by Scott Monk
‘Stupid junkies,’ his dad said, watching them leave. ‘They try the same trick all the time. The girlfriend smuggles it in, she kisses her boyfriend, they swap the drugs via their mouths and the guards catch them doing it.’
‘What’ll happen to her?’
‘She’ll go to court and probably end up in a women’s prison. Most of them do.’ Turning back to Matt, he pointed. ‘You aren’t on drugs, are ya?’
‘No. Never.’
‘Good. I’ll kill you if you do. I don’t want any son of mine a worthless junkie or dopehead.’
Uneasiness buzzed in Matt’s chest. He didn’t dare tell his dad about the ecstasy planted in his locker. It had been hard enough telling Kelly, who’d phoned him shortly after hearing the gossip. She didn’t believe the allegations either. That meant a lot to him.
Instead, Matt played it safe with his dad. He asked a question that had been taunting him all week. ‘I was wondering if you could tell me about, y’know, how you got in here?’
Arms folded on the table, his dad hung his head, gave a sad little laugh then drew a deep breath. ‘Okay. I guess you have a right to know.’
Breathing in, his old man summoned up the memories, then blew out the first few words. ‘After you were born, Heather and me moved into my parents’ garage. It was cold and damp and smelt of petrol. The only furniture we had was a fold-out bed, a couple of chairs, a coffee table and a cardboard box we used as a TV stand, right?
‘I got a casual job at a fruit and vegetable shop, stacking cauliflower, serving customers, ordering stock. Ya know, that kind of thing. It was an easy job but I wasn’t keen on it. I’d always wanted to be an airport mechanic. The pay was bad too, but I didn’t have much choice, eh? I had a girlfriend and a baby son to look after.
‘Things weren’t too flash between me and your mum. We were never in love. We just met at a party, I scored and I thought that would be the end of it. I never expected she’d get pregnant. Anyways, one night, I came home after a shocker of a day. A customer had accused me of ripping her off. She complained to my boss and tried to get me fired. The boss warned me that I had one last chance before he sacked me. I told him not to bother and I resigned.
‘Your mum went crazy when she found out, eh? We got into a major fight that went on for hours. Finally, I couldn’t stand it any longer. I jumped into my car and headed for the pub. I just wanted to get smashed. I got smashed all right. This idiot in a red Mazda rams straight into me and the next thing I know I’m in hospital. Without a job there was no way I could pay our food bills let alone any medical ones.
‘Heather and me fought even more after that. It was always about money. She had to work as a checkout chick and I had to go on the dole. I kept looking for work but all I got was knock-backs.
‘I bumped into a couple of my school mates outside a TAB shortly after that. We were from a pretty rough mob and forever in trouble. My mates heard that I was short of cash and wanted to know if I was interested in making some easy money. I said I was in.
‘That “easy money” was a break and enter at a hotel on the central coast. Two of us raided the safe while the other two loaded up the back of the car with enough grog to give a footy team a headache. We netted about two grand all up. That translated to about five hundred bucks each. Forget about selling fruit and vegetables, right. I’d just found a faster way of making cash.
‘We hit a couple of chemists and TABs after that. Nothing big. Just enough to keep us happy and the pigs in jobs. Ya mum started getting suspicious about where all the money was coming from, so I told her I’d got a job as a fitter and turner down in Cronulla. She didn’t believe me of course, but at least we could pay the bills.
‘About two months later, my mates got nicked by a couple of rent-a-cops. They’d been caught breaking into a hot-shot lawyer’s place on the north shore. Funnily enough, it was the only time I’d bailed on them. I was at the hospital with you after you’d started convulsing. You had a fever or some such thing. The doctors fixed you up before me and your mum took ya home.
‘That’s where the cops were waiting for me. My so-called mates had turned dog on me and told them about all our hits. Good thing I saw the red and blue lights in the distance, eh? I dropped you and your mum off on a corner and said I’d left my wallet back at the hospital. I bolted right there and then.
