Chapter 23
Alex followed her man as he criss-crossed Paris sometimes on foot, sometimes using the metro Alex was glad of her training otherwise he would have lost in the crowd easily. Lazarski hadn't been in any of the locations the man had visited and Alex was about to give up when he led her into a rundown commercial area, the streets were litter strewn with down and outs sleeping in several of the boarded up buildings doorways. The buildings looked like they had been offices and small factory units but most now either had 'To let' or 'For sale' signs on them. Graffiti adorned must of the exposed walls looking like the scribbling of a child, tagging is the name the person who put them there would like it to be known as. The man pushed aside a board that was covering a door and Alex stepped behind a pillar as he looked around before entering, Alex walked slowly up to the building, a demolition sign hung above the door 'What could he want here?' Alex thought as she walked back to the pillar so she could observe the door without being seen. All the other buildings they had been to that day had been to met people so what reason could he have for being here.
Alex shifted her position and looked at her watch it had just gone 6:55pm, he had been inside for quite awhile. Curiosity was beginning to get the better of her, so she decided to go inside and see what was so important. She was nearly at the door when she remembered that she had promised Ray that she would just follow the man to see if he would lead them to Lazarski but she couldn't resist finding out what was inside. Alex gently moved the board aside and stepped into the dusty, dimly lit building, she allowed her eyes to adjust to the lighting before proceeding. Alex found herself stood in a corridor and on either side where doors to two offices and in front a large open space that Alex thought must have once been alive with the sound of people and machines, she slowly opened the first office door and stepped inside a few pieces of broken furniture were strewn around the room along with old papers, everything was covered in a thick layer of dust.
So Alex opened the door again checking both ways before crossing the corridor to the other office, Alex found the same in this office as she had in the first she walked a few paces into the room and bent down to pick up an old newspaper, that was lying discarded on the floor, in the dim light Alex could just make out the date it was 11th November 1983, as Alex dropped the paper back onto the floor she noticed a faint red glow coming from the far corner as she moved closer she could see that it was coming from inside a cupboard, the light had managed to escape as the door was badly splintered. Slowly, she pulled the door open inside was a gas meter, the red light was coming from something strapped to it. Alex opened the door wider to get a better look. The red light was in fact a digital clock that was counting down time, it read 1hour, 30mins and 30 seconds 'why would anyone want to blow up a building that was set to be demolished' Alex thought to herself as she examined the bomb to see if there was anything she could do, they had basic explosive device training when she had joined Criminal Intelligence but without any equipment she knew that it was foolish to even attempt to disarm it. Alex checked her watch in the faint red light she managed to make out that it was nearly 7:15pm, Alex calculated that she had till 8:15 or 8:30pm at the latest to leave the building 'more than enough time' she thought as she closed the door and left the room. She moved slowly and quietly towards the stairs as she put a foot on the first step Alex remembered the phone Ray had given her if that went off it would making things a little difficult, quickly Alex pulled out the phone and pressed the off switch.
Alex hoped that Ray didn't call, as she didn't want to have to explain why it had been turned off. As Alex moved out of the room she could clearly see the layout of the building, there were two floors of offices, two on the lower floor with the rest arranged around the walls on the upper floor, a walkway outside of the upper offices acted like a balcony that overlooked then main floor area. Alex moved silently to the stairs that would take her to the next floor, it started straight and then curved round as it reached the top. The side of the stairs by the wall was in shadow so Alex kept as far over in the shadow as she could, just as she got to the curved part of the stairs a door in one of the offices on the upper floor opened. Alex pressed her body flat against the wall and held her breath. The man she had been following came out and walked over to another office but before he opened the door he took something out of his pocket, there was a red glow coming from it and just before he entered the room the red glow turned green.
He either wanted to keep people out of the room or he was making sure some one didn't get out but the door didn't look any different from the others so Alex thought that there must be something inside the door that was controlled by the box. Alex waited until the man had gone inside before climbing the rest of the stairs, the office next to the one the man had just entered had a half glazed front so she could see that it wasn't connected to the other office and was in darkness, Alex moved quickly and as quietly as she could around the walkway, the only thing she disturbed was the dust. Alex's hand trembled slightly and her heart pounded in her chest as her hand took hold of the door handle. Only a slight click from the handle signalled that the door was opened, Alex only opened it enough for her to squeeze through into the room Alex closed the door as quietly as she had opened it. Alex looked around the room small shafts of light where coming through holes in the wall that adjoined the office Alex had seen the man enter, the wall must have been quite thin as Alex could see through into the other room, she could just make out a figure sat with his back to her, Alex instinctively move back from the hole as a figure in front of the hole. Alex pressed her ear to the hole as she heard voices they were muffled by the wall but she could just make them out "Not long now Joe soon I'll have what I want and you'll be able to go home"
"Claude go to Hell!"
