Widows

Linda leaned heavily against Bella’s shoulder. ‘Oh, Bella. We ain’t meant to be lucky, are we?’ She sighed. ‘All I ever wanted to do was be a racing driver and be the first female World Champion. I was going to give James Hunt a good seeing to — on and off the track.’

Bella laughed and Linda, letting go of all her tension, laughed too. Through the open balcony window, the pool band started up and Ike and Tina Turner’s ‘River Deep, Mountain High’ filled the air. Linda was the first to join in, quietly at first, and then she turned the volume right up.

Bella joined in and they reached a crescendo together, singing at the top of their voices, jumping around and waving their arms in the air. As the song came to an end, they slowed to a stop and they got their breath back. It was not knowing that was killing them.

‘Me and you’ll be all right, won’t we, Bella?’ Linda asked.

‘We all will.’ Bella was a dab hand at reassuring paranoid drunks. ‘Let’s get room service.’

As she waited for someone to answer, Bella’s smile dropped. The man who had answered the phone at Dolly’s house was a real worry. If it was Harry, then Dolly had done them over for sure. If it was the cops, then Bella reckoned Dolly and Shirley were already in cells. And if it was someone working for the Fishers — then God knows where Dolly and Shirley were. Whatever the truth, Bella would take all her new gear back to the shop and get refunds on everything. She would give Dolly and Shirley one more day — and then she’d take Linda and run.

Chapter 39

The police had parked cars at either end of the Dolly’s street, blocking any access in or out. The local man was hugging his dog tight as he repeated his story once again for DCI Saunders. He had come across the badly injured man in the car; he was passing in and out of consciousness but had managed to mumble that he was a police officer. ‘Is he dead?’ the man asked.

‘No,’ said Saunders quickly. He had no time to talk. ‘Go with the uniformed officers now, please, and they’ll take a full statement.’ He ushered the man toward the nearest police car.

Glancing along the dark road, Saunders could just make out DS Fuller kneeling by Resnick’s car door. Saunders looked away almost in shame. He’d seen the mess Resnick was in and, even now, through all of the pain, Resnick had said just one word: ‘Rawlins.’ Saunders was certain of it. Of course, he could have been delirious, hallucinating or even brain damaged... so Saunders decided to get proof before repeating anything.

As the DCI plucked up the courage to head back toward Resnick, he grabbed a uniformed officer. ‘I need to make sure that DI Resnick’s safely out the way before we move into the Rawlins house. Get on the radio and chase that bloody ambulance up. Tell them no bells and horns. Silent approach.’

Resnick was slouched in the driver’s seat, blood streaming down his face from numerous deep gashes in his skin. His breath was coming in terrible guttural gasps.

Saunders leaned into the car. ‘Ambulance is on its way, George, you hear me? It’s on its way, so hang in there.’

Resnick’s chest made a rasping sound as he heaved for breath, but he nodded just slightly. Saunders shook his head, stepped back and whispered to Fuller.

‘What on earth was he doing out here alone playing super cop?’

Fuller had no answer he cared to share. No answer he needed to share. They both knew exactly why Resnick was on his own — because that’s the corner they’d forced him into.

Resnick’s chest rasped as he tried to speak, followed by a gurgling of the blood in his mouth and a cough that sent blood spattering across the windscreen. Saunders winced.

‘You need to clear his airway, Fuller. See if he’s got any false teeth. Don’t let him choke to death, for God’s sake. Not in the street. Stay with him and if he says anything, write it down. Someone’s going to swing for this, and it’s not going to be me.’

‘Of course... sir,’ Fuller replied. The pause before the ‘sir’ was exactly the same distain Fuller had once shown for Resnick. As Saunders walked away, Fuller shook his head in disgust. Saunders was the sycophantic, arse-covering bastard Resnick had always said he was.

Fuller knelt back down and looked at the pitiful, broken figure of Resnick. He had hated this man for so long, but he wasn’t looking at an enemy right now: he was looking at a victim. A brutalized victim who deserved respect and care. He got some clean, sterile gauze from a first aid box and leaned into the car.

Resnick’s eyes opened slightly and he looked at Fuller through the crimson haze of blood.

‘Sir,’ Fuller started. ‘I’m gonna clean your mouth to help you breathe more easily. You got false teeth?’

Resnick managed a slight nod, so Fuller slipped his finger into his mouth and felt around. Suddenly, a couple of real teeth that had been knocked loose during the assault fell out onto Resnick’s lap. Fuller eased the plastic bridge out. It was a plate with two side teeth on it.