Chapter 7

Life Imitating Life

If there ever was a moment that Ed wanted to give up, it was now. That phone call, coming so soon after the conversation with Eve had been almost enough to tip him over the edge to despair.

His head hurt and he still felt waves of nausea rise up in the back of his throat every time he moved, but fortunately, he hadn't eaten anything for hours, Mrs Witticker's dry sponge cake was just a dim memory. His hands had been cuffed once more, in front of him this time, just as tightly as before and he sat on the chair staring at the phone he'd just used to call Ironside.

Beside him, Richards and Lonnie were talking about nothing much, like cards and money. Ed forced himself to listen, though he wasn't sure what it would achieve. Though he had done as Richards had instructed and told the Chief he would call again, he doubted very much if that would happen. The thought of that phone call made him feel sick. He knew the Chief had been pushing, trying to get more answers and to try and keep him on the phone so they could trace the call. And the Chief had sure sounded convinced that Ed was on the level, and had betrayed him.

He forced himself to go over what he had said. For Ironside, and anyone else hearing that call, it was as good as a signed confession of his guilt. He'd demanded a ransom, a very substantial ransom, as well. That, along with his signature on the order would be enough to send him down. He didn't want to believe that the Chief would think that of him, but there wasn't anything in his favour at the moment, Richards had made damn sure of that.

Still, the thought that Ironside could think he could be on the take hurt much, much more than he expected it too. He could imagine Richards twisting words for Eve's benefit, and of course there was his own actions. He couldn't blame her. And it wouldn't be any different with the Chief. All he had was the overwhelming evidence of his guilt. Under the circumstances, what else was the Chief going to think?

Not so long ago, it had been the other way round, Ironside had been framed as the inside man on the Syndicate payroll. And that whole episode still stung too. Out in the cold, Ed hadn't been told of Ironside's plan to clear himself, and while it was the correct decision, it had still hurt that he wasn't trusted.

Ed leaned forward slowly to rest his forehead on his hands. Having to talk to Ironside like that had been a nightmare, knowing that if he said the wrong thing, Eve would suffer. Though the Chief was only doing his job, Ed was still angry at the man for trying to push so hard, and trying to get answers that he didn't dare give. Ed had never been on the receiving end of Ironside's interrogation technique before and it was not a pleasant experience.

Worse, Ed knew that Ironside was right to do it. And Ed knew he had to push too, to try and get some useful information, or try and get some opportunities. But at that moment he could barely think straight, and all he wanted to do was close his eyes and let himself slip away to oblivion.

That was the very last thing he could afford to do at the moment, but he struggled to resist the temptation to close his eyes. He didn't need medical training to know that the most likely explanation for his thumping headache and blurred vision was a concussion. Instead of helping, all that the encounter with Eve had done was to weaken his position even further. How could he have been so stupid as to let himself be walked into that one? He should have known better.

Ed suddenly realised that Richards and Lonnie had stopped talking, so he looked around at them. The two men looked back, with cold, pitiless expressions. Ed shivered.

Richards glanced at Lonnie.

'It's time we got set up through there,' Richards said. 'I would rather not be caught unprepared, I know how tricky Ironside can be. Put him in with the girl.'

Ed's hope suddenly rose. He'd been aching for a chance to see Eve, but he didn't dare ask, especially after what happened last time, fearing that Richards might see it as non-cooperation, and react accordingly.

'But Mr Richards,' said Lonnie in a loud, conspiratorial whisper, 'what if they… talk?'

Richards smiled at Ed and shrugged. Once more, Ed was struck by the utter indifference of that man, could nothing upset him? Everything was going according to his plan, and Ed was at a loss as to how to upset that plan without endangering Eve.

'So they talk?' said Richards. 'So what? It's not like they can do anything about it. Not now. And we can't leave him out here.'

Lonnie frowned, but Richards was not going to be argued with. Once again, it was perfectly clear who was in charge.

'I can't get all this ready on my own,' said Richards. 'Put him in and get going!'

Lonnie stomped over to Ed, circling around behind him. He stopped, standing very close to Ed's back, and Ed could hear him breathe. There was movement by the side of his head, as Lonnie reached out to touch the gash on Ed's temple. The wound was pressed open to let more blood flow out and Ed hissed in pain, seeing flecks of light behind his eyes and tried to turn his head away. He felt a line of blood trickle over his cheek.

