A Servant of the Company (27 page)

‘Hello. You must be Sumi. I’m Anthea, a damsel in distress I’m afraid but your husband has been most helpful. He was telling me that I’m the first member of the Company that he has met. They are so secretive aren’t they?’ Once Sumi was relaxed, she would get more information from the unsuspecting Arif.

The girl was young and obviously a very nice type thought Sumi but she too wanted information. ‘Which part of the company do you work for Anthea? I’m sure we have handled your mail, but a letter isn’t the same as a real person is it?’

‘Actually I have been on attachment to Manchester but as you know, I’m not supposed to say any more about it, but we’re in the same boat. We have set up an agency to help businesses secure more contracts. It’s going well but we still have to be careful because there are always people out there trying to beat you at your own game.’ Now it was time to listen. ‘That’s my lot for now,’ thought Anthea, ‘now you two can have the floor.’

‘I just had no idea what each part of the company did. That is the first thing I’ve learned. We do get mail from different parts of the Company and I just parcel it up and take it to Wimbledon each week. Even then I never see anyone. I just put it through the letterbox of a flat on the first floor and someone collects it. Who and when I have no idea, except by the time I take the next delivery, the first one has gone. I can tell that by the sound of the letters hitting the floor.’ His time with the Company had been strange as far as his employment was concerned but their lives had changed dramatically for the better, so he had just accepted everything once the doubts about the job had been submerged in his consciousness. Today a breath of fresh air had breezed into the building in the shape of Anthea, a fellow employee.

‘Tell me Arif, were you recruited as I was?’ She didn’t have to continue her question as Arif held up his mobile phone, tapping it with his finger. ‘Snap,’ she said. ‘I’m not as long serving as you so your knowledge will be far greater than mine. Have you heard of anyone else other than Mr. Crichton?’ Surely Arif would have at least one piece of information which would go into the jigsaw.

He stood with his arm around Sumi pulling her close to him. Anthea sensed that it was not only out of love for her but also for moral support. ‘The only other person is the one who collects the mail in Wimbledon and I’ve never spoken to him or her. The instructions came from Mr. Crichton. My only purpose in the organisation is to forward mail when told to do so. I am a very small fish indeed, but a happy one.’ He smiled at Anthea and continued. ‘Although a small fish, I have no wish to end up fried.’ They all laughed at his comment, but each knew that there had been an overt threat somewhere in his association with the Company. ‘Would you like to join us for tea or coffee Anthea, it would take no time at all.’ Arif hoped she would accept, this was a memorable day and he could see that Sumi liked the girl. She would now see that it was really a good company he worked for. A colleague like Anthea he was sure would never be involved with anything that wasn’t absolutely lawful.

‘I wouldn’t say no to a cup of coffee, it’s very kind of you.’ He hadn’t given her the name and address of the place where he delivered the mail but with luck she would get the information.

The flat above the office was immaculate and Anthea was impressed with the way it had been furnished. ‘What a beautiful room, one day once I get married I’ll remember this and if you don’t mind, I’ll copy it. It’s really lovely.’ It wasn’t flattery, she meant every word. Thought and good taste had been applied carefully to achieve the effect. ‘I just love the pictures, who is the artist?’

Sumi was very pleased with the compliments she had received and noticed Arif looking at her with obvious pride. ‘Oh, thank you Anthea, it’s so kind of you to say so. The pictures?’ She paused and looked embarrassed. ‘Well I painted them, it’s a new hobby, they are not really all that good but I enjoy painting them.’

‘I think you underestimate your talent Sumi, they would sell in any gallery.’ She looked around the walls at the paintings, each one an abstract but vibrant in its display of colour. ‘If you ever want to sell any please let me know, they are really very impressive.’ Seeing that Sumi was embarrassed, she changed the subject. ‘You were saying Arif that you delivered the mail to Wimbledon, whereabouts? I have an aunt living there.’ This was a white lie, her one and only aunt lived in France but she had somehow to get more information about the drop off point.

