Chapter 44

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

A midst the whirl of merry-go-rounds and the tantalising aroma of cotton candy, there lies a corner that beckons both the seasoned marksmen and the curious novices – the rifle range. Here, the air crackles with anticipation, and the rhythmic pop of air rifles punctuates the air. It was the one stall Needles loved, but he was sidetracked by Skinner.

Skinner was getting too drunk for Needles' liking. Drunk people inevitably ended up saying things they shouldn't, and the last thing Needles wanted was Skinner mouthing off to everyone about the shop they'd done over. So far, he'd kept his mouth shut. Needles figured if Skinner were going to grass him up to the cops, he would have done it by now, but after a few drinks, people's tongues loosened, and there were enough coppers on and off duty to hear him.

So he shoved a bag of chips into Skinner's hand. ‘Eat something,' he ordered.

Skinner looked down at the greasy chips and grimaced. ‘Needles, listen, could we have a quiet chat?' he said uneasily.

‘A quiet chat?' Needles laughed. ‘Where the fuck do you expect to have a quiet chat here?'

Skinner shrugged. ‘I don't know, maybe near the woods.'

Needles barely heard him for he realised that DI Miller was right at his side at the rifle range. Needles stared at him with a mixture of curiosity and admiration. So, this was the guy who'd mixed with real East End gangsters. He'd looked him up after that murder case in Stonesend. He'd put an actual brutal gangster away. He had some guts, and Needles had to credit him for that.

‘I think you have an unfair advantage,' said the guy, handing him the rifle.

‘Beth wants a teddy bear.' Miller laughed.

Needles watched in awe as Miller took a steady stance, rested the rifle easily on his shoulder, gently placed his finger on the trigger, and, with a sharp aim, managed to hit every target. Needles whistled in admiration and felt an overwhelming urge to congratulate Miller when Digger nudged him in the ribs and said, ‘Look! What the hell is Laine up to?'

Needles turned to see his sister laughing with the group of Asians he'd seen earlier. What was the little bitch playing at, mixing with Pakis and Asians? Embarrassing him in front of his mates, too.

‘Right, I think it's time they moved back to their own patch. Come on, lads.'

‘I don't know,' said Skinner. ‘Best if we leave them. It will only mean more trouble.'

‘Don't be a fucking gutless wonder,' snapped Needles.

Digger, fuelled by drink, followed eagerly with Twitch at his side, while Skinner followed reluctantly. Skinner heard Needles say in a menacing voice, ‘Get your filthy Paki hands off my sister or…'

‘Or what?' said Khalid, stepping in front of him. ‘You gonna beat us up?'

‘Yeah,' said Digger.

‘I remember you,' said Needles to Sajid. ‘You were the Paki on the coach the other day. I just told you to take your filthy Paki hands off my sister.' He shoved Sajid hard in the chest.

‘Laine,' said Jassy, her voice trembling. ‘Let's go.'

Sajid's body tensed. His warm eyes were suddenly hard and cold. He was angry with Laine for being provocative, furious because he had to struggle all the time because of his colour, angry that he couldn't have the girlfriend he wanted and angry with Needles for his ignorance. His nails bit into his palms.

He was furious with the whole fucking world, and at that moment, all his hatred was directed at Needles, and before anyone could stop him, he was pounding his fists and kicking his feet at any part of Needles he could reach.

Needles, taken by surprise, yelped in pain and fell to the ground, covering his head with his arms. Digger let out a primal scream and jumped on Sajid's back, knocking the breath out of him.

Then all hell broke loose. Skinner was winded when Laine punched him in the stomach. Sajid could hear her screaming obscenities. Khalid had dragged Digger off Sajid and brutally punched him in the jaw. Before Digger could retaliate, Kalid hit him again.

‘Here we go,' said Beth in a resigned tone. ‘Sooner than I thought.'

Through blurry eyes, Sajid saw Needles being dragged away by DS Harper.

‘You all right, mate?' said a voice. ‘You look a bit winded.'

Sajid nodded. Through the haze, he could see a crowd had gathered, and the police were moving people on.

‘What's going on?' said Ray.

‘The usual fair punch-up,' said Sandy, her voice slurred.

‘You're a twisted racist bastard, Colin,' screamed Laine.

The paramedic had somehow got Skinner up, and he realised he was sitting on a hay bale. The Asians, bleeding and bruised, were on the other side, also being seen by paramedics.

Needles gave Laine the finger. Laine returned it and walked off with Jassy, who was shaking so much she couldn't walk straight.

Sajid was dizzy; all he could see were black spots in front of his eyes, but he knew he'd beaten the shit out of Needles, and it was the best feeling in the world.

