Walking back towards Mansfield Road along Sixth Avenue, Izabela scanned the road, in front and behind. After finishing with her latest John, she’d found herself alone at the allotments in North Clipstone. After the previous two Johns, she’d been picked up and ferried back to her patch. They didn’t trust her, and were keeping an eye on her. But this time, there was no one here.
No one was coming to get her.
Something was up. Something that had called her minders away, leaving her alone.
Keen to not let this unexpected opportunity pass her by, she set off back through the town, choosing an obscure route through back roads and cut throughs, and kept her head down.
Remarkably, she reached the main road without trouble and found herself staring at the busy Clip Club beyond the car dealership opposite. People were standing around outside, drinking and smoking, enjoying the freedoms they took for granted. Freedoms that people like her had to fight for.
Standing beside the fence of the corner property, she considered her plan and wondered if she wasn’t being utterly crazy coming back here. But where else could she go? She only knew a few people and only trusted maybe two of those. Perhaps just one, depending on how Nigel was with her.
The only person she knew for sure that she could trust was Caprice. She’d always been kind to her and helped her out whenever she could. She’d seen her since she’d left Nigel’s care, and she’d been just as friendly as before.
But Caprice wouldn’t be enough. She needed Nigel. He’d been key to helping her last time, and she hoped he would be able to help her this time too. He did, however, run hot and cold, and she feared catching him at the wrong time and being sent back onto the streets.
That’s where Caprice came in. If anyone could talk Nigel around and get him to help, it would be Caprice. She’d seen how Nigel looked at Caprice. She’d noticed the signs.
She needed his help, and Caprice would be key in getting it.
Today’s events had made her escape even more urgent than before. She couldn’t wait anymore and bide her time. Things were spiralling out of control.
The news had spread during the day amongst the girls, and it wasn’t difficult for them to piece the jigsaw puzzle together. An unidentified girl had been killed in Clipstone. It was all over the news that one of the girls saw on her hidden phone. Another confirmed it after seeing the same story on Abel’s phone. He seemed curiously interested in the story, and when Izabela found out, she knew instinctively that it was Penny. There was no other option, as far as she was concerned. Penny had been murdered, and Izabela knew who’d done it. It all worked and fit into place for her. She felt sure of it. It was so obvious.
But if that was the case, and her suspicions about the killer turned out to be true, then her life was in danger as well. She couldn’t trust Abel to look after her, given how little difference it made to Penny’s life. Besides, he didn’t care for them. He made that perfectly clear through his actions, which left only one option, which meant escaping Abel and taking a huge risk.
So far, that risk seemed to be paying off, but the riskiest part was still to come, and she had no idea what she’d do if this fell through. To minimise the chances, she needed to get Caprice onto her side. That way, Nigel would find it so much harder to dismiss her.
Taking a breath, she waited for a gap in the sporadic traffic flow and jogged over the road before walking down Central Avenue opposite, away from Mansfield Road.
Passing the cars parked outside the dealership and the mechanics attached to it on Central Avenue, she came to the cut-through that led behind the dealership and the Clip Club, where Nigel and the employees parked. Without a backwards glance, she walked through as if she owned the place. She couldn’t afford to look shifty and get questioned about what she was doing, nor could she afford to spend any more time than was necessary out on the street.
She walked through shadow, into the familiar back lot. Music and the sounds of people enjoying themselves could be heard from inside the building, but going in through the back door was out of the question. Instead, she scanned the rear lot, picking out Nigel’s and Caprice’s cars.
They were both here, it seemed. Turning again, Izabela appraised the space, wondering where to hide and wait for her chance. She’d been out here plenty of times during her stay in the Clip Club. It had been her refuge. The place she’d come to get out of the building and away from everyone else, remaining out of sight and safe from casual view.
She’d have gone insane without it.
But it didn’t feel like a safe haven today. Instead, it felt like enemy territory, and she needed to hide. Walking over to the bins, she found a small pile of flattened cardboard boxes ready for pick up and recycling. It was the work of minutes to turn them into a small place for her to snuggle down and remain somewhat protected from the elements. It would do for the short term while she waited for Caprice to appear.
