Ruby

by Heather Burnside

  Later that day, Ruby’s phone rang and her anxious thoughts took over once more. It was Kyle. He came straight to the point.

  ‘Right, Trina, or is it Ruby now?’ His tone was arrogant and she hated the way he overemphasised the word Ruby as though scornful of her alter ego. ‘I’m giving you a few days to recover, and I think that’s more than generous. After all, you got off fuckin’ lightly. It’s not as if you’ve got any real injuries. So, let’s say Saturday night, nine o’clock. I always like having a good time at the weekend.’ He laughed but quickly resumed his hostile tone as he added, ‘I want you to be in the club ready and fuckin’ waiting for me.’

  ‘But the club won’t be ready by then. We’ve got repairs to do.’

  ‘Do you think I’m fuckin’ stupid?’ he growled. ‘We only smashed up the reception and waiting area. The rest of the rooms weren’t fuckin’ touched. So, we’ll be using one of them. In fact, I’ll enjoy seeing our handiwork on my way through the club.’

  He sniggered and Ruby felt a stab of irritation, but it was overridden by her abject fear at the sound of his voice.

  ‘So?’ he shouted. ‘Are you gonna fuckin’ be there or do you wanna face more consequences?’

  ‘Yes, I’ll be there,’ said Ruby, then she quickly cut the call.

  For a few seconds she stared at her phone screen. She was sweating and the phone felt slippery in her hands. She put it back inside her handbag, the whole of her body now trembling.

  Then she grew annoyed with herself. Why was she letting him get to her in this way? This wasn’t who she was. He was only a man after all and, ever since she’d been a child, she’d always stuck up for herself. And now, here she was, letting a sly bastard like Kyle Gallagher beat her.

  But it needn’t be like that. She had the answers; she just needed to act on them. So she pulled her sweaty phone back out of her handbag and called up Josh’s number. She knew now that things had already gone too far. It left her with no choice but to see it through to the end.

  58

  August 2011

  It was two days later and Ruby’s cousins had called round to see her and Tiffany.

  ‘You still look fuckin’ sore,’ said Calvin when Ruby answered the door.

  ‘Could have been worse,’ said Ruby, trying to be blasé about the attack.

  Once they had settled down in the living room and Tiffany had gone to fix them each a drink, Josh asked, ‘How’s things going with the club? Will you be able to get it up and running soon?’

  ‘Hopefully,’ said Ruby. ‘We’ve managed to get hold of a lot of replacements but we’ll have to wait for them to be delivered and I’ve got someone booked in to repair the walls next week.’

  ‘That’s good,’ said Josh, looking cautiously at Tiffany as she came into the room carrying drinks.

  ‘It’s OK. Tiff knows everything,’ said Ruby.

  They all knew why he and Calvin were here and, now he knew Tiffany was on board, Josh came straight to the point. ‘OK, like I told you on the phone, the plan is to hit the whole gang at once. We’ve done our homework and know the place they hang out. It’s a pub called The Duck in Stockport. They normally go down there at weekends so we think Saturday would be a good night.’

  He looked across at Calvin who nodded.

  ‘Saturday?’ asked Ruby, the terrifying thought of her upcoming meeting with Kyle sending a chill through her. ‘What time?’

  ‘Dunno. We’ve not decided yet. But we don’t wanna make it too early. We wanna make sure they’re all there.’

  ‘Good idea,’ said Ruby, trying to keep a cap on her fear. ‘Why not make it around nine o’clock, nine-thirty?’

  ‘Sure,’ said Calvin while Josh nodded his agreement. ‘We’ve heard Kyle’s usually in by about half seven, but some of his guys come in a bit later.’

  ‘OK,’ said Ruby.

  ‘I hope you realise things are gonna get brutal,’ said Josh. ‘Are you sure you’re up for it, Ruby?’

  Ruby looked across at Tiffany, noting the fear in her eyes before she said, ‘Yes, I’ve thought it through and, like you say, there’s no alternative. I need them wiped out otherwise they’ll make my life a fuckin’ misery. But I want no comeback.’

