Blood Daughter: Flesh and Blood Trilogy Book Three (Flesh and Blood series)

by Dreda Say Mitchell

  As the newcomer did so Flo rose out of hers. ‘I’ll see you back at The Commander’s when you and fuck face there have finished.’ She chucked a filthy look at the man before she was gone.

  ‘A bit of a livewire your girl,’ the stranger said. ‘My mum would give me a right clump for having such bad manners. The name’s Mal.’

  They shook hands. Nicky’s eyes widened with delight as Mal explained how he’d met his blood father and some of the antics they’d got up to. He loved hearing these East End tales; it was a world he was desperate to get into. His mum would blow her stack, but he was a grown man and could make his own decisions.

  Finally Mal said, ‘Look son, great meeting you but I’ve gotta get off.’ He tapped his nose. ‘I’m in the middle of a deal, know what I mean?’

  Nicky’s excitement grew. ‘What kind of deal?’

  Mal leaned in close. ‘First rule of the life is you don’t ever give out that piece of info. But seeing as how you’re Chris’s lad . . . Let’s just say I’m in the removal bizz. I’ve gotta move something from A to B.’

  Nicky was spellbound. ‘What?’

  ‘Let’s just say that if I get nabbed it will probably only be a fine and a slap on the wrist.’

  Nicky was really into the ‘Let’s just say’ way of talking about business. Made it sound secretive and daring.

  ‘I like you kid,’ Mal said, smiling, showing his crooked front teeth. ‘Let’s just say when the time is right I might need an extra pair of hands and give that person a bell.’

  Nicky didn’t hesitate. He nodded, knowing his mum would kill him if she ever found out.

  Forty-Nine

  At Courtney’s third session with Foxy they decided to both go for the big burger meal, which was large fries with peri peri sauce, double cheeseburger and a soft drink of choice.

  ‘I got taken to the cops for shoplifting when I was twelve,’ Foxy said openly.

  Courtney just stared and stared at her as if Foxy were in handcuffs. ‘What did you nick?’

  ‘A selection of pick-n-mix sweets from Woollies.’

  Courtney bit her lip then asked with curiosity. ‘Why did you do it?’

  ‘My mother died and I missed her.’

  The breath hissed in Courtney’s chest. She didn’t know what to say. Although her mum got right on her wick sometimes the thought of her dying when she was young made her throat clog up. She found the courage to ask, ‘What did she die of?’

  Foxy put her burger down. ‘One day she had a cold and before I knew it she had pneumonia. Do you know what that is?’ Courtney shook her head, feeling sad. ‘It’s when a bad cold gets in your lungs and chest. She was a fighter my mum.’ She picked up her burger again and took a bite, then gently asked, ‘Who’s the fighter in your family? The one you look up to?’

  Courtney didn’t hesitate. ‘My Nanna Babs. She . . . She . . .’ She couldn’t go on. The tears felt like they were bubbling all over her body.

  Foxy touched a single finger against one of Courtney’s hands. ‘No matter. We can talk about Nanna Babs when you’re ready.’ She pulled her finger away and added, ‘I’d like for us to meet tomorrow again if that’s OK with you?’

  This was the life! Jen let out an Ahhhh of pure delight as she enjoyed the luxurious spa massage. She was lying down, totally starkers, covered from head to toe in a thick layer of seaweed. A transparent material was wrapped tight around her body, securing her legs and arms and turning her into a green mummy. The masseuse had said that the plastic was needed to allow the ‘positive energy and ions’ from the seaweed to seep into the pores of Jen’s skin; more like stop the seaweed from dribbling off, she thought. But nothing could dampen her dog with two dicks mood. She hadn’t felt this cheery in aeons.

  Kieran Scott knew how to treat a lady. He had dosh in spades to splash out. The spa was on the top floor of an exclusive hotel in Knightsbridge. Despite being a Londoner, Jen had never been to this part of town before. Back in the day she’d cruised up West with Bex, but usually to Oxford Street and Bond Street to check out the latest fashion. That prick of an ex of hers had only introduced her to Soho’s nightlife. Knightsbridge had been for poshos and she wasn’t one of them, so why would she go there? But as soon as she entered the hotel she knew she’d been missing out big time. It was all marble floors and huge mirrored walls. And the smell . . . Mmmm! Jen’s jaw had dropped when she looked at the cost of the treatments; nothing under two hundred nicker.

