Read Online To Kill For by Phillip Hunter - Free Book Online Page B

take them all on. But I knew something they didn’t, I knew that Paget had a cohort: Mike Glazer. He’d been at Paget’s hide-out in Loughton, he’d gone armed to meet me earlier that morning. He’d know where Paget was. I had to concentrate on him. I had to at least find out who he was.
    Something Tina had said was ringing bells in my head. She’d asked me if I was one of Glazer’s men. Did that mean he was in the game in some way? I’d never heard of him.
    I decided to call Nathan King. After a dozen rings, I heard a woman’s voice over the line. She sounded sleepy. I asked for King. I heard the woman shout, ‘Nat, one of yours.’
    After a moment, I heard King’s deep slow voice wanting to know what kind of idiot would call him at this hour. I told him. He said, ‘Thought you’d be dead by now.’
    â€˜You ever heard of Mike Glazer.’
    â€˜No. Should I of?’
    â€˜He’s something to do with Paget. Partner or something.’
    â€˜Well, I’m glad I know that, Joe. Next time I have Paget over for cocktails, I’ll be sure and invite this Glazer.’
    â€˜I need to find out about him.’
    â€˜Yeah? Good luck.’
    â€˜You know people. You could ask around.’
    â€˜I could. Why would I? What I hear, you’re up to your neck in shit right now. Cole on one side, Dunham on the other, Paget out there somewhere, them fucking Albanians running around shooting people. I don’t want anything to do with that. If I start raising my head and asking about people involved in that, next thing I know,
I’m
involved in it.’
    It was a good point. I said, ‘There could be something in it for you.’
    There were a few seconds of static over the phone. Then King’s voice rumbled through the static.
    â€˜Such as?’
    â€˜Paget’s got a million quid’s worth of stuff that belongs to Cole.’
    â€˜Forget about it. We get hold of that and Cole will come after us with all guns blazing. We don’t need that kind of grief. Besides, we don’t deal in shit. You know that.’
    â€˜If I get it before Cole does, he’ll deal with me, say 10 per cent finder’s fee. You two get to split it.’
    There was a little more thinking about that.
    â€˜I’ll get back to you,’ he said.
    He rang off. He was going to call Daley and speak to him. They were careful, those two. When he called back, he said, ‘What’s to stop Cole taking the stuff anyway?’
    â€˜I’ll plant it somewhere.’
    â€˜Why would he pay up? It’s his stuff.’
    â€˜He’ll be glad to get it back.’
    â€˜We give you legit info, we each get fifty grand?’
    â€˜Yeah.’
    â€˜Okay, Joe. We’ll see what we can do.’
    I put the phone in my pocket. My head throbbed and felt clogged with unclear thoughts. The neon lights in the cafe were starting to eat into my eyes, and the glare from the plastic table was making me feel sick. The waitress came over and put a plate in front of me. I looked at the food: oven chips and breaded fish straight out of a frozen packet. I pushed the stuff away then thought better of it. It might be a while before I ate again. I drowned the fish in ketchup and forced it down and ordered another coffee.
    Bowker came into my thoughts. If Paget had sent Glazer and this Derek bloke to Ponders End, did that mean Bowker had grassed me up after all? I doubted it. It didn’t much matter now anyway. It probably only meant that Paget was being extra careful. I cursed my stupidity for the hundredth time.
    I considered going back to Bowker and squeezing him again, but that seemed pointless. If he had half a brain, he’d make himself scarce, at least until there was a last man standing. Then he’d come out and try to make peace with whichever one of us was left.
    There was a buzzing noise and it took me a second to realize it was a mobile phone,