Rival

by Jacqui Rose

  ‘Just, let me go,’ Tia hissed slowly through her teeth.

  He shook his head. ‘I don’t know what’s going on, but you’re asking too much of me, darlin’. I got Harry to think of.’

  Clearly agitated, Tia pressed on. ‘Come on, Vaughn, don’t do this to me.’

  The pressure of the situation making him angry, Vaughn raised his voice. ‘I ain’t doing anything to you. Don’t you get it, Tia? If Harry finds out that I’m letting you go for walkabouts then not only do I have to put up with the crap he’s bound to send my way, but there’d be a good possibility that he’d drop me. Then I’d have to deal with Wan. Because if Harry decides to wash his hands then Wan and his men will come after me.’

  Angrily, Tia snapped, ‘If Harry decided to wash his hands?’

  ‘Am I speaking double Dutch? I really don’t think you get it.’

  ‘You have no idea how much I get it, Vaughn.’

  Pissed off he growled, ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’

  Not wanting to say any more, Tia stared at Vaughn. ‘It means, Harry ain’t all that he makes out to you. What you think you’re getting isn’t always the case.’

  ‘Tia, I hate it when people talk in riddles; it reminds me of Alfie. He always liked to do that and the last thing I want to do is think about him. So talk straight and if you need to say anything, just spit it out, for fuck’s sake.’

  Seething but resisting blurting out the truth, Tia said, ‘Just let me out. I’ll meet you here in a couple of hours. I swear I’ll come back on time. It won’t be like the last time.’

  ‘Sorry, babe, no can do.’

  ‘Don’t do this to me, I’m begging you.’ As she said it, Tia suddenly saw two police officers walking along. She banged hard on the window, causing them to look her way.

  ‘What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Tia?’

  ‘What I have to … If you don’t let me out I will tell them that you’re keeping me in here without my consent – not only that, but also that you’ve got a gun in the back of the car.’

  Red-faced, Vaughn snarled, ‘You wouldn’t dare.’

  ‘Try me.’

  They held each other’s stare for a moment, but it was Tia who said, ‘I’m sorry, I wouldn’t do this if I didn’t have to, but I have to do what I have to do. I’ll meet you here in a couple of hours … No hard feelings, hey?’

  ‘You bitch.’

  And with those words Vaughn, watching the two officers walking closer, immediately pressed the unlock button to let Tia out while thinking he wasn’t about to let her get away with this.

  28

  Franny sat slumped at the table of Marco’s Italian restaurant in Wardour Street. It was just gone 5pm – the place was getting busy – and although she’d walked in over twenty minutes ago, she still hadn’t decided what she was going to eat. In fact, sitting here now, she just didn’t feel very hungry at all. All she could think of was the diary. The diary and Sasha and Louise. Especially Louise.

  Who was she? Where was she? The diary entries had only been from a couple of months before Wan had agreed to protect her. But she’d never heard any of the girls mention her name. Perhaps she was just letting her imagination run away with her. Perhaps if she’d continued reading on, then she would’ve found out that Louise was safe and well.

  Yeah, maybe that was just it. Louise was now doing what teenagers do … So why then, no matter how much she tried to convince herself, did she have a terrible feeling in her stomach, a feeling that something very, very bad might have happened?

  She’d wanted to go back and read the diary again but she’d thought it was too risky, so she’d gone to speak to Sasha, ask if she’d got the dress she’d left on the bed for her and then from there see if she could get Sasha to talk. But according to the other girls, Sasha hadn’t been about. And no matter how much she tried to tell herself she was being paranoid, she couldn’t help thinking that like Louise, Sasha might be in trouble. Everything about this whole situation spelt trouble.

  She pulled out her phone and with a sinking feeling before she’d even pressed dial, she called Alfie’s phone, knowing that within a couple of rings it would go straight to voicemail.

  Trying not to sound too despondent, she began to leave a message. ‘Hey, Alf, it’s me … again. You know the drill, just call me when …’ She paused and just as she was working up to say that she was sorry and that she missed him so badly, she heard the words, ‘Mind if I join you?’

  She looked up, cutting off the phone message as Detective Carter sat opposite her. She glared at him. ‘What do you want?’

