Bad Blood Rising

by Eva Carmichael

  “That’s simply not true,” David protested. “I’ve only…”

  “Do not interrupt me again, Superintendent Glendenning,” Laurence said. “Your actions are to be fully investigated by ACC Bonnington and DCI Williams. In the meantime you are suspended from all duties starting immediately. Please hand over your warrant card.”

  “This is ridiculous,” David hissed, removing his warrant card from his wallet and placing it on the desk.

  “Furthermore, Superintendent, you are to have no further contact with Maddox or the Emerald Club until this matter is resolved. Do you understand?”

  David remained silent.

  “I said do you understand, Chief Superintendent Glendenning?”

  “Yes sir,” David replied, staring defiantly ahead.

  “You will be informed when we need to interview you formally under caution. Make sure you bring a Force Representative with you to that interview. Is that clear?”

  “Yes sir.”

  “Good. You may go.”

  David made to leave the room, turned as if to say something to his accuser, then changing his mind, he went silently through the door.

  Was this down to Lydia, David pondered as he drove his car through the town. Had she finally plucked up the courage to report him? No, if she wanted to do that she would have done it years ago. Knowing it would be too dangerous to ring Karl on his mobile phone, David stopped the car outside a telephone box and rang Karl’s number.

  “Damn it,” he hissed. It was engaged. He waited a few minutes before dialling the number again. When Karl’s number was still busy after his third attempt, he ripped the telephone from the wall, screaming profanities. Getting back into his car, he drove at speed in the direction of the Emerald Club.

  FIFTY

  It had been a quiet morning at the club. Colin Clutterbuck was busy at his computer, and Karl was reading through the printouts.

  “It looks like Joe’s doing a good job over at the Topaz,” Karl said, smiling. “We’re up almost thirty per cent on last month.”

  “It’s the hot weather,” Colin chuckled. “Men always feel more randy when the sun shines. It’s a known fact.” Before Karl could reply the telephone on his desk rang.

  “Where’s Peter this morning?” Karl grunted irritably. “He should be answering the bloody phone.”

  “He had to go to the brewery and sort the delivery out. They’ve messed up the order again.”

  “They’re bloody incompetent,” Karl growled, picking up the receiver. “Emerald Club, sorry but we don’t open until six so…”

  “Karl,” said a familiar voice, “Karl, it’s me, Lisa.”

  “Lisa?” Karl gasped in astonishment. “Lisa, is that really you?”

  “Karl, I have to see you urgently. Can I come round to the club now?”

  “I… I…” he spluttered.

  “I’ll be there in twenty minutes. We have to talk, it’s important.”

  Before Karl could respond, Lisa hung up the receiver. Karl leant back into his chair, his heart racing.

  “Is everything alright?” Colin asked with concern. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  Karl sat motionless for a few moments, staring in front of him. He reached into his desk drawer and took out the bottle of tablets. “Colin, I need some privacy for the next hour or so. Find something else to do.”

  “Okay, boss. I could go and see Shirley.”

  “See who you want but I need you out now.” He took out two tablets from the bottle and swallowed them.

  When Colin had left, Karl began to pace nervously up and down the office. What the hell did Lisa want after all these years, he wondered? The shock of hearing her voice gave way to anger as, with one swoop of his arm, he swept the telephone and papers from his desk onto the floor. “Bloody bitch,” he hissed through clenched teeth. “When I get my hands on her, I’ll…” Although it was only ten thirty in the morning, Karl went over to the cabinet and poured himself a large whisky, purposefully omitting the soda. He checked his appearance in the mirror, straightening his tie in the process. “At least Erica isn’t about this morning,” he consoled himself as he picked up the debris from the floor and placed it neatly back on his desk.

  Exactly twenty minutes later there was a sharp rap on the office door and Peter came into the room, followed closely by Lisa.

  “There’s a lady to see you, Karl,” he grinned.

  “Thanks, Peter. Please make sure I’m not disturbed.”

