When Marie backed off the bus, she pointed the weapon at the other men, who had all returned to their seats. Good job because she would have blown their faces off. Adrenaline surged through her veins. She could take all four of them if she needed to. "And remember, you degenerates; there are children on this bus. So show some respect, yeah?"
The three men stared at her but none of them replied.
The gun was heavy in Marie's grip as she walked back down the aisle. After picking her bag up, she nodded at the driver. "Thank you."
A slight nod and the driver made a fist that he bumped twice against his chest.
Once she was off the bus, Marie watched it drive away and heaved a weary sigh. Today had been too long.
As she stared into the dark alley that led her home, she jumped when the sound of someone clapping their hands came out of the gloom. In a second, her gun was out and pointing into the darkness. "Who's there?"
Chapter Fifty-Two
The shake had left Marie's limbs and her adrenaline was spent. Despite the tiredness, at least it was easier to point the gun down the alley without a wobbly arm. "Stop! Stop right there!"
But the figure continued clapping and walking forwards.
A slight squeeze on the trigger and Marie watched with unblinking eyes. Just a twitch of her finger and this fucker was down. There had been far too much bullshit for one day, and she wasn't taking it anymore.
When the person made a fist and bumped its chest twice, Marie lowered her gun slightly. "Who are you? What do you want?"
Although the figure stepped into the light, the hood it wore still veiled its face in shadow.
Marie raised her gun again and squinted to try to see better. Why were they hiding their identity? Uncertainty wavered in her voice, "I'll shoot; I swear it." She didn't sound like she'd shoot. She sounded scared.
The figure raised their hands in submission and Marie lowered her gun again as the figure pulled its hood back.
"Gina? What the fuck? I was ready to blow your head off. Why do you keep doing this to me?"
After a quick shrug, Gina pulled her hood back up. Pressing a finger against her lips, she then circled that finger in the air. There were people watching. There were always people watching.
Gina then turned around and disappeared back into the dark alley, and Marie followed her.
***
It was only when they were in the bowels of the estate that Gina spoke. "Sorry I didn't reveal myself quicker. I don't want to be seen by anyone. I thought you'd twig it was me. Nice work with those men, by the way."
"You saw that?"
"Fuck, yeah! I wish I'd recorded it." Gina then stopped and held a closed fist out to Marie.
When Marie held her hand out, she felt four small things land in her palm. It was too dark to see, but she felt the cold metal. "What are these?"
"Bullets."
"You mean…" A sinking dread fell through her. "It wasn't loaded?"
All Marie could see of Gina in the dark was a cringing silhouette. "I'm sorry. I only gave it to you to make you feel confident walking through the estate. I didn't want to leave it loaded in case you did something stupid."
"Like threaten four horrible men with it?"
"I'm sorry, but it's all about the swagger. You acted like you were prepared to shoot them and they knew it."
"What the fuck, Gina? It wasn't loaded? I threatened four men with a gun that wasn't loaded."
"I'm sorry."
"That wouldn't have made a blind bit of difference if they'd retaliated though, would it?"
When Gina didn't respond, Marie fell silent, her pulse hammering and her breathing shallow. Striding out in front of her friend, Marie made for the Single Mum's block.
***
When the strong outline of her building came into view, Marie finally stopped, panting from the fast walk.
The march had taken much less of a toll on Gina, who had obviously chosen to hold back for Marie's sake rather than an inability to keep up. "I can't believe how big this place is."
"Don't think I'm not still pissed at you."
"I'm sorry, what more can I say?"
Marie folded her arms across her chest and didn't respond.
"But look at it, it's bloody huge. It's probably big enough to register as its own state."
It wouldn't serve Marie to hold a grudge. Gina was her only friend, and god knows she needed her friend. A look up the length of the imposing block made Marie dizzy. The stagnant reek of piss and shit in the air didn't help. "It's a state of abandoned women."
The ground had squished and squelched beneath her feet too many times to count, so Marie wiped her shoes against a nearby wall before setting off again. "Come on, let's go."
***
As soon as she stepped inside, Marie was hit with a wall of bright lights and shouting. What the fuck? It took a few seconds of blinking against the glare before her view cleared a little.
First, she saw a camera.
Then police.
Before she could look for anything else, someone grabbed a hold of her arm, bent it up behind her back, and charged with her towards a wall. Her forehead connected first, sending a sharp sting crashing through her face, and her world tilted like she was about to fall. Although her legs turned bandy, she just about remained upright.
The activity around her mixed with her dizziness. What the hell was going on? What were the police doing here?
When her arm was pushed further towards the back of her head, Marie's shoulder burned and she screamed. Her arm felt like it was going to pop out of its socket.
There was a strong smell of cigarette smoke as a man shouted in her ear. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"
It was hard to get her words past her crying. "I… I live here."
"And who's the other woman?"
"My friend, she's my friend." Hot tears ran down her face. "Please, you're hurting me."
"It's no less than you deserve, estate rat."
"I'm pregnant."
The man kicked her legs away and she hit the floor, hip first. The burning bruise ran up her side and down her leg.
