Chapter 18

I now realised how Smith was apprised of this targeted capture, and I swiftly applied my pick to her cuffs, releasing her from the person before and after, and again dropped the cuffs on the floor. As soon as she was free, she urged the others to get to the bus, and stood with me instead. Once we were alone, I told her, “Stay here, I have to set off the wired system of warehouse explosives, to hide the whole escape by making it seem you all died.”

Her eyes widened as the light dawned. “Damn,” she said. “They didn’t intend to leave evidence if they were found.”

I told her, “And that’s the way we want it to appear. I’ll be back shortly.”

I headed round to the staff door and squeezed the block of plastic explosive round the lock, then slapped the time pencil that was just sticking out. At once, I started walking smartly back to the plant. As I got to her, there was a soft “Whoomph” and the door exploded, followed by a set of concussive blasts that occurred almost simultaneously, all round the warehouse interior, and flames started to erupt from inside. The warehouse must have been storing inflammable chemicals, either for the criminals or an unsuspecting company.

I took her by the elbow and walked her out to the road.

As I did so, I asked, “Have you got transport arranged?”

“No. I had no chance to work on that,” she admitted, so I said, “Come with me. I have a car coming for me.” We walked like a courting couple along the deserted avenues back to the entrance to the industrial park. My driver was parked a few metres from the junction with the main road and flashed his lights to let me know he was here. We sauntered over to the car and got in the back. The driver made no comment on the extra passenger, and I simply instructed, “Take us both to my place, please.”

Without a word, he drove off and at last he arrived at our tenement block. We got out and I said to him, “Thanks for the ride. We were never here or there, okay?”

“Okay.” was all he said, and he departed.

As we stood on the pavement, my companion cast a keen eye of the block in front of us.

“This where you stay?” she asked.

“Yes, though we will be moving shortly to a larger house.”

“We?” she queried.

“Me, Phemie, Fiona and Theresa.”

“So, wife and two kids?”

“No. Three wives; not legal wives, but wives in effect.”

The other paused to reflect, then, “Three bloody wives? What were you thinking, man? One not enough for you? You have to have continual sex on tap?”

“I used to have one wife, but that ended in divorce, and she has my two boys. That episode put me off marriage, but Phemie made me an offer I couldn’t refuse. She wanted me for keeps, formal marriage or not. I agreed. Fiona is her cousin, and in a convoluted and unplanned way, she ended up wanting to be with me as well.”

“Good God! And the third one, ... Theresa I think you said?”

“Yes. Theresa is a teenager who I rescued from bullies, whom she knew and dreaded. She decided she would be best protected by me in future, so invited herself after watching us, wanting to join the family. The others agreed to accept her, and there we stand: two expecting and one trying to get the same way. I was just being myself, and unexpectedly managed to end up with these three.”

“Good God. This I have to see. Invite me in.”

“No bother; we’ll be there in a minute. You probably need a shower anyway, after your ordeal as a captive. Hey, what is your name?”

“Ahh ... best call me Elizabeth Brown. That is the name I was using for my undercover work. What about you?”

“I am known as Alec Jones; officially Aled – the Welsh name meaning ‘under divine protection’, but not familiar to most, so I usually answer to Alec.”

She nodded to herself, then said, “I suspect that is also another assumed name, due to your obfuscating words. Your most relevant utterance was ‘I am known as’, which tells me a lot.”

“Clever woman. You are not just a pretty face.”

“Pretty? I was trying to be mousy and nondescript, let me tell you. It makes it easier to be ignored, that way. I did not want to be sexually assaulted for being a good-looking victim!”

“A wise precaution. I am surprised Smith used a woman as a mole.”

“A woman is less likely to be seen as a possible plant, so that was the rationale behind the choice of me. Anyway, I volunteered as a competent soldier should.”

“Brave decision. I hope you are well trained to fight off any assailant.”

“I am. I probably went through the same training course as you.”

“On the Brecon Beacons? That is a tough course for anyone.”

“I know. It nearly killed me, but I got through it. Now what about meeting your women? And I would appreciate that shower, just that I don’t have spare undies with me.”

“Not to worry. Between them, my girls should be able to supply what you need for now. We can buy new ones for you tomorrow. Second floor here, for our flat.”

We walked up and got to the door. Instead of letting us in with my key, I decided to be more hospitable, and rang the doorbell. It took a couple of rings before the door opened cautiously, the security chain still engaged.

“Yes? Oh, it’s you, darling!” said Phemie. “Lost your key?”

“No, Phemie. I bring a guest with me, a lady who could do with a shower, so we should be more formal.”

