The train was packed with no chance to talk, it wasn’t until they were home, he relayed the conversation before they left. Sally also wondered if they had been told the full truth.
While Sally played tennis, Dave struggled round Tesco’s, he had a list, but was adding in extra items as he wandered up and down the aisles. It was busier than normal with only one more Saturday left before Christmas. Hopefully with Olivia staying for lunch in the afternoon, the arrangements for the holiday period would be sorted out. Sally and Olivia went upstairs as soon as they were home, they showered and returned in jeans and tops, the tennis gear left upstairs. Dave had opened a couple of cans of soup and was cooking bacon to put in sandwiches for them. The food was soon gone, as the three of them sat in the lounge, it was agreed Olivia and her husband Michael would join them for Christmas lunch. Their other friend Sam and her boyfriend Aaron probably wouldn’t come as they wanted to spend their first Christmas together. They would be at the Boxing Day party at Olivia’s, along with Dave and Sally, some of the people from Michael’s business and a few of their neighbours. Around twenty people in total. Sally said they would be across early to help get everything ready. Michael arrived at 18:00, he stayed long enough to have a beer before he and Olivia left. “Dave, as soon as we have eaten, shall we have an early night,” the look said there wouldn’t be much sleeping.
When Dave looked at his phone on Sunday morning, there was a missed call. It was from a number he didn’t recognise. As the kettle boiled, he stood in the lounge to return the call. “It’s Taff, we need to meet, somewhere we won’t be seen.”
“Why?”
“There’s a hotel at the Michaelwood Services on the M5, book a room, I’ll be in Burger King on the south side, do not approach me. I will see you and follow you back to the hotel. Make sure you are on your own, no Sally, do you understand?”
“Yes, I’ll see you later.” Sally was still in bed, he put a coffee next to her, she asked who it was on the phone. “Taff, he sounded agitated, he wants to meet me this afternoon, from the sound of it, he wants it to be very private. There is something not right.”
“Will you go?”
“Yes, if he needs help, I will do what I can, he only wants me there. I will take a Glock to be on the safe side, however if it came to a fight, I would lose.” She wanted him to come back to bed. “No, I need to get ready and my mind is now working overtime trying to figure out what it might be.” He showered and dressed, downstairs he was eating breakfast.
Sally brought him down his Glock and shoulder holster. “Is it anything to do with the bomb?”
“I don’t know, he said nothing to give me a clue. While I’m out, will you look at the CCTV from Leicester train station. See if the three or possibly more started from there or if they changed trains, study the access onto the platforms.”
Sally hugged him before he left, he went in his car, he stayed within the speed limit as he drove. All the way, he kept checking in his rear view mirror to see if he was being followed. At one point on the M42, he pulled off the motorway, and stopped at the side of the road for ten minutes before carrying on. He had to go down past the services, the hotel was on the other side of the motorway. He checked in at 13:15. His backpack was left in the room, which had been paid for at the time of booking. It was small and functional, the type of room where you would only want to stay if you had to. Going back down the stairs and outside, he walked across the bridge connecting both sides, his jacket was done up, no one would know he was armed. In Burger King, he ordered food, he looked round while he was waiting, Taff was sitting at a table on his own. He walked back with his paper bag of food, Taff was a little distance behind him. As he turned into the entrance to the hotel, he waited for him to catch him up, there was no conversation or greeting.
As soon as they were in the room, they shook hands and greeted each other. Dave offered some of the food to Taff, he shook his head. Taff on the only chair, neither of them took their coats off. “OK, what’s all this about? It’s not like you to sound the way you did.”
“Dave, there is big trouble on its way.”
“What sort of trouble?”
“I don’t know, a lot of the guys have been approached to see if they want to earn big money, not me, it’s some of the ones who have left the service recently.” Dave said nothing, he ate some of the fries, they were, by this time cool and limp.
“What if you are one of them and trying to find out what I know?”
“You should know me better than that. I live well, between the money you pay me when I’m needed and the other things I do, I’m OK. The house is paid for, my lad is at university, our cars are bought and paid for. I don’t want the shit that might come with the offer.”
“You didn’t call me to tell me to expect trouble, what else do you know?” Taff said nothing. “Are you waiting for me to offer you money?”
“No, I don’t want anything,”
Dave could see he was struggling, “when you tell me, it will be a load off your mind, what have you found out?”
“I don’t have proof, it’s only what I have heard, if I tell you, promise not to start snooping round my way.”
“There is no way I would do anything that would put you in danger.”
