by Jacqui Rose
He grabbed the girl between her legs, his powerful arms pushing her against the wall.
‘Please, I don’t want to do this.’
‘I don’t care what you want, so are you going to take them off or am I going to take them off for you?’ His hand slipped to the top of her thigh and started tugging roughly at her knickers.
Crying, she shouted, ‘Get off me! Just get off me!’
‘I don’t think so, darlin’, and now I’m going to show you what I do to little girls who tease.’
Before Barry had time to start to undo his trousers, Shannon suddenly thrust her head forcefully forward, driving it into his face. She heard the crunch of his nose as her head-butt landed square on it and as Barry staggered back, Shannon took the opportunity to run.
She darted out of the room, hearing the man yell after her. She charged past a shocked-looking Laura who was still sitting behind the reception desk chewing her gum.
Taking the stairs two at a time, Shannon rushed out into the street. It was dark and raining. Dressed only in a tiny, thin white dress, she continued to run until she was certain no one was following her.
Slowing down to a walk, Shannon turned into Montague Place, brushing away her tears and heading back towards Soho.
Driving along in a trance-like state, Franny gazed out in front of her, trying not to make any more driving errors as the tears rolled down her face. She’d already driven through several red traffic lights, and almost knocked a woman over on a zebra crossing but no matter how much she tried, she just couldn’t concentrate. She certainly couldn’t think straight or get her thoughts in order. All she felt was shock, a strange numbness where she couldn’t process what had just happened. What Ma had done to Mia … It seemed like she was in a dream … She couldn’t get her head around the fact that Ma had actually sold Mia to the highest bidder, not only that, but she hadn’t even known the man’s name and had no idea where he’d taken her to.
As waves of nausea hit her, suddenly, Franny slammed on the brakes, almost knocking over a person who was running across the road. She glanced at them and immediately realised it was Shannon.
After quickly pulling over by the corner of Bedford Place, Franny stepped out of her car, feeling more than a little shook up. With the rain getting heavier, Franny wrapped her jacket around her as she called out. ‘Shannon, hey Shannon!’
Shannon turned around, her expression turning into a scowl. ‘Oh, it’s you. What do you want?’
A strange look came across Franny’s face. ‘I was wanting a word with you. Why don’t we have a chat? Come and talk to me.’
Shannon looked around. It was dark, and the street was empty. ‘No thanks, it’s all right, I’m okay here.’
Franny continued to walk up to Shannon, her eyes dark and cold. ‘What’s the matter, Shannon? You had all the bravado the other day and now you don’t want to chat. Come on, it’s raining. I’ll give you a lift.’
Shannon began to back away. ‘Leave me alone. I ain’t got anything to say.’
Rage rose up in Franny as she stared at Shannon. ‘The problem with that, Shannon, is I know you have. I know you probably like to talk to all those little girlfriends of yours who haven’t got anything else to do, and the thing is I don’t want you to talk about my business, and I certainly don’t want you to talk to Alfie.’
‘I’m not going to, I promise, and besides, I don’t even know what’s happening. Ma ain’t told me nothing, so I ain’t really got much to say.’
As the rain continued, Franny pushed her hair out of her face. ‘Why don’t I believe that? I wish I could.’
‘You can, you can!’
Franny shook her head as she stepped forward. ‘No, Shannon, I’m afraid I can’t. You’re trouble – that’s all I see when I look at you. Have you any idea what you’ve done? Right now, Mia could be anywhere, and you know something, Shannon, it’s all your fault and I think we need to have a talk about that, don’t you?’
Shannon began to back away as the rain drove down. ‘Like I say, I don’t know anything about Mia.’
Anger and hate spat out of Franny. ‘But you still took her, didn’t you? You still gave her to Ma knowing what Ma was like. What sort of person does that?’
Dejected and feeling ashamed of herself, Shannon gazed at Franny. ‘I’m sorry.’
Franny laughed bitterly, her eyes burning with hatred. ‘Sorry? Are you kidding me?’
‘It’s just … it’s just that you were so mean to me.’
Clenching her teeth, Franny’s eyes darkened. ‘Mean to you? You stupid, stupid little girl!’
