Two-Faced (40 page)

‘Ring first,’ Steve told him, leaning down to snort his own line. ‘I’ve got a lot on at the moment so I’ll be in and out of town for the next week or so.’

‘Give me some dates when you’re going to be away,’ Liam said. ‘Only I’ve got a load of shit of my own to deal with back home, so I’ll only be flying back over here to pick the stuff up and I’m not hanging around waiting for you.’

Steve respected the guy for refusing to leap to his tune like everyone else did and told him what he needed to know.

Liam left the club a short time later and walked down to the end of the road to find a cab. After telling the driver to take him to the hotel, he took out his phone.

‘Darren . . . it’s Liam. I need to talk to you; can you come to my hotel a.s.a.p?’

26

‘Fucking hell,’ Darren muttered, his expression grave when he’d heard what Liam had to say. ‘Didn’t realise she was that bad. No wonder Mia don’t want to talk about it. They must be well ashamed. But how come you’re so bothered about it?’ he asked then, frowning at Liam across the table.

Liam breathed in deeply and said, ‘Remember how pissed off I used to get whenever you went on about Mia when we were banged up? Well, it’s because
I
used to date Michelle, and . . .’ Trailing off, thinking it best not to mention specifics, he shrugged before saying, ‘Well, let’s just say we didn’t finish too good, and it used to piss me off to have to see her face all the time.’

‘But that was Mia, not Michelle,’ Darren reminded him.

‘Identical twins,’ Liam reminded
him
.

‘Yeah, I see what you mean,’ Darren said, reaching for the drink that Liam had just poured. ‘So, you and Michelle, me and Mia, eh? Small world, or what?’

‘Yeah, and that’s why I’ve come to you with this,’ Liam said, his voice serious. ‘I didn’t really know what you were about when we were padded up together, but talking to you the other night I got the impression you’ve quit arsing about.’

‘Look, I know I’m a cunt,’ Darren admitted bluntly. ‘Always have been, probably always will be – that’s just who I am. There’s tons of shit I’ve done that I’m not proud of, but when I came out I knew I never wanted to go back inside, so I decided to buckle down and make something of myself.’ He twisted his lip in a self-deprecating sneer and took a swig of his drink before continuing. ‘Not done too good so far, I know, but I was thinking about what you said the other night and I reckon I just need one big job to get me some decent money, then I’m off.’

‘Off where?’

‘Anywhere but here.’ Sighing, Darren sat back in his seat. ‘Anyhow, that’s my problem. This stuff with Michelle . . . what do you think’s really going on?’

‘I don’t know,’ Liam murmured, pursing his lips and gazing thoughtfully into his glass. ‘It just doesn’t feel right. And that place . . .’ He paused and looked Darren in the eye. ‘Can I trust you not to tell Davy what I’m saying?’

Darren snorted softly and said, ‘Believe me, I don’t tell Davy nothing. No offence,’ he added quickly. ‘I know you’re old mates, and he’s probably sound with you. But me and him aren’t on the same level. I’m just one of his joeys, and he’d think nothing of slitting my throat if he thought I was up to anything. So I keep my head down and make my money without saying shit.’

Saying, ‘You’re smarter than you give yourself credit for,’ Liam refilled their glasses. ‘Okay, I figure I can trust you,’ he said. ‘So I’ll tell you what I think, and what I need to know. Obviously you know more people round here than I do, so if you can put out a few feelers I’ll make it worth your while.’

‘Cool,’ Darren said, nodding his agreement.

‘There’s definitely something dodgy about that club of Dawson’s,’ Liam went on. ‘I’m just not sure
what
yet. You ever been there?’

Darren shook his head.

‘Well, it’s one of those little lap-dancing places,’ Liam told him. ‘You know the kind – full of dirty old bastards and young dead-eyed girls. But if that’s all that’s going on there, why all the security? Dawson’s got the place set up like Fort Knox: windows barred, steel doors – the lot. I heard a woman crying when we went up to his office and after seeing the state of Michelle in that video I’m wondering if the club’s a front, and he’s got some kind of brothel set-up going on. So that’s one of the things you can ask around about – see if anyone knows anything.’

‘Right you are,’ Darren said, mentally storing that one away.

‘I know he deals,’ Liam went on, ‘’cos that’s where Davy gets his gear from.’

‘You sure?’ Darren frowned. ‘He reckons he gets it from London – drives there every week to pick it up.’

