Ruthless a Gripping and Gritty Crime Thriller

by Charlie Gallagher

  ‘No. I know you’re not stupid enough to go and tell anyone else what you hear. I just want you to know what I got you involved in and how sorry I am. I reckon honesty might be the only way that you might trust me again. That you might see why I did what I did.’

  ‘There’s never going to be an excuse for why you left me with a man who had just paid to have sex with me against my will. You know that, right?’

  ‘I do. I’m not excusing what I did. I just want you to understand.’

  ‘So go on.’

  Danny checked around him. They’d found a bench in the middle of the park. It was a pleasant day and there were other people about, walking their dogs, jogging or pushing prams. No one was close enough to hear them and no one was paying them any attention.

  ‘We sell heroin and crack cocaine mainly. A lot of cannabis goes through us, too, but I don’t get involved in that. The supply is run from London, where I come from. We have to go and pick it up. I’ve done it before but never on my own. Only Rosh goes on his own. I don’t think Aaron trusts me enough.’

  ‘But he trusts Rosh?’

  ‘Seems to.’

  ‘Are you brothers? You and Rosh?’

  ‘Brothers?’

  ‘Yeah, that Aaron, he called you brothers.’

  ‘Oh. No, it’s just what we call each other. I guess it’s a gang thing. We’re like soldiers, brothers in arms, that sort of thing.’

  ‘Soldiers,’ Rhiannon shook her head, she laughed, incredulous.

  ‘Well, yeah. Look, I know how that sounds, but there is a fight for territory out there. We do okay up home but when you come outside of the city to towns like Langthorne you can proper take over. That’s what we found. We know what we’re doing. We know how to make ourselves known and pretty soon we were running the show.’

  ‘How long have you been down here?’

  ‘Just a couple of months. We moved around a bit, spent a lot of time in shit hotels — the sort that still take cash and don’t ask too many questions.’

  ‘How can you sell drugs in a hotel? Don’t they notice all the people coming and going?’

  ‘They would, definitely, if we did it from the hotel. We never did. You couldn’t. Aaron targeted one of the locals who was already set up. He agreed to give us his list of users in the area. At least Aaron forced him to agree. It’s just a list of phone numbers. Then all you need is a phone and a text message out telling them you’re online. The calls and texts come in and you go out and meet your customers.’

  ‘Isn’t it dangerous? I mean, you don’t know who these people are. They could be anyone.’

  ‘They were anyone. You always get people that test you, who want to see what you’re about. They know you’re likely to have drugs and cash on you somewhere, so yeah you are vulnerable. But Aaron started it off. He was the face of the line to start with. Once people met him they realised that we were for real, that you weren’t going to take from us easy. I know how he looks, I know how he comes across — I know that people are scared of him from the off. But I’ve seen him go too, I’ve seen him when he was backed into a corner and you have to know that he can back it up.’

  ‘So you just go and pick up the drugs. That’s your part?’

  ‘No. I don’t often touch the gear. We’ve spread out a little. We provide a few other towns with a reload. They break it down and get it out and pay us when we’re done. I either pick up their money or sometimes I pick up the gear. We’ve started using a more local supplier — that was what I was doing the other night, but they wanted the money up front all of a sudden. They screwed me over.’

  ‘I thought you said he didn’t trust you to pick up the drugs on your own?’

  ‘The local supply is just if we get caught out, if we run out of our main load. It’s a much smaller amount. Same with the money. I pick up the small fry — it’s bits and bobs — and I bring it back to Aaron who sticks it with the main stash.’

  ‘And what happens to the money?’

  ‘Aaron takes his cut. We get our cuts and the rest goes back up the line. I don’t even know how much is going back up or how much we make. I know it’s a lot. Aaron deals with that himself. He takes the money personally.’

  ‘Does he keep it with him too?’

  ‘Why do you want to know that?’

  ‘Why wouldn’t I? I thought I could know everything?’

  ‘You’re not going to rob him, are you?’ Danny chuckled. It didn’t sound natural.

  ‘I don’t think so, do you?’

