Page 34 of Savage Protector

The front nearside tyre explodes. The car careers to the left, narrowly missing an innocent old oak tree before shuddering to a halt just a few paces from the south bank of the river Clyde.

Perfect. I leave my tackle where it is, to dismantle and collect later, and step forward onto the road. I stroll across the tarmac and enter the narrow strip of woodland just where the Toyota left the road. The driver’s door is open, the occupant is already out and stomping around to the front of the vehicle.

A torrent of vitriolic expletives reaches me. My Punjabi is patchy at times, but I get the gist well enough. Some fucking arsehole piece of motherfucking shit is due to get the kicking he deserves. Well, we shall see.

“Abdul.” I call out, and he swirls on the spot.

“Who the fuck?—?”

His tirade comes to an abrupt end when my second gun goes off. A handy little Glock, fitted with a silencer, just in case. Deadly accurate, especially in the right hands.

He drops, screaming, to the ground, his left kneecap shattered.

I amble over to him and regard the writhing man dispassionately. He’s screaming like a baby, which is not surprising, really. It’s a painful injury, and usually permanently crippling if done right. I like to think I do things right.

“Abdul, shut the fuck up and listen to me,” I instruct him.

He doesn’t. The screams and curses continue unabated, so I land my boot in his ribs by way of getting his attention.

He grunts, but the din quietens somewhat.

“What do you want?” he whimpers. “Take the car, take my wallet.”

“Nah, you’re all right, Abdul. It’s you I want.” I retrieve a burner phone from my jacket pocket, encased in a zip-top plastic bag to keep it clear of prints and suchlike. It still functions just fine, though, so I tap a few keys to bring up the video recorded by Frankie and crouch to hold it in front of his nose. “Recognise anyone?”

His eyes widen. He’s silent at last, despite his mouth being agape. He watches the sequence for a few seconds then makes a grab for the device.

I lift it out of reach. “Manners,” I admonish him. “No need to snatch. Here. You can have it.” I toss it onto his chest. “I should tell you, there are plenty more where that came from. Oh, and there’s no SIM in there, so you can forget about calling your slimy sons. You can manage a nine-nine-nine call if you want, if you think that’s a good idea. If you feel like sharing that video with the police, obviously.”

“Who are you? What do you want?” he grinds out, his eyes flashing with hatred.

“Me? I’m just a friend of Leila’s. And your worst nightmare.”

“What…? Why…? You fucking shot me!” His voice rises to a screech. “I need an ambulance.”

“Indeed you do, but sadly, that won’t be happening, at least for a while. You see, I need you to understand exactly why you will not so much as think about Leila again, let alone try a repeat performance. You leave her alone. Got it?”

He shakes his head. “Leila? What are you babbling about? Leila’s dead.”

“Ah, well, you’d like to think so, wouldn’t you? Let me just fast-forward a little for you.” I run the video on to the point where our launch comes into view.

He watches the rescue, his lip curled into a snarl. “Bastards. What’s it to do with you? Interfering gets.”

“I told you, we’re friends of Leila and we don’t take kindly to this sort of thing. More to the point, neither do the police, and you can be sure they’ll get a copy of this if you decide to involve them. Or if you forget any of what I’ve said. You and your two charming sons will go down for this. You’d get at least fourteen years apiece for attempted murder.”

“What do you want, arsehole?”

“I told you. Leave. Leila. Alone. That’s it. Forget you ever had a niece. Same goes for the two younger girls,” I add, as an afterthought. Might as well make the most of the opportunity.

He glares at me.

“Are we absolutely clear?” I ask him, getting to my feet.

More glowering.

I land my boot in his ribs again and hear a satisfying crack. “I said, are we clear?”

“Yes. Yes, clear.” He’s back to whimpering. “Call an ambulance. Please.”

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