by K Leitch
‘You make sure you do Hillary, you make sure you do,’ Trevor began, he broke off as Gordon, who had been summoned over by a fierce glare from his wife, came over to join them.
Gordon greeted Trevor and took him away from his wife and over to the bar to get him a drink.
Trevor was just making inroads into his first beer of the evening when he heard his name being shrieked from the other side of the room. Trevor looked towards the screeching voice and then swore under his breath as a very drunk Jenifer Booty came lurching over towards him.
‘Trevor darling,’ she cried again in his ear before pulling him into crushing hug which brought him into extremely close contact with her enormous silicone boobs.
‘Hi Jenny,’ he said once he’d disentangled himself, ‘you seem to be enjoying yourself, Roger not here?’
‘Ha! That fucking waste of space,’ Jenny slurred, speaking of her husband. ‘Told him to fucking stay at home, best fucking place for him darling…bloody miserable git, so I’m going to have a good time.’ Her eyes narrowed as she looked at Trevor. ‘So where’s your gorgeous wife tonight Trev? I saw you come in all on your lonesome…looking after the baby is she?’
Trevor swallowed down his irritation, Jenifer Booty was hard enough to take when she was sober let alone drunk off her head. ‘No she’s not feeling too good actually, I told her to stay in bed try and get some rest.’
‘Ooh so Trevor’s got a free pass has he?’ Jenny slurred moving closer to Trevor, ‘You know I’ve always found you incredibly attractive Trev…you know that don’t you? And I think you’ve always had a bit of a soft spot for me haven’t you?’
Trevor looked round desperately for some sort of escape but Jenny pulled him back towards her again, ‘Oh come on Trevor don’t be shy, it’s ok, I have that effect on men…and let’s face it you’re a real man aren’t you?’ she stuck her tongue in Trevor’s ear.
‘Ooh I bet you look fucking hot in your bike leathers don’t you Trev?’ Jenny whispered, ‘I thought about that a lot after Lucy told me she’d got you the bike. I could just see it, tight black leather trousers, white vest plastered to your chest your legs wrapped round that powerful machine…phwaw…makes me wet just thinking about it.’
Trevor pulled away confused, ‘What the fuck are you talking about Jenny?’ he asked with a puzzled frown.
‘Shit!’ Jenny slapped her hands over her mouth and giggled, ‘Oh God, I promised Lucy I wouldn’t say anything, fuck…me and my big mouth. Listen, forget I said anything about it, just act surprised she’ll never know…when is your birthday anyway?’
Trevor stiffened as he suddenly realised the importance of what Jenny was saying. Grabbing her by her shoulders he forced her round in front of him. ‘You’d better tell me what you’re talking about right now Jenny, or I swear I’m going to take you outside and beat it out of you,’ he hissed between clenched teeth.
‘Ow…ow you’re bloody hurting me…get off,’ Jenny squealed wriggling in his grasp.
‘Start talking you sad bint…when did you see Lucinda…come on, when?’ Trevor was barely holding onto his temper.
‘A few weeks ago…I don’t know exactly…ow, stop it Trevor you’re scaring me.’
‘Where? Where Jenny…think,’ he said ignoring her.
‘If you let me go I’ll tell you,’ she shouted pulling out of his grasp, a couple of party guests looked their way at her yell, but turned away when they saw who it was…bloody Jenny Booty was always behaving badly…pity her poor husband.
Trevor pushed her out towards the patio doors that led to the garden, once outside he turned to her again.
‘Sorry,’ he said rubbing her arms, ‘I didn’t mean to hurt you but it is really important you see that you tell me where and when you spoke to Lucinda.’
Slightly mollified Jenny said, ‘Yes well that’s all very well Trevor but there was no need to get so fucking weird,’ she grumbled. ‘If you must know I met her in M&S a few weeks back, she asked me not to tell you because she was buying you a surprise for your birthday…a fucking Harley Davison would you believe,’ she said with a curl of her lip. ‘I gather that was a lie…I knew there was more to it, I said as much to Christopher she looked really shifty.’
‘Where?’ Trevor said interrupting her, ‘where did you see her?’
