Idris’s voice was too upbeat. Bex’s last hope faded that he had moved on romantically.
“Cool,” said Bex, while thinking that a long distance relationship had no chance of cancelling out the scorching flames fanned by Quinn’s undeniably sexy wife.
“Reuben texted me that your youth center opened last week,” Idris changed the subject, making it clear she had to respect his privacy.
Bex contemplated her coffee. Idris was a grown man capable of ruining his own life without interference from her.
“Yes, and it’s been a resounding failure so far, as Dresden has been quick to point out.” Bex concealed her disappointment behind a flippant attitude.
“It takes time for the kids to learn to trust coppers. I know. I used to work in Hackney and that crowd can be difficult. He also said you’d booked a flight back to New York at Easter.”
“I promised my mom when she came to visit before Christmas that I’d find some time to return this year. Besides, I love New York in April. Best time of year to be there.”
Disappearing from New York after Zane’s death had left her parents devastated, but too well-bred to protest her plans to exchange her career at the NYPD for one at the London Met. With her older brother AWOL from their lives, Bex was used to shouldering her parents’ expectations, but that didn’t make it easy.
She had never shared her past with the Youth Crimes Team, however, and had no intention of starting with Idris.
“Let me bring you up to speed with our current cases,” she veered the conversation away from her personal life.
They sipped their coffees and talked shop for the next twenty minutes before heading back to the office. With his hand on the doorknob, Idris paused.
“Stop worrying about me, Bex. We all have our crosses to bear, but life goes on, as my mother says.”
“Don’t tell me not to worry, Idris, we forgot Eli’s pork pie. Now we’ll have to listen to his stomach rumbling all morning.”
* * *
Five weeks of African safari yielded enough conversational fodder to keep the team occupied for the rest of the day. Trying not to be distracted, Bex had a quiet smile to herself over Idris’s anecdote about a Swiss couple mistaking him for their tour guide. Idris had had no compunction in leading them on a merry chase, feeding them false leads until they had been on the verge of missing the tour.
When the workday ended, Bex took off to the drop in center.
“Hey, Josh, how’s it going?” Bex asked after she had changed into mesh leggings and a zip top. She planned to combine her visit with a gym workout. “Any kids drop by this weekend after I left?”
Josh shook his head. “Sorry, Boss.” He had taken to calling her boss because he heard Reuben call her that. “I guess I’m going to be out of a job soon.”
He pulled a sad face like an emoji.
Bex tried to fire up a smile to let him know it was okay.
“These things take time, Josh. Let’s not—” Bex broke off as the outside door burst open.
A chill breeze whipped through the empty open area as a motley collection of youths straggled through the opening, followed by Quinn and Idris. Idris grinned in her direction and gave her a thumbs up, while Quinn chivvied the teenagers into the gym area.
“Come on lads, who wants to spar with a copper?”
Bex knew Quinn trained in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu so she doubted he had much to worry about the boys landing any punches. When Idris approached her, she could only stare at him with shock.
“How did you manage to get this crowd here?”
“Quinn and I served at Hackney CID, so it’s our old stomping grounds. During our time here we got to know a lot of the regulars, so it was easy enough to twist a few arms and round up some ‘volunteers’ willing to give the center a go with a bit of persuasion.” He gave her a wink, so she guessed that included turning a blind eye to some minor misdemeanors. “These lads aren’t too bad. They’ve had some minor brushes with the law, but they’re not part of a gang, although I think Yusef fancies himself as some sort of overlord. Maybe your drop in center can discourage that ambition and give the boys something else to focus on.”
“Thanks, Idris.”
Idris shook his head.
“Don’t thank me, it was Quinn’s idea. I just came along for the ride and to see if one of these lads can get the better of Quinn.”
He followed the shuffling group into the gym area and Bex joined them, watching as the two officers each took a group, one on the mats to demonstrate some self defense holds, and the other over by the punching bag.
The truculent look on one of the larger youths caught Bex’s eye. He stood with crossed arms, sizing up Idris who was demonstrating a roundhouse punch as the rest of the youths jostled and elbowed for position in the circle. He had obviously spent time grooming his “guns” because they were impressive and he had taken off his hoodie to make sure they were on show in his sleeveless T-shirt. Dark tufts of hair sprouted from under his arms and his top showed wide circles of sweat, even though the air inside was cool. Not much heat was generated from the radiators spread throughout the building, in Bex’s opinion.
In her gym experience she had learned that young men tended to focus on what was on show and ignored any body parts under the waterline. She was prepared to bet his hamstrings were little more than sticks, given that he was keeping them hidden beneath baggy track pants. She eyed his lumpy pockets, wondering if they contained more than a phone.
“What you looking at, bitch?” He had noticed her attention and turned an evil-eyed stare on her.
Idris’s face tightened in anger, but she waved him back. The circling youths gathered behind the teenager, marking him as their leader. Bex noted this point, already figuring out how to score off his bluster. She figured this must be the Yusef that Idris had mentioned.
Yusef continued to stare down Bex while flexing his muscles.
“My name’s Detective Chief Inspector Rebecca Wynter. How do you like the center, Yusef?” she challenged him.