‘Yeah, well, that’s his business,’ Liam replied, kicking himself for having let that slip when normally he was so guarded. The coke was obviously still in control of his mouth. Warning Darren not to go telling Davy or anyone else that he knew any different or they’d both be in the shit, he said, ‘Anyway, the club closes at four, so I thought I’d take a trip back over there in a bit to see what happens when they lock up – if anyone stays inside, or if they all leave.’

‘So, what, you’re thinking about breaking in?’ Darren asked, getting excited despite his speech about going straight. They were moving into his territory now; burglary was in his blood.

‘If I have to,’ Liam told him. ‘But not tonight. Dawson’s going away for a few days, so I’ll probably do it then, when there’s no chance of him coming back unexpectedly. He’s got some big fuckers working for him and I’m not risking anything kicking off. I know his main man Vern goes everywhere with him, and he looks like the biggest threat, so—’

‘Sorry,’ Darren interrupted. ‘Did you just say Vern?’

‘Yeah. Why, do you know him?’

‘If it’s the same bloke, yeah,’ Darren said, his eyes suddenly flashing with anger. ‘And that would kind of make sense, come to think of it,’ he added thoughtfully. ‘Remember I told you about when I saw Mia in that club, and how she’d hooked up with a rich twat and his minder did me in? Well,
his
name was Vern – the minder, that is. I remember her saying it.’

‘What did he look like?’ Liam asked.

‘Big fuck-off black fella,’ Darren told him, sneering as he added, ‘One of them that all the birds go crazy for: hard as fuck, with a killer smile. Tell you what,’ he went on, a hint of longing in his voice now, ‘the
dreams
I’ve had about catching that cunt on his own.’

‘Sounds like the same guy,’ Liam said. ‘And Steve Dawson’s definitely loaded. And you said Michelle was with him?’

‘Yeah, only at the time I thought it was Mia, obviously. But now we know it’s definitely Michelle, and she’s still with him. But what a cunt, letting his own bird do shit like that with other blokes.’

‘Or
making
her do it,’ Liam murmured quietly.

‘Maybe,’ Darren said, giving him a doubtful look. ‘But he wasn’t forcing her to do the drugs. She was well into that, you could tell.’

‘That’s how pimps operate,’ Liam told him, still convinced that Michelle would never have gone into this way of life voluntarily. ‘Charm them, get them hooked, then the next thing they know, they’re out of their heads and being sold to the highest bidder.’

‘Yeah, you’re right,’ Darren muttered, taking another swig of his drink. ‘So, what’s the plan? You going in there to see if it was her crying, or something?’

‘To be honest, I’m not really sure
what
my plan is,’ Liam admitted. ‘But, now you mention it, I suppose you’ve got a point. It could have been her, couldn’t it?’

‘Only one way to find out,’ Darren said pointedly. ‘And if it is them blokes who went for me, you can count me in. Only I hope they
do
come back unexpectedly, ’cos I’ve got a score to settle.’

After reiterating that he’d prefer to do it when no one was around, Liam glanced at his watch. ‘Right, well, it’s nearly half-three, so I reckon I’d better call a cab and head over there. Want me to drop you back at yours on the way?’

Darren took his car keys out of his pocket and grinned. ‘I’ve got my old man’s wheels; I’ll take you. Four eyes are better than two, and all that.’

A short time later, parked up a fair distance from the club but still within viewing distance, Liam and Darren stayed low in their seats as men began to drift out of the club and make their drunken or stoned ways home. A good forty minutes later a people carrier pulled up, and the working girls came out and climbed into it. And ten minutes later, three big men came out.

‘Liam slid almost onto the car’s floor as they passed on the opposite pavement. He hissed, ‘That’s all of the security guys apart from Vern.’

‘So there’s just him and his boss in there?’ Darren asked, cracking his knuckles as if subconsciously preparing for a fight.

‘And the woman who runs the bar,’ Liam confirmed. ‘I haven’t seen her yet.’

Minutes later, Steve’s BMW nosed into view from the alley at the side of the club. Seeing just two figures in it, Liam narrowed his eyes as he and Darren carried on watching the door. When nobody else came out after half an hour, he said, ‘The bar woman was definitely there earlier, ’cos she served us. And I would have noticed if she’d come out with the girls, because she’s like a midget compared to them. So why would she still be in there after everyone else has gone . . .
unless
 . . .’ Turning to Darren, he said, ‘I bet she lives in. But why would you need someone living in a place like that unless you’ve got something to guard? And if we’re talking girls here, you wouldn’t need a man to guard them. A woman could do it.’

