A Gangster's Grip: The Riverhill Trilogy: Book 2

by Heather Burnside

  So she exercised caution, treating Winston with polite indifference, like she would do with any of Leroy’s friends and business associates. Although it would be silly to ignore him, she had to make sure that Leroy was the main focus of her attention.

  The first thing Leroy did was walk up to her and kiss her fully on the lips. “Hi babe, you alright?” he asked.

  This effusive greeting was unusual for Leroy of late, and Jenny suspected that it was for Winston’s benefit. She caught a glimpse of Winston as Leroy moved away from her, and was concerned at how downcast he appeared.

  “Do us a favour Jen and grab us a beer, will yer? I suppose you’d better get one for this loser too.”

  Jenny was surprised that Winston now seemed the target of Leroy’s venom. She flashed a puzzled glance in his direction, and Winston responded by shrugging his shoulders.

  When she returned they were deep in conversation, and Leroy appeared to be telling Winston off. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  “Nothing for you to worry about. It’s just that this dick wasn’t man enough to do a job for me, so I had to do it myself instead. At least I had the balls for it.”

  “What sort of job?” asked Jenny, responding as she thought Leroy would have expected her to, despite Winston’s discomfort.

  “Never mind the details. It’s sorted now anyway.”

  Leroy pulled open his can of beer and took a giant swig, smacking his lips, while Jenny and Winston sat in uncomfortable silence. She was used to this ploy by now. It was Leroy’s way of making people suffer by forcing them to sit in an uneasy atmosphere. What should she say? Any questions about their day would encourage further criticisms of Winston. Where should she look? She didn’t dare look at Winston, tempted though she was, but she could see Winston looking across at her, out of her peripheral vision.

  Jenny had taken one of the armchairs, meaning that Leroy was sitting in the other armchair to the right of her, and Winston was sitting on the sofa, which was adjacent and to the left of her. In order to look at Leroy, Winston had to look past Jenny, making things very awkward. There was no other alternative because Leroy insisted on having his own chair, where he kept his cigarette papers, a small packet of weed and Tyson’s toys, all stuffed down a hole cut into the upholstery underneath the cushion.

  “I’ve got another job for Winston. That’s why I’ve brought him back, so we can sort out the details. So you’ll have to disappear for a bit while we talk business. I think this one shouldn’t be too hard even for Winston.” He laughed at his own misguided humour.

  Jenny was about to leave the room when he stopped her. “Hang on. Sit down a minute.”

  She did as Leroy ordered, then he sat forward in his chair and shouted over to Winston, “Were you eyeing her arse?”

  Jenny had a moment of panic, convinced that Leroy was going to confront them.

  “No, was I ’eck,” said Winston. Then, as if to add weight to his argument, he added, “What would I want to look at her arse for?”

  “What you saying? Are you saying my missus doesn’t have a nice arse?”

  “Course I’m not. I mean, I wouldn’t know; I don’t look at it.”

  “You don’t look at women’s arses then. You a bum-boy?”

  “No! I just don’t look at other women’s arses, I mean m-my mates’ women, women’s arses.”

  It was excruciating to listen to Winston becoming tongue-tied as he rushed to defend himself. Jenny couldn’t understand the reason for Leroy’s latest little game; whether it was because Winston had disappointed him, and he wanted to wind him up, or whether he suspected them, she couldn’t tell. Surely, though, if he suspected them he would just come out and say it. Well, he’d do more than say it; chances were he’d give them both a good hiding.

  Leroy laughed at Winston’s discomfort, then ordered Jenny to leave the room. Thinking about it later, she wondered why he hadn’t discussed the job elsewhere. Somehow, she didn’t think that was the reason Leroy had brought Winston back to the house. There was something about the way he had set out to make them feel ill at ease in front of each other. She felt he knew more about her and Winston than he was letting on, or he at least he had an inkling. Then she shrugged it off. If that was the case, there was no way he would let them get away with it without having his revenge, and that would mean more than just humiliating them. The thought of what he might do to them if he ever found out was too frightening to even consider.

