* * *
Clint stepped out of the police station and blinked in the sudden darkness. Patterson followed him out, a few steps behind him, her eyes watching him closely.
“Remember, you’re only getting out because you gave us so much,” she said, as Clint turned to face her. “You’ll still need to show up for your court hearing.”
Clint nodded, only half-listening.
“When will Troy get arrested?” he asked.
Patterson looked frustrated.
“We’ve sent off for the arrest warrant. It shouldn’t take too long. Still, you’ll need to keep a low profile until we’ve brought him in.”
“You don’t think he’ll get tipped off?” Clint asked.
Suddenly, everything seemed like a bad idea. The two hours he’d spent in the station, answering detailed questions whilst the tape recorder clicked over and Patterson took notes, had felt so secure that he had been certain he was doing the right thing.
Now that he was standing out in the open, the streetlights casting an orange glow down on them, unknown cars passing on the road behind them, everything seemed menacing.
“I don’t think so,” Patterson said sternly. “But you should still keep a low profile. When the police turn up, things could get ugly.”
Clint nodded and held out his hand. Patterson shook it and smiled for the first time that evening.
“Thank you Clint,” she said. “And good luck.”
“You too,” he nodded.
As Patterson retreated into the warmth of the station, Clint set off across the car park and down the road. He couldn’t be sure that nobody had seen him going in or out. He had risked everything and now he knew that he was in danger.
He pulled his mobile out of his pocket and turned it on. He had a message from Aurora. He listened to the voicemail and felt his pulse quicken. As the message finished, Clint broke into a run.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
Aurora watched the clock as the seconds ticked by. Her palms were sweaty and she ran a hand through her hair anxiously.
There was a pounding on the door and she flew down the hallway and peered through the peephole, before throwing the door open in relief. Clint jumped inside and pulled her into a tight embrace, kicking the door shut behind him.
His arms around her, Aurora felt her fear ebbing away. Her earlier thoughts fought their way to the front of her mind and she pulled away from him. He looked at her and she saw his skin was sweaty and his chest rising and falling fast. He had run to her.
Despite herself, she felt relief that he had made it across the estate to her.
“Brandy knows,” Aurora told him, her fear returning. She didn’t bother to lower her voice, her mother was still at the pub. “She came round and I told her I knew about Troy killing Shaniqua. She left and then I realised. I was so stupid, I didn’t think -”
“I’ve been to the police station,” Clint interrupted her. He looked into her face. “I told Detective Patterson everything.”
Aurora was quiet. She didn’t know what to say. She had not expected this.
“You’ve told them?” she said. “Have they arrested him?”
Clint shook his head.
“Patterson said to keep a low profile until they do, but he’ll find out.”
Aurora felt fear in her heart now. Her hands started to shake.
“But if he finds out before they arrest him, then he’ll -”
“Come after us,” Clint finished for her, nodding. “Neither of us are safe.”
“How will he find out?”
“Tyrese has contacts, he’ll hear about it before Patterson does, I’ll bet.”
“How long do we have?”
“I’m not sure,” Clint said. “Half an hour, tops.”
Even though Aurora had expected it, she still felt her breath catch.
“What are we going to do?” she asked, looking at Clint, eyes wide.
Clint paced, thinking. Aurora watched him. Her mind fought. Part of her wanted to take him in her arms and comfort him, but another part wanted to punch and scratch him for everything he had done to her life.
The silence was broken as Clint’s phone began ringing. He fumbled in his pocket and answered it. Aurora watched for clues as to what the call was about, but a few moments later, Clint had hung up and looked at her and she registered the fear in his eyes.
“Who was it?” she asked, dreading the answer.
“It was Tamar,” Clint replied. “Troy knows the police are on their way.”
Aurora put a hand to her face. Her whole body seemed to shake with fear and tension.
“He thinks that Zoe grassed him up,” he said. His voice was calm, but Aurora felt the panic coming off him in waves. “They’re going to go round hers.”
