“Dove!”
Ren’s arms came around me as she turned me over, her eyes frantically searching for any wounds as she pulled me onto her lap and grabbed my phone from the coffee table.
I curled into her, trying to breathe through the pain in my head.
“Marcus, we’ve had a visit.”
Ending the call, she placed the phone back onto the table then held me tighter. “Marcus is coming, Dove. It’s okay now. It’s okay.”
I finally lowered my eyes and set them on the dead guy spilling blood from a hole in his forehead all over my nice cream carpet.
But then we both stilled when someone else walked into the room. Someone who had us both struggling to breathe.
“Flick?”
MY WHOLE BODy remained still as my eyes moved at lightning speed between the two girls huddled together on the floor and the stiff guy with a perfect hole in his temple, the bright crimson of his blood hypnotic against the subdued colour of the carpet.
I wasn’t sure if my mind had gone a little too animated with the coke I’d inhaled an hour ago, or if the batch had been dodgy and Kevin had done me again with an inferior quality than I was used to.
My heart beat was a little too slow and the effect made the room spin around me as blood struggled to reach my brain.
Finally, reality clicking back into place, I looked back at Dove. “Dove?”
She gawped up at me, her eyes full of horror and questions. “Flick, what the hell are you doing here?”
Ignoring her, I turned my stare back to the dead guy. “Who the hell is he?” I was positive I was hallucinating. I must have been, and I swore I was going to rip Kevin another arsehole for the shit he’d sold me.
Dove glanced down at the guy and a small frown creased her brow as though she hadn’t been aware of him. Like he’d just emerged from fresh air. Then, looking back at me, she gave a slight shrug. “The pizza guy?”
“What the fuck is going on?”
“Flick, you can’t be here,” the curvy girl holding onto Dove said. “You need to go.”
It was then I realised who she was and my eyes widened. “Serenity?”
She smiled softly, her eyes warm with familiarity. Ren had been about eight the last time I had seen her, so seeing her now, older and prettier, made my heart pang for what I had missed out on. Ren had been like my little sister and not only had I lost the girl I loved all those years ago, I had lost a part of my family.
She sighed and her smile dropped as sadness slid across her face. “You should go,” she repeated with a whisper.
Shaking my head, I moved my eyes back to the heavyset guy still bleeding out all over the carpet. I wasn’t sure which sister had put the bullet through his head but the fact that either of them had done it was inconceivable.
I was sure my heart didn’t belong to my body; its beat was too rampant for my system to cope with. I took a wobbly step forwards but suddenly I was pushed aside by hands that appeared to come out of nowhere.
Four men stormed the room, one of them heading straight to Dove. He lifted her from Ren’s arms and pulled her against his chest. The furious beat of my heart proceeded to ramp in volume, my head spinning as anger coiled deep in my gut.
One of the other men immediately concentrated on Ren, sitting her on the sofa as he frantically checked her over. Another man pulled out a piece of black material from a bag he dropped onto the floor, and the other helped him to cover the body, both of them expertly wrapping the dead guy inside with precise twists and turns of the black sheeting.
I stood mute and stunned at the scene unfolding before me.
“He needs to go to Benson,” the guy holding on to Dove told the two men who had mummified the dead guy. They nodded firmly then grabbed their package and walked out with the other guy without as much as a single word.
“Will someone tell me what the fuck is going on?” I managed to spit out.
It was then that the guy’s eyes moved to me. He frowned, sighed, then scowled at Dove. “I thought you told me he didn’t know where you lived!”
“I didn’t know he did,” she answered quietly.
“Well it’s pretty obvious he does.”
“But…” Dove mumbled with a crease across her forehead.
My gut jerked. She had always looked so adorable when she was confused. I knew I was weird, but I found the lost look on her sexy. I wanted to take her hand and lead her through life, cherish her, and protect her from all the bad things.
“I am here you know?” I hissed when they continued to talk about me like I wasn’t in the bloody room with them.
The guy snapped his eyes to mine; the coldness swarming from him made me swallow. He was huge, his muscles defined. His blond hair was closely shaven across his head, and his neck was painted with a mass of colourful tattoos. But it was the icy stare which pierced me that made the hairs on my body stand on end.
