Strong Women

by Roberta Kray

  ‘You think I’m a fool,’ he said.

  She saw the pain in his eyes and squeezed out a smile. ‘No more than the rest of us.’ Earlier, with so much time on their hands, she had ended up telling him about what she had learned this morning, about Peter and Deborah and what Carla had admitted to. He hadn’t judged her then and she had no right to judge him now. If anyone was a fool it was her. She had been so blind, so naïve.

  Gabe slapped his fist softly against his thigh. ‘I know she’s messed up but she still brought Silver here. She didn’t want the kid to be hurt. That says something about her, doesn’t it?’

  Jo nodded. She suspected that Susan was only taking care of number one but that wasn’t the answer he wanted to hear. ‘Maybe she’s scared of Gull coming after her.’

  ‘But there’s no chance of that if he doesn’t know where she is.’

  ‘Maybe she’s just making sure.’ In the wider scheme of things it didn’t really matter whether she rang or not – they already had the name they needed – but for Gabe it was a matter of principle. No, it was more than that. It was a matter of trust. He had put his faith in Susan and she had let him down again.

  Jo got to her feet and went to stand beside him. Pulling aside a corner of the curtain, she gazed out across the Green. It was dark and deserted. The rain had started up again, an angry shower beating hard against the glass. She thought she sensed a movement beneath her but when she glanced down towards the drive there was no one there. She frowned. It was nothing, just her nerves playing tricks.

  A week, just a week and a day and so much had changed. She had gone from being a grieving widow to … to what? She wasn’t sure who she was any more. A big part of her wished that today had never happened. The truth was not always something to be welcomed. Deborah’s confession had confirmed her very worst fears and then Carla had … God, what Carla had revealed could never be forgotten.

  As Jo dropped the curtain and turned back towards the room the first thing she noticed was the framed picture of Rangoon on the wall. She suddenly understood why Peter had put it there. It hadn’t just been a dramatic panorama, a glorious view to fill an empty space – no, for him it had been a constant and guilty reminder of what his father had done and of what he had done to cover it up. She stared at it with growing horror in her eyes.

  ‘Jo?’ Gabe said.

  She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t even look at him. Running to the bathroom, she slammed the door shut and leaned over the basin. She had thought she was going to be sick but only a vile, dry retching came from her throat. Leaning her forehead against the cool tiles, she felt the tears running down her cheeks. She lifted her head and stared into the mirror. Her face was pale and bloodless, her eyes as helpless as a child’s. She had loved Peter, loved him so much, but their marriage had been a sham. He had lied and cheated. He’d deceived her – and so had all his family. ‘Jo Strong,’ she murmured. Even her name was a joke.

  Quickly, she wiped the tears from her eyes. Now was not the time to be falling apart. The regrets, the sorrow and even the self-pity would have to wait. After throwing some cold water on her face, she patted it dry with a towel. She was not the only one whose life had been turned upside down recently. There was a frightened teenage girl in the bedroom, a girl who needed to be reunited with her father.

  As she walked back into the living room, Gabe was in the process of putting away his phone. He looked as pale as she did. She didn’t need to ask. She knew that he’d tried to call Susan again and that she still wasn’t answering. It was almost eleven and the time for any reasonable doubt was over.

  Leo’s mother had left at eight for a nightshift at the hospital. He had gone out at the same time, pretending he was on his way to Jimmy Talbot’s. Although Leo was well past his fourteenth birthday, she still refused to let him stay alone overnight in the flat. There was no point arguing with her; once she had made up her mind she was immoveable. Normally, he wouldn’t have minded that much – Jimmy was a mate and they always had a laugh together – but tonight he had good reason for wanting to stay home.

  At around six o’clock he had seen Jo come back from work. It hadn’t been accidental; he’d been sitting by the bedroom window waiting for a glimpse of her. She had looked odd, kind of scared and had scurried up the drive to unlock the front door. The big guy, the bruiser, had been on her heels and had followed her inside. Leo hadn’t liked it, not one little bit.

  After watching his mother get on the bus, he had jogged back to the flat and let himself in. After what had occurred last night, he wasn’t prepared to leave Jo alone. Someone had to protect her. He had seen the expression on that brute’s face and it wasn’t one of love and affection.

