The Club (47 page)

‘So, have you any idea who did it?’

‘Oh, yeah, and our guys are already onto it,’ Martinez told her, puffing his chest out proudly. These English cops were so disorganised, they hadn’t even thought to check the hotel register after they found the bodies. If they had, they’d have found out about the two American-Italians who had booked in earlier that day, then disappeared without so much as touching their minibars or beds. And they might then have followed it up, as Martinez and Knight had, and learned that the men had caught an early-morning flight back to New York.

‘Right, well, we’d best get moving,’ Knight said now. There was nothing worth sticking around for, and Bill looked to be getting a little too friendly with the lady boss. ‘Nice meeting you folks. Sorry to put you out with this.’

‘It’s no problem,’ Jenna assured him, standing up to show them out. ‘I’m just sorry we couldn’t be more help.’

Walking them down to the front door, Jenna shook Knight’s and Martinez’s hands and wished them a safe journey home. Thanking DI Seddon then, she said, ‘You will let us know if you find Melody’s family, won’t you? I’d hate to think of her being buried with no one to pay their respects.’

‘I’ll keep in touch,’ Seddon promised. Lowering his voice then so that Knight and Martinez wouldn’t hear, he said, ‘Think yourself lucky you weren’t involved with Cerrullo, ’cos I’ve got a feeling these guys would have been all over your club and your accounts.’

‘Well, there’s nothing here for them,’ Jenna told him, folding her arms. ‘And there never will be, because I’ve got no intention of ever letting anyone worm their way into my club.’

‘Good for you,’ Seddon said approvingly.

‘Do you think they were convinced?’ Avril asked when the detectives had left and Jenna had come back.

‘I think so,’ Vibes said, reaching for Jenna’s hand. ‘You did good, Princess.’

Gazing into his beautiful eyes, she smiled. ‘Thanks.’

Winking at her, Vibes turned back to Leonard and Avril. ‘Bet you’re glad it’s all over.’

‘Oh, yes,’ Leonard said, sighing softly. ‘It’s been quite an ordeal, I must admit. I was, um, thinking,’ he said then. ‘Maybe we should think about having the ownership reverted back to Jenna, now that Tony is no longer around.’

‘I don’t think so,’ Avril chipped in firmly. ‘With respect, Jenna, my husband’s name is on the contract as a legitimate partner.’

‘Yes, and I’m quite happy for it to stay that way,’ Jenna assured her. Turning to Leonard then, she smiled. ‘I’ve thought it through, and it seems a waste to let everything slip now. So, if you’re willing, I’d be quite happy for you to pick up where Tony left off and continue running your private members’ club.’

‘Really?’ Leonard gasped, hardly able to believe his good fortune. ‘Well, of course, I’d be delighted. Oh, but there are a few changes I’d wish to make,’ he said then, casting a quick glance at Avril. ‘I wasn’t too happy with the waitresses, you see.’

Chuckling softly, Jenna said, ‘I’m not really surprised. I never thought they’d suit your more
upmarket
clientele, but Tony wanted them, so what could I do? Just send them back in here. I’ll put them back on their regular posts.’

‘I’m not sure you’d want to do that if you knew what they’d been doing in there,’ Leonard told her quietly. ‘I’m afraid they weren’t very . . .
nice
.’

‘Oh?’ Vibes peered at him with a smile in his eyes. ‘How so?’

‘They were lap-dancing and prostituting,’ Avril told him bluntly. ‘If I’d known, I would have put a stop to it there and then. But Leonard isn’t the most forceful of characters, as you’ve probably surmised, and he went along with Tony Allen’s orders not to tell me. Didn’t you, dear?’ She gave Leonard a spiky smile.

‘I’m afraid so,’ he muttered, folding his arms.

‘Well, I can’t keep them on if they were doing that,’ Jenna said. ‘I’ll let them go when they come in tonight. Better still, I’ll find their numbers and call them, so I don’t even have to look at them.’ Sighing, she shook her head. ‘Never mind. There’s plenty more will be glad of the work. But in the meantime, you’ll have to choose some of the others, I suppose.’

‘Oh, right,’ Leonard said, licking his lips nervously. ‘Well, um, if you’re in agreement, I wouldn’t mind taking that polite girl from the VIP bar.’

‘Not Kalli,’ Jenna said quickly. ‘Sorry, but I can’t lose her. In fact, I’m planning to promote her to bar manager. She’s been practically running the place anyway, and now that Maurice has decided to retire I think she’s the perfect replacement.’

‘No, no, not her,’ Leonard said. ‘The other one – the quiet one. Diane. That’s it.’

‘Oh, right, well, fine.’ Jenna shrugged. ‘I’m sure she’d be an asset. Anyone else in mind?’

