Carly found the gentle rocking motion rather soothing. She was slumped to the left, her head resting on something soft and warm. Had it not been for the horrible ache in her head, she would have felt comfortable and content.
‘Is the bitch finally waking up?’ said a voice.
Carly’s body jumped when she realised the voice belonged to Ross Alexander.
Forcing her eyes open, Carly winced at the bright light that penetrated her brain. It took her several seconds to process the fact that she was in a car. Ross was staring round at her from the front seat with an intolerable look of triumph on his smug, gittish face. One of the mechanics from the garage where Cole worked was beside him, driving.
Hauling herself upright, she realised the warm shoulder she’d been resting on belonged to Cole. Sensing someone to her right, she slowly turned her head, wincing against the pounding this movement started up at the back of her skull. Jack Alexander glowered back at her.
‘Oh, great,’ she sighed. ‘I’m stuck in here with you lot.’
‘Headache?’ said Cole when she pressed a hand to her forehead.
‘Aye. A bad one.’
‘Here,’ he said, producing a pack of paracetamol from his jacket pocket. There was a bottle of Irn-Bru in the cup holder between the front seats. He grabbed it and handed the bottle to her.
‘Hey,’ said Ross. ‘That’s my bottle of ginger.’
‘I don’t want it if his nasty mouth has touched it,’ Carly told Cole.
‘You coo,’ exclaimed Ross.
‘It’s unopened,’ Cole told her, ignoring his brother. ‘So you’re good to go.’
Cole placed two tablets in her hand and she washed them down with the orange liquid. He took the bottle back from her and replaced it in the cup holder.
‘I hope they don’t take long to kick in,’ she murmured, settling back into the seat and closing her eyes.
‘They shouldn’t. I’m sorry you were hit.’
‘Don’t apologise to her,’ said Ross angrily. ‘If anyone deserves a whack on the head, it’s that bitch.’
‘What about Dean?’ said Carly.
Cole’s eyes flashed. ‘Why is it always about him?’
‘I know you think there’s something between us but there really isn’t. He is my cousin though and I care about him, so where is he?’
‘He got away, but it doesn’t matter. You’re the one we really need.’
‘So you can force my family to kill Rod Tallan? Sorry, it won’t work. We’ve already warned them.’
‘It doesn’t matter. They’ll still do what we want, especially when we send them footage of you being tortured.’
Bile rose in the back of Carly’s throat when Ross turned to look at her with sadism in his eyes. He hated her and would enjoy inflicting as much pain as possible on her. Cole wouldn’t enjoy it, he didn’t have the same callous streak as his brother but it wouldn’t stop him, he had far too much ambition. She looked at Jack, wishing she hadn’t made fun of his Pokémon addiction the last time they’d spoken, otherwise he might have convinced them to go easier on her. The hard look in his eyes as he stared back at her made her heart sink. She couldn’t rely on any of these men to help her.
‘My family will come for me,’ said Carly. ‘They won’t just sit back and wait.’
‘They can try but they won’t find you,’ replied Cole.
His confidence depressed Carly even more. She wondered if this could be her last day on this earth. Or would they inflict so much suffering on her she would be a cripple for the rest of her life? Perhaps she should fight? It wasn’t in her nature to sit back meekly and do nothing but she didn’t rate her chances against all these men while trapped in such a confined space. All she could do was pray her family reached her before she could be tortured.
‘We’re still being followed,’ said the driver, glancing in the wing mirror.
‘Well lose them then,’ snapped Ross.
‘It’s Dean, isn’t it?’ said Carly. ‘He’s coming for me.’ She turned to Cole. ‘He’s gonnae batter the lot of you.’
‘If he tries, he’ll get a bullet through his skull,’ said Cole, patting his jacket pocket, telling her the gun was in there.
‘You really have it in you to kill someone? You’ll go back to prison if you get caught.’
‘I’d kill myself first,’ he said darkly.
‘Then why do all this?’ she exclaimed.