‘Oh God I can’t remember,’ Jenny began flinging her arms in the air, ‘somewhere in Surrey, um…Redhill or Redbush, something like that. I know it wasn’t far from Godstone because I’ve got an old school friend that lives there…Redbank! That was it Redbank in Surrey.’ Jenny narrowed her eyes, ‘Why are you so desperate to know anyway Trevor. You don’t think our lovely Lucy has been playing away do you?’ she asked eager for some gossip.
Trevor grabbed her by her shoulders again and pushed roughly up against a wall. ‘Now you listen to me you drunken old slut, if I ever hear that you’ve spread rumours like that about Lucinda I’ll find you and I’ll make you pay…do you understand?’
‘Yes…shit Trevor I was only joking, there’s no need to get nasty,’ Jenny said shakily. ‘Fucking hell I pity your poor wife if this is how you treat women,’ she muttered pulling away from his grasp.
‘Just you fucking remember what I said Jennifer…not a word, okay?’ Trevor growled before he turned his back on her and went back to the party. He only stayed a little while longer, he couldn’t contain his suppressed excitement. At last he had his first real clue, Redbank in Surrey.
‘Don’t you get too comfortable Lucy my girl,’ he thought to himself with a smile as he drove home, ‘I’m coming for you…not long now and you’ll be back where you belong.’
CHAPTER 45
Ruben Davies lay back on the grass and closed his eyes. He had come up to the old airfield to try and get away from his mum going on and on at him about his recent run in with the police. It was a beautiful day and the sun had warmed and relaxed his body but his mind was still racing. Next week he was to appear in court for the theft of a laptop and handbag. It was so unfair, he’d only done a couple of jobs to pay off Herbert. It was his mum that had borrowed the five hundred quid from the Twees to pay her rent arrears that had started it all. Of course she hadn’t been able to pay the money back and they’d had that nutter Janey coming round at all hours shouting the odds and threatening Mum. Finally Herbert had said that if Ruben did a few jobs for him they’d call it quits. Bloody typical that he’d be the one that had got caught and ended up in court for it, mind you Herbert had said he’d see him right if he went down, just as long as he kept his mouth shut.
You had to hand it to Herbert and his old lady you’d think with their kids missing that they’d be too upset to carry on with the business like, but no, it seemed like it was business as usual. Ruben had his own ideas about Lola and Lewis anyway, no way were they really missing. Lola had told him about her uncle Damien and his caravan in Rye, he’d bet you anything you like that that’s where they were hiding out. Probably taken one too many beatings from Janey…fucked off to give the old cow a scare. Ha! That would be bloody typical of Lewis, he’d love to think of everyone running around like fucking headless chickens worried out of their brains…cruel, that’s what Lewis was. Anyway Ruben couldn’t give a toss where they’d gone, he was just keeping out of his mum’s way and laying low until his court case. With any luck he’d get a suspended sentence, maybe a bit of community service…piece of piss.
Ruben sat up and dragged his ruck-sack over to him. Un-zipping the front pocket he pulled out his mobile and a Mars bar and after unwrapping the chocolate he went on to Facebook, flicking through some of the latest posts. Out of the corner of his eye a few minutes later he spotted someone, a man, coming out from the back of one of the gardens that butted the airfield. Ruben started watching him because he was walking in a very shifty way, looking around him all the time as he went as if he was afraid of being followed. As he got closer Ruben recognised the man, it was that weirdo Billy Hobbs, what the hell was he doing out here on the airfield
? From where Ruben was sitting he knew he would have been well hidden from Billy, so he kept an eye on him. Everyone knew Billy was a retard but they left him alone because he had a temper and was built like a brick shit house so you didn’t want to mess with him. ‘I bet he comes up here for a sneaky wank,’ Ruben thought to himself with a smirk, ‘he’s probably got a stash of porno mags hidden in one of the old shelters.’
As it happened it looked like he could have been right, because Billy was indeed heading towards one of the old shelters. Ruben watched as he stopped and looked all around him again, before pulling back the rusty old bolts and heading inside.
‘Ha! Knew it,’ Ruben laughed to himself before lying back on the grass again. He took a selfie whilst pulling a grotesque face and posted it on his timeline, laughing at some of the responses he got from his friends who were obviously also trawling Facebook.