  Kieran was the bloke she’d been looking for all her life. He showered her with bling, high-end clobber and had even sorted out the neighbour who played head-banging music at all hours. She felt like the young Jen again, the girl who had turned her nose up at the loser lads on The Devil and set her sights on a bloke with bigger ambitions. Except this time around she didn’t mind if that drive was rooted in the world of dirty deeds. A man’s got to make a living, right? Plus, he’d promised to have a word with her mum – who adored him – to nudge her in the right direction about the houses.

  She let out a sigh of heavenly pleasure as the masseuse’s fingertips rubbed her scalp with soothing, gentle strokes. Now that’s what you called class. Ah yeah, this was the effing life. A delightful shiver went through her as the woman laid two sweet potato slices over her eyes.

  ‘Relax. Rest,’ the woman said in a soft, throaty voice. ‘Let the chi take you on a journey.’ Jen didn’t have a clue what the chi was but if it was anything like the quality fizz they kept topping up she was more than happy for it to take her anywhere it wanted. ‘I will leave you now and come back in twenty minutes.’

  The woman put on some airy-fairy music that reminded Jen of a Jackie Chan movie she’d seen once and then left. She smiled and then drifted into sleep . . .

  A noise woke her up. Blimey, had twenty minutes come and gone already? She heard the masseuse’s footsteps around the room.

  ‘I let myself go like you said. That chi thing was pure bliss.’ Jen grinned. ‘Can we do that coconut shell treatment now?’

  ‘Oh, I’ve got a load of treatments lined up that you won’t forget in a hurry babes.’

  Jen’s eyes pinged open in alarm, forgetting she’d covered them with potato slices. She tried to move but couldn’t because her legs and arms were tightly bound by the plastic. The potato slices were ripped off to reveal Dee, her face hard and determined.

  ‘What you doing here?’ Jen asked, still trying to wriggle madly out of the plastic. It wouldn’t budge.

  ‘Last I heard it was a free country. When I showed my greenbacks at the door the owners of this very grand establishment were only too pleased to welcome me.’ But her half-sister was completely dressed. Jen knew she was up to no good.

  ‘I don’t want no agg.’

  ‘You, my girl, should’ve thought about that before that arse-wipe you’re fucking pulled that cunt stunt at my gaff.’

  ‘Someone sent a dummy bomb to his club. Was that you? All the guy wants is his property back.’

  ‘I don’t bloody have it. How many times have I got to say this?’

  Jen twisted her mouth. ‘If you agree to give my girls a share of Mum’s houses maybe I can talk Kieran around for you.’

  Disbelief clouded Dee’s face. ‘All you can think about is me, me, me. My yard got sprayed with lead. My boy could’ve got hurt. Bloody hell, Tiff was in the house as well.’

  Jen cut her eye at Dee. ‘Last I heard, Nicky’s shacked up with Dad’s slag of a daughter and as for Tiff, well, she could do with a bullet or two up her aris to keep her in her place.’

  ‘Are you for real? You’re chatting on about your family, your own flesh and blood.’

  Jen scoffed. ‘What? The same flesh and blood that are trying to diddle my girls outta their inheritance? The same flesh and blood who were happy for me to be a drudge and chuck pennies my way like I was a monkey in the zoo? My days of being played for a chimp are over.’

  The stunned expression vanished from Dee’s face. She pulled out a ciggy and lit up.
She inhaled deeply, leaned forward and blew the smoke straight into Jen’s face, making her start coughing and choking. ‘You’ll be sorry.’ Cough. Cough. ‘Kieran’s here, so you wanna turn your shit around and fuck off back to Essexville.’

  Dee straightened up, a small smile twisting the corner of her mouth. ‘No he ain’t. Know how I know? I’ve had someone following you for a couple of days. Like I said, it’s funny what a few greenbacks can get you these days.’

  ‘Piss. Off.’

  Instead Dee started looking around the candle-lit room. ‘Now, I’m thinking . . . what’s the best treatment to remind you what happens to people who step outta line.’ She muttered the words under her breath as if speaking to herself.

  Jen started bricking it. Dee was a caring mum and wife but she was also known for being a complete nutter. ‘You touch me . . .’