The cameras moved in and Marie covered her face. The last thing she needed was Doug seeing her there.
The man leaned over her and shouted again. "Someone's throwing women over the balconies; what do you know about it?"
Before Marie could answer, the ground shook and the officer looked away. That was her moment. Marie jumped to her feet, hobbling from the pain in her hip, and then helped Gina up.
Everyone was staring at yet another broken form pressed against the solid floor in the middle of the building. Marie grabbed Gina's hand and led her to the stairs. They needed to get out of there while they still had a chance.
***
After closing the door to her flat, Marie leaned against it and breathed heavily. The quick escape up the stairs had taken everything out of her. Her forehead, right shoulder, and hip all throbbed with equal intensity. After the day she'd had, and it was the fucking police that had caused her the most damage. Welcome to the life of an estate rat. "Are you okay, Gina?"
Dazed and staring into space, Gina didn't respond.
"They're fucking brutal out here, eh?"
The fog on Gina's face lifted and she looked up. "Come and live with me, please?"
"No."
"You need to get off the estate. This is no place for a pregnant woman. Hell, it's no place for anyone."
With the palm of her hand raised, Marie said, "Stop. It's been a long day and I don't want to talk about it, okay? I've made up my mind; now please don't make it any harder for me."
Gina didn't reply.
As Marie walked into the kitchen, she shook her head. "What the fuck was that about, anyway? Those women aren't being killed. It's blatant suicide."
"All they need is an excuse to come in and frighten people," Gina said. "If they can do it under the guise of women being murdered, then they will."
A long s
igh and Marie looked at Jules first and then Gina. "Coffee?"
The lights on Jules sprang to life. "Did someone say coffee?"
The slightest smile broke through Gina's shock. "Hi, Jules."
"Miss GG, how wonderful it is to see you. Can I make you a coffee?"
"That would be lovely. Thank you, Jules."
It was almost sickening to watch the pair of them carry on. "You're like a couple of lovebirds. Are you going to offer me anything, Jules?"
"No!"
"Charming. This is why you fixed him, isn't it, Gina? Because he makes you coffee."
"He's got to fulfil his purpose."
"Exactly, thank you, Miss GG—finally, someone who understands me."
Marie rolled her eyes. "It's so unfair, eh, Jules? Jesus, you're like living with a moody teenager."
While they'd been talking, Jules had made Gina's coffee. Instead of taking it to her, Marie stood aside as Gina walked over to the machine and removed the cup. She cradled it with both hands. "A moody teenager that makes damn fine coffee."
"Thank you again, Miss GG."
As Gina sipped on the steaming drink, she looked down at Marie's stomach. "Have you felt any movement?"
Marie's gaze dropped to the floor and she couldn't speak past the lump in her throat.
Gina got the hint and said, "Okay, so tell me about Doug. What happened?"
"It was a fucking disaster. I fucked up royally. Although, he did admit he was cutting corners."
"Cutting corners?"
"To keep the budget low."
"But how?"
"He wouldn't say, and I'm not sure I'll be able to get it out of him after what happened tonight. I'm not sure I'll even have a job to go back to on Monday."
"It was that bad? What happened?"
Although she opened her mouth to reply, exhaustion washed over Marie and she dropped her head. "I don't really want to talk about it. It's been a long day."
Chapter Fifty-Three
The problem with going out with Doug on a Friday night was that Marie had to wait until Monday morning to realise just how much she'd fucked up. And sometimes he didn't even turn up to work on a Monday.
The nerves and stuffy commute combined to create a potent, nauseous mix that turned her stomach inside out. So when Marie walked through the front doors of the prison, she was just about ready to puke. On her way to the bathroom, Marie had to pass Sandy, the receptionist. The mother hen of Rixon loved to be involved in everyone's business and, if the twinkle in her eye was anything to go by, it was with great pleasure that she said, "Marie, Doug wants to see you in his office before you do anything else."
Seriously? Now? What an arsehole! A hard swallow did nothing to lower the bile lifting in her throat. Marie changed direction and headed for Doug's office. Sandy didn't get or deserve a response.
The shiny wooden door was large and imposing. Marie knocked so hard it stung her knuckles.
"Enter."
What a dick!
When Marie stepped into the room, she screwed her nose up at the reek of flatulence. It was as if the man permanently leaked gas like an ever-deflating bag of rancid air. The genesis of a heave stirred in the bottom of her throat and her palms started to sweat.
"Ah, Marie, Sandy told you to come and see me, I presume?"
"She did."
A quick glance at the spare seat in his office and Doug looked back at Marie without offering it to her. "What was Friday night about?" While his tone was even, his face reddened as he stared at her.
"I felt sick. I'm really sorry, Dougie—"
"Doug."
"Right." Marie wiped her sweating palms against her trousers and continued. "I'm really sorry, Doug, but I had to leave. It was a good job I did because I was sick everywhere when I got home." Just talking about vomiting was encouraging her churning gut to reject its contents.
"Then why are you in today?"
