The Thai Dragon Read online

  Table of Contents

  The Thai Dragon

  Prologue: Ten years earlier

  Chapter 1 Sarah Appleby. Tuesday Morning.

  Chapter 2 Sarah Appleby. Tuesday Daytime.

  Chapter 3 Tuesday night.

  Chapter 4 Wednesday Morning.

  Chapter 5 The Crime scene.

  Chapter 6 London two weeks later D/Sgt. Danny O’Brien.

  Chapter 7 Meeting the Detectives.

  Chapter 8 Murder Incident Room.

  Chapter 9 Bangkok.

  Chapter 10 The Pathology.

  Chapter 11 The British Embassy.

  Chapter 12 Back to Phuket.

  Chapter 13 Back to the Crime Scene.

  Chapter 14 Murder Incident Room.

  Chapter 15 Back to the Embassy.

  Chapter 16 Breaking the silence.

  Chapter 17 Brad.

  Chapter 18 Time to talk.

  Chapter 19 Into the night.

  Chapter 20 The Third Sex.

  Chapter 21 The Dragons Breath.

  Chapter 22 Cracking on with the Case.

  Chapter 23 Only Guilty Men say ‘No Comment’.

  Chapter 24 Going to Catch a Killer.

  Chapter 25 Kamala Beach.

  Chapter 26 The Suspect.

  Chapter 27 The Interview.

  Chapter 28 A Guilty man Charged.

  Chapter 29 We start again.

  Chapter 30 The Golden Orient.

  Chapter 31 The Alibi.

  Chapter 32 Phuket Provincial Prison.

  Chapter 33 Plan for Arrest.

  Chapter 34 Under Arrest for the Murder of Sarah Appleby.

  Chapter 35 A Prepared Statement.

  Chapter 36 Just a Hunch.

  Chapter 37 All the Time in the World.

  Chapter 38 Just a Drug Dealer.

  Chapter 39 The Hospital.

  Chapter 40 Goodbye Nok.

  Chapter 41 Let’s go Home.

  Epilogue

  About the author

  The Thai Dragon

  4th edition 2013; ebook

  Text by Guy Lilburne

  eISBN 978-616-222-051-7

  Published by www.booksmango.com

  E-mail: [email protected]

  Text & cover page Copyright All rights reserved. © Guy Lilburne

  Edited by Burnie Sinclair

  Also by the author:

  The Kiss of the Dragon

  My Thai Story

  Cocktails & Dreams

  The Flower Girl

  Tika

  This is a work of fiction. Characters, places and incidents are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is coincidental.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, copied, stored or transmitted in any form without prior written permission from the publisher. This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. It may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

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  Prologue: Ten years earlier

  The two Irishmen drove through London’s city streets towards the derelict east end warehouse, where the meeting had been arranged to take place. It was a dirty night and the rain lashed down. The traffic was heavy and they were already late. It was going to be Bob Malone’s first meeting with ‘Mad’ Mickey Harrison, the notorious East End gangster.

  “Jesus Danny! Put your foot down will yer? I don’t want to keep yer man waiting” said Bob, hardly able to contain his nerves.

  “Relax, will yer? Mad Mickey’s not so scary when you get to know him,” smiled Danny O’Brien, pulling up outside the warehouse. “We’re here already.”

  The two men walked into the empty warehouse. There were a few rusted chains hanging down from the beams overhead and a few broken wooden boxes. A rat scurried along at the foot of the wall and there were puddles of rain water on the concrete floor. The only light to break up the darkness was the moonlight that crept through the broken roof.

  “Mickey! You’re here are yer?” shouted Danny.

  “We’re up here Danny.”

  Danny and Bob walked up the small flight of concrete steps, holding onto the iron rail at the side. They walked into the room at the top of the steps and could just make out the figures of Mad Mickey Harrison and one of his men.

  “Danny, how well do you know Bob?” asked Mad Mickey in a cold tone.

  “I met him in a bar six months ago. I told you already. He’s a good man.”

  “He’s a fucking copper.”

  “He fecking can’t be.” Danny turned to face Bob. “Jesus! You’re a fecking copper are yer?”

  Mad Mickey pulled out his gun and pointed it at Bob’s head.

  “Fecking Jesus! Help me!” shouted Bob.

  Danny ran at Mad Mickey and a shot rang out. It echoed around the warehouse. Another two shots were fired and one man lay dead and another man lay paralysed.

  Chapter 1 Sarah Appleby. Tuesday Morning.

  It was the constant barking of the little dog in the apartment next door that woke her up. She groaned and gently turned her head instinctively towards the digital clock that sat on her bedside table. She opened one eye and as the red illuminated numbers came into focus she could see that it read 12:00pm.

