Read Online Money Run by Jack Heath - Free Book Online Page B

walking again. She shot the security guard an embarrassed aren’t-I-clumsy smile.
    With a gentle shove, Ash eased the door slightly open and slipped through the gap. When she was all the way in except for one hand, she used the hand to withdraw the key from the lock, and placed it gently on the ground beside the guard’s feet. When he saw it on the ground, he would see that his key ring was broken and, with luck, he would believe it had simply fallen.
    Ash pressed the door shut behind her, turning the handle so the lock didn’t click. Then she fell to her knees and took in a huge gasp of air. Her hands quivered with leftover adrenaline. She pressed them against her face, wiping wet foundation off and squeezing her eyes shut.
    â€œAsh! Is everything okay?”
    Still panting, Ash got to her feet. “I’m in,” she said.
    â€œWhat?” Benjamin demanded, astonished. “No way! Seriously?”
    â€œPiece of cake,” Ash said, slowly regaining her even breath. “Let’s see what Buckland’s hiding in here.”
    Peachey stood on the edge of the roof, staring down at the city streets with the wind rustling his hair as he contemplated his next move. Cars the size of chewing gum pellets trundled silently back and forth below.
    Peachey kicked some of the dust at his feet over the edge of the roof, and it evaporated into the void beneath him.
    There was no question of surrender. Even if it weren’t for the threat the government posed to Peachey if he didn’t complete his task, it was obvious that Buckland himself knew far more than he should. He knew who Peachey was. He knew what he looked like. He had somehow known that he was coming. The whole thing was supposed to look like a terrorist assassination – but if Buckland spoke up before Peachey found him, that cover was blown.
    Buckland had to die.
    So now it was a question of finding him. Only minutes had passed between the girl leaving his office and Peachey entering, so assuming that Buckland had actually been in the office with the girl, he couldn’t have gotten very far. A trapdoor in the ceiling was out, because that would have led him up to the roof, and he wasn’t here. Peachey couldn’t see any signs of a trapdoor, either. He had examined the walls, and fired bullets into them – they seemed solid. That just left the floor, and while Peachey didn’t think that Buckland had had time to roll back the carpet and lift the lid on a hidden passageway, there were no other options.
    Buckland presumably thought Peachey was unconscious in his office, and that there was no more risk. Once he emerged through the trapdoor down to the 24th floor, he probably wouldn’t be in a rush to leave. Trouble was, while Buckland was probably still somewhere on floor 24, Peachey had no way of finding out where, or for how long he would stay there. Not to mention the fact that Buckland might have a backup plan.
    Peachey’s phone vibrated. It was a Nokia 7250; one of the most widely sold models in the world. Another facet of his bland, unmemorable appearance. The caller ID was blocked, but he had a feeling he knew who it would be.
    He put it to his ear. “Yeah?”
    â€œIs Buckland dead?”
    Peachey stared out across the skyline. “No.”
    Tania Walker’s voice was icy. “Why not?”
    â€œHe knew I was coming. It was a trap. You’ve got a leak somewhere in your organization.”
    â€œYou’re wrong.”
    â€œI’m not,” Peachey said. “He knew who I was. He knew who’d sent me. And now I don’t know where he is.”
    â€œThen the deal’s off. You won’t get another cent.”
    Okay, Peachey thought. Time to put my cards on the table. “You fire me, you’re not going to find anyone else who can do the job… Ms. Walker.”
    There was a long silence.
    â€œDid you hear that?” Peachey asked.
    â€œYou think you can