‘I was a fugitive after that. I headed to Queensland. Without any money, I got desperate. I held up several service stations along the way. That was so stupid. It only left a trail for the pigs to track me down. They found out I was holed up in a rented caravan and raided the place. Except they got the numbers mixed up and arrested some joker three doors down from mine.
‘I learnt from that mistake. Things had to be planned. I met up with an old bank robber named Earl ‘Spinner’ McKay, who had served seven years in the slammer. He taught me everything I needed to know. Poor old Earl. Died a couple of years back. Probably paying for his sins right now.
‘Anyway, after that I was fired up to knock over my first bank. I staked out one up at Surfers. It wasn’t flash but it had the cash. I had everything planned, from walking into the bank to ditching the getaway cars. All I had to do was go inside and become a rich man.
‘Wouldn’t ya know it. I’d forgotten one thing—my balaclava. And there was no way I was going to waltz in there with all the cameras spying on me. Running out of time, I spotted a toy store down the road. In the front window was this black mask with a laughing skull on the front of it, right? It looked stupid, but it would do the job. So I grabbed some kid off the street and paid him a couple of bucks to buy it for me. I didn’t want the bird behind the counter describing me to the cops later.
‘I pulled on the mask, walked into the bank, disarmed the guards then grabbed the money thank-you-very-much. No one moved or said anything. It was kind of spooky. But I loved it. It was a pure adrenaline rush, eh? I was in complete control. Best thing was I walked out of there with ten thousand bucks. Beer money compared to what I’d steal in the following months.’ He grinned at the memories, but saw Matt’s concern and lowered his voice again.
‘It must have been a slow news day because I ended up on every television screen and in every newspaper. Some hack came up with the name Laughing Skull Bandit and it instantly stuck. I liked it too. I felt like Captain Moonlight or Mad Dog Morgan.
‘I laid low for two weeks before hitting two banks in a row in Brisbane. While the Ds were busy checking out my first job, I was robbing a second. Ha-ha. Boy, did they like me. I made the front page the next day and became an instant celebrity. Everyone was talking about me on the radio as I drove back towards Sydney.
‘I knocked off more banks there before moving onto Canberra, Melbourne, Adelaide then Perth. You should have seen the money! There was just so much of it. I could’ve retired after the first few hits but I enjoyed the rush too much. I started to live the high life, big time. I had cars, motorbikes, rich clothes, jewellery, women … The only ones who were making as much money as me were the psychologists who were forever on TV trying to guess my next move. I always laughed at them and did the exact opposite of what they predicted.
‘Things started to go bad after about four months. A couple of constables in Perth nearly nicked me one night. Some lowlife had broken into a house five doors down from my villa. The pigs were door-knocking for witnesses. When I saw them walking up my driveway, I panicked. I burned out of there in my Ferrari. They weren’t dumb. They figured it out and my secret life was over.
‘I was on the run again. This time my real face was on every front page and news bulletin. I had to dye my hair orange, grow sideburns and live out of my car for several weeks before all the heat cooled off.
‘Things were pretty depressing by then. I’d left most of my cash behind, not to mention my bikes and girlfriends. Feeling lost, I headed back home to Sydney. I was going to camp here for a month or so, buy a fake passport then catch a boat to Taipei or Bali. I’d just simply disappear.
>
‘Halfway across the Nullarbor, I started thinking about you and your mum. I always had feelings for you both but I’d tried hiding them. The last thing ya want when you’re a bank robber is any emotional ties. But I realised that I was missing out on seeing ya grow up. You were my boy; the only good thing I’d done in my life. So I made a pact with myself to see you one last time before I went overseas.
‘Tracking you down was harder than I thought. A couple of my old mates told me where you were. Problem was, they told the cops where I was too. There was a big reward for my capture but I never thought they’d turn dog on me. I was so wrong.
‘The pigs caught me while I was walking by a post office in the city. A girl recognised me and phoned the police. A whole group of them jumped me. I put up a great fight and knocked out five of them. I was a pretty good fighter. I’d always dreamed about being a boxer too.
‘One managed to get away and call for back-up. I stole his car and led half the Sydney pigsty on a road chase. There were helicopters and all. We went across the Sydney Harbour Bridge, through Manly, back through Parramatta then finally towards Campbelltown. It made good footage for the movie later on.
