Shay was going to let rip with Jig.
He had the boys in pairs, sprinting up and back to the cones.
‘Put the effort in, lads, get your breather at the end,’ he shouted at them. ‘Move it. Sprint back. Push it. This is the time when it counts, when you’re tired. Get your breather up into you, stay with your man, keep up with him.’
But Jig was only jogging to the cones and back.
‘Jig. This is the second time I have to tell you. Now, do ten.’
‘What for?’
‘Sprint back, not saunter back.’
‘Fuck sake.’
Shay pointed to the ground.
‘Ten. Now.’
‘That’s shite, that is.’
‘What’s shite is the attitude. You wonder why we’re losing games? It isn’t because we don’t have the skill; it’s the lack of effort to get the ball back when we lose it. You should be breaking your guts for the team.’
Shay wasn’t sure why he was giving Jig such a hard time. The boy grunted as he half did the press-ups.
Something twinged inside Shay’s brain. He didn’t want to know what Ghost did when he told him about the other team looking to poach Jig. He did consider ringing Hall, but then thought, what could he do? He didn’t want Hall even knowing. Ghost was his only option.
Shay asked Jig if he’d heard from Butch. He said he hadn’t. The gnawing feeling that he had betrayed Jig, denied him the possibility of an exit from his life here, away from Ghost and the Canal Gang, festered in his stomach. Perverse as it was, maybe that sense of guilt was why he was coming down hard on the boy.
Shay placed out more cones on the ground for a game, stepping in to avoid a fresh scorch mark. Seven black rings now riddled the green.
He sneaked a look at Ghost, who was busy on the phone. He was still wearing his jacket, which meant Shay was still delivering the goods for Hall. He had heard on the news about the drug hauls, which probably explained why Ghost seemed preoccupied, stressed even.
Out of the corner of his eye, Shay noticed some movement. A figure was striding over to Ghost, hooded and capped. Shay’s heart skipped a beat. Ghost had his back to the man, deep in conversation on the phone.
Christ, Ghost’s going to be clipped.
Shay let out a sharp whistle. Ghost turned to him. Shay nodded towards the approaching stranger. Ghost faced the man, but didn’t move. The fella halted a couple of feet away.
Ghost casually put his phone into a top pocket in his jacket and zipped it closed. The man started talking. Shay stepped a few feet forward to try and get a look at his face, but the cap and hoodie cloaked him. The man was still talking, then stopped. Ghost didn’t respond.
After a few moments, Ghost lunged forward and smacked the guy around the ear. The slap was loud and grabbed the attention of the young fellas.
The atmosphere changed like the flick of a switch: now the very air carried the promise of more violence.
Shay watched Ghost lean over the heap on the ground, pointing a finger down at him. Shay couldn’t make out all that he said, but he heard ‘filthy’ and ‘cunt’.
The kids ran towards Shay. He held out his hands to stop them in their tracks. The only reason they obeyed was because this was Ghost business and they knew better than to act the bollocks.
Ghost’s long arm trailed down his side, slightly out, like a strap, ready to slap again. The man on the ground got up. Shay was surprised he didn’t back off. The man grabbed his cap from the grass and pulled his hood up, but not quickly enough.
‘Jesus,’ Shay breathed. The guy had stubble and thicker, longer hair than the man in the photograph Hall had showed him the other day. But it looked like the Leo fella alright.
‘Who’s that, Shayo?’
Shay turned to see Jig looking up at him. Shay just shook his head and watched as the man began talking again.
Leo has some balls, I’ll give him that.
He watched Leo as he walked off, leaving Ghost standing there. If Shay didn’t know better, it was Ghost who looked rattled. Ghost didn’t move for a few seconds, then he took out his phone and fingered it, before putting it away. He strode towards the Cayenne.
‘Right, lads,’ Shay said, ‘back to it. Show’s over.’
But he had a feeling the show had just begun.