Captives

NINETY-SEVEN

'Down there.'

The pilot tapped Gregson's shoulder and directed his attention towards the ground.

Through the cockpit windows of the helicopter the DI could see the shape of Whitely Prison standing darkly against the moorland that surrounded it.

He nodded as the pilot said something else, his voice metallic through the headset the policeman wore. The noise of the rotor blades filled the small cockpit as the twin-engined Lynx cruised smoothly towards its destination. Gregson checked his watch, noting that it had taken less than an hour to reach the prison from London. He glanced behind him to the rear seats, where Finn and two other plain clothes men sat. One of them, a tall man in his early forties called Clifford, was looking distinctly queasy. The other, Sherman, was looking out of the side window, watching the countryside rising up to meet them as the Lynx swept lower.

Finn was tapping his fingertips against his knees, waiting for the helicopter to land. He didn't like flying at the best of times and the Lynx, as far as he was concerned, offered even less protection in the air than an aircraft. He was looking forward to getting his feet back on firm ground. One glance at Clifford told him the tall man felt the same way.

'You okay?' Gregson said, raising his voice above the roar of the rotors.

Finn nodded.

'Where do you want me to drop her?' the pilot interrupted, tapping Gregson's arm once again.

The DI scanned the prison below and stroked his chin thoughtfully. From their present height the huge Victorian structure looked like a model. He could see figures moving about within the grounds, some doubtless able to see the approaching chopper and wondering about its presence.

'Land in the exercise yard,' Gregson answered, pointing. 'There.'

The pilot nodded and the Lynx went into a swift descent which caused Finn to hold his stomach. The uncomfortable feeling he always experienced upon landing, his ears popping, seemed to intensify in the small aerial vehicle. Clifford thought he was going to be sick. Sherman felt like an extra from Apocalypse Now. He smiled at his own joke.

Gregson looked down as the Lynx descended, scanning the prison, wondering if Nicholson had seen them coming, wondering what the Governor was thinking as he saw the helicopter dropping gently out of the sky. The DI almost unconsciously touched the exhumation orders inside his jacket pocket. He felt a curious kind of exhilaration as the Lynx went lower, an excitement at the thought of finally finding an answer to the riddle of the killers. If there were answers, they were here at Whitely. He was sure of it.

The helicopter wavered slightly as the pilot prepared to set down. A strong gust of wind caught it and one of the skids bumped the concrete of the exercise yard but it re-adjusted and gently touched down. The pilot immediately switched off the rotors and Gregson and his companions hurriedly unstrapped themselves, the DI pushing open the passenger door.

'Keep your heads down,' the pilot yelled as the rotors continued to carve a pattern through the air. 'What do you want me to do?'

'Wait here for us,' Gregson told him, cupping one hand to his mouth to make himself heard over the dying engines.

The pilot raised one thumb in an attitude of acknowledgement, watching as the other three men clambered out and hurried away from the helicopter.

Two warders were approaching them, bewildered by the sudden, unannounced arrival of the Lynx. Before either of them could speak Gregson had taken his ID out and was holding it out in front of him for inspection.

'I want to see Governor Nicholson,' he snapped. 'Now: