Chapter 5

Wasp

I was so nervous waiting for the result of that test to come through and when the letter dropped through my postbox, I sat there for half an hour just looking at it. What would I do if it said that I wasn't the father? Would I feel relieved? Would I walk away from them and leave them to lead their lives. What if it came back positive and I was that boy's father, could I try to get Katy to remember me, to be a part of their lives permanently?

My feelings were churning inside me and it came to me. It didn't matter what the result was because whether I was that boy's father or not, I just knew that I had to do something to help them. Get them out of that apartment and find somewhere that was cleaner, safer and at least somewhere where the boy could sleep in a bed.

Opening the envelope, I had to read through the results several times for it to make any sense to me. Seeing 99.9% and reading the information on how to understand the results I let out a breath slowly. I was the father to that boy,

I went to her apartment with a smile on my face, I had so many plans and wanted to share them with her. As she opened the door my smile dropped because something didn't feel right. She seemed agitated and her mannerisms were jerky as though she was really anxious about something.

"Can you stay here while I go out?"

Was all she said as she pushed past me and disappeared down the hallway. So much for coming here and expecting everything to suddenly change. I had no idea where she had gone and to be honest my mind went back to when I had followed her before. Why was she doing that, why did she need to do it?

Once inside I went straight to the cupboard by the window and opening the door found the boy inside. I could tell by the slight smile on his face that he was pleased to see me, so took his hand and brought him out into the room. I spent the time telling him stories, stories that I'd read as a child, one's like Hansel and Gretel and Jack and The Bean Stalk. He loved it as though I was giving the opportunity to glimpse into a different world.

When his mother came back, he was quick to jump away from me and run to his cupboard, which actually made me angry. Why would he so afraid that he needed to do that? The look on her face was enough for me to work that one out, but to be honest I'd had it with tiptoeing around her, always trying to keep her happy.

"Where the hell have you been?"

I shouted at her as she took her coat off and dropped it on the floor, totally ignoring me.

"What have you got involved with?"

That certainly got her attention and she turned to me her eyes blazing but it didn't stop her from rummaging around in her bag. I waited and watched until she pulled a vial out of her bag. As I started toward her, she pushed me out of the way and made for the kitchen area pulling open a drawer. It didn't surprise me when she turned with a syringe in her hands and then as she withdrew some of the liquid.

"You're a junky, you stupid bitch. You've got a kid to look after but you have to go out and get your fix"

I was almost spitting my words at her, disgusted with her.

"It's fucking insulin. I have to have it"

That had my temper lowering as I watched her pull up her skirt and stab the needle into her thigh.

"You were never diabetic"

Suddenly regretting my choice of words because I'd just insinuated that I'd met her before. Thank god she didn't seem to notice as she threw the vial and syringe into an old plastic bag.

"I wasn't. I got it when I was pregnant. I can't afford the medicine, so I do what I have to do to get it"

"I'll get it for you"

She stopped and looked at me, really looked at me, as tears formed in her eyes.

"You'd do that for me wouldn't you?"

"Yes"

Because if that was what it took then I'd look after them both.

"I can't stop doing what they ask me, it's not just the insulin, they add something else into the mix and I can't survive without it. Anyway, I know too much, and they wouldn't let me go"

Her voice sounded so defeated as she said that, as she ran her hand over that tattoo on her arm, and to be honest, I believed her. All I could do was to walk out of her apartment, there were so many emotions running through me that I didn't trust myself to stay any longer. I felt so angry and frustrated because I didn't know what to do next.

Of course, I went back, and it was as if she'd totally forgotten what had happened that night. I couldn't understand the way that she was acting, or maybe she thought that if we never talked about it again then I didn't know. After that visit, that was when I knew I had to start planning. Knowing that she would have to inject regularly I made it my mission to find a vial and syringe that she'd used.

A week later I'd taken what I'd found up to a lab in New York City. I used a false name and cash of course and they promised to post me the result. I had a few properties on my books that were empty, so I used the address of one of those. In the meantime, I started to look for things for the boy, things to make him happier and more comfortable. I enjoyed shopping for him and ended up buying clothes and books.