Arif was relaxed and had finally met a colleague and she was everything he had hoped for but never thought would happen. She was a friend already, he was comfortable with her and so was Sumi. ‘You may know it, Chester Avenue near the station. There’s a new block of flats there and I just drop everything off to a Mr. Dawlish at flat 3. It looks as though it might be occupied but I can’t really tell because of the way the post box is situated. I did try to look through once but there was only a panel which shielded the inside of the flat. I know I shouldn’t have done that but curiosity got the better of me. It could be anyone who collects the mail, I just don’t know.’ Had he said too much, he hoped his opinion of Anthea was right and she would not report his comments to the Company. Neither he nor Sumi had ever been indiscreet about the Company with friends or relatives.

Once they had finished their coffee, Sumi took Anthea to the kitchen where her two children were sitting at the table painting. After the introductions, Anthea looked at the work the children were doing. ‘Sumi you have two beautiful and talented children, these paintings are excellent for such young children. They must get this from you, are any of your family artists?’ It was amazing to see the way the children had used colour in their pictures, had they been displayed in a gallery, people would have assumed that the artist was art school trained.

‘I’m not sure my parents ever painted as far as I know but they do seem to like my work. Perhaps if they took it up they might produce a nice painting. I think anyone can do it if they want to.’ It was her way of playing down her talent, she could do better but only time and practice would decide on that.

The afternoon had gone well. Anthea had enjoyed her time with the Rahman’s and had the only piece of information that Arif was able to give. Her next stop would be Wimbledon.

Before leaving the flat, Arif insisted on ringing Mr. Crichton’s mobile but the line was still dead. Anthea noted the number he called before taking her leave. She just hoped she hadn’t put them in a difficult situation, they were such a nice family but oblivious of the terror that surrounded those employed by the Company.

A week had passed and nothing had happened in Manchester to alarm either Carol or Steve. Both their mobiles had stayed silent, there had been no visitors or unusual mail. The agency still had clients booking its services and both of them had found that the Company had made payments into their accounts. When Carol banked the Company takings, she found the only withdrawals had been those which she made to pay her girls. Before the attack on her, sums had been transferred regularly from the account by the Company. Steve’s first job each day did not change, before Carol used her car he would check it thoroughly making sure no suspect devices had been attached. Their discussions on the Company had not been fruitful, without a lead the only thing they had to go on was Anthea’s meeting with Arif Rahman. He could be the key but could they convince him to join them? Anthea had been certain that he was an honest and unsuspecting person who had been drawn into the Company web by the benefits he had been offered. She was sure he would not risk putting his family in jeopardy.

They had been silent for some time when Steve suddenly sat upright in his office chair. ‘We will just have to continue as we are for the next few days, but it can’t go on forever without something or someone turning up and giving us a nasty shock. What do you think if I ask Anthea to make another visit to the Rahman’s? She got on well with them and I’m certain she could win them over so we could check who the other people are in the Organisation. The mail that he takes to Wimbledon would give us some answers. We could always seal it up again before he delivered it.’ It was a risk but Steve was now desperate, there were no other avenues left. He turned to Carol and waited for her response.

She looked at him and paused before answering. ‘I know, this can’t go on. We’re in limbo not knowing what is going on outside this little office. In fact I can’t believe the risks we are taking just being here.’ She shuddered, thinking of her experience at The Poplars. ‘How about us all going to see the Rahman’s at the weekend. I’ll ring Anthea and get her view on it, after all she has met them and from what she has said they are very nice people.’

The more he thought about it, the more confident he became. This was the route to take, the only route.

‘He may take some convincing Steve. Bear in mind he has a young family and there’s not much chance of him putting them at risk.’ Carol realised there was no other way but wasn’t sure that the Rahman’s would be willing to be a part of their plan. ‘Do discuss it with Anthea and if she is in favour then we should do it. I have no alternatives tucked away.’

She checked her watch. It was ten forty and she had arranged an eleven o’clock meeting with her girls at the Lowry.

‘Steve you must forgive me but I’ll have to dash, you know I’m meeting the girls this morning.’ She picked up her bag and disappeared into the small room which held a toilet, hand basin and wall mirror. Two minutes later she emerged, hair in place and new lipstick applied. ‘I hope to be back by two thirty, now you can earn your money taking lots of bookings while I’m away.’ He made a face at her which she returned with a smile before heading for the door and the meeting which meant so much to her.

