For Your Own Protection(72)

‘Depends on how much you need, my man.’

‘Six hundred grams.’ Matt got a nod of agreement from Sean.

‘Six hundred? That’s a challenge. But not impossible.’

‘So when can you have it?’

‘How quickly do you need it?’

‘Before midday.’

‘Woah.’ There was a tense pause. ‘Hey, for you, bruv, I can do that.’

Matt felt like whooping with joy.

‘You haven’t asked about the cost,’ Harvey said.

‘It doesn’t really matter. I’ll pay whatever it takes.’

Harvey laughed again. ‘Man, that comment shows you ain’t no drug dealer. It’s a good job you’re a mate, otherwise you’d be ripe to be stung. Look, I’ll get you the best price – should be around twenty-one grand?’

‘That’s fine.’

‘Good to hear it, my man. I’ll be in touch as soon as I get the stuff, bruv. You should hear from me in the next hour or so, to update you on how things are progressin’. There shouldn’t be no problem, man. But if there is, I’ll let you know.’

‘That’s great. Thanks, Harvey.’

‘Pay me later, okay? And one last thing – where you wanna do the handover?’

Matt covered the mouthpiece and looked across at Sean. ‘Where should we do it?’

‘Somewhere where Samson and Deed won’t be able to intercept it before we know Beth and Charlie are safe.’

Sean had a very good point.

‘Hey, Matt,’ Harvey cut in. ‘I guess from the silence that maybe you’re havin’ trouble thinkin’ of a place to take possession?’

Matt took his hand away from the mouthpiece. ‘We need to meet somewhere where we know they won’t be able to follow and watch us.’

‘I know a place.’

‘Is it okay if I put you on speakerphone?’ Matt said. ‘This would be good for Sean to hear too.’

‘So your friend has a name?’

‘Yes, sorry. I’m with Sean, in his apartment. He is – was – a work colleague. He’s also Beth’s brother.’

‘And it’s just you two?’

‘Yes. Just us.’

‘Put me on speaker. Okay. You need to make sure that they are watchin’. I give you the drugs, and you give them to Samson, at the same time and place as you get your family back, yeah?’

Matt got it. ‘So you mean you’d be present at the exchange?’

‘Yeah. We meet there, and only there.’



Harvey ended the call, and whistled softly through his teeth as a broad smile broke out across his face.

How could this have come together so well? Surely it was meant to be.

He pulled out the torn and faded photo from his pocket.

‘I’m gonna get justice for you, bruv.’





CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO


Matt returned from the bathroom to find Sean on the phone. Sean threw him a serious look and ended the call.

‘We may have a problem,’ he said.

‘How d’you mean?’

‘I just called the bank. They won’t give out that kind of money as cash. Not on the same day, at least. That was the second bank I’ve tried.’

‘So what do we do?’

‘Rob the bank? Alternatively, I don’t suppose your friend Harvey can lay his hands on a lot of cash to go with the drugs?’

‘I highly doubt it.’

‘Then I don’t know what we can do.’

‘Okay,’ Matt began, trying desperately to think as he spoke. ‘We’ve got the drugs, we hope. And we’ve got some of the money . . . Is there enough in that bag to convince them it’s all the money they’ve asked for?’

‘No,’ Sean replied confidently. ‘You counted twenty thousand in the bag. Less than half of what they’re expecting. And they’ll know what fifty thousand pounds looks like.’

‘Okay,’ Matt continued, ‘then what if we make it look like there’s fifty.’

‘How?’

‘I don’t know. We pad it out.’

‘With what?’

Matt shrugged. ‘So you’re thinking it wouldn’t work.’

‘It’s an extremely high-risk move.’

‘It’s too risky, you’re right.’

‘Do we know anyone who has thirty thousand pounds in cash to hand?’

‘I wish I did.’

Sean clicked his fingers. ‘Michael Thornbury.’

‘Michael?’

‘We need to call him, now.’

‘But how d’you know he’s got that kind of cash to hand?’

‘Because James wasn’t the only one who won big at Samson’s. Michael won big, too. He had a few big wins after the Birch Grove robbery, and he told me he was keeping the money in his flat because he didn’t trust handing it over to anyone else.’

Just then, Sean’s mobile rang, and both of them tensed.

‘It must be him,’ Sean said, staring at the ‘Unknown Caller’ notification on the display. He looked up at Matt, as if for guidance.