After the police searched them, Tom stood before them and said firmly, ‘Right, you lot. We're giving you two choices. One, you leave the fair right now, or two, you stay away from each other. I'm putting this down to too much drink and excitement, but I'll arrest all of you next time. Make your choice.'

Sajid got up. ‘Come on,' he said to his mates. ‘Let's enjoy the fair.'

They nodded in agreement and followed him, dabbing at their wounds.

‘Wanker,' Needles said.

‘We'll be watching you,' said Beth.

‘Good luck with that,' said Ray.

Sajid was shaking but feeling more confident. His sides hurt, but he imagined Needles hurt even more, and that made the pain easier to bear. Laine had been right. They shouldn't be ashamed of their relationship or let anyone bully them into splitting up. He looked around the crowded field, but spotting her amongst the crowd was impossible.

He fumbled in his pocket for his phone to call her, but it wasn't there. He must have dropped it during the scuffle. He searched everywhere he thought it might have fallen, but it was nowhere.

‘It's gone, mate,' said Khalid. ‘Anyone could have it by now.'

Sajid punched the air in anger. There was so much he needed to tell Laine.

The man next to Olivia turned. Ana had been holding her breath, and there was an uncomfortable tightening in her chest. Now that the moment she had been waiting for had arrived, she didn't want him to turn around. Instead, she wanted to run and keep on running. But there was no time for her to run. Ana's eyes focused on his hand. The smell of his aftershave made her want to vomit.

‘Hi, Ana, nice to meet you,' he said, his hand closing over hers.

She held her breath in anticipation, then forced her eyes from his hand to his face and gasped.

It wasn't him.

But that couldn't be right. It didn't make sense. He'd gone to Oxford, they'd said. A new job. A promotion. A private detective said he was married with two kids and lived in Banbury.

‘He's got a fancy piece. Lives in a nice apartment. Olivia Whitman.'

It didn't make sense. He had the correct name, so why wasn't it him?

‘You okay, Ana?' asked Matt.

Ana struggled to control her emotions. ‘Nice to meet you,' she said, but it didn't sound like her voice. It was fake and empty of feeling. Why the fuck aren't you him? her head was yelling. You're supposed to be him. You've got his fucking name, and you even fucking smell like him. But, of course, if she'd used a bit of common sense, it would have been obvious that loads of men probably wore the same scent.

‘You're a police officer,' he said. ‘You must have your hands full tonight.'

I should fucking arrest you for nearly giving me a heart attack , thought Ana.

‘We're not on duty,' said Matt, looking at Ana, who was staring at the other guy like he was an alien.

‘Olivia said you work odd hours too,' said Ana.

He smiled. He didn't look at all like him, not in the fucking least. Ana's anger was overwhelming her. If this wasn't him, then where the fuck was he? How much fucking time had she wasted?

‘I'm a surgeon at the JR hospital.'

‘Have you always lived in Oxford?'

‘Twenty questions or what?' Matt laughed. ‘Once a police officer, always…'

Ana glared at him.

‘Yes,' he said, looking confused.

Ana forced a smile. So, she'd been chasing a dead end all along. She'd got the right person, except it wasn't the man she wanted. So how the hell was she supposed to find the fucker now?

‘Hello.'

Ana turned to see Tim with Vanessa and forced a smile. ‘Oh, hi. Are you enjoying the fair?' she asked.

‘We'll only be staying a little longer.' Tim smiled. ‘It's a bit noisy for Mum. Thanks, by the way, for looking into the accident.'

Ana felt embarrassed. What if she didn't find anything? ‘Well, don't raise your hopes too much,' she said.

‘At least you're trying,' he said.

‘How's the hand?' Ana asked, noticing the bandage.

‘It's getting better. Right, Mum wants some chips to take home. Enjoy yourselves.'

Tim wheeled Vanessa across the field towards the chip van.

The place was swarming with people now, and Ana found herself jostled into the highly fragranced body of a woman.

‘Oops, sorry,' said the woman, trying not to slur her words.

‘You okay, Lisa?' asked Matt.

Ana cringed at how provocative the woman suddenly became, fluttering her eyelashes and stepping closer to Matt, asking, ‘You haven't seen my useless other half, darling?'

‘Luke? No. Have you checked the beer tent?'

So, this is Luke Carpenter's wife , thought Ana. Not quite what I'd expected.

Lisa wagged her finger in Matt's face. ‘No, but I will.' She glanced at Ana and then, sliding her arm into Matt's, said, ‘Fancy buying me a drink, darling?'

Matt smiled politely. ‘I'm sure Luke will buy you one when you find him.'

‘Huh, that tight old tosser,' she said caustically, throwing her handbag over her shoulder. They watched as she strolled off in her short dress, swinging her hips provocatively.

‘She looks a right tart,' said Ana, without thinking.

‘Don't let Luke hear you say that.' Matt laughed.