  For the rest of the evening, Leo had been listening out for any sounds that came from upstairs but what he had heard hadn’t made much sense. Just footsteps mainly, heavy footsteps, going back and forth. Like someone pacing, then pausing, then pacing again. The ceiling would creak for a while and then go silent.

  Every half-hour he had slipped outside and stared up at the windows. A couple of lamps had gone on but the curtains were drawn tight. Occasionally, he pressed his ear to the door but the wood was too solid; all he could hear was the steady splash of the rain against the drive.

  Sitting right on the edge of the sofa he examined the gun he’d bought off Stevie Hills. It was a dark, snub-nosed revolver, so small and light that it was hard to imagine it doing much damage. But then again, appearances could be deceptive. Was it loaded? He had no idea. He was scared of messing with it, scared of the damn thing going off and blowing a hole in his leg … or worse. He turned it over very carefully in his hands. He looked at it from every angle. If there was a safety catch, he couldn’t find it.

  Leo was about to embark on his next patrol when he heard a soft knock at the door. He thought about ignoring it but changed his mind. What if it was one of his mother’s nosy friends who had seen the light on and knew she was at work? The last thing he needed was some busybody ringing her at the hospital. He put the gun down on the sofa but then picked it up again and slipped it into his pocket. Best not to leave it lying around.

  Forgetting how late it was, Leo opened the door without bothering to attach the chain first. A black-haired guy in a leather jacket was standing in the shadows outside.

  ‘DS Hale,’ the man said, briefly flashing a badge in front of his face. ‘I need to talk to you. Do you mind if I come in?’

  Leo’s first thought was of the gun. His stomach lurched. Oh Jesus, no! His heart began a pounding so extreme that he was sure it must be audible. Stevie must have grassed him up. He was probably down the cop shop this very minute, pulled in on some drug-dealing charge and already confessing to all his other illegal activities. ‘W-what?’ he croaked.

  ‘It’s about your neighbour, the young lady living upstairs.’

  It took a few seconds for the words to filter through to Leo’s terrified brain. When they finally did he stood aside in relief. ‘You mean Jo?’

  The cop nodded as he stepped into the hallway. He pulled the door ajar and kept his voice low. ‘We think she may be in trouble.’

  ‘Is this to do with that guy, the one who’s with her now?’

  ‘You know him?’

  Leo wiped his sweaty palms on his jeans. He was still overly aware of the revolver nestling in his pocket but his fear was gradually diminishing. This wasn’t about him or the gun. ‘Yeah, course I do. He’s a real nasty bastard, off his head, a nutter. He had a go at me last week.’ He rubbed resentfully at the fading bruises on his arm. ‘I’ve been looking out for her, you know, making sure that he doesn’t …’

  ‘We’ve noticed,’ the DS said wryly. ‘We’ve been across the road, watching the house for most of the evening.’

  A light flush rose to Leo’s cheeks. He hoped the cop didn’t think he was some kind of stalker.

  DS Hale peered towards the living room. ‘Are you here on your own, son?’

  ‘Mum’s on the ni
ghtshift.’ Then, worried that she might get in trouble for leaving him alone, he quickly added: ‘But I’m sixteen. I can take care of myself.’

  Fortunately, Hale didn’t seem too interested in the issue of parental care. ‘Okay, let me explain what’s going on here. We have a warrant for Mr Miller’s arrest but, as they say, he’s unlikely to come quietly. Obviously, what we don’t want is a hostage situation where the young lady may get hurt. We need to get her out of the house before we go in.’ His forehead crunched into a frown as if he was in two minds whether to continue. He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. ‘Look, we don’t normally like to get members of the public involved but if Jo trusts you, if she’ll answer the door to you at this time of night …’

  ‘She will,’ Leo said eagerly. He could see what Hale was planning now. If the police started banging on the door, the crazy guy was likely to panic, to do something stupid, but if it was just the skinny kid from the flat below … And once he had lured her downstairs she’d be out of the bastard’s grasp for ever. She’d be safe, free of danger. And Leo Kearns would have been the one to save her!

