Out of the Shadows (Akira and Deane Thriller Series Book 1) (6 page)

‘Fine Burton, just fine. I’ve
been looking over the schedules you’ve prepared for the British
Royal visit to Oman. Excellent work here. I’ve picked out schedule
B for use; it has the least security risks and will work well for
Olsen and Deane to offer additional support. What do you think?’
After a few seconds, there had still been no response. He looked up
sharply. ‘Burton? Are you listening to me?’

The chubbier
Burton took his hand away from his face and looked up quickly.
‘Sorry sir, I was miles away, got that Monday morning feeling
today. Even though it’s Tuesday.’ He noticed his tie was a long way
from his collar and began to straighten it, as the schedules caught
his attention on the desk ahead. ‘Schedule C, huh?’

‘No, schedule B Hal. What’s got
into you this morning? If it’s something at home, maybe I-’

Burton immediately looked
irritated and interrupted his superior. ‘Schedule B then. You’re
probably right; I seem to recall my security advisors giving the
thumbs up to that one. You want me to circulate it?’

‘Yes, send it
to all members of the Royal security team, OMA1 and Olsen. That
should cover everyone.’

‘Will do, I’ll
get on it straight away.’ Burton lifted his cumbersome frame out of
the chair, put his hand through his thick black hair and took the
schedule from his superior’s hand. ‘Is that everything,
sir?’

Ramsey looked
away for a moment, not sure whether to broach the subject of
Burton’s family again. In the nine years they’d known each other,
the two MI6 veterans had never really gotten along but Ramsey felt
the need to raise the subject once again. ‘Look Hal, tell me to
mind my own business here but I should inform you that your work
has suffered in recent months. Both Richard Elliott and I demand
the best from our agents. You can talk to us. If there is anything
we can do, we’ll help. I hope you know that. Or even personnel,
maybe they could put you onto someone.’

Burton
refrained himself from telling his boss to mind his own business,
despite a strong urge. Discussing personal problems or anything out
of the remit of service work was not something he ever did.
‘Thanks, I appreciate the offer. It’s personal though, that’s
exactly how I like it, you know?’

‘I understand
that, Burton. However, it doesn’t remain personal when your work
begins to suffer. Even more so with the work you do here.
Sensitivity and a high level of quality are required at all times.’
Ramsey paused for a moment, choosing his words carefully. ‘Perhaps
I could make an appointment with one of our career counsellors. Now
I know that-’

Burton
interrupted and felt insulted that his abilities were being
questioned. ‘A shrink?! You think I’m losing my marbles or
something? For Christ’s sake, I may have a few problems but I’m in
control, you know?’

‘Firstly they
are not psychiatrists, they offer a friendly ear and you could talk
to them about whatever is troubling you, causing the blip in your
work. At the very least think about-’

‘Listen guv,
I’m no loony tune; I know exactly what’s going on at all times.
Yeah sure, I have some problems and yeah they are personal but I’m
not going to discuss them with anyone. Ok?’

Ramsey pressed a little
further. ‘Have you discussed them with Kate?’

At the very
mention of his wife’s name, Burton wheeled around and opened the
door. His light green eyes gave a slight glare as he clutched hold
of the schedule. He spoke in a gruff tone. ‘I’ll circulate these
straight away, sir.’

Ramsey watched him leave;
unable to think of any way Burton could be reached for help.

Olsen shut the
file and drummed his fingers on the table. His fiery temper
threatened to rise to the surface but he forced himself to stay in
control. There could be no denying it. Deane had been with his
father in Oman and could possibly have saved him from death. In the
moments that had passed, many questions and actions had passed
through his mind. He thought about ringing his mother but with her
persistent health problems, felt it wrong to trouble her and drag
up the past. This was all to do with Deane; it would have been his
decision.
What possible reason could he
have to lie to me for the last 13 years?
The question lingered around him as he tried to come up with
possible answers.

‘Hey, Sam! Did
you hear me?’ Asked a tall and well-built dark skinned
man.

Olsen looked up
and snapped out of his deep thinking as he laid eyes on his close
friend, who was the same age as him and a senior agent on team
S.U.C.O. ‘Sorry Dan, I was far away. You ok?’

Carter could
see the difference and thought about making small talk but where
Olsen was concerned, he always spoke his mind and looked out for
his friend. ‘Tell me to mind my own business but you look like
you’ve just been told you’ve won the lottery but lost your ticket.
What’s wrong?’

