by Mel Sherratt
‘Door, Mummy.’
‘I’ll go,’ Luke said.
Tyler grabbed his dad’s hand and pulled him along the narrow hallway.
After glancing through the spy hole, Luke turned back to Ruby. ‘I don’t know who it is.’
Ruby pushed Lily towards the door. ‘Lily, take Tyler and go into your bedroom. Stay in there until I come and fetch you.’
‘No,’ Tyler cried.
Lily shook her head. ‘I want to stay with you, Mum.’
There was only one entrance to the flat, only one escape route. Ruby pushed her again, too far away to grab Tyler.
‘Go,’ she said.
Watching her daughter’s face crumple didn’t make Ruby feel good but at least she was safe for now.
Another bang came on the door this time. ‘If you don’t come out, I will kick it down.’
‘You go into the kitchen,’ Luke said. ‘Take Tyler in there.’
‘Be careful,’ she told him. ‘Tyler, come here.’ Ruby reached for him but he dodged her hold.
Luke opened the door. ‘Can I help you, mate?’ he asked.
The man was tall, with the build of someone who pumped iron often. His head was shorn, a tattoo on his neck of a skull, his features a mess of battle scars. Beady eyes stared at them both in turn before he spoke.
‘Yeah, you can. I want what’s mine.’
Luke frowned. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’
‘Oh, I think you do,’ the man smirked. ‘And I want it back.’
Ruby moved to stand behind Luke, reaching for Tyler’s hand.
‘Go to your sister,’ she told him.
‘No.’ He pulled from her grip again and ran towards the man.
The man scooped up the boy and smiled at him. ‘Nice little chap you have here. What’s your name?’
‘Tyler, and I am nearly three!’
‘Nearly three-year-old Tyler, hello.’
Ruby didn’t dare move. He had her child in his arms and until she had Tyler back, she was saying or doing nothing.
Luke, however, had other ideas.
‘Come here, son.’ He held out his arms. ‘You don’t want to be bothering this man.’
‘Oh, he’s fine with me.’ The man nodded. ‘He’s a little treasure, isn’t he? I suppose all kids are precious cargo to their parents.’
‘Did someone send you?’ Luke asked.
‘You could say that.’ He stared at Luke, and then at Ruby.
‘Well, if you give me some sort of clue what you’re after, I can perhaps help you out.’
Ruby could sense Luke putting on a brave face but she could see how his body was shaking. He must be as terrified as she was. She prayed someone would come out onto the walkway soon and stop whatever was happening, nip it in the bud. Only then could they regroup and decide what to do next.
‘Perhaps this will remind you.’
Before either of them could react, the man dangled Tyler over the side of the railing by the back of his jumper.
‘Tyler!’ Ruby screamed.
‘What do you think you’re playing at!’ Luke cried, stepping forward. ‘Let him go.’
‘Come any closer and I’ll drop him,’ the man threatened.
‘Please!’ Ruby burst into tears. ‘He’s only a little boy.’
Tyler began to cry too, his arms and legs flapping about. ‘Mummy!’ he sobbed.
‘This is a warning,’ the man said, tightening his grip on Tyler’s hood. ‘I want what’s mine by Monday. If I don’t have it, I will harm you and your children, one by one.’
‘We don’t know what you’re after.’ Luke put his hands on his head. ‘Please, don’t hurt him.’
‘Give him to me.’ Ruby pushed past Luke, lunged at the railing and tried to reach Tyler, hoping to bring him back to safety.
Tyler began to flounder more. ‘Mummy,’ he shouted, his cries turning into sobs. ‘Mummy!’
She almost got a hand to him, but he wouldn’t stop wriggling. In horror, she watched as the man lost his grip and her son fell to the ground.
Ruby was left with only the sound of her own scream.
2012
‘Do you fancy a takeaway?’ Finn asked as they drove along the main road. ‘I’m starving.’
‘You had something to eat less than an hour ago.’ Ruby laughed. ‘You can’t be hungry yet.’
