Marwick's Reckoning - Gareth Spark

by Near To The Knuckle

  'Under lock and key,' Marwick said, looking round the room using only his eyes. He was trying not to move, as though any careless gesture he might make would hurry the death that was coming.

  Carmen seemed disappointed. 'That's a shame,' she said. 'The idea always was for he and the Stelescu's to wipe each other out. Still, I suppose he's out of the way now. He always was a fool.'

  'So it was you and the illustrated man here set this whole thing up? Why, Carmen?'

  'Money,' she said softly, 'and for the hell of it.'

  Christie was close behind him now; Marwick could smell the cigarettes on his breath. 'You want me to take him away and pop him, or shall we do it here?' He asked, his thick accent chewing the words.

  'It may as well be here,' she said. 'We're never coming back after tonight.'

  Christie lifted Marwick by the collar. He was strong and Marwick was soon on his feet. 'Come on, big man,' he said, 'let's go through to the bathroom.'

  'You don't want to do this Carmen,' he said, his voice high with desperation. 'The Firm'll figure it out the same as I did. They'll come looking for the money. Let me help.'

  'And what will they find?' Carmen laughed. She stood. 'The trail ends with you, Marwick. Thank you for the concern, it is most touching.'

  Christie nudged Marwick's shoulder and motioned to the doorway. Marwick pushed himself against the other man, causing him to pause. 'So where is he, Carmen?'

  'Where is who?' She replied slowly, running her fingers along the length of the CZ–99, rotating it in her fingers and studying the fire's glow in the black sheen of metal.

  'You know who.'

  Christie pushed Marwick back into the room. 'You're right,' he said, pulling up the sleeves of his tracksuit top. Stubble was growing back on the top of his shaved head and it looked like an animal's fur in the soft light. 'He did know.'

  Carmen put her head to one side and her thick black hair fell across her shoulder. Her eyes twinkled with pleasure and, when she smiled, her teeth were white as shark's teeth. 'Very well,' she said. Then she turned and addressed a door in the back right hand corner of the room, close to the draped velvet curtains. 'Why don't you come in?'

  Marwick's heart thundered against the cage of his ribs and his mouth was dry as graveyard dirt. There was pressure against his head and everything seemed to slow, the world, the night, the prodding of the revolver into his back. The door clicked open and Charlie Lynch walked into the room.

  He looked better than he had in years. His large blue eyes twinkled coldly above his broken nose. He wore a finely cut Navy suit and a blue silk tie with a gold pin, and there was a cigarette in his hands. Marwick had doubted himself until now, doubted that the sudden realisation, the clicking into place of the whole infernal machine that afternoon had been anything but fatigue or paranoia. Yet here was the devil in the flesh, and Marwick felt the soul fall from him like snow from a thawing roof. He looked over at Charlie with a numbed glare and said, 'You look spry for a dead man.'

  Charlie laughed. 'You wouldn't let it lie, would you, Marwick? You had to keep going. I tried giving you a scare that night in Raval, I sent poor old Nikolai on to you in Daurada Park. I tried everything I could to get you to give up.' He stubbed the cigarette out on the ancient wall. 'But it's still come to this.'

  'I should have known from the start,' Marwick said, he could barely push the words over his tongue, 'when I woke up on that boat, alive.'

  'I didn't want any harm to come to you, boy.'

  'You wanted me to take the rap.'

  Charlie shrugged. 'You know what, Marwick? I hate it down here, I've always hated it. I was somebody back home, I had the whole world going for me and then fucking Sean Mallon screwed it all up, because he doesn't have it up here.' Charlie tapped a finger against the side of his head. 'I had to get him back. Now I have.'

  'What about Roy Quinn?'

  'That was Radu, not me. Roy couldn't keep his gob shut, that's all. Same as that snake, Salvador Rus, can you believe he tried to blackmail me. He followed Christie here one night, all the way to Barcelona, got the address. Only he didn't know how smart this boy is, saw him, didn't you?'

  Marwick turned and looked at the Scotsman and said, 'And just who are you anyway?'

  Christie threw an importunate glance to Charlie, who nodded. 'You could say,' Christie spoke slowly, 'I'm the black sheep.'

  'He's my son,' Charlie said, 'from a long time ago. Don't you remember me talking about Glasgow, Marwick? The Firm used to run things up there. Just another reason why I reckon they owe me.'

  Marwick turned and stared down into the fire. 'You fooled us all,' Marwick said. 'Well done.'

  'Don't be so down about it,' Charlie said. 'I've been around longer than you.'

  'So who was the stiff on the boat?'

  'Some idiot who lived near the flat in Barcelona, he was the right height.'

  'I met his mother,' Marwick said.

  'He was a fairy. Christie took him down an alley. Bloke thought he was onto a promise.'

  Marwick heard Christie laugh behind him. 'Charlie,' he said; not Dad. 'We should wrap this up and fuck off. Time's wasting.'

