The Finest Line (36 page)

His remark made Richard laugh
again. “Women are a commodity. Don’t love them, don’t try to work
them out, just fuck them. Remember that.”

“I will,” Mark smiled. “So what
do you say Dad? Shall we have a little fun before the hard
work?”

Richard looked thoughtful and
grinned, “Yeah why not? Just clean the bitch up beforehand. She
smells like a piss pot.”

Mark called out to Barry. “Go
down to the toilets on the fifth level and get some wet paper
towels and soap if there’s any.”

When Barry was gone, Mark grasp
Mairead’s arm and hoisted her to her feet. He put his arm around
her to walk her away from the perimeter. She offered no
resistance.

“We’re going to have to use
condoms aren’t we” Mark called back to Richard.

He nodded and grinned. “You’re
learning. We don’t want that type of evidence left behind.”

“There’s some in the van,” Mark
said. “Would you get them?”

Mark held onto Mairead and
watched his father walk away before leaning his face in close to
hers. “Listen to me. Are you able to run?”

She looked at him curiously,
uncertain if she had heard him correctly, “Run?”

“There are stairs over there,”
He turned her so she could see them. “You’ll have to go that way
because Barry will be coming up in the elevator but you are going
to have to move fucking quickly because I don’t know how long I can
hold them off.”

“You’re letting me go?” Mairead
studied his face, looking for any sign of some cruel joke he was
instigating. She saw only a grim expression and was suddenly aware
that he was trembling slightly.

She had to know. “What about
you?”

“I’m going to be fine, but you
have to get out. Are you able to?”

Her legs were still weak but the
thought of escape sent adrenaline coursing through her. She
nodded.

“There’s another of my father’s
goons at the bottom somewhere. Don’t run into him. Keep your eyes
open and just fucking get out.”

She managed a tiny smile. “Thank
you.”

He looked at her. “Just make it
out and get help straight away.” His eyes were shining over. “I’m
sorry for what I did to you, now fucking run.”

Mairead ran and didn’t look
back, leaving shouting behind her. Her escape would not be easy
with her strength and senses limited. The stairs were narrow and
steep and she had to hold the handrail for balance. The temptation
to move faster was denied, knowing the slightest fall would cost
her freedom.

Step by step she descended,
ignoring pain and emotions that were threatening to erupt. Her wet
pants felt disgusting, but she found herself grateful for the shoes
James had chosen for her. She had good traction on the steps and
was already more than half way down.

Suddenly she stopped as she
heard noises below her. Leaning over the rail, she looked down at
the remaining steps and terror filled her as she saw the massive
hulk running up the stairs. Like his colleague, he was bald and
tattooed.

There was nowhere to go except
back up. Maybe there would still be an opportunity to get away.
There was always the scaffolding. It would only take a leap over
the wall and a lucky catch of the structure. If she missed, her
fate would be the same as the one Richard had planned for her
anyway and this way she was choosing her own way out.

Approaching the top, Mairead
prepared herself to push her body to its full potential but ran
straight into Richard’s arms. With her new found energy she fought
powerfully and drove her knee straight into his crotch.

The unexpected attack doubled
him over and his face was contorted in pain and surprise. It was a
look that lasted barely a second before Mairead used the power of
her legs and the solid shoe to kick him full force in the face. His
nose broke instantly and blood sprayed out.

Richard went down, gasping in
agony. Mairead stood over him and kicked him as hard as she could
in the stomach. Curled up, his mouth opened wide, his small
desperate intakes of breath barely heard.

She wanted to keep hurting him
but her ears were suddenly assaulted by a noise that shuddered and
echoed through her body. Turning she saw the other thug fall to the
ground, clutching what was left of his knee. He was screaming for a
moment before he passed out.

Mairead looked up towards the
lifts to see James, looking bloodied and dishevelled with Barry in
a worse state lying unconscious at his feet. He lowered the
gun.

She could only sit down on the
floor and cry as James walked towards her, returning his gun to a
holster under his jacket.

