Chapter Three
Leo
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MY FAMILY WOULD REALISEI’d left soon enough, and I was fairly certain they’d figure out exactly where I’d gone. My father and brother were going to be seriously pissed off that I’d taken things into my own hands, but this wasn’t about them. They wanted Rasmus still alive so he could continue to produce forged bank notes, and it seriously fucked me off that they were placing business ahead of Jodie’s life. Maybe they had a point that it wouldn’t bring her back, but all I wanted right now was to make sure Rasmus experienced the same pain I was going through.
I’d boarded the private plane first thing this morning. The flight would only take just a little under three hours, so I sat back in the comfortable seat and did my best to relax. I didn’t have a fully formed plan yet, but I’d been to Rasmus’s cabin out in the forest once before, and I didn’t think I’d struggle to find it again.
The flight attendant came around. “Can I get you anything, sir? Champagne?”
I’d had enough alcohol after last night, and anyway, it was still early, and I needed to keep my head clear. I would have to drive once I’d arrived in Tallinn and though I could have employed a driver to take me there, I didn’t want to get anyone else involved. Whatever happened when I reached Rasmus’s cabin was between me and him.
I had my favourite photograph of Jodie in my back pocket. I’d taken it one morning when we’d been on holiday in Antigua. I’d woken before her and had snuck out of the villa to find breakfast for us both. I returned with coffee and freshly squeezed orange juice and still warm pastries. The delight on her face had been enough for me to whip out my phone and take a snap. Her hair had been messy, her eyes heavy with sleep, but she’d been completely perfect in that moment.
I wanted Rasmus to see that photograph and understand the reason I had come for him.
After another couple of hours, the plane touched down, and I used a fake passport to get through passport control. I had no intention of letting the authorities know I was in the country. The authorities had smiled and nodded at me and wished me a safe onward trip, suspecting nothing.
I knew how I looked—tall, expensively dressed, young, and blond, with a winning smile and sharp blue eyes. That smile used to be real, but now I used it as a disguise to get what I wanted. I appeared to be a successful young businessman. People took me seriously and rushed to serve me, and I liked it.
Using yet more fake ID, I picked up my reserved vehicle from the rental company. Aware of the kind of terrain I’d be driving through, I’d chosen a four-by-four. I didn’t know how much off-roading I’d need to do, but I wanted to be prepared. Rasmus was the kind of heavy-set, bearded outdoorsy person that was the complete opposite to my city-boy lifestyle, and I knew he had that advantage over me. I was going to be in his territory, and he knew the land.
I put my bag on the passenger seat. Once I got out of the city, I’d need it close at hand. In the bag was a gun I’d broken down into pieces and concealed within the fake base. One of my main reasons for using a private plane rather than flying out of one of London’s main airports was the lack of security checks. It only took a sleight of hand to slip a couple of hundred quid to whoever was monitoring the images to ensure they turned a blind eye.
I drove out of the city. I hadn’t even booked a hotel room for a night. I wasn’t going to sit around waiting. I was here for a reason, and I intended to get that reason done. I left the stone turrets and red-tiled roofs of the city behind me, the buildings replaced by an expanse of trees on either side of the road. Birch, pine, and spruce. The fallen needles created a thick bed on the ground beneath them. A lay-by was just off the road, so I pulled in and switched off the engine. I opened the bag on the passenger seat and emptied out the clothes folded on top. The false base took pressure in two specific points to release, and then I was able to hook the false bottom up. Beneath were the pieces of the gun I’d dismantled and hidden in there.
Checking around to make sure I was still alone, I worked through each piece, clicking them into place until I had a working weapon. I would kill Rasmus eventually, but first I was going to cause him unimaginable pain.
I replaced the false bottom and threw the clothes back in and zipped it up. I slid the gun beside my seat, so I had easy access to it when the time came. I thought it might be some time before I’d need it, but I wanted it nearby just in case.
Hardly any traffic had passed by since I’d been here. It was such a contrast to being in London where it was impossible not to see a vehicle everywhere you looked. This was isolation in its true sense, and I couldn’t understand how someone could want to live like this. I liked noise, and bustle, and restaurants and bars, and being able to get my hands on whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted it. This much nature brought me out in hives.
It took another hour’s drive before I reached the vicinity of Rasmus’s property.
I couldn’t risk approaching while it was still light. If one of his men noticed me, they’d warn him that there was a stranger around. One of them might even recognise me. If I was spotted, I had no reservations about killing them, but again, if Rasmus noticed one of his men missing, that would also warn him that something was about to go down. My best option right now was waiting it out until it got dark and then attempting to gain access.
Rasmus’s property was surrounded by a tall, chain-link fence. When I’d last been here with Tam and Sly, we’d wanted to make ourselves known and so had approached the gate for the property. We’d been spotted right away, but I wondered if that was because Rasmus always had the border guarded, or if we’d been spotted via security cameras. Perhaps it had just been luck—bad or otherwise—that meant one of his men had been manning it the whole time. Either way, I didn’t plan on approaching via the gate.
I drove the rental off the road, manoeuvring it between the trees, bumping and bouncing over the rough terrain. I didn’t want the four-by-four to be visible from the road in case someone connected to Rasmus happened to drive past and spot it. When I felt I’d put enough distance between myself and the road, I put the vehicle into park.
I should have stopped off somewhere for food and drink before I’d rushed out here. I had a bottle of water that I’d brought from the plane, but that was all. Maybe hunger would focus the mind.