by KERRY BARNES
Still keeping the blubbering guy in the same position, Ricky turned to face the others. ‘If any of you other wankers even think of mugging us off, then I’ll drop this cunt like a bag of shit.’
It was Arty who now took control. He was actually afraid that Ricky might lose the plot and drop the bloke. ‘Right, you thieving bastards, all of ya line up, one by fucking one. You’re going to open your e-mail accounts and delete the e-mails that you’ve just sent, and you can empty your pockets. What you guys are doing is theft and sabotage, a serious fucking offence, so unless you want to spend a few years in the nick, you’d better do as we say.’
When Ricky pulled Garcia back, away from the edge, and threw him to the floor, everyone felt a huge sense of relief.
Liam watched his mates with pride, as the suited and booted men acted as though they’d a gun to their heads. Each man complied with the orders, and within an hour, all the e-mails to personal accounts were deleted.
Having been well briefed about the company by Zara, Ricky confidently stood back and demanded their attention. ‘You were all going to get paid a very good redundancy package at our discretion; however, I’ve changed my mind. We’ve looked over your employment contracts.’ He gave an exaggerated laugh. ‘And what a joke they are. In truth, they aren’t even legally binding, so all your dismissal notices will be sent to you in the post, and you’ll now receive only statutory redundancy …’ He laughed again. ‘I am sure, lads, that will buy you a decent meal at McDonald’s. Now, fuck off!’
The files were returned, and Colin Crawford’s ex-staff were left looking dejected and broken, except for Garcia, who’d needed a backhander to stop him from working on his computer.
He waited until his colleagues left the room before he spoke. ‘You underestimated me. I was deleting files that would incriminate this company.’
Arty rested his eyes on Garcia, staring him out.
Garcia, though, wasn’t at all bothered. ‘Colin trusted me with his other business, and I needed to get rid of all traces, but I guess that’s your problem now, and it won’t be me in jail but you guys. Good luck!’
He was about to squeeze past both Ricky and Liam but was instantly stopped.
Ricky grabbed his shoulder. ‘Wait up, you ain’t going anywhere. You’re gonna tell me exactly what you’re talking about.’
With a cold feeling ripping through his bones, Garcia nervously replied, ‘Please leave me out of it.’
‘I don’t fucking think so, Jim Garcia. Me and you need to have a little talk in me new office.’
Garcia felt intimidated, and by the look of the man and the tone in his voice, he really wanted to get away from them as soon as possible. This wasn’t the way businessmen spoke. It was bordering on gangster speak. He didn’t want to get involved.
‘No, thanks. I need to be off home. I’ll take the statutory redundancy and be out of your hair.’
Ricky wagged his finger. ‘No, you won’t. I said, me and you will have a chat in me office, and I don’t like to be contradicted.’ He looked at Arty. ‘Do I?’
Arty could see Ricky as a replica of Mike and acted in response. He straightened his shoulders and replied, ‘That’s right, Mr Regan.’
Their intimidating manner alone had Garcia shitting himself. He decided to do as they demanded rather than suffer the consequences. Nodding to all three men, he followed them into Colin’s former office.
‘Sit down, Mr Garcia!’ said Arty.
Knowing Liam would prefer to stand back and not do the talking, Ricky sat in the coin seat, with a confirmatory nod from Arty.
With a forceful hand from Arty, Garcia took the chair opposite and tried to stop his knees from bobbing up and down. ‘What is it exactly that you want?’
Ricky clasped his hands together and leaned forward. ‘Everything you fucking know. I want names, places, times, and dates.’
Swallowing hard, Garcia asked, ‘Are you the police?’
Liam laughed. ‘Ol’ Bill? I tell ya what, mate. You’ll fucking wish we were, if you don’t answer the questions!’
Garcia appraised them all. He had a good measure of what they were all doing and his astute brain thought of a way of turning this situation to his advantage.
He leaned back on his chair and grinned with satisfaction, although, inwardly, he was still nervous. ‘I’ll tell you everything you want to know on condition you take the statutory redundancy off the table and replace it with something worth my while.’
