Hot Revenge Box Set 2

Chapter 4

*****

 

Michael

Removing two dozen slates makes a gap comfortably big enough to take a man and incidentally exposes the timbers. There’s no question of how to anchor the rope this time.

“You realise we’re probably invalidating Finchby’s building insurance.”

Klempner whistles in. “What a shame.” We peer down into Stygian darkness. “How far down you think? Twenty-five… Thirty feet?”

“It can’t be more than that if the windows outside are anything to go by.”

This time on the rope, I'm much more in control.

It’s a straightforward climb down, the rope snagged by hand, thighs and crooked around one foot, and my body mass working for me rather than against, hand over hand, I descend into gloom. As my feet touch floor, the slight noise reverbs with the feel of a large empty space.

Blind-sighted in the darkness, the faint lines of external light seep through eaves.

Almost as I land, the rope shivers in my hand as Klempner also descends, coming at speed and I step smartly to one side as I realise he's all but on top of me.

He lands lightly. “Can't believe it's all going to be this easy.”

The air smells, not exactly stale, but unused. Revolving through three-sixty, the only light is the faintest of gleams, a fine line marking the eaves.

Also from above, a slight rustling…

Roosting birds?

From below, the floor vibrates to the bass thump of overloud music.

“Still got Beethoven’s Fifth Racket playing,” mutters Klempner from the gloom beside me.

“Useful for us though. He’ll not hear us coming with that going on.”

“Too right. I think we can risk a little light.”

With a click, the narrow beam of an LED flashlight cuts through the air, producing a startled flapping from above. To one side of us, the cracked plaster and paint of a wall, the beam painting threads and dots of light over webs and dust. But as the beam swings, it illuminates receding plaster then vanishes into darkness.

“A single open space?”

“It is a warehouse. Or was.”

Klempner gestures with the light. “That way is the front of the building, the main entrance and stairwell.” He swings the beam the opposite way. “So, let's follow the wall that way and see if we can find another stairwell. A place this size must have more than one.”

The torchlight aimed at the floor, we follow the line of the wall, stepping over the remains of ancient birds’ nests and small heaped cones of guano.

Almost immediately we come to a plain timber door; no lock, no complications beyond the weavings of the local spiders over the handle. On the wall beside it, a metal plaque in what might be brass under the patina. 'C-Bay'.

The handle resists turning, but only with the groan of long disuse. And the hinges complain as the door swings slowly open to reveal a small room beyond...

… then stepping through, stairs leading both up and down.

Klempner aims the torch upwards. “Presumably our roof access door is at the top. Wait here. I'll check. If we need to make a fast exit that way, it'll be nice to know what's there.”

He disappears up into shadow, the sound of his booted feet surprising quiet. For a tall man, he walks lightly. From downstairs, the bass thump is louder.

opened from

out his weapon, a machine gun. “Keep

me to bring the axe? It's not exactly a

I've seen you handle that axe…” His voice turns dry… “… and I know what you did to two of my men with one a couple

supposed to apologise? You’d sent them after Charlotte. It was December. We had to escape into the snow. I was fucking naked barring

blinks. “Naked? I didn’t know that.” He slides to a half-smile, looking sheepish.

might be

but you’ve come a long

that was two years ago… Almost to the day? And here we are, you and I, fighting

for you.

*****

landing; stairs up, stairs down, and a corridor off

pressing a finger to his lips… “Listen.” He cups an ear,

distance away, just audible over the thumping of the music, emerge from…

long forefinger along the corridor, then

along behind, axe in hand, ready to

murmur, “I think

there’s likely to be

rear. Normally I’d have

got a rear

was never in there, but he’d send someone through that way

into a door, abruptly, we must be all but

garbage competes with stale tobacco. Flies hum over an overflowing trash can, crawling over a slick brown stain on the lid. The steel of the sink

spilt crumbs being investigated by bottle-green buzzers. A half-empty jar of

the trash, his Adam’s apple working as he recoils from a large bluebottle

“You'd think the City authorities

two of the great

“As you would know.”

is unabashed. “Yes. As I

where we entered. The voices

“You've done well, Lena…”

the question on my face

woman’s voice whines. “You are going

am, Lena. We had an

door, inching around to see. After a second,

tumbler. An open laptop casts a glow brighter than the

the pregnant woman sitting opposite. She accepts both

it’s the woman Beth spotted on the video footage, watching James and Charlotte at

a wad of notes. “Here you are, Lena. Five thousand, like we agreed. You can start again, just as you wanted. New start.

both Klempner

more, I recognise the face: Baxter. We met when he was

Ben…

then morphs

kill my brother. Klempner did what

he’s doing

talking. “There's enough there, Lena, for the deposit on the rent for a nice

lifts. “Got a

displays yellow teeth. “What

flower shop. Nice

raises a

your way now. And all because

forward. “You got

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