Scarlet Women

When Tamsin emerged fully clothed at the end of the night into the alley at the back of the club, Annie and Tony were there, waiting for her. Tony moved in.

‘What the fuck’s this?’ whined Tamsin, eyes anxious in the semi-dark as they moved between Annie and Tony.

‘I’ll tell you what the fuck this is,’ said Annie. ‘It’s about you telling the truth for once in your shitty little life.’

‘Oh Jesus, I told you…’

‘You told me nothing, and that’s not good enough because I think you know something more.’

‘I told you, I don’t know nothing.’

Annie nodded at Tony, and he moved in closer still. Tamsin shrank back.

‘Hey, there’s no need for this,’ she yelped.

‘Yeah there is,’ said Annie.

‘I don’t know a thing. Not a thing.’

‘That’s a pity,’ sighed Annie. ‘Tone…’ she said, and started to walk off.

All Tamsin could see was blackness as Tony loomed ever closer. He raised his hand.

‘All right, all right! I’ll tell you, okay? Shit, there’s no need to go getting all physical about it.’

Annie walked back, and Tamsin started talking.

She knew nothing about the flame tattoo, nothing at all, but Teresa’s boyfriends? Well, maybe she knew something, but they didn’t hear it from her, was that clear?

Annie said that it was.

‘Teresa always thought she was a cut above,’ said Tamsin breathlessly. She was still watching Tony with a worried look in her eye. He had drawn back, but he was still close enough to do damage. ‘She liked the high rollers, the men with plenty of cash to splash.’ Tamsin tried a shaky all-girls-together grin at Annie. ‘Hey, don’t we all?’

‘Anyone in particular?’ asked Annie coldly. Tamsin bit her lip.

Tony moved forward again, big as a barn door and with a face to frighten the kids.

‘Okay, okay,’ gabbled Tamsin. She swallowed nervously. ‘Hold up. No need to get nasty. She said she was seeing one of the club owners sometimes, but none of us believed it. She was so full of crap.’

‘Who?’

‘She never said who,’ said Tamsin, and Tony came forward. She winced but stood her ground. ‘It’s the truth! I only know because I heard Teresa bragging about it backstage on the phone. She liked to rub people’s noses in it—“Look what I got,” you know the type. It was all bullshit anyway. I’ve never seen any of the owners, they never come here, they run a con…cons…’ She faltered.

‘Consortium?’ supplied Annie.

‘That’s it! Yeah. A consortium.’

‘I need names. Or a name, at least.’

‘I told you…’

Tony moved forward and grasped Tamsin very gently by the throat. She let out a startled cry.

‘Something more,’ said Annie, staring into Tamsin’s widening eyes. ‘Anything. Come on. A name. Give me a name.’

Tamsin did just that, and it was the last one Annie expected.

When Annie got back to the Palermo later that night, she was still thinking about the fruitless evening spent at the Alley Cat club, questioning people who neither knew nor cared whether Teresa Walker had lived or died. Teresa Walker was nothing to them. Teresa Walker might never have existed, for all they cared. But Tamsin’s news, now that had been interesting.

In the lounge, she looked at the mountains of red roses. Looked at the phone. Hesitated. Then picked it up and dialled.

‘Yeah?’ Constantine was yawning.

‘You still working? It’s late,’ she said. She could picture him there, at the big tooled-leather desk, the banker’s light cosily aglow.

‘Oh. It’s you.’

‘Thanks,’ said Annie. ‘For the flowers.’

‘Pleasure. Was there something else? Something you wanted?’ He paused. ‘Or needed, maybe?’

I want you, thought Annie. And then wondered if she was right to want that. Wondered if she really was on the rebound; if this was just a physical thing, nothing more than that. Just sex, not love.

‘I just want to ask you something,’ she said, trying to shake her own brain clear of all this.

‘Ask away.’

She told him.

‘Why would you want to know that?’ he asked. ‘And why can’t you get information like that yourself?’

‘I want to know because when I asked the manager he was evasive. So maybe there was some link between Teresa Walker and one of these businessmen who own the Alley Cat? Maybe not. Whatever, I’d like to know.’

‘Your boys could ask him,’ said Constantine. ‘Simple dark alley job.’

They both knew how persuasive the boys could be, down dark alleys.

‘I’m trying to keep it down. Had two warnings off the police.’

‘Okay. I’ll see what I can do. Oh, Mrs Carter?’

Annie sighed. ‘Annie. Call me Annie, for God’s sake.’

‘Something wrong?’ He’d caught the sharpness in her tone.

Everything.

‘Nothing. Just a long day.’

‘I’m going back to the States at the weekend.’

‘What?’

‘Just over the weekend. Business.’

‘Right.’

She sounded blase, but anxiety was clamping down on her breathing. He’d said something similar last time. I’ll be back soon, wasn’t that what he’d said? And it had been three months. He didn’t even live here, although he owned the Holland Park place and the clubs up West. He lived in New York. His life was there. Not here. Not with her. This whole thing was doomed, why couldn’t she just face that?

‘Remember. If you need me, I’ll be right there. All you have to do is say it.’

She wanted to say it. Knew she mustn’t.

‘Goodnight, Constantine,’ she said, and put the phone down.

She went to bed, and slept. Then she awoke with a start, her heart pounding madly in her chest because there was someone hammering at the main door. She groped for the light, switched it on and looked at the clock. It was three-fifteen in the morning.

Groaning, she slipped on her red robe and got out of bed. She went out of the flat and down the stairs to the main doors, which were securely bolted.

‘Who is it?’ she asked.

‘Me, Boss. Barney.’

Barney was the man who was currently keeping an eye on the club from outside, doing nights because the word was he couldn’t stick the sight of his rampant, plug-ugly old lady and he jumped at any chance to escape the marital bed.

‘What’s up?’ She threw back the bolts and opened the door, flicking on the outside light. The door stuck a bit, felt—weirdly—heavier than normal.

Barney stood there, a thin balding bundle of aggression, his face tinted yellow by the light. He was blinking