by Anita Waller
‘We don’t drive off? We stay here?’ Carl said, wondering if he really was stupid after all.
‘We can go in your house, if it makes you feel any better, but I think Vinnie’s mother is in there, and I’m pretty sure Daryl will be. It would be better if they didn’t hear what I need to say.’
Carl walked slowly around the car bonnet and opened the passenger door. ‘Five minutes,’ he said.
‘It might take longer,’ Kenny said, and Carl could hear the stress in his voice. He’d always seen Kenny as a super-confident, do anything to anyone kind of guy, but his tone now suggested a change.
Carl sat in the passenger seat, his hand automatically going to the seatbelt.
‘We’re not going anywhere,’ Kenny said. ‘I’m telling you, we’re here to talk. First of all, how’s your lad?’
‘Leave him out of it. I don’t want that bastard knowing anything about him. He doesn’t know owt about the bloody consignment. He’s eleven years old, for crying out loud.’
‘I was asking because I wanted to know,’ Kenny responded. ‘Believe me, Grausohn won’t be told anything. And I don’t want to know who the rest of the kids are.’
‘Grausohn does. And Daryl’s doing okay. Still in pain, but he’s alive.’ Carl gave the information grudgingly.
‘I know. Let me ask you a question, Carl. Do you want out?’
‘I am out.’
‘No, you’re not. You walk away from Grausohn, and he won’t rest until you’re dead. Nobody leaves his organisation. As soon as they’re in, they already know too much to ever be allowed to leave. So, you’re not out, not yet. But we can help each other with this.’
Carl felt his mind go blank. He didn’t think he was hearing this properly. It seemed that the great right-hand man of Grausohn didn’t want to be in that position any longer. Carl stared out of the side window, waiting for Kenny to expand on his words.
‘Go on,’ he encouraged.
‘I want out as well,’ Kenny said. ‘But it’s even harder for me. You, he would kill, me – he would kill me painfully. The only way we can get out is by him dying.’
‘Whoa!’ Carl put his hand on the car door handle. ‘I’m no murderer, Kenny. Don’t bring me into this.’
‘You want to see Daryl strung up by his arms, having the soles of his feet burnt with a blow torch?’
Carl took his hand off the door handle.
‘The fact that Daryl is a child won’t make any difference to Grausohn. He hates kids anyway. And if it’s not Daryl he eventually snatches, it will be one of the other kids. You ready to listen now?’
Carl nodded. He felt sick.
‘Okay. This isn’t thought through fully, so feel free to add your own ideas. Have you ever been in the lounge in the penthouse?’
‘Once. He asked me to go and look for his mobile phone.’
‘Can you remember the layout? Large room, raised area at one end with a dining table, and patio doors leading off it, onto a small balcony.’
‘Didn’t take a lot of notice, but I remember the raised area.’ Carl’s brow furrowed as he tried to picture what Kenny was describing.
‘Right, the first thing you need to know is there’s a new man, Fraser. He’s taken over from Tommy.’
‘Tommy? Why, what’s happened to Tommy?’
Kenny extended two fingers and pointed to his heart.
‘Shit. But Tommy was his main man…’
‘Exactly. I’m currently the main man, but I reckon Fraser’s got plans. He had to get out of London, and he’s arrived here. The system has always been we finish sometime between five and seven for the day, then we have alternate weeks on call should anything be needed during the night. There’s usually at least two nights in the week when I have to go back to see the boss. And there have been times when I’ve come across something, so I call him and tell him I need to see him. He gets rid of anybody he may be with, and I go up to the penthouse. We usually end up having a drink and a chat, then I go home.’
‘Am I going to like where this is going?’
‘You’ll be safe. I’ll have your back.’ Kenny looked at him and knew Carl was hoping he could believe him.
Kenny paused for a moment, as if trying to get his thoughts in order. ‘The plan is that I ring Grausohn and tell him you’ve come to me with the list of the names. I’ll say it’s taken a while to track them all down, especially after the death of that young lass, Ella.’ He stopped once more, allowing the mention of his daughter to wash over him.
‘I’m not giving him the list.’