“The bomb that went off in London,” Dave stopped eating and looked at Taff. “The bomb wasn’t meant to go off, something fucked up, inside the case were a load of smaller bombs. It wasn’t the only one, there are others. I don’t know how many, I’m only reporting what I’ve heard. The guy with the suitcase was a nobody, promised money to deliver the case, probably would have been killed when he had completed his job.”
Dave said nothing, he waited to see if there was any more, Taff had nothing else to say. “Have you any idea who is behind this or what the motive is?” There was a shake of the head, if there was more, he wasn’t going to be told. “When you want to tell me the rest, I will be listening. It must be difficult if some of your ex colleagues are involved, I understand about the bonds. Thank you for telling me what you have, I appreciate it. You can call me at any time, if you or your family feel threatened, let me know, we can do something. My phone is always on.”
That was it, Taff said goodbye and left, Dave sat on the bed thinking. He phoned Sally, he asked her to write down, then type up his report of the meeting. “Don’t say where it was or who I saw, send a copy to Jane, I will call her as I drive back.”
“David, this confirms what you thought the other day, that it was multiple bombs in one case, we know there is another, but how many more?”
“Jane will you speak to the Met Police, find out if they have found any bodies since last Tuesday, not domestics or gang killings, maybe the other suitcase carrier has been murdered. If you find anything, let me know, I will be down tomorrow.”
Sally was waiting for him, he could smell the roast beef as he came through the front door, she hugged him, then asked what was going on. “I don’t know, Taff was frightened, you’ve met him, he isn’t the sort to be scared of anything.” She had cooked a good meal, Dave went back into the kitchen for more beef and gravy, afterwards, the sat in the lounge listening to music, the TV was off. He packed his case for the morning before they went to bed.
It wasn’t long afterwards when he heard his phone ringing, thinking about what he had said to Taff, he got up to answer the call, it had stopped then started again. “David, you are needed in London now, bombs are going off all over the country,”
“Do you want Sally as well?”
“Yes, I’m heading in now, I will organise for an escort, wait until they are outside.” Sally was rubbing her eyes as he went upstairs. “Get dressed, pack enough clothes for three or four days, I’ll get the Uzi’s, Jane says there are bombs going off all over the country.” Through the curtains he could see blue flashing lights, he quickly dressed and went out to speak to the driver. “Are you our escort?”
“Yes, my orders are to stick with you until another force picks you up, regardless of where it is.”
“We will be in the Range Rover, you can radio through the registration number, I’m a trained driver, I will stick on your bumper, we will be five minutes.” Clothes had been quickly put in a suitcase, Sally grabbed some snacks, Dave carried out the backpack and suitcase, they both pulled coats over their Glocks, each carried a laptop out to the car. Sally put on the radio to listen to the news, Dave pulled off the drive and sat behind the police car. It was chaos on the radio, reports were coming in from reporters all over the country. So far, according to the reports, there had been no loss of life. Most of the damage had been to infrastructure, damaged railway lines, electric sub stations, pedestrian bridges over motorways and dual carriageways, incendiary devices in bus depots. In Scotland, pylons carrying high voltage cables had been damaged, every report added to the chaos.
Approaching Staples Corner, they could see more blue lights ahead, the traffic was backed up, the police car slowly drove down the hard shoulder. Dave was right behind when they were stopped. The road in front was blocked, part of one of the pedestrian bridges was down. The police driver came back to him and said they couldn’t go any further. “Tell them to move out the way, drive round the other way, we must get into central London.” Police cars were moved to allow them past, once through, they were on their own, the police escort was gone. The streets were deserted, they made good time, at one point the traffic lights were out. Dave carefully crept across the junctions. It was 01:30 when he pulled into the underground carpark. They took the lift up to the top floor, people were everywhere, standing about waiting for instructions. Jane Goodley’s door was closed, Howard, her deputy was at his desk. “She has said no one is to go in, we are waiting for instructions.”
Dave knocked on the door, there was no reply, he tried the handle, the door opened. “Sally, let no one in.” Inside he saw Jane Goodley sitting at her desk, tears were rolling down her face, the phones were off the hook. “Sally, come in here, look after Jane, lock the door when I have gone out, let no one in except me.” Outside he spoke to Howard. “She’s taking calls, Sally will be helping her. Get everyone together, I have jobs for them all.”
