The Goldsworth Series Box Set

by Davie J Toothill

  “Fuck’s sake. How do you know all this anyways?” Troy asked.

  “Because I wasn’t coked-up all night,” Brandy said, “And I have eyes. Plus, Tamar saw them all lovey-dovey after the ambulance picked Zoe up.”

  “What ambulance?”

  “Zoe went to hospital,” Brandy said, “She was having her baby.”

  “Oh right,” Troy mumbled.

  “I might go down there later and see how she’s doing.”

  “You sure that’s a good idea?” Troy asked. “Last thing I remember, you were having a go at her about something.”

  “Yeah, but she’ll have forgotten about all that.”

  “If you say so,” Troy said.

  “So what are you going to do about Clint?” Brandy asked, “He can’t stay with Aurora.”

  “I’ll have a word with him.”

  “Yeah, because that worked so well last time, didn’t it?”

  “I said I’ll have a word, now let me get some bloody sleep,” Troy said, and pulled the covers back over his head.

  “I’m going out,” Brandy said. “I’ll ring you later.”

  Troy mumbled something incoherent and was asleep within seconds.

  * * *

  Zoe looked up at the nurse and shifted her weight in the uncomfortable hospital bed. She winced and remembered how much it hurt to move too much.

  “Are you ready to hold her now?” the nurse asked.

  “I don’t know,” Zoe admitted.

  She had thought, all through her pregnancy, that the birth would be easy and that motherhood would come naturally to her. Last night had proved her wrong and now she wasn’t sure what to do. So many people had babies and made it look easy, and Zoe wondered if something was wrong with her. Perhaps she had some deficiency that made her unable to hold her own daughter. The thought scared her. She had barely been able to look at her last night, the pain blinding her to everything in the hospital room.

  As if reading her mind, the nurse leaned closer, smiling.

  “Don’t worry, a lot of first time mother’s find this a difficult moment,” she said. “It takes a while to get used to the fact that you’re no longer pregnant and that you’ve actually got a baby now.”

  “Really?” Zoe asked, and the nurse nodded.

  “You did really well last night,” the nurse continued. “The birth had no complications. The doctor was very impressed. Most teenage mums have problems when it comes to the birth but you did well.”

  “Thanks,” Zoe said. “It still hurts a bit, though.”

  “That’s only natural,” the nurse explained. “You have just had a baby. It’ll take a few hours, maybe a few days, for you to feel a hundred percent again.”

  “Where is she?” Zoe asked. “My baby, I mean?”

  “I’ll just go and get her,” the nurse said and left the room.

  Zoe leant back against the pillows and looked out of the window. It was raining outside and she wondered back to the party last night. The argument with Brandy, the moment of terror when her waters had broken, finding Aurora and Clint in the street, the ambulance, the pain she had felt all the way to the hospital and beyond.

  There was a quiet knock on the door and Sasha bustled into the room. She was still wearing the red dress and had a cup of coffee in her hand.

  “How are you feeling?” Sasha asked, taking a seat beside the bed. “You’ve been asleep for hours. I was starting to wonder if you were in a coma or something.”

  “I still feel a bit tired, but I mainly feel good,” Zoe replied.

  “That’s good,” Sasha said. “You were so funny last night. You kept saying the doctor’s name wrong, but he didn’t mind.”

  “Have you been here all night?”

  “Yeah, I came with you in the ambulance,” Sasha said. “I stayed here and then I thought I might as well wait for you to wake up.”

  “Thanks,” Zoe smiled.

  “It’s just lucky that Aurora and Clint found you when they did.”

  “Yeah, that was lucky,” Zoe admitted. “Has my mum been around yet?”

  “Not yet, but she rang your mobile and I spoke to her. She said she’ll visit you in a couple of days when you’re back at the flat.”

  “I guess that’s something,” Zoe sighed.

  “Don’t worry, she sounded like she was telling the truth this time,” Sasha said. “She started crying when I told her you’d had a girl. She promised she’d come and visit you.”

  “I won’t hold my breath though.”

  “I’ll have my fingers crossed,” Sasha smiled.

