Slur: The Riverhill Trilogy: Book 1 (9 page)

Thursday 26
^th
June 1986

Julie had been undecided about her date with Mike right up
until the last minute. There were so many reasons that she thought she
shouldn’t go.

Firstly,
there was Vinny. She felt as though she was being disloyal to him but really
there was no reason why she should. She was a free agent with no ties. That was
the way her relationship with Vinny had always been. They’d agreed as much from
the outset. However, she couldn’t help feeling that Vinny’s views had changed
since then and no matter how much she told herself that she was doing no wrong,
she still felt guilty. She hadn’t promised Vinny any commitment, but she knew
that if he ever found out that she had been on a date with someone-else, he
would be hurt.

Secondly,
she was bothered by Norma’s words of warning although these didn’t concern her
as much as her feelings of guilt about Vinny. She knew about Mike’s reputation
but it was something that she chose to ignore. Julie refused to spend her time
worrying about what might happen. She recalled the old saying, ‘nothing
ventured, nothing gained’, and decided that it was appropriate. If she didn’t go
out with Mike then she might spend the rest of her life regretting it.

The third
reason why Julie felt she shouldn’t go out was because of her present state of mind.
She felt bad that she was going out so much and enjoying herself when Amanda
had just died, but she convinced herself that Amanda wouldn’t want her to sit
at home moping. Anyway, it would be a good way to take her mind off things and she
couldn’t afford to miss this chance. Men like Mike were few and far between and
now she finally had the prospect of going on a date with him. Just the thought
of him sent a tingling sensation through her body.

In addition
to all of these concerns, Julie was feeling nervous. Mike was in a separate
league to the men she usually went out with. Most of her previous boyfriends
had been a disappointment as they hadn’t had the vision to see beyond their own
little worlds. But Mike was different. He was sophisticated, educated and had
travelled. He was interesting, amusing and probably came from a different
background to hers. His family might even be loaded for all she knew.

Julie finally
decided that she would go on the date. To hell with her concerns! After all,
wasn’t this the opportunity she had been waiting for?

--------------------

Thursday
26
^th
June 1986

They met in
a pub near work, one that they were both familiar with. Mike had offered to
pick Julie up from her home but she had declined. She preferred not to let her
parents know who she was going out with. Julie had had enough grief from Rita
and Norma about seeing Mike and didn’t relish having to explain the position to
her parents as well. She also preferred not to let Mike see the area where she
lived just yet as she didn’t want to give him any cause to go off her before
they had even got to know each other. For the same reason she had decided not
to tell him about the events of the previous weekend. There was nothing more
likely to send a man running than the thought that he might be dating a
murderer, she thought.

Julie
figured that Mike would soon find out about what had happened. It was
unavoidable as the news was spreading through the office like wildfire. She
knew that he hadn’t been in the office much this week as he had a diary full of
customer visits, so the chances were that he hadn’t heard the rumours yet. “
Fine,
”
she thought. “
I’ll leave off telling him for now and cross that bridge when
I come to it.
” At least that way she would have a chance of him getting to
know her without any pre-judgement.

Mike looked
even more gorgeous outside of work than inside. His appearance was less formal
but still smart. He wore a pair of slacks and a very fetching shirt, and she
could tell that he was freshly showered and shaved. As he approached her she
caught a whiff of his expensive aftershave. They made small talk, complimenting
one another on their appearances as they drank. Then, when they had finished
their first drink he guided Julie out of the pub and into his car.

‘Come on,
let’s go!’ he suggested.

‘Where are
we going?’ she asked.

‘Wait and
see, it’s a surprise, but I just hope you didn’t have a big tea before you left
home.’

Julie
smiled and relaxed in the comfortable seat of his shiny new Ford Sierra while
they headed out of the city, and in the direction of the Cheshire countryside.
Mike flicked a switch on his state of the art stereo and the sound of Motown
classics filled the car.

After about
a half hour drive, they stopped at a beautiful restaurant. It was an old
building, surrounded by greenery and with a small stream flowing towards the
rear. Julie stepped inside the restaurant and was pleased to find that it was
full of old-world charm, affluently decorated, and with an abundance of knick-knacks
dotted about the place. There were toby jugs, and brass ornaments and plates,
many of which appeared to be antiques. The atmosphere was tranquil, and, as
soon as they entered, a waitress showed them to their seats.

