Authors: David Lowe
‘You’re right in not underestimating Murphy. I’ll just make a couple of phone calls to update Five and the regional unit what’s happening,’ David said taking his phone out of his pocket.
* * *
From GMP’s Special Branch office Debbie had just spoken to David, who told her about Murphy being on the move and she decided to ring Jenny Richmond. ‘Hello Jenny, there’s been a development regarding Murphy. I’ve just heard from David, Murphy’s on the move and it looks like he’s just entering Staffordshire. He suggests you patch into Cheshire ISB’s own channel to monitor events. I’ve informed George and he’s going to inform Staffordshire’s Branch office. The regional unit’s SIO is also aware.’
‘Have they any idea what he’s up to?
‘Not yet, but Murphy sent his wife out as a decoy. Wearing his coat and hat, she drove his Bentley. They got a uniform patrol to stop her by Runcorn for a document check. She claimed to be going to Liverpool to meet her friends. A Cheshire mobile surveillance unit followed her into Liverpool. I’ve spoken to Steve Adams and they picked her up by Halewood on the outskirts of Liverpool. She went to an address in the Childwall area of Liverpool. Early checks show it’s an innocent association, but Merseyside’s Branch officers have started checking the address and the occupants. It could be a drop we don’t know of. When the Cheshire uniform officer stopped her in Runcorn, he searched it and found nothing suspicious in the car.’
‘Is David following Murphy now?’ Jenny asked.
‘Yes. They’re on the southbound carriage way of the M6 approaching junction fifteen. For all we know he could be heading down to London.’
‘True, he might want to meet up with whoever’s taken over from McCrossan. We’ll have to wait and see. Keep me posted and tell David to stay in direct contact with me.’
* * *
After driving through Stoke-on-Trent, Murphy drove along the A50 to Derby but turned off at the A515 and drove south through the Staffordshire countryside followed by David and Gary and other members of Gary’s team. As Murphy entered the small market town of Yoxall that was so small it mainly consisted of a high street with a few shops, he pulled into a car park opposite a public house. The pursuing Branch officers pulled up a safe distance from Murphy. ‘Do you know this area Gary?’ David asked.
‘Vaguely, my wife’s family comes from Hamstall Ridware. It’s a little village not far from here. Her father’s got a farm on the edge of the village and I’ve been to Yoxall a couple of times for a night out.’
Watching Murphy, David said, ‘He’s gone into that pub over there. We’ll have to be careful how we play this one. Murphy doesn’t know me, but he could be meeting someone I’ve had dealings with in the past who does. I suggest four of us go in and make it look like we’re on a night out. I’ll walk in behind you and we’ll find a seat that provides the best cover.’
‘Sounds good to me. Whose round is it?’
‘Don’t worry, I’ll give you the money to get the drinks,’ David said wondering whether Gary was joking or if he really was tight with money.
Gary called over two officers to join them in the pub and instructed those remaining outside to maintain static surveillance. After checking the immediate area to see if anyone was watching them, David, Gary and the two other members of Gary’s team walked over to the pub. ‘Let’s see if we can see where Murphy is before we enter so we go to a table as far away from his as possible,’ David said.
‘Good idea,’ Gary said. With the other two officers, he looked into the pub to see where Murphy was. Seeing Murphy at the bar ordering a drink, Gary beckoned David over to them and all four entered the pub, with David right behind Gary. Built in the late eighteenth century, the pub was a typical English country pub that still had many of its original features, including the oak beamed ceiling. At the far end of the pub, opposite the entrance was a large inglenook fireplace above which hung a large collection of highly polished horse brasses. As it was the only pub in the area, being a Friday night, it was busy. The customers standing near to the bar gave David plenty of cover. Making his way to a vacant table he saw an array of hand pumps displaying a wide selection of real ales. As David sat down on a stool with his back to Murphy, Gary passed David the twenty pound note he gave him in the car and said, ‘There’s your money back. I’ve got Tony to get the drinks in.’
‘Thanks Gary,’ David said putting the money back into his wallet.
‘I bet you thought I was going to take your money. I had you there didn’t I?’ Gary said as Dominic Price, an officer from Gary’s team joined them.
‘He’s always the practical joker is our sarge, aren’t you Sarge?’ Dominic said laughing like a snorting hyena.