Now Alex knew that there was going to be an exchange, so the device was to keep this guy in. Alex heard the door in the other room open she dropped into the crouched position and crawled to window that over looked the walkway, she lifted her head just enough to see out and watched as the man she now knew as Claude closed the door and reset whatever device was inside before crossing the walkway back to the office he had come from. Alex waited until he was inside before turning her attention to the wall as she surveyed it for a better place to see into the room next door. As Alex looked up there was a vent panel 'if I can get that off it should give me what I need' she thought as she looked around for anything she could use, just poking out from behind an old desk was the legs of an overturned chair. Alex walked over and picked up the chair she checked it to see if it would hold her weight, satisfied she placed it under the vent and climbed on, taking out a coin from her pocket, the coin just fitted into the head of the screws holding the vent panel. The screws were rusty and it took some effort from Alex to budge them. When all but one of the screws were out Alex checked her watch 10 minutes to 8, she knew that time was running out. She then took out the last screw and pulled the panel away. Alex was grateful that the vent cover the other side was already missing and she had a clear view of the room, a grey haired man sat with his back to her, by the door was a black box, across by the window was another one the same size and shape as the one by the door. "Hey" Alex whispered, the grey haired man looked around but couldn't see where the voice was coming from "behind you" Alex whispered again the grey haired man twisted in his seat and Alex got to see his face for the first time, he had a stubbly beard as grey as his hair "Don't worry I'm here to help you.can you tell me anything about the two boxes?"
"Yeah.there packed with explosives.if you open the door it goes off or get too close, the same with the window.you need a control box to disarm them" the man replied.
"Ok.I'll have to see if I can get it.by the way what's your name?" Alex asked as she quickly checked that Claude was still in the other office "Joe.Joe Dawson" came the reply "Well Joe, I'm not going to bullshit you this doesn't look too good right now but I'm going to do all I can to get you out Ok"
"Ok.hey you've not told me your name?" Joe replied.
"Alex.Alex Rogan" the sound of her name sent a cold chill down Joe's spine 'surely Mac.wouldn't have sent her here knowing Claude want her' he thought "Gotta go" Alex said before jumping off the chair as the door to the office where Claude was opened. Alex watched as he came out onto the walkway a distant look in his eyes as he leant against the railing, Alex had seen that look before it had been on Duncan's face today at the barge. Alex followed his gaze down to a figure that had just walked into the open space downstairs, the figure was tall with dark hair and dressed in a long black coat, Alex's heart seemed to jump into her mouth and a wave of nausea flowed over her "What's he doing here? What's he got to do with Claude and Lazarski?" she said to the darkness, as she tried to find a reason for him being here.
Alex followed her man as he criss-crossed Paris sometimes on foot, sometimes using the metro Alex was glad of her training otherwise he would have lost in the crowd easily. Lazarski hadn't been in any of the locations the man had visited and Alex was about to give up when he led her into a rundown commercial area, the streets were litter strewn with down and outs sleeping in several of the boarded up buildings doorways. The buildings looked like they had been offices and small factory units but most now either had 'To let' or 'For sale' signs on them. Graffiti adorned must of the exposed walls looking like the scribbling of a child, tagging is the name the person who put them there would like it to be known as. The man pushed aside a board that was covering a door and Alex stepped behind a pillar as he looked around before entering, Alex walked slowly up to the building, a demolition sign hung above the door 'What could he want here?' Alex thought as she walked back to the pillar so she could observe the door without being seen. All the other buildings they had been to that day had been to met people so what reason could he have for being here.
Alex shifted her position and looked at her watch it had just gone 6:55pm, he had been inside for quite awhile. Curiosity was beginning to get the better of her, so she decided to go inside and see what was so important. She was nearly at the door when she remembered that she had promised Ray that she would just follow the man to see if he would lead them to Lazarski but she couldn't resist finding out what was inside. Alex gently moved the board aside and stepped into the dusty, dimly lit building, she allowed her eyes to adjust to the lighting before proceeding. Alex found herself stood in a corridor and on either side where doors to two offices and in front a large open space that Alex thought must have once been alive with the sound of people and machines, she slowly opened the first office door and stepped inside a few pieces of broken furniture were strewn around the room along with old papers, everything was covered in a thick layer of dust.
So Alex opened the door again checking both ways before crossing the corridor to the other office, Alex found the same in this office as she had in the first she walked a few paces into the room and bent down to pick up an old newspaper, that was lying discarded on the floor, in the dim light Alex could just make out the date it was 11th November 1983, as Alex dropped the paper back onto the floor she noticed a faint red glow coming from the far corner as she moved closer she could see that it was coming from inside a cupboard, the light had managed to escape as the door was badly splintered. Slowly, she pulled the door open inside was a gas meter, the red light was coming from something strapped to it. Alex opened the door wider to get a better look. The red light was in fact a digital clock that was counting down time, it read 1hour, 30mins and 30 seconds 'why would anyone want to blow up a building that was set to be demolished' Alex thought to herself as she examined the bomb to see if there was anything she could do, they had basic explosive device training when she had joined Criminal Intelligence but without any equipment she knew that it was foolish to even attempt to disarm it. Alex checked her watch in the faint red light she managed to make out that it was nearly 7:15pm, Alex calculated that she had till 8:15 or 8:30pm at the latest to leave the building 'more than enough time' she thought as she closed the door and left the room. She moved slowly and quietly towards the stairs as she put a foot on the first step Alex remembered the phone Ray had given her if that went off it would making things a little difficult, quickly Alex pulled out the phone and pressed the off switch.