Crouching down next to her, he
didn’t touch her but smiled softly into her face. She looked at him
still trembling. “I wet my pants.”

He grinned. “Did you baby? I
will give you a bath when we get home.”

“You look like shit,” she told
him.

“You don’t look much better,” he
replied.

She felt close to losing control
until she suddenly remembered Mark. She scanned the entire area but
he was nowhere to be seen. She felt sick.

“We got to find Mark.”

She got up and steadied herself,
and started to walk towards the wall. James was instantly beside
her and together they looked over the wall.

Several feet below, Mark was
lying unconscious or dead on a thin board draped diagonally across
the scaffolding pipes. One end was bolted securely where his head
rested. The other end, only a corner rested on the pipe.

As they watched he moved his
head slightly.

“Fucking bastard is still
breathing.” James voice was furious.

She hated hearing him so angry.
“He saved my life James. He helped me escape. I got to help
him.”

His anger was turned on her. “No
you don’t. He’s the fucking reason you’ve gone through all this.
They hurt you and the only reason I haven’t killed the fucking lot
of them, is that I know it would haunt you.”

Mairead nodded. “Exactly which
is why I don’t want Mark to die either.”

James breathed deeply. “I’ll get
the bastard but only for you.”

“You can’t,” Mairead clutched
his arm. “You won’t be able to bring him up and if he wakes up and
sees you he will panic. Both of you will be killed. I’ve got to do
it.”

Grasping her arm, his voice was
raised. “Like hell you do. Get back from the wall Mairead or I
swear I’ll tie you up.” He took his phone from an inner pocket of
the jacket. “I’ll ring emergency services.”

“James, please,” She pulled on
his arm. “Let me do this. I told you once before this is what I do.
This is the one thing that I can do that you can’t.”

“You are injured Mairead,” James
tried to reason.

“And I don’t need to balance.”
She desperately explained. “All I have to do is climb down to him
and stay with him until emergency services arrive. Holding onto a
pipe is even easier than a pole. I can keep him still. Please
James, please let me do this.

Tears began to course down his
face as he stared at her and then he nodded. Mairead embraced him,
removed her shoes and quickly straddled the wall. James took a firm
grip on her arm and helped her down to the first pipe.

“You take your time, do you hear
me?”

She nodded and started to climb
down slowly. “Just keep talking to me James.”

“Whatever you want to hear
baby,” he told her softly.

She watched her feet through
blurry vision as she went from pipe to pipe. “Have you had enough
of me yet James?”

“Are you kidding?” He was trying
to sound cheerful. “You’ve ruined me for any other woman. How would
they ever compare to you?”

Mairead laughed. “They would
probably bring you a lot less stress.”

“Probably,” He agreed, “But life
would soon get boring. It would go back to what it was like after I
got out of hospital. It had no meaning then. Even working at the
nightclub only served to get me out of a depression. Life began
with you.”

Moved by his words, tears were
threatening and she needed to keep what little vision she had. “How
the hell did you find me?”

“You owe your life to your taxi
driver. He followed the van that took you and I had just rung the
taxi company to find you when he called it through.”

Her tears pricked again as she
thought of Chandi. She had to keep calm.

She paused long enough to grin
up at James. “If I get out this alive, I’m in more danger alone
with you than I ever was here, aren’t I?

He returned her grin. “You have
no idea.”

She could only imagine the
punishment he was going to inflict on her but it was enough to
renew her strength.

Reaching Mark she sat down on
the pipe that the board was resting on and at which end his head
lay. She could see the other end of the board and its precarious
support. Any movement would be fatal.

Leaning forward she was able to
bring her head down next to his and support her balance with one
hand on the pipe and the other on his back.

She called softly to him several
times until he responded. His head lifted up and he looked at her
with glazed eyes, “Mairead?”

“Listen to me Mark.” She spoke
urgently. “If you move we both die. You must remain completely
still. You are lying extremely high up on a board that is not
supported very well.”