'Lonnie!'

At the word, Lonnie abruptly hauled Ed standing. Once again, Ed was sorely tempted to try and knock the man off his feet, but he would be at a serious disadvantage in his current condition. Besides, Richards was close by, the gun back in his hand. There was no doubt in Ed's mind that Richards would do whatever he had to, if anything went wrong.

'Get over to the door and open it,' Lonnie said.

Ed obeyed, sliding the bolts and opening the door slowly. He stepped forward and was suddenly pushed inside. The door slammed quickly behind him with a loud, metallic thud that made him flinch as it screeched through his head.

'Ed!' He had barely staggered forward when Eve barrelled into him, engulfing him in a fierce hug. 'Oh, Ed!'

It was darker in this room, with less light coming in through the narrow window, and his pounding headache felt a little better away from the brighter light of the other room.

'Hey, hey, Eve, it's ok.'

He tried to reach out to hold her back, but with his hands fastened together, it didn't work. He felt Eve take his hand and give the cuffs a small tug. He gave another hiss of pain.

'Oh, Ed!' she said again.

The room was swaying slightly, and Ed needed to sit down. The single ledge in the corner looked even less comfortable than the chair in the outer office, so instead Ed leaned against a wall and slid down to the floor, resting his head back. Eve sat down close to him.

'Ed, I'm so glad you're ok. I've been so worried. I'm so sorry.'

'It's ok, Eve. It's not your fault.'

'You've got to tell me what's going on,' she said. 'Please.'

He closed his eyes briefly, dreading having to tell her about Lonnie. He could hear the words Richards had used every time he looked at her. Sickness welled up inside him once more, this time not cause by his headache.

'That's Tony R,' Eve asked. 'Isn't it? Anthony Richards? The one the Chief's mentioned.' Ed nodded, though the motion made him feel worse. 'And he's out to get the Chief? Through us?'

'Yes,' whispered Ed. He looked down at the floor, away from Eve, not wanting to look her in the eye as she spoke.

'Why did you help him? Tell me. What was your price?'

Ed hated that phrase and he winced. He didn't answer, but Eve was relentless in her logic.

'You don't have to say anything, Ed, I can take a good guess. It's me, isn't it? That was your price, it's not money, it's me.'

'Eve…'

Ed couldn't say any more, he just tightened the grip on her hand.

'They threatened me, and you couldn't say no,' she said.

When she put it like that, it sounded so simple. He didn't want to elaborate, so he let the explanation stand at that.

'I'm sorry I shouted at you. I'm sorry I provoked him and you got hurt.' She reached up to touch the cut on the side of his temple where he'd hit the ledge. Though her touch was far more gentle than Lonnie's had been, that whole side of his head felt like one big bruise and any pressure made him feel worse.

Ed closed his eyes again, hoping that when he opened them he would wake up from this nightmare. In the dark peace of the safe-room, his awareness briefly faded. But suddenly it crossed his mind that Richards was beginning to lose interest in them, now that he had served his purpose and spoken to the Chief. Maybe that was why he'd let him talk to Eve now. And that might mean this whole bad trip was almost over. Or it might mean that they had just outlived their usefulness. Either way, it didn't look good. That thought made him force his eyes open again.

'What are we going to do?' Eve asked after a while. 'Can't you even get out of those handcuffs?'

'No.'

'Why not? Can't you pick a lock?'

'I can't pick a lock with just air,' he said with a sigh. 'Not even Mark could do that.'

'Well, what about the ledge, the window? We've got to try and get out of here. We can't just sit around.'

'You've tried to move them yourself, haven't you? Richards wouldn't be stupid enough to give us a chance. You must've tried to get out, but it's all locked down tighter than a drum.'

'Yes, but they're fixed, maybe you could…'

Ed didn't move.

'Ed, you're not even going to try?' Eve asked in surprise. 'You're not going to try anything?'