  The next time she saw Winston, she asked him what the job was that Leroy had wanted him to do, but he refused to discuss it. Remembering how Leroy had humiliated him, she decided not to press him for more information. Instead, she was left to speculate. Knowing what she already knew, this caused her to worry more about what exactly Leroy got up to.

  Chapter 19

  Friday 10th May 1991 - evening

  Carl was busy at work. Normally he would be out selling at this time on a Friday evening, but he had another job to do. This was something that couldn’t be done while the children were around, so he’d had to wait until they were in bed. He couldn’t risk them getting their hands on the drugs, knowing that even a small amount could be fatal to a young child.

  He covered the dining table with a plastic cover so that any spillage couldn’t get into the wood grain. Then he sat down at the table and placed the packets of powder on either side of him. To his left he tipped out the packets of brown heroin and, to the right, the packets of another substance. It was a white powder, which the supplier in Moss Side had assured him would have a similar effect to heroin when mixed with it. The difference was that it had cost him substantially less than he was paying Leroy for his heroin supplies.

  Next, he set down his scales in the centre of the table. He poured out a bag of heroin in front of the scales and a bag of the substitute drug, then he mixed them together in equal amounts. The result was a lighter shade of brown, but that suited him, because he could pass it off to his punters as higher grade heroin.

  When he was satisfied that the two drugs were well mixed, he scooped small quantities onto the scales, keeping his eye on the dial to make sure that the weight didn’t go over. He pulled a small polythene bag from a wad secured with an elastic band and spooned the contents of the scales into it. Then he sealed the top using Sellotape.

  “What you doing?” asked Debby.

  “What’s it look like? I’m getting the supplies ready for the punters. Help us out,” he said, passing her a handful of the small polythene bags and a second spoon. “I want to get it done so I can go out selling.”

  “You’re mixing ’em, aren’t you?”

  “So, what if I am? It’s not as if the junkies are gonna know the difference. Anyway, my takings are right down since I’ve had to start dealing in Longsight. I’ve gotta make up the money somehow. And your habit doesn’t come cheap, you know.”

  “Leroy will go mad if he knows you’re skimmin’ the drugs,”

  “He won’t find out, will he? And you’d better keep your gob shut.”

  “Don’t do it, Carl; it’s not worth it!”

  He reacted by swiping her across the face with the back of his hand. “Don’t fuckin’ tell me what to do! I’ve been doing it for weeks now and nobody’s noticed, so why’s it a big deal all of a sudden?”

  Debby pulled up a chair while rubbing her throbbing cheek with her other hand. “You shouldn’t have done that, Carl.”

  “Well don’t wind me up then. You asked for it … Are you gonna get some of these bags filled, or what?”

  Debby obeyed him. He knew she would. She relied on him too much to feed her habit, so she was prepared to take whatever treatment he dished out to her, including the regular beatings. They sat filling the bags together until Carl broke the silence by going into one of his rants about Leroy.

  “You know, that Leroy really thinks he’s the dog’s bollocks. He’s got me and Winston dealing in Longsight while all the time he’s still down the Moss every night. He’s such a craf
ty bastard. He’s getting rich pickings, a mark-up from us and, if Mad Trevor or any of the other lads find out about us selling the H that we got from the Cheetham Crew, he can act as though he knows nothing about it.

  “So this is my little side-line, something he knows nowt about. He’s not the only crafty bastard around. Word’s getting around in Longsight about our gear, and by the time trade picks up, I should be quids in.”

  He looked at Debby for a response, feeling proud of his statement, but she remained silent.

  -------------------

  Sunday 12th May 1991 - afternoon

  Leroy was late for his meeting with Carl. He liked to keep him waiting; it kept him in his place, and let him know who was boss. As he approached Carl, he chuckled, noting the desperate look on his pathetic little face.

  “Alright mate?” greeted Carl.

  “Yeah, you?”

  Leroy got straight down to business. He had called at Carl’s home to collect his share of his earnings for the last week. When Carl handed over the wad of notes, Leroy counted it slowly while Carl waited. Satisfied with the amount, Leroy gave him a slap on the back, “Cheers mate; looks like it’s not going too bad in Longsight.”

