It was after midnight when he switched off the engine, the day had been long, but hopefully productive. Sally was in bed, but awake, she asked how the day had gone, “what were you doing in Wales?” “I went to see someone who might be able to help me.” Sally knew not to push for more answers, the real reason would come out when Dave was ready to tell her.
It was 10.00 on Tuesday morning when Sally being the first one up, went to make coffee. As well as the drinks, she brought up Dave’s phone, “You’ve got a few missed calls and messages.” He had missed calls from the MOD and MI5, he chose the Brigadier as the first one to call back. “The serial numbers, have been traced back to consignments of ‘end of life’ weapons shipped from Catterick Garrison down to Kent for disposal. The Glock from around six months ago, the rifle, sometime later, I can send you over the details if you think they might be helpful.” Dave said yes, it was the beginning of the information gathering phase.
The next call was to Jane Goodley, he had no idea what she wanted, “I have contacted the Chief Constable on Merseyside to say we may have an operative working in his area investigating stolen army weapons, and if required to give you any assistance required.” “Why did you do that, you might as well have put an advert in the Liverpool Echo, the news will be common knowledge by the end of today?” She ignored his comment, “what name will you be using, I need to pass that on.” “So not only will everyone know I’m coming, but they will have my name as well, bloody brilliant. No name at the moment, do not under any circumstances give out my real name. I will give you a working name if I think it is needed.” With that he hung up. “What a bloody useless woman,” Sally had heard most of the conversation, she could guess the bits she hadn’t. “What’s next?” “I need to think, I might stay in bed or maybe go for a run.” It was a run, he spent nearly an hour going through the university grounds, out as far as the motorway, then back along the streets. A plan was forming by the time he returned. Straight into the shower to wash the mud off and warm up, he was downstairs by 11:30 ready for breakfast. As he ate, he explained to Sally what would be the next move. She left him to go upstairs, he phoned the Brigadier. “Sir, I want to go to Catterick Garrison tomorrow, can you set me up with the necessary authorisation.” The Brigadier asked what he had planned. “I want to get into the Logistics section. I have a gut feeling that is our starting point. Say to them, I will be there to carry out an external audit, do not be specific, I will inform them of the information I want, when I arrive. I need the authorisation sending to me, it will have to say, I can inspect anything I deem necessary to further my inspection, do not mention missing weapons in any of your communications. The head of Logistics and the Garrison Commander will need to be informed, any questions to be referred back to you.” “Do you have any idea what you are looking for?” “No sir, not at this moment. Upstairs he looked out his suit, shirt and a tie for the next day, “Can I use your car tomorrow, I have to go to Yorkshire and want to arrive in a decent car, if not, I will hire one?” “No, that’s OK, we can swap.” He explained what he would be doing in the morning, as he did so, Sally lay down beside him. “You didn’t have anything else you had to do?” The look on her face said he was going to be there with Sally for some time.
Over their meal that night, he asked if she had any green ball point pens, “I need a couple for tomorrow, auditors nearly always use green ink.” As Dave made coffee, she went off to look, he could hear her going through boxes in the cupboard beneath the staircase. She returned triumphant, “I knew we had some, I just didn’t know where.”
Dave was on the road by 06:00, on the passenger seat was his briefcase with the green pens, several notepads, and his letter of authorisation. When he arrived, he parked in the carpark and walked to the gatehouse. He announced his arrival, then sat and waited. It was twenty minutes before a staff car arrived to collect him. It had been many years since Dave had done his basic training on the base, he tried to remember the way but didn’t recognise anything. The car pulled up outside a non descript two storey office block. Inside, it was a mixture of civilian and military staff. The man accompanying him stopped outside a door and knocked, it was opened by a civilian worker, inside the office, Dave could see two other people behind desks, one in a suit, the other in military fatigues. “The Major’s visitor,” Dave entered and was taken to a door off the main office. The knock was answered by a ‘come in’, “Your visitor sir.” A tall thin man in uniform offered his hand to Dave. “Major Henry Jennings,” “David Stretton,” “this is most unusual and at such short notice, would you explain why you are here please.” Dave had been offered a chair, now sitting opposite the Major, he gave the explanation for his visit. “The Ministry, as you will be well aware of, is always looking to see where money can be saved. With the rocketing cost of fuel, they decided to have external auditors look at fuel consumption from different angles. This is not an investigation, it is purely an exercise. Catterick was chosen due to its size, Logistics was chosen as that can be quantified. Vehicles on exercise cannot be controlled. My visit is a one day experiment, if I identify ways to make savings then further investigations will be made. I will need access to documents and records, most of which will probably be online or easily found, if you have someone available to assist me I would appreciate it, I don’t want to be bothering you all the time.” “Any of my assistants out there will help you, I will have a word with them as we go out.” Before they left, Dave took the letter of authorisation from his case and gave it to the Major. “If you have any questions, please contact Brigadier Storey.” Dave was introduced to the three workers in the office. It was explained what he would be doing and the assistance to be given. His first request on being shown a desk he could use was to ask where the coffee machine was. “In the kitchen over to your left, help yourself.”