“Why are you here?” His question was barked at me and I narrowed my eyes.
“I’m not sure that’s any of your damn business.”
He gently removed Dove from his embrace and slowly walked towards me. The air in the room seemed to disappear the closer he became.
“Marcus,” Dove whispered. “It’s okay. Flick is okay. He wouldn’t hurt me.”
Marcus obviously didn’t hear her because when he reached me, my back was slammed so hard against the wall behind me that my breath left me in a single gush. His fingers tightened around my throat, his anger potent and suffocating. “I’ll ask once more. Why are you here?”
“Marcus, please,” Dove said as she appeared beside us. “This has nothing to do with Flick.”
“Well forgive me for thinking otherwise, Dove. But I don’t think it’s a coincidence that one of Leshev’s men was here and then this dick appears.” Marcus turned back to me. “So, Flick, are you going to tell me how the fuck you found out where Dove lives?”
Dove’s eyes narrowed when she suddenly realised I had found out her address.
Rolling my eyes, bored with Marcus’ accusation and Dove’s suspicious look, I sighed. “I paid the taxi firm who brought her home from mine the other morning,” I said then glared at Dove. “When she just disappeared.”
She blushed and lowered her eyes.
Marcus tightened his grip on me. “Well, congratulations, you fucking idiot. You just gave Leshev Dove’s whereabouts.”
“Leshev?” I shook my head. “Who the hell is Leshev?”
“The fucking bastard who wants to kill Dove.”
Every part of my body went stiff with dread. My heartbeat went from super-fast to shockingly slow. My soul snapped to attention and my fingers itched with the instinct to take hold of Dove’s hand and run. My mouth was so dry that I had to force saliva into my mouth to speak. “What?”
Marcus ignored me and dropped his hold on me then turned to Dove. “Go pack. I’ll phone in and get you a safe house.”
Walking passed Dove when she continued to stare at me with an expression I couldn’t decipher, Marcus took hold of Ren’s hand. “Are you okay, sugar?”
“I’m fine,” she answered quietly. She was sitting on the sofa with a dog on her lap, her fingers running the length of his body to soothe him. The dog appeared to be the only sane one in the room.
“What are you doing here, Flick?” Dove asked softly, making my eyes move back to her. Sadness covered her face and my soul ached with hers.
She didn’t move away when I reached out and took her hand. “Why did you leave?”
She sighed. “This is why I left,” she said quietly, referring to the situation. “And because you hate me,” she added on a whisper.
I frowned. Her palm was sweating under my own, the touch of her skin sending bolts of heat up my arm. “I don’t hate you. I could never hate you.”
Her eyes moistened, and just as she opened her mouth to say something, the dickhead grabbed hold of her other hand causing her to drop mine like my touch burned her.
“Dove,
go pack,” he ordered again. “We need to get you out of here.”
Her eyes still held mine but she shook her head slowly. “No.” Her voice was quiet but firm.
Marcus tensed beside her. “What?”
She dropped my gaze then turned to him. “I’m tired of running. We need to finish this. I need my life back, Marcus, and I can’t do this to Ren anymore. If Viktor wants me then let’s invite him over for tea and cake.”
“Will someone tell me what is going on?” Everyone ignored me again.
“You know the boss won’t sanction that, Dove,” Marcus said.
“I don’t care. We’ve done this his way for so long. It’s not working. Two years, Marcus. Two years I’ve been afraid to answer the door. Two years I’ve held my breath when I’ve stepped out of my own front door. I am not willing to sacrifice two years of Ren’s study. No. Your boss wants Viktor, then he plays the game my way now. I can do this, Marcus. Please trust me.”
Nothing made sense. My neck ached from how my head was spinning between the two.
Marcus growled then stormed from the room, the door making us jump when it slammed so hard the wooden frame cracked with the force.
Ren sighed loudly and shook her head sadly at Dove. “If you get killed doing this then I will personally piss on your grave.”
The expression that covered Dove’s face made my whole body ache.
“I’m sorry, Ren…”
Ren shook her head and took Dove’s hand. “I know. And I understand. But you train hard, you do everything by the book. If you tempt Viktor out then you need to be ready to trap the bastard.”
