Silent Night - By Tom Barber Page 0,88

at each other. There was one car left. And the two of them.

Which meant they’d be riding together.

FORTY TWO

To say conversation inside the Ford Explorer was minimal would be an understatement. The two men rode in total silence, Jorgensen behind the wheel, Archer in the passenger seat to his right. This was the closest the two of them had ever been for any length of time and neither was enjoying the experience.

Archer suddenly lifted his head and sniffed. He looked over his shoulder into the back.

'Is that weed?'

Jorgensen didn't respond.

Archer rolled his eyes and turning back, looked out into the night.

Silence.

'Shame Josh was the first to the roof,' Jorgensen suddenly said. 'We're down a good cop and here I am stuck with you. Do me a favour and step in front of the bullet next time.'

With that, Archer snapped.

He turned to him. ‘You know what? I’m getting really sick and tired of your shit.'

Jorgensen looked over and glared.

‘You want to make something of it?’ he replied.

‘I get it, college boy. You don’t like me because I’m foreign. You don’t like me because your friend didn’t make the squad and I did. But get over yourself. Every person in the entire Bureau thinks you’re an asshole.’

‘You think that’s why I hate you?’

‘You want to tell me otherwise?’

‘My brother was a cop too,’ Jorgensen said, his hands tight on the wheel.

‘So?’

‘He was five years older than me. He was the reason I joined. He put his time in then joined the ESU. He was one of the best guys they had.’

He paused, shaking his head.

‘Then last summer, he takes a response call at Flushing Corona Park on a Sunday night in September. Three bank robbers had held up a money truck on its way from the US Open to Long Island.’

Archer froze.

‘They tried to take them on but the thieves pulled flash bangs. The whole team was stunned, disorientated. Then one of the robbers drilled him with an M16, right between the eyes. Killed him instantly.’

He paused.

‘I have a good friend in the New York FBI Office. He told me this crew had been running the city ragged the entire year. He said someone was put undercover in their group but hadn't stopped them in time.’

He looked at Archer, his jaw clenched.

‘Turned out that person was you.’

Archer stared at him.

‘I don’t know how you ended up in it. I don’t want to know. But you could have taken those people down. You could have saved Tommy’s life. But you didn’t. And because of you, he died.’

Silence.

Archer was lost for words. He hadn't been expecting that.

Jorgensen put his foot down harder, relieving some frustration.

And they sped on through the night.

As they approached Kearny Medical, Shepherd called Jorgensen in the car behind and told him that they’d be moving in straight away. As the two cars swung into the lot, the team saw that there were a number of vehicles parked outside the building. The two Ford Explorers pulled up quietly, the engines were switched off and the entire group stepped out, Shepherd’s team minus Josh but plus the two doctors. Archer climbed out, his mood rock bottom. The combination of Jorgensen’s revelation, Josh taking a round and spending half an hour in a freezer had left him feeling like complete shit.

The group stood there for a moment. Beside them, the building was dark, the lights switched off. The entire place had a stillness that only a complete lack of human activity could emit.

‘Looks like we missed him,’ Jorgensen said.

‘Not necessarily,’ Shepherd said quietly, pointing to all the cars parked in the lot. He pulled his Sig and the other three detectives did the same.

Together, they approached the dark building. Shepherd tried the front handle; the door was open. He pushed it back and they all entered the lobby. The place was deserted. To the right was a reception desk. Straight ahead was a glass panel to prevent unauthorised access. It was open. Stepping through one by one, the group followed Shepherd as he moved forward to the stairwell quickly and silently.

There was no sign of activity on 1 or 2. But when they got to 3, it was immediately clear that someone had been here recently.

It looked as if it was the main floor of the building. Up ahead was a large laboratory with smaller rooms and offices placed around the level. There were signs of occupation. Food wrappers and an empty pizza box had been dumped on the ground. A long smeared