Held for ransom

Abby' s sister was in serious trouble, but was it all of her own making?

Nat, my sister, found me in the pub one evening having a quiet drink with my friends.

She ushered me away into a corner, her face full of panic, and said: I need to show you something¼'

We' d never had much contact over the years.

She liked all the things I hated, from music to clothes to what to do with money.

I suppose I lived a simple life a flat, a goldfish, a little car. She called me unambitious my job as a dental nurse simply too boring for words.

She craved a big house and a swimming pool, and she wanted to travel the world.

Today, on edge, she showed me a picture on her phone.

What the¼' I stuttered out. Is that Zack?'

Of course it' s Zack,' she replied impatiently.

I blinked in shock. Her boyfriend, looking petrified and bruised all down his arms, wore only a T-shirt and his boxer shorts. He appeared to be trussed up

his hands and ankles tied with thick blue rope.

Tape gagged his mouth, and he sat on a stone floor behind a grey brick wall, somewhere dark and dingy. Is he being held hostage?' Yes. Don' t judge,' she said. We sort of got in with some bad people. We sort of sold a few things on the street we shouldn' t have.'

Are you talking about drugs?'

Shush,' she hissed at me, glancing at an elderly couple who sat close by our hideaway in the corner. We owe them money. We got robbed. Somebody stole our stash. We had nothing to sell and we got into debt. These people aren' t like anybody you' ve ever met. They' ve been to jail they' re hardened criminals.'

I stood wide-eyed, thinking of the worst thing that had happened in my block of flats number 6 having a late-night party and two very drunken lads streaking across the car park.

What do they want?' I whispered.

Their money, obviously! They' ll hold Zack until we deliver it. The 10 grand we owe plus interest. So¼ 20 thousand.'

You owe them 20 grand!' She flapped her hands at me, since I' d spoken way too loud.

I told you, we were robbed. It wasn' t our fault. They' ll kill him, Abby, if we don' t settle up as soon as possible.'

We have to call the police,' I blurted.

We can' t. They' ll know. They' re watching me.'

I glanced about the pub myself, the hairs on the back of my neck tingling.

Now, everybody looked suspicious

the lads in the corner supping lager, the greyhaired man feeding the slot machine with pound coins. Talk about addiction¼

Are you two taking anything?'

What?' Nat jerked as if

I' d struck her. No, of course not. You know me and Zack won' t even take a multivitamin. We only wanted to make some quick cash.'

It wasn' t our fault. They'll kill him, Abby, if we don' t settle up as soon as possible

Id never guessed that one day Nat' s desires would lead her so astray. I stood shaking, looking at the picture on her phone.

I have some savings. Not 20 grand, but it' ll be a start. We' ll need to talk to Mum and Dad.'

No, we can' t go to them! They' ll go mental and call

the cops. It' ll be useless asking any of our friends either. They' re hardly rolling in it. We need somebody loaded. How about that Justin guy? He drives a flash car. I' ll pay all the money back, I swear. Only you have to help me get it, please!'

I had a thing for Justin Templar. He' d used the dental practice where I worked. Recently he' d decided on a set of veneers. I' d often admired his smile I preferred it to his BMW. I knew from his records that he lived in a modern new build out in the country.

I also knew he liked me. He' d asked me out more than once. Intimidated by his flash lifestyle and obvious wealth, I' d always shaken my head and made some excuse.

My parents brought us girls up in a two-up, twodown terrace, close to the heart of town. We' d never owned much. Mum used to go to car boots to buy our clothes when Dad couldn' t get extra work shifts.

I suppose the way we lived made me overcautious about lots of things I couldn' t afford, like falling for Justin and the way he lived.

I imagined living the high life, then after we fell out, going back to my tiny flat knowing I' d never see that life again. I' d rather be poor than full of regrets.

I felt intimated again turning up at Justin' s place in the dark that very same evening. Owls hooting in the trees, my sister by my side, I rang the bell.

Look at this place,' she whispered. The house, built all on one level, gleamed with glass and chrome. It sat down a lane, surrounded by fields. Some would definitely christen it a blot on the landscape. I bet his parents gave him this. Some people have all the luck.'

The door opened and Justin peered out. He' s rather unassuming really, considering his family' s countrywide building firm and their string of London real estate.

He wore a shirt covered in Labrador fur

his hair standing up in peaks as if we' d woken him from a nap.

Hi,' I said awkwardly.

Hi,' he replied, looking rather pleased to see me as his dog poked her head outside, her tail thumping against his knees.

I couldn' t string him along. I doubted I could have managed small talk if I' d tried.

I' m in trouble. Well, actually my sister is.' I aimed a hand at Nat and her phone. She fiddled with the screen, then passed it over. There, Zack sat hog-tied. We need a loan.'

