Schemer (56 page)

‘I don’t know how to get to the pub from here. Please let go of me, you’re hurting me,’ Dannielle cried.

‘No, of course you don’t know where it is, you lying little mare. Now, who is this fucking boy?’ Steph yelled, with a neurotic tinge to her voice.

Dannielle looked at her right arm and saw blood where her mother had dug her false nails in so hard. ‘Look what you’ve done to my arm. Leave me alone. You’re mad, you are.’

Seeing the marks she had caused, Stephanie immediately let go of her daughter’s arm. ‘Danni, I’m sorry. Where you going?’ she shouted, as Dannielle bolted out of the room.

Ignoring her mother’s question, Dannielle picked up her handbag and ran sobbing from the house.

Pam had really enjoyed her day out with Cathy, Lin and David. Firstly, they had gone to the Dagenham Sunday Market and had a good old mooch around, and then they’d had a few drinks and lunch in a local Wetherspoon’s, which had made a nice change from cooking herself. ‘Didn’t we have a good day?’ Pam said, plonking herself on the armchair opposite Lin and Cathy.

‘Yeah, we did, sis. I didn’t like that bleedin’ roast in that Wetherspoon’s, though. Weren’t a patch on what you cook,’ Lin said critically.

Cathy chuckled. ‘Back to the oven for you next Sunday, Mrs Crouch,’ she said to Pam.

Pam raised her eyebrows in pretend annoyance. ‘I can’t believe I got a top to fit me off the market. I’m shrinking that fast I’ll be able to fit down the drainholes soon,’ she joked. Her diet had gone up the swanny somewhat recently, and on her last three weigh-ins she had put on a total of seven pounds.

Lin and Cath both roared with laughter, and when the phone suddenly burst into life, it was Lin who stood up first. ‘I’ll get it. I wanna get meself another beer anyway.’

‘She seems so much happier since she’s moved in with you, you know,’ Cathy said in a hushed voice.

Lin returned holding the handset. ‘It’s Stephanie. She sounds really upset,’ she mouthed, handing her sister the phone.

‘Whatever’s the matter, love?’ Pam asked, when she heard her daughter’s racking sobs.

‘I’ve got big problems with Danni, Mum, and I can’t handle it.’

Pam took the phone into the kitchen. ‘Of course you can handle it, darling. Now stop all them tears, tell me exactly what’s happened and we’ll sort it out between us.’

Mimi sat down on the bed next to her friend. Dannielle had just admitted to her that she had lost her virginity to Barry the previous evening, and even though Mimi wanted to hide her disgust, she was struggling to do so.

‘Oh, it was wonderful, Mimi, and you know them orgasms that everyone talks about, well I had three of them. It didn’t happen during actual intercourse, though, it happened when Barry kissed me down below,’ Danni said, dreamily.

The thought of an old man kissing her best friend around her nether regions was all too much for Mimi to take in. Not only did the visualization of what had happened make Mimi want to vomit, but she knew it was her duty as a best friend to try and make Danni see sense. ‘Please don’t describe anything else to me, Dan, because you’re making me feel ill, mate. I cannot believe that you have done all this stuff with some old man that you used to call your uncle. He used to sing “Incy Wincy Spider” to you, for fuck’s sake!’

Wishing she had kept her mouth shut about certain things, Dannielle tried to change the direction of the conversation. ‘Barry isn’t my bloody real uncle, is he, Mimi? I only used to call him that because my dad went missing and at the time he was sort of a replacement relation.’

Feeling a bit guilty, Mimi held her friend’s hand. ‘Look, I’m just worried about you, that’s all, and I think you might have hit the nail on the head by what you just said. Perhaps you are with Barry because you crave a father figure in your life, Dan. I mean, I love my dad, and it must have been so difficult for you growing up without one.’

Snatching her hand away, Dannielle glared at her friend. ‘I barely remember my dad, so how can you say that? It’s not as though he disappeared when I was twelve, is it?’

Mimi shrugged. ‘I just can’t get my head around you being with someone that old. It’s not your fault. It’s Barry who should know better.’

‘And what exactly do you mean by “know better”?’ Dannielle asked angrily. She had wanted to tell Mimi that Barry had told her he loved her for the first time this morning, but she wasn’t going to bother now.

‘I mean, Barry’s only two years younger than my dad, Danni. It’s not right, mate, and if you want my honest opinion I think that your wonderful boyfriend is one of them paedophiles.’

