Crash Course by Derek Fee (freenovel24 .TXT) 📗

The Hague

Kane found himself back in The Hague one week after his initial visit. This time he travelled alone. He had spent the week clearing his desk and was now assigned full-time to the ‘Bell operation’. De Vries, who he had learned was an inspector in the Dutch police, met him at the entrance and led him directly to the conference room. Watson was already there.

“Mr Bell is expected shortly,” de Vries said. “Perhaps you and DS. Watson could get acquainted while I ensure his admittance to the building.”

“I think they expect you and me to do a bit of bonding,” Watson said as soon as de Vries closed the door.

“I don’t bond all that well,” Kane sat across the table from Watson. “Or didn’t they tell you?” He reckoned Watson to be somewhere in his forties. Mid-forties and still a detective sergeant. There was a story there somewhere. A light brown moustache covered his upper lip. The craggy face was lived in but not one that would be forgotten easily if it had once been undercover. The body resembled the face in that it appeared sinewy and hard. Kane noticed that lines even stood out on the back of Watson’s hands.

“Your reputation proceeds you,” Watson said. “We’ve even heard about you in Manchester. Some people say that you’re a grandstander. There’s a whole load of folk who think that I’m deranged for agreeing to work with you.”

“Do they now,” Kane smiled. “They say that forewarned is forearmed. Grandstander or no grandstander. Stay out of my way. I’m used to running a solo operation and that’s the way we’ll play this one. I don’t need back-up. Especially from someone who hasn’t worked undercover before.”

“Okay,” Watson said returning Kane’s smile. “I don’t particularly like working in pairs either. Especially with someone people say is more like a raging bull than a police officer. And how the hell did you know that I never worked undercover before?”

“Your face is not one that people would easily forget. The kind of people we deal with are like elephants. They never forget who put them away. That’s why you’ve got to look like me. I put on a beard or a moustache and I look completely different. That wouldn’t work with you. How did you get into this business?”

“They were looking for a copper with operational experience who could also pass as a first-class mechanic,” Watson said. “I scored high in both areas. When they told me the operation’s objectives, I volunteered?”

“You don’t look like you’re that stupid,” Kane said. “Being undercover isn’t like working around some nick or other. You’re in the face of the bad guys and if they smell a rat then it’s goodnight. I hope you’re up for this.”

“Don’t worry about me. I get the easy job. I work on the engines and ask a few silly questions. And I try to keep an eye on what you’re up to.” He spread his hands on the table palms upwards. “Easy.”

“Tell me about it when someone shoves a gun in your face and you loosen your bowels.”

“It didn’t happen in Helmand and it won’t happen here.”

“You want to bet.”

Watson smiled. “Why don’t we start this bonding shit again. People generally call me ‘Doc’.”

Kane raised his eyebrows.

“You know, Doctor Watson, Sherlock Holmes’ friend. My father was considered a bit of a wag. He named me John and in the next breath he stuck the nickname ‘Doc’ on me. Since I can’t very well go around calling you DS Kane, what do I call you?”

“My first name is Mark,” Kane said. “But not too many people get close enough to me to use it.”

“Good,” Watson said. “Mark will do fine. Now, Let’s get one thing clear. This is no lifetime partnership so we don’t have to fall in love with each other. However, it would be nice if we didn’t manage to get killed by being at each other throats all the time. Let’s agree that for this one time we’ll work together and try to bring down the bad guys.”

“Under different circumstances, Doc. I think I could even get to like you.”

“That’s a good boy,” Doc smiled broadly.

De Vries returned with Bell in tow before the conversation could resume. Bell shook hands with Kane and Watson and sat beside them. A secretary deposited a tray of coffees on the boardroom table and departed.

“Okay,” de Vries stood in front of an electronic whiteboard and removing his jacket revealing a perfectly ironed blue striped cotton shirt and the matching blue braces.

Kane looked at Watson and nodded in the direction of the young Dutchman. De Vries fashion sense only increased Kane’s opinion of the employees of Europol as displaced investment bankers.

“Let us begin,” de Vries said.

Kane passed a coffee to his new pal and took one for himself. Bell ignored the tray.

“And now to business,” de Vries said. He opened the folder which he had brought from the desk. “Following our meeting of last week, we have completed a dossier on all the drivers in the Offshore Championship.”

Kane sipped the black coffee savouring the liquid as it ran down his throat. Europol might not be real coppers but they knew how to brew a decent cup of coffee. “How can you do that in such a short time?” he asked.

De Vries turned to face Kane. “We are specialists in the obtaining of information. Although you may not consider us to be policemen in the true sense of the word, I assure you that we are excellent at what we do. We have access to virtually every database in Europe. If you are a criminal, then you deal in money. We can follow every financial transaction made in any one of the Member States of the European Union.”

“I thought most of that stuff was confidential,” Bell said with more than a degree of apprehension.

There speaks the voice of the true capitalist, Kane thought. The poor bastard must be shaking in his boots knowing that these bods in