Den of Snakes

by Damian Vargas

  Mike grinned. ‘Wouldn’t want to upset the Lawson brothers, would I now? C’mon Veronica, we’re going home. Be a good girl, get my jacket, would you?’ He pulled a packet of Rothmans out of his pocket.

  ‘Get you own bloody’ jacket,’ she replied, before storming off towards the bar.

  Mike shrugged. ‘Maybe you was right about that one, Charlie,’ he said. He put a cigarette in his mouth and turned towards Roger. ‘Give us a light’.

  Roger reached into his jacket pocket, found his lighter and stepped forward. ‘You’re bang out of order tonight, Mike,’ he said while holding out the burning zippo.

  ‘Always have been, always will’. Mike started walking towards the exit. ‘See you all at the meeting’.

  Charlie let out an anguished sigh. ‘Why does he always have to make things so difficult?’ He put his hand on Eddie’s shoulder. ‘Thank’s, bruv’.

  ‘Don’t worry about it,’ said Eddie, but he wasn’t looking at Charlie. He was watching Veronica who stood thirty feet away, staring back at him, her arms crossed before her. She spun around and headed into the bar. Eddie was sure he saw her smiling.

  Bill and Roger pulled Kenny to his feet.

  ‘Get him cleaned up. We should get out of here before anything else goes down,’ said Roger.

  Charlie sighed again. ‘Yeah, time to go. Just when I was enjoying myself, too. Are you two alright to get Ken home?’ he said.

  ‘Yeah, no worries,’ said Bill.

  ‘Good. I’m going back to Deb’s place. You okay to get a cab back to the villa, Ed?’ he held out a handful of banknotes.

  ‘I’m good. See you in the morning,’ said Eddie. Debbie was walking towards them. ‘Have fun, bruv’ he said.

  Charlie smirked. ‘I always do’. He walked off towards his girlfriend.

  ‘Sure you’re okay, Kenny?’ said Eddie.

  Kenny was holding a handkerchief to his nose. ‘The fucker broke my bleedin’ nose’.

  ‘Don’t go back on a deal with him next time, you plonker,’ said Roger.

  ‘I ain’t gonna be doin’ no deals with him ever again. Fuck that bastard,’ said Kenny.

  ‘You coming with us, Ed?’ said Bill.

  ‘Nah. I’ll get another cab’.

  ‘Uh huh,’ said Bill, and gave him a knowing look. ‘Steer clear of that one, son. She’s poisonous,’ he said before helping Kenny towards the exit.

  Eddie waited until they had left before going off in search of Veronica.

  He found her standing at the bar attempting to order another drink. She had been crying. Eddie shook his head at the bartender who got the message and moved to serve another customer instead.

  ‘I think you’ve had enough already’.

  ‘Not close,’ Veronica said.

  ‘You should go home’.

  ‘I ain’t being in the house with him when he’s in that state’.

  ‘Fine’. Eddie put his hand on her elbow and lifted her up from the barstool. ‘Have you got a friend I can take you to?’

  ‘Friends? Ha, you’re kidding. He gets all jealous’. She pushed in front of him. ‘Let me come back to Charlie’s place. I won’t be any trouble’.

  Eddie frowned. ‘That’s not going to happen’.

  ‘Please, Eddie. It’s two o’clock in the morning. It’s too late to find a hotel. Besides, it’s the high season. They’re all gonna be full, anyway’. Eddie gazed at her dark brown eyes. Her lips.

  Those wonderful lips.

  It was the early hours, but it was still uncomfortably hot. A strand of her hair was matted to the side of her face with sweat. That didn’t matter to Eddie. He just wanted to kiss her. To undress her. Her hands were on his chest, exploring the contours of his pecs through his thin black shirt, her eyes fixed on his. He slid his hands down her side to the top of her hips. His fingers pressed on the edge of her firm backside.

  ‘Take me back with you,’ she said, her hands falling to his stomach and then to his belt.

  ‘Sod it,’ he thought. ‘I’ll be out of here in a few days, and her fella’s an arsehole’.

  ‘Let’s go,’ Eddie whispered and pulled her towards the door. ‘Get us a taxi,’ he said to one of the door staff, and placed a bunch of banknotes in the man’s hand. The doorman signalled for a waiting cab which pulled up outside the entrance.

  ‘Have a good night,’ said the man winking at Eddie.

  ‘Oh, he will,’ said Veronica.

