By the time it reached 8:20, the waiter had asked Vinny twice if he would like to order, and Vinny had explained that he was waiting for someone. It was now becoming evident, even to the waiter, that that someone was not going to show up. The waiter fussed around a nearby table, straightening knives and forks and flicking imaginary bits of dust off the tablecloth. Now and again he cast a sidelong glance in Vinny’s direction, as though awaiting a decision.
Vinny had already glanced at the menu several times and had long ago decided which dishes he would like to order. His stomach rumbled in anticipation. As he tried to occupy his time during the lengthy wait, he gazed around the restaurant at happy couples tucking into their meals. Some looked back and, to Vinny, it seemed that everybody in the restaurant knew that he had been stood up.
Eventually it became obvious to him that there wasn’t much hope of her turning up this late in the evening. After taking one last glance at his watch, he stood up, sighed and nodded towards the waiter before he left the restaurant feeling downcast and very humiliated.
His first thought was to return home, but he decided that there was no point in sitting there brooding. So he made his way to his local pub where he knew he would find his friend Pete, amongst others.
When Vinny walked inside the pub he knew it was a mistake. His clothing looked out of place in the surroundings of his local, so it became apparent to everyone that he hadn’t intended to stay there for the entire evening.
‘Where you off to mate?’ asked an acquaintance called Danny.
‘I’m not off anywhere, I’ve already been,’ Vinny replied.
‘Well you’re soon back aren’t you?’
Vinny sighed as he made the obligatory reply. ‘Let’s just say my arrangements didn’t turn out.’
‘You’ve been stood up, haven’t you?’ asked Danny sniggering.
The crowd sitting with Danny were quick to join in the fun, as they laughed and made jibes. Pete came to Vinny’s rescue. ‘All right mate, do you fancy a pint?’ he asked as he put his arm around Vinny’s shoulder and led him to the bar.
Pete was aware that Vinny had arranged to take Julie for a meal, so when he showed up in his local a little after 9pm, he guessed what had happened.
‘Take no notice of that bunch of prats. Let’s go and sit over there and you can tell me about it.’
‘There’s nothing to tell. I’ve been stood up, haven’t I?’
‘Have you tried ringing her to find out why she didn’t show up?’
‘Yeah, I rang her from two phone boxes on the way here but the phone was engaged all the time. I thought about calling round to her house but that would just make me look desperate.’
‘No, don’t be a mug! Don’t worry about it mate. It’s not the end of the world.’
‘Maybe not but, oh I dunno, I just don’t know where I stand with her anymore.’
Vinny shook his head from side to side before continuing. ‘It’s not like it’s just any bird, you know? I really thought that me and Julie had something good going, especially after the last time I saw her. Christ, she couldn’t get enough of me!’
‘Look Vinny, there’s plenty of birds you can have. Why wait around for Julie? It’s obvious she’s not that bothered.’
‘It’s not just about having a shag though is it? I want more. I want commitment.’
‘For God’s sake Vinny, you’re starting to sound like a woman!’
An uncomfortable silence descended over them; commitment wasn’t a word that entered into Pete’s vocabulary. Vinny withdrew the package from his pocket and showed it to Pete.
‘Oh I get it,’ said Pete, nodding as the realisation hit him. ‘You were going to pop the question? Jesus Vinny, you have got it bad!’
‘Yeah,’ replied Vinny, becoming annoyed. ‘Fuckin’ muggins, that’s me. Two hundred quid this set me back and she can’t even be arsed showing up. She’s probably out with that bunch of slags she hangs around with.’
‘Oh, Rita the Man Eater and that blonde bird with the big tits, do you mean?’
‘Yeah, that’s right; all out on the cop while I’m sat in a restaurant looking like a right dick.’
‘I don’t fancy your chances if she’s out with them two mate. I bet they’ve copped off already.’
‘But Julie’s not like them two Pete.’
‘Well, maybe not, but I wouldn’t trust that Rita as far as I could throw her, not after what she did to me.’