Ricky nodded and laughed, impressed with Garcia’s audacity. ‘Yeah, not a problem, so start talking. The property business is just a sideline – we know that. What do you know about Flakka? Who’s behind it? And, just so you know, we’re aware that Colin Crawford shipped it over from Poland.’ He lowered his voice and gave Garcia a grave look. ‘And we fucking know by what means.’
Garcia’s mouth dropped open. How the hell did they know that? As far as he was aware, there were only two people from the office who knew that level of information and that was Colin and himself. Yet he couldn’t deny anything because, however these three young men had managed to get their information, they knew the score.
Ricky had been given all the facts by Zara, so he knew exactly what questions to ask. She didn’t want any of the lads going in blind. Liam, though, had found it a bit difficult to understand the inner workings. However, Ricky was different; he’d grasped everything she’d told him and was well equipped to interrogate Garcia.
Liam locked the door. ‘Just a precaution, you understand. We don’t need any distractions.’
Garcia looked from Liam to Arty and saw the smart man’s suit jacket shift slightly to the side, revealing a gun. ‘Um … er … yeah, sure. I know all about that. Colin had mules sent over on a weekly basis, but then it all stopped. The man who took delivery suddenly disappeared.’
Ricky frowned. ‘Er … you mean he’s dead or what?’
Garcia shrugged. ‘I don’t think he’s dead. All I know is that the drugs were being held up in a factory, awaiting the go-ahead, but we had a date for the next shipment, so that’s why I was so stunned when Colin sold up everything and I couldn’t reach him.’ He looked questioningly at Ricky. ‘Colin is dead, isn’t he?’
Ricky shook his head. ‘No, he ain’t dead. He’s retired due to a sudden serious illness. Anyway, he’s sold the company to us, but that’s not your fucking business. You, Mr Garcia, are going to answer my questions, and if you’re honest, then you’ll get ya decent payout, or Mr Ritz, ’ere, might even keep you on. But treat this as an interview, yeah?’
Garcia knew then not to look a gift horse in the mouth. It really was a no-brainer.
Chapter 23
Zara snuggled into Mike’s arms and looked down at her ring. ‘So, Mikey Regan, it’s all well and good having that rock on me finger, but shouldn’t we be setting a date?’
Mike kissed the top of her head and felt a sudden feeling of sorrow. The love of his life had been to hell and back and was still running a risky empire. He was so proud of her, and yet, she should be enjoying all the pleasures other women experienced in life.
‘Yes, indeed, my rosebud. What about June? Here or abroad?’
Zara felt a surge of excitement, and it showed, because she blushed, and her eyes sparkled. As Mike held her in front of him, he drank in the excitement radiating across her face and dancing in her eyes.
‘June! That will be perfect. I want your father to give me away, if he won’t mind, and I want Ricky as your best man. I would love Joshua’s little girl to be bridesmaid and …’ She stopped. ‘What are you looking at?’
He was absorbed in her delight. ‘You look like a little girl, Zara. You’re so excited, and it’s so refreshing, babe. This is what life’s about, the good stuff. And if wedding planning puts that pleasure in your heart, then we should get married every year.’
She pulled him close to her and gently kissed him on the lips. ‘It’s all I’ve ever wanted. Me, Mrs Zara Regan.’
‘An
d don’t you forget it.’ He cupped her face and kissed her again.
Their intimate moment was cut short when the light in the office suddenly dimmed as if there was a power dip. Zara turned to look at the blank screen on the monitor, and her shoulders dropped.
‘I swear that bloody thing’s cursed. It’s gone off again. Mike, would you get the engineers over to sort this out once and for all? I’m going to have a quick shower.’
‘Yeah, sure. Why did it do that?’
Zara sighed. ‘I dunno. I think it’s to do with the electrics. If Torvic was still alive, I would swear it was him.’
As soon as Zara reached the top of the stairs, she heard a bang at the front door. On edge, she peered down from the landing window to see Ricky standing there, looking frozen, and behind him a taxi disappearing down the drive.
‘I’ll get the door, Mike,’ she called out, hoping Mike would get on the phone and give the engineers a real earbashing.
