Dangerous Girl_An utterly heart stopping thriller

by Emma Tallon

  ‘Pour yourself a drink and sit down. I’m just here to talk.’

  William hesitated for a moment, then fixed himself a drink with a trembling hand, never taking his eyes fully off the stranger with the gun. He closed the cabinet and sat down nervously on the edge of the sofa.

  ‘Are you going to kill me?’ he asked, finally.

  ‘No. Like I said, I’m just here to talk.’

  ‘Then why have you got a gun?’ William asked, barely containing the panic that was threatening to spill over.

  ‘In case you didn’t want to talk. Drink your whisky. You’ll feel better.’

  William did as he was told and downed the fiery drink in one. He coughed, and his eyes watered as he put down the glass. He didn’t usually drink the stuff, and when he did, he sipped it. But as he felt the warm liquid reach his belly, he slowly began to calm down.

  ‘What do you want to talk about?’

  ‘Your sister.’

  ‘You could have just asked,’ William said crabbily. ‘Knocked at the door, called me and set up an appointment.’

  ‘I don’t have time for bullshit. Now why do you think the guy who took your sister wants you dead?’

  ‘I don’t know! I have been through this already. I spent half the night in the station answering questions. I have no idea what’s going on!’ William was frustrated.

  ‘Watch your tone,’ the other man snapped.

  William closed his mouth, remembering his precarious position.

  ‘Who are you?’ he asked. ‘You’re not with the police.’

  ‘No, I’m not. I’m just someone trying to get your sister back. And I need every single bit of information I can get my hands on to do so. You need to tell me everything. Especially the stuff you can’t and wouldn’t have told the police. I’m no threat to you on that side of things.’

  ‘What do you mean?’ William was confused.

  ‘I mean, you need to tell me everything you’ve done that’s less than legal. If you have underground business dealings, I need to know. If you fucked off your weed dealer, I need to know. If you killed your neighbour’s cat because it was pissing on your doormat, I need to know. I need to know everything that has any link to anyone that might have decided you needed to be taught a lesson.’

  William frowned. ‘I haven’t done anything illegal at all. I work in investment banking, for God’s sake. I have to be cleaner than soap!’

  ‘You’re telling me that you’ve never done anything even slightly underhand?’

  ‘No! I smoked a bit of weed at high school for a few months, but that was years ago and hardly the crime of the century.’

  ‘What about at work? Have you lost someone a lot of money lately? Swiped someone else’s client? Do you have any enemies at all, for any reason?’

  ‘No, I really don’t. I only started a couple of months ago. I’m a junior handler still; I don’t get near the big accounts yet. And I’ve done pretty well on the small ones.’ William slumped back on the sofa, his exhaustion taking over. ‘I don’t have enemies. I get on well with everyone, and aside from the odd girl I haven’t called back, I can’t think of anyone I’ve done anything to.’

  They both sat in silence.

  Freddie contemplated the man in front of him. He was just a kid, twenty years old and finding his way in the world. Everything he said just backed up what Freddie had already found out. An intelligent boy, he had graduated early from university and walked straight into a big firm. Nothing on his record, no serious dating history, liked by everyone. The young man was clearly at a total loss as to what was happening. He stood up.

  ‘I’ll leave you to it. Have another whisky and get some sleep. You look like you need it.’

  ‘That’s it?’ William stood up too. He wanted to make sure this man was really gone and double lock the door before he tried to rest.

  ‘That’s it,’ Freddie confirmed.

  They walked to the door together, and William opened it.

  ‘Can I just ask… if you’re not anything to do with the police, why are you looking for my sister?’

  Freddie have him a hard look. ‘Because yours isn’t the only life that rides on this.’

  He walked out and disappeared before William could ask anything more.

  39

  Anna sat down opposite Freddie in the restaurant and forced herself to relax. She placed her clutch bag on the table and folded her arms in front of her. She loved it here and so desperately wanted to enjoy the evening. The food was amazing, Michelin star. But it was more than that. This was the first place they had come together on a formal date, as an official couple. It was a brand-new start for them, finally both understanding who the other was after the revelations of that fateful night when Tony had kidnapped Anna. Tony was finally out of their lives, and they were free to enjoy their new-found love. It had been such a happy time.