‘Yeah, but you had only seen her a couple of times though, hadn’t you? You’d have probably dumped her soon anyway. It’s not like me and Julie, we’ve been together for a while now.’
‘That doesn’t mean to say she’s not seeing someone-else behind your back though does it? They’re all the same them lot; they just use blokes for what they can get. I thought that Rita was a good laugh, but she was just taking the piss, letting me take her for meals while she had other blokes on the go as well.’
‘Yeah, but you were seeing someone-else as well Pete, weren’t you?’
‘At least I wasn’t flaunting it in front of her face. I felt dead shown up when she walked in Saturdays with that bloke and just sailed right past me without even letting on. I felt like a right mug.’
‘I know how you feel mate,’ Vinny responded.
This prompted some sympathy from Pete who realised how carried away he had been in maligning Rita when his friend was feeling hurt. He slung his arm around Vinny’s shoulder in a rough, masculine embrace. ‘Look mate, don’t let it worry you. There’s plenty of birds you could have. If she can’t be arsed, then find someone who can.’
Vinny looked down in silence and took solace in his pint of beer. Pete tried to discuss other matters in order to take Vinny’s mind off the situation, but after they had drank a few pints, Vinny raised the subject again.
‘I’m going to ring her and find out what the problem is.’
‘She won’t be in.’
‘Well I’ll ring her in the morning then.’
‘Don’t be a mug Vinny, it’s her that’s stood you up not the other way round. If anyone should be phonin’ anyone, it should be her phonin’ you.’
As Vinny began to recall the embarrassment of sitting alone in the restaurant while the waiters whispered amongst themselves, his disappointment turned to anger.
‘Yeah, you’re right Pete. Why should I ring her? Stuff her!’
Having made his decision, Vinny removed his jacket, rolled up his sleeves and loosened his collar. ‘Right, let’s get pissed!’ he said.
Now that he was feeling more in tune with his environment, he spent the rest of the evening playing pool, getting extremely drunk, and trying to forget about Julie.
Chapter 7
Sunday 22nd June 1986
Julie arrived home on Sunday morning feeling exhausted, full of grief for her lost friend and terrified at the prospect of what lay ahead. She was met by Clare who was standing in the hallway looking as though she had been waiting there most of the morning. Clare announced, ‘It’s our Julie, Mam,’ casting a backwards glance towards the living room where her parents sat, but failing to meet Julie’s eyes, as though afraid of what she might find there. Julie was then greeted by three anxious, expectant faces. She forced a narrow smile and said, ‘I made it back home then,’ endeavouring to sound nonchalant.
Her mother stepped forward and threw her arms around her. ‘Oh Julie love, I’m so glad to see you! I’ve been worried sick, thinking that you wouldn’t be coming home.’
Julie replied, in an attempt at flippancy, ‘Don’t be daft Mam, they can’t hold me without evidence! They had to release me.’
‘God help us when they do find the bloody evidence then!’ said her father.
Julie withdrew from her mother’s embrace and turned on her father. ‘There is no evidence to find. I’m innocent, and so is Rita!’ she shouted.
‘Well if you were so bloody innocent, they wouldn’t have been here in the first place, turning our house over, and showi
ng us up in front of all and sundry! I always said that no good would come out of all this clubbing, staying up till all hours…’
Julie interrupted, sniping viciously at her father, ‘Don’t you start! I’ve had enough with those bastards, interrogating me, day and night, accusing me of things I haven’t done, and now even my own father won’t believe me! What kind of a father is that anyway?’
Bill pounced forward, with his hand raised. ‘Don’t you dare speak to me like that!’
Before he could manage to strike, however, Betty wedged herself between Bill and Julie. ‘Leave her alone Bill! This isn’t helping matters. Julie, get up to your room!’
Julie did as she was told to the sound of her father’s voice berating her, ‘You’re no daughter of mine! Out till all hours, with a load of scum, getting drunk, involved in murders, MURDERS, I say!’