“What about Sienna?” Aurora asked. “And Zoe? What will they do to them?”
Clint grimaced.
“I don’t know, but if Troy thinks she’s grassed him up.”
He left the sentence hang in the air, and Aurora knew what would happen. He would kill Zoe and perhaps even Sienna. She was certain of it.
“We can’t let them do it,” Aurora stammered. “We’ve got to do something.”
Clint was pacing again. He stopped and turned to Aurora.
“I love you,” he said. She looked at him, surprised.
“What?”
“I love you,” he repeated. “More than anything else in the world. You know that, don’t you?”
Aurora nodded, her mind racing.
“Do you love me?” he asked. “Do you still love me? Even after everything I told you earlier, can you forgive me?”
His face was earnest and Aurora found herself unable to speak.
“Aurora?” he pressed.
Aurora stammered, before nodding.
“Yeah, I still love you,” she said, and found that she really meant it.
Clint sighed with relief, his eyes burning with tears.
“Will you marry me?”
His words tumbled out and Aurora wondered if she’d heard him right. He looked at her expectantly and she felt tears in her own eyes. The adrenaline and the thought of being with Clint forever, the tension building in her body, her shaking hands, clouded her mind.
“Will you?” he repeated, apprehensive.
“Yes,” Aurora managed.
Clint smiled and pulled her close against him, his strong arms cradling her and more tears came. She knew that he was crying too.
She longed to stay in his arms forever but she pulled away from him again. She looked at him and wondered how she’d ever doubted him.
“What are we going to do?” she asked. “We can’t let Troy -”
“We’ve got to get away.”
“Where?”
“Anywhere, maybe the countryside. Away from the Goldsworth, away from London.”
“We can’t -”
“We don’t have a choice. Troy will kill us if we stay. You deserve better, and so does the baby.”
Aurora couldn’t stop the tears or her shaking body, but she nodded. She knew that they had to leave. It was the only way they could survive.
“Pack a bag and meet me at King’s Cross in half an hour,” Clint said. “Make sure you’ve got your passport and stuff. Once we leave, we won’t be able to come back.”
“What about you?”
Clint looked at her and Aurora realised with a start what he was going to do.
“I’ve got to go to Zoe’s,” he said calmly, though she knew that inside he was frightened. “I can’t let her take the rap for me.”
“But they’ll kill you,” Aurora gasped. “You know Troy won’t let you walk out -”
“I’ve got to try,” he interrupted. “Listen to me, Aurora.”
Aurora fell quiet. Her whole body ached, but it was her heart that hurt her so much. She looked into his eyes and saw how serious he was.
“You’ve got to get to King’s Cross, okay? Get the tickets,” he said, and he sho
ved some notes into her hand and closed her fingers around them. “I’ll meet you at platform nine. If I’m not there after half an hour, I want you to get on the train.”
“No, I can’t go without you, I won’t -”
Clint held up his hand and Aurora went quiet again, her tears thick now.
“You’ve got to, Aurora,” Clint’s voice was calm, authoritative. “There’s a chance that I won’t - won’t - there’s a chance I won’t make it.”
Aurora threw herself into Clint’s arms and sobbed. Clint held her close for a moment, before taking her head in his hands. His eyes were watery but his face was stern.
“You’ve got to promise me, Aurora.”
Aurora looked into his eyes and felt her heart breaking.
“I promise.”
Clint smiled and kissed her tenderly on the lips. He turned and opened the front door again, stepping out into the cold.
“I love you, Aurora Curtis.”
His voice was so full of love and tenderness that Aurora felt her heart might break all over again.
“I love you too, Clint Jackson,” she said. “And we will get married.”
Clint smiled, wiping at the tears in his eyes, before setting off at a run down the balcony. Aurora went back inside. She wiped her tears away and tried to focus. She had half an hour. As she hurried into her bedroom and pulled a small travel case from under her bed, she thought about the future. She was leaving the Goldsworth at last.
