Page 42 of Savage Justice

“Great. Right, then, Jonas. Let’s be having you.”

We haul Bairstow upright, and Tony holds him up while I arrange the noose around his neck. The man sobs quietly now, having seemingly abandoned any hope of a reprieve.

“Is there a particular way this should go?” I enquire. “I read somewhere that there’s a science to this. Getting the drop right, and the weight. For a quick kill.”

Tony’s not impressed. “Probably, but I daresay the end result will be the same. We’re not bothered about a quick kill, are we? Doesn’t matter how long it takes as long as he’s dead at the end of it. Have you got a cable tie for his wrists?”

“Somewhere.” I dig through my pockets. “Yes. Here.”

I secure his hands behind his back, then grab hold of the loose end of the rope. I wind it around my wrist and brace to haul on it.

“It’s easier if you don’t struggle and fight it,” Tony advises the condemned man before releasing him to stand or fall as he will. He joins me and seizes the rope. “We go on three. Okay?”

Bairstow doesn’t heed the advice he’s been given. He struggles and fights to the very end, which is longer in coming than any of us really want. The bastard is a dead weight. Quite literally, by the time he finally goes limp.

“What did you do with the body?” Ethan asks over a mug of black coffee.

He and Aaron have joined us at Caernbro Ghyll for a planning session. Our normal business goes on. We have number of protection defaulters in need of a less-than-gentle reminder of their obligations and are carving the visits up between us.

“The usual,” I reply. “I dumped him in the river. He’s probably out at sea by now.”

“Fair enough. What about Glodowski?”

I meet my boss’s steady gaze. “Glad you brought him up. I was thinking he needs a hard word, at least. Those other shits were the monkeys. He’s the organ grinder.”

“True. He’ll just hire more thugs. What about the woman and her kids? Are they still here?”

“For the time being. It’s safer.”

“Not to mention convenient for you. You’re fucking her? Right?”

I see no point in denying it. “Right.”

“Is it serious? She comes with baggage. A lot of it.”

“I like kids. Just need to sort out that arsewipe, Borys. Then we’ll be peachy.”

“It’s not just the kids. She’s well-known, a famous artist. She earns a fuck-load more than you do.”

I shrug, genuinely not interested in Molly’s bank balance. “So? I’m a modern man.”

“Does she feel the same way? I didn’t get the impression she exactly approves of our line of business.”

I can’t deny that either. “I’m working on her. She’s a practical woman. And flexible.”

“Who you fuck is your business, but I don’t want any hassle.”

“Beth was pretty disapproving of the family business when we first got back together.” This from Aaron, who has been silent up until now. “She’s found a way to live with it. Faith, too.”

Aaron’s partner and her mother both live on Caraksay. Neither grew up in this life, unlike Ethan’s wife, Cristina, but they somehow manage to turn a blind eye most of the time.

“Same with Ruth,” Jack chips in. “And she’s an ex-copper.”

Ethan nods slowly. “Okay. We’ll see how it goes. Nice kids, I grant you that.” For a hardened crime boss, Ethan Savage is putty in tiny hands. “So, about Glodowski. Do we know where he is?”

I’ve been doing my homework, namely quizzing Molly for information. “His family have a yacht, currently moored at Albert Dock in Liverpool. Molly tells me he spends a lot of time there.”

“That’s handy. Jed O’Neill has a warehouse not far from there. I daresay he’ll let you use it.”

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