Back in the countryside near Crazy Well Pool, there was little change from the night before. The lamp had gone out just before dawn. It was as light as it was going to get today with the thick cloud and drizzle that hung over the moorland. There were no vehicles on the unnamed road this morning; nor were there any hikers or anoraked youngsters on organised walks.
CHAPTER 18
Colin had phoned ahead for transport and fallen asleep in the minicab on the trip back to Larcombe Manor. His driver had elbowed him awake as they drew up outside the stable block.
“There you go Phoenix” he said “I should get your head down for a few hours mate; nobody in the big house is going to bother you today; the balloon’s about to go up and they’re tied up in meetings.”
“Thanks” said Colin. He had dropped his rucksack inside the door of his quarters and crashed out on his bed. It was nine o’clock before he awoke and he headed over to the canteen for a meal. There were several other people around and the general chit chat concerned where and when this seemingly inevitable strike would hit. Colin gathered that London was odds on favourite; not that anyone was keeping a book.
By ten o’clock Colin was ready to get back to his bed. All that exercise in the West Country had done him in. He unpacked the rucksack and sorted the things he had taken with him; ready to drop them back to the stores personnel in the morning. And so to bed, as someone said.
In Milton Keynes three young men were resting. They had been awake since five o’clock. It was important to have a morning routine. Prayers, supplications and reading from the Quran came before a hearty healthy breakfast. They had been trained well. Eighteen months ago they had travelled to Pakistan where they studied alongside Al Qaeda and learned how to make homemade explosives. During their stay all three recorded martyrdom videos to be released after their deaths.
All three — Arshad, Irfan and Karim had been born in Britain. They were the chosen ones, it was they who had volunteered to strap on an explosive rucksack and detonate it in a crowded place.
Everything was prepared; all they had to do now was wait. Wait for the text message that would identify their target.
The streets that surrounded the maisonette were covered with other little boxes that had smart new cars on the forecourt and their occupants went about their business with no clue as to what was being planned just a few yards away.
Many miles away Erebus was chairing another Olympus meeting at Larcombe. Athena was sat on his right hand side, head down, contemplating the table top. Thanatos, Alastor and Minos were sat on the left of Erebus and they waited anxiously for their leader to tell them the latest information from the surveillance section.
Colin Bailey was swimming length after length in the pool, alongside Rusty. Neither man was aware of the other; both knew that Larcombe Manor was as quiet as it had ever been. Everyone on site seemed to be holding their breath; waiting for news.
Could the surveillance section track the whereabouts of the cell before the secret services? Could one or the other of them find the bombers and capture them before they left their hiding place and set out for their target? Or would there be another scene of devastation and misery similar to July ’05?
Erebus studied the information in front of him. He pursed his lips and thought for a moment. Then he spoke.
“We have traced some internet traffic between Pakistan and the UK that may prove useful. Various messages were passed to addresses in Birmingham and Leicester. If we combine this with mobile activity between Birmingham, Leicester and Milton Keynes over the past twenty days, it’s possible we have found some of the links in the chain; indeed, we might have the most vital link, the one that leads to the bombers themselves. Conversely, they may not have included the hit squad in the messaging loop yet. We may only get one chance to catch that message giving them the go ahead.”
“Do we have people physically watching these addresses?” asked Athena.
“We do” Erebus replied “and we are alone; the security services haven’t traced these links as yet. So we won’t be treading on anyone’s toes. We can’t however go into all three properties we have identified thus far all guns blazing without revealing our hand; we must attempt to take out the bomber or bombers and leave sufficient evidence at the property that a trained monkey could trace it back to the other members of the hubs.”
Thanatos leaned forward in his chair.
“How much do we know about the address in Milton Keynes?” he asked.
“I think that’s the one to concentrate on for now” said Erebus “it’s more likely that the other two cities have the more senior members of the cell and that’s why the direct traffic is arriving there. The property in question is a two bedroomed maisonette owned by a shop owner in the centre of town; he rents out this place to college students.”
“How many students currently occupy this maisonette?” Alastor asked “have we identified them yet?
“The stakeout team have seen four or five different people entering and leaving the house; they were all around twenty years of age” answered Erebus “at this moment in time we don’t have a complete history on them.”
“We should step up our efforts to confirm the Milton Keynes address as the bomber’s bolt hole” said Athena “and then move in and take them out before they can do any damage.”
“Agreed” said Erebus “in the meantime we will put the surveillance section on red alert for any message between the known suspects that could be the instruction to start the mission. Our man on the inside may well have been compromised; we haven’t heard from him for a while. If we miss them getting a green light, then we’ll be chasing shadows; and probably too late to stop them. If there’s nothing else, I need to get Phoenix to come over to the house to debrief his Devon assignment. I’m confident it went without a hitch; but there has been no news yet on the demise of any former prominent politician.”
As the others stood up and prepared to leave, Erebus called Athena back to him.
“You will be travelling up to London this week I take it?”
“My parents are back from the South of France on Wednesday; my father is concerned about my mother’s health. I’d like to be with them after they’ve returned from her appointment in Harley Street on Thursday.”
“That’s perfectly understandable my dear; go with my blessing.”
Colin had a call at about five to eleven. He was to meet Erebus in the orangery on the hour. He walked quickly across to the building and found Erebus sat in a chair already; he was deep in thought. Colin sat beside him and waited for the old man to speak.
“Was your trip successful Phoenix?”
“It was” replied Colin.
“Good. What do we need to do next?”
“The body will be discovered eventually; there will be marks found on the body at the post mortem which will show that the target was secured by the wrists at some time before he died. He will also have some bruising in the midriff and possibly other bumps and scratches received while he was in the water. I left incriminating material I discovered in a holdall for the police to follow up on; and there should be enough clues for them to uncover his murky past.”
“We can help with that; I’ll make sure the police are tipped off by a concerned member of the public that Sir Godfrey was suspected of interfering with young people. There’s a big enough witch-hunt for crimes of that nature committed decades ago already; they can’t afford not to add it to the list. A word in the right ear and the bruising could be dismissed as part and parcel of a predilection for rough sex. Well done Phoenix! Onwards and upwards,”
“Scotland?” asked Colin.