  ‘Don’t worry. We’ll go in disguise and keep schtum. We always cover our backs. There’s no way the police will be able to trace it back to us. Oh, and I wanna make sure you two won’t say anything either.’

  ‘Course we won’t,’ said Ruby.

  ‘You sure?’ asked Calvin, looking at Tiffany.

  ‘Yes,’ said Tiffany. ‘Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like the idea of any of this. But, like Ruby says, we’ve got no choice. It’s the only way to get them off our backs.’

  ‘OK, as long as we all understand,’ said Josh.

  For the next few minutes they made small talk. Ruby didn’t add anything more about the proposed attack until Tiffany went into the kitchen to fetch them more drinks then she quickly said to her cousins, ‘By the way, Kyle won’t be there on Saturday.’

  ‘Why not?’ asked Josh.

  ‘Because he’ll be with me.’

  ‘What the fuck?’ said Calvin.

  ‘Don’t worry,’ Ruby said. ‘Just you take care of the rest of the gang. I’ll sort Kyle out myself.’

  ‘You sure you can deal with that, cuz?’ asked Josh.

  ‘Oh yeah,’ said Ruby, outwardly confident.

  Inside she was full of trepidation about what she had to do. But Kyle had tortured her for too long. After going over everything countless times in her head, Ruby had finally decided that she was no longer prepared to let him get away with it. Not only did she need to put a stop to Kyle, but she also wanted to make it clear to him that from now on she was the one in charge.

  59

  August 2011

  Saturday soon arrived. Ruby had thought about hardly anything other than her forthcoming meeting with Kyle and her cousins’ plans to annihilate the rest of his gang. She was trying to quash the feelings of dread that consumed her, but found she couldn’t settle to anything.

  In the end she decided to visit her mother to take her mind off things while Tiffany was out visiting her own family. She surmised that Tiffany was finding things just as difficult and had therefore decided to go out rather than stay at home, anxiously waiting for the hours to tick by.

  Ruby arrived at her mother’s house clutching a bunch of flowers with plenty of cash in her purse. She had never got over her feelings of guilt for abandoning her mother when she was struggling and had been making up for it ever since with cash and presents whenever she visited.

  When she arrived, there was no answer so she tried the front door handle, relieved to find it was open. She pushed her way inside the house and smiled on hearing the high-pitched, jangling sound of her brother Tyler’s games console. She fondly recalled buying it for him a few years previously and it amused her to think that he still played on it even though he was now well into his twenties.

  But the smile slid from her face as soon as she walked into the lounge. Before she even saw her brother she sensed the smell of fear and took in the destruction. She could see that the room had been ransacked and scarlet smeared objects were scattered wantonly about.

  Then she saw Tyler. His feet were protruding from the end of the armchair where he was sitting with his back to her. As she walked over to him she could see that his body was slumped over the arm, half-twisted as though he was trying to get up but hadn’t made it.

  His back was a mass of blood-drenched wounds, and as he lay prone the blood continued to seep, covering the seat and the carpet below. The games control had slipped from his hand and was lying on the floor in a pool of blood. Ruby put her hand to her mouth and yelped like a wounded animal.

  The constant, repetitive chime of the games console heightened her distress and drew her attention to the TV. Jolly, animated images flashed across the screen, incongruent with the tragic scene. Ruby shifted her attention from the TV, one thought domina
ting her mind as she yelled for her mother, praying she had escaped the carnage.

  Driven by desperation she fled from the lounge, back into the hall and towards the kitchen. But then she spotted something she had missed on the way in: a faint bloodstain on the wall near the kitchen, and a crimson footprint next to the door, darkening the mid-brown shade of the carpet. She rushed inside the room, dreading what she might find, and spotted her mother straightaway.