  Chapter Eleven

  The Morning After

  Eddie stirred from under his pillow, to the sounds of fat car tyres sending driveway gravel in all directions as Charlie’s Porsche pulled up at the front of the villa. Fleeting images of the preceding evening flashed past his eyes; talk of a heist in England, Kenny floating unconscious in a pink pool, Eddie jumping in and lugging the comatose man out.

  Eddie remembered sharing a taxi with Veronica. He lifted his head out from under the soft bedding, and the sunlight immediately penetrated into the back of his eye sockets. His head was thumping. The inside of his nose was burning. A peculiar, bitter taste lingered in the back of his throat.

  Did I do cocaine?

  The muted sounds of the Porsche’s stereo system suddenly intensified as a car door opened. Eddie recognised the song immediately; Paul Weller singing “Eton Rifles”. Charlie was attempting to sing along, but it was clear his brother only knew the song’s chorus. Eddie shut his eyes again and rolled over, at which point he sensed the warmth of another body beside him.

  Oh, shit!

  He opened his eyes gradually, and as he feared, it was Veronica. She lay there fast asleep on her side, her bare backside facing him. New, more pleasant memories appeared and swirled around his brain alongside the images of the earlier events of that previous night. Paul Weller stopped singing and a car door slammed shut.

  ‘Veronica. Wake up. Charlie’s here,’ he said while shaking her.

  She moaned and opened her eyes. ‘I don’t wanna wake up yet’.

  ‘We overslept. Charlie’s here’. She stared at him blankly, evidently untroubled by the news. ‘You need to go to another room before he sees us together’.

  She pulled a bedsheet across her body and sat up. ‘Eddie Lawson, are you ashamed of me?’

  Christ, does she ever let up? ‘Move. Now! The room across the hallway. Quickly’. He leapt out of bed, searched for his Y-fronts, pulled them on and marched to her side of the bed. ‘Get up. Now, for fuck’s sake!’ He hauled her to her feet by her limp wrists, pushed her towards the open bedroom door, and pointed towards the bedroom across the corridor. ‘Go in there and make it seem like you slept there last night. ‘C’mon, hurry’.

  Eddie glanced towards the sound of the front door being unlocked.

  ‘My head hurts,’ she moaned. She rubbed her head with both hands, and the sheet fell to the floor, revealing her toned, slender body once more.

  Eddie felt his heart accelerate again. He lent down to pick up the sheet, at which point he realised that they both stunk of sex. ‘Quickly,’ he said. He wrapped the bedsheet around her, before he frog-marched her into the corridor. ‘That door, there. Go,’ he instructed. She took two steps but abruptly changed direction and headed up the hallway. ‘What are you doing?’ he said, totally exasperated.

  ‘I need to pee,’ she muttered and opened a bathroom door. Eddie darted out into the corridor, but she slipped inside the door and quickly shut it behind her. He tried the handle, but she had locked the door.

  ‘You alright, bruv?’ Eddie stood on the spot, slowly lifting his head to meet the gaze of his brother, who was now walking along the hallway towards him with an expression of confusion on his face. ‘What are you doin?’

  Eddie stood there in his blue and white underpants. He felt like a schoolboy who had just been caught by his headmaster, looking at girly mags. ‘Listen, Charlie -’.

  The sound of a toilet flushing stopped him, and his gaze fell to his feet. From inside the bathroom came the sound of Veronica humming as
she washed her hands.

  Charlie looked at his brother, a broad grin appeared on his face. ‘Sounds like someone got lucky last night’. They heard the door unlocking from within. Charlie took a step backwards, a curious look on his face. Eddie sighed.

  ‘Hi, Charlie. Splendid party last night,’ said Veronica, smiling. ‘I ain’t had that much fun in ages’.

  Charlie’s jaw dropped. He snapped back to face his brother who, in a fraction of a second, burst at Eddie, forcing him up against the wall.

  ‘You fucking idiot. What were you thinking?’

  ‘I can’t remember. I was drunk. I think we might have done coke. I fucked up, I’m sorry’.

  ‘Sorry? That ain’t gonna cut it if Mikey finds out’.

  ‘Then don’t tell him,’ said Veronica. She closed the door behind her, one arm clasping the sheet to her body, and ambled off towards the bedroom. ‘Just one more secret to keep, Charlie. Right?’ She started humming again as she went back to Eddie’s room.

