by Mel Sherratt
Like a scene from a bad cop movie, Josie slammed on her brakes, parked up her car and raced over to him.
‘Hey!’ She shouted to him. ‘I want a word with you!’
‘Fucking hell!’ Sam cried, jumping away from her. ‘You scared the shit out of me, you lunatic.’
‘I’ll do more than scare you if you go anywhere near Amy Cartwright again, you little creep.’
Sam laughed, even if it was a little uneasy. ‘You haven’t got a thing on me,’ he said. ‘Amy was gagging for it. You can’t prove anything else.’
‘I don’t need to prove it. I’ve got Amy’s night-dress with your DNA all over it.’ Josie tried to stop herself from grinning. She sounded like a Crime Scene Investigator: Gil Grissolm would be proud of her.
‘That doesn’t mean owt,’ Sam spat out quickly. ‘I’ll say she’s up for it with everyone. Loads of me mates will vouch for me.’
‘Even Ricky Cartwright?’
At the mention of Amy’s older brother, Sam’s cocky demeanour changed. Ricky Cartwright was a fighter: they both knew he’d go mad if he found out what had been happening.
‘Is Reece your son?’ Josie asked next. The thought had been running through her mind all morning.
‘No, he’s fucking not!’ And with that, Sam was off. ‘You’re not landing me with that one,’ he threw over his shoulder. ‘I’ll say I never touched her at all.’
‘But you used that as an excuse to get her knickers off.’ Josie ran to catch up with him and yanked hold of his arm. ‘She’d done it once, she’d do it again? Is that what you thought?’
Sam shrugged her arm away. ‘Gerrof me, you mad woman. Look, I told you it wasn’t like that.’
‘No, rape never is from the rapist’s point of view.’
‘Rape?’ Sam cowered. He looked up and down the street, as if the word had been shouted, but apart from a car in the distance, there was no one around. ‘I never did that! You can’t say –’
‘Then what would you call it?’ Josie prodded a finger into his chest. ‘Making mad, passionate love?’
Sam’s eyes went to the floor.
‘You used her. She’s vulnerable and you used that for your own means.’
‘I won’t go round again!’
‘You’ll have to think of something better than that to stop me going to the police.’
Josie walked off, but Sam was quick on her tail.
‘Wait! Please, I promise I’ll leave her alone – I swear!’
Josie opened her car door. ‘You’ve just told me there’s no point in threatening you so I don’t have a choice, do I?’
‘What are you doing?’ If it were possible for Sam to go any paler, it happened then as Josie reached for her mobile phone. ‘Don’t call the pigs!’
‘But if I let you off, you’ll be round Amy’s like a shot.’
‘I won’t! I swear – please, I’ll do anything.’
His words were like music to Josie’s ears, but what could she do to make him understand his predicament? Her mind went blank, but she’d think of something in time. For now though, she’d let the hard man-come-mardy-arse stew.
R u ok, Kel? I heard what happened. Text me if u want to talk. J. xx
Although they’d been out separately on their morning calls, Josie and Ray got back to the office at the same time. After they’d parked up, Ray asked how Amy was doing.
Josie locked her car and shoved her files underneath her arm. ‘She seems okay, thanks. More to the point – how are you?’
Ray’s hand automatically rose to the split in his lip. ‘I’m okay,’ he said.
‘What happened to make you flip like that?’
Ray shrugged uncomfortably. He moved aside as a car pulled into the space beside him.
‘I’d seen Pearson’s scooter parked outside Amy’s flat quite often when I’d been on my rounds.’
‘That’s funny,’ said Josie. ‘I never saw it.’
‘It changed on a regular basis. Pearson would have a different one every few weeks or so. They were hot, I reckon. When Amy’s heating broke down a while ago, I suppose I started to feel sorry for her. She came into reception in such a panic, as if she was going to get into trouble, so I told her I’d call round later that afternoon. When I got there, Pearson came to the door, I could see Amy was uncomfortable around him, but when I suggested that Pearson leave while I sort everything out, he grabbed Amy’s arm and told me to go instead. I just saw red. That little bastard was up to no good but what I didn’t know was whether Amy was okay with it. So I barged in –’
‘You didn’t!’ Josie was shocked.