‘Because I don’t want an ordinary fucking life,’ he yelled back. ‘I’m sick of it. If I cannae have the money and the cars and all the good things, then I don’t want to live.’
‘You bloody idiot. There’s so much more to life than all that shite.’
‘No’ to me there isn’t.’
Tears filled her eyes. ‘What happened to the man I loved?’
‘He’s dead,’ he told her coldly. ‘And good fucking riddance.’
‘I don’t believe that. He’s still alive in there.’
‘You’re deluding yourself.’
‘I guess we’ll see when I’m being tortured.’
His gaze was so impassive, so without emotion, that Carly began to despair. But the thought that Dean was following nurtured a flame of hope in her heart and she smiled down at her hands.
* * *
‘They’re not trying to lose us,’ said David as he drove.
‘Meaning they want us to follow them,’ replied Dean.
‘Aye, so they can ambush us when we get there.’
‘Da’s keeping track of our movements through my phone. ‘
‘It won’t make a blind bit of difference. They have guns and we don’t.’
‘Then I’ll tell them I’ll kill Rod for them.’
‘You can’t,’ exclaimed David.
‘Why the fuck not?’
‘Because he’s the only one who will prevent your family from getting wiped out, which is what Neil will do if he wins. He can’t let you all live, not after this. He’d kill me too.’
‘I don’t understand why he didn’t bring you in on his plan?’
‘I first began working for the Tallans through Rod. I was his friend, so Neil knows my loyalties will always lie with his brother if I were forced to choose. If Rod dies, then so do we. We have to keep him alive to protect ourselves.’
A police car passed them on the opposite side of the road and a wicked smile curled Dean’s lips. ‘I’ve got an idea,’ he said, producing his phone.
‘Who are you calling?’
‘The polis.’
‘I know this is a desperate situation but don’t you dare fucking grass. You won’t last five minutes.’
‘I’m not grassing; credit me with a bit of sense. I just want to get their car stopped.’
He dialled 999 and reported the Alexanders’ car for dangerous driving, saying he thought the driver was drunk and that they needed to be pulled over before they caused an accident. He also reported the make and model of the car, its licence plate number and location. The operator assured them it would be dealt with immediately.
‘Let’s hope your plan works,’ said David, jaw tense with apprehension.
The police car that had passed them just a minute ago shot back up the road, siren blaring. Sure enough, it flagged down the Alexanders’ car.
‘Let’s hope they search Cole and find his gun,’ growled Dean. ‘Then the wee bastard will be sent back to prison for years. Pull over,’ he told David.
David nodded and managed to nab a spot just a hundred yards down the road from where the police car had pulled over the Alexanders.
Dean hopped out and began to jog up to them.
‘Come on, Carly,’ he murmured. ‘You can do it.’
* * *
‘Holy fuck,’ exclaimed the driver. ‘That polis car’s flagging us down.’
‘Dean, the twat,’ muttered Cole. ‘He called them on us.’
‘The grassing bastard,’ yelled Ross, banging his fist off the dashboard.
‘Take it easy,’ said Cole. ‘Don’t lose your rag with them. We can talk our way out of this. Guaranteed he won’t have told them what’s really going on because it would land his own family in it.’
‘You’re right,’ said Ross, taking a deep breath while wrestling with his phenomenal temper.
‘And you keep your mouth shut,’ Cole growled at Carly.
She just smirked at him. What was he going to do, pull out his gun and shoot her in front of two police officers?
One of the officers knocked on the driver’s window while his female colleague stood on the pavement, looking in at them sternly.
‘Yes, Officer?’ said the driver with a broad but nervous smile. ‘Did I do something wrong?’
‘Would you step out of the car please, sir? I need to perform a breathalyser test.’
‘I can assure you I’m entirely sober.’
His creepy forced smile and the way he was sweating profusely caused doubt in the officer’s mind. ‘Please get out, sir.’
‘Well, okay,’ he reluctantly replied, removing his seat belt.
He climbed out and closed the door behind him.
‘If he’s had a drink,’ muttered Ross. ‘I’ll do him myself.’
