‘With the male population, yeah,’ Vernon replied.
‘Ain’t you got work to do?’ Tony said, cocking his thumb behind him. Vernon gave him the Nescafe shake and then went back inside.
Prick, Tony thought to himself and put the phone up to his ear. ‘Hello?’ he answered gruffly.
‘Tony. Listen re, we’ve got a problem…’
‘Nick? What problem? What you on about?’
Charlie ran up beside him. ‘What’s wrong?’ he asked, his voice laced with anxiety. ‘What’s he saying?’
‘Well, if you let me listen, I might fucking hear!’ Tony said, and put the phone to his ear again.
‘It’s Nick Black, re. He’s run off with the bling.’
Tony frowned. ‘He done what?’ he bellowed.
‘Who done what?’ Charlie asked, eagerly.
‘Nick’s run off with the bling,’ Tony informed him.
Charlie’s mind worked. ‘Nick XR2’s run off with the bling?’
Tony’s eyes rolled involuntarily. ‘No, you prick. Not Nick XR2. Nick Black. The Mavro. He’s run off with the jewels. Told you he was a fucking traitor!’
Charlie looked away again, his mind working.
‘Is that Charlie?’ Nick XR2 asked.
‘Yeah, Charlie’s here,’ Tony replied.
‘Good. I’m coming to pick you both up, and we’re gonna sort this out.’
‘What’s he saying?’ Charlie asked.
‘He’s gonna come and pick us up, and we’re gonna go find the Mavro.’
Charlie raised his hands in the air, exasperated. He pulled Tony’s arm down and covered the mouthpiece of the phone with his hand. ‘Those fucking things are cursed, Tone,’ Charlie said slowly and clearly. ‘Listen to me. They’re cursed. Let him have them! Don’t go after him, let him have them! Going after him will just cause more problems.’
Tony just stared at Charlie like he was crazy. He was talking about the gold that they went through all that shit for—potentially half a fucking mil, who knew, maybe more. He turned round to be faced with White Rose Motors and could virtually see the stink of oil, dust, rust, and petrol; could taste the bucket loads of sweat that would pour from his skin over the next God knew how many years he would have to work there. He then balanced it against the money in that bag the Mavro nicked; could taste the freedom; the lifestyle; the choices; the sun; the sea; and when it came down to such a simple choice as White Rose Motors or freedom, there was no choice.
He put the phone back up to his ear. ‘Come and get us, re,’ he said to Nick. ‘And we’ll get our shit back off that prick.’
‘You sure you can get out of work?’ Nick asked.
‘Don’t worry. I’ll make some shit up and get that prick Vernon to cover for me.’
‘Good. See you soon,’ Nick said, and the line went dead.
Tony looked down at Charlie, whose eyes were brimming with fear. ‘What can I do, re?’ Tony said and shrugged. ‘It’s either I work in this gaff forever, or I take the only chance I’ve got to get out. Marco or no fucking Marco, the choice is easy.’
Charlie’s eyes grew smaller for the first time that day, and he gave Tony a philosophical nod. ‘I understand,’ he said and then sighed. ‘Well, we better find him, take the jewels back, and sort it all out from there.’
‘Ain’t nothing to sort out, Charlie. The Mavro’s going down for this treachery. Fucking Judas. That’s exactly what it’s like, re. Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. Now the Mavro has betrayed us for a bag full of bling and a black putana!’
‘What are you gonna do to him, Tony?’ Charlie asked in a concerned voice, hoping that he didn’t already know the answer.
Tony glared back at him with dark eyes and a look so serious etched into his face it unnerved Charlie to his core. ‘He’s going down, Charlie,’ he replied coldly.
Charlie looked away, negative vibes suddenly racing through him.
Then, he suddenly remembered the words of Snow White just before they raided the tomb. You have to keep an eye on them, Charlie…
He realised that still held true. Even now at this stage they would need him to keep a watch out for them. He failed last time, but this time he might be the difference between life and death. It was his duty.
He sighed, and then looked up at Tony and asked: ‘How long did Nick say he’s gonna be then?’
*****
Nick wasn’t long at all. In no time that infamous Ford XR2 came steaming along, and skidded to a halt outside White Rose Motors where Tony and Charlie were waiting. They jumped in straight away.