Dove nodded firmly. “Oh, I guarantee I’m ready. To be honest, I’ve always been ready. It’s only Marcus’ insistence that we hide that’s held me back from doing this.”
Ren was quiet for a moment, then she nodded. “Okay, then I’m behind you. We do this together. But promise me you’ll wait until I get back from Manchester.”
Both hers and Dove’s eyes filled with tears as they hugged. “I love you,” Dove whispered to her sister. Memories burst into my head of their younger selves, their love just as strong now, if not more so, as it was ten years ago.
Ren smiled at me then left the room, leaving Dove and I alone.
“Are you going to tell me what’s going on?” I asked.
Her shoulders slumped but she gave me a reluctant nod. “You should know now, you’re involved.”
“Involved? Involved in what?”
“They know who you are now, and they’ll come for you. You need to be aware.”
“For fuck’s sake! Will you talk to me!”
I blinked when she gently slipped her fingers through mine and guided me to the sofa. She sat down beside me, tucked her legs under her and then told me every dark, horrific corner of her past.
Nine years earlier
“PLEASE.” I WASN’T too proud to beg, and I would. I’d go down on my damn fucking knees if I had to.
Teresa gave me a sympathetic sigh but still she shook her head. “I’m so sorry, love. We’re full to bursting as it is.”
“But…” I licked my dry lips, attempting to coat them with what little moisture was in my mouth. “…Please, she’s ill. She has a fever and…”
Teresa looked at Ren who was juddering in my arms. Sweat poured from her forehead but her little body was like ice in my arms. “She needs to be in hospital.”
I swallowed. She was saying stuff I already knew but couldn’t risk. “I can’t. You know I can’t. They’ll inform social services.”
I looked around the room of the hostel, my eyes searching. People were staring at me; the lucky ones who had managed to secure a warm bed for the night. The lucky ones who would be fed and watered tonight. The lucky ones who would lie on a soft mattress and cover their dirty bodies with a soft blanket.
Spotting Sean, another hostel volunteer, when he walked towards me, slipping his arms through his coat sleeves, I grabbed his arm desperately. “Sean, please can you help me? I’ll even leave Ren here on her own. I’ll come back for her in the morning. Please.”
On the few occasions Ren and I had managed to procure a bed at the night house for the homeless, Sean had been good to us and allowed us to use the restrooms to wash in. Usually it wasn’t allowed but Sean seemed to have a soft spot for me.
Sean glanced down at Ren. His brow creased and he touched her forehead with the back of his hand. Ren whimpered, snuggling closer to me. My heart ached for her. She was so ill. This was no ordinary flu and I was worried so much that I was willing to do anything to help her.
“She needs antibiotics, Dove. She’s running a fever. It’s obvious she has an infection somewhere.”
“I know that, that’s why I’m begging you. She can’t… she won’t survive the street tonight. Please.” Winter had set in and had come with a vengeance, the temperatures that night predicted to be the coldest for over ten years.
“Have you tried the hostel on Church Street?”
I nodded quickly. “Yes, that’s why I’m late here. I had to carry Ren all the way across the city.”
Sean glanced at Teresa but she shook her head firmly. “We can’t. We’re currently pushing the occupancy. If we have an inspection tonight we’ll already be under scrutiny with the numbers.”
“Please. It’s just one more.”
Teresa sighed, her pity making me angry. “I’m sorry, Dove. Really I am, but I can’t.”
Ren whimpered again, her small body trembling with the virus as she barked a cough into the air.
“And I can’t take her in if she’s ill,” Teresa added. “You know that. She’ll spread the virus.”
I covered my mouth with my hand, trying to push back the tears. “I’m begging you.”
Teresa shook her head again. “Dove, take her to the hospital.” Her eyes were full of pity and concern but emotions wouldn’t help us.
I glanced at the front doors, the snow that had started to fall forcing the tears to free themselves from my eyes. Trying Sean again, I grabbed his wrist. “We can sleep in the foyer, here.”
“Dove.” He didn’t say anything else, just shook his head with sadness.
