Chapter 3: Killer On The Loose

The driver turned to him and told him, ‘You’re not the only fish in the sea,’ he said, ‘We have other things to do as well as dealing with scum like you.’

As he was speaking, his colleague had got out and gone around the car. Opening the door by Tony, he said, ‘Can you pass me the folder off the floor?’ As Tony looked to see where it was, he pushed a needle into his arm.

Two seconds later Tony was unconscious. They opened up the garage, then between them Tony was carried in and strapped to the table. They rescued their handcuffs and put a gag in his mouth.

Locking everywhere up, they sent a message, ‘Item in Stock’ Returning to the station, they had a cuppa in the canteen then returned to their duties. In the meantime, Brian got a text saying, ‘Item in Stock.’

Brian had returned to the station. He dropped the bag of cash into Superintendent Hopkins and the heroin into forensics asking for an urgent confirmation that it was actually heroin.

The bag of papers he emptied onto his desk then started sorting through them. He hadn’t got very far when he had a call from forensics confirming the packages where indeed heroin.

He put everything away, then set off to the garages. Letting himself in, he secured the outer door then went through into the inner room. When he switched the light on, Tony, who had been lying there in darkness wondering what on earth had happened to him, looked relieved to see him.

He tried to speak but only muffled noises escaped. There was a puzzled look on his face as Brian sat at the side of the table making no attempt to release him. Brian put a finger to his lips for silence. ‘Keep quiet, then you can hear what I have to say,’ Brian told him.

‘Tony Appleton,’ he began, ‘You have been found guilty of drug dealing by a jury of twelve of your peers. Because you have already had a warning, you are sentenced to death.’ As he said that Tony’s eyes went from puzzled to terrified.

‘Your actions have brought death, suffering and misery to many,’ Brian continued, ‘They did when you worked for Gerry Adams, and they are carrying on doing so now you are trying to take over Gerry’s customers.’

‘Gerry Adams died on this table with an overdose of heroin injected into the groin. It took him several hours to die and he died in agony.’ Brian showed him a full syringe of fluid. ‘A fate he well deserved. Your execution will have some similarities.’

‘I am going to prepare you in a few minutes. When you are prepared ready, before I set things in motion, I will remove your gag. If you say anything other than what I am about to ask you, or shout or argue, the gag will be replaced immediately never to be removed again ever. Your execution will then go ahead.’

‘If, however, when your gag is removed, you give exact details of your suppliers, how you pay them, where you collect your drugs from and every other item of information you know, I will go easy on you. Do you understand? Blink three times if you do.’ Tony blinked like mad.

‘Gerry didn’t believe me,’ Brian told him. ‘When I took his gag off, he started arguing, so I replaced it immediately then injected him with the fatal dose. So, in case you do the same, I will prepare you first.’

Brian undid the strap around Tony’s waist, undid his trousers and pulled his trousers and shorts down as far as he could. Then he refastened the strap over the bare skin of his waist. Next, he undid the strap over his thighs which enabled him to pull his clothes down further.

Refastening the strap over his now bare thighs, he felt along Tony’s groin until he found the right spot. Then pushed a canula into his vein. Once he saw some blood ooze out into the hypodermic, he turned the little tap on the canula to the off position, then withdrew the needle which left a plastic tube behind. Then he connected a tube to the canula that he had prepared earlier. He knew Tony couldn’t see it.

Tony now had a tube direct into his femoral vein with a tap on it. Just like you get put into your hand or arm when you go into hospital. Looking down at Tony, Brian told him, ‘I now have a direct line into your vein. If you don’t do what I ask, all I have to do is connect this syringe to it and in seconds your long-suffering death begins.’

‘Do as I ask, and I won’t use it. Here is my tape recorder,’ Brian said showing it to him. ‘I’m going to set it to record, then remove your gag. You say nothing but your full name, then these are my suppliers, then give their names and addresses. Then you explain how you pay, how you collect and every other bit of information you have. If I feel you are holding back or you don’t give the information, I will inject immediately. The choice is yours.’

Brian set his recorder, put it on the table near Tony’s mouth, then undid the gag. The moment it was off, Tony drew a couple of deep breaths then started reciting names, addresses and all sorts of details. He kept going for several minutes, then came to a stop. ‘That’s everything I know,’ he said.

‘You have been very sensible,’ Brian told him. ‘I’m going to put the hypodermic away.’ As he spoke, he showed it to Tony then put it up on a shelf. ‘I’m going to put the gag back on whilst I go and check this information then I’ll return and release you. Unless of course you have lied in which case the hypodermic will be used. Do you want to add or change anything?’ ‘No,’ Tony said, ‘I’ve told you everything, honest.’

Brian put the gag back in and fastened the strap holding it in place. Then he turned the tap on the canula on before putting a blanket over him. What Tony couldn’t see was the blood running out of his groin down the tube into a drum under the table. Brian knew Tony wouldn’t feel the blood flowing, he would just go steadily weaker until his system closed down. A humane end he didn’t deserve.

‘I’ll be back as soon as I can.’ Brian told him as he switched the light off and closed the door.

Brian returned to the station and typed out a transcript of the tape recording. Then he locked the recording in his safe. The transcript he put in the draw of his desk to be dealt with in the morning. Then he went home.

The following day, Brian returned to the garage. Going in, he took the blanket off. He could see that no blood was now flowing. Tony’s face was blue. He felt for a pulse on Tony’s neck, but there was none. Next, he checked his eyes, always a good test. Certain he was dead, he pulled out the canula. Checking the drum under the table he could tell from its weight it was two thirds full of blood.

Taking off all the straps, Brian rolled the body into a bag. Wrapping up the syringe, canula, needle and tube in a piece of cloth, he tucked it inside the bag before sealing it up. Moving it onto the trolley, he wheeled it under the table. Then putting the drum of blood in his boot, he set off home.

Arriving home, he emptied the blood onto his compost heap, then washed out the drum before tipping the water also onto his compost heap. The drum went back into his boot ready to return to the garage.

Before he went inside, he sent a text, ‘Item ready for Collection.’

Paul got the message a few hours later. He collected the Item that evening and sent the message, ‘Item Sold.’ He set it into a concrete block the following morning.

SPECIAL GROUP – ANOTHER ITEM

A month had passed since the garage attack. Mary, the lady who had been stabbed had left hospital after a couple of days and had now made a full recovery.

DI William Dodd had followed every lead he had with no success. He reached a point when he had to reluctantly decide there was nothing more he could do unless new evidence appeared, or another attack took place. He turned his attention to other cases.

A week later, there was an attack on an eight till late corner shop just a few blocks away from the garage. It was just gone nine pm when the shopkeeper brought a box in from the storeroom. He put it under the counter, then stood up to find a masked man up against the opposite side of the counter.