Risking It All

by Stephanie Harte

  Even though Alfie assured me that the police had nothing to go on, they were looking for a man ten years younger than Nathan, the colour drained from my face. This whole experience was stressing me out.

  I pushed my chair back and stood up. ‘I’ve had enough of this. When are you going to let us go home?’ I asked, putting my hands on my hips.

  ‘What do you make of that, gentlemen?’ Alfie said to his henchmen. ‘The way Gemma’s talking you’d think I was physically restraining the two of them and holding them to ransom.’

  The sound of Alfie’s laughter echoed around the room. It sent a shiver down my spine. That was exactly what he was doing. We were living in a constant state of fear. It haunted me every time I thought about how much things had changed since he came into our lives.

  ‘We must have cleared our debt by now,’ I said.

  Alfie narrowed his eyes. ‘I’ve already explained this to you. You’re part of the team now, so you’re in this for the long haul. The debt is no longer relevant.’

  I couldn’t get Alfie’s words out of my head. I didn’t want to be part of the team. I wanted my life to go back to the way it used to be before he’d turned it into a nightmare, full of threats and violence.

  ‘The Diamond Pavilion heist has given us a lot of collateral,’ Alfie said.

  I wondered what he meant by that but knew better than to ask. ‘Does that mean we can blow it all on cheap booze at the hypermarket?’ I asked, and a sarcastic tone seeped into my words.

  The look on Alfie’s face told me I’d infuriated him, without him having to say a word. He pulled out one of the leather chairs. ‘Sit down, Gemma,’ he said before he took a seat at the opposite side of the table. Crossing his arms in front of his chest, he glared at me. As he continued to study me, my heart began pounding. Had I gone too far this time?

  34

  Alfie

  Gemma continued to fascinate me. Not only was she stunningly beautiful with her long brown hair and green eyes, but she wasn’t afraid to stand up to me. That was rare. Not many people were brave enough to do that. For the life of me, I couldn’t work out what a strong woman like her saw in a loser like Nathan. She deserved better. I would gladly take her off his hands.

  Now that the two of them worked for me, they would need to start over from scratch. Gemma and Nathan Stone were about to disappear off the grid. They wouldn’t be returning to the UK for the foreseeable future. For the next stage of the journey, they’d be travelling on French passports.

  *

  ‘Why have you changed my name again?’ Gemma asked when I handed her the document bearing the name Emma Martin.

  ‘You’ll blend in better if you have the same surname as half the French population.’

  ‘We’re coming into port,’ Knuckles called.

  I got to my feet and peered out of one of the many windows. I loved Boulogne. It was the only port on the Côte d’Opale with direct access to the sea, so if we needed to make a run for it in the middle of the night, we could get away and wouldn’t have to wait for the tide. Knowing that meant I’d sleep soundly.

  As we entered the marina, Knuckles guided the yacht into the berth, and the sound of the engine stopped.

  Tommy looked up, then glanced over at me. ‘Should I put the jewellery back in the bag now?’

  ‘Yes, and put the paperwork in there as well.’

  ‘What’s the paperwork for?’ Gemma asked.

  ‘It’s a bogus certificate for the shipment of stones. If the Port Authority decide to search us, we don’t want them to think the jewellery isn’t legitimate, do we?’

  I flashed Gemma a smile before I started to make my way along the corridor, towards my room. When I reached the doorway, I turned and looked over my shoulder.

  ‘I want you to dress up for dinner tonight, Gemma. Make sure you wear something classy and put red lipstick on. I like red lipstick,’ I said as if we were going on a date.

  La Plage was an expensive restaurant. Gemma deserved the best. When I saw the look on Nathan’s face, it made me smile. I might go on the charm offensive later and really wind the wanker up.

  35

  Gemma

  La Plage stood right on the seafront. Unsurprisingly, the beachside restaurant specialised in fish. As I looked at the unimposing exterior of the building, I couldn’t understand why Alfie had been raving about it. It didn’t look very impressive.