Julie was a
little taken aback to find that she couldn’t understand much of what was on the
menu. It was either in French, or, otherwise, it contained dishes that she had
never heard of. She guessed that this was all aimed at making the place much
more upmarket than your average restaurant. For a while she struggled through
the descriptions grasping at vague recollections of her ‘O’ level French
vocabulary. She didn’t want to appear ignorant and unsophisticated in front of
Mike.

‘I’ll start
with the escargot,’ she announced, opting for a word that seemed vaguely
familiar and attempting to sound confident in her choice.

Mike looked
puzzled. ‘Are you sure?’

“
Oh
damn!
” she thought. “
I’ve hit a no-no. I must have remembered ‘escargot’
for the wrong reasons.
”

It was only
by thinking of the most undesirable French dishes imaginable that she recalled
the meaning of the word that had been bothering her for the last few minutes. “
No
wonder it rang a bell.
”

‘It’s
bloody snails isn’t it?’ she blurted out and then became embarrassed at her
little outburst.

Mike found
her embarrassment hilarious and it was a while before he could control his
laughter enough to respond.

‘I didn’t
think you were a snails type of girl myself,’ he teased.

‘I’m not, I
just forgot what it meant, that’s all.’

‘Don’t
worry,’ said Mike, covering her hand with his. For some he may have appeared patronising,
but Julie saw it as kindness, and was thankful when he offered to translate the
entire menu for her.

Julie made
her choice, opting for soup followed by a mushroom starter and chicken in a
creamy garlic sauce for the main course, and declaring emphatically that there
was no chance of her wanting a sweet after so many courses, let alone the
cheese and biscuits. She mistakenly thought that this might make her appear
more ladylike.

‘I’m sorry,
I didn’t mean to embarrass you Julie.’ Mike said. ‘I’ve known women who had
excellent etiquette but it doesn’t make them any better a person you know? I
like you for yourself and if I can show you a bit of the high life, then why
not? There’s no rules about who can come in here Julie.’

Once the
chore of choosing her food was out of the way, Julie began to unwind and enjoy
herself. However, when the food arrived she regretted her decision to waive the
sweet. The courses were minuscule and so decorative they appeared almost too
good to eat. However, she didn’t gasp in wonder, but tried to act as though
this type of meal was an everyday occurrence for her as she tucked into the
mouth-watering works of art with gusto.

Mike was
the perfect gentleman throughout the evening. He pulled her chair from beneath
the table for her, opened doors, and allowed her to choose the wine. He was
also good company and during the exquisite meal he regaled her with tales of
his exploits. She hadn’t laughed so much in a long time.

Julie was
sorry to reach the end of such a perfect evening. Despite her earlier decision
not to mention Amanda’s death, she found herself opening up to him, such was
the calming effect that he had on her. During a break in the conversation she
happened to comment on how nice it was to have such a good time after the lousy
time that she had had recently. Then, before she could help herself the whole
story came tumbling out.

‘I’m sorry
to hear that,’ said Mike.

Julie
missed the note of irony in his voice and the way in which he switched the
subject, telling her about the recent loss of his aunty and how it had affected
him. She merely thought that this was Mike’s way of sympathising with her.

At the end
of the meal there was no awkwardness about who paid for what. Mike just settled
the bill, no questions asked, and they headed back to his car.

He insisted
on taking her home even though she tried to refuse, embarrassed by the prospect
of letting him see the area where she lived. She was also relieved, however, as
he knew that she lived with her parents so he wasn’t expecting anything from
her in payment for her evening’s entertainment.

When they
arrived outside Julie’s house Mike didn’t comment. He just gave her a chaste goodnight
kiss, and told her how he had enjoyed their evening together and how much he
was looking forward to seeing her again. Then he left it at that. The whole
experience had helped to cheer Julie up at just the time when she needed it.
She couldn’t wait for him to ask her out again.

--------------------

Friday
27
^th
June 1986

‘Something’s
put a smile on your face,’ said Norma when Julie arrived for work the next
morning.

‘It’s about
bloody time!’ said Julie. ‘The rest of this week’s been hell.’