Ray looked uncomfortable again. ‘They weren’t, you know, exactly having sex, but I still told him to sling his hook. He told me to mind my own business, in so many words, so he felt the back of my boot up his arse.’
Josie smiled. That was more like the Ray she knew.
‘I meant metaphorically,’ he said, clocking her expression. ‘A job’s a job and I’m not losing mine over scum like him. I tried to talk to Amy about it and she froze up. And when I next collared Pearson, he practically laughed me off the shops. There were too many witnesses for me to have gone at him.’
‘So how did you know when he’d be there again?’
‘I kept an eye on those scooters. When I drove past last week, he’d just parked it up and was going up the path. He saw me looking and gave me the finger. That was all I needed.’
‘Ray –’
‘That bloody kid’s not mine,’ Ray joked, ‘if that’s what you’re thinking.’
Josie smiled. ‘That’s the furthest thing from my mind, I just wanted to know why. You always have this big macho attitude about you. Why help Amy?’
Ray looked away for a moment. He seemed to be concentrating on a rose bush popping through the railings, hell bent on pulling the petals off one poor flower.
‘She really got under my skin,’ he said. ‘Her face… it was so… empty. Void of any feeling. She reminded me of a lump of meat. Even prostitutes get paid for it.’
‘Amy’s not a prostitute!’ retorted Josie, annoyed at his insinuation. An elderly man getting into his car turned his head, wondering if he’d heard her correctly.
Ray held up his hand. ‘I was comparing, that’s all. But you know what I mean. She’s just a kid.’
Josie nodded. ‘I hope Sam keeps away now. I’ve got nothing to use on him, except reminding him what Ricky would do if he found out. If that doesn’t work, then I’ll –’
‘It’ll work,’ Ray said, with a nod of his head.
Josie frowned. ‘You seem very sure about yourself.’
They began to walk towards the staff entrance. ‘I’ve been checking into our Mr Pearson,’ Ray explained. ‘He’s been doing a bit of work with Scott Johnstone. Word has it he’s trying to get in with the Kirkwells when they get out, stupid bastard. He thinks he’s one of the main men around the estate because of it – but he’s only a kid. It’s a shame to see that he’s taking the usual route, but maybe we can catch him early. Or maybe he’ll end up in prison. At least he’ll be out of our hair then. You certainly scared him, though.’
‘Oh?’ Josie looked on in perplexity.
‘He didn’t give me any lip when I saw him yesterday. In fact, he looked the other way, which is unlike him. Usually he mouths off, no matter how far away he is. But yesterday he kept his head down, as if he wanted to be invisible.’
‘Funny what power a word like ‘rape’ can have,’ said Josie, feeling better about her little episode with Sam. If it kept him away from Amy, then it had been worth it. Sometimes it was okay to move down a level.
‘You’ll have to be very careful, Mr Harman,’ she continued, wagging her finger at him. ‘You’re going a long way to ruining your miserable bastard reputation.’
‘Don’t worry,’ Ray assured her with a grin as he took the steps. ‘I’ll be back to normal tomorrow.’
Kelly pulled herself together and went into work the following night. Now t
hat Scott had gone, she couldn’t afford to miss a shift. When Sally heard what had been going on, she threw her arms around her, causing Kelly to burst into tears again. Sally beckoned Leah over to the bench.
‘I can’t believe that!’ Leah was shaking her head after she’d told them everything. ‘I know Anne-Marie; she isn’t a slag. I wouldn’t be surprised if Scott hadn’t told her about you either. The sneaky bastard.’
‘But all this time?’ Kelly sniffed. ‘What an idiot I’ve been.’
‘Don’t say that,’ said Sally. ‘This isn’t your doing, you’ve got to remember that. How’s Emily?’
‘That’s the sad thing,’ Kelly replied, as Julia came over with mugs of tea for them all. ‘She doesn’t seem bothered. In fact, if I’m honest, she seems better now that he’s gone.’
