Ark Angel

sitting facing him. He watched as the player opened the box and took out a gold medallion on a chain. It was an appropriate present.
    Adam Wright wore more jewellery than most women: earrings, bracelets and a different necklace every day of the week. But none of this made any sense. The three men in the dressing room were killers. What were they doing offering gifts to a footballer who’d just blown a game?
    “It’s really nice,” the Stratford East captain said, holding up the medallion. It was round and chunky, about the size of a mini disc. There was a figure engraved on the front. Himself, heading a ball into a net. “It’s great!” he exclaimed. “Can you tell the fans that, you know, I really appreciate this.”
    “Aren’t you going to put it on?” Combat Jacket asked.
    “Sure!” Wright slipped it over his head. The medallion rested on his muscular chest. “It’s quite light. What’s it made of?”

    “Caesium,” Combat Jacket said.
    Adam Wright looked blank. “Is that rare?” he asked.
    “Oh yes. Getting hold of it can be murder…”
    Something nudged the back of Alex’s neck. Alex stepped backwards, allowing the door of the changing room to close, and he heard no more of the conversation.
    There is something about the touch of a gun that is unmistakable. It’s not just the coldness of the metal; it’s the whisper of death that comes with it. Very slowly, Alex turned round. He saw the gun clasped in two hands, one of them swathed in bandages. He knew that the man who held it had broken at least a couple of his fingers. Alex remembered him from the magnetic resonance imaging chamber at St Dominic’s. He was short and very well built. Alex had nicknamed him Steel Watch, but the watch was no longer there. It must have been broken when the man crashed into the MRI machine. Alex was a little surprised that the same thing hadn’t happened to his neck.
    “You!” Steel Watch was shocked to see Alex.
    Alex raised his hands. “I don’t suppose you’ve got the time?” he asked.
    Steel Watch grimaced. He seemed unsure what to do. He had been about to enter the changing room; the other members of Force Three were waiting for him. But he had a personal score to settle with Alex.
    He made up his mind. “You and I are going to leave quietly together,” he ordered. “I am going to walk behind you. The gun will never be more than a few inches away. You will not speak; you will not stop. If you try anything—anything—I will put a bullet in your spine. Do you understand?”
    “Where are we going?”
    “There’s a van. I’ll show you. Now move.”

    Alex had no choice. He could see that Steel Watch meant exactly what he said. He was going to force him out of the stadium and make him a prisoner for a second time. Alex knew if he got in the van, he’d be dead anyway. Both Combat Jacket and Steel Watch had a score to settle with him. They were adults. Professional killers. He was a child. But he had beaten them twice. They were going to enjoy making him pay.
    Steel Watch gestured with his gun and Alex walked down a corridor leading away from the tunnel. He had noticed that the man was wearing a security pass just like his. It had to be fake. There was nobody around, but even if one of the stewards did appear, there would be nothing Alex could do. If he called for help, Steel Watch would kill him and then run. There were still hundreds of people milling around Stamford Bridge; it would be simple to disappear into the crowd.
    Briefly Alex thought about Adam Wright and wondered what was going on inside the changing room. But there was nothing he could do for the footballer. He was more worried about himself.
    They left the building. The east stand was now behind them, the terraces slanting up at an angle from the ground. There was a high wall straight ahead. Alex knew that the railway ran behind it -the wall had been built to keep out the noise. On the other side of the tracks was a cemetery. Alex had been there when his uncle, Ian Rider, was buried. He had to think. If he didn’t do something soon, he might well end up joining him.
    Steel Watch jabbed the gun into the small of his back, deliberately hurting him. He had seen a couple of policemen standing on the other side of the gates that led into the Fulham Road. There was an endless queue of people filtering slowly out of the gates. The bars, restaurants and hotels were open. Alex paused.
    He couldn’t believe they were about to walk