Chapter 2: When A Robbery Goes Wrong

The evening after Jacks attackers in the woods had been caught, Lewis and Danny had returned. They came on their bikes to rescue the hidden camera and battery. Once everything was loaded into Danny’s bike, they had a hug and Lewis thanked him for the loan before they returned home.

When Danny unloaded everything, he recovered the camera out of the tree branch and decided to check it out before putting it back on the shelf. He left it out but got sidetracked. It was a week later by the time that he connected it to his computer and started doing a fast watch. His computer automatically spun it on a number of frames, showed a couple and spun it on again.

That enabled him to check it quickly without having to watch loads of pictures of an empty clearing. He hadn’t gone far when some pictures flashed up. He stopped and rewound. Then played at normal speed. He watched an empty clearing for a few moments then three people came in. Two were around thirty and one was a young teenager.

They sat down on the grass in the centre of the clearing and seemed to be just talking. Danny hadn’t put the sound on and was about to fast forward when one of the men gave the teenager an almighty slap across the side of the face.

Danny stopped the tape and rewound to when they first entered the clearing. He put his headphones on and switched the sound on. The two older men were discussing robbing an eight to late shop in town.

After a while it became plain that the teenager, Callum, who was quite slim, was going to be used to squeeze in through an air vent to let them in. Callum was plainly against the whole idea. But when he said he wouldn’t do it, he got the resounding smack across the side of his face that Danny had seen earlier. The older man turned out to be his older brother Norman.

They discussed all the goods they expected to get out of the storeroom. The second man was called Raymond. He had a large van, and he would move it all. Callum was told that once he had let them in, he was to go round to the front of the shop and go in as a customer. He was to take his time browsing.

‘The old man on the till won’t leave the shop whilst you’re in there,’ his brother told him. ‘So as long as you stay in the shop, he won’t come through and disturb us.’ ‘Once we’re loaded, we’ll text you,’ Raymond told him. ‘Then you go and buy something cheap and go home.’

‘I still don’t want... ‘ Callum started to say. His brother grabbed hold of him. ‘Do you remember what I did to you when I got drunk last year?’ he snapped. ‘Yes,’ Callum said looking sick. ‘Well, if you don’t do what you are told and do it well, I’ll do it again. Then I’ll let Raymond do it to you too. And I’ll make you suck us both at the same time.’

‘Ok.’ Callum said looking downcast and defeated. ‘What did you do to him?’ Raymond asked with interest. ‘I’d been out drinking with some mates,’ Norman said. ‘I’d come home well-oiled and feeling very horny. As I went upstairs Callum was coming out of the bathroom in just his shorts.’

‘I just grabbed him, took him into my bedroom and ripped his shorts off. I bent him over the bed and went up his bum. It must have hurt because I had to keep my hand over his mouth to stop his screams, but it was really good, I shot loads of cum.’

‘What did it feel like?’ Raymond asked Callum, sounding quite interested. ‘It felt disgusting,’ Callum told him, ‘Like he was tearing my insides apart. The pain was terrible. I was sore for weeks afterwards.’

‘There you go then,’ Norman said, ‘If you don’t do as you’re told you know what to expect.’ ‘Yes,’ Raymond said looking at Callum smirking, ‘I’ve never done it, but I wouldn’t mind trying that.’ Callum looked disgusted.

They moved on then, running through their plans once more. ‘We’ll do it Wednesday night about nine o’clock.’ Raymond told them, ‘It’s quiet then, I’ve been in a few times at different times of the evening to check. After six Norris, the young chap that helps him, goes home. The old man is on his own from then onwards.’

‘What are you going to do with it all?’ Callum asked. ‘Anything we can use at home we’ll split between us,’ Norman told him. ‘Then anything else Raymond has a contact with a café who’ll buy it all off him.’

‘Does he know it’s coming?’ Norman asked Raymond. ‘Yes, I had a bacon butty there yesterday.’ Raymond said, ‘Jason served me himself, so I told him then.’

They chatted a bit more then as they got up to leave Raymond said, ‘We’ll meet up at half past eight on Wednesday evening. I’ll park in front of yours.’ He glared at Callum. ‘Make sure you’re there, or else.’

Danny made a separate DVD of that section of the recording. Then as he put the remainder back on fast check, he worked out a date in his mind. Given what they were saying and when the camera was put in the clearing, the robbery should have already taken place. It would have been on the same evening of Jacks attack.

There was more movement on the screen. He put it on ordinary play in time to see two boy pupils, presumably from Lewis’s school enter the clearing and give each other a hug and a long kiss. As they kissed, they each had one hand over the others cocks but over their clothes. Then they left.

Back on to fast again. This time it was getting dark when a young couple came into the clearing and stripped off. The boy looked about sixteen and the girl similar age. Danny could tell from their demeanour that they were both there by consent, so he returned to fast play.

The next one was Jack. Danny watched it all the way through as he had been involved in it. When that finished there was nothing then through to the end. Knowing Lewis would have made a copy of Jacks attack he wiped the camera clean.

