Chapter 60

The house felt warm and the air clean and fresh as they entered. Before Dan was completely inside the door, Bern ran, jumped, and clamped her legs like a vice around his waist. Planting a hard kiss on his neck, she turned up her nose and pulled her head away.

"You stink, and taste, like a bonfire," she said wiping her lips

"I know sorry love. Some kids had set fire to some tires, I think, and we were down wind"

"Well go and have a shower, both of you, and I will sort some drinks"

The shower was amazing. After three years of using the slow dripping shower in the caravan, the pressure felt good. It had no trouble washing the dirt and stench from his body but done nothing to wash the images and feelings from his mind. All said and done Saim had been his friend for years. He knew what kind of man Saim was and how he lived his life, but what right did he possess to be judge, jury and executioner. He was a criminal too after all and had been for as long as he could remember, although not involved in half the things Saim had been involved in. As the reality of what he had just committed sank in, the water from the shower mingled with his tears.

"That's it", he insists to himself "I am done with all this, no more secrets and lies, no more crime"

In one night, he was finally together with the love of his life Bern, had his best friend brought back from the dead and, made the man who could ruin it all disappear. That was the end of it. He was definitely out and would make damn sure that this, one last job, he had planned and executed was definitely going to be that.

A little sore from the heat of the fire, the can of John Smiths felt cool as it flowed down his throat. Slumping onto the sofa, next to Bern, Dan glances around the room.

"This is not a bad place. It's only for a week or so I suspect, or at least until we can sort out what we are doing, and it's comfortable enough" Dan sighed

The room was square, with beige walls and carpet to match. An old seventies gas fire, attached to the wall, gave out more heat than was needed for the small room. Heavy curtains hung around the bay window, and looked out of place, in front of the new voiles threaded onto the curtain poles. Two sofas, a three seat and a two seat, positioned in the middle of the room made it cosy. Ray and Bridget sat opposite, oblivious to the fact their feet, crossed over each other, were slowly rubbing up and down against the others. Catching Bern's attention, Dan nods in Ray's direction and winks. Noticing what he was looking at, Bern in her own subtle way, smiles.

Placing his drink on the coffee table, Dan was the first to speak

"Now it's just down to deciding where and when we are going to go. We didn't achieve much in the way of funding a new lifestyle, which is a shame, but at least we can go out in public without looking over our shoulders"

"Wait a minute," Bridget says.

Looking down noticing the position of her feet, tucked around Ray's, she jumps up.

"Dan, have you got a printer here?"

"Yes, I don't own much but what I do have is here, including my laptop and printer. Why?"

"Get it for me and I will show you" Bridget replies smugly

Returning from the bedroom, Dan sets the printer on the coffee table, plugs it into the mains and pushes the power button. Reaching into her jeans pocket, Bridget produces her mobile phone. Switching on the Bluetooth application and, with a beep it connects to the printer. Flicking through her images, she finds what she is looking for and clicks the send button.

The printer clunks as it takes a sheet of paper and feeds it through. Every face, now watching the paper as it emerges from the bottom, has an expression of wonder and anticipation plastered on it. As the last line is printed and complete, the printer spits out the sheet. Snatching up the paper, Bridget offers it to Dan.

Holding up the page in front of his face, every set of eyes trying to peer around the sides, Dan blinks, raises his eyebrows and turns to Bridget.

"Where did you get this?" Dan asks shaking

"From Saim's desk the first day I started work. When I walked into his office, he was looking at this page and he didn't seem too pleased at what he was seeing. He left, to sort out his monkeys or something, so I seized the opportunity and took a picture on my phone of what he was reading. I didn't have a clue what it was, I was just being nosey," Bridget happily explained

"You fantastic amazing woman, this is a list of five of Saim's off-shore accounts. Addresses, account numbers, passwords, sort codes and even the amounts in each one. Everything needed to access them," Dan zealously says. "If I didn't have the love of my life standing right next to me, I would kiss you right now," Dan grinned

"Well if you won't then I will" Ray blurted out.

Before Bridget could even turn around, Ray was in front of her. Looking deep into her eyes, for any sign of rejection, he found none. Placing one hand on her cheek caressing and stroking, his lips, longing and wanting, cover hers. The response from Bridget was immediate. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she pushes hard onto his lips. Like two swords in a duel, their tongues dance with one another in blind bliss. The outside world forgotten, lost in passion, Dan interrupted their moans with a cough.

"Bloody hell guys, get a room" Dan smirks

Separating, a string of saliva, like a strand of shared spaghetti, stretched until breaking point.

"Shut up you muppet, it's been a while for me you know" Ray explained embarrassedly.

"I know matey it's just this is not completely over yet. There will be plenty of time for that. With this new piece of info, we still have some more work to do. Get some shuteye for a few hours. I have a few loose ends to tie up and then we can sort out these accounts"

The time was just after nine in the morning and Dan hadn't slept. He looked as bad as he felt but he needed to finish the loose end with Chief Taylor.

"Good morning, Chief Taylor speaking"

"Good morning Chief. Thank you for going through with our agreement" Dan stated calmly.

"Yes I have and I have instructed that nothing will be revealed about the sting until tomorrow morning" the Chief nervously replied.

"That is good. Now, have you got all the pictures and SD cards with you, and I do mean all?"

"Yes I have. What do you want me to do?"

"Put them all in an envelope. A courier will be with you in an hour. It will be a straight exchange. You give him your envelope and he will give you his. Inside will be the pictures taken of you. Your reputation will be untarnished and safe and your fake double life can continue unchanged"

Dan wanted to send the pictures to the press. Expose him for what he really was but he didn't want any more hassle from anyone.