Naïvely, Shannon said, ‘Look, I never thought it through!’
‘Yeah, and that’s the problem, and because you didn’t, Mia’s in trouble. Now I’ll ask you again, Shannon, and if I were you, I’d think really carefully … Where is Mia?’
Shrugging, Shannon’s eyes filled with tears. ‘I swear, I don’t know anything.’
As Franny stepped nearer and nearer to Shannon, Shannon began to run, darting across the road, hearing Franny chasing behind her, knowing she wasn’t far behind.
‘Shannon, you little bitch, you’re going to pay for what you’ve done! Shannon!’
Not bothering to answer, Shannon sped along Bedford Place before turning into Russell Square. She was sweating and panting, having never run so fast in her life but she knew whatever happened she didn’t want Franny to catch up with her. There was something about the way she’d looked that had frightened her.
With her heart thumping in her chest, Shannon continued to run as fast as she could, speeding past the bowling alley heading towards Southampton Row, feeling Franny getting ever nearer.
Not wanting to wait for the traffic lights, Shannon ran across the busy road, scurrying between the cars and taxis, ignoring the honks of the irate drivers’ horns as she just managed to avoid being hit by a speeding bus.
On the other side, with the wind and rain making it difficult to see, Shannon jumped the railings. Her feet were hurting, and she was tired, but she knew she had to keep going.
Stumbling along she turned into Remnant Street, glancing behind her, and was relieved that she couldn’t see any sign of Franny, but suddenly she felt somebody grab her, pulling her into the large office doorway. About to scream, Shannon turned around, ready to fight, but she stopped and grinned, a big gummy smile as she recognised the person in front of her.
‘Hello, Shannon, where’ve you been? I’ve been looking everywhere for you, but I’m glad I found you. I’ve got a job for you, one that you might like. What do you say?’
With her face shining with joy, Shannon nodded, once more her heart pounding but this time with delight. ‘Yes! Yes, I’d like that.’
‘Good, but first how about I get you out of the cold and cleaned up. You look like you need a hot meal … Come on, but we have to be quick.’
And as Shannon, soaked to the skin, hurried along the street, no longer feeling afraid, a thought suddenly came to her: maybe life wasn’t so bad after all.
28
Exhausted, having searched the streets for Shannon, Franny was almost able to taste her own fear. She walked into the kitchen of the Soho house she shared with Alfie, her face drained of colour, all fight having left her.
‘Where’ve you been? I’ve been waiting for you for hours. One minute you’re telling me to get some Chinese, the next thing you’re nowhere to be seen. I was out looking for you, walking the streets like a numpty. What the fuck is going on, cos it’s making me uncomfortable. It’s like you’re winding me up. Just talk to me, Fran.’
Franny stared into Alfie’s face, handsome and strong but lined with worry. She could see he had genuine concern for her, and every part of her wanted to tell him what had just happened with Mia, with Ma, with Shannon, to share how she felt, to share how terrified she was, but no matter how much she wanted that, she knew that could never be an option. The only thing left open to her was to find Mia, but she had no clues, no leads and for a
ll she knew it was already too late. Mia might be gone forever and she was terrified.
Alfie stared at Franny, wondering when the right time was to talk about Shannon, to talk about what Charlie had said, but looking at Franny, clearly it wasn’t now. ‘Fran, I’m speaking to you. I want to know what the fuck is going on.’
Trying to speak, Franny put her head in her hands and began to sob. Her whole body ached. Her head felt a mess. In fact, she’d never felt so helpless in the whole of her life.
‘Franny.’
Quickly, she looked up, scooting around in her chair. Alarmed, she gazed around, her eyes darting about. She stared at Alfie, speaking in a whisper. ‘Did you hear that?’
Alfie looked at her strangely. ‘Hear what?’
Wide-eyed and scared, Franny looked at Alfie. ‘It sounded like someone was calling my name, Alfie. Did you hear it? It sounded like a woman’s voice.’
He shook his head, concern etched over his face. ‘It’s just the wind, darlin’. Listen, you need to get some sleep. This is exactly what I was like, thinking I was hearing things, thinking I was going mad.’