  ‘It’s just stuffed in bags. He takes it back up to London personally, normally a couple of times a week but at least one trip. He doesn’t normally keep the money far away. It’s probably in the house somewhere, out of reach of the rummy.’

  ‘The rummy? You mean William?’

  ‘I think that’s his name, yeah.’

  ‘How come this Aaron is living there? I don’t think William wants him to.’

  ‘I think it suits both their needs to be honest. Aaron needed a place to stay in the middle of it all and your man William was suddenly on his own and maybe wanted some company.’

  ‘He didn’t — want the company, I mean.’

  ‘Well, he doesn’t mind taking the rum, I know that for sure. You two friends now?’

  ‘I owe him. He kept me safe and when he made sure I got out in the morning your mate Aaron beat him unconscious.’

  ‘He should have done what he was told.’

  ‘Keep me there? So I could be sold for sex, you mean? You did what you were told. Seems this rummy is a far braver man than you are.’

  ‘There are ways of dealing with Aaron. Butting up against him isn’t one of them. That’s a way to get yourself killed. I don’t want to be here doing this. I got sucked into all this when I was young and stupid. I want to go home, Rhiannon, you have to believe me.’

  ‘You’re scared of him.’

  ‘You should be, too. We all should be.’

  ‘William isn’t.’

  ‘Then he will get himself hurt. Worse than he already has.’

  ‘I still don’t understand why you’re telling me all of this. What am I supposed to do now?’

  ‘You’re supposed to be scared of him. You’re supposed to see the bigger picture, so you know to stay away from it all. You’re too good Rhiannon.’

  ‘There you go again. But here I am.’

  Danny swore. Rhiannon thought it was frustration at her at first but his hand jerked to his pocket like he had been stung. He took out his phone but hesitated as he looked down at it.

  ‘That the boss?’

  Danny snatched his eyes away to meet with hers. ‘No, it’s Rosh.’

  ‘He’s still above you right? Just how far down are you in the pecking order?’

  ‘I don’t care about the pecking order, Rhiannon. I don’t care about any of it.’

  Rhiannon saw the screen on his phone change and she guessed that he had rung off. ‘Are you brave enough to ignore him?’

  ‘I’m not ignoring him. I can’t talk to him here.’ Danny looked around. Rhiannon did the same and couldn’t see anyone close enough to hear their conversation. He stood up. Rhiannon stayed seated, her way of making it clear that she wasn’t going anywhere.

  ‘Look, I’ve got to go and take this. I have to play the game. For now at least.’

  ‘For now? I thought you said there was no way out, that this was your gang and there was no walking away.’

  ‘I did, I mean, there isn’t.’

  ‘So this isn’t for now then, is it Danny?’ His eyes snatched back to his phone. Rhiannon could hear the vibration; it was ringing again.

  ‘Look. I told you all this so you would stay away. You have to disappear. I think your rummy mate is about to blow the whistle. If he does, that Aaron’s going to be on the warpath. I don’t want you being in the way.’

  ‘Blow the whistle? You mean to the cops? William?’

  ‘Look, I have to go take this, yeah? But you need to go. Do
n’t be where you’re known. Just until this blows over.’

  ‘What? Until what blows over?’

  ‘Please, Rhiannon, be smart.’ Danny still had his eyes fixed on Rhiannon but now he spoke into his phone. ‘Yo, Rosh.’ Rhiannon immediately saw fear in him. He stood still. Rhiannon shook her head as she strode away. She heard Danny behind her: ‘Look, hold on Rosh . . . just a second,’ he said, but then he was immediately backtracking. ‘Yeah, I get this is important. Yeah I can speak now.’ Rhiannon continued her walk until she was out of earshot. She didn’t look back.

  Chapter 17

  ‘What are we doing here?’ Sam said. Her voice was low, unsure, lacking any strength. She knew she wasn’t going to get an answer. Rosh had picked her up. They had argued. She had told him how disgusted she was with what had happened the other night. He had checked she had got the money from Danny so she could go shopping and she had fallen silent. Then he said he was taking her somewhere to make up for it. Initially she had been pleased; she had believed him, like she always did with men. But now she wasn’t sure this was a drive somewhere as part of an apology. Rosh had stayed sullen; he had barely spoken and wouldn’t answer any questions on where they were going. She could tell his mood was black. She had learned to spot the danger signs in men the hard way, and the other night she had seen a side to Rosh that was colder than she had ever seen before.