I only took one book and a set of clothes for him on my next visit to the apartment, though his mother wasn't particularly thankful. I only did that once because when I next visited the apartment, they weren't there and the boy was still wearing the worn out clothes. I had no idea what she'd done with them but the fact that she had on a new dress didn't go unnoticed by me. I was betting she'd sold them.

When the results from the lab finally arrived, I was surprised at their report. They apologized for the delay because while they had found insulin and a small amount of cocaine within the contents of the vial there was another substance that they were unable to identify. A new substance that they hadn't seen before and had no idea what it would do if taken. That changed my outlook on the prospects of the mother and my son. If she was addicted to that unknown substance, then I wouldn't be able to get it for her and she may not survive without it, just had she'd told me.

SPOV

I finished reading the book and closed it but continued running through what I'd read in my head. Wasp had slipped up and written the name of the mother, Katie. I wasn't sure if that was important or not, but the rest was, especially the information on what she was taking. I wondered if what he'd said was right, that if she stopped taking that unknown drug that she might not survive. I knew that people could end up being really ill from withdrawal, but to need it that much seemed odd to me, then again, I had no idea what it was like to be so addicted to something. Hold that thought, raced through my mind because maybe I did. I was addicted to Ranger and to be honest I think if he withdrew from me then I'd find that hard to survive.

Becoming addicted to something like cocaine was bad enough, that was readily available on the streets. This new substance wouldn't be. Okay, I knew that a pusher wanted his clients to go back to him to buy more. That was how it worked. Start them off on the mild stuff and slowly get them onto the hard drugs and get them so addicted to it they had to buy more. Wasn't what was out there enough, surely there didn't need to be more? Or was that it? Was someone trying to get a foot in the market? Was that substance something that people would crave for and insist that they had? I almost laughed as I thought of what some of the mob would think of that. If what Charlie had been writing about was true then there could be a turf war afoot.

I heard Arthur as he approached me, two bowls in his hands that looked to be steaming. After handing me one of the bowls his hand was deep inside the pocket of his oversized trench coat producing a handful of biscuits. Seeing as he hadn't provided a spoon, I tilted the bowl to my lips and blowing across the top took a tentative sip of the contents.

I tasted tomato soup, which was actually quite good. Arthur was dipping his biscuits into the soup before eating them, so I did the same, surprised at the mixture of tastes from the soup and what I discovered to be ginger biscuits.

"How do you get hold of food Arthur?"

Because I was feeling a bit guilty thinking that he maybe didn't have very much.

"Wasp brought me a load of boxes filled with cans and packets. Before that I'd make a trip up top and get some from one of them homeless shelters"

At him saying the last part I was suddenly very interested in how I could get out of the labyrinth of tunnels I'd found myself in.

"Is it easy to get out of here?"

He shook his head and took a drink from his bowl before he replied to me.

"Nah. The main entrances to here are blocked so you have to know where you're going"

Whilst my hopes were dashed of a quick exit, I was hopeful that Arthur would lead me out of here. I had to get out and soon. I'd lost track of time down here and had no idea how long it had been since finding Charlie. That I hadn't had a nervous breakdown or panic attack was probably because I'd had someone with me. Okay it was a young boy, but his company had kept me sane. I had to get out of here and find a way to get in touch with Ranger. He was the only person that I would trust enough to help me.

Finishing the soup and biscuits I was surprised when Arthur took the bowl from me. That he also picked up the lantern meant that I would have to follow him, no way was I staying by myself in the dark. Arthur had a makeshift bench just inside the recess where he put the bowls down and then he was stood facing me, looking at me.

"What is it Arthur?"

Suddenly feeling that there was something wrong.

"Err, I'm gonna be getting some sleep, which you need to do as well. If you need to use, well I don't exactly have a toilet down here. You'll need to take the lantern down and across the track"

He thrust the lantern into my hand and turned, walking into the recess. Yeah, that was embarrassing, but he was right I really did need to relieve myself. I started to walk to the left and over the tracks worried that I'd step in something. I was intent on watching the ground and let out a small screech as two sets of red eyes suddenly appeared. The sound of scurrying had me nearly turning around and returning to the safety of the recess.

"Rats. They're more afraid of you, they'll scarper"

I felt mortified. That rats were the reason for my scream and that Arthur was obviously listening out for me. Could he see me? How could I squat down and do anything with him watching me? I closed my eyes and counted to ten, trying to talk to myself not to be so stupid. After that little pep talk, I lifted the lantern and continued to the wall at the other side of the tunnel. Making sure the floor was clear of anything, I actually turned the lantern down low before pulling my jeans down and squatting down.