* * *
Zoe lit a cigarette and inhaled deeply. Her kitchen was cluttered and she felt a pang of guilt for smoking so close to Sienna, having brought her and the cot into the room so she could keep a watchful eye on her whilst she had a fag.
She looked down at her beautiful daughter and felt proud, as she always did when she looked at Sienna.
She heard raised voices outside but ignored them. There were always loud voices, day and night, round here. The voices got louder and then there was a bang. Zoe jumped, dropping the cigarette. She hastily picked it up and brushed the ash off the table onto the floor.
She jumped as she heard the unmistakable sound of her front door being kicked in. She rose to her feet but there were already figures running down the hallway. Tamar burst into the kitchen, out of breath, and leant against the counter, closely followed by Troy. Troy’s eyes were alive with anger and his fists were clenched.
Zoe looked from one to the other, eyes wide and her heart racing. Troy smiled wickedly at her and bent down over the cot. As he cradled Sienna in his arms, Zoe let out a whimper.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Troy watched Zoe as tears rolled down her cheeks. Her hair was tied back in a loose knot and her whole body was shaking.
“Please, Troy, please,” she was mumbling, “Don’t hurt her, don’t hurt my baby.”
“Should have thought about that, shouldn’t you?” Troy said, smiling. “Should’ve thought about your precious baby before you opened your big fat job.”
He laughed as Zoe started crying harder.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Zoe said. “Honestly, I don’t have a clue.”
“Shut up piggy,” Troy snapped. “Or I might lose my grip on the baby.”
Zoe fell silent, and Troy found that he was enjoying himself. He had been snorting coke before he’d had the tip-off from Tyrese. It seemed somebody had finally caved in and told Patterson what had happened to Shaniqua, and he knew that Zoe was responsible. She had proven she was a liability time and time again. After he’d finished up here, he was going to teach Brandy a lesson about picking her mates more carefully in future. The thought of bringing Brandy down a few pegs excited him.
“Why did you go and tell her?” Tamar asked.
“She’s a grass, that’s why,” Troy said. “She doesn’t know how to keep her mouth closed.”
Zoe looked between them, confusion on her face.
“I haven’t told anyone, not about -”
“Who else would’ve done it?” Troy cut across her. “You’re the only one dumb enough to grass up a Banks brother.”
“I swear I didn’t, I swear on -”
“On little baby’s life?” Troy asked, looking down at Sienna. His smile was wide now.
Zoe looked alarmed, but she nodded.
“I swear on Sienna’s life, I haven’t been to the pigs, I wouldn’t -”
“Poor little baby,” Troy cooed. He knew Zoe was getting more frightened by the second. He lifted the baby higher into his arms. “She swore on your life, baby, you hear that?”
Troy looked into Zoe’s face and grinned. Tears were still pouring down her face and Troy felt the urge to hurt her more, make her suffer.
“Did you know, piggy, that when you swear on someone’s life when you’re lying, that person dies?” Troy asked, keeping his voice conversational. Zoe looked petrified. “So it’s only fair that little baby goes for a swim.”
Zoe screamed.
“No, please, I didn’t -”
Troy ignored her and dropped the plug into the kitchen sink. It was empty. He turned on the taps and there was silence apart from Zoe’s hysterical sobbing as the sink slowly filled with water.
“What are you doing?” Zoe asked, voice thick with panic. “Why are you filling the sink?”
Troy shrugged.
“You lied to me. You swore on her life, so there’s only one thing left to do,” he replied. “I’ve got to drown her.”
Zoe screamed and moved across the kitchen, but Tamar grabbed her and threw her back against the counter, winding her. Zoe gasped and struggled against Tamar, screaming as loud as she could. Troy licked his lips. He hadn’t expected this to be so much fun.