Minutes later, after I fully explained, Justin paced his ultra-white gleaming kitchen. It looked out on to a garden lit up with solar lights in a hundred colours. It looked like a fairyland, which was rather apt considering how otherworldly our evening felt.

You need to call the police,' he said.

Nat stood with her arms folded. We' ve been though this. They' ll kill him if I do. I have to get the money as fast as I can and contact an email address they passed on. Then they' ll tell me where to drop off the ransom.

Look, I don' t mean to be rude or impatient, but Abby has five grand, and another 15 grand is likely chicken-feed to you, and you will get it back. I' m not sure when, but you will.'

Then she took a deep breath to steady herself.

They want cash. No bank transfers. Nothing traceable.' ndJustin,

tall with wide shoulders, chewed at his lip as he thought the conundrum over.

Finally he said: I' ll need to call my bank in the morning.' Tears sprang into my eyes. Oh brilliant! Thank you. Thank you so much.'

Seeing me unravelling,

Nat hurried over and gave me a hug.

Why don' t you both stay here tonight,' Justin said Then tomorrow we' ll get organised.'

After calming us down with a glass of the best wine I' ve ever tasted, he showed us to two rooms in his extravagant house. After he' d left us to settle in, Nat took a tour.

Leaning around the edge of the en-suite, she said: Look at this shower! Are these taps gold-plated?

Look at that bed and the furniture.' She just about danced back to my side. This is how I want to live one day!'

Isn' t wanting to live this way what got you into trouble in the first place? There' s no easy route to this kind of life.'

She sobered, her mouth turning down. It seems Justin got it all pretty easily.'

He still works for a living. He' s an architect.'

Her eyebrows lifted sarcastically. Let me guess he works for his daddy?'

I' m going to bed,' I replied in exasperation, heading for the door.

I didn' t go to my own room immediately. I wandered back into the kitchen where Justin sat on a big sofa in front of the wide glass doors.

His dog lay next to him and he stroked her broad brown head.

Are you OK?' he asked. I remembered all the times he' d chatted to me, lying back on Mr Singh' s chair at the dentist' s, mouth numb, drooling a bit after his anaesthetic. He' d talk about the boarding schools he' d attended and how much he' d hated university.

I feel a bit nauseous to be honest,' I confessed in his kitchen. Things like this don' t happen to people like me. I never expected them to happen to Nat either, though she' s always mixed with the wrong kind of people. She first did it to stop a girl bullying her in school.

All our

I aimed a hand at Nat and her phone. She fiddled with the screen there, Zack sat hog-tied

stuff was old or oldfashioned, you see, even down to our bags and pencil cases. Still, she seems to be taking all this in her stride.'

Not that I blame you, considering the circumstances,' Justin replied, but you' re more of a worrier, aren' t you?'

I couldn' t deny it. My fretting had kept him at arm' s length after all.

Before we' d even reached the stage of going out for drinks or dinner, all I could see was a miserable future.

It helps sometimes to imagine what' s to come. It saves making mistakes.'

So what are you imagining this time?' he asked. Us in a dark car park throwing a bag of cash behind a bush? It' s like the plot of film.'

You can say that again.' How about some cocoa?' he soothed. That helps with nerves sometimes.'

I knew he wanted me to settle down and talk through my concerns. Sitting there with his dog, he seemed so much the quiet, dependable type. Solitary, too.

I suppose when you' re loaded, it' s hard to know who to trust. Still, I hesitated.

No, no, I think I' ll go to bed. Thanks again for all this. I' m sorry I brought it all down on you.'

That' s OK, I' ll cope,' he replied, all earnest and helpful.

I thanked him one more time, then retraced my route through his house.

My room stood right next to Nat' s, so I stuck my head round her door to check she hadn' t sat up worrying her previous blasé attitude simply a front.

She lay fast asleep instead. My gaze settled on her phone lying on the bedside table. I wondered if I' d

any clues in the photo of Zack. Some tiny hint of where he sat tied up

a cellar, an outhouse, somewhere he could be rescued from in case things went horribly wrong?

When we were girls, Nat always said she' d chop my fingers off if I touched her stuff. I didn' t think she' d mind this time.

I crept across the carpet and retrieved her mobile.

She' d left it unlocked, so I scrolled through her photos.

The hairs on the back of my neck rose again when I saw the grey brickwork, the gag, the rope dark bruises blooming like ink blots.

My sister' s quest for money seemed endlessly terrible.

I quickly realised I had to speak to Justin again.

We needed a new plan for tomorrow¼

The next morning, Justin stood making coffee in his kitchen when my sister came in, blurry eyed and without any make-up, the clothes she' d slept in crumpled.

