Sharkey buttoned his shirt up to his chin. “Thanks for that, love,” he said, and threw money onto the bed. The girl grabbed the notes greedily and gathered her clothes together. “Don’t forget,” he added as she passed him by. “First payment’s due next week.”
He knew she wouldn’t forget but it was always good to remind them. Just in case.
He took a steak and kidney pie out of the oven and a cold can of beer from the fridge. He should have used a good, homemade meal as a loan guarantee, not sex. He snorted with laughter but nobody was around to hear.
After his meal, he made his rounds – knocking on the doors of the poor to collect repayments. Hefty loans with even heftier rates of interest. They called him Sharkey because he was the most blood-thirsty loan shark around. Hey, he was helping people out. Not his fault they got over their heads in their own desperation. All he asked for was his money back – and then some.
Same shit, different day. Money owed, some handed it over, some needed another week – more interest, no problem. Others tried to hide. That’s when he earned his nickname. He didn’t need heavies to get his money back. Everyone was scared of Sharkey’s tempers.
He had plenty of money. If someone missed a week, it was no skin off his nose but that wasn’t the point. Lessons had to be taught and examples had to be made. When Damien Murphy answered the door with a still broken nose and handed Sharkey cash without saying a word – that was a lesson learned. When Rachel Doyle had to use her left hand to pay him because her right wrist was still sprained – that was a lesson learned. And when Della Conway opened her door with no bra on, well, it was all in a day’s work.
Money pocketed and non-payers adequately scared, Sharkey headed to the pub alone. Carrying around that amount of cash was foolish for some. For Sharkey, nobody would be stupid enough to look at him crooked. That’s how it was. In the pub, everyone steered clear of him. He downed pint after pint but the chairs around him remained conspicuously empty.
He was cool with being alone. Nobody to nag him, upset him, break his heart. He had enough company doing his job. Women offered themselves to him on a regular basis – to persuade him to give them a loan or to keep him happy if they couldn’t meet a payment. He knew it and he didn’t care.
People didn’t approach him, even to ask for a loan. They made appointments, dealt with him through text messages, but only after they had been recommended.
When the dark-haired woman sat next to him in the pub, uninvited, he was beyond surprised.
“They tell me you’re Sharkey,” she said, and held his stare, something that didn’t happen very often.
He nodded, unsure of himself for a change.
“I need a loan, pretty quickly. I can pay you back.”
He sneered. “Why not go to a bank then?”
“Because it’s urgent. I don’t have time to wait.”
She looked desperate enough but something told him she wouldn’t be spreading her legs for money. He kind of liked that. He liked how her chin jutted out and she held her head up like she knew her worth. There was something defiant in her eyes. Not the kind of defiance he was used to, the one that needed to be knocked out of people. More like the proud kind. It was interesting.
“How much you need?”
“How much you got?”
He tried not to smile. “Why should I give you a loan?”
Her forehead creased. “That’s what you do, right? Play on people’s desperation? Give them money they can’t afford to pay back? Well, I can pay it back, I just need it right away.”
“What do you need it for?”
Her cheeks flushed red and she looked away. “I need to take a trip.”
“One way? Trying to scam a poor man out of his money?”
Sharkey was joking but she looked aghast. “No! I just need to go to England. For a weekend.”
He caught it then. The look of shame. “Ah. That kind of trouble.”
“Not me!” She was quick to deny it. She shrugged. “It’s my daughter. A man . . . took advantage, she doesn’t need to be burdened with the consequences. It’s her choice, I’ll do what she needs.”
“She needs to pay for her own mistakes,” Sharkey said, hoping to draw her out.
“She’s just a kid and it wasn’t her mistake. The bastard attacked her knowing she’d be too scared to tell.” The flush in her cheeks was warmed by anger, not embarrassment.
This interested Sharkey. He pushed around the people who deserved it, he wasn’t sure he liked the idea of a bully in his neighbourhood.
“Maybe I can help. If you work for me.” The words were out of his mouth before he could think about it. What was he doing?
“I . . . I’m not that kind of woman.” She edged away from him, making sure her body faced away from him. She crossed her arms.
“Don’t worry. I’m not asking for anything. I need an employee. Office work, someone to help me keep track of things. Maybe make a dinner sometimes, maybe accompany me on an outing. Someone with their ear to the ground, able to pass on info.”
“Are you looking for a companion?” Her eyes opened wide but she didn’t laugh.
He shrugged. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for. Sometimes he felt lonely but he would rather pay for the company. That way, he controlled the situation. Not an escort because they were greedy and had usually been around the block. This woman though, he could work with a woman like her.
She shook her head. “I have a job. I’m a nurse. I don’t have time for more work.”
“You don’t have time for a baby either then. It’s a part-time thing, flexible, a bit of change. Tell you what, to sweeten the deal, I’ll help you in another way. Make sure baby daddy deals with some consequences. What do you say?”
He wasn’t sure what he expected but the look in her eye thrilled him. She leaned forward, her cheek twitching. “I can’t tell you how badly I want him to deal with consequences.”
Sharkey laughed. “What’s your name, anyway?”
“Wendy.” She stood up to leave. “How do we do this?”
“Leave your number, I’ll contact you tomorrow when I’ve roped a couple of grand together. That be enough?”
She nodded. “Why me?”
“What?”
“Why do you want me to work for you?”
Sharkey frowned. He didn’t have a fucking clue. “Well, you’re smart. And you obviously ain’t gonna sleep with me for it so I have to figure something else out. The world doesn’t need any more unwanted babies, right?”
She gave him her contact details and the name of the man who impregnated her daughter. “You’re not as bad as they say,” she told him.
He showed her his teeth. “Tell that to your man.”
He was sad to see her leave. “Going fucking soft,” he muttered under his breath. Sharkey finished his pint and went home alone, feeling hopeful. Maybe it was time the shark had some real company.
That evening, Sharkey wondered how much pain the rapist had to be in before it impressed Wendy.