being asked for cocaine and Mohammad was happy to put him in touch with someone he said could be trusted implicitly.
The first time Dave met his new supplier was at the initial negotiations held at a ‘pay-by-the-hour’ office suite in London. The meeting went well and he agreed to take a minimum shipment of £10,000 every two weeks. Dave could see these people were serious. It was forcibly brought home to him that he was expected to always arrive on time at the agreed handovers, and to be professional in every way.
Since that first meeting, Vladimir Fedorov the Russian, never attends the handovers personally, preferring to send two of his men to handle the exchanges. Dave meets them at the Milton Motel just outside of Trentbridge every two weeks.
The set-up is always the same: Dave receives a call on the unregistered pay-as-you-go mobile provided by the Russians at the previous meet up. The day and time will be agreed and they will meet in the motel coffee lounge.
One of the Russians and Dave’s second-in-command will then go out to their vehicles, which they have parked side-by-side. The Russian will check the money while Dave’s man will check the ‘merchandise’.
The Russians are slick operators. They are always on time and the goods are always exactly as agreed; never short or sub-standard and never carried out on the same day or at the same time. It is either a Tuesday or Wednesday and from any time between ten am and three pm. At each meet, Dave is given a new pay-as-you-go phone for the next drugs meeting and he hands back the previous one.
The Russians display no emotion, no fear, nothing. They are men of few words. As Dave peers into their menacing eyes, he imagines their hearts are as cold as a Siberian winter and they would slit your throat without a moment’s hesitation, yet at the same time they are friendly and polite. He considers this to be an admirable quality.
It is obvious to Dave that they are simply part of an operation one step up the chain from him. He often wonders how high it goes and who is actually at the top, but even he is not stupid enough to try to find out.
Eight years ago, when he first started buying drugs from them, the deals were £10,000 every two weeks. Over time, the amount he buys has increased and is now £30,000 each time.
After the exchange, Dave leaves the motel coffee bar and gets into a separate car from Kenny Green his second-in-command. His associate will take the drugs to the lock-up and meet him when he arrives. This way he won’t get caught with the drugs if the police happen to stop and search the car. Once he has the new supply, it is simply a case of phoning his customers and taking orders.
None of Dave’s customers are street dealers as these tend to get caught easily by the police. Dave supplies the middlemen who in turn supply the street dealers, unware of his existence. Most of the street dealers are users themselves so totally unreliable. Junkies, who if they are desperate enough would stab you for the price of a fix.
Three years ago, when Dave arrived at the Milton Motel handover, he was shocked to find Vladimir taking the place of one of the usual Russians. Dave wasn’t sure what was going on and couldn’t hide the fear on his face. Vladimir was quick to hold out his hand and smile as if to reassure him.
“I have a proposition for you. We could help you expand your business. We have lots of nice girls who we can offer to you for £500 a week. You could make your money back in a couple of days. If you don’t have experience in setting up an escort agency we can send people to help you. And perks of the trade, you get free. You can double or even triple your money, easy. Ten girls working can make you £5,000 a week. You want to think about it and let my people know next time?”
Dave was relieved this was the reason for the unexpected appearance of the Russian boss. He told Vladimir that he would definitely think about it, but in his mind he was pretty certain his answer was going to be yes. He’d heard about the amount of money to be made from these Eastern European girls, and the freebies would also be good. They would probably be used to the kinds of things which turned him on; things that prevented him from getting a regular girlfriend.
Two weeks later, as the next deal went down, Dave passed on the message that he was interested in Vladimir’s new proposal. The two Russians smiled.
“I think you make good decision. I tell boss when we get back to London,” one of them told him.
Within six weeks, Dave had his own ‘escort agency’ up and running, starting with ten girls as Vladimir suggested. The deal was that the first month was free and
