Dave Stretton opened his eyes, everything was blurry, he knew he wasn’t in the Premier Inn, or his bed at home. Turning to his right, he saw the outline of Sally, he cried out when he felt the pain. He wondered why he hurt so much, his whole body ached. Sally Fellowes had her eyes closed, she was dozing in a chair, they immediately opened on hearing Dave’s cry. Her hand reached for the Glock sitting in her lap. “You’re in hospital, stay still.” Trying to move, nothing would work, his vision was blurred, he blinked several times before his eyes cleared.
“I have to get up, I should be watching a building.”
“Dave you’ve been shot, almost killed, you’re not going anywhere. I’ve been sitting here for two days. There is no way you are getting out of bed.”
A nurse came into the room to check when she had heard voices. “How do you feel?”
“Terrible, can you give me some paracetamol and disconnect me from these machines? I have to leave.”
“You will be staying here for some time. You have complex injuries, now you have regained consciousness, you can tell us where it hurts.”
“Everywhere, can you organise food and coffee please?”
“Dave, there are coppers outside, they want to question you, act as if you are still in pain and can’t remember.”
“That won’t be difficult.”
“Do you want me to tell you what I know?”
There was a nod in reply.
“Jane Goodley called me at work, she said there had been some trouble in Aberdeen and for me to get here as quickly as possible. From the way she spoke, I thought you were going to die. I grabbed some clothes, your proper ID and two of the Glocks. I have one, the other is in my bag, in case you need it. What happened?”
A tray of food was brought in, on it were sandwiches and coffee. Sally asked if there was more coffee available. “As many cups as you can bring please.”
“I need to remember, you tell me what you know and I’ll see if it reminds me. Before you say anything, kiss me.” She kissed him on the lips then sat back in the chair, she turned to face him.
“I’ll talk in a low voice, let me know if I have to speak louder. I was at work on Tuesday, around lunchtime, my phone went, it was ‘caller withheld’. Jane said you had been hurt, she didn’t know how badly, but you were unconscious in Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. I screamed, one of the other girls came running to see what had happened, I said you had been hurt and I had to go.” She stopped to wipe her eyes. “I went straight home and phoned Jane to find out more. All she knew, or would tell me, was that you had been found on Tuesday morning at the bottom of an embankment by a dogwalker. It was near the sea in Aberdeen, you were rushed to hospital. Your ID said you were Harry Graves, the address was a shop in south London. The name flagged up on an MI5 screen, it eventually landed on Jane’s desk. She took over, spoke to the police, found out what she could then phoned me. I packed quickly and drove here, I arrived at midnight that night. The police wouldn’t let me in, despite me showing them my ID. It took ages for them to get clearance to let me in the room. I could see you through the glass, lying there hooked to all this equipment.” Sally paused as more coffee was brought in, she took a drink of the dark liquid, it barely resembled coffee. “It’s now 16:00 on Thursday, you’ve lost nearly four days. Now tell me how you ended up in here.”
Dave had finished his sandwiches and was on his second cup of coffee, the sandwiches were OK, but it hurt eating them.
“This might be a bit jumbled, but you will understand. You know Jane spoke to me on Friday when we were down in London, it was about a counterfeiting operation in Scotland. She didn’t want to involve the Scottish Police, I was there to observe only.” Sally already knew this, they had discussed it on Friday evening but said nothing, she didn’t want to interrupt his train of thought. “I flew up to Aberdeen on Saturday morning, hired a car and booked into a Premier Inn. I think I phoned you to say I had arrived.
That night I had a drive by the premises, I could see two containers and loads of blue plastic chemical barrels. The place was down near the docks in amongst a load of similar type buildings. The walls were high with barbed wire on the top, I saw all this through the gap between the gates.
On Sunday morning, I walked past, it was quiet, only a few other people about. The gate was slightly open, there was a car inside. It was too quiet to do any sort of surveillance I came back at 21:00, the car was still there, but the place was locked up.” There was a long pause before he carried on.