‘I want you to hand over a list that will look feasible. Make up the names from the initials and put in fictitious addresses. He has to believe it for maybe half an hour, and you could come out of it ten thousand pounds richer. Once the business end is out of the way, and he has what he wants with that list, he’ll offer us a drink. Be prepared to talk about anything German. He talks a lot about Auschwitz. Then, he’ll offer us a cigar, and we always go out onto the balcony to smoke it. He won’t have smoking in the lounge.’
Carl stared at Kenny. ‘We’re going to chuck him over the balcony?’
‘We are. And the second he’s gone, we have to go. We don’t want to be bumping into Gerda on her way back from bingo, or wherever she’s been.’
Carl felt sick. He was a bit player, earning insignificant amounts of money, enough to keep things ticking over nicely. It seemed he was stepping up a notch.
‘What if Gerda is there?’ Carl heard the stress in his own voice.
‘She won’t be. She goes out every night. She once told me he insisted she go out, because the evenings were kept for the shadier of his dealings, and he didn’t want her hearing anything. She’s at bingo most nights, got a feller there, so I understand. We don’t need to worry about Gerda. And as it will be my week on call, we don’t need to worry about Fraser Blake, either.’
‘And when did you think we might do this?’
‘I’m on call from next Sunday to the following Saturday. Shall we say Thursday? We can fine tune things during the week, make sure we have everything down perfectly.’
‘I dunno, mate. I’ve got the kid to think about now. We’re not getting rid of the body, are we? It’s gonna be splattered all over the ground. The police will probably be there within five minutes.’
‘We’ll have alibis. They’ll not tie us to it.’
‘CCTV?’
‘The cameras are dummies. Not one of them works. Grausohn likes all his minions to think they’re for real, but his belief is that if the law got hold of CCTV recordings, it would be a bad thing for his business. And he’s fuckin’ right about that. If that camera in the lift had been genuine when Tommy took out Johanna…’
‘You’re certain none of them work?’
‘Definitely. Don’t think this Fraser bloke knows it yet, though. I’d been there a year before I found out. Grausohn will only tell people on a need-to-know basis, and only when they’ve proved loyalty.’
‘All I need is an alibi?’
‘Yeah, and I think you’ve probably got one in your house.’
‘Daryl? Not an earthly, I’m not dragging him into it.’ Carl shook his head angrily.
‘I don’t mean Daryl. That was Vinnie Walmsley’s mother I saw going in, wasn’t it?’
Carl grinned. ‘Yeah, and she spotted you, mate.’
‘I wasn’t hiding, Carl. I was here to talk to you. I have information for you to give her – she’ll be your alibi, but you’ll have to tell her the truth about why you need one. You tell her Johanna Fleischer, Grausohn’s bird, killed her Vinnie. She did it on Grausohn’s orders. You’ll get your alibi.’
‘Shit. Is that true?’
‘Johanna killed him because the package that we’re all running around like headless chickens trying to find wasn’t where Vinnie had hidden it. Grausohn was miffed that she killed him, which was why he had her taken out, because it meant he couldn’t work on Vinnie to find out what had really happened to it. N
ow, I don’t think for one minute that Vinnie knew anything, but that wouldn’t have stopped Grausohn cutting off his balls or burning his feet to cinders. You must tell Aileen Walmsley all of this. She’ll work with you on that alibi. And if the police question Daryl, he’ll back you up that when he went to bed, you and Aileen were in the house and planning on watching a video. The alibi, of course, might not be necessary. There’s no reason the police would suspect the pair of us, not if we get out of there via the basement. We’ll go straight down to the bottom level once we’ve chucked him over, then send the lift back up. I’ll make sure we’re in a car with false plates, and we’ll have black hoodies. We’ll put them on before we set off, over our suits.’
‘Christ, Kenny, you’ve thought this one through all right.’ Carl was staring through the windscreen, his mind racing.
‘Carl, why would they suspect us? He’s got twenty or so people working for him, running clubs, the casino, the drugs… any one of them could have held a grudge. We need the alibi in case we’re routinely questioned. Can you hack it?’