  Freddie reached over and squeezed Anna’s hand. ‘You look amazing, as always.’ He gave her an admiring look.

  ‘Thank you,’ she answered, smiling.

  ‘Champagne?’ Freddie began pouring her a glass. Anna looked at the label. It was Cristal, her favourite. He was pulling out all the stops tonight. Usually this would make her happy, but tonight it just unnerved her. With Freddie being so secretive and disappearing all the time, she had no idea what to expect.

  ‘Have you had a good week?’ she asked, her voice carefully casual. ‘I haven’t seen you in a few days.’

  Freddie sighed internally. ‘I’ve just been really busy lately. That’s why I thought it would be good for us to take a night off and spend some quality time together.’ He stared at her, his eyes beseeching. He needed her to stick by him at the moment, even though he knew the war that must be raging inside her. Anna had been damaged long before he met her. He knew her natural instinct would be to pull away from him now.

  Anna cast her eyes down. It was eating her up inside now, knowing there were things he was keeping from her. She knew everything about his illegal businesses and even men he had murdered, so what on earth could there be left to keep from her? The only answer, no matter how much she tried to find another, was that it was another woman.

  She watched as Freddie lifted his champagne glass, waiting for her to lift hers. She put her fingers on the stem and paused. This was killing her. If she didn’t ask him now, she never would.

  Sitting up straight, she looked him determinedly in the eye. ‘Freddie. Is there someone else? Are you having an affair?’

  Freddie’s eyebrows shot up in shock. ‘Are you joking?’ came his immediate retort.

  ‘Sadly no. There’s nothing that you haven’t been able to tell me before.’ She leaned in. ‘And I really mean nothing.’ She emphasised the word heavily. He would know what she meant. ‘But now you’re keeping secrets from me. You’re holding something back, and you’re away even more than usual.’ Anna kept her voice low and her expression straight but couldn’t quite contain the tears that began to spill down her cheeks. ‘We’ve spent three years together without a single thing between us. And so now I really don’t know what else to think. I won’t go through this, Freddie. I won’t live with secrets and lies. I won’t be made a fool of again, not by any man.’

  Freddie leaned forward, mortified to have caused her so much anxiety and pain.

  ‘Anna, stop. Anna, here take this.’ He handed her a serviette, and she quickly dabbed the tears away, annoyed with herself for crying. She lifted her chin and tightened her jaw.

  Freddie sighed and closed his eyes for a second. ‘There is no one else. There will never be anyone else. You know that,’ he said strongly. ‘You are everything to me.’ Freddie grabbed one of her hands and squeezed it. ‘There is something going on, yes. It’s to do with one of my clubs. I know that this doesn’t make sense to you right now, but I can’t discuss it with anyone. If I do, it’ll just make the situation worse.’

  Anna frowned and shook her head in frustrated confusion.

  ‘I know. It won’t
make sense yet, but I really need you to just trust me and stick with me. Can you do that? I would never do anything to hurt or disrespect you – ever. That I can promise you. And I also promise you that when this is all over, I will tell you everything.’

  ‘And when will that be, Freddie? Because this is all really difficult to swallow.’

  ‘Well, one way or another, in about one week.’

  ‘A week?’ Anna looked sceptical.

  ‘A week,’ Freddie confirmed, his heart sitting heavily in his stomach. There wasn’t enough time. God, if only she knew.

  There was silence as Anna took a deep breath. She lifted her glass to his, her face still sombre.

  ‘OK. You have one week. But I’m warning you now, Freddie, if you don’t come clean then, there will be no future for us.’

  Freddie chinked his glass to hers and drank some of his champagne, his eyes never leaving hers, his heart heavy.

  He would never do anything to purposely hurt her – that promise was the truth. He just wished he could control the nightmare he had unwittingly dragged her into. Because in one week’s time, if he didn’t find this girl, Anna might well be taking her last, terrified breath. And there would be nothing he could do to save her.