As soon as Julie reached her room and shut the door, renewed tears filled her eyes. She found it hard to accept that a night out had resulted in such a tragedy; her friend dead, the hostility of her own father, the guilt and shame which she had brought on her family. She needed to convince her parents of her innocence, but what could she say to reassure them? Her father had never approved of her lifestyle. He was old-fashioned and always would be. He was also a bit of a male chauvinist. If he knew half the things that she and her friends got up to then she would sink even lower in his estimation. How could she explain to him that they were only meant to be having a laugh?
A recurring thought began to trouble her. It was of Inspector Bowden, ridiculing her and her friends’ behaviour, and she could feel her cheeks burn with embarrassment. She could see the similarities between her father and the inspector – two of the old school, with their ‘women should be at home, tied to the kitchen sink’ philosophy. Her mind was in a quandary. She thought that in some ways perhaps they were right; her life was just one useless, time-wasting mess. Maybe she should find herself a husband and have a family, instead of running around and acting the fool.
Julie lay down on her bed but, once again, sleep eluded her. She was too upset at her friend’s death, and her father’s animosity towards her. He had always been so supportive of her in the past, even though he didn’t approve of her way of life. She felt that she had let him down, and his anger unsettled her. Julie hadn’t seen this aspect of her father’s personality before, and what she had seen in the last twenty-four hours had shocked and disturbed her intensely.
Suddenly the bedroom door opened and Julie tensed in anticipation, expecting her father to walk in, but it was Clare. Her younger sister walked towards the bed. She seemed ill at ease, and hesitated before she spoke, ‘Julie ... I just came to say... well, that, I believe that you haven’t done anything wrong. I don’t care what my dad says!’
Julie reached her hand out towards Clare but she seemed to shrink away from her. Wanting to reassure her little sister, Julie stood up and flung her arms around her. She could feel Clare beginning to relax in the comfort of her embrace. They wept in each other’s arms and it was a while before Julie spoke, ‘Thanks Clare; that means a lot to me. I haven’t done anything wrong. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, that’s all.’
After Clare had left the room, Julie still couldn’t sleep so she took a long awaited shower. She stood beneath the powerful spray for ages, letting the hot water flood over her and scrubbing at her skin as though trying to purge herself. She didn’t realise just how hard she had scrubbed until she emerged from the shower, with patches of her flesh red and slightly sore. Julie dressed soberly, wearing no make-up, subconsciously attempting to prove to her father that she was still his innocent little girl.
As Julie made her way downstairs, her stomach churned at the prospect of encountering her father’s wrath again. She wanted to call Rita, to find out if she too had been arrested. Julie needed to confide in someone with whom she could identify at this dreadful time.
Inside the living room Bill peered over the top of his newspaper, then pulled it upwards, signifying that he didn’t want to look at her. She stepped gingerly towards the telephone and then trembled with shock as her father bellowed, ‘And don’t be gabbing on there for ages either! It’s me who pays the bloody bills in this house!’
Shocked by his manner towards her, she replied, timidly, ‘I won’t Dad.’
As soon as Rita answered the telephone, she responded to Julie’s unease, ‘Listen Jules,’ she said, ‘they put me through the ringer as well, but don’t worry about it! We know we’ve done nowt wrong, so them bastards can fuck off! I tell you what though, I’d love to find out who did give drugs to Amanda!’
‘So would I,’ said Julie. ‘That’s if there were any! It might have just been too much drink!’
‘Maybe, but I doubt it. Anyway, I can tell you’re feeling upset at the moment, so why don’t we go out tonight and have a few drinks, and a chin wag? Maybe you’ll feel a lot better then.’
‘Oh, I don’t know,’ said Julie, thinking what her father’s reaction might be to the news of another night out.
Rita guessed that Julie was having difficulty speaking openly on the phone. ‘Can’t you talk?’ she asked.
‘Not really.’
‘All right, give me one word answers then. Are you having a hard time at home, because of what’s happened?’
‘Yes.’
‘Has your old man had a go at you?’
‘Yes,’ replied Julie, almost in a whisper, afraid that her father might have overheard Rita’s comment.