He started by asking for the fuel logs for the coaches and lorries controlled by Logistics. He asked if there were any vehicles which never left the base, and if so, could he have that information as well. Finally, he requested the procedures manuals.
It was explained that some of the information would only be online, paper records were being phased out. He made a start with the coaches, Dave wasn’t interested in the information, but made it look like he was noting totals and writing notes. It was afternoon when he moved onto the trucks, this was what he wanted to know about.
As he poured through the records, he wondered why the MOD needed to shift so much equipment round the country. Eventually he found what he was looking for. Every two weeks, there was a vehicle movement from Catterick to the weapons disposal depot in Kent. He couldn’t copy the files, all the information had to be written manually. He noted, type and registration number of the vehicle used, mileage, fuel added, driver and security tag number. He asked one of the three in the office what the security tag number was. “When the containers are sealed, a number is punched onto an aluminium tag that goes through one of the handles, the doors cannot be opened without breaking the tag. The number is noted on the screen, written on the paperwork that goes with the load and is also emailed to wherever the load is going to. The number should be checked at the other end and we should be notified of any discrepancy.” Dave asked who puts the tag on. “When the containers come to us, they usually have a tag on, once we have checked it, we remove that one and replace it with one of ours. It is always an officer who does that. There is a separate tag book, but that is in the dispatch office, do you want it?” “No. I was just curious about the entry on screen.” Dave later asked if someone could help him. “There is a three week period where very little has been sent offsite, do you know why?” He was asked what the dates were, “I’m not sure, I will have to find out.” It was a good half hour before he had the answer. The handheld machine they use to stamp the number on the tag was lost. It took some time for a replacement to arrive, there had been an investigation, but it was never found. Dave made a note of the dates, to check later. At 17:00 he went to see the Major, “I’ve finished, it has been a very productive day, I’m not sure there is enough money to be saved to justify a change, but that isn’t up to me, I will produce a report, it’s up to others to make the decision. I’ve thanked your assistants for the help they have given me. Would you arrange for someone to escort me to the gatehouse.” They shook hands, Dave chatted to the assistants while he waited, it was only ten minutes this time.
In the car going home, he was working on a plan, he used the journey to try to work out his next step. He had ideas which he mulled over, there was nothing certain at this point. He was used to that, the more he dug, the more information he had, he knew it would lead eventually to the solution.
On the way, he stopped for food, he had only eaten a sandwich and a bag of crisps during the day. He ate without noticing if the food was good or bad, if he had stopped and thought about it, he would have said it was bad.
On Thursday morning, he was sitting with a coffee, going over what he thought his next move should be. One hundred miles away, Peter Farrell was doing the same. He was behind his desk in his plush city centre office. His business empire spread across the city, from nightclubs to pubs and bookmakers. He had received information that morning from a source inside Merseyside Police, the Home Office were investigating reports of weapons being sold on the open market. Picking up the phone on his desk, he told the voice on the other end to find Billy. A few minutes later there was a knock on his door, “Boss, you want me?” “Come in, shut the door, this is private. I’ve had a message this morning that there is someone snooping around looking for the guns, find him and make sure he doesn’t learn anything about our operation, get the police to set up a meeting with an informer, you make sure whoever you send does a proper job.” “Won’t they just send someone else?” “I’m sure they will but the next one we will be more prepared for, we will set up someone else for the fall. Make sure the lads run the trucks everyday and it is all ready to move at a moments notice, just to be on the safe side. There should be another consignment in next Wednesday. I will speak to the lads when I see them tomorrow night. That’s it, I’ll give you the name of the person we are looking for, as soon as I have it. Whatever you do, make sure it can’t be traced back here, or you will be the next one.” Billy stood up without saying a word, he didn’t think this was the right way to handle the situation, but said nothing, he was there to make things happen, that’s what he was well paid for doing. Walking out past the secretary, it looked like it had just been a routine meeting.