‘I’m a growing man.’ Finn flexed his muscles. ‘Working out at the gym is paying off but it leaves me with an appetite.’
‘For burger and chips?’
‘Well, yes, as long as you’re my dessert.’
He parked the car on a piece of waste land and turned to Ruby. ‘I won’t be a minute. Love you.’
Ruby smiled at him. ‘Love you more.’
As she waited, she stared in awe at the bundle of pink wrapped up in her baby seat. She still couldn’t believe she was a mum, that this little girl, now a month old, was hers.
Once he was back in the car, Finn pulled Ruby into his arms and began to nuzzle playfully at her neck.
‘Hey, your daughter might see us,’ Ruby joked. Then she caught a movement out of the corner of her eye. Three men were walking towards the front of the car.
‘Finn,’ she said.
‘What?’ He started to tickle her.
‘Stop it.’
But he didn’t stop.
She pushed him away roughly. ‘Finn!’
Finn glanced in the direction she was looking. ‘Lock your door quickly.’
He reached to start the engine as she thrust down the door lock button. The locking mechanism clicked into place and she breathed a sigh of relief. Until there was a loud bang on the window beside her. She screamed. Dane was by her side and he was carrying a metal bar. She recognised the two men as visitors to the flat, both of broad build and menacing.
‘What’s going on, Finn?’ Her lip was all of a tremble.
Dane walked around to the driver’s seat and made a circling motion with his finger.
‘Drive away!’ Ruby cried.
‘I can’t.’
She would never forget the look of fear in Finn’s eyes.
‘I have to speak to him,’ he whispered. ‘I don’t want them to harm you.’ He wound down the window slightly.
‘Finn, my boy,’ Dane cried. ‘Whatcha up to?’
‘I don’t want any trouble, Dane.’ Finn’s voice came out a little squeaky.
‘Who says I’m going to cause trouble? I just spotted you here and came to say hello. I’ve been meaning to call at your gaff anyway.’ Dane sneered. ‘Your actions could have got me sent down so I’ve had to lay low for a few days.’ He stared at Ruby. ‘Pretty thing, ain’t she? Let’s hope she stays that way.’
‘No, please—’
‘No, please.’ Dane mimicked his voice. The other men laughed.
Ruby clasped her hands around Finn’s arm but she didn’t dare look at Dane. He could smash the window and unlock the car in an instant, pull Finn out onto the ground, and there was no one in their vicinity right now. She held her breath when he looked across at her again.
‘This is your first warning. Either you show up for work this weekend, and take what you get as your punishment, or I’ll come after you properly.’ He pointed at Ruby. ‘And then I’m coming for her.’
With a swing of the bar, they began to attack the vehicle. Metal crunched and glass broke, the noise deafening. Ruby covered her ears with her hands, pulling her feet up close to her chest. Lily woke up and began to scream.
It was over in less than a minute but it seemed to last forever. As suddenly as it had started, it stopped. The men walked away, laughing with each other.
Ruby flew into Finn’s arms and burst into tears.
‘It’s okay.’ Finn stroked her hair. ‘They’re gone now.’
‘But they’ll be back. What are we going to do then?’
‘I don’t know. I may have to do more work, to keep them off my back.’
‘No. You’ll get dr
awn in again.’
‘I don’t want them to hurt you, but … Maybe it’s better to stay on his good side, for a while longer. You’re my main priority, you and Lily, and they know it. I won’t let them hurt you.’ He pulled away and looked at her.
Ruby could hear her friend Naomi saying ‘I told you so’ inside her head. Naomi was right. He was trouble. But Finn was her trouble. And she loved him. And she would stick by him no matter how frightened she was.
‘I’m not going anywhere,’ she told him. ‘It’s you and me forever.’
He hugged her tightly. She didn’t say a word when she felt wet tears on her face, and knew they weren’t coming from her.