“Good to know, but I think I’ll just call you bitch,” he said, glancing around to make sure he had the backing of his mates to bolster his bravado.
Sensing conflict, several youths left Quinn to drift over. Losing his audience, Quinn stood back, silently contemplating her interaction with the teens.
“I tell you what, Yusef, I don’t like being called that. I have a name and I want you to use it. But if you think you’ve got something to prove over a woman, why don’t we have a little bet? If I win you tell all your mates about this place and you start coming regularly and following the rules.”
“Nuh-huh. Ain’t taking part in no bet that gives you the edge ’cause you a ho.”
He was nodding his head now, a smirk sitting squarely across his features. A sullen restlessness flowed through the group, several nodded their heads in sync with Yusef.
“I’m talking about a challenge right here in the gym. You think you can handle that, Yusef?”
Yusef’s eyes raked her body thoroughly up and down. Long hours in the gym helped her combat grief over Zane’s death, a sadness that still overwhelmed her if she didn’t fight it. Those hours had also sheared away her feminine curves, leaving her with a wiry strength grounded in well-developed shoulders narrowing to slim hips and muscular legs, legs she trusted to do heavy lifting any time she neared a squat rack.
“I’m talking about who can do the most jump squats without a break.”
Hesitation flashed across his features. She had guessed correctly—his legs were going to let him down.
“I’ll go arm curls to fatigue,” he countered.
A knowing smile lingered on Bex’s lips. “After we do jump squats, let’s see if you still want to do bicep curls,” she said.
His eyes narrowed in response.
“If you outlast me in jump squats I’ll let you call me any name you want. But if I outlast you, you follow my rules and attend the center regularly.”
T
here were a few sniggers and muffled laughs from his backing group. A few pulled out phones.
“Yo, take her on!”
“You can do it, Yusi!”
“Yo, Yusef ain’t afraid of no scum bitch!”
Quinn stormed over, his eyes two blue ice chips as he pulled her aside.
“Why are you arcing these kids up? I thought the idea of the center was so the kids could defuse their aggression. Is this some sort of American policing strategy?” he hissed.
“You’re always telling me to de-escalate situations by talking, so that’s what I’m doing, following British police strategy and using my mouth.”
Quinn said through gritted teeth, “You know perfectly well that’s not the way we do it.”
“Quinn, I’m not having this conversation now. You, of all people, should know I can handle myself in a physical confrontation. Please remember you’re part of a team, and you need to back me.”
Quinn’s lips compressed into a thin line. He was obviously seething with more to say, but he accepted her reminder and withdrew. Crossing his arms he stood with a dissatisfied expression that mirrored Yusef’s.
When she turned back to the circle of youths she found it had expanded. Word had spread via the boys’ social media throughout the streets and now she estimated around twenty young men hovered around Yusef.
She could see the pressure was getting to him. Sweat beaded the cusp of his upper lip, despite the cool interior.
“You’re not afraid I’ll whoop your ass are you, Yusef?”
“Ain’t afraid of no woman!” he shouted, swaggering around the crowd, a sneer curling his lips away from his teeth.
“Yusef! Yusef!” the chant began softly and built up as Bex plated up two bars.
She still had to do the conversion from kilos to pounds in her head but with two ten kilo plates on a twenty kilo Olympic bar, they would be squatting close to ninety pounds. Someone was going to be hurling their cookies at the end of this competition, and she only hoped it wouldn’t be her.
She made sure everyone could see the plates for both bars were equal and she allowed Yusef to take first pick so he couldn’t claim she had cheated.
“Quiet down everyone!” Idris roared.
With legs like tree trunks and ham-fisted hands, he had the look of someone not to be messed with unless they wanted their skulls cracked together. The roar of voices quieted to a dull murmur.
Idris’s expression was strained as he watched Bex and Yusef lift the bars onto their shoulders. Bex had appointed Idris and Quinn to count the repetitions along with two of Yusef’s mates.
She settled the bar comfortably, preparing herself mentally by shutting out the crowd’s noise and focusing inward. The weight was more than she was used to for this exercise, but she figured she had the advantage because this exercise was part of her regular gym routine.
She was well aware of the power that jump squats required from using legs and also how easy it was to get fatigued doing them. That’s what she hoped would happen to Yusef. Unless she was mistaken and he turned out to be an ace volleyball player or the best at basketball rebound in a team, then she stood a good chance of outlasting him.
“Go!” shouted Idris.
Bex bent her knees into a quarter squat, already preparing to power up. She exploded from the ground before landing solidly. She took a few seconds to reset her stance and then blasted off the ground again.
Out of the corner of her eye she kept Yusef in view. She only had to outlast him by one repetition and she set her mind on that goal rather than keeping score.
“Nine! Ten!”
She was only vaguely aware of the counts. Her muscles were screaming at her to stop. Her sweat-soaked top clung to her back and breasts. She could feel the blood rushing to her face each time her feet pounded back on the floor.
Beside her Yusef was panting, the pauses between his jumps growing longer.
“Eleven!”
His legs wobbled, barely able to bend into a squat. His jump was feeble, his toes only just leaving the ground.
“Call it quits, mate!” Idris urged.
