Klaus was sitting at his desk, his small brown hands resting on the blotter.
‘Come in, Mr. Lucas, and sit down.’
As I sat down, Harry came in and moved over to a distant chair.
I twisted around and looked at him. I wondered about him. He was an unknown factor. He looked tough and cocky as he scratched his beard, but he hadn’t Benny’s brutal viciousness.
‘This is Harry Brett,’ Klaus said. ‘From now on, Mr. Lucas, you and he will work together. You will tell him what you want, and he will arrange it.’ He leaned back in his chair. ‘I take it you can tell me how to break into the vault and how to get the money out?’
I stared at him.
‘Did you have to murder Sheriff Thomson?’
His hands turned into fists and his slate-grey eyes lit up with that maniacal glare.
‘Let that be an example to you,’ he snarled. ‘When anyone obstructs or is likely to obstruct me, I get rid of him. Remember that! Now answer my question: can you tell me how to break into the vault and get the money out?’
‘I can, but on my terms.’
‘We have gone into that already.’ There was a snap in his voice. ‘That we will discuss later.’
I glanced at Harry who was listening intently.
‘You are forcing me to betray a trust,’ I said. You are blackmailing me for a murder I didn’t commit. The evidence you have against me could put me in jail for years, and you know it is faked evidence. I have a trump card. I could tell Brannigan, and he would come after you, and make no mistake about it, he would nail you. Unless you meet my terms, I am prepared to stand trial, and I know you will also land in jail. I want advance payment if I tell you how to break into the vault.’
‘We have gone into this before,’ Klaus said impatiently. ‘I will pay you as arranged if you can convince me we can break into the vault and get the money away.’
‘We?’ I shook my head. ‘I don’t imagine you will participate. You will be sitting here in safety while your people take the risks.’
Klaus glared at me.
‘What risks?’
‘The unexpected. If the unexpected happens, your people will go away for twenty years.’
I saw Harry shift uneasily.
Leaning forward, his face a snarling mask, Klaus said, ‘And you and your woman will be dead as Marsh and Thomson are dead!’
Looking at him, I now was sure he was mentally unbalanced: he was a psychopath, and I felt a chill crawl up my spine.
‘Then let us hope the unexpected doesn’t happen,’ I said, trying to keep my voice steady. I reached down and picked up my brief-case I had brought with me.
Moving with the quickness of a lizard, Harry was by my side. He snatched the brief-case from me, put it on the desk, flicked up the catches and opened it. A brief glance at its contents satisfied him. He nodded to Klaus, then returned to his chair.
I guessed he might have thought I had brought a gun with me or it might have been a show of efficiency to impress Klaus. Whatever it was, by his lightning movement, I was warned that this man must not be underestimated.
From the brief-case, I took the gimmick I had made and two photoelectric neutralizes and the blue print of the bank.
I spread the blueprint on the desk.
‘Here is the entrance to the bank. Double doors are operated by a photoelectric cell. It is a unique cell with a neutralizer only held by Manson, the head teller and myself. There is no security risk. If someone got hold of the neutralizer, he would only be able to enter ‘he lobby of the bank. He couldn’t get into the vault nor get up to the second floor where the staff is. This neutralizer will get your men into the lobby. Getting in has to be timed right when the guard is patrolling. The doors slide back, your men rush in and the doors will automatically close. It shouldn’t take them more than thirty seconds. They will have to bring with them a small oxyacetylene cutter to get into the deposit boxes. There will be no problem burning out the locks. It’ll take time, but a cutter will do it. The problem, of course, is getting into the vault.’ I pointed to the blueprint. ‘Here is Manson’s office. There are three scanners covering the lobby. Each is activated to take photographs if a beam is broken. Here is the beam,’ and I drew a pencil line across the lobby. ‘By crawling on hands and knees, your men can reach the elevator without activating the scanner. Using this second neutralize they can operate the elevator and get into Manson’s office on the second floor.’ I picked up the gimmick I had made. ‘On Manson’s desk is a red telephone. The lead wires must be cut and stripped, then joined with these two wires here,’ and I showed him the two loose wires on the gimmick. ‘Then using the dial on the red telephone, four numbers must be dialled. The numbers are 2-4-6-8. These numbers will release three of the vault’s locks. Then using the cassette of Manson’s voice, the other three locks will be released and the vault door opens. The cassette is in a spring-opening panel behind Manson’s desk. It is up to your people how fast they break into the deposit boxes. Assuming they enter the bank around 02.00 on Saturday morning, they should have cleared the boxes by the evening.’ I paused and looked at Klaus. ‘Any questions so far?’
Klaus looked at Harry who shook his head.
‘You and Harry will work out the details later,’ Klaus said. ‘Now tell me how to get the money out.’
‘At first, this seemed to me a major problem, but I’ve got it fixed. There are some four hundred deposit boxes in the vault. Not all of them are in use, but to make sure, your people will have to open them all. Those that are in use will contain money, jewellery, bonds and documents. You must have cartons in which to move the loot. It takes the guard around three minutes to patrol the bank before returning to his sentry-box by the bank’s entrance. So your people will have to rush in, not only with the cutter, but a number of collapsible cartons. The change of guards takes place on Sunday morning at 08.00. This is when the loot must be moved. It is an acceptable risk because there are few people on the street, and the guards will be chatting each other up in front of the bank. At exactly 07.55, a security truck will arrive at the back of the bank. Every Monday morning, a security truck arrives around 08.00, delivering bank reserves, money for wages and so on. Everyone in Sharnville has seen this truck at one time or the other. You can say it is a familiar landmark.’ I pointed my pencil to the blueprint ‘The truck arrives at the bank, here, and drives down this ramp into a cellar. Once in, the doors, leading into the cellar, automatically shut. The truck driver has a neutralizer that opens the door of the cellar. Once in the cellar, he waits, until one of the staff opens a steel door with direct access into the vault. This staff member will not open the steel door until the truck driver has identified himself. I can open the doors to the cellar and the steel door into the bank, but only from inside the vault. You will have to supply an identical truck and two men wearing security guards’ uniform. You put the cartons in the truck and drive away. Unless your men slip up, there will be no alert until the bank opens on Monday morning so your men should get well away.’
Klaus looked at Harry.
‘Can you get a truck and the uniforms?’
‘Sure. I’ll need to get a photo of the truck and the uniforms. I know a guy who can fix it. No problem.’
Turning to me, Klaus said, ‘You think this plan of yours will succeed?’
‘If it doesn’t, no other plan will.’ I pointed to the gimmick and to the blueprint. ‘I’ve made it as foolproof as possible. It is now up to your people.’
‘No, Mr. Lucas, it will be up to you. You will be with them.’ He leaned forward to stare at me, his eyes glittering. ‘If anything goes wrong, you will be shot. Benny killed Marsh, and he killed Thomson. He has orders to shoot you if this operation fails or if he thinks you are being tricky. Remember that.’ His face set in a snarling mask. ‘And there is another thing for you to remember. I will personally shoot your woman, Mr. Lucas! This operation must succeed!’