‘He’s a couple of hours ahead of us,’ Nick told them as they got in. ‘I don’t know where he’s going.’
‘How are we gonna find him?’ asked Tony, shrugging his shoulders. ‘We don’t even know where he is!’
‘He could be anywhere by now,’ Charlie added from the back seat. ‘Especially if he’s travelling by car.’
Tony nodded in agreement.
Nick glanced coolly from Tony to Charlie, back to Tony again. ‘I know exactly where the prick is,’ he told them, continuing to stare seriously at them one at a time.
After a few seconds of silence, Tony asked: ‘How?’
‘Yeah. How?’ Charlie echoed, intrigued to know.
‘Oh ye of little faith,’ Nick replied, and put his hand inside his leather jacket. He pulled out a small device from his inside pocket that resembled a mobile phone, and clicked a button on its face. A screen flashed on, reflecting blue and red in his irises. Charlie craned his neck forwards to get a better look; Tony just watched on with a confused frown on his face.
‘He’s heading towards…Birmingham,’ Nick said, and looked up at Tony and Charlie.
‘What the fuck?’ Tony exclaimed. ‘Birmingham?’
‘What is that thing?’ Charlie asked.
Nick spun it round to face them, and they leant in closer to see what it was. On the screen was an image of a map—like an A-Z or Google Maps—where a red dot was edging along a motorway.
‘Is that dot Nick Mavro?’ Charlie asked. Nick nodded, a smug look emerging on his face. ‘I-I don’t get it,’ Charlie said, shaking his head.
‘GPS tracking device, Charlie,’ Nick informed him, that smug expression deepening.
Tony began smiling a smile that quickly developed into a wide grin.
Charlie just remained confused. ‘No,’ was all he said in reply, as if it was all he could say.
‘It’s pretty simple, Charlie,’ Nick told him. ‘Wherever Nick Mavro goes, this thing will track him, meaning we can follow him. It’s all done with satellites.’
Charlie’s mouth became a perfect ‘O’ and his head twitched. ‘Like a Sat Nav system,’ he stated.
‘Exactly,’ Nick confirmed, that smug look now permanently tattooed on his face.
Tony began laughing in his seat like a maniac, making the whole car bounce up and down like it had just come alive. When he eventually calmed down, he reached out and took Nick’s hand and shook it with plenty of vim. ‘You are the fucking man!’ he said in a jovial voice.
‘Just call me Jack fucking Bauer!’ Nick said, and Tony laughed. ‘Went down to the Storage Centre and got my cousin John to give me a spare key to our storage unit. Hid the tracker in with the bag just after Nick got together with that Carla sort.’ Tony began laughing again, nodding his head in appreciation. ‘You’re not the only one who lost trust in him once he hooked up with her, re, believe me,’ Nick told him. ‘Can’t fucking trust a man with that much bling once a woman comes on the scene. Two don’t mix.’
‘You’re damn right there,’ Tony said. ‘You see that shit, Charlie? That’s what you call using your fucking brains!’
‘I got brains,’ Charlie said and his head twitched.
Tony dismissed him with a pfff! and a flip of the hand. Charlie sunk back in his seat, suddenly feeling small.
‘We better get moving ’cos there’s a range on this thing,’ Nick XR2 informed them. ‘If h
e goes beyond it, we’ll lose him.’
Tony clicked his seat belt in. ‘Buckle up boys!’ he said in an excited voice. ‘We’re going for a car ride!’
FOURTEEN
Charlie had something on his mind, something that he needed reassurance about.
‘Listen you two,’ he said, squeezing his head into the space between the two front seats. ‘What exactly are you gonna do to Nick when you catch up with him?’
Nick XR2 glanced at Tony, who just continued staring out of the windscreen, focussed, and in the zone. Nick Black was now on the M6 well on the way to Birmingham; they were still on the M1, some way behind, but gaining fast.
‘I mean, look,’ Charlie continued. ‘I know you’re pissed with him and that’s all good, but he’s still our friend…’
‘Not any more he ain’t,’ Tony said before taking a swig of Stella from the can he held.
Charlie then glanced at Nick to see him shrug indifferently.
‘So, what are you gonna do?’ Charlie repeated. ‘I-I mean, are you, are you gonna kill him? What about Carla? What are you gonna do to her?’
