Page 125 of The Devil's Advocate

‘There’s no shot,’ said Berlin. ‘You might rupture the tank.’

‘Flank him, to the side. Let me out,’ said Bloch.

She was agitated, her voice well above normal volume. This was Bloch in a panic.

‘Calm down, Bloch,’ said Berlin. ‘There’s no shot. Even if you flank this guy and put two in his head the round could ricochet. You could hit Harry, or the round could bounce off the inside of Edwards’ skull and tear a hole through the cab and the tank.’

‘Let me out. I’ll take Edwards out of the cab before I put him down,’ she said.

I got a good look inside the cab. Harry had a glass of bourbon in his hand. Edwards was holding a mobile phone. Harry’s lips were moving, Edwards was listening.

‘Harry’s trying to talk him down. We have to give him a chance,’ I said.

‘Let me out of this car and I’ll take down Edwards. We’re losing too much time,’ said Bloch.

Berlin’s voice cut through the car. ‘You can’t ! He’ll see you coming and blow the whole town.’

Bloch let out a roar, punched the back of the seat.

Berlin was right. There was nothing we could do. Not now. If we spooked Edwards in any way, then it was all over.

I could taste bile in my mouth, I wanted to be sick. I couldn’t look, but at the same time I couldn’t take my eyes off the cab. Harry was still talking. He looked relaxed. A bottle of bourbon appeared and Harry refilled his glass, then took a sip. There was another glass on the dash between Harry and Edwards. The glass had bourbon in it, but it sat untouched.

I swallowed, listened to my heart kicking at my chest.

‘I should never have left him,’ said Bloch.

Francis Edwards was holding a phone. An old one. A burner. Disposable, and probably a detonator. His eyes were wild. He was rocking back and forth in the cab, gently. Holding the phone in his hand, wiping away tears and then staring hard at that phone.

Harry continued to talk.

Edwards threw his head back, his mouth wide open. I heard a faint scream. A cry, from his throat. I tried to speak, but I couldn’t make a sound. I had no breath. I grunted, forced the words out.

‘We’ve got to do something ! He’s going to trigger the detonator.’

CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN

KATE

Kate woke suddenly. She was slumped over the dresser, her head resting on her forearm, a sea of paper in front of her. Still in her suit.

Her phone was ringing.

She picked it up. It was Eddie.

‘Hello?’ said Kate, her voice still thick from sleep.

‘There’s a truck outside the hotel with a bomb inside. Get Andy, get Patricia and get the hell out the back, right now and get clear of the building. Don’t come out the front door ! If you see Harry, grab him, if not just get out !’

He hung up before Kate could process the information, never mind speak. Kate looked around the room. Her case files and notes were spread out all over the beds and the desk. She needed them. Andy’s case depended on it. She got up, telling herself to keep it together. She tried to take a deep breath, but it didn’t work. Her chest was closing up, her stomach cramping. Panic was taking hold.

She left the paper where it was, ran down a floor and started hammering on Andy and Patricia’s door. Andy answered straight away. He’d been watching TV with his mom.

Kate stumbled over the words at first, put her hand on the doorframe to steady herself, and then said, ‘We’ve got to get out of here right now. It isn’t safe,’ said Kate.

Andy went back into the room, Kate holding the door open, and he started to pack.

‘We don’t have time. We’ve got to go right now. Right this second,’ said Kate.