  Now in her early fifties, Lisa was still a beautiful woman. Her once golden hair was streaked with grey but her eyes were still as blue as Karl remembered them. She wore a floral sun dress with a white cotton jacket, and low heeled court shoes. Lisa wore very little makeup.

  “Karl,” she said smiling as she walked gracefully towards him. “How are you? You look well.” She attempted to kiss him on the cheek but Karl pulled away.

  “What the hell do you want?” he snapped, staring at her suspiciously.

  “All in good time, darling. Do you mind if I sit down? I’ve had a long journey.” She walked over to the couch.

  “You haven’t answered my question. What are you doing here?”

  “You don’t look happy to see me.”

  “I’m not,” he hissed, walking towards her menacingly. “You left me. I thought I’d seen the back of you for ever.”

  “I still am your wife, Karl. We never got divorced, remember?” She took out a cigarette from her bag and lit it. “I hear you have a new wife now. Erica, isn’t it?”

  “You keep Erica out of this.”

  “Oh I’ve no quarrel with her, in fact I feel sorry for the poor girl if you treat her like you treat me. But at the end of the day, Karl, I’m your legal wife, not Erica.”

  “So what is it you want after all this time? A divorce?”

  “No, I don’t want a divorce. What would be the point? We’ve both put the past behind us and moved on.” She drew on the cigarette and exhaled, causing a plume of smoke to rise. “I’ve read all about you over the years. You seem to be quite the successful businessman these days. ‘Mr Sleaze of the North’ that’s what it said about you online.”

  “If it’s not for a divorce, why are you here?”

  “I need money, darling. Legally half of everything you own belongs to me. You do realise that?”

  “Over my dead body,” Karl snarled, bringing his fist down hard on the desk. “You left me twenty-five years ago, remember? You won’t get one penny of my money.”

  “I think you’ll find that I will. But don’t worry, I didn’t come here for half of your grubby little empire. I only want fifty thousand pounds, and I want it in the next seven days.”

  “Fifty thousand? You must be crazy if you think I’ll…” Karl suddenly began to gasp and clutched at his chest. “Heart,” he whispered as he slumped heavily to the floor. “Get help.”

  Lisa dropped to her knees and cradled his head in her arms. “Hang on, Karl,” she soothed, taking out her mobile phone from her bag. Karl was already unconscious.

  Peter was in the bar when he heard the ambulance sirens. Suddenly the club’s front door opened and two paramedics ran into the building.

  “Where is he?” demanded the first one, a short, powerfully built man of about forty.”

  “Where’s who?” Peter answered, perplexed. “What the hell are you doing here?”

  “Up here,” Lisa cried. “He’s up here. Please hurry.”

  Both men made their way up the staircase and, directed by Lisa, made their way into the office, an anxious Peter followed.

  Karl was lying on his back on the floor when they entered the room. Quickly the two men approached and began their checks.

  “What’s his name?” one asked.

  “Karl,” Lisa answered. “Karl Maddox.”

  “What the hell happened?” Peter asked Lisa. “What the fuck have you done to him?”

  “He’s had a heart attack, I think,” Lisa said. “He’ll be alrigh
t, I’m sure.”

  Karl moaned softly and his eyes slowly opened.

  “Take it easy, Karl,” said the first paramedic. “We’re going to take you to hospital, mate. You’re gonna be fine.”

  Karl looked anxiously over at Peter.

  “You stay here,” he said in almost a whisper. “Tell Joe what’s happened but not Erica, okay?”

  “Sure, boss,” Peter nodded. “Don’t you worry, Karl, Joe and I will take care of business.”

  Karl’s breathing was shallow as he attempted to speak. He slipped back into unconsciousness as he was placed on a stretcher and carried downstairs to the waiting ambulance.

  “I’ll go with him,” Lisa said quickly as she followed the paramedics. “I’ll ring you when I have news.”

  Peter stared after her but said nothing. As soon as the ambulance was out of sight, he went up to the office and telephoned Joe.