  ‘Good lad,’ Hale said, patting him on the arm. ‘Shall we get on with it?’

  It was only then, as the cop turned to go back outside, that Leo noticed the deep red scratch marks running down the left side of his neck. He looked like he’d been in a fight with a cat.

  Gabe was getting ready to leave. He had the car keys in his hand and was waiting for Silver to come out of the bathroom. Jo, who had spent the last hour urging him to take the girl home, was now starting to have second thoughts. Delaney still wasn’t answering his mobile. He wasn’t at the club or his home either. His wife, Nina, would only say that he was ‘out’. She had sounded (according to Gabe) as if she already had half a bottle of vodka inside her and when pressed for further information had simply slammed down the phone.

  ‘Maybe you should wait and talk to him first, make sure he realises that you had nothing directly to do with all this.’

  Gabe shrugged. ‘It’s not going to be too hard for him to work out. If he’s still got his cash and he’s got his daughter back, then I’m hardly in the frame as her abductor. Anyway, Silver knows I didn’t have anything to do with the kidnapping.’

  ‘Does she? I doubt if she’s too clear about anything at the moment. Don’t you think it would be better if you—’

  Suddenly two thin sharp rings of the bell cut her question dead.

  She stared at Gabe.

  He walked to the top of the staircase and looked down.

  Jo, reminded of what had happened at Clover Road, remained frozen to the spot. But the voice that floated up was reassuringly familiar.

  ‘Jo? Jo, are you there? It’s only me. It’s Leo.’

  ‘Leave it,’ Gabe said softly, moving back into the living room.

  ‘I can’t,’ she whispered. ‘He knows I’m here. He can see the lights.’

  ‘He’ll go away.’

  A few seconds passed.

  ‘Jo, are you there?’

  Now there was a more plaintive note in his voice. She couldn’t close her ears to it. Leo was her neighbour, her friend. If something was wrong – and why else would he be ringing the bell at this time of the night – she couldn’t ignore it. Quickly brushing past Gabe, she glanced over her shoulder as she headed down the stairs. ‘Just give me a minute, okay?’

  As she opened the door she was aware of Leo taking a few steps back. He was dressed in blue jeans and a black hoodie although the hood wasn’t up. He silently beckoned her forward. His hair was wet, slicked flat against his skull and on his face was an expression of … She was still trying to work out exactly what it was when she heard a swift movement beside her and felt the cold press of steel against her head.

  ‘Don’t scream, sweetie. Don’t even move.’ A voice was whispering into her neck. It was hard and vicious and not entirely unfamiliar.

  Chapter Seventy-six

  Jo couldn’t clearly remember the climb back up the stairs. She retained only a series of fleeting impressions: the horror in Leo’s eyes, the strong musky smell of Marty Gull’s body, the painful pressure of the gun barrel just above her right ear. In the living room, Marty had forced her down into one of the armchairs and was now positioned behind and slightly to the left of her, barking out his orders.

  Gabe and Leo, standing by the sofa, obediently placed their hands on their heads. Gabe looked like thunder. Leo looked like he was going to cry. Jo found herself thinking with a lucid and peculiar calm: Is this it? There could be, she realised, only one logical outcome to the scene that was unfolding.

  ‘Where is she?’ Marty said. Then he raised his voice. ‘Silver?’

  The door to the bathroom opened and the girl walked out. She stared first at Marty Gull, then at everyone else. Her face registered only the mildest surprise at this sudden shift in power.

  Marty gave her a thin smile and gestured with the gun. ‘On the other chair, kid.’

  Silver, saying nothing, walked across the room, sat down and folded her hands neatly in her lap. She had an odd, disturbing blankness about her as if she was still watching television, as if this was just the latest episode in a rather dull on-screen drama. Jo wondered what kind of psychological damage the last week had done. Then with a start of horror, she realised that it was nothing compared to what Marty intended to inflict on the poor girl next.

  She saw Gabe frown as he glanced down. Following his line of view, she inwardly groaned. The handcuffs were lying on the coffee table. Why the hell had she put them back there? And that hadn’t been her only mistake. Why, oh why, had she answered the door? What had she done! Jesus, this was all her fault.

