The Getaway - By Tom Barber Page 0,65

there in the cop car, but Archer refused. He knew the plates would be going out over every NYPD radio in the city. They wouldn’t even get halfway there before someone made the stolen vehicle and pulled them over. Katic argued, saying that all she had to was show her badge, but Archer demanded they left the vehicle parked where it was.

Archer didn’t tell her, but he was more worried than he was showing. Not only was every cop in the city looking for him, but the FBI were all-powerful here. If any of them were on the wrong side or had their own agenda, it would only be a matter of time before they tracked them down. And considering everything they now both knew, it was a certainty that someone out there would be desperate to silence them for good.

So the three options for transport were either walking, subway or taxi. The subway was out, as was walking. Both would take too long and Archer didn’t fancy getting cornered underground on a platform as they waited for a train. So they opted for a taxi.

Before they left, Archer quickly changed out of the cop uniform, pulling on a grey t-shirt, blue jeans and a pair of black Converse sneakers he had stashed under the front seat of the car. He grabbed a thin navy blue-raincoat from the back-seat to go over it all, a cheap one he’d picked up at JC Penney’s the other day. It was a warm night, but he needed it to help conceal his pistol. He pulled it over his shoulders and stepped outside onto the sidewalk and shut and locked the car.

Katic had also wanted to take the money with them, but Archer had refused that too. Strange as it felt, the money would be safer here. They couldn’t walk around the city carrying duffel bags containing almost a million dollars The car looked like any other amongst all the others on the kerb, save for the fact that it was a cop car. No one would ever guess what was in the trunk, and car-jackings were close to non-existent up here, especially on a NYPD squad car. So, much to Katic’s displeasure and against her sense of duty, the money stayed where it was. It felt unnatural to leave it here, but she realised it was the right thing to do in the circumstances.

There was another reason why Archer demanded they leave it behind. It had been a chaotic night so far, and from now on, he didn’t trust anybody but himself. Archer wanted to find someone they knew they could trust before handing over a single dollar. From what Katic had told him, everyone could be a suspect. And that included this guy Siletti.

As he locked the car, she walked to the sidewalk and stood beside him.

‘Ready?’ he asked, tucking the keys into his pocket.

‘Wait,’ she said. ‘Your pistol.’

‘What about it?’

‘I need it.’

He looked at her, ready to refuse.

‘You can’t be running round town with a gun, Archer,’ she said. ‘You’re in deep shit already. You shoot someone, nothing I can do or say will help you.’

He looked at her for a long moment, weighing her up.

‘Can I trust you?’ he asked.

‘With your life.’

He believed her. So he pulled the Sig from his belt and passed it over.

If she was the rat, he was a dead man. She’d kill him right there and then and make off with the cash.

But she nodded a small nod of gratitude and tucked it into the back of her waistband, checking the safety catch was on first.

Archer hid a small smile.

Their level of trust had just gone up a notch.

Once they headed up the hill and up 92 to 2 Avenue, it took a couple minutes of walking downtown before a taxi passed. Archer was on his guard, looking for any cops on patrol or any squad cars speeding down the road, but they didn’t encounter any law enforcement. Katic hailed the cab, which slowed and pulled to a halt on the kerb beside them. They both climbed inside, Archer pulling the door shut behind them. Katic told the driver their destination and the vehicle moved off downtown, headed south towards 59 where they could pass under the Park and move up the other side in a big U. As they moved down the Upper East Side, the occasional police car flashed past the window but Archer kept his face looking inside the cab. They sat