Later that afternoon, he had a call from Jane Goodley, “Merseyside Police, had been contacted by an informer, who, they said, had information regarding the stolen weapons, he wouldn’t speak to the police, what do you want me to do?” “There’s a good chance I am being set up, on the other hand, if there is information to be gained…” He didn’t finish the sentence, Dave was thinking. “Arrange for the police to set up the meeting or pass on a contact number to them, I will email you the name I will be using and a contact number in about ten minutes.” He took out an envelope from the filing cabinet with ‘Sam Morton’ written on the front. Inside was a birth certificate, passport, driving licence and a credit card. Next he took one of the many burner phones he had, put it on charge, then noted down the number from the sim card. An email was sent to Jane Goodley with the details.
He told Sally what had happened that day, and that he might have to go to Liverpool at short notice. She was worried, “it’s just a routine meeting with an informer, he might have something useful, who knows.” There was no sign of the doubt in his mind. Just after 21:30, he could hear the burner phone ringing upstairs. He raced to answer it, taking the stairs two at a time. “Sam Morton,” he listened to the voice on the other end of the phone, “there’s no way I can be there this evening, I’m in Milton Keynes, I can meet you tomorrow,” Sally was by now standing in the doorway listening. Dave was writing as the call went on. When it was finished he rewrote his notes, ’23:00, outside Colonnade Apartments, dockside, Saturday night, £500, Danny’. She wanted to know what was happening, “I have a meeting tomorrow night in Liverpool, I should be home again on Sunday afternoon.” He made it sound as if it was nothing, Sally guessed and Dave knew it was more than that. On Saturday morning while Sally was playing tennis with Olivia on the indoor courts, he was packing, he put enough for a night in a small suitcase, then phoned a car hire company in Birmingham, he had looked for one as close to the train station as possible. After they had lunch, Sally kissed Dave, “take care, do you have your gun with you?” “No, I shouldn’t need it.” She dropped him off at the railway station and returned home, until he was back, she would try to keep busy.
Dave parked the hire car in the Premier Inn, West Derby, on the outskirts of Liverpool. The room was like every other Premier Inn he had stayed in, clean and functional, He lay on the bed watching TV, or rather the TV was on, but he wasn’t paying attention, he was going over possible scenarios for the meeting tonight. He went down to the restaurant and ate, at 21:00, he was back in his room to get ready. Knowing he could be waiting for some time, he had packed warm clothing, long johns, a thermal vest and a thick shirt. He took a Kevlar vest from the bottom of the case and fastened it round his chest. Finally, he put a jumper on. There were two pairs of socks on his feet. In the car was a thick Crombie coat. Dave looked much bigger than he usually did, he kept flexing his arms to get a bit more movement in the bulky clothing. He parked near the docks, it was 21:45, he wanted to walk round, get a feeling for the place and to find a good position to wait. It was still quite busy, people coming and going from the pubs and restaurants. No one was hanging about, it was bitterly cold with a wind blowing. Dave was worried about the lack of light, the few there were, left spots unlit, there were columns where someone could easily hide behind. He had a coffee in Costa, making sure he wasn’t being followed or watched, he didn’t think he was. At 22:30 he was in position, his heart was beating faster, the number of people about had decreased significantly. At 23:00, the place was deserted, he moved out from the shadows and stood under a lamp, he waited, the occasional couple walked past, giving him an odd look. It was another fifteen minutes before he saw someone walking towards him, he had both hands in his pockets. “Are you Sam?” Dave said he was, “I’m Danny, I have something for you, do you have the money?” Dave patted where the inside pocket of his coat was. The man was almost in front of Dave, it was only when he stopped talking, he heard footsteps behind him. A hessian bag was thrust over his head, now unable to see, he turned and lashed out with his steel tow capped boots he had put on earlier, he heard a crack as he connected with a leg. He heard in a loud Liverpudlian accent, a scream followed by moans and a shout of “my fucking leg’s broken, get the bastard. He was now lashing out with his fists, trying to connect with anyone, there was a blow on the side of his head, he had been hit with either a piece of wood or a metal bar. It knocked him sideways. “Fucking do it, do it now.” He was hit again this time on the top of his head, the last thing he heard was a ‘crack’, he felt a searing pain in his chest then passed out. The cold water of the dock shocked him into life, he couldn’t see, the sack was still on his head, the heavy coat that had kept him warm just a few minutes ago, was now weighing him down. He tried to keep his head above water but he was fighting a losing battle, he wriggled his way out of the coat. He then tried to pull off the sack from his head, but it was tight round his neck. He felt himself getting weaker, the cold was getting to him. There was a hand on his shoulder, it was trying to haul him out the water, seconds later, there was another hand pulling him. Two men were trying to get him onto a boat. Through the sack, he could make out blue lights, he passed out again.
