Nails In A Coffin (Demi Reynolds Book 1) (14 page)

Demi had nearly fallen asleep in the coffin. The lack of air on the inside was making it harder and harder to remain awake, but somehow she was managing it. She could feel her heart rate slowing down. Beads of sweat were making their way down her neck from her forehead. Her breathing was raspy, and her nose felt bunged up. She was just about to close her eyes again when she heard a very loud noise.

“What the…?” she managed to say through her sore throat.

The loud noise went off again. This time, two pops in a row. She tried to sit up and banged her head on the low lid that was acting like a ceiling. She cursed out loud, holding her sore head and wincing in pain. But then her eyes widened. She heard the noise once again. Another loud pop. Then, as if out of the blue, she put two and two together and realized that she was hearing gunshots. Heavy-gauge shots, at that. At first, she didn’t know what to think. She heard a few muffled cries, but she didn’t know who was doing the shooting. Had the police found her, and now they were having it out with Donny and his two men? It didn’t sound likely. The armed police don’t tend to make such loud noises. They had silencers and automatic rifles. Not shotguns.

As the shooting continued, Demi wondered if a farmer might have come across Donny digging the hole and opened up fire on him. Maybe it was his land, and he didn’t take kindly to people burying gangsters on his property. But as the sound of gunshots ceased for a second or two and the sound of a distant car’s engine roaring to life echoed through the coffin, Demi realized what was going on. Donny had been ambushed, and it seemed he was trying to make a break for it. She obviously couldn’t be too sure on the facts, but being locked up in the dark with only your hearing working made her feel as if she had superhuman hearing. Everything around her was audible, from the tires screeching off to the sound of gunshots hitting the back of a car’s window. It was as if she could see what was going on using audio.

But then her breathing stopped, and she held her breath. She could hear approaching footsteps. They belonged to somebody heavy. Somebody tall. Somebody who was there for serious business. They were getting closer and closer to her. She tried to shut her eyes and block out the sound, but not even covering her ears with her hands did the trick. She could still hear everything, and it all sounded menacing. From the dirt scattering across the ground as the heavy footsteps came toward her to the sound of adrenaline-fueled breathing, whoever was approaching the coffin knew she was inside. Demi could tell. The footsteps had a certain purpose behind them. They sounded strong and confident. As if they were accomplishing something.

“Please don’t kill me!” she shouted at the top of her lungs. The footsteps stopped suddenly. And then she could hear what sounded like a shotgun being dropped to the ground.

“Oh my God,” she whispered under her breath. It was all getting too much for her. She was hanging on to the last fibers of life, but she didn’t know how long she could hold on.

Then the footsteps went from idle to moving, and now they were moving with a purpose. She clenched her fists and got ready for whatever was coming her way. But then there was silence. It was eerie and foreboding. The silence resembled a countdown to Demi. A clock that was counting down to her fate. With only seconds left on this earth, she decided to make peace with whatever was waiting for her on the other side.

“Please forgive me for my faults. May I be forgiven for the wrongdoing I have done in this life. May the people who have died at my hands forgive me for my profession. Though I do evil, know that I am not. Know that I gained nothing but pain throughout my whole life. Although it isn’t an excuse, it’s all I’ve got. And that, that makes me sad. I wish I’d found love. I wish I’d found whoever or whatever you are. I know people call you by many names. They have many beliefs as to what you stand for. But if you stand for only one thing, please let it be forgiveness. I don’t want to suffer anymore,” Demi said, her voice trailing into a whisper.

Suddenly, Demi heard somebody calling her name. She opened her eyes and started to breathe rapidly once again.

“Demi?” the voice said.

“God? Is that you?”

There was silence for a split second, and then laughter. “No, you muppet. It’s Hamish!”

Demi broke into tears of joy. She felt a little stupid, but she had a smile on her face. Deep down, she’d known somebody was looking out for her. She just hadn’t realized it was Hamish.

“Please get me out of here!”

“Don’t worry, I will.”

