Matilda Wren

by When Ravens Fall

  He cursed the day he ever met his wife’s family. He had no idea who George Anderson was until his wedding.

  Now, he was unwittingly involved in a gangland turf war.

  He didn’t want to have George’s assets signed over to him.

  It was a dodgy tax evasion and he wanted no part in it, but he had no choice. You didn’t say no to George, the same as you didn’t say no to Ray Jarvis or Davie Newman.

  Peter knew he was screwed either way, but he also knew that, if he didn’t take the money, he was dead and he couldn’t do that to his wife, not his Patsy. The woman he adored over anything else. He couldn’t leave her alone to raise the baby.

  He looked over to Bonnie, who was standing in the doorway of the kitchen. She smiled at him politely, like this was just a normal business deal. She had been the same that afternoon, in her office. She was as villainess as the men in the room. A few hours ago he thought she was just a professional and that somewhere along the line, what George was doing was legal.

  It had to be. He had a top notch lawyer and everything seemed above board when she had explained how it all worked to him earlier.

  It dawned on him just how naive he had been, but then again, so had George. He obviously had no idea that the beautiful lawyer was working for Ray Jarvis, anymore than Peter himself did. She had done the pair of them over.

  It briefly crossed his mind, when would she screw the main man himself over, because, in his eyes, she would eventually. This was a comforting thought. He tried to return the smile but due to the broken jaw, it wasn’t the easiest thing to do.

  Looking back at Davie and Ray, he gave a loud resigned sigh.“Show me where to sign.” He said, slowly shaking his head; the product of a beaten and defeated man.

  Ray smiled and clapped his hands together. “Miss Mashek, do the honours.”

  Bonnie walked into the kitchen and pulled out a chair from the table. She sat herself down next to Peter and pulled out a brown cardboard folder from her briefcase.

  She didn’t look at him, she just begun to proficiently reel off technical legal jargon, while handing him one piece of paper after another, to sign away his life. He wasn’t listening to her. All he was thinking about was how the hell he was going to convince Patsy to run away six months pregnant, but then again, once she saw the state of him, she might not take much convincing at all.

  Bonnie noticed his blood stained hands. It was funny but violence never bothered her. It’s not that she enjoyed it like Ray did; she just had a strange detachment to it. It all seemed so staged. She felt the same way about it as a hen pecked husband does about his wife’s nagging. It was that quick raise of the eyebrows, here-we-going-again, boys-will-be-boys tolerance.

  Ray watched, while all of George’s legal assets were handed over to him. The illegal ones Ray just intended to waltz in and obtain. You don’t need a lawyer for that kind of takeover. He waited until the last of the papers were signed and then he called Sean.

  Everything he had planned over the last three years had finally come together in the space of a day and a night. He couldn’t have wished for a more successful outcome. He now had what George had spent a lifetime creating and, once the night was over, he would be rid of the thorn in his side as well.

  The only downside was that Sean didn’t want to take over. It meant he would have to split the businesses up and get his own crew to work them. It meant spending further time in Essex and that was not Ray’s intention. He wanted to get back to his own terrain, as soon as he could. He wasn’t that keen on this particular area and missed the smog and the noise of London.

  Still smiling, he walked over to Peter and gave him a friendly slap on the shoulder.

  “Well done lad. Mr Newman here is going to sort out your payment and then he will take you home. If I was you, I’d leave tonight.”

  “Ttt…tt…tonight?” Peter stammered.

  “Yeah, tonight. By morning Anderson is gonna be on the missing list. This time tomorrow I will be informing the rest of his family that I am the one that took it all away, right from underneath their noses.”

  Peter had never felt fear like he was feeling it right now.

  It crept up from his toes and spread all through his body.

  His heart pounded against his chest and his lungs seemed to deflate, refusing to let oxygen back in. His head was thick and heavy and the room felt like it was closing in on him, getting smaller and smaller by the second.

  Ray turned to Bonnie. “Fergus’ papers ready?”

  She nodded and gathered up the folder and documents.

  Ray waited for her to secure them in her case and then gently grabbed hold of her arm and led her out of the room, leaving Peter contemplating his future and his past.

  * * *

  Sean poured out a full tumbler of vodka and knocked itback like it was a glass of water. Kenny watched him. Sean had been sniffing coke and swigging vodka for the best part of three hours. He had paced the length of Kenny’s living room in an almost military trance waiting for his phone to ring. Kenny knew he was psyching himself up, he knew the thoughts that would be running through his head; the questioning, the reasoning, the justifying. Beating a man, maiming him, it pales into significance compared to taking a life. No matter how much of a sociopath you are, the enormity of what you are about to do will always enter your mind, even if it is only briefly.

  What Kenny didn’t know was that although he was right in his suspicions about what was going through Sean’s head, Sean had only considered them for about the first hour. After that, all he was thinking about was how the older men, Ray, George and Kenny all thought they could run him.

  The more he mulled it over, the more he began to fixate on it. As far as Sean was concerned, he was going to end all of the control. He was going to show the old school the new school. Taking the contract on George was about demonstrating his worth, not as an employee or a protégé, but as an equal; just as shrewd, just as brutal.