  But once we were inside, my opinion changed, and I realised I should have reserved judgement. The interior couldn’t have been more different. It was elegant and refined with soft music playing in the background and just the right level of lighting. The maître d’ introduced himself as Pascal, and greeted us as if we were old friends. Following Alfie’s request, we were shown to a spacious table, covered with a white linen tablecloth in the corner of the restaurant.

  Alfie sat down with his back against the wall, facing the door. ‘Gemma, come and sit next to me.’

  I looked up at Nathan. He was furious, but thankfully instead of reacting, he didn’t say a word and took a seat at the far end of the table.

  The waiter handed us all menus. ‘I’ll be back in a moment to take your orders.’

  Before the waiter had a chance to leave the table, Alfie took the liberty of ordering everybody’s starter. He chose the house speciality: red mullet served on a bed of tomatoes and black olives from the restaurant’s à la carte menu.

  ‘Would you like to order some wine?’ the waiter asked.

  ‘Yes.’ Alfie took the extensive list, which was as thick as a book, and selected a bottle of white Bordeaux with a hundred-euro price tag.

  ‘That is an excellent vintage, and it will complement the fish.’ Pascal nodded, clearly impressed that Alfie hadn’t needed any advice.

  The waiter brought out the wine and showed Alfie the label. He gestured his approval, so the waiter pulled the cork from the bottle. Alfie inspected it, and then the waiter poured a small amount into his glass for tasting.

  ‘It’s excellent. You’d better bring us another one – that won’t go far between the seven of us,’ Alfie said, looking around the table.

  Our delicious starter was followed by a sharing platter of oysters, langoustines, dressed crab and lobster with tarte au chocolat and hazelnut ice cream to round off our meal. After we’d finished our coffee, Alfie ordered a bottle of Japanese malt whisky for the table. I never knew the Japanese made whisky, but then Nathan and I didn’t normally dine in Michelin-starred restaurants. Now I understood why Alfie had been eager to bring us to La Plage. Although the restaurant was expensive, the quality of the food was incredible.

  The waiter brought the bill over to the table and placed it down in front of Alfie. He didn’t turn a hair at the price of the meal and produced a large fistful of euros from his wallet to settle it.

  I found myself gazing at the huge pile of notes on the table. You would think he’d feel nervous carrying so much cash around. But I suppose Alfie didn’t need to worry about anything with his guys watching his back.

  ‘Wouldn’t it be easier to pay by credit card?’ I asked.

  ‘It might be if I had one.’ Alfie grinned.

  ‘You haven’t got a credit card?’ My eyes widened. I couldn’t imagine life without plastic. I was going to ask him why, but I had a pretty good idea I knew the reason. Alfie loved to be flash, and waving great wads of cash around so everyone could see how much money he had was one of the best ways.

  ‘In my line of work, it’s never a good idea to leave an electronic footprint behind.’ Alfie locked eyes with me.

  I raised my eyebrows. That wasn’t what I was expecting him to say.

  36

  Gemma

  It was just before seven and early morning sunlight poured through the cabin curtains. It woke me from my sleep. Shielding my eyes against the glare, I sat up in bed when I became aware of muffled voices outside on the deck. I could hear Alfie talking to a man with a French accent, but couldn’t make out what they were
saying.

  ‘Wake up, Nathan, something’s going on.’

  Nathan yawned and opened one eye. ‘What makes you think that?’ He leant up on one elbow and fixed me with his eyes.

  ‘I heard Alfie talking to a man on deck.’

  Nathan turned his head towards the door. ‘I can’t hear anything.’ The way Nathan eyed me left me in no doubt that he was sceptical about my theory.

  ‘That’s because he’s gone now.’

  ‘It was probably one of the guys.’ Nathan stretched his neck to one side.

  ‘The man had a French accent.’

  Nathan stifled a laugh. ‘No way. You’d never expect to find a man with a French accent in France, would you? You crack me up, Gemma.’

  ‘It’s not funny. Alfie’s up to something. I know he is.’

  ‘Maybe he was talking to one of the local fishermen. Go back to sleep.’ Nathan ran his fingers up my arm then settled back down on the pillow and closed his eyes.

