Royal Heist

14

The problems with Royal Flush continued, and it was decided that his throat should be scraped. Any inflammation caused by mucus might have repercussions. The next morning de Jersey gave the go-ahead for the operation and watched sadly as the horse was driven from the yard. It was not yet seven o’clock, so he had a lengthy workout in his gym. He pushed himself, first on the treadmill, then the rowing machine before moving on to the weights. By the time he was showered and changed, he felt clearheaded and hungry. Christina cooked him scrambled eggs and bacon.

He reached for her hand. “Got some business to do in London. If I have to stay over I’ll call you.”

“Say good-bye to the girls. They go back to school today.”

He drained his coffee cup just as Natasha and Leonie came in. He hugged and kissed them both. When the phone rang, his body went rigid. It might be the vet. He nodded for Christina to answer it, which she did, then held out the receiver to him.

“Darling, it’s the vet.”

De Jersey took the phone with trepidation. Then his face broke into a wide smile. “You’re kidding? Are you sure?”

“We’re certain,” the vet reassured him. “We don’t think the operation’s necessary after all. It was just a bit of a cold. His chest is clear, and although his throat is a bit rough, he’s in terrific shape compared to when we last examined him. It must have been the antibiotics.”

“Are you bringing him home?”

“We are. Give him a day or so, and then he can go back into training.”

It was just what de Jersey needed. He rushed to Christina and lifted her off her feet. “My boy’s coming home. They don’t need to operate!” He kissed her lips and bounded out the door without a backward glance. Now he could get on with preparing for the robbery without worry about his “boy.” Everything was back on track, and he knew he had to get moving. It was already late January.

De Jersey walked through the door of the Kilburn flat and straight to the computer. There was an e-mail from Elvis asking when he wanted his next tutoring session. Then checking the post he had brought in with him, he found a long-anticipated letter from Gregory Jones, responding to his fake solicitor’s letter. The blue notepaper was stamped “Franklyn Prison.”

Jones’s handwriting was looped and slanted backward, but the letter was well constructed. It said that a visitor’s pass would be allocated shortly, and he was looking forward to discussing the possibility of appeal. De Jersey wrote to confirm he would see Jones, signing himself Philip Simmons.

Later that day, Paul Dulay phoned. He had an appointment in London several days hence, so they arranged to meet. Things were starting to pick up pace.

Philip Simmons, Solicitor, pinned a visitor’s pass to his jacket. His briefcase was searched but contained only documents from the firm of Hunting and Letheby. He was ushered into a booth next to the main visiting hall, security cameras monitoring his every move.

After ten minutes, the door opened and Gregory Jones, wearing a yellow striped bib, was led in by two officers. They stood by the door as he sat down in front of de Jersey, then moved outside.

Once the door was closed, Jones, a surly-faced man with an athletic build, took out his tobacco and cigarette papers. His face was pockmarked, with two fresh scars down one cheek, like thin tramlines, where he had been cut with a razor. It was a typical prison injury, no doubt caused by a pair of razor blades stuck so close together in a nailbrush that the wound would be difficult to stitch. Jones rolled a thin cigarette, took a box of matches from his pocket, and placed it on the table. Then he broke the silence. “You had no trouble getting in, then?”

“No. Thank you for agreeing to see me.”

“You intrigued me.” His voice was coarse with a trace of the West Country. His teeth were stained. “There’s no hope of an appeal, so I know you aren’t from my solicitors.”

“Do they tape these meetings?” de Jersey asked.

“Invasion of privacy, pal.” Jones leaned back in the chair. “They’re supposed to monitor the odd phone call, but they don’t bother. Too much aggravation. Imagine the fucking nonsense they’d have to wade through.”

De Jersey looked down at the papers. “Your two daughters live with a relative in America?”

“California. One wrote for a while, then stopped. Why do-”

“You must want to see them again.”

“They’ll be married with kids of their own by the time I get out, if I ever do.” He sighed. “I’d like to see them. It’d be a light at the end of the tunnel.”

“How are your finances?”

“The savings I had disappeared with the legal costs. Like the wife.” He sucked in his breath. De Jersey could feel the man’s pent-up bitterness. “So, let’s get to the point, Mr. Simmons. You got the visitor’s pass. I’m here. What do you want?”

“Information.”

