Val McDermid - Kickback

A moment later, I heard Nell shout, 'Brian?'

'What the hell's the matter with you?' I heard, the voice muffled at first but growing clearer as he approached her.

A chair scraped on a hard floor, then Nell said, That Brannigan woman. The private eye, the one who was sniffing round Martin? She came into the shop this afternoon. Brian, she says she knows everything that's been going on!' She sounded as though she were on the verge of hysterics. It was like listening to a radio play, trying to conjure up the picture that matched what I was hearing. I checked that the tape was running, then concentrated on what I could hear.

'And you fell for that bullshit? Christ, Nell, I told you, no one can pin a thing on us. We're in the clear now. What did she say anyway? She could only have been bluffing.' He sounded angry rather than edgy, as if he wanted someone to blame and Nell was handy.

'She said she knew all about the land deals, and the mortgage scam, and about using the old houses to launder the money,' Nell reported, surprisingly faithfully.

'Jesus, that really is bullshit. She must have been guessing. And even if she did guess right, there's not a shred of proof.' Another chair scraped on the floor and a different lighter clicked.

'She said she had proof,' Nell said.

'She can't have. I got rid of everything after Martin. Every bit of paper, every computer disc. There isn't any proof. For Christ's sake, Nell, get a grip.'

'What if she does have evidence? What if there was something you don't know about? I'm telling you, Brian, she knows. And she knows Martin's death wasn't an accident.'

'Now you're really on Fantasy Island,” Lomax snapped. 'Look, the cops think it was an accident. The inquest is going to say it was an accident. You and me are the only ones who know any different. How the fuck could this private eye know anything? She wasn't there, was she? Or did I miss her? Was she there giving us a hand to drop your precious boyfriend over the banisters? Did that somehow escape my notice?' he demanded. 'Listen, there's no way she could know anything about that gutless little shit.'

'Don't talk about him like that,' Nell said.

'Well, he was. Saying he wasn't going to have anything to do with violence,' Lomax mimicked in a namby-pamby voice. 'Saying he was going to the police if I didn't lay off the nosy bitch. As if it wasn't his stupid fault in the first place that something had to be done about her. If I'd done the fucking job properly to begin with, we wouldn't be getting any fucking aggro off this Brannigan cow. She'd be on the bottom of the bloody Ship Canal where she fucking belongs.'

In spite of myself, I shivered. There's something very stomach-churning about listening to someone who's tried to kill you whingeing because they didn't succeed. A bit like reading your own obituary.

'Well you didn't do it properly, did you? And now she says she knows. And she wants sixty thousand from you or she'll go to the cops,' Nell said. Her voice sounded shaky, as if she was forcing herself to stand up to her brother.

'Sixty grand? She's trying to blackmail us?' Lomax's voice rose, incredulous.

'Not blackmail. She says you ripped off her client for five thou, and there's another eleven in the same boat. She wants their money back.'

'She wants their money back,' Lomax echoed, a snort of laughter in his voice.

'And she wants it back before you catch the plane on Monday night. What plane is that, Brian?' Nell's voice cracked. Even at my remove, I could sense the tension between these two.

'I told you, she's a bullshit merchant. She's just trying to drive a wedge between us, to make you crack and tell her all the stuff she doesn't know but wants you to think she does,” he said. He was as likely to win an Oscar as his sister.

'You're running out on me, aren't you?' Nell said. 'You're going off somewhere with all the money leaving me to clear up the mess.'

There isn't going to be any mess, I keep telling you. And I am not doing a runner,' Lomax shouted.

Confusion reigned in my right ear. It sounded like a chair scraping back, a scuffle then a slap. 'Oh no?' Nell almost screamed. 'So why have you got a bloody passport in your pocket?'

'Give me that,' he yelled.

'You thought you could just clear off and leave me? You bastard, Brian! You said we were in this together. I've put up with all the worry while you and Martin were playing your silly games. I was even stupid enough to listen to you when you said Martin was too much of a risk. And now you think you can just write me off and sod off with the money that's mine by rights?' She was ranting hysterically now.

'Fucking shut up,' Lomax exploded. I heard the sound of another slap. 'You silly bitch. All you ever wanted was the money. You didn't give a shit about Martin. You were willing to fuck your brains out to keep him quiet just so long as the money kept coming in. So don't give me all that stuff.'

There was sudden silence. Then Nell Lomax said softly, 'But nobody would ever believe that, would they? They'll believe me, though, when I break down and tell the police that I've discovered my brother killed my fiance and now he's planning to skip the country with all the money they embezzled.'

“You wouldn't have the bottle,' Lomax said contemptuously.

'Wouldn't I,' Nell said bitterly. 'You're not leaving me without a shilling while you live it up on my money'

There was a crash. 'You just went too far, little sister,' Lomax hissed.

The sounds of struggle intensified. Suddenly afraid, I whipped the earphone out and hit the floor running. I tore down the stairs, out of the front door and across the street, willing my stiff muscles to drive me forward. Up the drive, round the side of the house, the blood pounding in my ears, Lomax's voice echoing in my head.

As I rounded the corner of the house, I saw a long conservatory Beyond it, I could see the kitchen. In an instant I took in the scene. Nell, bent forwards over the kitchen table, her hands scrabbling uselessly frantic behind her. Masking her body with his, Lomax leaned forward, bearing down on her with his superior weight, his hands round her throat.

I tried the door, but it was locked. Urgently, I scanned the UPVC door frame, estimating the weak point. Then I positioned myself and aimed a kick with my full weight behind it. The force of the blow cracked the frame, and had the added benefit of stopping Brian Lomax. I took a deep breath, trying to block out the pain that had jarred every bone in my body, and concentrated all of my body's energies into my leg and foot. The second kick jerked the door out of the frame, leaving it swinging inwards.

My momentum carried me forward into the conservatory. Lomax had abandoned Nell and was coming for me. He was bigger, heavier, stronger and fitter. I knew I'd only get one chance. I balanced myself and twisted round so I was side on to him. I feinted on one foot, then as he dived towards me, I brought the other foot round in a fast, short arc. The crack of bone as his femur snapped was sickeningly loud. He crashed to the floor like a felled tree. His scream of pain made the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end.

'Hanging in space over Barton Bridge wasn't a whole lot of fun either,' I said as I stepped over him towards Nell.

'Bitch,' he gasped.

I could hardly bring myself to talk to him, but, mindful that the tape was still running, I said, 'You brought it on yourself. You got greedy. You didn't have to kill Martin Cheetham.'

'What’s it to you? He was a no-mark. I should have killed you when I had the chance,' I heard him say as I stooped over the slumped body of his sister.

I felt her neck for a pulse. There was a faint fluttering beneath my fingers. Gently, I raised her body and eased her to the floor. I loosened her blouse, then put my ear to her mouth. Her breathing was weak and ragged, but it was still coming. 'You'll be pleased to hear she's still alive,' I said.