David leant across to Dominic and quietly, but forcefully said, ‘For fuck’s sake, stop laughing so loudly, you’re bringing attention to yourself and use first names when you’re on surveillance, not rank. How long have you been in the Branch?’
The officer stopped laughing and feeling embarrassed, said, ‘Three weeks.’
David looked at Gary and said, ‘What the fuck did you bring him in here for, you should have left him outside.’ Looking at Dominic, he said, ‘Is this your first surveillance job?’
‘Yes.’
‘Just sit quietly and don’t speak until you’re spoken to,’ David said scowling at the officer.
‘Here’s Tony with the drinks and our friend has sat down at a table by the window. He’s still on his own,’ Gary said.
As Tony Price placed a tray with their drinks on the table, David looked at the four drinks and said, ‘Bloody hell, are you three hitting the shorts already?’
As Tony handed out the drinks, he said, ‘No, Gary’s on a diet bitter lemon, I’m on a diet Coke and Dom’s on diet Lemonade. You’re the only one having alcohol,’ as he placed a pint of bitter in front of David.
Unable to believe what he heard, David said, ‘You’re not all teetotal health freaks are you?’
‘I don’t encourage the team to drink on duty and I suppose you could say we’re all as you put it “health freaks”. I have the team training in the gym during their breaks or at the end of a shift. I find it builds team spirit and bonds a team. It’s far healthier than going for a drink after work,’ Gary said.
‘Is this another one of your wind-ups,’ David asked.
‘No,’ Gary said looking at David’s slight paunch and said, ‘I take it you don’t work out much then?’
David looked down at his stomach. Breathing in slightly, he said, ‘Don’t you worry, I work out using suspects as punch bags. It keeps you on your toes as they like to hit you back. Unlike reps on a weight machine that type of exercise keeps your reflexes sharp.’
‘I didn’t mean to be rude. I just assumed that as you smoke and like a drink you didn’t take fitness too seriously. And another thing, I don’t like it when you smoke in the car.’
‘When you’ve finished being fucking holier than thou, rather than looking at me, start looking at our man behind me,’ David snapped back.
‘Three Asian looking men have just entered the pub and they’re walking over to Murphy now,’ Gary said.
‘Are they looking over at us?’ David asked.
‘They did for a split second, but they’re not paying any attention to us. One of them’s ordering drinks at the bar,’ Gary said.
‘That’s a turn up, I thought he would be meeting his Irish mates,’ David said.
‘He still could be. There are a number of Asians living in Northern Ireland now,’ Tony said.
Dismissively, David said quietly, ‘While there might be an Asian community in the north, I don’t know of any that joined the IRA! I’m going to the bog for piss so I can have a good look at them.’ As he stood up to go to the toilet, he glanced over the four men sat at the table by the window. As he did, momentarily he stopped dead in his tracks, Unable to believe what he was seeing he could not take his eyes off one of the men. His face went a deathly white at the shock of seeing one of his adversaries that he knew if he saw him, he would kill him there and then. ‘So Sayfel’s back,’ he muttered to himself.
‘What is it David?’ Gary said noticing that the colour had drained from Hurst’s face.
‘So the fucker’s back in the country,’ David said quickly sitting back down.
‘Who is? Dominic asked.
‘The Asian sitting in the middle of the other two. He’s Younnis Sayfel, known simply as Sayfel. He’s one of Al Qaeda’s top men in the UK. While on a job in London a few months ago, he stabbed my best mate leaving him for dead. He’s one ruthless bastard. Remember when those traffic bobbies got blown up at the service station on the M1 a few months ago?’
‘Yes,’ Gary said.
‘He was the one who planted the bomb that killed them. He also helped Chechen rebels come over to the UK and target Russian dignitaries and businessmen. While he’s Al Qaeda, he’s no qualms regarding who he operates with so long as they will help him fight us and promote his jihadist cause. Apart from possibly being the one behind the investigation the rest of my team are looking at in Manchester, he must be the money behind the Real IRA’s operation,’ David said fighting the temptation to go over to Sayfel and confront him there and then. ‘If he is, we’ve got one fucking uphill climb as that means Al Qaeda’s working with the Real IRA. It won’t just be the money they’re giving them, it could also be the use of their safe houses, equipment, and god knows what else to help them. If the two are co-operating then we’ve just stumbled across one fucking big can of bastard worms.’
