Ruthless a Gripping and Gritty Crime Thriller

by Charlie Gallagher

  ‘I told you already, I ain’t no common drug dealer. Don’t be worrying yourself.’

  Suddenly there was a knock at the door. The curtains had been pulled and the only light was from a weak bulb hanging over the table. Mo moved to the wall so he could get an angled view through the gap in the curtains towards the front door. He looked a little tense. Almost immediately, his body relaxed. He moved to open the front door. William couldn’t see the door from his position and he couldn’t move quickly enough on his leg. He stayed still, listening for the conversation.

  ‘Hey!’ Mo greeted the visitor.

  ‘Need a reload.’ The voice was urgent, it sounded similar to Aaron but it wasn’t him — the same accent that London street gangs always seemed to have. He’d heard it a lot recently.

  ‘Already?’

  ‘Business is good!’

  William heard the scuffle of feet. He stepped round to see another black guy entering the house. He was around the same age — a little older maybe — definitely stronger built. He gave no reaction. It was as if William wasn’t there at all.

  ‘Who are you?’ William demanded.

  The man did now look over. He looked William up and down. ‘I’m with Aaron.’

  ‘I asked who you were, not who you were with. This is my house. What are you doing in my house?’

  ‘This is Aaron’s house. Who I am don’t mean nothing.’ He stepped a few paces towards William and looked him up and down again. He sucked at his teeth, his expression one of disgust. He stepped in closer, so close William could smell the sickly energy drink he held in his hand. He was dressed similarly to Mo, baggy jeans that were tied off tight over his thighs, his underwear visible over the top, a black T-shirt and a Nike rucksack with string handles that hung loose on his back.

  ‘This is my house.’ William held his ground.

  ‘Keep your mouth shut and you might be able to stay here. You’re just as pathetic as Aaron said, man. Now get back in your fucking corner before I put you there. You don’t know who we are — and you don’t want me showing you.’

  ‘You’re a fucking boy! Two boys who think they can come in here and tell me what to do. I’ve seen a million of you and not one has impressed me.’

  ‘This impress you?’ The boy held eye contact, his right hand came up smoothly, William was sure he was holding a blade. Though William didn’t stare at it directly, he thought it was a large kitchen knife, but he kept his eyes on the boy whose face was now a sneer. He felt something sharp push into his cheek, just below his eye.

  ‘That doesn’t impress me at all.’ William leant into it a little.

  ‘Maybe I should run it through your gut. See if that does the trick.’

  ‘You ever done that before? You ever stabbed anyone? Takes nothing to carry one of them. Takes nothing to pull one either. Takes a bit of something to stick it in someone. Trust me on that.’

  The boy stepped back. William was suddenly aware that he couldn’t move quickly in any direction. The knife spun in the lad’s hand, it was thrust back towards him. The lad struck him hard in the thigh with a closed fist that was bunched around the handle of the knife and increased the power of the blow. The pain was instant and excruciating. William’s legs were so tender to touch that the boy might as well have used the blade. The pain took him off his feet and he fell onto the kitchen floor where the cold tiles pressed against his cheek.

  ‘You stand against me again and the next time you don’t get up, you get me?’

  William tried to get his breathing under control. He didn’t want to show how much he was hurting. He didn’t reply.

  ‘Pathetic fucking rummy.’ He heard the boy spit. A warm clump of it fell onto this neck and chin. He recoiled.

  The boy stepped away. From his vantage point on the floor he could see Mo standing a few paces away, still with the same expression and facing the lad who had just punched him to the floor. Mo handed him a package and then held out a small, round tub with the lid off. The lad declined it.

  ‘I’m good.’ He stepped out of sight.

  William didn’t think he had left as Mo looked like he was still watching him. He heard some breathing noises, a sharp intake of breath and then a scuffle of clothes. The front door opened and closed. Mo sniffed and walked out of sight. He appeared a few seconds later with the bottle of rum. There was two-thirds of it left. He placed it next to where William had managed to drag himself and was now sitting, propped against a kitchen cupboard. Mo went back to his table and got busy again. William knew it would be some time before he’d be able to get up. He reached out for the bottle.

