‘Neither, I’m afraid. You will be staying here for a while. But not in the office. We’re going to leave you in the vault. For security reasons, you understand.’
‘In the vault?’ Landor was shaken out of his calm. ‘Good God, man! Why?’
The other did not answer immediately.
‘Off you go, then,’ he said to one of his companions, and watched the man leave. ‘Why? I would have thought that was obvious, sir. I mean — well, what’s the alternative? If we released you, you would immediately contact the police. You might promise not to do so, but we both know you would. Promises made under duress are seldom kept. So we would leave here to find police checks on all the roads out of town. We could, of course, rip out the telephone and tie you up, but you would find that most uncomfortable. In the vault you’ll be free to move around.’
‘And how and when do we get out?’ Landor asked.
‘I’ll ring the police as soon as I consider it safe. A few hours start is all we need.’
‘Suppose you forget?’
‘I shan’t.’ His tone was suddenly curt. ‘I’m meticulous in such matters, Mr Landor. Now — shall we go?’
He led the way with the torch. The vault was open and the lights switched on, and as Rose paused in the doorway she saw that most of the space was filled with steel shelving laden with deed boxes and ledgers. There were no windows and the air smelt stale, and for the first time since leaving home she experienced a pang of real fear. Brian would be with her, they were not to be left in the dark. Yet below ground — and in such a confined space — and once the heavy door closed on them, how long before it would open again? Suppose, as Brian had suggested, the man forgot? Suppose that in fact he had no intention of remembering?
She shuddered. ‘No!’ she said, her voice shrill. ‘I can’t! I’m sorry, but I just can’t!’
‘Oh? Why not?’ The tall man drew her aside as his companions carried in a couple of chairs. ‘All the comforts, you see. And no lack of reading material, by the look of it. And it won’t be for long, I promise you. A couple of hours at the most. You can stick it that long, can’t you?’
‘No,’ she said hysterically. ‘I can’t. If you shut me up in there I’ll die of fright.’
‘Oh, come now! That’s an exaggeration, isn’t it? Of course you won’t.’
‘Claustrophobia, I imagine,’ he said. ‘Nasty, poor thing. Still, her old man will look after her. She’ll be all right.’
If you enjoyed Tight Circle check out J F Straker’s other books here: Endeavour Press - the UK’s leading independent publisher of digital books.
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Why not read Book Two in the Detective Johnny Inch series next?
Dead Letter Day
Also in the Inspector Pitt Detective series:
Postman’s Knock
A Will To Murder
The Detective Johnny Inch series:
Tight Circle
Dead Letter Day
Death Mask
Death on a Sunday Morning
Motives for Murder
Death of a Good Woman
Pick up the Pieces
Dead Man Walking
The Shape of Murder
A Man Who Cannot Kill
Miscarriage for Murder
Murder for Miss Emily
Final Witness
Hell is Empty
A Choice of Victims
A Gun to Play With
Ricochet
Swallow Them Up
Countersnatch
Another Man’s Poison
A Coil of Rope
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