TWENTY-EIGHT
Mary pushed on the door to floor one but instead of turning her usual right to go home, she made her way left, to the end of the walkway and across to the other side. Outside flat 114, she tried not to think of what she’d seen two nights ago when the little boy had fallen. She wanted to knock on the door and ask how he was but she suspected the parents would be at the hospital anyway. And she didn’t want to stay on the walkway outside their flat for long in case anyone saw her.
At flat 116, she stopped and looked around. There were a few people about but no one was looking at her. She wondered why she was bothered so much. People only cared about themselves.
She lifted the letterbox and pushed the envelope through. Hearing it plop onto the floor, she turned and rushed away as quick as her legs would allow. She didn’t want to be there when he saw it.
The money had played on her mind for months. He said it was for her to keep quiet about what she saw. Just because she spent a lot of time looking over the railing didn’t mean she was a busybody. Yes, she had noticed a few things but she hadn’t mentioned them to anyone.
When the first envelope appeared, he’d posted it through her letterbox with a note. But last night was the final straw. She had to make sure he knew she wasn’t his to do as he wished with. She would not be a pushover.
Shelley’s ear pricked up when she heard the letterbox go. She went through to the hall and saw a large envelope on the mat. She picked it up, frowning when she saw the writing on it.
I WILL NOT PLAY YOUR GAME
She opened the door and stepped outside on the walkway. In the distance she could see someone. It was that woman from across the way, Mary. Seth was always giving out grief about her; said she was too nosy for her own good, but Shelley couldn’t see any harm in her. Maybe she had seen too much every now and then and Seth was worried she would grass him up, but if he thought about it, if she was going to do it she would have done it by now. Shelley reckoned Mary would keep her mouth shut about anything. She seemed a good sort from what she knew of her.
But the message was intriguing enough for her to look inside the envelope. It wasn’t sealed shut anyway, so she wasn’t really snooping. She hurried back inside and opened it.
It was full of money, twenty-pound notes.
She frowned again, wondering where it had come from. Quickly she counted it. It added up to nearly three thousand pounds.
The envelope was obviously meant for Seth but what did the message mean? What game was he asking the older woman to play? It didn’t make sense.
She made a coffee, had a cigarette on the doorstep while she looked across at Mary’s flat. Was she watching her now, wondering if Seth had got the envelope or not? She put out the cigarette and went inside again. Then she took the envelope and popped it in her handbag. That sort of cash wasn’t for sharing. She would deny ever having seen it.
TWENTY-NINE
Uniform had picked up Seth Forrester and brought him in. Grace left him stewing in interview room three while they had a quick look at what Sam had found on CCTV. Finally, she and Frankie went in to see him.
‘Oh, it’s dumb and dumber.’ Seth rolled his eyes before folding his arms. ‘I believe you wanted to see me.’
Grace ignored his comments while she set up the room and read out the necessary details to start the interview.
‘You’re not under arrest but we want to question you under caution about a number of things.’
‘As long as you don’t intend to fit me up for something I didn’t do.’ He sneered at Grace. ‘I hear you’re good at that. And I hear you’ve been warning people away from me.’
Grace held his stare before dropping her eyes to her notepad. He was referring to her having a quiet word with Megan about him being bad news. Her grandmother, Kathleen Steele, had asked Grace to encourage Megan to stop seeing him.
‘Perhaps you ought to ask yourself who wanted me to warn her off,’ she countered.
He visibly sank back as he caught her meaning. Forrester was no match for the Steeles. She gave Frankie a surreptitious glance. Maybe Seth wouldn’t be so cocky now.
‘Can you tell me where you were around four p.m. last night?’
‘I was at home.’
‘Alone?’
‘No, I was with my woman. I was on a late shift so me and Shelley were in bed until about half six, if you catch my drift.’
‘I do but I’m not sure I want to. So you left your flat at what time?’
‘About quarter to eight.’
It was still possible that he had knocked Caleb Campbell off his bike. Grace would have to ask Sam to check the CCTV again.
‘There was a hit and run last night that appears to involve a black BMW, and I believe you have one of those?’