  Sam had been anxious during the car journey. This now turned to all out fear as they drove round the back of a grey industrial estate and pulled up outside a featureless, flat-fronted building. Rosh told her to get out. He was looking directly forward, still gripping the steering wheel. He didn’t look at her. They were on the edge of the historic town of Sandwich. She’d been to the town once, a few years before, having been invited to a party on a boat when there was some golf competition on nearby. Everywhere had been busy. She’d gotten off her head and taken some tablets. She couldn’t remember much more than that.

  Today she had never felt more sober. It was mid-afternoon and a little more overcast than Ashford had been. There didn’t seem to be anyone around; the units all seemed to be locked up, unused even. At the far end she could see a fence and beyond that it looked like tall grass running down to a river. She could see part of it stretching away into the distance, catching the sun like a grey, sparkly ribbon. A large boat was up on stilts in a sort of dry dock outside the last of the units. The boat’s bottom was a patchwork of repairs and it was a faded yellow. The boat had rolled on its stand and was pushing against the fence. She could see the name etched on the side from where she stood: Angela’s Dream. It didn’t look like it would ever sail again.

  ‘I said, what are we doing here?’ Sam persisted. She climbed out of the BMW but remained stood in the open door. Rosh stood out of the car too.

  ‘We need to go in. We’re just picking something up.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Why are you asking so many questions all of a sudden? We’re here to pick something up. You need to come in with me. That’s all you need to know.’

  ‘What if I don’t want to?’

  Rosh walked round to Sam’s side. He pulled her roughly away from the car and pushed the door shut. He locked it remotely. Sam watched him walk towards one of the units. All of them were the same: a white, garage-style door covered two-thirds of the front and a smaller door, like the front door to a house, was on the right side of it. Rosh pushed the smaller door open. He stood on the threshold and looked back over at Sam. She took a last look around and walked to him.

  ‘You don’t have to push me,’ she said.

  ‘You’re right. Do as you’re told and I won’t.’

  ‘I’m not here to do as I’m told by you. What the fuck is all this about?’ She hesitated by the door. Still Rosh didn’t reply. She made a decision, tutted loudly and stepped into the unit. The door closed behind her.

  ‘You might be right, you know!’ a voice boomed out from a distance away, the other side of the space. Sam tried to peer over to the source. ‘You’re not here to do as you’re told by him. You’re here to answer my questions.’ Sam recognised the voice: it was Aaron. The natural light was limited, coming through the top half of the small door they had just stepped through and a similar sized window at the rear. Sam could see through to it, it looked like it was in a kitchenette space. Aaron was blocking much of this light. He was stood in front of it and appeared as a silhouette.

  ‘What do you want from me?’ Sam’s voice carried her fear now. She was aware of it but there was nothing she could do. She turned to Rosh. ‘This why you brought me here? So your mate here can bully me, too? The way he did Rhiannon?’

  ‘Rhiannon!’ Aaron clicked his fingers. ‘That’s her name. Where is she, Sam? That’s your first question.’

  ‘I don’t know. What do you want with her? I think you’ve had enough to do with her.’

  Aaron stepped forward. Something metal scuttled along the floor, unsettled by his footfalls. Suddenly a strong light clicked on above them. Aaron still clung onto the power switch, a thick grey box that hung down from the ceiling. Sam had to narrow her eyes against the sudden light. The room was sparse and looked to her like it had once been a working garage. The floor was grey concrete with brown stains in places and an inspection pit with a bundle of blue material and a drum of brown fluid at the bottom.

  ‘She your mate?’

  ‘Who?’

  ‘This Rhiannon. Don’t start playing dumb with me, girl. Don’t start acting like you don’t know what I’m talking about. You know what I’m talking about. You know why we’re here and you know why I need to talk to you.’

  ‘I have literally no idea what you are talking about.’ Sam’s voice broke to a sob. Her legs suddenly felt weak. ‘I ain’t done nothing wrong. I ain’t done nothing to you lot at all.’