  ‘And what sister dearest? You gonna pull my hair out? Duff me over?’ She ran her eyes mockingly over the plastic around Jen’s body. ‘Looks to me like you’re only in a position to run that poisonous mouth of yours.’

  Jen thought about rolling off, but she might hurt herself when she landed on the hard floor. She stayed put and watched her eldest sister with a wary eye.

  Dee used a large pair of tongs to pick up a hot stone from a machine that looked like a hair curler heater. She waved it at Jen. ‘Now I could shove this down your gob to sort out that bitter tongue of yours.’

  ‘Dee . . .’

  ‘Nah.’ Dee let the stone drop to the floor with a heavy bang. ‘Let’s see what else we’ve got here.’ Jen’s fretful and fearful gaze followed her until she stopped near a machine on wheels. She dragged it across the room to a twitching Jen. With glee Dee unhooked a large pen attachment and held it up. ‘I hear one of these laser hair remover thingies hurts like a bitch.’ She moved it close to Jen’s face. ‘They can also burn a nasty scar right into the skin. One of my mates went to an iffy salon to get hers done and ended up with a face that looked more like a piece of toast.’

  Jen held her breath, her heart beating like the clappers as Dee moved it closer and closer to the skin under her right eye.

  But Dee suddenly dropped it, leaving it swinging from its machine. ‘Nah. Let’s see what other beauty treatments us ladies torture ourselves with.’

  ‘Dee, you’re gonna regret this, you mad bitch.’

  Her sister levelled a steady eye on her. ‘Oh, I’m a mad bitch alright. You seem to have forgotten that.’ A few seconds later she came back holding a jug with steam coming out of it. ‘Do you know what this is?’

  ‘Dee, you’ve made your point.’

  Her sister ignored her. ‘It’s hot wax. I’ve decided that little Jen here needs a Brazilian she will never forget.’

  Now Jen did start to try to roll off, but Dee gripped her legs effectively with one hand. With the other she held the wax above her sister’s bush. ‘Think about it, every time that polyester gangster gives you a portion you’ll be hurting so much all you’ll be thinking about is me.’ A wide smile split her face.

  ‘No!’ Jen screamed.

  Dee poured the hot wax all over the plastic covering Jen’s vagina. Thank God it wasn’t hot enough to melt through the plastic – the machine must be on a low setting.

  Dee slung the jug into the corner. ‘You wanna be giving this plastic some love, coz if it weren’t there I would’ve poured wax up your family–betraying pussy.’ She leaned over Jen again. ‘I want you to give that cunt a message. Tell him to stop with the hard man routine or he’s gonna be saying his prayers in hell a lot quicker than he thinks. I don’t have no gold.’

  Jen gazed at her, filled with confusion. ‘What gold?’

  Dee sneered. ‘He’ll know what I mean.’

  Jen seethed with fury as Dee moved towards the door. Then her sister turned back. ‘And I’ve got a P.S. for you. You should never, ever forget that family always comes first.’

  Fifty

  Satisfied with a job well done Dee got in her car. She turned the radio to a station pumping out some old style lovers’ rock reggae, Susan Cadogan’s ‘Hurts So Good’. She was in the mood for something mellow after putting Jen back in her box. The bloody cheek of her! Dee pushed her disgraceful sister from her mind. She started shaking her shoulders to the tune and singing along with the chorus. She swung her motor into a side street where the traffic was slight and there was only one car behind her.

  Her face creased up with confusion when she heard a popping sound. Suddenly the car swerved and she tried her best but she couldn’t control it. Desperately she turned the steering wheel, but the car wouldn’t play ball. There was another popping sound and the car skidded across the road and then flipped into the air.

  A bewildered and aching Dee woke up to piercing fluorescent lights in the ceiling above her, which instantly made her snap her eyes shut again. Where am I? What am I doing here? Then it started coming back to her – tormenting Jen, getting in her motor . . . The pain hissed in her throat as she remembered.

  A gentle hand touched her shoulder, making her eyes spring open again. A young, male nurse was looking at her. She was in the hospital.

  Her hand clamped over her tummy with motherly protection. ‘My baby?’ Oh God! If anything had happened to John’s unborn child . . . A few tears leaked from the corner of her eye.

  ‘Your baby’s fine.’ Dee relaxed back with a relief she’d never felt in her life before. ‘You were in a car accident.’ The nurse smiled, a small one of reassurance. ‘But you’re fine. You’ve got some very minor cuts to your face but they should heal in no time without any scarring. We’ve put a neck brace on you as a precaution.’

