left, all this wouldn’t be happening. But of course, the fucking manager wants to be a hero, doesn’t he? Starts arguing with me. I had to clock him. Blood flew out of his nose, it was only a bit, but it went everywhere, people started screaming.’ He shook his head, livid at the audacity. ‘So people start running, including the hero manager. My mate lost his nerve, legged it out the back fire door, set off the fire alarm as well, the dickhead.’ Rick stared unabashedly into the camera. ‘Phil, if you ever see this, when I catch up to you, you’re gonna know about it.’ He turned back to Ashley. ‘I was stuck. I had to start putting bullets in the floor, so the people I had left knew I was serious. By the time I got to the door, there was pigs out the front. And I didn’t wanna, but I was forced to round everyone up and lock the doors.’ He shrugged. ‘That’s about it.’
Ashley realised he’d finished his tale. She nodded and said, ‘Mmm, yes. I see.’ She was surprised to find that even now, she had a lot of questions to ask, but every one seemed like it might piss off Rick. Any other day, any other interviewee, she’d ask anyway. But this was no ordinary day, no ordinary interview. He was a short-fused thug with a gun. His story made it clear that he had little empathy for anyone else. In the end, Ashley landed on the safest thing she could think of. ‘So, Rick, you’re in here alone, with a lot of scared hostages. Do you have a plan?’
Rick nodded, a sly smile creeping onto his lips. ‘You’re the plan.’
Ashley wondered if that urine was finally going to make its appearance down her leg. ‘Me?’
‘Yes. I spotted you parked out on the road, and I knew you’d be the ticket. See, the thing is, what those coppers out there want is to do me.’
‘They want to… have sex with you?’ Gina asked, baffled.
Ashley sighed and shook her head. ‘Gina, please don’t speak during the interview-’
‘For fuck’s sake, not that kind of “do”,’ Rick interjected irritably. ‘They want to put a bullet in my head, don’t they? First chance they get.’
‘They’ve only tried to talk to you,’ Ashley pointed out. ‘What makes you think-’
‘They can’t risk innocent lives, looks bad,’ Rick explained impatiently. ‘But the second they get the last hostage, I’m fucking dead. They won’t even wait until then if they get a chance.’
‘Rick, you committed a crime,’ Ashley said gently. ‘But you haven’t killed anyone. They don’t want bloodshed. If you tell DI Conway that you want to surrender, walk out with your hands up…’
‘It’ll be me last breath, I’m telling ya,’ Rick snapped at Ashley. ‘Don’t act like you know what will happen, with your cosy little job, reporting on graffiti? You don’t know anything.’
Ashley had to concede, she was utterly out of her depth right now. ‘So how can we help?’
‘You’re my protection. ‘Cos you see, the police, they’re like any other murderer. They won’t do anything while people are actually watching.’
‘So you want us to what?’ Gina said, from behind the camera. It annoyed Ashley, but she decided not to express it this time. Because this wasn’t exactly the moment to train up the newb on dos and don’ts, was it? Gina had a right to speak, considering how she’d stuck her neck out for Ashley.
‘I want you to shoot everything that happens, and I want it on the telly, ASA fuckin’ P,’ Rick said proudly. ‘They need to know they’ve got eyes on ‘em.’
‘And then what?’ Ashley asked.
Rick’s grinned slipped. ‘I’m still working on that. I just need to think. I’ll come up with something.’
‘Rick, if you just want us to film you handing yourself over to the police, we can go and do that right now,’ Ashley told him hopefully. ‘I can make sure they just put you in the back of the squad car, no guns fired.’
Rick chuckled. ‘Oh, yeah, right. You think I’m handing myself over for armed robbery? With my record, I’ll get twenty years. No way.’
So, that was the real problem. Rick wasn’t just trying to save his own life. It was so much dumber than that. ‘Are you saying you want to escape?’ Ashley asked incredulously.
‘Why not?’ Rick said. ‘I’ve got a gun, a camera crew, hostages. And that car park would fit a private plane. I’ve googled the countries they can’t