Silence answered him, and Charlie realised that meant something bad. ‘I don’t suppose it matters anyway,’ he said and fell back in his seat. ‘Marco’s gonna sort them and us out pretty soon…’
‘What are you talking about now, Charlie?’ Nick asked, staring at him hard through the rear view.
Charlie didn’t answer, just looked out of the window instead.
‘Tell him what you told me back at the garage, Charlie,’ said Tony.
Charlie shifted uneasily in his seat, and just carried on staring out of the window.
‘Tell me what?’ Nick asked, getting impatient.
‘Tell him, Charlie!’ Tony snapped.
Charlie suddenly sparked into life. ‘Marco’s back,’ he said, and his head twitched. ‘Okay? That’s what I told Tony, and it’s true. Marco’s back. I saw him.’
‘Don’t start that shit again, Charlie!’ Nick said sharply, giving him daggers via the rear view. ‘Marco’s dead. Stop your superstitious bullshit!’ He shifted in his seat, and both Charlie and Tony could feel the car speeding up as Nick had unconsciously put his foot down in anger. ‘All we’re gonna do is catch up with Nick Mavro and sort this out,’ Nick continued. ‘And whatever happens, happens. As long as we sort it out, get the bling back, then that’s all that matters.’
‘Even if one of us loses their life?’ Charlie asked.
Nick stared at him through the rear view with cold eyes. ‘Yes,’ he replied, and then began watching the road ahead of him once more.
*****
Nick Black stepped out of the small shop next to the all day café, the holdall gripped in one hand, something else clutched in the other, and a big smile planted on his face.
He returned to where Carla was sitting—a plastic chair that had been merged with a plastic table, inside a plastic building that served plastic food. There weren’t many people around, the odd pocket here and there, and when he looked around him, he couldn’t help but feel like he was in a school dinner hall after 3 pm.
When he got back to Carla, he took a seat next to her, that smile still on his face. He put the holdall down on the seat next to him, but didn’t let go of the handles. ‘I got you something,’ he told her.
‘What?’ she asked, a small smile now emerging on her own face.
Nick placed a postcard down on the surface of the table, picture side up. Carla looked down to see a white sandy beach that melted into a sea so crystal clear, she could make out a school of fish swimming within it. It met with a cloudless deep blue sky. A palm tree with overhanging leaves like giant wings sheltered a happy young couple from the blazing sun as they strode along the beach, hand in hand. The expressions captured on the faces of the couple reflected to perfection the words that danced across the top of the postcard in vibrant red, green and yellow lettering—SMILE JAMAICA.
Carla began laughing. ‘Where did you get this?’ she asked.
‘In there,’ Nick said, pointing to the shop he just came out of. ‘They got loads of ’em—Scotland, Germany, America, Hawaii…’
Carla glanced out of the windows that lined the cafeteria to lay her eyes upon a grey, overcast sky that threatened to spill a torrent of rain onto the population below. ‘Complete contrast to here, isn’t it?’ she remarked, and sipped her coffee.
‘Well, that’ll be us soon,’ Nick stated, indicating the beaming couple on the beach in his fantasy postcard. ‘So it won’t matter any more.’
Carla put her drink down and gave him a serious look. ‘We can’t go to Jamaica, Nick.’
‘Why not?’
‘Where are we going to live for a start?’
‘You said you got family out there, that’s a good enough start for me.’
‘And what about our families here?’
‘We can visit whenever we want. Do you realise how much money we’ve got in this bag?’ He leant in close as he spoke so no one else could hear, even though they were alone. He stared at her with big, sincere eyes. ‘Once we sell this lot, we can do what we like. Getting a plane back here whenever we feel like it will be like getting a bus. Fuck it, on second thoughts, we’ll move ’em all over with us!’
Carla laughed.
‘I’m serious,’ Nick said.
‘I dunno,’ Carla replied in an unsure voice, shaking her head. ‘I got a bad feeling…’
‘Well don’t. We’re gonna go stay with your cousin until we sell these, then we’re off. I don’t care where, as long as we’re out of here. And I tell you what, nothing would make me happier, believe me.’
Carla gave him a warm smile, and Nick felt a lot of his anxieties melt away. Deep down, he too was unsure how this thing was going to play out. Something at the back of his mind (I’m gonna fucking kill you) was gnawing away like termites on a freshly cut tree stump, telling him that something was going to go wrong, something was brewing (for what you did to me) and there was nothing he could do to stop it. But, one thing he did know was that to entertain such thoughts around Carla was a no-no. He had to be strong, remain firm, and stick to his plan, or he could end up losing everything.
