The Getaway - By Tom Barber Page 0,54
a sawn-off shotgun. Tied them up and sat there with the Ithaca on them, waiting for the job to be done, the phone in his hand. The guy left straight after apparently.’
‘He didn’t harm them?’
‘No. And neither one could tell the cops anything about the guy later. Both are still in shock, and the guy was masked up anyway.’
Archer drank from his beer, thinking.
‘OK, so they passed the manager the phone, laid out the threat. What happened next?’
‘He was ordered to clear the place out. He got everyone’s attention and said there was a pipe leak, and that the area needed to be evacuated immediately. Everyone complied, leaving him and the three cops inside. There were two guards, but only one of them thought something might be up. They took the manager round the corner to the vault, out of sight of anyone on the street. Gave him another listen on the phone, and told him to open it or they’d open up his daughter. Funnily enough, he did what they asked.’
‘Wasn’t there some kind of time lock?’
‘They got it when it was still open. Given the unpredictability of traffic in the area, the time-lock on the vault in that bank is different. It’s unlocked for twenty minutes at a time. There was a delivery a few minutes earlier so the damn thing was packed full. They had fifteen minutes to work with.’
Archer drank from his beer again, and shook his head.
‘OK, but they couldn’t just walk out of there carrying bags. Everyone outside would know in a second that something was up.’
Gerrard nodded, drinking from his Miller. ‘That’s the thing. They didn’t. They walked out the same they walked in. One of the guards approached them but said they looked perfectly normal.’
‘So the cash had to be hidden under their clothing then?’
Gerrard nodded. ‘Yes. The guard went into the bank to talk to the manager and saw that he was petrified with fear. He pushed the alarm and ran back out to the street, but by the time he got there the three cops had gone.’
‘Did you close off the city exits?’
‘Of course. But we screwed up. We figured they’d be in a car. But with Brown gone-’
‘They used the subway,’ Archer finished.
Gerrard nodded.
‘I’m an idiot,’ he said. ‘I wasn’t thinking fast enough, otherwise we could have shut down the subway too and trapped them on the island. There are cameras down in Bryant Park Station, and we found them on the tapes heading through the station. Looks like they split up, and got on an M train headed to Queens, but after that, we lost them. Passed right under all our road blocks, which held up Midtown traffic on a weekday morning. And they got away with the cash. Needless to say, my bosses and the Mayor are seriously pissed. The other jobs have been humiliating enough, but this happened right under our noses. That bank should have been impossible to rob. But they did it. And now I’ve got to go and explain how.’
He drank more from his beer, a long mouthful, then shook his head and cursed.
‘We sent a squad car over to Farrell’s gym, but the three of them were all in there, Ortiz working the pads with Farrell, Regan working the timer. They claimed they’d been there all morning. We asked around, but their alibis checked out. It’s useless asking the gym staff. They’ve all been paid off for sure.’
‘What was the take?’
Gerrard shook his head in frustration. ‘Over a million.’
Archer stared at him.
There was silence.
‘Jesus.’
Gerrard nodded, draining his beer.
‘Exactly,’ he said. ‘Yet more on the total. And down goes my clearance rate another notch. This is beyond a joke now.’
Archer thought for a moment, opting for a positive approach.
‘Look, you’ll be OK,’ he said. ‘Explain the operation to everyone in D.C. If you get down there today, you could be back by Saturday and lead the take-down yourself. We now know Tate is going back and forth to Atlantic City with the stolen cash. Get someone to arrest him at the casino or at the hotel. You know he’ll be going down there before Sunday. You’re in control of this situation, Gerry. You’ll get that money back.’
‘When was the last time you spoke to Farrell?’ he asked.
‘Yesterday. But he dropped me a text earlier. He wants to meet tomorrow night at the Garden. I’m guessing he’ll want to walk through the job. I’ll get in touch afterwards and pass it all on.’
Gerrard nodded,