“Look Linda, it’s not like that… things could go south very quickly.”
“And you want helpless little Linda out of the way?” She snapped, “Perhaps I should stay here and watch television — I could do some ironing if you like!”
Stone closed his eyes in frustration. In a way she was right, he was trying to protect her — perhaps unfairly. However, they were short-handed and heading into a potentially fast-moving and dangerous situation. He had genuinely wanted to keep her in reserve, available but safe. He looked at her now and his heart almost broke. There were tears of humiliation in her eyes and her face spoke of betrayal and distrust.
“Look… I didn’t mean it that way… I want you there… I need you, but I wanted you to stay in the car and monitor our communications. Then, if they make a break for it, you’ll be ready to follow immediately. That was my plan… ” his voice tailed off unconvincingly.
“I’m a big girl, Stone. I have a brain, you know… I think I could help.”
“But you will be helping,” he said weakly, “monitoring the communications is very important.”
“Whatever… ”
She looked at her watch and exhaled noisily.
“We’d better get going then.”
“Linda, I… ”
Stone took one look at the anger in her face and gave up.
“Let’s go.”
The Wrecking Crew had travelled to the shopping mall in three vehicles. Helen Atkins had driven her BMW 5 series with The Fixer as a passenger. Kitten and Bunny followed close behind in their black Toyota Hilux. Peter White had set out a little earlier in a red Toyota Land cruiser. He had been sent to collect three lads from Second Chances. They had been waiting at the freeway service area along the way. Becka and Gordon McIntosh had remained at the office, as they were not required for the operation.
Because their trip to Reading was not a long one, the Crew arrived at The Oracle just after 4pm. They parked their cars close together in the Riverside parking lot, just yards from the entrance to the mall. The lights of the mall and parking lot combined with the fall fog to create a ghostly glow. As Peter White passed out photographs of the targets, The Fixer gave his final instructions.
“Ok, listen up… Helen, I want you to stroll around the stores for a bit. Make sure that you reach the coffee bar at 4.50pm. It’s on the Riverside walk, just over there. Buy a coffee and sit outside, so we can keep an eye on you. Ok?”
She nodded.
“When Carter gets here, you can tell him whatever you like — just as long as you keep him sitting at that table. Peter’s guys are all dressed as mall security guards. At the first opportunity they’ll surround Carter and arrest him for shoplifting.”
He rubbed his hands together and smiled.
“Taking him in such a busy place will make the incident seem righteous. People are far less likely to question a scuffle in public, than they would if they saw the same thing happening at night, in some dark alley. Once he’s outside, Kitten and Bunny will put him in the back of the Land Cruiser. After that—”
“I just walk back to my car?” Helen said, ignoring the grisly image of what would happen to Carter a little later.
“That’s right. Just do as I say and you’ll be fine. There’s no risk to you.”
He smiled and nodded dismissively towards the mall entrance.
“Off you go then.”
Once she was out of earshot, The Fixer turned to Peter White.
“Get your people spread out along the river walk. If they see this Eric Stone, he becomes their prime target. Do they appreciate how dangerous he is?”
“Yes Boss, I’ve briefed them carefully.”
The actor spoke in a calm voice that belied the tension he was feeling.
“You don’t need to worry — my people can all handle themselves.”
“They may need to. I heard this morning that Anton Stephens and his pet gorilla were found dead in his burned out car.”
“Oh!”
“Oh, indeed. I’m starting to suspect that Eric Stone has been busier than we had first thought. Not that it matters anymore. This ends now — right here.”
He shuffled his feet in silence, until The Fixer spoke again.
“You’d better stay on this side of the river so you can keep a look out. I’ll be around, observing from a distance.”
“Right, Boss.”
The Fixer watched Peter White stride away. Then he turned his attention to Kitten and Bunny.
“You two cover the parking lot. I want one of you at each end — and for Christ’s sake, keep out of sight.”
Once his huge bodyguards had silently shambled into position, The Fixer pulled his coat collar up around his face and began walking towards the north end of the mall. The plan was in place, now there was something else he had to do.
The journey along the M25 was horrendous, due to a combination of too many cars, foggy conditions and a couple of inattentive drivers. Stone fought his rising tension as the traffic slowed to a walking pace. Twice, their progress was reduced to miles of frustrating stops and starts, as three lines of cars attempted to merge into two, in an attempt to negotiate a minor shunt. Furthermore, the tension inside the car did little to improve his mood.
Stone wanted to apologise for his omission, for not considering her feelings, but he couldn’t find the words. The problem was that he was in love with this woman, and in his planning, he had subconsciously wanted to place her in a position of the least danger. It was a perfectly natural thing to do — for a man.
For Stone it was like opening a door for a lady, or making sure that the house is secure before bedtime, or placing a valuable ornament safely on a high shelf. It was just something that you did. Of course, Linda is not an ornament to be kept safe, and he was wrong to treat her as one. Conversely, shouldn’t a man try to protect his loved ones — or is that just too old school? Silently, Stone admitted that he was confused. In his frustration, he gently bumped his fist on the steering wheel.
He had tried to say sorry. He had wanted to move past this, to engage Linda in some bright and witty conversation — to make it all go away, but she had remained sullen and unresponsive. In the end he had to bite his tongue, for fear that he would lose his temper and verbally lash out.
As they stood in the hotel parking lot, Carter had leaned in close and gently patted his friend on the shoulder.
“Let it pass.”
Perhaps Linda heard the kindly comment he had whispered, and chose to take further offence. In any event, Carter was treated to a harsh glare as she threw herself into the passenger seat, thereby nominating Stone to drive to Reading. Now he speculated that perhaps Linda was simply reacting to her own tension about the dangerous situation that they were walking into. She had every reason to. Things were about to get deadly, and when they did, Stone would wish that he had done much more to protect Linda Smart.
After yet another delay as they negotiated their way past the school-run traffic, with seemingly endless lines of cars filled with busy parents and overexcited children, they arrived at The Oracle at 3.50pm. Using the wonders of the internet, they had already studied the layout of the mall and the surrounding area. Stone could see why it had been chosen as a location for the meet.
The Oracle was a complicated and confusing maze of stores and corridors, with dozens of exits and blind alleys. There was a large food court alongside the river and above that, two floors of stores. Overall, The Oracle contained more than eighty stores, twenty cafés and restaurants, and two parking lots, with twenty-three-hundred parking spaces. Each parking lot had a separate road exit. Both gave easy access to the main road, which would allow a determined driver to reach the fast escape of the M4 freeway, in just a few minutes. In truth, they were walking into a security nightmare, that couldn’t be safely secured with fifty people — and they only had three.