Timing was key for this. I had to wait until he was out of earshot from reception but not too close to the guards. I phoned Sophie’s number on my phone and saw her touch her leg. She could feel it vibrate which was our secret code. Looking back it had never occurred to me what would have happened if someone else had phoned her.
Sophie played her part perfectly. She stood up straight, swaying slightly. I could just hear her speak to the receptionist.
‘I’m sorry, I don’t feel very well.’
She clasped her hands on the desk and I could see the concern in the faces of the receptionists. As they asked her if she was alright, she collapsed. There was an eruption of movement as both receptionists and the guards on the gates rushed to her side. It was basic human nature. Deep down, we all care about the well-being of each other. And everyone wants to be a hero. This was my moment.
‘Mr Fitzgerald?’ I called, shouting after him. I repeated it and he turned to face me. He seemed a kindly old-man and had no hint of malice in his face. He was obviously not from London.
‘Mr Fitzgerald? Hi I’m Jason from reception,’ I said, noticing I was putting on a slightly camp tone. Why was that coming out now? I decided to go with it. ‘Hi there, Sir. So sorry about this, Amy has just told me she has given you the wrong gate pass. We just had them updated, that one won’t get you through.’
He looked convinced enough. ‘Oh dear,’ he said softly.
‘But if you give me that one, I’ll make sure it gets back to the desk. Amy has just popped off to get you another one,’ I continued, controlling the situation. There was no Amy on reception but it was all about confidence (hence why they call it a ‘con’). I didn’t really give him a choice. I gently took the pass off him and told him to take a seat and Amy would be with him shortly.
I had done it. It was almost certainly not up to Emma’s standard but I had conned someone out of something. I could see why people did it; I had a huge rush just from lying to an old man.
Sophie’s eyes were closed as people rushed about her, checking her pulse and poking her but I was sure she was watching me through a small slit in her eyelids. She seemed to smile as I scanned the ID badge and slipped through the gate. I was in.
I had done the hard part. Now I had to find room number 165. Once you were past the gates, and the escalator to the next floor, you filtered through a small corridor before being greeted by three massive elevators. Either side there looked like a set of staircases, which I would not be using. This building was huge and I was out of shape.
The only way I could find the room was trial and error. There was no one of use around and no signs on the walls indicating where to go. I got off on the first floor and looked at the room numbers. Too low. Same with the second floor. I pushed up to the sixth floor. Too high. Eventually on the fourth floor I found it.
It was a small room right at the end of a long corridor. There was no one on the corridor and I couldn’t hear any footsteps. I was alone. At last, some good news. I pushed the door handle down. It was locked. Fuck.
Lying to old men I could just about do, but picking locks (without any tools) was not in my skill set. What could I do? Right, think. Maybe I could find a cleaner and pretend I had locked something inside. Too risky. I had the gun... could I shoot the lock? Ridiculous. I was more likely to shoot myself. That just left one option. I stood back, took a deep breath and kick it.
Absolutely nothing happened. Well that was not true. It made a huge noise and almost broke my foot, but it certainly did nothing to the structural rigidity of the lock. I paused for a second, checking nobody was coming to investigate the bang and tried again. I decided this time to go in with my shoulder taking the brunt, and after several painful charges, the lock gave way. I was in.
I pushed the door closed behind me and switched on the light. The room was a mess. It was clearly just used for storage and even more clearly hadn’t been opened up for weeks. It was disgusting. It looked like the type of room that got into such a state that you just locked the door and abandoned it forever.
Where the hell was I going to start? There must have been twenty large boxes filled with thousands of old files and pieces of paper. There were bags in the one corner which looked so old, I was morally against opening. Just to make things a bit harder, there were stacks of old chairs blocking my path through the room.
I figured that 2903 must be relevant here. That was the only thing left on the note I hadn’t used. Was it a box number or a particular page number in one of the files? It was the easiest thing to remember and the only one that was poignant to me. 2903. 29th of March. Our wedding anniversary. Even though we'd never had a real wedding it still meant something to me and clearly it did to Emma too.