Dave quickly thought what to do, all eyes were on him. He stood on a chair. “Thank you all for coming in, I know some of you were here already. Howard has a list of all the police divisions in the country, I want it split up amongst you. Call each police headquarters, I want a list of every report of damage tonight, do not take no for an answer. Threaten them with the Home Secretary, if that fails, I will speak to them. It’s 02:00 now, I want a full list by 03:00, send them to Howard, he will coordinate everything. Ask for updates every time a fresh report comes in. That’s it, let’s get to work.” He spoke to one of Howards assistants. “Do you know if there is anyone in the kitchens?”
“There should be one open.”
“Good, go down to it, have a trolley sent up here with tea and coffee for everyone. Ask them if they can do some hot filled rolls as well, and find out where the central heating controls are, see if it can be switched on.” Once everyone was working, he tapped on the door to Jane Goodley’s office, Sally asked who it was, she let Dave in. The door was locked again. Jane had stopped crying, she now had a cup of coffee. “Sorry, I went to pieces, I panicked when all the reports started to come in.”
“It’s OK, it’s under control, stay here, I will take any calls that come in for you. I will have Howard divert the calls to me, Sally will stay with you.” Outside, he spoke to Howard. “Divert any calls coming in for Jane, put them through into the nearest office. I will be in there. Ring every building connected with MI5, put the security level at ‘critical’, don’t forget this one.”
The phone started to ring almost immediately, “Jane Goodley’s office, David Stretton speaking. She’s out the office at the moment, I’m taking her calls, I’m up to speed. Good morning Prime Minister, at the moment I have a team ringing round every police division for an up to date report of the damage caused.” There was a pause while he listened. “Yes, it is related to the incident on the tube.” He was asked for advice. “I think you have to tell the press it is a concerted effort by a terrorist group to disrupt the country. Say we are checking on several lines of enquiry. I hope to have an up to date list of the damage by 03:00. As far as I am aware, there have been no casualties so far, it looks like the targets were carefully selected.” Again, he listened. “09:00 is too early, can you make it an hour later. I want to organise tasks for those who start work in the morning.”
When the call was over, he went back to see Jane. “Howard, can you get a car, Jane is going out, she is required in a meeting.” He turned to Jane. “You’re going home, I will cover for you, I will say you have a stomach bug, everything is under control.” Sally gathered Jane’s bag and phone. “Stand up, we will walk out together and take the lift down to the basement. Sally will go with you, she will speak to Ruth, then return here, are you ready?” Howard was on the phone as they walked past. The effort to walk to the lift was almost too much, she slumped against the side when she was in. They both helped her into the car. “Have Ruth help you at the other end.”
Howard, was putting together a list of all the reports, a spreadsheet was being created. Dave walked round checking on the progress. Howard came looking for him. “The Home Secretary is in the phone.”
“I’ll take it in Jane’s office,” he closed the door as he went in. “David Stretton, how can I help you?”
“Where’s Miss Goodley?”
“Unfortunately, she has gone home, she should never have come in, she has some sort of stomach bug, I am coordinating the investigation at the moment.”
“Who gave you authority to do that?”
“I have an email from Sir Rupert Parsons, check with him or the PM, I will stand aside if you want someone else to take charge while Miss Goodley is away.” He asked for an update, Dave told him the same as the Prime Minister.
When Sally returned, she closed the door as she came in. “Dave, she’s exhausted, Ruth said she has been like it for a couple of days. She said she has hardly slept, between writing reports and attending meetings, she hasn’t stopped.”
Howard knocked on the door, “I have most of the information, it’s in a spreadsheet, what do you want me to do with it?”
Dave looked at the time, it was now after 04:00. “Sally the next part involves you, Howard, find me ten senior researchers if there are enough here. Sally, split the spreadsheet up, give roughly the same amount to each person. I want locations plotted on maps, checks made on CCTV, all before 09:30, I want something I can present in a meeting. I will be writing my report for the PM, we have to see him at 10:00.” He went through Jane’s phone book, he called the head of the Met Police, they didn’t get on. Dave decided to try to be polite. He introduced himself, “I am in temporary control of this investigation while Miss Goodley is away, can you give me an update on the situation in London.” Dave listened, he was told the road system would be back to near normal by mid-morning. All leave had been cancelled while their investigation takes place. “Can you copy me in on forensic reports as they come in please.”
His next call was to the head of security at Transport for London. The Central line was closed, several surface signalling boxes had been blown up and would be out of action for several days. As soon as it was light, the whole of the surface part of the system was to be walked to check for damage. It was the same at Network Rail. No trains would be running until the system had been checked, it would take a couple of days to complete. The damage to the system may take a little longer.
Sally brought him in bacon rolls and coffee as he typed up his report. “Dave what has happened?”
