Time To Play

by KA Richardson

  She could imagine how he’d felt, taking the same swimming route he took three times a week only to be caught out by a riptide. She could feel him struggle against the pull, using his strength trying to get out but only ending up further in. And she could imagine the very second when he gave up, the second he became too tired to fight any more. She wondered whether he’d whispered goodbye to his family as Davy Jones pulled him deeper into the locker.

  Feeling tears prick at her eyes again, she realised she was more tired than she’d initially thought. It wasn’t often she got emotional like this. It was time to go home.

  By the time she came out of the bathroom, she’d calmed down.

  So when she came face to face with a young girl in an extinct piece of uniform, she’d frozen in shock.

  The girl looked to be about sixteen years old; slender framed with dark hair surrounding her petite face. She looked terrified.

  ‘Easy, love,’ said Marlo softly, holding her hands out in front of her, trying to make herself as non-threatening as she could.

  It didn’t work though; the girl spun on her heels and practically flew down the stairs.

  Marlo followed and heard the door at the bottom slam into the external wall to the building seconds later.

  She put her hand out to stop it closing and winced as the force reverberated through her elbow and shoulder. As she entered the yard, she saw the girl who was frantically looking around for a way out. Her eyes were wide with terror and she was obviously desperate.

  Dive Team HQ, South Shields – 14 November

  Elvie had nearly had a heart attack when she’d almost walked into the female diver. Even now her heart pounded deep in her chest, every scenario of what could happen next running through her mind, and none of it was good. Even if the cops here weren’t like they were at home, she’d end up shipped off to some little room where the paint was peeling and be forced to answer questions.

  She looked around, already feeling dread in the pit of her stomach. There was no way out. She was trapped.

  The woman would kill her, she was sure of it. Well, almost sure. A voice niggled at the back of her mind. Maybe she’ll help you, maybe she’s as nice as she seems when you’ve been watching. But she knew in her heart she couldn’t take the risk.

  So she did the only thing she could do. She turned and leapt as far as she could into the pitch-black sea at the bottom of the wall.

  Dive Team HQ, South Shields – 14 November

  ‘Shit!’ exclaimed Marlo as she heard the girl land with a loud splash. She raced to the edge of the wall, but she couldn’t see the girl. She knew the wall was solid, built to hold the water back, not allow it under like some ocean walls. There was nowhere the girl could have gone.

  Thankful for the torch app on her mobile phone, she shone it back and forth over the water, looking for the girl or any sign indicating where she could be. Finally, she saw a small burst of bubbles spill over the surface, and putting her mobile phone down, she pulled in a deep breath and jumped into the water.

  The icy cold water was like a slap to the face, and she instinctively wanted to breathe in, but she didn’t; instead, she swam powerful strokes to the rough area she’d seen the bubbles, bent double and pushed herself beneath the surface. Kicking her feet to propel herself forward, she blindly felt around for anything that felt solid. She felt something fabric, with weight behind it, so she pulled with all her might, resurfacing only centimetres from where she’d gone under.

  The girl’s body was motionless, and Marlo swore softly. Turning the girl onto her back, Marlo put her cheek up to the mouth of the girl, feeling for breath.

  There was nothing, not even a whisper of breath.

  Treading water to support the girl’s weight as well as her own, she firmly pinched the girl’s nose and filled her lungs with air from her own. She repeated the process, willing the girl to wake.

  Suddenly the girl jerked beneath her, and started coughing, seawater splashing up onto Marlo’s face. ‘Easy, love, you’re OK.’ She soothed, twisting slightly so the girl could cough up the briny water.

  Placing her arm across the girl’s chest and under her arms, Marlo swam them both to the edge of the wall. The ladder was illuminated slightly by the lights in the yard, but she held no illusion. Getting herself up the ladder would be challenging enough, the cold starting to set in now as her adrenaline abated, and she wondered how she’d manage to get the girl up too.

  ‘Listen, can you hear me? I know you’re cold, and I promise we’ll get warmed up as soon as we get back into the building. But first, I need your help, OK?’

