Once inside, Deana held her nose. ‘Fuck,’ she whispered, ‘this place stinks of BO and dog piss.’ They wandered into each downstairs room to check them out, but there was no one around, which made this more intriguing. Maybe Percy had just gone away and not locked the door. After all, who in their right minds would come in here to steal anything!
Deana followed Alex into Percy’s bedroom, which made her want to curse even more at the state of it. ‘God, do people actually live like this?’ she exclaimed. She had forgotten to whisper out of her shock of the smell and the state of the place and Alex glared at her. Percy’s bedroom was small and his double bed barely fit the room. Suddenly, Deana grabbed her dad’s arm tight. ‘What’s that?’
They both stood in silence looking at each other. Their only lighting was the streetlight outside as it shone through the bedroom windows. Holding their breaths to listen, both of their hearts were pounding in their chests. And then they heard a low moan. Sharply, Alex looked around, but he couldn’t see anything.
Again, they heard the faint, low moan and Alex and Deana followed it, their ears pricked as they waited for the next sound. Alex noticed it was coming from on old wardrobe, which almost looked antique. Opening the door, Alex put his hand inside. There were a few clothes on hangers but nothing else, and then they heard it again. ‘It’s coming from behind it, Dad.’ Alex nodded and looked at the wardrobe. How the hell were they going to move this wooden mountain? To double check, Alex opened the wardrobe fully, well, as best as he could considering the limited space. It was taller than him and moving the old hanging shirts out of the way, he went deeper inside to put his ear to the back of the wardrobe to listen. Confused, neither of them could understand where the noise was coming from. Alex trailed his hand along the back of the wardrobe. There was no back on it! Knocking on the wall behind it, he heard a louder moan and looked back at Deana.
‘That’s a false wall. No wonder this room is so bloody small. It’s been divided. Someone is behind there.’ Walking to the side of the wardrobe, Alex knocked on the wall, ignoring the moans. He was right, he thought to himself. Behind this mismatched wallpaper was plasterboard and on the inside of the wardrobe, hidden from sight by Percy’s belongings, was the entrance. This had been well thought out. Pulling out Percy’s coat hangers, he threw them on the bed. ‘Come on, Deana.’
‘God no, it could be a dead body Dad.’ Deana’s eyes widened. She didn’t know what was behind there, but her own instincts told her it wasn’t good.
‘Corpses don’t moan. Someone is behind there and by the sound of it they are in pain. Come on, man up!’
Annoyed at being told to man up, she followed her father who seemed to disappear into the back of the wardrobe, then she heard his low whistle. Crouching down, she hurried after him and almost knocked him over with her speed. Shocked, she stood up in amazement and wonder and looked at Alex. ‘This is like that book, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. We’ve just entered another world.’ The pair of them looked around the secret room. It was lit up with UV lamps, keeping rows and rows of cannabis plants warm. It was just what Alex had expected, but not to this extent. This was a professional job, not Percy earning a few quid on the side. He was obviously the keeper and the gardener, making sure the plants were watered.
‘Did you know this was here, Dad?’
‘Yes, and no.’ He shrugged and shook his head. ‘Strange men in sharp suits and big cars have been hanging around, and that Polish woman’s electric meter has been going around at a hundred miles an hour by all accounts. They’ve wired the electricity to her mains. I had my suspicions but not on this scale.’
Deana walked along the rows of trestle tables holding a host of potted plants. Some were in full bloom, larger than life, others were seedlings. ‘It looks like a bloody forest. You never see Alan Titchmarsh planting these on any of his shows.’ They heard the moan again and followed the noise to one of the trestle tables holding the plant pots. Alex looked underneath it, then looked up at Deana. ‘Give me a hand.’
Clasping her hands over her eyes, she squirmed. ‘Is it a dead body?’
‘No, it’s a live one, you silly cow. I told you corpses don’t moan. Now give me a hand to get him out. I’m bloody roasting in here, it’s like being on a sunbed.’ Sweat had started to pour down both their faces, and Deana wiped her brow with her sleeve. Kneeling down beside her father, she saw a young man who was bleeding and had obviously taken some kind of beating. His knees were up to his chest, and he was bound and gagged. Without disturbing the plants, Alex pulled him out. The young man tried to wriggle away from him in fear, but Alex used his full force until he was out from under the table. Pulling off the brown tape from around his mouth, Alex threatened him. ‘Not one word sonny, or this goes back on and you’re on your own. I’m sweating to death in this forest.’
The young man nodded and acknowledged Alex as best as he could through swollen slitted eyes. Taking out his Swiss Army knife, Alex cut the ropes that bound him and noticed his clothes were dripping wet with sweat. He could feel his own shirt starting to stick to his back.