The chain was slipped off and the door flung open.

“Welcome to our home, madame!” she announced breezily. “What is your name, dear?”

“Elizabeth Brown. Sorry to be a bother at this time in the night, but it was unavoidable in this case. It turns out we both work for the same master, me and Aled.”

“You are in the army too? A nice girl like you?”

“Alec, you have a good one here. Intelligent, and knows all the right strings to pull.”

I chuckled at the comment, and asked Phemie to see if she could find some undies that might fit Elizabeth after she had a shower. Phemie eyed Elizabeth almost like viewing a tailor’s mannequin, nodded, and took off. I presumed Fiona and Theresa were asleep.

I now replied to Elizabeth’s comment.

“I know. Phemie is a real darling. She is a history teacher so she has brains, apart from choosing me as her man.”

“And the others?”

“Fiona is Phemie’s cousin, and came to stay with her while her parents went on a cruise. She caught us in bed together, and to prevent Fiona telling tales to her folks, Phemie told her I was very good to a woman, and suggested she try me. To cut a long story short, Fiona decided Phemie had good judgment, and Phemie agreed to share me on a long term basis, as sister wives.

Theresa was a girl I rescued from bullies in the street, and brought back here to recover. She stayed for a few days, and somehow never left. Phemie and Fiona decided Theresa needed me as a protector on a permanent basis, and so she became wife number three. I seemed to have little say in the matter of love and commitment, and just went along with my ladies’ decision.”

“That makes you out as a big softy, but Smith would not use you if you were like that. He needs soldiers who can act independently and reliably.”

“Well, I must be able to compartmentalise my life. In work terms, I am your get up and go type. I spent some time in hiding from a senior officer who was trying to have me killed for revealing his criminal activities., and other senior officers were also in on the deal and protected him to protect themselves, so I had to vanish. Apart from Smith, no-one knows I still exist. My former persona has been erased from most of the records, and even my pay goes to a numbered account with nothing about me associated with it; difficult to use, but I have other accounts I can access for daily living.”

“But Smith knows of you and your past record, so he uses you for his black ops?”

“More or less. He is pragmatic in the extreme. I have a deal with him to protect my sons, and he was able to cause my officer nemesis to be erased more permanently from life, with the culprits seeming to be his fellows in crime. Smith works in mysterious ways to achieve favourable ends, always with two or more positive outcomes achieved with one operation. I suspect the same applies to your rescue. He got you extracted, did a training favour for the SAS, and made sure the warehouse fire apparently eliminated all the folk with you, so that they looked to have died in the conflagration and thus would not be sought for elimination as dangerous witnesses. He will use what information he can glean from them for his other activities, and will also be able to advise the police about ways to catch the criminal gang involved, and thus earn merits with the cops. So you see, multiple useful outcomes from one efficient operation.”

“Quite a schemer, is Smith!” Elizabeth agreed.

“As long as I get some benefits from his scheming, I am fine with it all,” I said grudgingly. “Speak to Phemie about a bed for the rest of the night, and we can phone Smith in the morning to see what he has lined up for you. You, as Elizabeth Brown, probably have to disappear, apparently burned to death in the warehouse.”

“Yeah, that’s the way he will think.”

At that moment, Phemie got back, with Fiona and Theresa in tow. The other two greeted Elizabeth, having been given the basics by Phemie. Phemie told Elizabeth, “We decided whose bra and whose panties would fit you, and raided our dressers for these. We put together two sets for you to use until you get new ones. The electric shower is ready for you, Elizabeth, and you get to use Theresa’s bedroom. We have changed the sheets. Theresa lost the toss and will have to bunk with Alec tonight.”

Theresa was grinning from ear to ear, and Elizabeth remarked with another grin, “You are forced to share with Alec, Theresa? Poor you!”

“Yes,” Theresa shot back with alacrity. “I might end up pregnant, too! The things I do for this man...”

Elizabeth looked at me with glee.”I think you are going to be a busy man for the next few days, Alec.”

“We’ll see, Elizabeth. Go have your shower, and I will send Smith a message that you are here to recuperate after your ordeal; and I will tell him you will be in touch tomorrow. Okay?”

“Okay,” then she next spoke to my first wife. “Lead me to it, Phemie.”

The time was too late to bother him, so come morning, I placed a call to Smith at a reasonable hour, and he answered in person.

“Ah, Jones. Everything seems to have gone well. I am told that Elizabeth went with you afterwards.”

“Yes, sir. It seemed appropriate to extract her from the rest. She came home with me, got a shower, and my ladies provided her with certain essential items of female apparel. We will supply her with new items in the next day or so. She arrived without a purse or anything.”

