by Karen Woods
Rachel’s eyes were wide open and she swallowed hard as the man’s warm breath circled her face. She wriggled about but there was no way she was going anywhere, her body was pinned to the wall. This man was strong and even with one hand he was controlling every movement she made. This was serious and nothing to be taken lightly. “Your fucking son owes me some money. You tell him from me if my cash isn’t back by the end of the week he’s a dead man walking.”
Her eyes twitched rapidly and she licked at her dry cracked lips. Nothing was registering, her head was all over the show. “What the fuck are you going on about? Take your hands off me you prick.”
Why didn’t she keep her big mouth shut, these were not the kind of men you messed with? The man choked back and spat in her face. Green and yellow spit right in her eyes. “You little rat. Tell Mikey, I want my money back. He’s going to get leathered when I get my hands on him. Who the fuck does he think he is, having me over?”
Rachel was white, the penny had dropped. The other man at the side of her was in her face now and he was as aggressive as Davo. He chipped in adding his two penn’orth worth. “We know all about the lying cunt. We’ve been told he had the cash. He had his chance months ago to come clean and he never. Listen, you slut. You know how things work around here and if the money isn’t back in the next forty-eight hours shit will go down. You get me?”
Rachel’s chest was rising frantically, and she was struggling to get her breath. The man at the side of her was nose to nose with her. His hand was raised and she knew she wasn’t leaving without getting a good going over. Closing her eyes she felt a fist pound into her cheek. Her head crashed to the wall and for a moment she was unaware of her surroundings. This bastard was laying into her now. His foot swung into her legs as she melted to the floor. He made sure she wasn’t getting back up in a hurry. Rachel curled into a tiny ball and tried protecting herself. She’d had beatings in the past and knew all about protecting her face and teeth.
Davo stood over her and his voice was chilling. “You tell your son to find me before I have to find him.”
Rachel was in a bad way and blood was seeping from the side of her mouth as she lifted her head up. “He’s fuck all to do with it. Mikey’s in the big house, how could he have had your money away when he’s in there?”
“Since when has he been in jail?” Davo asked.
Rachel tried to explain and hoped she convince these two that her son was innocent. Davo looked at his pal and inhaled, nostrils twitching. “Did you know he was doing a rip?”
“Nar, Davo, I’m as much in the dark as you are.”
Davo bent down and gripped Rachel’s cheeks again. His fat fingers digging deep into her flesh. “Which jail is he in? And, don’t fucking lie to me because I’ll find out. Your son owes me and I’ll make sure he pays every single penny back. Does he think people don’t talk around here?”
Rachel sat up and dragged her knees up to her chest, she was quivering and her lips were shuddering, she had no choice but to grass him up. “He’s in the farms, Lancaster Farms.”
Davo had connections and he was sure to know someone who was serving time at the prison too. The man nodded slowly and stroked the end of his chin. Standing to his feet he chuckled. “Either way, if my money doesn’t land soon I’ll be coming back for you. You make sure you tell him that right?”
At that moment Rachel would have done anything to save her bacon. She knew the script and nodded her head slowly. “Davo, Mikey has enough shit of his own going on. I think this is a big misunderstanding but I’ll make sure he knows what you’ve said.” The two men started to walk away but she didn’t move an inch. She was in total shock.
Davo and his wing-man dived into a silver Vectra and screeched out of the car park. She kept her head low as they passed her and didn’t make eye contact. Her hand pressed firmly against the ground, she used every bit of strength in her body to get up from the floor. A few people were there now and they were whispering about her. Rachel was limping as she passed them. She was fuming. “You could have given me a lift you fucking cowards. Fancy just standing there watching a woman get attacked by two men. Where is your backbone, no wonder this world is in the state it is.” The onlookers watched her walk by but stayed silent. They huddled together and in their own hearts they knew she was right but who would ever step up at a time like that? They knew the code of conduct around these parts and have a go heroes never came out of it too well. Once you opened your mouth, you were involved. You were a marked person too. Yep, one wrong word and your home could be petrol bombed, your family beaten up or worse… the list was endless. Nobody ever got tangled up with anyone else’s beef.