‘Go back through there Deana, and get some water for him to drink. He’s dehydrated. Use whatever you can find; the bathroom is next door.’ Alex waited while Deana left.
‘Can you stand, son?’ Seeing the young man nod, Alex put his hand underneath the man’s arm and helped raise him to his feet.
Deana rushed back through with a plastic jug. ‘Sorry mate, but it’s all I could find.’ Deana held the jug to his mouth as he gulped it down.
‘Get him some more while I find him somewhere to sit. There is an old stool over there, I bet that’s where old Percy the Gardner sits,’ Alex scoffed.
‘I’ll get it.’ Deana pulled the stool up for the man to sit down on. ‘And I’ll get the water now.’
Crouching beside him, while he sat on the stool, Alex looked at the young man. ‘We’re not the police, unless they wear fluffy pink dressing gowns, and we’re not whoever it was that left you here. So, tell me your story son – what is your name?’
‘Luke,’ the young man blurted out, his eyes wild as he scanned the hole in the wall waiting for Deana. His lips were cracked and swollen, not only from the beating he had taken, but from thirst. Deana struggled through with a washing up bowl full of water and the jug. This time the man had enough strength to pull the jug of water out of her hands and drink it down. Alex scooped his hands into the washing up bowl and poured water over the young man’s head to cool him down and bring him to his senses. ‘Keep drinking Luke, we’ll talk later.’
‘No!’ Luke shouted. ‘They are coming back to finish the job. I know them, they will have either hoped I’ve already died, or they will finish me off themselves and I will be buried in this hell hole.’ Water spewed from his mouth as he tried to drink and talk at the same time.
‘How do you know they are coming back? Did they say so?’ A puzzled frown crossed Alex’s face.
‘Yes, they think I grassed them up – I didn’t, I swear,’ Luke pleaded. ‘I bet it was that old bastard that lives here.’
Knowing that Percy was a police informer, Alex nodded. ‘So do I Luke. No need to plead your case with me.’
‘They are coming to move the stuff. The police have had a tip-off.’
‘You been creaming it off the top, Luke? I take it you’re a dealer then?’
‘No, I’m a businessman. I see opportunities and use them.’
Instantly, Alex liked the young man. He reminded Alex of himself in his younger days. He was a thief and a scallywag, but he was honest. He made easy money where he could. That was the name of the game and the world he came from.
‘I know people who like to buy the stuff and yeah, everyone creams a little bit off the top, it’s expected, but I was the last one to pick up from here and they think I’ve tipped the police off about this garden.’ Feeling more himself now, Luke was more coherent for Alex and Deana to understand. ‘I’ve got a gun; I’ll shoot the bastards for this.’
Alex gave him a wry grin. ‘I bet they’ve got a bigger one Luke. Do you even know how to shoot a gun?’
‘Not really, but it can’t be too hard… you just pull the trigger.’
‘And if you’re lucky enough to hit them, you maim or even kill them and if you miss, you’re dead meat,’ Alex laughed.
‘Who are you two?’ Luke asked.
‘We’re your friends. Friends who have an idea and you’re going to get off your arse sharpish and help us with something. You’re going to die tonight, Luke.’ Seeing the fear in Luke’s eyes, Alex reassured him. ‘As far as they are concerned, you’re going to die. There’s a van parked outside – I take it that’s what they brought you in?’ Alex watched as Luke nodded.
‘Well, we’re going to fill it full of plants and take them somewhere safe. There will be a police raid tonight. You said yourself, they are coming back, so we had better hurry up. Come on, there is a lot to clear.’
‘You do know you’re crazy. That bunch don’t fuck about mister and this isn’t just a bit of weed, there’s hundreds of thousands of pounds here. Take a look. Look how many plants there are.’ Luke stressed.
‘Yup, so get moving. We have a lot to do. I’ll go and open the van. Deana, start bringing those plants. Oh, and we’ll take a few of those lamps as well.’
Quickly and carefully, Luke loaded the plants into some nearby crates and passed them through the hole in the wall towards Deana and Alex. They had formed a chain gang and it was working brilliantly! Even Alex hadn’t realised how many plants there were and they almost filled the van to capacity. There wasn’t a soul about in the street, and each house light was turned out. The van blocked them from view and Alex was grateful for that, because he knew a few of the neighbours had cameras. Once Alex saw how full the huge van was, he knew it was time to call it a day. The men it belonged to could come back at any time. Now it was time for Luke’s untimely death.
Going into the kitchen, Alex saw that Percy’s cooker was a gas one. This was what he had hoped for. Pulling it out slightly so that he could see the pipe, he slightly dislodged it, knowing the gas would escape. All the worst accidents happen in the home, he thought to himself.
