Soft Target (Major Crimes Unit Book 2) (10 page)

Howard nodded and headed out
of the room, Bradley and Sarah close behind him.  He slipped out his mob-sat
and made a call. 
“
Mandy
. 
Get us a couple of road warriors, ready to go in five.
”

Sarah caught up to Howard and
looked at him quizzically. 
“
Road warriors?  Do you have a fleet of tanks here that I missed?
”

Howard smirked at her. 
“
Didn
’
t anybody tell you?  The Earthworm has arms.
”

Howard and
Bradley led Sarah into the Earthworm
’
s
middle section and then into a side corridor. 
“
Follow
me,
”
said Howard, making his way up a steep staircase.

The size of the place still
shocked her.  It must have been built for a thousand employees, maybe more.  A
person could die inside the Earthworm and never be found with the way things
currently were.   

The long staircase wound back
and forth on itself like a coiled python.  By the time Sarah reached the top,
she was sweating.  Howard and Bradley were waiting for her there, two minutes
ahead, subtle grins on their faces and their hands on their hips.

“
You get used to it,
”
said Bradley. 
“
There
was supposed to be a lift built, but then
…”

“
Yeah, I know,
”
said Sarah. 
“
Funding.  How is this
place not falling apart?  It
’
s huge.
”

“
Sergeant Mattock
’
s strike team comes and goes, but we feel he
’
s
better placed out in the field,
”
Bradley said.

“
There used to be more of us,
”
said
Howard.  He held open a door and daylight bled in with a warm almost-summer
breeze.  Sarah smiled as she felt the warmth tickle her face.  It felt good to
get out of the pit and back out into the open air.

They emerged from inside a
rickety shed onto a derelict farm.  Sarah glanced around at the various
outbuildings and empty livestock pens.  A rusty tractor sat parked up against
an old farmhouse which was missing both its roof and one wall.  Rocks and weeds
jutted out of the ground where there may once have been crops. 

“
It
’
s our disguise,
”
said Bradley proudly.

Sarah nodded. 
“
It
’
s a good one.  I wouldn
’
t want to go snooping
around this place.  It looks like Old MacDonald haunts it.
”

“
It
’
s more high-tech than it looks,
”
said
Howard. 
“
There are cameras hidden in a dozen places.
” 
He
pointed to the tractor and Sarah saw the glint of a lens hidden inside the
exhaust pipe.

She put her hands on her
hips. 
“
So, do you plan on walking to Oxford, because I didn
’
t wear the right shoes.
”

Howard trudged through the mud
toward a listing feed shed.  Its entrance was currently fitted with a
collection of padlocks, but all of them had been popped open.  Howard pulled
open the sheet-metal doors to reveal Mandy standing inside.  The big guy nodded
at Howard and Bradley as they entered, but gave Sarah only a cursory glance.

“
Good to see you again, too,
”
she grunted. 

Inside the feed shed, a group
of powerful superbikes sat beside a couple of sleek saloons.  Near the front,
two jet-black Range Rover Westminsters idled.  The two 4x4s immediately made
Sarah think of the Snatch Land Rovers used in Afghanistan.  She shuddered.

“
You okay, Captain?
”
Bradley asked her.

“
Fine.  So these are our rides, huh?  Not the latest models, but
pretty swanky.  Way things were downstairs, I was expecting a couple of Mini
Metros.
”

Howard rolled his eyes. 
“
We do the best we can with what we have.  Didn
’
t they teach you that in the Army?
”

“
No,
”
said Sarah in a put-on dopey voice. 
“
They just taught me which end of the rifle to point at the bad guys,
herp-derp.
”

Howard opened the passenger
door of one of the two Ranges and glanced over at the other one. 
“
Bradley, you take second, follow me and Mandy.
”

Bradley hopped up into the
other vehicle, silent and shaky.  He looked like he was about to take a big
test.
  He isn
’
t good in the field at all, is he?
Sarah
noted.

Mandy gunned the engine and
took off in the first Range Rover.  Bradley waited for Sarah to get into the
passenger seat, but she went around to the driver
’
s
side and elbowed him. 
“
Shove over.  I
’
m driving.
”

“
But
…
Howard told me to
—”

“
Just move over,
”
Sarah said.  Bradley hopped across to the passenger seat,
and Sarah shifted into first gear.  The engine grumbled immediately as she
brought up the clutch.  She revved the engine and took off after the other
Range.  It was already a quarter-mile ahead, so she stepped on it, flinging
poor Bradley about in his seat.  Within a couple of minutes, she was
side-by-side with Howard
’
s vehicle and doing almost a ton.  It was a hell of a rush.

