Driven by Fear (The DS Lasser Book 27) Page 13

  Rea took a step back as if she couldn't stand to be close to her one-time boyfriend. 'All I know is that you wouldn't listen to me, I couldn't stay in that car with you a minute longer, then you drove away and caused that woman's death.'

  Draper gnawed at his bottom lip, a tiny bead of blood appeared, and he briefly winced at the sting.

  'Well, what an interesting situation, one of you is telling the truth, but which one is it,' the man said as he tilted his head.

  They both looked toward him, Rea's lips pressed together tightly as Draper continued to tremble with fear.

  'I'm the one telling the truth,' he claimed before Rea could reply.

  'Are you saying that Rea is lying?' their captor asked, the smile no longer lingering on his face.

  'I don't know why she's saying I was drunk when I wasn't.'

  Rea glanced to her right, unable to believe what she was hearing, but Mark ignored her completely, the bead of blood now leaving a thin red trail down his chin.

  'So, you suspect that someone must have spiked your drink?'

  Draper's face drained of colour as he realised his mistake.

  'By saying that you are admitting you had a problem, admitting you were over the limit when you got behind the wheel,' the man pointed out, his words clipped.

  'I don't know what happened, I swear she just ran out in front of me and…'

  'We have been over this, Mark, and I have no problem with that side of your story, like I said accidents happen and I am fully aware that Julie was in a state of high emotion, and I could have forgiven you if you had at least tried to help her.'

  'But you heard what Rea said, she was beyond help, she was already dead,' Draper implored.

  'And that makes what you did acceptable, is that what you're telling me?'

  Rea felt her disgust for Mark Draper deepen as he tried to justify his actions, tried to worm his way out of the things he had done.

  'It was an accident,' he wailed again.

  The man stepped forward hands by his side. 'OK, you have your version of events, and no doubt Rea has her own views on what occurred, and in situations such as these then there are certain ways we can resolve the issue.'

  Rea opened her mouth to ask him what he meant but Mark was suddenly talking again.

  'That's all I want; I just want to make you see that I am innocent in all this.'

  'I've just thought of something,' the man paused and raised an eyebrow, 'do you think that Rea could have been the one who spiked your drinks?'

  Rea gasped at the accusation and when she looked at Mark, she saw that he was nodding, his eyes now alight with a sense of hope and then he whipped his head towards her.

  'Is that what you did, were you the one who spiked the drinks?' Draper demanded.

  'What are you talking about?'

  'It was you I can see it in your eyes, you did it and…'

  'But why on earth would I do something like that?' Rea interrupted, bemused by the way the conversation had suddenly taken a surreal turn.

  'I have no idea but it's the only thing that makes any sense, you must have slipped something into my drink when I wasn't looking,' Draper nodded at his own reasoning and then he jabbed a finger in her face. 'You are responsible for the woman's death, not me, you drugged me and…'

  Rea lashed out and knocked his hand down, her disbelief turning to anger. 'You're pathetic, this was all your doing, just yours, you lied, you got behind the wheel pissed and…'

  'Liar!' he screeched as he spun back to face the man. 'She's lying, I don't know why but you are right, she was the one who put something in my drink she did that and then got out of the car and…'

  'And why would she do that?' the man asked.

  'I don't know, perhaps she was hoping I would crash the car, perhaps she hates me, I have no idea how her mind works, but I am innocent, you have to believe that.'

  'Well, at last it looks as if we are getting to the crux of the matter.'

  Draper shuffled towards the man. 'She's the one who owes you, not me, what happened on that road was terrible, but I can't be blamed for it, not after she spiked my drinks.'

  'Well, one of you will be staying here but having heard the evidence…'

  'Evidence?' Rea broke in. 'Are you insane, are you really going to believe his lies?'

  Draper threw a look over his shoulder. 'You're the guilty one, he sees that now, you all but killed that woman and…'

  'I was the one who stopped to try and help, I was the one who called the ambulance and…'

  'That's because of the guilt,' Draper interrupted.