  Daisy was at the kitchen counter, as she often was, preparing food. Ruby could see the veg, half-chopped in front of her and the aroma of stewed meat infused with her mother’s herbs and spices filled the air, the pan bubbling away on the hob. But Daisy hadn’t finished the job. She was slumped across the counter, the white plastic chopping board now coloured pink and her own chef’s knife protruding from an angry wound in her back. Her hair was matted with the thick blood that clung to it and lacerations covered her head, arms and back.

  Ruby dropped to her knees and yelled, ‘Mam, no! Oh please no…’ She became hysterical as shock and sorrow invaded her body and made her shudder with racking sobs. The sound of her agonised wailing drowned out even the chiming, merry sound of the games console coming from the front room.

  She had never felt so bereft. Not since that other time when Kyle had left her wounded and traumatised. And as she took in the brutal scene in front of her, harrowing memories came flooding back once more, adding to her grief.

  That other time it was her mother who had come to her rescue. She had always been there for her. And how have I repaid her? she thought, in despair: By abandoning her then leading a life of debauchery and bringing ruthless villains to her door.

  Ruby didn’t know how long she remained there, but when she eventually calmed down, she had an overwhelming urge to flee the house. She knew she should have called the police and waited for them to arrive but she couldn’t bear to look at her mother’s mutilated body any longer. So she dashed to her car and spent a tearful half hour driving around aimlessly, her tortured brain questioning the reason for such a callous and devastating attack.

  What sort of person would do such a thing? Kyle? Gilly? Kyle’s men? A random stranger?

  Ruby’s devastation and regret soon turned to fury as she thought about the sick mind behind such a brutal slaughter. And fury drove her on. The more she thought about it, the more she came to the conclusion that she knew exactly who had done this. There was only one person it could have been. And she was determined to get even with him in the most callous way possible.

  60

  August 2011

  It had to be Kyle. Gilly didn’t know where her family lived and, as her cousins had pointed out to her, he was small fry and was too frightened to act out his threats once her cousins had finished with him. But Kyle was another matter; he was a major threat and she knew he was ruthless enough. He was also set on revenge and had made it clear that he would stop at nothing to get it.

  The fury was building within Ruby. It was as though a box had been unlocked and an irate devil had jumped out. Her brain had fast-tracked to the angry stage of grief. The stage where it manifests itself in rage at the helplessness and injustice of it all. The stage where you question the world around you and how life can be so cruel. And the stage where you want reparation for your loss.

  As Ruby’s anger threatened to engulf her, she became increasingly determined that reparation was exactly what she was going to get. Despite her grief she would go ahead with the meeting with Kyle. In fact, the discovery of her slaughtered family strengthened her resolve to meet him. But she would have to hold it together and channel her anger and sorrow, if she was to see this through.

  *

  It was five past nine, thirty seconds later than the last time Ruby had looked at her watch. The bastard was deliberately late! Inside the club it was eerily quiet, despite the music from the nightclub below, as they were still shut for renovations. As she sat behind the counter awaiting his arrival, Ruby could feel her heart thundering within her chest and a sheen of sweat covered her forehead. She gripped a pen in her clammy hands, tapping on the desk in front of her.

  When she saw him walk through the door with that usual smug grin on his face, she felt as if her heart had jumped up into her throat and was about to choke her. She swallowed hard and took a deep breath as she looked across the reception area at her adversary.

  ‘You not reopened yet then?’ he asked, grinning and peering across at the waiting area, which was still in a state of disrepair.

  ‘No, I’m afraid the thugs who did that left us a lot of fuckin’ work to do,’ she replied sarcastically.

  ‘Ha, funny!’ he commented. ‘It’ll teach you and your cousins not to fuckin’ take the piss in future then, won’t it?’

  Ruby kept a lid on her emotions. She didn’t want this to escalate. Not yet anyway. ‘Come on then, let’s get this over with,’ she said, pretending to search for the keys.

  ‘We’ll take Rose’s room,’ he said, leering. ‘Then I can pretend I’m fucking her. She was my first choice after all.’

  Ruby could feel her anger rising to the surface again and with it her suppressed tears threatened to spill. Who did this little shit think he was? As if she was bothered about his preferences. Again she kept calm, focusing on her plan.