  FIFTY-ONE

  “You’ve been very lucky,” the nurse said quietly. “If it hadn’t been for your wife’s quick thinking…”

  Karl slowly began to focus, taking in his surroundings. The sight of medical paraphernalia around his bed made him anxious. He sank back into the pillows and closed his eyes. He’d never been in a hospital before and it terrified him. A heart attack the nurse had said. How the hell had that happened, he wondered?

  “I need to get home,” he said weakly, attempting to sit up.

  “Not so fast, Mr Maddox,” the nurse said as she gently plumped the pillows. “I want you to lie back and relax. The doctor will be here shortly to speak to you.”

  Karl grunted in dismay by way of response.

  “Your wife’s outside. She can stay for a few minutes.” The nurse, bristling with efficiency, walked over to the door. “Just five minutes, Mrs Maddox,” she said, addressing Lisa.

  Lisa came into the room and sat on the chair by the side of Karl’s bed. “How are you feeling?” she asked with concern as she reached gently for his hand.

  “I hear you saved my life, is that right?”

  “I did what I could,” she said softly. “The paramedics seem to think it was just a mild heart attack so you’ve been lucky. It could have been a lot worse.”

  “Mild? They should have been lying where I was lying. They wouldn’t think it was fucking mild then.”

  Lisa smiled and for a second, Karl saw in her the sweet girl he had married all those years ago.

  “So Lisa, here you are at last,” he said, his tone softening. “Where have you been living all this time?”

  “That doesn’t matter now,” she said dismissively. “That’s all water under the bridge. You must concentrate on getting well.”

  Karl lay silent for a moment, staring suspiciously at her. “Tell me, what is it that brings you back after all these years?”

  Lisa released her hold on Karl’s hand and her posture stiffened slightly.

  “You know why I came,” she said abruptly. “I need fifty thousand pounds. You owe me that much.”

  “I owe you nothing,” Karl responded abruptly, pushing himself up onto his elbows. “You haven’t been a wife to me in over twenty-five years.”

  Lisa began to pace nervously around the room, pausing by the window.

  “There’s something I need to tell you,” she said at last, “something that perhaps I should have told you a long time ago.”

  “Go on, I’m listening.”

  Lisa breathed deeply and Karl detected a faint tremor in her voice. “When I left you I… I was pregnant.”

  “Pregnant? You were pregnant? I don’t believe you. Why the hell didn’t you tell me?”

  “Have you forgotten how bad things were between us? You were violent and cruel. I couldn’t bring a child into that toxic relationship.”

  “But it was my child, damn it. I had a right to know.”

  “The way things were back then, you’d have made me have an abortion. You always said you never wanted kids.”

  “So you waited until I was banged up inside so you could sneak off. Tell me, where did you go when you left?”

  “I have a cousin in Cornwall. I stayed with her for a couple of years.”

  “Cornwall? What did you do for money?”

  “I worked in a pub at first and after the baby was born I went to evening class and learnt secretarial skills.”

  “Are you still living in Cornwall?”

  “Karl, where I live now is nothing to do with you. Once I get the money you’ll never see me again.”

  “So where is this kid?”

  Lisa opened her bag and removed two photographs. “This is your son. His name is Alex.” She handed Karl the first photograph. It showed Lisa as a teenager holding a small baby. Karl stared at the photograph in disbelief.

  “Nice try,” he said coldly. “This could be anybody’s kid. It’s probably not even yours.”

  “Of course he’s mine… ours. Alex has grown into a fine young man.” Lisa handed him the second photograph. This showed a smartly dressed man in his twenties. His physique and features were unmistakably the same as Karl’s. “Alex is a doctor,” Lisa said proudly.

  Karl stared hard at the second photograph. “Alex, you say? A doctor. Where is Alex now?”

  “He’s working at the City Hospital in Manchester, but he has a fantastic opportunity to buy into a private practice in Canada. That’s why I need the money, to give our son a good start in life.”

  “Canada? Why the fuck does he want to go to Canada?”

  “It’s a great chance for him Karl, for him and his wife.”

  “Alex is married?”

  “She’s a lovely girl. Alex and Sarah have been married almost a year now.”

