by Emma Tallon
It hadn’t been meant as a genuine question, but when Freddie saw Tanya’s guilty face he realised that there was indeed something else. He paused and the look he gave her made her blood run cold.
‘You need to tell me whatever else it is I don’t know, right now,’ he said, his voice hard and authoritative. ‘I mean it, Tanya. I have always respected Anna’s right to privacy but right now nothing is more important than getting her back and to do that I need full transparency.’
‘You might want to sit down,’ Tanya said heavily. She squirmed in her seat. She couldn’t believe she was about to do this. She prayed Anna would forgive her.
‘I don’t want to sit down, Tanya. Tell me now.’ Freddie’s voice rose with every syllable. It was something bad, he was sure of it. He needed to know what it was; the suspense was physically painful.
Tanya ran her hands over her strained face. Her voice came out as barely more than a whisper as she revealed Anna’s deepest secret.
‘She’s pregnant.’
39
He walked into Anna’s room and smiled at her. The smile of a predator, she thought. Her dark blue eyes stared back at him warily.
‘I thought you might fancy a little walk. Get out of the room for a bit,’ he stated.
Anna’s eyes darted towards the hallway behind him and back to his face. He could see the suggestion both appealed to her and worried her simultaneously.
‘I’ll give you a little tour of the house and then leave you with Izobel in the kitchen for a bit, if you like,’ he continued. ‘She’s always cooking something; maybe you could give her a hand. Or just chill out with a cuppa, whatever you fancy.’
‘Whatever I fancy?’ Anna laughed humourlessly. ‘OK, I fancy a trip into London, a large gin and tonic and maybe some sushi. But I somehow doubt that’s going to happen.’ She smiled pleasantly, as if they were exchanging normal conversation.
He ignored her jibes and lifted his eyebrows in question. ‘So, are you coming?’ he asked.
Anna narrowed her gaze coolly but stood up and began to cross the room.
‘Ah.’ He held his hand up to stop her. ‘Please take off your socks.’
‘What?’ Anna asked, her tone incredulous.
‘Not that you’ll get much opportunity to run, but this should deter you from trying.’
Anna made an indignant sound and rolled her eyes, but she did as he asked. As she pulled them off she muttered expletives under her breath. They were the thickest ones that were available and she had them on for exactly that reason. She’d seen the ground outside – it was uneven and rocky, sharp pebbles strewn around where they’d been kicked up from the sides of the track. Her feet would be ripped to shreds within minutes if she ran barefoot.
Following him out of the door she tried to memorise the layout of the house and look for anything that might be of use later. Her room was almost at the end of the hallway and he took her to see the last room first.
‘This is where Izobel is staying,’ he said casually, as though he were showing her around his own home. The room was neutral and slightly old-fashioned, like her own. The furniture was sparse, nothing much to see.
They moved back past her room and into another almost directly opposite. ‘This is Diego’s room,’ he said.
Anna looked at him in surprise. She hadn’t heard anyone else mentioned so far, nor heard noises or voices around the house, so she had begun to assume that perhaps it was just the three of them.
They carried on, past the top of the stairs. There was a split second where Anna considered pushing him down them. She was right behind him, all she had to do was reach out… but she thought better of it. It would be unlikely to do much more than bruise him and then what would she do? This Diego guy was somewhere in the house and even if she got around him, she’d be running around in the middle of nowhere with bare feet. Not the best plan she’d ever had.
‘This is my room.’ They had stopped outside a closed door and he didn’t open it. He pointed to the adjacent door. ‘That is my office. Both are out of bounds unless you’re invited. And you will be,’ he added in a softer tone, ‘just as soon as I can trust you. As soon as I know you’re with me.’
Anna raised her eyebrows. It would be a cold day in hell before she’d join forces with him.
‘Oh, give it time,’ he said, reading her expression. He walked back through the hallway and made his way downstairs.
