Slur: The Riverhill Trilogy: Book 1

by Heather Burnside

  ‘Shortly followed by Mr Ernest Cummings, I believe?’

  Julie watched the expression on Les’s face. His anguish showed and it was discomfiting to see, but she knew that the prosecution barrister had to do this. It was the only way to get at the truth! She then checked herself for almost feeling sorry for Les. It was no more than he deserved. She could tell that Les was losing it and she willed the prosecution to carry on until he broke down altogether and told all. She wasn’t expecting him to throw in the towel quite so soon though.

  ‘That prat!’ he bawled. ‘Why didn’t he keep his fuckin’ mouth shut? I knew he’d blown it. He should never have mouthed off about the drugs in front of that Jacqueline. I thought she’d blame me but I didn’t kill Mandy, I swear!’

  His bad language was overlooked in the quest to get at the truth as though even the judge realised that a major revelation was about to occur. The prosecution barrister urged Les to continue.

  ‘She only came to bring an LP, but that prat Ernie tried to buy drugs from me in front of her. I was worried about what she might think. When she went I couldn’t stop thinking about it. If she told the police about me dealing drugs then they’d think I killed Mandy. So I had to get rid of her.’

  Once he started, he couldn’t stop himself, and he went on to describe in detail how he had followed Jacqueline home one night and waited for an opportunity to ‘get rid of’ her when there weren’t many people around.

  Julie could feel herself beginning to heave. The rest of the courtroom remained silent, enveloped by an impenetrable tension. Without prompting, Les then described how he had despised Ernie from that night onwards and felt an overwhelming urge to do him some damage. It started off as a vengeance attack, but his rage got the better of him.

  As he told the tale he visibly stiffened and the veins on his neck protruded while he relived the scene. His aggression was unabated as he cursed Ernie and continued to plead his innocence in relation to Amanda’s death.

  The judge again implored him to calm down, but he continued shouting and cursing until he was led from court by two policemen, straining to break free from them and howling pitifully.

  It was at this point that Julie left the courtroom. Vinny and Rita followed her out.

  ‘Are you all right?’ asked Vinny.

  ‘I just can’t watch anymore,’ said Julie.

  ‘Don’t tell me you feel fuckin’ sorry for him?’ asked Rita.

  ‘No, it’s just the whole thing, I can’t stand it anymore. Take us home will you Vinny?’

  ‘I think the bastard got what he deserved anyway,’ said Rita, ‘and you can piss off if you think I’m gonna go home now and miss the best bit! I’m stickin’ around for the verdict, me.’

  ‘Rita, I don’t even want to argue about it,’ pleaded Julie. ‘I just want to go home.’

  Julie and Vinny watched Rita disappear into the courtroom.

  ‘Come on then,’ said Vinny. ‘Let’s get you home. It’s been a hard few days, and I’m sure Rita will let us know what happens.’

  They walked out of the court building for the last time.

  Chapter 35

  Saturday 13th December 1986

  The first thing that impressed Julie about the restaurant was the tantalizing aroma, which hit her even before they had stepped inside. It was a welcoming blend of garlic and baked bread. When she entered she glanced around at the impressive pillars, archways and Romanesque paintings on the walls. The staff were very accommodating and ensured that Julie and Vinny got a good seat in a cosy corner. Julie noticed the waiters’ interest in her, but guessed that it was just the Mediterranean male reaction to any woman under 30.

  ‘Well, here we are,’ said Vinny. ‘You’ve seen the Bella Vida at last.’ His words were a mistake and Julie could sense his discomfort, prompting her to say something to smooth the situation.

  ‘I’m sorry about last time. I was just so worked up by everything that I forgot to ring you.’

  ‘It’s all right,’ Vinny assured. ‘You don’t have to keep explaining. You had been arrested when all said and done. You had more important things on your mind. Here have a look at that,’ he said, passing her the menu, but she put it to one side while she continued to explain herself.

  ‘It’s not all right Vinny; I’ve been awful to you. Not just since Amanda died but even before that. It’s like I was searching for something that I was never going to find, when all the time the man I wanted was right here. I’m so grateful to you for everything you’ve done for me.’

