Blighted Land: Book two of the Northumbrian Western Series (Northumbrian Westerns 2) (12 page)

She frowned and shook her head. ‘Not at all.’ She sat down on the bed and faced me. ‘We’ve had enough of all this.’ She waved her hand towards Low Town. ‘Places run by thugs. So-called committees that are just gangs in disguise. Neo-reivers.’ She shrugged.

Maybe that was all genuine. I still had one more question.
 

‘Why me?’

Reaching over to one of the panniers she opened it and pulled out a handgun: a semi-automatic pistol. Her towel slid up on her legs the showing the top of her thighs. She checked the gun over, dropped the magazine out, popped it back in. ‘You know your way around stuff, seem reliable…’

I shook my head. ‘Come on. You zoomed in on me at the bike races. Just by chance I was the guy ready to interrogate Casper.’

‘Maybe I did some sniffing around. Found out who ran the town. How things worked. I did figure out you were in Round Up, but I didn’t know you’d be doing the questioning.’

‘And what about me coming with you?’

‘That wasn’t the initial plan.’ She put the pistol away and started clearing stuff off the bed, putting it all on the floor. ‘I was after someone in Round Up who could give me inside details. Information. You just happened to have more about you. A good feeling, shall we say.’

‘A good feeling?’

‘I knew you’d help us. Get Casper out.’

‘I haven’t said I’ll help.’

She smiled. ‘You’re here, aren’t you?’ She reached down to a bag on the floor and pulled out another gun. Then a grenade. ‘I have the kit and a plan. Bring your bike over and we’ll talk it through.’

‘Look, trying to get Casper out is possible but we’ll never get the tank. No way —’

‘We’ll talk about it when you come back.’

‘I’m not sure.’

She refastened the bag. As she leant forward the top of her towel came undone, slipping down a little, showing her body underneath, still damp from the bath. She took hold of the towel again but instead of doing it up just pulled it off. She stood in front of me naked. She looked fantastic, her skin smooth and soft and with a hint of tan, natural colour. She had curves but there was a firmness to her body, strength. She took my hand and I resisted. Pulled free. She was sexy but this was taking me all in the wrong direction.

‘You don’t find me attractive?’
 

‘It’s not that —’

‘Come on, Trent…’

‘I don’t want to complicate things.’

She lay down on the bed on her side with a leg crooked up, one arm across her nipples and the other on her crotch, hiding the thin strip of hair. ‘You sure?’
 

‘I need to go,’ I backed off towards the door, my eyes fixed on her body, part of me wanting to stay there with her. Spend the rest of the morning in bed. But I knew that would really cloud my thoughts and I needed a clear head.

Becky got up and slid the towel on following me to the door. ‘Listen, Trent, I didn’t mean to give you the wrong idea, I —’

‘It’s fine.’ I opened the door and stepped out into the hallway.
 

She stopped in the doorway. ‘Think it through. I’ll wait for you. Here.’ She smiled. Some kind of smile I couldn’t figure out.

‘All right.’ But I was already on my way towards the stairs.
 

As I crossed town I thought it all through. Becky and Casper and their plans. Round Up and Sophie and Faeston. There was too much going on. Too much I didn’t like. Round Up had stepped up a gear. And Sophie was getting all settled, with me woven into her nest. In some ways Becky’s plan had come at just the right time. Appealing as it was to go off with her there were too many loose ends. Too many unknowns. Getting Casper out was going to be hard. And he was some fella. Some piece. But once we were out we’d be in the Eblis. We’d be able to go anywhere. I’d be much safer than on the bike.
 

But I had to go where they wanted, at their pace. I wasn’t one for taking orders and fitting in. That was why I hated Round Up.

Maybe I was best going off on my own, same as I always had. I wasn’t quite ready to go but I’d soon have enough cash together to see me safe. Maybe do some final patch-ups on the Scrambler.

 
I came to my flat. Tommy was singing to himself downstairs. His version of a hymn.
 

I opened the door and went into the living room. Gregg and Will sat in the two chairs at the table.
 

Gregg had his hand on a pistol that lay on his lap aimed at me. ‘Wondered when you’d arrive,’ he said.

Will laughed as Gregg cocked the gun.

G
REGG
FROWNED
. ‘Y
OU
’
RE
IN
luck. Nico wants you alive.’

‘Yep,’ said Will.
 

They both looked dreadfully disappointed.
 

‘What’s this all about?’ I said.

Gregg grunted. ‘You know what it’s about. All your games with him in the cell. Do you think we’re stupid?’

I did think they were stupid but obviously they weren’t quite as bad as I’d assumed.

‘Got you now!’ added Will.

‘Aye,’ said Gregg. ‘We know you’ve been working against us.’
 

‘So now what?’ I said. The pistol was aimed at me. Still tight in Gregg’s hand.
 

He waved it around, onto my feet and torso and head. It was an old revolver, chipped and marked but good enough this range. His lips were tight and brow furrowed like he was thinking something through. Like he was ready to pop a shot into me. He could tell Nico it had been an accident. The gun went off in a scuffle, or something. ‘We’re going to work you over. Make you squeal. Slowly. Until, well…’

‘Until you’re dead,’ said Will.
 

Gregg stood up. ‘Come on, out.’ The gun was waved again but this time to make me move.

‘Right.’ I went towards the door and took the handle. Tried to work out some way to get out of this. If they had something on me from Casper, I really was in the shit. Maybe he’d let on that I’d mentioned Becky. Told them that I knew his sister and had helped him. Now Round Up were going to knock me around. Finish me off.

‘Wait.’ Will shoved past me and took the handle himself. ‘Don’t want you running off.’

As he went out Gregg pushed up close behind me. He jammed the gun in my back and made me walk out. ‘No funny business, you hear?’