Alex hoped that Ray didn't call, as she didn't want to have to explain why it had been turned off. As Alex moved out of the room she could clearly see the layout of the building, there were two floors of offices, two on the lower floor with the rest arranged around the walls on the upper floor, a walkway outside of the upper offices acted like a balcony that overlooked then main floor area. Alex moved silently to the stairs that would take her to the next floor, it started straight and then curved round as it reached the top. The side of the stairs by the wall was in shadow so Alex kept as far over in the shadow as she could, just as she got to the curved part of the stairs a door in one of the offices on the upper floor opened. Alex pressed her body flat against the wall and held her breath. The man she had been following came out and walked over to another office but before he opened the door he took something out of his pocket, there was a red glow coming from it and just before he entered the room the red glow turned green.
He either wanted to keep people out of the room or he was making sure some one didn't get out but the door didn't look any different from the others so Alex thought that there must be something inside the door that was controlled by the box. Alex waited until the man had gone inside before climbing the rest of the stairs, the office next to the one the man had just entered had a half glazed front so she could see that it wasn't connected to the other office and was in darkness, Alex moved quickly and as quietly as she could around the walkway, the only thing she disturbed was the dust. Alex's hand trembled slightly and her heart pounded in her chest as her hand took hold of the door handle. Only a slight click from the handle signalled that the door was opened, Alex only opened it enough for her to squeeze through into the room Alex closed the door as quietly as she had opened it. Alex looked around the room small shafts of light where coming through holes in the wall that adjoined the office Alex had seen the man enter, the wall must have been quite thin as Alex could see through into the other room, she could just make out a figure sat with his back to her, Alex instinctively move back from the hole as a figure in front of the hole. Alex pressed her ear to the hole as she heard voices they were muffled by the wall but she could just make them out "Not long now Joe soon I'll have what I want and you'll be able to go home"
"Claude go to Hell!"
Now Alex knew that there was going to be an exchange, so the device was to keep this guy in. Alex heard the door in the other room open she dropped into the crouched position and crawled to window that over looked the walkway, she lifted her head just enough to see out and watched as the man she now knew as Claude closed the door and reset whatever device was inside before crossing the walkway back to the office he had come from. Alex waited until he was inside before turning her attention to the wall as she surveyed it for a better place to see into the room next door. As Alex looked up there was a vent panel 'if I can get that off it should give me what I need' she thought as she looked around for anything she could use, just poking out from behind an old desk was the legs of an overturned chair. Alex walked over and picked up the chair she checked it to see if it would hold her weight, satisfied she placed it under the vent and climbed on, taking out a coin from her pocket, the coin just fitted into the head of the screws holding the vent panel. The screws were rusty and it took some effort from Alex to budge them. When all but one of the screws were out Alex checked her watch 10 minutes to 8, she knew that time was running out. She then took out the last screw and pulled the panel away. Alex was grateful that the vent cover the other side was already missing and she had a clear view of the room, a grey haired man sat with his back to her, by the door was a black box, across by the window was another one the same size and shape as the one by the door. "Hey" Alex whispered, the grey haired man looked around but couldn't see where the voice was coming from "behind you" Alex whispered again the grey haired man twisted in his seat and Alex got to see his face for the first time, he had a stubbly beard as grey as his hair "Don't worry I'm here to help you.can you tell me anything about the two boxes?"
"Yeah.there packed with explosives.if you open the door it goes off or get too close, the same with the window.you need a control box to disarm them" the man replied.
"Ok.I'll have to see if I can get it.by the way what's your name?" Alex asked as she quickly checked that Claude was still in the other office "Joe.Joe Dawson" came the reply "Well Joe, I'm not going to bullshit you this doesn't look too good right now but I'm going to do all I can to get you out Ok"
"Ok.hey you've not told me your name?" Joe replied.
"Alex.Alex Rogan" the sound of her name sent a cold chill down Joe's spine 'surely Mac.wouldn't have sent her here knowing Claude want her' he thought "Gotta go" Alex said before jumping off the chair as the door to the office where Claude was opened. Alex watched as he came out onto the walkway a distant look in his eyes as he leant against the railing, Alex had seen that look before it had been on Duncan's face today at the barge. Alex followed his gaze down to a figure that had just walked into the open space downstairs, the figure was tall with dark hair and dressed in a long black coat, Alex's heart seemed to jump into her mouth and a wave of nausea flowed over her "What's he doing here? What's he got to do with Claude and Lazarski?" she said to the darkness, as she tried to find a reason for him being here.