Delombre switched off the lamp. It was probably too late, as they’d have already seen the glow from the street. He’d been careless, assuming the car noise earlier to have been these two morons returning from whatever bordello they’d been celebrating in. But it explained why there had been such a short time lapse between the car stopping and the two dead men arriving on the stairs.
They’d been followed. And he had a good idea who was doing the following. Divisional Inspector Drueault and his band of eager beavers had proven better than he’d thought. They’d found the truck rather than standing down as he’d advised, and followed the trail to this address.
He stood up in a fluid movement and grabbed the man in the leather jacket. Dragging the lifeless body behind the armchair, he propped it in place so that only the head, shoulders and arms were showing. Then he moved the standard lamp so that it would throw up a glow behind the dead man. It wasn’t nearly enough of a distraction, but it would have to do. Hopefully, any cop coming through the door expecting trouble would see Danny’s outline and shit himself.
He moved over to the door. He had perhaps twenty seconds left before the men downstairs came up in a rush, weapons out and ready to shoot. Once they got to the top he’d have no way out. He had to slow them down.
He took a deep breath and stepped out onto the landing.
The one named Detric was in the lead, already halfway up. He had his weapon in his right hand and was hugging the wall, trying not to make a noise. He looked up as Delombre appeared, but his gun was pointing away.
Big mistake.
Delombre shot him before he could bring up his gun, then reached up and swiped the bulb in one smooth movement. It popped and everything went black.
Men were shouting at the bottom of the stairs as their wounded colleague tumbled down among them. Delombre continued across the landing, flicking the broken chair down on top of them to add to the chaos, and through the open door into the empty flat. Two shots rang out behind him, but they were shooting blind, no doubt hoping to scare him into giving up.
He closed the door and hurried across to the open window, swinging one leg over the sill. Lowering himself easily, he hesitated for a second, then dropped. As his feet hit the wooden structure of the coal store, he pushed himself off and jumped to the ground, making no more than a hollow thump. The noise would be lost among the shouting upstairs and the two more gunshots that rang out as the remaining cops stormed the flat and came face to face with a desperado hiding behind the armchair.
At least Danny had finally done something right.
He looked out of the rear gate. The alley was dark and full of rubbish, but his eyes were already adjusting. The cops had made another mistake: they hadn’t posted a man to cover the rear. Stuffing the gun in his jacket, he walked away in the dark.
Rocco’s telephone jangled with what seemed unusual harshness, springing him from sleep barely minutes after he’d finally managed to nod off. He scrambled for the handset and dragged it onto the pillow. It was still dark outside.
‘Hello?’
‘It’s me.’ He sat up as if fired from a gun, throwing back the bedclothes. It was Jacqueline, her voice steady and calm. Just two words, neither of them clear enough to judge whether she was still mad at him or not.
‘Hello, again.’
Her voice was cool, businesslike. ‘The man Delombre? I called a friend of mine who knows everyone in ISD. He confirmed what I thought. Delombre is a contract employee for the department, and works exclusively for Marcel Levignier. He’s a former Legionnaire and does not do office work. I asked for a description, and was told he’s tall and thin, exceptionally fit, with fair hair thinning on top. I hope that answers your question.’
‘Wait.’ He didn’t want her to put down the phone. ‘Please. I owe you an apology. I’m very sorry. But I promise, I didn’t come to your aunt’s house just to ask questions. Well, not those questions, anyway. But thank you for doing this.’
The silence went on far too long, and he thought she’d hung up until he heard a faint sigh.
‘Are you there?’
‘Remember what I said about Levignier. He will do anything in the pursuit of duty. His man Delombre is a killer.’
There was a click as the phone went down.