  She took Vinny’s hand to reaffirm her words but he responded by diverting his attention to the menu, embarrassed by her emotive speech.

  After a couple of minutes studying the dishes on offer, Julie said, ‘Wow Vinny, I’m spoilt for choice. It all sounds lovely and this place is really nice.’

  ‘I know,’ he said. ‘I wanted it to be special. You deserve it after what you’ve been through.’

  She finally made up her mind what she wanted. Although the menu was quite comprehensive, Julie settled for one of her favourites, lasagne, and preceded it with minestrone soup. Vinny opted for a pasta dish in a tomato based sauce (a posh version of Spaghetti Bolognese Julie thought) with breaded mushrooms for starters. As soon as Vinny looked over his shoulder a waiter appeared as though from out of nowhere.

  Once they had placed their order, Julie took up the conversation again.

  ‘It’s so nice to be able to relax now we haven’t got the trial hanging over us.’

  ‘Yeah, pity they didn’t do him for Amanda’s murder though,’ said Vinny.

  ‘Well, at least they got him for Jackie and Ernie’s murders, and for drug dealing. He’ll serve a good few years for that. I know it won’t bring Amanda back but he did deserve punishing. What I can’t understand though is why the break-ins were only brought up in court.’

  ‘Maybe because he kept quiet about them at first so the police wouldn’t find out about the drugs. Then, when Dan came up with his evidence, Les probably figured that he had nowt to lose so he just went for it. He might have even thought it would help his defence if he made out that he was set up. I still think they should have done him for Amanda’s murder anyway,’ argued Vinny. ‘After all, it was him that got her hooked on drugs in the first place.’

  ‘I know, but I think that, even though he’s a total bastard, he loved Amanda in his own strange way. You could tell that in court by the way he kept denying that he’d killed her. Maybe that was what made him crack up on the stand; either that or the fact that his brain was just so addled by the drugs. He’s definitely not a full shilling, is he? You know, it freaks me out now Vinny to think that I could have ended up like Jacqueline and Ernie. I dread to think what might have happened in his flat that night if you hadn’t have turned up.’

  ‘I know, but I did, so just try to put it behind you now, eh?’

  ‘I wonder why he didn’t kill me after the break-in though.’

  ‘He didn’t have much chance with us around, did he? You weren’t on your own much after that night, especially after that bloke followed you home from work. Besides, he needed you to take the rap. Him and his friend probably tried to put the frighteners on you so that you’d confess to Amanda’s murder and get him off the hook.’

  ‘Maybe…Still, I think the whole thing’s really sad. Drugs can do strange things to people. I can’t believe Amanda was an addict but I suppose it would explain a lot of things. She always seemed to be on such a high when she arrived for work in a morning. Then, as the day wore on, it was as though she was fading away. I just accepted it as the way she was. I never once thought it had anything to do with drugs. Maybe Les might have been a different person without drugs.’

  ‘I doubt it. People like him are rotten through and through. Before you get too carried away Julie, just remember what he’s put you through.’

  ‘I know, and it’s not over yet. What if they charge me for breaking and entering? I’ll still have a criminal record hanging over
me.’

  ‘No, they won’t do that. You’d have heard from that miserable inspector by now if they were going to press charges. He’ll be too busy celebrating his promotion ’cos they’ve solved two murders. Besides, it’s a bit late for that when Les didn’t report the break-in at the time, isn’t it? Anyway, stop worrying, it’s all over now. Let’s change the subject. Has Rita fixed the date for Greece yet?’

  Yeah, I was just getting round to that. I kept meaning to tell you. She’s going next Saturday and the girls are giving her a major night out on Friday to see her off.’

  ‘Oh good. Well, have a good time and no silly buggers, eh?’

  Julie looked at him. ‘Definitely not!’

  The food arrived and they both began to drool over it. “This is a bit different than the last time I was supposed to come here,” Julie thought to herself. She noticed that Vinny had become pensive too.

  ‘Penny for ’em?’ she asked.

  Vinny hesitated before replying.

