Blood Rush (Lilly Valentine) (32 page)

Trick laughs as if Jamie’s just told a joke. And Jamie accepts that it is pretty funny. He’s just some schoolkid who doesn’t know
anything
. He gets up when a bell sounds and eats what’s put in front of him. He does as he’s told, day in, day out. His mum still labels all his clothes and he hasn’t even had the guts to tell her that he’s gay. How the fuck does he think he can overpower a one-eyed mad man and his army of violent drug dealers?

‘Please, Trick,’ he whispers. ‘Just trust me.’

His friend pauses, looks deep into his eyes, then nods.

As Lilly thumped on the metal sheet, she accepted that this
wasn’t
her brightest idea.

Even if there was anyone inside, what were the chances of your average drug dealer entering into a civilized conversation?

Is Tanisha McKenzie in there?

Why yes. Shall I send her out for a little chat?

Still, if she had even the slightest suspicion that her client was inside, she’d call in the cavalry. She pulled out her mobile in readiness.

The vent flew open and Lilly peered inside.

‘What?’ said a voice from inside the darkness.

Lilly gulped. ‘I’m looking for someone.’

‘What?’ The voice sounded angry.

Lilly coughed, but before she could repeat her strange request, she heard shouting. From the bowels of the flat, came a scream.

‘If you hurt my baby I will kill you!’

Lilly recognized it instantly and lunged at the vent. ‘Tanisha?’

‘Lilly,’ Tanisha’s voice rang out. ‘Lilly, is that you?’

Lilly scrabbled for her phone. Tried to stab the key pad. But before she could make a call, the metal door swung open and she was dragged inside. 

Lilly flew through the dark space of the hallway and crashed into the far wall, where a pair of firm hands around the throat pinned her. Lilly choked for breath, her tongue lolling. She scratched out at the man’s face leering at her, with a look of rage in one eye, the other quite dead.

He released his hold, so that Lilly fell forwards, gulping down a breath, before he pushed her backwards again. Her head smacked against the wall and the stranglehold began to squeeze the life from her once more.

‘Who is this?’ he shouted.

Behind him was Tanisha, her face aghast. And another girl, younger than Tanisha, wearing a school uniform. She looked so very tired.

‘I said, who the fuck is this?’

Tanisha jumped forward. ‘Put her down Danny, it’s my solicitor.’

‘Your what?’

‘My brief,’ said Tanisha. ‘I’m in all sorts of trouble with the feds, you know that.’

Lilly heard the gagging sound come from her throat and felt the wet splash of saliva on her chin, but the world was becoming blurry around the edges. Her hands could no longer fight the man.

‘What’s she doing here?’ Danny demanded.

‘I don’t know,’ said Tanisha. ‘She must have followed me.’

The man turned slightly so that he could direct his fury at Tanisha. ‘And didn’t it fucking occur to you, that someone could do that when you came over here?’

Lilly began to drift away to the sound of Tanisha crying. This was it, then. Her arms flopped to her sides and her eyes began to roll back in her head. Life and death were but two sides of the same coin. Heads you live, tails you die. No one gets to choose.

Fuck that.

Lilly brought her knee up into Danny’s groin. Hard. With a grunt, he released his grip to protect himself and Lilly took the opportunity to ball her fist and bring it up under Danny’s chin. His teeth crunched together with an audible snap and he fell backwards.

Lilly spluttered as her lungs filled with air, her shoulders
heaving
. She wanted to rest, let her chest expand, but she knew Danny was about to recover. She couldn’t let that happen. She drew back her foot and kicked him full in the stomach, catapulting him on to the floor. He fell with a howl.

In terror, Lilly checked the hallway. There was only one way back, and that was over Danny. Behind him were the schoolgirl and the man who had answered the door, both shocked and
disorientated
. But for how long?

A foot away was a side-door. It wouldn’t lead out of the flat, but right now Lilly just needed to put distance between her and Danny. She grabbed Tanisha’s arm and staggered through the door, slamming it behind her when they were both inside.

The room was cavernous. At least twice as big as Lilly expected and empty apart from three old sofas huddled around the remains of a dismantled wooden table. In the far corner were two teenaged boys, skinny and frightened, their fingers entwined. They stared at her in fear and confusion.