‘That was different – you were taking all that shit, I’m not.’
‘No, but you’re tired and stressed, exactly how I was. Look at you, Fran. You haven’t slept. That alone can send people crazy.’
Rubbing her temples, Franny’s eyes pricked with tears. ‘It isn’t just that though.’
‘Then tell me what’s going on. Tell me where you’ve been. Like I said before, I can’t help you if don’t tell me what’s going on. I thought you and me, well, I thought we were a team?’
Needing to believe it herself, Franny said, ‘We are … we always have been. You know I’ve always told you everything.’
‘Then don’t stop now. Come on, maybe I can help.’
Franny gazed into Alfie’s eyes. ‘I thought I had a lead, with Mia … It turns out it wasn’t.’
Alfie stood up, reaching for his cigarettes. ‘Jesus Christ, Franny, that’s exactly what I’m talking about; you should’ve told me. For God’s sake, all this secrecy has to stop.’
Franny nodded. ‘I know, I know, but I didn’t want to get my own hopes up and whilst you were getting the takeaway …’ She paused to make sure her story sounded sincere, half believing it herself. ‘Well that’s when I got a call. I did try to get in touch with you …’ She trailed off.
‘From who? Who was the call from?’
She shrugged, beginning to feel uncomfortable with all the questions. ‘Just someone I know.’
Taking a drag of his cigarette, Alfie watched the smoke rise into the air. None of this was making sense. He thought the reason they’d taken Mia was because of him, something he had done, somebody he’d pissed off without knowing and as it was common knowledge that Franny was connected with him, whoever it was had taken the opportunity to snatch Mia as some kind of ransom.
He’d truly thought whoever had taken Mia would get in contact with him, letting him know what they wanted. But the more he thought about it, the more it dawned on him: it wasn’t about him at all. It never was … It was about Franny.
‘What have you done, Fran?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean what have you done? Who have you pissed off? Think about it. Who have you turned over?’
‘What?’
Full of sincerity, Alfie said, ‘Look, I ain’t having a go at you. In this business there’s always someone who’s got a gripe, who ain’t happy. It’s obvious that the reason Mia was taken is about you, not me … or maybe it’s about your mate. What have they done? For fuck’s sake, Franny, think, because maybe that’s the key to it all.’
Ill at ease, Franny shrugged again as she scrambled for words. Alfie was far from stupid. If she said the wrong thing, she knew that he would smell it a mile off. ‘Her ex-partner … he’s a face, from up north. She left him without saying anything so of course when Mia went missing at first she thought it was him, or at least one of his men, but it ain’t. It’s nothing to do with him.’
‘What’s his name?’
‘You won’t know him.’
‘Come on, Franny, I might! Talk to me for fuck’s sake. And if I don’t know who they are then I can ask around. Why are you being so evasive? Why I am getting the feeling you ain’t being straight with me?’
Franny raised her voice as she covered her ears. ‘Alf, stop! Stop! Stop! Please just stop! Stop trying to fix something you can’t. The point is, it’s not him, it’s not her ex … and … and she doesn’t want him knowing about Mia going missing, not yet anyway. So, you asking about ain’t going to help with matters; it’s just going to make it worse. But as you can imagine my friend is going out of her mind. She can’t cope, Alf. It’s like she’s going mad. She’s hearing things. She can’t sleep. Can’t eat. She has no idea where to turn, no one to talk to. It’s a mess …’
‘I’m sorry, Fran.’
With her eyes wide, Franny continued to talk, not hearing Alfie’s apology as she was consumed by her own thoughts and feelings. ‘Though what she does think – and it’s only a guess, but it’s the only kind of lead she’s got – she thinks Mia was taken by … well that guy.’
Puzzled, Alfie asked, ‘What guy?’
‘Charlie’s father. Barry Eton.’
Alfie couldn’t have looked more surprised if he tried. The minute he’d known the letters were from Franny he’d no doubt ruled that out. To him, Barry Eton was out of the picture when it came to Mia. ‘That’s impossible, Fran. Why would he do that? No way.’
