The Legacy (27 page)

Chapter 52

Harry and Lucy had walked about a mile or so up onto the hills when the snow began to fall. They kept walking for a while but, as it started to get heavier, they found some trees to shelter under at the edge of a small wood.

‘The snow reminds me of Nepal,' said Harry, lighting two cigarettes and passing one to Lucy.

‘Yes,' she replied. ‘If my father hadn't been killed, I would have just completed my last ascent in Annapurna and I'd be heading back to Kathmandu by now.'

‘Would you have come and seen me?' asked Harry.

‘Of course,' she replied, turning to face him. ‘I'd agreed with Isobel that she'd travel back to UK and that I'd stay a while in Nepal so I could spend some time in Kathmandu with you.'

‘Really?' asked Harry, pleased.

‘Really,' replied Lucy, taking his hand in hers. ‘You didn't finish showing me around. There were three or four places you mentioned that I was still keen to see.'

‘OK,' replied Harry, not really sure whether she'd wanted to return to Kathmandu to spend time with him or to see the sights that he'd not had the time to show her.

‘I also want to know more about you,' she said, as if reading his mind. ‘Now that I've met some real life Gurkhas, I want to know why you really left the Army as they seem such good blokes.'

Harry looked at her. ‘OK, well let's start getting to know each other better by having lunch. I'm starting to freeze and the lure of soup and a steak sandwich is becoming too much to resist.'

They started walking back down towards the village. The snow had already covered the tracks they'd made on their way up. They were both silent, lost in their own thoughts. Lucy felt herself being increasingly attracted to Harry. She recognised that she wasn't very good at reading his emotions. He was obviously pleased to see her but she wasn't sure whether this was because he felt a sense of duty towards her, a need to help her in her time of need, or because he genuinely found her attractive. His slight awkwardness with her made her think that he also didn't really understand how he felt about her himself. On the positive side, she felt that there was a depth to their relationship that belied the short time they'd actually known each other.

‘I'm not sure whether a heavy snowfall like this is good or bad,' said Harry. ‘If the roads get much worse, we could be cut off for days. If the chap we think is Richards tries anything, the police are going to be slow to react and we might have to deal with him ourselves.'

‘I expect the Gurkhas will be a big help if things start to get sticky,' said Lucy.

‘Yes,' replied Harry. ‘They are very good indeed in a fight.'

They chatted about them as they walked. It was clear from the way he spoke that Harry had a deep affection for both of them. He'd known them a long time. He explained that they had been young nineteen year olds when he'd first met them. He'd just been commissioned from Sandhurst and they were the first two soldiers he met when he joined his first platoon.

‘What was it like?' asked Lucy.

‘A bit surreal,' said Harry. ‘I was just a year or so older than them and I was their newly commissioned platoon commander. I had an old sergeant to guide me but it's quite a responsibility. Sandhurst tries to prepare you for your first command but it's quite daunting turning up after nine months training and suddenly being put in charge of thirty Gurkhas. Most Gurkhas serve the full twenty-two years so many of my platoon had already seen active service in Bosnia, Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan. They had a huge amount of combat experience and I had none. It gets a bit easier once you've done the language course and spent a bit of time with them but it's still hard and it takes a while to earn their respect.'

They continued chatting until they arrived at the pub. It was quiet and they found a table near the fire. They ordered their food and chatted as they watched the snow falling outside. The food was excellent. The waitress suggested that they make the most of it as she wasn't sure how long they would be able to stay open if the snow kept on. ‘The road will be closed for a few days if it keeps on like this,' she said. ‘We normally run out of beer first. The locals tend to use the pub more in the evenings when the village is cut off. Something to do with shared hardship I expect,' she said as she disappeared off towards the kitchen.

They finished their meal and, after large cups of strong black coffee, decided to go back to the house to see whether the girls had returned with Camilla. Lucy was subdued as they walked up the drive. She'd enjoyed talking to the Gurkhas and she was looking forward to meeting Sarah and Ellie but she was nervous about meeting Camilla. Harry obviously still cared for her, otherwise why would he have flown half way round the world to be at her side? Though she had no claim on Harry - they'd only met a week ago - she found herself seeing Camilla as competition for Harry's attentions. ‘Get a grip girl,' she said to herself. ‘Otherwise you'll make a fool of yourself.'

Harry sensed her apprehension. ‘It'll be fine,' he said, squeezing her hand as they approached the front door.

Chapter 53

Richards had phoned the hospital on the journey down to Dartmoor, pretending to be a relative. They wouldn't give him much detail over the phone but they confirmed that she was being released that afternoon. He realised that she would be out before he got to Exeter but he wasn't concerned. He expected her friends to take her back to the house in North Bovey. Once she was there, he would have time to watch the house for a day or so before making his move. Whilst he wanted to finish it, he had as much time as he needed. ‘Better to wait for success than rush to failure,' he said to himself as he drove.

