by Linda Calvey
There were gasps from legal counsel on both sides. No one had expected such a tough sentence. Ruby felt her head swim, as if she would faint, but she gripped the wooden bench and stood up so that Bobby could see her.
He stood in the dock, no reaction on his face. He held her gaze as the officers on each side of him gestured for him to be led back down into the bowels of the building. Before he disappeared, he looked back and nodded as if to say ‘I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me’, then he vanished, a long stretch ahead of him.
Ruby stared at the space where her brother had just been. She looked around the courtroom, at the judge, the barristers and lawyers, the people who had good starts in life, who were given privilege and the ability to earn money legally. They were the people who had the real power.
She realised as never before that people like her and Bobby, from poverty, from rough backgrounds, had no other choice but to find other ways to survive. She saw the gulf between her people and these, the unbridgeable gap, and she felt a new sensation sweep her body. She had money. She had plenty of money, more than most of the people in that room, yet she realised it wasn’t enough. For her to carry on and protect those she loved, she had to have power to wield, the power to make choices, the power to stop these bastards and the system crushing her. She felt a focusing of her desires to one single concept like the sharp point of a knife; she would never be weak again. She couldn’t help Bobby. The system had swallowed him up – for now. But she could learn to think differently.
As she held Archie’s arm and walked out into the winter sunlight, Ruby knew she was a changed woman; ruthless where once she was merely hardened, determined to be a major player in the underworld, where once she hovered on the edge of it. Now she would make her presence felt, she would learn everything she could from Archie and his family, and one day, one beautiful day, she would be so powerful even the law couldn’t touch her.
Nothing and no one would stand in her way ever again. The past was gone. The future was for seeking power, whatever price she had to pay.
PART THREE
POWERFUL FRIENDS
Marbella, Spain, 2006
CHAPTER 30
‘Bobby! Belle!’ shouted the young girl as she ran to Archie’s Porsche. Ruby stood at the doorway of the palatial villa she’d inherited from her beloved friends Charlie and Maureen, watching her daughter Cathy run to meet her uncle and his wife.
The years had been both kind and cruel to them. Bobby had done ten long years. He’d missed the birth of his only niece, and most of little George’s life. They’d visited him in prison as much as they could, but it wasn’t the same. It had taken months for George to stop asking for Bobby, and the bond that had once been so strong between them was but a thin thread now. It still pained Ruby to know she’d played a part in Bobby going to prison, but she took a small amount of comfort from the fact that Bobby had met the love of his life there. Belle had been his art teacher, and Bobby had courted her ceaselessly, then married her as soon as he got out of prison. The two were blissfully happy now.
In the intervening years Ruby and Archie had built their business into a small empire. Archie’s father Lloyd still headed the family, but it was clear where Archie had gotten his respect for women. From the moment she’d married Archie, she’d been one of the family. Lloyd valued Ruby’s opinion and negotiation skills, and wasn’t one to waste such assets. He’d taken Ruby under his wing, teaching her the ins and outs of running a drug empire. One day he hoped to retire and pass the business on to Ruby and Archie. Meanwhile, Alfie spent much of his time in South America building their connections there.
As Ruby watched Cathy hugging and practically dancing around Belle and Bobby, she felt a huge sense of contentment. Though Bobby had been out of prison for three years, he’d been on parole and unable to leave England. Instead of joining the family in Spain, Bobby and Belle had taken up their old house in Chigwell. Now, with their arrival, she felt her family was finally coming back together. And she had the type of power that the Freddie Harrises of the world would never dare mess with.
She turned her attention to her daughter, enjoying the happiness that emanated from her. Cathy was a slim girl of twelve. She had her father’s dark blonde hair, but her eyes were as green as her mother’s.
Bobby managed to extricate himself from the tangle of limbs that was his niece and walked straight up to Ruby. ‘Sis, it’s good to see ya,’ he said, wrapping Ruby’s petite frame in his big arms.