I decided to walk once around the room to try and see if anything jumped. The state the room was in it was more likely a wild animal would jump out at me than an idea but it was worth a shot. With great difficulty, I circumnavigated the room. Nothing stood out. I couldn’t see anything with the number 2903 on.
I completed my circle and stood once more facing the room. There seemed to be a flashing coming from a small cupboard right at the back of the room. I had missed this the first time. I was worried the light might be coming from some sort of sensor. Maybe I had triggered an alarm. I rushed over to it to examine it. It wasn’t a camera or an alarm. It was so much better. It was a safe.
I forced open the cupboard door, knocking over several boxes of files as went. I had found what Emma wanted me to. I was impressed that she had believed in me that much. I would never have thought I could have found this but she obviously did. It showed me how powerful the men who had her were and what lengths she had to go to hide this from them. I could wait no longer. I took a deep breath and punched in the number 2-9-0-3. There was a rumble and an electronic bleep, then a green light shone. It was open.
I grabbed the handle eagerly and yanked the door ajar. It was full of so many things my mind struggled to take it all in. The safe was almost waist-high and it was jammed full. There was a huge black holdall at the bottom which was bulging with something inside. On top was a small white envelope which was also straining to hold its contents. I picked it up and looked at it. In the same scribbled writing it read, ‘do not read this until you are alone.’ On top of this pile was a handheld Dictaphone. There was a tape inside it and every inch of me knew I had to press play. It was a message from Emma.
‘Tom, if you can hear this then you did it. You are my hero in so many ways. But there isn’t time for this. If you have found this there is a good chance they won’t be far behind you. Get everything from the safe and take it home. Only read my note when you are there. Be safe. Thank you for never giving up on me. Love you always.’
Tears were beginning to form in the corners of my eyes. I hadn’t heard her voice for so long, but I would never forget it. She sounded concerned. Not exactly worried, but certainly short on time. I could listen to it a hundred times when I was safe but now was a time for action.
I pulled out the holdall; it was heavy. I don’t know what was inside but it weighed a lot. I slung it over my shoulder and pocketed the Dictaphone. The letter was placed carefully in my inside jacket pocket. There was no way I was losing that now. I checked the safe twice to make sure I hadn’t left anything behind and was away. I moved as quickly as I could over the rubble left in the room and reached the door in record time. I looked back at the room, saw what state I had left it in and moved on, flicking the light off as I went.
I marched down the corridor smoothly and attempted to look smart and sophisticated once more. It wasn’t my strong point but again I felt I was less likely to be stopped if I shone with confidence. I plastered on smile and then quickly removed it. Lawyers don’t smile, I remembered. They smirk. I adopted a cocky attitude and swaggered back towards the elevators. People passed me and perhaps some wondered what was in the bag, but nobody stopped me.
I reached the first floor and was just thinking to
myself how well it was going as I turned to step on the escalator. I could see the lobby below and no sign of Sophie. That was a good thing. She must have got away cleanly. I stepped on and began to travel down when I froze. Sadly, I froze but the escalator kept on moving so it had very little effect. I had seen something I really didn’t want too. Three enormous men were standing in the lobby. Two of them I had never seen before but they look completely out of place in a lawyer’s firm. They stuck out like a sore thumb. Seeing as I wanted to escape this building without having ‘sore thumbs’ or sore anything for that matter I turned and bolted back up the escalator. I hid around the corner, out of sight.
I was sure they were Kozlov’s men. They couldn’t be anything else. Their muscles ripped out of their suits (metaphorically) and they looked like they didn’t have enough brain cells between the three to pass a law degree (not that I would say that to their faces.) The third man I had seen before. He was the same man who had followed me at Victoria Station. I didn’t think he had brought reinforcements just to observe me and I wasn’t going to stick around to find out. This bag, the letter and the tape with her voice on were too important. But how could I get out?
