Jake stood up, straightened his leather jacket and walked towards the closed bathroom door. He could hear the shower was running, but shouted through anyway, ‘I’m going to go and see that publican before he opens, see you later.’
John, Tony’s driver, was outside polishing the car. Jake walked up to him. ’Hi, John,’ he said, ‘I’ve got to pop to that pub you went to last night with Tony. Any chance of a lift?’ Jake had his own car around the corner, but he wanted to go with John in case he could shed any light on the previous evening’s events.
‘Did Tony seem okay last night when he left the pub?’ Jake tried skirting around the subject as best as he could. ‘I hear there was some misunderstanding with a woman or something?’ He knew it sounded vague but he wanted to get to the bottom of it.
‘Well, between you and me, Jake, he seemed a bit flustered when he got back to the car. He did ask if I had seen a woman, which I had briefly, but I didn’t pay much attention to her. There were loads of people milling around, shouting to each other.’
At last, Jake thought to himself, he had a lead. If John recognized what she was wearing or even knew her, that would be a start, and maybe he could stop her spreading gossip about Tony and making herself a small fortune while doing it.
‘Would you recognize her again? Did you notice what she was wearing?’ Jake waited with bated breath.
‘No. All I saw was some woman running out of the dark, she hailed a cab and jumped in the back of it. I never took any notice until Tony came out asking about her. Why? Is it important?’
Jake shook his head.
He had the same conversation with the publican, and it all came to a dead end. Apparently, Tony was at the bar one minute, having a drink, then he declined another one and just disappeared. The publican did go out of his way to remind Jake what Tony had said about the payments.
‘It’s okay, I already know that. It just seems he thought he knew this woman, but couldn’t remember where from. He thought maybe you would know who she was, considering she was at your party.’
The publican was still slightly hungover, having got into the party mood, himself. ‘I’m sure there are lots of lovely ladies Mr Lambrianu can’t remember, but none of these old slags, Jake. They are not in his league.’ He winked at Jake and laughed.
Considering the mood Tony was in this morning, and the fact that he had already snapped at Jake for calling the woman ‘easy’, he was glad he wasn’t there when the publican called her an old slag. He seemed to vaguely know the Jamaican woman he mentioned.
‘That would possibly be Candy. Nice woman, the guys all like her, but she was with a lot of people and has a lot of friends.’
Jake decided to call it a day; all this probing was causing suspicion. He decided another way to tackle the problem would be to check the daily newspapers to see if Tony was on the front page. There was nothing. Again, it was a dead end. He would wait a few more days; maybe they hadn’t had time to do anything about it yet.
Three days later, Jake went into Tony’s office, threw a bunch of magazines on his desk and sat down. ‘There is no “kiss and tell” story about you, Tony. Your Cinderella didn’t even leave a shoe for us to track her down with. No one seems to know who she is or where she’s from. Forget it, mate. I haven’t heard of a woman being hurt or anything in the area, so I presume she got home okay and that’s that.’
Tony glanced up at him, as though trying to remember what he had asked him to do. ‘Oh, yes,’ he said, ‘I’d forgotten about her. You’re sure there is nothing in the news about it?’
Jake shook his head.
‘Well, that’s good, anyway. As you say, it’s over now.’
Jake thought it was strange that Tony didn’t seem disappointed there was no lead on ‘Cinderella’. Maybe he was just relieved that it hadn’t become common knowledge. Who knew? Who would ever know?
***
Christmas, as hoped for, brought the cash rolling in, as the club hosted its many Christmas parties. Companies hired the place to put on Christmas parties for the men, who enjoyed all the fun the club had to offer, especially the strippers. At the weekends, there were the usual nightclub events, where everyone came out to dance the night away, all in the name of Christmas.
The casino, with all of its glamour, beckoned in people from all walks of life, hoping to have a good time and win some money. Graham had given Tony a good saying to remember: ‘It doesn’t matter who wins what, always remember, the casino always wins.’ That was true enough, because even when they did win, they would bet it all again, trying to win more.
