Every Second Counts

Chapter Thirty Five

IT'S WHILE WE'RE ON OUR THIRD CUP of coffee when a plan emerges. It's just short of brilliant! I search through my cell phone and find his number. It could bloody well work!

'There's this investigator, Justin Walker who's been harassing me for information about, well I can't go into it at the moment. But, if I'm right about him, he'll jump at the chance to bring someone in. Like your husband.'

I explain the plan in detail and the more excited I get that we can nail the son of a bitch, Kelley-Anne sinks into herself. 'You OK?' I ask. She looks up at me and I see in her eyes the same hunger for revenge I have seen in my own eyes...several times. She wants to beat the living crap out of him!

'We have to follow the plan for it to work. You have to stay here, out of sight. Understand?' She nods and she bunches then unflexes her hands several times. Like those puny arms of hers could hurt a fly?

'If this works,' I say then quickly add, 'and it will. It'll all be over. He'll spend a long time in prison.'

She writes Ted's cell phone on my notepad and I go into my bedroom. 'I just need to keep my head clear while I ring him,' I tell her. But this isn't true. I have decided to use my voice changing device...hope I sound like a man. Once rigged up, I get my burner out and ring Ted Lucca.

I'm not sure Lucca will answer this unknown number, but he does with a hesitant 'Hello.' I tell him, with a voice two registers lower than mine that echoes around my bedroom, 'I'm ringing on behalf of me boss, Reuben Houston. Jobs done. But he's a bit indisposed at the moment. Needs quick cash.' I wait for Lucca to respond. He doesn't so I continue, 'I'm setting up a meet. Midday today, at Zonka's Bar. Be there with the biscuits, got it?'

'How do I know you're not...' he stammers.

'Scamming you? Number one – I know you been working with me boss Reuben Houston. Number two – He gives me your cell number in case of an emergency. And this is an emergency. Number three – listen to this...' I recall the conversation between Lucca and Houston I had recorded, the same one I'd made Kelley-Anne listen to. When it finishes I ask him, 'Satisfied?'

'OK. But I'm not in the city at the moment. I don't think I can get back by midday.'

'You better be there. Midday. I'll sit at the bar, I'm 28 years old, 5ft 10 inches with fair wavy hair. Bring the money.'

'It's too short notice. I can only bring £10,000.'

'Bring it. And you got three more days to get the rest,' I say then I hang up.

Kelley-Anne is asleep on my couch when I go back into the dining room. I make my next call to Justin Walker and like Ted, I am not sure he's going to answer. But he does, angrily. He's either very sleep deprived or he's in the middle of some interesting 'rest and recreation!'

'What! Is that...?'

Obviously I'm not who he thinks I am so I talk quickly, 'Please listen. It's Athena Morisot. I'm sorry to call you in the middle of the night.' It's 2.30 a.m. 'I cannot explain everything. Not right now, maybe never. But, it's important you listen to me.' I wait for a response which I get, 'What? Spill it!' I continue, 'I chanced upon a conversation which I taped about a husband planning to murder his wife.'

I hear Justin exhale loudly, not in a good way, more like, Jesus, I've been awoken by a loony with a fairy tale. I swallow my annoyance and say, 'The husband we're talking about is Ted Lucca.'

'Christ,' Justin growls. I have his attention.

'You're a cop, so you'll be able to get access to information before the general public. Get onto it now and you'll find Lucca's house has been torched.'

'Where are you?'

'We have to act fast. His accomplice is a man called Reuben Houston and I'm not sure where Houston is,' I lie. 'But, I've made contact with Lucca telling him Houston's employee will meet him at Zonka's bar at midday. I want you to pretend to be Houston's employee. If you get it right, Lucca will pay another £10,000 to you, for the job of murdering his wife.'

'Jesus, Morisot. What have you got yourself involved with? For your information, Reuben Houston is a Detective on the force...'

I butt in with, 'Now, we both know he's been suspended. Just shut up and listen to this,' and I replay the conversation between Lucca and Houston.

'Where the fuck are you?' Justin asks again. I tell him to meet me in an hours-time at an all-night bar several streets away from Red's apartment. When I leave for the rendezvous I'm pleased Kelley-Anne is out for the count. I'm also pleased the pain in my knee is subsiding but nothing has changed with my rib cage. When I get out of my car to meet Justin I make a conscientious effort to relax my walk so he doesn't suspect I've been in a fight...like been beaten up.

Justin Walker looks as if he has slept in his clothes, he actually looks worse than me. I washed the soot from my hands and face, took the precaution of being Athena with my wig etc but although I sorted some clean clothes out to change into, with all this hype going on, I damned well forgot, so I turn up in my all-black attire which stinks of smoke. I pray Justin doesn't twig that I was actually in the house fire.

Coffee and donuts at 4 a.m. in the morning is a new one for me, but Justin takes it in his stride. 'This had better not be a wind-up, Morisot. I've been up most of the night on a stake-out. So, I don't need this.'

'You heard about the fire?'

'Yeah,' he says. 'The wife? They're not going to find a body?'

'No. She's safe. But he doesn't know that yet. We've told him she died in the fire.'

'Jesus Morisot. You're the one playing with fire here. You could get yourself in a heap of trouble,' he says.

'Only if you don't do your job. Your job is to get that son-of-a-bitch,' I tell him.

He wants to hear the tape again. I shake my head. 'Not until you've met my demands.'

'Are you for fucking real? Bribing an officer of the law will get you a prison sentence,' his voice has changed down a notch, down to a threatening asshole.

'I'm not bribing you, you prick! One, you don't mention where you got the tape from...like from me. Two, you lay off me about knowing anything about the deaths of my parents or that wanker Patrick Gladstone. Because, I know nothing! Got. It? Three, once you arrest Lucca, you don't come back to me, for anything. Agreed?'

He narrows his eyes and stares at mine for the longest moment. I don't lose my nerve. 'I know nothing!' I wait while he works out whether he believes me or not.

'So, the only involvement in all of this plot to murder Lucca's wife is the discussion you taped?' he asks.

'Obviously I talked to Kelley-Anne, got her out.'

'Is that all?'

Sleep deprivation is getting to me and I bang my fists on the counter-top and growl, 'Yes, I told you. I was in the right place at the right time as far as Kelley-Anne Lucca is concerned. Now, are you going to meet up with Ted Lucca at midday or is the mother-fucker gonna go free?'

He gestures to my cell phone and before I play the discussion again he gets out a device and he tapes my recording.

'I'll ring you about 2 p.m. If it all goes well, we'll have him banged up by then.'

I am so relieved I want to leap across the table and kiss him but I pull a scowl and say, 'Don't fuck it up. Kelley-Anne and her kid's lives are depending on you.'

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