“My plan was to come back the next day, find some place to park, wander past a couple of times, changing my shirt between times. This time, the hire car was parked across the road and about one hundred yards away, I had a clear view.” Dave stopped again, Sally wondered if he was going over the next part in his head before saying anything.
“At 22:30, it was still fairly light, most of the other cars had gone. I lay low in the seat, the gates were unlocked, the car came out. I could see there were four in it, they waited while the gates were locked by the driver. I followed, but it was difficult, there weren’t too many cars about to begin with. Away from the dock area it was busier, I kept my distance, always a few cars behind. They turned off the main road into a park near a lighthouse, I should have given up then, but it was a narrow road with nowhere to turn. I decided to get out as soon as I found a place wide enough to let me get away. My thoughts were, I’d been rumbled, I would change cars the next day, hire something different. The road into the park was narrow then opened up into a carpark, they sped away from me. I decided to swing round once there was enough room and get away as quickly as I could. Too late the other car was coming straight at me, headlights full on. I didn’t see anyone get out, I heard a shot, my chest hurt, then more shots, I passed out.
The next thing I remember is seeing you. I guess I’ve been shot, how badly?”
“Seven times in the chest, once in the arm and you took a head shot. The Kevlar vest saved you, four of your ribs are broken. The bullet went through your arm and a chunk of bone has gone from your head, other than that your fine.” Sally’s voice changed. “For fucks sake, when are you going to learn you aren’t invincible. That’s the second time you have been lucky, you won’t always be, think about me.”
“I only came up to look, nothing else. I didn’t know they would try to kill me. I’m sorry.” Neither of them said anything for a while, Sally was relieved and angry. Angry with Dave, angry with Jane Goodley, the Head of MI5 and angry with herself. She should have gone with him. His eyes were closed, with the information Sally had given him, he was able to piece the events together.
“Give me your phone.”
“Who do you think you are calling?” Dave said nothing, Sally grudgingly passed over her phone, the screen was a blur, he handed it back.
“Will you phone Jane please.”
She passed it over when it rang. “Sally, how is he?”
“It’s me, you need to do some things. Have someone go past the building, I think it will be empty now. If it is seal it up, no one to go in before me. If it is still going, close it down. Make sure the recordings from all the cameras in the area are kept. I will be out of here soon, hopefully tomorrow.” Jane asked to speak to Sally.
“He won’t be out tomorrow, he is in a bad way,” she gave her a list of his injuries before she hung up. “You will be staying here until they discharge you, don’t argue. I have to go and sleep, I’ve been up since Tuesday morning. Will you be OK if I leave you? The coppers outside are armed, I have brought you a burner phone. I think the police have your possessions, do you want a Glock?”
“Yes, wrap it in a cloth. I’ll keep it in the drawer in the cabinet. As you are leaving, can you ask a nurse to come in?” She kissed and hugged him as best she could, he didn’t see the tears in her eyes as she left. A few minutes later a nurse was in the room. “Can you disconnect the drips and the heart monitor and tell me where my clothes are.”
“No, and no, the doctor has to make that decision and I don’t know where your clothes are, possibly they were cut off you.”
“OK, then what about this bandage on my head, it feels huge.”
“I can take it off, check the wound and then dress it again, possibly with a smaller one, I’ll have to get a bandage trolley, I’ll only be a few minutes.”
“Could you bring a mirror as well?” The nurse returned handing Dave the mirror. “Help me sit up, only one arm wants to work properly.” He winced but said nothing as he was helped into a sitting position. “Do you have a wet flannel I can use to wash my face, my eyes feel like they are glued together.” His focus returned when he wiped his eyes with the cloth.
The nurse watched as he carefully wiped his open eyes. “You’re not meant to do that, we have special fluid for eyes.” He smiled at her, she unwound the bandage on his head, part of his hair had been shaved off. Waiting until it had been cleaned up, he tried to see where he had been shot.