He arrived in Exeter late that afternoon. The local radio station said that it had been snowing heavily up on Dartmoor but, being several hundred metres lower, Exeter had escaped with only light rain. The snow on the hills wasn't unexpected and Richards had come prepared. Over the years, he'd spent a fair bit of time in Norway taking part in Arctic warfare exercises. He was therefore no stranger to operating in snow. He found a travel lodge on the outskirts of the city and booked a room. It was modest but sufficient for his needs. He intended to sleep for a few hours, have some supper and then, as darkness fell, try and get as close to the house as he could. The place he'd watched it from before would be ideal, provided no farm animals had decided it would also be a good place to shelter from the snow.

Chapter 54

Sarah was sat on the sofa talking to Camilla when Harry and Lucy came in. Ellie was upstairs making up an extra bed in the room that Harry and Camilla had both slept in. The third bedroom was still a mess. They had started to strip the wooden floor and remove the many layers of wallpaper that had been put up over the years but they had a fair way to go.

‘Put Camilla and Lucy in the spare room and I'll sleep downstairs with the boys,' Harry had said when they'd discussed sleeping arrangements the previous evening.

‘Are you sure that's wise?' Ellie had asked. ‘What if they don't like each other?'

‘I'm sure they will,' Harry had replied. ‘The worst that can happen is that Camilla bores Lucy to death by describing my many faults in intimate detail. But I don't think she will.'

Sarah stood up as Lucy and Harry came in. Harry did the introductions.

‘I've heard a lot about you,' Sarah said to Lucy, shaking her hand. ‘I'm really sorry about your Dad but we're delighted that you are able to stay for a few days.'

‘Thank you,' replied Lucy. ‘And thank you for letting me stay. I really appreciate it.'

Camilla got slowly to her feet. ‘Hi,' she said, holding out her hand. ‘I'm Camilla. I've also heard a lot about you and I'm really pleased to meet you.'

Lucy looked for any signs of hostility but there were none. Camilla was making an effort to be open and friendly. Lucy was grateful to her. She was also surprised. Camilla was about her own age and very attractive in an arty sort of way. Her injuries, particularly the bruising around her eyes, didn't help her appearance but there was no doubt that she was a good looking woman.

‘How's the recovery going?' Lucy asked, trying to be friendly as well.

‘Come and sit down and I'll tell you,' said Camilla, plonking herself back on the sofa and patting the seat next to her. Lucy sat down and the two fell into animated conversation.

Harry was relieved and grateful to Camilla for making this easy. He looked at Sarah who winked at him theatrically. ‘Tea?' she asked.

Ellie came downstairs as Sarah was pouring the tea. She saw Lucy sitting next to Camilla and looked quizzically at Sarah. Sarah smiled and nodded. Reassured, Ellie went to introduce herself. Lucy stood up to shake hands. Ellie took the hand. ‘I'm so sorry about your father,' she said. ‘It must have been an awful shock.'

‘It was,' said Lucy. ‘I'm slowly coming to terms with it. Thank you for your concern.'

‘Have the police made much progress?' asked Ellie.

‘No,' replied Lucy. ‘They think it was a mugging that went wrong. They've heard nothing from their touts and they're now pretty sure it wasn't a local that did it. They think it might have been someone from out of town and that they left in a hurry when it went wrong. I don't think they're very optimistic about catching them.'

‘And what do you think?' asked Ellie.

‘I think he was murdered by a man called Richards. Harry and I think it was the same man who tried to kill Camilla. The picture Camilla drew of her attacker is almost identical to a photograph of Richards that a friend of Harry's sent through this morning. I don't think there's much doubt that it's the same man but we've been struggling to work out what the connection is.'

Harry could see that Ellie, Sarah and Camilla were all surprised by the news. ‘Why don't I fill you all in on developments over the last twenty-four hours,' offered Harry. ‘That way, everyone will know what's happened and what we might expect over the next few days.'

Sarah and Ellie came and sat with Camilla and Lucy in front of the wood burner. Harry eased himself into one of the armchairs and started to explain everything that he'd found out. Lucy watched him as he spoke. His face was animated as he explained what his friend had uncovered about Richards. The girls asked the occasional question but Harry spoke well and Lucy could imagine him in uniform briefing his soldiers. She wished she'd known him then. He started to explain about Lucy's father. He was careful not to go into too much detail but Lucy interrupted him and told them pretty much everything she knew about her father. She didn't talk about the amount of money he'd managed to amass but, even without that, they were clearly shocked. ‘Are you sure about this?' asked Sarah. ‘It all sounds so unbelievable.'

‘I know exactly what you mean,' said Lucy. ‘It's not every day you find out that your Dad was an assassin but I am afraid it all seems to be true.'