  “How does she look?”

  “Who? Your mum?”

  “No, you idiot,” Zoe laughed, “My baby.”

  “She’s gorgeous,” Sasha said.

  The nurse reappeared at the door with a bundle in her arms and Zoe and Sasha both went quiet.

  “Here you are,” the nurse said, crossing the room to the bed. “Careful to support her neck and head.”

  Zoe took her baby in her arms and looked down at the tiny features. She had a sprinkling of red hair, just like her. Her eyes were big and blue and she clenched and unclenched her tiny fingers as she looked up at her.

  She wanted to say something to the nurse or Sasha, but struggled to find any words to describe her feelings. The words caught in her throat.

  “She’s amazing,” Zoe eventually managed to say.

  The nurse nodded, “I’ll leave her with you for awhile, then I’ll come back and talk to you about breastfeeding.”

  “Okay, thanks.”

  The nurse left the room, and closed the door quietly behind her.

  “She really is beautiful,” Sasha said. “An angel.”

  “Yeah,” Zoe agreed, “I can’t believe she came from me.”

  “Of course she did, you’re beautiful too.”

  Zoe laughed and Sasha smiled at her. A thought occurred to her.

  “Has Brandy been in?” she asked.

  Sasha looked uncomfortable.

  “No, she hasn’t been in yet,” Sasha said quietly. “Listen, there was actually something I wanted to tell you.”

  “About the fight?”

  “You remember it?” Sasha asked, surprised.

  “Yeah,” Zoe sighed. “I just wondered if she might have been in.”

  “I can ring her if you like?” Sasha suggested.

  “No, don’t bother,” Zoe said. “She can do what she wants.”

  “Exactly, she usually does.”

  Zoe and Sasha caught each other’s eyes and laughed. The baby gurgled and Zoe looked down at her.

  “Looks like she agrees,” Zoe smiled.

  “Have you thought about names yet?” Sasha asked.

  “I think I might call her Sienna.”

  “That’s a nice name.”

  “Yeah, I thought so too.”

  “It suits her.”

  “Yeah.”

  Sasha’s phone rang and she answered it and went to the other side of the room to answer it. She spoke for a few minutes and then returned, putting the phone back in her bag.

  “That was Aurora,” Sasha said. “She just wanted to hear how you were.”

  “Aw, that’s sweet of her,” Zoe said.

  “Yeah, she stayed with you whilst Clint came and got me.”

  “I know, that was nice of her.”

  “She’s a nice person,” Sasha said. “If only you and Brandy would give her a chance.”

  “I know,” Zoe sighed. “Will you tell her I said thanks?”

  “Yeah, of course.”

  There was a knock on the door and Brandy appeared in the doorway.

  “Hi guys, I just thought I’d come and check on you,” Brandy said, looking sheepish.

  “Great,” Zoe said. “I had a daughter.”

  “That’s nice,” Brandy said. “What’s her name?”

  “Sienna.”

  “Cool name.”

  “Well, I should probably get going,” Sasha said, grabbing her b
ag. “I should think about tidying up the flat before my parents get back.”

  “Okay, and don’t forget to thank Aurora for last night,” Zoe said.

  “No problem,” Sasha said, “Take care.”

  She left the room, only nodding at Brandy. Zoe looked to Brandy.

  “Why have you really come?” Zoe asked.

  “To see how you were,” Brandy replied. “Why else would I have come?”

  “Maybe to make sure I haven’t spilled the beans to Sasha or the doctors that we killed someone?”

  “Don’t be silly,” Brandy said, waving her off. “I trust you.”

  “You didn’t last night.”

  “I’m sorry about that,” Brandy sighed. “I just reacted like I always do. I’m sorry.”

  “Apology accepted,” Zoe said.

  “Thanks,” Brandy said. “So how was it?”

  “Having the baby?” Zoe asked, and Brandy nodded. “Painful. Really painful. But it was worth it.”

  “That’s sweet,” Brandy said.

  “You can sit down if you want,” Zoe said, gesturing towards the chair vacated by Sasha.