Despite
Julie’s other worries, she couldn’t resist telling Norma about her night out
and what a great time she had. She detailed the restaurant, what they had to
eat, how Mike had been the perfect gentleman, and added that he hadn’t even
expected to drag her back to his flat afterwards.

‘You were
wrong about him you know,’ Julie stated. ‘He’s a lovely man. If he’d have been
the womaniser that people say he is then he’d have had me back to his flat in a
flash.’

‘Don’t
count your chickens. Maybe he’s trying to win you over before he does the dirty
on you.’

‘Thanks
very bloody much Norma. Spoil my day, why don’t you?’

‘Sorry,’
said Norma. She didn’t say any more. She didn’t need to. Each of them already
knew what the other was thinking.

Friday 27
^th
June 1986

Friday night arrived after a trying week at work for Julie.
Rita and Debby called for her, and they walked to the Flying Horse together. In
many ways this was like any other Friday night; the three of them dressed to
impress, the make-up, the heady scent of perfume, the excited chatter as they
made their way down the street. Julie knew deep down, however, that this wasn’t
just an ordinary Friday night. So much had changed in the last week.   

Although
they were trying to carry on as normal, it was the little things that gave it
away; the way Rita had insisted on calling for Julie instead of meeting her in
the foyer of the Flying Horse, for example. Julie knew that Rita recognised her
need for support but Rita didn’t want to mention it outright. Then there were
the uncomfortable breaks in the conversation, especially from Debby, who
couldn’t fail to mention previous good nights out in an attempt to cheer Julie
up. Unfortunately, those good nights had been when Amanda had still been alive.
Any oblique references to Amanda’s presence last time they had all been
together caused Dizzy Debby to stutter with embarrassment and Rita would then
try to change the subject.

When they
arrived at the Flying Horse, Rita turned to Julie and said ‘Well, their seven
days are almost up. Let’s see if they’ve found something else to gossip about,
eh?’

Debby
turned to Rita with a look of confusion on her face.

‘Seven day
wonder,’ Rita explained, but to no avail. ‘Oh, never mind!’ said Rita,
frustrated, ‘Let’s just get in and get a bloody drink, shall we?’

The fact
that this Friday night was different from others became even more apparent when
they entered the pub. They noticed the tense atmosphere straightaway. Numerous
pairs of eyes stared at them and then gazed away as they approached. At the bar
backs were turned against them. People whispered in corners.

‘Stuff them
all!’ said Rita, raising her voice. ‘They haven’t got a bleedin’ clue!’

She looked antagonistically
around the room, challenging those present to say something, but was met by a
stony silence. Julie and Debby looked at Rita beseechingly. Julie took a few
steps away from the bar area hoping that Rita would follow; to her relief Rita eventually
did. They chose to sit at a table that was positioned along the outer perimeter
of the room in a quiet part of the pub.

‘I can’t
understand it’ said Julie, dismayed, ‘I thought they were our friends.’

‘Just goes
to show then, doesn’t it?’ replied Rita, loudly. ‘It’s at times like this when
you find out who your friends are, isn’t it? Sod ’em all, they’re nowt but a
bunch of arseholes if you ask me!’

Julie
pleaded with Rita to keep quiet. ‘I don’t want any trouble Rita, I’ve had
enough this last week.’

‘All right,’
conceded Rita. ‘Let’s just ignore them.’

The three
girls tried to pretend that the atmosphere didn’t exist but it was impossible
to disregard it. When Debby suggested that they go elsewhere, even Rita agreed.

As they
left the pub they could hear the sound of Lindsey Pilkington’s voice shouting,
‘That’s right, bugger off! Can’t you see we don’t want the likes of you in
here?’

Before
Julie and Debby had a chance to respond, Rita was back inside the pub, turning
over chairs and anything else that stood in the way of her and Lindsey
Pilkington. Within seconds she was on top of Lindsey, clawing at her face and
yanking at her hair like a madwoman.

Lindsey’s
friends were quick to react with three of them tugging at Rita in an attempt to
drag her off Lindsey, and shouting malicious insults. In the ensuing clamour
caused by Rita’s threats, Lindsey’s terrified screams, and the shouting of Lindsey’s
friends, Julie struggled to make herself heard.

‘For God’s
sake Rita, leave it!’ she yelled. ‘It isn’t worth it.’