Olsen passed the folder to his
colleague and spoke in an angry tone. ‘Page 12 Dan, read the last
paragraph of Deane’s statement.’

Carter raised his eyebrows as
he found the page, wondering what had ticked off Olsen so badly.
The operation name gave him some clue. It was as personal as it
could be. He scanned over the words and let out a sigh. ‘But you
told me that your father died alone in Oman?’

Olsen took the
folder and returned it to the administrator at the desk. ‘Exactly;
I guess I was wrong.’

Carter took the
revelation on board and for several seconds didn’t know what to
say. ‘What are you going to do? How did you get access to that
folder, anyway?’

Olsen signed
the declaration slip and turned around to leave, with Carter
following behind. ‘I’ve been assigned to the British Royal visit in
Oman, and will be working with Deane.

Carter managed a wry smile.
‘Nothing like confronting your fears. You sure you’re up to
this?’

Olsen wasn’t in
the mood for a long discussion and was desperate to get to the gym
and take his anger out on the punch bag. ‘I’ll manage. I’ll catch
up with you later, Dan.’ He pressed the button for the ground floor
and heard the lift chime. ‘One more thing, after this operation,
I’ve been assigned to S.U.C.O. as the team leader. Keep it to
yourself, for now.’

Carter watched the doors close
and gave a shake of the head to himself as he thought of the
current acting leader of S.U.C.O. ‘Alex Jordan is going to be
seriously pissed.’

Burton returned
to his office, sat down and dropped the Royal visit schedule on top
of a pile of papers to one side. He loosened his tie and sat back
in his chair, thinking about his conversation with Ramsey over his
performance and personal problems. As much as Burton wanted to deny
it, his work was being affected by problems at home.
How am I going to get out of this mess?
The S.U.C.O. Commander jumped slightly as his
phone came to life and began to ring. He moved several empty drinks
bottles and found the receiver. ‘Yeah, Burton.’

‘You’re not going to believe
what happened to me this morning.’

Burton’s glazed eyes came to
life at the sound of his wife, Kate. ‘What is it? What
happened?’

‘I was at the shops with Oscar,
got to the checkout and none of my credit cards worked! None of
them! It was so embarrassing Hal, you’ve no idea. I only had enough
on me to pay for a few things and had to take most of it back. It’s
never happened before, you’re not hiding anything from me are
you?’

Burton rubbed
one side of his forehead as a headache began to form. ‘Uh…well
Kate, I probably should have told you about this before but we’ve
been having a few financial problems of late.’ His wife could be
heard about to reply. ‘Now hold on, hon, I didn’t tell you about it
before as I didn’t want to worry you with all the details. All you
need to know is that I’m on top of it and I’ll get it
sorted.’

‘Just how are you going to do
that? You had trouble getting your tie straight this morning. Oh
god…’

‘Easy hon,
easy, you’re just gonna have to trust me, ok? I’ll think of
something. We’ll be back on track in no time, you know?’

‘We have a
baby, Hal. For god’s sake, Oscar is only 15 months old, what sort
of a situation is this for our child? Do you understand me,
Hal?’

‘I know, you
don’t think I’m aware of that Kate? Look…when I get home I’ll tell
you everything I promise. I have a solution to it all, you’re just
gonna have to trust me ok? I’ve got to go, I’ll leave as early as I
can and we’ll work this out. Yeah, ok, I’ll see you then. Bye.’
Burton chucked the phone back in the direction of the handset and
released a groan, knowing the situation had just become a hundred
times worse. He rose from his chair and walked out of his office
towards the drink dispensers at the end of the corridor. Fumbling
in his pockets for change, the 49-year-old wondered when the powers
at be would finally introduce free alcoholic drinks to ease the
stresses of the job. ‘Not bloody likely, that’s for sure.’ He
mumbled to no one in particular.

‘Bad day,
mate?’

Burton turned
around to find a drinking buddy standing behind him. ‘You could say
that. Problem is, it’s only going to get worse.’ He looked at the
can of drink that had just been dispensed. ‘Still, I’m sure this
can of Sprite will make all my troubles go away. What you reckon,
eh?’

‘Listen mate, this isn’t about
the money probs? You mentioned something a fortnight ago in the
pub. You were going to tell Kate about it.’

