The Truth Will Out Read online

  The bloodied tea towel was being removed, and I felt the fluttering of panic. I couldn’t stomach any more blood. This phobia was getting ridiculous.

  “I’ll just be outside the main door,” I said, leaving her in their capable hands.

  I couldn’t get outside quick enough to breathe in fresh air or as fresh as I was able to with smokers around the corner.

  I was on the verge of having a panic attack. My hands were clammy, and I was breathing too quickly. I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes. Slow down, Sarah, nice deep breaths, hold and exhale.

  CHAPTER THREE

  Kelly

  Kelly sat in the front seat of the car with the moneybag as she normally did. The street was like any other on the outskirts of the capital. There were lines of shops, takeaways and convenience stores with the majority of them run by Asian families.

  Johnny and Pete were in the latter. A small girl stood outside staring, forcing Kelly to look away. Was that why she was outside? She couldn’t know what Kelly was doing there, and Kelly hadn’t noticed her before. Had her parents sent her out as they saw Johnny and Pete approaching?

  Kelly looked back, and the girl was still staring. She seemed unnaturally still. Kelly decided she had been purposely sent outside to make her feel guilty for taking money from people who ought to have known better.

  Johnny came out of the shop first. Kelly watched as he glanced both ways before crossing the road towards their car.

  He was a handsome man. His short dark hair was slicked back, and he had brooding, intense eyes. A square jaw was framed by a short moustache and beard. Overall, he looked moody when he didn’t smile, or perhaps even menacing, depending on who was with him. He was a man who knew how to work people just by looking at them.

  When Johnny did smile, he made people want to smile with him. A sharp dresser in good suits, he carried himself well.

  By contrast, Pete was not an attractive man, although, he dressed well, which drew attention away from his looks. He had short-cropped hair, a crooked long nose, and dark round eyes, one of which was bigger than the other.

  People assumed Pete was dumb, but they were wrong. He was very astute, rarely missing anything going on around him. Kelly and Pete had been friends for a lot longer than she had known Johnny.

  Pete got into the driver’s seat and Johnny into the passenger side, twisting around to hand her a small bag. Kelly took out the contents, counting it and writing the total next to Khan’s name in a notebook. She then added it to a carrier bag.

  “Are we done?” she asked, knowing there were no more names in the book. “Can we go home now?”

  “Why?” Asked Johnny. “Have you somewhere more important to be?”

  “No, it’s just a bit stuffy in the car.”

  “Then open the window,” he told her.

  “No, not when I’ve got a bag full of money.”

  As they travelled back in silence, Kelly realised how she was feeling more uncomfortable with the way her life was going. Taking money from good people under the pretence of offering protection and lending money at extortionate rates was not how she wanted to spend the rest of her life.

  Half an hour later, the car pulled into Johnny’s home on the outskirts of town. The house sat on its own grounds with its own security. Johnny pulled out a remote control, pointed it at the gates, and they opened. Pete drove up the gravel driveway and parked near the front door. The three-storey building was attractive. There were three windows on each level, except the ground floor, where the middle one was the front door. Each window had shutters and clematis and honeysuckle ran up the walls.

  A man in uniform appeared with his dog on a lead, a black Rottweiler that snarled until he tugged it back.

  “Afternoon, Mr Hatton.”

  “How’s the dog?”

  “Ah, she’s fine, just something she must have eaten.”

  Johnny nodded and went inside with Pete following.

  Kelly went straight in the study and to the desk. Opening the drawer and pulling out a ledger, she emptied the contents of the bag onto the desktop. Using the notebook from the car, she wrote all the names and counted out the correct money for each one. She calculated the interest and entered it into the ledger alongside the list of names. Every name told a story, and she had learned not to think of them, except as she wrote Khan’s, she thought of the little girl.

  Johnny came into the room and stood behind her, staring down at his books and rubbing her shoulders as he did.

  “You do a great job, baby, I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  “Let’s hope you never have to find out,” she said as she wrote.

  “Why? Are you going somewhere?”

  She turned to face him. “Where could I possibly go?”

  He bent down and kissed her on the lips. “Nowhere, you belong to me. I’ve had many women, but none like you.”

  “Because I do your books?”

  He brought her to her feet. “Is that what you think?” His eyes searched her face.

  “Then what makes me different?” She asked.

  “Because I love you, K, I really do.” He smoothed back her hair so he could see her eyes, and then he kissed each eyelid as he cupped her chin.

  She knew he was in love with her, but it was a possessive love. He gave her a good life and as long as she treated him with affection, he was good to her. Life couldn’t be better, she told herself as she wound her arms around his neck and melted her face against his.

  “Got you a present,” he said when they pulled apart. Putting his hand in his pocket, he pulled out a small plastic bag containing a white substance. She smiled and left it on the desk where he placed it. “Don’t you want it?”

  “Of course, I do,” she said, pushing him away. “Just not when I’m doing the books. Give me half an hour and we’ll get stoned if you like?”

  He grinned. “I think I’d rather do it now, so we can roll on the carpet together.”

  Kelly laughed. “And have Pete come in?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t care, baby. I just care about you.”