“I thought as much. Who are you?”

De Jersey glanced at his watch. “I have a proposition for you.”

Jones stared at the ceiling. “Well, I’m not going anywhere.”

De Jersey took out a file. “I need certain information, and it is imperative that the details you supply are legit.” He passed over a sheet of typed questions.

Jones took a long time reading it. He flicked ash from his roll-up a couple of times but did not look up until he slid the paper back to de Jersey. “What’s the deal?”

“Fifty thousand. Any bank account, any name, any country.”

“But I’m in here and you’re out there, so how can I trust you to do what you say?”

De Jersey leaned forward. “You can’t, but how about putting faith in the old saying ‘My word is my bond’?”

“I suppose I’ve not got much to lose,” Jones said.

De Jersey began to pack his briefcase. “You interested?”

“Maybe.”

“Do you have the information?”

“You know I do. That was my job, but how do I know you’re not setting me up?”

“Not much point. As you said, you’re in here already.”

“I need more information.”

“The less you know the better. But I mean no harm to the Royal Family.”

De Jersey clicked his briefcase shut.

“You want me to phone you with the info or what?”

“Too risky, even if they’re too bored to tape calls. I think the best way is another face-to-face. Before then you can phone me with your account details… I gather you are interested?”

Jones lit up. “Bet your arse-and I’ll tell you something for nothing. I know a lot more than what’s on that page. The security there is archaic.”

A bell rang to indicate that time was up. De Jersey said, “I do not intend to break in. As I stated, I have no desire to harm the Royals or put them in jeopardy.”

Jones’s voice was hardly above a whisper. “You’re not the fucking IRA, then? Cos I draw the line there, pal.”

“I am not connected to them.” De Jersey leaned close, his voice hardly audible. “I can give you the light at the end of the tunnel, but no more questions. I need answers, understand me?”

Jones nodded. Their eyes locked, then the door opened.

Jones stood up. “Mr. Simmons, can we shake on it?”

De Jersey grasped the prisoner’s hand.

“I’ll call you just to arrange payment, all right?” Jones said softly.

De Jersey felt Jones grip tightly. “Yes, but I don’t want answers. Not then. After I hear from you, we’ll organize another visit.”

After Jones was led out, de Jersey waited for an officer to take him back to the gates. Next visit, Prisoner 445A should have all the answers he needed.

Raymond Marsh seemed even odder-looking than previously. His hair shimmered as if it had been sprayed with crystallized sugar. “Can’t stay long. Taking the wife out. There’s an Elvis at a pub that’s shit-hot. He’s Chinese, but he’s got an amazing voice.”

He sat in the chair in front of de Jersey’s computer and swiveled toward him. “You’ve been spreading yourself around the chat rooms. You’re getting quite good, but I was disappointed you were checking out other hackers when you’ve got the best right here.”

De Jersey smiled. “Prove it. I need some information.”

“What’s it for this time?” When de Jersey didn’t reply, Marsh gave him a sideways glance. “Novel, right? I read your messages. What do you want?”

“I need to know the Queen’s diary movements. I am writing about the Golden Jubilee. Can you do that?”

“Do what exactly?”

“Gain access to the Royal household’s computer and check out the Queen’s diary dates, especially for her fitting of the Crown Jewels. I know it should be in May sometime, but I want the exact date and time. It should be listed.”

Marsh chewed his lip. “That’s a bit dodgy, mate.”

“I’ll pay you well.”

Marsh nodded. “A grand?”

“Five hundred, cash.”

“Okay, I’ll have a go. It’d be easier to read it in The Times. They list her comings and goings next to the births, deaths, and marriages.”

“By the time it’s public, it’ll be too late for what I have in mind.”

“And you’re writing a book.” Marsh grinned. “I believe you. Thousands wouldn’t.”

De Jersey went into the kitchen and put the kettle on. He could hear the click of the keyboard as Marsh moved through cyberspace, inching closer to his destination. After about half an hour he laughed. “I’m in! I’m fucking in!”

De Jersey leaned against the table.

“You’re in luck, pal,” Marsh said.

De Jersey read over his shoulder while Marsh printed out the lists as they appeared on the screen. Finally, he passed the pages to de Jersey with a flourish. “Her Majesty’s diary.”