Just a few days to sort it all out was all he needed, and then they would be free.
He glanced down at the postcard and the vibrant colours of freedom helped ease his anxiety even further. But, no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn’t feel completely at ease until they were well away from London. From England.
He sighed, and then replanted a smile on his face for Carla. ‘Come on,’ he said. ‘Finish up and let’s go.’
*****
‘You done well not to go into one last night with Maria, re,’ Nick XR2 said to Tony as they moved further up the M1. The GPS told them that Nick Black had stopped for a while, but was back on the road again. Nick XR2 had no intention of stopping, so they had gained a bit of ground, but were still around an hour behind. ‘If it was my sister, I think I would’ve gone apeshit,’ he added.
‘Yeah, well… violence ain’t always the answer,’ Tony said and glanced to the side, towards Charlie in the back seat, who thankfully had stopped with the Marco/superstitious mumbo jumbo.
‘So what are you gonna do about it?’ Nick asked Tony. ‘I mean we can’t just let the prick get away with this, otherwise he’ll think we’re weak, and he’ll just keep on doing it, maybe even worse stuff next time.’
‘Don’t stress about it, re,’ Tony replied. ‘Charlie sorted it,’ he added cocking his thumb behind him.
Charlie just watched the front of the car with calm eyes.
‘Charlie?’ Nick asked, confused. He twisted his head round for a split second to face him. Charlie stared blankly back at him. ‘Charlie?’ Nick repeated, cocking his thumb behind him just like Tony did a few seconds before.
‘Yeah. Charlie,’ Tony reaffirmed. ‘Went down to Mario’s café and kicked the shit out of him. Done him proper innit, Charlie?’
Tony put h
is palm up for Charlie to hi-five him. Charlie leant forwards and gave his hand a small slap before falling back in his seat, not wanting to revel in the fact he had put someone in hospital. He actually felt slightly ashamed.
Nick just continued to look nonplussed for a second or two. ‘Nice one, Charlie,’ he then said, and turned his mouth downwards in appreciation of what he was hearing. ‘Prick deserved it.’
‘Damn fucking right he did!’ Tony agreed and had a big gulp of Stella.
‘Yeah, well, I’m thinking maybe I did the wrong thing, you know,’ Charlie told them.
‘Why?’ Nick asked.
‘Just reducing myself to his level. I’m no better than him now.’
A few seconds of silence ensued.
‘Well, if it makes you feel better,’ Nick said, wanting to try and raise Charlie’s spirits. ‘We promise to talk to Nick Mavro first before we do anything else. Ain’t that right, Tone?’
‘Eh?’ Tony answered, not believing what he was hearing.
‘Ain’t that right?’ Nick repeated and winked.
‘Oh, right. Yeah, we’ll just talk to him, Charlie.’
‘You’re sure?’ Charlie asked.
‘Yeah, yeah. No worries, man. We’re just gonna sort this out like adults, believe me.’
Charlie fell back further into his seat. ‘I’m relieved to hear it. There’s no need to hurt each other.’
‘That’s right,’ Nick said, and glanced cagily at Tony, who was now staring out of the window with a distant glare in his eye.
Deep down inside him, Nick knew that was a load of old bollocks. Tony Savva was gonna do whatever Tony Savva wanted to, and Nick knew that he and Charlie would just have to clean up his shit like a couple of obedient servants.
And that was the way it always had been.
*****
Carla’s cousin, Jocelyn, greeted them at the front door, her face lighting up like Piccadilly Circus once she saw Carla standing on her doorstep.
They made it to Wolverhampton in one piece, and for that Nick was grateful. Every step of the plan they survived was a blessing. He had never been anywhere in the UK north of Watford, and to him, Wolverhampton—or the Black Country as the signs read—was like stepping into a time warp and going twenty/thirty years back in time. He kept getting this weird sense of being on the set of Coronation Street for every row of tiny terraced, brickwork house he passed. Jesus, he felt like some kind of alien. He tightened his grip on the handles of the bag, and pulled it in close tight to his thigh, looking edgily around him as Carla greeted her cousin with a big hug.
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