How could he take that risk? Was it even a risk, now, wasn't it more like a dead certainty? The longer he spent around Richards, the more convinced he'd grown that Richards would do exactly what he'd threatened, and worse, he'd enjoy it. He wouldn't have left any way out.

'No. I'm not going to do anything.'

'Why not? Because they'll kill me if anything goes wrong?' She still sounded incredulous. 'Ed, there are other…'

'Because they won't kill you,' he whispered.

He heard a choked gasp and felt the shudder go through her. It was a long time before she spoke again.

'Lonnie,' she said, her voice full of undisguised disgust.

'Yes.'

She nodded, shaking, but didn't say anything else for a few moments. He couldn't fail to be impressed by the way she was holding this together. There were no tears, no hysterics. She was scared, scared to death, but she wasn't going to fall to pieces.

'I know,' she said quietly. 'I think I've known from the first moment, but I just didn't want to…' she stopped for a few moments, her voice shaking. 'Oh, Ed! I'm so sorry.'

'You don't have to be sorry. I can't take that chance, Eve.'

He couldn't tell her that it wasn't a chance anymore. He knew Richards would do exactly as he threatened, sooner or later; all Ed could do was try to delay the inevitable any way he could. They stayed side by side in silence for a long time, until Eve spoke again.

'What do you think the Chief's going to do?'

'He'll probably arrest me,' said Ed with a mirthless laugh.

'That's not what I meant.'

'But I did a pretty convincing job.'

'He's not stupid, he'd never believe you did this on your own.'

'You sure about that?' Ed asked bitterly. 'You thought I had a price.'

It wasn't in his nature to be so negative or so cutting, but his head was killing him, he was tired and sick and the tension inside him felt so raw that he couldn't help himself. But Eve wasn't angry.

'If it was the other way round, would you believe this of him?' she asked gently.

It was a pointless question, they had already gone through something similar when the assistant District Attorney had tried to frame the Chief. In the face of overwhelming evidence, and the Chief's own inferred admission of guilt, Ed still hadn't believed Ironside was on the take. Ultimately, his faith in his boss had been proved correct.

For the first time in the conversation, Ed looked at Eve. Even in the dim light, he could tell there were tears in her eyes.

'He'll believe in you,' Eve said. 'He'll come after us. He's probably already on his way. No one's ever got the better of him.'

But instead of feeling comforted by that thought, Ed felt worse.

'Ed? He'll come after us. That's good, isn't it?'

'I think that's what Richards wants. If Richards has gone to all this trouble to get us to this, he'll want the Chief at the end too. You know he will.'

Eve let out a despondent sigh, looking away.

'Well, what are we going to do, Ed?'

'I don't know.'

They were quiet again for a short while, then she leaned forward and placed a small kiss on his cheek.

'What ever happens, thank you,' Eve whispered. 'I might not get the chance to say that again.'

She leaned closer against him, and Ed lifted his cuffed hands and awkwardly slipped his arm around her shoulders, letting her rest against him. They had nothing to do now but wait. At last, he couldn't struggle any longer and his eyes flickered shut. But even so, he didn't sleep, now it was the one thing he wanted to do more than anything else.

Eve slept, Ed could hear her breathing grow slow and steady, but he could only doze fitfully through the night. Every time he did almost sleep, he jerked awake with his mind filled with blood-soaked, violent images of rape, mutilation and murder. His head was killing him, his wrists and hands had gone from painful to achingly numb, as had is right arm where Eve was leaning on it. But he didn't want to wake her up to this nightmare.

It was the longest night he had ever spent, tired out and alone, and though it was always warm in California, Ed grew colder as the night changed into morning. But eventually, the tiny square of the outside he could see through the window grew lighter. He could just make out the time on his watch. It was seven in the morning. The Chief had exactly twenty-one hours to get two million dollars and get it to Richards.

And, as he knew from the bitter experience of the past day, a lot could go wrong in so short a time. There was no guarantee either he or Eve would still be alive by the end of it.

Ed couldn't stop himself wondering what the Chief was doing, but he couldn't even guess. And after that phone call…

Ed shuddered; he'd deliberately tried not to dwell on it or any of the details, and he certainly would never be able to repeat it to Eve, if she'd asked. But he knew the consequences of his actions. Working with the Chief was his dream job, though it wasn't without its blood, sweat and tears. He was an immeasurably better policeman than he would have been without Ironside. He had been so proud to be on Ironside's staff and work with one of the most respected and admired policemen in the country.