  An urgent voice shouted from the doorway, ‘Dee? Bloody hell.’ And then Tiffany was standing next to her. Her eyes were wild and her face chalk white. ‘What happened? Is the baby . . .?’ Her hand clapped over her mouth, stifling the rest of her words like they were too awful to give voice to.

  ‘Little John’s alright. I’m alright.’ Dee glanced at the nurse. ‘Can I go home?’

  He nodded. ‘But you have to take it easy. I’m going to give you some pain medication that you should take every four hours.’

  After he had gone, with her sister’s help Dee sat up and swung her legs over the bed. The neck brace made her move awkwardly. Her body felt sore, but she’d been in worse situations, far worse.

  ‘What happened?’ Tiff asked.

  Dee got to her feet with Tiff supporting her on one side. ‘One minute I’m driving and then all of a sudden I hear these popping noises. Then all hell breaks loose and I’m flying in the air like Mary Poppins.’

  ‘Oh babe. Sounds like your tyres must’ve gone.’ Tiff would know, with her years of experience working in a garage.

  Dee gazed at her strangely. ‘But my motor only had its MOT the other day. Everything, including the tyres, was bang on point.’

  Tiff curved her arm round her as they walked carefully to the door. ‘Don’t you worry your head about nish,’ Tiff soothed, ‘we’re taking you straight home for a proper chillout and rest.’

  ‘No.’ Dee would have shaken her head with firm determination if she wasn’t wearing the neck brace.

  ‘Whatcha mean “no”?’

  ‘There’s something we need to do first.’

  If Tiffany had been watching her face she would’ve realised there was more bovver brewing.

  ‘What the fuck do you mean you’re gonna do eff all about it,’ Jen blasted with disbelief at Kieran.

  They stood on the balcony of his flat in Chelsea with its breathtaking view of the harbour. Courtney and Little Bea were watching a movie inside the main room. Jen had closed the door to make sure that her convo with Kieran was kept private.

  ‘Just cool it, alright?’ he told her.

  ‘Cool it? Fucking cool it?’ Jen’s tone was hot and hard. ‘Your girlfriend gets attacked by someone in a spa. A spa, I might add, you got her invited to.’

  Kieran took a leisurely puff of his ciggy, which
made Jen even madder. It was like he couldn’t be arsed with what she was telling him.

  ‘A woman? Jen, it was your sister, Dee.’

  ‘Who would’ve, if she’d had time, shoved a hot stone down my throat.’

  Kieran snickered. Jen saw red. She reared towards him. ‘Oh, you think it’s bloody funny do ya?’

  ‘Come on Jen.’ He didn’t hold back his laughter this time. ‘A hot stone? Not like she was gonna put you six foot under with that.’

  ‘You don’t know Dee.’

  Kieran’s laughter disappeared in a heartbeat. ‘That’s where you’re wrong. I know Dee Black. Inside and out.’

  Jen didn’t like the sound of that. She couldn’t put her finger on it but there was something in between his words that made her feel uncomfortable. Something he wasn’t letting on about. Jen opened her mouth to find out what but quickly shut it. She didn’t want to get his dander up, she wanted him to sort out that thug of a daughter of her mum’s. That’s what Dee was, after all: Babs’ daughter. She’d only been in Jen’s life for the last three years so she reasoned she was hardly a sister at all.

  ‘Then you know what I’m going on about,’ Jen started up again. ‘She needs putting in her place. For fuck’s sake, she threatened to do me – your bird – over and made a right plank outta you with that bomb stunt, despite swearing blind that she had eff all to do with it.’

  He squinted at her. ‘She said what?’

  ‘You heard. That she never sent the bomb that never was.’ Jen puffed her chest out. ‘Course I don’t believe her and told her the same to her lying face.’

  Kieran gave her the eye. ‘You just worry about looking pretty on my arm. Leave the rest to me.’

  ‘The rest to you?’ Jen sneered as she reared to her full height. ‘I’ve been asking – begging – you, morning, noon and effing night to have a word in Mum’s ears about the houses . . .’

  ‘You know I’ve already done it and I’ve said I’m gonna give it another shot.’ If Jen had known Kieran better she would’ve sussed by his tight tone that she was pushing him to the edge of letting rip.