I thought about phoning Sophie, but what was she going to do? I couldn’t involve her in this. Plus, I could hear Emma’s message ringing in my ears. ‘You are my hero in so many ways.’ Time to start acting like one. If I wasn’t going to fight them (and I wasn’t) I would have to outsmart them. It shouldn’t be too difficult.
I looked around, desperate for a way out. Was there a back door or a fire exit? Not that I could see but that did give me an idea. The fire alarm. Along the corridor I had seen several of those red buttons which you could set off the alarm with if the glass in front is smashed.
I raced back to the corridor with the bag cutting in to my arm. It was getting heavy. Quickly I found one, set myself and smashed through the glass. It happened instantly. A siren, more piercing and invasive than I thought possible erupted around the building. I could hear the usual commotion of people. They were not sure what was going on and there was not the desperate rush for the door I had hoped for.
Reception were confused and decided to deal with it.
‘This is not a drill. Please file out one at a time. Nothing to worry about,’ I heard them shout.
I waited for a few minutes. The Russians were not likely to leave straight away but I couldn’t see how they would be allowed to stay in. People rushed past me onto the escalator, which was now stationary and providing a metallic staircase. Time to leave.
I slipped into a crowd of ‘stressed out’ lawyers and kept my pace with them until we reached the revolving doors. They were stationary but could move if you pushed them. I pushed through and was away. I had done it. Scanning around, I couldn’t see Kozlov’s men. I didn’t need a second invitation so I ran as fast as my legs, and the heavy bag, would allow me. I weaved through the crowd and didn’t stop until I reached Sophie’s car.
*****
Sophie seemed surprised to see me. It was probably more concern than surprise, as I banged on the window she jumped half a mile. I threw the bag on the back seat and hopped in next to her.
‘Tom... you did it! How?’ she muttered, astounded.
‘What, you didn’t think I could?’ I joked, strapping my belt on and indicating I was ready to go.
‘No, not at all... I’m so happy. I saw that man again with some others... I was really worried... I wanted to do something but...’
‘Sophie calm down! I’m fine. It would take a bit more than three terrifying Russian men with years of experience in the criminal world and no doubt an arsenal of horrendous torture equipment to stop me.’ She laughed at this and started the car up.
‘So what did you do?’ She asked carefully. I told her about the fire alarm and blending into a crowd.
‘That’s clever. You’re getting good at this,’ she teased.
‘What about you? You looked pretty comfortable out there,’ I remarked.
I felt euphoric. I was alive, which was nice, and I'd done it. I hadn’t seen Emma but she had left a trail and I'd followed it to the pot of gold at the end. I was burning with intrigue. What was in the bag and the note? I would have opened it there and then but Emma had asked me not too, and I wasn’t sure whether that request extended to the bag as well. Better to be safe than sorry.
I had no doubt that Emma wouldn’t have a problem with Sophie seeing it all, especially with the help she had given me, but I would open it in private and then judge whether I could show Sophie.
I explained this to Sophie and she didn’t seem to mind. She took me all the way home, hugged me and told me to come see her whenever. Soon enough I was alone in my flat and ready to open my note. Deep breath, here we go.
Chapter Fourteen
‘So many ears listening. So many tongues lying.’
I had been so wrapped up by the loot that I didn’t think about my safety. I'd been followed by huge Russian thugs and there was a very good chance they would be waiting for me in my own flat. I could be walking straight into a trap.
Luckily, I wasn’t. There was no evidence of a break in and hours later, I was still breathing. A sudden realisation hit me: I could have thrown all my hard work away. Perhaps they didn’t want to kill me just yet. I took a slow breath and opened the note; the contents of the bag could wait. I was relieved to see pages of her writing unravel itself. Finally I was going to get some answers.