Anna followed, looking at the pictures on the walls as she walked. There were photos of a couple, some in black and white, where they looked very young and then the pair grew older as the pictures changed to full colour. Some of the photos showed a third person who she guessed to be their son, growing from a baby into a young man. She wondered where they were now. Did he know them? They hadn’t been home in at least the seven days she had been here.
‘Whose house is this?’ she asked, as they reached the bottom step.
‘Mine,’ he answered.
‘Then who are these people? Where did they go, leaving all their belongings and memories behind?’ She gestured at the wall. He didn’t answer her. She swallowed. I need to get out of here.
They walked into a large, warm, farmhouse kitchen where Izobel stood cutting up potatoes. She physically jumped when he walked in, Anna noticed.
‘I’ll leave you with Izobel for one hour, then I’ll take you back up.’ He stepped towards her and leaned in with a menacing look. ‘Don’t do anything stupid, or there won’t be a next time. Got it?’
Anna nodded, not trusting herself to speak. She looked away and tried not to shiver. Looking at him was like staring into the eyes of the devil.
He turned away and, walking over to Izobel, took the knife she was using to cut the potatoes. He walked out without a further word and Izobel shook her head, plopping the rest of the uncut potatoes in the pan of cold water so that they wouldn’t brown in the air.
Anna listened to him walk back upstairs and shut himself in the office. ‘Izobel, who’s Diego?’ she asked urgently. She didn’t have a lot of time, only one hour to figure something out.
‘My brother,’ Izobel answered wearily.
‘Where is he?’ Anna questioned, looking around for signs of life.
‘Gone into town to get a few things.’
‘Oh, OK.’ That was interesting. It was only two of them she would have to get past. She eyed the younger girl. Izobel was watching her warily, not eager for a repeat of their last scuffle. Anna tried another tactic.
‘You could just let me go,’ she whispered. ‘If you help me get out, you can pretend I knocked you out. It wouldn’t be your fault.’
‘I can’t take the risk,’ Izobel replied.
‘Please, Izobel, do the right thing,’ Anna pleaded.
‘What is the right thing for you is not necessarily the right thing for me, Anna,’ Izobel shot back. ‘I told you before – he has my mother. That is why we are both here. We have to do as he says and when it is over we can go home and our mother will be safe. But if we don’t do as he says, she will be killed and we won’t even have the money for a ticket home. So I am doing the right thing for my family. I have no choice. Neither does Diego.’
Anna rubbed her head. ‘Where is he holding her?’ she asked, sitting down in the wing-backed armchair by the hearth. ‘I know you’re scared of him, but Freddie can help you. If you get a message out to him, give him the details, he can get your mother back safely. Then we can all get back home to normality. He’ll deal with him,’ she added, her voice darkening.
Izobel sighed again. ‘That would be a great plan if we knew where my mother was, or if she was even in this country. But he took her from our home in Mexico. Two men with guns dragged her from her bed and took her away in a van. He told us she would be kept safe until we had done our job, then returned home. I have no idea where they took her.’
Anna nodded and dropped the subject. She knew that no amount of persuasion was going to convince her to put her mother’s life in danger. Ann
a could understand that. She looked around the kitchen. There had to be something she could use to help herself. There was a phone attached to the wall, but on closer inspection she could see the cord had been cut. There were no pokers in the hearth either; he must have removed them. Standing up casually, she wandered over to the drawers near the sink.
Izobel spoke as she opened the top one. ‘He already took everything out. That knife I was using on the potatoes was the last knife in here.’
Anna slammed the drawer shut. She quickly checked the others just to be sure, but Izobel was telling the truth. There was nothing of use in there, just a couple of forks and spoons and a whisk. She wasn’t going to get far with those.
‘Can I go outside?’ Anna asked.
‘No,’ Izobel replied. ‘He had me lock the door. I do have the key,’ she said, ‘but I’d really rather you didn’t try to fight me for it.’ She pulled a face.
