Scorpio's Lot (25 page)

‘We’ll wait in the car when we
get back,’ he told Mick. ‘No good goin’ to the cabin with the cops and dogs
there. We got no darts anyway. These two have gotta come back sooner or later,
so we’ll follow them when they leave the farm.’

Charlie’s mobile vibrated. He
fumbled nervously in his attempt to press the activating key. He looked towards
Mick with a concerned expression, knowing full well it would be the Piedpiper
seeking an update on the situation. Charlie answered the call.

‘Have you got the girl, Charlie?’
asked the Piedpiper.

‘Not yet. We lost them in a
forest and they could be anywhere.’

‘What! They’ve eluded you again?’

‘If you’d let us kill the dogs we’d
probably have her by now.’

‘Don’t question my decisions,
Charlie. I gave my reason earlier.’

‘Don’t worry, boss, she’ll be
ours soon, I promise.’

‘So what do you plan to do now?’

‘We’ll return to the car and wait
for them to leave, even if it means hangin’ around ‘til tomorrow.’

‘Okay, but keep me posted at all
times. Charlie, I’ll be sending another person to assist in capturing the O’Neill
girl once and for all. He’s one of the Keeper’s men down here on business and
is reputed to have exceptional skills in these circumstances. His name is Brad
Morgan. You met him on a previous visit. He’ll phone you tonight regarding a
rendezvous point. Between the three of you I expect to see the girl in our
custody by tomorrow night.’

Before Charlie could respond the
line went dead.

Mick was agitated. He was worried
about Charlie’s commitment to wait overnight for the O’Neill girl to leave the
farm.

‘I’m worried, Charlie. What if
there are more cops on the way?’

‘We destroyed their two-way and mobiles,
remember?’

‘Yeah but -’

‘Shut the fuck up, Mick! The car’s
well hidden and how in the hell could more cops arrive in this weather? The
roads are probably flooded. Anyway, Morgan’s gonna phone tonight and help us
get the bitch. We’ve gotta talk about a rendezvous point.’

~ * ~

We
finally stirred from our camouflaged surrounding, knowing the two hit men were
well and truly gone. Standing and brushing herself down, Brigit didn’t look
exactly like a candidate for belle of the ball.

‘You okay?’ I asked.

‘No, Tom. I’m wringing wet, very
cold and I’ve just about had a gutful of this lot. They’ve shortened my
lifespan by about ten years after that close encounter.’ She saw me flinch in
my attempt to stand erect.

‘Let me take a look at that
shoulder, Tom.’

Prodding away, she moved my arm
in numerous directions and declared, ‘I think it’s only a surface wound with
some loss of blood. Nothing appears broken, but expect a massive bruise in the
morning.’

Brushing aside this new injury
and Brigit’s fuss over me, I spoke of our need to return quickly to the farm. ‘We
need to head back to the cabin to check on Hamish and the two other men and
also to get out of these wet clothes. Chances are the dogs will be back on
their feet very soon. I have doubts about our two assailants risking Cain and
Abel’s appetite for a second time. These cowards have probably fled the scene
already.’

We made our return trip through
treacherous water, successfully avoiding the barrage of debris still en route
downstream. Walking up the incline that led from the creek bed, I instructed
Brigit to keep the torch turned off as a cautionary measure, even if we couldn’t
see any sign of the men. After what we’d both been through I didn’t want us
caught over such a simple oversight.

The rain had finally eased to a
drizzle, with the lightning now visible in the distant heavens. The forest had
been transformed to its former state. Stepping upon level ground, it was
difficult at times to avoid the smaller obstacles in our path. With the passing
of the electrical storm the night had grown darker, making our passageway more
challenging, but I knew that the deplorable weather conditions had been our
savior tonight.

We had travelled half a kilometre
when we saw the lights from Hamish’s cabin in the distance. This would now
become our critical part of the return journey. We had to avoid being detected
on the stretch of land that separated the cabin from the pine plantation. We
decided not to run the last two hundred metres for fear that sudden movements
could be spotted in the night air. The rain had stopped in this area, which
gave us all the more reason to progress steadily.

Still no sign of the aggressors
and only fifty metres from what we hoped would be our safety. Suddenly a large,
dark object appeared from nowhere and headed directly toward us. We both got
one hell of a fright as this obscure shape started to grow bigger by the second
in its advancing charge. How could this be? I thought. So close and yet so far.
From ten metres away the object began to materialise into a familiar farmyard
figure. One of the Friesian cows had broken loose from the main herd down by
the dam and lost its way in the storm. We both heaved a sigh of relief as we
stepped aside to allow the black-and-white animal to pass by.

Finally the welcome sight of the
cabin steps beckoned our entry. A gun was pointed at us through the living room
open window, causing Brigit to nearly collapse. After the harrowing ordeal of
near misses in the pine plantation, this finale was almost too much for her to
endure.