  Carl didn’t reply, but Leroy could sense his festering resentment and decided he would have to keep an eye on him. If loyalty was going to be an issue, then he would have to set him a task that would test him. In any case, he’d already given it some thought and decided on the task before he came here. After all, there was no point in doing your own dirty work when you had other mugs to do it.

  “It looks as though Cheetham Hill’s working out for us, so we’re gonna carry on getting the H from there. They give us a good price on some of the other gear too.”

  “OK.”

  “There’ll be a bit of a change though … I want you to buy ’em in.”

  “Me? Why me?”

  “Because I fuckin’ said so!”

  “But what about Winston? Can’t he do it?”

  “Don’t make me laugh. He hasn’t got the bottle. He’s frightened of his own fuckin’ shadow. I sent him to give someone a good slappin’ a few days ago and he bottled it. I ended up having to do it myself. I think Winston’s got the wrong idea about what a good slappin’ means.”

  He allowed Carl to take in this information, then added, “Or are you telling me you haven’t got the bottle either?”

  “No, it’s not that. I’m just a bit worried about what would happen if Mad Trevor and the others found out what I was up to.”

  “I thought you were tougher than that. Why do you think I’m asking you and not Winston? Now you’re telling me you can’t handle it? You’re OK to sell the H that I get for you, but you don’t want to get it yourself. What kind of a mug do you take me for?”

  “No, no, I don’t Leroy, honest. OK, I’ll do it.”

  “You sure you can handle it?”

  “Yeah, course I can; just tell me what you want me to do.”

  “There’s nowt to it. I’ll fix the meet-up. I’ll agree the prices beforehand, so don’t let him put one over on you. Then, you just go with the cash, and bring the goods back. Easy as that.”

  Despite the simplified instructions that Leroy was giving, Carl knew there was a lot more involved. In terms of risk, this was about as bad as it got.

  Chapter 20

  Monday 13th May 1991 - morning

  Although it was not yet eight in the morning, it was already shaping up to be an eventful day for Rita. She had just come off the phone with Jenny, and then noticed the post had arrived. As she sifted through the letters she saw one from the hospital, and knew it would be the one they had been waiting for. Yansis was just on his way out of the door with Vinny when he spotted the NHS sign on the envelope, denoting that it was from the National Health Service.

  “Oh, Rita, why don’t you open it now, then I can read it before I go to work?”

  When Rita saw the eager look on his face, she knew he would be disappointed if she kept him waiting. She looked at Vinny for approval.

  “It’s OK, I can hang on for a minute,” said Vinny in response. “I’ll wait in the van.”

  She ripped the envelope open and scanned the letter. “It’s our next appointment; Thursday 6th June.”

  “That’s good news, Rita. It is not so far away,” said Yansis.

  “Yeah, only about three weeks.”

  She couldn’t help her lack of enthusiasm. This latest call from Jenny was troubling her.

  “I thought you would be happy, Rita. We will soon be able to find out what the problem is. Then perhaps we will be able to have babies.”

  “I’m sorry, Yansis. I am happy, but I’m a bit preoccupied at the moment. That call was from Jenny; she wants me to go round. She didn’t sound right. I think there’s something else troubling her.”

  “Why must you always go running round there, Rita? It isn’t fair. We have our own lives to think of.”

  “I know that, Yansis, and I’m sorry, love, but you know she won’t come round here. She doesn’t want to bring any trouble to Julie’s door. Things are bad enough as it is. You couldn’t drop me off, could you, and then follow Vinny to work later? I want to get there as soon as possible. She hasn’t phoned me this early for nothing … I know, I know, I shouldn’t ask you but …”

  She saw he was already regretting his hasty words. He didn’t usually stay angry with her for long. “It’s OK, Rita. I shouldn’t shout at you; I know it is not your fault. Let me tell Vinny what I am doing. I am sure he won’t mind.”

  “Thanks love,” she said as she planted a kiss on his cheek. “Oh and, Yansis? I am chuffed about the hospital appointment. It might not seem like it, but it just came at the wrong time, that’s all.”