  Chapter 8

  ‘I’m so glad you called!’ Rhiannon looked up to see Sam hanging out of the passenger window of a smart-looking white car. It pulled alongside her. The rear windows were blacked out. Rhiannon could see through the front to the driver. She didn’t recognise him. He was black and had a bit of a baby face. Rhiannon didn’t think he looked old enough even to be driving the car.

  ‘I know I said I would walk back, but I didn’t fancy the crowd, you know.’

  ‘Shit meeting?’

  Rhiannon nodded.

  ‘They always are,’ Sam said. ‘No crowds then. Just my fella and Danny. Get in the back and I’ll introduce you!’ Sam almost squealed with excitement. Rhiannon pulled the back door open and she saw Danny, who scrambled immediately over to the seat on the other side.

  ‘Hey!’ he said.

  ‘Hey.’ Rhiannon could feel herself blushing all over again. She wasn’t sure why and it angered her a little. She didn’t want to be out blushing at boys. That was for other girls: silly little girls who hadn’t been through what she had in the last few days. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe she should have gone somewhere quiet, where she could think about what she was going to do next. No one had said anything helpful in the meeting with Social Services but one message had been clear: they would never allow her to go back to her mum.

  ‘You okay?’ Danny said. Those brown eyes seemed to carry genuine concern.

  ‘I’ll be fine.’

  ‘You wanna talk about it?’ he persisted.

  ‘Nah.’

  He held his palms up. ‘Then I won’t ask again.’

  The heat in Rhiannon’s cheeks intensified. ‘Sorry, it was shit. There’s nothing much else to say.’

  ‘Well, we should go somewhere that isn’t. You hungry or anything? I would love a milkshake. My treat, yeah?’

  Sam had turned and was beaming into the back. ‘You two are so cute together! Don’t you think they’re cute together, Rosh?’

  ‘If you say so, woman.’

  Sam slapped him playfully on the arm. ‘Don’t call me that!’

  ‘You are my woman!’

  Sam turned to the back. ‘Rhiannon, this is Rosh. He’s my man. So you wanna go to McDonald’s?’

  ‘Sure. Hey, Rosh, nice car!’ Rhiannon called out. She rubbed at the leather. They pulled away. Rosh didn’t respond.

  ‘It’s a BMW!’ Sam squealed.

  McDonald’s was ten minutes away. Rosh abandoned the car on double yellow lines and strode inside, leaving them all trailing behind. He then barked his order at the young girl stood behind the counter. Already, Rhiannon didn’t like him. He seemed to speak down to everyone. He struck her instantly as brash and obnoxious. They all ordered to take away and were quickly back in the car. Rhiannon hadn’t spoken to Danny on the journey. She had looked over a couple of times and exchanged a shy smile, but Sam was in control of the stereo system — and the volume. Conversation was impossible. Rosh moved them a little further away to where he found a parking bay and immediately tore at his brown bag of food. He switched the engine off and the music turned off with it. Rhiannon dropped her window. She only had a milkshake; everyone else was eating something.

  ‘So this car, is it yours, Rosh?’ Rosh, she thought, what sort of a name was that anyway?

  ‘Mine to use,’ came the curt reply. Rhiannon could see the back of his neck throug
h the headrest. He made no effort to turn and engage with her.

  ‘So it’s not yours.’ She pressed, disliking him more every second.

  ‘It’s a company car.’

  ‘What do you do for a job?’

  ‘I don’t answer questions, that’s for sure.’

  ‘Rosh!’ Sam hit him harder on the arm. ‘She’s my friend. She’s just making conversation.’ Sam turned to the back. ‘It’s his boss’s car. Rosh lets me drive it sometimes too. Maybe he’ll let you drive it later if you want to? When it gets dark, like.’

  ‘It’s okay. I’ll wait. I wouldn’t like to drive it without the actual owner’s permission.’

  The silence that fell was a little awkward. Rhiannon had intended for it to be.

  ‘So, how long are you at the house for?’ Sam said.