Absolutely furious by her friend’s horrendous comment, Dannielle leapt off the bed and pointed a finger in Mimi’s face. ‘Don’t you dare call my Barry a paedophile. He is a wonderful person and I love him. As for you, if you can’t accept my choice of boyfriend, then you’re not the good friend I thought you was.’

‘Where you going?’ Mimi asked, when Dannielle picked up her handbag.

Ignoring her pal’s question, Dannielle ran down the stairs and slammed the front door.

CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

Tyler got up and reluctantly took his school uniform out of the wardrobe. He hated school at the best of times, it bored the pants off him, and he especially hated going back after any school holidays. Opening his bedroom door, Tyler trudged dejectedly towards the bathroom. It was then he heard sobbing coming from the direction of his mother’s bedroom.

‘What’s wrong, Mum?’ he asked, opening the door slightly.

Stephanie was seated on the edge of her bed with her head in her hands. Her eyes were red raw, and Tyler couldn’t help but think how tired and ill his mother looked. He was so used to seeing her all glammed up, but this morning she somehow looked haggard. ‘Your sister never came home again last night. I asked her if she had a boyfriend, but she denied it and then we had a big row. I’m so worried about her, Ty. I mean, she must be staying at this boy’s house, and it makes me wonder what type of family he comes from. Surely if his parents were decent people they would check with me first to see if it’s OK for Danni to stay there? And say they are letting them share a bedroom with each other? If your sister gets herself pregnant, she will ruin her life. I just wish I knew who this boy was.’

Tyler felt torn between the devil and the deep blue sea. Even though Dannielle had made a mug out of him in front of Brad and he wanted to pay her back, he had only been spying on her because he had planned on confronting her himself. Grassing his sister up to his mum wasn’t something he would relish doing. He might blurt out the odd insult and cocky comment from time to time, but that was about it. On the other hand, Tyler hated seeing his mum in such a state, and he was also now worried about Dannielle himself. The man whose Range Rover she had got into had looked really old, and when he’d had time to properly think about it, that had disturbed him greatly. Tyler was not a touchy-feely kind of boy, but for once he put his arms around his mother and awkwardly hugged her. It wasn’t just the fact his sister had got into an old man’s motor that was worrying him, it was also the quality of the motor. Tyler might not be academically bright, but he was extremely streetwise, and he knew that black Range Rovers with dark tinted windows were usually owned by gangsters or footballers. Danni’s boyfriend had looked too old to be a footballer, therefore Tyler was sure he must be a gangster.

‘What am I going to do, Ty? I mean, how am I going to find out who this boy is if Dannielle doesn’t want to tell me?’ Stephanie wept, clinging to her son.

‘If you don’t make me go to school this week, then I can find out who he is for you. Brad’s got the week off ’cause his mum said he don’t have to go back till after his grandad’s funeral. He’ll help me.’

Pulling away from Tyler, Stephanie looked him in the eyes. ‘How are you going to find out who he is though, Ty? And I don’t think you should really be skipping off school, boy.’

Tyler thought about his answer before he blurted anything stupid out. ‘Danni’s bound to come back today when she thinks you’re at work for a change of clothes, Mum. I can then follow her and see where she goes.’

‘Oh, I don’t know, Ty. Say the boy don’t live locally and she gets a bus or train to meet him or something. She’s not been using my cab firm, I’ve already checked.’

Desperate to have another week off school, Tyler decided to disclose a bit of inside information. ‘She don’t get a bus or train to meet him. He picks her up in his motor.’

The word motor immediately sent chills down Stephanie’s spine. One of her best clients at the salon, Sherri, had lost her youngest daughter in a car crash last year. The girl had met a lad who had just passed his driving test and Sherri’s daughter had been killed because the silly little sod of a boyfriend had been racing with another car. The lad had survived with nothing more than a few cuts and bruises, and a slap on the wrist from the courts, but for Sherri’s poor daughter it had been curtains. ‘Where does he pick her up from, Ty? Have you actually seen him? What does he look like? How old do you think he is?’ Steph asked, frantically. She knew she was bombarding her son with too many questions, but such was her anxiety, she couldn’t help herself.

Tyler didn’t want to reveal everything he knew, as he felt that his mum would not only go off her head, but also take matters into her own hands and follow Dannielle herself. ‘Let me have the week off school and I promise you I’ll get you photos of the geezer and his motor.’