‘He’s not stupid,’ said Jack.
Carly looked out of the window and her pleading gaze connected with the female officer’s. Thankfully, she was alert and caught the look. She knocked on Ross’s window and indicated for him to wind it down.
Ross, who was still fighting to contain his anger, gave the officer a bizarre, twisted smile.
‘This is a treat,’ he said. ‘The most beautiful polis in Glasgow wants to talk to me.’
The officer just stared back at him, unmoved.
‘Well, that was embarrassing,’ said Jack quietly, making Carly snigger. When she glanced at him, she was surprised to see him wink back at her.
The police officer looked to Carly. ‘Are you okay, miss?’
‘I… I feel sick,’ she replied. ‘I need to get out.’
Cole turned to regard her with cold green eyes. ‘If you feel sick then you’re better waiting in the car.’
‘I have to get out,’ she told the officer.
The woman nodded and pulled open the door on Cole’s side. ‘Out you get then. You don’t want to ruin the upholstery.’ She tried to sound jovial but the look in her eyes told Carly she knew something was wrong.
Cole turned to look at Carly and the rage in his gaze almost took her breath away. For a moment, she thought he was going to draw the gun and shoot her there and then but he was more controlled than his brother and he got out instead so she could.
Carly glanced at Jack, wondering if he was going to stop her, but to her surprise, he just winked at her again and nodded encouragingly.
‘Is that better?’ the officer asked Carly once she was out of the car.
‘Aye, thanks,’ she replied, taking a few deep breaths.
‘You do look very pale.’
Carly wasn’t surprised. Not only had she been afraid but her head still ached.
‘She’s pregnant,’ said Cole, taking her hand. ‘That’s why she feels sick.’
‘And you’re the father?’ said the officer, looking sceptical. She hadn’t missed Carly’s surprise at this statement.
‘Aye. We’re very happy, aren’t we, sweetheart?’ he said, turning to her with a warning look.
‘Deliriously,’ she replied flatly.
‘Carly,’ called a voice.
They all looked round to see Dean jogging up to them.
‘Who’s he?’ the officer asked her.
‘My cousin,’ she said. ‘We’re really close. Dean,’ she said. ‘I was hoping to bump into you.’
‘You too,’ he replied, gaze bouncing from Carly to Cole and then the police officer. ‘What’s going on?’
‘Oh, something about a breathalyser test,’ she replied with a dismissive wave. ‘I had to get out of the car because I felt sick.’
‘I see,’ he slowly replied. ‘I was gonnae get a coffee, if you’d like to grab one?’
‘Sounds lovely.’ She tugged her hand free of Cole’s. ‘You don’t mind, do you darling?’ she said, pronouncing the last word sarcastically.
‘Actually, I dae. We’re taking you for your first scan. You don’t want to be a negligent mother, do you?’
Dean had no idea what they were talking about but decided not to say so in front of the police officer.
‘That’s next week, silly,’ she said, slapping him on the arm a little harder than was playful. ‘I’ll see you later.’ With that, she took Dean’s arm.
‘Carly…’ Cole began.
‘She can go for a coffee if she likes, sir,’ said the police officer in a hard tone.
Carly glanced back over her shoulder at the woman as she hurried off with Dean and nodded. The officer nodded back, getting the strong feeling she’d performed her good deed for the day.
Cole was desperate to tear down the street after them but the last thing he wanted was for the police to search him with the gun in his pocket, so he got back into the car, resisting the urge to slam the door shut. He turned to look out of the back window and saw Carly and Dean get into David’s car. It pulled into the flow of traffic, Carly giving him a cheery wave as they drove by, making him grit his teeth.
‘It’s okay,’ Jack quietly told him. ‘We’ve still another play to make.’
Cole just nodded. Although he hadn’t relished the idea of torturing Carly, now he had absolutely no problem with it.
* * *
‘Thank you,’ Carly told Dean, hugging him. ‘It was really clever of you to call the polis.’
‘Did they hurt you?’ Dean asked her.