Harry continued talking for another twenty minutes. He concluded by saying that, as Lucy had suggested, the thing they didn't yet understand was why Richards had apparently killed Lucy's Dad and why he had also tried to kill Camilla.

‘So what happens now?' asked Camilla.

‘Well,' Harry began hesitantly, looking at Camilla. ‘We think that Richards might try again. I don't know why he wants to get you but he's clearly worried that you know something, perhaps to do with Fairweather's death. We know from the notes that Lucy's father left that he killed Fairweather on Richards' instructions. We also know that Richards is a high class fixer and that he was therefore most probably working on somebody's behalf. Lucy and I discussed it this afternoon and our view, which we accept might not be right, is that somebody thinks you know something that could link them to Fairweather's death. It looks like someone is clearing up after themselves. With Lucy's Dad out of the way, the only person who knows anything about the Fairweather death, other than Richards, is you.'

‘But I don't know anything,' protested Camilla.

‘We know that,' said Harry, emphasising the “we”, ‘but someone clearly thinks you do. And I suspect they won't rest until you are also out of the way.'

‘Harry!' said Lucy in a shocked voice. ‘You don't need to put it so bluntly.'

‘I'm sorry Camilla,' said Harry. ‘But there's no easy way of explaining this. I think you are in real danger. That's why I asked Ganesh and Hemraj to come and stay for a few days.'

‘So you think he'll try and get me now I'm out of hospital,' asked Camilla.

‘Yes,' replied Harry. ‘But you're safe here. I think we have a bit of an advantage in that Richards doesn't know we suspect him. He thinks he has the initiative and that gives us a slight edge.'

‘When do you think he'll try to get me?' asked Camilla.

‘I don't really know,' answered Harry. ‘But I think we need to work on the assumption that he's watching us and looking for an opportunity. He'll try and make it look like an accident but I suspect that might be difficult.'

Camilla had gone pale. Ellie took her hand and squeezed it. ‘Don't worry,' she said. ‘We're now all in this together and we won't let anything happen to you.' Camilla didn't look particularly reassured but she smiled anyway.

Harry went on to explain about the cameras that Ganesh had installed. ‘The snow's a bit of a blessing,' he said. ‘It'll make it harder for Richards. He won't try anything unless he can guarantee that he can get away and if the snow continues, that'll be difficult.'

They talked for the next few hours, trying to confirm the connection between Lucy's Dad's murder and Camilla's attack.' Eventually, Sarah ordered them to sit at the table for supper. As she opened the oven, the smell of roast pork made Camilla realise just how hungry she was. The hospital's food had been OK but it was nothing like home cooking. Ellie poured them all a glass of wine. ‘To us,' she said, raising her glass. The others copied her. Lucy joined in but couldn't help thinking that it was all rather surreal. Even as they sat there, it was highly likely that there was a man somewhere outside apparently intent on killing at least one of them. Surely they should be doing something other than having a roast meal and a glass of wine. ‘But what more can we do?' she asked herself. ‘The police aren't remotely interested and Harry and the Gurkhas appear to have the bases covered. I suppose it's just a question of time and letting things unfold.'

They ate slowly, enjoying the meal and the conversation. Prompted by Sarah and Ellie, Lucy explained what her dissertation was about and Camilla encouraged Harry to talk about his recent experiences in Somalia. They were all hungry and animated. Harry suspected this was at least partly because of the circumstances. He had seen it before on operations. Soldiers about to undertake potentially dangerous missions either go quiet and reflective or become louder than usual as their nerves start to get the better of them. He limited himself to one small glass of wine but was pleased to see that all the girls except Lucy were drinking a bit more. ‘Might help them relax,' he thought. He caught Lucy watching him and smiled. She smiled back.

Just after midnight Ellie, Sarah and Camilla decided to go to bed. They all helped clear away and Harry made a pot of coffee which he took downstairs to Hemraj and Ganesh. Lucy came with him. They were doing shifts, watching images from the cameras on two laptops. ‘More badgers,' said Hemraj as he accepted a mug of coffee from Harry. ‘I've never seen so many badgers in my life.' He pointed to one of the laptops with his chin. The picture was surprisingly clear. Although it was gone midnight, the full moon and the white snowy background made it easy to spot the large badger as it waddled across the screen. A couple of seconds later, another smaller badger followed. Lucy stayed with them for another half hour or so and then announced that she was going up to bed. Hemraj suggested that Harry should get some sleep on the extra camp bed they'd set up. Although he was reluctant at first, he was soon fast asleep. Hemraj remained on duty.

Hemraj shook Harry's arm. ‘Wake up, there's something you need to see.'

Harry was wide awake in an instant. Ganesh was already fully dressed. Instead of black combats, he was wearing a white arctic smock and white combat trousers. ‘What is it?' asked Harry.