  I touched Nathan’s arm to get his attention, but he rolled over and ignored me. I was almost certain that Alfie was talking to one of his contacts. But I would keep that to myself. Nathan would only question what I’d based that assumption on and then accuse me of having an overactive imagination. If he thought about it logically, why would Alfie even be up at this time in the morning if he wasn’t up to something? I was sure he wasn’t just having a casual chat with a fisherman. That was my husband’s opinion, and he was entitled to it, but I thought he was wrong. Although I had no proof, I had a gut feeling I was right about this. I got to my feet and walked over to the door.

  ‘What are you doing?’ Nathan suddenly looked over his shoulder.

  ‘I want to find out what’s going on.’

  ‘Come back to bed, it’s way too early to get up,’ Nathan said, patting the sheet next to him.

  It didn’t matter what time it was, there was no way I was going to be able to get back to sleep. My mind was buzzing, so I decided to put it to work. Channelling my inner detective, I pulled on my jeans and a cream cable-knit jumper and went to join Alfie on deck, leaving Nathan in the cabin.

  ‘You’re up early, Gemma,’ Alfie said, looking up from his mug of tea. ‘Didn’t you sleep well?’

  ‘Who were you talking to?’ I asked, hoping to catch him out, by putting him on the spot.

  I took a seat opposite Alfie, and my eyes searched his. I was certain I’d know if he was lying to me, not just from his words, but from his body language as well.

  ‘I was talking to Tommy,’ Alfie replied, putting his mug down on the table and turning his back on me.

  He definitely hadn’t been talking to Tommy, unless, of course, Tommy had suddenly developed a strong French accent. I’d expected Alfie to lie. He was a pathological liar and couldn’t help himself. But his reluctance to tell me the truth on this occasion only confirmed what I already thought. He’d just given me the proof I needed.

  37

  Gemma

  Having spent three uneventful days moored in the harbour at Boulogne, I was beginning to think Nathan was right. Alfie was just taking some time out. He wasn’t planning anything. My intuition appeared to be wrong, after all.

  But as night fell, Alfie started behaving strangely. He kept peering out into the darkness as if he was looking for something or someone while he paced up and down the deck. I caught Nathan’s eye and realised he’d noticed it too.

  ‘Are you expecting somebody?’ Nathan asked.

  Alfie leant down and looked him in the eye. ‘I don’t think that’s any of your fucking business, do you?’

  Alfie’s aggressive tone was a wake-up call. My pulse started pounding in my ears. I hoped things weren’t about to kick off.

  ‘You’re right. It’s none of my business. I didn’t mean to pry, but you seem very agitated. I was just curious to know why.’

  ‘Well, you know what they say, curiosity killed the cat,’ Alfie replied. Pointing two fingers towards Nathan, he pretended to fire an imaginary gun.

  We’d just received a very clear reminder that Alfie was a gangster and it was never a good idea to piss someone like him off. If we knew what was good for us, we’d pipe down and not antagonise him further. Otherwise, who knows what might happen?

  Alfie flashed me a confident smile, and I looked over his shoulder to where Nathan was sitting. I fixed him with my eyes to show him I was terrified, and he gave me a reassuring smile.

  ‘Don’t worry. It’s OK,’ he mouthed.

  But I wasn’t so sure. Alfie’s personality could change at the drop of a hat. One minute he’d charm the birds from the trees and the next he’d turn into a violent maniac. I couldn’t figure him out. He was impossible to read, and I didn’t mind admitting his unpredictable nature scared me to death.

  Alfie looked at his Cartier watch. ‘It’s time you two went to bed,’ he said, before walking to the back of the boat and scanning the darkness again.

  It went without saying that Nathan and I did as Alfie asked. Leaving the others on deck, we made our way to our spacious room and took a seat on the end of the bed, having closed the door behind us.

  I turned to face Nathan. ‘What do you think’s up with Alfie?’

  ‘I haven’t got a clue.’ Nathan ran his hand along his chin, which was covered by a dapple of dark stubble. Then he knelt on the bed behind me, put his strong hands on my shoulders and began to massage my tense muscles. ‘Try not to think about it.’

  ‘I can’t help it.’ I bit down on the side of my lip. I’d tried to forget about it, but every time I pushed the thought out of my mind, it seemed to surface again.