The Reception staff recognised her immediately and gave a wave as she headed for the pre-booked room and her meeting. This was not like her earlier meetings, there was now a problem with the Company which she had to keep from the girls. Any signs of violence and she would lose them all. Pausing before entering the conference room she took a few deep breaths, put on her best smile and breezed in to meet the team. If there were problems she would soon find out. She would have preferred an earlier time but some of the girls had been to an engineering company function the night before and would have had a late night. Her policy was always to look after her girls. The pleasure she got from the update meetings reflected a happy team, and that’s what she wanted. The problems some had experienced at the hands of drunken executives had been reduced to just the odd sexual comment. The girls had learned from each other at the meetings which Carol considered an important part of the job, and it was here that their humour and camaraderie held the team together. So far she had not lost one of the team, this was not due just to her influence and training once they had started, but to her selection skills. The Eastern Europeans had settled in well too, they hadn’t set up on their own, which had concerned Clive Andrews but were popular with their British colleagues and eager for work.

Once again the meeting had gone well, everyone was happy. News of Amanda’s baby was good which pleased them all, the baby was out of hospital and Amanda hoped to be back at work in two to three weeks. Carol, conscious of her current precarious position with the Company, had in general chat asked if anyone had approached any of them who might not be a legitimate customer. This had worried her, it could happen and she had taken time before putting the question. It was posed in a light hearted yet serious manner, they were in no doubt she wanted an answer either way but the response from everyone was negative. Carol was relieved, no-one had tried to exercise influence in any way upon her, the business or her temporary bodyguard. How long this would continue she was unsure. Surely someone somewhere was going to ask questions.

There had been a comment in the press about the hotel murder, the Police were trying to trace a call girl who had visited their room. Carol just hoped she was never found. The car explosion was proving to be a mystery as the Police having traced the car to a Hire Company were unable to identify the driver as his documents were forgeries. Their investigations were continuing.

‘Right girls, I have organised a light buffet lunch, I know how well you dine and how you worry about your figures. Don’t, because you all look wonderful, so let’s go and eat.’ With the sound of laughter ringing in her ears another successful meeting came to an end. There was a general exodus, all heading to the powder room with Carol in the lead. As she reached for the door handle, the door opened and she found herself looking at a face from the past. Stepping back in shock her eyes wide open she cried out, ‘Am I dreaming or is it Diane Adams?’ Turning to her team she said, ‘Do go on, I’ll join you in a few minutes.’

The elegant figure in front of her took a second look. ‘My God Carol, after all these years. What on earth are you doing here? You just took me by surprise, I was deep in thought about a meeting I’ve been attending. Your voice was immediately familiar but I had to do a double take on you. The last time we met was Graduation Day and we were both bleary eyed from the Ball, do you remember?’ She had meant to keep in touch but the race for jobs had scattered the graduates like confetti on a windy day.

‘Like you I’ve been to a meeting, in fact it’s just finished. Look I’m just about to have lunch with my team, are you here for long? I’d love to sit down and have a good old natter with you.’ She would love to hear Diane’s news and learn about her progress. Glancing at her left hand, she noted the absence of rings. Diane had been very popular at University and Carol was surprised that she might still be single.

‘I’m here tonight and head back to London tomorrow evening. Are you free tonight, we could have dinner and talk over old times?’ She glanced at Carol’s left hand and noted there were no rings to be seen. ‘It would be good to meet up if you can make it.’

‘I wouldn’t miss it for anything Diane. Seeing you here today has been wonderful. I’m certainly free this evening, I live locally and know a very nice restaurant not too far from here, or have you any ideas?’ Carol didn’t want to appear pushy so giving Diane the option for a change of venue avoided any embarrassment.

‘Would you mind very much if we had our meal here Carol, I have a telephone conference from seven until seven thirty but could be ready for eight? If I book a table for eight thirty we could have a drink first. What do you think?’ She smiled at Carol, memories of their friendship continuing to rise to the surface.

