Heartless (24 page)

“So, how many others have there been, Jonathan?” Stanley demanded. “Go on; tell us; if you were capable of murdering Sophia’s dad when you were a kid, then you must’ve done it again since, right?”

“Too many to count,” Jonathan boasted and then, for effect, added: “Actually, it started off out of curiosity; I just wanted to see what death looked like. And then I began to enjoy it. It was a bit of game really. You’d be surprised at the amount of people that cry and beg before they die. You just can never tell what a man – or woman – is made of until those last final moments. Some people have no dignity; it’s shameful.” Jonathan shook his head in genuine dissatisfaction. Some of his victims really hadn’t met his expectations.

Despite the question he had asked, Stanley listened to his son speaking in disbelief. All these years he had known that Jonathan was not all there, but this was a whole other level: it was impossible to comprehend, or to forgive.

Seeing Bernie coming down the hallway holding Rosie’s hand to stop the child from running to her father at the sound of his voice, Stanley shook his head at her. Bernie slowly backed away.

“But why, Jonathan? Why take all those lives?” Stanley asked.

“Why? Why not? It makes life exciting... What would have been a crime was if I’d ended up living a boring existence, like you. Look at you. You get up day after day and do the same mind-numbing job, tinkering with the same shitty cars whilst talking to the same dull people. You’re the freak, not me. Bring Rosie in here now, Mum. I’m not waiting any longer.”

Bernie led the child, a lamb to the slaughter, into the kitchen.

“Daddy, no,” Rosie cried, as she saw her dad holding a knife against Sophia’s throat. “Leave Sophia alone, Daddy.”

“Rosie, be a good girl and open the back door,” Jonathan said.

“Put the knife down, Daddy, and then I’ll come,” Rosie said.

Jonathan was impressed: Rosie was a real chip off the old block. “Okay, but promise me we’re going to go then. You’re going to get in the car with Daddy, and we’re going to leave.”

“I promise.”

Jonathan lowered the knife and Sophia ran to Tommy, rubbing her throat. Tommy held her close.

“Come on, Rosie, we’re going,” Jonathan said.

“No, Daddy: I want to stay here with Granny.”

When he picked Rosie up, she kicked him in the face. Stanley took his chance and ran at Jonathan, pinning him against the wall. Tommy, aware that Jonathan still had the knife in his hand, tried to help his dad overpower his brother, but Jonathan was too strong and he lashed out kicking and punching then blindly struck out with the knife. It caught Rosie’s shoulder, slicing through her robe and into her flesh. She let out a piercing scream.

“Rosie, darling, I didn’t mean it; Daddy didn’t mean it.” Jonathan realised what he had done, reaching out for her. Rosie flinched, clutching her arm, blood trickling through her hands.

Reaching for the saucepan on the stove, Bernie smashed it against Jonathan’s head. He slumped on the floor, his blood spilling onto it. Sophia grabbed Rosie and hugged her, shielding the child’s eyes as she pressed her closer.

“Call an ambulance Tommy,” she cried.

Bernie had lost control, still hitting her son. Stanley tried to grab his wife’s hands but she batted his away.

“Bernie, stop,” Stanley cried.

There was a gouge in the back of Jonathan’s head where his skull had caved in. Still, Bernie continued to beat him with the pan.

“Granny, please stop,” Rosie shouted.

Coming to when she heard her granddaughter’s plea, Bernie screamed as she realised that Jonathan was lying face down in a pool of blood. He was dead. She had killed him.

Chapter Forty-One

Seeing Tommy sitting on the bench at the back of the garden, Stanley made his way over to join him. The day was gloriously sunny and the barbeque that he was cooking would be fine without him for a few minutes.

“Are you alright, son? Mind if I join you?” he asked, as he sat next to Tommy. His son was staying with them, and Stanley was grateful for his company. It was helping Bernie to cope.

“I was just thinking about him, you know.” Tommy’s head had been all over the place for the past few weeks. Jonathan had tried to destroy the people Tommy loved. He had lied, cheated, and murdered. But Tommy couldn’t find it in himself to feel any hate for him.

“I know, son.” Stanley patted Tommy’s leg. Jonathan’s death had affected every member of the family in one way or another but Tommy had taken it harder than anyone: being his twin gave him a different kind of connection with Jonathan. He had lived with him in the womb, and despite what he had done he would always be part of Tommy.

“He just seemed so lost. It wasn’t even like it was him anymore, you know.” Tommy deeply regretted staying away for so long. He wondered whether him leaving had made Jonathan worse, maybe if he hadn’t things might have turned out differently. Maybe Jonathan wouldn’t have felt so alone.

“You could go around in circles for the rest of your life wondering about it, Tommy, but who knows what makes someone behave like that. He’s gone now; we can only hope that in death he found some kind of peace.”

“Stanley, I can smell burning,” Bernie shouted from the patio table.

Stanley laughed. “Your mum still doesn’t get the whole barbeque thing, does she? Come on, let’s go and get some grub before she gets the bloody fire extinguisher onto it.”

Stanley wrapped his arm around Tommy’s shoulder as they made their way to where the others were sitting. He sat next to Bernie, who smiled at him. She had been different since Jonathan’s death, like a weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

“So what’s your news, girls?” Bernie looked from Dolly to Sophia, wondering about the announcement they had said they were going to make.

Bernie had really taken to Sophia over the past few weeks. They had had a heart-to-heart and Sophia had assured her that she had no intention of taking Rosie from her, feeling that Rosie belonged to Bernie; she would love to see her and to build a relationship with her, but she wasn’t her mother: Bernie was. Bernie felt that they all owed Sophia for what Jonathan had done to her, and for all that he had taken from her, and she wanted to do her best to make it up. Sophia was part of the family now, and Bernie would make sure that Rosie spent as much time with her biological mum as she could.