‘Help me,’ Lilly screamed and began to push one of the sofas against the wall.

One of the boys didn’t move, but the other vaulted to Lilly and heaved the sofa across the doorway, crashing it into place. Together they threw themselves at it.

‘Trick,’ the boy shrieked, ‘get the other one.’

His companion wiggled his fingers, near his face. Lilly could see his cheeks were pitted with burns and he was evidently in shock.

‘Trick,’ the boy screamed, ‘move the fucking sofa.’

Trick blinked back tears but did as he was told, shoving it across the room to the door.

‘After three,’ Lilly said. ‘One. Two. Three.’

She let the boy take the weight of the door, while she and Trick lifted the second sofa and tried to pile it on top. She cursed as it slipped back down, scraping her foot.

‘Tanisha, don’t just stand there.’ Lilly gestured to the other end with her head.

Tanisha joined Trick at the other end. Together they managed to raise it on its side so that it rested against the top part of the door.

‘This won’t hold.’ Tanisha’s voice was full of panic.

‘Doesn’t need to,’ said Lilly. ‘As soon as Annabelle realizes I’m gone, she’ll call the police.’

‘How long will that be?’

‘Not long,’ Lilly replied, with more confidence than she felt.

Jack swore as he punched in Annabelle’s number. Because he was using Carla’s mobile, he had to dial by hand, reading the number from a scrap of paper, pressing each key individually.

‘Hello?’ Annabelle sounded nervous.

‘I’ve tried Lilly’s number and it’s dead,’ he said. ‘And I’ve tried your land line and it’s going straight to answer machine. Tell me you haven’t left the house.’

‘Sorry,’ she muttered.

Damn it. When would he learn that Lilly never did what she was supposed to do?

‘Where is she?’ he asked.

Annabelle gave a small cough. ‘I’m not sure.’

‘What do you mean, you’re not sure? Isn’t she with you?’

‘We’re looking for Tanisha on the Clayhill Estate,’ she said. ‘Lilly thought it would save time if we split up.’

Of course she had.

‘Where are you now?’ he demanded.

‘Outside Clancy Block,’ she said.

‘Right. Don’t move.’

Demi has no idea who the white woman is.

She’s pretty old, nothing special, like somebody’s mum or something.

Yet she singlehandedly fought off Danny. You’ve got to give respect for that. One minute, he had her pushed against the wall, his hands around her throat and she was making an awful noise. Then bam. It was like a film or something, in slow motion. She kicked him and punched him, and dived out of the hallway with Tanisha.

They’re in the other room now, the door barricaded, and Danny is going completely off his head.

‘I am going to fuck you up.’ He kicks out at the door, the wood splintering. ‘Do you hear me? You are going to wish you never messed with me.’

He takes a step back, lets out a howl and charges at the door with his shoulder. Screams come from inside, but the door holds.

Demi is rooted to the spot. She has no doubt that if he gets in, he will kill them all. The junkie with the burns over his face will wish he was still lying on the floor, getting the treatment. As for the woman …  

‘Tanisha, you hear me now,’ he shouts, ‘you better let me in or, God help you, I will cut that baby out of your stomach.’

Demi can hear crying from inside. As soon as she saw Tanisha and Danny together she knew it was his child. It was the way she looked at him, all pleading. And she knew that Danny wouldn’t help her. Tanisha is just another girl. Like Malaya, and Chika and JC. None of this means anything to Danny. They’re all disposable.

Which means everything she’s done is pointless.

Danny reaches into his waistband and pulls out a gun. It’s the one Demi brought to him.

‘Motherfuckers.’ He points it at the door. ‘I will cap you all.’

He aims and his finger begins to squeeze the trigger.

‘Boss.’ Rocky’s voice comes from the end of the hallway, near the front door. ‘We gotta get out of here, man, before the five-oh, arrive.’

Danny frowns at him. Demi can see Rocky is frightened too, but the fear of being banged up outweighs his fear of Danny.

‘Serious, boss, we need to go now.’

Danny’s nostrils flare. Then he nods and goes to move away. Almost as an afterthought he fires into the door. More screaming from inside. He fires again.

‘Quick, boss.’ Rocky is unlocking the front door, his hands fumbling in his hurry.