De Jersey glanced down the list of all the Royal Family’s current engagements. He flicked to the May-June dates: June 1, Princess Royal takes salute at the Centenary Parade; June 3, Duke of Kent to open the Montgomery Exhibition; June 4, Duke of Edinburgh as Master of the Corporation of Trinity House attends the Outward Bound Charity Golf match; June 5, the Queen holds an Investiture at Buckingham Palace. There was no mention of the jewels fitting, no mention of Jubilee celebrations at all.

“This isn’t any good. It’s from the Royal Web site. I could have got it myself,” he said frustratedly.

Marsh dangled two sheets of paper in front of him. “Not these, though. For an extra two hundred, they’re yours.”

“One hundred. And let me see them first.”

Marsh threw the pages to him.

De Jersey studied them closely. This was made different from the engagements sites by the alterations, queries, and question marks. “TBC” was written beside numerous appointments. His heart jumped. There, on May 2, was the word “Fitting.” Beside it was the name of the jewelers, D’Ancona, and the time, 10:30 A.M. De Jersey folded the pages.

“Is that what you wanted?” Marsh asked. “I couldn’t come up with anything else.”

“Not really,” De Jersey lied. “I was hoping to find out about her portrait sittings, but it’ll still be useful.” He withdrew six hundred pounds from his wallet and handed the cash to Marsh.

“Ta. I’m gonna put it toward a holiday I’ve promised the wife. She’s not seen her sister for eight years. They live in New Zealand.”

As the door shut behind Marsh, de Jersey breathed a sigh of relief: he had found not only the date and time of the fitting but also its location. He reread the printout and laughed out loud. There was another piece of vital information on a February page: a D’Ancona representative was flying in from Antwerp for an appointment at the Palace. Since D’Ancona was a jeweler by appointment to the Queen, the alterations must be under way. By tailing the D’Ancona agent from the airport, perhaps he could discover the location of the “safe house” where the jewels were being kept. He needed Marsh again to find the list of passengers traveling on the nine fifteen from Antwerp to Heathrow.

The Daimlers had been stripped down. Wilcox had spent hours in the dank mews garage respraying and fixing them. As he expected, buffing the bodywork to gleaming Royal standard took time, but fitting the new carpets and replacing the leather seats would take even longer. Now Wilcox checked the engines. The cars would be taken to London in one of his own trailers. He didn’t want them to be seen driving through the city. He had already made the Royal mascot, which would be attached to the front, a silver St. George on a horse, poised victoriously over a slain dragon.

He had just turned on the electric polisher when de Jersey paid a surprise visit.

“How’s it going?”

“The engines are all tuned up, but the bodywork’s a problem.”

De Jersey inspected the cars. “Travel in style, don’t they?”

“I guess so, but they don’t make them like this anymore. We were lucky to find them. You wanna hear the engine?” He turned it on, and they listened to it purr.

“You here alone?”

“I get here early and leave late. I see no one.”

“Got a place to brew up?”

“Sure, out the back,” Wilcox said, wiping his hands on a rag.

As the two men sat with mugs of tea in the grimy back room, de Jersey updated Wilcox on the plan. Wilcox said little, smoking one cigarette after another.

“We’ve got a date, May second. Can the cars be ready by then?”

“Hell, yes. I’ll work on the upholstery in London, but we need a place to store them.”

“I’ll find it,” de Jersey said. “Gregory Jones is putting together the rest of the information, then I’ll proceed with the Palace security research. Now we just need the D’Ancona rep to lead us straight to the jewels.”

“What arrangements did you make for moving them on?” Wilcox asked.

De Jersey sipped his tea, and Wilcox repeated his question.

“You know, Jimmy, I still don’t have it direct from you that you’re not going to get cold feet-or Tony for that matter.”

“Don’t do this to me,” Wilcox said.

“What am I doing, Jimmy?”

“My head in. Obviously I wouldn’t be schleppin’ up and down the motorway fixing up these motors if I wasn’t in.”

“But you haven’t said it to me directly.”

“I’m saying it now, all right? And I reckon Tony’s in too.”

De Jersey continued drinking his tea.

“Did you hear what I said?”

“Course I did.”

De Jersey looked into his eyes. “Cut out the coke, James. Doesn’t do you any good, and it worries me.”

“I’m clean, Eddy,” Wilcox protested.