Neither he nor the nurse could place the mirror in the right position. “Use the phone to take a picture,” he looked at it, his eyes were now clear.
“You will always have a dent in your head, but judging by the rest of it, this isn’t the first time.”
“No, I’m not very good at avoiding wooden clubs. Eventually those who hit me end up worse off.” There was no reply to his comment.
“It looks dry and is healing, I can put a dressing on the wound and tape it to your head, hopefully it will stay on. You should be able to let the air get to it tomorrow. I will look at your arm since I am here.” The bullet had gone through both sides, there were more stitches on the side where it came out. A smaller bandage was put on his arm.
“What about my ribs?”
“They are strapped up, nothing will be done about them, they will heal in time.”
“Can I leave tomorrow?”
“That’s not up to me, the doctor will make that decision, it’s only a few hours since you regained consciousness. Normally you would be in for at least another forty eight hours.”
“OK, thank you. I need to pee, can you help me to the toilet. I want to see if I can walk?” The nurse left and returned with someone to help her. The heart monitor was temporarily disconnected. The drips would go with him, they helped him swing his legs off the bed. Dave slipped down off the bed until all his weight was on them. His head was pounding and his ribs ached. He forced himself up, there was no movement while he checked his balance. The first few steps were shaky, with each one it improved. As he left the room, a policeman joined the slow walk to the toilet. One of the nurses stayed with him while he peed. The walk back was better, however, he was glad to get back into bed. He was brought painkillers to ease the pain, closing his eyes, he slept in a sitting position.
Sally checked in to the same hotel as Dave, she explained who she was. The duty manager had to call the police before she was allowed in his room. It had already been searched, she knew they wouldn’t have found anything. Taking all his clothes, she said he wouldn’t be using the room again. She settled the bill before returning to her room. She was pleased when Dave rang, his voice sounded stronger, he said the food was OK, but not enough. Sally made a mental note to pick up more for him on the way in tomorrow, he asked her to also bring clothes.
Last orders in the restaurant were at 21:30, having showered, she was getting ready when there was a knock on the room door. Instinctively, she took out her Glock, standing to one side, she asked who was there. “It’s Jane Goodley.”
Sally opened the door and they hugged. “How did you know I was here?”
“It’s my job to find these things out.”
“What are you doing here?”
“I came to see David and to check on a few things. Have you eaten?”
“No, I was about to go down.”
“Good we can eat together.” During the meal, Sally asked how she got here so quickly. “I flew up, there was an RAF jet going to Lossiemouth. I had them detour to Aberdeen.”
She asked how he was, “I have no idea how he managed to survive, either God was watching over him or he was incredibly lucky.” Jane asked if he had said anything about the events. “He had spent the day watching, as they left, he followed them in his hire car. They drove into a car park quickly spun round and someone got out and shot him as he was sitting in the car. He will tell you in more detail tomorrow, you know the rest.”
“He sounded weak when he phoned, I’ve done what he said.”
“Shortly after he spoke to you, he was saying he wanted to leave.”
Jane laughed. “Why does that not surprise me.” They moved into the bar to have coffee.
“Jane, why did you involve Dave, this is police work, not MI5?”
“There is something not right, very few people knew he was up here. The gang who are producing the counterfeit notes on an industrial scale are always one step ahead of us. This time I thought I would bring in Dave and you. All we had was the address of the latest place they were working from.
I sent Dave up to observe only, if we shut down this site, we knew another would spring up somewhere else, it’s the people behind this we want. I don’t know if they saw Dave or if they knew he was coming, only three or four people knew. I didn’t even know which alias he would be using.” Sally asked if there was a leak. “I think so, we have to plug it before we can move on, but more importantly I want to make sure Dave is OK. I will be going with you tomorrow if you don’t mind.”
