Takedown by Heather Atkinson (latest books to read txt) 📕

“Nothing is more important than your safety,” Vance told her severely.

“But who would want to stalk me?”

“People who are jealous of our family’s business and want to take it. You’re in charge, so you’d be the prime target.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. There’s no one in Blackpool with the strength to hurt us.”

“New gangs are always up and coming. From now on we up security. You don’t go anywhere alone Faith. One of us is with you at all times.”

“I don’t need a babysitter,” she sighed.

“Well tough because you’re getting one until we’re sure you’re not in danger.”

“I know it’s a pain in the arse,” said Caleb. “But Vance is speaking sense. After everything we’ve been through, we can’t take any chances.” He thought back to when she’d been fighting for her life in hospital after being attacked by Marlow. He couldn’t go through all that again.

“All right,” she said more gently, able to hear the pain in Caleb’s voice. “I won’t go anywhere alone, promise and we’ll check it out, just to be sure.”

“I’m glad you’re being sensible about this,” said a relieved Vance.

“You’re giving me no choice,” she said, the corner of her mouth lifting into a smile. “But you lot need to be careful too. If this really is a stalker I might not be the only one being targeted.”

She dropped Caleb off at his flat, not setting off until he was safely inside. When they turned the corner, Vance rested his hand on her knee.

“What I didn’t want to say in front of Caleb because it would only worry him,” began Vance. “Is that this could be linked to something we’ve done in the past, either to Marlow or Lenny and Harry Paisley.”

“But only you, me and the Wallace brothers know about Harry. Everyone else thinks he fled the country when a warrant was issued for his arrest. Can the Wallace brothers be trusted to keep their mouths shut?”

“Course they can, they’re not stupid. They’d all get sent down for murder if they breathed a word about it and they disposed of the body so effectively no one has ever found him. I’m confident this isn’t about Harry.”

“So how do we confirm if someone really is watching me?”

“I’ll get some surveillance equipment. There’s a guy I know who supplies cameras with night vision, real tactical stuff. We’ll also have to be careful to make sure we’re completely alone before showing our affection for each other,” he smiled, sliding his hand further up her thigh.

“Careful,” she breathed when his hand pressed between her legs. “I don’t want to crash.”

He retracted his hand. “There isn’t anything you’ve been keeping from me, is there? Weird messages or phone calls, things like that? I know you Faith, you don’t like to worry people, so you shoulder the burden alone when you don’t need to.”

“I promise Vance, there isn’t anything I’m keeping from you. It’s just that strange sense of someone watching me, that’s all. The last time I had it, it was Harry Paisley.”

“But he didn’t vandalise your car. You never did find out who was responsible for that.”

“It was probably Marlow,” she said dismissively. “And he’s dead, thank Christ.”

“You didn’t think it was him at the time. This could have been going on for longer than we realise.”

Faith hated the thought. “If it has then why haven’t they made their move yet?”

“I don’t know but we’ll find out.”

“I bet it’s my imagination. What Marlow did to me changed me, made me more cautious. Probably no one’s watching me and it’s just past trauma.”

“Do you need to see a counsellor?”

“God no.”

“There’s no shame if you do. You went through a horrible ordeal.”

“I’m fine. Marlow is not going to control me from the grave. The git’s dead and rotting, where he belongs. End of.”

Vance smiled. One thing he loved about Faith was her strength. “If you’re sure?”

“I bloody well am.”

“Good.”

“I just hope a load of crap’s not going to kick off again. Everything’s going so well and the Maguires are really pleased with how we’re running things. They might not be so pleased if we have any more trouble.”

“With the amount of trouble that family’s had I think they’ll understand that these things happen. I’m glad we have the back-up of such powerful people.”

“That’s what puzzles me. Everyone in the criminal underworld knows we work for them. Who would risk pissing them off by messing with us?”

“You think this stalker could be personal, not business?”

“Let’s just confirm that I do have a stalker first before we get carried away. Like I said, it could be my imagination.”

Vance really didn’t think it was but he thought she was trying to convince herself of that more than him.

CHAPTER 3

The next morning, Faith and Vance decided to go out and see what they could discover about Dillon Enfield. They thought a little curious questioning wouldn’t raise any red flags. Everyone would be talking about his murder anyway.

They decided to start with the repair garage their family took their cars to. The owner knew everything that went on in the town’s underbelly. If Dillon was mixed up in anything then this person would know about it.

After Vance had performed a little sabotage on his Lexus, he drove it to the garage with Faith in the passenger seat to speak to Kingsley, a tall, strapping black man with a stunning smile and a deep infectious laugh. He was well-liked and trusted by everyone. He also did a roaring trade in turning over stolen motors.

“Faith,” he said with that smile of his that could charm the birds from the trees. “Looking stunning, as always.”

“Thanks Kingsley,” she smiled back. “You’re looking good too.”

“Cheers. I’ve been working out a