  'I agree,' Carmen said, standing.

  'In my own time,' Charlie said as he sat in the vacated chair and motioned to a similar seat, facing him, 'sit down, Marwick.'

  Christie pushed Marwick into the chair and jammed the nose of the revolver into the top of his head. 'Al?' Marwick asked.

  'He didn't know anything,' Charlie said. 'But I knew you wouldn't turn up that night if anyone else rang, so we picked him up, made him call.'

  'Where is he?'

  Christie spoke. 'You know the hotel they're building in Pineda? Al's more or less a permanent fixture now.' He laughed. 'Still, it's what he would have wanted.' He laughed again until silenced by Charlie's cold stare.

  'You see,' Charlie said, turning to the fire. 'Carmen and me, well, she was wasted on Sean. A woman with her qualities, her fire, she deserves more.' Carmen stood behind him now and leaned on him, her arms around his neck. She kissed the top of his head and looked at Marwick. Charlie carried on. 'I did what I had to. So there we are, Marwick. That's the whole of it.' He stood and walked back to the door leading into the other room. 'Sorry I have to kill you mate, but dead men tell no tales.' He paused by the door and spoke over his shoulder. 'Make it quick' He closed the door behind him.

  Christie stepped back from the chair. 'I've been looking forward to this for ages, pal.' He cocked the pistol and Marwick saw Carmen move to the side, still holding Marwick's weapon. She was smiling.

  Marwick closed his eyes. He waited. 'Come on then!' He yelled, fighting the unbelievable urge to vomit. He didn't want to give this bastard the satisfaction. He heard Christie giggle. Then the almost childish sound turned to an anguished, gurgling scream and Marwick felt something hot hit the side of his face. He looked over at Carmen, whose smile sank away as waves sink back into the sea. She dropped the pistol involuntarily and lifted her hands to her mouth. Marwick raised his finger to his cheek. Everything had slowed. It was blood. He stood quickly and turned. Christie was a crumpled heap of cheap sportswear and pumping arterial blood on the floor and behind him stood Louise, a long blade in her hand. She was dressed in black and her eyes bore into Marwick's with murderous intensity. Christie's blood had stained her blonde hair.

  She yelled, 'Look out!'

  Carmen picked the gun back up and swung it towards the door, firing blindly. Marwick dived for the Colt, still wrapped in Christie's fingers. He fumbled, trying to disentangle them and Carmen fired again. Marwick heard a bang, then Charlie's voice, 'What's going…' Then Marwick turned the revolver on them and fired two shots cleanly. His aim true as it had been at the best of times. Charlie fell back onto the floor with a shout, and Carmen's face vanished beneath a shower of blood. She tottered on her heels for a moment, and then fell to the floor. Marwick breathed out slowly.

  A clock ticked somewhere in the room and he listened to it for w
hat felt a long time before lifting himself onto his knees. The floor was slick and wet and he slipped, working his way back to the door. Louise lay against it, staring with iced over eyes into something before her Marwick hoped he would never have to see. There was blood on her lip, the knife was loose in her fist, and he felt his eyes sting as he said her name and ran his hand through her hair for the last time. The 9mm round had entered just above her heart. He closed her eyes and kissed her lips softly. Her blood was warm and tasted of the sea and he thought of all the days they could have had.

  'Louise?' Charlie's voice was frail, coming from the corner. Marwick stood and walked over, feeling the old black anger now, like a cloud of ghosts, pushing into him. 'Yeah,' he said, 'Louise was here.' Charlie lay on the floor staring at the ceiling. The suit no longer looked so fine. Marwick had shot him in the side, the liver, he thought. He knelt down close to the old man. 'Now you're dying for the second time, eh? Not a lot of men get to say that. Louise's dead, Charlie, I want you to know that before you go, Christie too, both your cursed from birth kids, gone. Now there's just you and me.'

  Charlie coughed and winced in pain. The suit was dark where it filled with his blood and his eyes were wide with terror. 'It's…' his voice was a dry husk blowing through a dead building.

  Marwick shook his head. 'How could you do it, Charlie?'

  He stood and walked into the bedroom. There was a large black case at the foot of the bed, leather and gold locks. Marwick flicked it open. Bundles of 500 Euro notes filled the case. It filled him with sadness, nothing more. He closed the case and carried it back into the main room. The stench of gun smoke and blood was overpowering. His eyes watered. Charlie looked at him from the floor. His breathing was fainter now and there was a distance in his eyes. 'It's...it's...'

  Marwick stood in front of the old man and stared into his eyes.

  '...it's black,' Charlie said, 'there's no light.'

  Marwick held his gaze until the life disappeared from it like smoke. 'No,' he said. 'There isn't.'

  ***

  It was cold outside in the street and the sharp sound of sirens cut through the misty rain blowing against the buildings of the old town. Marwick looked around and walked into the dark.

  THE END

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