by Jacqui Rose
Not looking at Franny as she tried to carry on walking, Alice’s voice was a monotone. ‘I’ve made a deal. Now just let me go, Franny.’
Franny shook her head furiously, running in front of Alice. ‘No, no, no. You are not doing what I think you’re doing.’
Alice’s eyes were full of fear as she looked intensely into Franny’s face. ‘He would never let you go otherwise and now it’s over. Nico’s dead, but once Bobby finds out he would kill you too. Trust me, Franny, this is the only way.’
‘Alice, it’s not. It’s not! It’s not down to you to save me. I’m going back to Bobby, I’ll tell him not to take you, to keep me instead.’ Franny’s voice was desperate.
Weeping, Alice shook her head. ‘It’s not you they want. It’s me, and this way it’ll be over. This way you’ll be safe. You’ve all made sacrifices for me and now it’s my turn.’
Franny began to cry, something she had rarely done until this week, as her words tumbled out. ‘Alice, no, it’ll never be over if you do this. What do you think we’re going to do without you? Alice, see sense, this is crazy. This is not going to happen. You don’t have to do this. Where’s Alfie? You need to speak to Alfie.’
Trembling, her legs knocking together as she spoke, Alice shook Franny off. ‘Franny, please, this is the way it’s got to be. It’ll be all right. I have to go, Bobby’s waiting. I love you, Franny.’
Losing her usual cool, Franny gave in to the tears. ‘Jesus Christ, Alice, no! Don’t you understand what they’re going to do to you? They’re animals, Alice!’
Frantically, Franny turned to Bobby, ran back down the hill and, with tears still streaming down her face, screamed at the top of her voice, ‘I won’t let you do this to her, you hear me. You leave her alone, you fucking well leave her alone. Take me, come on, Bobby, take me!’
Then, running to Bobby’s car, she opened the door, threw herself in and quickly pulled the door closed, but Bobby, with one hard tug, yanked it open and dragged Franny out by her hair as Alice came running down the hill.
Kicking Franny aside as he pointed his gun at Alice, Bobby yelled, ‘Get out of the way, Franny. You hear me?’
Alice grabbed Franny’s hand, her beautiful almond eyes full of pain. ‘I love you, Franny. Here …’ Alice pulled off the cross she wore around her neck, placing it in Franny’s hands.
Franny was hysterical with panic.
‘Alice, please, please, don’t do this! You really don’t understand what they’re going to do to you.’
Holding Franny’s stare, Alice trembled as she got in the car, Bobby holding the door open for her whilst she talked calmingly to Franny.
‘Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your—’
The door slammed shut, cutting off Alice’s words.
‘Stop, Alice, stop!’
The car sped down the gravel track with Franny chasing after it, tears streaking her face.
‘Alice, no! Alice, no!’
From inside the car, Alice, terror-stricken, listened to Franny’s screams, the reality of what was happening and what she’d agreed to suddenly hitting as Bobby continued to drive at speed. Panicking, she banged on the window. ‘Franny! Franny!’
‘Alice!’
Franny’s voice faded away and Alice herself began to scream, scrambling over the car seat to the back as Bobby looked at her in the rear-view mirror, a large smirk on his face as he switched on his music, Italian opera blaring out to drown out Alice’s cries.
Turning his attention back to the road, Bobby, alarmed, abruptly took his foot off the accelerator. There, standing in the middle of the track, bleeding profusely but still alive, was his brother Salvatore Russo.
From the track, Salvatore screamed inaudible words as he raised the semi-automatic gun he held in his hands. He fired at Bobby and blinding flashes of light flared out as a hail of bullets ripped through the car and windscreen, exploding Bobby’s head into thousands of bloodied pieces. Alice screamed in horror as the car swerved, hitting Salvatore and throwing his body up into the air.
The car plummeted towards the ditch, pitching and bouncing over the rough ground before nosediving to an abrupt halt as it hit a tree and the engine burst into flames.
‘Alice! Alice!’