‘The cops played dirty, though. They rammed me off the road and threatened to shoot me if I didn’t surrender. What choice did I have but to give in? They cuffed me and put me in court. I begged your mum to come and see me, but she never returned my letters.
‘After that, the judge sent me here. They took away my life, my freedom, my mask and my chance to see you. I’ve pretty much been forgotten by the world ever since. Newspapers wrote about other stories and things moved on. Except in here, of course. Nothing ever changes.
‘For the past fourteen years I’ve been living with the greatest mistake of my life—leaving behind my son. Every single day I’ve wanted to see you again. I’ve wanted to hear your voice or kick around a football. They’re such simple things but I sacrificed it all. For what? This place. Great, hey?’
‘You’ll be out of here in a year, won’t you?’ Matt asked.
His dad nodded. ‘Yeah. And that’s why I want ya to promise me one thing when they do release me.’
‘Definitely. What is it?’
‘Make me a better man.’
The stadium detonated with thunderous cheering as the Doggies’ million-dollar rookie dove under the goalposts for a try. Blue and white flags, banners, scarves, stuffed toys, torn up programs and the club song filled the air as fifteen thousand spectators went crazy. Even the mascot and cheerleaders got into the act, shaking their tails in front of the coach’s box. Among the celebrations, Newcastle fans shook their heads as the Bulldogs mounted a second-half resurgence. Down 12–nil after forty minutes, they had arm-wrestled back the lead. It was 14–12 with a kick to come and thirty minutes of play remaining.
The kicker stepped back, ran towards the ball then easily watched it sail over the black dot: 16–12. Once again the stadium shook, as dozens of kids behind the goalposts chased after the errant ball.
The teams returned to their respective halves then waited for the ref’s whistle to signal play-on. The Knights kicked the ball deep to the Bulldogs fullback before the big hits and smashing tackles started again.
After the up-and-down week he’d had, Matt relished the opportunity to catch a game. The Sundance Kid nudged him as he finished the last of his hot dog. ‘Hey, call a tow-truck company, would you? Somebody’s ego will need a lift after the game.’
‘Hey?’
He followed Chris’s gaze to a nearby stand. Dressed in blue and white jerseys, Blackwell and his mates were cursing and abusing the Newcastle fans closest to them.
‘Didn’t they see the No Morons sign outside?’
Matt barely heard his mate. He was looking at Kelly sitting dutifully next to her boyfriend. Her long hair was pulled back through a cap, her tanned cheeks were striped with blue and white war paint, and both ends of her scarf cascaded down her round breasts and middle.
‘And you say I’m obsessed,’ Chris snorted. ‘If you stare any longer, mate, I’ll have to call an undertaker.’
‘Shut up.’ Matt laughed and pushed the Sundance Kid away.
‘You’re lost to us, aren’t you? You’ve fallen completely in love with her.’
‘Wouldn’t you?’
‘Mate, if I did, you wouldn’t have a chance.’
They grinned then returned to watching the game as the Doggies hooker made a break only to be ankle-tapped by a Newcastle second-rower. The fans quieted again and Matt eyed Kelly. She was trying to placate Blackwell, who had hacked off the Knights fans. Bad move. They were returning the favour tenfold.
‘So what’s the deal with her? Why does she keep going out with a loser like that?’
‘I wish I knew,’ Matt answered.
‘Chicks are weird, aren’t they? They always say they want guys who are sensitive, smart and funny but they still end up dating Neanderthals with too much hair gel. Meanwhile, the rest of us guys sit around going “Hello?”’
‘Tell me about it.’
‘My mum says she was the same with her first boyfriend. She says girls have to date jerks so they know what kind of guys to avoid next time.’
‘Yeah, but how long does it take them to learn that?’
Watching Kelly, Matt felt his heart accelerate. His feelings for her were growing stronger each day. He was excited and giddy when he was with her. He felt sad and fidgety when he wasn’t. During the week, he’d visited her at work. They’d talked non-stop for an hour as she served doughnuts to customers. They would’ve talked more if the manager hadn’t got stroppy and shooed him away.