  Karl sank back into his pillows. He could feel the sweat trickle down the back of his neck like it always did when he was angry. He closed his eyes for a few seconds before speaking. “Tell me, Lisa, are you still using the name Maddox?”

  “No, not any more. After I left I reverted back to my maiden name, Sutton.”

  “So, my son is known as Dr Alex Sutton?”

  “Yes, that’s right.”

  Karl studied the photograph of his son. It was a couple of minutes before he finally spoke. “I’ll tell you what I’ll do. I’ll give Alex the fifty thousand if, and only if, I get to meet him personally.”

  “That’s never going to happen,” Lisa snapped, glaring at her husband. “I don’t want you anywhere near my son, do you understand?”

  “Why? What are you afraid of? You don’t think I’ll corrupt him, do you?”

  “Please Karl, leave him alone. Alex is a good boy and…”

  “Take it or leave it, Lisa, it’s up to you. If you want my money, bring Alex to the club to meet me.”

  “You always were a stubborn bastard,” she hissed.

  “I’m not swapping insults, Lisa. Just let me know when you’ve arranged the meeting. You’d better go now,” he said dismissively, closing his eyes. “You heard what the nurse said. I need to rest.”

  Casting a defiant stare, Lisa hurried from the room. Once she had gone, Karl rang for the nurse.

  “Yes, Mr Maddox,” said the pretty first year student as she hurried into the room. “Is everything alright?”

  Karl was about to snarl at the girl but instead he gave her his warmest smile.

  “A telephone, please, dear,” he said, “and a cup of tea, milk but no sugar.”

  “Yes, of course,” she answered. Returning in less than five minutes, the nurse had the telephone trolley and a cup of hot tea.

  “Is there anything else I can get you?” she asked nervously. Nurse Jones knew exactly who Karl Maddox was. All the staff on the ward were talking about him.

  “No, thank you,” Karl grinned as she turned to leave the room. “Thank you for the tea, Nurse Jones.”

  Carol felt the colour rising in her cheeks under Karl’s gaze as she hurried out of the room. Smiling to himself, Karl dialled a familiar number.

  “Joe? Joe I need you to come and col
lect me from the hospital.”

  “Hospital? Are you alright?”

  “Yes, I’m fine. I just had a funny turn. I’m feeling a lot better now. Come and pick me up as soon as you can, and Joe, not a word to Erica. I don’t want her fussing.”

  “Alright boss, if that’s what you want. I’ll set off now.”

  Karl made a second call.

  “Peter? Peter, it’s me. Is Paul with you?”

  “Yes boss, I’ll put him on.”

  “Hello, Karl,” Paul Borowicz answered. “Is everything alright? I hear you went off in an ambulance earlier.”

  “Oh, nothing to worry about,” Karl sighed. “I’ll be back at the club later. Paul, I want you to do something for me. Do you have a pen?”

  FIFTY-TWO

  When Joe arrived at the hospital he went straight up to the ward. “Karl, are you alright? What the hell happened?”

  Karl was sitting up in bed finishing off a shepherd’s pie and chips. “The food’s not bad in here,” he grinned. “I don’t suppose you’ve brought me a drink? Whisky would be nice.”

  “Never mind whisky, I rang Peter and he said you’d been carted off in an ambulance.”

  “A minor heart attack, that’s all.” Karl smiled faintly. “I’ll be good as new in a couple of days.”

  “Do you want me to ring Erica?”

  “No, I don’t. What I want you to do is get my clothes out of that cupboard over there.”

  “No chance,” Joe protested. “Not until the doctors say you can go.”

  “Joe, stop fucking about and do as I ask. I’m absolutely fine. It was just a minor attack, a warning that’s all.”

  Joe looked at Karl suspiciously.

  “They did an angiogram earlier and everything was okay,” Karl grinned. “Now stop pissing about and get me my clothes.”

  Half an hour later, both men were in Joe’s car and heading for the Emerald Club.

  “Not a word about this to anyone,” Karl warned as they entered the club.

  “Alright, but I think you should tell Erica. She has a right to know.”