Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be produced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior permission of the author of this book.
This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead is purely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various places/products referenced in this work of fiction which have been used without permission and is by no way sponsored by the trademark owners.
For my Mother, Josephine Lindsay who never got the chance to read it, and for my Father, David Lindsay who doesn’t like reading fiction anyway.
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ALSO BY DREW LINDSAY
All books are available from eRetailers worldwide
Coral Sea Affair
Ben Hood Thriller Number 1
Black Mountain Affair
Ben Hood Thriller Number 2
Flesh Traders
Ben Hood Thriller Number 3
The Dead Woman’s House
Ben Hood Thriller Number 4
The Men’s Club
Ben Hood Thriller Number 5
The Dark Affair
Ben Hood Thriller Number 6
An Explosive Affair
Ben Hood Thriller Number 7
A Lost Lady
Ben Hood Thriller Number 8
Treasure
Ben Hood Thriller Number 9
Charlotte’s Fear
Ben Hood Thriller Number 10
Dying in Paradise
Ben Hood Thriller Number 11
Disorganised Crime
Ben Hood Thriller Number 12
Atomic Blonde
Ben Hood Thriller Number 13
Gone
Ben Hood Thriller Number 14
Subterranean
Ben Hood Thriller Number 15
Island Magic
Ben Hood Thriller Number 16
South Pacific Affair
Ben Hood Thriller Number 17
The Pilbara Affair
Ben Hood Thriller Number 18
Out of the Darkness
Ben Hood Thriller Number 19
Loveless
Ben Hood Thriller Number 20
Kill Them
Ben Hood Thriller Number 21
Secret Women’s Business
Ben Hood Thriller Number 22
Project Dragonfly
Ben Hood Thriller Number 23
Get Charlie Noah
Ben Hood Thriller Number 24
Inheritance
Ben Hood Thriller Number 25
Operation Moth
Ben Hood Thriller Number 26
The Track
Ben Hood Thriller Number 27
Aitutaki Sting
Ben Hood Thriller Number 28
To learn more about Drew Lindsay, visit him online at
https://www.drew-lindsay.com/
Or at his Facebook page
https://www.facebook.com/drew-lindsay-author
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Thank you Anthi for the beautiful cover work.
https://www.brandaidstore.com/en/home
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Chapter One
‘You went too far this time Ben.’
‘What?’
‘You can’t just run around shooting people. It doesn’t make the department look good.’
‘One of them had a carving knife Peter and the other was swinging a machete. I was going in. They were coming out. They had just stabbed a teller and grabbed money.’
‘You didn’t know that.’
‘I knew they were in a damn hurry to get out of there and they looked fairly determined to carve me up in order to do so.’
‘So you pulled out your gun and shot one in the throat and the other one in the stomach.’
‘I shot the skinny one in the stomach. I couldn’t afford to miss because he had the machete. I was actually aiming for his chest but I’m a bit out of practice.’
‘Out of practice! You shot a gay 3 months ago for threatening his hairdresser.’
‘He had a knife to the poor man’s throat and fully intended to slice him.’
‘What, over a bad streak? Are you crazy?
‘So I just stand there and watch the guy’s artery sliced and then shoot?’
‘Well the gay is dead. The hairdresser is still recovering from a heart attack, and the family of both are threatening to sue.’
‘I didn’t cause his heart attack. Be fair Pete.’
‘You blew the gay’s brains all over the hairdresser’s face.’
‘You’re missing the point.’
‘Well in the case of this latest alleged robbery, the suspects are both stone dead and their parents want your hide nailed and so does the Commissioner.’
‘Suspects! Alleged robbery!
Detective Sergeant Ben Hood slumped into a chair and breathed out a long sigh. The room he was in was on the 9th floor of Police Headquarters in Sydney. The air conditioning vent above his head rattled but at least for a change it was blowing cool air to combat the Australian summer heat rather than the hit and miss mixture of various temperatures that were normal for that building.
Detective Inspector Peter Dunn sat opposite him with a large fake timber laminated desk between them.
Ben looked out the window over thick summer foliage in Hyde Park. He watched as children with their mothers set picnics on the grass near the War Memorial. He looked back at his long time friend but Peter lowered his eyes to the file in front of him.
‘They want you put out to pasture Ben. I can’t help you this time.’
‘Pasture?’
‘Yeah, gone. Finished. Retired.’
‘I won’t go. I’m not even 50!’
‘You’re 50 next month you jerk and you keep shooting people.’
‘They need bloody well shooting and you know that.’
