Four Letters: A Gripping Psychological Crime Thriller by Jake Houstoun

Author:Jake Houstoun [Houstoun, Jake]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2024-08-20T00:00:00+00:00

GAME

The spray from the harbour had kept Strathmore’s roads ice-free letting the Apollo’s worn tyres roll to a stop in front of the factory’s sea facing doors. Nolan had once told Haris being driven in his car was like sitting behind a high-speed dining table, and Haris was reminded of that line as he stared through the windscreen at the vast expanse of yellow bonnet warding off the snow with its heat. He killed the engine and the car’s headlamps, but it made no impact on the surrounding gloom. The clouds hung low overhead, casting New Wellington’s lights back at it in an ethereal yellow haze. The city’s hum had also been trapped by the clouds, the slurping of waves against the nearby seawall the only sound not captured by nature’s muffler.

Haris shut his gauntlet, having finished his call. Exited the Apollo and crossed the deserted industrial road towards the plain-faced factory with its dead spotlights. The number above the loading doors was the same as the address written within the rope, but the only thing beckoning him was a red door to the side lit by a single bulb.

Haris had been hoping to find a security guard working the nightshift and was surprised when a bearded man in a shirt and jeans answered the door. Of all the reactions he’d have expected a man to have towards a sudden stranger in the night, relief was not one of them.

‘Thank the lord for that. You certainly took your time.’

‘Didn’t realise I had an appointment.’ Haris scanned the man’s shirt. Crushed lines of burgundy sprouted from little red abdomens against a black background. A striking pattern of Insurgent colours that would be sure to raise eyebrows in more patriotic parts of the city. ‘Seems I don’t need to explain why I’m here.’

The man shook his head, his skin turned tan by the yellow bulb. ‘Your friend said you’d be coming. Paid me 500 marks to wait and give you a message.’ He stuck out his head and looked down either side of the street. ‘No cameras, eh? I was expecting this to be one of those social media pranks you hear about.’

Haris inhaled too deeply, the frozen air burning his lungs. ‘When were you given this message?’

‘Yesterday morning. I manage the production of the safety equipment see. Here I was getting ready to cancel work because of this latest invasion scare when your mate came knocking. Slept in the office afterwards, I did. You’re welcome by the way. I nearly went home to grab a shower and a change of clothes, but wouldn’t it be typical for you to turn up while I’m away?’

‘Let’s hear it then,’ Haris said, keen to cut the ramble short.

‘Alright, here I go,’ the man said, cloudy breaths catching in the door’s light. “When you’ve run out of places to search, all you need to do is look under your feet.”

‘That’s it?’

‘Aye. Cryptic bugger, eh? Is this some sort of game you pair are playing?’

‘Only one of us thinks that.

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