Widows

As Tony moved the cigarette closer to her perfect skin, Shirley swiped at his hand and knocked his cigarette to the floor. ‘Bitch!’ he screamed, and hit her hard across the mouth with the back of his hand. She crumpled in a heap onto the floor. Her lip was cracked and a thin trickle of blood oozed out, poppy-red against her ashen skin. Tony gripped her by the hair, unzipped his trousers and began to force her head toward his crotch.

Greg had never been one for good timing, but for once he got it exactly right. The door to the kitchen swung open to reveal him in his punk leather gear and ear studs, his hair dyed pink and yellow. Behind him were his mates, Arch, with his Mohawk haircut and leopard-print T-shirt, and Fruity Tooty, who had a shaved head and thick black eye make-up, and was dressed in a full-length black leather trench coat. The three of them looked like characters out of a B-list horror movie. At first, as Tony Fisher quickly zipped up his fly, Greg thought he had caught his sister in a compromising position. He was about to walk out in embarrassment when he clocked Shirley’s terrified and bleeding face. He had no option but to stand his ground. ‘You all right, sis?’ he asked, scared out of his wits. He knew Tony Fisher and his reputation.

Greg’s mates were normally useless, but Fruity Tooty, seeing Shirley’s split and bloody lip — and not knowing Tony from Adam — gallantly stepped forward to have a go. Greg held him back, shaking his head. It would be a bad move. If he was honest, Greg wasn’t even certain that all three of them could take on Tony Fisher.

Tony laughed as he picked up his cashmere coat and slipped it over his shoulders. He walked up to the boys and stood nose to nose with Fruity. ‘I got a good memory for faces,’ he said, and tapped him on the cheek before leaving.

Fruity and Arch had no idea what had just happened. Greg knelt next to Shirley and hugged her for the first time in years. In sheer relief, she sobbed in his skinny little arms. She was shaking and holding her top together, trying to cover herself. Greg squeezed her tighter and tighter, till she could no longer tremble.

Eventually, Shirley calmed and the tears stopped. Greg helped her up off the floor and started to walk her through to her bedroom just as their mum burst in through the front door. Audrey was sweating like a stuck pig and was as red as a beetroot; she had indeed run pretty much the whole way home. Shirley took one look at her mum and burst into tears again. Audrey stepped forward and enveloped her little girl in her arms. A split lip was nothing compared to what Tony Fisher could have done.

Audrey looked at Greg. ‘Get the car sorted for your sister. Now. Go on.’

Greg, Arch and Fruity quietly left as Audrey took Shirley into the lounge and sat her down on the sofa.

‘How are you involved with the Fishers, darlin’?’ Audrey spoke calmly but firmly. ‘I know ’em of old, see, and I know they’re no good. No good at all.’ Shirley shook her head and snuggled deeper into her mum’s shoulder, her eyes closed and her fingers touching her split lip. ‘I’m your mother, Shirley, please talk to me. I can’t help if you won’t tell me what’s going on.’

Shirley took a deep breath and swallowed. ‘He came onto me, Mum, but I don’t fancy him! I pushed him away and he got angry and gave me a back hander because I wouldn’t do what he wanted.’

Audrey stroked Shirley’s lovely long hair. ‘You sure it’s nothin’ else? Cos you’ve been flush with money lately.’

‘Honest — that’s all it was about. I told you the truth about the cash. I honestly found it in a suitcase of Terry’s.’

Shirley had never been very good at telling lies, and Audrey knew that when her daughter repeatedly used the word ‘honestly’ it meant she was lying.

Shirley got up and went into the bathroom. She splashed cold water over her face, took deep breaths to calm herself and looked at her split lip in the mirror. In her reflection, Shirley saw a strength that she hadn’t ever seen before; not in her eyes anyway. She’d seen it in Terry’s eyes, when he used to lie to her to protect her from the truth of where he was going and what he was doing. And Shirley was now doing exactly the same for her mum.

Audrey could never know that Shirley was getting the money from Dolly Rawlins, and she could never, ever know about their plans to rob a security wagon at gunpoint. Shirley could hardly even think it; it all still sounded so absurd.

Shirley knew that she had to tell Dolly about Tony Fisher, though, and quickly. Because if he hadn’t got what he wanted from her, he would be going after the others next.

Linda had been told to start at the arcade much earlier than usual because she’d been late the previous night. Charlie must have snitched to their boss — there’s no way he could have known otherwise. God, she wished she could tell them both to stuff their poxy job.