The sound of something heavy hitting the lid above her made Demi jump. Suddenly an onslaught of blows rained down on the coffin lid. She could feel every whack. It sent vibrations through her. But then there was light. A hole the size of her fist emerged above her. She could see trees. The sun was barely there. An orange horizon splashed across her face. But the hole became bigger and bigger. Shards and splinters of wood fell onto her chest and legs. She covered her eyes for a second or two as the hole became larger and larger. Finally, the sound stopped, and she opened her eyes. She saw Hamish peering down at her. He had a sledgehammer in his hands. He was covered in dust and looked as if he had been up all night. She smiled at him as he extended his hand. She grabbed it, and he pulled her out. As her feet touched the ground, she nearly lost her balance. She felt unsteady, but Hamish embraced her, keeping her on her feet.

“Thank you, Hamish. I can never repay you!” she said, tears streaming down her face.

“Don’t worry about paying me anything. You didn’t deserve this. Donny has been throwing his weight around for too long. Enough is enough.”

They hugged for what felt like forever, but in reality, it was only a few minutes. But then the realization of what had just happened spread across both their faces.

“Where’s Donny?” she said, looking around for the first time.

She saw a dirt mound next to a hole. The coffin was on the right side. Two bodies lay on the ground. Neither of them were Donny. Both of them looked like they had gotten shot in the face with a shotgun. It was a nasty sight. Brains leaked onto the soil. Their faces didn’t look like faces anymore. Their heads resembled a watermelon that had been dropped on the floor.

“Donny got away in the hearse. We need to go after him, or he may regroup with a bunch of his goons and really bring the fight to us.”

Demi looked at Hamish and nodded. She gave him another hug. He was a big man. Some would probably call him fat. Others might have said he was just big-boned. But whatever it was, she enjoyed hugging him. She ran her hand across his right cheek. The scar he’d gotten from Donny a while back still felt fresh. She went on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on his cheek. He blushed. His big round face went red, and he looked down at his shoes for a split second.

“Thanks, Hamish. I really appreciate what you did.”

“No problem, Demi. But we’d better get going. I know the hearse isn’t the fastest of vehicles, but we need to get on the right road. It’s like a maze around here. Plenty of places for him to hide.”

She nodded, and they both started jogging. Hamish pointed to the ridge that stood in front of them. She could see his car on top. They quickly ran toward the ridge and climbed up the dirt mound, over some rocks and branches. They reached the top and both got in. Hamish turned the key and reversed. He did a 180 turn and revved the engine.

“Let’s get this wanker,” Hamish said, hitting the gear into second and wheel-spinning out of the forest enclosure.

DCI Francis and DI Craig were still in their boss’s office. The room had been silent for a while. All three of them had been arguing prior to the silence. A few threats had been made by DCI Francis, threats that her boss wasn’t all too impressed by. It was one thing to be so passionate about your job and threaten to leave if you didn’t get your own way, but it was another thing entirely to badmouth your boss and threaten to tattletale on him.

“I don’t like where you’re going with this, Amy,” her boss said, crinkling his face as he attempted to massage the patience back into his skin.

“I don’t care what you like, sir. And it’s Detective Chief Inspector Francis. Not Amy.”

Her boss looked at her blankly for a second, then turned his attention to DI Craig, who was remaining quiet.

“She speak to you like this?” he asked, smiling a little.

Craig nodded over-dramatically and said, “All the time, boss. I’d listen to what she has to say. She can be a right bitch when she doesn’t get her own way.”

“I can see that,” their boss said, still crinkling his face a little. The pressure of the situation felt like a furnace. Everybody was feeling hot and looking flustered. All three of them were firing on all pistons. It was safe to say, as they sat there in that dank office, passion and pride were on the menu.

“I think it’s absolute bollocks that you and the Met would rather play it safe than go after a suspected kidnapper,” Amy let out, her face looking pink in the dim light.

“We’ve been over this. It isn’t something I can change just like that. Once Division’s mind is made up, it’s made up. I’m not on the board. I don’t have any clout. I can’t just magic up authority out of my ass and expect anybody up there to give me a second thought,” their boss said. This time he was biting his nails. He looked a little uncomfortable behind the chair, as if he had ants in his pants.

“I don’t expect you to work miracles, boss. I just want you to do your fucking job,” Amy said, giving her boss a stern look.

He stopped biting his nails and sighed loudly. “Look, we aren’t getting anywhere with this back and forth. Let’s make a deal,” he said.