  Charlie still had his forearm across Eddie’s chest.

  ‘I’m sorry, bruv. Let go, please,’ said Eddie. Charlie shifted his weight and released Eddie. He took a step back. ‘Look, it doesn’t matter. I’m booked on a boat to Morocco this afternoon, and a flight to Angola tomorrow. I’ll be out of your hair, and you can pretend it never happened’.

  ‘The two o’clock ferry from Algeciras?’

  ‘Yeah,’ said Eddie.

  ‘That ain’t happening,’ said Charlie.

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Algeciras is eighty miles away, and it’s gone midday already. The coast road is shit after Estepona, and it will be rammed with tourists and other cars heading in the same direction. You ain’t catching that boat today’. Eddie slumped against the wall. ‘Another day won’t kill you,’ said Charlie. ‘Mike might though’.

  Eddie put his head in his hands. ‘What was I thinking?’

  Charlie leaned against the wall next to his brother. He pulled a cigarette packet out of his pocket, plucked one out and lit it. ‘You were thinking, “She’s a hot piece of ass and she’s coming on to me,” that’s what,’ said Charlie. Eddie gave his brother a sheepish grin. ‘And I very much doubt you are the first or the last bloke to fall into that honey trap, bruv,’ said Charlie. ‘But listen, she needs to understand she can’t say nuffin. She’s had her fun, now she needs to keep schtum. Or we’re all going to suffer, believe me’.

  Eddie nodded and pushed himself off the wall. ‘I’ll talk to her,’ said Eddie.

  ‘Nah, I’ve got this. You get yourself cleaned up. You stink like a wet dog’.

  ‘Alright. And I’m sorry, Charlie’.

  ‘I know, mate. We all make mistakes, right?’ Charlie winked at his brother, who sauntered back to the bedroom before closing the door behind him.

  A taxi arrived twenty minutes later. Eddie, who stood freshly showered in his bedroom wearing a bathrobe, watched his brother emerge from the front door beneath his window. Veronica was at Charlie’s side. She glanced back up at the bedroom window. Eddie thought she appeared sad. Charlie had his hand around her waist and was steering her up toward the main gate. They appeared to be having a heated discussion.

  As they reached the gate, Eddie saw Veronica push his brother away, but he grabbed hold of her again. After another minute of animated talking, she departed through the gate. Shortly after he saw the car move off down the road.

  Eddie dried himself and had started to get dressed when Charlie knocked on the door.

  ‘Come in,’ he responded.

  ‘Hopefully, that’s sorted. I frickin’ hope that girl knows what’s good for her,’ said Charlie.

  ‘It seemed like you were getting your message across alright. You didn’t need to be so hard on her’.

  ‘You don’t know her like I do,’ Charlie said. ‘She’s a snake’.

  ‘I’m only sayin’ you can’t just blame her for what happened, it’s my fault too’.

  Charlie gave him a friendly punch on his shoulder. ‘Just…you know, listen to what I’m telling yer next time. Alright?’

  ‘It’s for the best, me leaving. I ain’t cut out for this life,’ said Eddie. ‘Stick me in the middle of machine-gun fire and artillery, that I can handle. But this place. And what you lot do…’. He shook his head.

  ‘I get it,’ said Charlie. ‘And to tell you the truth, sometimes I wonder if it would be easier if I was back in London’.

  Eddie shook his head. ‘I don’t buy that. I’ve seen you, you’re in your element here. You, the crew, and the whole fraternity you have down here. You love it’.

  ‘Yeah, I do,’ said Charlie. He grinned. ‘But it’s like you said the other night, we’re in prison here. We can’t go home. We’ve all got friends back there. Family as well, in the case of the other fellas. People you can trust, not like here. But I can’t go back. None of us can. We can’t pop into our local boozers. Can’t get on the tube and go up to the Bridge to watch the Blues’. He laughed. ‘Mind you, that’s probably for the best. Chelsea are still pretty shit these days, aren’t they?’

  ‘They’re back in the first division,’ said Eddie. ‘They got promoted last year. They’ve got a good little team now. Jonny Hollins is back there as the coach’.

  ‘Really? Well, that just goes to show how out of touch I am. Which is why you are right. You don’t belong here. Not that I’m at all keen on you getting your ass shot off in Timbuktu or wherever you’re going -’.

  ‘Angola,’ said Eddie.