Anna sat back down. There was no point jumping into anything right now. She was determined to get out of here and she wasn’t going to let anyone get in her way. But she needed a good plan first. And now she knew who was here and the layout of the house, she could finally begin to strategise. She nodded to herself as Izobel filled the kettle.
He was clever, she’d give him that. But then he’d never been up against her before. Relaxing his hold and allowing her this extra freedom had been a big mistake. Even under normal circumstances Anna would fight to get out of here, but now that she had another life to protect she was more determined to get back home and to Freddie than ever.
40
James walked through the busy back streets of Soho with two large cappuccinos in hand. He smiled as he looked around him. He loved it here – the bright colours, the sounds of the day starting up, the buzz of people on their way to work and shops opening up for trade. He sidestepped out of the way of a busy-looking woman hurrying in the opposite direction.
Stopping outside a door with no number or name, he pressed the buzzer and waited. It was a while until the door finally creaked open, revealing a tall, slender man with blonde highlighted hair and big blue eyes that any woman would kill to have. His long lashes flicked up and down as he blinked in the morning light.
James grinned. ‘Good morning, sunshine.’
‘Oh my God, if it isn’t James Waters himself! What are you doing here?’ The excited screech turned into a tone of sarcastic accusation as he continued. ‘At ten in the morning, what on earth would possess you to wake me up at such an ungodly hour, you heathen?’
James laughed. ‘I’m sorry, Nathan, I thought you might be getting up soon. I’ve brought coffee.’ He held out the peace offering, knowing this would likely get him forgiven for waking up his old friend.
It worked – Nathan flashed him a dazzling smile. ‘Well, in that case, you may enter.’ He stepped aside and James walked into the building.
Inside, the walls were a deep burgundy, low-level spotlights highlighting the path through to the bottom of the stairs. James followed Nathan up to the second floor and into a cosy lounge. Nathan flopped onto one end of the sofa, pulling his dressing gown around him more securely. James handed him the coffee and he sipped at it gratefully.
‘So, how are you?’ James asked.
‘I’m fab, other than a slight hangover. Big party last night. Business is good. Moving to this place was a great decision. It’s true what they say, location really is everything.’ He paused to light a cigarette. ‘Want one?’ he offered.
‘No, I’m good thanks,’ James replied.
‘So yeah, you know Soho. So many reprobates loitering at the end of the night, looking for a suck or a fuck.’
Nathan was a male prostitute and enjoyed his chosen profession greatly. He had been one of the first people James had met after he came out. Nothing romantic had ever come of their meeting and James had declined his professional services, but the pair had become great friends.
These days he didn’t see his friend as much, but they stayed in touch and caught up now and then.
‘So, what about you? How’s things going with that boyfriend of yours?’ Nathan asked.
‘Oh, it’s going great,’ James answered with a warm smile. ‘You should come over to the new place sometime for dinner. Sadie too. We haven’t done a dinner party in ages.’
Sadie was another good friend of theirs, who James knew would still be asleep upstairs right now. A Russian beauty, she and Nathan had set up this flat together. Due to the natural differences in their clients’ needs they were never in competition with each other, so it worked well.
‘That sounds like a plan; we’ll get something in the diary. Now’ – Nathan tilted his head and arched an eyebrow – ‘I know you didn’t come here and interrupt my beauty sleep for a bit of small talk over coffee. So, what’s up?’
A slow smile crept over James’s face. ‘You’re right, I didn’t. I’ve got a little problem that I need to resolve. I have a plan to do it, if I can enlist both you and Sadie. I’ll pay you well for it, but on top of that’ – he chuckled – ‘I think this is going to be something you’re going to greatly enjoy.’
* * *
Later that night, James hurried down the road to meet Paul. He had a spring in his step, excitement bubbling under the surface now that his plan was in motion. He took a deep breath and cleared his face of all expression as he walked up to Paul and Thea.
Paul looked smart in his favourite suit and crisp white shirt. James smiled as a feeling of love for the man swelled through his heart.