‘You might as well get away from him for a few hours then,’ urged Rita. ‘You’ve got nowt to lose have you?’
‘Oh, go on then,’ agreed Julie reluctantly.
‘Right, great, I’ll see you in the Flying Horse at eight o’clock then. Oh, and don’t forget to ring Vinny,’ Rita added before Julie had a chance to replace the receiver.
“Oh My God, Vinny!” thought Julie, and she remembered how she was supposed to have met him the previous night. She had been so preoccupied by her troubles that she had forgotten about him until now. She knew that it was a bad time to ring and explain, while her father was within earshot, so she decided to do it later.
Julie ventured into the kitchen to see what sort of a reception she would receive from her mother.
Betty was pottering about, busy as usual, starting to prepare the Sunday dinner. Her cheerful greeting surprised Julie. ‘Hiya love, don’t suppose you managed to get any sleep at all, did you?’
‘No, Mam.’ Julie skirted around Betty before continuing. ‘Listen, I’m really sorry about all the trouble I’ve caused you and my dad. I swear Mam; I’ve not done anything wrong! We just had a few drinks and a laugh, that’s all. All right, maybe Mandy had a few too many and we had to take her home. But we thought she was all right. She seemed to be coming round a bit when we left her.’
Her anguish was such that her words came out in a rush until eventually, unable to continue, her voice broke and she succumbed to tears.
Betty stopped what she was doing and dried her hands, taking Julie in her arms. Forgetting any attempts at bravery, Julie was transported back to her childhood, wanting her mother to shield her from all the guilt and pain of the last 24 hours. As she laid her chin on her mother’s shoulder, she gave way to uncontrolled tears and felt her legs weaken beneath her.
Betty tried to reassure her. ‘Listen love, try not to worry, I believe you. I bet somebody else was giving her drugs when you were too drunk to notice, eh? It’ll all come out in the end, mark my words!’
‘It doesn’t change the fact that she’s gone though, does it?’ sobbed Julie, ‘and my dad hates me for it; he thinks I’ve done it!’
‘Does he ’eck. He knows you’re innocent just as much as we do. He’s just suffering from hurt pride, that’s all. He’s worried about what the neighbours think. Anyway, you know he’s never liked the idea of women going to clubs, and this just gives him a good excuse to get on his high horse again.’
‘I’ll stop
going out then Mam, I will. I’ll do anything to get things back to how they were!’ said Julie, her voice beginning to tremble with emotion.
‘You bloody well will not, you’ll get on with your life! Just give him a few days and he’ll come round, you’ll see. In fact, get yourself out tonight girl. I’ll have a word with him and see if I can get him to ease off you a bit.’
‘Oh thanks Mam,’ said Julie, hugging her mother tightly.
‘It’s all right Julie love. I can tell what you’re going through, but nobody should be punished just for having a good time.’
Julie, now feeling more at ease, helped her mother to finish preparing dinner. She was relieved to know that her mother was supporting her and trying to make things easier with her father.
Once Julie had finished helping her mother, she returned to her bedroom where she struggled to banish memories of her last meeting with Vinny from her mind, feeling that they were inappropriate under the circumstances.
However, grasping at a source of comfort in the midst of her troubles, she gave in to thoughts of the previous weekend. She had gone back to Vinny’s house with him after going out with her friends. Recalling how precious those moments had been, she lay back on her pillow and cast her mind back.
Chapter 8
Saturday 14th June 1986
The last time Julie saw Vinny was the previous weekend. She had awoken at about 10am on Saturday morning to find Vinny snoring gently beside her. Julie was reluctant to disturb him straightaway, so for a while she lay still, immersed in her own thoughts.
She was feeling quite serene and content after a night of passionate lovemaking. Vinny always had this effect on her. It was just as she always said to Rita, Vinny knew “exactly which buttons to press and when to press them.” For Julie, it was one of the most satisfying aspects of their relationship.
Slur: The Riverhill Trilogy: Book 1 Page 5
