The Inspector Walter Darriteau Murder Mysteries - Books 1-4 by David Carter (best finance books of all time .txt) 📕

you from the chair and set you on the gurney. You will not be harmed, you have my word on that, but if you struggle you will be beaten. Understand? Nod your head if you do.’

Everyone stared at Jess. She glared back. Weighed up her options, and they weren’t that many. Jessica nodded.

Pryce nodded too, and ordered the guys into position. Pryce and Brinton on the arms, Man One and Two on the feet. Brinton cut the restraints and Jess felt four strong men seize hold of her lanky limbs, and lift her clear of the chair and set her down on the gurney. As easy at that. A moment later and new restraints were in place, and Jess was prone and stuck fast.

‘I’m going for the gear,’ said Pryce, and he left the room and returned to his office. Unlocked the wall cupboard, took out the syringes and drugs, and hurried back to the packed pep talk room. Still the same, two Chinese women cowering in the corner, wondering what was coming next, three fit guys standing about, staring down at one restrained supermodel, and more than one of them thought of how much photos of that scene would be worth to worldwide tabloid newspapers and scandal sheets across the globe, for Jessica was a known face in almost every country. More than their lives were worth though, and they all knew that too.

‘Hold this,’ said Pryce to Man One, handing him the bag of drugs and syringes.

Pryce nodded Brinton to the feet end of the gurney and they eased her across to the far edge of the desk, leaving a vacant area of maybe ten inches of desktop on the near side. Pryce grabbed the drug bag and opened it, took out the contents, and set them neatly on the desk, right up close to Jessica’s face and eyes.

‘Roll up her sleeve,’ said Pryce, and Brinton did as he was told. Jessica shook her head. Brinton grinned down at her. Pryce smiled at Jessica and said, ‘You have nothing to worry about. It’s just a mild sedative, keep you calm on your long journey. I am hardly likely to injure my prize asset, am I?’

That at least made some sense.

‘Lie back and enjoy it,’ said Brinton, that sickly grin back on his stubbly face.

‘You two!’ said Pryce, glaring at the Chinese. ‘Over here!’

They ambled reluctantly to his side. He stared at Monica and Shu in turn and said to Monica, ‘Tell her to inject the English woman in the arm, 20mg/4ml. Tell her!’

Monica rattled off the Chinese translation. Shu shook her head. Brinton stepped in and slapped her, harder than he’d slapped Jessica earlier, much harder, the sound echoing around the Spartan room. Monica glared at Brinton and he almost slapped her too. Shu’s head had been knocked to one side; she slowly came back to the upright, her hand rubbing her face, her lips trembling and tears not far away.

‘I’ll tell you one more time,’ Pryce said to Monica. ‘Tell the little slut to inject the white woman, as I’ve instructed. If she doesn’t do as she’s told I will inject her,’ glaring at Shu, ‘In the fucking eye! Tell her!!’

Monica rattled off the translation, there was something of a pleading tone in her voice.

Shu stared round the room at each of them in turn, and hurried to Jess’s side. Picked up the first of the two 10 mg ampoules of midazolam hydrochloride, fitted a fresh needle on the syringe, broke the head off the ampoule, slid the needle in, pulled back the plunger, fully loaded, wiped Jessica’s arm, said something in Chinese that came across as: Sorry, but I’ve got no choice, but it could have been anything, and gently slipped the needle into the upper arm, pressed the plunger and delivered the cargo.

Jessica jumped and blew out hard through the nose.

‘Again!’ ordered Pryce, and Monica unnecessarily translated, and the whole process was repeated.

Jess fought the oncoming tide of drowsiness, but the false ceiling and striplight were already hazy, and Brinton’s ugly grinning face was getting hazy too, moving from side to side, and that might have been a bonus, as her breathing slowed, and her eye-lids fluttered and fell closed, and suddenly she looked at peace.

‘Show’s over!’ said Pryce. ‘Take the dogs back to the kennel,’ and Brinton grabbed the leads and jerked Monica and Shu from the room, and took them back into the assembly plant. Removed the leads, placed them in the box for next time, and ordered them back to work, before adding: ‘I might see you later.’

PRYCE GLANCED AT HIS watch. 21.35. Too early yet to load up the van. ‘Go and get yourselves a coffee and something to eat. No alcohol,’ he said to Men One and Two. ‘We’ll load up the van at eleven. Make sure you are back by then.’

‘Sure boss,’ said Man One.

‘Yeah,’ said Man Two, and they left the room.

Pryce stared at Brinton.

Brinton gawped back and said, ‘What’s that drug again?’

‘Midazolam hydrochloride.’

‘Where d’ya get it?’

‘Remember when my aunt died a couple of months back? Cleared out her bungalow. The place was stacked with drugs - waste not, want not. Funny thing is, it says not to be given to the over sixties, and she was eighty-eight!’

‘Seemed to do the trick.’

‘Oh aye, it will.’

‘What do you want to do now,’ asked Brinton.

‘We wait, till eleven, and then we get her moving.’

22.15. IN THE WRENBURY mini mansion, Jennifer said, ‘Do you fancy an early night?’ and in the way she said it Kit knew precisely what she meant. They seemed to be taking more “early nights” than usual, and he wasn’t quite sure why. Early nights with Mrs Napoleon were always to be looked forward to, though in truth he didn’t really fancy one that night. But there again, never look a gift horse... and all that.

‘Okay,’ he said, ‘if you like.’

She’d have preferred a more enthusiastic reply, but no matter.

‘I’ll go and get