‘That would be super Diane, I’ll be here for eight and I won’t be driving so no worries about the amount we drink, not that I’m an alcoholic I would hastily add, but we have some fun memories to relive.’

Diane moved forward and held Carol, giving her a brief kiss on the cheek. ‘I think you had better join your colleagues before they come looking for you, see you at 8.00.’

Carol returned the kiss on Diane’s cheek and took another look at her old friend. ‘You look just so elegant Diane, I’ll have to smarten myself up for this evening or I’ll be showing you up. Must dash now. I’m really looking forward to seeing you again.’

Once she joined the team, the girls were interested to know if Carol had found another colleague for them. They had noticed the girl had been both attractive and very well dressed. In Carol’s absence they had discussed her and their initial impressions were that she would probably fit into the team. Carol had quickly let them know that it was an old friend from University and not competition to take prime appointments away from them. This she had done in her usual light hearted way which brought a chorus of comments followed by more laughter.

Having a good meeting with the girls, then meeting Diane had temporarily removed her concern over the recent events. Now as she prepared to return to the office, her worries returned. Was Steve safe in the office and had anything new turned up? How was Anthea getting on and had Sue been able to keep their secrets from Greg? It must be stressful for her to have to be on guard for possible slip ups all the time.

Arriving back in the office she found Steve on the telephone busily taking an order for the Company’s services. Carol was impressed, he could sound very professional and no doubt the client company would think so too.

‘It’s been a good start to the day Carol, three more bookings over the next three weeks, if we are going to satisfy demand we’ll need more girls. It’s going so well, you’ve done a great job setting it up and it’s a real money spinner, it would be a pity to have to turn business away wouldn’t it?’

‘You’re right Steve, but first things first. Has there been any sort of contact from anyone other than clients?’ He seemed so laid back, even though each of them had been the target of ruthless killers recently. When he first moved into her flat, she had heard him wandering about during the night, looking out of the windows checking for the threat which he thought would come. As the days progressed he had relaxed and although he still checked her car, he was getting into the co- running of the business and marvelled at the growth in the bank balance. Still no cash transfers had been made out of the account by the Company, and when Carol had reminded Steve of the situation all he had said was, ‘Long may it continue.’

‘You’re going to be on your own tonight Steve, I’ve got a dinner date with an old University friend I met by chance at the Lowry. It was quite amazing to just bump into each other just like that.’ Steve listened with interest as Carol told him about her friend and some of their exploits at University. ‘After that last experience I said I would never ever again accept an invitation to a hotel, but that now seems like months ago. I don’t know about you but I still feel uncomfortable about the whole situation. Each day that passes eases the fear but it is still there.’

‘Did you bring a newspaper in with you?’ Checking the Police progress on the hotel murders and the car explosion had been Steve’s responsibility and she had intended getting a paper to bring back but in her excitement it had slipped her mind. She shook her head.

‘Never mind, now you’re back I’ll nip out and get one. Back in five minutes.’

It was important to keep on top of things. The T.V. news is alright but sometimes the local reporters might get inside information. It was not only the Company who posed a threat. There was still the Police investigation involving Carol’s attackers and there was concern that she might still be discovered as the call girl. The wig had been disposed of and Carol had told him that she was carrying something in her hand when she had opened the hotel bedroom door so it was unlikely her fingerprints would be found. She hadn’t told him the something was her panties, which she only replaced when she had arrived back at the office.

He bought the local and a cross section of National newspapers and returned quickly to the office eager to check their contents. The news was encouraging, it was thought that the call girl might have tried to avoid involvement in an argument between the brothers and made her escape via the emergency staircase. She was still requested to contact the Police so a motive for the killings could be established. The brother of one of the victims was in custody.

It was unlikely that anyone would identify the mini skirted brunette with the businesslike blonde managing the Agency. She hadn’t taken a taxi to the Poplars as advised by Clive Andrews, if that was his real name, but had used her car. The wig she had put on before entering the hotel. With luck she would remain anonymous forever.

There was an update on the car explosion, the driver had booked the hire car using false documents and his identity was still a mystery.