Jessie Keane - Lawless

‘Fats,’ said Rob. ‘Shut the fuck up. You think it’s funny – one of the Danieri crew throwing himself out of a hospital window when Kit’s in a room a few doors down? You reckon the Old Bill’s laughing? Do you have any idea the trouble I’ll have to go to, to see that it’s buried?’

Fats shrugged uneasily. He’d done his job, hadn’t he? Stopped that wop bastard dead.

‘Soon as Kit came round the police were in there, questioning him about the shooting. He handled it; we were home clear. All that could change if they find out the guy who took a high-dive from the window had a helping hand. You think Kit needs any more crap, you dumb fuck?’

The boys were silent. Rob turned away from them in disgust.

‘I’m not happy with any of this,’ he said, and stalked out of the room.

‘No shit,’ muttered Fats.

Next evening, Rob took a pale, silent Bianca to the hospital. Throughout her enforced stay at the Lambeth safe house, she had been biddable, subdued, and her demeanour didn’t change even when they entered the maze of corridors and wound their way to the private room Kit now occupied.

Ashok was on guard.

‘All OK?’ Rob asked him.

‘Fine,’ he said, glaring at Bianca.

‘Go on home,’ said Rob, and Ashok departed.

Rob glanced at Bianca. ‘You OK for this?’

She nodded: didn’t speak.

‘Sorry about this,’ said Rob, ‘but I need you to spread your arms.’ And there in an empty waiting room he frisked her with cool expertise.

‘Come on then,’ he said when it was done.

Rob led the way into Kit’s room. The moment they walked through the door, Kit’s eyes fastened on Bianca and stayed there.

Bianca and Rob stopped at the foot of the bed.

‘Rob, you can go,’ said Kit, his eyes still fixed on her.

‘I’d rather stay,’ said Rob. The woman was a crazy Danieri, who knew what she was going to pull? She might grab a syringe, stick Kit with it. She was capable of anything.

Kit’s eyes flicked to meet his. ‘Go,’ he said.

Rob sighed and started towards the door. He groaned when he saw Ruby appear there, about to come in and no doubt kick off. He’d told her to stay away. But she was looking past him, arrested by the scene at Kit’s bedside.

Rob paused beside her in the doorway and looked back too.

‘Come to finish the job off?’ Kit asked Bianca.

Bianca bit her lip and shook her head as she approached him. Tears filled her eyes as she stared down at his face.

‘I want to hate you,’ she gulped out. ‘But I can’t.’

She moved closer and slowly reached out a trembling hand. Kit grasped her hand, twined his fingers into hers. Suddenly the tears overflowed and poured down Bianca’s cheeks. The strength left her and she fell to her knees beside the bed.

‘Oh God,’ she managed to say. Over and over, she kissed his hand, sobbing and murmuring that she was sorry, she was so, so sorry. Kit placed his other hand on her head, smoothing her silky white-blonde hair.

‘It’s all right,’ he said to her. ‘Really. It’s all right. I’m sorry too.’ Sorry for Tito. Sorry I caused you pain. Sorry I lied to you.

‘I can’t hate you,’ sobbed Bianca. ‘I can’t do it.’

‘I know.’

‘You don’t know. You can’t. ’

‘You pulled to the left. Like the rabbit, right? You could have finished me, shot me straight through the heart, but you didn’t. And when you were aiming at my head, you couldn’t do it then, either.’

‘Oh Jesus, I’m so… did it hurt?’

‘Stung a bit,’ he said.

Rob and Ruby stood in the doorway. They looked at each other. Then Rob took Ruby’s arm. ‘Let’s give them a minute,’ he said, and led her out to the waiting room.

‘I don’t understand any of this,’ said Ruby.

‘Join the fucking club,’ said Rob.

Outside the hospital, Thomas Knox was waiting for Ruby.

He knew I was here because he watches me, all the time , she thought. Once it had made her shiver with lust, that thought. Now there was fear, too, and a cold hard stab of dread.

‘You got Reg here with the car?’ Rob asked her.

‘Just over there.’

‘Good. I’ll catch up with you tomorrow then, OK?’

‘Fine. Thanks.’

Rob went back inside.

Reg had the Merc parked up and he was standing, leaning against the bonnet, watching her.

‘Hey,’ said Thomas, coming forward and kissing her cheek.

He wanted Michael out of the way to get to you , said Daisy’s voice in her head.

Ruby stiffened.

Thomas drew back, stared at her face. ‘What’s up?’ he asked.

Ruby shook her head. ‘Nothing, it’s just…’

‘Just what?’ he prompted when she hesitated.

‘It’s just that I don’t think I can do this any more. You and me. I can’t.’

He was still staring at her, trying to fathom her reasoning.

‘Something happened?’ he asked. ‘Is Kit all right?’

‘He’s fine.’ He’s crazy and he’s got that lunatic girl who nearly killed him at his bedside, but he’s fine.

‘Then what? What’s changed your mind all of a sudden?’

‘Nothing. But I don’t want to go on with this.’

Now his eyes were fierce. He grabbed her arm. ‘Bullshit. Something’s happened.’

Yeah, I’ve found out that you might have killed Michael just to have me, and you know what? That makes me feel sick, like I may as well have pulled the trigger and killed him myself.

Reg was coming toward them now, his face anxious.

‘Nothing’s happened. It’s over. That’s all.’

‘Not until I say.’

‘No! I say it’s over,’ said Ruby angrily. ‘And it is.’

She pulled her arm free and barged past him, towards Reg.

‘All right, Miss Darke?’ he asked.

‘Fine, Reg.’ She glanced back, just once, and Thomas Knox was still standing there, watching her go. She turned away, and told Reg where she wanted to be taken next.

The last time Ruby had been to Joe’s big house in Chigwell, she had been attending her eldest brother’s funeral after Charlie died drunk in a hit-and-run. She remembered the day vividly; she hadn’t wanted to come, but Charlie was her brother, blood was thicker than water and all that sentimental bullshit. And she recalled the way Betsy – who long, long ago had been her best friend – had lorded about the place while hosting the funeral tea, showing her grandly embellished palatial home and her swanky new pool house off to all the East End faces and their wives, letting them know how much better than them Joe was doing with his business dealings.

Poor bloody Joe , thought Ruby as Reg stopped at the gates and announced her arrival into the intercom. He could have done a lot better, a lot nicer, than Betsy, but there you go. Who knew what brought people together?

That train of thought led her back to Thomas Knox, and she pushed it aside. She’d done the right thing. Finished it. Kit was safe enough with his boys around him; she should never have got involved with Thomas, never asked him to find Gabe’s address or anything else. The thought that he could have killed Michael tormented her.

Was it possible he’d been so determined to have her that he’d have stopped at nothing, even removing Michael from the scene?

She was afraid that she had caused Michael’s death. It made her feel nauseous to consider it as a possibility, but there it was, right in front of her. Her own guilt.

A squawking voice emerged from the intercom, and Reg answered it. The gates started to open, and Reg got back in the Merc and drove up to the house along a deep dark avenue of shrubbery, the headlights forging a path. Reg parked the Merc in front of the house and Ruby peered out at it, lit by the porch light. To her eye, then as now, the place looked tacky, like it was trying too hard to be something it wasn’t. There was a white van parked up on the drive, and the sound of hammering was coming loud and clear from inside the house. Someone was working late.