  ‘Pick ’em up,’ Marty said to Leo. He was pointing the gun at Jo’s head.

  Leo slowly bent down and lifted them with trembling fingers.

  ‘Hands behind your back,’ Marty said to Gabe.

  Jo saw him hesitate, but only for a second. He had no choice, at least not one that left her skull intact. Reluctantly, he put his wrists together and Leo snapped on the cuffs. She flinched as she heard the metal links click securely into place.

  ‘Now sit down – both of you!’

  They slumped down together on the sofa.

  ‘Well, this is cosy, eh?’ Marty said. ‘All of us together like this. Quite a reunion.’

  Gabe glared at him. ‘You’re wasting your time. You know it’s over. Susan’s gone; she’s bailed on you. And yeah, sure, you can shoot each and every one of us but that isn’t going to stop her from calling Delaney.’

  ‘We’ll be well gone by then,’ Marty said softly.

  Jo glanced anxiously at Silver but, as if oblivious to the inherent menace of that word ‘we’, she remained completely indifferent. Her wide blue eyes were looking at Marty Gull but they displayed no emotion.

  ‘Maybe she’s already called,’ Gabe said. ‘Maybe he’s on his way here right now.’

  Marty grinned back. ‘Oh, I dunno. Last time I heard, Vic was heading for Kent.’

  His tongue snaked out and ran slickly along his thin upper lip. ‘And when Susan and I had our little chat tonight, after she passed over the cash, she didn’t seem too arsed about making any calls.’

  There was a second of absolute stillness in the room.

  Jo fixed her gaze on Gabe. She could see the blood draining from his face. And suddenly she knew, just as he did, that Susan hadn’t gone to the airport. She hadn’t gone to Palma. She had done what she had always planned to do on the anniversary of Linda’s disappearance: she had gone ahead with the ransom demand. Jo felt a hot rush of breath burn out of her lungs. Oh God, if only Susan had answered her phone, if only she had talked to Gabe …

  ‘What have you done to her, you fucker?’ Gabe said. His voice was low and full of rage.

  Marty shrugged his shoulders. ‘Done to her? Nothin’ mate. Why should I? I think you’ll find that you’re the one she’s done the dirty on. Nice of you to clean up after us though.
Very thoughtful.’

  Jo could see Gabe’s chest rising and falling but he was helpless to do anything.

  Leo, his face still stricken, was staring at Marty. His fingers were splayed across his thighs and a thin chattering noise came from his mouth.

  ‘You know,’ Marty said, ‘we really should have some music. I mean, it’s not much of a party without a few sounds, is it?’ He looked over at Silver. ‘Switch on the radio, kid.’

  She got to her feet and went over to the music system. She studied the controls for a moment, then pressed a button.

  As the sound of ‘Toxic’ floated out across the airwaves, Jo had one of those hysterical thoughts: not only was she going to die but she was going to die to the dulcet tones of Britney Spears. Could it get any worse?

  ‘Louder,’ Marty said.

  Silver turned up the volume.

  ‘Good girl. Now go and wait in the bedroom. I need to have a private talk with my friends here.’

  For the first time, Silver showed some signs of animation. Perhaps she was finally starting to realise what was going on. She bit down on her lip and her eyes slowly narrowed. She looked at Marty and then, as if seeking reassurance, gazed over at Gabe.

  Gabe forced a smile and nodded. ‘Go on. It’s okay.’

  When the door had closed behind her, Marty gave a small hollow laugh. ‘She’s so young. Be a shame for her to witness anythin’ … unpleasant.’

  ‘Delaney’s going to find out,’ Gabe said. ‘And when he does—’

  ‘Sure he’s gonna find out,’ Marty interrupted. ‘He’s gonna find out that you stole his precious little girl. And I’m going to explain exactly what happened. I had a tip-off, see, got straight over here but sadly it was too late.’ He paused, smirking. ‘Too late for his daughter, at least, and these other two poor souls. And faced with the horror of what you’d done – well, what decent man wouldn’t take matters into his own hands? Vic’s going to understand that. In fact, he’s going to go down on his knees and bloody thank me for it.’