Paul turned as he saw James approach. ‘Ah, here you are. Was just about to call you.’
‘Sorry, got caught up. How are you, Thea?’ He leaned in to hug her warmly in greeting.
‘All the better for seeing you, sunshine,’ she replied happily. ‘Shall we go grab our seats?’
‘Yeah, let’s head in,’ Paul said. The three of them made their way inside.
Tonight was Seamus’s debut fight, the first one in an official league. The tickets had completely sold out and the gymnasium was full to the brim. Vendors had their stalls around the edges, selling popcorn and hotdogs and drinks. Betting stands were placed every few metres and the queues were long at all of them.
Paul smiled at the sight. All the bookies on site were their own, so they stood to make a large amount of money tonight. Seamus had been told to win this fight at all costs, as the other man was marked as the favourite. Paul knew Seamus would have no problem winning. He might be new to the scene, but the boy was a born boxer. He was the fastest, lightest fighter Paul had ever seen. Luckily for them, the rest of the world didn’t know that yet.
He led the small party to the front row, where their seats had been reserved. He was excited to watch this fight. With everything that had been going on lately it would make a nice change to just relax and enjoy something for once. He had James and Thea with him too, which just made it all the more pleasurable.
‘I’ve never been to a boxing match before,’ James admitted. ‘How violent is it really? I mean, it’s an official match so they don’t let them get properly hurt and stuff, do they?’
Paul and Thea looked at each other and tried to hold their laughter in. It probably wasn’t going to be something James would enjoy. They had tried to tell him this gently, but he had insisted he wanted to try it at least once.
‘Nah, yeah, it’s er… it’s not that bad,’ Paul replied, scratching the back of his neck.
The lights went down and a man jumped up into the ring with a microphone. His voice boomed out as he introduced himself and began to warm up the crowd.
‘Oh, I should have put a bet on,’ James said in dismay. ‘Oh well, never mind.’
Paul looked around the room at the buzzing crowds and was surprised to see Frank Gambino and two of his men at the other side of the ring, a few rows back. Frank was looking in his direction, no expression on his face. Paul smiled and gestured for them to join him in the front row but Frank didn’t seem to notice, instead looking up i
nto the ring. Paul lowered his hand. Frank must not have seen him.
It wasn’t too long before the fighters were brought into the ring, the crowds around them going wild with excitement. Seamus winked at Paul as he passed and they each took their corners.
The match started and the first round finished without much action. Each fighter was testing the other out and holding back their energy for later. Paul tensed his shoulders when the real fighting began in the third round. He watched every move Seamus made with a critical eye, cheering him on when he was up and praying silently when he was down.
James went to get drinks and snacks for everyone as the third round ended. Paul nodded encouragingly at Seamus as he retreated to his corner to take a gulp of the drink someone handed him and wipe the sweat from his face with a towel.
The air seemed charged with electricity and the crowd worked themselves into a frenzy when in the sixth round it looked as though Seamus was going to be beaten. But he pulled himself round and came back with full force, drawing the energy from somewhere.
The seventh round began and Paul had to remind himself to breathe. He gripped the side of the chair until his knuckles turned white, but he didn’t notice that. He couldn’t tear his eyes from the ring.
‘Come on, Seamus,’ he muttered under his breath. This was going to be a big payday for the Tylers when he won. There was no way he could lose. Paul had lived and breathed boxing since he could walk. He knew what he was looking at and Seamus was the most flawless rough diamond he’d ever come across.
Seamus was backed into a corner, sweat dripping from every inch of his skin, his hair plastered flat to his head and blood running down his face from a gash on his forehead. His opponent didn’t look much better, but he had the upper hand, pummelling away at Seamus’s sides.
With a roar, Seamus pushed forward and sidestepped the next punch. The other man stumbled, not expecting the move. Seamus was about to take full advantage of this when suddenly he paused. He locked eyes with Paul, a look of confusion on his face. His body began to convulse and his opponent took a step back, looking to the ref for guidance.