In the meantime, Lionel was remaining quiet, counting his chickens. “Just drop it, Amy,” he finally said.

Both his boss and Amy gave him a look. It was one of surprise. Lionel very rarely made any statements. He didn’t like causing waves. But once in a while, more like once in a blue moon, he’d speak up, and everybody would tell him to shut up. But they always knew Lionel had his head screwed on. He wasn’t one to just speak for the sake of it. The man knew how to articulate his thoughts.

“Now you speak,” Amy mumbled.

“Yeah, now I speak,” Lionel quipped back. He sat up straight and looked at Amy, who was seated next to him. She looked just as uncomfortable in the seat as her boss. He could tell she was agitated and didn’t appreciate being belittled. But sometimes she needed to be put in her place. Sure, she had rank over Lionel, but he didn’t care for such things. Rank didn’t mean she could be an asshole 24/7. So on occasion he’d have to reel her in. It was to protect her and her job. If she looked bad, he looked bad. That came with the territory of being partners.

“I just think you need to calm down, Amy. I’m sure the Met does what it does because they have their own reasons,” Lionel said.

Amy turned to him and gave him a scornful glance. “I don’t care what their reasons are. Justice should be put in front of any political bullshit. It seems like these days, the police force is run by a bunch of namby-pamby dimwits who worship the PM and strive for political correctness over justice. Last time I checked, justice doesn’t come with health and safety warnings. Justice doesn’t come with understanding or forgiveness. Justice comes swift and hard. No matter what color you are. What creed. What gender. When justice comes, it comes for everybody. All this crap is getting out of hand. I don’t know if I want to be part of an entity that puts those sorts of things in front of justice.”

Their boss stood up and sighed loudly once again. “Fine. Be melodramatic if you want, Amy. But know this. I’m only doing this because I believe you are on to something with Donny the Hat. I could lose my job for this, but so be it. If you want to investigate the matter yourself, do it on your own time. I’m giving you permission to do so. Take a few days. Dig around a little. See what you find. But keep it to yourself. If any of this gets out, I’ll deny it. And you’ll lose your job.”

Amy nodded her head and said, “I’m going to get to the bottom of this. With or without you.”

She stood up and walked to the door. She turned the handle and walked out. Lionel gave his boss an apologetic smile and said, “Well, at least she didn’t hit you.”

“I can’t thank you enough for coming after me, Hamish. It just proves that there are good people out there,” Demi said as she watched Hamish shift gears and put his foot down on the accelerator. She was sweating, and so was he. The whole experience was obviously affecting both of them negatively. Demi didn’t think she’d ever see daylight again, so the sight of the night sky was a disappointment as well as a relief.

“You would have done the same for me,” Hamish said as he made a swift right onto an even narrower road. This one was loaded with pebbles and rocks. The car’s suspension was bouncing up and down in protest. Demi felt as if her insides were being jumbled around in a washing machine. She felt a little sick, but she knew that they had to do what they were doing. There was no way they could allow Donny the Hat to escape justice. If they did, they wouldn’t be safe. Donny wasn’t the sort of man to let things lie. He was the sort of man to make people pay for the minutest of transgressions.

Demi looked at Hamish’s profile as he drove. The deep scar on his face reminded Demi of who they were dealing with. As they took another hard right and the surface of the road got bumpier, Demi closed her eyes and attempted to form some sort of plan. A plan that would help them stay alive. After all, staying alive was the only thing they had left. They couldn’t go back to their old lives. Not with Donny around. Not with the knowledge that he was out there, still breathing. They couldn’t risk such a thing. They needed to have him killed. They needed to have him buried.

“Where do you think he could be?” Demi asked, looking straight ahead through the windshield. Specks of dirt and water residue sprayed the glass. The wipers came on and smudged the dirty brown liquid off the car. It was starting to rain, and the darkness that engulfed their car became thicker and blacker. Demi could see that the road stretched for a good mile and a half straight ahead. There were trees and bushes on either side. They were the only people in the vicinity. The road looked as if it belonged in a desert. It was desolate and lonely.

“I don’t know where Donny is, but when I find him, I know where he’s going,” Hamish said, taming the steering wheel as it twisted from left to right as the wheels clipped against the rough surface of the road.