The next day, Kelly rang him at his grandmother’s and invited him over to her place for dinner. Both her parents were going to the movies and Blackwell was out with his mates. When he put the phone down, Matt almost ran all the way from Balmain.
It turned out to be the best night. They cooked tortellini in a creamy sauce with bacon, chicken, shallots and cracked pepper. Matt made a salad and garlic bread to go with it, not to mention a stack of chocolate pancakes for dessert. Afterwards, they put on a couple of CDs and sang and danced in her living room using remote controls as microphones. They were so wrapped up in their impromptu concert that they failed to hear the storm outside. Lightning struck nearby and blacked out the whole suburb. Before Kelly’s parents returned, the two of them spent the rest of the night telling ghost stories.
A Newcastle fan lunged at Blackwell and the fight was on. Shirts were grabbed before fists swung through the air. Friends jumped from everywhere and joined the melee. Guards rushed down the steps to stop the biff.
Kelly grabbed Aaron’s arm and tried prying him from the fight. Annoyed, he shook her off before yelling at her and pushing her to the ground. She fell down hard on the concrete but got no sympathy. Blackwell kept swinging at the Newcastle fans.
Kelly didn’t stick around. Hurt, she climbed up the steps as the guards set upon the louts. Matt rose to intercept her when a large woman blocked his way.
‘Mum? What are you doing here?’
‘Looking for you. We need to talk.’
‘Can’t it wait?’ he asked, looking around her. Move! Kelly was about to walk right past.
‘No, it can’t.’
The chance to chase after Kelly was lost. He sagged back in his seat and watched her disappear into the masses. She was flicking her eyes dry with her left hand—definitely a bad sign. Angry, he snapped, ‘Okay, what?’
His mum looked at Chris.
The Sundance Kid pulled his cap down then rose to his feet. ‘I think I’ll go and introduce myself to those cheerleaders.’
He left and Heather sat down next to her son. Matt crossed his arms and focused on the game. ‘You could’ve waited until I was home.’
‘And when will that be? I haven’t seen you all week, Matthew. You’re always over at that woman’s place.’
‘I need my space, okay?’
‘Why?’
‘I just do.’
‘Don’t give me the cold shoulder, mate. You’re not the only one finding this tough.’
He snorted. As if.
‘And now you’re calling yourself Matthew Ryan. Do you know how hurtful that is to me?’
He remained silent.
‘That man almost ruined my life, Matthew. I felt like … Hey, don’t you dare turn your back on me. I’ve never done that to you, so don’t start with me.’
The crowd jumped to its feet as the Doggies hooker made a bust through the middle. Fans screamed, urging him on. Try! Blue and white filled the air again.
In the middle of the crowd, Matt sat unmoved. He wished his mother would leave. She was spoiling a great game.
She must have read his mind. Sighing, she shook her head then sat forward, ready to leave. ‘Okay, you win. If you want to sulk, then you’re not dragging me down with you. I’m getting on with my life. But believe me when I say this. I admit what I did was wrong. I should’ve told you a long time ago about your father. It was stupid of me to think that I could keep him a secret from you all your life. I should’ve known you’d find out sooner or later.
‘But that was the worst time of my life. I had a baby to look after, bills I couldn’t pay, your dad in court and reporters chasing me all the time. I didn’t want you to be victimised for the rest of your life. I told you he was dead so you wouldn’t suffer for his crimes. Imagine what would happen to your football career if someone found out about your father!
‘Can’t you see, Matthew? I did it all for you. You’ve got to believe me. I’ve always been there for you, haven’t I?’
‘Yeah, of course.’
‘And I don’t want to lose you. That’s what I’m scared of at the moment. I feel this is ruining us. You’re making me out to be the villain when I’m not. And I’m worried about all these bruises on your face, like you’ve been in a fight. There’s something you’re not telling me and that’s scaring me too.’
She breathed in and stared at the footy field. ‘I don’t know how to deal with you, mate. The more we talk about this, the more bitter we become. I just want to know what you want from me?’