As she opened the door, she stepped aside for Ricky to come in. ‘Jesus, it’s freezing out there, Ricky. Where’s your coat, love?’
Wearing only a thin fitted jumper, jeans, and his cheeky grin, Ricky leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek. ‘I have some padding underneath this top.’ He winked as he pulled away.
‘Aw, what was that for?’
He blushed. ‘’Cos you care, and it’s nice that you do.’
Zara felt her heart swell. Ricky was eighteen and no boy. The feedback from Arty and Liam on how Ricky had conducted himself with the takeover at Colin’s offices had put a proud grin on her face. She had given them the tools to take on the business and free rein to do it their own way. In the home, Ricky, Liam, and Arty were just boys, but outside, they were as fearless and dangerous as their fathers.
She closed the door and opened the small box in the wall that held all the reserve keys. The code was simple: it was 1944, the year her father was born.
Retrieving some spare keys, she handed a set to Ricky. ‘Take these, in case I’m not in. You can let yourself in. Besides, after I’m gone, all this will be yours … although I should think you’d want to sell it.’
Ricky looked up at the high ceilings and the huge framed pictures. ‘Aw, I dunno, Zara. I kinda like the place. It’s like a castle.’
As she turned to lock the box, she tutted; something seemed amiss. On close inspection, she realized that there was something actually missing. In fact, quite a few keys were not there. Yet it had been a month of Sundays since she’d opened that box; there hadn’t been any need until now. Taking a deep breath, she stopped her brain going off on one, worrying about who had them. They may have gone missing when Izzy was alive. She snapped the door shut and followed Ricky into the kitchen.
He rubbed his cold hands together. ‘Do you want a coffee, Zara?’
She nodded. ‘Yeah, a strong one, please. Ya dad’s in the office. We’ve some tittle deeds for you.’
Ricky placed a cup under the espresso machine and raised his eyebrow. ‘Deeds?’
‘Yeah. We’re just sorting through the business, making sure everything is hunky-dory and squeaky clean. There are two properties that are now in your name: one’s in Spain, a nice villa by all accounts, and the other is a flat in West London.’
Ricky held his breath in anticipation, yet the surprise was written all over his face.
Zara beamed. ‘The keys are in the office. They’re all yours.’
‘What! But I can’t. I haven’t earned it. I mean, how can I just be given a London pad and a holiday home? I don’t deserve either.’
Zara’s eyes filled up. ‘Oh, Ricky, you are such a good lad. Most lads would grab them with both hands and run. They are yours. You do deserve them. I can’t make up for what Jackie put you through, I know that much, but your dad and I can make sure you’re set up for the future.’
Unexpectedly, Ricky threw his arms around her and hugged her tight. ‘You should’ve been my mum. I wish you were.’
Caught off guard, Zara replied, ‘There’s nothing to stop me from adopting you.’
Slowly, he pulled away, with a tear trickling down the side of his nose. ‘Really? What? Then I can call you Mum, can I?’
The word ‘mum’ had her eyes overflowing with tears that cascaded down her cheeks. ‘You can call me Mum, anyway, and the day I don’t act like it … well, it’s the day you should call me Zara again, but, Ricky, I will do my best by you, I promise.’
‘What’s all this?’ came a voice from the doorway.
Both Ricky and Zara turned around, teary-eyed.
‘Mum was just telling me about the deeds.’
Mike froze for a moment. Did he hear that right? Did Ricky actually call her ‘Mum’? He looked at them both, wondering if it was a slip of the tongue, but it was her reaction that shocked him the most. He watched her as she walked over to him and put her arm around his waist.
‘I said that as his parents, we will make his future brighter, starting with the deeds.’ She smiled and winked at Mike, who was still gawping.
‘So, after coffee, let’s get those papers signed. Go on, Ricky, you go with your father. I’ll make us some sandwiches. I’ve got some fresh salmon in.’
Mike felt his life was complete. At long last, he had his family, his future, all together. With his arm around Ricky’s shoulders, he whispered, ‘I’m so proud of you, Son. While you were taken from me, Arty grew into a man that we thought would take over. He’s a good lad. He takes no shit. Mind you, neither does Liam.’