Alice heard her name as Franny began tugging frantically at the buckled rear door, forcing it open as Lola, who’d run out from the nearby warehouse, helped Franny drag Alice out of the burning wreckage, pulling her to safety. The dead body of Salvatore Russo lay only metres away.
Alice, with a large gash on her forehead, traumatised by her ordeal, burst into desperate tears. Sobbing uncontrollably, she buried her head in Franny’s chest.
‘Alice, oh, Alice Rose, you silly, special, wonderful, brave girl, why did you do that? Why would you do that, for me?’
‘Because I love you, Franny, I couldn’t have let anything happen to you.’
‘The things we do for love, hey?’ Lola smiled, stroking Alice’s hair as she winked at Franny.
A moment later, Alfie and Bree stumbled up together with Bree looking ill, her face drawn and pale as she tried to push down the pain.
Sitting down next to Alice, Alfie kissed her on her head and didn’t care that his voice was breaking and that tears were falling down his cheeks. He smiled. ‘It’s over, Ally, they’ve destroyed themselves …’ He stopped and grinned. ‘But of course, they could only have done that with a little bit of help from you – and I say, Amen to that.’
Alice, Lola and Alfie laughed as they clung to each other, until Alfie, glancing up, saw Bree walking away.
‘Hold up! Where are you going?’
Struggling to his feet and thankful that the bleeding from his shoulder seemed to be under control, though he was still in an incredible amount of pain, Alfie frowned as he walked towards her.
‘Bree, what’s going on? Where are you going?’
‘I just thought it was best if I left you to it.’
Alfie frowned, though his eyes were warm. ‘Why? You’re part of the gang now.’
Bree shook her head. ‘No, Alfie, I’m not.’
‘Look, I know it’s all a mess, but after what happened it puts everything in perspective.’
‘I know and that’s my point.’
Alfie grimaced at the sudden pain that shot through his shoulder. ‘What are you talking about?’
Bree took a deep breath, watching as Franny walked over to them. ‘I’m leaving, Alf. I need time to be alone. I need to get my head straight. I should …’ She stopped to take a quick breath, finding the words difficult to say, knowing that she didn’t really mean them.
‘I should never have got together with you in the first place, I made a mistake.’
Panic hit Alfie’s eyes. ‘I don’t believe you. I know you better than that, Bree, I know you love me, so what’s going on?’
‘Alfie, I just need time for myself.’
‘This has been difficult for all of us. What you went through, well, Jesus Christ, I’m not surprised your head’s a mess, but you don’t have to make a rash decision.’
Smiling sadly, Bree shook her head. ‘Being in that cage gave me time to think, it made me realise what I want.’
‘Is everything okay?’ Franny asked, looking concerned, as she walked up to Alfie and Bree.
Hurt and in pain, Alfie snapped, ‘No, everything ain’t all right. She’s trying to tell me that she wants nothing to do with me anymore. I know this is all a mess and I’m so sorry for that, but somehow we can sort this out, I know we can. And what about the baby, there’s the baby to think of?’
‘Alfie, there is no baby.’
Both Franny and Alfie stared at Bree, but it was Alfie who spoke first.
‘What are you talking about?’
Looking uncomfortable, Bree gave Alfie a tight smile. ‘I lost the baby a couple of days ago. I was bleeding heavily and there was nothing I could do, that’s right, isn’t it, Franny?’<
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Franny stared at Bree in bewilderment, but she quickly said, ‘Yeah, that’s right, Alf.’
Alfie’s expression turned from shock into anger. ‘This is because you were locked up in there, isn’t it? It’s my fault, ain’t it? If I’d found you quicker, if I’d been able—’
Bree cut in, placing her hands on his. ‘Alfie, stop, please, these things happen and who knows, maybe it’s for the best.’
Alfie’s eyes darkened. ‘Best for who, Bree? That could’ve been my kid, doesn’t that mean anything to you? I was actually looking forward to being a dad. Even if it wasn’t mine, it wouldn’t have mattered, I would’ve loved it all the same. You’re talking like it ain’t a big deal but, you know what, it’s a big deal to me.’