‘Bobby, ya know if I could turn back that clock and do things differently, I would’ve done—’
‘What’s done is done. We’re ’ere now and the past is gone. New start?’
‘New start,’ Ruby nodded before breaking into a smile. ‘Come inside, I’ve got so much to show ya.’
Cathy skipped ahead of them, filled with excitement and childish glee. Ruby had done everything she could to shelter their daughter from the realities of their world; the deals, the danger, but sometimes she wondered if she’d done too good a job. Cathy was one of life’s innocents. She was without guile, a generous soul who loved her family and wanted nothing more than to spend time with them. Ruby’s musings were broken by Archie who, looking round, suddenly said, ‘Where’s George?’
Ruby sighed. It wasn’t the first time she’d sighed over her little brother. ‘I don’t know, darlin’. I called him, told him everyone had arrived, but he just grunted and carried on with playin’ his video game.’
Archie frowned. ‘I’ll drag him down ’ere myself if I ’ave to,’ he said as he marched inside to look for him.
The contrast between Cathy and George was never more stark than at moments like this. Cathy was excited to see her family. She adored Belle and Bobby, and wanted everyone to be happy together. George, on the other hand, had turned from a delightful little boy into a troubled teenager. He sneered. He swore. He wouldn’t do anything Ruby or Archie asked of him. He’d been expelled from two schools already and there seemed to be no way to get through to him. Ruby worried about him constantly.
‘Look who I found sulkin’ in his room,’ Archie announced as he marched a scowling George, who was fifteen years old, onto the vast patio area beside the infinity pool where everyone had wandered.
George grunted, ‘Hi,’ before trying to turn away, but Archie stopped him.
‘George, it’s good to see ya,’ Bobby said, coming over to them, his face a picture of concern.
George, who was wearing a black hoodie over low-slung baggy jeans, shuffled on the spot. ‘All right, Bobby?’ he said gruffly, as if it was an effort.
‘Yeah, mate, I’m all right. It’s good to be ’ere. Must be lovely bein’ able to come ’ere durin’ the school holidays?’ Bobby attempted to start a conversation.
George shrugged and said nothing.
Archie raised an eyebrow and exchanged a glance with the teenager’s older brother. His look said, ‘We’ll talk about this one later.’
‘He’s fine, Ruby, Archie, don’t worry. He’s a teenager, he’s got other stuff goin’ on,’ Bobby tried to reassure his sister, but he could see the pained expression on her face. ‘George, let’s ’ave a chat later. I ain’t been around for ages so it’s difficult. I’d like to hang out with ya while I’m ’ere, get to know ya again.’
George nodded, though he still didn’t speak.
When the teenager had slunk off up to his bedroom seconds later, Ruby turned to her brother and Belle.
‘I blame myself. I gave him everythin’ and I created a spoilt brat. It’s my fault he’s the way he is. I should ’ave kept him ’ere with Cathy in Spain, put him in the international school with her and kept us together,’ she said dolefully.
‘Don’t blame yourself, Ruby. You did everything you could for the right reasons. He might’ve had the same troubles there too, and you thought you were doing what was best for him by putting him into good schools back home,’ Belle soothed.
Ruby looked over at her sister-in-law. Belle had curly,
almost frizzy hair, which was hennaed a red colour. She wore a red shift with coloured scarves and silver Indian bracelets which tinkled as she moved her hands. She was a kind soul.
‘Belle’s right, it ain’t your fault George is the way he is. He’s had every chance in life. You’re not to blame if he don’t take those chances. He’s in the best boarding school in England right now, and why? Because they can straighten him out,’ Bobby added, putting his arm around his wife.
Archie moved over and sat beside Ruby. She turned to look at him and felt that familiar thrill that this man was her husband. He had aged well, with a few streaks of grey in his blonde hair but, if anything, he looked more rugged, more attractive. He wore an immaculately cut shirt with chinos and brown leather slip-on shoes.