He was just about to undo his trousers and take a more explicit picture, when he spotted Billy coming back out of the shelter. He seemed to be carrying a couple of empty water bottles and once again he checked all around him as he pushed the bolts back into place and walked cautiously back towards the gardens. Once Ruben was sure that Billy had gone, he decided to go and see what he’d got hidden in that shelter. He jumped on his bike and rode over to the grass covered mounds. There were two doors at the entrance to the shelters but it was obvious that one of them hadn’t been touched since the Second World War, the other one, however, had definite signs of recent use.
Ruben suddenly felt a bit nervous, as if the ghosts of all those that had sheltered here were watching his every move and warning him off.
‘Oh stop being such a fucking pussy,’ he said to himself as he pulled back the two heavy bolts and pulled open the door that led down to the underground room.
The stink of sweat and old piss hit him as he got to the bottom of the steps, making him swear and put a hand over his nose and mouth. He couldn’t see very much, even with the door open the room was incredibly dark and airless. He took out his lighter and a flame sprang to life illuminating a small area in front of him. There seemed to be a pile of rags to one side of the room and a mass of rubbish under foot. Old bottles and crisp packets crunched under his feet as he edged into the back space. Why the hell would that nutter Billy Hobbs want to come here?
Suddenly a movement from the bundle of old rags made him jump back squealing in fright. What was it…rats! There were fucking rats in here, Ruben hated rats, he turned to go….
‘Lewis…Lewis,’ Ruben stopped in his tracks, hardly daring to breathe at the faint mutterings coming from those rags.
Sweat was running down the back of his neck and his hands were trembling as he slowly turned back around and clicked on the lighter once more, holding it out in front of him. With trembling fingers he carefully pulled back a corner of the filthy old blanket in front of him.
‘Oh fuck…oh my good God…’ he yelped and jumped backwards as Lola Twee’s bedraggled and emaciated face came into view.
At the sound of his voice she turned vacant eyes towards him and held out a filthy hand, ‘Lewis…I’m so cold Lewis,’ she said faintly, her words slurring as her eyes closed again and she slumped back down.
‘Fuck…fuck,’ was all Ruben could think to say. None of this made any sense, why would Billy Hobbs be keeping Lola in an old air raid shelter, unless he was fiddling with her? That sounded about right. He’d always thought the stupid knob was a fucking pervert.
Without a second thought, Ruben went over to where Lola lay and tried to help her up, this was no easy feat as she was completely out of it and began to struggle and scream at him.
‘Come on girl,’ he said to her as he caught her under her arms, ‘let’s get you out of here…fucking hell you stink Lola…come on push up with your feet so that I can help you out. Come on Lola you want to go ‘ome don’t ya?’
Lola opened her eyes at that, ‘Home…going home…NO…NO AARRGGH,’ she screamed looking over Ruben’s shoulder.
Ruben caught a movement right behind him, just before his head exploded with pain and he fell to the floor unconscious.
Lola continued to scream as Billy dragged Ruben’s inert body over to the edge of the room.
‘You stupid boy,’ Flora shouted at Billy, ‘I have told you repeatedly not to come here unless I’m with you. Have you been touching her again you filthy boy…have you?’ she repeated her voice turning even shriller.
‘No, no I only look at her Miss Metcalf I promise,’ Billy said close to tears, ‘I just look…I didn’t touch her.’
‘Well, see what your disobedience has brought about Billy Hobbs…who is he anyway?’
‘I think it’s Ruben Miss Metcalf…he goes about with the Twees.’
Flora curled her lip, ‘Just more scum then, you’ll have to take care of him but it’s a damn nuisance Billy and I’m very cross…you will be punished for this you understand?’
Billy dissolved into noisy tears, as he nodded and hung his head.
‘I will not tolerate disobedience Billy you know that don’t you?’ Flora went on sternly.
Billy nodded again his tears flowing and his nose running.
‘Pass me the switch Billy and hold out your hands.’
Billy picked up the thin cane that he’d left by the door of the shelter and handed it to Flora. Then he shakily held out his hands, palms up, and waited for his punishment.