  He grinned, his velvet black skin shining from an excess amount of moisturiser, his brown eyes twinkling. ‘What is it with you guys? Anyone would think you’re not happy to see me. First Vaughn, now you.’

  ‘Vaughn?’

  ‘Yeah, your mate.’

  Franny’s face flashed with anger. She pushed a stray bit of her long chestnut hair behind her ear. ‘I seem to remember that he was your mate. Anyway, I don’t want to talk about Vaughn.’

  Carter smiled. ‘That’s funny because that’s exactly what he said about you. No love lost there, is there?’

  Franny said nothing and continued to stare. She knew Carter well, or as well as she could ever get to know a copper. He’d started off in vice and then in the serious crime agency and she’d first come across him when he had dealings with her father, who was a face in Soho, and then she’d had her own dealings with him … more than she’d care to remember.

  She was also aware that Vaughn and Carter had once been friends. Once. A long time ago. Though obviously now they’d moved on in different directions. But for all she hated the police and certainly it was a question of them and us, Carter was at least honest. Straight. And she would even go as far as saying he cared about people. Cared about the community and the streets of London. No matter how much they had different trains of thought, Carter, if there was such a thing, was one of the good ones.

  Sighing, Franny said, ‘Listen, Carter, there’s no love lost between me and anyone else, and that includes you.’

  He laughed. ‘Always hard-faced, aren’t we? But I don’t believe that’s all there is to you. I know there’s a heart in there somewhere, Franny Doyle.’

  ‘Well that’s what the doctors tell me, but I’m not so sure,’ Franny said coolly.

  ‘Come on, Franny, all of us have our soft spots. What is it for you? Cute, fluffy puppies? Christmas movies? A night in by the fire?’

  Franny regarded him evenly. ‘Dogs make me sneeze, I don’t watch TV and I’ve got central heating.’

  Carter reached for a toothpick from the small pot on the table and stuck it at the side of his mouth. ‘I don’t buy it. I don’t buy the tough act, Franny. Oh yes, you’ve got balls. You’ve had to fight your way to the top, I know that. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have any feelings. I don’t believe you don’t know how to let down that guard … to care … to love …’

  Franny shook her head. ‘Do me a favour. I think it’s you who sounds in need of a little bit of TLC, Carter. Sounds like you’re projecting.’

  Not to be put off, Carter continued. ‘I hear that Alfie’s gone. That must be difficult for you,’ he said not unkindly.

  Trying not to show any kind of emotion but for some reason suddenly feeling slightly overwhelmed by everything, Franny shrugged. ‘Carter, what are you doing? I thought you were a copper, not a doctor. And sorry to disappoint but for your information, you’re wrong. What you see is what I am. There’s nothing warm and cuddly about me, so save the psychobabble for someone else.’

  She got up to go, but he stopped her, pulling her back down gently onto her chair. ‘Franny, I need your help.’

  ‘What are you talking about?’

  Chewing the toothpick, Carter brought his voice down to almost a whisper. ‘I know that you’re working with Wan, but I also know that it wasn’t your choice.’

  Again, Franny shrugged. ‘Whoever you’ve
been talking to has got it wrong.’

  He leant forward, his strong, handsome face full of concern. ‘I don’t think so. We both know what’s happened. Soho has a way of talking; word spreads easily. The point is, I need you to help me and you know why I think you will, no matter what you say? I know you care. You’re not like the others in this game, Franny. Funny thing is, you remind me of Vaughn.’

  ‘Now you’re really taking the piss,’ Franny said firmly.

  ‘No, I’m not. You and Vaughn and even Alfie, you might have your differences, you might see life differently to the way I see it even, and yes, you guys might do bad things, but ultimately I don’t think you’re bad people. And there’s a difference. Sometimes good people do bad things, but from my experience, bad people rarely do good things. And that includes Wan Huang. He’s bad, Franny, and I want you to help me get him off the streets.’

  ‘Not a chance.’

  Carter sat in silence for a moment, then nodded to himself before he continued. ‘What do you know about Sophie?’

  ‘I don’t know a Sophie,’ said Franny, lying as visions of the young girl convulsing on the floor the other day came into her mind.