The cardboard provided little warmth or insulation, and it wasn’t long before she found herself shivering and questioning her plan. The minutes dragged on endlessly as she waited, hoping that Caprice would appear alone. While she waited, Izabela busied herself with creating a small makeshift bed out of the boxes, using some like a mattress and the rest as a kind of covering in an attempt to keep the heat in and fend off the cold. As she huddled under the cardboard, she thought back to the other girls and wondered how much danger they might be in? If this was as she feared, and tensions were brewing between the rival gangs, how long would it be before outright violence erupted? He had to know. It was the only explanation for Penny’s disappearance, and if he couldn’t get to her, then he would surely lash out and attack anyone he could, such as Penny.
Minutes turned into hours as she shivered under the covers she’d created for herself. Peering out across the parking lot, she watched the rear door, hoping against hope that the one person she needed to see would appear. Caprice usually took out the rubbish. She’d seen her do it time and again. But would she do it again tonight?
When the door finally opened, it came as something of a shock, and for a moment, Izabela didn’t quite believe her eyes as the familiar-looking blonde woman stepped out with several large black plastic bags clutched in her hands.
This was her chance.
Izabela slipped out from under the boxes and waited for Caprice to get much closer before she rounded the corner.
“Hey,” Izabela said cautiously.
Caprice jumped and dropped the bags, letting out a stifled yelp as she turned. “Holy shit.”
“Sorry. It’s me. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Izabela?” Caprice sounded shocked.
“Hi.”
“What the hell are you doing back there? You must be freezing.”
“I err, I ran away.”
Caprice frowned. “You what?”
“From Abel, I mean. I couldn’t stay with him anymore. Look, I need help.”
“Help?” Caprice glanced at the club with a troubled expression before she turned back, looking curious. “What kind of help?”
Sensing that she had a chance, she stepped closer. “I think my life is in danger.”
The blonde frowned and narrowed her eyes in what looked like a mix of confusion and suspicion. “Why?”
She sighed. “You’ve seen the news about the murder?”
“Yeah, it’s all anyone’s talking about.”
“I think that was my friend, and I think they’re after me.”
The look on Caprice's face turned incredulous. “Are you sure? How can you know that? That’s a hell of a leap.”
“No, it’s not. I was one of Radek’s girls, right? But I escaped. I got out, thanks to you and Nigel.”
“And then you went right back into it,” Caprice added, sounding tired.
“Yeah, I know.”
“Why?”
“I… Because I needed money.” She took a long breath, knowing she needed to be honest about this. “Because Penny convinced me, and… I guess I just didn’t know any better.” She sighed to herself, wishing she’d thought it through more, but hindsight was always clearer. It was always easy to look back and see the mistakes you made, but when you’re in the moment, sometimes it’s just not that obvious. Sometimes all you can see is trees, rather than the whole wood.
“I know,” Izabela added. “It was wrong. I should have… I don’t know, done something else.”
“Anything else. You hurt Nigel and me by going back. We thought you knew better than that.”
“I do… now,” she admitted.
“And you want our help again?”
“Yeah…” she answered, but this was starting to feel like a lost cause.
“I don’t know how he’s going to react to this, Izabela.” Caprice sighed and put her hands on her hips. “I don’t think tonight is a good night to go and talk to him, either.”
“No. Of course not. But I can’t go back now because they’re after me.”
“That’s a bit paranoid, don’t you think?”
“Penny disappeared last night, and today, a girl was found murdered. It’s her, I know it. It’s Radek that did it. He found out… something. Maybe he knows I’m part of Abels’ crew, or that Penny helped recruit me, or something. I don’t know. But it’s him. I’m sure of it. If I don’t disappear, I’m next.”
“You don’t know that. You’re speculating. It might not be Penny, and it might be totally unrelated to you. Maybe she escaped like you did. She might be halfway to London by now and a new life. You don’t know.”
“I don’t care,” Izabela snapped. She wasn’t going to be talked out of this. “I’m not going back, and I’m asking for your help. Will you help me?”
Caprice sighed and seemed to think it through before she looked around, her eyes settling on her car. She pulled out her keys. “Yeah, sure. I’ll help. Don’t say I never do anything for you, though.”