I threw out my arms, managing to break the worst of my fall, then rolled over in the dirt, jumped to my feet again, driven by pure adrenalin and the ecstatic joy of survival, and kept running through the woods in the rough direction of where I’d parked the Mercedes. I didn’t get in it though, but kept running down the lane and out onto the country road I’d originally turned off.
Headlights temporarily blinded me as a car came into view, moving fast. It screeched to a halt and I jumped in the passenger side as it accelerated away again, heading for the motorway and safety.
For a good minute neither of us spoke. I was still panting from exhaustion. Then, as I finally got my breathing under control, I turned to Tina.
‘I didn’t want you to have to do that. But thank you. You saved my life.’
She shrugged. ‘I know. If I hadn’t been there, you’d be dead by now.’
Which was absolutely true. After I fled the scene of Cem Kalaman’s killing in the Mercedes, I’d known my options were limited. As I’ve repeatedly said, I didn’t want to involve Tina, but desperate times call for desperate measures and I’d called her on the burner phone, told her about my intention to head back to the house where Lane and her colleagues had held me, and she’d offered to come as back-up. I suppose it could be argued that I’d tried to talk her out of it, but I hadn’t really tried too hard. The plan had been simple enough. Although I’d gone in alone, I’d put my phone on speaker and called Tina’s number so she could hear what was going on. She’d been positioned on the driveway, just outside the front gates, and had insisted on being armed with the gun I’d picked up from one of Kalaman’s bodyguards, even though it had only two rounds in it.
‘I couldn’t see what was going on from behind the gates,’ she said, ‘but I could hear it all, so I started shooting. I couldn’t even see what I was aiming at.’
‘I managed to hit the guy, but I don’t think the woman was hurt.’
‘It sounded like you knew her.’
‘She’s the one I’ve told you about – The Wraith.’
‘The one who killed your friend Chris?’
I nodded. ‘She didn’t actually pull the trigger but she organized his killing, so I hold her responsible. I didn’t think I’d ever see her again after she got away last time.’
‘So, who’s her client now?’
‘It’s got to be Alastair Sheridan. Cem Kalaman knew all his secrets. He would have always been a threat, especially now that Sheridan’s got his eyes on the PM’s job. With him out of the way, there’s no one with any evidence of the things he’s done. I’ve got to hand it to him, he’s a cunning bastard. Kill Kalaman. Frame me for it. Then sit back and watch while the police hunt me down and kill me.’ I shook my head. ‘I reckon Lane was part of the plan too, working for Sheridan rather than the security services, and he decided to get rid of her as well.’
Tina slowed the car down, then took the gun I’d given her out from under her jacket and threw it into a hedge.
‘You’ll need somewhere to stay tonight,’ she said, turning back to me.
I took a deep breath, the adrenalin fading now. ‘I know. I’ve got a fake passport on order. It’ll be ready tomorrow. I’ll pick it up and then try to get out of the country with the cash I’ve got left.’
The car fell silent as we came onto the M25, heading anti-clockwise in the direction of Tina’s house. The wound in my belly that I’d got from the prison knife fight with Troy Ramone was hurting, and when I inspected it, I saw that it was bleeding a little. It was going to need dressing again.
‘Come back to mine,’ Tina said eventually, ‘but after tonight you’ll have to leave.’
‘I don’t want to put you at risk.’
She laughed. ‘You’ve already put me at risk a few times over, but I wanted to help you. And you know what? It felt good tonight, seeing some action again. But now that I’ve had my dose of it and got away in one piece, I’m happy to go back to my normal life.’
‘I’m glad to hear it. I want to think of you living to a ripe old age.’ I smiled at her. ‘Maybe marry a nice, handsome accountant, even have a couple of kids.’
‘I’m not sure that’s ever going to happen but I guess you never know. And by the way, you can only stay with me on one condition.’
I looked at her. ‘What’s that?’
‘No trying anything. I know you’ve been in jail a long time, but you’re going to need to keep your hands to yourself. Do you think you can do that?’
‘After what’s happened tonight, that’s the last thing on my mind,’ I lied.
17
Jane Kelman hadn’t always been a killer. Years ago, she’d been a married mother of two who’d never even been in a fight, let alone murdered anyone. But life has a way of changing things, and the truth was, Jane had enjoyed killing the first time she’d done it. The act itself had been exciting. It had given her a sense of power she’d never experienced before and it didn’t take her long to understand why serial killers found murder addictive. The victims too had deserved it. One had been the loan shark she’d been forced to sleep with to help pay off her husband’s debts, a low-level gangster and a slimy piece of dirt called Frank Mellon. Another had been his bodyguard. And the third had been her husband himself, set up to make it look like he’d killed
