Imposture (DI Gardener 6)

How the fuck had he done that? thought Anthony.

Sheer panic rose within him and he tried again but nothing gave. With a deep sigh and a resignation, he turned to face whatever unknown horrors Roger had in store for him.

Then the lights came on.

He blinked furiously, holding on tightly to the mace and the syringe. They held very little comfort for him anyway but if he lost them he’d probably lose his mind.

As his eyes adjusted he found himself in a corridor, constructed of wooden boards. Around two feet in width, it stretched about ten feet in front of him. He glanced upwards and immediately recognised the roof of the warehouse, with its criss-cross steel beams and large domed lights. Although he considered it, the walls were too smooth and too high to climb so he had no choice but to move forward.

He was grateful that the building beyond the reception was deathly quiet. Yes, it meant he had to be careful about making any noise and telegraphing his approach but Roger Hunter had built the contraption, so he would know exactly the route Anthony was taking. He twisted his head to make sure. With no choice, Anthony moved forward, seething with anger and resentment, mainly for what had happened to Zoe and the others. Roger Hunter might well want revenge but did he have to go to such lengths?

Reaching the end of the corridor, Anthony turned right into another corridor that headed left at the end. He tried to make sense of where he might be in the warehouse but he soon gave that up as a bad idea. The building was bloody massive. Even if he knew now, he probably wouldn’t by the time he’d finished the maze. If he finished it!

Anthony glanced behind, knowing that it would be nigh on impossible to creep up on him at the moment, unless Roger had followed him through the reception door.

Anthony scurried back to check. All was clear. He returned to his position and headed left. The panelling was still the same so he would have little choice but to go the way of the corridors.

The third corridor however, ended in a T-junction. So now he did have a choice.

Anthony wasn’t keen on that. What if he chose the wrong way? He supposed it didn’t really matter. He was here at Roger’s mercy so there wouldn’t really be any right way.

He reached into his pocket, pulling out a coin. Heads he went right. Tails he went left. He placed the pepper spray and the syringe on the floor whilst he flipped. It landed heads up so he picked up his stuff and headed to the right.

At the end of that corridor he came up against a door. Anthony turned tail and slipped back the way he came so he could take the left turn, where he also came across a door at the end, so it mattered not which route he took. He suspected they would also be one-way doors again.

He was really pissed off with Roger’s games. Why the hell didn’t he simply come and finish him off like the others? What the fuck was the point of games and puzzles?

He was about to scream out in frustration but caught a grip of himself – bad idea.

Anthony grabbed the handle and twisted it. He decided that he would hold on to it so that he could return if he needed to.

That didn’t work. As soon as Anthony went through the door the lights went out and something brushed his face.

Anthony yelped like an injured dog, dropped the mace and the syringe and let go of the handle. The door slammed shut.

“For fuck’s sake,” shouted Anthony, all thoughts of not giving away his position having gone, like the lights.

But they came on again quite quickly.

Anthony picked his weapons up, stood up and turned, wishing he hadn’t. He was no longer in a corridor of wooden panels but a hall of mirrors.

Then the music started.

Chapter Sixty

Gardener slipped through the door and Reilly followed him. As it shut, Reilly turned and made a grab for the handle.

When it wouldn’t open he turned to his partner. “Good idea, that.”

“What is?”

“A one-way door. You can come through it but you can’t go back.”

“Doesn’t help us,” replied Gardener.

“Roger’s not after us. He wants to keep Palmer in here.”

Gardener turned and surveyed the corridor; it was long and narrow with smooth wood-panelled walls.