  ‘I don’t know now. I don’t know what they’re going to do with me,’ Rhiannon mumbled. She watched a family of four walk past. She had seen them round a table in McDonald’s. The two parents were led by two toddlers, holding hands and giggling. They had a balloon each and were dressed the same. Not a care in the world, Rhiannon thought.

  Sam faced her in the back. ‘They don’t know their arse from their elbow that lot. Fucking useless. I ain’t ever heard of them sorting someone out, doing a good job.’

  Rhiannon turned her face away, looking back out of the window.

  Danny nudged her gently. ‘You fancy a walk? There are some shops, nothing much. Rosh don’t mind picking us up in a bit, right?’

  Rhiannon found herself smiling, she did want to get out of that car and away from Rosh. But she wasn’t sure that was why she was smiling.

  * * *

  McDonald’s was part of Ashford’s pedestrianised High Street. As they turned into it, an old man was singing as loud as he could while sat on top of a wooden box. His singing was terrible, a little slurred even, and he was beating the box out of time. Danny’s and Rhiannon’s eyes met and they chuckled. Rhiannon peeled off to find a bin for her cup. She dropped a coin with the busker on her way back.

  ‘You’re different.’ Danny had thrust his hands into his pockets and stopped walking to watch her.

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘I dunno really. You’re not like the rest of us, are you? I mean, you don’t really belong here, having all this shit.’

  ‘I don’t know who does. Anyone can have a bit of a rough time.’

  ‘I dunno. It’s difficult to explain. I just think you should be with a good family. With a proper mum and dad, in a posh house and in school an’ that. You don’t drink, don’t smoke, you don’t talk shit like we do. I mean, you’re not Sam are you?’

  ‘Only Sam can be!’

  They both chuckled. ‘You know what I mean though?’ Danny said.

  Rhiannon shrugged.

  ‘It’s not like you’re better, I mean, maybe it is. I think that’s it . . . you’re better than all this shit. You’re better than a loser mum and a kid’s home. You shouldn’t be here. You ever feel that?’

  Rhiannon started walking down the High Street. Danny walked alongside her, his hands still in his pockets.

  ‘Sometimes I think things will never be any different. I get frustrated. I try to be a good person. I think that good people have good things happen for them. I do worry that I won’t ever have that. And I don’t know why.’

  Danny pulled his hand out of his pocket and hooked his arm around hers. He pulled her in closer and she smiled at him. They both smiled as they continued walking.

  * * *

  Aaron walked through the front door of William’s bungalow on his mobile phone, holding two pizza boxes. He dropped one on the table in front of Mo, who was still busy. Aaron continued through to the kitchen and ended his call. William could hear running water. Aaron walked back in and addressed Mo.

  ‘Strong day. Business is good down here.’

  ‘The drug business.’ William called out from where he was sat on the sofa.

  Aaron turned to face him. His expression didn’t change as he spoke to William. ‘I’m gonna need you to use your bedroom. You can’t be out here.’

  ‘What the fuck?’ William pulled himself up straighter, though his mind was foggy with alcohol. ‘What the fuck are you talking about? I’ve been waiting for you to come back so I can tell you to fuck off. You need to leave. I know what you lot are doing from here and I won’t have it.’

  ‘You know nothing. You need to go into your bedroom and you need to stay there. It’ll be for a few days.’

  ‘Get the fuck out of my house! Get out tonight and maybe I’ll stay quiet about your little setup here. I’ll give you a few hours’ head start. That should give you enough time to get back to London. I know that’s where you’re all from.’

  Aaron walked over so he was stood directly over where William sat. William suddenly felt very vulnerable. Aaron was a big man, even bigger up close. William had been a fighter once, dirty and headstrong. He was never the biggest, but his attitude and determination had always carried him through. He couldn’t be that way anymore.

  ‘I’ll make you two promises,’ Aaron hissed. ‘You’d do well to listen to me. If you do as you’re asked, if you go into your bedroom and stay the fuck out of my way, you’ll be just fine. That’s my first promise. My second promise . . . if you don’t do what I ask, you have my word: they will never find your body. Do I make myself clear?’

  William could only reply with a jerked nod.