Rachel wiped her mouth with her sleeve. Her teeth were gritted tightly together as she dodged the cars as she crossed the road. She just wanted to get home now, away from any danger. This woman was a target, a sitting duck and she knew it wouldn’t be long before they came to her house to smash it up. Her step quickened and she didn’t even go to get Gary a weed from the dealer. He was going to go berserk, but her life was in danger, she was living on borrowed time. He could get to fuck.
Rachel’s hands shook as she tried to place her key into the front door. At one point she booted the door thinking it was stuck or something. She was shrieking at the top of her voice, hysterical. “Gary, get the fuck out of that bed, shit’s going down. We need to tell Mikey! We need to let him know he’s not safe.” Rachel slammed the front door behind her and staggered into the front room. She was screaming at the top of her voice and collapsed onto the sofa.
Gary sprinted into the front room, he was still half asleep. Rubbing his knuckles deep into the corner of his eyes he could see her properly for the first time. She was bleeding, bruised and in a right state. “Rachel, what’s happened? Fuck me, you’re cut. Babe, take a deep breath and tell me what the hell has happened.”
She was hyperventilating, her teeth chattering together. Gary twisted his head around the room and ran to get a blanket. He wrapped it around her shoulders and cradled her in his arms. He was rocking her, trying his best to comfort her. “Sweetheart, come on. Just tell me what’s gone on. Just take your time. Do you want me to light a cig for you?” Rachel nodded slowly and her breathing was starting to calm down. Gary sparked a cigarette up and sucked a few long drags of it before he passed it over to her. “Here, get that down you.”
She held the fag like it was a piece of gold. Pushing it into her mouth she inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. The nicotine filtered her body and it seemed ages before she blew the smoke out from her mouth. “Davo knows about the money. Gary, we’re not safe here. He’ll be coming through our front door soon. He’s tapped in the head, he’s a fucking lunatic.”
Gary blew a laboured breath and sat back on the sofa. “How do you know, who’s said that?”
Rachel snapped and smashed her hand against the arm of the chair. “Look at the state of me Gary, we’re not talking about any little dickhead here who we could sort out ourselves. Davo is a gun merchant and he wouldn’t think twice about coming here and knocking the living daylights out of us. Look at the state of me. And this is just a warning.”
Gary sniffed. His arse was twitching, he was by no means a fighter. Yeah, he could throw a few punches but when push came to shove he was a shit bag. He liked to big himself up as a bit of a street fighter but the fact was he was a nobody. He couldn’t fight his way out of a paper bag. “Well, say something then,” Rachel stressed.
Gary was shell-shocked and he knew in his own head that when they came to the house they would leave him for dead. He was a man and what they done to his girlfriend was just a taster of what was to come in the future. Licking his dry cracked lips slowly, he sat in a deep trance. Rachel punched him in the arm and she was in no mood for him to be having second thoughts about being with her. He was like that Gary. Any real sign of danger and he was on his toes until it all calmed down. “Fuck that Rach. I mean, they’ll fucking murder me if they come here. What was M
ikey thinking when he got involved with them? Davo is a nutter we both know that right?”
Rachel clenched her fists tightly into two rounded balls. She knew he was getting ready to bail and leave her to it. She bolted from the sofa and stood facing him. “Don’t you dare leave me to deal with this on my own Gary. I swear to you now, if that’s your plan you can fuck right off. Every time this happens you’re always the same. You’re a shitbag. Go on, if you’re going, fuck off now and save me the trouble of binning you.”
Gary was fidgeting, he was trying to defend himself but he was struggling. “Rach, I’m going nowhere,” he said unconvincingly, “It’s just that I don’t need all this shit in my life. I’ll stand by you. Come on give me a bit of credit. As if I would just get off and leave you to deal with this on your own.” Rachel shot a look over at him and knew he was chatting shit as per usual. He was never there when she needed him, he was a yellow belly. Rachel plonked down on the floor and Gary joined her. “If you know where the money is just give it him back. Simple isn’t it?”
“No fucking way. Mikey would go ape. If we give the money back then they’ll know for sure he had them over. He can’t win. I need to speak to Mikey, he’ll know what to do.”