  ‘Let me see if I can take your mind off things.’ Nathan slipped his hands around my waist and began to kiss the side of my neck.

  As he kissed me, I felt a rush of excitement. He was doing a good job of distracting me and had almost succeeded when a motorised boat suddenly pulled up alongside the yacht. I sprang to my feet and moved towards the door.

  ‘What are you doing, Gemma?’

  ‘Shush,’ I said over my shoulder.

  When I pressed my ear against the cabin door, I could hear the sound of muffled voices coming from the back of the yacht. Desperate to find out what was going on, instinctively I reached for the handle.

  ‘Don’t go out there. Alfie told us to go to bed.’ Nathan caught hold of my hand and tried to stop me.

  ‘I know he did, but I can’t. Stay here; I won’t be long.’ Throwing my arms around Nathan’s neck, I reached up and kissed him on the cheek.

  Opening the door, I stepped out into the hallway and made my way along the shadowy corridor. When I craned my neck from the bottom of the stairs, I could just about see the deck. The first person I noticed was Alfie. He was at the back of the boat with Tommy. Frankie and Johno were at the water’s edge. They were talking to a dark-skinned man with curly hair, who was standing up in a small dinghy, which was tied up next to the Lady Nora.

  After a brief conversation, Frankie handed him a packet. The man looked inside and, satisfied with the contents, he placed five large holdalls on the jetty beside them, before he motored out of the harbour.

  Frankie and Johno passed Alfie and Tommy the bags then got back on the yacht. Turning around suddenly, Alfie caught me watching from the stairwell. He stared right into my face, and my heart skipped a beat.

  ‘Oh shit!’ I said under my breath. Terror filled me. I was like a startled rabbit caught in the headlights. I couldn’t think of what to do, so I froze.

  Pacing across the deck, Alfie launched himself down the steps two at a time.

  ‘You can’t follow a simple instruction, can you? I told you to go to bed, didn’t I?’ Alfie shouted.

  Spying on Alfie didn’t seem like such a good idea any more. So this was it, I was about to face my fears head-on. There was a very real chance I wouldn’t live to see another day.

  Nathan burst out of the cabin. But instead of his presence helping the situation, Alfie flipped at the sight of him. He head-
butted my husband, making his nose bleed. Reaching forward with one hand, Alfie pinned Nathan to the wall by the throat. Nathan attempted to claw Alfie off, but Alfie tightened his grip, and as he did, fear washed over me.

  ‘Look how vulnerable you are, Nathan,’ Alfie said through clenched teeth.

  Nathan’s eyes burned with hatred when he glared at Alfie. As the scene unfolded, I began to tremble. I hoped Alfie wouldn’t see me like this, but I couldn’t stop my body reacting this way. It was my fault Nathan was in this situation. I should have stayed in the cabin.

  ‘I know you’re scared; I can see the fear in your face.’ Alfie laughed.

  Nathan tried to break free, but he couldn’t move his head. Alfie’s hold was too tight. I moved towards them and forced myself to look at Alfie with apologetic eyes.

  ‘Please let Nathan go.’

  Alfie turned towards me and flashed me a pearly white smile. ‘He seems to have quietened down now. He’s not even attempting to struggle any more.’

  I was terrified. Nathan looked to be in severe pain. The pressure Alfie was applying to his neck was crushing his trachea. He’d tucked his chin down to try and stop his airway from constricting any further, but it was becoming hard for him to breathe.

  ‘You know I have the power to decide whether your husband takes his next breath or not, don’t you?’ Alfie smirked. ‘How does that make you feel?’

  It made me feel incredibly vulnerable. Alfie was a psychotic gangster. It wouldn’t be hard for him to take another person’s life.

  ‘I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you.’

  ‘That’s all right, Gemma, I accept your apology.’

  I fixed Alfie with a pleading look and finally, he loosened his fingers. The sudden release made Nathan stagger forwards. He gasped for breath, desperate to fill his lungs with air, like a diver with an empty tank ascending from the deep blue. I rushed to his side and threw my arms around him. I couldn’t hold it together any longer. My eyes welled up, and I began to sob.