  “I’m okay,” Brandy said, looking uncomfortable and out of place. “I should probably get back to the estate anyway. Check on Troy. I’ll drop by and see you again though.”

  “Yeah, okay.”

  “See you later.”

  “Bye.”

  Then Brandy was gone. Zoe looked down at baby Sienna and wondered at Brandy’s motives for visiting her. She had said she’d wanted to see how she was but she hadn’t even looked at the baby and she’d barely stayed five minutes.

  Last night had changed things, Zoe realised. She could no longer rely on Brandy for protection. Now that she was a mother, it was time she took responsibility. She not only had to think about herself now but her daughter too.

  * * *

  Serena Patterson walked down the hospital corridor and hesitated outside the door. She had seen Brandy outside the hospital and she wondered if somebody else was in the room with Zoe.

  She pushed the door open and Zoe looked up, the baby in her arms. Zoe looked healthy, if a little tired.

  “What are you doing?” Zoe asked, eyes widening.

  “Don’t worry,” Serena said, walking into the room. “I’m just here to see how you’re doing.”

  “Funny how many people say that to me,” Zoe said. “Not everyone means it though.”

  Serena thought back to seeing Brandy leaving. Was it her that Zoe was referring to? If it was, that meant that a rift was appearing in this seemingly impenetrable wall of silence.

  “You had a daughter?” Serena asked.

  Zoe nodded, “I’ve decided to call her Sienna.”

  “That’s a beautiful name,” Serena said.

  “That’s why I chose it.”

  “She’s beautiful too,” Serena said, looking down at the baby, with rosy skin and beautiful eyes.”

  “Look, I don’t mean to be rude, Miss Patterson,” Zoe said, looking up at her, “But I know why you’ve come here.”

  “You do?”

  “You heard I had the baby, and you thought that you could pressure me into telling you something by suggesting me and the baby are in danger.”

  “Well, that was part of the reason,” Serena admitted. “You and your daughter are in danger now. You can’t just think about yourself, you have to think of your daughter too.”

  “I am thinking of us both,” Zoe said. “That’s why I’m not going to say anything.”

  “Listen Zoe, we can help you, but you have to let us,” Serena said.

  “I’ve heard it all before,” Zoe said. “My answer is the same.”

  “You and your daughter are at risk,” Serena insisted.

  “We’ll be at risk whatever we do,” Zoe countered. “But at least by keeping quiet we’re not in danger. We’ll be alive, and that’s what matters.”

  “Alive?” Serena repeated. She leaned closer. “Don’t you want better for your daughter? For yourself? Better than just being alive?”

  “Being alive is lucky,” Zoe said. “Especially on the Goldsworth Estate.”

  “I understand that, but I really think -”

  “Miss Patterson, I’m not going to change my mind. Now, I’m feeling tired, so if you could give me some privacy.”

  Serena looked down at Zoe and sighed. She nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her. It was frustrating but she knew that Zoe was involved somehow. That meant Brandy was too and Serena knew that Troy and Clint were somehow in on the whole thing. Something was going on, and she was determined to find out what it was.

  * * *

  Aurora looked down at her sleeping mum and wondered how much she’d had to drink last night. When she’d got back home after the party, Aurora had seen two empty bottles of vodka on the kitchen counter and two crumpled cans of cider beside the sofa, where Marlena was now snoring heavily, still wearing the clothes she’d had on last night.

  When she had gotten home, Aurora had given the empty bottles little thought. The other events of the night had filled her mind so nothing else could occupy it. The alcohol, Zoe having her baby, and her kiss.

  The kiss had been magical. Although she knew it was cheesy to think it, but Aurora couldn’t help herself. She had kissed other boys, but none of them had felt so right. So special. Clint had been gentle and tender, just as she’d known he would be, and he’d respected her. That was rare of most boys, but even more so on the Goldsworth.

  The thought of their kiss filled her with warmth, but Aurora forced herself to focus on the situation at hand. She surveyed her mother more closely, relieved that Marlena was snoring, meaning that she wasn’t unconscious.