Bradley directed Sarah to a
gate at the edge of the field.  She slowed the Range down abruptly, skidding to
a halt.

Mandy parked the other Range
beside her.  Howard jumped out furiously. 
“
Do
you think we
’
re messing around here?
”
he demanded as he
stormed toward Sarah. 
“
We
’
re trying to catch the people responsible for four terrorist attacks
and you
’
re racing around like you
’
re on
Top Gear
. 
I told Bradley to drive.
”

“
He said he couldn
’
t concentrate with me sitting next to him.  He wanted me to take the
wheel so he was free to touch himself.
”

Bradley went bright red.

Howard sighed. 
“
Look, I understand the whole attitude thing.  It comes with the
scar, I get it.  But can I rely on you?
”

The question made Sarah
angry. 
“
I can handle my shit.  You just handle yours.
”

Howard nodded, apparently
satisfied. 
“
I
’
m taking lead.  Follow me and keep the Mario Kart bullshit to a
minimum.
”

Sarah snapped off another mock
salute. 
“
Roger that.
”

They got moving again and
drove out of the gate, stopping briefly while Bradley closed it behind them.

“
What
’
s Howard
’
s deal?
”
Sarah asked Bradley after they had driven for a while
in silence.

“
What do you mean?
”

“
Why
’
s Howard got such a stick up his arse?
”

Bradley shrugged. 
“
Just the way he is.
”

“
Bad childhood?
”

“
Nope.  Howard was an Assistant-Lecturer at Nottingham.  He was
teaching Terrorism and Security studies, when he was headhunted by MCU.  When
he was younger he almost made it as a professional tennis player, but chose
University.  His father was a carpenter and his mother stayed home.  He
probably has the least baggage out of everybody at MCU.
”

“
What, all five of you?
” 

“
There are more of us than that.  Like I said earlier, we have a
field team as well.  Sergeant Mattock leads it.  He
’
s
ex SAS.
”

Sarah
’
s
heart skipped a beat.  Mattock was SAS, which meant he
’
d
know her father.  All SAS knew Major Stone. 
“
Another
thug with a beige beret, right?
”
she said. 
“
Shoot first, ask questions later.  I
’
ve
met the type before.
”

Bradley looked out his
window. 
“
You
’
ll be glad to have him if you need him.  He
’
s
the only reason Howard didn
’
t die when I froze.  It might be MCU
’
s
job to protect the country, but Mattock
’
s
job is to protect us.
”

“
I don
’
t need protecting.
”

“
Good for you.  The rest of us aren
’
t
perfect, so it
’
s nice to have a little help when we can get it.
”

They sat in silence for the
next twelve miles.  The roads were unusually quiet for a Monday afternoon.  The
latest terrorist tape had sent the country into hiding.  People wouldn
’
t leave their houses for fear of getting blown to pieces by some
maniac.  Sarah wondered how many people had left their jobs today after the
latest video.  The economy would already be suffering just hours after the
attacks.  No doubt the Stock Market had plummeted as it was wont to do in times
of crisis, just to add to the misery.

Howard spoke over the radio,
breaking the silence.  Sarah hadn
’
t realised the Range
Rovers were comm-linked. 
“
I just got an update from Palu,
”
he
said. 
“
Cartwright
’
s receptionist said the doctor is with patients today.  He
’
s at his office.  Mission to extract is green, but we need to go in
soft.  Our target is in place but we can
’
t
afford to endanger civilians.
”

“
Civilians are in danger every time they cross the street,
”
Sarah said. 
“
So what
’
s the plan?
”

“
I
’
ll go in alone and speak with the doctor.  If I feel he has
information on the attacks, I
’
ll bring him in.
”

“
Alone?
”
Bradley asked.

“
I can take a civilian on my own easily enough, Bradley.  If I need
your help I
’
ll give the signal.  Keep your line open.
”

“
Roger
that,
”
Bradley
said.

Sarah folded her arms. 
“
So, our orders are to sit in the car and do nothing?  Not very James
Bondy.
”

“
Don
’
t worry,
”
Bradley said. 
“
I
play a mean eye-spy.
”

Sarah didn
’
t know if the kid was joking.

The entire day had been like
something out of a bad novel.  It was as if all the ghosts of Sarah
’
s past had teamed up to haunt her all at once: Hesbani, Al-Sharir
…
her father.  And somehow she had the feeling that things were only
going to get worse.

Sarah lowered her speed. 
Suddenly she wasn
’
t in such a hurry.