“That I can appreciate. We tracked her journey via an electronic transmitter inserted under her skin, and that told us when she had arrived at the warehouse. After that, she and all the others had to vanish, and they must appear to have died in the conflagration at the warehouse. A few metal items were left there for the fire investigators to find, including some handcuffs which would imply they were being trafficked. I am having them interrogated to glean as much as we can about the operation of the gang, so that we can eliminate that lot at the appropriate time. The rescued people, with new documentation, will be filtered into English society one way or another.”

“Eliminate, you say? Permanently?” I queried.

“Certainly. You think a few years in jail will make any improvement to these traffickers? They have probably killed a fair number of the people they collected for enslavement, as an example of what resistance would mean, so killing them in turn is no loss to society. They are committing warfare on humanity, so humanity has the right to retaliate, in my view. We have means of disposing of bodies so that they never appear again. This clears the decks and is a salutary lesson to others trying the same business. You have an alternative in mind?”

“Not when you put it that way, sir. War is harsh at any time, and this a type of war.”

“It is indeed. I don’t need the talents of your guest for the moment, so she can stay with you. Charge all she needs to your card, and I will reimburse you later.”

“Good of you, sir. I was willing to cover what is needed to cover her...”

“A pun to the last, it seems. It is a duty charge, so the unit will cover the costs. Talking of which, our valuer wants another look. Some items have him excited, so I suspect they are stolen items that may have a reward for their return. He would be due a finder’s fee, I believe.”

“If he wants another look, a new examination, that is fine with me, If he sends me a time, I expect to be able to meet him there, as my time is my own for now. I can also take the opportunity to show Elizabeth around, so she can see where our new home will be.”

“OUR new home? Do you include Elizabeth in that statement, Jones?”

“Gosh, no, sir. That was more a generalised ‘our’, meaning me and my three ladies. Whatever made you think otherwise?”

“Ah, that is because of her background. Her husband was killed in a bombing at his barracks, and she took it badly. Probably coming directly from that event, she volunteers for dangerous missions, and so I suspect a mental imbalance, a sort of death wish, due to her bereavement. I had a sudden and unexpected thought that you and your unique household might offer a zone of comfort for her. I was not thinking of a permanent liaison, but more a chance for her to recover from her loss in an environment of love and caring such as you seem to have developed there.”

“Well, thank you for the compliment, sir. I am not so sure that we are set up for offering treatment for mental suffering. However, if she wants to stay with us for a little, to recuperate, I am okay with that provided my ladies are fine with it. They are all sympathetic in their natures, so she might fit in with them for a while.”

“Good. I have no plans for using her on operations in the next week or ten days, so you have that time to make a start with her and your ladies, and see how you get on.”

I thought I would get a call the next day, but Grey must have been waiting for approval to contact me, as I got a call within two hours.

“Mr Jones? Grey here. You may have heard I would like another look inside your house. I am told you have no objections, so can we fix a time?”

“Certainly. How soon do you want to cast your eye again over the artwork”

“Is tomorrow afternoon too soon?”

“I don’t think there is any problem, but phone me again around lunchtime to confirm the appointment time to meet and how long you need.”

“Fine. I’ll do that. I should need about an hour, as it is certain specifics I need to clarify.”

“Can you advise me in what way you need to clarify things? Good or bad?”

He hesitated before saying, “A bit of both, actually. It may be that certain items are stolen property; others do not appear to being sought by anyone.”

“Stolen property? We have to hand these over, I take it?”

“Yes, but there should be a reward for the safe return. That would come to you, minus a small percentage to me as the finder.”

“Ah, yes. I have heard of a finder’s fee. Well merited, I think. And those that are not stolen property? What of those?”

“Ah, now. Here is where it gets interesting. It looks as if those items are listed as current whereabouts not known. Note that there is no mention of being stolen, so one assumes the item was mislaid, disappeared during a war, or sold privately without a proper record being kept by a gallery. In such cases, the undisputed ownership remains with you until you sell them. If my assessment is correct, you should be in for a tidy sum at an art auction or a private sale.”

“From your words, I assume the remainder of the collection are fakes or copies or whatever you call them, certainly not being originals.”

“Indeed, Mr Jones, but not without value. Copies were often done by the artist’s studio apprentices to get practice in the style of the master. Many apprentices did some of the painting, mostly the simpler parts, while the master concentrated on the fine detail. At a later date, other copies may be made by more recent artists, but these would not be so valuable as the master, the original artist, had no hand in it at all.”