‘If it means I’m out of it, I can hack it. You got your alibi sorted, then?’
‘My partner… he’ll cover for me. He’s only found out over the last couple of days what Grausohn’s been up to, and although he had to think it through, he’s onside now. He’s a careful man, we can trust him. And I think, once you’ve told Aileen about Vinnie’s death, we’ll be able to trust her as well.’
Carl stared at Kenny. ‘He?’
‘Yeah, he. His name is Billy Hanson, we’ve been together four years, and I’d like you and Aileen to come over next Tuesday night for a meal and a chat, finalise plans. We’ll have to work round me being on call if Grausohn rings for anything. But I need you to work on Aileen first.’
‘Shit, Kenny… you sure about all of this?’
‘Carl, if we don’t do it, he’s gonna go for those kids. I’ve lived with most things he’s done, but I can’t stomach torturing little kids. And me and Billy want a quieter life.’
‘Some bastard ran my wife off the road and killed her, so I need out like you’ve never known. I’ve got Daryl to sort, to bring up. Can’t do time, that’s a fact. So, I’m in. I’ll talk to Aileen tonight, once Daryl’s in bed. He’s still in a lot of pain, and the painkillers knock him out, so he’ll not hear what we’re talking about.’
Kenny reached into his inside pocket, and Carl stiffened, his hand automatically going towards the knife in his pocket.
Kenny grinned. ‘Carl, we’re on the same side. Here.’ He handed him a mobile phone. ‘It’s new. I’ve got one as well. Our numbers are programmed. Don’t ring me on your phone, use this one. We’ll throw them away when the job’s done.’
Carl nodded and took the phone with the hand that had gone for the knife. ‘Right. I’d better go in before Aileen comes out with a baseball bat or something. She’ll have been watching us all this time, but it’s been a long time, and she can be a bit tetchy.’ Carl laughed. ‘Text me about next Tuesday, and we can deal with details.’
He reached and opened the passenger door. This time, Kenny let him. ‘Take care, Carl,’ he said. ‘And I’m sorry about your wife and lad, look after him.’
Carl nodded, checked the road and crossed back to his house. To his surprise, he felt buoyant, excited even. This life he’d somehow managed to fall into was starting to change.
Aileen was coming down the stairs as he opened the front door. She wasn’t smiling. ‘What the…?’
He touched his lips with his fingers and shook his head. ‘Not now,’ he whispered.
She stared at him, as if trying to decide what to do, then stomped off into the kitchen. ‘I’m doing us a meal,’ she snarled.
He smiled at her. ‘And after we’ve eaten, when Daryl’s in bed, we’re going to talk. I’ll tell you everything that’s gone off.’
He continued through the kitchen and into the back garden. He could tell from Daryl’s eyes that he had been crying.
‘You okay?’ he asked, knowing it was a stupid thing to say.
Daryl shook his head. ‘No. I want my mum. It’s not fair that she’s dead. Can I have the others come up? Maybe tomorrow? They’ll make me feel better.’
‘Course you can, mate. Want the phone so you can give them a ring?’
Daryl nodded and brushed a stray tear from his cheek. He needed to tell the other five – no, four – about how brave his mum had been, saving his life and losing hers. He had to tell them. Had to.
He made the phone calls, and they promised to visit the following day, subject to availability of parents. It appeared that they couldn’t go anywhere unaccompanied, not until things had been resolved.
Carl reappeared bearing medication, and Daryl took the tablets. His shoulder was hurting, but with his leg raised on the sun lounger, his knee didn’t feel quite so bad. He suspected that as soon as he tried to put weight on it, the pain would return; for now, it was manageable. He needed to be able to walk without pain. Ella’s funeral was only a few days away, and he was going, with or without parental accompaniment.
Again, the tears leaked from his eyes, this time for his friend. He would miss her; she had been the stability in the group. Crazy ideas thought up by the others were squashed by Ella’s logic, and he knew they would miss her forever.
Aileen popped her head through the door and smiled at the young lad. ‘Daryl, you want to stay out there and have your meal on a lap tray, or do you want to sit at the table with us?’
