DS Billy Drysdale watched them climb into a taxi and followed it as it drove out of the Merchant City area of Glasgow towards Maryhill. As he drove two car lengths behind, he could see into the back of the taxi and noted that only one of them was acting rowdy. Drunk. Off his face. Or angry? Arms flapping all over the place, large gesticulations with his hands. The other men didn’t seem to mirror his actions.
The taxi took a right turn off Great Western Road onto Queen Margaret Drive and headed past the Botanic Gardens. Wherever they were headed, it wasn’t Cole Woods’ rented flat. That was in the west end, nearer the Partick area. Billy had done his research, knew everything there was to know about Cole Woods. This man was dangerous, a massive drug dealer. He was known to many in the city of London as ‘The Loner’. He’d made his business deals alone. No one wanted to have many dealings with him because rumour had it he was a tad unstable. A gambler, a guy who could fly off the handle at the slightest loss. People didn’t want to be around him when that happened. Not only was he a gambler, he was a heartless shit. Rumoured to be linked to a few unsolved murders down south before pissing off to Spain for a couple of years. Of course, Cole was a resourceful man and left no evidence behind, so he had escaped prosecution. But DS Billy Drysdale had been tasked with the job of bringing this guy down because Cole was now doing his business in Glasgow. And he would bring him down. He wasn’t going to allow this guy to deal drugs on his streets. A gambling addict and lone gangster didn’t mix and it would only be a matter of time before Cole made a mistake. Billy just had to be there waiting when he did.
They reached the top of the road, just making the green light. The taxi turned onto Leyden Street and stopped outside the first sandstone building. Number two. Billy turned into the street and pulled in just ahead of the taxi. He pressed the button, releasing the window just an inch. He needed to be able to hear as much as possible.
The three got out of the taxi. Cole stumbled and Billy could just about make out what he was saying. His thick London accent was loud, yet his words slurred a little.
‘You lads are going to fucking love it. I’m telling ya, just you wait. We’ll be fucking—’
‘Right, Cole,’ one of the other lads said over the top of him. It was as if he knew that what Cole was about to say would cause them problems. ‘You up for a game of poker?’
‘Is the pope a fucking catholic?’ Cole replied before roaring with laughter at his shit joke.
The taxi pulled out of the street and Billy killed the engine. He watched in his mirror as the two men Cole was with helped him up the external stairway before going inside. Billy needed to turn the car around and position it so that he could get a better view for when they finally came out again. That could be in the next few hours, or it might not be until the next morning. Either way, Billy was staying put.
He quickly turned his car around and parked it in the small private car park directly across from the flat. Killing the engine again, he took out his phone and noted the time. Almost midnight. Billy glanced back up at the building and to his surprise, he could see them. He was staring straight into the kitchen. One of the lads threw the window wide and another lit a cigarette before sitting by the window. They were loud. Well, Cole was loud. The others listened.
As did Billy.