‘Someone's just moved into the hide,' said Ganesh. Harry looked at the screen. He could make out a human shape lying prone where the badgers had been. What looked to be a rifle was on the ground next to them.

‘He moved slowly into position about ten minutes ago. He's good. No light and no unnecessary movement. He's definitely armed but I think he's using binoculars or some sort of thermal imager or NVGs at the moment,' continued Hemraj. Harry watched the screen. The camera was positioned behind the man and it was therefore difficult to see what was in his hands. He occasionally moved his feet in a bid to stay warm.

‘What do you think?' asked Harry.

‘I think we should give him an hour or so of complete boredom and then I'll go and say hello,' said Ganesh. He was fully dressed now. He had a pistol strapped to one thigh and was sliding a mean looking kukri into a scabbard on his waist belt. ‘I think we need to try and bring him back here so we can ask him a few questions about his boss. But it's so quiet out there that getting close to him might be difficult. A small diversion here at the house would be helpful when I get really close to him.' They discussed this for several minutes, deciding what to do.

Ganesh was matter of fact as he prepared to leave the house but Harry was only too aware of the dangers. If the man outside was Richards, then he was a formidable opponent. Well armed and experienced, he might be taken by surprise but, once captured, they knew that he would be looking for every opportunity to escape or to kill his captors. Harry knew that Richards had been expensively trained for just this eventuality and he therefore realised that they would need to be extremely careful with him.

Ganesh clarified a few last details with Hemraj, pulled his white balaclava down over his face and then went upstairs. Richards could see the front of the house from where he was lying and Ganesh therefore slipped out of the back door. A hedgerow ran close to the back of the house and up the hill directly opposite Richards. Ganesh went through a small gate set into the hedge and then turned and followed it to the top of the hill. It was about seven foot high and there was little chance of Richards seeing Ganesh but he moved quietly, careful not to startle any nocturnal animals that might give his presence away. As he approached the top of the hill, he skirted sideways, dropping down into a small valley that would allow him to circle round behind Richards. He knew the ground well. He had been over the route several times during the day but he was still careful to stay in dead ground.

Hemraj and Harry continued to watch the image on the laptop. Richards remained still, giving no indication of having seen or heard anything untoward. Harry checked his watch. A few more minutes and Ganesh would be in position. Harry put his coat on and checked that he had the Range Rover's keys in his pocket. Hemraj looked at Harry and nodded. Harry went upstairs and turned the kitchen lights on. Hemraj saw Richards shift slightly as he brought his arms up to his face. ‘He's got the binos in position,' called Hemraj. Harry switched on the external lights and opened the back door. He was slightly apprehensive but knew that Hemraj would alert him if Richards gave any sign of going for the rifle that still lay by his side. He walked over to the Range Rover, clicking the automatic lock on his key fob as he went. The car's indicator lights flicked on and off a few times. Harry opened the boot and started to take out a small case.

Hemraj watched the screen. Richards was clearly focused on what Harry was doing. As Hemraj continued to watch, a white shape appeared behind Richards. It was Ganesh. He saw Ganesh lean forward and gently move the rifle out of Richards' reach. He then prodded Richards in the back with his own rifle. He couldn't hear what Ganesh was saying but he saw Richards roll slowly over onto his back, away from his rifle with his arms outstretched. Richards then removed his own balaclava as Ganesh stepped back slightly. Hemraj knew that this was the most dangerous part of the operation. Richards would no doubt be carrying other weapons and would be looking for an opportunity to get to them before Ganesh had the chance to react. Hemraj watched as Ganesh threw a set of handcuffs on the ground next to Richards. Ganesh's rifle never wavered. It was pointed straight at Richards' chest as he sat up and started to put the handcuffs on. Richards was taking his time but, clearly urged on by Ganesh, he eventually held his arms up in front of his face with the handcuffs on. Neither man moved for several minutes. Eventually, Hemraj saw Harry appear on the screen. He was carrying one of the Glock pistols. He placed it on the ground next to Ganesh as he went towards Richards, careful not to place himself between Ganesh's rifle and the handcuffed man. He approached Richards from behind, reaching over to check the handcuffs before lifting him on to his feet and frisking him expertly. He removed a pistol that had been holstered on Richards' waist and a wicked looking knife that had been sheathed on his thigh. Hemraj continued to watch as Harry's hands patted Richards around the groin and then worked their way down to his boots. He removed another knife, sheathed down the inside of the boot, and a small pistol which had been fastened to his ankle. Hemraj didn't doubt that Richards would be carrying other weapons but, for the moment at least, he would be unable to get to them with his hands in handcuffs. After a few more minutes, the three men started to walk off the screen. ‘So far, so good,' thought Hemraj. He was pleased but not really surprised. Richards had not expected to be ambushed, particularly by someone who obviously knew exactly what he was doing.