  She pushed him gently away, her hand on his chest. “Not now. Money comes before everything, you understand that.” She could see longing in his eyes, and as much as she would like to throw off all her clothes and give herself to him, she couldn’t. “Go,” she said instead.

  People generally didn’t say no to Johnny. Kelly knew she was privileged. It was her one hold on him, but even then, she had to be careful. The years had taught her how to play him. Johnny could turn nasty, and she’d seen him break someone’s nose because they thought they knew better than he did.

  She was just a girl in a bar who had a head for figures, thanks to her dad. When she saw how bad Johnny’s books were, she offered to help. She also observed how he treated people around him and if she played her cards correctly, she would be better off with him than on her own. She did not expect to be more than that. Initially, she’d refused his advances, but that only made him more determined.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  Kelly

  Kelly was born to a good mother who believed in the goodness of all people. Her father was more of a realist. Together they balanced each other out. Kelly had an unusual childhood and was home schooled because her parents preferred to travel around in their camper van. Often, they would join communes where other people shared their lifestyle, and Kelly liked hanging out with the different children.

  Other people lived in houses and their children attended school in uniforms. She once asked her dad why she didn’t do the same.

  “We are free spirits who roam the world as we wish and I don’t want anyone to dictate how I bring up my child. Our life is our own, Kelly. Never forget that.”

  Kelly loved her life, and going out with her dad to buy and sell or pick up things people who lived normal lives didn’t want was a perfect way to live. She always had a head for figures, and her dad encouraged her. She eventually kept a crude copy of what the
y bought and sold, and what they needed to continue living the way they wanted.

  Her mum, as Kelly always remembered her, was like an angel. She sometimes didn’t think she lived in the real world because in her world, nothing ever died and nothing bad ever happened. Her mum taught her virtue and morality. She also taught her how to get the best of people by giving respect and understanding. She was always interested in what they had to say.

  Then by a cruel twist of fate, cancer took her. Kelly took it badly and got in with a bad crowd before getting arrested. She was let off with a caution, but it taught her a valuable lesson. If you let them, people will take advantage of you and lead you to places you didn’t really want to go. Now it was happening again.

  She and Dad had another 10 years before he was knocked over by a lorry when he wandered into its path after drinking too much.

  Kelly sighed; here she was. Was her life her own? No, it was Johnny’s. She belonged to him. Her free will was not so free any more. She was being taken down a path she didn’t want to travel, and there seemed no way out.

  She brought her thoughts back to the present. Putting the money and books into the safe, she went upstairs to shower. She always felt dirty after collecting cash, and it wasn’t just the handling of it.

  Afterward, she emptied the powder onto the edge of the sink and sniffed it.

  When she went out into the bedroom, Johnny was waiting. There were remnants of powder on his cabinet. He smiled, and she dropped the towel, letting him see her nakedness. She moved over to him and helped him take off his clothes. Their lovemaking was slow and sensual, and she smiled her delight, as he knew just how to make her feel good.

  Afterward, he slept, and she lay awake. Did she love him? No. Of course, she was fond of him, but she hadn’t experienced real love. She loved her parents, but that was different. She wondered what it would be like to love without fear, and would she ever find out?

  Johnny liked his traditions, and at 7pm, they dressed for dinner. Housekeeper, Mrs Januka, took care of things and she employed cleaners and the occasional cook when she was too busy. She preferred to look after Johnny personally, without anyone else’s help, just as she had been doing long before Kelly arrived.

  Tonight Dave and Shawn, who also lived at the house, were out, so there was just Johnny, Pete, and Kelly.

  Mrs Januka brought in steak dinners, served with vegetables and chips for the men. Kelly only ate white meat, served with mixed steamed vegetables.

  Pete cut into his steak. “I can’t understand why you don’t eat this, it’s oozing goodness.”

  “Oozing blood, you mean. I don’t know how you can put it in your mouth,” she said.

  “Like this.” He grinned, putting a generous piece into his open mouth. Blood oozed around his teeth.

  “You’re disgusting,” she said, not looking at him.

  Johnny laughed and said, “It’s bloody good, though.”

  “Actually, you two are inbreeds...” They burst into laughter as she often called them names. “At least mine’s clean and good for you, not like that rubbish.”

  Pete made a puffing sound with his mouth and continued eating.

  “I’m considering expanding the business,” Johnny suddenly announced. She and Pete looked up.

  “I thought we were doing well,” said Pete.

  “We are, that’s why I’m expanding.”

  “In what way?” Pete asked, putting down his knife and fork to listen for a moment.

  “Well, think about it, we’ve got the loan company and Europe is doing really well. I heard Spenser’s car place in Trackham is having trouble with vandalism and it got me thinking.”

  Pete raised his eyebrows, picked up his fork and speared a piece of meat. “And we can protect them,” he said as he chewed.

  “Exactly,” said Johnny, moving the food to the side of his mouth as he spoke. “We could give them a helping hand and anyone else who’s also having a problem. Who wouldn’t want to stop that?” He picked up his wine and drank. “I’ve sent Dave and Shawn over to them, so we’ll see how they go on. Shouldn’t need much persuading.”

