Free Go Out With A Bang! by Gary Weston Page A

the
stadium.'
    'They're
hitting two places at once?' said Crowe.
    'Looks
that way. They've already had one explosion over there just to
prove a point. But that's just an empty factory. Nobody will get
hurt. Here we have eighty thousand people.'
    Marlow
said, 'It isn't just the explosives. A stampede will see many
people killed and hurt.'
    'We're
aware of that, Mr Marlow,' said Morris. 'For now, we need to stay
calm. Do you make this decision about payment?'
    'Me? I
take care of the stadium. Everything from arranging the games to
making sure there's enough toilet paper. I do not approve payments
of thirty million to criminals. The directors are in their own
box.'
    'Then I
suggest you get busy talking to them. He said we have until the end
of the game, right?'
    'Yes,'
said Marlow.
    'Then we
need a longer game. Vince. We need to talk to the ref. Extend the
game.'
    They
left Marlow to find the directors and made their way to the tunnel
entrance.
    Crowe
said, 'We can't just go out there. This is being televised. They
see us two trying to influence the game, boom boom.'
    'Good
point.' Morris saw a hot dog seller with a tray of dogs. 'Oi. You.
Come here.'
    'One
each? Ketchup? Mustard?'
    Crowe
grabbed a couple of dogs.
    Morris
said, 'Go get the ref. Tell him to come over here.'
    Dog man
scratched his head. 'What? There's a bloody game on.'
    Morris
flashed his badge. 'You. Ref. Now.'
    'Are you
paying for those?'
    'Send us
an invoice,' said Morris. 'Move it.'
    Dog man
walked to the end of the tunnel. Before him were three separate
fights going on. The ref was kicking a Blue's player in the ribs
when the dog man walked up. The ref grabbed a hot dog.
    'Thanks.
What?'
    'Some
bloody cops over there want a word.'
    'Yeah?
We got the final going on here, in case they hadn't
noticed.'
    Dog man
shrugged. 'I'm just the errand boy.'
    'Okay.'
    The ref
ignored the bedlam on the pitch and walked up the
tunnel.
    Dog man
shouted, 'Hey. You gonna pay for that dog?'
    'Send me
an invoice.'
    'Didn't
you have mustard on that?' Crowe asked the ref.
    'Can't
stand the stuff. You wanted something?'
    'Yes,'
said Morris. 'The stadium is full of explosives. It's due to go off
at the end of the game. We'd like the game to go on a bit longer.
Can you manage that?'
    The ref
thought it over. 'Yeah, okay.'
    'Good
man.'
    Ref went
back to the carnage and the Red's captain approached him. Ref
smacked him in the mouth with a right hook and showed him the red
card.
    'What
was that for?'
    'Having
a bad haircut. Bugger off. You there. Penalty.'
    'I never
laid a hand on him, Ref.'
    'That's
why it's a penalty. Make it count, it goes into extra
time.'
    The
Blue's striker shrugged but wasn't going to let the opportunity go
by. The crowd hushed, collectively holding their breath. Striker
crossed himself, ran at the ball, kicked hard, it sailed through
the air, hit the post, but went in. Goal.
    Ref blew
his whistle. 'Extra time. Off for fifteen minutes.'
    Morris
said, 'That gives us a fifteen minute break and another half hour
of play. Let's see how Marlow's getting on.'
     

Chapter 28
    The
Chief looked at the damaged factory window. 'Dale? Which is the
target? Here or the stadium?'
    'Both,'
said Andersen. 'They're dividing us up. Laughing at us.'
    'Hancock?'
    'Surrounding the stadium. But he may as well not be there.
Look at that window. They are not messing about.'
    'So what
do we do?'
    'Do?
There's nothing we can do. We need a bloody miracle.'
    'Short
supply,' said the Chief.
    * * *
    Rod
Marlow said, 'Detectives. This is Mr J. J. Pullman and Mr Sandy
Shaw. The stadium directors.'
    'We are
not happy, detective's,' said Pullman.
    'Neither
are we,' snapped Crowe. 'We're missing the end of the
game.'
    Morris
jabbed the big man in the ribs. 'We've bought us some time. Another
forty minutes max. Sir. Mr Pullman. Mr Shaw. I would not usually
advocate this, but are you in a position to buy these guys
off?'
    'We
could do that, Detective,' said Shaw. 'But doing that is so wrong
on so