  Tanya scowled at the woman barging past her down Oxford Street. She had completely forgotten that it was the school holidays when she made her way down there for a weekday shopping spree. She had counted on fewer tourists bumbling around, getting in everyone’s way.

  ‘Fuck sake!’ she complained loudly, securing the knocked shopping bags in the crook of her arm. A pious looking woman in an ‘I love London’ T-shirt gave her a snotty look. ‘Oh, you can piss off an’ all, love.’ Tanya rolled her eyes and swept onwards towards the Tube station. She couldn’t wait to get back to her apartment and try on the new lingerie she had just bought for her next date with Daniel. She flicked her long, red hair back over her shoulder. It was baking out – she should have tied it up to stay cool.

  She reached the Tube and swiped her Oyster to get through the barrier. Following the crowd to the stairs down to her platform, her mind drifted, wondering whether she had enough ice at home to make frozen cocktails.

  As she took her third step, Tanya felt two hands press against her back, through her thin camisole top. Before she could move, they shoved her forward with force. Her feet lost contact with the ground and she began plunging downward through thin air. Her arms flailed around helplessly. The shopping bags flew off to the side as she loosened her grip, their security no longer a priority. Tanya began to scream as she realised she was going to land face first at the bottom of the steep, tall set of steps. People moved out of her way automatically, trying not to get pushed down themselves by this human cannonball. It all happened so fast, yet Tanya felt like everything was moving in slow motion.

  Suddenly all the wind seemed to escape her lungs as a vice-like grip stopped her fall with a hard jolt. Her body swung around, and she nearly carried on falling backward, but a second burly arm quickly encased her. Tanya grasped the big manly arms around her as if they were a lifeboat. She gulped in the air around her in huge, panicked gasps.

  ‘It’s OK – I’ve got ya.’ The voice came from the man holding her up. She looked up at him and immediately stood herself up. He let her go but kept one hand on her arm, worried in case she started to fall again.

  Tanya looked back up the stairwell to the top, where she had been pushed. She had fallen quite a way – she was now more than halfway down. If she hadn’t been caught… she stared at the hard concrete floor at the bottom and shuddered. Best not to dwell on that, she thought. A few people slowed down, concern on their faces, but no one stopped.

  ‘You OK?’ the man who had caught her asked.

  ‘Yeah. Sorry. Thank you.’ Tanya was shaken up.

  ‘That’s OK. Er, let’s get out the way.’ He guided her down the rest of the steps and over to a less-crowded area. He looked at her drawn face, concerned. ‘You sure you’re alright? That was a pretty hefty fall.’

  ‘It wasn’t a fall,’ Tanya replied heavily. ‘Someone pushed me.’

  ‘Yeah, it gets crazy round here sometimes—’

  ‘No.’ Tanya shook her head. ‘Someone purposely pushed me.’

  ‘Really?’ He looked back to the stairs, frowning. ‘Did you see who?’

  ‘No.’ Tanya suddenly looked at him, realising she was sharing things with a complete stranger. She plastered a smile over her face. ‘Maybe I’m imagining it. Don’t worry. I’m fine. I really do appreciate your help. Thanks, mate.’

  ‘Any time. Just glad I heard you coming.’

  Tanya laughed. ‘Yeah, well, I was never the quiet type.’

  He grinned at her, and she was struck by how attractive he was. In a rugged sort of way anyway, she thought. His brown eyes twinkled. She might have been interested were she not already in a happy relationship.

  ‘Hang on a minute.’ He left her and went back to the side of the stairs, collecting her fallen bags. She cringed as he picked up a lacy red garter and dropped it back into the bag. To his credit, he said nothing as he returned them all to her.

  ‘Listen,’ she said, ‘it’s not much but I would like to repay you for saving me from a face full of concrete. I own a club over on Greek Street. Club Anya. Pop down sometime – bring your mates. I’ll get you a good table and drinks are on me all night.’

  ‘I thought I knew you from somewhere,’ he cried. ‘I worked on that construction site opposite the club, a couple of years back. My mates used to wolf whistle you, every time you came into work.’