‘Um, yes, maybe the boy who works with her – Austin, I think his name is.’

‘I don’t think so,’ Avril snorted.

‘He’s very good,’ Jenna told her. ‘And he and Diane do work well together.’

‘No, dear, I don’t think he’s at all suitable,’ Avril said firmly. ‘Leonard will take another of the young ladies, won’t you, Leonard?’

‘Yes, of course,’ he murmured, looking down at his hands. She obviously knew. And if she knew, it was over.

Tapping on the door just then, Kalli popped her head in. ‘Anybody want anything? Only I’m about to go.’

‘Wait a minute,’ Vibes said, smiling up at her. ‘We’ll walk you out.’ Standing up, still holding Jenna’s hand, he said, ‘If everybody’s ready?’

‘Yes, absolutely,’ Leonard said, jumping lightly to his feet, already over Austin because the future looked quite bright without him. ‘We shall see you tonight, then.’ Turning to Jenna, he bowed. ‘
Partner
.’

Smiling, Jenna looped her arm through Vibes’s and held on tight as they all walked out together. Now that she’d got him back, she was never letting go again.

EPILOGUE

Avril was roused by the sound of rustling in the corridor outside her bedroom door. Opening her eyes, she glanced at the clock. It was only just past two, and The Diamond didn’t close until three, so what on earth was Leonard doing home already? And why was he at her door? He surely didn’t think that she was going to welcome him into her bed? Oh, no, no, no! It hadn’t even been a month yet. He had
far
more grovelling to do before she forgave him his latest indiscretion.

Sitting up when the door handle turned, she was about to call out to him to bloody well forget it when she heard a voice that she recognised all too well.

‘It’s locked. She’s gotta be in there.’

She inhaled sharply. No, it couldn’t be. They were dead.

Getting out of bed, she tiptoed to the balcony door.

The wind was high tonight, and a forceful gust tore the door from her hand when she eased it open. Licking at the curtains, it knocked a jar of cream over on the dressing table, sending it rolling noisily into her perfumes and deodorants.

‘Kick it in!’ the voice in the corridor hissed.

Bursting in seconds later, Tony saw the hastily vacated bed and the open door and turned back to the stairs. ‘She’s climbed out. You go look if you can see her, I’ll go after her.’

Walking quickly to the balcony, Eddie stepped out and peered over the rail into the dark gardens below.

Holding her breath, petrified that he would hear her, Avril crept out of her walk-in closet with the heavy steel poker held firmly between her hands. Raising it above her head, she came up behind Eddie and slammed it down as hard as she could on the back of his neck.

Letting out a tiny gasp of fear when his knees buckled, Avril hit him again and again on the top of his head, not even aware of the sounds of splintering bone and squelching tissue, just conscious that she needed to make sure he was properly unconscious so that he couldn’t retaliate.

‘You seen her?’ Tony’s voice hissed up a moment later. ‘Ed?’

Ducking so that she was almost sitting on Eddie’s battered head now, Avril squinted out through the ornate balcony rails. She couldn’t see Tony, but she could hear him mooching about in the pitch-dark gardens below. The security lights should have come on by now, but they had obviously disabled them along with the alarms.

Letting out another tiny gasp when Eddie made a sighing sound, she reached down to steady herself, and almost fell over when her hand landed on the gun he was still holding.

Bringing her hands up to her mouth in shock, Avril recoiled when she felt and tasted the blood on her lips.

‘Yo!’ Tony hissed. ‘What you doing up there, man? I can’t see her. I’m coming in.’

Heart hammering in her chest, Avril wrenched the gun out of Eddie’s hand and stumbled back into the bedroom. Running back to the closet, she crouched on the floor inside the slightly open door so that she could see Tony when he came in. She felt sick, and every nerve in her body seemed to be sparking, every muscle taut with terror.

Running into the doorway a minute later, Tony made his way to the balcony door in search of Eddie. Pointing the gun at his back through the crack, trying desperately to still her wildly shaking hands, Avril closed her eyes and squeezed the trigger.

There was a slight popping sound, followed by a grunt and the sound of something falling heavily to the floor.

Hardly breathing now, Avril opened her eyes and looked out.

Tony was lying in a heap a few feet away. Standing up, Avril ventured out warily. Screaming when he moved, she shot him again, not even sure if anything had happened because she couldn’t hear anything at all this time – she just saw the flash of light that illuminated Tony’s darker than dark eyes.

Turning, she ran for her life.

About the author

Mandasue Heller was born in Cheshire and moved to Manchester in 1982. There, she has found the inspiration for her novels: she spent ten years living in the infamous Hulme Crescents and has sung in cabaret and rock groups, seventies soul cover bands and blues jam bands. She still lives in Manchester with her musician partner, three children and a tarty squirrel-tailed cat.