‘Haven’t you ever heard of a taser?’
Ben sat back and laughed. ‘You and I both know that I’m not authorised to carry a taser and even if I had one, you only get one shot and then the other guy slices you.’
‘And you’re not authorised to load up with high powered hollow points or whatever you are putting in that Glock and splatter people over the landscape.’
‘Hit them with standard issue and they’ll put their finger in the hole and keep coming.’
The two men stared at each other.
‘It’s likely you’ll go down over this one Ben. The non issue loads will be reported to the Coroner this time.’
Ben looked out the window and fiddled with his watch.
Peter looked back at the papers on his desk. ‘OK. This is the deal. You clear out for 3 months on full pay and get some counselling.’
‘You are kidding!’
‘Anger management.’
‘ANGER MANAGEMENT!’
‘And then we do an analysis of your progress and a decision will be made in relation to your ongoing relationship with the department.’
‘And what do I do while I’m not working for 3 months?’
‘Take a holiday. Book a romantic trip for you and Fay to the Maldives.’
‘The Maldives! Me and Fay! She hates the sun and heat and she hates tropical places and she hates me! You know that!’
‘Re kindle the relationship.’
‘RE KINDLE! She would tie me to a coconut tree and re-kindle a fairly decent fire under my arse with anything she could find t
o burn.’
‘Well you are the one that keeps a photo of Brenda Grant in your office.’
‘And I’ve got one of her in my wallet too. So what? Brenda’s a pin up girl after all. No harm done. A movie star for God’s sake!’
‘Yeah well Fay doesn’t see it that way mate.’
‘Yeah well Fay didn’t seem to mind sleeping with a bloke who fixed our fence.’
‘I’m not getting into this with you Ben. You are now officially on paid leave for 3 months. I want your stuff.’
Ben leaned forward in the chair, examining his friend’s face for any sign that he may relent. Peter Dunn watched him carefully. Ben removed his issue handcuffs from the pouch on the back of his belt and placed them on the desk. He then unclipped the Glock 35 from his pancake holster, ejected the 15 round clip and put both on the desk in front of him. Inspector Dunn picked up the gun. ‘How did you get one of these? They’re not standard issue.’
‘I’m in special ops.’
‘Special ops my arse.’
‘It’s got NSW Police stamped on it, right?’
‘Good Lord!’ Peter thumbed one of the bullets out of the clip and examined it. ‘These are standard load.’
‘Yeah, so.?’
‘You weren’t using these in the last shooting Ben.’
‘I have mood swings….’
Peter Dunn sat back slowly in his chair. He placed both hands, palms down on the desk. ‘That’s why you have to go Ben. We don’t do stuff like that in this department any more. Buggered records. Non standard weapons and equipment. Cover ups. We have computers now that track everything.
‘Yeah and the crims are making a laughing stock of the Police Force. Gangs of drunken low life’s are out of control all over the place. Anyone in their way gets beaten up or killed. Two good uniformed cops at Fairfield got stabbed just last night because they tried to break up a drug deal. Did that ever happen when we worked Fairfield 25 years ago?’
‘That was 25 years ago. Things have changed Ben.’
‘Well you have changed; that’s for sure.’
‘You can’t just go around breaking arms and shooting people!’ Peter’s voice was rising in volume.
‘Worked in Fairfield 25 years ago.’
‘Not anymore!’
‘Remember when we used to get the dog guys to put their nasty German Shepherds in with a group of drug dealing zips at one of those Cabramatta night clubs? The shit was flying everywhere and I’m not just talking white powder.’
‘OK….. Enough. Badge.’
Ben took out his Police Badge and Identification wallet and laid it on the desk. ‘Satisfied?’
Peter Dunn slumped back in his chair. He pushed his right hand through thinning hair. ‘OK smart arse. You got anything else?’
‘Like what?’
‘Weapons?’
‘Na.’
‘Yeah, likely. You are going to get into deep shit if you’ve got other stuff you know.’
‘Nothing. OK?’
The two men looked at each other for several seconds. Inspector Dunn put the handcuffs, gun and identification badge in his desk drawer and locked it.
‘So what am I supposed to do now?’ asked Ben.
‘Take a holiday. Get back to the gym. Just look at yourself. You’ve put on weight and you are out of condition.’
‘That’s why I’ve got the gun.’
The two remained silent for several moments.
Peter Dunn stood and Ben stood slowly as well. The meeting was over. ‘Go and talk to that Jap guy again. He did you some good. He straightened you out last time.’
‘I don’t need straightening out…..and he’s Korean.’