Desperate to know how old her daughter’s boyfriend might be, what he looked like, and what car he drove, Stephanie nodded her head. ‘OK, you can have this week off, but if you don’t get me any evidence, Ty, and I find out you’ve said all this just because you don’t want to go to school, I swear I will kill you.’

Tyler stood up. ‘I won’t let you down, Mum, I promise.’

Dannielle groaned with delight as Barry flicked his tongue against her clitoris and gave her another wonderful orgasm. Twice last night they had made love, and twice again this morning, and each time they did so, the sex between them just seemed to get better and better. The only bit that Dannielle hadn’t really enjoyed so far was when Barry had encouraged her to put his penis in her mouth. She hadn’t really known what to do. However, it didn’t taste that bad, and she was sure that in time she would get used to it. Dannielle sighed and laid her head on Barry’s chest. ‘I think I’ll pop home and get changed soon; then if you want we can go out for lunch somewhere.’

Barry kissed her on the forehead. ‘Your wish is my command, Princess. What you gonna do tonight? You gonna stay here again or face the wrath of your mother?’

‘I’d best go home tonight and see how the land lies, Barry. If Mum kicks off badly, I can always come back.’

Lifting up the arm that Stephanie had dug her nails into, Barry planted gentle kisses on the small grazes. ‘If your mother attacks you again, she’ll have me to deal with next time,’ he said protectively.

‘My mum didn’t mean to hurt me, Bal. She was just angry and it was her nails’ fault, not hers. If my mum didn’t wear false nails she wouldn’t have hurt me at all.’

‘OK, you believe what you want,’ Barry replied rather abruptly.

Desperate for them not to have their first lovers’ tiff, Dannielle decided the best way to avert it was by pleasing her man. She knew Barry had been quite disappointed when she had only put his penis into her mouth briefly last night, so she decided to try again.

‘Ahh, Danni,’ Barry whispered, as he felt her sweet young lips connect with his prize asset.

As Dannielle forced herself to give her first-ever proper blow job, Barry Franklin couldn’t help but smirk. He loved Danni dearly, but he still got a kick out of wishing Stephanie could see her daughter right now.

Tyler was playing a game of Virtua Fighter on his PlayStation with Brad when his hussy of a sister arrived home. ‘Where you been?’ he shouted out, casually.

‘Out,’ Dannielle yelled as she ran up the stairs.

‘Right, let’s go. We can play this again later,’ Tyler said to Brad. They had already concocted a plan between them. Tyler was going to wait at Loughton Station and Brad was going to be the one to follow Dannielle in case she took a detour. Both lads now had disposable cameras. Tyler had made his mother leave him a score this morning, in case he needed the money to complete his task successfully.

‘We are still gonna buy some fags and lager later with all that money you got left over, ain’t we?’ Brad asked his pal.

‘Yeah, of course we are. Now, I’m gonna shoot off to the station and you hide where I told you to. Keep your hood up at all times and keep in touch with me by phone. If Danni sees you, just walk the other way, then ring me.’

Brad jokingly saluted Tyler. ‘Sorted, boss.’

Unable to concentrate on work, Stephanie asked Maria to see to her latest client for her.

‘Are you OK? You look a bit peaky today, Steph,’ Maria asked, concerned.

Stephanie was not one to discuss her personal life with her staff, so chose to tell a small white lie. ‘I’ve got a feeling I’ve got the start of a bug or something. I’m going to sit out the back for a while as I need to make a few phone calls. Give me a shout if you have any problems, Maria.’ Steph shut the door and sat in the room she had converted into her little office. She hadn’t wanted to speak to her mother when she had rung her at home this morning, so she had made Tyler take the call and tell his gran that Steph was busy and she would call her back later.

‘You all right, Mum?’ Steph asked, as Pam answered the phone.

‘I’m fine, love. Me, Cath and Lin have been rolling up. The old slapper and the black man have just had a full-scale argument in the street. “Fuck off to your precious family of racists then,” Marlene screamed out. Then, as her boyfriend walked off she shouted, “And don’t bother coming back ’ere, you black bastard.” Talk about airing your dirty washing in public, and how has she got the front to call him racist names if they’re living together? I know I don’t like the woman, Steph, but she is pure entertainment and I’d hate her to move. I enjoy watching her more than I do
EastEnders
. So, how are you today, darling? Did Danni come home after I spoke to you late last night?’