‘Jeezus,’ Darren muttered, shaking his head. ‘This is starting to sound like that sex-slave shit you hear about.’

‘My thoughts exactly,’ Liam said quietly.

‘So what do you want to do?’ Darren asked. ‘They’ve all gone, and I doubt they’ll come straight back. If you want to go in, I’m up for it.’

‘No, we need to work this out properly,’ Liam told him. ‘We need to find out if there’s any way to get past the doors, for starters. And I don’t think it’d be too smart to show our faces, ’cos Dawson’s the kind of guy who’d hunt you down.’

‘It’d take me two minutes to find a way in,’ Darren told him confidently. ‘Every ship’s got a leak somewhere. And balaclavas are the answer for the other problem – which
ain’t
a problem ’cos I’ve got loads back at my place. And gloves. I’ve got leather, wool, cotton, surgical – take your pick.’

‘Christ, what are you?’ Liam asked, amused now. ‘A one-man fucking crime-wave?’

‘
Two
-man,’ Darren corrected him, grinning. ‘My brother, Pete – remember I told you about him? Well, me and him work together, and he’s fast as fuck. Should I say we
used
to work together,’ he corrected himself now. ‘’Cos I’ve been going straight since I got out. Least, I will be after I’ve earned enough to sack Davy off.’

‘Sometime never, then?’ Liam said, chuckling softly.

‘Yeah, whatever,’ Darren scoffed. Then, starting the car’s engine, he said, ‘So what’s it to be? Back to the hotel, or over to mine to pick up what we need so we can strike while the iron’s hot? I mean, what’s to think about, really? We’ll only have to come back another time and watch until everyone’s gone again. And you still won’t have any idea what you’re actually going to do once you get inside, so what’s the difference if we just go ahead and do it now? Before it starts getting too light, though, eh?’

Liam shook his head and raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. ‘All right, let’s do it. But you’d best hope that Dawson and his man don’t come back ’cos I reckon that could get pretty nasty.’

‘Don’t you worry about that,’ Darren said, setting off.

As he ran down the alley at the side of the club half an hour later, his face concealed by a black balaclava, his hands encased in black leather gloves, Liam was seriously beginning to wonder if he’d lost his mind. This was exactly why he didn’t touch coke, because the few times he’d tried it in his youth it had made him do crazy reckless things – like this. And only when it had worn off – like now – did he realise what a mistake he’d made.

But it was too late to call it off now, because Darren and Pete were already scaling up the drainpipes at the rear of the building, checking the bars on the windows for weak points.

Pete was a last-minute addition to the team, one that Liam could really have done without. But Darren had insisted that he was one hundred per cent trustworthy, and Liam had thought
what the hell
. If he was as fast as Darren had said, it would speed things along. And he was every bit as muscular as Darren, which would be a definite bonus if Steve or any of his men
did
come back.

But he wasn’t so sure about the knives they had both insisted on bringing along.

Liam spun on his heel when he heard a noise behind him. He held his breath and peered into the shadows. Exhaling nervously when he caught the glint of a cat’s eyes as it ran past, he gritted his teeth.

‘Psst!’ Darren hissed. ‘Look!’

As he squinted up towards the silhouetted figure, Liam’s heart began to pick up speed when he saw that Darren had managed to open a window.

‘It’s a bog,’ Darren informed them in a whisper. ‘I’ll climb in, then you two follow. And try not to make any noise, ’cos I can hear a telly.’

Watching as Darren disappeared, to be quickly replaced at the window by his brother, Liam took a deep breath and climbed up the pipe to join them.

Darren, who had slipped into the role of leader, placed a finger against his balaclava’d lips when they were all crammed in the tiny space together and pushed the door handle down slowly. When he found the hallway on the other side in darkness, he eased his way out.

There was a slash of light along the bottom of the door of the room in which Liam had earlier seen the video of Michelle. Darren took his knife out of his pocket and flicked it open silently. Taking this as a cue, Pete did the same. Thinking
oh, fuck!
, Liam had no choice but to follow as they tiptoed towards the door.

After putting his ear against it for a moment, Darren whispered, ‘You say the chairs face the TV?’