“Keep it that way, because I need you beside me.”

Wilcox’s face broke into a smile.

“I think I’ve got a buyer, a Japanese guy.”

“What about Dulay?”

De Jersey nodded. “The contact came through him. Dulay’s not firmed up yet. He’s coming for a meeting in three days’ time, but I reckon he’s onboard. I don’t want him meeting you or Tony. Less he sees of any of us the better.”

“Sure. I never met him anyway. Tony said he looks like that French actor Gérard somethin’. You went over to Monaco to see him, did you?”

“As Simmons. He doesn’t know who I am. He just needs to produce a buyer and get the big cut he’s after.”

Wilcox stubbed out his cigarette. “Have you found out where the jewels are being held?”

De Jersey glanced at him. “I told you, the D’Ancona rep will lead us to the jewels. They’ll be in a safe house somewhere, being prepared for the fitting.” He stood up to leave.

Wilcox walked him to the garage door, where de Jersey patted his shoulder. “It’s coming together. Don’t worry.” Then he stepped through the doorway and was gone.

Wilcox locked the door. He was shaking; the palms of his hands felt clammy and cold. He walked back to the annex, where he opened a silver snuffbox and performed his regular ritual. He was still shaky, but his head was clearer now. He went back to work.

De Jersey called Christina to say he would be going to Dublin for a few days, then spoke to Fleming about Royal Flush. He was informed that the horse had started training with no problems. They were pacing him with other horses, and that morning he’d passed them with ease on the gallops. Fleming asked which stallion he should put to the filly coming into season, and de Jersey said he would have to think about it. Calmly, he noticed that the date for the Derby was almost a month to the day after the heist. He hoped for enough cash to keep the estate going for the rest of his life.

A few days later, after a call from Jones, he arranged for his second visit to Franklyn Prison. The money had been deposited in Jones’s account, and Jones was ready to talk. In fact, he provided more information than de Jersey had hoped for, such as the number and type of vehicles required per Royal, how many motorbike cavalcades would be allocated by the Metropolitan Police, how many police cars, and the number of their own security guards who would act as bodyguards.

“A complete Scotland Yard division is allocated to the Royals, so get your pencil out. With Her Majesty, we’re talking about the full treatment. The number of guards and security officers goes down according to the rank of the Royal.”

Jones had the contact numbers of every police officer working out of Scotland Yard assigned to the Royals. He also knew what police and security procedures were in place before the Royals stepped into their cars.

“Every vehicle is inspected for bombs, not to mention engine faults. So is the route they’ll take-every inch, every possible sniper location-checked and cleared. You getting all this?” he asked.

“Keep going.” De Jersey’s pen flew across the page.

Jones leaned back in his chair. “Right. The Scotland Yard unit in charge of the Royals is called the Royalty and Diplomatic Protection Department. These guys, all skilled motorcyclists and car drivers, provide twenty-four-hour protection. They are recruited from the ranks of police officers experienced in operational street duty. I was part of this group for five years. There’s nothing I don’t know about all areas of Royal protection.”

He lit a roll-up, heaving the smoke deep into his lungs, then let it out through his nose. He continued. The head of Palace security received a special code word from Scotland Yard daily. Scotland Yard would use this same code word to inform Palace security if an IRA threat had been issued. Then Royal visits planned for that day would halt, unless Scotland Yard gave the all clear.

“Only the head of Palace security and Scotland Yard officials know these code words. And, of course, the IRA.”

“Wait a second. The code word comes from the IRA?”

“Yeah. The IRA gives Scotland Yard a code word that the IRA will use that day if they want to alert Scotland Yard to an impending terrorist attack.”

The bell rang, ending visiting time. De Jersey collected his papers and placed them in his briefcase. The door opened, and two prison officers walked in. “Thank you, Mr. Simmons. I appreciate you comin’ to see me. Good luck, then,” Jones said.

De Jersey shook Jones’s hand. The officers stood aside to allow him to pass, and he walked into the corridor, then left the prison.

Jones’s information had been invaluable. He had also provided answers to de Jersey’s questionnaire. De Jersey plotted his next step. While he needed Marsh, he was beginning to worry about the hacker’s involvement. Did he have the expertise to carry out the work required? He was a dabbler. In order to get the job done, de Jersey would have to divulge the entire plan.