Franny, knowing much more than Alfie, vehemently shook her head, terror painted across her face. ‘It’s not though. Listen, I’ve found something out. I think Mia’s been sold.’
Again, Alfie looked surprised. ‘Hold on, hold on, what are you talking about? All this is news to me. Why would you or your mate think Mia has been sold? What the hell’s going on?’
Feeling cornered and hating all the questions, Franny snapped, ‘I just do okay, I just do. It ain’t a coincidence that Barry has been released and Mia goes missing.’
Still in shock at the suggestion, Alfie took hold of Franny gently. ‘You’re grasping at straws, darlin’. I know you’re worried, but unless you have any reason to believe he took her, which you haven’t, then it’s madness to think that. You’ve got to try to calm down, babe. It really is crazy.’
Her frustration at not being able to tell him about Ma turned to anger. After all, she was privy to the fact that Barry Eton was also Ma’s father, and Shannon’s grandfather, so it wasn’t too unreasonable to think that Ma had sold Mia to Barry or at least one of Barry’s friends – she’d admitted she knew people in that kind of world – but Franny’s problem was trying to make Alfie understand without telling him the truth. She screamed at Alfie again, ‘Why is it? Why is it such an extreme thing to say? Go on, tell me, why? Charlie lives here, so Barry still has a connection to this area.’
‘Fran, sweetheart, stop. Just listen to me. Sshhhh, just calm down and listen … Charlie doesn’t have anything to do with him.’
Franny’s eyes flashed with anger. ‘You’d be surprised what people don’t tell you, Alf.’
Irritated himself now, and the discussion of Barry putting him on edge, Alfie yelled, ‘What the fuck is that supposed to mean? What is that supposed to fucking mean?’
Franny pulled her hand away from Alfie. ‘It means, stop being so naïve. You don’t know everything that goes on and unless you can tell me for certain Barry hasn’t taken Mia, then it’s crazy to rule it out. And even if Barry isn’t the one who actually took her, maybe he knows something about it.’
Alfie shook his head. ‘Why would he know?’
Franny yelled in Alfie’s face, ‘Because the world they live in is a small world! He’d know if a baby had been touted about and sold … So, you need to help me find him, so I can ask him just that.’
Alfie began to back away, thoughts and images running through his mind. He shook his hea
d, terror coming into his eyes. His voice trembled. ‘I can’t, Fran, I just can’t. I can’t do it … I’m sorry, but no.’
Franny grabbed hold of Alfie who shrunk away. Angrily she shook his arm. ‘You’ve got to!’ She paused, knowing that although she wanted to know where Barry was, and she needed Alfie’s help with finding him, she certainly didn’t want Alfie to actually speak to Barry. That was too dangerous. Who knew what he might tell him? Even asking for Alfie’s help was risky but she really didn’t have any other choice.
‘Look, Alf, I understand that you don’t want to talk to Barry or have anything to do with him, and I’m not asking you to, I just need you to help me find him!’
Alfie pushed past Franny, hitting one of the chairs out of the way. He slammed out of the door, striding into the front lounge, which was decorated in grey and silver.
Marching across to the bottle of whiskey on the side, Alfie unscrewed the top and not bothering to get a glass, he drank it down, feeling the burn.
‘Alf, don’t walk away from me!’
Wiping his mouth with his sleeve, Alfie turned his back on Franny. ‘Leave me alone, Fran.’
Incensed, Franny stormed up to Alfie, her face marked with anger. She snatched the bottle from Alfie’s hand, throwing it down to the side where it smashed, shattering into tiny pieces. ‘I’m not going to leave you alone because I need you to help me.’
Trembling, Alfie stared at her. ‘No, Fran, I can’t do it, and it’s not that I don’t want to, I just can’t, I’m sorry.’
‘What about Mia, Alf?’
‘Look at me, Fran, just the mention of his name makes my head a wreck. I’d be no good to you anyway. You need to get your mate to sort it out. Get her old man to ask about. He’s a face ain’t he? So, he’ll be able to find him just as well as I could.’
Franny poked Alfie in the chest. All that was on her mind was Mia. Anger and resentment ran through her. She hissed. ‘You owe me, Alfie Jennings, you hear me?’