‘That’s good then, isn’t it? With him having to pick her up for visits, it means you’ll be tied to him, so it might work out better if they don’t see each other.’
Kelly looked on in dismay. She hadn’t thought that far ahead.
‘I can’t deprive Em of her father,’ she said. ‘I’d rather be dead than see Scott on a regular basis but I would do it, for Emily’s sake.’
Sally touched her lightly on her arm. ‘You know that’s not what I mean. If Scott really is a loser, then he probably won’t want to fetch her. You’ve got to prepare for that.’
‘So what happens now?’ Leah asked quietly.
Kelly sighed and blew her nose. ‘I don’t know. I haven’t heard from him since he pissed off last night. I suppose he’ll be in touch soon.’
It was then that she remembered something. In his rush to get out, she wondered if Scott had remembered it too.
As soon as she got home, Kelly popped Emily into her pyjamas and they settled down together on the settee. It wasn’t long before Emily was sleep. Careful not to wake her, she moved her carefully to one side and went through to her bedroom. In the cupboard over the stairs, she moved some of Emily’s toys and looked to where she had last seen the box that she’d collected for Scott. To her surprise, it was still there. She pulled it out.
Scott must have been in it because some of the tape had come away now, making it easier to get her hand inside. She searched around, stretching into all four corners but there was nothing in it. Typical Scott, she thought, leaving me to tidy up his mess. She put the lid back on. Taking the box with her, she stepped backwards into Emily’s room.
It was then that she saw a small plastic bag shoved inside a game that her daughter didn’t use anymore. She pulled it out and looked inside. Then she gasped. Inside it were an old gentleman’s watch, two gold bands slipped through a gold-link chain, and three wallets. They weren’t the only items in the bag. They were on top of piles of twenty pound notes.
She sat on Emily’s bed and counted the money. Once she’d finished, her hand rose to her mouth.
The total came to six thousand, two hundred and eighty pounds.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Kelly sat on her settee in a daze. Where the hell had all of that money come from? This was more than the odd knock off bargain or earning a bit on the side that she was used to Scott doing. He must have done more than a burglary here and there to have thousands stashed away.
Then another thought struck her. Had the money come from more than one job? And if so, how long had he been keeping it away from her? And why the hell had he left it behind? Surely he still didn’t think she trusted him? Not after what he’d done.
She was desperate for someone to talk to, but there was no one she could trust. She couldn’t say anything about this to her parents. She couldn’t ring Jay. He probably knew about it, although he hadn’t mentioned anything to make her suspicious of him. She’d definitely have to keep it a secret from Josie. If Kelly was right and the money was from lots of jobs, then she might have given him an alibi. She used to cover for him all the time, say he was home with her when he’d been out until all hours.
Before she could think herself into a sleepless night, she hid the bag under the sink unit in the kitchen.
After a quiet weekend, Josie started off the week at a planner’s meeting discussing The Workshop. Her head, fit to bursting full of facts and figures, dates for completion and unit sizes, couldn’t spare any room to think of Kelly until lunchtime. It had shocked her to hear what Scott had been up to. She really wanted to call to see how Kelly was doing, but instead she sent a text message, reiterating that she’d be right over if she needed her.
Her mobile phone beeped moments later. Kelly had replied to say that she was holding it together for Emily’s sake and that she’d be in touch soon. Josie felt relieved. She’d always thought that Johnstone was a creep, but what he’d done to Kelly was far worse than she could put into words.
Yet, even if it had been terrible to hear Kelly so upset when she’d last visited, inside Josie had been jumping up and down with glee. If Scott did stay away for good, she was sure she’d be able to keep her on the straight and narrow. It could be the best thing that had happened. Josie felt so proud of her: she wasn’t even the Kelly she’d met in January, never mind who Scott had made her into over the years, resigned to her lot and not prepared to fight for anything else because she felt she didn’t deserve any better. Josie knew she’d have a hard job to get rid of Scott – you don’t get rid of scum like him without a fight. She only hoped that Kelly would be strong enough to stand her ground, whatever she decided. She made a note on her pad to check out the benefits he was getting. He wasn’t going to get away with anything if she could help it.