  Sarah’s brain was slow because she had just woken up and she was still a little bit drunk from the night before. She worked it out in her mind. It was 12:00pm midday and she knew that she went to bed at 07:00am. That’s five hours sleep, although she knew that she had been listening to that ‘bloody dog’ next door barking for at least the last two hours. So maybe she had only really had three hours sleep. ‘Anyway, are dogs even allowed in these apartments?’ she silently asked herself. It did not matter, she was awake now. She slowly dragged herself out of the king size bed and walked naked with her eyes still closed to the en-suite bathroom. Either drunk, or with eyes closed, she could always find her way around her apartment. She vaguely recalled last night. She had been out during the evening to one of the more expensive beach front open air restaurants that littered Beach Road, Patong, with one of her older lovers. Later, they had gone back to the apartment and soaked in the Jacuzzi that sat out on the balcony, before she had dressed up for him in stockings and a Basque. They drank vodka and smoked marijuana and they made love on the bed. Sarah had a sexual fetish and liked to take lots of photos of herself with her lovers. Usually, she just set the camera to take photos automatically every 60 seconds. She suddenly remembered dropping the camera last night and, when she tried to turn it on again, all she got was a black screen. That had happened in the bedroom when she tried to adjust the tripod, but they had carried on playing for another two hours after that. She sat on the toilet and sighed as she peed.

  She could hear the dog next door still barking and could hear that it had gone into the bathroom too and was barking through the wall at her. During the day the dog had the run of the apartment and one of the patio doors would be left slightly open so that it could go out onto the balcony and use the litter tray. Sarah did not particularly like dogs, but this one was okay. It was a toy dog. It was female and she had heard the owner call it ‘Chi’. Sarah just wished that it did not bark and wake her up every day, but the poor thing was probably
bored and knew that Sarah would get up and play with her on the balcony for a while.

  Sarah needed a coffee and a cigarette before she could even think about having a shower and getting dressed. As usual she walked around the apartment naked as she put the kettle on and spooned coffee and two sugars into the mug. She sniffed the milk. It still smelt OK, but she would have to buy some more today. She walked through into the open plan living area and caught sight of herself in the huge mirror. Her long blonde hair looked unkempt and strands were stuck to her face. Her eye makeup was smudged black around her bloodshot blue eyes. Her slim body made her large breasts look even bigger. She held them up and admired them in the mirror. Sarah thought that they were her best feature. They were firm and pert and still no sag. But then again, at 21 years of age, there should not be.

  “Ughh! You look like shit!” She stuck up two fingers to her reflection and turned around to open the vertical blinds that kept out the bright sunshine.

  This was always a great part of her day. She loved sliding open the blinds and taking in the view of Patong through the giant vista windows; the Iconic Patong Tower apartments recognizable by anyone who has ever been to Patong, the palm trees massed in front of the beach and, because she was on the top floor, the fourth, she could even see the sea from here. The rainy season was due to start in another month, but she did not mind because it was a relief from the overwhelming heat. Even in the monsoon rain she loved Patong, she loved Phuket, and she loved Thailand.

  The kettle boiled and clicked off. She poured the boiling water into the cup and spilt some onto the black marble work surface as she stirred the over filled cup.

  “Oh shit!” she cursed out loud.

  She would have wiped it up, but she could not see the cloth. She was still too hung over to look for it, and anyway, the maid would clean the place later. She loved living here. The Patong View Talay Apartments, just off Phrabaramee Road, were an exclusive and executive block of only 14 apartments over four floors. They were only a year old and the residents were still all the original people. The maids, who were employed by the residents of the apartments, were two sisters who had advertised themselves while the apartments were still being built. Now, they had a monopoly on the cleaning and laundry business, which kept their entire family employed and they provided a very good service.

  Sarah went back into the master bedroom. The second bedroom had never been used during the last 12 months. She put on her little silk kimono and picked up her cigarettes and lighter. She turned on the digital camera, but the screen was still all black. It was an expensive camera.

  “Fuck it!”

  She collected her coffee on the way to the balcony. She pulled the sliding doors open and the oppressive heat slapped her in the face as she walked out of the cool air conditioning of the apartment. She would never get used to the heat and humidity in Thailand and within a few minutes, it was making her sweat.

  As always, next door’s dog ‘Chi’ was on the next balcony ready to greet her human friend, yapping and wagging her tail so much it made her whole body wobble from side to side. Sarah leaned over the glass partition that separated the balconies and picked her up. Chi licked her face as Sarah stroked her and said hello. Chi was left in the apartment from 7:00am to 6:00pm five days a week and, although Sarah had never really got to speak to the single Thai lady who lived there, she had made friends with her dog. Some days she would put her in the basket on the front of her motor bike and take her shopping. Other days she might take her to the beach, or just for a walk along the beach front. If Sarah went for a drink in the day time, which she often did, then Chi would sit quietly on the bar top and locals and tourists would make a fuss of her. Chi did funny things and she made Sarah laugh. Sometimes she found herself talking to the little dog and Chi cocked her head to one side as she listened. Although Sarah did not really like dogs, she was big friends with Chi.

  She carried her into the kitchen and looked in the fridge. There was some rice from last night. She put some in a saucer and poured some milk onto it and carried Chi and the food outside. Chi ate the milk and rice, as all dogs eat rice in Thailand. Sarah sat at the glass table on the balcony and finally lit up a cigarette and sipped at her coffee. She always enjoyed this breakfast looking out and down to the sea. Each balcony had its own Jacuzzi and it was a great way to enjoy the view. Especially at sunset when you could sit in the Jacuzzi and watch the red sun drop into the sea, silhouetting the palm trees on the beach and any fishing boats that might be floating by on the Andaman Sea beyond.