  ‘I’ll have your bedroom cleared. You can come out to shit and heat your food. Anything else is none of your fucking business. It’s a very simple rule. Stick to it and you’ll be fine. We clear?’

  William gave another nod.

  Aaron managed a smile of sorts. ‘I gotta go back out. You want some more rum?’

  William nodded again.

  ‘Of course you fucking do.’

  Chapter 9

  Rhiannon felt tired all of a sudden. She was sitting in the communal living room of her temporary home after spending an hour in town with Danny. They’d bought another milkshake and then he’d walked her to the bus station. She hadn’t wanted to meet back up with Sam or her obnoxious boyfriend. Sam was still out with Rosh. Rhiannon didn’t know where they would end up, but Danny had hinted that he might know and this had reinforced her decision to come home early. Rhiannon was watching some terrible American police show where a body was discovered in suspicious circumstances and a group of attractive forensic scientists took the rest of the forty-minute episode to piece together how it had got there and who was responsible. Her aunty had loved it; she always made Rhiannon watch, trying to second-guess what technique they would use to crack the case this time. Rhiannon had always protested, but tonight she found a strange comfort in having it on in the background. She still hadn’t cried for her aunt, not really, and she was starting to feel almost guilty about it. Meeting Danny, walking hand-in-hand with a milkshake and pulling faces in glass shopfronts — it had been a normal day. How could she have had a normal day so soon after her poor aunt was gone forever? She wanted to be sad, she wanted to sob, to mourn her loss. But she just felt empty, accepting that this was how her life worked out, as if she was never going to be settled with people she loved without something going wrong.

  Her vision blurred as she gazed listlessly at the television, lost in her thoughts. She was suddenly aware that the channel had been changed when the audience’s laughter in a panel show cut through her thoughts. She turned to a girl who now sat on the sofa opposite. She must have removed the remote control from the arm of Rhiannon’s chair. The girl still held it out and the channel changed again. She had something in her other hand, which she gnawed at absently.

  ‘Hey,’ Rhiannon said in greeting.

  The girl did nothing to acknowledge her.

  ‘I’m Rhiannon. I came last night? I guess you’re Anais, right?’

  The girl still ignored her completely.

  ‘Or should I just call you rude bitch?’ Rhian
non felt her neck and cheeks suddenly burn with the one emotion she was getting good at: anger.

  ‘What did you call me?’ The girl faced her now at least. She had a larger build and was pale-skinned. Her hair was so black it had to be dyed, her lips two flashes of scowling red.

  ‘I said hello.’

  ‘So what? You think you can talk to me just because you’re the latest freak they stick in the emergency squat through there? Another down-and-out street rat.’

  ‘Oh, well it seems I misjudged you. You’re not a rude bitch after all.’

  ‘I’m whatever I need to be for you to stay the hell away from me. I’m sick of it. I’m sick of you lot coming in here thinking you own the place.’

  ‘I was just sat watching the TV.’ Rhiannon was suddenly overcome. She felt like she might break down and cry. She wasn’t upset or scared — just furious. She couldn’t speak; she didn’t have the words. She got to her feet to leave; she didn’t want this thing to see her cry.

  ‘Yeah, fuck off!’

  Rhiannon didn’t reply, she walked towards her room.

  Anais still called out after her. ‘Rose told you this is a shared room, right? Well, it ain’t! This is my room. You can stay the hell out!’

  Rhiannon still said nothing. She got into her room and pushed the door shut. She leant on it for a few seconds, waiting. Sure enough the tears came.

  It took a few minutes for Rhiannon to get a hold of herself. She felt angry all over again. Not at Anais — she was just a rude bitch who Rhiannon wouldn’t normally think twice about. It was more the thought that she had walked away, that her emotions had got the better of her. She stood up and rested her hand on her door handle, ready to go back out and shout Anais down, to tell her what she thought.

  Her phone vibrated in her pocket. It was a message from Danny. He said he was outside and he wanted her to come down and meet him. It was nearly 10 p.m. Rose had a curfew of 10 p.m. She had just a few minutes — just time to go down and tell him about the curfew.