Dead Ball by Tom Palmer (snow like ashes series .txt) 📕

men in black could do was try to keep as close to him as possible. There was no way out for them.

Danny smiled. Now he needed to catch McGee’s eye.

He’d stopped his abduction.

Now he needed to abduct McGee from his abductors.

WE MEET AGAIN

Danny hadn’t looked behind him since the autograph scrum had started. He’d not seen the man standing there. The man thinking about what he should do next.

‘Danny,’ the man said in a soft voice. So soft – and English – that Danny assumed it was Holt.

Danny turned round, about to ask what they could do.

To be faced by Sir Richard Gawthorpe.

His nemesis looked calm. Not angry. Or frustrated. Or scared, even.

‘We meet again,’ Sir Richard said.

Danny jumped. Literally. Like a shot of electricity had gone through him. He had to pull himself together. Not lose control. Not let Sir Richard see how scared he was.

‘It’s over,’ Danny said.

‘Is it?’

‘Yes. I’ve got –’ Danny went for his pocket.

‘Danny,’ Sir Richard smiled, glancing at the wall beside to him. ‘It’s not over. Even if you get out of here alive, no one will believe whatever story you have cobbled together. This is Russia. Things work differently here, Danny.’

Danny was about to speak when he saw Sir Richard’s face light up. And then suddenly the man was shouting. At the top of his voice. ‘FIRE! FIRE! FIRE!’

Danny was so surprised he stumbled.

Sir Richard pushed in a fire alarm on the wall next to him. The noise was dramatic. First the ringing. Then the sound of hundreds of feet running and hundreds of voices crying out.

The mood changed immediately. Parents picked up sons and daughters from the scrum and ran. Fire doors burst open.

Danny turned to see McGee being grabbed again and dragged away, through a fire door to a waiting black people-carrier.

Then he felt his legs go from under him. And a punch to his back. And Sir Richard was standing over him.

‘If I had time… I’d kill you,’ Sir Richard said. ‘If I meet you again I will kill you.’

Then Sir Richard was off, heading for the black vehicle.

Danny staggered to his feet. This was his last chance.

As he ran, he saw that the road was open for the people-carrier – fenced off from the fans. It would be out of there in seconds.

So he ran faster. Ran like he’d never run before. He had to try and save Matt McGee. If he could just make it to the car.

In seconds he was almost level with Sir Richard.

Sir Richard dived into the car, to avoid what he thought would be Danny attacking him.

But Danny had other thoughts. He was going for the front of the car.

He heard the engine rev as the car door slammed shut behind Sir Richard. And Danny waited in front of it, holding his mobile phone out in front of him.

Danny stood there, convinced he was about to disappear under a large heavy vehicle – and to die in a very painful way.

The car lunged at him. Then braked. Like an animal snapping, then retracting. But not biting.

Now Danny could only hear the engine idling and his own heart hammering. Then a door opening.

Sir Richard came from the back of the car.

‘What?’

Danny could feel his hand shaking violently, still holding the phone. He could barely control his emotions. He’d switched his phone to video and began to record.

‘WHAT?’ Sir Richard shouted.

‘I sent a film. From the reception,’ Danny said. ‘Tupolev talking to Matt McGee about their deal. I sent it to England.’

Danny saw Sir Richard’s eyes narrow.

‘And I have a film of you on the steps when McGee attacked Skatie. With Tupolev’s men behind you.’ Danny watched for another physical reaction. But there was nothing. ‘And I’m filming you now. But this is the only clear film of you I have. The one on the steps: you can’t really see it’s you. But this. This does show it’s you. I can give you this. Now.’

Danny saw Sir Richard’s shoulders drop.

‘Let McGee go,’ Danny said, his voice trembling. ‘And you can have it.’

Sir Richard looked confused. Like he was doing something he didn’t want to do.

‘Let him go and I’ll move out of the way,’ Danny said. ‘No dead boy. No abducted footballer. No film of you. Just a film of Tupolev.’

Sir Richard shook his head, looking at the ground.

Then, behind them, the lights came on. A massive flood of light. So bright everyone was blinded briefly.

They heard the noise of tens of thousands of fans leaving their seats in the stadium. Headed their way. About to block the roads and the paths for hours.

Sir Richard gestured to the car, pointing at McGee, then outside.

At first the men in the car refused to act. Then Sir Richard pulled his own phone out of his pocket. He pointed at it. Mouthed ‘Dmitri’ at the driver.

The rest happened quickly.

McGee emerged from the car and ran back into the stadium.

Danny threw his phone to Sir Richard.

Sir Richard got in the car. But before he did, he turned to Danny. ‘You’re lucky I have more important concerns right now. I meant what I said in there,’ he said. ‘If I see you again, I will kill you.’

Danny shrugged. He wanted to say something witty, but decided to leave Sir Richard with a silence. Sometimes silence said more than words.

‘And when I do,’ Sir Richard went on, ‘I’ll be back in charge of City. That’s a promise.’

Danny shook his head and smiled. ‘Never,’ he said.

And with that the black people-carrier was gone.

THURSDAY

PRESENTS

Moscow Domodedovo Airport felt good. Once Danny was airside and mingling with hundreds of other England fans.

It was safe to be in numbers. He hoped.

Danny wanted to go home. Home to his dad’s cooking, his mum’s rushing off to work, his sister’s jibes.

He enjoyed travelling, but he’d had enough for a while.

Once they had got through security, Holt had gone to sit down with a plate of chips and his