  For a 21 year old it was a life of luxury, but Sarah Appleby was used to luxury. She was from a wealthy family and had enjoyed a privileged upbringing. She was considered by some in her family to be the black sheep. She had dropped out of school at 17years of age and spent the last four years living in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and, for the last 12 months, in Patong, Thailand.

  Thailand was her very favourite place. She found the mosquitos irksome and she had been frightened a couple of times by big snakes that had ventured from the jungle, but she loved the Thai people and she loved the way they enjoyed to party. Sarah felt accepted here. She was young and beautiful. She lived in a top class apartment and enjoyed a monthly allowance. She could eat, drink, party or sleep whenever she wanted to. Patong never closed. Here she could get whatever she wanted, when she wanted. She had become a known face around Patong and had many lovers, both farang (foreign) and Thai men. Her main boyfriend was a blonde Australian man called ‘Brad’, who was ten years older than Sarah. He made his living from taking tourists out to sea on his power boat.

  Their relationship had been going on for the last three months. Usually they met on the beach and made love in his boat. Brad had been to her apartment a few times, but she had never been to his place. Sarah just assumed that it was because he felt that he could never compete with her living accommodation. If they wanted to get together they would phone each other and arrange it, but it was not an everyday thing. Well, not any more. They both had their own lives to be getting on with and, although they liked each other, it was not love.

  Sarah embraced life and lived it to the full. She had made many friends in Patong and always had time to chat to people. She loved the feeling of belonging here and everyone knew her name. The locals would shout out her name, which they pronounced as ‘S-e-ll-a-h’, and would wave to her as she went past on her motorbike, smiling and waving back to them. At night time, when the bars came alive with bright lights, loud music and smiling bar girls, she would be around the bars and the nightclubs. Her favourites were ‘Banana Disco’ on the beachfront, ‘Tai Pan’ opposite the top end of Bangla Road and ‘Safari Beach’ just out of the town. This place did not even open until 2:00am and she could dance there until 7:00am.

  Chi finished the rice and jumped up onto Sarah’s lap. She liked being tickled under her chin as she was stroked.

  “Do you want to come out with me today, baby? I’m going down to the beach to see Brad and I’ve got to go buy some more milk. I’ve got to try and get my bloody camera fixed and then we can go and get something to eat and do some people watching. What do you think?”

  Sarah often talked to the dog. Chi cocked her head to one side and yapped.

  “Come on then.” Sarah put Chi onto the floor and walked back inside the apartment and through into the bedroom. She pulled off her kimono and tossed it onto the bed and walked into the walk-in shower in the en-suite. Chi followed her in and enjoyed the cool water as Sarah showered.

  Chapter 2 Sarah Appleby. Tuesday Daytime.

  Sarah left the apartment feeling refreshed and looking stunning, as usual. She did not wear make-up during the day time, just a touch of lip gloss. She had put on her favourite pink tee-shirt with the words ‘Boys Toy’ in silver sequins written across the chest and she had also pulled on her tight white hot pants and white Nike trainers. She carried Chi in the beach
bag hung over her shoulder. Chi stood on her hind legs so she could peek out of the top of the bag.

  The front door of Sarah’s apartment led out onto a small hallway that was only shared with the next door neighbour. The hallway could not have been more than 8ft square. To the left there was a small table with a plant on it. Opposite was the neighbour’s door and to the right were the stairs and the lift doors. Sarah always skipped down the stairs of the four floors to the bottom. She only ever used the lift to come up. Once outside she tucked the beach bag into the basket on the front of her motorbike, which already held her pink crash helmet.

  She rarely ever wore it, only if she ever saw a police checkup ahead and they always seemed to do those on a Thursday. Today was Tuesday, so the chances of being stopped were slim.

  Sarah drove out of the apartment complex. Although it was only a short distance to the beach front, the one way system meant that she had to drive in a big circle along Rat-U-Thit Road and Beach Road to get to the beach front. She waved to a few of the shop keepers and bar owners who called out to her as she drove past. The roads were always busy, night and day, with motorbikes, tuk-tuks and cars. Every road was lined with hundreds of parked motorbikes. The smell of cooking food filled the air as road side vendors eked out a living cooking and selling everything from chicken and fish, bananas and corn cobs to insects, scorpions, bugs and frogs; all served with sticky rice wrapped in banana leaves. Tourists packed the pavements, haggling with shop keepers and buying copy clothing and DVD’s. There was something about Patong that Sarah found intoxicating and compelling. Nothing was surprising here and everything was accepted as normal.

  Nobody paid any attention to the 70 year old man with only one leg, in a wheelchair being pushed along by a beautiful 20 year old Thai girl, who would occasionally lean over and kiss his bald head or hold his hand. For the next week or two at least she was his girlfriend. So what!