  Ray needed to be shown not to back him into a corner and Kenny needed to be shown that Sean will do whatever it takes to get what he wants. George was going to be the one that delivered the message.

  He checked his watch every few minutes, his whole posture fidgety, giving a glimpse into his restless mind. It worried Kenny slightly how quiet he was. It was unlike Sean to be a silent thinker. He normally showed his thoughts quite clearly but as Kenny watched him do another lap of his living room, he begun to have serious doubts as to the nights events being a success. He wondered, not for the first time, what had got him involved with Sean Fergus and why.

  When Sean finally spoke, the calmness of his voice certainly didn’t match the edgy and impatient bearing he had been presenting. It threw Kenny even more than Sean already had.

  “It’s time to go.”

  Kenny looked at him straight in the eye. Sean saw the meaning behind it. It pleased him, that Kenny was second guessing him. After tonight, he and Ray would know, just how far he was prepared to go.

  He was going to show his worth. It wasn’t about the monetary gain anymore, although George Anderson’s house was a major factor in it, it was about moving up the ladder.

  Sean no longer wanted to work for the main men; he wanted to be one of them.

  He implored the power and fear that he could yield. He had a taste of it from running whores and now he wanted it from the older guys too. He wasn’t concerned with what they had; he didn’t want what was theirs. Sean had no interest for owning nightclubs, or managing protection rackets, or even being the social worker for the community, like Kenny was.

  All of that involved having a firm, working in a team.

  That wasn’t Sean. He was a loner, always had been. He was indifferent to teaching people, or helping them along the way. He loved running the girls, but even that wasn’t for the money. That was for the power. It was all about the power and control.

  Finding a new girl and breaking her in, stripping away their innocence and making them completely de
pendent on him, he loved it. It was the constant thrill of how easy it was.

  The pathetic and weak ones he put on the street, where they risked their lives getting into strange cars all day and night, to pay for the drug habit that he had forced upon them. He got half their money for their bodies and the other half for their drugs. He owned them in every way.

  The more savvy and slutty ones he put in the houses, where they had regular vetted clients, health checks and security, these girls earned him a fortune. He appreciated that and rewarded them, by paying them a decent wedge and looking after them. Sean especially looked after his top girls; the ones in charge of each house.

  They run all the other whores. It was always one of the girls, never one of the boys. Rent boys fight and scrap more than whores. They don’t have the temperament to be in charge. It’s just their nature.

  He was more than happy with his way of life. Tonight was about gaining the fear and respect of those around him.

  Above all he wanted and needed equality. He needed to feel adequate. He hadn’t felt that in a few years, not since he was seventeen and it had left a hole inside him.

  He masked it with aggression and violence but it didn’t fill it. He fucked his way through women in an attempt to cancel out the emptiness that threatened to explode. They became a toy for him, something to relieve the boredom, frustration and longing.

  It was vital for Sean that he made himself a name; he had to be a ‘somebody’. The opportunity to take out George Anderson couldn’t have been dismissed, not just because it was Ray Jarvis doing the asking, but because in Sean’s eyes it was his way of showing the world who he is. That he had been successful.

  Ultimately, he was showing her; the girl that created the void in the first place.

  Kenny watched Sean walk out of his house; the boy adamant he was going alone. It was coming up to one in the morning and he was dog tired but he knew he wouldn’t be sleeping; his mind pre-occupied with how the night will unfold. He needed something to relax, to take his mind off the anxiety. He reached for his phone and sent a text.

  If he was going to be up all night, he would much rather be in the company of an affable and willing young man than wearing out more of his solid oak flooring by continuing the pacing Sean had been doing.

  His young friend would help take his mind off it all for a while; until Sean called to say it was done, or that it wasn’t.

  Whichever way it went, Kenny was sure that nothing would ever be quite the same again, for any of them.

  While he waited for his male prostitute, he thought about the last few years and his life since Sean had come into it. A mutual associate had introduced them one night in a pub in Basildon. Kenny had taken an instant shine to him, which was strange because he normally made a point of staying well clear of the straight ones. But there was something about Sean that Kenny couldn’t resist.

  It wasn’t the arrogance or the confidence that attracted him so much; it was more of a look that Sean would throw at him every now and then, that said Sean felt a connection too.

  It was always momentary and it had never been discussed, but it was something that had kept them together.

  Kenny knew Sean didn’t let people get close to him and he was probably the closest anybody had got; in his growing years, this made him feel unique and elite. But then, Sean was good at making you feel like that, when he wanted to.

  Sean hadn’t so much as blinked when Kenny had enquired into whether he had boys for sale as well as girls. He had just smiled his charming smile and told him he could get Kenny whatever he wanted. There was no disgust or repugnance in his eyes. He had never mocked Kenny for his tastes and in Kenny’s mind that meant Sean was not homophobic.

  He was secretly flattered, that Sean had called him when he had raped that girl; that he had needed Kenny’s help and expertise. But Sean had also come a long way since that night and tonight Kenny knew he was about to find out just how far. It was nights like this, that either makes you or breaks you. You learn to live with the consequences of your actions or you crack up.