Chapter Twenty-Two
The Bull Public House, Yoxall, Staffordshire,
22.05 hours,
Friday, 6
th
July
‘Have you got it?’ Murphy asked Sayfel, as he and his two companions joined him.
‘All in good time Declan. Before we do the transaction, have there been any developments at your end?’ Sayfel asked.
‘As I told you on the phone, my tout on the inside says Special Branch is already onto us and they’re watching me and the other three. They’ve applied for surveillance authorities on my home and business premises, but whatever they get, they won’t be able to use as evidence as my man’s made a mess of Cheshire’s surveillance applications, but there was nothing he could do for those issued in Liverpool and Manchester.’
‘That’s going to cause us a few problems. Have you let the others know Special Branch are onto them?’
Not knowing that Special Branch officers, including David, were already in the pub watching them, Murphy said, ‘With that Hurst seeing Sean in London and then giving Rory and Danny a kicking in Liverpool last weekend, they know alright. That’s why I’m bringing some others over from Ireland this weekend to do the jobs I had planned for them to do. There’ll be no direct contact between Rory and Danny with those coming over. We’re going to make sure the peelers stay watching those two while under their noses, the others get on with the job we’ve got planned.’
‘That Hurst’s becoming a fucking pain in the arse. Only months ago he and his team of detectives ruined the attack we had planned that would have brought the country to a standstill. For someone not in a high management position in counter-terrorist teams, he’s one irritating thorn in our side. Watch him, he might be a fucking nuisance but he’s clever and I’d love it if he was fucking taken out,’ Sayfel said with a note of frustration in his voice, then he gave a short laugh, ‘so if you and your boys kill him, there’ll be a bonus in it for you.’
‘We’ll try. I think it’s just bad timing how he and the ones he works with got onto us. I’d love to fucking know how they did.’
‘We haven’t time to go into that, shit happens. Take it from me, if you’re to finish the job you need to get Hurst out of the way. Ideally kill the bastard. You’ve done the right thing diverting Special Branch in watching Rory and Danny. While their attention’s on those two, you can get moving on your plans. Maybe you could use those two to set up a diversion to get Hurst out of the way. We haven’t got time for any more fuck ups. Everything’s got to go ahead next week, so make sure you’re ready.’
‘We’re ready for Prince William and his wife’s visit to Chester,’ Murphy said trying to be upbeat, ‘For the evening reception, Lord Trevelyan’s coming up from London. So we can hit him when he turns up for the function. While the security services are dealing with what they think will be our only hit, we’ll have another surprise waiting for them. My man tells me they think the Real IRA is under-supported and under-financed on the British mainland, so they aren’t expecting a big hit from us. He told me they’re only suspecting us to carry out an assassination.’
‘Good, but don’t rely on whatever they find on you not being able to stick, those bastards always find a way of making sure it does. That leads me onto another point. If they’re watching you, how do you know they didn’t follow you here?’ Sayfel looked around the pub once more for anyone that might be paying them particular attention, but did not notice Hurst who had his back to him.
‘They didn’t, I gave them the slip.’ Leaning closer towards Sayfel, Murphy said. ‘I had my missus leave the house before me and she rang me earlier to say she got followed. They even had a uniform peeler stop and check her out. To be on the safe side, on the way down here I kept checking and trust me, no one followed me here.’
‘For your sake, I hope they didn’t. If they know I’m here, it could seriously compromise my end of things and could be bad news for you. I don’t like sloppiness. If I’m compromised, trust me it could be the last time you’ll be able to do anything for your cause.’
As Sayfel’s steely glare unnerved the Irishman, he knew Sayfel not only meant what he said, but also he was in a position to carry it out. Hiding his nerves, Murphy said, ‘I’ve been in this game a lot longer than you. Don’t forget, I was the commander of the Provisional’s Tyrone Brigade and I know what I’m doing. I’m confident I wasn’t followed here.’ As a slight element of doubt entered Murphy’s mind as to whether or not he was followed, wanting to change the topic he said, ‘Have you got what we need?’
‘It’s underneath this bench seat I’m sitting on. When we leave, you can take the case. It’s all there. Just as you requested, two million in used and untraceable notes. That should finance your projects for a while. We need the security services to be spread as thinly as possible and we’ve got to keep them looking in the wrong direction. As your old firm said, we only have to be lucky once, they’ve got to be lucky all the time. What time are your new recruits coming over?’ Sayfel said.