The painkillers had helped, his head didn’t hurt as much. Several times he had been out of bed, squatting down and getting back up again, his ribs hurt each time he did it. He hoped the pain would lessen in a few days, he remembered how much it hurt from previous breaks. His sleep was restless, every time he woke, he was going over the events. Had he made a mistake, he didn’t think so. Around 04:30, he heard a commotion coming from the ward, he saw through the glass panel one of the policemen standing up, he reached for the Glock. Fortunately, it was one of the patients having a fit. There wasn’t much sleep after that, around 06:00 there was a shift change. Cleaners were moving about, at 07:00 he was offered a coffee, he asked for two. During the night, the dressing on his head had come off, he looked at it to see if there was any blood, it was clean, he left it on the bedside table. He ran his fingers along the stitches. His head hurt a little less. The heart monitor was disconnected to allow him to walk to the toilet, this time unaided but still being followed by a policeman. He didn’t realise how much speculation there was about who he was, some had thought him a prisoner in hospital for treatment.
Sally went in first, Dave didn’t know Jane was also there. Following a kiss, she looked at the scar on his head. “Why do you look like an east European thug when your head is shaved. You will have to do the rest of it and wear a baseball cap until it grows back. How is your arm and chest?”
“The arm is OK, it hurts but doesn’t feel like anything is damaged, I can still work it, there is a bit of pain. My chest hurts, but it’s getting better,” he lied. Sally could tell he was lying. She gave him the clothes she had brought. When he took the gown off Sally couldn’t see the extent of the bruising, his chest was strapped up. Sally helped him dress, he couldn’t get his shirt on due to the tubes in the back of his hand and the leads going to the heart monitor. He pulled out the plug, an alarm sounded, a nurse came running into the room. Dave smiled at her. “Sorry, I was trying to dress.” Cancelling the alarm, she removed the drips from the canula, allowing him to put on a shirt. “I won’t re-connect the drips, but the heart monitor has to go back on.”
There was a knock at the door, Dave hoped it would be a doctor, he wanted to leave. He smiled when he saw Jane. “Your turn to visit me.”
She kissed him on the cheek. “I hope you are feeling better today.”
“I’m ready to leave, as soon as I have seen the doctor.” Sally looked at him, a look that said ‘no chance’.
“When you feel like it, we need to have a talk. There is more to this, Sally knows, we discussed it last night. I’m going to see the senior officer here next.” Dave asked her to be guarded in what she said. Sally gave him the snacks she had bought, he sat and ate from the bag. He began with two bananas, followed by a large bar of chocolate.
The doctor came around 11:30, he checked the cut on his head, asked about the ribs, he said the strapping should come off. The nurse disconnected the monitor and removed the pads. Sally watched as the strapping was removed, she had seen his chest bruised before, but that was from a single bullet. The bruises were right across his chest, there were darker parts, she assumed this was where the bullets had pushed into the Kevlar vest. The windscreen, she thought, might have reduced the impact slightly. Dave tried not to shout out as his ribs were felt. “It all looks OK, the bruising will get worse before it starts to clear, your ribs will be tender for some time.”
Dave asked if he could leave. “Only if you will be resting, every movement you make will hurt for some time.”
“He won’t rest, he will be working the minute he is out of here.”
“What do you do?”
“I drive for Uber most of the time.”
“I don’t think you will be up to driving until the pain has subsided.” Dave said he wouldn’t be driving. “OK, one of the nurses will give your wife dressings to take home with you.” On hearing the news, one of the policemen said he couldn’t leave until a senior officer had given permission.
“Am I under arrest?” The officer said he wasn’t. “Then I’m free to go. As soon as I have dressings and painkillers, I’m off. I appreciate you sitting out there protecting me, but you won’t be following me when I leave. I have my own protection with me.”
Sally smiled at the two officers, “I’m firearms trained and allowed to carry when required.” Twenty minutes later a senior officer arrived.
© 10210ken 2026