  Sean had never really mentioned the rape, since it happened. He just carried on as usual. It had got to Kenny though. He thought about the girl a lot. Her haunted face came to him in his dreams. It had affected him more than he liked to admit. The revulsion he had felt when he saw what Sean had been doing was so intense, it took all his will power not to batter the life out of him.

  But it was this strange connection between them that had stopped him. If anybody else had called him in the middle of the night and landed him in the shit Sean had, they wouldn’t be standing now. Because it was Sean though and because of the feelings Kenny harboured for him, he covered it up and played it Sean’s way.

  The doorbell interrupted Kenny’s thoughts and he sighed heavily. He needed the diversion that was on the other side of the front door and decided there was nothing he could do now, apart from wait and see what happens. In the meantime, he was going to let the prostitute weave his magic and make him forget about Sean Fergus for a while.

  * * *

  George Anderson looked straight down the barrel of theshot gun. Then he smiled at Sean.

  “Not my chosen weapon.” George said jovially.

  It wasn’t what the boy was expecting and it unnerved him slightly. Considering he was straddled over the man, who was lying in bed and had just been woken up, with a gun poked in his ribs.

  Sean wasn’t about to show his disconcertment though and smiled a cheeky grin down at George.

  “Completely misunderstood the shotgun is; a bit like me really. This beauty has more than a few advantages. For a start she is reliable, with still and moving targets, just in case you make a run for it.”

  He stroked the barrel tenderly and then continued chatting away, knowing that if he kept his cool, he would unnerve George a lot more. He was, after all, at the advantage.

  He had the gun and he knew that George was alone in the house; the house that would very soon be his.

  He had been watching the place for the last two hours.

  He had scouted every inch of the vast grounds that came with it, investigated the two large outer buildings that sat at the back of the house and had a good look round the various rooms inside, before he had ventured up to George’s bedroom.

  The first thing he was going to change was the security system. He had just waltzed straight in. No security lights, no burglar alarm, nothing; not even a dog. Just a normal lock, that set Sean back about thirty seconds. He wasn’t sure if George was really that stupid, or whether he was just so cock sure nobody would ever come after him.

  “It has gigantic stopping power at short range, you see; more than the hand guns and rifles. Gotta know how to handle one though.” Sean jumped down from the bed and pulled the sheet off, exposing a naked and vulnerable George.

  “People think the shotgun is great for untrained shooters, amateurs, but truth is, at close range like now, the distance from me to you, the spread of the shot is not very large and the skill in aiming is essential.” He went on, enjoying the confusion in the older villain’s face, watching his facial expressions change, from disbelief, to a final realisation of what was really happening. That this was a hit.

  “Whatever you’re getting, I’ll double it.” He pleaded.

  Sean just laughed. “There isn’t a price tag on this job George. This is about my freedom from you all. Now… let’s take a little walk shall we.”

  George slowly rose from his bed and looked around for his robe, more an automatic move, rather than a need to cover his dignity.

  Sean guessed what he was doing. “You don’t need to get dressed mate, come as you are.”

  He shoved the end of the gun against George’s chest to show his impatience. George took the hint and instinctively put his hands up. He stood, a little unsteadily and nodded at Sean.

  “Outside then, son.” He beckoned in the direction of the bedroom door. The sarcastic ‘son’ reference was not lost on Georg
e. It was what the older villains called the up and coming talent. He himself had referred to Sean as son, or boy, many times and Sean’s ironic affront had not gone unnoticed.

  The cold eastern wind whipped itself around George as they walked from the house, across the garden and over to one of the outer buildings. Once inside, George immediately realised that Sean had been here, before coming to get him.

  He also realised that Sean had no intention of letting him die a graceful and quick death.

  An overwhelming smell of sulphur clung to the air. In the centre of the floor stood a tripod with a small handheld video camera and a tin bath tub filled, George correctly guessed, with sulphuric acid.

  Wide eyed and panic stricken, George turned round to face Sean.

  “There is no need for all of this. Just shoot me and let that be it.”

  “Oh I’m gonna shoot you George, don’t you worry about that old boy.” Sean shoved George towards the bath, his eyes begun to sting from the overpowering aroma.

  It didn’t seem to affect Sean though as he walked over to the camera and turned it on. Then he pointed the shotgun back at the naked man. He didn’t say anything. He knew his silence would make George babble like a baby and he was right.

  “This really doesn’t need to happen Sean.” George began, almost straight away. He kept looking at the gun and then back at the bath behind him. “I can give you your freedom.

  We can take out Jarvis and the Jewish cunt together. I can give you whatever you want.”

  “Why would I take out Kenny?” Sean’s voice boomed around the building. It echoed out into the night, where the dark blue sky was slowly beginning to lighten.

  The dawn chorus had begun, indicating the day would soon be upon them. Sean raised the gun to his eye line.

  George began to sob. He pleaded and begged with Sean, to spare his life. He even went as far as to say he would work for him, that he would give up his position and hand it to Sean, in exchange for his life.

  It fascinated Sean, how panic and fear could reduce the hardest of men to a quivering mess. He had an uncanny knack of tuning into people’s weaknesses and insecurities.