  ‘What, and you didn’t?’ She laughed and pretended to be offended.

  ‘Nah, it ain’t classy to whistle a lady. And you always looked like a proper lady.’

  Tanya found herself warming to his open charm.

  ‘I’m Tom, by the way,’ he said, holding his hand out.

  ‘Tanya.’ She shook his hand.

  ‘And you don’t have to do that, really,’ he said.

  ‘No, I want to. Please. I insist. I’ll be insulted if you don’t come.’

  ‘OK, well I don’t want to insult ya.’ He rolled his eyes jokingly, backed into a corner. ‘I’ll come down sometime. Thank you.’

  ‘Great. Well…’ She looked round. ‘I’d best get on.’

  ‘Yeah, me too. I was on my way up. I’ll see you later.’

  ‘Yeah, bye.’ Tanya waved awkwardly as he left.

  What a nice guy, she thought. Her eyes lingered on the top of the stairs well after he disappeared from view. Her mood darkened and a quiet anger flashed across her face. She had definitely been pushed, and it was no accident. Whoever had done that to her meant business. She remembered the feel of their hands, both hands pressed deliberately across her back before sending her flying. From that height onto the concrete below, she could have died. At best, she would have been hospitalised had Tom not caught her.

  This was no longer a few sinister texts. Whoever was following her was out for blood.

  40

  Thea sat sipping her coffee outside the little café in Brixton, eying the empty property opposite with interest. It would make a good tea room, with its old-fashioned windowpanes looking in on a spacious room with wooden pillars dotted around. It would be a simple front business for Freddie, if the rent wasn’t too high. She jotted down the agent’s number in the little notebook she kept in her pocket. Slipping it back into the pocket of her denim jacket, she raised her hand and waved at the tall, awkward young man making his way towards her. He waved back and they smiled in greeting to one another.

  ‘Ready to go?’ Dominic asked gaily as he reached her.

  Thea downed the last dregs of her coffee and stood up, grabbing her backpack. It held her camera and all the related accessories she needed inside.

  ‘Yeah, definitely. Well excited.’ Thea smiled, and her eyes twinkled brightly. She loved photography and was relishing the challenge she had set herself. She had dressed comfortably and casual
ly, not knowing how long they would be out and not wanting to draw attention to herself. Stalking her brothers would be no easy task.

  ‘Where do we start?’ Dominic asked.

  ‘My brother Paul mentioned popping over this way for a meeting this morning, so I followed him in. He’s up the next street, but his car is parked down there.’ She pointed to the other end of the street. ‘I was thinking, you could position yourself at that corner and pretend to be taking shots of the street. Then you can get him walking towards you. I’ll come from behind and shoot at another angle so I don’t sit in your shot. But I can get him walking away, maybe even some side face if I can keep well enough hidden.’ She looked around. ‘There.’ She pointed to a narrow alleyway between two buildings. ‘I can shoot from there.’

  ‘OK.’ Dominic grimaced slightly at the look of the alley. Bin bags were piled up high, and flies swarmed around over the top in the summer heat. It didn’t seem like the most pleasant position. But if that’s what she thought was best, he would go along with it. He greatly admired her dedication to the art of photography.

  ‘Let’s start with that then and see what we get. He should be coming out soon, so we had best get into position. I showed you his photo, didn’t I? You know what he looks like?’

  ‘Yes, I remember,’ Dominic replied, nodding.

  Thea grinned and, hoisting her bag higher on her shoulder, walked determinedly into the mouth of the foetid alley. She pulled a face as she set her bag down on an upturned bucket. It stank down there. Perhaps she hadn’t thought this through. She wrinkled her nose and peered further in. A dead, half-eaten mouse lay just beyond the bins, and a cat prowled at the other end, shooting her a resentful look. Clearly she had interrupted its meal. She raised her eyebrows and shrugged apologetically at the mangy feline, before turning back to her bag. She pulled out her camera and took the cap off the lens. Pointing it out into the street, she took a couple of practise shots and tweaked the focus.