Although in the beginning the security firm they had set up was intended to be a front for the protection racket, it had taken off and was doing very well in its own right, and at Christmas it seemed to thrive. Everyone wanted their special event to have some security doorman on hand, to help out if needed.
Ashley had a special Christmas fun night planned at the men’s club, to which Tony and Jake were both invited. They had sent their apologies and declined, but whatever it was, they knew it would be a money-spinner.
Tony and Jake were in the office at the club, each dressed in a designer Italian suit, Tony in grey and Jake in black. They sat back in their wingback leather chairs and toasted each other. This was going to be the best Christmas ever. All of their hard work over the last year was paying off.
‘To us, Jake.’ Tony held his glass up, and bowed his head as a form of acknowledgement for all of Jake’s hard work and standing by him when things got tough. Jake did likewise.
‘I wonder what next year will bring, Tony? In a year from now, when we are sat in this very spot, toasting each other as we are now, I wonder what it will be about.’ Jake seemed to be daydreaming.
‘For God’s sake Jake, let’s get this one done and out of the way with, first, shall we?’ Tony said. He smiled at his friend, who seemed to be in a world of his own.
Sharon came running into the office; she had a cloth bag full of money, which she had taken out of the cash registers before they burst. She took in the sight before her, Tony and Jake lounging in their chairs, each with a glass of whisky in his hand.
‘Are you two sure you’re not working too hard?’ she said, sarcastically. ‘Put this in the safe, will you? It’s mayhem out there, but at least we’re getting rid of all that cheap champagne at top prices. They are so drunk they don’t know the difference.’ She half chuckled to herself.
‘I’ve come in here to get out of the way,’ said Jake. ‘If I hear the same Christmas song again, I think I’ll scream. It seems to me they are played every year, without fail, and in every pub or club you go in, but people still don’t know the bloody words!’ He was indignant, he sat and folded his arms.
Sharon looked at Tony, who was starting to dial in the combination on the safe so he could put the money away. ‘So, what’s your excuse?’ she said, with a smirk on her face.
‘I’m helping you out, Sharon.’ Tony picked up the bag of money and deposited it into the safe. ‘If I wasn’t here, who would you come running to with all your earnings, so that you can get back into the club and fleece them all some more? Come on, Sharon, you’re worse than us … cheap champagne, more like fizzy water … you put Robin Hood to shame, except you’re robbing the poor to pay the rich.’ Tony picked up his glass again and raised it to her. ‘Come and have a quiet drink with us. It’s all about us three amigos, and how we work together.’ Tony put his arm around her shoulders; she was like his sister, always there to support him and Jake.
She leaned her head on Tony’s shoulder while Jake poured her a drink. Tony was right, they had all come a long way together, through the good and the bad.
‘To us.’ She raised her glass, and gave them each a kiss on the cheek. ‘So, Tony, which one of those lucky ladies out there will be having the pleasure of your company tonight, then?’ Again, she gave him a mischievous smile.
Tony burst out laughing. ‘All of them; after all, it’s Christmas, and I want to spre
ad my Christmas wishes around.’ They all creased up laughing; Tony would never change.
‘By the way, Sharon, business now. You know I went to the East End last week to one of the stripper pubs.’
Sharon took a sip of her drink, nodded her head and sat down.
‘Well, this is going to sound a little jumbled up, but some of them weren’t bad looking, and I thought maybe you could give some of them a look over. Maybe we could use some fresh faces.’ Tony stopped and waited. He had agreed a long time ago that this was Sharon’s side of things and he wouldn’t interfere, and he never had, but he thought this was worth mentioning.
‘You have a point; the men have seen all of these girls dozens of times, maybe a little variety wouldn’t go amiss. I bet it’s all the same punters, anyway.’ She took a drink. ‘We could hold an audition day. Let me think about it, Tony, I’ll have a word with the local agencies and ask them about their A list girls. Let me work on it.’ Sharon finished her drink, put down the glass and left the office, to walk back into the mayhem of the nightclub.