“Before you say anything,” Nessa interrupted, “I just want to say that if this is what I think it is then you don’t have to explain yourselves. It didn’t happen much in my day, or if it did then it went on behind closed doors but I have no problem with it.”

“What are you talking about, Nan?” Sophia looked at Dolly, who was sitting next to Nessa, clearly trying not to laugh.

“I’ve had my suspicions,” Nessa said.

“Had your suspicions?” Dolly giggled. “About us...?”

“If you two want to dabble in a bit of lesbianism, you have my full approval.”

Bernie snorted the mouthful of wine that she was about to swallow back up her nose. She could see by Dolly and Sophia’s faces that Nessa had got it wrong.

“We were watching a programme on lesbians the other night,” Nessa continued. “Weren’t we, Albert? As a bit of research. Very interesting, it was.”

“Yes, it was very good.” Albert chuckled.

“Nan!” Sophia laughed. “We’re not lesbians. Our news is that we’ve got the flat.”

“Ah, that’s lovely. I’m so happy for you both.” Bernie clapped her hands together.

Sophia and Dolly had been looking at a flat around the corner from the Jenkins’ house, a new build. The girls thought that not only would they be good company for each other but if they shared the rent they could afford to undertake further education, with Dolly having decided to train as a counsellor. Trevor’s death had hit her harder than she had ever expected, but it had also set her free from her old life. And it meant that now Sophia would be living right between her nan and Rosie, so could split her time between the two; she hoped to train to be a chef.

“What have I missed?” Tommy asked as he returned from the kitchen with a fresh beer for himself and his dad and sat down opposite Sophia.

“My lovely nan here has all but arranged a civil partnership for me and Dolly; think her and Albert are going to want to be bridesmaids.” Sophia giggled. “I was just saying that we got the flat.”

Tommy beamed. He knew how much getting that flat meant to Sophia. After everything that had happened, she very much deserved a fresh start.

“So I’m afraid, Tommy, that if you want Sophia in the future you’ll have to go through me.” Dolly winked.

Tommy blushed. He had decided that he wasn’t going to go back to his old life. He wanted to move nearer to his parents. After what the family had been through, they had a stronger bond.

He certainly had feelings for Sophia, but it was too soon to make them apparent to her. She had been through so much that he wanted to give her space: one day, who knew. Right now, he just wanted to be her friend.

“Ignore her, Tommy.” Sophia smiled. “You’ll be one our first guests.”

Dolly nudged her friend, smiling.

Laughing, Sophia added, “You can help us with the furniture.”

Tommy grinned.

“Right; grub’s up.” Stanley placed a platter of barbequed food onto the table.

“Where’s Rosie?” Bernie asked, as she looked around the garden.

“I know where she is: I’ll get her.” Stanley was sure that she would be using the new colouring book he had bought her earlier.

Bernie smiled; she appreciated the fact that Stanley was making an effort with Rosie. They were having family counselling sessions, and Bernie hoped that in time they would move on from the events that had taken place. Bernie hadn’t been charged for Jonathan’s murder. After the police had found Dolly tied up inside the shed and she had told them about Jonathan killing Trevor, along with the little girl’s slash wound and the kitchen full of witnesses, there was no question of it.

Bernie didn’t need to be punished by the law, though; she would always have to live with the knowledge that she had killed her son. It was a heavy cross to bear, but Bernie was determined she would make it up to Jonathan by looking after his daughter.

“Actually, can I go and find Rosie?” Tommy asked.

Bernie and Stanley looked at each other. It was the first time that Tommy had said anything like that. They knew it was hard for him to accept that Sophia had had a child with Jonathan, especially the way the conception had occurred. But maybe his feelings were starting to change.

Bernie smiled. “Of course you can, love.”

***

Rosie was sitting on the edge of her bed when Tommy opened the door. She had her palms in her lap and her head hung down.

“Rosie,” Tommy said, “what are you doing in here all on your own?”

“I feel a bit sad today,” Rosie said. “I know my daddy was a bad man. But sometimes he was a good man, too, and I miss him.”

Tommy sat on the bed next to his niece. Looking at her, he smiled. She had so much of Sophia in her, yet he could see a lot of Jonathan too. Putting his arm around her shoulder, Tommy said to her softly, “You’re allowed to miss him, sweetheart. We all do in our own way. Your daddy wasn’t bad, he was very poorly, and he lost his way.”

“Do you think that he’s still lost now, Uncle Tommy?”

“No, darling, I think your daddy is finally at peace,” Tommy said, and he hoped to God that he was right. He wished his brother nothing but peace.

“When I get sad I can look at your face, Uncle Tommy, can’t I, and then I won’t think that he is so far away?”

“Of course you can,” Tommy said. A single tear slid down his cheek as he pulled his niece close to him. “Now come on, if we don’t get downstairs soon, Granddad will have eaten all the sausages.”

Also by Casey Kelleher

Rise and Fall

Louise Alden learnt from a young age that you can't change the cards that life deals you; you just have to learn how to play the game. With money in her pocket and a new boyfriend at her side, life on the estate has never been better.

Until Louise uncovers a deadly secret; now nothing will ever be the same again.

Jerell Morgan was born evil. Even his Bible preaching grandma, who raised him back home in Kingston, Jamaica, couldn't drive away the wickedness that festered inside him as a child.

Now busy making a name for himself, Jerell is prepared to do whatever it takes to live the life that he has always dreamt of.

He is on the rise, and London doesn't know what’s about to hit it.

“Some rise by sin, and some by virtue fall.”

~ William Shakespeare