  “Mum,” Aurora whispered, gently rubbing her mother’s shoulder, “Are you okay?”

  Marlena stirred but didn’t open her eyes.

  “Mum,” Aurora persisted.

  Marlena stirred again, her eyelids fluttering in the daylight coming through the balcony doors. She opened her mouth but nothing came out.

  “I’ll get you some water,” Aurora said, and retreated to the kitchen.

  She filled a glass with tap water and returned to the lounge, where Marlena was struggling to sit up. She gulped at the cool water and Aurora watched her mother with concern.

  She wasn’t coping well, and Aurora didn’t know what she could do for the best. Perhaps, she hoped, Marlena would pull herself together and find a way to deal with her grief.

  “Thanks,” Marlena muttered, after draining the glass.

  Aurora fetched another glass of water and then helped her mum to her bedroom.

  “Thanks,” Marlena said, after Aurora had undressed her and helped her into bed.

  “Don’t worry about it.”

  “How was your party?” Marlena asked, laying back onto the pillows, her eyes red and puffy.

  Aurora couldn’t help but smile.

  “The party was great,” she replied.

  Marlena nodded and closed her eyes, and Aurora waited until the sound of her mum’s snoring before leaving her mother’s bedroom and gently closing the door behind her.

  Aurora fumbled in her dressing gown pocket for her phone. She looked down eagerly, but there were no new messages. She sighed and sat down in front of the television in the lounge. Clint hadn’t text her yet, but she knew he would. After he had walked her home, they had shared another kiss. Not just any kiss, but a lingering kiss that had shown that neither wanted to leave the other.

  She switched the television on and flicked through the channels, turning the volume down so that she didn’t disturb her mum. Her phone vibrated and she grabbed it up quickly.

  It was a message from Clint. He wanted to make sure she was okay, and to reiterate that he had enjoyed last night and wanted to see her again as soon as he could.

  Aurora smiled and began texting back a reply.

  * * *

  In Flat 115, Clint waited anxiously for Aurora’s reply. He had waite
d all morning before sending his text, not wanting to seem overly keen. She knew how he felt about her, but he hadn’t wanted to put her off by being over demanding.

  When the delivery notification appeared on his phone, Clint began pacing the bedroom, ignoring Kojo’s look of bemusement.

  “Why are you doing that?” he asked, looking inquiringly at Clint.

  Clint looked at him in surprise, as if startled awake. Kojo maintained his gaze and Clint sighed.

  “I don’t know, bro,” Clint admitted. “Girls, I guess.”

  “Do you have a girlfriend?” Kojo asked, clearly impressed.

  Clint smiled.

  “Yeah,” Clint said, “Her name’s Aurora.”

  “From the estate?”

  “Yeah, the very same.”

  “When did you start going out?” Kojo questioned.

  “Yesterday, at the party.”

  “Were you drunk?”

  “Not when I asked her out,” Clint laughed, “Did I wake you up when I got home?”

  “No, I was already kind of awake,” Kojo replied, his smile faltering. “Dad woke me up.”

  Clint’s smile vanished, replaced by a grimace.

  “How come?”

  Kojo shrugged, “He broke the door.”

  Clint sighed heavily and sat down on his brother’s bed beside Kojo.

  “So that’s why the bathroom door’s missing.”

  Clint had noticed the damage when he’d got home but had been too drunk and happy over the situation with Aurora to pay much attention to how the door had been torn off its hinges.

  “Was he drunk?” Clint asked.

  Kojo looked uneasy, but nodded.

  “What did mum say?”

  “Nothing much,” Kojo whispered, “Dad just went to bed.”

  “So they didn’t fight or anything?”

  Kojo shook his head.

  Clint felt relieved that his mother and brother had been spared another run-in with Rakhul, but he still felt a surge of anger towards his father for drinking away money that could be put to better uses.

  Still, Clint knew that Rakhul’s hangovers were painful, two-days-in-bed affairs, which meant that they would all be spared his presence for at least another day.

  His phone chirped and Clint dived back over to his bed to check the new message, making Kojo laugh at his eagerness.