‘Yeah, well, what I can say?
Kate only found out just now, when all her credit cards didn’t work
at the shops. Going to have to face the music on that one when I
get home. I’m not going tell her everything though, she’d hit the
roof!’

‘Can’t be that
bad, surely? Spill it mate, c’mon, tell me.’

‘Uh…ok, brace
yourself. As a starter for ten, I have six months of mortgage
arrears. My bank accounts are practically empty, I’m behind on the
repayments for the car and to top it all off I owe just over a
hundred grand to a casino.’ He noticed his friend’s shocked face
and managed a small smile.

‘You’re kidding
me, right? Jesus…how the hell did you manage that?’

‘I don’t know.
When I started falling behind on the mortgage and other payments I
went to the casino to try my hand, you know? Then, what do you
know, I got back on level terms with some success.’

‘But you know you’re not
supposed to gamble! What do you think Kate will do when she finds
out?’

‘Hey! Listen, I
don’t have a gambling problem! I can start and stop whenever I want
and that’s a fact. I’ll sort this out my way, you got
that?’

‘Seems to me
you created this whole problem. Why don’t you do something useful
and talk to Ramsey about getting an advance in pay, huh? After all
the years of service you’ve put in, he might just help you out.
What have you got to lose?’

Burton sighed
at the prospect. ‘Other than my professional pride, you
mean?’

‘Surely your
so-called pride isn’t worth more than your family? I have to go.
Think about it?’ He slapped his friend on the shoulder and walked
towards the nearby lift.

Burton watched him leave, none
too happy at the help his friend had provided. ‘Cocky so and so…’
He looked at his drink, sighed again and began to walk back to his
office; realising begging for an advance in pay could be the only
immediate solution to his problems.

Chapter 5

Friday, March 2
^nd
09:00,

Oman, Middle East.

The sun was hotter than Olsen had ever
experienced. Placing his right hand over his eyes for protection,
he glanced up. Not a cloud could be seen in the beautiful blue sky,
just an angry looking sun that had no cover. Trying to ignore the
heat was difficult, especially when he felt so uneasy. A sense of
uncertainty spread through his body and mind as to why he was
there. Trying to focus, he looked around at his surroundings. What
presented itself was the dusty outskirts of Muscat in the capital
city of Oman, a Middle Eastern country

Slowly, the
scene appeared to be one that was familiar to him. Yet, that was
the problem. Olsen knew he had not been there before, didn’t
recognise the people or the setting but at the same time, he did.
Before he could clear his mind, a disturbance came from behind. He
spun around and froze, feeling himself stiffen all over as he saw
the scene ahead. ‘Oh, no…please god, no.’ He said in a shaky tone.
His voice sounded distant. As if it had come from someone
else.

Olsen felt his body weaken with
fear as he tried to sprint towards the sight ahead of him. His
breathing became frantic, yet again it sounded disjointed from his
body. As hard as he tried, he couldn’t make any progress. ‘No! Hold
on…I’m coming, just hold on, stay with me…DAD!’

Several hundred
yards away from Olsen, his father was fighting for his life. Geoff
Olsen had already defeated one attacker but the second was coming
at him with renewed anger.

Sam Olsen
pumped his legs as hard as he could but felt like he was sinking in
the desert sand. His right hand reached for his favoured Beretta
pistol but found nothing. Olsen outstretched his arms in a
desperate attempt to save his father. He caught sight of the fear
etched on his father’s face as they locked gazes with one another.
He screamed in anger, as once again it seemed inevitable that he
would fail his lost father. The young man stirred and looked back
sharply, feeling as if he was the next target. As the sand cleared
around him, another figure emerged, almost from thin air. The form
of Thomas Deane, his father’s partner and his future mentor
appeared. Olsen’s eyes were wide with fear, feeling helpless that
nobody was rushing to his father’s aide. ‘DO SOMETHING! YOU CAN’T
JUST STAND THERE!’ He shouted at Deane, his voice breaking with
emotion. Moments passed but his father’s partner didn’t move,
merely stood with his arms crossed, watching the horror unfold.
Olsen was now out of control, his hands were trembling, his
breathing erratic. One look to his father showed him on his back at
the mercy of the murderous gang that had now surrounded him. Olsen
tried again to help…