I was soon back at the recess and as I made to go inside, I heard Arthur from somewhere deep inside.

"Blankets are on the right"

I spied Ed in the dim light and lay down next to him pulling a blanket over me. It wasn't uncomfortable but it seemed so quiet and dark, something that I was starting to get used to. I could hear the rhythmic breathing coming from Ed and in a way, it seemed to settle me.

RPOV

Tonight was when I was going to the house where this all started. I was hoping that the police had finished with it as a crime scene but no doubt there would crime scene tapes still across the doors. I didn't think anyone would be patrolling the area but was going to work on the assumption that there could be. I had Hector with me as I drove across town knowing that he might see things differently to me, plus he had a few electronic gadgets with him that would be useful.

I parked the car a block away and after ensuring all was quiet, we exited the car to make our way toward the lane that ran behind the row of houses where we needed to be. We covered the short distance quietly without seeing anyone and were soon entering through the back gate that led into the yard behind the house. I saw no tape across the door so felt sure that the police had finished with the place.

As Hector kept a look out, I picked the lock on the back door and slipped through into what looked to be a kitchen. As Hector followed me, he closed the door behind him and blocked the handle with a chair. Pulling out a pen light I shone it around the room.

"Cleaner than I thought it would be"

I nodded my head at Hector's comment remembering Tank telling me that the inside was deceptive because of how tidy it had been. The kitchen furniture betrayed the age of the house, old painted units with chipped worksurfaces covering them. There didn't seem to be much in terms of electric hardware, only a solitary kettle with two mugs sat next to it.

Hector used his electronic measurer and had an accurate width of the kitchen from one side to the other. It was in this room that the under stairs cupboard was, so opening that door I stepped inside and tapped on each wall. Stepping out I let Hector investigate the floor area using a 3D ultrasound imagining wand, watching the screen of the pad in his hand. Nothing looked to be there, so we moved into the lounge area. This was the room that had me questioning the specifications from the real estate.

When Hector measured the width of the room, I could see that it measured 2.5 feet less than the kitchen had. There were no obvious cupboards to be seen, no fireplace with alcoves next to it so we started by tapping the walls. They seemed hard and solid, and it was only as I bent down to look for marks on the floor that I felt the whisper of cold air against my hand.

"Hector, over here"

Between us we investigated but it was Hector who stood up with a small triangular piece of wood in his hand.

"Wedged under the wall. Try pushing the wall at that end"

It moved easily, rotating on a central pivot, revealing a small empty space. Being contained we were able to use brighter flashlights that revealed deep scratches on the floor, an obvious sign that something had been scraped across it.

"That large slate, it must slide across"

I said as I looked for a way to move it.

"Here"

Looking down I saw Hector step onto a small piece of metal jutting out from the wall and the slate lifting a few inches. It was easy then to slide the slate across the floor, revealing a set of stone steps leading down into the darkness below. I led the way down the steps stopping when I came to a large wooden door blocking our path. There were bolts at one side and at the top and bottom, but they weren't what was keeping it closed.

"It must be bolted in a similar way on the other side"

"Ideas?"

I asked frustrated that it looked as though we weren't going to be able to go any further.

"I'll sort it, I'll need some tools and another man"

Half an hour later we were back at the car. In some ways I felt better that we'd found how Steph had managed to escape, but somehow, I didn't think that she'd still be down there, hell I hoped not. Had she been by herself when she went down there, or had she been taken, had Watson planned to be with her? I couldn't imagine where that tunnel would lead to but would have Silvio see what he could find. Before starting the car, I messaged him to get on it straight away.

Having returned to Rangeman in the early hours of the morning and leaving Hector to go up to my office I was disappointed that nothing new had come through. No one had entered Steph's apartment which I found unusual. I would have thought that the detectives leading the case against Steph would have visited it.

Santos had messaged to say that he'd spoken to Zero and would keep me updated on what Zero found out. There were a number of things to report back with at the morning meeting and after that maybe I'd get caught up with the paperwork piling up on my desk. That's when I internally swore, remembering that I had a meeting in the morning with Craig Jackson.