LIAM KNIGHT
"Knight, the Chief wants to see you," I sigh irritated at my partner, Victor's words, anger dripping from his mouth, not that I blamed him. We had just set up an ambush on one of the business' Mr Jonathan Slater owned, that we suspected to be a front for one of his countless illegal activities, only for us to show up and the whole warehouse to be empty.
It wasn't a secret that Jonathan Slater was the leader of the Mafia that terrorised this country, but he made it difficult to pin that fact on him, so much so I wondered if he screwed around with us just for his enjoyment. Constantly tempting us, just for him to pull he rug out from under us.
The sick game of cat and mouse, but in this one people were dying.
He was truly the definition of scum, in my eyes, but also the eyes of the entire police force.
Ripping off my bulletproof vest and throwing it on my desk, I scowl facing the Chief Constable's office.
I looked up to Chief Turner, he was a man who saw some of the most harrowing crimes, but stayed on the force for 35 years, wanting to keep the people safe.
Right now, however, I swallow the pang of defeat from the failed raid, ready to take on Chief Turner's anger. That was 4 months of planning down the drain, even through I'm guessing Jonathan Slater was enjoying seeing this.
I step into his office looking down, but my Chief wide grin shocks me. "Ah... Chief you wanted a word?", my question just makes the old man laugh, pissing me off further. "Detective Knight, please tell me you wanna catch that bastard Slater as much as I do."
"Obviously," I pause clearing the anger from my strained voice, "I wanna take out the whole of the goddamn Mafia... Chief."
Chief Turner just grins wider slamming his aged but hefty hand on my shoulder. "You're gonna have to do something about the scuff on your face, but it should work." My hands shoot up to my growing dark beard and I narrow my eyes at him. Chief Turner ignores my questioning glare, and slams down a packet of documents on his marked up desk.
I pick it up hesitantly and suddenly feel as if in that moment I was making a deal with the Devil.
My eyebrows furrow at the documents, it's my picture but a completely different name and birth date.
William Lane, aged 23... What a stupid name.
The Chief just looks pleased with himself in his swivel chair, his desk littered with now useless Intel about Slater's now empty warehouse. "You, my boy, are going back to university," he states simply in his gruff voice.
I let out the breath I was holding and sit down, sure I had done undercover ops but that was for a month tops, I knew this would be a much longer game. Therefore, the risk of being caught out was greater, not to mention more dangerous.
This was the Mafia we are talking about, not some little league drug dealers.
I look to the wall where all the information about Slater's Mafia was pinned, but it was mostly pictures of his victims and loyal workers. My eyes shift to the family tree and the familiar university name catches my eyes.
Cole Slater, son of Jonathan Slater, heir to the Mafia. He was only 23, but he had his hands dirty in his father's business, as well as attended university for his masters. God knows what he was doing on campus in his spare time, but I suppose that's why they are sending me there. To find out.
"Chief... Why me?", I let out in disbelief. I had been apart of the force under Chief Turner's command for 6 years now, but still there where much more experienced detectives who I would have thought to have been first choice, unless they were all smart enough to say no.
"It's your time Knight, trust me. If anyone can get close to these lowlifes it's you." I look at him allowing his blunt words to sink in. My father was one of the biggest lowlifes I had ever met, and I had dealt with him my whole life, until he died from one of his drug deals gone wrong, three years ago.
Good riddance, my mother and me, as well as the whole world was better off.
My father was most probably why I had been described as relentless when it come to chasing down criminals.
"You have that fire in your eyes Knight. That Cole Slater is a known hot head, if anyone is reckless enough to trip him up it's you." I put my head in my hands trying to ease the tension of the day, only to look up at the time and see it's only four in the afternoon.
I groan inwardly, scanning the documents of my new identity. A new hometown, new hobbies, new everything for god knows how long.
"We have set up a secure server for you to communicate with your partner Detective Victor Wilds, but obviously you wouldn't be able to physically meet him. Nor will anyone else expect for our unit know what you are doing." The deafening pounding in my neck doesn't slow down at his words. Without knowing, my eyes focus in on the pictures on the board, the bloodbaths and coke victims, Slater has left and it's as if an shot of adrenaline hits me, my eyes narrowing in on Jonathan Slater.
I'm not saying no to this. I'm not passing up on the chance to put a whole load of Mafia member's in prison, regardless of the fact the Chief only wants the son. I'm taking them all.
Anyone who works for the Mafia are vile... Plain and simple.
"Alright, then. When do I start?", the determination in my tone making Chief Turner grin. He runs a hand through his greying hair and his brown eyes look merry. His faith in me just cements my decision, he was more of a father figure in my life than anyone.
He pulls out a bottle of aged whiskey and pours it in two glasses, and rises his glass to mine. "Here's to taking down the bad guys," Chief clinks my glass with his and we both drink, the alcohol shooting right to my head. God, I'm gonna have to get used to this if I'm going back to university. At least I wasn't that much older than the fake age of William Lane, but it was safe to say 6 years on the force had hardened me, with my partner Victor constantly calling me an old scowling man. Not that he was only better, but out of the two of us he was the blonde charmer, with my gleaming smile, while I was the opposite.
I head home and look around my empty apartment, packed ready to start my new life as William Lane, not before sending my mother a vague lengthy text explaining my disappearance for a while, trying not to worry her. It was somewhat a comfort that she lived on the other side of the world, safe from all this, but she still liked to get worked up about my job.
I wash my face, free from my stubble and watch the new man in the mirror. William Lane... Seriously, that was a stupid name. My lips quirk up in the mirror as Victor's word's echo in my head after I had told him about the assignment later on. "It's not like your actual name is any better, man. I mean, come on, you're a police officer named Knight, I mean you can't make that crap up."
I stand up straighter, wincing when I realise why I felt so uncomfortable. I look like my father without my beard, and I hated that. Same black hair, same blue eyes.
I got the name Knight from him, but he was anything but a shining knight in armour for my mother and me. Most of the time he was the reason why we were in trouble. Years of banging and shouting at the door, with my mother rocking me in her arms, eyes glistening while telling younger me that everything was going to be okay, meanwhile my father was no where to be seen for days when people where looking for him.
My mum was my knight in shining armour. I protect people like her, because though she loved my father, she had the strength to get out and take me with her.
That's why bringing down the Mafia is so important, they are like the disease infecting a community. They deserve a piece of their own medicine, Slater's Mafia was known to never treat anyone with mercy, so that's what I'm gonna do.
One by one they will fall.