  Carter’s stare was piercing. ‘Really? Are you sure about that?’

  ‘I’ve just said haven’t I?’

  ‘Okay, what about this girl?’ Carter placed a photo on the table of a smiling young girl looking carefree. ‘Her name was Louise.’

  ‘I don’t know any Louise. I don’t know many teenagers so I reckon you’re wasting your time. You need to ask someone else.’

  ‘But I’m asking you because we have reason to believe that Louise came and worked for Wan for a short time. So of course we’re keen to clarify this with anyone who might’ve known her.’

  Franny felt sick, and although she didn’t know it for sure, she was certain that the Louise Carter was talking about was the same Louise Sasha had written about in her diary. ‘You said was. This was Louise. What do you mean?’

  ‘She was fourteen years old and she was found beaten to death, wrapped up in bin liners. Toxicology reports show that she had a high level of cocaine in her system. Fourteen years old. Oh and if that wasn’t enough, the pathology report showed that there was some internal vaginal damage from something sharp being inserted inside her. So come on, Franny, are you still trying to tell me you won’t help me? Are you still trying to tell me, after hearing about Louise, that you haven’t got a heart?’

  Having to grip on to the edge of her seat to make sure her voice didn’t show a hint of emotion, Franny spoke evenly. ‘Like I say, I don’t know anything.’

  Carter thumped his fist down on the table, causing the other diners to turn around. ‘I still don’t buy it. I don’t buy it that you’re this cold.’

  ‘And like I said before, I’m sorry to disappoint you.’

  With his usual calm demeanour ruffled, Carter slammed another photo of a young girl down on the table. ‘What about her? You know her?’

  Unintentionally, Franny flinched.

  ‘You know her, don’t you?’ Carter said as he watched Franny intently.

  ‘No.’

  His brown eyes darkened as he waved away the waiter who was hovering with a menu. ‘Don’t lie to me.’

  ‘I’m not. I ain’t ever seen her before,’ Franny replied as she stared at the photo of Ellie. Because it was definitely her. Without the red hair, in her school uniform looking fresh-faced and very young.

  ‘Why is it that I know you’re lying to me?’

  Franny sneered. ‘Maybe cos you’re a copper.’

  ‘I think you know who she is … Look at her. Look at her again. She’s fifteen. She’s a runaway and she’s vulnerable, Franny. She had a bad start and spent a lot of her life in and out of care. You don’t want vultures preying on her do you? Is that what you want for her? Come on, Franny, you might even pretend to yourself that you’re some cold bitch but you can’t pretend you’d want a young girl to get into Wan’s clutches. I know that’s not what you’d want.’

  Not glancing at the photo again, Franny pushed it away. ‘I told you, Carter, I don’t know anything. Besides, what makes you so sure that she came to Soho?’

  ‘She told some people that she had a boyfriend here. He owned some clubs and restaurants. She also told them he was an older man. South East Asian. I reckon Wan fits the bill, don’t you? After all, you and I both know what he does. It’s just a question of proving it.’

  ‘Look, I hope you find her, I really do, but I can’t help you.’ She stood up and was about to say something but she thought better of it and made her way out of the restaurant and into the chill of the London evening air.

  She might not have told Carter who Ellie was, but that didn’t mean that she was going to do nothing. Just that she was going to do it her way. And with that thought, Franny pulled up her jacket collar and headed down Wardour Street. She was going to find her and then, whether Ellie liked it or not, they were going to have a very long talk.

  29

  On the other side of Soho, Milly Jacobs sighed and stared at her large stomach in the mirror.

  ‘You look well fat!’

  ‘Thanks a lot,’ Milly said as she turned to look at Ellie, a girl she’d met in the arcade in Wardour Street three months or so ago. She liked Ellie. She made Milly laugh, something she hadn’t done for a long time, though she knew if her mother found out she’d go mad, because she’d promised her she’d lie low. But she couldn’t just sit here doing nothing.

  And it wasn’t as if she wasn’t careful. She was. Because aside from what her mum had told her, she had her own reasons she wanted to lie low. So when she did go out, she made sure that she tucked up her hair and wore her beanie hat and pink Ray-Bans, so it wasn’t as if anyone would recognise her.

