“Funny how the weather’s always grotty when something sad is happening,” thought Julie.
An aeroplane was cruising along the runway preparing for take-off. She watched as it built up speed until it soared into the air.
‘That’ll be me soon,’ Rita commented, surprising Julie by her proximity. Noting Rita’s glee, Julie managed to force an encouraging smile but Rita, as always, could see through her façade.
‘Now don’t start snivelling Julie Quinley or there’ll be no cheap holidays for you!’
‘Oh I’m sorry Rita. I am really happy for you; it’s just that I’ll miss you.’
‘I know, I’ll miss you too Julie, but I’ll ring you as soon as I get there, and I’ll keep in touch and let you know how I’m getting on.’
‘I know, Rita.’
‘Right, well let’s tuck into those bloody drinks then. This is a celebration.’
After grabbing her drink she clinked the glass against Julie’s and Vinny’s and announced, ‘To new beginnings.’
She then managed to down her drink in one go. As Julie and Vinny watched, astonished, she commented, ‘Well, you didn’t think I was gonna fly sober, did you?’
‘How long have you got?’ Julie asked.
‘My flight’s at 3.15 so that gives me just over two hours, but I’ll have to go through to passport control long before then. That’ll be the boring bit, when I’m sat on my own waiting and can’t even have a drink. Mind you, I’ll be that pissed by then that I won’t give a shit.’
‘Yeah, I pity the poor bugger that’s got to sit next to you for the flight,’ said Julie, laughing.
‘Whoever it is, his luck’s in. Eh, I wonder if there’s any good films on. I hope it’s not that load of crap they had on last time.’
‘Is Yansis meeting you at the airport when you get there?’ asked Vinny.
‘Course he is. He’s a darlin’ is Yansis. He wouldn’t leave me stranded.’
Julie and Vinny took great care not to mention the fact that none of Rita’s family had accompanied her to the airport, and that, if it hadn’t been for Vinny’s insistence that they gave her a lift, she would have had to rely on taxis at this end. They knew that it was just the way it was with Rita’s family and that Rita had long since become accustomed to it all.
It seemed that they had already said all they had to say and Julie didn’t want to quell Rita’s excitement by discussing anything too mundane. So they confined their conversation to topics that interested Rita; what clothes she had taken, how hot the weather was going to be, what Yansis’s apartment was like etc., etc.
As soon as it was time for Rita to go, a last minute panic gripped Julie. This was it; Rita was really leaving! She felt that there was something important she should be doing or saying at such a crucial time, instead of just standing there looking hopeless. Now it seemed to her that their last moments together had passed by in a flash. Before she knew it Rita was in the queue waiting to check her baggage in. She wanted to grab hold of Rita, as though she would never let her go, but Vinny held her back.
‘Let Rita do it her way,’ he whispered. She watched Rita advancing excitedly up the queue and knew he was right. Rita wouldn’t appreciate a heavy emotional scene at such a key time in her life; she wanted to embrace the whole experience, not commiserate it.
As Rita moved to the front of the queue, Julie shouted, ‘Have a great time Rita. I hope it all works out!’
‘Course it will,’ came the reply. ‘Come and stay whenever you want. I can’t wait to see you both.’
Then she was gone and Vinny was ready with open arms. When Julie had spent a couple of minutes recovering her composure, she finally found her voice.
‘Oh Vinny, I’m going to miss her so much; we’ve been through a hell of a lot together!’
‘Don’t worry,’ he casually remarked. ‘She’ll be back.’
T H E E N D
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Author Note
If you enjoyed “Slur” perhaps you would consider leaving a review on Amazon using the direct link: Amazon Review (UK) or Amazon.com review. Independent authors such as myself value reader reviews, and we rely on them to spread the word about our work.
I am also inviting readers to subscribe to my mailing list by following the link: Heather’s readers. This will enable you to be among the first to find out about forthcoming publications, and receive a FREE copy of my short story book “Crime, Conflict & Consequences”. I use my mailing list solely to notify readers about my books and will never share your details with any third parties.
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Other Books by Heather Burnside
A Gangster’s Grip – The Riverhill Trilogy: Book 2
When Rita returns to Manchester after a few years away, she doesn’t expect to find a spliff smoking, beer swilling thug called Leroy firmly ensconced on her parents’ sofa. Rita is horrified to discover he is her sister Jenny’s new boyfriend, and she senses trouble.
The more Rita finds out about Leroy, the more she mistrusts him. As she uncovers the truth about his shady dealings, she becomes anxious about Jenny’s safety and is desperate to lure her away from him. Rita’s mettle is tested as she tries to protect her sister while battling with personal health concerns.
But it’s worse than Rita could ever have suspected. Through her association with Leroy, Jenny is about to become embroiled in the most dangerous phase in Manchester’s recent history.
“A Gangster’s Grip” is available from Amazon in both a Kindle and a print format: http://viewbook.at/GangstersGrip.
Crime, Conflict & Consequences
This entertaining collection of 10 assorted tales explores a variety of genres with stories of crime, love and family dilemmas. There are also a few twists and surprises along the way. The common thread running through each story is - consequences.
- In HELD UP our heroine is caught in the wrong place at the wrong time and becomes a witness in an unusual bank robbery.
- In ISLAND OF DREAMS Joe and Bev are looking forward to returning to the island they visited on honeymoon 34 years previously. Will it still be the same?
- In WELCOME ABOARD find out how Helena copes with the job from hell.