  'What?' she asked in astonishment.

  'You heard me; this is your doing, you bitch.'

  'Mark, listen to me,' the man said.

  Draper turned to face him, his chest rising and falling, sweat coating his bruised forehead.

  'When you leave this place you will find a track to the left, if you stick to that then you will eventually reach a road and all being well you will be home by daybreak.'

  Rea watched as Mark Draper's shoulders sagged in utter relief. 'Thank you, thank you so much.'

  'But before you go you have a choice to make.'

  'A choice?'

  'Yes,' the man paused, 'what shall we do with her?'

  Rea Lomax held her breath, her own heart picking up speed, her hands closing into fists.

  'I don't understand?' Draper asked.

  'Well, you have proven your innocence in this matter, and for that you get to choose what happens to her,' he pointed at Rea.

  'I get to choose?' Draper sounded as if a genie had just appeared and granted him a one-time wish.

  Rea could hear the sudden shiver of excitement in his voice and the sound made her feel psychically sick.

  The man nodded, his face deadly serious. 'That's correct, if you ask me to release her then that's what I shall do, if you decide it would be more prudent to keep her here, then again I will be happy to oblige. So, what's it to be?'

  Mark Draper was momentarily lost for words though his mind was working in overdrive. If he asked for Rea to be released, then if the death of the woman on the deserted road ever went to court then he had no doubt that she would testify against him. He could picture her in the dock, spouting her lies about him, the jury shaking their heads as she painted him as the devil, a pissed-up devil behind the wheel of the car responsible for the death of an innocent woman. Even though he knew she had spiked his drinks he was convinced that the judge and jury wouldn't believe him, after all what reason could she have had for doing such a despicable thing?

  He knew how the law worked and how things could be twisted by the police, after all hadn't they tried to pin the blame on him already and…?

  'I really do need an answer?'

  Draper blinked at the man's words and then he leaned forward slightly, his voice coming out in little more than a whisper.

  'Do what you like with her, but she has to stay here, you can never release her.'

  'Understood,' the man said as he moved to one side. 'You are free to go.'

  Draper dashed for the door, and Rea watched in anguish having heard every word he had tried to keep hidden from her.

  Then he vanished from sight, leaving the door open as he disappeared into the darkness.

  'Well, Rea Lomax, I must say you are not a very good judge of character, are you?'

  She was speechless, her mind reeling at the way Draper had cast her to the lions, condemning her to stay locked within these circular walls of thick stone.

  Suddenly, the despair came crashing down like scaffolding, clattering and banging through her paralysed mind.

  'What are you thinking?' the man asked as he tilted his head again, his keen eyes studying her mortified expression.

  She blinked back the tears and tried to swallow the emotion. 'I hate you for this,' she said, her voice bone weary.

  'Well, why don't we strike a deal?'

  The tears slipped free, and she swiped them away with the ba
ck of her hand. 'I'm sick of your games, you know that everything he said was a lie, he killed the woman, not me, and as for spiking his drinks, well that was all…'

  'The protestations of a desperate man, a man prepared to say anything to avoid the terrible truth of his actions.'

  'So, if you knew he was lying then why did you let him go, why am I still in here?' she demanded.

  'You are here because I believe you are special and now's your chance to either prove me right or wrong.'

  'What are you talking about?'

  'Mark Draper will never reach the freedom he desperately craves; he will be dead long before he reaches the road.'

  'You lied to him?' she asked, her body starting to shake.

  'I simply played his game and returned the favour; the question is what will you do about it?'

  Rea tried to fathom his meaning, but she couldn't make the links.

  'OK, here's the deal, persuade him to return, explain the situation, make him understand that there is no escape.'

  'But you saw what he was like, he would never listen to me, never believe me,' she replied, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, the anxiety rising.

  'The question is do you want to even try, after all, you were right, he was more than happy to abandon you, so why should you try to throw him a lifeline?'

