A scurry of sound had Gus diving upstairs, just in time to see two legs disappearing up a ladder into the attic space. Gus lunged forward making a desperate grab for a leg. Gripping the ankle, he held tight, with one hand, but his assailant struggled, kicking, and twisting his leg until finally he made purchase with Gus’s broken nose. Gus yelped as the killer pulled away and scrambled into the attic. Grabbing the ladder rungs, Gus hoisted himself upwards and threw himself into the space landing on a bed of Rockwool.
Scrambling sounds to his right gave him Cameron’s position and attempting to keep his knees on the joists he crawled after him. As he moved along the loft space, adrenalin allowed him to keep pace with Ben Cameron, the sounds of Alice talking to Gabriella in the bedroom beneath receded. Wondering which of the row of terraced houses Ben had gained entry by, Gus kept on doggedly. His entire body protested, but he was determined not to give up. Ahead of him the killer stopped and turned the dull light from his head torch gave his face a maniacal look. ‘Come on then, McGuire. It’s just you and me now. Let’s do this.’
Gus got to his feet and moved closer to Ben. ‘Yes, let’s.’
When Gus was within a few feet of his assailant, Cameron threw something at Gus’s head. Taken by surprise, Gus tried to dodge but the object – a metal drill, but it hit him on the temple making him lose his balance. One foot slipped off the floor joists and onto the plasterboard. Before Gus could pull his foot back, it sunk into the plasterboard and his foot was trapped.
Ben, seeing his predicament, laughed. ‘Oh dear, McGuire. What will you do now?’
Cameron moved closer, his experience exploring attic spaces making his movements fluid. He carried a syringe in his hand and Gus knew that if Cameron managed to inject him with the ketamine he was sure was in the syringe, then he’d be incapacitated within seconds. Yanking his foot, Gus ignored the pain of his ankle twisting, intent only on releasing himself so he stood a better chance against the maniac. Another twist, and his foot came clear, leaving his shoe behind. Cameron was now only a foot away from him. With no time to think, Gus, instead of advancing on Ben, dived to the side, his fingers grasping for the drill Ben had thrown at him moments earlier. It was the only weapon Gus had and, although he was confident of his chances of taking Ben down in a fight, he didn’t want to get anywhere near that syringe.
Surprised by Gus’s tactics, Cameron hesitated, and that hesitation provided Gus with the chance to throw the drill back at Ben. Rather than aiming for his head though, Gus opted for his knees. The clank of the metal hitting his knees followed almost immediately by Ben falling onto them, galvanised Gus. He wasn’t sure if Cameron still held the syringe but that didn’t matter. Gus jumped to his feet and instead of lunging forward using the foot with his trainer still on, he aimed a kick right for his adversary’s face. The sound of bone and cartilage breaking was accompanied by a spurt of blood. Gus, breathing hard, moved closer as the other man, his hands cupping his nose, growled. Before Gus reached him, Cameron jerked forward, one arm outstretched, and Gus felt a scratch on his thigh through his jeans. Barely aware of the sound of activity beyond Ben Cameron, Gus collapsed. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t move his limbs. His heart hammered, sending the ketamine through his system quicker and as he looked up, unable to do anything, the killer’s booted foot stomped right on his stomach. As Cameron raised it again, this time to aim at Gus’s head, a familiar voice said, ‘Fucked if you do that to my boss.’ Taffy!
Taffy winked at Gus as he and a uniformed officer restrained Ben Cameron. ‘I got you, boss. I got you.’
Chapter 78
Bradford
Woozy, his entire body throbbing, with fractures to his cheekbone, ribs, and ankle, as well as the injuries he’d sustained in the car crash, Gus sat behind his desk in The Fort, trying not to move any more than was strictly necessary. Much as he would have liked to sleep for a week, his obstinate refusal to take any stronger pain relief than ibuprofen made that impossible. Besides, every time he thought of Ben Cameron and the destruction he’d caused and the torture he’d inflicted, his anger reached new heights.
Gabriella, thankfully, was fine – bruised and in pain and, in true Gabriella style, blaming him for everything that had happened to her. Gus was only relieved that their baby appeared to be unharmed by the trauma and Katie, while siding with her partner wasn’t quite so hard on Gus. Gus suspected that as the days passed all the trauma that she’d suffered at the hands of Ben Cameron would flatten her, so he’d very quietly asked Carlton to suggest a therapist to Katie. Neither his sister nor her partner would accept any help from him.
‘Look Gus. We can’t just give in to his whims. We’ve got him on all the pregnant women’s murders and on Dr Mahmood, Hopkins, and Smedley’s ones too. That combined with his attack on you will be more than enough to have him locked away forever. So you don’t need to face him again.’ Nancy was attempting to be firm, but it was clear that she was conflicted between protecting Gus and getting more information from Cameron. Ben had insisted