“Where’s the money. Please tell me it’s not in the house. If they come here and find it we’re fucked.”
Rachel rubbed vigorously at her skin, she was itching at it, dragging it. For a split second she forgot who she was talking to and told him about the stash under the floorboards. Gary’s eyes were wide open and he ran to the corner of the room. He was quickly bent over and his hands seemed eager to get his fingers on the money. Rachel grabbed him from behind just as he was about to pull the cash from under the floorboards. “Shift out of the way. I’ll get it.” Gary moved back slowly and he was watching her like a hawk. As the money was revealed he rubbed his palms together. “Rach, let me stash it somewhere safe. Let’s face it, where can you hide it that’s secure? If you leave it here they will find it for sure.”
Rachel wasn’t born yesterday and there was no way she trusted Gary. He was her boyfriend yes, but she didn’t trust him as far as she could throw him and he was a right fat twat. “Just leave it with me, Gary. I know where I can put it. I’m not going to leave it in here, I’m not that daft. Do you think we should even be staying here with all this going on? It’s only a matter of time before they’re knocking on our door for the money,” her voice went higher. “Fucking hell, when it rains in this house it pours.”
Gary wasn’t listening to a word she said, his eyes were fixed on the cash and he was watching every move she made. “Come on babes, let’s get you cleaned up. Look at the state of your lip. It looks like your eye’s going to be bruised. It’s already swelling up.”
Rachel placed the money on the table and walked to the mirror. “Bloody hell, you’re right. I’ll tell you what Gary, they had no qualms about giving me a crack either. The two of them set about me in the car park with no mercy whatsoever. God help you if they get their hands on you, they’ll destroy you.” He swallowed hard and blew a laboured breath. What the hell was she doing to him, he was as white as a sheet!
The mobile phone starting ringing and Rachel was in a panic looking for it. Gary found it first and looked at the caller ID. “It’s Mikey, it’s the number he rang from the other day.”
Rachel answered the call and dispensed with the pleasantries. “Mikey, they know about the money. Davo and his mate give me a good hiding this morning at the post office. I swear to you son. This isn’t going to stop here. I had to tell them you were in prison. He was going to kill me.” Rachel held her ear to the blower and every now and then she gasped. Gary was sat on the edge of his seat and he was puzzled at what was being said. The phone call continued. “Right, son. I’ll do just that. Don’t you worry about me I’m as tough as nails when I need to be. Ring me later and I’ll know a bit more.” The call ended and Rachel stood thinking for a few seconds. “I’m going to get a shower to sort myself out. Put the kettle on and I’ll be down in ten minutes.” Gary nodded and watched as she left the room, he could hear her footsteps bouncing up the stairs.
Rachel stood looking in the bathroom mirror. She was a mess and Gary was right, her eye was swelling up. Touching her skin with the base of her finger she frowned as the pain filtered through her body. There was dried claret around her mouth and her chin was dark red as she scraped at it with her fingernail trying to remove it. The bathroom was clean and tidy and even the colour of the walls was pleasing to the eye; a soft yellow, a warming neutral colour. Rachel peeled her clothes from her haggard body. She must have only weighed about seven stone. Her ribcage was visible and her collarbone stuck out from the top of her chest. With every movement she made she moaned and groaned. Usually, Rachel only had a quick wash in the morning but today she had no other choice than to get a shower. Turning the dial on the wall, she made sure it was piping hot. Standing in the shower cubicle she scrubbed every inch of her skin. A bit over the top really, but she was making sure every bit of blood was gone from her body. The room was full of mist and she didn’t notice Gary come into the bathroom. He was in and out at the blink of an eye. Once she was cleaned up she wrapped the bath towel around her head and stood in front of the mirror. There were deep purple blemishes all over her skin that looked sore to touch. There was a loud knocking at the front door and she froze, eyes open wide. Tip-toeing out from the bathroom she whispered down the stairs. “Gary, somebody is at the door.” Her body edged down the staircase and she was doing her best to make sure she wasn’t spotted. She tried again but a bit louder this time. “Gary, I said there is somebody at the bleeding door.” There was still no reply. Rachel took a deep breath and peered around the corner in the hallway. Were her eyes playing tricks on her? She couldn’t be sure if it was a man or a woman. The letterbox lifted and she recognised the voice.