‘You still trying to find your Cinderella, Tony? I mean, since when did you want to hold auditions for any of those girls?’ said Jake. He put his feet up on the leather pouffe and waited for an answer.
‘Who? Oh, you mean that woman. No, that’s long gone. Ancient history, now, but I did have a look around while I was at the party. Some of the women were as rough as the roads, but some were okay, and with a little bit of Sharon’s magic, well … you never know, do you?’
‘I’ve been thinking about that woman, Tony. I genuinely don’t think she knew who you were; either that, or she’s married and if she did some story for the newspapers, it would be a great risk to her marriage, and possibly her family. I’d say you’ve got away with it.’
‘Married?’ Tony had already discounted that. ‘I told you, she wasn’t with anyone.’
‘He might not have been at the party. Was she wearing a wedding ring?’
Tony shrugged.
‘Me and Sharon are not joined at the hip, even though we’re married, but yes, she wears a ring. Mind you, you weren’t looking at that woman’s hands, were you?’
Tony shook his head. He reached over and poured them both another drink. Jake had a point. He hadn’t thought of looking at her hand to see if she had been wearing a wedding ring. Why had that never occurred to him? He downed his drink in one. ‘Come on, Jake, let’s go and see what’s going on in the club, and furthermore, who is waiting for me.’
They both straightened themselves up, switched off the office light and walked into the noisy club. Lights were flashing, the floor was lit up and the DJ was doing his very best to get them all in the Christmas mood. Tony looked across at the bar; Sharon was standing at the side of it, organizing the staff, as usual, and Jake was walking towards her. Then Tony caught sight of Roxy at the bar. He swept his hair back, straightened his tie and walked up to her and her group of pals. After all, it was a fun party night and what better way was there to spend it than with beautiful women, champagne and friends.
***
Tony walked downstairs the following morning; he hadn’t showered or shaved yet and his hair was ruffled. He had left Roxy in bed and come down early because he wanted to see the aftermath of the night before. Whatever happened in his personal life, his businesses came first. Women would come and go, but he would make sure that his business empire would last forever.
The cleaners were in, filling their rubbish bags and vacuuming, which didn’t help his hangover.
‘Morning, Mr Lambrianu,’ said Lydia, the old cleaner, who had her nose into everything. She wore an old floral headscarf wrapped firmly around her head, flattening her hair so much that Tony wondered if she actually had any. The tabard she wore was at least three sizes too big for her and she wandered around with her polish in one hand and her duster in the other.
Tony nodded at her. She was an old gossip, he knew that, and he was waiting for the usual barrage of questions she asked. She was a good worker and always on time, in that way, he had no complaints, but God, she was nosy!
‘Nearly Christmas, Mr Lambrianu, very expensive time of the year for us common folk, trying to make ends meet. I bet you don’t have those worries, do you?’ Her high-pitched voice and her harsh rubbing of the tables nearby annoyed him.
‘Go away, Lydia, go and polish somewhere else.’ He gave her a glare and reached up and scratched his head. She carried on rambling about Christmas being the most expensive time of the year. Finally, it dawned on him and he realised what she was getting at. She was hinting about her Christmas bonus, or rather, wanting to know if there was going to be one.
Now it was Tony’s turn to annoy her. ‘It is an expensive time, Lydia, which is why I need to earn and keep all the money I can.’ Tony looked down at the floor, he could hear her giving out deep over-the-top sighs, but thankfully the vacuuming drowned out most of her moaning and hint-dropping.
Jake walked through the doors and saved the day. ‘Morning, Lydia, my love,’ he said, and he bent forward and gave her a kiss on the cheek. She blushed and gave him a coy smile, then muttered something about not telling her husband of thirty years. ‘You’re up early, Tony, has Roxy gone already?’