And yet, over the past day, he'd effectively stabbed the Chief in the back and destroyed years of hard work and a valued friendship. That phone call… What in heaven's name had possessed him to swear at the Chief? No one swore at Ironside, and kept their badge. Even if they all got through to the end of the day, the Chief was going to have him on the carpet for that and he would be pounding the beat from now until retirement.

It struck him then that keeping his badge was the last thing he should be worrying about, considering the circumstances. On the evidence he'd left lying around over the past day, he was looking at two decades or more in Q. And life in San Quentin for a disgraced policeman was not a pleasant prospect.

But it didn't matter. Whatever the personal cost, he was going to keep Eve safe for as long as he could. He owed Eve that. He owed the Chief that as well.

At last, after hours of waiting, there was the sound of scraping metal outside the door, and Ed tensed. Eve must have felt him move, and she woke suddenly. The door opened, and there stood Lonnie, complete with gun, Anthony Richards standing in the background, at a safe distance from the doorway. Lonnie looked at the pair, entangled on the floor and a jealous glare crossed his face.

'Get up, pig!' he said, pointing the gun at Ed's face. 'Get your hands off her!'

Slowly, Ed lifted his arm up from Eve's shoulders and stood. He had no idea it would be so difficult to stand up straight, the blood rushed from his head and he almost fainted. He had to lean against the wall to keep steady. Eve half-rose as well, wanting to help him.

'It's not your turn yet, blondie,' said Lonnie with an unpleasant smile. 'Just him this time. C'mon on, pig! Move!'

Ed took another step forward, keeping his hand on the wall, and was almost overcome by the strong smell of gasoline. They were going to burn this place too, that was obvious. There would be no evidence left behind again for the Chief to find.

'You don't want to be around here when it goes, Brown,' Lonnie said, jerking his gun towards the door. 'Come on!'

Ed staggered forward, the sudden change in brightness hurting his eyes. The smell of gasoline was almost overwhelming and he couldn't walk straight. Richards came over, and roughly turned his face towards the light. Ed flinched.

'Help me get him out to the car,' said Richards in an impatient tone. 'Take his arm, or he'll most likely walk into a wall.'

Gun pressed against the small of his back, Ed was frogmarched forward by Lonnie and Richards. The warehouse had been filled with gasoline, the floor by the doorway was slick with the stuff. He saw that there were new boxes along one side, but didn't register many more details.

Lonnie opened the door, and Ed saw a car waiting for them, the same car as they'd used the day before to get here. In the fresher air, away from the stink of fuel, Ed felt slightly better, and he leaned against the back door, grateful for the support. He closed his eyes.

At his side, he knew Richards was waiting calmly for Lonnie to return. Ed jerked his head up suddenly. He'd missed something. Lonnie had gone to get Eve. Lonnie and Eve, together in one place, that wasn't good.

He pushed himself up, but Richards caught his arm.

'Lonnie does as I tell him, remember,' said Richards. 'You don't need to worry about her this time.'

A moment later, Lonnie came thundering out of the door, but with no Eve.

'What the hell are you doing?' demanded Richards.

'They're turning down the street. Right now!'

'What? Who?'

'The van!'

The look on Richards' face was frightening. For all the dispassionate contempt he had shown over the past day, he was suddenly furious, his face contorted with such ferocity and anger that Ed felt afraid.

'Get him in the car,' Richards told Lonnie. 'We'll have to cut and run.'

Richards reached into his pocket and pulled out a bronze lighter.

Eve! Eve was still inside. They were going to leave Eve inside and torch the building!

Three things happened almost simultaneously. Ed cried out her name and stepped away from the car, intending to get to Eve. Then Lonnie kicked him across the back of his knees and he buckled, losing his balance and he toppled forward.

Through the thick fog of confusion, Ed still tried to struggle up. He had to get to Eve.

'We'll just have to make do with one,' Ed heard Richards say. A fraction of a second later, before Ed could move more than a few inches, something struck him across the back of his head and it all went black.