  Pete was nodding wholeheartedly as he ate.

  Kelly kept out of the conversation, as she preferred to keep her nose in the books without getting involved in anything else. She worked the shops and didn’t understand what the European side was. It was sometimes mentioned in her presence, although on the whole, kept from her. The transporting of goods, which were distributed and then sold on, was all she knew. She didn’t want to get involved in anything else. Unfortunately, Johnny had other ideas.

  “Kelly, you can be a tough cookie sometimes, and we have a couple of bitches on the estate that I’m sure you can handle.”

  She knew immediately whom he was referring to and looked at him, alarmed.

  “But I just do the books.” That was the last thing she wanted. Scamming people got you into trouble. She knew that from experience.

  “I know you do K, and you do a great job. You could do just as good here. A woman’s touch goes a long way. There are plenty of women on that estate and they can bring in a good income if handled correctly.”

  “But Johnny.” She protested. “I don’t want to get involved in that.”

  “You’re already involved,” he said. “Just because you do the books doesn’t make you innocent.”

  “I’m not saying that, I mean, what if they turn nasty?”

  “Then we’ll come in and sort them out,” Pete said as he put his cutlery in the finished position.

  “That won’t help if I’m there by myself.”

  “You can take Dave with you if you like. See how you get settled, and then maybe you can go on your own.”

  Kelly put down her knife and fork and looked at him. “Johnny, I prefer not to get that involved.”

  “You’re not above a bit of threatening,” said Pete, still chewing and causing food to come out of his mouth as he spoke.

  Kelly stared at Johnny, her mind in turmoil. “I do your books, and I do them well.”

  “And a good job you do of it, too,” he said, with a disarming smile. “We’ll get a meeting set up and discuss it further to get some ideas. I’ve mentioned it to Dave and you can both give it some thought before the meeting.”

  Kelly lost her appetite. It was not something she wanted to think about. Things were moving forward again, and her life was spiralling further out of control. She didn’t wish to intimidate people; she wasn’t a bully. It was one thing collecting money without getting her hands dirty, but this could turn into something else.

  The following morning Kelly left Johnny in bed and threw on her jogging pants and tee-shirt. Standing in the bathroom, she brushed her long, dark hair and tied it up in a ponytail. For a moment, she stared at herself and she saw traces of her mum. She had the same colour hair and when Kelly’s mouth was down and her lips together; she sometimes saw a shadow of her there, too.

  Kelly hadn’t slept well as she tried to think of a way to get out of Johnny’s proposal. The problem was that when he came up with something new, he wanted it followed through. She would have no choice and she wanted to step away from that sort of thing. This was going to make it all the more difficult.

  Absently she ran her hand down her ponytail and then threw it back over her shoulder before going downstairs. The house was quiet, and it didn’t sound like anyone else was up. She was glad because no one would be around to ask where she was going, as she didn’t know how much longer she could keep it a secret.

  Grabbing her keys from the hall drawer she went out the front door conscious of her feet crunching on the gravel driveway.

  She could have taken the car, but it was nicer to walk, or jog as she sometimes did.

  The fresh morning air was clear, and the sky was a deep azure. The birds were singing, and the sun was bringing warmth to the day. Kelly loved the countryside and took a deep breath, exhaling as she had been taught. She couldn’t wait to get there.

  C
HAPTER FIVE

  Sarah

  Abby was in the hospital cubicle having her cuts looked at and I, as usual, was outside breathing deeply and trying not to make a fool of myself.

  “Are you all right?” A voice said.

  I snapped my eyes open to see what I could only describe as a beautiful man standing before me. His hair was slightly spiked. His olive skin gave him a Mediterranean look, but it was his eyes that were so captivating. Instead of being brown as one might expect from his colouring, they were ice-blue, and he was staring right at me.

  “Don’t mind me,” I told him. “I’m just having a panic attack.”

  He stared at me with an are you for real look.

  “I hate hospitals and blood, so I’ve scored twice today,” I explained.

  “You must be Sarah Whittaker, then,” he said, to my surprise.

  And here I was thinking a random stranger saw a girl in trouble and wanted to help. “Erm, yes, once seen never forgotten. And you are?”

  “Inspector Ryan Andrews.” He actually flipped out his ID to show me, but I’d have believed anything he said, although my heart sank. I hated the police.

  “I’ve been assigned to your case by Chief Superintendent Fielding.”

  I cast my eyes heavenwards. I should have known. “Ah, now his daughter’s been hurt he’s suddenly taking an interest?”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Oh nothing, don’t mind me. I’m not a fan of the Soop.”

  He gave me a strange look, “The Soop?”

  “Private joke.”

  “Okay,” he said, drawing out the word. “Why don’t we go back inside so we can talk?” My legs were still a bit shaky, but I went with him.

  Back in the hospital’s Accident and Emergency department, I came face to face with the Soop in his stiff uniform. He stared at me as if this was my fault.

  “What happened?” He demanded rather than asked.

  “Haven’t you spoken to Abby, you really should, you know? She’s been asking for you.”