  The girl just mumbled in response.

  ‘Hey, girly, look at me. Open those pretty brown eyes and look. I need you to help me, or we’ll both die in this freezing cold sea, do you understand?’

  Understanding flashed across the girl’s face, and suddenly her fight came back. Whatever Marlo had planned in relation to carrying the girl up the ladder went out of the window as the kid reached past her, grabbed the lowest rung and pulled herself forward. Reaching as though her very life depended on it, she stretched again and dragged herself further.

  The second her feet hit the lowest rung, Marlo reached up and grabbed a rung too. Spurring her on, Marlo muttered encouragement until both of them finally hoisted themselves over onto the concrete of the yard. The danger now was that both had spent their energy. The girl had already collapsed with her eyes closed. Marlo was close to doing the same.

  But she pushed herself, knowing they had to get inside the building. She got to her feet, and grunting, she hoisted the girl over her shoulder in a fireman’s lift. Her legs wobbled under the excess weight, but she managed to maintain her balance and made her way into the building. Her swipe card was still dangling from her neck so they could gain access.

  She could feel the warmth as soon as she entered, but she knew it wasn’t enough.

  Her body screamed with each movement, but she slowly navigated up the stairs to the top and rushed through the canteen and into the men’s bathroom. The men had shared showers, not individual cubicles, which meant she could get some instant heat into both of them simultaneously. Hitting three of the showers, she waited a moment until the water began to steam, then gently lowered the girl directly underneath one of the hot sprays. Holding her up, she managed to get herself under the next one along too.

  The girl gasped, struggled a little, then realised the water was warm. She sagged back into Marlo’s chest, sighing as the water cascaded over them both.

  ‘Shhh, it’s OK, I’ve got you,’ whispered Marlo against her hair, her fingers rubbing the girl’s arm in a soft circular motion.

  Both now conscious, the adrenaline ebbed to nothing, and they started shivering, not just small ones either, huge judders that shook teeth and made the body believe it was in the middle of an earthquake.

  ‘Stay here,’ said Marlo, getting to her feet and leaving the girl under the shower. Her legs were still wobbly, but she made her way to the kit room and retrieved a couple of packaged space blankets. Pulling at the plastic wrapping with her teeth as she made her way back to the bathroom, she told the girl to come out from under the water.

  Knowing the girl would follow her lead, Marlo pulled her clothes off down to underwear and wrapped a blanket around her. As hoped, the girl followed suit.

  Marlo led her back into the canteen and made them both a cup of hot, sweet tea.

  The whole thing felt a bit surreal, like it had happened to someone else and Marlo had just happened to have been watching. Her shoulders ached as she moved: she was going to be stiff tomorrow. The body had funny ways of dealing with trauma, but she could manage that when it happened. For now, she handed the girl a steaming cuppa, and sat down beside her.

  ‘So, what was that about then?’ asked Marlo, glancing over the mug she held with both hands.

  ‘I think you will hurt me. Police hurt me where I come from,’ whispered the girl, tears filling her eyes.

 
Marlo felt her expressions soften. ‘Where do you come from?’

  The girl started crying, not able to answer for the sobs heaving through her shoulders. Marlo shuffled closer, put her arms round the girl and pulled her to her chest.

  ‘Shhh, it’s OK, everything’s going to be fine.’

  The heat from the extra body, and the fact they’d both warmed up caused both of them to become sleepy. One after the other, they both fell fast asleep.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Ryhope, Sunderland – 14 November

  H e pushed open the door and entered the room. It was time to get rid of Nita, clean up and figure out what he had to do next.

  She was exactly where he’d left her. Her skin had turned grey and parts of it had darkened where her blood had settled. Her expression was peaceful. At least he’d been able to give her that. It was a small mercy, though. The guilt for hurting Nita was threatening to overwhelm him. He’d been thinking about it all day, how his hands had squeezed the life from her as though she didn’t deserve to live.