‘It ain’t nuthin’ to do with you, Ruby. You’ve been like a mother to him. George is almost a man and it’s time he realised he’s got to grow up. He’s back for the holidays and perhaps he needs time to adjust.’
As the adults spoke, the maid, Maria, handed round cool glasses of sangria with thick slices of orange and lemon in them. Cathy had been listening to every word. She got up from the floor where she’d been sitting cross-legged and smiled at her mum.
‘I’ll go and speak to him. He’ll be all right, I promise you,’ she said, making Ruby smile back at her.
‘Go on then, darlin’. If anyone can work their magic with him, it’s you.’
Cathy brushed back her long fair hair and skipped off up the huge marble staircase to George’s room. Ruby watched her go, her heart swelling with pride and love for her daughter. Her and her uncle George were only three years apart in age, but the difference between them was as vast as a galaxy. Even so, there was a bond between the two that neither Ruby nor Archie fully understood. Virtually siblings, protected from the criminal world and the circle they mixed in, each child had been brought up the same way, with lots of love and attention, yet George was against the world. He seemed to hate Ruby and Archie and everyone around them. He lied and stole, cheated and ran riot, but what could they do? He was their flesh and blood and Ruby had vowed to her dead parents that she would bring up their child as her own. Ruby sighed again. She’d never expected that vow to be as troublesome as it was. ‘Well, if there’s one person who can charm George, it’s Cathy. Let’s ’ope she can magic him into joinin’ us for lunch. Is everythin’ prepared, Maria?’
Ruby smiled over at the maid, a young woman from the local village, who nodded back.
‘Yes, Mrs Willson, the food is ready when you are.’
The adults gathered around the table. Food was served and wine poured. For Ruby it was a moment of celebration that she’d waited years for.
As the dessert was served, Archie caught Ruby’s eye and she gave him a nod.
‘So, Bobby, ’ave ya given any thought to rejoinin’ the family business?’ Archie grinned, his eyes twinkling.
‘It’s been a while, Archie. My key-man days might be over. There’re new alarm systems now, more sophisticated. I wouldn’t want to risk my freedom.’
Belle squeezed his hand and nodded. They’d obviously given this question some thought. Ruby looked over at them. She was happy Bobby had found a soulmate but she was still surprised that he’d managed to find a straight one. Belle wasn’t stupid; she knew he’d been crooked – she’d met him in prison, after all – but Ruby couldn’t see how she’d approve of any law-breaking now, which is why she’d come up with a plan for him, one that didn’t explicitly involve crime.
‘I’ve been thinkin’ how you can come back to work. I know you’ve played it straight, workin’ in a bar for the past three years while you’ve had to check in with the parole officer—’
‘And he still wants to play it straight, Ruby,’ Belle said firmly.
Ruby nodded. ‘I understand, Belle, I really do, which is why I wanted to ask Bobby if he’ll manage a pub we’ve just bought in Chigwell. It’s just down the road from ya, and we’d pay you well. I’ve got plans for it. It’ll be an upmarket wine bar eventually and it needs a good manager with experience of workin’ in pubs. I can’t think of a better person.’
Ruby sipped her wine. They’d eaten slowly, talking and laughing round the table, enjoying the freshly cooked Spanish food. A couple of hours had passed but already the cicadas were vibrating softly in the palm trees outside, the gentle breeze drifting through the white floors and walls of the villa. Ruby kept the vases full of white lilies, in tribute to Maureen, who’d loved them. She could smell their sweet scent on the warmth of the late afternoon air. How she missed her friends, even now.
Bobby glanced at Belle, who looked pleased at the idea.
‘All right, I’ll do it. Runnin’ me own pub, that’ll be somethin’. Thanks, Ruby, thanks, Archie.’
Ruby waved away their gratitude. They toasted their success. A new venture. A new life for Bobby. A new start for them all as a family.
The day passed and evening drew in.
‘I’ve got plans to show ya both the local markets tomorrow so I need my beauty sleep,’ Ruby murmured.
