Free A Man Alone by David Siddall Page A

shoulder and Jay tossed it into the water.
    Doyle dropped his arms.
    “Bit surprised,” said Wood. “Thought you might try to be the hero.” He shimmied like a boxer taking a stance. “Do the rescue bit.” And then he smiled, a thin line of menace. “Actually, I was lookin’ forward to it.” He glanced back at Stonehead. “Weren’t we?”
    Doyle checked his watch. 6:05. “Okay,” he said. “I’ve come as you wanted. Let me see April.”
    Wood held his gaze. “Why should I?”
    “Because you’ve got what you want, because you’re a man who values his reputation.” Doyle focused hard on Wood. “Because if you go back on our agreement, your word will mean shit.”
    Doyle watched Wood’s shoulders stiffen. He had hit the mark. Reputation meant everything to this guy. Wood opened his mouth then bit back his words. He swiveled his head to look at Jay then at Stonehead. Both were grinning. Then he laughed, a short bark that echoed across the water. Doyle frowned, there was something here he was missing.
    “It’s sad really,” said Wood, “but there’s something you should know.” He rocked forward on the balls of his feet. “I haven’t got the girl, I never had the girl. She came to us and begged me to sort it. She hates you, hates what you’ve done. It was her idea.”
    Doyle felt something inside him twist. “You’re lying.”
    “No. Last night when we were figuring out what to do with you, my little mate,
    Burnsie brought her in. Said if I let her and her mam be, she’d help me get you on your own.” He used a finger to trace a cross over his heart. “God’s truth Doyle. It was her idea.”
    “I don’t believe you.”
    Wood shrugged. “Whether you do or don’t doesn’t really matter. It’s just a thought to take to whatever dark place you’re going to. Got to say she surprised me.” He shook his head. “Devious bitch. She’s one to watch is that kid.”
    Doyle’s heart beat a little faster. This wasn’t going the way he planned. “So what now?”
    Wood leered. “I’ve got you Doyle. I’ve got you where I want and your life’s not worth a carrot. One man.” He held up a finger. “That’s all you were, and now it’s over. That’s all there is to it.” He walked over to Doyle, balled his fist, and punched him in the face.
    A light exploded in Doyle’s head. He fell back, managed to cushion the fall with his hands but still crashed hard on the ground. A foot dug into his ribs. He groaned. Blood from his split lip strayed into his mouth. He turned on his side and spat on the floor as the metallic taste registered. Doyle saw Wood standing over him, and he waited for more.
    But there wasn’t. Instead Wood summoned Jay. “Take yourself off to the car.”
    “I want to watch.”
    Wood grabbed his shoulder “We’re not here.” He flicked a finger between them. “We were never here. Understand?”
    Jay’s dull eyes glimmered. If they weren’t there then they couldn’t be accused of anything. A slick smile creased his mouth. He stared at Doyle, grinned in a see what you’ve gone and done, kind of way, then turned his back and began to walk.
    Doyle pushed himself to his knees. 6:10.
    Wood pointed. “Don’t you fucking move.” He gestured Stonehead forward. In his hands was a stainless link chain. Wood looked back at Doyle. “So this is the way of it. See that?” He gestured to a metal drum lying on its side. Stonehead clipped the chain to a metal loop on its flat end. “One drum, one chain, and one stretch of water. But here’s the thing. The dock’s forty foot, the chain twenty.” He smirked. “I won’t bother to ask if you can swim.”
    Wood nodded at Stonehead. “Give us five minutes then do it.” Once more he looked at Doyle. “Goodbye Mr. Doyle. We won’t meet again.”
    Doyle watched him until he ducked beneath the gate’s wire mesh and disappeared back into the living world, a world where a man’s span wasn’t just measured in seconds and minutes.