Scarlet Rose

Chapter 74 (Part 2)

Highgate Police Station (Early Monday morning)

Detective Shaw entered his office early on that dreary Monday morning. He wasn't in the best of moods but then again, since Christian -a.k.a the Raven- had involved him in this plan of his, handing himself and MacDonald to the detective, he had been on the edge, short of fuse, restless. In fact, he had forgotten when it was the last time he was having a good day, but it wasn't any time recent, he was certain of that.

He took his suit jacket straight off and hung it at the coat stand, next to the door. Unbuttoned his shirtsleeves and folded them up. He had walked from home, rather than having taken the car. Partly due to the thick fog that had descended that day, partly wanting to wake up his brain, he had kept a quick pace all the way to the police station and now he felt warm to the point of sweating.

He opened up the windows for some fresh air. Switched on the light on his desk. It was 8.30 in the morning and it felt like early evening. Not much time had passed since he had sat down on his desk, taken the evening report from the officer who came in his office and had boiled some water for a cup of tea, before the phone on his desk rung.

The conversation over the phone did not last too long.

Neverhtheless, it was enough to lift his spirits in a significant way. It was a police officer from the isle of Barra. They had caught a man. Miss White had been kidnapped and Mr. Graham had been the one who had disarmed and incapacitated the kidnapper until the police had arrived. They all were on board the boat to Oban. Apparently, the man was going to hand over Miss White to the man from London in Glasgow. On the 9pm sleeper train from Glasgow to London.

Shaw stood up. Paced across his office, while hearing the developments. He was more than content.

"Make sure you catch the man from London." He said. "It is of the outmost importance to let Tom Duffy to do the handover and catch MacDonald's man red-handed on the train."

Robert knew his move was risky. As was everything else on Christian's plan. However, unbeknown to Christian, this part of the story was Robert's, and he intended it to remain so. You could see the determination in his eyes, his stare still, unwavering, completely fixed to the wall opposite him as he was giving orders to the police officer in Barra.

He knew he was putting Christian's ex-girlfriend at risk. He also knew, both Christian and Terence Graham would want to beat the hell-out-of-him for ordering this, but it was long time coming for Charles MacDonald and his criminal reign in London's dark underworld. Maybe catching the Raven would make the flashier headlines in the press, but catching MacDonald was more important for Robert Shaw.

The stunt that Christian was willing to pull with the break-in of the Duke of Grandchester estate and the implication of MacDonald, of course was the strong hand in putting the gang lord behind bars; if the Detective was to add the charge of kidnapping on top of everything else... MacDonald would look into spending a long time in prison.

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Bleeding Heart Yard, London

C. Morris & Co was a well-known jeweller in London for the past twenty years, Christian thought while he observed the shop from a short distance. He was quietly impressed with Charles's connections it had to be said. He had not realised it earlier, when having given the address to the taxi driver, he would pull over by one of the best jewellers in town.

They had not stopped right outside the shop as such, but rather on the other side of the road, as per Christian's instructions. To be cautious had to be the name of the game, on that particular day. The last day of his present life as he knew it.