“Taff said there was trouble coming, it looks like it has arrived.” He flicked through Jane’s phone book, he called the Prime Minister, “David Stretton, may I see you fifteen minutes before the main meeting starts, it’s very important.” He called Howard into the office, “Is anyone checking on communications with groups who might be capable of this scale of operation, if not, start now. I want a report by 09:15.” Day staff were arriving, those who travelled in by public transport would be late, the ones who came in on foot or cycled were on time. Sally poured him a coffee, he was scribbling on a pad, she could make out some of his writing, she fired up a laptop, there was a report being written, she would be typing it up shortly.
At 09:30, he asked for a car to take him to Downing Street, Sally was still working on the report. “Bring it with you, finish it while I speak to the PM.” Passes were waiting for them, they were shown into an office, Sally continued on the report. “Mr. Stretton, the Prime Minister will see you now.” Sally stood up to accompany Dave. “Stay here, finish the report, I’ll tell you about it later.” Richard Carlton looked as worn out as Dave, he was sitting behind a desk several empty coffee cups were to one side.
“David, what do you want?”
“Sir, I sent Jane Goodley home, she is suffering from exhaustion, she cannot function at the moment, you have to make a decision. Howard her deputy is a good organiser, but he doesn’t have a clue about investigating. At the moment only the Home Secretary knows half the truth, I said she had a stomach bug and had to go home. You have to decide who to put in charge. I’ve started the investigation, set things in motion, but someone needs to be in overall control. It may, hopefully, be for only a few days. I have a report and some thoughts on what is going on, I will give a short presentation at the meeting.”
It was almost 10:00, he said he had to check Sally had finished the report, she had. “Find some place to print out twenty copies, I’ve no idea how many will be at the meeting.” They went down into the basement, the meeting was to be held in one of the briefing rooms.
At the head of the table was the Prime Minister, next to him was the Home Secretary, Peter Stockdale. Around the table were the head of the Metropolitan Police, the new head of MI6, the Defence Secretary, Dave and Sally. They all waited for the PM to speak. “Good morning, I want this to be a brief meeting to understand where we are at the moment, and to discuss what we are to say to the press. Miss Goodley is ill, Mr. Stretton and his assistant Miss Fellowes are here from MI5.”
He looked at the head of the Met. “We are currently working with the local councils to clear the roads and get the traffic flowing again, our forensics teams are stretched. We have asked local police to gather anything from the sites which they think might help us, reports will start later today.”
William Ferguson the new head of MI6 was next. “We are checking on Irish groups to see if any of them have been active over the last few weeks, so far nothing, we do not think it is a foreign government.”
Sally handed round the short report, the room was quiet while it was read. “David, what is your reading of the situation?”
He went to stand, Sally held his leg to stop him, he remained seated, “The bomb on the tube wasn’t meant to go off, we know there was a second person with a similar suitcase, inside was probably up to twenty small bombs with timers. I don’t think there was meant to be loss of life. As far as we can understand, each bomb which has gone off, was placed to create disruption and not loss of life. The targets weren’t chosen randomly, each one was placed in a position where there is no CCTV, we are currently plotting the location on maps. This was a long time in the planning, each location picked carefully.”
His phone was ringing, he passed it to Sally, she left the room to take the call, she asked him to come out the room, they both returned a minute later. “I’m sorry about the interruption,” he carried on from where he left off. “With regard to the press, I think you need to admit we have come under a major attack, say the usual things about Great Britain, not bowing to terrorism. Many leads are being pursued and it is hoped the perpetrators will soon be in custody. Ask the public to remain vigilant and to report anything suspicious.”
“I will be addressing the nation at midday, I will not be taking any questions from the press. The meeting is now over. Mr. Stretton, please remain behind. Home Secretary, do not leave the building.” Sally remained seated with Dave, once the room was empty. Dave spoke. “Sir, the phone call was from someone I know, there will be more attacks.”
“How does he know?”
“I met with him yesterday, he said then, big trouble was coming, he was right, I have no reason to doubt what he has said today.”
The colour drained from the PM’s face. “What can we do to prevent this happening, there has been no ransom or demands? David, you’re not normally wrong, what is happening?”
“I think the plan is to disrupt the country, one small bomb, can cause days of disruption. Hundreds of bombs make the populace worried, where will the next one be, will it affect them. Interfere with the internet or TV and there will be unrest. I have an idea, but I want to keep it to myself, I have more enquiries to make, once I am a little further forward, I will speak to you about it. As I have said before, the only person I can trust is Sally, at the moment I don’t even trust my informant.”
© 10210ken 2026