  ‘There’s something I’ve got to tell you. I’ve kept quiet about it up to now but the time seems right. You see, I’ve got some unfinished business to tend to …’

  Julie’s heart sank. Just when she was beginning to think that all her troubles were behind her, Vinny was about to drop a bombshell and he had brought her here to sweeten her up beforehand. She watched him fidget nervously, convincing her even more that he had bad news to impart.

  ‘Well, last time I was here,’ he continued, ‘there was something that I wanted to do.’

  Julie looked at the package that he had withdrawn from his pocket, still only half anticipating what he had to say but nevertheless shocked when she heard the words, ‘Julie, will you marry me?’

  For a moment she was speechless and Vinny awaited her reply with bated breath. It was what she wanted; she knew now that Vinny was the one, but she just hadn’t expected it to happen yet.

  ‘Yes,’ she cried. ‘Yes of course I’ll marry you Vinny,’ and she smiled as he put the ring on her finger.

  As if from nowhere three waiters appeared and congratulated them effusively, drawing attention to them from nearby tables. When the waiters went back to their work, Julie and Vinny held hands across the table and gazed lovingly at each other for a few minutes before becoming aware of the interest from neighbouring tables. They then withdrew their hands, embarrassed by all the fuss.

  ‘What a way to round off a meal!’ said Julie as they returned to their food, giggling like smitten teenagers.

  They celebrated by ordering two enormous desserts (Julie’s had lashings of vanilla and chocolate ice cream and was covered with a liberal measure of Tia Maria), and a bottle of expensive champagne.

  --------------------

  Wednesday 17th December 1986

  Les sat in his cell alone. His cellmate had disappeared about half an hour ago and Les was making the most of his solitude. He was still becoming accustomed to life behind bars. Despite his nefarious dealings of the last few years, this was the first period that he had spent in prison and it was taking some getting used to.

  The lack of home comforts and short supply of drugs was bad enough but the worst part was the constant fear. There were some mean bastards inside and it paid to stay on the right side of the right people. Because he had no previous experience of prison life though, it was difficult knowing who the right people were.

  Up to now he had relied on the advice of his cellmate but he was a sly looking bastard and he couldn’t trust a word he said. Les knew though that he needed to tread a fine line between showing no signs of weakness to the nobodies and making sure that he didn’t upset the people who were somebodies. There was a definite pecking order inside prison and he was starting to find out who was who.

  So when one of the prison hard men, Leroy Booth, stepped inside his cell Les instinctively knew that it spelled trouble. His suspicions were reaffirmed when Leroy was followed by four of the meanest looking blokes you could ever expect to meet; all biceps, scars and the smell of stale sweat. They wasted no time in pinning him down while Leroy shut the door and made the brief introduction:

  ‘This is for my man Ernie, you cunt.’

  With little time to spare before the prison guards became aware of a problem, Leroy’s bully boys began to rain punches and kicks down onto Les while Leroy acted as lookout. Les rolled into a ball trying to protect himself, ironically just as Ernie had done when he had attacked him. His efforts were wasted though; this wasn’t about punishment, it was about justice. Nobody killed one of Leroy’s men and got away with it, and he had to set an example that everyone would find out about.

  While one of the men dragged hold of Les’s hair and pulled his head back, enabling another to aim savage kicks at his head, yet another reached under Les’s body, which had now been levered off the ground.

  When the post mortem was carried out it was difficult to tell what had killed Les first; blood loss following repeated thrusts of a sharp implement into his abdomen or damage to his brain.

  --------------------

  Friday 19th December 1986

  As Julie was running late after visiting Vinny, she made a quick call to Rita explaining that she would meet them straight in the club, Saturdays. It was turned ten o’clock when she arrived but she soon found Rita and Debby chatting to a group of men. She pulled Rita to one side.

  ‘I’ve got some news for you,’ she said.

  Rita’s gaze shot to Julie’s left hand which she was resting self-consciously on the strap of her handbag.

  ‘Congratulations!’ shouted Rita, ‘When did that happen?’

  ‘Last Saturday.’

  ‘You bugger, why didn’t you tell me before now?’