Dear Tom,
I have lied to you. More times than I care to count. I lied about my name, my past and even our wedding. But believing everything was a lie would be a mistake. I cannot give you specific details at the moment in case this falls into the wrong hands. There are so many ears listening. So many tongues lying. There is one thing you have to believe me on: I love you. I do love you, I have loved you always and I will love you for the rest of my life. Whatever you think of me, whatever I have done to you, remember that.
The truth is I am not who you think I am. I concealed it not out of choice but out of desperation. I had a ‘troubled’ upbringing if you want to use that term. I started engaging in things that don’t show me in the best light. I have broken most rules put in front of me in the past but believe me when I say I have never hurt anyone physically and only those who deserved to, emotionally. I have never hurt anyone I didn’t mean to before; except you.
It breaks my heart to know that by the time you've read this I won't be with you. I wanted to talk it through with you but you could never understand. The thought that you may never get this and live your life thinking I left you by choice fills me with dread but I believe in you Tom. I know you will find your way to me.
My mind was rushing, desperately reading on to hear more from her. It was like she was speaking to me, I remembered how she used to talk and could hear her voice now. I felt safe and warm.
You're probably wondering what's going on. I don’t blame you. I don’t know how much you know, or have been able to figure out, so I will explain as much as possible. I was very good at what I used to do, some would say the best. The problem is when you do something wrong it eventually catches up with you.
I upset some very important men. Important in the criminal world that is. I can never explain to you how terrifying these men are and I pray you never meet them. I thought I'd gotten away from them but they found me and they are not happy.
I have to go with them and do whatever they want. They say they need me for something huge; if I use my ‘skills’ they might let me go. It's not a great option but, believe me, there really was no other choice. When these men tell you to do something, you do it. It could take weeks, or months... maybe even years. I just don't know.
This is my mess and I must deal with it alone. I am so, so sorry you were dragged into it. Now, if you haven’t done so yet, I want you to open the bag.
I did what I was told. I reached over, heaved the dead weight nearer to me and unzipped it.
Ho
ly Shit! Inside was more money than I'd ever seen. Even in the movies. What was it for? I grabbed up her note again.
Those are my savings. If truth be told, the money I made as a youngster was mostly wasted on stupid things but in that bag is almost £1.2 million. You may notice that about £200,000 is in American dollars and another £250,000 is in Euros... roughly. I want you to take this and start a new life.
The day I fell in love with you I hid this away, deciding I'd never associate with my old life again. But it caught up with me. After everything, it seems fair that you get some of the benefits of it. These men will probably be watching you to make sure I don’t return but they won’t bother following you around the world. Buy a ticket, get on a plane and enjoy yourself. Maybe one day - if I make it out of this - I will come and find you. I'll never give up hope. Trust me, wherever you go, I will find you. You know I'm that good!
Do not worry about covering your tracks. I'll make sure I help these men and they'll never bother you again. That is why I can never leave: they'd kill you if I did and I could never let that happen. But you can leave. I need you to leave. I don’t know if it has taken you days, weeks or months to find this but don’t delay. Go now. Tell your family you're travelling or something...
Do not tell anyone the truth. Do not trust people. Even when you never thought it possible people can betray you. Just look at me, I was meant to be the one person you could trust and I let you down. You're safest on your own.
Finally, stop looking for me. I know it is hard, but there is nothing you can do. We have to play by their rules but if they see you talking to police or trying to find me they'll get edgy. For all our sakes, let’s not annoy them anymore.
I don't expect you to wait for me. Perhaps you can never forgive me for what I have done. I hope I can see you again one day and explain everything in person but if you need to move on I want you to.
Be safe and be happy.
Think of me the way we used to be.
All my love,
Ems xxx
I was physically shaking by the time I had finished her note. I read it through three or four times, desperate to hear her voice in every word. Jack had been completely right (he really was an incredible detective) and the Kozlov brothers had got her. Could I go to the police now? Maybe the letter would be enough. I knew I couldn’t in my heart. If I showed them the letter they'd use it to prosecute Emma for all her past crimes and she'd see out her life in jail.