  “That’s OK, I understand. Now let me go and tell Vinny, otherwise he will be very upset with me.”

  -------------------

  Monday 13th May 1991 - morning

  When Rita arrived at Jenny’s, a quick scan of the cars in the street told her that neither Leroy nor Winston were in the house. She hoped that the fact Jenny had rung her meant she had had the foresight to put the dog outside if it was at home, and cursed herself for not mentioning it earlier.

  Because of her concerns, Yansis came inside with her to make sure everything was OK. She wouldn’t have asked him to do so; she felt bad enough for making him late for work, but she was relieved that he had come inside. At least if the dog was there, she wouldn’t be on her own. Fortunately, it was nowhere to be seen. The only person there was Jenny, and once Yansis was satisfied that all was in order, he said goodbye and left.

  “Where’s Leroy?” asked Rita.

  “God knows! I don’t bother asking anymore. I’ll only get told to mind my own business. He went out yesterday, and took the dog with him. He often stays out all night. I think he has other women.”

  “Doesn’t surprise me. You alright?”

  “Yeah, you know.”

  “You didn’t sound too good on the phone.”

  “I’m not really but, well, it doesn’t get any better, does it?”

  Rita could sense that Jenny had something to tell her, but she wasn’t the only one. Rita had been putting it off, trying to decide whether to open up. But the more she thought about it, the more it seemed the best thing to do. Jenny needed to know exactly what Leroy was up to so she could have her wits about her. Although it would frighten and upset her, she was already in this situation, so there was no point hiding things from her any longer.

  “Jenny, there’s something you need to know. It’s about Leroy’s trips to Cheetham Hill. I’ve known for a couple of weeks actually, but you were that upset the last couple of times I saw you that I didn’t want to upset you even more.”

  “For God’s sake, Rita, get to the point! What is it?”

  “Well … have you heard of the other gang, called the MSC?”

  “Yeah, course I have. Winston said the Buckthorn Crew hate them. They’re enemies.”

>   “But did he tell you that the Buckthorns are also enemies with the Cheetham Crew?”

  “No, why?”

  “They’re friends of the MSC and, from what I’ve found out, the Buckthorn Crew don’t like dealing with them. So, it got me thinking about Leroy’s trips to Cheetham Hill. Do you think he could be playing both sides off against each other?”

  “I don’t know. Why?”

  “Well, maybe he can get drugs cheaper from them or something. I don’t know why he’d want to deal with them, but my point is that he might be dealing with enemies of his own gang. And if he is, how d’you think that will go down with the Buckthorns?”

  “Shit! I don’t know.”

  “Don’t get me wrong, Jenny, but it might be part of the reason Leroy was so keen to move in with you in the first place. Aside from being able to hide his drugs, he’s out of the way in Longsight. If he was still on the Buckthorn Estate, there would be more chance of his gang finding out what he was up to.”

  Jenny’s shock was evident from the taught lines on her face as she replied, “Yeah but, he was living in Longsight anyway, at his mam’s.”

  “I know, but I bet he wasn’t hiding drugs in his mam’s house. There’d be too much risk of someone finding them in a houseful of people.”

  Jenny stayed silent for a moment.

  “Are you OK, Jenny?” asked Rita.

  Jenny clenched her teeth, and took a deep breath, before speaking. “Rita, I don’t know how much more of this I can take. There’s something else I need to tell you … I think Leroy suspects me and Winston.”

  “Jesus, that’s all we need! What makes you think that?”

  “It’s the way he acts whenever me or Winston are in the same room as him. It’s like he’s deliberately trying to show us up in front of each other. He even accused Winston of eyeing up my arse the other day. He was trying to make him squirm just for a laugh.”

  “Yeah but, maybe that’s just how he is. Surely if he thought it, he’d confront you both.”

  “I don’t know, Rita; It’s hard to tell whether he knows or not, but he seems to be enjoying watching us both squirm for some reason. Maybe he just thinks Winston fancies me, I don’t know. But that’s not all … There’s something else …”