Her office phone rang next. It was one of the revenue officers asking her to visit a tenant who had rent arrears. Before she knew it, Josie was thrust into her work again. She had another eviction pending, one that she didn’t want to happen and was going to do her best to stop – the family had been torn apart by the death of their six-year-old son from leukaemia and, since then, everything had gone to pot. Josie hoped they would see her first. Maybe she could make things more comfortable for them over time.
Next, she conducted an interview with the Bradley twins. They were acting as if they owned Stanley Avenue again. Neighbours had been complaining about the teenagers’ shouting foul language, throwing bricks and bottles, scratching cars. Luckily for her, getting Gina Bradley onto her turf always subdued her, so it hadn’t been too much of an ordeal.
Then she gave Amy a quick call. She hadn’t seen her for a couple of days and wanted to know if she was okay. Amy had surprised her by answering the phone in a chirpy manner, letting her know instantly that she was feeling happier. It seemed like Sam Pearson was keeping his promise.
It was four thirty when Josie next checked her watch and she gasped at the lateness. Livvy had made an appointment for her at the hairdressers for five fifteen. She switched off her computer – stuff the groaning in tray and the overflowing desk; she’d better get a move on.
Despite the initial shock of being handed her own fairy godmother, Josie had been pleasantly surprised to find that Livvy hadn’t wanted to railroad her into anything she didn’t want to do. ‘One step at a time’, she’d said to her when she’d told her about the appointment. ‘First it’s a good cut and colour and then I’ll take you shopping.’ Josie felt nervous about it, but trusted Livvy not to fit her out like a teenager. Besides that, she had never shown an interest in what was fashionable, so she wouldn’t know where to start.
Home at last a few hours later, she retrieved her things from the back seat of her car before messing with her new fringe for the umpteenth time. The stylist had done wonders with her thick matt of straw. After telling him exactly what she didn’t want, Josie had left him to decide on a longer version of a geometric bob with a short fringe and, after straightening and smoothing for quite some time, she’d been left with a shine that would compete with any supermodel on any television advert. Add to that an all-over chocolate colour strewn with honey highlights, and her transformation was complete.
She
ran a hand down the side – it felt really peculiar to stop at her shoulder – and grinned. Now all she needed were the rude heels that Livvy talked about.
There was a whistle from behind her. Josie turned to see James at the end of her driveway.
‘Wow, you look amazing!’ he said.
Josie’s hand shot up to her hair again. ‘Do you think so?’
James nodded.
‘Thank you.’ Not used to compliments, she felt the colour rising to her cheeks.
‘I think I might have to take you out to celebrate.’ James threw her a flirty smile.
Josie blushed even more when she caught a whiff of his aftershave in the slight breeze. Because she was drawn to the twinkle in his eyes, she noticed a different pair of glasses, this time with a thicker frame in navy blue. A recent television advert sprang to her mind and she grinned. He must have gone to…
‘What’s so funny?’ James asked.
‘Nothing,’ she told him. ‘I was just admiring your glasses.’
‘And I thought you were admiring me. Hey, I don’t suppose you fancy joining me tonight?’ he questioned. ‘I’m going out with a few friends for something to eat. It’s a kind of farewell meal as I’m off to America tomorrow for a while. I’m overseeing a project there – bit annoyed that I’ll miss the birth of my first nephew or niece as Louise shows no signs of having the baby yet. I’m sure one more bum on a seat wouldn’t make a difference.’
Josie was taken aback. It would be so easy to say yes. She hadn’t eaten since dinner time and she felt as if she wanted to show off her new image. But to go out with someone she barely knew, in the company of his friends? She’d feel like a fish out of water.
‘I’ve got a lot to do tonight,’ she smiled, hoping that he wouldn’t be offended by her refusal. ‘Some other time, perhaps?’
James nodded. ‘I’ll hold you to that – in exactly two months.’ He pulled out his wallet and handed her a business card. ‘Maybe we could keep in touch via email? Do you have a card with your details too?’