Natalie, you need to tell the people holding Zack you have their money,' he said. You need their instructions of where to go. Let' s get this over with as fast as possible.'

Heaving a sigh of relief, she pulled out her phone.

OK, I' m sending a message now.'

It didn' t take long for a reply to arrive.

This afternoon. The woods at 2pm,' she read off her screen. The bin by the railway bridge. Put the money in a supermarket carrier and leave it there.'

She blew out a slow breath. I' m replying with¼ OK.'

Her message sent, she flopped on to the sofa where I' d sat the night before with Justin, drinking cocoa.

In the end, we' d talked for hours. He' d laid his hand on mine and my heart had fluttered, speaking a language of its own.

Sometimes you have no choice, Abby. You have to face your fears,' he advised. You can' t get pushed around. You can' t always keep your head down.'

I don' t quite know what happened as he reassured me or maybe I do.

I think, right then, I needed to conquer one fear before I faced another.

I kissed him. I did! And I felt better afterwards.

After Nat' s call to the kidnappers that morning, all we could do was wait.

At midday we piled into Justin' s BMW.

Aren' t we a bit early?' Nat asked for the fourth time when we set out, motoring towards town.

Later, when we sped right past my bank, she loosened her seat belt and leant forwards.

Weren' t we supposed to stop there for your money, Abby?'

It' s OK, we' re all set,'

Justin reassured her. I have a safe in the house with some ready cash and decided to use it instead. I didn' t think there would be enough, but when I counted, it was fine.'

She didn' t question the

He drove on with a set jaw and a determined expression. We'd face the worst of this together

discrepancy. I suppose she simply considered 20 grand in a safe small change to somebody like him.

We flashed by shops and houses, heading towards the outskirts of the town again.

When we reached the narrow lanes on the far side and the sign that pointed towards the woods, Justin swept right by that as well.

OK,' said Nat. What' s going on?'

I recognised something in the picture on your phone,' Justin informed her calmly. I' ve worked in a lot of local properties, including a cottage a few months back that had some distinctive grey brickwork in the cellar. I thought we' d take the money straight to the source.'

No, no, no, we can' t!' Nat protested. We need to do exactly what they said. We have to. Turn around!'

We' re not turning back,' I said. This isn' t going to end the way you imagined, Nat. Things don' t always, do they?'

I could hear her breathing heavily. I knew she finally sat in terror, while I felt perfectly calm, only occasionally glancing over at Justin.

He drove on with a set jaw and a determined expression.

We' d face the worst of this together¼

Minutes later, he turned a corner. Up ahead, the red roof of a cottage appeared above the hedgerows. When we reached it, he indicated and turned on to its tarmac drive, parking right outside the windows.

He climbed out and I followed, then we waited for Nat to join us.

She' d caught on by now. She knew we' d worked it out.

I can explain,' she said in a rush before Justin rang the bell. No, really I can!' she added as the door swung opened.

Zack stood inside. He was absolutely fine. Unmarked, unblemished, he wore a T-shirt, jeans and a dumbfounded expression.

What are you doing here?' he asked Nat. What happened to the plan?'

Pale and stricken, she didn' t seem to know how to reply.

I went through her phone while she was asleep,' I explained coldly. I worked out what you' d done.'

While scrolling through Nat' s photos the night before, I hadn' t found a picture of Zack bound and gagged at all I' d found one of my sister instead. She wore nothing but her underwear and appeared bruised and petrified. You can do a lot with make-up and a few acting skills.

After checking her messages, I found out that while she' d begged for money to save her boyfriend, Zack was using the exact same trick on his brother, and apparently even on his nan. Only he' d claimed that Nat lay trussed up, gagged and held hostage instead.

After that, hunting through even more of their messages, I discovered they' d also conned a little old lady out of her holiday let, saying they' d pay up later. They intended to use it as a base before they left the country.

I also found out they' d bought one-way tickets to Marseilles in France. They intended to flee and start a brand-new life with their ill-gotten gains.

Though, assuming they' d burn through the cash pretty fast, it was likely they wouldn' t have lived the high life for long.

Then again, maybe they had some other cons planned, now that they' d taken a darker route through life?

I had decided one thing with Justin on the sofa the night before. That' s why I took his hand outside the cottage, hanging on tight as a police car drew on to the drive.

You didn' t?' Nat gasped. We did,' Justin replied. I arranged for them to meet us here so we could catch both of you. My parents know the Chief of Police. He owes them a few favours.'

He wrapped a comforting arm about my shoulders and I leant into his warmth.

At last, I refused to envisage a tragic end to our relationship. I had taken a lesson from my sister in that regard.

If she' d breezed through her misdeeds with barely a shred of concern, surely I could risk falling in love with

Justin with the same seize-the-day attitude?

Maybe there is something to be said for a life of crime after all?