Tony stood up. ‘She’s about to leave, Jake, just as soon as I get her up and out of bed. We have things to do.’ He thought it was time to put Lydia out of her misery and then maybe she might stop polishing the same table and actually do some work. ‘Oh, and I did get the hint, Lydia,’ he said, ‘and there will be a little extra in your wages, to help you through Christmas. There might even be enough for a new duster.’
‘Ooh, Mr Lambrianu, that will be very much appreciated, thank you very much.’
‘Come on, let’s leave them to it and get some coffee.’ Tony started to walk up the stairs to his apartment. ’Nosy old cow,’ he muttered to Jake, who was following him upstairs. ‘You’re no better, encouraging her with your flattery and your kisses.’
‘My God, we are grumpy this morning. What’s wrong? Did Roxy say you were losing your touch?
Tony snorted.
‘Also, I like Lydia. You’re right, of course, she’s an old gossip, but that workshy husband of hers hasn’t done a day’s graft in years because of his bad back, or so he tells her. I tell you what, though, if you need to know anything, Lydia is the one to ask.’ Jake was laughing as he walked into the apartment, then he stopped. ‘Bloody hell, Tony, I thought the party was downstairs.’ Jake surveyed the room; clothes were discarded everywhere, there were silver champagne buckets, now filled with water as the ice had melted, corks had been popped and empty bottles were strewn around.
‘How many are here?’ asked Jake, looking around.
Tony just shrugged. ‘Not sure, I never counted.’ He yawned and ran his hands through his hair. ‘Still, it’s check out time, now.’ This was Tony’s usual procedure the morning after. All of his charm and flattery deserted him, now it was back to business.
Jake started making the coffee. He could hear Tony shouting into the bedrooms to get everyone up and everyone out. He carried on making himself busy as he watched a dishevelled Tony, in his bathrobe, doing nothing short of throwing three women out of his apartment.
As always, Roxy was the last to leave. She knew Tony well enough now not to argue about it.
Jake poured coffee into two mugs, then looked over at her. She was wearing last night’s clothes and her once perfect make-up was smudged. Her long flowing blonde hair had been quickly combed, but still looked tangled. Suddenly her sequined minidress looked tacky.
‘I thought I might come back to the club tonight, if you fancy a drink love,’ she said.
‘Doubt it Roxy, I’ll be at the casino tonight. And don’t call me love, my name is Tony.’
Tony was fed up, already; he knew she was waiting for an invite, but his mind was on the day ahead of him. She’d served her purpose and he wanted her to leave. Jake felt for her; it was painful to watch, at times.
‘Okay, well I’ll see you soon, then.’ Roxy hung on to Tony’s every word.
Tony nodded and gave her a weak smile, then walked her to the door and closed it sharply behind her. That done, he breathed a sigh of relief. ‘It’s hard being a bachelor and having to get rid of the women in the morning, Jake, all they want to do is hang around.’
Jake felt sorry for the women in Tony’s life. One minute they had all the flattery and attention they could want and the next minute they had nothing.
‘I’m going for a shower.’ Tony picked up his mug and walked towards the bathroom.’ I tell you what, though, if you’ve got nothing better to do for the moment, you can start tidying this place up a bit.’
Jake looked around the apartment; it had been one hell of a party, there was no way he was going to clean up after Tony and his guests. Then a thought occurred to him; just to annoy Tony even more, he would ask Lydia to go up there and give it a spring clean, after they had left. That way she could nosy around to her heart’s content.
Eventually, Tony emerged from the bathroom. Jake was reading the paper and drinking more coffee. ‘Anything in particular we have to do today?’ asked Jake.
‘Not really. I want to go and see Angus, give him and Elsie their bonus face-to-face. He’s done some good work lately, maybe me shouting at him worked out for the best.’ Tony had never apologized to Angus about shoving a gun in his mouth and he never would. He was hoping that his Christmas bonus might just do it for him.
‘Whatever you say. Everyone else’s bonuses are already sorted, even the strippers. Sharon took care of all that. By the way, I thought I would ask Lydia to pop up here to clean up your harem; that’ll definitely give her something to gossip about.’
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