‘I’ll come in,’ he said. ‘Eat at the table with you two. Might watch a DVD or something, later.’
‘Read a book?’ she countered.
‘Yeah. In my backpack, there’s the second Rick Riordan. I’ve not finished it. Dad’s got my first one, somewhere. He started reading it in the hotel.’
‘Your dad?’ She looked surprised. ‘Reading?’
Daryl laughed. He liked this woman. ‘I know. I’ve never seen him read before, not a book anyway. I finished book one, and he picked it up. Can you find me my backpack, please?’
She helped him into the kitchen, and his knee hurt as much as he guessed it would once he put his weight on it. ‘Bloody knee,’ he grumbled.
‘Hey, no swearing at your age,’ she said, and brought him a small stool to put underneath his foot. It would save him bending his knee.
He watched her as she continued with the meal, and then, his dad came downstairs, showered and changed.
‘You going out, Dad?’ he asked, his voice trembling.
‘No. I just wanted to change into shorts, jeans are a bit warm.’
‘Daryl wants his backpack,’ Aileen intervened. ‘His book’s in it. Is it upstairs?’
‘I’ll get it,’ Carl said. ‘I think it’s in the hallway.’
Daryl shook his head. Who was this stranger masquerading as his father? Maybe there was hope that the two of them could share a life. Once more, tears sprang to Daryl’s eyes. His mum. That was who he wanted for his childhood years, and some evil car driver had sorted out that issue.
Aileen plated up the food, and Carl, after depositing the backpack on the floor by Daryl, cut his son’s pork chop into bite-sized pieces.
‘That okay?’ he asked and showed Daryl the plate.
‘It’s fine, thanks, Dad.’ Daryl picked up his fork. It was like being a baby all over again, having to have his food cut up. The sooner he got his shoulder and his knee back in full working order, the better.
By seven o’clock, Daryl gave in. He needed to sleep; the tablets might be helping the pain, but they knocked him out.
‘Come on.’ His dad smiled. ‘Let’s get you up to bed and off to sleep. Hopefully by tomorrow, when your mates come, it won’t be feeling quite so bad.’
Aileen kissed Daryl’s forehead. ‘Sweet dreams. Shout if you need anything.’ She looked straight at Carl. ‘We’ll hear you. Your dad and I will be down here in the lounge, talking.’
Chapter 17
Aileen listened to Carl. He pa
ssed on all the information that Kenny had relayed concerning Vinnie’s death, and she said very little. He talked for what seemed hours but was, in truth, about half an hour.
He explained Kenny’s plan to get rid of Grausohn and, in view of his lack of family, probably his whole operation. She still said very little.
He continued to talk, going into as much detail as he could remember from the discussion in the car, until, in the end, he forced her to speak. ‘So, tell me what you think.’
‘I think it’s probably the truth.’
‘You do? Do we go ahead with this crazy idea, then?’
‘I think we need to talk, the four of us, around a table, before saying yea or nay. If it’s yea, that’s good, I can live with it. If it’s nay, that’s good also, because I will kill him. Maybe not in the same way, but he’ll wish he’d taken an easier route, like falling from a balcony.’ Her tone was icy. He flinched as he realised she meant it.
‘We’ll go to Kenny’s on Tuesday, then?’
‘Can we get somebody in to look after Daryl? We can’t leave him.’
Carl thought for a moment. ‘I’ll sort it. He won’t be on his own.’
Joe Walker, Sammy’s older brother, walked down to the Brownlows’ home, chatting to his sibling about a variety of subjects that covered football, girls, Xbox, and crisps.
Sammy didn’t respond; he let Joe talk. He’d too much on his mind to want a conversation.
Mark, Dom, and Freya were all waiting, ready for the trek up the hill to Daryl’s home. Freya held on to Joe’s hand all the way until they reached the path leading to the Clarkson’s front door.
Carl had been watching for their arrival, and he ushered them in and through to the back garden.
Daryl was on his sun lounger once more, feeling much better than the previous day. His knee wasn’t as painful with weight on it, and he felt he’d found the right position for his arm and shoulder to be in to rest more comfortably.
