Revenge

By John Lawrence

Bobby Chalker had spent a long time alone, meeting Joanne in the supermarket was the start of a love affair that only comes along once in a life time. When that love was snatched away because of the perceived negligence of another person the need for revenge burns brightly. Bobby wanted revenge but had no way of achieving it until an inheritance changes everything, Plans can now be put in place, but in all things there are glitches, Bobby could not for-see the glitches and the problems that would hinder every turn, only the military training and support from old comrades could make a difference.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Aug 21, 2015
• ISBN: 9781504946575

Book preview

© 2015 John Lawrence. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 01/20/2016

ISBN: 978-1-5049-4656-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5049-4657-5 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015911132

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Chapter 1 The Inheritence

Chapter 2 What are Friends For?

Chapter 3 The House

Chapter 4 My Inheritance

Chapter 5 The Vow

Chapter 6 The Surveillance

Chapter 7 The Plan Comes Together

Chapter 8 The Plan, Part One

Chapter 9 The Plan Comes Together

Chapter 10 The Day of Action

Chapter 11 The Plan, Part Two

Chapter 12 The Waiting Game

Chapter 13 The Game Goes On

Chapter 14 The Hostage Takes Charge

Chapter 15 Phase Two of Revenge Version Two

Chapter 16 Using Our Brains

Chapter 17 We Need a Hacker!

Chapter 18 The Next Step

Chapter 19 The Boss Takes Over

Chapter 20 Three Months Later

Chapter 1

The Inheritence

R evenge was the last thing on my mind as I sat in the solicitor’s office listening to my grandfather’s last will and testament. Bloody hell. Until ten days ago, I didn’t know I even had a grandfather, let alone one that was alive. And now he actually wasn’t, and I still didn’t know him.

Three weeks ago I received a telephone call from a solicitor’s clerk. She asked several questions about me, and I was just beginning to think that she was from an Indian call centre when she told me that I had been named in a will. Yeah, right, I thought. That’s a good one!

So here I am, sitting in this office, listening to the solicitor. My grandfather, one Robert Charles Conway, had died about a month before and had left everything to me. I was about to interrupt the solicitor’s droning monologue but decided that if I did, he might go back to the beginning and start again, so I kept my mouth shut.

Well, there you are, he concluded. Do you have any questions?

I had a hundred but couldn’t think of one to ask immediately.

I expect you’re a bit taken aback, he said. Would you like some time to think about it?

Well, er, yes please, I replied.

He offered me some tea, which I accepted, and whilst he fetched the brew, I reread the piece of paper that he had given me.

I only had to sign to accept the provisions of the will, and all that my grandfather had left me would be mine. But I hesitated because I couldn’t quite make out what it was that I had been left. Although I’d never been one to look a gift horse in the mouth, I’d also been taught that you never get anything for nothing. The solicitor came back into the room with my cup of tea.

You say that this man was my grandfather, I said. How come he never got in contact with me before now? I’m forty-two years of age and never knew who my grandfather was.

The solicitor looked at me sadly. "When you were born, your mother was only fourteen, so your grandmother and grandfather persuaded your mother to have you adopted. You were taken from your mother and put into care. Your mother became extremely depressed and tried to kill herself on at least three occasions; unfortunately, she succeeded. Your grandparents were devastated, and your grandmother blamed you. She told your grandfather that she never wanted to see you again and that if he attempted to see you, she would leave him. Your grandmother died five years ago, and although your grandfather tried to find you then, he couldn’t.

Four months ago, your grandfather was diagnosed with cancer and told he had only six months to live. He decided at that point to enlist help to find you. He hired me, and I hired a private detective. Once we had found out who had adopted you, it was easy. Unfortunately, we found you five weeks too late. He had already died.

I sat silently for ages, my mind in a whirl. I knew that I had been adopted, but my mother and father had told me that all my biological family had died, leaving no one to trace, so I hadn’t bothered to look.

I looked up at the solicitor and said, Well, what has he left me?

Good question, the solicitor replied. If you would please sign the sheet of paper, I will tell you. It is certainly to your advantage.