  Maybe it would have felt different if he hadn’t known her name. She was the first one he’d asked. When it had come to killing the others, it had been like second nature. Routine almost: it had been a task that had needed to be done. It was almost as though his mind had detached from his body, only now returning. The fuzziness and control he’d felt was ebbing. And he felt sorrow. Sorrow for the lost lives and for what was to come. Like taking the bodies to his favourite location. His wife had loved it there. They’d gone every few weeks before she’d gone and done it for years and years. They would get up in the morning, and she’d fill a flask, make sandwiches, and away they’d trot. He missed those times.

  Raw pain flooded through him. Why her? It just wasn’t fair. He would have preferred it to have been him. She’d always been so full of life, bursting at the seams and always happy. Then she wasn’t any more.

  Shaking his head, he knew he couldn’t dwell in the past.

  He caught a sob as he dragged Nita from the chair and onto a large expanse of plastic, the same kind of plastic used to cover seedlings on farms and in allotments. He’d picked up a roll of it years ago and had kept it. Firmly believing that one day he’d need it. One day had arrived with the death of number one.

  His head started to pound dully as he wrapped the plastic around her and secured her with tight knots. Hoisting the body onto his shoulders, he took her to the car and placed her in the boot. Two large cinder blocks were already inside, and he tied them to the bag with the strong rope he’d purposefully left loose for that task.

  He drove in complete silence. The only noise was the sound of his tyres gliding over tarmac, then eventually over a stony track that led to what had been his favourite place. It was always deserted at this time of night. He still came here to think, even when he didn’t have to leave one of the girls. It was peaceful, serene. He could hear the wind rustling the trees he knew surrounded the path, the occasional hoot of an owl, and the water lapping against the reservoir wall.

  The path led to the wall by the tower. It was only because he left his headlights on that he could see where he was going. Nita was heavier now he had the cinder blocks tied on too, and he struggled lifting her high enough to pitch her over the fence. Something felt different tonight: it didn’t seem like the sanctuary it usually did.

  He pushed her over, listened for the splash then retreated to the car. Something was definitely out of place this evening. Not wanting to be caught, he pulled the car in a circle around the car park and drove off.

  Dive Team HQ, South Shields – 15 November

  Marlo fought to stay asleep, but her body had other ideas. Her neck ached and slowly she registered two things: she was sitting up and she was way too warm. She remembered having a dream, jumping in the sea to save someone, and being so cold afterwards.

  Suddenly she remembered it wasn’t a dream, and her eyes flew open.

  The girl was laid on the floor in front of her, sound asleep. She looked so innocent and peaceful that Marlo was loathe to wake her, but she had questions that needed answering.

  Gently, she shook the girl’s shoulders.

  ‘Hi,’ she greeted, smiling at the girl who stared back with distrustful eyes. ‘I’m Marlo, what’s your name?’

  The girl just stared back, huge brown pools of fear and fear.

  ‘Do you speak English?’ asked Marlo, keeping her tone neutral.

  Again, the girl didn’t speak, but Marlo was certain she understood.

  ‘Let me help you, love. I know you’ve been staying here, taking food from the fridge and hiding, but without knowing what you’re hiding from, I can’t help you. If I can’t get any information from you, I’ll need to contact an interpreter, maybe even immigration. But I suspect you know exactly what I’m saying, don’t you?’

  Elvie had a decision to make. She couldn’t run, the woman wouldn’t let her. If she didn’t speak, she’d be deported back to the Philippines where she had nothing and no one and would potentially get taken again by the same men. Her fear grew as she contemplated her options. She couldn’t go through all that again. She knew that if they found her they would kill her. There would be no selling her to the highest bidder, nobody trying to touch her. There would be just death. She was terrified and her lips were trembling, but she made the decision.

  ‘Elvie,’ she whispered. ‘Please, no send me back. Men will take me again. Bad men. They hurt me.’

  ‘What men?’ said Marlo.

  ‘Bad men,’ repeated the girl gravely. ‘They take me from house. Bring me here. Many other girls die, but I live. I help Nita from truck. Then they take her, do things to her. They take me to big house. Try to make me marry man. But Danny help me get away.’