“He must be around here somewhere,” Demi said.

But then they saw something. Something strange.

“Look, on your right!” Demi shouted.

Hamish pushed both feet down on the brake pedal. The car came to a screeching stop. Dust and dirt settled around them as both Demi and Hamish looked out of the windows at their surroundings. On Demi’s side, it was clear. The bushes were intact, and the road lay still and silent. But on Hamish’s side there was a hole in the bushes. A car-sized hole. Leaves and branches caked the entrance to the hole. Tire marks scorched the surface of the dirt. They wound their way into the darkness, through the hole in the bushes. The marks were blacker at the tip as they curved into a turn.

“Looks as if he lost control of the hearse and went through some bushes,” Hamish offered as he sat there staring at the tire marks in front of them, just to their right.

“Should we follow the trail? Maybe we’ll find him hiding someplace?” Demi asked.

“I don’t know. But whoever went through there didn’t do so on purpose. He lost control. He could be injured. Going through a bunch of bushes is going to cause some damage to his radiator. And let’s not forget, he’s driving a hearse. They aren’t exactly built to go off-roading.”

Both of them sat in silence for a few minutes. Neither of them knew what to do. Demi thought that maybe it could be a trap. Hamish thought that maybe the tracks were old and belonged to a car accident from a while back. People were always crashing into trees and whatnot in the sticks.

“We should investigate. I don’t want to be driving down the damn road, only to find out he’s behind us,” Hamish said as the car began to move forward slowly. Demi could hear the revs being tamed. Usually Hamish drove the car like it belonged on a rally circuit, but right then he was being cautious about the whole thing.

They took the right and followed the tire marks. Hamish made the turn into the bush and went through the gap. The sound of loose branches crunching under the tires made Demi squirm. Everything was dark. Hamish turned the headlamps on the car to full. A massive field appeared in front of them, the bright white lights bouncing off all sorts of emptiness. But something caught Demi’s eye. The grass surface in front of them had deep tire marks that stretched away from them. She followed the tire marks with her eyes and noticed they led to a barn around three hundred yards ahead.

“Right there!” she said, pointing at what looked like a small black smudge moving.

“Fuck! I see him!” Hamish said, immediately revving the engine and roaring down toward the figure. The car’s engine stuttered but continued to fire on all cylinders. After half a minute or so, they had reached the end of the field and came to a little barn. The tire marks that originally led them there were now meshed into two sets, theirs and the original set.

The barn in front of them was painted white and had paneled wood on its side. It looked like some sort of cowshed. Hamish pointed at a long row of bushes that were a few feet in front of them. Demi saw what looked like the back end of a vehicle sticking out. The wheels were slightly raised off the ground. Someone had gone flying into the bush. The car was obviously stuck, and three-quarters of it lay hidden in the brush.              

“You reckon that’s the hearse?” Hamish asked.

“I don’t know, but whoever crashed that vehicle was running into the barn when we drove into the field. You saw it, and I saw it. I’m betting that whoever is in there will be needing medical attention. And if they don’t receive any, they’ll die. It looks like a bad crash.”

“And if Donny is in there, we might as well do him the courtesy of speeding up the process. We wouldn’t want him to suffer, now, would we?”

Both of them smiled. It was the first time either of them had done so in a while. They looked at each other, and then Hamish nodded. He reached for his shotgun and opened the driver’s door. He got out and slammed it shut. Demi sat there for a millisecond or two. Alone and peaceful. For a split second in time, she was free. Free from fear. Free from anger. But then it all came back to her. The sound of Hamish cocking his shotgun after sliding in some ammo shook her back into reality.

If she wanted her freedom, she’d have to fight for it. And that’s exactly what she was about to do. She got out of the car and joined Hamish. She looked at him and smiled once again. It was strange, smiling twice in such a short amount of time. He smiled back at her and said, “You ready to make Donny the Hat brown bread?”

Demi nodded and replied, “With pleasure.”

They both held hands for a second or two, and then released their grips. Hamish stood in front of her and raised his gun to shoulder level. He was now aiming down the sights, ready for whatever was waiting for them on the inside of that barn.