“Screw you!” I hissed as I budged Ren further into my body, pulling my coat around her frail body before I stepped back into the bitterness of the dark night.
“Dove?” Ren rasped, her eyes wet and pleading. “It hurts.”
“I know, baby. I know. I’m so sorry.”
She sniffed, her bloodshot eyes peering up at me. “Don’t take me, Dove. Don’t.”
Despair clawed up my throat and I tried in vain to hide my distress from her. “We have to, Ren. You’re so ill, and…”
Her head shook wildly, a sob bursting from her. She tried to reach up to my face but she didn’t even have the strength to lift her hand. “You can’t. They’ll split us…” She started to cough, her tiny chest rattling with the amount of mucus in her lungs.
“We have to, Ren,” I whispered.
I shivered, my threadbare shoes sliding in the snow as I bit back the fear and started to make my way to the nearest hospital. The snow was driving in my face; the flakes landing on Ren’s face instantly melting with the raging heat that consumed her body.
I knew the hospital would help her, but I also knew this was the end of our time together. I’d tried so hard to keep us going. For nine months I had managed to keep my little sister fed, barely, but we’d managed, yet fate now decided that it wasn’t to be any longer.
My tears froze as they leaked down my face, my lips tingling as the temperature bit at my breath.
“Dove!”
I turned to find Sean chasing after me. Hope curled in my belly. I even prayed that one of the lucky bastards who’d secured a bed had croaked it, and now his bed was being offered to Ren. I wasn’t heartless, just desperate. I didn’t want my sister’s bed being offered to someone else tomorrow night when she died.
He smiled when he reached me. “Listen, I really shouldn’t d
o this but…” He looked anguished for a minute. I stared at him, begging him with my eyes. And praying. Praying so fucking hard. “I have a spare bed at home.”
That certainly hadn’t been what I’d expected. For some reason apprehension tickled my senses but I didn’t have the strength to debate his offer. “Oh, thank God.” My gratitude came out rushed, with even more tears. “Thank you. Thank you.”
There was a weird glint in his eyes but when he took my hand, giving me a soft smile, I followed him. I allowed a man I barely knew to take me into his house. But desperation makes you do things you never usually would.
And still, to the day I died, I knew I would never regret that decision. It was a decision made on the tip of a breath. But a decision that saved my sister’s life. And I would make the same one over a thousand times. Life gave us choices, and sometimes even the worst choices can lead to hope and a way out.
Sean drove us to a small terraced house on the outskirts of the city. By the time we’d taken the ten minute journey, Ren’s fever had worsened. She was shivering and mumbling incoherently, her cough making me wince as Sean bustled us into his house.
My senses prickled. Although his house was untidy, it was clean. However, no personal effects littered the house as he led me up the stairs with Ren and into a small bedroom. There were no photographs or ornaments. The bedroom he ushered me into just held a single bed with a solitary blanket. The old floral wallpaper was peeling from the walls, and chipped paint hung down from the yellowing ceiling. But I wasn’t to look a gift horse in the mouth, and it was still luxurious compared to the small dug out under the Barton Street Bridge where Ren and I usually slept.
I turned to Sean, giving him a huge smile of gratitude as I finally moved Ren out of my arms and into the bed. My arms felt numb and heavy with the sudden loss of her weight.
“There’s a bathroom on the landing,” Sean said with a small smile.
“Thank you.”
I made my way to it quickly, frowning when I couldn’t find a washcloth. “Sean,” I shouted. “Do you have a cloth so I can wipe Ren’s forehead?”
I jumped when he suddenly appeared behind me, the tiny room with an old toilet and small tin bath not providing enough room for both of us. The house clearly hadn’t been upgraded since the sixties and I couldn’t fathom it out. Sean was always clean and wore decent clothes. I knew his job at the shelter was voluntary and that he didn’t get paid but I was sure I’d heard him mention that he worked. And besides, the brand new car he had told another story about his wealth. It just didn’t make sense, but when I heard Ren’s soft cries, I brushed aside my concerns and looked at Sean again. “Wash cloth?” I repeated when he seemed to zone out and stare at me with a weird expression.
Dove Page 6
