The Jade Garden (The Barrington Patch Book 2) by Emmy Ellis (reading diary txt) 📗

The thing was, he’d told her the scenario, not thinking she’d believe it had happened that way. He’d gained satisfaction at knowing what had gone on, feeding it to her to see what she’d say, see whether she thought it was a genius idea. But no, she’d said it was stupid or whatever.

Li Jun must have harped on about it being a quiet night for the lack of customers and people on the street to register with her. Brett was meant to nick the drugs while Jason was in The Donny with Cassie, so Jason wasn’t suspected. Brett had gone in too early, and look what had happened: Cassie had walked in on it just after he’d scarpered, and shit had gone tits up.

She was a tenacious bitch and wouldn’t stop until she’d found out who’d sent Brett there. Even if it took her years, she’d work it out eventually. If he left her to it.

No, he’d have to plant seeds in her head. Starting now.

Over the sound of Marlene grinding bones and flesh, Jason shouted, “Whoever it is won’t try again.”

She tied the top of the black bag, creating bunny ears that stuck up. “How so?”

“If they know you’re looking for them, they’ll go into hiding.”

“I doubt it. They knew I’d be after them, and they wanted those drugs badly enough, so they’ll want them again. Okay, maybe they’ll hide out for a bit, but they’ll be back. Wouldn’t you if you knew there was a shedload inside a fridge, ready for the taking?”

Jason pushed Brett’s head harder, and Marlene sucked the rest of him inside. Thank God his gaping neck had disappeared. Congealed blood from it smeared the edge of the chute, and he cringed at the thought of cleaning Marlene. To keep his mind off it, he moved to the left, staring at the human mince dropping out of the tube at the other end into one of the large plastic tubs they used for this job. Christ, they had to go to Handel Farm next, getting Joe out of bed most likely. The night was going on forever.

The mince stopped coming out—it had filled the tall box to the top. Sometimes, they had to use extra boxes if the person was bigger. He pressed the button to power Marlene down. She quieted, and it seemed so silent in the little side room off the main factory. Those who worked here, other than Ted and Felix, thought Marlene was just stored in here, an old mincer Lenny hadn’t been able to part with for sentimental reasons.

He stuck the lid on the box and dragged it over to the door, thinking he’d never eat a chilli or spaghetti bolognaise again—or owt with mince in it. Then he took the hose off the wall and unravelled it ready for cleaning the mess. Cassie helped him by producing a bottle of Fairy from beneath the cupboard under the sink, then grabbed a couple of brooms with extending handles. Together, they took the chute off and opened Marlene up, working opposite sides to scrub, rinse, and dry the machine with an old towel ripped in two.

Jason didn’t strike up a conversation. It looked like Cassie was inside her head, possibly chewing over what he’d said. He had to stop her searching for…for him, the man who’d set this whole thing up. Create another distraction to take her mind off it. Ditch the SIM he’d used to contact Brett. He’d have to nick the drugs himself at a later date. Break in the Jade in the middle of the night and get Li Jun and Nuwa to fill a holdall for him. At gunpoint. They’d come down from their flat to investigate the alarm going off—it was a false one to scare would-be thieves which didn’t alert the police, the wires going nowhere, the bleeps coming from a speaker in their living room.

Yeah, he’d do that. Force them to take the bags out to a van he’d nick. He’d be safe from CCTV capture, because Cassie paid the blokes who did shifts for the private company who ran them, and the street the Jade was on wasn’t connected to the system. Too many people going in and out of the takeaway might be seen as suspicious, see, should a pig not in the know pass by.

Lenny had thought of everything.

Cassie sprayed bleach solution all over Marlene’s innards, then they put her back together. She stuffed the towels into another black bag. Floor mopped, they left the side room, Jason dragging the mince box down the corridor to the back door. Outside, they both lifted it into the boot, put a black bag of clothes at each end, and while Jason got in the driver’s side, Cassie took her phone out. He kept the door open to listen to her conversation.

“Hi. I know it’s late, but we have a delivery for the pigs.”

Ah, she was only phoning Joe. Jason relaxed. For some reason, he’d got it into his head that she’d called Lenny’s old right hand, Glen Maddock, who’d gone into retirement once Cassie had taken his role when Lenny went downhill. Jason had imagined her asking him for advice, a pep talk, a reminder as to what Lenny would do in this situation.

I don’t want him coming back, stepping on my toes, taking my place.

Glen was a right hard bastard and no mistake. He was still fit enough to take over Jason’s role if Cassie decided they weren’t a good fit, sending Jason on his angry way with a flea and its family in his ear. He wouldn’t put it past her and had thought about this happening if their relationship outside of the job ever took off. She might want him separate from her day-to-day life, preferring him out of her hair