‘Yesterday morning.’
‘And you’re only telling me now.’
‘I had … I had a lot on,’ Josh stuttered. ‘But I don’t—’
‘Shut the fuck up!’ Don placed his hand on his hip and watched a kid on an electric scooter making his way through the park exit. ‘Explain to me exactly what happened.’
‘I don’t know what was said but he gave them access to the Soteria network.’
‘Them, you said them.’
‘Yeah, she had this computer guy with her. Ezra Williams. I Googled him and found out that he was found guilty of fraud. He created phishing software for a gang that defrauded a bank. The prosecutor said that this Ezra kid was a prolific and highly skilled cyber-criminal.’
‘I suppose the police will take anybody,’ Don said, putting the business card in his pocket.
‘You can see why I want out right? They’re getting close,’ Josh’s voice rose in panic. ‘What if she comes back?’
Don said nothing.
‘I can’t go to prison. I just can’t. I’ve got my kids.’
‘Fine.’ Don slapped Josh hard on his shoulder. ‘Consider yourself out.’
‘What? Are … are you sure?’
‘Absolutely.’
‘You don’t know what this means,’ Josh said with relief. ‘You have my word. I won’t say—’
‘I understand,’ said Don, patting Josh’s arm. ‘Forget you ever met us.’
Don held the citrus vapour in his mouth for a few seconds as he read the witness statement. He could almost feel the pain of the victim, imagining how she felt as the liquid burned the skin on her face. She’d had no doubt about the identity of her attacker.
‘Are you sure this is the one, Mika?’ he asked, taking another inhale, desperate for the nicotine hit. He’d been careful not to use her name – not that he was even sure if it was her real name – when Josh had been around but now it was just the two of them, it was safe.
‘Positive,’ Mika confirmed as she adjusted the sleeves of her oversized cardigan. The heating was malfunctioning in the garden office and the night chill had settled in the room. ‘Obviously this is a redundant discussion if the jury do the right thing, but we need to be prepared.’
‘I think it would be better if we prepared for someone a little bit less high profile. Someone who hasn’t been splashed all over the home page ofSky News.’
Don returned the witness statement back to the file and picked up the well-thumbed list from the table. He picked up a red sharpie and crossed out Nathan Hall’s name.
‘You’re probably right, said Mika. ‘It might throw the police off a bit. Speaking of the police, have you heard anything from Larry?’
‘No,’ Don replied. He tapped his pen against the list of names. ‘Radio silence. I’m thinking that we scared him off.’
Mika snorted. ‘I’d rather have him out than in if he can’t handle the reality of what we do. You scream about wanting justice and then cry when we deliver it. Tea or coffee?’
‘Tea, please. I’ve been thinking that it might be a good time to recruit another member, maybe two. I’m not saying I can’t handle things myself, but two pairs of hands are better than one. I know a guy—’
‘I’m not too keen on dragging anyone new into our business,’ said Mika. She opened the fridge, pushing aside the Ziplock bags containing the scalps to get the milk.
‘It wouldn’t be anyone new, not really,’ Don said. ‘You already know him. His name’s Frank, and he was a member of the Crawley Hunters. I met up with him last week and he’s keen.’
Mika handed Don his tea. ‘What’s his background like and do you trust him?’
‘I do. And he’s clean. He’s got a new job working security and he had to have an enhanced DBS check as part of the application,’ said Don. He put his tea down and took out his phone. ‘He’s got an incentive to do what we do. His brother was robbed three years ago and had a knife put to his throat. The guy only got an eighteen-month sentence but was out in six. Frank showed him what he thought of that.’
Mika took the phone from Don and smiled at the photo of a man tied to a chair, his face bloody and bruised. The crutch of his blue jeans darkened from when he’d pissed himself.