  And anyway, it felt good to have someone her own age about. She felt old and as Ellie had said, she felt fat as well. Old and fat and she was only sixteen.

  ‘I’ve got stretch marks! Oh my God! Look! Look!’

  Ellie jumped up and stared at her stomach just as Milly let out a breath of exclamation. ‘He’s kicking! Feel it!’

  She took Ellie’s hand and placed it on her stomach. ‘Can you feel it, El?’

  Ellie grinned and nodded, throwing herself back down on the bed. ‘I’m going to have a baby with my boyfriend.’

  ‘You’re too young.’

  Scowling, Ellie shrugged. ‘I’m not and anyway, look at you.’

  Milly suddenly looked subdued. ‘That’s different.’

  ‘How?’

  ‘It just is, and anyway, what have I got? I’m stuck here on my own.’

  Ellie looked around the bedsit. She didn’t see the grimness – Milly had tried to make the place cheery – the dripping water, the mould in the corner of the room and she didn’t see the window that was smashed and held together with gaffer tape, all she saw was a place Milly could call her own. ‘You’re lucky to have this.’

  Milly pushed back her hair and looked around as she lay down on the bed next to Ellie. She giggled. ‘This place? It’s a dive.’

  ‘At least it’s your place. I’d love to have somewhere. Just me and my boyfriend and no one else around, no bitches around.’

  ‘You can have it! Take the place!’ Milly laughed, which made Ellie laugh as well.

  ‘So who’s the dad?’ Ellie said as she watched a very dishevelled pigeon sitting on the ledge outside the window.

  Milly’s face became serious. It was the same question her mum had been asking her from the moment she’d found out that she was pregnant so, like she’d told her mum, she said, ‘Just some guy, Ellie. Stupid mistake.’

  ‘Did you love him?’

  ‘Are you kidding?’

  ‘Well I love my boyfriend. He’s dead handsome and I reckon he loves me too,’ Ellie answered, swooning at the thought of Wan.

  ‘Did he tell you that? Did he say he loves you?’

  ‘No, but I get the feeling he does. You know, I think he t
rusts me. He asks me to do things that he wouldn’t ask anyone else. We have secrets, me and him.’

  Piquing Milly’s interest, she asked, ‘Like what?’

  ‘Stuff.’ Ellie turned her head to the side, which made Milly quickly sit up, staring at her new friend. She reached over and touched Ellie’s neck. ‘What’s that?’ Milly asked, shocked as she stared at some red and purple bruises.

  Having forgotten they were there, Ellie’s hand quickly shot up and covered them. ‘They’re nothing.’

  Milly leant on her elbow, resting her stomach on a large, pink fluffy pillow. ‘You got a scratch on your face as well.’

  ‘Like I say, it’s nothing.’

  ‘Well those bruises don’t look like nothing. Did he do that to you? Did your boyfriend do it?’

  It was a moment before Ellie answered. ‘I don’t think so.’

  ‘What are you talking about? He either did it or he didn’t.’

  Ellie’s face crumpled. ‘I can’t remember.’

  ‘Ellie!’

  Shrugging, Ellie tried to downplay it. ‘It’s fine, it’s no big deal and I don’t mind, if it makes him happy.’

  ‘Ellie, have you heard what you’re saying? That’s crazy! You’ve got to dump him.’

  ‘I can’t and anyway, I don’t want to. Like I say, I can’t remember if he did it or not.’

  Milly stared at Ellie. Even though they were almost the same age, to her, Ellie seemed so much younger. ‘You ain’t making sense, El. What do you mean?’

  Playing with her dyed red hair, Ellie took a deep breath as she figured out whether to trust Milly or not. ‘You swear you won’t say anything to anyone?’

  ‘Like who? It’s not like I get any visitors is it?’

  ‘Okay, but swear on your baby’s life.’

  Feeling silly for not being entirely comfortable in doing so, Milly nodded and said, ‘I swear.’

  ‘Okay, well a few nights ago – Thursday night, I think – he took me to this place. The place was in the middle of nowhere and there were these guys, three of them and well, I did things with them.’