Yusef’s dark face purpled with strain, his bulging eyes went glassy.
Bex steadied herself, harnessing her strength, then pushed off violently.
“Twelve!”
Yusef’s spindly legs brought him to grief. As his rubberized thighs collapsed, Idris and Quinn yanked the bar from his shoulders before he was hurt. Yusef folded like a demolished building, spewing his guts out as he went.
The stench hit Bex before he hit the ground. Gagging, she forced in a deep breath, tensing her abdominal muscles and pushing herself airborne one last time. She didn’t want there to be any doubt that she had beaten Yusef.
“Thirteen!”
There was a collective groan from the crowd.
“Hell, man, she bleeding KO’d him!”
Someone nearby spat with disgust.
She heard Yusef groan.
Idris rushed forward and removed the bar from her shoulders. She let her arms drop, the muscles shaking, as she hunched over, sucking in deep draughts of fresh air where someone had opened a window.
Quinn handed her a towel so she could mop the sweat from her face.
“Bloody risky move,” he said. “You could’ve done yourself and him a lot of damage. And for what?”
“The only way to win these kids over is by showing them you’re tougher than they are on their own terms. That’s the only way to earn their respect,” she gasped between breaths.
“It’s a lot easier to show them who’s boss by just throwing them in prison when they mess up.”
“You and Dresden have a lot in common.”
“She should’ve put me in charge then,” he growled.
Idris joined them. “Shit, Bex, that was physically impressive. But you’ve decimated Yusef in front of his mates.”
Bex straightened and walked back to the youth who was struggling to gain his feet. One of the others aimed a kick at his ribs. Yusef simply huddled, like a miserable cur kicked to the gutter. Bex clipped the offender sharply across the ear before he could get in another kick.
“Enough! Only a coward kicks a man when he’s down. Not one of you could best Yusef, so keep that in mind!”
She glared round the circle and their eyes skittered away or dropped to the ground without meeting hers. Quinn and Idris rallied the boys backwards to the punching bag and the mat, while some of the newcomers drifted out the door.
She bent over Yusef and used the towel to wipe the vomit from his chin. He glowered at her.
“How’d you do that?” he muttered with a glare that was both obsequious and resentful.
“Keep coming back to the center and I’ll teach you some tricks,” she offered. She straightened and beckoned with one hand. “Josh! Come and help me.”
The two of them extended a hand each to Yusef and, after a few seconds, he reached out and they pulled him to his feet. Josh slung an arm around his shoulders to keep him upright on his still shaking legs.
“We have a deal, right?” Bex said, keeping hold of his hand.
His mouth dropped into a sulky pout.
“You tricked me,” he protested.
“Don’t blow smoke up my arse, Yusef,” Josh scoffed. “I watched the whole thing and the boss beat you fair and square and everyone here saw that and knows it.”
“If you want to go another round with arm curls now, I’m prepared to whoop you at that too.” Her voice rasped with asperity and impatience. “And if you don’t think I can, just hold out your arms.”
Reluctantly he raised an arm, noticeably trembling with fatigue.
“So, do we have a deal?”
“I’ll keep to your rules if I ever step back in this cruddy center.”
“Even if you don’t, today you learned two valuable lessons. First, weighted jump squats kick the hell out of your stamina, and second, never underestimate a woman when she wants something. I can see the guys around
here look up to you so I have a proposition for you. How would you like to help Josh run the gym and keep the boys in line?”
He shook his head in bafflement.
“First you beat the crap out of me then you want to put me in charge? You’re cray cray.” He kept shaking his head.
“You don’t have to answer right now, just think about it. If you want to come back to the center, you get to be in charge. Josh, why don’t you show Yusef where the mop and bucket are so he can clean up his mess and then show him the shower room.”
“Ain’t mopping no puke. That’s women’s w—” he broke off his muttering at a stern look from Bex and a dig in the ribs from Josh’s elbow.
“When you learn to shut your mouth and listen to her, she’ll look out for you,” Josh said.
As Josh bundled Yusef ahead of him, he checked back over his shoulder.
“Sorry, boss, I forgot to mention that lawyer lady called with the name of a doctor. The one who’s going to drug test the kids. She wants to know when’s a good time for him to come by.”
Chapter 8
Wednesday March 7
“A last word of caution before we leave the office tonight.”
Bex had called her team into the briefing room to address the concerns Dresden had flagged with her. Reuben continued sharing a noisy joke with Eli, so Bex rapped the table to regain their attention.
“The brief you delivered on the Durrell case file was sloppy. I know we’ve been busy and short staffed with Idris on leave, but the prosecution will throw this kind of lackluster work back in our faces if we’re not careful.
“Finally, Dresden informs me we’re well behind on our monthly statistics.”
“Give us a break, it’s only the first week of March! It’s all about the paperwork these days. Stats are all the brass really care for.” Detective Sergeant Eli Morgan’s face flushed with irritation as he sipped mahogany brown tea from his special mug: Keep calm and call a policeman.
“Exactly. And if we fall behind this early in the month it’s going to be particularly hard to catch up. Any questions?”
Bex Wynter Box Set 2 Page 5