  Rea hesitated for a moment and then she sprang forward dashing past the man, he watched as she sped into the darkness, the smile once more splitting his face in satisfaction.

  41

  'Sorry,' Lasser said as he flopped down onto the sofa.

  Jackie smiled as she eased down by his side. 'Don't be sorry, we can always rearrange the meal.'

  He looked at her and sighed. 'Was Martine OK about it?'

  'She was fine, we had a long talk today on the boat and we got to talking about you and Alan and the job you do.'

  'Bet that was thrilling for her,' he said with a wry smile.

  'I think she really likes Alan,' Jackie said.

  Lasser looked at her in surprise. 'Please tell me you're not trying to be a matchmaker?'

  Smiling, she shook her head, her dark hair swaying. 'Of course not, but like I said, she definitely likes him.'

  'No accounting for taste.'

  'I told her about Suzanne.'

  'Why?' he asked before lighting two cigarettes and handing one over.

  'Because I wanted her to know that he was fragile, but it turns out he had already told her about what had happened.'

  Lasser thought about Suzanne, her image as always fresh in his mind, her smile and caring ways making his heart ache at the loss.

  'She admitted she had been attracted to him the first time she saw him on the boat. I just didn't want her hopes building up, though we both know it would do him good to have a female friend.'

  'I agree, but I think if she wanted more then he would run a mile,' Lasser paused, 'he would see it as cheating on Suzanne,' he finished with a sigh.

  'Exactly.'

  'Which is crazy because Suzanne would hate the thought of him holding the right person at arm's length.'

  'I know, I just don't want either of them getting hurt, or Alan having a knee jerk reaction.'

  'Yeah well, he's good at that,' he replied before flicking ash into the ashtray. 'What do you think she'll do?'

  'Well, she said she understood and the last thing she wants is to jeopardise their friendship.'

  'That's sorted then,' he said in relief.

  'I just worry about him, he needs something other than the job and us lot in his life.'

  Lasser thought about what she was saying and nodded again. 'In all the time I've known him he's never been the easiest person to get along with.'

  'That's because he orders you and the team about, but he won't be like that with Martine.'

  'Christ, I should hope not, imagine him blowing his stack over something trivial, she would be the one running for the hills.'

  Jackie smiled as she leaned against him. 'That's what he's like in his work life, but today he seemed almost shy.'

  'I suppose he's just not used to talking to the opposite sex, Suzanne knew him inside out so nothing he ever did really shocked her, but whether anyone else would put up with him is another matter.'

  'Well, I did tell her all about the job and how dedicated you all were and when the meal was cancelled it kind of proved my point.'

  'Doesn't that bother you, the way things always seem to come up at the last minute?' he asked, in part dreading her answer.

  'Not at all, I knew from the start that the job could be demanding but you forget I lived on my own for quite a while so occupying myself is never a problem, I have the painting that keeps me busy, so no it never bothers me.'

  'It won't be like this forever you know,' he said as he stretched out his legs.

  'You're a long way off retiring and besides, I love the fact that you're dedicated to helping others, it's part of who you are, and Alan's the same and I just wanted Martine to be aware of that fact.'

  'Before she gets in too deep?'

  'Well, that's up to her, but I think she will be more cautious now.'

  Lasser yawned and closed his eyes and Jackie heard him start to drift away and she knew that he would be asleep in no time. Half a minute later, she plucked the smouldering cigarette from his fingers and rose to her feet, leaving him asleep as she took Poppet out onto the towpath to allow her to stretch her legs before locking up for the night.

  42

  'Please, Mark, you have to listen to me, you have to come back,' Rea gasped, her voice full of pleading as she tried to get her breath back after dashing along the path through the trees.

  Draper stood in a splash of moonlight; his hands raised as he shook his head. 'Stay away from me, you mad bitch,' he hissed.

  'I'm telling you; this is a trap; they won't let you escape.'