These short stories are a great introduction to the work of Heather Burnside. Each one makes an enjoyable quick read with a satisfying conclusion.
“Crime, Conflict & Consequences is available from Amazon in Kindle format: http://viewbook.at/Consequences.
About the Author
Heather Burnside started her writing career 16 years ago when she began to work as a freelance writer while studying towards her writing diploma. During that time she had many articles published in well-known UK magazines. As part of her studies Heather began work on her debut novel, “Slur”, and wrote several short stories. She has since written outlines for a number of other novels.
Despite interest from a couple of literary agents, Heather didn’t quite succeed in finding a mainstream publisher for “Slur”. Disheartened, she put it to one side while she focused on other areas, but was determined to return to it one day. She eventually published “Slur” in August 2014, which is book one in The Riverhill Trilogy.
When not working on her books Heather runs a business offering writing services to various companies and individuals. Through her writing services business Heather has ghost-written many non-fiction books on behalf of clients, covering a broad range of topics.
In early 2015 Heather published a collection of short stories, and she published the second book in The Riverhill Trilogy, entitled “A Gangster’s Grip” in autumn 2015. The third and final part of The Riverhill Trilogy will be published in summer 2016. Heather publishes regular updates about her writing on her blog at: www.heatherburnside.com.
You can also connect with her on Twitter at: @heatherbwriter or on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/DMPublisher.
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Acknowledgements
I would like to
thank the many people who have helped me to bring this book to market. Firstly I will start by thanking the independent author community in general. They are a fantastic group of talented authors who support each other, offering advice on everything from formatting to marketing. Unfortunately there are too many names to mention but the people involved know who they are.
A special thank you goes to my longstanding friend Karen Hopes who was the first person to read a very early draft of the book and give me some honest feedback. Karen has worked both as a librarian and an administration manager with the police so her knowledge was particularly valuable.
I would like to acknowledge the Police History Society for invaluable help with the research for my book. Their website at: http://www.policehistorysociety.co.uk/ contains a wealth of information. I would also like to thank individual members of staff who went to a great deal of trouble to answer all my questions.
Thank you also to my wonderful beta readers who gave valuable feedback which helped me to improve the book. They are the lovely Rose Edmunds, Emma Dellow, Fiona Lang and Rita Ackerman.
Big thanks also go to Chris Howard for designing a stunning book cover. He can be contacted at: [email protected].
I found the following websites useful when carrying out my research: http://www.cps.gov.uk for information on court procedure and http://www.peevish.co.uk/slang/c.htm for helping to compile my glossary of slang. I have to confess, however, that I am already familiar with the slang used, but in many cases I needed to find a polite way to define the words. I also used several websites for research on drugs but this research was carried out several years ago so I no longer have the relevant links.
Lastly I would like to thank my family and friends, particularly my husband Damien and my children, for all the support that they have given me in bringing this book to fruition.
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Disclaimer
All of the characters in this novel are fictitious. They are products of the author’s imagination and are not intended to bear any resemblance whatsoever to real people. Likewise, the character’s names have been invented by the author and any similarity to the names of real people is purely coincidental.
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Glossary
A lot of local dialect has been used throughout the book. Although some of these words are used throughout the UK and in other English speaking parts of the world, some of them only usually apply in Manchester and the North of England. The glossary below gives the definitions that apply to the context in which they have been used in the book.
Arsed
Bothered
Bird
An attractive female (now considered an offensive term)
Bloke
Man
Bonk
Sexual intercourse
Boozer
Someone who drinks alcohol a lot/a pub
Bugger
Unpleasant person or just a person generally
Buggered
Ruined/broken
Bugger about
Mess about/waste time
Bugger off
Go away/get lost (usually used in a derogative manner)
A card
An amusing, eccentric person/a character
Chinwag
Chat/talk
Codswallop
Nonsense
To cop/cop off
To meet someone sexually desirable
Cop/copper
Policeman
Cronies
Friends (sometimes used derogatively)
Dead
Very
Dick
Contemptible person/idiot (also a word used for the penis)
Do
Party/event
Dodgy
Suspicious, risky
Dolling yourself up
Dressing up/getting ready (to go out)
Fancy
Feel attracted to/desire
Gabbing
Chatting
Get/git
An unpleasant or contemptible person
Gone to town
Made a big effort (usually used derogatively)
Grotty
Unpleasant/poor quality/not good looking
Having somebody on
Having a joke at their expense
Jacked in
Given up/finished
Lose your marbles
Become crazy
Mither
Fuss/bother/hassle
Mithered
Bothered
Mug/muggins
Someone who is a fool or is gullible
NFA
Of no fixed abode
Nowt
Nothing
Offy
Off Licence (a shop that sells alcohol)
Paralytic
Very drunk
Pissed
Drunk
Plastered
Drunk
Prat
Fool/Idiot
Puddled
Eccentric/insane
Scrubber
A coarse and/or promiscuous woman
Shorts
Measures or spirits such as whisky or vodka
Slag
A woman who is promiscuous or has loose morals
Snog
Kiss and cuddle amorously
Sod
Similar to bugger, or used as a defamatory term especially when used as, ‘sod it!’
Sod off!
Go away (usually used in a derogative manner)
Sod you!
An expression of hostility or rejection
Suss
Realise/grasp
Talent
Attractive person(s)
Tart
Promiscuous woman/prostitute
Tarting yourself up
Similar to dolling yourself up but with the suggestion of overdoing it
Tits
Breasts
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Slur: The Riverhill Trilogy: Book 1 Page 25