Either Rita
couldn’t hear her or she was too consumed with rage to notice, but she
continued to tear into Lindsey while Lindsey’s friends tried to pull Rita off.
Julie looked at the scene desperately, noticing Debby standing beside her,
appearing helpless and pathetic with her jaw hanging low. By now it was
becoming evident to Julie that attempts by Lindsey’s friends to drag Rita off
were half-hearted. They were more intent on inflicting injuries to Rita in
vengeance for those she was inflicting on Lindsey.

‘Come on!’
Julie ordered Debby, and without thinking of the consequences she dashed
towards the group of girls and began to pull at Rita, at the same time trying to
coax her away. She took a few blows to her head and shoulders, but luckily
Debby had come to her aid and, because of Debby’s size, she had more luck with
prising Rita from Lindsey.

Julie then
became aware of a number of things simultaneously and it was difficult to take
it all in at once; Rita’s furious expression, the clumps of hair hanging about
Rita’s shoulders, Lindsey’s swollen and bloody face, the fact that Lindsey was
no longer surrounded by her friends and the sound of male voices. Then Julie noticed
the reason that Lindsey’s friends had retreated; a group of men, including the landlord,
were approaching them and looking like they meant business.

‘Come on
now girls, turn it in!’ bellowed the landlord.

Julie
raised her hand towards him and the other men, ‘It’s all right, we’re going,’
she assured them.

‘Well don’t
bother coming back; you’re all barred!’

It took all
of Julie and Debby’s efforts to extricate Rita from the scene and get her outside
the pub. Eventually Rita realised that no matter how much she struggled, there
was no way Julie and Debby were going to let her back inside.

‘Jesus Rita,
you could have got us all a fuckin’ good hiding,’ Julie cursed. ‘It’s lucky the
landlord stepped in to stop them. Let’s get away from here quick before they
decide to bleedin’ follow us and finish the job off.’

‘Julie’s
right,’ said Debby. ‘Jesus Rita, what the fuckin’ hell got into you?’

Rita
refused to calm down, and it took their best efforts to haul her away from the
pub while she continued to shout threats at Lindsey Pilkington. ‘You cheeky bitch!
I’ll have you, don’t you bleedin’ worry!’

It
disturbed Julie to note that Rita had completely lost her composure, and had
just displayed the troubled emotions that must have been eating away at her
ever since their arrest. The only difference between her and Rita was that Rita
had kept her emotions under wraps; until now that is.

‘Jesus!’
Julie exclaimed when they had all calmed down a little. ‘I think I preferred it
when I was at bleedin’ work!’

‘What do we
do now?’ asked Debby.

‘We’re
goin’ to town to have a bleedin’ good time, same as we always do!’ said Rita as
she brushed the clumps of hair away from her shoulders and re-arranged her
clothing.

Rita spoke forcefully
and the other two were not prepared to argue with her, so they went along with
her demands. As far as Julie was concerned, however, she would have been
happier to go home and try to forget that this night had existed.

Their one
consolation when they arrived in the city centre was that very few people knew
about their backgrounds and, despite the fracas in the pub, the physical
evidence was minimal so they felt accepted as part of the throng.

After
having a few drinks in the pubs, they made their way to Saturdays nightclub.
Debby, undeterred by the evening’s events, managed to find herself a companion
in record time while Julie and Rita decided to have a few more drinks to drown
their sorrows. For the rest of the evening they caught occasional glimpses of
Debby, which wasn’t unusual as she made a habit of latching onto someone of the
opposite sex at the earliest opportunity whenever they went out.

Once Julie
and Rita had bought their drinks, they sat down for a chat.

‘I can’t believe
that carry on in the Flying Horse,’ Julie said to Rita. ‘What got into you?’

‘I don’t
know. I suppose I just got sick of people treating us like a piece of shit.
Anyway, don’t worry about it. They’ll soon get over it, especially when we’re proven
innocent. They’ll all be up our arses then!’

‘Will we be
proven innocent though Rita? What if the police never find out who drugged
Amanda?’

‘Something’s
bound to come up. Anyway, even if it doesn’t, they’ve got nothing on us!
Innocent till proven guilty, don’t forget.’

‘It doesn’t
change the way people are towards us though, does it Rita? It’s hell at work at
the moment! Jacqueline had a right go at me in the canteen the other day.’