CHAPTER 46
‘Right settle down you lot,’ Frank said as he followed Obie out of his little office, ‘it seems like our vigilante has struck again. Last night 54 year old Bob Simmonds was attacked as he walked his dog on Kenley common. He was beaten with a cane on his back and his face, one of the blows came perilously close to his eyes he was lucky he wasn’t blinded. He was told by his attacker that he was being punished for using foul language and lack of respect towards the elderly.’
‘Bloody hell it was a good thing no one heard me arguing with my old mum the other week, I’d have been black and blue,’ Midge piped up.
‘You’re just lucky he’s not punishing people for lack of fashion sense mate, you’d have been a definite target if he’d clapped eyes on those trousers,’ Sam laughed as Midge spluttered indignantly in defence of his tan coloured skinny jeans.
‘Yes well,’ Frank said loudly bringing them back to order, ‘we did glean something that might be useful when talking to Mr Simmonds though. He works for British Gas, reading the metres, and his round that day had been along Jessop Street, Waldour Way and Fernley Crescent…’
‘Fernley Crescent again,’ Obie repeated, ‘surely this can’t be just coincidence Frank?’
‘What the hell is in Fernley Crescent that could possibly link this vigilante nutter and the disappearance of those kids?’ Mandy asked, ‘We can’t be thinking the two crimes are linked can we sir?’
Obie sighed, ‘I must admit it does seem unlikely Mandy, but I can’t help thinking that there is some connection somewhere along the line, it just seems too coincidental that Fernley Crescent keeps coming up in our investigations.’
‘Right, let’s go through it again, see if anything jumps out at us,’ Frank said turning back to the white board. For the next half an hour the team went through piece by piece the evidence that they had accrued the written statements that they’d taken… nothing jumped out at them.
Obie was reading the statements taken from the vigilante victims, ‘Mandy,’ he said looking up at her a while later. ‘In her statement, Hilda Clegg’s daughter said her mum had been arguing with someone at the supermarket.’
‘Yes…um, Flora Metcalf.’
‘Not her again... has anyone managed to speak to this woman yet?’ Obie said to the room in general.
‘We’ve tried several times sir,’ Midge said. ‘She’s not been home, last time we left a message with her gardener, asking her to get in touch, but so far she hasn’t.’
‘Wasn’t she the woman that reported some kids were terrorising her in her home, did w
e ever get to the bottom of that?’ Frank put in.
‘The very same Frank, and no we never found out who it was, because apparently whoever it was got bored and stopped doing it,’ Mandy said.
‘Yes, we know all that, but coming back to what I was originally going to ask you,’ Obie persisted, ‘did she mention which supermarket…Hilda’s daughter I mean, not Flora Metcalf, did she say in her statement?’
Mandy clicked a few buttons on her computer key pad, ‘Yes and we spoke to the manager sir, it was the Quickmart on Jessop street.’
‘Jessop Street is just around the corner from Fernley Crescent isn’t it?’ Obie said warming to his theme. ‘What about those kids, the two boys who were attacked, Zack Fletcher and Michael Prentice, do we know where they had been, in the days before the attacks?’
Mandy shook her head, ‘No we didn’t ask specifically sir.’
‘Well I think we should don’t you?’ Obie said, ‘I’ll leave that with you Mandy. We already have two victims that have been in and around that area on the days leading up to their attacks, add to that the fact that we know that Lewis Twee was heading in that direction on the night that he and his sister disappeared…what are we overlooking, there must be something.’ Obie ran his hand through his hair distractedly.
‘Okay,’ Frank said, ‘what do we know about Fernley Crescent? Its residents are for the most part elderly, it is made up of a few bungalows and retirement flats…what about people working at the retirement flats, there must be a warden or something mustn’t there? Have we spoken to them yet?’
‘We’ve had no reason to have we?’ Sam said, ‘We did a door to door in the flats when we were asking about the Twee kids, but we’re talking about elderly people Frank, some of them can hardly get around let alone attack anyone with a cane.’
Frank nodded, ‘I know it all seems really unlikely but my gut is telling me that somebody on Fernley Crescent knows more about all of this than they’re letting on.’
‘So,’ said Obie, ‘we start again, we go back to Fernley Crescent, we ask more questions and I think we should start with this Ms Flora Metcalf, because her name just keeps cropping up again and again and this time we’ll make sure she’s in.’