“Rachel, it’s Sarah.”
Mikey’s mother looked relieved as she opened it. She was shivering and she was still wet. “Go in the front room. Gary must have fallen asleep. I’m just going to shove some clothes on and I’ll be down in a minute. Tell him I hope he’s brewed up. I’m gagging for a nice cup of tea after the morning I’ve had.” Rachel ran back up the stairs and Sarah walked into the front room.
By the time Rachel was cleaned up there were two cups of tea on the table and Sarah sat smiling at her. “I’ve made us both a nice cuppa.”
Rachel snarled and shot her eyes around the room. “Where’s that lazy bastard, I asked him to do it for me ages ago!”
Sarah shrugged her shoulders. Rachel turned her head towards the kitchen. “Gary, bring some biscuits in with you. I think there are some chocolate ones left on the cupboard.”
Sarah was confused. She’d been in the kitchen only a few seconds ago. There was no sign of Gary. “I think he must have gone out Rachel. He wasn’t here when I came in.” The words worked through Rachel’s brain and all of a sudden she was running around the front room like a headless chicken. She stormed into the kitchen, doors could be heard being opened and then slammed shut. Rachel was screaming at the top of her voice. “Gary, Gary where are you?” Sarah sat on the sofa and seemed oblivious to what was going on. Rachel raced past her and headed upstairs, Sarah could hear her feet stomping about in every room. Rachel came back into the living room and her body folded in two. She was sobbing and holding her head in her hands. What the hell had happened? “He’s done it. He’s took the fucking money. I left it right there on the table and the dirty horrible twat has had me over. I knew not to leave it near him. I only went upstairs for a wash. Why has he done this to me?”
Sarah was used to these two arguing all the time and tried to brush it off. Mikey’s mother always had a drama going on in her life and today was no different. She had to look concerned though, she couldn’t just sit there and watch her crying like that. “Rachel, come on, get your drink. Gary will be back soon. I bet he’s just nipped to the shops or something. Has he belted you too?
Oh my God, look at the state of your eye.”
She reached down into her handbag and pulled out a wet wipe. What she thought she was going to do with that, God only knows. Rachel pushed her away. She was livid now. “He’s took all of it. Mikey’s money has gone.”
Sarah looked puzzled. Mikey always said he was potless, she must have heard her wrong. “I’m sure it’s a bit of a mix up. How much do you think he’s taken? I’ll lend it you until he comes back if you want?” Sarah reached over for her bag and pulled out her brown leather purse. “Here you go, there’s twenty pound. You can give it me back once he comes back.”
Rachel pushed the money back at her and growled. “You barmy cow, you don’t understand do you? Put your money away, I don’t need it.”
Sarah gasped, what was this woman’s problem? “Why are you so nasty to me all the time? I was only trying to help. I don’t know why I bother sometimes. Honest to God, you are such hard work.”
Rachel realised that she had to explain further. She reached over and held her hands in hers. This was a first and never in her life had she seen Mikey’s mother so weak. “Sarah, it was Mikey’s money. The money for his future.”
Sarah’s ears pinned back and she listened carefully before she spoke. “Rachel, you need to explain because I’m not with it. What money are you talking about?”
Rachel grabbed her cigarettes from the table and knew she would have to come clean. Sarah would never tell anybody anyway, she knew that. “Mikey did a graft before he got sent down. It was a daft stupid thing... but you don’t need to know the ins and outs of it. What’s done is done. All you need to know is the trouble it’s caused.” Rachel was deflated, her son had been caught bang to rights and there was no way she could save him. Gary always called her son ‘Goldenballs’ and he would have been laughing somewhere now about his downfall. He was a no-good bastard and when she got her hands on him he was going to get a mouthful from her. She didn’t need him in her life, she would move on and find someone who would stick by her through thick and thin. He was history in her eyes now, a dirty no-good sell-out. “Sarah, he’s dropped a right bollock and these men aren’t plastic gangsters, they’re the real McCoy. Honest, they’ll chop his balls off if they get their hands on him. Slice him up.”