  ‘I thought I’d surprise you and I knew you’d be dying to see the ring so I waited until tonight.’

  ‘Ooh, it’s gorgeous as well,’ cooed Rita. ‘Debby come and have a look; Julie’s gone and got herself engaged.’

  Debby broke off from her male company for a moment to examine the ring. She then returned to the crowd of men, and ensured that one of them passed a drink to Julie.

  ‘It’s a pity it’s so loud in here; I can’t talk to you,’ said Julie.

  ‘Sod talking! Let’s do some bleedin’ drinking and dancing, and having a good time. We’ve got a lot to celebrate Julie,’ shouted Rita before taking Julie by the arm and introducing her to the crowd of men.

  When Julie and Rita had tired of the men’s small talk, they finished their drinks and Rita dragged Julie off to the dance-floor.

  ‘Come on,’ she said. ‘The night’s only just begun.’

  Eventually, when they had danced for about an hour and Julie’s legs could take no more, she managed to persuade Rita to go with her for a sit down and a drink in a quieter area of the club.

  Julie said to Rita, ‘Right, now we’ve got a moment, it’s time I told you my news.’

  ‘I thought you already had?’ asked Rita.

  ‘No, not that, my other news.’

  Rita raised her eyebrows, displaying her interest in what Julie had to say.

  ‘I had a visitor this morning,’ said Julie.

  ‘Oh yeah, come to help you with the wedding list did he?’ teased Rita.

  ‘No, not Vinny, you daft cow. It was Inspector Bowden. That’s why I was running late. I went to see Vinny to tell him what had happened.’

  ‘Bowden, what did that bastard want?’

  ‘He was the nicest I’ve seen him actually.’

  ‘Since when was he nice?’

  ‘When he had to come with some shocking news, that’s when.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Les has been killed in prison.’

  ‘You’re joking, that’s brilliant news Julie! What happened?’

  ‘Rita, you don’t need to sound so overjoyed. It’s still a human life even if he was an evil bastard. His family will be grieving.’

  ‘Like as if. The bastard got what he deserved for getting a nice girl like Aman
da hooked on drugs in the first place just so he could control her, not to mention the other two people he killed. Anyone who wants to grieve over him needs their head testing. They should be glad to see the back of him.’

  Once Rita had finished her rant, Julie continued. ‘A rival drugs gang jumped him in his cell. They kicked, punched and knifed him to death … Anyway, the police aren’t going to press charges for the break-in at his flat, so that’s a relief.’

  ‘I didn’t think they would after all the problems they caused us in the first place!’

  ‘You should have heard Bowden, Rita. He apologised for doubting my word and for misjudging us, and he asked me to send you his apologies too. And he said that he might have broken into Les’s flat too if he had been in my position.’

  ‘Jesus, I wish I’d have been there to hear him grovel.’

  ‘Oh, don’t worry Rita, it wasn’t all good. He did suggest that I had put myself in that position by my foolish behaviour, and that girls who go to nightclubs are regarded as being a certain type.’

  ‘The cheeky get!’ cried Rita before noticing Julie’s eyes looking over her shoulder. She followed her gaze and noticed that it was Vinny who had caught her eye.

  ‘Hiya love,’ shouted Julie before standing up, approaching Vinny and embracing him.

  ‘I thought you’d only just bleedin’ left him?’ asked Rita exasperated, as she grabbed her drink and left the table. ‘I’m leaving you two love-birds to it,’ she added. ‘I’ll be on the dance-floor when you’re ready Julie. I’ve got one more thing to celebrate now with that nutcase out of the way. That’s made my fuckin’ day, that has.’

  Rita strutted towards the dance-floor to the sound of “Trapped” by Colonel Abrams, turning to wink at Julie before she disappeared from view.

  --------------------

  Saturday 20th December 1986

  It was the following day. Julie stood by the window with her back to Vinny and Rita. She didn’t want them to notice how upset she was. She knew she was being silly but she just couldn’t help it. Outside the rain gently ran in tiny rivulets down the pane of glass; a moment’s let-up against the heavy downpour, which had lashed down throughout the last twenty-four hours, causing the inside of the windows to steam.