A figure appeared in the kitchen doorway and Troy spun around. Clint walked into the room, looking out of breath.
“You took your time,” Tamar said. “I phoned you like ten minutes ago.”
Clint shrugged and looked around the room at the scene before him.
“Please, Clint, you’ve got to believe me, you’ve got to stop him -” Zoe pleaded.
Clint crossed the room and looked into the sink. He pulled the plug out and turned to Troy.
“Bit harsh, ain’t it? Killing a baby.”
Troy looked murderous. He eyed Clint with mounting anger. He’d turned up late and then he’d disrespected him in front of Zoe and Tamar.
“She deserves it, the fucking grass,” Troy snapped, spitting on the floor.
“I think we should wait, you don’t know it’s her for sure,” Clint said calmly.
“Who else could it have fucking been?” Troy asked. “She’s the only one thick enough.”
“Could have been Amal,” Clint suggested. “He’s been locked up, he might’ve boasted about it. Or maybe Patterson visited him.”
“He wouldn’t,” Troy insisted. “I know it was piggy over there. It’s all over her face.”
“I didn’t -”
“Do you have proof?” Clint asked.
“I don’t need proof,” Troy said. “It was her.”
“It wasn’t,” Clint said, his voice low.
All eyes were on him now. Troy watched him suspiciously. Clint was turning out to be a right party-pooper and he wished he hadn’t told Tamar to phone him now.
“How do you know?” Troy sneered.
“Because I was the one who grassed,” Clint said. “I told Patterson everything.”
Troy was stunned for a moment. Zoe and Tamar were silent, watching the two of them. Only Zoe’s low sobbing broke the silence.
“What the fuck do you mean? Why the fuck would you want to grass?”
Troy knew his voice was shaking with anger. Clint didn’t move. His face remained impassive, except for a flicker of fear behind his eyes.
“You tried to rape my girlfriend,” Clint said. “You deserve everything you get.”
Troy was momentarily speechless. He looked at Tamar and Zoe, both open mouthed at Clint’s words.
“He’s lying,” Troy
said. “What would I want with that bitch?”
Clint was still quiet, and Troy felt uncomfortable.
“Why would he make it up?” Tamar asked in a low voice.
“Just ask yourself,” Clint said, addressing Tamar. “Who do you trust more? Me or Troy?”
Troy watched Tamar’s face and knew that Clint had hit a nerve.
Tamar looked from Clint to Troy, then moved towards the door.
He looked at Troy, his face unreadable, “You’re a waste, man.”
Troy felt his blood boiling but Tamar disappeared through the kitchen door and Troy knew that he had lost his last ally. He shifted the baby in his arms, her weight annoying him. He placed her back into her cot, not too gently, and turned to face Clint. Zoe hurried across the room and snatched Sienna up into her arms, clutching her tight to her bosom.
“You going to hand yourself in peacefully then?” Clint asked. “It might help you, when you get to court.”
Troy felt nothing but hatred as he looked at Clint. A glint of silver caught his eye. He grabbed the knife off the cluttered counter and spun around. Clint wasn’t moving fast enough. Zoe screamed as Troy lunged.
Before Troy could take another step, he was knocked to the floor. The knife flew out his hand and clattered across the floor out of his reach. His arms were being forced behind his back and he felt handcuffs snap into place against his wrists.
He was hauled to his feet and found himself staring at Detective Patterson.
“You’re under arrest, Troy, for the murders of Shaniqua Curtis, Wright O’Neill and Sasha Morton,” she said, a barely suppressed look of triumph on her face. “Let’s not add any other charges to the list, shall we?”
Troy glared at her, but he knew that he would have the last laugh.
* * *
Brandy watched the scene from the balcony outside Troy’s front door. Keskia had been unable to watch and had hurried inside, close to tears. Brandy took a drag on her cigarette and surveyed the scene. The flashing lights, men and women in uniform.
The Goldsworth Series Box Set Page 39