NOWHERE TO RUN

ONE

He double checked the black electrical tape that changed the letters on his car registration, in reality the R was a P and the E an F, it was sufficient should any security cameras pick him up either entering or leaving the car park. There was no need to check, as per usual his preparations were water tight, nothing was left to chance, but his years spent with elite units had left their mark, years of learning to be meticulous, one stupid mistake could cost him everything, in the past it could have cost him his life, this was just as serious, it could cost him his life, only this time behind bars; nothing was left to chance.

The hair dye blended well with his skin tone, it had been a good choice, with two good washes it would all come out, and if need be he would simply shave it off, so that not even any trace of having dyed his hair would be evident. The baseball cap covered most of it, including his face, he looked like just another tired motorist, stretching his legs after
a long journey, looking forward to a well earned cup of tea.

The woman was in position, she was his only weak link, she was his Achilles heal, but for this one job he had no choice, she was the only bait with which he had to catch his fish, or rather pluck it from the murky waters, his target was pond life after all, he deserved to be taken out of the game and dealt with.

Sharon sat on the plastic seat, her hands showing signs of nerves, she knew she was in too deep, but there was nothing she could do, her son was all that mattered to her, she would do this one thing for his father then get as far away from him as she could. She thought back to good times, to the beer festivals and clubs in Germany, to a time when she had no responsibilities, just Mark and her, his army pay not even stretching to a good night out, her skills as a multilingual interpreter bringing in more money than they could spend. It didn’t occur to her that her constant jibes about his earning potential against hers would turn him into the man he had become. It wasn’t the only factor, but it was the beginning, the seed was sown to prove himself. It was only a matter of time before the novelty of the drinking and doing what he liked would wear off, Mark needed something else, he was bored with army life, his drinking had landed him in jail a couple of times, it wasn’t the only thing that was noticed by his commanding officer, Mark had the raw talent that he was looking for.

Sharon was unaware that all those years before she had been silently forced out, her work dried up, the money stopped flooding in, as the fun stopped the arguments started, she made the move back to England unaware that she was carrying Mark’s child, he too, unaware, his training took him far away.

At no time did she feel that Mark was any threat to Jamie, he had his faults, but she knew he would never hurt his own son, though he had not even wanted to see the child he was still his flesh and blood. The promise of money wasn’t the only reason she had agreed to help him out, she still felt for him, believed the spark was still there somewhere, she remembered the old times and tried to remain calm, if Mark was true to his word then all she had to do was great the guy, excuse herself and be on her way, she had no other involvement, wanted no other involvement. She had not asked too many questions, had been given even fewer answers but was aware that she would bee complicit.

Mark walked into the motorway services, taking note of all the exits, his senses even more acute than normal, the girl handing out free chocolate samples looked up and smiled, the fact that she had noticed him bothered him, but it was nothing out of the norm, she was only doing her job, her smile was flirtatious, there were no hidden meanings, he walked slowly passed, only slightly raising his head and returning the smile, nothing in his demeanour would betray him, his training was kicking in, no normal man would totally ignore a pretty girl, she seemed pleased to have received the desired reaction from her passing trade. Two men stood by the fruit machines, the larger one alternately stuffing money into the machine and a burger into his mouth, his companion appeared nervous, Mark’s hairs stood up on the back of his neck, for some reason he had zeroed in on these two, yet the concourse was full, and they were not the only ones playing on the machines. He took note of them, their shoes, clothes, height, he noted that they weren’t wearing any obvious surveillance gear, no blue tooth ear pieces, innocuous enough to the man in the street, but not to him. Ear pieces were worn by everyone now, but were being adapted and used by surveillance teams, anything that made them blend with their surroundings was a blessing, gone were the days of radio ear pieces with obvious leads. But they could be wearing ‘in-ear’ pieces, if they were from ‘The Company’ then they would be, Mark needed a closer look. He walked to the toilets, pretending to look at the signs, in reality he knew every square inch of the service station, he had done his homework. They didn’t look up, but that meant nothing, if they were from The Company then they too would be well trained, their actions hidden in a myriad of false moves. Sharon sat nursing her coffee, it had begun to get cold, she was beginning to get nervous, he hadn’t turned up. She had spotted mark, no matter what his disguise, she would always know it was him, why hadn’t James turned up, did he know?, part of her wanted him not to come, she knew what was in store for him.

‘Did you come alone?’ the voice came from behind her, it made her jump, her hand jerked, making the coffee cup, still half full, spill over the table, her fumbled reaction to clean it up only alerted more people to her clumsiness, she winced and apologised, the onlookers all looked away again, she wondered how many of them were there specifically watching her. She pushed the wet napkins and empty coffee cup across the table away from herself. Before she had a chance to speak the voice that she knew all too well whispered so low that she strained to hear it. ‘You seem a bit nervous, why is that, is there something that you want to tell me?’ The hidden threat in the question chilled her, she knew at that moment that she was in too deep, this wasn’t her game, she wasn’t a part of this, goose bumps careered up her arms, her throat went dry, the hairs stood up on the back of her neck. She started to speak, but with her dry throat her voice was hoarse and scratchy, just as she started she noticed a commotion outside in the concourse, she wasn’t the only one, everybody in the dinning area looked up and over to the source of the disturbance, a group of young lads were making a nuisance, one tipped over a stand of newspapers, two more were throwing crisp packets at each other, ordinary shoppers caught up in the fracas started to fade away, many choosing to make an impromptu visit to the toilets. The dinning hall became eerily quiet, each and every person watching intently at the carnage that was happening before them, not one stood to help the shop assistant that cowered behind her counter, before crouching as low as she could she set off her panic alarm, the noise pierced everyone’s ears. As soon as it started it seemed to stop, the lads had moved outside, running in the direction of some woods, presumably to open countryside beyond, their departure heralded a cacophony of noise and reaction from all around her. Sharon, turned to see James, but there was no one there, the seat behind her from where the voice had come from was empty.