Archie followed her up to their room. She sat on their luxurious bed, covered with starched white Egyptian cotton sheets, and watched as he took off his watch, slipped off his shoes and started to unbutton his linen shirt.
‘So, ya didn’t tell him everythin’ then . . .’ He raised an eyebrow at his wife.
‘No, no I didn’t Archie. The less Bobby knows about the pub, the better,’ she demurred.
‘And is that wise?’ Archie leaned over to kiss her neck. She moaned softly and lay back, pulling at his belt.
‘It’s . . . necessary. Belle won’t be happy with him doing any crooked work, but Bobby’s still a proud man. He won’t want a handout, and with his prison record what kind of job would he get? He did ten years for us and I want him to have a good life. We need someone we trust to manage the bar. He doesn’t have to know we’re laundering money through it. The less he knows, the safer he is, and the happier Belle is. No, this way he’s taken care of and protected.
‘Now, let’s not talk business any more . . .’ Ruby began to kiss Archie back, their desire for each other igniting like a flame.
CHAPTER 31
A fly buzzed as it tapped against the huge expanse of glass that looked out onto the glittering ocean. The sky was a blue haze as the heat of the morning melted into midday. Palm trees sat in elegant urns outside the window, and if she craned her neck, Ruby could see her luxurious infinity pool, its blue water stretching out to the heavens from their hilltop position.
Bobby and Belle had returned to England, excited to be running the pub Ruby had acquired. Having them all with her in Spain had been a dream come true, and though they’d had to head back, she knew it would be the first trip of many.
Despite the dangers of this chosen path, sometimes it all still felt like a fairy tale to Ruby – this life with her beautiful things, her plush homes and her husband, who was talking alongside his father with the dangerous stranger sitting across from her in their office.
Archie looked tanned and relaxed, though she could tell he was listening to the man intently as he talked about shipments across the Adriatic Sea. She watched her husband, marvelling at her good fortune in finding a man she desired and respected in equal measure. On his wrist he sported a watch that cost more than her parents would’ve earned in a year.
He was a kind, considerate husband, and a ruthless, dangerous businessman. She’d seen him smile winningly at an associate then weeks or months later, order them to be despatched when it turned out they’d betrayed him or the company. Yet he was always loving to her.
Ruby had taken a couple of years out of the business, bringing up Cathy and George. But once they’d gotten older she’d begun to sit in on meetings, and when she did, all the while she was thinking, I could do a better deal than that, as the men chatted around her.
Lloyd and Archie had always been keen to use Ruby’s talents, but it was a meeting wi
th a particularly charming Spanish mafia tycoon that had cemented her position in the Willson business. She’d listened in, watching the man, knowing he was skirting the important issue of the delivery point for a shipment of coke from Colombia. Afterwards, she told Lloyd and Archie straight, ‘You should’ve asked them to deliver the goods to England, as now you’ve got the problem of shipping it from Spain.’
Both men had looked at her. It had been Lloyd who’d spoken first, ‘Archie, I think it’s time we let your wife in on the negotiations. She’s a sharp thinker.’
Archie had winked at Ruby. ‘Dad, you’ve never met anyone more devious . . .’ which made them all smile.
‘It’s settled, then,’ Lloyd had said, glancing at his Rolex. ‘I’m expected somewhere so I’m off out. Sort Ruby out with an office. She’s officially on board.’
Ruby had missed the adrenaline rush when a deal came off. She’d missed the buzz of staying one step ahead of the criminals they dealt with, always watching for the catch, sussing out their opponents and watching their backs.
The Albanian stranger shifted slightly in his seat, drawing Ruby back to the present.
‘My associates tell me you are looking for a large shipment of goods for the European market. Why should we supply to you when we have others who are interested?’ he said.
Archie smiled. ‘Because, unlike the others, we’ll pay you on time and in full.’
Ruby looked at Saban, the drug baron. He was smiling but it didn’t reach his eyes, which were cold and calculating.
Archie added, ‘And we want decent gear.’