  ‘One of my soldiers got burnt today.’

  Sam flicked from Aaron to Rosh and back to Aaron again. ‘Soldiers? Who got burnt? What are you talking about?’

  ‘The cops picked up one of our gang,’ Rosh said, by way of explanation, his tone markedly softer than Aaron’s.

  Sam’s eyes were watery. She sniffed so she could speak. ‘I didn’t know. I didn’t even know. How would I know that? It’s got nothing to do with me.’

  ‘Someone ratted us out. Someone told them what we’re doing down here.’

  ‘I didn’t! What, you think I did? Why would I tell the cops? I got no reason to go to the cops. You gotta believe me! Fuck!’

  Aaron still hung from the light switch. He stepped away and it swung in shallow loops creating fidgeting shadows. ‘Where are the others, Rosh?’ Aaron said.

  ‘The girl wasn’t at the house and she isn’t answering her phone. Danny is out looking for her. He reckons he can find out where she is at least and then I’ll go pick them both up. Rummy hasn’t been back to the house. He can’t be far. The search party is out. He’ll turn up in some gutter somewhere.’

  ‘So, girl, which one ratted us out then if it weren’t you? Tell me what you know and make sure I believe it.’

  ‘I haven’t been to no cops. Rhiannon wouldn’t have either, I’m sure of it. I don’t even know this rummy bloke. I’ve never said two words to him.’

  ‘But it weren’t you?’

  ‘I told you. Of course it weren’t me. I’m not stupid enough to go shouting my mouth off about other people’s business. What you do is up to you. I thought me and Rosh were good, you know? I thought we were going strong.’

  ‘You and Rosh.’ Aaron’s lips turned upwards in a smile. His teeth reflected the strong light. ‘You and Rosh. Rosh and you. Like a proper couple, right? Lovers?’

  Sam shrugged. ‘I dunno, there’s nothing wrong with spending a bit of time together. I thought we liked each other.’

  Aaron turned to Rosh. He was still grinning. ‘You and white trash here, are you together? Boyfriend and girlfriend?’

  Rosh shrugged now. ‘It’s like she said . . . we’re spending time to
gether. Fucking about.’

  ‘Fucking about! Is that what you’re doing, white trash? Are you fucking my man Rosh, here?’

  ‘What is this? I told you I ain’t been speaking to no cops. I want to go home now.’

  ‘Are you fucking my man?’

  ‘What does that matter?’

  ‘It’s a simple question. You were brought here to answer my questions, white trash, and I will tell you now there’s a reason I brought you to a place with a pit already dug. This place hasn’t been used for months. There’s no chance it will be used again any time soon. So then, are you fucking my man here?’

  Sam eyed the inspection pit. She was stood a few metres from the edge. She took a step backwards. ‘We mess about, sure. So what?’

  ‘And you think that he loves you because you’re fucking? Is that right? That he thinks you’re special?’

  ‘I don’t know. Look, I answered your questions, yeah? Now Rosh can take me home. I’m done with all this.’

  ‘I don’t think you are. All of you need to realise who we are. You seem to think we’re down here for a bit of a break, to mess about with, to fall in love and live happily ever after with. We’re brothers, the lot of us. You ain’t nothing to any of us.’

  ‘I don’t get in the way of your shit.’

  ‘That’s where you’re wrong, see? You are in the way of my shit. And Rosh here, he couldn’t care less about you. You’re worthless white trash to me and you’re worthless white trash to him. Do you understand?’

  ‘Sure, whatever you say.’ Sam could feel the anger building. She had listened to this enough. Why should she stand here and take his abuse? She hadn’t spoken to the police and now he was just trying to humiliate her.

  ‘Whatever I say? A demonstration perhaps?’

  ‘What?’

  ‘I say he doesn’t give a shit about you and you don’t believe me. So you need a demonstration.’

  ‘I don’t, I believe you. Look, fine. I see you have got your shit going on. You say I’m in the way. I get the message, okay? You won’t see me again. Just drive me home and I’m gone.’

  ‘Bring her over here!’ Aaron snapped at Rosh.