  ‘Yeah, right. Angola’. Charlie put his arm across Eddie’s shoulders. ‘And there’s still no way I can talk you out of that?’

  Eddie shook his head. ‘I called the company - they’re expecting me now. I don’t want to mess those guys about’.

  ‘Okay. Okay. Well, I promised I’d take you to the ferry port, so I will. We’ll go tomorrow morning. Alright?’

  ‘Thanks, Charlie. I know you’d like me to stick around, but -’.

  ‘No. No need to say anymore. I get it’. Charlie glanced at his gold Rolex. Eddie could tell that his brother was attempting to hide his disappointment. ‘We’ve got this crew meeting in two hours. We’re voting on that job that Roger proposed last night’.

  ‘Do you reckon they will go for it?’ said Eddie.

  ‘Nah, I’ve got a plan,’ said Charlie. Eddie saw a malicious glint in his brother’s eye. ‘Tell you what, why don’t you tag along?’ his brother ventured. ‘It won’t take long, and I’ll take you out for a decent meal afterwards. It can be your send-off. What d’ya reckon?’

  ‘I dunno, Bruv’ said Eddie. After all that had happened over the last few days, the last thing he wanted was to be around his brother’s crew any more.

  ‘S’alright, you can wait in the bar when I’m with the lads. Oh, I wanna check in on Kenny on the way there too. He spent the morning in the hospital. Only got a bleedin’ broken cheek ain’t he?’

  ‘He was in a bad state,’ said Eddie. ‘Listen, Charlie, maybe it’s best if I don’t -’. The sound of the phone ringing interrupted him.

  ‘Sorry, I need to grab that,’ said Charlie, before jogging down the hallway to get to the phone.

  Eddie sat down on the bed and was just about to pull his socks on when Charlie appeared back at the doorway. He was holding the portable handset, his hand covering the receiver and wearing a confused expression.

  ‘Did you give somebody this number? It’s some Scottish bird. She’s asking for you’.

  ‘For me? Did she say who she was?’

  Charlie shrugged. ‘She said it was a private matter’.

  Eddie stood up and took the receiver from his brother. ‘Hello. This is Eddie Lawson’.

  ‘Mr Lawson,’ said a woman in a Scottish accent. ‘I’m calling from Hawkwood International. I have a message from the colonel for you’.

  ‘Go on,’ said Eddie, his pulse quickening.

  ‘He said to tell you that the contract in Angola is no longer proceeding’.

&n
bsp; Eddie could not believe what he was hearing. ‘But that can’t be right,’ he said. ‘It was going ahead just a couple of days ago’.

  ‘The client cancelled. That’s all I can tell you,’ said the woman before adding, ‘I’m sorry’.

  Eddie’s head was spinning. In just a few seconds, his world had turned upside down. The one thing he had clung onto that he knew could help him get his life back together, the mercenary job, had been snatched from him in an instant.

  ‘Are you still there, Mr Lawson? Hello?’ He stared at the receiver, then pressed the red button to end the call.

  His brother was standing behind him. ‘Problem?’

  ‘The job I had in Angola. They called it off’.

  ‘You are kidding me’. Charlie put his hand on Eddie shoulder. ‘Did they say why?’

  Eddie was still shaking his head in disbelief. ‘She just said something about the client pulling the plug’.

  ‘Mate, I’m sorry’. Charlie put his hands on his brother’s cheeks. ‘Look at me’. Eddie was slumped against the wall. ‘Ed, look at me. This was your thing, I get it. But you’ll find something else’. He put his arms around Eddie and hugged him.

  ‘It don’t make sense,’ said Eddie, still grappling with the news.

  ‘You’ll find something else, bruv’. He held Eddie’s head and forced him to make eye contact. ‘I’m here for you this time, bruv. I’ve got your back. Okay?’ Eddie nodded. ‘That’s the spirit. Now c’mon. Come with me now. I need to pop in to see Ken in Banús, then I have this meeting. After that, we will have a proper talk over dinner’.

  Twenty minutes later they drew up outside a stylish apartment block on the main road that leads into Puerto Banús.

  ‘Ken lives up there,’ said Charlie, while pointing to the top floor. ‘He’s got a right nice penthouse’. They made their way into the building’s lobby and approached the security patrol, a tough-looking man in his forties wearing a black suit, collar and tie. The man stood up and grinned as they approached.

  ‘Alright Fletch, how’s the family?’ said Charlie.