He looked at her quizzically for
a moment and then his recall prompted him to raise his head
further. He looked over the plank at the depth below. “Fuck.”

Mairead increased her pleading,
“Don’t panic whatever you do. Emergency services are on their way.
You have to keep still Mark.”

“I will,” He whispered and lay
his head down again. “I think my nose is broken.”

She grinned. “It looks fine
unlike your father’s which is spread across his face”

“How did that happen?”

“I kicked him in the face and in
his balls and in his guts.”

“Well done you,” Mark grinned.
“So why the hell are you down here or up here with me?”

“You saved my life.” She
replied, narrowing her eyes at him. “Do you think for one minute I
was going to let you have that over me? I’m here to repay the
favour.”

“I did try to stop you even
being here.” He reminded her. “You should have listened to me in
the cafe.”

A fog began to whirl through her
head and her vision paled. She looked at Mark. “I think I’m going
to pass out and that can’t be good. I’m lying on a pipe.”

Mark reached out and gripped her
arm. “Stay awake, Mairead. Keep talking to me.”

“Just do me a favour.” It was
getting harder to think. “Would you tell that big bastard up there
that I love him beyond life and any happiness I ever had was only
when I was with him.”

Mark nodded and Mairead allowed
herself to close her eyes.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

When registered nurse Amy
arrived for her shift she was stunned to see the unusual crowd
gathered outside one of the private suites. She looked at Matron
who was busy filling out forms.

“Don’t even ask,” Matron sighed.
“They won’t leave and we’ve had official word to leave them alone.
So far they’ve been well behaved.”

Amy looked at the group which
comprised of a tall and quite handsome man with dreadlocked hair, a
heavily tattooed and pierced woman and a tall pretty bleach blonde
girl, dressed in very little. Across from them was a Maori woman,
dressed in a stylish pencil skirt and jacket. Next to her was an
Indian lad in a taxi uniform.

The door opened and a tall older
man came out and everyone got up to listen to him.

“Isn’t that Sean Kavanagh, the
politician?”

Matron nodded. “It is and it is
his daughter who is our special guest.”

Sean addressed the others.
“She’s awake and looking well but right now we need to give her
some space with James. Come down to the cafeteria and I’ll buy you
all some lunch.”

Amy watched the politician lead
the crowd away. When they were gone she grinned at Matron, “Scary
looking bunch.”

Matron smiled and raised an
eyebrow. “You haven’t seen the scariest one.”

Several minutes later, the door
opened again and Amy’s eyes widened as she watched a man approach.
He was tall and broad, well muscled under a black t-shirt and with
jeans upon a lean waist and stomach. His face sported a few minor
cuts and bruises which didn’t detract from his very handsome
features. It was the hardness and sobriety of his face that was
unnerving.

“Miss Kavanagh is requesting
some food” he told her quietly.

Amy nodded staring up at the
face at least a foot above her own, “Anything in particular?”

“I suggest poached eggs on
wholegrain toast and a few choices of fruit.” He smiled. “A pot of
tea would be welcomed and might I bother you for a cup for
myself?”

“No bother at all,” Amy
replied.

“Thank you,” James walked away
and Amy looked at Matron with a grin.

“He can scare my pants off any
day.”

When James returned to the room
Mairead was sitting up against the pillows looking mournful.

“Am I ugly?”

“No you are not,” He replied
firmly. “The bruising will be gone in a few days.”

She looked up at him. “I didn’t
think I was going to get to look at you again.”

She started crying and James was
quick to get his arms around her. “Try not to think about it. I’m
having enough trouble myself coping with it. I should never have
allowed you to go out on that scaffolding.”

Mairead pulled away to look up
at him. “But you did and I love you for that. Makes me think that
you might consider a few other things I want to do.”

His frown was instant. “Which
are?”

“I want to live in Wellington so
I can be near my friends. I can always fly back and see Daddy.”

“You’ll have to spend the first
few months in Pukerua Bay with me until my house is any shape to
live in.”