Burke recognised his target and
withdrew the weapon as Hamish walked toward the front door to greet us.

‘Wondered if we’d ever see you
guys again. You gave us some anxious moments though. Everything all right?’ he
asked.

‘We had a narrow escape out there
but we’re basically okay. We just need to get out of these wet clothes,’ I
replied.

As I looked around the room I
could see Cain and Abel were beginning to stir following their dose of
sedatives.

‘By the way, what’s with your
shoulder?’ asked Hamish.

‘It’s only a graze. I’ll be fine.
Brigit can take a closer look shortly and apply some antiseptic.’

‘Thank goodness. With all that
blood I thought you might’ve broken your arm.’

‘And what about you two? Those
taser guns gave quite a punch,’ I asked, looking at Burke and Martino.

‘It took around fifteen minutes
to regain a full recovery. We’re fine, no side effects,’ replied the sergeant
and added, ‘We think those bastards have finally fled.’

‘Hamish, we need to shower,’ I said.
‘Could you manage a change of clothes for both of us?’

‘Not a problem. I still have some
female clothes in one of the bedroom drawers from a past romance or two. I’m
sure you’ll find something in there, Brigit, and as for you, Tom, maybe farm
clothes would suit.’

After we had both showered I took
this opportunity to inform Hamish and the two officers about our rendezvous
with the imposters. I reiterated the events of the past hour, receiving full
and uninterrupted attention from the three men. Martino began to write down
some notes. Adding our encounter with the cow behind the cabin brought a
lighthearted moment and laugh to an otherwise solemn and serious story.

‘We’re of the opinion these thugs
have left the property,’ stated Burke. ‘Knowing we have Hamish’s guns and that
the Dobermans will soon be on their feet is probably enough to scare them off.
They may come back but I have my doubts.’

‘Yes, that makes sense,’ I
agreed.

‘Tom, I need to run something by
you and Brigit,’ Burke said. ‘When Forbes discovered Ruth Evans’ body he
noticed some letters she had written in her own blood. We’ve since learnt this
message was intended to read Piedpiper, which happens to be the code name for
the drug syndicate’s southern regional head. Have either of you heard this name
before?’

‘No,’ I said. ‘I also saw Ruth’s
body and the crude writing on the floor but couldn’t make head nor tail of what
it meant at the time. Brigit and I discussed it on the way to the farm but came
up with no answers. Good to hear that mystery’s been solved.’

‘I haven’t either,’ Brigit said. ‘Were
there any more hassles after we left the farm tonight?’

‘The sarge and I were tied up for
a bit, but other than that there wasn’t,’ said Martino.

‘I don’t think either of you guys
are up to driving back to Pedley tonight,’ I stated, looking at their fatigued
bodies.

‘Couldn’t, even if we tried,’
Martino said. ‘As a result of this storm tonight all roads leading into Pedley
are cut, according to the latest weather and flood report. Hamish has kindly
offered to put us up for the night, so we’ll assess the situation in the
morning and then make a decision. Also, it’s impossible to contact base due to
those men destroying the two-way.’

‘Our mobiles are gone and Hamish’s
landline is cut,’ added Burke. ‘Apparently the floods are widespread on the far
side of Ashworth.’

‘Can’t even offer you my mobile,’
I said. ‘I think I lost the damn thing in the forest.’

‘Sergeant, don’t underestimate
this syndicate,’ declared Brigit. ‘How can you be sure those men aren’t still
lurking around somewhere? These persistent people won’t accept defeat, and they
won’t go away that easily.’

‘That may be so but they’re not
stupid, meaning if they carried out a further attack it would only be done if
they hold the advantage. At the moment they’ve forfeited that dominance,’ Burke
said.

‘Are you saying we’re safe for
the time being, Darren?’ I asked with some doubt.

‘Of course I can’t give you my
total assurance, but think about it, Tom. They had their chance and blew it. We
now control the situation, with five adults who have access to ammunition and
two Dobermans about to shake off a dose of sedatives. Their artillery consists
of two people with most likely limited weaponry. Hardly a fair comparison, don’t
you think?’

‘Okay, you’ve made your point,’ I
acknowledged.

I looked across at Cain and Abel,
who appeared to be over the effects of the sedative and were now on their feet
circling the living room. Cain gave a deep short growl as he walked past Darren
and Chris. This was new scent and he seemed confused by their presence.

‘Stay!’ ordered Hamish, to
reassure Burke and Martino. But it wasn’t necessary. He knew the dogs would
never attack inside unless provoked or instructed to do so.

‘Okay, Hamish, so we’ll all stay the
night and somehow return to Pedley tomorrow. It’s not safe for Brigit to remain
here with her cover now blown,’ I claimed.

‘That’s fine by me, Tom. Pity it
had to come to this because I was looking forward to the company.’

‘Our return tomorrow is mandatory,
with Detective Sergeant Forbes in mind,’ said Burke.

~ * ~