the hand brake cable on my mk2 escort is a shortened sierra cossy one i used wire rope crimps like this to shorten the cable .find a suitable position on the floor pan to cut cable over lapthe two halves & crimp to the desired length .mine was done 12 yrs ago still going fine .
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/50-4-5MM-A...0#ht_556wt_698
but you would need a heavy duty crimper like this
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ferrule-WI...9#ht_834wt_698

the cheaper alternative is go to your local chandlers (yacht parts )get them to crimp it .