‘Why, what
did that cow say?’

‘She
accused us all of being murderers, in front of everybody as well.’

‘So what
did you say?’

‘Nothing,
how could I? A canteen full of people were all watching me.’

‘So what?
That’s all the more reason why you should have set the record straight.’

‘You don’t know
what it was like Rita; you don’t work there.’

‘I don’t
care. I’d have told that Jacqueline what I thought of her and no messing! I
knew she was a cow.’

The girls
didn’t speak for a few minutes until Rita interrupted their silence by
announcing, ‘Look who’s just arrived; it’s Vinny.’

‘Oh yeah,’
said Julie.

‘Well don’t
look so overexcited, will you?’

‘What’s the
big deal? I’m seeing him tomorrow night! Anyway, the way things are at the
moment, I’ve got enough on my mind without thinking about men.’

‘Suit
yourself,’ said Rita.

Vinny had
already spotted them and was making his way through the crowds. When Julie
realised that he was within earshot, she discontinued her conversation with
Rita for fear of being overheard. Instead, she turned towards him and smiled.

Before he
had a chance to talk to her, however, Rita rose from her seat and stepped in
his direction. She adopted a seductive stance with hands on hips, breasts
protruding forwards to their best advantage, and head and shoulders cocked back
with her body swaying from side to side.

‘Hi Vinny,’
she greeted. ‘What brings you here tonight? We haven’t seen you for a while.’

Without
waiting for a response she continued. ‘Mind you, need I ask what brings you
here?’ and she nodded her head in Julie’s direction. ‘Well, I just hope she’s up
for it, because if she isn’t I know of a few likely candidates who would be
glad of the chance,’ she said, fluttering her eyelashes.   

Vinny, totally
embarrassed by this blatant proposal, was anxious to make himself scarce so he turned
towards Julie and said, ‘I’ll see you tomorrow,’ then dashed away.

As he made
his way back towards his group of friends, Rita shouted after him, ‘See you
around, big boy,’ and then looked at Julie with a mocking grin on her face.

Julie was
furious and made no attempt to hide her anger as she fumed, ‘Just what the hell
do you think you’re playing at?’

‘Oh just a
bit of fun Julie, that’s all. Keep your hair on!’

‘Fun, is
that what you call it? Playing up to him more like! I’m surprised you didn’t
just ask him to give you one there and then!’

‘Oh give
over Julie; I only wanted to embarrass him for a laugh, that’s all. You do
remember what laughing is, don’t you?’

‘Stop being
so bleedin’ sarcastic, I don’t mind a laugh as you well know but I do mind when
somebody flirts with my boyfriend! Anyway, I’m surprised you can have a laugh
after what’s happened.’

‘Oh lighten
up Julie! What’s happened has happened and you aren’t going to change anything
by walking around with a face like a wet weekend. Anyway, I thought you weren’t
that bothered about Vinny. You seem more interested in that fella from work.’

‘I’m still
going out with Vinny, and just because I’ve been on a date with someone-else,
it doesn’t give you the right to snatch Vinny from under my nose!’ Julie’s
voice began to falter as she continued. ‘I just can’t stop thinking about
Amanda and you’re carrying on as if nothing’s happened. How do you do it Rita?’

‘By taking
my mind off it, that’s how Julie,’ Rita replied. ‘There’s a lot of bad things
happened to me in my life and if I let them get to me I’d have cracked up a
long time ago. You’ve just got to get on with life Julie and try not to let things
get to you.’

‘That’s
easier said than done!’

‘I know, it
takes practice. I haven’t forgotten about Amanda and I never will. But I’m
buggered if I’m going to let it mess up the rest of my life, and neither should
you!’

Julie
managed a faint smile as Rita continued. ‘We haven’t done anything wrong Julie;
we’ve got nothing to feel guilty about! Somebody gave Amanda drugs. It wouldn’t
surprise me if it wasn’t that cow Jacqueline. She’s probably giving you a hard
time so she can cover her own tracks. If I were you I’d give her what for!’

‘You’re not
me though, are you?’

The two
girls gazed at each other in silent acknowledgement of their differences in
character until Rita broke the silence by taking Julie’s hand and saying, ‘Come
on Jules, no hard feelings, eh? Let’s go and have a dance, cheer ourselves up.’