I looked down at the paper in my hand, looked at the pen that I had been given, and in a daze, I signed my name. The last time I had signed a bit of paper without really knowing what it meant, I had joined the Army. Look where that had got me: twenty-two years of muck and bullets.

I handed the paper to the solicitor, and he took out another document from an envelope on his desk and gave it to me. You’ll see there that your grandfather’s estate is worth just over seven hundred and twenty-two thousand pounds. He paused.

This is after my fee, the inheritance tax, and funeral and other expenses, and it includes the proceeds of the sale of his house. So, there you are. That amount can be paid into any bank account of your choice; I just need the details. I will make the transfer today and you can start drawing on it when your bank allows.

Seven hundred and twenty-two thousand pounds! The number rang inside my head like a huge bell. I couldn’t believe my ears. Are you sure that’s the right amount? I asked.

Oh yes, the solicitor said. And also he left you a house in London, near the river.

Pardon me, I said, A house, but you haven’t given me any keys or the address.

Apparently your grandfather was into codes and cyphers and other security measures. The solicitor handed me a CD. The information is on here. Your grandfather said that he has left you some specific instructions on there. There’s a password to get into the CD, but he said that you would know what it was. I’ll leave it to you.

Can’t you even tell me the address? I asked.

It’s on the CD, he replied. I can tell you nothing more because I don’t know any more. That is your grandfather’s will, and his decision is final. He then asked for my bank details and promised that the money would be transferred within twenty-four hours. His parting comment was that if I needed any help, I could always contact him at this office.

I stood on the steps of the solicitor’s office with the envelope in my hand and, just for a moment, couldn’t think of what to do. How could I access the CD? I didn’t have a PC. The library was out – too many people. Then my training took over. You don’t spend twenty-two years in the Army without making contacts with people you can call on. Pussy Rodgers, my old boss from Hereford, would help, or so I hoped.

Chapter 2

What are Friends For?

A fter four rings, I cut the phone off. I waited two minutes and then dialled again. Four rings, and the phone was answered. Yes?

I need to speak to the boss. It’s Bobby Chalker.

How many ragheads make up a stew? the voice asked.

Not enough, I replied.

It sounded silly, but the boss always used passwords. Everything was all right as long as you could remember the reply; otherwise, you were in for a really tough time that nearly always ended with you in the crap. There was a silence, then a click, and then I heard my old boss.

Bobby, how are you? What can I do for you?

Knowing I could not beat about the bush, I said, I need to use a PC to access a CD. My grandfather left it to me, and it’s private.

Right, then. Come on over. You know where. The phone went dead.

I grabbed the next Underground to Leicester Square and walked towards Covent Garden, passing by the Tube on Long Acre Road. When I reached Drury Lane, I turned left, walked another one hundred yards or so, and found the door of the office just past the small tailor’s shop, just as I remembered it. I rang the bell and gave two knocks. Nothing. I was just about to try again when a tinny voice said, Push the door and step inside. Then wait.

I knew what was coming: When I entered the vestibule, I would be screened and searched using a special detector housed in the floor and the ceiling, just like in an airport but less obvious. I stood and waited. After several minutes, the next door opened and I went in. My old boss stood up from behind a desk and came round to meet me, putting out his hand to shake mine.

Good to see you again, Bobby. Didn’t know you had a grandfather.

Nor did I until ten days ago, Boss. He had always been the Boss and always would be. Over here, the Boss said. There’s a PC with a secure headset unit you can use. That okay?

Yeah. Thanks a lot. He went back to his desk and I sat down, put on a headset, put the CD into the slot, and waited. After a moment, a folder opened. Inside was a single file labelled Click Here. So I did. A face appeared. This was my grandfather, and he didn’t look well.

As the video played in front of me, my grandfather cried as he apologised for what my family had done to me and to my mother. He confirmed that I was the only relative that he had and that he had wanted to find me before, but was afraid of losing his wife. I felt sorry for him but hated my grandmother. He said that he hoped his will would go some way to putting right what had been done to me. He apologised again. Then he said that I would need to put in a password to watch the rest of the video and he was sure that I would know what the password was. At that moment up popped a password screen.