He rang Lewis, who told him he had just rewound to the beginning of Jacks attack and made a copy of it. He hadn’t looked any further. Danny told him what he’d discovered. ‘I’ll ask Tom to check on recent robberies,’ he said. Lewis told him he’d leave it to him.

Danny texted Tom and asked him to check if any eight to late stores had been broken into on the Wednesday in question or up to a week either side. Tom told him he was in work tomorrow and would check then.

MONDAY

At lunchtime the next day Danny found a text on his phone from Tom. ‘Urgent please ring me, Tom’ Danny rang right away. Tom told him there had been a robbery on the Wednesday evening. The elderly owner of an ‘Eight to Late’ shop had disturbed thieves in his storeroom.

He had been hit over the head with a pickaxe handle and had died of his injuries. No one had seen any of the attackers.

‘Does the shop have a daytime assistant called Norris?’ Danny asked him. Tom said, ‘I’ll have to check, I’ll ring you back.’ Five minutes later Danny’s phone went. ‘Yes, he does.’ Tom told him.

‘I have a DVD of the three culprits planning the raid,’ Danny said, ‘I’ll send it through to your phone.’ He did, then he sent a copy through to Lewis. ‘Hi, do you know any of these three?’ he asked, ‘It’s a murder case.’

Lewis didn’t recognise anyone. Then he had a thought. He put a picture of Callum on the screen and went to find Rufus. Rufus saw him coming and came over to him. ‘Hi,’ Lewis said, ‘I wondered if you knew who this is. He could need help.’

‘Yes,’ Rufus said, ‘He’s here somewhere. He’s in the lowest form in my year.’ ‘He’s in very serious trouble,’ Lewis told him. ‘I don’t know if I can help him, but he’s going to be in trouble anyway. If he comes to me first, I’ll try and help him, but he would need to trust me.’

‘Can I ask what sort of trouble?’ Rufus asked. ‘He’s involved in a murder,’ Lewis told him, ‘But he was forced into it, which could go in his favour.’ ‘I’ll go and see what he says.’ Rufus said.

Lewis went and sat back with Ella. ‘It turns out I accidentally filmed a robbery being planned,’ he told her. ‘I hadn’t noticed it on the recording. Danny spotted it when he was putting the camera away.’

Then he spotted Rufus heading their way with someone in tow. ‘I might not get back,’ he told Ella as he got up. As he went over, he recognised Callum who looked terrified. Rufus introduced him and said, ‘I’ll leave you to it.’ To Callum he said, ‘You can trust Lewis. He might be your only chance.’

As Rufus walked away, Lewis told Callum, ‘I know everything about your plans and how you were forced to take part. The police have your picture and your name. They will come for you at any moment.’ Callum looked even more terrified. ‘I never wanted to do it.’ he said. ‘I know,’ Lewis told him, ‘And there is evidence to prove that.’

‘Here’s what I recommend. Come with me to the police station right now and make a statement. Tell them everything. You’re not telling tales because they already know about Norman and Raymond. It won’t stop you being arrested and charged. But it could stop you going to prison for a very long time.’

He let him digest it then said, ‘I presume you know it’s now a murder case?’ ‘Yes,’ Callum said near to tears, ‘It’s terrible, the poor old man.’ He let out a long sigh. ‘Yes, I’ll come.’ he said.

Lewis rang Tom, ‘Hi Tom, can you pop over to school in your own car and pick me up. I have Callum with me, he wants to make a statement.’ ‘Ok I’ll be there shortly.’ he said.

Lewis rang his form teacher. ‘Hello sir, it’s Lewis,’ he said. ‘I need this afternoon off.’ ‘Ok, no problem.’ his form teacher said. ‘Can you let Callum Preston’s teacher know he won’t be in this afternoon either, I’m just taking him to the police station to make a statement.’ ‘I’ll mark you present,’ his teacher said, ‘Should I ask the same for Callum?’

‘I don’t think there’s any point in doing that.’ Lewis said. ‘Oh dear, is it that serious?’ his teacher said. ‘Ok Lewis, good luck.’ ‘Thank you, sir.’ he told him. They walked over to the front gates and waited.

Tom arrived ten minutes later. Lewis introduced Callum and said, ‘I’ll get in the back with Callum so I can talk to him on the way.’

Callum was looking terrified. Lewis smiled at him, ‘Try not to worry too much,’ he said, ‘I can’t deny you’re in a lot of bad trouble, but the Judge will know that you were forced into being part of it. He will also know that you had nothing to do with the killing.’

‘Now listen carefully, we haven’t got a lot of time. At the police station you may be charged with murder. That is because you were part of the gang involved in a killing. You will have to go to court tomorrow and your solicitor will advise you about that. When you make your statement, tell them everything that happened, including about your brother raping you previously.’

Callum looked open mouthed at him. ‘How could you possibly know that?’ he asked going red. ‘Callum,’ Lewis said, ‘The police know absolutely everything about what happened. They know about Norman and Raymond, what they threatened you with, where they sold the stolen goods and how they sent you into the shop to keep the owner occupied.’