Danny gives the door to the sitting room a last violent kick, then makes after Rocky. As he passes the kitchen he pauses. The meth factory is still bubbling away. He takes aim again and shoots. The sound of glass exploding fills the air. Then the whoosh of fire taking hold.

As they leave, they don’t even look back at Demi. She is nothing.

She runs to the kitchen. The table is already engulfed in flames, chemical bottles shattering, throwing their contents over the walls where they instantly set alight. She glances at the gas canisters, the toxic smoke already making her chest crack.

She heads for the front door, her hand over her mouth,
leaving
the others inside.

Jamie cradles Trick in his arms, whispering his name, trying to ignore the red stain spreading across his chest. There’s a gurgling noise in his throat and a line of blood spills from the corner of his mouth.

‘Everyone stay down,’ the woman tells them.

They’d been pushing against the sofas, desperately trying to keep the mad guy out. He’d been kicking it and swearing. At one point he threatened to hurt someone called Tanisha’s baby, and the pregnant girl started to cry.

‘Don’t listen to him,’ the woman ordered. ‘Just hold this bloody door, until help arrives.’

So they did.

Then there was a bang. Or a crack, like a whip, and a hole appeared in the door. Jamie had no idea what it was, but Tanisha started to scream.

‘He’s got a gun.’

‘Hit the floor.’ The woman pulled Tanisha on to the ground. ‘Now.’

Jamie threw himself on to the floor, hands over his head, but Trick didn’t react.

‘Trick,’ Jamie yelled and yanked at his leg.

Trick looked down, puzzled, then there was another crack. Louder than the last. The woman flung an arm over Tanisha and Trick dropped like a stone.

At first, Jamie thought he was doing as he was told, then he saw the hole in his chest. At first no bigger than the burns on his face. Almost matching. But within seconds, blood pumped out and covered his jumper.

‘Keep your head down,’ the woman hisses.

Jamie lies next to Trick and holds him. He’s still warm.

‘Don’t anyone move,’ the woman says, and they listen intently, waiting for another shot.

It doesn’t come. Jamie can hear the muffled sounds of glass breaking, and the thick sound of the rattle in Trick’s throat.

‘Hold on,’ Jamie tells him. ‘We’ll be out of here soon.’

They wait. Still nothing.

Bang. Everyone hits the deck again. But this time it sounds
different
. Not a gunshot. Someone’s knocking at the door.

‘Can you hear me, in there?’ It’s the schoolgirl.

The woman puts her finger over her lips, warning them not to speak.

‘The others have gone,’ the girl shouts through the door.

‘She’s lying,’ Tanisha whispers.

The girl knocks more insistently. ‘There’s a fire in the kitchen. You’ve got to believe me.’

‘I’m telling you she’s lying,’ says Tanisha.

The girl on the other side of the door is coughing and Jamie looks at the woman. Her face tells him she doesn’t know whether to trust the girl. What if they open the door and the mad guy is waiting outside?

Jamie takes a deep breath for courage. Then he’s caught by a racking cough. A chemical tang hits the back of his tongue and the woman starts coughing too.

‘Please,’ the schoolgirl is frantic now, ‘you’re going to get trapped in there.’

Jamie and the woman exchange looks. Something beyond the door
is
burning. He can smell it and taste it. It could still be a bluff, but can they risk it? Jamie glances down at Trick. His eyes are flickering but he and Jamie are now both soaked in his blood. He needs an ambulance. Jamie kisses Trick’s head and nods at the woman. They both jump up and throw the sofas aside, flinging the door open.

The schoolgirl has her blazer pulled over her head. Behind her, the hallway is licked by flames and clouds of black smoke billow towards them.

‘There’s gas in there,’ she chokes. ‘It’s going to blow up.’

The heat is intense, burning Jamie’s cheeks. The schoolgirl’s hair is singed. They all fight for their breath. The woman pulls Tanisha to her feet, then helps Jamie pick up Trick. They each take a bloody arm around their shoulders. His feet drag and his head falls forward.

The schoolgirl beckons them on down the hallway, her back bent against the blaze. They follow, deafened by the roar of the flames.

As they reach the kitchen, an explosion of glass, like a firework on Bonfire Night fills the air. The schoolgirl screams as glittering shards of glass fly towards her, slashing her hands and face. She stops in her tracks, the others bumping into the back of her.