  ‘Shit!’ she said. ‘Where did I put those bloody keys? I’m sure they were here a minute ago.’ She pretended to search the drawers under the counter then presented a key to him. ‘Nah, this is the only one I can find. It’s for upstairs.’

  ‘You can get fucked if you think I’m going up there where you take all your fuckin’ weirdos.’

  ‘OK, so d’you want to do it here in front of the window where anyone off the street can see?’ she asked, satisfied as she saw Kyle mulling it over in his mind. After giving him a few seconds to think about it, she added. ‘There is a bed in there as well you know; all the other stuff’s behind a screen.’

  ‘Go on then,’ he capitulated. ‘But no fuckin’ funny business. I ain’t into all that pervy stuff.’

  She walked over to the door to Ruby’s Dungeon and unlocked it, then climbed the stairs with Kyle following behind. With each step, trepidation threatened to take hold of her, but she fought to maintain control, ignoring her trembling limbs and racing heart.

  Finally, she led him into the room and strode over to the bed where she waited for him to join her. Kyle jumped onto the bed, eager as a puppy, and lay alongside her on the scarlet satin bedding. Then he took in the rest of the room.

  ‘Hang on a minute. Where’s the fuckin’ screen?’ he demanded.

  But he was too late. Ruby already had her knife jabbed up against his throat. She looked with satisfaction at the expression of sheer alarm on his face. He had obviously underestimated her. Perhaps he was carrying a weapon, but he hadn’t even bothered taking it out, confident of his ability to overpower a feeble woman.

  ‘Right, I want you to get up off the bed, really slowly,’ she hissed. ‘And don’t try anything or I’ll slit your fuckin’ throat!’

  ‘OK, like that, is it?’ he asked.

  He was putting on a brave act, but Ruby could see through it by the shock and terror in his eyes. Once he was up off the bed, she walked him across the room, keeping the knife pressed up against his throat till they reached the stocks.

  ‘Get down on the floor!’ she ordered.

  ‘You must be fuckin’ j—’

  But Ruby cut him off, viciously jabbing the knife harder till she drew blood. ‘Do as you’re fuckin’ told!’ she snarled. Kyle complied. ‘Right, good. Now I want you to put your feet and hands through the holes.’

  Kyle looked up at her, his expression venomous. ‘You’ll fuckin’ regret this!’ he said.

  ‘Do as you’re told!’ Ruby yelled. ‘Now!’

  She jabbed the knife again to let him know she was serious and was relieved when he carried out her command. As soon as she had him in the stocks, she secured them then raced downstairs and locked the
entrance. Once she was back in her dungeon, she locked that door too. Ruby didn’t want anybody to witness what she was about to do.

  61

  August 2011

  She walked slowly round the stocks, enjoying the thrill of anticipation as she took in the agonised look on his face. They were a perfect choice for confinement, enabling her to see his every facial expression but also leaving his back exposed.

  Being careful not to get too close, she bent and searched him, firstly pulling up his shirt then inserting her knife in the gap at the back of his trousers and yanking hard till the material split. She pulled the top half of his trousers away and peered into the space between his groin and the stocks. But there was no weapon concealed there.

  ‘You might have shown a bit more enthusiasm,’ she mocked, referring to his flaccid penis. ‘Most of my clients would have been really excited by this stage.’

  ‘Fuck you, bitch!’ he cursed and she knew he was attempting to cover real fear through his angry outburst.

  Next she walked round to the front of the stocks, satisfied when she saw him squirm as she approached his feet. Again she inserted the knife and pulled, this time in the bottom of his trouser legs, each one in turn. There she saw the blade, tucked away inside one of his socks. She grabbed it then made a show of examining it before slowly crossing the room and adding it to her rack of implements.

  ‘Should come in handy,’ she said before selecting a bullwhip and walking back to the stocks with a fake smile plastered on her face.

  His eyes became wide with alarm. ‘Steady,’ she said, putting down the whip. ‘Not yet. We’ve got something else to do first.’