‘I know, Dad, and I like working with them. Honestly, I feel like I belong. I never liked the travellers’ way of life. Working with you, my uncles, and the lads is where I fit in.’
Mike turned Ricky to face him. ‘Fit in? Son, you do more than fit in. Arty was so humbled by you that his exact words were: “Mike, I was just keeping Ricky’s seat warm until he returned.”’
With a lump in his throat, Ricky replied, ‘Then I must be a chip off the old block!’
* * *
As Zara buttered the bread, she heard a rustling sound by the back door and paused to listen. Then the sound of a fox snapped her from her paranoid thoughts. From the kitchen window, she looked across the field and noticed the thin white layer of snow. It shouldn’t have been a surprise, for the last few days had registered below freezing temperatures. Something made her look again: the farmer’s house in the adjoining field appeared lifeless. Twisting her head to the side, she realized that on this cold day there was no smoke billowing from his chimney. That was odd because the old boy always had his log burner on the go. She had known the farmer all her life and wondered if something was amiss. A cold feeling crept over her, but the sound of the fox starting up again pulled her from her thoughts. She looked at all the salmon left over and thought maybe it would be a nice treat for some animal out on a day like this. She chopped up the remainder, placed it on a plate, and unlocked the back door. The cold air kissed her cheeks like spears of ice. Just as she stepped forward to put the plate down on the ground, a sudden recollection hit her. Like a stack of dominoes tumbling down, one thought after another jolted her – the old farmer – his lifeless house – the car burned out in his field – the body burned alive, and now, finally, the most crucial thought of all: foxes are normally nocturnal.
Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a vapour cloud to her right and heard the distinctive click of a gun being cocked. She didn’t need to look to see who was holding the weapon. She knew. Whether it was the way he breathed or his familiar smell, she knew he was her worst enemy. All she could think of was Ricky, his sweet innocent face beaming with love. The way he hugged her, it felt like she really was his mother. And now she had Mike, her man, the person she’d thought about every waking hour. Love had reached such depths that it went beyond passion. She would die for these two men. Never would she subject them to this evil man’s cruelty.
Without looking to assess where exactly he was positioned, she instantly flung her right arm and connected with
the cold metal. The shock caused Torvic to fire and gave Zara a chance to grab his arm. In his attempt to shake her free, he pulled his fist back to punch her in the face, but, as he did so, he slipped back on the ice and fired the gun again. The force at which he hit the ground pulled her down too. Yet she wouldn’t let go of his wrist. And he couldn’t point that gun at her all the time she forced his arm away. With his other hand, he ripped at her hair, trying to pull her head back so that he could release her grip, but her knee came up and caught him between the legs, as he fired once more. Like a German Shepherd in a fight, she held on to his wrist and tried desperately hard to knee him again. But Torvic managed to pull himself upright and back onto his feet, despite the pain. Zara, not letting go, used his arm and hauled herself up. Fiercely, she fought to reverse the gun barrel around. For his part, all he could do was punch her on the side of the head. She wavered but didn’t let go.
The sound of gunshots had Mike up on his feet, with Ricky behind him, running through the kitchen and out of the back door where he found Torvic smashing Zara in the face, as she tried hard to twist the gun barrel and aim it at her attacker.
The second Torvic clapped eyes on Mike, he fired another round, but, again, he missed his target. Zara was desperate to stay focused although the force of his punches to her head had almost knocked her out.
But with Torvic’s mind distracted for that vital split second, Zara managed to pull herself towards his arm, and, using all her strength, she sank her teeth into his flesh. She caught his reflex tendon, which made his gun recoil, and his finger systematically pulled the trigger again and again. She desperately wanted him to empty that magazine.
Torvic bared his teeth and fired yet another round, catching Mike in the shoulder. The force of the bullet threw Mike backwards and into Ricky, who was directly behind him.
‘No!’ screamed Ricky, terrified that his father had been shot in the chest. He couldn’t bear to see his father die, not now, not ever.