‘Apart from whacking me around the back of the head, no. I’m fine, although I have a headache.’
‘Do you need a hospital?’
‘Naw. We’ve more important things to sort out.’
‘I’ll call Da’ and tell him we’ve got you back. The family will be so relieved.’ Dean took out his phone with one hand, keeping the other around Carly, who was still nestled into him. He could see David giving them puzzled glances through the rear-view mirror but he didn’t care, he was just delighted to have her back.
‘Da’,’ he said jubilantly. ‘We’ve got Carly. Aye, she’s fine. They didn’t lay a finger on her. Where shall we meet you? Okay. We’ll be there soon.’ He hung up. ‘We’ve to meet them at a flooring shop across from the Barras Market.’
‘Why there?’ David frowned.
‘Da’s pal owns the place. It’s somewhere to lay low and discuss what we’re gonnae do.’
‘Are they all okay?’ Carly asked him.
‘They’re fine. They got Rod and Uncle Alec out.’
‘Thank God,’ she sighed with relief.
They had to drive through Polmadie to get there. They were just starting to relax when a motorbike shot out across the road in front of them. David was so caught up in trying not to hit it that he failed to see the black SUV coming at them from the left. It slammed into the passenger side of the vehicle. David wrestled with the wheel, the horrible shriek of metal as the SUV ground against the side of his car like something out of a nightmare. David was helpless to stop them from being shunted across the road. The car hit a wall with a sickening crunch and came to a rest, rocking from the impact.
David groaned and for the second time that day he fought against the blackness wanting to claim him as he saw figures swarming around the car. At first, he thought they were there to help, until he saw they were wearing balaclavas.
He flung off his seat belt and turned to look at Carly and Dean. To his dismay, they were both unconscious.
‘Wake up,’ he mumbled, tongue feeling thick in his mouth with shock.
The back doors were pulled open and Carly and Dean were dragged out. David was unable to help them, his own movements slow and lethargic.
The driver’s door was opened by the rider of the motorbike, face hidden by the helmet. David managed to punch him in the crotch and he reeled backward with a cry. He shoved open the passenger door and practically fell out of the car just in time to see Dean and Carly being dumped inside a van.
‘Finish him,’ called the driver of the van through the open window while nodding at David.
As the van sped off, the driver of the motorbike produced a knife.
David scrabbled at his jacket pocket for his knuckle dusters. ‘Come on,’ he told his hands, which were still struggling to obey his commands.
The man lunged at him with the knife. David rolled and the blade struck the side of the car. He looked around for assistance but their attackers had chosen their ambush spot well. The large redbrick building to his right was closed and shuttered, a sign on the outside announcing Polmadie Car Boot Sale.
‘I went to that car boot sale once,’ he murmured to himself. ‘I bought a radio. It didnae work.’ David shook his head, wondering what the fuck he was thinking. The shock of the crash had affected him more than he’d realised.
David managed to slip one of the knuckle dusters onto his right hand, remaining in a crouch as the man in the helmet loomed over him with the knife. As his assailant drew back the weapon to strike, David slammed his fist into the side of the man’s knee. There was a loud crack and the man threw back his head and howled with pain, the sound muffled by the helmet, before he collapsed to the ground.
David leapt on him and tore the knife from his hand before punching him twice in the belly. Fortunately for him the man’s bike jacket didn’t contain Kevlar, it was just leather, so the impact winded him.
David unfastened the strap around the man’s chin and tore the helmet from his head. He recognised his attacker as one of the Tallans’ heavies. They’d gone out together drinking several times. David had even been to his house and met his wife; he’d thought they were pals.
‘Stevie, you feckless bastard,’ David snarled at him before punching him again, knocking him out.
David staggered to his feet and pulled on the helmet. He mounted the bike, and was relieved to see the keys had been left in the ignition. He started the engine and shot off in the direction the van had gone but there was no sign of it.
Left with no choice, he decided to head over to the Barras to meet up with the rest of the Savage family. He just hoped they didn’t blame him for this fuck up.