John McAllister had been having his last cigarette of the night sitting on the end of his barge moored in the dock, he had heard the commotion, the shot and then the splash. At the same time as footsteps were fading away, he was running to the other end of his barge with a boathook, his wife had heard the same and come out to see what was happening, he said for her to phone for an ambulance and find some help. He saw Dave struggling, hooked him and pulled, he grabbed his shoulder to keep him afloat, his wife, having phoned, roped in a passerby to help her husband. Between them they hauled Dave out of the water. The ambulance crew checked he was still breathing, wrapped him in foil blankets. It took four people to lift him off the barge and on to the quay.
He woke up in a hospital bed, he had no idea of the time, he was wearing a hospital gown, there were pads over his chest monitoring his heart. His head felt different, he put his hand up, it was covered in bandages and it ached. When he moved, his chest hurt. Looking round, he was in a private room, he could see the head of a policeman sitting outside. A nurse came in to check on him, she asked how he was, Dave wanted to know where he was and the time. “It’s 11:15 and you are in the Royal Liverpool.” The policeman outside, seeing Dave was awake was on his radio. Dave asked the nurse if he could have coffee and paracetamol, “do you know where my clothes are, I have to make a phone call?” “I think they were cut off you in A&E last night, there were no possessions sent up with you.” He guessed before tossing him in the water, they looked for the £500, taking the phone as well. A detective came into the room, he waited until the nurse had finished and left. “Now you are awake, I have a few questions I would like answering.” Dave said for him to not bother,” I won’t answer any of your questions, I don’t have to and I don’t want to. So, you’re wasting mine and your time, you won’t catch the people who did this, even if you did, nothing will happen, I’d rather you left me alone.” “Why were you wearing a Kevlar vest? Who were you meeting last night?” “My head hurts, didn’t you hear the bit where I said I wouldn’t be answering any of your questions? I think it’s time you fucked off.” The detective left, the nurse returned with a coffee, tablets and a glass of water, “I couldn’t borrow your phone, I must make a call.” She left and returned a few minutes later, taking her phone out from a pocket and passing it to him, “would you stand at the end of the bed so the copper can’t see me.” He dialled the Brigadier, “sir, I’ve been shot and I’m in hospital, can you get me to the Queen Elizabeth in Birmingham, the police want to question me.” The Brigadier wanted to know which hospital and under what name, He asked the nurse, what name he was admitted under, “There’s no name, you are down as unknown at the moment.” He needed to know the ward and room number. “Ward 32 and room 4.” With that he ended the call, handed back the phone and lay down closing his eyes.
An hour later, he could hear a commotion in the ward. There were four military policemen and two orderlies, they had come for Dave. The policeman sitting outside the door tried to argue with the MPs but they ignored him, “we’ve come for a deserter, he’s one of ours, we will look after him from now on.” The nurse came in to disconnect the heart monitor, “you’re not a deserter are you?” “No,” Dave winked and smiled at her.
Twenty minutes later the military ambulance was on its way to Birmingham, there was an army escort with it, one car in front, one behind.
Sally was worried, there had been no call, Dave’s phone was by her side, she had checked her own phone every few minutes, but there had been no messages. She phoned Olivia, within thirty minutes she was sitting beside Sally, trying to re-assure her. Eventually at 18:15 her phone rang, it was Dave’s voice but weaker, she wanted to know where he was and what had happened to him. “I’m in hospital, everything is OK,” “no it’s not or you wouldn’t be in hospital, what the fuck has happened?” There was panic in her voice and tears running down her face, “I was attacked last night, someone is on their way to pick you up, and bring you to Birmingham, I haven’t got any clothes, they were cut off me in hospital. His name is Trevor, he will want £75.00. I will see you in about an hour. I love you.” Tears were flowing down her face, Olivia’s arm was round Sally, “what do we have to do?” “He needs clothes and probably something for his feet,” “come on, show me where everything is, I will pack.” Upstairs Sally opened the wardrobe, Olivia took out clothes she thought suitable, found boxers and socks, shoes she would get downstairs. “I’m coming with you, I’ll phone Michael and let him know. There was banging on the door, Olivia opened it to see Trevor standing there, “are you Sally?” Olivia said she was getting ready and there would be two instead of one going to the hospital, Sally picked up Dave’s wallet, he had taken a spare one with him, made sure there was plenty cash in it, put her coat on and locked the house.
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