‘Yeah, but—’
She showed him the CCTV image that Sam had found. ‘Is that you in your car?’
It was a long shot. The image was blurred and they couldn’t be certain yet. The number plates weren’t clear either. Grace watched intently as Seth studied it.
‘No, that’s not me. I told you – I was at home.’
‘But you can see our predicament?’ Grace pointed to the image. ‘This looks like your car.’
‘It isn’t me. So don’t even think about setting me up for it. I’ll have lawyers on to you so fast you—’
‘Oh, quit with the threats,’ Grace snapped. ‘Like I said earlier, you’re not under arrest.’
‘So can I go yet? I have things to do, places to be, you know? If you don’t have anything else?’
He could tell they hadn’t, Grace was sure. But she did have one more thing to mention.
‘What about Monday evening, around six p.m. for an hour or so?’
He sat forward. ‘You mean when that kid fell over the railing?’
‘We have a witness who says they saw you around the time Tyler Douglas was attacked. We also have CCTV of you leaving the building.’
‘I was outside on Monday.’ He paused to stare at her again. ‘I went to my car to fetch my gym bag. I’d left it in the boot when I got back from the boxing club. The next thing I knew there was a crowd, an ambulance and cops everywhere.’
‘Did you see what happened?’
‘I told you, no. If I had, I wouldn’t keep that to myself. What do you take me for?’
‘Do you know Ruby and Luke well?’
‘Not really.’ His eyes shifted to the left and back again quickly. ‘I see her out with her kids every now and then and I see him around, in the pub, maybe out on the walkway if we pass. But nothing more than that.’
‘So you didn’t see anything happening on the walkway on Monday evening?’
‘No.’
‘And you didn’t see the altercation in the car park that happened the same night?’
He shook his head. ‘It was all quiet when I was there.’
‘And we won’t find out your car was involved in the hit and run?’
‘I’m telling you, it wasn’t me.’
Grace glared at him for a moment. Even though she had information about him being in the right place, she didn’t have any evidence to back it up other than hearsay. She let him go, hoping what she’d told him would get him thinking about what he was doing. Which was lying to the police.
Outside the station, Seth too
k deep breaths to keep his temper at bay. He hated being cooped up in an interview room. It brought back too many bad memories of his times in the cells. But even if it was an occupational hazard, this wasn’t of his doing this time.
He walked along Bethesda Street, past the museum and up Albion Street towards the taxi rank.
What the hell was going on? Had that bloody nosy cow across the way been talking about him? She’d be in for it if she had.
But then he realised he’d better be careful what he said because the only reason he couldn’t be sure if he saw anyone or not was because it would implicate him in the attack on Milo Benton and so far the lad had kept his mouth shut about who had beaten him. Unlike Caleb Campbell, who must have been the one who grassed him up. Seth needed to see him. He’d pay him a visit tomorrow.
He pulled up his collar against the cold and stomped up the bank, deciding to ring Shelley. Perhaps she could tell him more.
‘Everything okay?’ she asked.
‘They let me go after we’d had a chat.’
‘That’s great! Because wait until you hear what I found out this morning.’
Seth’s smile widened as he listened. ‘This man you saw running away. What did he look like?’
‘I told you. I couldn’t see. He was too far away.’
‘It wasn’t anyone you know?’
‘I can’t be sure. Why?’
‘Because if I find out that you’re covering for someone, I—’
‘I’m not, honestly! Who would I be doing that for?’
The line went quiet for a moment.
‘Are you coming home?’
‘I’m going to the club for an hour and then I’ll be back.’ Seth stopped in his tracks, a woman behind him almost bumping into him. He scowled as she passed.
‘Come home now. I can—’
‘I’ll be there when I’m done.’ He disconnected the call. Let the stupid cow stew for a while.
Shelley cursed loudly as she realised Seth had ended the call. Then she typed out a quick message:
‘Police have been talking to Seth. I’ll let you know more as soon as I see him. He’s heading your way, going to Flynn’s.’