  'I don't believe a word, you bloody lied in that place, you tried to set me up.'

  'What are you talking about?' she asked, her frustration mounting as he refused to accept a single word she said.

  'Making out like I was pissed and killed that woman deliberately, but you lied, and it happened exactly as I said, she shouldn't have been out there, not at that time of night, I mean, what the fuck was she even doing there?'

  'I think she was being chased by the man who took me, the same one who brought you here and…'

  'Bullshit,' he snarled before turning and striding off along the path.

  Rea hesitated for a moment, tension crackling through her mind and then she was following again, her hurried feet brushing through the drift of fallen leaves. 'Mark, wait!'

  'Fuck off and leave me alone!' he shouted over his shoulder before breaking into a shambling run.

  For a couple of seconds, the thought reared in her mind, here she was in the darkness chasing after a man she had thought she loved and who had turned out to be nothing but a coward and a liar, a man who had condemned her to stay here in the stone chamber whilst he made his escape. Instinctively, she knew that if he did make it back to civilisation, he wouldn't let the authorities know that she was being held prisoner, he would keep that information to himself, leaving her to rot here at the mercy of the tall man with the cracked smile and the giant who seemed to be at his beck and call.

  Then she was running again and in her mind's eye she saw herself dashing past Mark Draper, making her own break for freedom and yet inside she knew she would never be allowed to do that. She thought back to the mad dash through the woodland and how easily the man had caught her, as if he had known exactly where she intended to go.

  Now, she ran, determined to get to Mark and make him realise that he was making the biggest mistake of his life.

  Quickening her pace, she felt the cool evening air against her fevered skin, the sense of doom increasing as she sprinted into the darkness.

  'Mark wait!' she screamed and then suddenly she was hit hard from the left, the breath leaving her body in a whoosh of pain as
she hit the leaf-littered ground in a jumble of arms and legs.

  She felt hands close around her throat and cracked open her eyes to see Mark Draper bearing down on her, his shadowed face twisted in a grimace of hatred.

  'All your fucking fault,' he jabbered.

  She felt her vision begin to blur, and then she lashed out her right hand, her nails gouging across his left cheek, parting flesh, and suddenly the hands sprang free from her throat.

  Rea scuttled back, the heels of her shoes digging into the soft earth as Draper cursed and threw out his right fist missing her face by mere inches.

  'Cunt!' he roared as he came at her again, twin trails of blood marring his cheek, his eyes glaring with insanity. 'All your fault!' he bellowed again as he loomed over her.

  Rea Lomax jabbed out her arm, her fist slamming into his damaged face, hearing him grunt as his head snapped back.

  Before he could recover, her arm shot out twice in quick succession, Draper cried out in pain and frustration as he swung a wide right, but Rea rolled to the left keeping out of his reach.

  'Kill you!' he screamed, his anger swallowed by the darkness and the ancient forest.

  Leaping to her feet, she faced him and waited to see what he would do next, her chest rising and falling, her hands bunched into fists.

  Draper stood snuffling in the darkness, blood in his mouth from where her blows had landed.

  'You have to listen to me, Mark, you have to stop this otherwise…'

  He leapt forward, arms outstretched, and then suddenly the air was split by a roaring blast from the right. For a couple of seconds, Mark Draper was bathed in torchlight, and she saw the side of his head explode in a huge gout of red, his brains splattering to the ground as his body slammed to earth.

  Rea Lomax stood statue-still in total shock, her heart thundering and then she screamed out the horror as the man called Max emerged from the shadows, the shotgun held easily in his right hand, the barrel pointed at the ground, a torch in his left.

  'He refused to listen, but no one can say you didn't try.'

  She spun around to find her captor on the path at her back, then he flicked his own torch on and shone it to the left, though she couldn't turn to look, knowing that she would see Mark Draper, his head obliterated, leaving nothing but an empty crater of gore, his body twitching in a spasm of death.