‘I hear,’ I said.

Will was ahead of us on the stairs. He walked down backwards watching me as he went. Gregg came out of my door leaving it open.

‘Are you going to shut that?’
 

‘What the fuck for?’ he said.

‘Nico might want to go through my stuff. He won’t want it stolen.’
 

Gregg grunted at this. Mentioning Nico always pressed his buttons. He kept his eyes on me but reached back with his left hand to grab the door handle and pull it shut. He couldn’t reach it so he glanced round.
 

As he did I grabbed his wrist, the one holding the gun. With his free hand he punched me in the ribs but he was too close to get any force behind it. Before he got the idea to push me down the stairs I braced myself against the railing. He still wouldn’t release the gun so I got both hands on it, aimed it down the stairs and got the end of my thumb on the trigger. Fired a shot.
 

It cracked off over Will’s head. ‘Get him, Gregg,’ he shouted.

‘I’m trying!’

As Gregg tried to pull the gun free, I launched myself at him, using the rail to shove against. I sent him off balance and he raised up his hands but I got hold of the pistol, twisted it hard and he had to release it to stop his finger being broken. He cried out and I pulled the pistol free, elbowing him in the face while I had the chance.
 

With the gun in my hand I stepped back and aimed it at him.
 

‘You nearly broke my finger!’ he said.

‘You’ll have worse in a minute.’

‘Nico will hear about this! He’ll have your skin!’

‘Wasn’t the plan anyway?’

‘Now you’ve really —’

‘Save it.’ I shifted back towards the door. Will had advanced up the stairs so I aimed at him. ‘Back off.’ He kept coming so I fired a shot into the stairs, just in front of him. It blasted a chunk of wood off the edge and he backed down and stood in the yard. I waved for Gregg to follow him. He didn’t move for a second then trudged down. As he went ahead I popped out the chamber to see how many rounds there were left: only two. He’d know that so I’d have to be careful.

Once he was beside Will I set myself on the second step. Now I had to work out what to do with them. Shooting them wasn’t an option. Nasty pieces that they were I wasn’t one for executions. I’d have to work out where to put them.

‘Empty your pockets,’ I said.

‘Nico will hear about this,’ said Gregg.

‘So you said. Go on.’

They felt around in their overalls. Both had cash. Will had a knife and Gregg car keys. I made Will throw the knife across the yard.

‘Take me to the car,’ I said. I only had the two shots so I didn’t have much freedom now. But they were cowards. That was helpful.

They led me across the road to the disused park. There was a track that ran through it and the Volvo was parked part way along, just under the bushes so it was hard to spot. I popped the boot and checked for guns. There wasn’t anything dangerous in there, just tools and spares.
 

As I shut the boot Will leapt forward so I flicked out the gun. Cracked him across the face and makes his lips bleed. He staggered back with his hand to his mouth. Gregg just stared at me. If they’d both rushed me I’d have struggled to keep them off.
 

I waved the gun around. Made myself look braver than I was. These two weren’t the brightest of sparks but they were quite capable of killing. In fact, it was what they liked doing.

Next I checked the inside of the car, going round to the passenger side while they stayed at the other. There was a crowbar and some sandbags but not much else. Under one of the bags there was a good length of rope.
 

‘Get in,’ I said.

Neither moved so I took the crowbar. I went round to the them and raised it up

‘I said, get in.’ To make the point I hit Will on the back, a satisfying thud.

Once they were in the front seats I held the gun to Will’s head and made him tie Gregg’s hands to the steering wheel. Then I tied Will to it myself. He’d not done much of a job securing Gregg so I added a few of knots of my own. Once they were good and tight I popped the bonnet, ripped the leads off the starter solenoid and chucked them into a bush. Then I double locked the car and took the keys.

They’d get out in a while but it gave me a little time. Time to pull myself together and head off. Go and see Becky. Her deal was starting to sound better now. If I went off on the bike Nico would soon catch me up in one of his cars. Blow me off the road. Even if I hid out in a nearby town he’d use his contacts to track me down. I needed to get away as far and fast as I could in something with equal firepower to the weapons he had hidden in Round Up Central. Something like a tank.

I went back to the flat and loaded up my panniers with spare spark plugs and a roll of tools. The crowbar and pistol from Will and Gregg. I slid them into the bottom of the bag and shoved a blanket on top.
 

I went into the wardrobe and pulled out Gehenna and the bag with the shotgun. Took the wad of money. Counted through it and rammed it and my clothes into a rucksack. There wasn’t much I wanted to take but I put it all together.
 

Outside I manoeuvred the bike around, started it up and rode out of the yard, facing towards High Town. The Volvo was still parked in the bushes with Gregg and Will in it. They’d expect me to ride off out of town now. They’d never guess I was going to Round Up Central to take their precious tank. With any luck it would be a complete surprise.
 

I shot across Faeston and was soon at High Town.
 

I parked at the front of Bay Hotel and went straight up to Becky’s room.
 

She opened the door. ‘All set?’ If she’d wondered about me coming back she didn’t let on.
 

‘Yeah, I’m all set.’ I dumped my bags on the bed and sat next to them. It was tempting to tell about all the weird shit that had gone on since I’d left. Instead I said, ‘So, what’s the plan?’

She picked up a map and ran her finger across it. Then she put it down and leant towards me. ‘Tell me the layout of their place.’

I went through the setup at Round Up Central. The different floors: where they had Casper. She nodded, raised an eyebrow when I told her about the doors from the prison. She asked about the ways and way out. Where they kept their weapons.

‘Is that where the Eblis is?’ she said. ‘Next to the armoury?’

‘Yeah. But forget about that. We’ll never get it out.’