"I think it was more to do with the amazing food you bought for me." With her hand on her stomach—having still not felt a kick—she said, "I'm not used to such luxury. You treated me a little too well, I think." She forced a smile.
At that moment, Doug dropped his eyes to his desk and twirled a pen between his fingers. "I'm not sure I need you for the rest of this week."
A jolt ran through Marie's chest. She'd still not found anything incriminating. "Why don't you need me?"
Doug examined his fingernails. "Dunno, just not sure we need another worker in the control room."
The temperature of the room seemed to rise by a few degrees. A tug on her collar did nothing to make her feel better and Marie gulped a mouthful of the stale air. Why was she so foolish to think she had control over this relationship? Why didn't she play it smarter?
"I think I have to question if I can trust you on my staff."
"Trust me? Of course, you can trust me. If this is because of Friday night, then I'm sorry, I truly am, but I didn't want to vomit all over you. That would hardly be attractive, now would it?"
A slight pause and Doug looked up at her again, hope in his eyes. "I suppose you're right."
The thing about Doug was he always took the opportunity to save his precious ego. Give him a chance to not feel like a prick and he'd take it with both hands. "I am right. Please give me another chance. Let's go out again. I'll show you the best time you've ever had. I was so sad about how Friday turned out."
It was only when Doug lifted it up that Marie noticed the sandwich on his desk. After he'd taken a bite, a trace of mayonnaise remained at the corner of his mouth. It looked like pus. "So you actually want to go out with me again?"
The nod she replied with had maybe a little too much enthusiasm, and Marie forced the biggest smile she could muster. Better to be too keen than not keen enough. "Of course, only if you'll have me on another date, that is?"
The anger was melting before her eyes. Behind his rage was the panic of a fat little boy who clearly still believed he would never get a date; the boy who—no matter who he asked—would always arrive at the prom alone.
When Doug took another bite of the sandwich, Marie got a whiff of the prawns inside it. Imaging the metallic taste of bad seafood, she turned to look at the door. How much longer did he want her for?
A creak sounded out as Doug stretched back in his seat, and his shirt came untucked in the process. It was hard to ignore the exposed strip of flesh. It was covered with the angry red scratches of stretch marks. After rubbing what was clearly a sweaty belly, Doug stuck his fat fingers in his mouth to pick the food from between his teeth and burped. This was a man in control of the situation. He was a man who suddenly didn't give a fuck about how he came across because Marie was in his pocket.
With sweat standing out on her back, Marie covered her mouth as if it would calm her sickness. Was he trying to make her feel worse? "Can I go now please, Doug? I need to use the bathroom."
The last of Doug's irritation melted from his face and he made a gun with his fingers. "We'll sort our next date out soon then. Don't go changing, darling."
Without replying, Marie rushed out and raced towards the bathroom, her heavy bag swinging from her shoulder as she ran.
***
Another heave made Marie's eyes water so badly she could barely see where she was going. It stung her foot when she kicked the heavy door open and rushed into the bathroom.
Except, it wasn't the bathroom… The nausea left her as she looked around. Where was she?
The walls were made from unfinished concrete. It looked like a maintenance corridor. The air was cool against her hot skin, but it carried a strange smell. It was damp, but there was something beneath the mossy reek of rot.
There was a bend in the corridor that she couldn't see around. Should she just go back to the toilet? What was she even doing here?
A glance at the door she'd just walked through and Marie scratched her face. No, she had to see where this corridor led. She bit her bottom lip and held her breath as she listened for people. The
re were none; or at least none that she could hear. She took a deep breath and walked farther along the corridor.
After three sharp turns, Marie found herself in a huge, open space and the smell beneath the damp hit her with both barrels. The fetid, muddy reek of human waste hung so heavy in the air she could virtually see it.
A sharp contortion and her stomach flipped. The thick paste, which was previously her breakfast, burned as it rose up her throat and her mouth stretched wide as she vomited on the floor. The wet pattering rang out in the cavernous space.
Seconds later, another wave flipped through her and she was sick again.
While wiping her mouth with the back of her sleeve, Marie rested her hands on her knees and took her first proper look at the room. She stood up straight again and her jaw fell open. With wide eyes, she scanned her surroundings. "Oh. My. God!"
Chapter Fifty-Four
Marie froze as she stood before the lavish black door trimmed with brass filigree. An estate rat shouldn't be here, even if it was the house of her best friend—her only friend, in fact—but this was too important for her to leave now. She'd already spent the entire day keeping it to herself; there was no way she could go home tonight and not share it with another human being.
She looked behind her. There was no one around. No one had worked out what she'd seen yet, and why would they? She hadn't revealed it yet. It was another reason why she couldn't go home. If they found her now, before she'd made a copy of this stuff… Well, that just couldn't happen. This was the chance she'd been waiting for and she wasn't going to fuck it up.
Marie knocked on the door and then looked around, chewing the inside of her mouth. "Come on, Gina, hurry up." When Gina answered the door, she was dressed in just a nightie; her perfectly toned legs poking out from the bottom of what was essentially an oversized T-shirt.
New Reality 2: Justice Page 26