‘Look, Alfie, I’m sorry, but if you don’t mind, I don’t want to talk about it anymore. As soon as I get back to the house, I’m going to get my stuff and move out. The sooner I do it the better, it’ll make it easier for everyone.’
Angrily, Alfie spat his words. ‘Just like that? That’s it?’
‘Alfie, please—’
It was Alfie’s turn to cut in, his hurt, as it always did, making him say things he would later regret. ‘You’ve got it all worked out, ain’t you? Well, let me tell you something, darlin’, I was going to get shot of you anyway, so you’ve saved me the trouble. I’m only sorry I bothered getting together with you in the first place. I should’ve just left you in that trailer park. And you know something else? Franny is more woman than you’ll ever be.’
And with that Alfie stormed off, leaving the women standing by the car.
Immediately, Franny turned to Bree. ‘What’s going on? What was that about?’
Bree wiped away her tears. ‘Leave it, Franny.’
‘No, I won’t leave it! I want to know why you said all that to Alfie. Why did you tell him you lost the baby?’ Franny’s tone was hard.
Unable to look at Franny, Bree’s voice cracked with emotion. ‘Because I can’t do this. I can’t do what comes hand in hand with Alfie. Look what’s just happened, we were lucky to get out alive.’
‘The Russos were nothing to do with him though.’
‘But if it isn’t the Russos, it’ll be someone else. Don’t you get it? I can’t be like you and I don’t want to be scared anymore. I’ve had so much chaos in my life and Molly’s life already, the last thing I want is to bring another child into this. It wouldn’t be fair. I just want peace, Franny. And Alfie, he’s never going to change, and I wouldn’t ask him to. Even though I love him so much, I just can’t do it.’
‘So, what about the baby?’
Bree swallowed hard, but she didn’t say anything, she just stared at Franny, pools of sadness in her eyes.
‘You’re going to get rid of it, aren’t you? Bree, is that what you’re going to do?’
Bursting into tears, Bree nodded miserably. ‘I’ve got no choice. If I did stay, I couldn’t look Alfie in the eye knowing that I’ve got rid of the baby behind his back. And you heard him, if I did have the baby he’d want to be involved, so then I couldn’t get away, but I have to. I have to get myself sorted, everything just feels too much … and besides, I can’t really afford to have another child, not on my own … Franny, please, don’t look at me like that, I need you to understand, I don’t want you to hate me.’
Taking Bree’s hand in hers, Franny stared intently at Bree. ‘I don’t hate you and I do understand, and I get that you should have a chance to live your life how you want to, but I also know getting rid of the baby isn’t what you want.’
Unhappily, Bree said, ‘That’s just the way it is.’
‘It doesn’t have to be though, not if you let me help you. I told you already, no matter what, I’d be there for you and the baby.’
‘What are you talking about?’
Franny glanced over her shoulder, making sure that Alfie was completely out of earshot. ‘I’ll help you. I’ll give you some money, so you can find a flat and look after yourself until you get back on your feet, no matter how long it takes. Getting that kind of money isn’t a problem. And then you and Molly and the baby can get on with your lives. That way you’ll never have any regrets, and I’ll be there for you, whenever you need me.’
Bree looked shocked. ‘This is crazy, Alfie would never agree to it.’
Franny lowered her voice. ‘But we don’t have to tell Alfie. We never have to tell him.’
‘Franny, I might not know Alfie as well as you do, but I do know if he ever found out what you were doing, that you were helping me behind his back, that you were keeping his baby away from him, he’d kill you, no question, because family is everything to him.’
‘I know he would, but as long as he doesn’t find out, I don’t need to worry, do I? It’ll be fine. And in the future if you want to tell him about the baby you can, but all you need to do is keep my name out of it, then it should be fine.’
Glancing at Franny and then across to Alfie, Bree said, ‘I don’t know, it’s a lot to ask of you.’
‘You’re not asking though, I’m offering. I want to do this. Please, let me do this for you.’
Fear came into Bree’s eyes. ‘But if I agreed to it, I’d be frightened for you, worried that Alfie would somehow find out and then how could I live with myself if something happened to you, if he—’
Franny cut in. ‘Let me worry about Alfie, and anyway, like I said, that’s not going to happen, because he’s not going to find out … So what do you say, Bree? Have we a deal? Will you let me help you?’
