Barry Maitiland - Spider Trap

She shook her head and Brock and Kathy exchanged a glance.

Magdalen caught their look. ‘Hang on,’ she said, ‘you don’t think-Oh, Christ, no. I can’t believe-’

‘Did you tell anyone else about your conversation with Tom?’

‘No . . . Wait, yes. Teddy Vexx saw us together at the bar downstairs last night, and he asked me later what we were talking about.’

‘Where’s Vexx tonight?’

‘I dunno. Troy said he had a job on. I’d better ring my dad. If that stupid bastard-’

‘Better still,’ Brock said, putting the car into gear,‘let’s pay him a visit.’

As he drove, Kathy called for back-up, and a patrol car joined them on Blackheath, leading them fast under lights and siren as far as the turn-off into Shooters Hill, where Brock overtook and led the way to the gates of The Glebe, which were open. They drove into the central courtyard where they saw a car parked askew outside Magdalen’s parents’ house, whose front door was standing open.

‘That’s Mum’s car,’ Magdalen said, and jumped out and ran to the house, the others following. Inside they found Magdalen’s mother Adonia kneeling beside a chair on which Spider Roach was sprawled.She was holding a glass of water and a bottle of pills.Every light in the room was on, including the garish central chandelier, and the old man looked pale and sick in the dazzling illumination. Adonia rose to her feet as they ran in, saw the uniformed men and said,‘You took your time.’

As Magdalen ran to her mother, Brock said,‘What happened?’

‘We had a robbery, that’s what. Some bastard broke in here and started going through the place.’ She gestured at a cabinet with drawers hanging open.

‘Shut it,’ Roach croaked from his seat.

Adonia misunderstood.‘I’ll tidy up later, Dad.’

Kathy was sniffing the air.‘Someone’s fired a gun in here.’

‘I noticed a smell when I came in,’ Adonia agreed.‘I know the man was hurt. Ivor got a call from his security men and came first, then Dad wasn’t well and I brought him home.’

‘So where are they now?’ Brock said.

‘Hospital, I suppose . . .’

‘Shut it, you stupid cow!’ Roach’s voice lashed her like a slap, and she blinked in surprise. He had hauled himself upright and was beating the air with a claw-like hand.‘My daughter-in-law is confused. There was no burglar. Nobody’s been hurt.’

‘But Dad . . .’ Her voice faded as he glared at her.

‘You seemed to be expecting us,’Brock said.‘Did you ring for the police?’

‘Well, no. I assumed Ivor would have . . .’ The expression froze on Adonia’s face as she finally understood what was going on. ‘Dad’s right. I must have got it all wrong.’

‘Did you see him,Mum?’Magdalen cried.‘Did you see the man?’

Her mother frowned,shook her head.‘I got it wrong.’

‘No you didn’t,’ Brock said. ‘Where did they go, Spider? Where did they take him?’

Roach turned to Brock with a sneer on his mouth. Brock recognised the expression, the curl of the lip, full-blooded and terrifying once, still with the power to chill.

Brock turned to Adonia.‘What car was Ivor driving?’

She shrugged and turned away.

‘Adonia, tell me.You have to stop this.’ Getting no response, he hesitated then said,‘We found Robbie Forrest’s body.’

She turned slowly back to him, her eyes huge with surprise. ‘Robbie?’

‘Yes. He was one of the three bodies we found recently, buried on the railway land behind Cockpit Lane. He died in 1981. Didn’t you know?’

She shook her head in slow motion.

‘No, well, Ivor didn’t want you to know, of course.’

‘Shut up!’ Spider barked again.‘You keep your evil-’

‘Where are they?’ Brock repeated, and the old man’s mouth snapped closed.

‘What do you mean, about Ivor?’ Adonia said.

‘He murdered Robbie, shot him in the head, him and his two friends. I think you know why.’

‘You’re lying.’ She turned away, her hand on the gold pendant at her throat.

‘What car is Ivor driving?’he demanded,and when she still said nothing, he said, this time with a sigh of regret, ‘Does Magdalen know, Adonia?’

‘Know what?’Magdalen said.‘What is all this? Who’s Robbie Forrest?’

‘Nothing,’ her mother said.‘Nobody.’

‘Your father, Magdalen,’ Brock said, and as Adonia shook her head and began to speak he went on, ‘Six foot tall, left-handed, Jamaican.We believe he had a gold tooth.’

Adonia looked stunned.‘What do you mean, believe ?’

‘Part of his remains were missing. But we’ve done tests on his DNA and Magdalen’s. He was her father.’

‘Mum?’ Magdalen was staring in horror at her mother, whose eyes were filling with tears.

Adonia turned to her father-in-law.‘You knew?’

Roach glared back at her defiantly.‘You stupid bitch. A nigger! A man as black as your sin.You Greek whore!’

‘What are you saying?’ Magdalen cried. She grabbed Brock’s arm.‘What are you saying?’

‘Ivor Roach murdered your father, who was having an affair with your mother, and now he’s murdering your boyfriend Tom.’

Magdalen gazed at him, then whispered,‘A black guy?’

Brock nodded.

‘I knew. I think I’ve always known.’ She stared in horror at her mother, who was frantically turning over in her fingers the golden heart on its chain around her throat. ‘You told me he gave it to you when I was born . . .’ She blinked as if shaking herself awake from a dream.Then she turned to Brock and said,‘I think I know where they’ve taken Tom.’

‘No!’ Spider roared, his rage lifting him out of his chair, but he couldn’t stop Magdalen, who went on.

‘There’s an old car yard . . . in Tallow Square.’

‘I know it,’Kathy said.‘You’ve been inside,haven’t you? You’d better come with us.You might be able to help.’

‘I’m coming too,’ Adonia said, and to her daughter, ‘You’ll need a coat, come on.’

Brock gave hurried instructions to the two patrol officers to secure the house and make sure Spider didn’t use a phone, and to call for an armed response vehicle to meet them at Tallow Square. While he was talking,Kathy went after the two women.She heard them in a back room, voices raised, then they were hurrying out, pulling on their coats, and they ran to the car.

There was no sign of the ARV when they turned into the mean little square. Magdalen pointed out Vexx’s Peugeot, and described the layout of the place.‘The entrance is down the laneway there. There’s a big old shed on this side, and beyond it what used to be the workshop.They …’she hesitated,‘store stuff there.’

‘Drugs?’

‘Yeah. There’s a regular little laboratory at the back. And they have two bloody great pitbulls. Savage, they are.’

‘We’ll wait till help gets here,’ Brock said.

‘No,’ Magdalen said. ‘They’re murdering Tom in there. I’m going in.They won’t hurt me.’She pulled open the car door,ignoring their cries.Then Adonia,too,was tumbling out of the door and chasing after her daughter.

Kathy said,‘I’ll stop them,’ and followed, running towards the mouth of the lane. She heard the ARV skidding into the square behind her as the two women disappeared into the shadows.

There was a huge old battered metal sliding door with a small wicket-gate set into the side of the shed, and a speaker and keypad hidden inside an old fuse box bolted to the wall beside it. As Kathy caught up with them Magdalen pressed the button. From inside the building they heard the muffled scream of an electric motor, like a drill or a circular saw, which was abruptly cut as Magdalen began to speak.

‘Dad? Dad, it’s me, Magdalen. Open the door, will you? It’s important. I need to talk to you.’