  ‘How old are you?’

  Elvie looked confused.

  ‘Age? How many years?’

  ‘Fifteen,’ replied Elvie, understanding. ‘Danny nice man. He help me. I need to find Nita, help her. She in bad place.’

  The girl’s words were now running into each other. She was babbling, trying to pass information that made little sense to Marlo. She had goosebumps from hearing what had already happened to the girl. Who was Danny? And Nita? She was out of her depth. Marlo knew she needed help. She would have called Sharpie, but he had kids and they would all be tucked up at this late hour. Ali, a little voice niggled in her mind.

  ‘Elvie, I will help you. I’ll not let anything bad happen, but you need to trust me. Can you do that?’ Her words belied her own uncertainty. The girl had a long hard road ahead of her, navigating immigration and possibly even a criminal investigation. Would she be better off?

  ‘I trust Marlo,’ said Elvie.

  ‘I’ll get us some clothes, then we need to go see a friend of mine, OK?’

  Despite the fear in her eyes, Elvie nodded.

  Ali’s flat, Sunderland – 15 November

  Ali groaned loudly, then cursed even louder. Who the hell was knocking at this stupid time in the morning. He pulled on a pair of shorts and headed for the door.

  It had been late when he’d got to bed, anyway. He’d found himself listening for movement in Marlo’s flat, so he had an excuse to knock. Which was ridiculous, he knew, but he’d still done it.

  Flinging open the door, his face quickly softened from thunderous to much less annoyed when he saw Marlo stood with a young girl beside her. The girl looked ready to bolt, and he instinctively knew it was partially in response to his demeanour when he’d yanked open the door. He stood aside to allow them access, one eyebrow rising up in question as Marlo caught his eye.

  ‘Sorry to wake you, Ali. This is Elvie. I think you need to hear what she has to say.’

  To be fair, the girl had already piqued his interest. He didn’t see Marlo as the type to pick up waifs and strays, so there must be some connection there. He could feel the cogs turn rapidly as Elvie bombarded him with information. It didn’t take him long to realise she’d been illegally trafficked into the count
ry. He should be taking notes, preparing to hand information over to the NCA, National Crime Agency, who dealt with human trafficking, as well as contacting the likes of immigration and his own supervision. But instead, he found himself enthralled. From what she said, it was a miracle the girl was still alive, let alone sat in his living room. And he didn’t want to rush things. Besides, he knew what would happen when he informed immigration. She’d be detained in one of the immigration buildings, pending an asylum investigation. The details of the case would be handed off to someone other than him, and he would likely never even find out the outcome. And Elvie deserved more than that.

  Deciding he had time to take the official route, he looked the girl up and down. She looked exhausted. Her skin ashen as she struggled to stay awake. Getting up, he pulled the throw from the chair behind him, and covered her shoulders, telling her to go to sleep.

  Motioning with his head at Marlo to follow him, he headed to the kitchen.

  ‘Is she OK?’ he asked, concerned.

  ‘She took a dip in the sea trying to get away from me, had to give her mouth to mouth. She’s fine. coughed up all the water, but she’s had a lot to deal with. I think it’s probably just stress and exhaustion to be honest. Do you think I should take her to hospital?’

  ‘No,’ Ali shook his head. ‘That’d just open up a whole can of worms. I’m sure you’re right; she’ll be exhausted with everything she’s put up with.’

  ‘She’s been hiding in the dive HQ building. Stealing food and the like. She’s been there at least the last few days.’

  ‘Few days?’ said Ali incredulously. ‘How on earth does someone hide in a police station for a few days? When that gets documented no doubt the shit will hit the fan.’

  ‘For sure,’ agreed Marlo. ‘Listen, I’m sorry I woke you to deal with this. I’d have called my sergeant, but he has kids and I figured he’d be flaked. Besides, he’s a stickler and probably would have just woken the super for advice. Just figured you’d probably know what to do for the best. Can’t believe this sort of stuff happens on our doorstep. I’m a bloody cop, and I’d never thought for one second that human trafficking would be happening here.’