Unable to fight back her tears, Bree, overcome by her emotions, nodded and simply said, ‘Yes, Franny, and thank you, we have a deal.’
Franny smiled, but, catching a glimpse of Alfie, an uneasy feeling suddenly began to creep over her.
One Week Later
55
Franny walked into the hallway with Alfie and Alice as the sunlight streamed through the window. Seeing the morning post on the doormat, Franny bent down to pick up a padded envelope, which was addressed to Alice, along with a couple of bills for Janine and a letter each for her and Alfie.
‘Here you go, these are yours.’ She smiled as she handed the padded envelope to Alice, who looked at it curiously, then, handing Alfie’s letter to him, she quickly opened hers. It was from Bree.
Franny,
I thought I’d write to you rather than text, I wouldn’t want Alfie seeing it. I found a flat, it’s perfect. I don’t know how I’ll ever thank you. I’ll give you all the details when I see you next week at the place we arranged, and I promise, I’ll never breathe a word to anyone that you helped me.
x
‘Who’s it from, Fran?’ Alfie broke into her thoughts as she crumpled up the letter and shoved it into her jeans pocket.
‘Just a bit of junk mail from a health clinic.’ She smiled innocently at Alfie, hoping not to give anything away as he ripped open his own letter. ‘Alf, are you okay?’
Alfie’s face paled, his voice wavering. ‘Yeah, I’m fine.’
‘Bad news?’
Blinking back a rush of nausea, fear crept over Alfie as he stared down at the letter, unable to stop his hand shaking as he struggled to answer Franny.
‘No, don’t be silly; it’s not bad news. It’s just junk mail, like yours.’
Distracted, Franny nodded as she turned and headed for the kitchen, her thoughts on Bree.
‘Good, I’m glad, I’m just going to make myself a drink.’
As she walked away, Alfie, feeling his chest tighten, reread his letter. There was no name on it, but Alfie Jennings knew exactly who it was from:
Hello Alfie,
Remember me? I hope so. Twenty-two years inside – thanks to you – is a long time, but I’m out now, what do you think about that? I thought a lot about you over the years, every day in fact. That’s the thing about prison, there’s a lot of time to think. The other thing is there’s a lot of time to do is write, so I thought I’d write you a poem – hope you like it:
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
I’m your worst nightmare
And I’ll be coming for you …
As Alfie stood frozen, fear etched onto his face, Alice, not noticing, tore open the seal of her padded envelope:
My dearest Alice,
I hope this finds you well.
Sometimes in life we meet people who touch us to our very soul. I have been fortunate to meet two people who have done that to me: Natalia was one and you, Alice, were the other. And whilst I certainly may not be religious in the traditional sense, you have converted me. You gave me my faith back and you took my hand and led me out of the darkness into the light. You gave me life and you gave me your kindness, and yet you asked nothing in return. As I told you before, when Natalia died she was pregnant. What I didn’t tell you was she was expecting a girl. Many tormented nights I have spent imagining what my daughter would’ve been like and whilst I will never get to see that joy, in my dreams now I imagine that she would be just like you. You live in my heart and if it is God who I have to thank for you, then I thank him for sending you to me. I have not lived a good life, Alice, not a worthy one, and I have several regrets, but one of my biggest regrets is that Natalia never got to meet you.
These keys are for you, Alice. I no longer want to live in my house, it is time to move on, but I want you to have it. There were so many special memories, both good and bad, and I know it’ll be in good hands. I just ask you two things. The first, never change from who you are, and secondly, come and visit me, you’ll know where to find me.
Your servant,
Abel Gray
Frowning, Alice tipped up the envelope. At the bottom was a set of keys, as well as two single gold wedding bands, inscribed with the names Natalia and Abel.
There was a light summer storm as Abel Gray, dressed in his wedding suit, adjusted his tie in the mirror. Satisfied, he carefully positioned his grey top hat perfectly on his head before walking out of the house and through the vast grounds of his estate.